An_Opening_Repertoire_for_White_-_Keene.pdf

To Dominic and Jane

An Opening Repertoire for White

RAYMOND KEENE International Grandmaster

B .T.Batsford Ltd, London

Symbols and Abbreviations + ++

!! '! ?'! !? ?! 1-0 0-1

�-� =

;!; + ±

+

±±

H

0-0 0-0-0

IM GM IQP

check double check good move outstanding move weak mov� blunder interesting move risky/dubious move White win Black win drawn game the position is equal or balanced White/Black has a slight advantage White/Black has a clear advantage White/Black has a winning advantage castles (kingside) castles (queenside) International M aster Grandmaster isolated queen's pawn

Prologue This book is an arsenal providi ng essential ammunition in hand for all White players who wish to open with I d4. The outst feature is its intention of reducing the areas of conflict to tho which t he·reader is familiar and, t herefore, competent and confi handle. It would be wrong to claim that the variations exam ined confer advantage on White, but the systems presented here all confor basic solid but aggressive style. It is my belief that a reader who is in tune with the patterns displayed in this book will feel happy v lines I have recommended and will, therefore, score more poin An Opening Repertoire for White (OR W)

is the companion vol Keene ar which performs a similar function for openings commencing wi1

An Upt•ning Repertoirefor the Allackmg Playu(URAP) by

Raymond Keene

Note on Algebraic Notation The notation used in this book is algebraic, the only type approved by FIDE, the World Chess Federation and the governing body of international chess. If you can understand a London A-Z guide or a Manhattan street map you will have absolutely no problems in comprehending algebraic notation, which is more economical and less prone to ambiguity than the alternative and outmoded descriptive variety. A brief examination of the following diagram will im mediately clear up any possible confusion concerning the application of algebraic notation.

8 7 6 5 4 3 2 I a

b

c

d

e

f

g

h

Introduction The aim of this book is to provide a complete repertoire for the White player, based on the move I d4. I n analysing the material I have chosen to develop from I d4, I have maintained several crucial principles: one main line is demonstrated for White against all of the major Black defences which the White player is likely to meet in competition; the mai n lines selected are sound but a ggressive and do not rely on memorisation of long tactical variations a nd su b-variations. In several cases, they embody newly elaborated, relatively unexplored ideas which allow plenty of scope for individ ual creative contribution on the part of the reader. Furthermore, I have based each suggested line on annotated illustrative games, so that the strategies outlined and attacking methods proposed can be fully a bsorbed, right up until the endgame phase.

Advantages of a Repertoire There is no need to feel concern at limiting oneself to an opening repertoire. All chess players have restricted time and resources at their disposal, and this is particularly true of social, club, league or weekend competitors. In view of such constraints it makes excellent sense to work out a tangible, fixed group of opening variations in which to carry out a specialised study. O nce the reader feels thoroughly at home with this, it will provide a firm platform for branching out and acquiring new knowledge and expertise in other, broader areas of chess science. It should not be forgotten that even such great players as Fischer and Karpov have had their own selective repertoire, centred largely on I e4, while Vi ktor Korchnoi and Gary Kasparov strongly favour openings arising from I d4. A cu rious fact, in this context, is that of the twenty games played in the World Cha mpionship semi-final at London 1 983, in the matches between S myslov and Ribli and between Korchnoi and Kasparov, no less than nineteen commenced I d4! I d4 is a sound, solid move, aiming for central control and a restrained but ultimately convincing attacking build-up. It does not lend iiself to premature adventures and in general, by opening with it, you can avoid colliding with too many devastating surp rises from your opponents.

xii

inlroduction

Link with 'BCO'

OR W (An Opening Repertoire for White) is designed to give the reader confidence and ideas for t he practical st ruggle. As I have already stated, this is essentially a book of strategies, not an exhaustive reference work . I have, therefore, taken the step of linking each variation analysed with the related section in Botsford Chess Openings (BCO). This o ne-volu me openings encyclopaedia, written by Gary Kasparov and myself, provides a vast amount of detailed background information. It is a useful companion to OR W, and one that will form a handy compact compendium, both for expanding the repertoire beyond the confi nes of the lines l have exami ned here and for last-minute rev ision before and du ring tournaments or impo rtant games. Good luck with improving your chess and your scores!

Raymond Keene London, June 1 984

Part I Queen's G ambit: 1 d4 d5 2 c4

8

Chapter 1: Chigorin 's Defence 2 ... lbc6 Chapter 2: Albin Counter-Gam bit 2 ... e5 Chapter 3: Queen's Gambit Accepted 2 ... de Chapter 4: Tarrasch Defence 2 ... e6 3 lbc3 c5 Chapter 5: Orthodox 2 ... e6 3 lbc3 lbf6 Chapter 6: Slav 2 ... c6

\�� ��h j Je-t.��J -·

,

1

Chigorin 's D e fence 1 d4 d5 2 c4 tbc6!?

��wr���u

2 w

concessions in the line 3 lt:lf3 .ig4 4 cd .ixf3 5 gf, such as surrender of the centre, exposure of the black queen and Joss of the bishop pair. In return for all t his, Black's counterchances against White's slightly fragile king position seem somewhat nebulous: Furthermore, in the line 3 lt:lc3 Black has o survive an immediate onsl:�g which has claimed a number of victims, including the author! M y standard method in this book will be to give just one line against each Black alternative, but against the Chigorin I mention two White possibilities (here and by transposition in Chapter 1 8), since both are good but will appeal to different styles of player. In contemporary tournament practice S myslov and Miles have occasionally upheld the honour of the Chigorin, but no modern grandmaster is prepared to make a living out of it - it remains, essentially, a surprise weapon. It is analysed in BCO on pages 54 and 55.

�

�

This remarkable concept was introduced in t he late 1 9th century by the great Russian player Mikhail Chigorin, who used it to defeat such supermen as Lasker and Pillsbury. This was at a time when Dr Tarrasch was claiming that his defence, 2 . e6 3 lt:lc3 c5, was the only correct antidote to the Queen's Gambit, and even the Slav, 2 c6, was considered highly unusual. In spite of Chigorin's personal success, his defence did not capture the public's i magination, poss ibly because Black is committed to rather too many positional . .

. . .

., Keene-Cox Lloyds Bank Masters' 1 983 1 d4 dS 2 c4 ltJc6

The Chigorin. Very rare alter­ natives at international level are: a) 2 cS 3 cd ltJ f6 4 e4 ! ltJxe4 5 de ltJxc5 6 ltJc3 e6 7 b4 'tlff6 8 'tlfc2 ltJca6 9 a3 ed 10 ltJxd5 'tlfe5+ I I ltJe3 .ie6 1 2 ..ib2 'tlfc7 1 3 .i b5 + ltJc6 1 4 ltJ f3 ±. Analysis b y Bondarevsky, quoted i n BCO. b) 2 g6?!.An incredible move, tried in Stahlberg-Alekhine, Kemeri 1 937. After 3 cd 'tlfxd5 4 ltJc3 Black has a very suspect G rtinfeld, while after 3 cd ltJf6 4 1ra4+ leaves Black with problems in retrieving his pawn. c) 2 ltJf6. The Marshall or American Defence: 3 cd ltJ xd5 4 ltJO, White's best method, is given in the notes to Alekhine-Marshall in Part V of this book. d) 2 ..ifS 3 cd ..ixb I (3 '@xd5 4 li:lc3 is natu rally excellent for White) 4 'ifa4t c6 5 l h b l 1Wxd5 6 ltJf3 lLJf6 7 e3 t; in a semi-open position Black has no tangible compensation for W hite's bishop pai r.

Chigorin's Defence

15

J 8

...

3

de

Black can also try: a) 3 ltJf6 4 lt:lO ..ig4 (4 de transposes to the main game; 4 e6 5 ..ig5 .ib4 6 e 3 o r 5 ..ig5 ..ie7 6 e3 are both passive for Black; 4 ..if5 5 cd lL!xd5 6 'tll b 3 e6 7 e4 lL!xc3 !l ef favours White. This is also mentio ned in the notes to Alekhine-Marshall, Part V) 5 cd lL!xd5 6 e4 ltJxc3 (6 ltJb6 7 d5 ltJe5 8 lL!xe5 ..ixd l 9 .ib5+ is a sta ndard winning sacrifice) 7 be e5 8 d5 lObS (8 . . . .ixtJ 9 1rxf3 lLJb!l 10 ll b l ± Keene-Rahman, Com­ monwealth Championship, Hong Kong 1984) 9 •a4+ lLJd7 10 ltJxe5 •r6 I I f4 ..id6 12 .ib5 ..txe5 13 fe .\ Wxc5 1 4 0-0 ± (M inev). White's bishops loo k good. b) 3 eS 4 cd lL!xd4 (4 ed 5 de de 3 lL!c3! 6 'W'xd 8+ $>xd 8 7 cb ±) 5 eJ lLJf5 For 3 ltJf3, see the section on 6 ltlf3 .id6 7 .ib5+ ..id7 8 'tlfb3 ± I d4 lt!c6 in Cha pter 1 8 and the (G heorghiu). game Kasparov-Smyslov given on lLJf6f 4 lL!f3! page 1 7. ...

...

000

0 0 0

o o •

...

...

000

000

oo•

0 0 0

16

Chigortn's Defence

4 .A.e4 looks natural but 5 dS! .A.xn 6 ef �e5 7 .A.f4 �g6 8 .A.xc4 !1 �xf4 9 .A.b5 + c6 10 de is devastating; or 7 . . . �d7 8 .A.xc4 a6 9 0-0 �gf6 10 lie I ± Donner­ Keene, London 1971, the game which taught me all about 3li:lc3!. 4 ... e6 5 e4 .A.b4 6 .A.xc4 li:lf6 7 Wd3 is very passive for Black, although Chigorin played it. 4 ... a6!? 5 d5 10b8 6 e4 e6 7 .A.xc4 ed 8 i.xd5 U ± (Watson). S e3 This is not the only move. Excellent alternatives are: S .A.gS h6 6 .A.xf6 ef 7 e3 .A.e7 8 .txc4 0-0 9 a3 li:la5 10 .ta2 b6 I I •c2 li:lb7 12 lld l c6 13 0-0 10d6 ;! Tisdall-Cox, Gausdal 1983. S e4 .tg4 6 ..te3 .txn (6 . .. e6 7 .txc4 .tb4 S 1Wc2 1We7 9 lld I or 9 .ib5 , both� Watson) 7 gf 68ch liJe7 9 h4 li:lh5 10 1Wa4+ Wd7 11 •xc4 li:lg6 12 .i.h3 ± ( Watson). i. e4 s 5 ... 10a5 ?! 6 Wa4+ c6 7 .A.d2!? with either b4 or �e5 to come is an interesting gambit which looks good for White. .•.

·

6

.txc4

e6

h3 i.bS 8 .i.bS Otherwise Black plays ... a6 to obtain a normal Queen's Gambit Accepted. 1

See Diagram 4

4

B

8

..td6

I f 8 . . . .tb4 9 g4 i.g6 10 �e5 1M5 11 ..txc6 + be 12 0-0 ±. 9 e4 .A.b4 1 0 1Wa4 10 g4 .i.g6 11 �e5 is no longer desirable now that White has occupied the '!:entre with 9 e4, since the e4 pawn would hang .

10

i.xO?

1 had expected 10 ... 0-0 and had calculated this variation: 11 .txc6 ..txc3+ 12 be be 13 i.g5 h6 14 .th4 g5 15 li:lxg5 hg 16 .txg5 e5 17 Wxc6 with advantage to White. If 16 . . c5 17 Wa5 ! (17 e5 ?1Wd7 �) 17 ... cd 18 .txf6 1Wxf6 19 Wxh5 and now 19 . . . de or 19 ... d3 200-0 should favour White because of Black's shattered king position, though the passed black d- or c-pawn makes it difficult. Anyway, the text is a tactical error. 11 J.xc6+ be 1l Wxc6+ �e7 13 Wxd4 gf .

Chigorin's Defence 17 14 15 16

1fxc7+ .tg5+ ll d1 1 (5)

/t)d7 f6

24 25 26

llb5

'iVe2 llbg5! 1-0

ltle3+ llcd7

26 . . . lld2+ 27 �e l ltlc2+ 28 �fl and Black is helpless.

j B

Kasparov-Smyslov Candidates ( 1 1 ), Vilnius 1 984 1 d4 d5 2 ltJO ltlc6 3 c4 .i.g4 4 cd .txO 5 gf 11fxd5 6 e3 e5 7 �c3 .i.b4 8 .i.d2 .txc3 9 be "Wd6 Unusual.

16 llbc8 Agreeing to the loss of two pawns, but if 16 . . . .txc3+ 17 be llhc8 18 1llg3 1fxc3+ 19 .td2 and 20 11fxg7+. If 18 . . . 11fc5 19 .i.e3! or 18 . .. Wa4 19 11fd6+ wins. 17 18 19 20

lilxd4 ..ixf6+

lhc7 q;,xr6

q;.e2

q;,g5

ll "M

lP . which has never bee � reYu�ml't unlike the Benko Gambit, which has fi rmly established itself as a respectable black defence in inter­ national tournament play, the Albin has never really caught on at the highest levels. Part of the explanation for this m ust be that it does not offer Black permanent structural compensation for his invested pawn. I nstead, Black acquires a lead in development (which may eventually be neut­ ralised) and various tactical chances, often directed against White's king. If White survives Black's early burst of activity. and there is no compelling reason to believe that he should not, he can look

·forward to a middlega me with extra material and/ or distinct counterchances of his own against the black king. The line I recom mend from the d1agra m 1s: 4 zt:\fj llSc6 5 g3 (rather than 5 a 3 or 5 ll:lbd2), ulso avoiding the obscurities of Spassky's 4 e4 ll:lc6 5 f4. Since Black usually has to castle queenside in the Albin, the development of the white king's bishop to g2 can be a useful asset for t he future. Even if Black succeeds in recouping the sacrificed pawn at eS. the opening up of the h l -a8 diagonal for White's king's bishop combined w1th a while queen sortie (either to -a4 or 63) and an advunce of White's queenside pawns, can prove a senous threat to the black kmg on c8 or 68. The most exalted victim of the Albin in recent years was U S grandmaster a nd many times US Champion, Walter Browne. He lost, as W hite, to Mestel in the 1982 Interzonal at Las Palmas, but the final result says lit tle about the outcome of the opening phase, which was in White's favour.

·

Albin Counter- Gambit /9

The Albin is covered i n BCO, pages 54 and 55.

Korchnol-Velnger Beersheva 1978 1 d4 d5 2 c4 e5 3 de d4

3 ... de 4 'ttx d8+ �xd8 5 lt::lc 3 (Pillsbury) leads to an uncom­ fortable queenless middlegame for B lack; White will continue with .tg5+ and 0-0-0+, harrassing Black's king. 4 ltJ f3 lt::lc6

5

g3

Volfson , USSR 1 969. The simple 9 h4 merits attention. b) 5 ... .if5!? 6 a3 1t'd7 7 8 0-0 j0h3 9 b4 h5 1 0 b_ ltdcs? w h en Black has compensatjon fgr the pawn in a complicated position, typical of the Albin. This line occurred m Chigorin-Aibin, Nurem­ berg 1 896.

.if0-0-0

Curiously, of these, 5 ... .tf5 offer the best chatH.:cs

may

partly because It ts

coos•derabl�

less explored than t he other m oves and the most effect i ve white line has not yet be en clanfied.

6

(7)

7 8

lg2 0-0

tt'IJ]! (8)

'ttd7 0-0-0

8 B

5

.tg4

From the diagram Black's sensible alternatives to 5 ... .tg4: (a) 5 ... .te6 6 lt::l b d2! 'ttd7 7 .tg2 0-0-0 (7 . . . liJge7 8 0-0 lt::l g6 9 �g5 liJgxe5 10 10 xe6 11fxe6 I I lbf3 and White has the two bishops and attacki ng chances, Hort­ Gasic, Sarajevo 1 972) 8 0-0 h5!? 9 b4 .txb4 10 :b l h4 1 1 11fa4 with complicated play, Vladimirov-

An excellent move, striking directly at Black's most sensitive poi n t, the b7 square. From the diagram: a) 8 . .th3. This natural-looking move stumbles i nto an ambush 9 e6! .t xe6 1 0 10e5 1t'd6 I I 10xc6 be 1 2 11fa4 1fc5 1 3 �a3 'ttb6 1 4 .txc6 .t xa3 1 5 b a ± Spassky­ Forin tos, Sochi 1 964. ..

20 Albin Counter- Gambit

b) 8 ... h5 9 l:ldl b6 10 �f4 h4 I I lt::lc 3! �xfJ 12 �xfJ g5 1 3 1rb5! ±. c) 8 ... �c5 9 lt::l bd2 �h3? 1 0 e6! �xe6 and II lt::le 5 again c� nfers great advantage on White. d) 8 ... lt::la5 9 1Wd3 �f5 10 e4 de I I thc3 ±.

e) 8 ... •rs 9 l:ld 1 lt::l ge7 - this may be Black's best chance but it looks artificial. 8

lt::lge 7

l:ld1 �xf3 If, in nocently, 9 . . . li:lgo'? 1 0 lt::l x d4 �xe2 ( 1 0 . . . lt:lxd4?'! I I 1rxb7 mate) I I l:ld2 ±± . It is quite obvious, though, that this exchange of bishop for kn ight is an unwelcome one for Black, whose sensitivity along the h 1-aH diagonal is now accen tu;1tcd .

9

10

12

lt:Jxf4

Renouncing any thought of regaining the 'Albin pawn', Veinger strives for counterplay by frac­ turing the pawns around White's king. 13 gf g6 14 1rf3 f6 More violence, but if Black proceeds quietly with 14 . . . �c5, then 1 5 �c3! is crushing, exploiting the d-file pin against Black's queen, to prepare lt:le4 . t!t'fS 15 ef 16 17

18

lt:ld2

ltJe4

b4! ( 10)

1Wxf6

1rf5

thO!

Commencing a manoeuvre which holds his extra pawn. 10

1rh5 Threa tening �h3.

lt::lg 6

II

II

12 \1 H

i.f4 (9)

�b8

A move thoroughly conforming to the whole pattern of White's attack - namely, a bn:a kthrough at b7. If now 1 8 . . . lt:lxb4 1 9 lt:ld6 ±± or I H . . . �xb4 19 l:lab I and Black is clearly finished. The blac k bishop on b4 can be n u dged away with a3, when there would follow moves like l:lb5 and i.Llg3, intensifying the

Albin Counter-Gambit

)

pressure against b 7, on the b-file and from the white queen a nd bishop to in tolerable levels. 18

19

Uxd3

19 20 21 22

l:i:bl 'flrxd3

��

11

B

d3

This way, at least, Black removes one pa ir of rooks from the board .

l":;

�xb4 lihd3 �e7 Wxf4

He m1ght as wel l. There is. in any l:ase. no good defence to Wh ite's 11-lile at tack . l f 22 . . . i.xc5 23 'ikl �J-1 �-I W xc6 ±±-. 23 �.l.\b7+! ( 11) The logil:;tl culmination of White's stra tegv - a sacrifil·ial bomb-blast on his theme s4uare. b7.

23 24 2S

Wb5+

.th3+

1 -0

ct>xb7 c8

If

25 ... �dM 26 'thc6

±t.

An imposing and highly instruc­ tive miniature which I had the privilege of watching since I participated with Korchnoi in the 197M Beersheva tourna men t . For the record, Browne-Mestel, mentioncJ in my introduction, went, from diagram 7: 5 . . . i.g4 6 ltJ bd2 tt'd7 7 i.g 2 0-0-0 8 0-0 h5 9 h4 ltJge7 10 tt'a4 ltJg6 I I ltJb3 �b8 1 2 ltJa5 ltJ xa5 13 tt' xa5, which should have favoured White.

3

Queen's Gambit Accepted 1 d4 d5 2 c4 de 3 ltJc3 ha rassed by their advance. The variation I have decided to recommend to combat the QGA is an antiquated one that is only just beginning to find favour amongst modern grandmasters, but it has already been enthusiastically adopted by no less than Korchnoi, Vaganian and the US Champion, Walter Browne. The point is, that after 3 �c3 Bla c k's most trusted

I! B

In principl e , acceptance of the reply, 3 . . . e5, leads to an Isolated Queen's Gambit should cede queen pawn (IQP) sit uation, White precisely what he desires where Black has no obvio��!l after I d4, namely a majority of brea ks, while White's very free pawns in the centre , plus speedy development confers a long-last i n� mobilisation. The Iauer deri ves initiative on him. After 3 lDc3 fro m White's ability to recapture Black cannot implement the pin the pawn on �:4 in one move line which can arise after 3 lDc3 ( i.xc4) placing the white king's bishop on an aggressive diagonal, · lLlf6 4 e3 }g4, while attemi!:5 IO without wasting an initial tempo e nter the standard""lilia n flne­ (3 lDf3 lDf6 4 e3 e6 5 i.xc4 c5) are on .id3. In practice, the clearance otreaily-oJ)erati ve:- i·l1bla grain n of pawns in the m iddle of 12, 3 . . . e6 can be met by 4 e4 in one the board often leads to early go, while 3 lDc3 lDf6 can lead to simplific ation and total equality. u ncharted and dyna mic positions On occasions, Blac k's fluid queen­ f Ol . Alternatively, White 4 g5 a ter side pawns (especially if he can accept a modest e ndgame plus achieves the configuration: pawns with 3 ... ltJf6 4 e4 e5 5 lbf3! on a6, b5 and c5) may also be very The QGA as a whole is treated annoying to Wh ite, whose queen's in BCO, pages 56-59. knight and king's bishop can be ·

Queen's Gambit Accepted 23

La Bourdonnals-McDonnell Match, London 1834 1 d4 d5 de 2 c4 e5 (13) 3 �c3! 13 B

�c6 1 0 lt::J xc6 .i.xc6 1 1 J.f4 0-0 1 2 0-0-0 also± ( 1 2 ..txc7 ? :U.ac8! is too dangerous for White, of course). This is Keres-Khalilbeili, U S S R 1 960. c) 31 .. c6 4 e4! a nd now: c l ) 4 .... e5 5 liJb ed 6 Wxd4! tlfxd4 7 lL!Xd4 �f6 8 f3 J.c5 (8 . . . b5 is too weakening: 9 a4! b4 10 liJdl ..ta6 I I J.f4 J.c5 1 2 lll f5 0-0 1 3 :U.c l l:let! 1 4 J.e3 lll bd7 1 5 J.xc4 ±) 9 J.e3 lL!bd7 10 J.xc4 0-0 I I q;.r2 lll b6 1 2 J.b3 ;t m uch as in (b) above, Portisch-Saidy, San Antonio 1 972. ( I n the above, Alek hine's sacrifice 6 J.xc4?! is dubious). c2) 4 . . bS 5 a4 b4 (5 ... tlfa5 6 J.d2 b4 r �a2 e6 8 ..txc4 regains White's pawn and leaves him with the superior pawn structure) 6 liJa2 liJ f6 (6 . . . e5 7 .ixc4 tlf xd4 8 'lrb3 tlfxe4+ 9 �e2 is a highly promising ga mbit for White) 7 e5 llld 5 8 .ixc4 e6 9 1ll g4 ..ta6 1 0 .txa6 lll xa6 I I lt:\13 with fine chances for a kingside a ttack, Kotov-Enevoldsen, Jonkoping 1 958. d) ... c 4 d5 e6 4 . . . lll f6 5 e4 b5?! 6 e b4 7 ef be 8 be lDd7 9 tlf a4 ef 1 0 .tf4 Wb6 I I ..txc4 ;!;) 5 e4 ed (5 ... �f6 6 liJO ed 7 e5 liJfd7 8 ..tg5 J.e7 9 ..txe7 Wxe7 1 0 liJxd5 ;t; o r 7 . . . d4? 8 ..txc4! liJc6 9 ef de 10 tlfe2+ *d7 1 1 J.f4 11ra5 1 2 lld l + lDd4 1 3 ..tb5+. l -0 U hl mann-Wade, Hastings 19589) 6 liJ xd5 lt::J f6 7 ..txc4 lt::J xd 5 (7 . . . J.e6 8 Wb 3 ! - Petrosian) 8 ..txd5 .

.

The main alternatives are: a) 3 . a6 4 e3 (4 e4 b5 5 �f3 is an untested gambit, worth a try if you are in frivolous mood) 4 . . . b5 5 a4! and Black can not cling to his pawn, viz 5 ... b4 6 111 0 ! c6 7 .bc4 be t! ..txf7+ 'it'd? 9 be with a strong attack , plus two pawns, for the piece. White will proceed with moves such as J:lb l , e4 and ..tf4. I should also point out the witty forced dra w at White's disposal: 9 tiffS+ �c7 1 0 -.aS+ �d7 I I tiffS+ or even I I J.e6+ 'it>eB 1 2 ..tf7+ *d7 1 3 J.e6+ etc. b) 3 . li'Jf6 4 e4 (4 ..i.g5 is untried) 4 . . . c5 5 lined 6 \W xd4 tlf xd4 7 �xd4 J.b4 I! t1 a6 9 J.xc4 0-0 1 0 i.:f4 b5 I I ..i.e2 .i.c5 1 2 0-0-0 and_ White enjoys greater freedom of movement: or 8 . . . .i.d7 9 l xc4 ..

..

24 Queen's Gambit Accepted

.td6 (8 . . . ll:ld7) 9 ..h 5 ! g6 10 'it'h6 .tf8, Petrosian-Radulov, Plovdiv (Euro-Teams) 1 983. Now best is I I 1ff4! forcing the horrid I I . . . f6 ( ±). After I I ..f4 1fc7 White wins out right with 12 .txt7+ 1fxt7 1 3 1fe5+ 1fe7 14 1fxh&- 'tt x c4+ 15 ll:le2. Black has better in 9 . . . ..f6 ! when 1 0 ll:lf3 1fg6 I I 1fxg6 hg 1 2 ll:lg5 0-0 1 3 f4 .te7 slows White's initiative. 4 e3 ed

5 6

ed

.txc4 ( 14)

ll:lf6

14 8

defending b4 and n with tempo) 7 . . . 0-0 8 0-0 .tg4 9 a3 .txc3 10 be c5 I I h3 .txf3 1 2 ..xf3 cd (stronger is 1 2 . . . ll:lc6 1 3 de ll:le5 with compensat ion for the pawn) 13 1fxb7lt.Jbd7 1 4 cd lt:lb6 1 5 .ta2 't!fxd4 16 .te3 ± Korchnoi­ Matulovic, Europa Club Cup, Belgrade 1984. White won by exchanging all of t he major pieces and advancing his king towards Black's a-pawn in the two bishop v two knight ending.

6

·

...

.tc7

lt)IJ

0-0

6 . . . .td6 !? 7 ll:lf3 tle7 8 .ie3 lbg4 9 it:Jd5 ll:lxe3 10 fe gives Wh ite f-file prospects. 7

{15)

/.1 II'

An ancient variation, wh ich has recently become the height of fashion! It was believed for decades that White halrm" play 3 ll:l f3 in the Queen's Gam bit Accepted to forestall . . . e5, but this is no longer held to be true. Given the disappearance of Black's e-pawn, the white king's b1shop on c4 can become a powerful, unobstructed force. I f now 6 . . . .tb4 7 lt:J O (7 .txf7+? �xf7 8 1rb3+ it:Jd5 H; or 7 1rb3 1fe7+

7 . . . ll:Jbd7 8 .txf7+ ! 'it>xf7 9 ll:l g5+ c.t>g6 10 'lt'u3+ ..t>h5 I I lt.Je6 ti is a pitfall to note.

8

.tc3

White's treatment is-interesting, hut 8 0-0 is more acceptable to m odern eyes, e.g. 8 . . . . �bd7 (8 ... .tg4 9 h3 .txfJ - 9 . . . .th5 10 g4 .tg6 I I lt.Je5 followed by f4 - 1 0

Queen's Gambit Accep ted 25

'ifxf3 lL!c6 1 1 �e3 lL! xd4 1 2 'ifxb7 c5 13 �xd4 cd 14 li[ad l !) 9 �b3 lL!b6 10 li[e I c6 1 1 .i.g5 lL!bd5 1 2 lL!xd5 cd 1 3 ltle5 ! Browne­ Petrosian, Las Palmas 1982. Also I I . .tg4 12 'ifd3 .i.xO 1 3 1hf3 lL!fd5 1 4 .i.xe7 lL!xe7 1 5 lite5 lL!g6 1 6 li[e4 lL!d7 1 7 li[d I 'ifa5 1 8 li[e3 li[ad8 19 lL!e4 'ifc7 20 h4 ± Vaganian-Hiibner, Tilburg 1983. Tartakower used to recommend 8 h3 to stop . . . �g4, and this has resyrfaced jn co,wemoora rygames: . .

the reader might expect to have one white move proposed at each point, instead of three, as here (8 .i.e3, 8 ()...0 , 8 h3). I have adopted the policy of pointing out reasonable alternatives within the main recommended line here, as elsewhere in this book, since the three choices seem equally worth investigation.

c6

8 9 I0 II 12 13

h3 .i.b3 0-0 a4 lL!e5

14

.i.c2

lL!bd7 ltJ b6

ltJfd5 aS

.i.e6 If 1 3 . . . lL!xe3 14 fe .i.f6 1 5 'ifh5 .We7 16 llf3, summoning up h is rese rves for a kingside offensive. Bl ack would have gained the bishop pair, but White's centre is reinforced by the exchange of the m inor pieces.

10 ... c6 I I li[e I ltlfd5 1 2 lt:le4 lile8

1 3 .i.d2 .i.f5 14 lL!g3 �e6 1 5 �c2 lL!d7 1 6 a 3 ltJf8 1 7 .i.d3 g6 1 H .i.h6 ltJf6 19 'ttd 2 .i.d5 20 lt:le5 lL!e6 2 1 .i.c2 lL!d7 22 ltJg4 ± Timman­ Panno, M ar del Plata 1 9H2. Or in the above 10 ltJbd5 I I li[e I c6 1 2 .i.g5 .i.c6 1 3 ltJe5 ltJc7 1 4 .i.c2 lle8 15 'ifd3 g6 16 'iff3 ltJfd 5 1 7 .i.xc7 Wxe7 1 8 'irg3 B:ad8 19 llad I ltJf6 20 f4 lL!h5 21 Wf2 f5 22 g4 ! ± Razuvayev-Bagirov, USSR 19!!2. In a 'repertoire' book ...

"Evading multiple exchanges and stressing the high value of the b l -h7 diagonal." (Tartakower).

�4

f5?!

{1 7)

26 Quun's Gambit Accepted

Up to here this game could have been identified as a modern one between grandmasters. But the rash weakening manoeuvre intro­ duced with the text places it judged by contemporary Grand Magisterial standards - firmly in its 1 9th century contex t . Still, there is no reason that your opponents in club, league or weekend events should play like grandmasters, and the reader may well encounter such moves from his own prospective vict i ms. 14 . f5 must have been initially conceived as a means of blocking the b 1 -h 7 diagonal , but Black soon change� his mind and tries to use hi� f-pawn as a battering ram. Unfortunately, his pieces are inadequately co-ordinated to justify such ambition. .

15 16 17

1te2 �d2 li!.ae I

17 18 19

1te4 �xf4

Threatening llJxg6.

f4? 1te8 �f7 g6

.Wxf4

llJ xf4 J.c4

21 22 23

...h6 �xfl �xg6! hg llJxg6 ( 18)

IH B

.

The refutation of Black's strategy.

19 20

The planned defence to 1 9 .txf4, b u t White now concludes with a beautiful and typical kiQgside demolition.

A rook and piece ahead , Black has no salvation from White's mating attack. I f 23 . . . li!.f7 24 1thH mate.

23 24 25 26

'*h8+ 1th7+ llJf4!

27

li!.l-6+

28 29

11t'h6+ g4 mate

llJc8 �f7 �f6 �d3 'o!.>g5 g8" bS

Driving off White's q ueen before he can increase the pressure with llb l .

46 Queen's Gambit: Slav

29 1re5+.

28

Or 28

cd

o••

lt:lxd5

ed 29 ll b6 ti.

29

�hi

29 30 31

lilgl + �h7 Wa3! (48)

Not 29 .txd5? ed 30 ll b6 1fg4+ with perpetual check. Moving the white king eliminates t his while preparing to launch the rook into action via g l . I njecting fresh and decisive energy into the white attack. Euwe has acco mplished everything pos­ sible within the confines of hi� meagre resources, but Alekhine now blows him out of t he water with four beautifully timed pawn thrusts: h6, a4, c4 and fi nally e4. The point of 24 h6! is either to weaken the e5-h8 diagonal after 24 . . . gh (as occurs in the game) or to lure Black's rook from its defensive station on t he back rank, when the knight on c8 will lack adequate protection. Thus if 24 . . . lhh6 25 a4! lt:la7 (25 . . . ba 26 ll b8 ti) 26 Wb6 ba 27 1ha6 a nd there is no answer to llb7.

"24 25 26 27

.te5 a4! c4

gh �g7 ba

Here 27 llb8 does not work , but the text is deadly, prising away Black's final central bast ions.

27

li:Je7

Or 27 . . de 28 .txf6+ �xf6 o

liteS

am deeply impressed by the way that Alekhine finally smashes Black's resistance by withdrawing his king to h I , a nd his queen to a3. There is now absolutely no antidote to t he threats of e4 and 1fd3+. If 3 1 llc3 32 1ff8 tlo The game concluded: 3l ooo llg8 32 00.

e4 lilxg l + 33 xg l 1lb5 34 ed 1tbl + 35 �g2 1t'g6+ 36 'it>fl Wbl + 37 �g2 1fg6+ 38 .tg3 lt:lxd5 39 .txdS ed 48 Wxa4 h5 41 h4 1-0. "An original and forceful game" (Alexander).

Queen' J Gambit: Slav 47

Portisch-Ljubojevit Indonesia 1983 dS d4 I 2 c4 _£§. cd 3 cd � 4 lt::l c 3 ltJr6 s .tr4 Or 5 . .76 6 e3 .td6 7 .i xd6 -

.

1Vxd6 8 f4 ! followed by lt::l f3 with a menacing grip over the central dark sq uares . e6 6 lt:lf3 6 . . . tfoola:n .tf51! tria4 Wd8 9 e3 lt::l d 7 10 .ib5 e6 I I 0-0 .ie7 1 2 li[ c l lilc8 1 3 .ixc6 be 1 4 �e5 �xe5 15 .ixe5 0-0 16 ltJc5 U ± Ande rsson-Torre, Wijk aan Zee 19 84.

1 �49)

49

8

9 .id3 .td7 10 0-0 1rb6 I I a3 lt::l a 5 12 b4 lt::l c4 13 lt::le 5 lilacl!! 1 4 .i.xc4 de 1 5 .ig5 with some pressure, Portisch-Pet rosian, Candidates' Quarter Final 1 974. Also good is 15 ltJc4! followed by lt::l c 5. Another line is Capablanca's 7 .ie7 8 .td3!? ( not bothering to preserve the queen's bishop from . . . lt.':lh5) !l ... 0-0 9 0-0 lLlh5 (9 . . . .id7 10 lt::le 5 lilc!l I I '@f3 a6 1 2 tfh3 b5? 1 3 lt::l x d5 ! ! ed 14 lLl xd7 'ihd7 1 5 .ixh7+ �h& 1 6 .if5+ .±± i s a trap well worth adding to your repertoire. Of course, if you prefer Portisch's 8 h3 to Capablanca's 8 .id3 , you cannot t ry for it, si nce h3 is not available for White's queen) 1 0 .te5 f5 I I lilc I lt::l f6 1 2 .txf6 gf with a sharp struggle ahead, Capablanca-Lasker, New York 1 924. ...

0-0 :. 8 J.g3 9 J.d3 a6 9 ... lile8 is Portisch-Petrosian,

M oscow 1967 (see final chapter)

9 . b6 10 lil c l .ib7 I I 0-0 .ixg3 . .

1 2 hg 'ire7 is Black's most solid defence.

10

7

J.d6

Black can strike out with 7 . ltlhS hoping to acquire the bishop pair, but after 8 .ig5 tfb6 9 i.b5 h6 10 .ih4 g5 I I lt::l c 5! is ±. The major alternat ive is 7 . .tc7: 8 h 3 ( to meet . . . lt::l h 5 w i t h � h 2) !l . . . 0-0 ..

..

llcl

Note that White plays as many useful moves as possible before committing h imself to 0-0

10

,lxg3

A really dangerous exchange while White can still utilise the open h-file. Perhaps Black should revert to the . . . Il e8 idea.

48 Queen's Gambit: Slav

11 12

hg e4 !

g6

Rupturing the centre activates all of White's pieces for i mmediate transfer to t he kingside.

12 13

J.xe4

Or 1 3 . . . lbxe4 planning lbeg5.

14

1Wd2

de i.d7 14

1Wh6 g4 (50)

19 20 21 22 23

lbxe4

1We7

He could fight against 1Wh6 with 14 . . . h5 15 1Wh6 ltJg4, but it looks like an extreme measure.

15 16

The winning move. Black cannot capture on d5 ( 1 9 . . . ed 20 �xd5) since t h is would again invite the terminal check on f6, so W hite wins a pawn and retains some i nitiative.

llfd8

de .i.xb7 i.xa6 0-0 (51)

fiJe7 .ixe6 llab8 llxb2

51 B

50 B

A singularly aggressive position to have arisen from an Exchange Slav. True, W hite often aims for dark-square control in this variation, but here Portisch would appear to have over-achieved in this respect.

16 17 18

1Wh4

19

d5!

g5

"tlrfS "tlrg7 �e8

Of course 1 8 . . . �xe4 19 �xe4 presages a deadly check on f6.

A flexi ble attitude to castling is the hall mark of many great masters. White's h-file attack has yielded its harvest, so Portisch now sensibly consolidates.

lla8

23

Or 23 . . . .txa2? 24 1fa4 .ie6 25 1Wa3 ::1:±.

24

.i.b5

lbd6

24 . . . .ixa2 25 i.xe8 llxe8 26 1Wa4 ::1:±. The game concluded: 25 a4 liJef5 26 'tff4 llc8 27 lbe4 �xe4 (27 . . . llxc l 28 lbf6+ 'it>fl! 29 'tfxc I ) 28 llxc8 .ixc8 29 1fxe4

lbd6 30 1We7 lbxb5 31 lld1 h5 32 gh 1txh6 33 lld8+ 'i&>b7 34 ltJg H 1 -0.

Part II Indian

Defences

5! 8

Chapter

7: Old I ndian 2

. . .

Chapter 8 : K i ng's I nd ian 2 Ch apter 9 : Grtinfeld 2 C h a p ter 1 0 :

...

d6 3 lt:Jc3 . . .

g6

3 lt:Jc3 j.g7 4 e4 d6

g6 3 �c 3 d5

:Nimzo-lndian 2

. ,.

e6 3 liJcJ .tb4

4

�J. ..

7

Old Indian 1 d4 li:Jf6 2 c4 d6 3 li:Jc3 white cen tre. From t he diagra m , Black has Jhree moves: 3 ... eS allows W hite to retain the initiative by exchanging q ueens. d isplacing B lack's ki ng; 3 ... .i.f5 4 g3 followed by .i.g2 exploits the exposed position of Black's queen's bishop t o conquer the centre and gain time; while 3, . l!Jbd7 4 e4 e5 5 d 5 (Spassky's method ) leaves Black cra�ped. W hite's plan will then be to castle q ueenside and attack Blac k ' s k ing on the opposite side of the board. Note the similarities with Spassky's way of handling the Czech Benoni. Currently t he Old Indian is favoured sporadically by Danish G ra ndmaster Bent Larsen a nd US G ra ndmaster Lubosh Kavalek; in BCO it is covered on page 50.

H istorica lly, the Old I ndian was the prec u rsor of the Ki ng's I ndian, fa voured i n the late 1 9th cent ury and early 20th century by innovators such as Ch igorin ( when not adopting the Defence w hich bears his own name) and N i mzowitsch ( before he invented the defence which bears his ) . This was at a period before master players had realised that it was possible to Spassky-Ka�alek pe rmit White the central latit ude Montreal 1979 conferred by the development of d4 Blac k 's king's bishop to g7 (the l!Jf6 K i ng's I ndia n ) . The Old I ndian 2 c4 d6 is usua lly distinguishe·d-·byihe 3 10c3 l!Jbd7 iln l gORJTack's. k.lni'sbistioo Other ways of implementing the on e7, a more passive square than Old I ndian a re : a) 3 . . . eS 4 de d e 5 'W'xd8+ e8 1 4 .th3 at least !. Spassky­ Gheorghiu, Siegen 01 1 970. White fol lows up by seizing the g-file with his king's rook . b) 3 ..trs 4 g3 ! (ra ther than 4 f3 which is usually given ) 4 eS 5 .tg2 c6 6 d5! with the makings of a tremendous space advantage for White. O r 4 c6 5 .i.g2 � bd 7 6 e 4 .tg6 7 lt!ge2 e 5 8 h3 1lrb6 9 0-0 0-0-0 1 0 d5 ± A lekhine-Janowski, New York 1 924 . c) After the amorphous 3 c6 I suggest 4 e4 e5 5 d5 or 4 . . . �bd7 5 � [3 e5 6 d5, broadly emulat ing Spassky's recipe. ...

...

...

...

4 5

e4 . d5! (55)

e5

A n unambiguous declaration of intent . White will ossify the centre , castle quecnside and then try to blast B lack's king on the opposite wing. Black can scarcely consider . . . 0-0-0 himself, since his internal comm unications are in­ adequate to bring over sufficient ddensive pieces to shield his king, either on c8 or b8. 5

Jle 7

Move-order now makes little difference, since the contours of the position have been fixed, but here is one slightly divergent example; 5 . . . �c5 6 1rc2 a5 7 .te3 .te7 8 h 3 0-0 9 g4 c6 10 0-0-0 cd I I ..txc5 de 1 2 ed ! Peev-Zeitlin, Pernik 1 977. If 5 ... g6, heading bac k towards a King's I ndian , White can play 6 ..te2 ..ig7 7 ..ig5 with a grip, since Black cannot easily throw off the pin without weakening his kingside (7 . . . h6 8 .i.h4 g5 9 .tg3 leaves f5 exposed, and Black does not even have . . . lll h 5 a t h i s disposal).

52 Old Indian

0-0

ILleS aS

56 w

To secure his knight against eviction with b4.

9

.teJ

b6

10

h3

h6

If 9 . . . lL!g4? 1 0 .ixc5 de I I h3 winning material. Or 10 . . . g6 I I g4! The point of Black's l i th move is to fight for kingside dark square control (g5, f�. h4) impeding White's aggressive designs in that sector. lLlh7 I I 0-0-0 lL!gS 12 g4 1 2 . . . g5 is much too passive, a nd would give White a free hand with a later h4, e.g. after lldg l . 1 3 lL!d2 A false trail .

13 14

�h7

�f3 lL!el !

lOgS

liJxe3

g6 (56)

IS Finding a more profitable route for the k night. �h7 IS Black is willing to draw after 16 liJf3 liJg5 , but there is no need for White to conclude peace yet. .lgS 16 ll:lg2 An exchange which is 5trategicaUy desirable for Black, in that he gives himself extra room in which to manoeuvre and eliminates the more agile of White's bishops. .ixe3+ 17 h4

18

·

Black adopts a classic defensive posture, with his pa wns abreast of each other on the third rank. He can thus meet h5 with ... g5 or g5 with . . . h5, blocking position in either case. 19 :dn .ld7 20 wbl 1We7

11

f3

wg7

Bronstein calls Black's set-up "the fire-resistant Kavalek wall". Actually, that is t he maxi m u m it can achieve. Black's position is going absolutely nowhere. The standard break-out attempts . . . b5 and . . . f5 are out of the question, so he m ust just sit a nd wait for White's winning try. The next few moves resemble siege warfare Spassky lines up his mangonels and assa ult troops more or les:. as he pleases, while Kavalek maintains vigilance along his defensive 'wall', shifting his troops to any area where an im mediate thrt:at arises. lL!f6 22 l:l: fl llae8 2J 9d2

Old Indian 53

24 25 26 27 28 29 30

lUh7 .tdl .tel l:lb8 l:lbc8 lUb5 l:lfb2 l:lh8 l:lgl l:lhfl g5 hS lt:lf5+! (5 7)

J7 B

calamities, Kavalek resolves to return the material for a measure of freedom .

32 33 34 35 36

fe g6 fg gh

e4 We5 fg l:lf4 .tg4 (58)

5il w

At last White storms the fort ifi�:ations. This is the only way to make progress, si nce playing for f4 would, given the absence of dark-squared bishops, tend to u ndermine White's own posi tion and give Black a splendid pie�:e outpost on e5. It is worth comparing the ope ra tions here with Gl igoric-Petrosian in Part V where White's f4 breakthrough was feasible. 30

31 32

ef l:lhg2

gf 'ti;>h8

White is now ready to smash through Black's position with his g-pawn. Another plan that comes to mind is f6 fo llowed by We2 and f4. In view of these i mminent

An interesting psychological situation has arisen, and a common one in chess . The White assault has ended, but he is now one good pawn (plus one doomed pawn) ahead in material. So, White has to overcome Blac k's cou nterplay and adjust himself to a mental framework of consolidation, rather then aggression. Not everyone can handle such i mportant transitions! I t is also i nteresting, from a positional viewpoint, that the position in the diagra m could have arisen from a crude assault by White, involving a bru te-fa2 lLld7 42 Il:d2 lilf2 43 llgg2 llxg2 44 lhg2 ll:lf8 45 b4 ab 46 ab \t'g7 47 c5 be 48 be li:Jg6 49 lih2 �1'8 50 .ia4 Il:f6 51 'i!;>b3 Il:f3 52 �e4 'i!i'e7 53 Il:b2 lH7 54 d6+ ed 55 ed 'i!;>f8 56 Il:d2 .id7 57 i.xd7 lixd7 58 'i!;>d5 'i!;>e8

1 -0.

I give another example to show the typical style of attack. Diagram 5!!a is timer Khan­ Solomo n, 2nd Commonwealth Championship, Hong Kong 1 984.

5Hu w

t6 17 18 19

li:Jf5!! er fg 'W'gJ

�r hg li:Jxg4 ll:lxr5

'8xg4+ 'W'g3 h5

ttlg7 r5

1 9 . lLl f6 20 h5 t>g8 3 7 lii: c g 7+ lt.tl8 38 'itc7 ±±). An a m azing ga me. Tisda l l-Orset h , Molde 1 9 8 1_. A nother Tisd all ga me, as W h i t e v Thipsay, Bene d i c t i n e 1 98 3 : 7 . . . i.cb 8 'i!t'c2 li'lc6 9 lid I li'l b4 I 0

66 Grunfeld Defence 1t'b I ll:l4d5 I I e4 lLl xc3 1 2 be 0-0 1 3 .te2 h6 1 4 .te l c5 1 5 de .t xc 3 + 1 6 'it>fl ll:ld7 1 7 .i h 6 i.g7 H ! i. xg7 'it>xg7 1 9 Wb2+ ..tig8 20 h4 Wc7 2 1 h 5 ±. 8 .-..&!!:!. i. eli

711 w

�1tc2 10 %fill !Eb4 Not 10 �ll:lxd4?"IJ ll:l xd4 9

i.xd4 1 2 e3 i. xc3+ 1 3 1!hc3 tl; or 10 ... 0-0 I I d5 ll:lb4 1 2 1tc l t.

II

"iltbl_ ( 77)

77

8

IS 16 17 18 19

20

Now I I . . . c6 is insufficie n tly challenging: 12 e4 0-0 13 a 3 ll:la6 14 .te2 ll:lc7 15 i.g3 i.bJ 16 Ild2 ll:le6 17 0-0 lLl xd 4 I H ll:lxd4 i. xd4 19 We t c5 20 ll:lb5 'it>h7 2 1 .tc5 'tireS 22 ll:l xd4 cd 23 i. x d4 t Keene-Small, Commonwealth Ch. M elbourne 1 983.

II 12

e3

13 -;.r1 4 dS

,tg3 a3 ab hg

gf

Ilh2

rs

f4 fg

I h f1 .t d 3

i.xdl

I n furman-Savon, U S S R 1 970, Black preferred to stay the exchange d ow n : 20 . . . ll:ld7!? 2 1 i.e2 lueS 22 1tc2 1td6 23 �f I . K otov assessed this as "equal", but iho it m ust be a dynamic balance where both sides ha ve chances to win.

21

"iltxd l (79)

0-0 "'1:15

"ii4

gS (78)

Violent counter mea.s-ure;i, design­ ed to detonate White's imposing cent re.

This is a curious case, where both players seem, in a sense,

Griinfeld Defence 6 7

to be playing past each other - White dominates the light squares while Black controls the dark square part of the board . White's chances reside in a direct assault against Black's king, based on the key moves i.h3-e6 and 1t'h5, threatening to infiltrate on g6 or 17 . In what follows Black has to play very accurately to maintain the bala nce . H ere is one attractive trap concealed in the position: 2 1 . . . 'itd6? 22 .i.h3 'ff xb4 23 i.e6+ �h8 24 l hh6+ (80)

i.e6+ 'it'h8 'ith5 1ff8 Not 25 . . . lLlxb2? 26 'itg6 1!t'f8 27 i.f5 *&8 (27 ... 1rg8 28 llxh6+ ±±) 28 llxh6 with the crushing threat of llh8+.

24 25

26

1hg5

26 27

'it'e2! (til)

After the game Tisdall felt 26 ltJ d I migh t have offered him better chances.

li'Jxb2

il l IJ

HO 8

All B lack's moves have been very natural, but now he is mated: 24 . . . i.xh6 2 5 ..h5 'it'g7 26 'itf7+ �h8 27 .tf5 i.g7 28 'ith 5+ �g8 29 i.e6+ ±±:.

21 22 23

ba ..thJ

aS! lixa5 lLlc4

Set ti ng a final t rap: 27 . . . litc5 28 'itg6 litxc3 29 i.f5 ±± .

27

1rf6

Eventually Black has equalised , but it has been an uphill struggle. The game concluded: 28 1rxf6

i.xf6 29 lLlb1 lLlc4 30 lhh6+ �g7 31 lithl lita2+ 32 'it'd3 lLle5+ 33 �e3 ll:lc4+ 34 'it'd3 lUeS+ 35 �e3 1!2 - \12 .

10

�Nimzo-lndian

l d4,. �r�amJ.��-c3 £b4

champions Botvinnik, Tal, Petrosian and Spassky, as well as prominent w gra ndmasters such as Browne, H ubner, Timman and Miles. Strangely, K asparov plays it rarely as Black a nd fares badly when he does, but is oftt:n to be seen on the white side. I suggest that White should esc ew advent ures such as 4 �. 4 f3, 4 1tb3 or 4 g) (though 4 1tc2 is quite playable) and adhere to lnventexf7 2 1 i.g5 tfd7 22 Wxh7+.

13

ct>h8

Now Black is swiftly despatched.

14 IS 16 11 18 19

1nas

20 21

dS lt:lg3 lt:lfS

lt:laS gf i.c8

ef lii: l3

lii:g8 lii:g 7

.ih6 lih3

lii:g 8

..txrs

19 ... fiJg7 fails to 20 1Wxh7+ ct>xh 7 2 1 lii: h 3+ lt:lh5 22 lii: xh5+ c;t>g7 23 i.h6+ 'it>h7 24 .if8 mate.

7

be

fiJc6

8

lt:le2!

8 9

e4

10 11

0-0 f4

i.a6 lt:laS

12

rs

f6! (92J

Here 7 . . . d5? was played in Kasparov-lvanovic . To this square rather than f3, since White does not wish to block the advance of his f-pawn. This is the reason that White's chances in the deferred Samisch are superior to those he obtains in the variation: 4 e3 c5 5 i.d3 lt:lc6 6 lt:lf3 ? ! i.xc3+ 7 be d6 8 e4 e5, which scores consistently well for Black.

b6

lt:l e8 Sidestepping the pin i.g5 . Boldly ignoring White's kingsidc demonstration. In contrast I I . . . d6 fails t o hinder White's plan, e.g. I I . . . d6 1 2 f5 e5 1 3 f6 ! (jj xf6 1 4 i.g5, followed by li:lg3, with carnage - as in Bronstein-Najdorr above.

1 -0

Timman-Polugayevsky Tilburg 1983 I d4 li:lf6 2 c4 e6 i. b4 3 lt:lc3 4 e3 cS 0-0 5 .id3 6 a3 .ixc3+

Correctly halting the fu rther

76 Nimzo-lndian

push of White's f-pawn. I f 1 2 . . . ef 13 ef .txc4 14 f6! or 1 3 . . . 10 xc4? 14 11ra4! ±:±:.

13

10f4

13 14

'tthS?!

GM Larry C hristiansen claims that 1 3 fe is good here.

cd

Both 1 4 c d and 1 4 fe d e 1 5 e5! come into consideration here as possible i mprovements.

14 IS

er?

ef

Ch ristiansen says 15 cd! .txc4 1 6 .txc4+ 10 xc4 1 7 'ttxf5 "wirh good play for the pawn", while Polugayevsky recommends 1 5 11rxf5! 10d6 1 6 1lrd5+ lt:ln 1 7 cd.

�d6

15

Or 1 5 . . . de 16 li'lg6! lln 1 7 llf3 threatening 1 8 'ttx h7+ �xh7 1 9 llh3+ �g8 2 0 llh8 mate. The text prepares . . . 'tieS and seems to beat off White's attack. 'tte 8 1 6 llf3 .txc4 17 10g6

18 19

93 B

.tf4

llh3 (93)

.txd3

The attack reaches its crescendo, but it is bluff. 19 .txrs 20 'ttxh 7+ c;&n 21 ll g3 �e4 22 10e5+ Or 22 lle 1 lbxg3 23 llxe8 llaxe8 24 .ih6 lbe2+ 25 'i&f2 llg8 26 lt:lh8+ �e6 winning.

22

0- 1

'i&e6

Keene-Helmers Exhibition game Arhus 1 983 1 d4 lbf6 2 c4 e6 3 lbc3 .tb4 4 e3 cS 5 ,a3 .txc3+ 6 be lbc6 7 .td3 b6 8 �e2 0-0

On the k.ingside, Black's monarch represents a clear target. Black can also try to arrange . . . 0-0-0 with 8 . . . d6 but then 9 e4 1lrd7 (9 . . .ta6? 1 0 'tta 4! i s a trap into which Capablanca once fell against the variation's inventor, Fritz Samisch) 1 0 0-0 .i.a6 I I .i.g5 0-0-0 1 2 lO c i ! lt.la5 1 3 l0b3 'tta4 14 lt.lxa5 'tt xa 5 1 5 'ttc 2, with advantage to White, since the black queen is temporarily out of action: For more on this see Section I l l . .

9

e4

To forestall .i.g5.

l0e8

Nimzo-lndian 77 10

0-0

.ta6

Inaugurating the standard attack against White's indefensible c4 pawn.

II

f4

cd

I t is exceedingly risky to open up the position like this. M ore sensible is I I . . . f5 t hough after 1 2 ljj g 3 g6 1 3 .te3 ljj a 5 1 4 de llc8 ( 1 4 . . . ljj xc4 1 5 .txc4 .txc4 1 6 llf2 ljj f6 17 1td4 b5 1 8 lld2 1tc8 1 8 . . . h5! - 1 9 h 3 1tb7 20 1te5 ltac8 2 1 i.d4 fe 22 ljj h 5 ! ! ±± Christiansen-R . Rodriguez, Mos­ cow IZ 1 982) fS ef ef 1 6 cb ab 1 7 c5! .txd3 1 8 1txdJ 6c 1 9 c4 �f6 20 llad I followed by .td2-c3 White still has a plus in my opinion. Also worth considering is the con­ tinuation of Tisdall-Kudrin, Gaus­ dal l 98 3 : 1 3 ef ef ( l 3 . . . gf 1 4 .te3 ltla5 1 5 de ltlxc4 16 .txc4 .txc4 1 7 llf2 is p romising for White, whose queen's bishop will ra ke Black's kingside from d4) 1 4 de be 15 .i.e3 d6 16 .txf5 gf 17 1td5+ lii: l7 1 8 1txc6 .txc4 1 9 lii: fe I 1Wc8 20 1111 lilbll 2 1 lld I 1ta6 and now best is 22 1th 5 !

12 13

cd f5!

14

l!J(4 (94)

94 B

14 15 16

e5 lilc8

At the cost of a pawn White enjoys a free hand to throw all his pieces into the assault against Black's king.

16 17 18 19

.txc4 llf3

.txc4 ltlxc4 ed

lii: h3 ljj eS I f 1 9 . . . h6 20 .txh6 wins. 20 21 22

ltJaS f6

White threatened f6 fol lowed by .tg5. Tranposing into t he position whid1 could have been reached in Timman-Polugayevsky after the recommended 14 cd!

�d5 1th5

22

1txh7+ .tr4

lii: fl (95)

q;,n

lii: c6

78 Nimzo-Indian

This allows a quick finish but it is hard to see a constructive move for Black, e.g. 22 . . . d6 23 .!xeS de 24 Wg6+ �g8 25 Ilh7 with the devastating threat of •hs and Ilh8.

23 24

1L'hS+ �g8 li:Je7 maite

Kasparol-Yurtaev Spartakiad May 1 98 1 1 li:Jf6 d4 e6 2 c4 3 li:Jc3 .!b 4 4 e3 0-0 5 .!d3 dS 6 cd ed 7 li:Jge2 (96) 96 B

Kasparov's move-order in the opening is quite strange and seems to bemuse his less experienced opponent. It evinces a superficial si milarity with the old Reshevsky variation: 1 d4 li:Jf6 2 c4 e6 3 li:Jc3 .!b4 4 e3 0-0 5 li:Jge2 d5 6 a3 .!e7 7 cd ed, but the crucial difference is that White has already developed

his king's bishop to dJ.

�bd7

7

A perfectly acceptable move in t he Reshevsky line, but here is seems out of place. I nstead, Black should put more pressure on the centre wit h 7 . . . cS.

8 9

0-0 f3

c6 cS

A mending his previous move displays definite signs of confusion. However, after the normal 9 . Ile8 Y urtaev doubtless feared 10 e4, with a central initiative for White. .

10

a3

cd

11 12

ed li:Jf4

J.e7 li:Jb8

13

g4! (97)

.

N ow 10 . . . .!xc3 I f be cedes White a great advantage, since Black would have squandered a tempo ( . . . c6-c5) only to surrender the two bishops, strengthen White's central pawn roller and misplace his own queen's knight. At last Black recognises the futility of having developed the knight on d7, and decides to re­ route it to c6, from which square he can also threaten White's d4 pawn. Sadly, t hough, B lack has lost so much precious time in the opening that Kasparov can now floor him with a few well-aimed blows . Threatening to knock away the props of Black's d-pawn with g5.

Nimzo-lndian 79

18 19 20

f4 •n rs

g6 b6

20 21 22 23 24

f6 lbel l:leS •e3

.ic6

24 2S 26 27 28

J.e2 ab J.xhS g6! (99)

Naturally, White does not capture on d5, which would only invite trouble along the a 8-h l diagonal. The standard f-pawn thrust ensures White's advantage. Interestingly, this aggressive thrust (g4) often features in Kasparov's games. J. d6 13

14 IS 16

17

'ii?h l gS J.xf4

l:le8 J.xf4 lt:lhS ('18)

l:lb7

•d6 l:ld8

White's winning plan is straight­ forward: play his bishop to e2 and then destroy Black's kingside with J.xh5. That was the point of 2 1 f6 (the culmination of White's f-pawn offensive) - to strand Black's k night.

bS b4 l:lxb4 gh

J.xb8!

A very fine move indeed . I t

breaks a n umber o f excellent rules about not giving up the bishop pair, not swapping an active piece for a passive one etc . . . but Kasparov has clearl y perceived that the increased momentum of his attack fully justifies the exchange. l h b8 17

.

A neat combination finishes off

the game. I f 28 . . . fe 29 l he6 wins at once, so . . .

80 Nimzo-lndian

28 29

lhe6

hg fe

30

1Wb6

l::t b 7

O r 29 . . . 1rxe6 30 'tlrh6 with mate to follow on g7. 1-0 White wins with 3 1 l::t g l rt>n 32 'tlrg6+ rt>f8 33 'tlrg8 mate and there is no other sensible defence at move 3 1 .

Preparing . . . .la6, . . . �a5 and

. . . 0-0-0. The immediate 9 . . . .ta6

is met by the embarrassing 1 0 1ta4.

10 11 12

e4

.ta6

.l gS 0-0-0 �cl ! (101)

III Black tries to play ... 0-0-0 ( Attack against Black's king on the queenside)

Geller-Lisitsin Ch 1 9�S � f6 d4 e6 c4 ..tb4 �c3 .ixcJ+ a3 cS be e3 � c6 d6 .idJ � ge2 b6

USSR

1 2 3 4 s 6 7 8

An important position which can a rise from a variety of move­ orders (4 e3 c5 or 4 e3 b6). 9 0-0 'tlrd7! (100)

I mproving on an earlier game in the same event, Geller-Spassky, which went 1 2 �g3 ? h6 1 J .lxf6 gf 14 �h5 cd 1 5 cd �xd4 1 6 �xf6 1re7 1 7 1ra4 ( better was 1 7 �g4 followed by ll:le3) 1 7 . . . .lb7! 1 8 ll:lh5 l::t g 8 1 9 Wd l f5 ! 20 l::t e l (101)

/ 00 w

20 . . . 1rh4 2 1 f4 e5! (stronger than winning the exchange with 21 . . . 1txe l + 2 2 1he l li.JfJ+. Now 22 l::t f l is met by n . . . fe 23 i.e2

Nimzo-lndian 81

�f.H H) 22 lite I ef 23 .i.fl 1txe I ! 24 Wxe l ltJf3+ 2 5 � � xe l 26 llxe I f3 ! and Black soon won.

12 li:la5 12 ... .i.b7 1 3 a4 a5 was possible,

but the b6 pawn would be a permanent target. 12 ... cd 1 3 cd ltJxd4 1 4 a4 ltJc6 15 liJb3! gives White value for the pawn, with a5 to come.

13 14

ltJb3 ltJxa5

't!fa4 'li/xa5? (103)

24

't!fc2 .i.d2

17 18 19 20 21 22 23

cd .ic2 e5 i.e I a4 h4

f4

c4 cd l!J e 4 ltlg5 .ib7 lL!e6 .ic6

.i.g3 1td2 h5 1tc2 e6 ( 104)

29 30 31 32 33

.id6 .ie7 ll:fbl

34

35

36

h6 dS

U n thema tic, but While was threatening ll: fb l followed by lil:b5 and trapping the queen.

25 26 27 28 29

.i.d7 ¢>b7 lil:c8

f6?

/04 B

Better was 1 4 . . . 'li/xd I 1 5 lil: fxd I ba, but after 1 6 e5 de 1 7 de h6 1 8 i.xf6 gf 1 9 e f White has good winning chances in the ending.

15 16

rs

Black has no counterplay and the central pawn advance is decisive. 24 ltJc7

37

105 B

i.f3

.cl t!ia3 .id6 aS! ( 105)

.ic6 ltJe8 ¢>a8 lil: b8 1!ta6 ..., 7 ltJc7 ll:hd8

82 Nimzo-Jndian

Preparing the final breakthrough. Black ca nnot afford to a llow the opening of the a-file.

37 38 39

a6 i.f4

bS 11t'c8

ll b6

39 . . . ll d � loses to 4 0 11t'd6 lt:lxa6 41 .ixd5 � b6 42 �xb5! �d8 43 �xb6 �xd6 44 �bxa6 ±±:: . 40 •e7! lt:lxa6 ( 106) /06 w

.i b7 41 11t'xg7 42 11t'xf6 b4 43 1re5 1rc6 44 cb lt:lxb4 45 e7 �g8 46 f6 1re8 47 �xb4 ! �xb4 48 1!re6 11t'c8 49 1!rxc8+ �xeS 50 f7 1 -0.

Reshev!>ky-Santasierc US Ch New York 1 951 li:lf6 d4 I e6 2 c4 3 li.)cJ i.b4 b6 4 e3

After this move, White may not need to play a 1 s i nce Black often exchanges voluntarily on c3. .i a6 5 lt:lge2 ! The main line. Alternatives are:

a) 5 .tb7 6 a3 i.e7 7 d5 t space advantage. White can continue with g3 and .tg2 or si mply lt:lg3 and .te2. b) 5 ... lt:le4 6 1rc2 .ib7 7 a3 .ixc3 + 8 lt:lxc3 lt:Jxc3 9 1rxc3 0-0 1 0 b3 d6 I I .ib2 li:ld7 1 2 .id3 (sacrificing the g-pawn) or 1 2 0-0-0, both ;!; since B lack has little t o show for White's aggressive bishops, and hardly dare capture on g2, when given the chance. c) 5 ... cS 6 a3 i.a5 7 llb l . Korchnoi-G urevich, US Open, Pasadena 1 983, continued: 7 . . . 1!t'e7 8 .id2 0-0 9 lt:lg3 liJa6 10 d5 lt:Jc7 I I 1rf3 .ixc3 1 2 .ixc3 ed 1 3 cd �e8 1 4 lt:Jf5 ±. 6 lt:J g3 (107) •..

107 B

6

.txc3+

Or: a) 6 ... hS 7 h4 .ib7 8 ..id2 a6 9 1rc2 d 5 1 0 cd lt:Jxd5 I I lt:Jxd5 .ixd2+ 1 2 1!rxd2 1rxd5 1 3 �ac I lt:Jc6 1 4 .ie2 0-0-0 1 5 .if3 and Black's position is uncomfortable, Geller-Keres, USSR Ch Tiflis 1 959.

Nimzo-lndian 83

b) 6 ... 0-0 7 e4 ltle6 (7 . . . d5 8 cd .lxfl 9 'ii>x fl .lxe3 10 be ed 1 1 e5 ltle4 12 f3 !) 8 .ld3 e5 (8 ... d5?! 9 cd .lxd3 1 0 Wxd3 ed 1 1 e5 l0e4 1 2 a3 J.xc3+ 1 3 be f5 14 ltle2! ± planning f3) 9 d5! .lxc3+ 10 be lt!a5 1 1 .,e2 c6 1 2 lt:lf5, with the makings of a kingside attack.

7 8

be J.a3!

d5

I used to like 8 •o . but have now come to the conclusion that it offers White very little.

8

1Wc8

Fischer once played 8 . . . de? ! (Black v Portisch, S iegen 01 1 970). It is playable, but exceedingly risky after 9 .e4 .,d7 10 .te2 ltlc6 I I .,c2 0-0-0 1 2 0-0 followed by lilfd 1 and d5 if possible. N ormal is 8 . . . .t xc4, though Kasparov has recently shown a n improved way for White to handle this, in Kasparov-P. Wells, London/Acorn Clock S im ul, 1 984: 9. ·J.xc4 de 1 0 e4 1Wd7 1 1 0-0 1Wb5 1 2 Wc2! (the new move superseding the old 1 2 d5?! which does not work) 1 2 . . . ltl bd7 13 f3 h5 14 lilfb 1 1Wa5 15 J.c l h4 16 ltlfl 1Wh5 1 7 a4 a6 1 8 .,e2 h3 1 9 g4 1ltg6 20 ltlg3 0-0-0 2 1 •xc 4 a 5 2 2 .tf4 c 5 2 3 �f5 �h8 24 .tg3 ±±. IJ ltlh5!? ( 108) An interesting decision. One might expect 9 cd .txf l 10 lil xf1 ( 10 c;i;>xfl ? .,a6+) but Reshevsky's move is deeper . . He eliminates

Black's most active piece and prepares to deploy his own queen on the kingsidc dark squares, in concert with the bishop on a3 .

9 10

•xh5

ltlxh5 1Wd7

11

cd

•xd5

12

.g4

g6

13 14

J.xa6 0-0

Or 10 . . . de I I .,g5! forking e7 and g7. 1 1 . . . J.xfl ? 12 de ! or 1 1 . . . ed? 1 2 .,e5 + . I f 1 2 . . . lilg8 1 3 .,h4! White's clever manoeuvres have per­ manently prevented Black from castling kingside and induced a general debility of Black's dark squares.

ltlxa6 0-0-0

The only refuge for Black's king, but Reshevsky proves it is not a safe residence. 15 1te2 c;i;>b7 1 6 .te7! ( 109) Economy of execution - the bishop strives for a square "where

84 Nimzcrlndian

fiJc7 26 ll b7 cd 27 1Wb2 ±±.

24

109 B

it will exert maxi mum pressure" ( Reshevsky). At the same time, White unblocks the path of his a-pawn which can now press forward against Black's king. ll d7 16

17

.i.f6

l:lc8

18 a4 1!fa5 "The q ueen IS not a good blockader" (Nimzowitsch), but there was no other blockader i n sight. c6 19 llaJ Digging in; 19 c5 is too loosening and atten uates Black's defences along the h l -aS diagonals, e.g. 1 9 . . . c5 20 llb l lt:Jc7 2 1 1Wt1+ q;>b8 22 .i.e5 ! ± .

20 21

.i.e5 c4

liJc7

Keeping the kn ight from d S.

21 22 23

c5 i.g3

ll:\e8 f6

e5 Desperately hoping to exclude White's bishop from the attack. I f 2 3 . . . be 2 4 lib I + 'it>a8 25 llab3

25

26

cb de llbl

27

1llg4?

ab fe

lla8 ( 1 10)

This looks like a time-trouble error, failing to notice Black's coming resource. After 27 l:l ab3! l:la6 28 1lrb2 White increases the pressure to intolerable proportions.

27

l0f6!

28 "W'f3 Suddenly White sees that the seemingly crushing and probably intended 28 1re6? fails to 28 1lrd5! 29 1rxf6 1rd l + . 1td5 28

29 30 31

1re2 l:lab3 h3

1Wa5 l:la6

White could st i ll play 3 1 1rh2, but he has already let Black's k night onto a more active post. The text avoids t he back rank tricks which foiled White's previous attempt. "Always a good idea when there is no particular

Nimz�lndian 85

hurry." (Reshevsky)

31

�e4

It seems reasonable to transfer the knight to c5, but W hite has a tactical refutation. Still, with Black's weak pawn on e5, his unstable king position and White's powerful bishop against the rootless knight, Black should lose anyway. lt:lc5 32 1Wg4

33

-'.xeS!

hS

A s haft of hope, since White's queen must be deflected from d7, and the rook on b3 is en prise. 34 1Wx g6! (I l l) A ll is clear. I f 34 . . . lt:Jxb3 3:t 1We8 ! threatening 1Wxd7 and 1Wb8

Ill B

mate. The game concluded: 34 ... 1Wxa4 3S 1We8 :c7 36 J.xc7 xf2 .i.g3+ H). Alter­ natively, 4 . . . lt:lc6 5 e3 .i.b4+ (5 . . . .i.c5 transposes t o the column) 6 .i.d2 .i.xd2+ 7 'itxd2 lt:lgxe5 8 lt:lxe5 �xe5 9 .i.e2 0-0 1 0 llJc3 d6 I I O-O b6 ( 1 1 . . . ..te6 1 2 b3 ;!: ) 1 2 f4 lt:lg4 1 3 .i.f3 l:tb8 1 4 lLlbS a6 1 5 lt:ld4 ± due to the holes in Black's q ueenside (K nezevic­ M estrovic, Y ugoslavia 1 980) . e3 5 lLJc6 6 ..te2 lDgxcS 7 0-0 White can also delay committing his king to this side of the board, although there is no need to be

Budilpest Gambit 89

nervous about it, as we shall see. The alternative is 7 /Oc3 d6 8 a3 a5 9 b3 'O xf3+ 10 gf fl .ih4+ 18 o;i>e2 11rxg2+ 19 o;i>d3 bS 20 cb ..Q.f6 21 .il3 1lrg6 22 .ie4 1lrg3 1-0.

12

Benko Gambit 1 d4 tt:Jf6 2 c4 c5

1 /8 w

I do not advise White to accept the Benko Gambit. After 4 cb a6 5 ba .txa6 6 lt::l c 3 d6 Black enjoys unhindered, harmonious develop­ ment, plus two open files to blast away at White's q ueenside pawns. The standard procedure to adopt when material ahead is to simplify towards the endgame, when the extra pa wn, or whatever, should grad ually tell. I n t he Benko this procedure is not foolproof, fo r exchanges often intensify Black'!> pressure against Whi te's a- and b-pawns, in the line of fire of a black rook operating from bl:l a nd the bishop from g7. I n addition, accepting the gambit encourages Black to play a whole stream of very natural moves, e.g. contmuing

3 d5 b5

from the sequence above: 7 lt::l f3 g6 8 g3 .tg7 9 .tg2 0-0 10 0-0 lt::l bd7 (1 1 9)

Black will now follow up with more easy moves, such as . . . 1ta5 and . . llfb8. I f you are playing in a tournament with chess clocks, it is helpful to be able to play so many black moves without thinking and know that you are proceeding actively and correctly. Bent Larsen once wrote with acu ity about this: "Some players find it boring to play the same first I 2 mo ves over and over again: others don't m 1 nd Some are even happy if they play t hese moves quickly, there is less danger of serious ti me­ pressure. (The nasty part bf me thinks this is why Benko likes the .

92 Benko Gambit

gambit - ten moves for a pawn !)." U S Grandmaster Pal Benko, chief propagandist for the gambit which bears h is name, is, of course, a notorious time-trouble addict. My solu tion, therefore, is to play 4 lt:lO!?, politely declining the Trojan pony on b5, and thus throwing Black more or less on his own resources. I have used this successfully in my own games, and, incidentally, felt very uncom­ fortable whenever I have grabbed the pawn. It is also the recent choice of Viktor Korchnoi, twice" challenger for the World Cham­ pionship. For more details on the Benko in general, see BCO, pages 104 a nd 105.

Korchnoi-Sax Phillips and Drew 1 980 lt:lf6 I d4 c5 2 c4 b5 3 d5 4 lt:lf3 (/ 20)

London

110 B

"Although we generally expect Korchnoi to take pawns that are offered to him, in the present game he prefers to avoid any sharp H ungarian theory. Better to leave the opponent to his own resources in a position where he is less comfortable." ( H artston in the Tournament Book).

4

be

A lternatives are: a) 4 ... J.. b 7 5 a4 a6 (5 . . . b4 6 lt:l bd2 followed by e4 shuts Black's queen's bishop out of play) 6 ab ab 7 lha8 J.. xa8 8 lt:lc3 1i'a5 (8 ... be 9 e4! while 8 . . . b4 9 lt:lb5 d6? leaves Black struggling after 10 11ra4! lt:lbd7 I I 11ha8 11rxa8 1 2 lt:lc7+ 'i;>d8 1 3 lt:lxa8 h6 - to prevent lt:lg5 - 14 e3 'it>c8 1 5 b3 lt'b8 16 J.. b2 �xa8 1 7 J.. d 3) 9 Af41 d6 10 lt:ld2 b4 I I lt::l b 5 g6 1 2 e4 lt:lbd7 1 3 lt:lb3 1i'b6 14 11ra l J.. b 7 15 J.. e 3 J.. g7 1 6 11ra5 lt:l h 5 1 7 g4! lLlhf6 1 8 g 5 lt::l h 5 1 9 J.. h 3! ± Dorfman-Mochalov, M oscow 191! 1 . b) 4 . e6 5 de fe 6 cb d5 7 e3 i.d6 8 lLlc3 J.. b7 9 e4! de (9 . . . d4 10 e5 ±) 10 lt::l g 5 J.. d5 I I 11rc2 ± This is a recent attempt to refute the Blumenfeld Gambit, into which 4 . . . e6 transposes. c) 4 . g6 5 lt::l bd2 be ( 5 . . 1lra5?! 6 e4! Keene- Bellon, Bali 1 98 2 . I f 6 . . . l"i:Jxe4? 7 b4! ti'Kb4 8 llb l 'tlt'a5 9 llxb5 11rc3 10 .ib2 ±t) 6 e4 d6 7 J.. xc4 J.. g7 8 0-0 0-0 I) l:tb I l"i:Jbd7 10 ll e l lt:lb6 I I b3 llb8 1 2 ..

..

.

Benko Gambit 93

.tb2 U ± Keene-Pytel, Benedictine

1 98 1 . d) 4 ... a61? 5 a 4 b4 ! is less effective

for White than variation (a), since the black queen's bishop is not yet com mitted to b7 (Keene-I vanov, Commonwealth Ch, H ong K ong 1984). My feeling after that game is that 5 11rc2! plus a quick e4 keeps White's opening advantage. 5 �c3 g6

6 7 8

e4

.txc4 eS (121)

d6 .tg7

lt:lb6 1 3 .te2 1Wc7 1 4 .tO .ta6 1 5 lle l llad8 was u nclear, s o White should i nvestigate the sacrifice 10 . . . lt:lfd7!7 I I � xf7!? followed by 1 2 d6.

II 12 13 14

1lrb3 llel

..igS .txb3

lt:Ja6 1Wxb3

llac8 � b4 may be the last chance to resist. I S ltJc4 ( 122) 14

/}} B

121 B

The bold advance breaks up Black's tidy pawn chain (c5-d6-e7) and brings White's king's knight onto a powerful post, w he n: it menaces both c6 and e7. In addit ion, Black is left with a weak backward pawn on e7.

8

9

lD xeS

de

0-0

0-0 .ib7 The ga m e Balashov-Stein, l\.los­ 10

cow 1 97 1 , saw 10 . . . li:J fd 7 ! ? Balashov's 1 1 lt:lc6 lt:l xc6 12 d e

White's pos1110n is crushing. Black suffers from two very weak pawns on e7 and c5 while White is constantly threatening some tactical breakthrough based on d6, opening up the diagonal of his k ing's bishop from b3 to f7. I f now 1 5 . . .

llfeM 1 6 i.a4 ±t or 1 5 . . . ;g: t:7 1 6

.i.f4 liL u 7 1 7 .i.a4 t± . Finally, 15 . . . .t xd 5 '! 1 6 .i xf6 tl . Sax's

choice l ose s the exchange.

IS 16

17

18

(iJ xdS

lt.:lxdS. .i xdS

.i xc7 Ilfe8 lt:ld6 ±± ( 1 23)

94 Benko Gambil

each player, and then 1 6 per player per hour thereafter. Korchnoi could have killed more cleanly during this mad scramble, while Sax missed 42 . . . ¢'e3! complicating White's winning process.

The theoretical debate is over. I cite the remaining moves without further comment, other than that both sides were in time-trouble· and their rush continued until move 44. For those not used to competition chess, the time control is 40 ( ! ) moves in 21,1 hours for

18 .. c4 19 �xe8 lhe8 l0 .ta4 llb8 ll .td6 lld8 ll .teS �c5 l3 .txg7 �xg7 14 .tel .te6 15 lladl llb8 16 llbl n a4 19 c;i;lel lld8 30 f4 .!Oa6 31 ..txa4 �b4 31 lldl lh8 33 a3 llxa4 34 ab llxb4 35 lldl c;i;lfS 36 liO llb5 37 llel 'M6 38 llfe3 ..trs 39 lla3 ..id3 40 llfl c;i;>f5 41 c;t>dl c;t>e4 41 �cl llh5 � h3 llf5 44 lla7 g5 45 g4 llxf4 46 lle7+ �d4 47 llxf4 gf 48 �dl f6 49 lle6 ..tn so llxf6 c;t>e4 51 llh6 1 -0.

13

Czech Benoni 1 d4 lLJf6 2 c4 c5 3 d5 e5 4 lLJc3 d6 5 e4

114 B

A closer relative to the Old Indian than to the Modern Benoni, the Czech Benoni erects a solid, resilient, but ulti mately passive position. Black's main hope of active counterplay resides in exchanging the dark-squared bishops (B lack's king's bishop is severely restricted by t he fixed c5, d6, e5 pawn triangle) and then achieving a bn:: a kt hrough with . . . f5. If White is vigilant , however, both of these objcdives can be suppressed. The most c1 itixd8 7 f4! .ie6 (7 . . . �c6 8 fe .ie6 9 ..ig5 + \!i>c8 10 �f) is uncomfort able for Black, whose displaced king jams his rook communication; 7 . . . �d7 8 �f) c 6 9 ..ie2 f6 I 0 0-0 'tt'e8 I I gJ is a lso :!: and a tedious position for Black to defend) 8 lLl fJ lLld7 9 ..ie2 h6 10 0-0 lLle7 I I lLld5. Such positions may be defensible for Black but they are no fu n. I have tried them for both sides, and believe me, it is more enjoyable to be White. d) 4 ... lild7, t he most rel iable of Black's fourth move alternatives, which will normally go into a King's I ndian. If White wishes to follow t he recom mendations in this book he should play 5 lLlge2, but 5 �f3 e5 6 ..ie2 or 5 f) are obviously playable too.

4 s

dS

l!Jc6 �d4

S . . . �b8 is obviously very

passive.

6 J.eJ d Or 6 . . . eS 7 �ge2 �xe2 8 J.xe2 fS 9 ef gf 10 ..ih5+ 'it>f8 I I f4 ! ±; if 8 . . � h6? ! 9 g4! Wh4 10 ltg l ! ± .

Conquest-Keene, London (Lloyds

Bank) 1 983. 7 � gel

8

l0xd4!?

1rb6

For many years this capture was not taken particularly seriously. I ndeed, the old line was 8 . . . cd 9 lt:la4 'tta 5+ 10 b4 'ttx b4+ I I J.d2 1ra3 1 2 .icl 'ttb 4+ 13 J.d2 Then in 1 982, Yasser Seirawan played 8 lt:l xd4 cd 9 lt:la4 'tta 5+ 1 0 .i d 2 'ttc 7 I I cS d e 1 2 ..ib5+ J.d7 13 J.xd7+ 'tt x d7 14 lU xeS ± against me a nd won. =.

8 9

lLla4

My opponen t, t he Norwegian answer to looked shocked, but mentioned in BCO analysed it in some GM

Jon

Speelman

Yasser deb4cle. 1 0 � xb6

II

�xfl

cd de! !? (138)

1 5 year old N igel S hort, this 'sac' is and I had detail with after

the

ef+ ab (139)

We have reached an extra­ ordinarily rich pos1t1on. My conclusion from t he analysis with

Modern Defence 107

position must now be rated ±. IJ'J w

12

...cl?!

.i.d4+

14 15 16

.iel lldl a4!?

0-0 .ie5 h5

17 18

b3 ...d3

..td 7

18 19 20 21

de ..tf3

e6! .ixe6 lL!d7 b5! (140)

To bother White's king. Another plan is 1 2 . . . l!Jh6 followed by a quick . f5 . lL!f6 13 �el . .

Speelman was that the situation was not at all clear, though i t must be said that Speelman is a man who would prefe r to start the game with a couple of minor pieces instead of his q ueen, and might, therefore, be biased. After a l engthy investigation, it has been established that White should play 1 2 1td2 ! here, to preve nt the black king's bis hop from checking on d4. The game D.Cramling­ Davies, played at Copenhagen 1 983, several months after my game with Agdestein, sadly demon­ strated what is the likely death­ knell of the black q ueen sacrifice: 1 2 . . . l!Jf6 ( 1 2 . . . ..te5 13 ..id3 l!Jf6 14 h3 0-0 1 5 b3 ! i.d7 1 6 a4 e6 1 7 llhel b 5 1 8 cb ed 1 9 ed lL! xd5 20 .ic4 l!Jf6 21 -.Pg I ±± Davies) 13 .id3 l!Jg4+ 14 �e2 0-0 1 5 h3 lL!e5 1 6 b3 .id7 (after 16 . . . f5 White m ust play 1 7 el1 but this is sufficient to keep his advantage) 17 a4 lla6 18 llac l llfa8 19 'it'f2. Wh i te is consolidating and the

Played partly to restrict White's king's bishop from use of g4. I n tending to auack the b-pawns, diagonally from e3.

�f2

The last difficult move of the game. If now 22 cb l!Jc5 wipes out White's q ueenside pawns, so White must submit to a variation which permits the exchange of his a�.:tive rook, and still leaves the k i ng's rook bottled up. ·

22

ab

ll:a2+

108 Modern D efence

23 24 25 26 27

lld2 1re3 1rxd2 1rc2 'it>g3 ( 141)

IOcS llxd2+ ll::l x b3 .td4+

141 B

If White's king goes to the back rank he will not be able to develop his king's rook .

27 28 29

..ieS+ ..id4+

Drawn by repetition of position. I was tempted by various sacrificial attempts to deliver mate, but could not quite make this work . Black may still be better positionally, but if he actually captures material t he white queen may escape and become a nuisance. The queen sacrifice in this game was nominated as · one of t he most important theoretical games of the year by the prestigious Yugoslav journal, Sahovski /nformator. It should be mentioned that in a later game Ginzburg-Arapovic, Lugano 1 984, White also got nowhere by allowing the check on d4 : 1 2 'trb3?! .td4+ 1 3 'it>d ll::l f6 1 4 lld 1 ..ic5 1 5 .td3 0-0 1 6 ..i b 1 b 5 ! 1 7 c b ( 1 7 'tlhb5 ..id7!) 1 7 . . . .td7 1 8 h3 ll a 5 19 ..id3 llfa8 20 a3 e5 2 1 de .txe6 with more than adequate compensation.

16

Dutch Defence 1 d4 f5

/4} w

Capablanca once denounced the Sicilian Defence ( I e4 c5) as an opening which "leaves Black's position full of holes". There are many who believe that the Dutch, the mirror image of the Sicilian, is a considerably more dubious proposition. Indeed, t he move I . f5 stakes out some sort of claim over t he e4 square, and also prepares subsequent general activity by Black on the kingside. On the negative side, though, it is a gratuitous weakening move, which diminishes important support for squares such as e6 and g6, and it contributes little to Black's develop­ ment. A common way for Black to suffer an accident in the Dutch is to be deluded i nto the belief that .

.

1 ... f5 is an immediately attacking move. Frequent disasters have overcome Black players who have launched inadequately supplied kingside attacks, relying only on their queen, king's rook , king's knight and kingside pawns, for­ getting about their lines of com­ munication with underdeveloped q ueenside units. Usually, White can detonate the entire undertaking with a timely central thrust, based on f3 and e4, exposing all of the weak nesses in the black structure, especially in the e-file. Black has three systems in the Dutch - the Stonewall ( with pawns on d5, e6 and f5); the Fluid (pawns on d6, e6 and f5) and the Leningrad, where Black fian­ chettoes his king's bishop. All three are playable, if Black is cautious and avoids premature adventures, and it should be mentio ned that the Dutch has been favoured by Botvinnik , Bronstein and former B ritish Champion, Robert Bellin, who has written an excellent book about it. There are various odp tries

/ / 0 Dutch Defence

against the Dutch: the Staunton Gambit ( I d4 f5 2 e4!?); the Korchnoi Gambit ( 1 d4 f5 2 h3 ll:lf6 3 g4 !?); al ternatively, I d4 f5 2 .i.g5 or 1 d4 f5 2 ll:lc3 ll:lf6 3 .i.g5 . . . Here, though, I reco mmend t he solid, classical variation based on g3 and the fianchetto of White's king's bishop. One good reason for this (apart from the method's inherent sound­ ness) is that Black may in troduce his Du tch via 1 d4 e6, inviting the French Defence with 2 e4, but avoiding the exciting ideas· men­ tioned above. The Dutch is treated in BCO, pages 36-4 1 .

Stonewall and Fluid Systems Keene-Fuller

I Commonwealth Championship

Melbourne 1 983 e6 I d4 f5 2 c4

Or 2 . . . .i.b4+ 3 .i.d2! 1t'e7 4 e4 d5 5 ..txb4 1txb4+ 6 1td2 1rxd2+ (6 . . . �c6 7 li:lc3 ! ) 7 ll:lxd2 1 because of White's spatial plus. 3 lLlf3 li:lf6

4

g3

See Diagram /43

4

..te7

Also worth considering is 4 . . . ..tb4+ 5 ..td2 to prevent White's

queenside fianchetto. This was in vented by Alek hine and cham­ pioned by B ronstein. Possible conti nuations are: a) 5 .i.xd2+ 6 1txd2 0-0 7 ll:lc3 d6 8 .i.g2 lLlc6 9 lld l 1We7 1 0 d5 ll:ldll ( 10 . . . ltle5 I I ll:lxe5 de 1 2 d6!) I I d e ll:lxe6 1 2 ll:ld5 1. b) 5 1We7 6 .i.g2 0-0 7 0-0 ..txd2 8 1!fxd2 ll:le4 9 1t'c2 d6 I 0 lLlfd2 ll:lxd2 I I 1t'xd2 e5 1 2 ll:lc3 c6 1 3 llad l 1 . c) 5 ..te7 6 .i.g2 d5 (6 . . . d6 7 0-0 0-0 ll ll:lc3 1t'e8 9 1t'c2 1t'h 5 1 0 e4 c 5 1 1 de de 12 ll:ld5 ! Szaho­ Bronstein, Candidates' Tourna­ ment, Budapest 1 950) 7 0-0 0-0 8 l0c3 c6 9 1t'c2 Well 1 0 a3! Introducing a highly sophisticated manoeuvre making expert use of White's bishop on d2, to trade dark-squared bishops: 10 . . . 1t'h5 I I lLla2! lLlbd7 1 2 .i b4 l1e8 1 3 .i.xe7 lhe7 1 4 ll:lb4 lLlg4 1 5 ll:ld3 ± Flohr-Szabo, M oscow­ Budapest match, 1 949. As we have seen, the following year Szabo ...

...

...

Dutch Defence 1 1 1

switched t o t he white side. Black can also try to pla nt h is king's bishop on the more aggressive square d6, e.g. 4 . . . d5 5 ..tg2 c6 6 0-0 ..id6. This gives Black extra influence in engineering the advance . . . f4, but White retains a positional edge by proceeding broadly as in the main game - fianchetto both bishops, play ltle5 and watch out for Black's k ingside ambitions: 7 b3 1te7 (to prevent ..ta3, exchanging Black's useful king's bishop) 8 ..ib2 0-0 9 1tc2 ..id7 (9 . . . b6 1 0 lt::l c3 lt::l e4 I I ll.he4 de 1 2 ltJe5 c5 1 3 llad I ..tb7 14 de :t Gligorii:) 10 lt:le5 lt::l a 6 I I li:Jd2 ..ie8 1 2 lt::l df3 ..th5 1 3 a 3 llac8 1 4 b4 lt::l b 8 1 5 .tel lt::l e4 1 6 lt::l d 3 g5 1 7 lt::l fe5 to be followed by f3 , and White retains a l l the advantages of his position, Kotov-Goldberg, USSR Ch 1 949. S ..ig2 0-0

6

0-0

dS

The main alternative is 6 . . . d6, when I recommend 7 li'ld 11ret! (144)

.

8 b3 ! rat her t han 8 lle I 1tg6 9 e4!? which is possible as a result of the tactical t rick 9 . . . fe I 0 lt::l x c4 lt::l xe4 I I llxe4 1txe4? ( I I . . . lt:lc6! is best) 1 2 lt::l h 4 netting Black's queen. However, the idea of open ing up the f-lile so q u ickly seems, to me, to be ra ther too co-operative. If White develops his pieces sensibly first, agai nst the nuid system, Black's 'aggressive' queen on g6 or h 5 will become a target (e.g. e3, lt::l e 2-f4) wh ile the thrust e4 will evolve later, after due preparation (first e3 then rook centralisation). Here is one example: 8 . . . a5 9 ..ta3 lt::l a6 1 0 llc l ..td7 I I eJ lt::l b4 1 2 ..tb2 1th5 1 3 a3 lt::l a 6 1 4 lt::l d 2 1th6 1 5 lle l (also playable, though more risky, is 1 5 ..ixb7 lt::l g4 1 6 lLlfJ lila 7 1 7 ..t xa6) 1 5 . . . c6 1 6 lLlfl ..ie!! 17 1td2 e5?! ( Black should instead seek to close thi ngs up with . . . d5!) 1 8 de de 1 9 lt\a4 lid!! 20 1txa5 lt::l d 7 2 1 b4 ± PortischCorden , H asti ngs 1 969-70. 7 lt::l c 3 Substant ially similar is the move-order variance: 7 b3, e.g. 7 ... lOeb!? H ..tb2 ..id7 9 lt::lc 3 .ie8 (such galvanization of the inferior queen's bishop to h5 or f7 often occurs in the Dutch) 10 lt::lg 5 ..tf7 I I e3 1td7 12 �x f7 ll x17 13 �a4 b6 14 llc I lt::l d 8 1 5 lt:lc3 IU1l I h fJ lt::l 17 1 7 c4 ! Polugayevsky­ Spassk y, Tilburg 1 983; or 7 . cfl 8 'tWc2 ..td7 9 ..tb2 ..te8 10 lt::l c 5 . .

1 12 Dutch Defence

l0bd7 I I /Od3 .th5, Kasparov­ Petrosian, Bugojno 1983, and now 1 2 /Of4! .tn 13 l0d2 followed b y 10 0 1 according t o Kasparov. c6 7

8

b3

I used to believe in Alekhine's pawn sacrifice: 8 llJe5 l0 bd7 9 llJd3 de 1 0 l0f4 /Ob6 1 1 e4 until I read Robert Bellin's book on the Dutch which pointed out the refutation I I . . e5! 1 2 de Wxd l 1 3 l hd 1 llJg4 H. .

8

llJe4

Or 8 . . . b6 9 .tb2 .tb7 10 e3 llJa6 1 1 llJe2 .td6 1 2 llJf4 We7 1 3 lic l ;t Keene-Bellin, Benedictine 1 98 1 . We8 (145) 9 .tb2 145 w

dark centre squares and tardy development of his queenside forces. More solid is 9 . . . 10d7 10 Wc2 .tf6, though W hite should prefer 1 0 e3, as in the game, intending /Oe2, 10e5 and then f3 . 1 0 e3 WbS 1 1 /Oe2 g5 To stop llJf4. llJd7 1 2 liJe5

13

f3

ltld6

1 3 . . . 10 xe5 14 de 10c5 also looks good for White. llJ(7 14 Wcl

1 5 cd or course, the simple 1 5 llJxd7 .txd7 16 e4 is at least !, but I

wanted to try for more.

15

ed

Or 1 5 . . . cd 1 6 liac l , good for White.

16

g4 (146)

146 B

The standard Dutch attempt to gain a kingside attac k . This can prove very dangerous if White isn't careful about how m uch leeway he allows his opponent on the kingside. Of course, to start his kingside play Black h as to make certain concessions, such as weak

The point of my idea, which leads to very interesting comp­ lications. 16 Wh4! After 1 6 . . . fg 1 7 liJg3 Black's

Dutch Defence 1 13

queen is embarrassed for decent squares. 11

er

J.d6!

Or 1 7 . . . �h6 18 e4 � xeS 1 9 de de when 20 •c4+ is annoying. � f6 1 8 f4 1 9 �£3! The only move. 19

�xeS

Tempting, but the best defence is 19 . . . g4 to close things up. Even then 20 llad I or 20 llae I leads to better chances for White.

20

de

Possible also is the exchange sacrifice 20 fe ltlg4 2 1 J.f3 � xe3 22 ..e2 � xfl 23 ll xf l .

though 25 10 xf5 ll xf5 26 J.xd4 m ust win.

24 25 26

�xe4 d71

26 27

llh3! (14 7)

J.e4 de

If now 27 . . . ef 28 1fd5 + :n 29 de'tt + or 2 7 . . . lle6 28 llg3 gf29 ef e3 30 •s2 llxf4 3 1 lld I •d8 32 •d5 wins; or 3 1 lld I e2 32 dl!•+ •xdl! 33 ll xd8+ x f l but 2 1 J.f3 J.c5 ! is slightly annoying. .

21 22

ed

23

'ttd 2

cd J.xfS!

Not 22 . . . � xe3 23 •c3.

Of cou rse not 23 �xf5 l hf5 24 Wxf5?? •xh2 mate.

23

llae8

Setting a neat trap 24 llac I ? .td3 ! 25 ll f3 gf and White is in trouble. 24 llf3! Setting a coun ter-trap into which Black falls, alt hough he didn't really have a good alternative. The best defence is 24 .. . d4,

Black lost on time 1 -0. I f 27 . . . -.xh3 2 8 •d5+ : n 29 -.xg5+ 'it;>f8 30 •xd8 mate; or 27 . . llxd7 28 1Wxd7 •f2+ 29 h8 ll:ie6+ If 2 1 . . . c;!,>gH 22 lt:lxd6 ±± . 21

14 15

lt:lxc4

..Wxa2?

16 17

lilfel lt:lfg5

lilae8

fe

Wildly over-opti mistic. 1 5 1txd2 i s still n o worse than t. Aiming at e6, Black's perennial wound in the Leningrad.

17

bS

Igor I vanov's note in lnformator gives the symbol here for 'with counterplay', but since Black is now swiftly demolished, I assume

White's cavalry tramples Black underfoot. A fter 23 :ers 24 lt:l:d'8 lt:Jxf'8 28 ll:ixn+ �8 Black resigned. ...

17

English Defence 1 d4 e6 2 c4 b6 3 e4 i.b'··.· position started to slide downhill. Nevertheless, Polugayevsky did bypass one extremely interesting and aggressive sacrificial possibility in the early stages of this game and that will form the topic of my recommendation in this section. For the English Defence see BCO, pages 32 and 33.

151 w

So named after exploits by English Masters such as Skipworth and the Rev. Owen in the latter half of the nineteenth century, and its resurrection by P.N . Wallis, Basman, M iles and myself in the 1 970's and 1 9 80's. This defence positively invites W hite to set up a mega lomaniac pawn centre, which Black will then snipe at with guerilla shots, such as . �b4 1fh4 and . . . f5. While I was acting as Viktor Korchnoi's second in the World Championship semi-final versus Polugayevsky at Evian 1 977, I succeeded in persuading him to t ry out the English Defence in game 6 of their match. Polugayevsky at first looked unbelieving and shocked, later extremely worried, as his . .

•

Polugayevsky-Korchnoi Candidates' Match Evian 1 977 e6 1 d4

Or I . . . b6 (Owen's Defence) 2 e4 ! .ib7 3 .id3! (1 52) 152 B

. . .

And now: a) 3 cS (Chandler-Spee lman, UK 1 976) 4 d5! blotting Black's queen's bishop out of play. b) 3 e6 4 t0f3 c5 5 c3 l.Df6 6 tfe2 cd 7 cd i.b4+ 8 it) bd 2 d5 9 e5 ! ...

...

English Defence I I 7

r o;en, Bugojno 1 978. /53 • -1 ef! J.xg2 5 w e:h+ �ffi 8 ... /:> ' " ... , , ] 1 0 ll g l � Ait I I I W�J tl . l n this line, 4 efl wins. The comparable variation (which I do not recom­ mend) I d4 e6 2 c4 b6 3 e4 J.b7 4 J.d3 f5 5 ef J.xg2 6 W"h5 + g6, is less clear, the extra moves ... e6 ar ' c4 being helpful to Black . White then has an i ncontestable Th-. related queenside fianchetto space advantage. defence: I d4 liJ f6 2 c4 b6 is s l0d2 i.b4 6 J. d 3 inferior: 3 l0c3 J.b7 4 1rc2 d5 5 cd f5 6 . . . 1rg4 !? could be tried here. �xd5 6 liJf3 e6 7 e4 l0xc3 8 be White m ust reply 7 c;Pfl and will J.e7 9 J.b5+ c6 10 J.d3 ;!;/ ±. then gain much time by chasing b6 2 c4 Black's queen. e4 3 7 �f3 ..txd2+ The strongest move, played s �n ? with an air of disbelief by A fter t he text White gains a Polugayevsky who obviously re­ pawn but loses the right to castle garded Black's set-up as a bad and also lets his pawn structu re be joke. ruined. To be consistent White 3 b7 i. must sacrifice two pawns with 4 1rc2! Polugayevsky's idea is to defend 8 i.xd2! 1rg4 9 llJe5 ! 1txg2 e4 without allowing a pin of the I 0 0-0-0 fe I I .ie2 ( 1 54) when vast knight o n c3 which would risk compl ica tions ensue. doubled pawns. /54 4 11rb4!? (I53) R Viktor had been analysing such weird moves days before this game, but to Polugayevsky it was unpleasantly new. It is surprisingly difficult to drive off the insolent black queen. After the only other plausible move 4 . . . i.b4+ White plays 5 J.d2 i.xd2+ 6 lihd2. 1

1 18 English Defence

Investigation by Korchnoi, Murei, Stean and myself immediately after the Polugayevsky game convinced us that White has truly dangerous attacking chances in this position. So dangerous, in fact, that Korchnoi was reluctant to repeat the entire defence. Let us examine some variations: a) 11 eJ? 1 2 .i.xe3 1hh l 1 3 lbh l .i.xh l 1 4 .i.h5+ g6 1 5 .i.xg6+ hg 1 6 'tlrxg6+ ±± . The trade of Black's q ueen for White's two rooks is, of course, clearly a disaster. b) I I 'tlrxf2 1 2 .i.g5 (threaten ing .i.h5+) 12 . . . 'tlrf8 1 3 llhfl 10f6 1 4 d5 with a terrific attack. c) I I . li:lf6 12 .i.e3 threatening both 1 3 li[dg l 'tlrh3 1 4 li[g3 and 1 3 h4, followed by lldg l . After I I . . . li:lf6 1 2 .i.e3 'tlrh3 1 3 lldg l ! threatens both ll xg7 and ll g3 plus .tg5 . d ) I I . li:l c6 is probably the best defence: 1 2 10xc6 .i.xc6 1 3 d5! and if now 13 . . . ecd 1 4 cd .i.xd5 1 5 llhgl 'tlrxf2 1 6 .i.h6 threatening .i.xg7, a nd .i.h5+. If 16 . . 0-0-0 then 1 7 .i.a6+. Or 1 6 . . . 'tlrxg l 1 7 li[xg I li:lxh6 1 8 'tlrxc7 0-0 1 9 'tlre5. e) 1 1 ... d6 1 2 llhg l 'tlrxf2 1 3 .tg5 ! again with the threat of .i.h5+, while lldfl may also prove annoying.

10 11 12 13

ef gf

.i.cJ

.i.xfJ li:lc6

0-0

'tlrhJ+ S passky advocated 1 3 ... 'tlrxf3 but pursuit of the attack is also excellent.

llel

14 15

'itlel 'itldl

llae8 e5! (155)

16 17

de .tel

li:lxe5

18 19

'tlrdJ li[xel

llxel

19 20 21

li[he I �xel

...

/55 w

...

..

.

.

.

8 9

.txdl

'tlrh5 10f6

I f 1 7 .i. xe5 ll xe5 1 8 ll xe5 'tlrxO+ and ... 'tlrxh I =F . 17 ll:l xfJ! P repari ng a neat combination which brings a decisive advantage. Or 19 �xe2 1rh5! and Black wins.

1tg2 ll:l xe 1

See Diagram 156

English Defence J J 9

2 6 llxn Wxg3 2 7 ll xg7+?? fails to the retrogressive 27 . . . Wxg7!

26

llf1 (157)

fg

/57 w

21

Jeopardising victory. B y inter­ posing 2 1 . . . Wg I + 22 �d2 and only then ... Wxh2 Korchnoi could have prevented the invasion of his position which now occurs.

22

lle7!

22 23 24 25

'it>e2 �el "trg3!

From now until adjournment (move 42) Polugayevsky plays excellently and brings about a dra wish ending.

=

1hg3

M aybe 25 . . :n is stronger for .

44: 27 ..ixf6 gf 28 lle8+ �g7 29 �f2 �h6 30 b4 �g5 31 lla8 �xf5 32 Iha7 d6 33 a4 c;t;>e6 34 aS ba 35 l ha5 f5 36 c5 llh7 37 cd cd 38 b5 h4 39 gh llxh4 40 lla8 llb4 41 llb8 c;t;>d5 42 'it;>fJ ( 42 ll b6! �c5 43 llc6 ) 42 ... llb3 43 �f4 'it>c5 xb5 44 llc8+? (44 �xf5 ) 44 45 'it>xf5 lle3 46 'it>f4 llel 47 Ild8 c;t;>cS 48 Ilc8+ 'it>d4 49 �fJ d5 50 �f2 Ile5 51 :t:la8 �c3 52 :t:la3+ 'it;>b4 53 Ilal d4 54 Ilcl d3 55 llc8 d2 56 Ilb8+ 'it>c3 57 llc8+ 'it;>d3 58 lld8+ 'it>c2 59 llc8+ 'it>dl 0- 1 . =

A difficult decision to make but it is the right one. Exchange of queens eases the task of defence.

25

Black stands better in the ending, but White has chances to draw, notably on moves 42 and

...

18

Miscellaneous Black Replies

1 d4 bS (158) 158 w

The Polish Defence looks weird, but is not so easy to crack. It should be mentioned that in the form I e4 a6 2 d4 b5 Tony Miles used it (as Black) to defeat World Champion, Anatoly Karpov in the European Team Championship in Sweden 1 980. Nevertheless, it is difficult to believe that Black can fully equalise by this eccentric feint away from the centre. I

159 w

around Black's kingside makes it exceptionally dubious. I d4 �c6 (/60)

d4 h6 (159)

The most wildly outrageous reply to I d4 , intending 2 . . . g5 to reach the Basmaniac Defence. Although this has been championed by Basman himself, the superfluous ventilation voluntarily created

An exceedingly rare defence which is by no means easy to refute. 2 d5 is obvious, but not totally convincing, while 2 e4 d5 leads to the labyrinths of Nimzo-

Miscellaneous Black Replies 121

witsch's Defence to I e4. Here I propose the simple 2 � t1 . when Black has nothing better than 2 . . . dS, retu rning t o the paths of Chigorin's Defence.

1 d4 d6 (161) 161 w

This ( Englund's or Charlick's Gambit) is just an inferior Budapest. The irregular answers to I d4 are dealt with on pages 47, 1 85, 1 86 and 187 of BCO.

Petrosian-Spassky World Championship Matcb (22) Moscow 1 966 I d4 b5

Here I examine the really rare alternatives on move I for Black: a) I h6 2 e4 gS 3 ,j,d3 d6 4 �e2 cS 5 c3 ll:\c6 6 0-0 � f6 7 ll:\d2 1tc7 8 b4 b6 :!! ±. b) 1 �c6 is difficult to refute. I recommend reversion to a line of the Chigorin which I briefly mentioned in Part 1: 2 �t1 ( threatening dS in earnest) 2 . . . dS 3 c4 ,1g4 4 cd ,j,xt1 5 gf •xd5 6 e3 eS 7 liJc3 .1b4 8 ,j,d2 ,j,xc3 9 be ed 1 0 cd liJf6 (or 10 ... ll:\ge7) I I ,j,g2 followed by •b3 ! c) 1 d 6 can hardly avoid transposing to one of the main lines I have already analysed. If Black insists on a sturdy indepen­ dence of spirit he can land in trouble: 2 c4 e5 3 �c3 ll:\c6 (3 . . . ed 4 1fxd4 �c6 S ..d2 transposes to a line of the English, where White controls d5 and has a small advantage: 5 . . . ll:\f6 6 b3 ,j,e6 7 e4 ;!; H ubner- Balashov, Rio de . Janeiro 1 979) 4 d5 ll:\ce7 5 g3 fS ( more sensible is . . . g6) 6 �f3 ll:lf6 7 ,j,g2 c5 8 liJg5 ± Csom-Suttles, ...

...

. . . d6 has virtually no independent significance and will usually transpose to the Modern, King's Indian or Old I ndian. White can also choose 2 e4, to transpose directly into the Pirc Defence. I

d4 e5 (162)

/6} w

...

122 Miscellaneous Black Replies

Bali 1982. Hi.ibner-Seirawan, Tilburg 19H3, we nt: I . . . d6 2 e4 g6 3 c4 e5 4 ti:Jc3 ti::l c6 5 d 5 liJce7 6 .td3 h5?! 7 f4 il.g7 8 ti:Jf3 u ±. d) I e5 2 de ti::l c6 3 ti:JO 1re7 4 1rd5 f6 5 ef ti::l xf6 6 1rb3 d5 7 ti:Jc3 d4 8 ti:Jb5 il.g4 9 ti::l bxd4 tt:Jxd4 1 0 ti::l xd4 0-0-0 I I c 3 ± . ...

2 3

e4 f3

/63 w

.te3 ti:Jd2 c3

6 7 8

il.d3 a4 ( 164)

e6

ti:Jf6

Petrosian does nothing to attempt an im mediate refu tation . He develops efficiently and establishes rock-like central fortifications.

.tb 7

Erecting a solid barrier in the path of Black's queen's bishop. Few world champions have been faced with this exotic defence, so it is worth quoting Ka rpov-M iles, Skara 1 980: I e4 a6 2 d4 b5 3 ti:Jf3 il.b7 4 il.d3 ti:Jf6 5 1re2 e6 6 a4 c5 a nd now 7 ab ab 8 l ha8 il.xaH 9 e5 c4 1 0 ef cd I I fg il.xg7 1 2 1Wxd3 1ra5+ (Miles) ( 1 63) offers Black compensation for his pawn. I n the game, Ka rpov chose 7 d e and after many fu rther vici�situdes the world champion actually wen t on to lose.

4 5 6

il.e 7 d6

164 8

The attack on b5 forces B lack to jam the diagonal of his queen's bishop.

8 9 10 II 12

�e2 0-0 ti::l g3 ab

13 14

lha8 Wc2

c6 ti)bd7 0-0 ne8 ab

1 2 . . . cb is more active, but reduces Black's quantity of pawns in the centre. There would also be no obvious way for Black to launch a 'minority attack' advance of his a- and b-pawns.

3

a6

1Wxa8 .tf8

Miscellaneous Black Replies I 23

IS

b4! (165)

An excellent strategic conception. He puts a greater clamp on Black's long term . . . c5 break, and also prepares seizure of the sole open file via ltl b3 and :a I .

IS 16 17 18

li:lbJ :at

trb8 g6 eS

'irf2

Further pressure against . . . c5, without which Black can never liberate his bishop on b7.

18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

de .ic2 .ia7 .ib6 .ia7 .i.b6 .ia7 ( 166)

dS ltlxe5 .ig7 1Wc7 1!t'b8 't!rc7 'irb8

An i nglorious episode in the game - Petrosian was not unwilling to pocket half a point, since this would virtually assure him of match victory and retention of his

title. He was, however, rcluctalll to claim the draw by repeti tion since he obviously stands bet ter. Spassky, of course, was desperate to avoid a draw but now commits hara-kiri in his misgu ided effort to extract more from the posi tion than is objectively present. Of course, Petrosian should have played 21 .i d4 ! ±, 23 .id 4 ! ± or 25 .id4! ±.

25 26

At last.

.id4!

1fc8?

h5 h3 I ntending f4 and e5. h4 27 28 ttJn de ltJed7 29 fe cS 30 ltJfd2 ltJxc5 31 ltJxcS 32 be ..Q.xe4 If 32 . . . ltJ xe4 .:n .ixe 4 ..Q. �4 34 ..Q.xg7 '.!txg7 35 Wd4+ ±±: . 33 ..Q.b3 ( ifll) 26 27

124 Miscellaneous Black Replies

/67

B

only had the adverse effect of wrenching open avenues for White's attack: the f-file and a7 for White's rook.

33

Black's central clearance has

j.f5

I f 33 . . . 1rc6 34 lla7 i.d5 35 i.xd5 'Wxd5 36 .txf6 ±±. �d7 34 lla7 35 �13 Threatening �g5 and 11hh4. 'Wb8 35 and 1-0 ( 36 c6 ±±).

Part V The Top Ten with 1 d4 ! 10

Svetozar Gligoric (Y ugoslavia)

9

A kiba Rubinstein ( Po land)

8

Samuel Reshevsky ( U S A )

7

Lajos Portisch ( H u ngary)

6

Vi ktor Korchnoi (Swi tzerland)

5

Tigran Petrosian ( US S R)

4

H arry Nelson Pillsbury (USA)

3

M ik hail Botvin nik

2

Alexander Alekhine ( Russia/France) G ary Kaspa rov (USSR)

126 The Top Ten with 1 d4!

Each of the top ten is represented by one game: Kasparov- Belyavsky, Moscow 1 983 Queen 's Gambit. Exchange

Alekhine-Marshall, Baden Baden 1 92 5 Marshall's Defence

Bohinnik- Larsen , N oordwij k 1965 Queen 's Gambit, Orthodox Exchange

Pillsbury-Marco, Paris 1900 Queen 's Gambit, Pii/Jbury A ttack

Petrosian- Fischer, Buenos Aires 1 97 1 Griinfeld

Korchnoi-Karpov, Hastings 197 1 /72 Torre A ttack

Portisch-Petrosian, Moscow 1 967 Queen's Gambit, Exchange Slav

Reshevsky- Fischer, Los A ngeles 1 96 1 Nimzo-Indian, Ragozin

Rubinstein-Teichmann, Vienna 1 908 Queen 's Gambit, Orthodox

Gligoric-Petrosian, Belgrade 1 954 Czech Benoni

The 1 d4 Oscars US G randmaster Andrew Soltis, chess correspondent of the New York Post, once asked me to nominate the ten greatest players of I d4. I never found time to respond to his question directly, but here, in my book devoted to I d4, seems the appropriate time and place to publish my list of the I d4 Oscars. I have given them in order, with one annotated game each to demonstrate their prowess. Of course, my list is controver­ sial. O bjections could be raised, for example, that Alekhi.'l e was also a major exponen t of I e4, or that the list should embrace Capablanca, Spassky, Tal, Polu­ gayevsky, Euwe, N ajdorf, Browne, Bogoljubow . . . . However, in his

world title matches Alekhine was a staunch adherent of I d4, while Capablanca, Tal and Spassky, for example, relied heavily on 1 e4 for their i mportant competitions. My choice of Kasparov for the number one spot, in preference to Alekhine or Botvinnik, also needs some explanation. My own feeling is that Kasparov's interpretation of I d4 blends icy efficiency and almost balletic artistry in a way that excels the achievements of his mighty antecedents. A t the mo­ ment, Kasparov's rating is 27 1 0, the world's highest, and I believe that, still only twenty-one, he has the capacity to equal, or surpass, Fischer's all-time rating Everest of 2780.

Svetozar Gligoric G Jigoril:-Petrosian

Belgrade 1 954 Czech Benoni

1 2 3 4

d4

ll:lf6

d5

e5 d6 � bd7 a6

c4

cS

� c3 5 e4 6 �n 7 .ie2 With this move White declares his intention of castling kingside. The scheme is not as overly aggressive as the 0-0-0 based line I analyse in the Czech Benoni chapter, but it is an excellent alternative option. .i e7 7

8

9

0-0

ll:le1

0-0

Heading for d3, from where the knight can support either b4 or f4, assaulting Black's twin defensive horns at c5 and e5. lLle8 9 � c7 1 0 � d3 Heading the wrong way. Black should prepare for . . . f5 to increase his kingside influence, e.g. 10 . . . g6 I I .ih6 ll:lg7 1 2 .d2

�h8 planning hounding Whi te's queen's bishop. 11

a4

11 12

.ieJ

�e8-f6-g8, threatening

He must not allow the liberating advance . . . b5 .

l:l:b8 .i.g5 ( 168)

/6/J w

This is positionally desirable since Black's king's bishop is restricted by his dark-squared pawn chain, while W hite will be left, a fter the bishop swap, with a light-squared bishop slightly ham­ pered by his pawns at e4, d5 and c4. Significantly, Black waits to play . . . .ig5 until W hite has expended a tempo with .ie3. Black cannot, of course, expand with 1 2 . . . b5? because of 13 ab ab 1 4 cb �xb5 15 � xb5 l:l:xb5 1 6

Svetozar G/igoric 129

10xe5! unearthing an attack against Black's rook.

13

Wd2!

e3 will provide a fine square for Whi te's queen.

13 14 15

'ttxe3 aS!

j.xe3 h6

If Black does not react, White will now roll him up with li[fb l and b4. Thus we see t hat, in spite of the strategically valuable bishop exchange, W hite is still at the controls because of his terrain advantage. This permits him the luxury of being able to choose either b4 or f4 as a means of progress.

15 16 17

ab b3

b5 10xb6 li[a8

18

f4!

ef

19

Wxf4

f6

20 21

10d1 10e3

We7 g5?

22

10f5!

j.xfS

23 24

Wxf5 'tlt'g4

'tth 7

24 25 26 27

li[ae8 10d7 li[ f5 li[afl li[e7 b4! (169)

Unfortunately forced.

Obviously White does not exchange queens. With Black's kingside so full of holes it makes sense to keep the most powerful aggressive unit on t he board.

/69 B

Black's snail-like plan is . . . a5, ... j.d7 and finally ... a4. Relying on use of the vacated e5 square to aid his defence. Securely squashing White's dream of breaking down Black's barricades with e5. Gligoric rightly condemns this as an "impulsive move". Not only does it undermine Black's influt:nce over f5 , it also exposes the g5 pawn to later tactical operations. Safer is 21 . . . c;i;>h8.

Black's fortress cannot be breached by kingside action alone. This thrust creates the requisite diversion to knock away its foundations.

27 28

c5

29

1Wg3!

cb h5

Neither here, nor on the next move, can Black capture on c5, since the advance d6 wins a piece. Not 29 'tt x h5? Wxh5 30 .._xh5 li[xe4.

29

li[xe4

130 Svetozar Gligoric

30 c6 lil xe2 Or 30 . . . lLlb6 3 1 1fxd6! lil xe2 32 lilxg5+ ! a nd wins. 31

1 70

1fxd6

Much stronger than regaining his piece. The sacrificial com­ bination which Gligoric has en­ visaged, and which now follows, is spectacularly beautiful. lLlbS 31 lLlb8 32 1hb4 33 lilxg5+! 'it'll 34 lilxf6+! (1 70) A corruscating crescendo of sacrifices. White gives up almost every piece to inflict mate.

34

35

36

1fxf8+

h4+

'it'xf6 'it'xgS

1-0 36 . . . �xh4 37 1ff4, or 36 . . . Wg6 37 lLlf4.

Akiba Rubinstein Rubinstein-Teich mann Vienna 1908

10 11

0-0-0

b4

cS c4? (1 72)

Q GD Orthodox

1

2 3 4 S 6 7

d4 c4

lt:lc3

.igS e3

lt:lf3

'Wc2 (1 71)

dS e6 lt:l f6 lt:lbd7 .ie7 0-0

17/

B

Rubinstein's patent, against which the correct reply is the active 7 . . . c5 ! . The choice of the Austrian grandmaster allows White to initiate a superior form of the Exchange Variation with 0-�0.

7

8 9

cd .id3

b6 ed .ib7

The same category of error that Marco committed against Pillsbury in their game later in this section. Black voluntarily crystallises the central situation into a static one, where he has little or no hope of striking back in time with . . . a6, . . . b5 , . . . b4 etc. It is rewarding to compare this position with the Botvinnik-Larsen game, where . . . c4 i s a reasonable decision. In this game Black should prefer 1 I llc8, though 12 'lib 1 lle8 13 de llxc5 14 lt:ld4 also favoured White in the earlier game Rubinstein­ Teichmann, Carlsbad 1907. Another example is 1 I a6 1 2 g4 c4 1 3 .if5 g6 1 4 .i.xf6 .ixf6 1 5 .••

...

132 Akiba Rubinstein

g5 Jl.g7 1 6 Jl.xd7 1rxd7 1 7 lt'le5 1re7 HI f4 ± Spassky-Bobotsov, Havana 01 1 966. lle8 1 2 Jl.fS

13

Jl.xf61

An excellent move, dragging Black's knight towards f6, where it is a target for White's soon-to­ be-advancing army of kingside pawns. White m ust first capture on f6, before Black can consolidate with . . . lt'lf8.

13 14 15 16

g4 g5

hS

lt'lxf6 .id6 lt'le4 'ti'e7

Alternatively, 1 9 . . . c;!;>h6 20 gf Wxn 2 1 llg6+ �h7 22 /t) xe4 followed by a murderous check on g5; or 19 ... fg 20 /t) xe4 de 21 lt'lg5+ �h6 (2 1 . . . �g8 22 'ti'xc4+) 22 hg+ �xg6 23 /t) xe4+ �f7 24 1rxc4+ and wins.

20

lt'lxe4

de

If 20 . . . 1rxe4 2 1 gf+ �xf7 22 lt'lg5+. 21 h6! (1 74) 1 74 B

Or 1 6 . . . lt'l xg5 1 7 lt'l xg5 1rxg5 18 .ixh7+ 'it>f8 19 h6 gh 20 lldg 1 , a variation given b y Tarrasch. 1 7 lldgl a6 (1 73) / 73 w

White's pos1t10n is obviously very promising indeed, but what is the most accu rate way of clinching matters? Rubinstein's solution is staggering.

18 19

.ixh7+ ! ! g6+

'it>xh7 �g8

The climax of White's majestic campaign. The most tenacious defence is now offered by 21 . . . fg when 22 llxg6 ef 23 ll xg7+ 'ti'xg7 24 hg .ie4! 25 9xc4+ c;t;>xg7 26 ll g l + 'it>f6 is not convincing fo r White. Stronger is 2 1 . . . fg 22 h7+ n ( 22 ... h8 23 o.?lh4 spells instant doom) 23 lll h4 g5 24 lll f5 'tlt"e6 25 llxg5 g6 26 llh6, while most devastating of all, perhaps, is j ust 22 lt'Jh4! when Black's king's shield inelu�:tably disintegrates, e.g. 22 . . . gh 23 lt'l xg6 or ll xg6+, while 22 . . . g5

A kiba Rubinstein 133

loses to 23 lt:lg6 1t'f6 24 h7+ 'it>l7 25 h81t' litxh8 26 lt:lxh8+. I n his Art of A l lack Vukovic claims that Black ca n resist with 26 . . . rt/e7 27 1t'e2 c3 28 be ..ta3+ 29 c;i/b l 1t'f5, but after 30 lit h 5 ! I do not set: it. What Black plays encourages his opponent to bo w out with a rapid flourish.

21

hg li[h8+

li[h7+ 1t'f5!

25 26

litxe7

�g8

Threatening 1t'h5 , g7 and litxe7. It ma kes no difference what Black does now.

c3

f6�!

1 -0 26 . . . lit xe7 27 1t'xf6 li[d8 28 lith I wins. A truly amazing game.

ef rt/xg7

"A dashing victory in the grand mannt:r", said the noted critic and connoisseur Hans Kmoch.

If 2 1 . . . ef 22 gf+ 'it'xl7 23 hg! wins.

22 23

24 25

Samuel Reshevsky Reshevsky-Fischer Match (7) Los Angeles 1961 QGJJ I Nimzo-Indian (Ragozin)

I 2 3 4 5 6

d4

�f3

c4 lt:lc3 e3

,j,d3

dS lt:lf6 e6 .ib4 0-0 fi:Jc6!? (1 �5)

175 w

There is nothing wrong with 6 . . . c5, transposing directly into the N imzo-I ndian, where W hite no longer has recourse to 10ge2. Fischer used to enjoy playing this obscure line which blocks his own c-pawn, but several reverses ultimately persuaded him to abandon it.

7

a3

A good alternative is 7 0-0 de (7 . . . a6 8 h3!) 8 ,j,xc4 .td6 9 lt:lb5 .ie7 10 h3 a6 I I lt:lc3 b5 1 2 .td3 .ib7 and now 13 a4 and 1 3 11re2 (Gligoric-Fischer, Leipzig 01 1960) both favour White.

7

.txc3+?!

A dubious exchange . Greater tension arises from 7 . . . de 8 .t xc4 ,j,d6 9 b4 e5 10 d5 fi:Je7 1 1 ,j,b2 .tg4! and now either 1 2 Wc2!? or 12 h3 .td7 1 3 �g5 with the curious threat of 10e6 ! , e.g. 13 . . . 10g6? 1 4 �e6! fe 1 5 de �h8 16 ed ± . This was a line I analysed with US GM Larry Christiansen, while I was functioning as his assistant at the 1 982 Moscow I n terzonal.

8 9 10 11

be

lt:ld2 0-0 cd

fi:Ja.S c5

b6 eel (1 76)

Black captures with the pawn to maintain a foothold in the centre, thus discouraging white advances such as c4 or e4. H owever, the structure before us can be recognised from my chapter on the N imzo­ I n dian and it is one which is excellent for White. The point is

Samuel Reshevsky 135

16

that Black cannot ultimately prevent White from marching through the centre with e4; meanwhile, Black is unable to play quick . . . ..ta6, swapping White's k ing's bishop, which now stays on the board for some time representing a powerful distant menace to Black's king. f"3

12 13

lle1

14

lla2!

lle8 ..te6

Blac k's queen's bishop would exert more influence on the centre from b7. Another idea worth considering is 1 2 . . . �b7!? followed by . . . lt:ld6 and then . . . ..tb7 or . . . ..tf5. The standard 'Arabic' develop­ ment of White's queen's bishop, the most efficient method of bringing it into action on the kingside, or in t he centre.

14 15

llc8

�n cd S triving for counterplay down the c-filc.

cd

hS?! ( 1 77)

An in teresting moment. I t should not be forgotten that White has two aggressive plans at his disposal, either e4 followed by e5 and a general advance of his kingside pawns, or g4 and then �g3, followed, perhaps, by g5 and f4, pushing Black back. Fischer must have been very concerned by the second of these possibilities and decided to stop it for good, but . . . h5 proves very weakening when White actually opts for plan A. New York GM Edmar Mednis recommends instead the con­ structive waiting move 16 ... •d7, and he is surely right.

17

h3

Still threatening g4, so Fischer continues with remorseless logic to stop it. 17 h4 But now the h-pawn is hopelessly cut off from Black's lines of com munication. 18 llf2 •d7

136 Samuel Re.shev.sky

19 20

e4! fe (1 78)

de

I f now 2 1 . . . Wxd4? 2 1 e5 threaten ing to win Black's qu een with �h 7+ and after 22 . .. lii: e d8 22 ef 1hd3 2 3 lii: d 2 ±t.

20 21

'ifd2

22 23 24 25 26 27

i.c2 .txb3 e5 'ifg5 'ilg4 �g5 (1 79)

i.b3 i.c4

Or 2 1 . . . ... xd4 22 e5 lii: fd8 23 ef ... xd3 24 liteS+! ±t.

lL!b3 i.xb3 lL!d5 ...e7 lii: c6

Here Black is obviously lost, since 27 . . . tfe6 28 ...xh4 followed

by lLJg3 is horrible. What Fischer plays is a blunder which shortens the process.

27 28

1Wxa3

...d7

1 -0 Black cannot protect c6, e8 and f7 at once. Few people have dispatched Fischer so decisively. Reshevsky has a phenomenal record, having beaten Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine, Euwe, Botvinnik, Smyslov and Fischer. Of living players, only Botvinnik can surpass this achievement, but at the age of 73 Reshevsky is still playing, while Botvinnik quit competitive chess for good when he reached 60.

Lajos Portisch Portisch-Petrosian Moscow 1 967 QGD, Slav Exchange

1 2 3

d4 c4 cd

dS c6

With the i m mediate exchange White: avoids any possible comp­ lications arising from . . . de.

3 4 5 6 7 8

�c3 �f3 jJ4 e3 ..i g3 (180)

cd �f6 �c6 e6 .i.d6

180

B

Black prefaces . . . 0-0 with 8 . . ..txg3 9 h g 'ttd 6, trying t o equalise with . . . e5, White has 10 .id3 e5 I I de �xe5 1 2 � xe5 1!txe5 1 3 1!fa4+ ..id7 14 'tif4! 'tt xf4 1 5 gf, with a very pleasant position based on his mobile centre and ki ngside pawns, general dark-squared con­ trol and play against Black's fixed I QP. .

8 9 10

0-0 liteS

..td3 �eS

A version of the: ' Pillsbury A ttack' , which is seen in its purest form in the game Pillsbury­ Marco . The knight on e5 is very threatening and Black hastens to remove it.

10

..ixeS

Of course not 10 . . . �xe5? I I de winning a piece.

11 12

lLld7 1llb 6?

de f4

A superior alternative to the pawn-snatching text is 1 2 . . lLlc5! After Black has com mitted his king to the kingside, it is dangerous to swap bishops on g3, op e n i ng up the h-file for attac k . I f, however,

13 lLlb5 lLl xd3+ I H !hd3 'W'a 5+ 1 5

�1'2 lLlb4 1 6 ire2 b6 1 7 lLld6 �a6 J g 11fd l llJd3+ 1 9 �g l a v a r i a t i o n given by Varnusz, but doubt lt:ss ,

stemming from consultat ion with

138 Lajos Portisclr

Portisch. This position is hard to evaluate, but probably favours White who will unravel with 1i'c2, h3, ¢>h2 etc. H is k night on d6 is more firmly entrenched than Black's on d3. 13 0-0! (181)

16

lU"3

li:lg6

Or 1 6 . . . 1i'xb2 1 7 ll b 1 tfxc3 1 8 .i.xh7+ winning Black's queen. 17 .i.fl (182) /81 B

181 B

Calmly ignoring Black's demon­ stration. If Petrosian does not take one of the two pawns on offer, then his . . . 1i'b6 would be revealed as a total waste of time. 1i'xe3 + 13 Or 1 3 . . . 1i'xb2 1 4 f8 ( 1 9 . . . h6 20 i.xg6 fg 2 1 1i'xg6 - 19 ... 1i'a5 20 1i'xh7+ 'it>f8 2 1 ll b5 and i.c5+) 20 1i'xh7 li:lxf4 21 .i. h4! and B lack is mated, since his k in g cannot escape via e7.

17 18

xg7

Viktor Korchnoi Korchnoi-Karpo\' Hastings 1971/72 Torre A llack

I 2 3

d4 ll:lf3 .i gS

ll:lf6 e6 b6

Korchnoi's choice of opening was su rprising, at the time; his i dea may have been to avoid. his opponent's excellent k nowledge of main line opening theory . Though Karpov's 3 . . . b 6 cannot be called a mistake, it may be a psychological error, si nce it allows White to create a position where Black has the bishop pai r but is otherwise passive. 3 ... c5 is more combative, leading to u nfathom­ able complications after 4 e3 'lrb6 5 lll b d2 'tlrxb2 6 .id3 d� 7 c4 1fc3 8 �e2! � bd 7 9 'ira4. Karpov needed only a draw from this game, played in the penultimate round, to clinch first place. This explains his cautious approach.

4 5

e4 .ixf6

/84 w

h6 'tlrxf6 (184)

6 .idJ Also interest ing is 6 a3!? e.g. 6 . . . .ib7 7 ll:lc3 d6 8 'tlrd2 ll:ld7 9 0-0-0 g5? ! 10 ll:lb5 �d8 I I h4 g4 12 e5 ± Korchnoi-Kcres, USSR Championship 1 965. 6 7

.ib7

�bdl a6 Black fears that 7 . . . ll:lc6 H c3 0-0-0 would be met by 9 1re2 followed by .ia6. The text safe­ guards t he bishop from exch ange but costs va luable time. Both now and on the next move Black should have considered regrouping with . . . 'tlrd8. In the line played Karpov's queen becomes exposed.

Viktor Korchnoi 141

8 9 10

1t'e2 0-0-0 ¢>bl

d6 �d7

A useful move, wa1tmg for Black to commit h imself in the centre, which he now does.

10

16

g4!

16 17

g5

18 19 20 21

g6! lilhgl lOgS lt:le6

23

lildn?

23 24 25 26

lt:lxa8 c4 �d3

bS! �xa8 lilb8 We8?!

27 28

l:i:cl l:i:g2

i.. f6 llbb?

Beginning an advance of pawns to open lines for the attack on the black king. After 1 7 . . . hg 1 8 lildg l ! ±.

e5

Karpov should still play 1 0 . . 1t'd8 followed by J.e7 and . . . 0-0.

.

II 12 13

If

13 .

14

c3 �c4 J.c2

. .

�e7 0-0 l:Ue8

ed 1 4 cd lilfe8 1 5 e5!

d5!

By sealing the centre Korchnoi gives his pieces more freedom to manoeuvre as well as shutting Black's bishops out of the game.

14

c5?

The decisive strategic mistake, permitting White full scope to build up a powerful k i ngside attack. It was necessary lo retain possibilities of counterplay with . . . c6, either immediately or after 14 . . . �f8.

IS

1115 w

ll:le3

1td8 h5 fg

trf6

J.e7 lt:lf'8

An auempt to repel boarders at the cost of t h e exchange. A fter the a l ternat ive 2 1 ... lilacS 22 lil g2 lt:lf8 23 lil dg I 'it'h 7 24 lt:l x f8 lhfll 25 lilxg6 trxg6 26 lilxg6 g8 1 6 1txg4 1tc6 1 7 ltJd6! 1td7 (187)

Here the game Petrosian-Benko, . Candidates' I 962 ( round l 2 ) con­ cluded: 18 1txd7 ltJ xd7 19 ltJxc8 ll xc8 20 f4 llc2 2I �e2 .ih6 22 lt:lf3 llxb2 23 g3 g5 !--S - !--S . At the time, it was believed that White might have won with I8 1th4 ! ? but then Botvinnik indicated the defence 18 . . . h6 I9 ltJ xc8 hg 20 1tc4+ e6 ! 21 ltJd6 ltJc6 22 ltJe4 �xeS!

5

c5

Black may also enter fearful

complications with the pawn sacrifice 5 . . . 0-0, though currently this wild line appears to be good for White: 6 cd ltJ xd5 7 lt:lxd5 1txd5 8 .ixc7 lt:lc6 9 lt:le2 .ig4 I O f3 llac8 I I �c3 1te6 I 2 .if4 ltJxd4 I 3 fg llfd8 14 .id3 lt:le6 I 5 1tb i !De 5 1 6 .ie2 lt:lc4 I 7 0-0 lt:ld2 I S

144 Tigran P�trosian

1fc2 � xfl 19 �xf l ! .txc3 20 be 1ff6 2 1 g5 1fxc3 22 1fxc3 l hc3 23 l:td I ! ± Timman-Schmidt, I ndonesia 1983. I t seems that Fischer also distrusted this ambitious black strategy.

6 7

de l:tcl

1taS �e4!

The most pointed choice. After

7 . . . de 8 .txe4 0-0 Black can only

aspire to laborious equality.

8

ed

8 9 10

1fd2 be

10 11 12

WaS �d7 .te4 liJel (188)

For a while White falls behind i n development, but realises on " gain of material or s trong centre to offset this.

�xe3

1fxa2

I would be tempted by exchange sacrifices based on 10 llxc3, offering the queen's rook for Black's strong king's bishop, but somehow I doubt that such concepts can be proved sound.

/88 B

With ten years of hindsight, Black's best course at this stage was fou nd to be 1 2 . . . � xc5 1 3 0-0 �e4 14 1fc2 �d6 with a complicated position if White retreats h is king's bishop. I n the game Farago­ Ceshkovsky, Banja Luka 198 1 , White sought to attack Black's king with a manoeuvre of truly Eolithic subtlety: 15 .txd6 ed 1 6 1fe4+ 'it> f8 1 7 liJd4, but Black unravelled easily enough ( . . . .tf6, . . . �g7) when his passed a-pawn proved exceptionally powerful. 12 liJeS .tfS? 1 3 .ta:Z The transparent th reat of a black knight check on d3 is easily met, though Fischer may have underestimated White's possibility of giving up his dark-squared bishop for B lack's knight - the same course which brought disaster to Farago ten years latt:r. Correct (again with much hindsight) is 1 3 . . . 1hc5 1 4 0-0 0-0 1 5 c4 a5 1 6 e4 1f b4 with a tough fight i n view, Farago (the same)- Filipowicz, Banja Luka 1 98 1 .

14

.txeS!

.txeS

'i!heS IS liJd4! Fischer must allow h is kingside pawns to be shattered, if he wishes to regain his pawn. The alterna tive of 1 5 . J.d7 1 6 l:t b l is also unpleasant, while 16 c6 also does not look ridic ulous. gf 16 liJxfS . .

Tigran Petrosian 145

17

shackles totally. The humble 19 tlc5 might b e in order, however miserable it looks.

0-0 (189)

•oo

/89 B

20

Black's position has become quite wretched as a result of his error on move 1 3. His king has no safe refuge, and the pawn on f5 is doomed if White sets about besieging it. The best way of solving the problems is Mednis' suggestion: 1 7 f4 ! ( if Black waits White may fix the pawn on f5 with f4, and t hen pick off f5 at his leisure) 18 ef j,d6 followed by 0-0-0. A strict blockade by Black's queen and bishop on c5 and d6 will shut White's k.ing's bishop out of play for some time, and with opposite bishops on the board, White will experience difficulty in converting his extra pawn into a win. o o •

0 0 .

17

1ra5?

A further error, relieving the blockade, which encourages White to revive the fortunes of his temporarily muftled king's bishop.

18 19

1rc2 c4

f4 fe

After this White breaks his

c5! ( / 90)

A pawn is no price at all to pay for the mobility White has achieved. If, for example, 20 ef+ 2 1 Wxf2 0-{) 22 j,b I and either f7 or h 7 will collapse. oo•

20 21 22

Wd2

h7 25 Wxh4+ 'it>g7 26 Wg4+ 'it>h7 27 litd3 ±±.

In spite of the terrrible exposure of his king, and White's golden horde of pawns, B lack, with rook and two pieces for the queen, can

certainly fight on. Here, for example, White must not rush in with 27 f5? because of 27 ... litd7! , when Whi te's best is 28 Wg5+ and perpetual.

e3

27

If 27 . . . litac8 28 f5 .ta6 29 e6 fe 30 f6 ±± and White immediately achieves his basic objective - to nail Black down with h is pawns.

28

litel

And not 28 Wxc7? e2 29 Wxb7 litd 1 30 Wxa8+ q;>g7 H. 28 ef+ The best chance is 28 . . . e2, though White still wins with 29 f3 litd 1 30 'l;>f2 .ta6 3 1 Wxc7 litad8 32 Wxa7 lit xe 1 3 3 ti'xa6 118d 1 34 f5 :±± . Black's choice deprives him of his e-pawn, the only real counterforce at his disposal. The game finished: 29 ¢'d2 litd2+ 30

lite2 libel+ 3 1 'it>xe2 .ia6+ 32 'it>f2 o!Oe6 33 rs lll d4 34 e6 :rs 35 WgS+ 'i!t>h7 36 e7 liteS 37 f6 llle 6 38 'W'hS+ �g8 1 -0. ( 39 Wg4+ �h7 40 Wa4 o!Oc7 4 1 Wd7 ±t).

Bibliography The following is a list of the major sou rces I have found helpful in writing OR W. The readc:r may find many of them useful in his own further studies. Kasparov & Keene Keene & Levy Larsen's section Ed. Matanovic Ed. Matanovic J . Wa tson Lam ford Cafferty & Hooper Barden, H artston, Keene Botvinnik & Estrin Grunfeld Defence Keene & Taulbut How to Play the Nimzo-lndian Benoni for the Tournament PlayerN u nn Modern Defence Keene & Botterill Classical Dutch Bellin Kasparov & Wade Fighting Chess Alekhine's Best Games 193/J-45 Alexander BotYinnik's Bes/ Games 1 947-70 Botvinnik Sergeant & Watts Pillsbury's Chess Career Petrosian 's Best Games Clarke Botsford Chess Openings (BCO) ORAP How to Open a Chess Game 5-Yolume ECO New in Chess 1970-81 Chigorin 's Defence Albin Countergambit A Complete Defence to J d4 King's Indian Defence

Batsford Batsford RHM Ba tsford Elsevier Ba tsford Batsford Pergamon Batsford RHM Batsford Batsford Batsford Batsford Ba tsford Bell/Tartan B atsford Printing Craft Bell/Hyman