Middlegame Planning

Middlegame Planning by Georgi Orlov

Planning ahead is a very important part of the playing process. One of the great players of the last century, Mikhail Chigorin, once said: “Even a poor plan is better than no plan at all.” The right plan can save a poor position, while the wrong plan can break a good one. How should a player make a plan, what kind of process is involved? There are several steps in the making of a plan: 1) Detailed assessment of the current situation on the board. This is the most difficult task; 2) Identifying and defining your own goals as well as your opponent’s goals; 3) Creation of a plan. Let’s take a look at each of these steps. DETAILED ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION ON THE BOARD There are several factors that must be included in this. A) Safety of Kings, first your own, second, your opponent’s. B) Misplaced pieces and pawns, unprotected pieces and pawns, smothered pieces. C) Pawn structure. D) Activity of the pieces. E) Open files & diagonals. F) Central outposts. A) THE SAFETY OF THE KINGS (first your own, second, your opponent’s) Is your King safe? a) Is the pawn structure around it sufficient against possible attacks? b) Are there enough pieces to protect it in case of some sacrifice that may draw it out? c) Is the back rank covered? If the answer to any of these questions is NO, than serious consideration must be given to prophylactics. The same checking procedure should be applied to your opponent’s King. It is important to be aggressive in the game. If you think that the opponent’s King is less safe than yours, then you should make use of this factor by attacking. Tal - Unknown, simultaneous exhibition

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While evaluating this situation, the great Mikhail Tal noticed that the situation with Black’s King deserves special attention – particularly, there is no Rook to protect the back rank. Another important point was a lack of protection for Black’s Queen. In case of the obvious 1.Rxh1 Nh5 2.f4 Nc4 Black would be in a good shape. It is always important to look for unusual moves! 1.gxf6! Rxd1 2.Nxd1! Now the Queen on a5 is under attack and so is the Bishop on g7. 2...Qxd2 3.fxg7!! An amazing combination, Black resigned. B) MISPLACED, UNPROTECTED, or SMOTHERED PIECES & PAWNS These things need immediate attention. Carefully check the status of all your pieces and pawns. Anything that needs to be defended must be taken care of first. Do the same against your opponent’s pieces and pawns – see if you can immediately take anything or attack anything. Always look for targets. Any piece that is not protected or poorly protected must be targeted for attack. Tactical considerations in many positions overrule positional factors! Let’s take a look at the following game. R. Fischer - S. Reshevsky

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What should White do here? Both Kings are safe, and the pawn structure is undefined. The e5-pawn is attacked. White’s pieces are clearly more active, both Bishops have active diagonals, White seems to have more control in the center. Another obvious factor is lack of space for the Black pieces. Smothered pieces make ideal targets. Should White play 9.f4 protecting the pawn? NO! 9.Bxf7!! Bobby noticed that in case of Nd4-e6 only the f7-pawn can take the Knight, the d7-pawn is pinned! 9...Kxf7 White wins the Queen after 9...Rxf7 10.Ne6. 10.Ne6!! A great move. Due to the pinned d7-pawn, Black’s Queen has no moves. The only way Black can save his Queen is by taking the brave Knight with the King, but 10...Kxe6 meets 11.Qd5+ Kf5 12.g4+! Kxg4 13.Rg1+ and Black gets checkmated. 10...dxe6 11.Qxd8 and White eventually won. As we can see, immediate tactical considerations are often more important than anything else. C) PAWN STRUCTURE Pawn structure always plays an important part in determining a plan – even more so in the case of fixed pawn chains (c4, d5, e4 vs. c7, d6, e5, or f7, e6, d5 vs. d4, e5). Most of the time the base of the chain should be attacked (in practice it’s the middle of the chain, since the bottom can’t be reached). In positions with other types of pawn structure a player should look for weak pawns that can be attacked. In certain cases the pawn structure defines the attacking plan, like the kingside pawn storms in the Dragon Variation. In case of the opponent’s attack on the wing, serious consideration must be given to counter offensive in the center. Such a central counterattack may be even stronger if opponent’s King is still uncastled. Let’s take a look at the following position. Van der Wiel - Kasparov, Moscow 1982 3

Shortly after the opening, White started some action on the kingside. Here Kasparov had a dilemma. Should Black continue his development with, say 14...Na6, or play 14...Bf8 first, opening the e-file? White’s King is obviously unsafe. The pawn structure in the center is stable, there is no way to undermine it. On further consideration, Kasparov concluded that 14...Bf8 would not be enough because he needs other pieces to help with his attack. Therefore he played... 14...Nfd7! This blocks the light-squared Bishop, but opens the important d8-h4 diagonal, which will allow the darksquared Bishop to come out to h4 or g5. 15.Ng3 Bg5 16.Kf2 The first concession, White lost his right to castle. 16...Ne5 The Knight comes closer to his opponent’s King and eyes the g4-, f3- and d3-squares. White tries to bring his own pieces out. 17.Bb5 Bd7 18.Bxd7 Nbxd7 19.Nef5 Van der Wiel tries to counterattack on the kingside. 19...c4! The success of an attack often depends on whether the opponent’s position can be penetrated. Black makes d3 an outpost and in case the Knight gets there, the Rook on e8 will play an important role too. 20.Nh5 White offers an Exchange, hoping to slow his opponent’s attack down. 20...Nd3+ 21.Kg2 Bxc1 22.Rxc1 g6!

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Perhaps White had hoped for 22...Nxc1 23.Qxc1 Re2+ 24.Kg3, with threats to g7, but the Knight on d3 is worth more than the Rook on c1. Now 23.Nh6+ Kf8 24.Ng3 Qg5! is very unpleasant and 23.Nxd6 meets 23...Qb6 24.Nxe8 Qxf2+ 25.Kh3 gxh5! and Black wins. White resigned D) ACTIVITY OF THE PIECES It’s important that your pieces cooperate with each other. Avoid placing your pieces in the corners of the board, unless they have a specific reason to be there or are on their way to another – hopefully more central – location. Try to play with the whole army instead of single pieces. In most cases pieces should be place in center of the board, where they can attack more squares than in the corner. Always look for ways to bring more pieces into the action. Activity is very often more important than material. E) OPEN FILES & DIAGONALS Open files and diagonals are the highways, or communication channels, of the chess game. Take control of open files and diagonals if you can. If your opponent controls them, try to wrestle them back. The player that controls communication channels controls the battle. Remember, Rooks belong on an open file, Bishop belongs on an open diagonal! The following game illustrates the importance of piece activity and open files and diagonals.

Petrosian - Spassky, Moscow1966

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Both Kings appear to be somewhat unsafe. Black’s pieces seem to be active – particularly threatening is the light-squared Bishop on h3. If Black’s Knight was to leave e5, it would significantly compromise his position in a view of White’s control of a1-h8-diagonal. White must activate his pieces in order to succeed in this game. 21.Ne3! Petrosian sacrifices the Exchange! The Queen’s Rook is now brought into play and the g2-square is protected, renewing the threat to the Knight on e5. Of course, 21.fxe5?? Qg5+ had to be avoided. 21...Bxf1 22.Rxf1 Ng6 23.Bg4! The Bishop is brought into action and the threat of 24.Be6+ is terribly unpleasant. 23...Nxf4 24.Rxf4! One more Exchange is sacrificed in order to eliminate the defender of e6. 24...Rxf4 25.Be6+ Rf7 26.Ne4! The e4-Knight controls g5 and f6 from here. It’s very important to have more pieces closer to the opponent’s King for the attack to be successful. 26...Qh4 An attempt to counterattack, since Ne3-f5 and Qb2-g7 mate was coming. 27.Nxd6 Raa7 28.Bxf7+ Rxf7 It looks like Black has almost bailed out. White’s next move dispels the illusion. 29.Qh8+!! Black resigned in a view of 29...Kxh8 30.Nxf7+ and 31.Nxg5. 6

F) CENTRAL OUTPOSTS The squares d4-d5-e4-e5 are in the heart of the chess board. In some cases a Knight or a Bishop placed there is worth more than a Rook. Frequently, a powerful outpost provides great support for a minor piece, turning it into a mighty attacking force. Razuvaev - Bagirov, Russia, 1982

White’s Knight on e5 is beautifully placed. It’s worth more that the opponent’s Rook on d8. The Knight attacks the g6, f7 and d7 squares and GM Razuvaev masterfully uses his advantage to build a decisive attack. 27.Rg6! A move made possible by the Knight’s position on e5. This is much better than 27.Rg2, since from g6 the Rook can get to h6, attacking h7. 27...Nce6 28.Rdg1 Rf8 29.Rh6 The threat of Ne5-g6+ forces the King to move. Here 29...Rf6? loses to 30.Qh4! 29...Kg8 30.Bb3 One more piece is employed in the attack, tying up the d-Rook to defense of the d5-pawn. 30...Rd6 31.Qg2 The d5-pawn is under attack once again. 31...Rfd8 Black’s Rook on d6 has to protect d5, while it also has to watch out for the Knight on e6 – a classical case of overload. 7

32.Bxd5! Rxd5 33.Rxe6! Qf8 It seems that large losses have been avoided. No! 34.Re8!! Rxe8 35.Qxd5+ Now 35...Kh8 36.Nf7+ Kg8 37.Nd6+ Kh8 38.Nxe8 wins more material, therefore, Black resigned. Not every situation can be solved tactically, of course, but any positional situation will eventually become tactical. In the following game White executed a great positional plan and topped it off with a nice attack. Smyslov - Denker, USSR vs. USA Match 1946

Both sides have safe Kings, although Black’s is a bit more open. White has full control of the d5-square and the pawn on d6 is obviously weak. What should White do here? His plan should involve some kind of attack against d6, but first he has to make sure that his opponent has no counterplay. While White’s g2Bishop has a good diagonal, it does very little there. Black’s light-squared Bishop guards the important d5-square and can also be used for defending the g6-pawn. Therefore, White must first exchange lightsquared Bishops, getting even more control over d5 and eliminating a defender of the opponent’s King. 25.Bd5! Kh7 26.Bxe6 Qxe6 27.Rd3 Now the d5-square is completely under White’s control and he can safely triple his heavy pieces on the dfile. 27...Rc7 28.Red1 Rf7 Perhaps Black hopes to double his Rooks along the f-file, but White can easily defend f2 with Nc3-e4. 29.Ne4! Bf8 30.Rd5 In such positions it pays to be slow. Also b3-b4 and c4-c5 is possible at some point. 8

30...Qg4 31.R1d3! An important move. If 31.Nxd6, then 31...Bxd6 32.Rxd6 Qxd1+ 33.Rxd1 Rxd1+ 34.Kg2 e4! 35.Qxe4 Rd2 36.Qe3 Rxa2 and Black is still in the game. 31...Be7 32.Nxd6 Bxd6 33.Rxd6 Rdf8 34.Qxe5! In case of 34.Rd2 e4! Black can still put up some resistance. 35...Rxf2 36.Rd7+ R8f7 37.Rxf7+ Rxf7 38.Re8! Rg7 39.Qe8 g5 40.Qh8+ Kg6 41.Rd6+ Kf7 42.Qxh6, White has two extra pawns and he won few moves later. IDENTIFYING and DEFINING MUTUAL GOALS After looking at all of the above-mentioned factors, think about what you want to do and check it against what you can realistically accomplish. Define your goal for the next 5-6 moves. Anything that takes more than that is probably not worth doing. The longer it takes, the easier it is to defend against it. After defining your plan, check your opponent’s intentions. Most plans fail because they don’t take into the account actions of the other side. CREATION OF A PLAN After goals are defined, make a plan, then pick moves that lead to accomplishment of your goal. It’s important to pick the right move order. Whatever plan you choose, always check for possible tactics before proceeding further. Tactics rule the game of chess! Calculate your play as many moves ahead as you can. Always ask yourself: “If I am able to execute my plan, what will happen then? Will I achieve a material or positional advantage?” If the answer is no, make another plan!

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Middlegame Planning II By Georgi Orlov

In this lecture we will look at a game where one side has a relatively clear choice of a plan thanks to a common pawn structure that features a standard set of ideas. Players must know as many standard plans as possible, since such knowledge helps during the game immensely. It’s not necessary to come up with some special plan for every position, in many cases, well known paths are very effective. Stolberg - Nogovitsin USSR 1938 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 The Nimzo-Indian remains the most popular way to meet 1.d4 and 2.c4. Black has great counterplay in all variations. 4.f3 d5

5.Qa4+!? Nc6 6.a3 Bxc3+ 7.bxc3 Bd7 8.cxd5 exd5 9.Qc2 0-0 10.e3

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White played the Saemisch Variation against the Nimzo-Indian Defense. This treatment, 5.Qa4+, is no longer popular, since it’s not considered the best way for White. The situation on the board is very standard for this line. White has a strong pawn center, which is supported by a pair of Bishops, and his perspectives are clearly on the kingside. The plan for White here is relatively simple: he has to play Bf1-d3, Ng1-e2, castle kingside, and advance in the center by e3-e4-e5, gaining space on the kingside and opening his dark-square Bishop at the same time. Then he should push f3-f4, threatening f4-f5-f6 with a strong kingside attack. From Black’s point of view, things are a bit more complex. It is not clear to a less experienced player what should be done here. Black has one good thing going in his favor – all of his pieces are deployed. He must create some pressure against White’s center before White has a chance to finish his development. A good way to do it here is 10...Ne7! 11.Bd3 c5!? Here 12.Ne2? loses a piece to 12...c4. White can play 12.dxc5 Rc8 13.Ne2 Rxc5 14.Nd4, but Black obviously would have his chances there. Also deserving serious attention is 10...Na5, with similar ideas. Instead, Black played... 10...Qe7?! 11.Bd3 Nd8? If Black’s 10th move was a waste of time, this one misplaces the Knight and breaks ties between Black’s pieces. Again, 11...Na5 was necessary. 12.Ne2 c5 13.0-0 c4?! This is a dubious idea. Black hopes to later play …b7-b5, …a7-a5 and …b5-b4, but it would take a lot of time and gives White a free hand in the center. Instead 13...Rc8, bringing the Rook to a semi-open file and threatening ...cxd4, was clearly better. In that case the pressure against d4 and possible counterplay along the c-file would make e3-e4 harder to achieve. 14.Bf5 Bc6!?

Black makes an interesting decision. It looked like Black had a good reason to exchange Bishops, but it’s not that simple. In case of 14...Bxf5 15.Qxf5 Black would have two ways of forcing White’s Queen out:

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1) 15...g6 (Black wants to force the Queen away from the kingside, as well as to have an option of…h7-h5, anticipating White’s Knight coming to g3) 16.Qc2 Re8 17.Ng3 h5, but here after 18.e4! dxe4 19.Bg5! White would be on top. 2) 15...Qe6 16.Qc2 Re8 17.Ng3 Nc6 18.Bd2, with 19.Rae1 and 20.e3-e4 to follow, which would also give White the upper hand. After 14…Bc6, Black threatens …g7-g6 kicking White’s light-squared Bishop off of the b1-h7 diagonal. 15.Qb1! White finds a great move, giving his light Bishop some room in case of… g7-g6, since going back to h3 would not be as good. 15...b5 16.Ng3 White follows his plan, continuing preparations for e3-e4. Of course, poor was 16.a4 here in a view of 16…bxa4 17.Ba3?? Qxe3+, and Black wins. 16...Re8 17.Bc2 Also possible was e3-e4, but White decided to make the f5-square available for his Knight. 17...a5 18.e4!? g6? Up to this point Black defended reasonably well, but the text move is a suicide, as it weakens the kingside and the dark squares. Black should play 18...dxe4 19.Re1! (another way, 19.fxe4 Nxe4 20.Re1 f5! 21.Nxf5 Qb7 would be fine for Black) 19...e3 20.Rxe3 Ne6 with a defensible position. Now White totally dominates the center and the kingside. 19.e5 Nd7 20.f4 f5 This is the only move. If Black allowed 21.f4-f5, he could have just as well resign on the spot. Here, Mark Stolberg faced a choice of two options: 1) Sacrifice his Bishop with 21.Bxf5!?, which was very tempting, and 2) The text move. The first one was probably good enough but less practical. 21.Ne2 Rf8

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22.g4! fxg4 23.Ng3! White brings his Knight closer to opponent’s King. Now, White’s victory is just a matter of time. 23...Ne6 24.Bxg6! This is a nice finish by White. He could also play 24.f5, with a smashing attack, but the text wins by force. 24...hxg6 25.Qxg6+ Kh8 26.Qh6+ Kg8 27.f5 Nd8

28.Rf4! This moves wins instantly. 28...Qg7 29.Qh5 Qh7 30.Rxg4+ Kh8 31.Bh6

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It’s not a surprise that Black can’t handle this raging attack. 31…Rg8 In case of 31...Rf7 32.e6 Nf6 33.exf7! White wins as well. 32.Rxg8+ Qxg8 No better is 32…Kxg8 33.Qe8+ with mate to follow. 33.f6 Qe6 34.Bg5+, 1-0. Black didn’t need to be shown 34…Kg8 35.Qg6+ Kf8 36.Bh6 mate.

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Middlegame Planning III By Georgi Orlov A player frequently encounters positions where he/she has to choose from two or three different possibilities. Making the right choice is often crucial in such cases. Anyone who wants to seriously improve his/her chess skills must pay attention to this subject. But how is a player to know which plan is correct? While there is no ultimate solution, serious study can help a lot on that matter. What kind of work should a chessplayer do? Basically, one of the best methods is to play over games of good players, with extensive supplement commentary and analysis. Books of selected games of Garry Kasparov, Anatoly Karpov, Jose Capablanca, Alexander Alekhine, Aaron Nimzowitch and other World Champions/chess legends are a great place to start. David Bronstein’s famous book CANDIDATES TOURNAMENT, ZURICH 1953 can also be recommended, perhaps even ahead of the above-mentioned material. Here are a few tips: 1) Evaluate a position using the following elements: a) King’s position and safety (both your opponent’s and your own). b) Material correlation. c) Situation in the center, who controls it, what can be done about it? Ultimately, control of the center is a great plus in most cases. d) Presence of weak pawns and squares. If you have those, what can be done to defend or get rid of them? e) Piece placement. Good and bad pieces (your own and your opponent’s) f) Open lines, files, and diagonals. 2) After evaluating the situation, make your decision. What are the common plans in such positions? 3) After choosing a plan, start looking for a particular move, make sure it’s tactically sound. 4) After verifying your move, take a look at least at one alternative move. There are some other factors that may influence your choice of a plan, such as the tournament situation, the presence of a time pressure, etc. Here are two games where one of the players faced a dilemma while choosing a plan. Particularly challenging are situations where a player has to choose between keeping Queens on the board or exchanging them.

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Karpov-Kasparov, World Championship Match 1984 BLACK TO PLAY & MAKE A DECISION Garry Kasparov, then a young grandmaster, faced a serious challenge here: to play 35...Qxd3 36.Rxd3 Kf7 with a slightly passive, but nevertheless solid position, or to play the move that occurred in the game, 35...Rc2, which also looks attractive. On top of the seriousness of this decision, Black also had a serious time shortage. Let’s evaluate the situation here. White’s King is safe, he controls the d-file, and his Bishop is more active than his opponent’s Knight. Black’s King seems to be okay for now, but not quite as safe as his White adversary is. Also, the h-pawn is bit loose. Taking all this into consideration, in my opinion Black should do the following: 1) Exchange Queens with 35...Qxd3 36.Rxd3, because in a middlegame his King may be in danger. 2) Bring the King to the center with 36...Kf7 and be ready to cover the d7-square with …Kf7-e6. 3) Play …g7-g5, kicking White’s Bishop off its comfortable post. The advance of the g-pawn also sets up a later …h5-g4 push at the right time. 4) Try to activate his Knight and Rook. All of this looks relatively simple, but faced with time-pressure, Kasparov chose the second option. 35...Rc2? It sounds strange, but this is the losing move! Black probably hoped for 36.a4 Qxd3 37.Rxd3 Ng6 but forgot that his 8th rank was weak and that White does not have to trade Queens. 36.Qe3! Karpov makes a very strong move that points out the vulnerability of Black’s King. In case of 36...Rxa2? 37.Rd8, threatening 37.Bd6, White would win Black’s Knight. Also bad was 36...Qf7 when 37.Rd8 Kh7 38.Rxf8! Qxf8 39.Qd3+ and 40.Qxc2 wins for White. 36...Rc8 37.Qe7! Now it’s obvious Black is in trouble, as his pieces are disorganized and pawns are weak. 16

37...b5 38.Rd8! A decisive blow. Black now loses at least a pawn. 38...Rxd8 39.Qxd8 Qf7 40.Bd6 g5 41.Qa8!

ATTACK EM AND HACK EM! Black has no way of protecting the a-pawn. 41...Kg7 42.Qxa6, 1-0. At this point the game was adjourned and Kasparov resigned without resuming. Black can’t prevent the loss of a second pawn. If 42...Qd5(d7,e8) then 43.Bxf8+ Kxf8 44.Qxf6+ is easily winning. In our next game White had a couple of moments where he had to make a choice. T.Petrosian - A.Beliavsky, Riga 1973 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 0-0 5.Be3 d6 6.f3 e5 7.d5 Nh5 8.Qd2 f5 9.0-0-0 Nd7 10.Bd3 Nc5 11.Bc2 a6?! 12.Nge2 b5?

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FULL OF SOUND AND FURY Late World Champion Tigran Petrosian was a player of exclusive positional understanding and intuition. In the position above, White faces several choices. Typically, his plan would be a kingside pawn storm, but Petrosian noticed that Black seriously weakened his queenside with …b7-b5, especially the c6-square. Also, the majority of White’s pieces were aiming at the queenside and, should Black’s c5-Knight be pushed back, it would be difficult to regroup. After thinking for forty minutes, White decided to attack on the queenside and played... 13.b4! Nd7 14.cxb5 In case of 14.c5 a5! Black would have some counterplay. 14...axb5 15.Kb2!? White prepares the maneuver Ne2-c1-b3-a5 and threatens to take on b5. 15...Ba6 16.Nc1 Qb8? A typical maneuver, but instead 16...Nb6! was best. After 17.Bxb6 cxb6 18.Bd3 Qd7 Black would be okay. 17.Nb3 Nb6 18.Na5 Now White is not afraid of ...Nc4+. 18...Nc4+ 19.Nxc4 bxc4 20.a3 Nf4? Another mistake. Black should play 20...fxe4 and if 21.fxe4 then 21...Rf4!? threatening …Nh5-f6-g4. In that case, 22.Bxf4? exf4 would give Black excellent counterplay along long black diagonal. However, 21.Bxe4 instead of 21.fxe4 would give White a small edge. What should White do after 20…Nf4? He strength is on the queenside, so he regroups his pieces for a pawn push there. 18

21.Ra1! Petrosian prepares Rh1-b1, Kb2-c1 followed by the advance of the passed a- and b-pawns. 21...Nd3+ 22.Bxd3 cxd3

ANOTHER DIFFICULT DECISION Again White has a problem. His ideal would be to move his queenside pawns and then win the d3-pawn, but how? In case of 23.Rhb1 fxe4 24.fxe4 Bc4 going back to c1 does not make sense. Tigran employees the rule of the first World Champion Steinitz, “The King is a strong piece.” 23.Kb3! Rc8 24.a4 c6 25.dxc6 Rxc6 26.b5 The d3-pawn falls and Black decides to complicate things. 26...d5 27.Nxd5 Bf8 28.Qxd3 Qd6 Another challenge here. White needs to trade pieces, but in case of 29.Rhc1 Rxc1 30.Bxc1, Black would have 30...Bxb5! 31.Qxb5 Rb8. 29.Kb2! Rb8 30.Rhc1 Kh8 31.Rc3! If 31.Rxc6 Qxc6 32.Rc1 then 32...Bxb5!! 31...Bb7 32.Rac1 fxe4 33.fxe4 Rxc3 34.Rxc3 Bxd5 35.Bc5!

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KILLING COUNTERPLAY AND ICING THE GAME A nice little detail, otherwise Black’s Queen would have had access to b4. 35...Qf6 36.Qxd5 Rd8 37.Qc6! Now White’s win is a matter of technique. 37...Qf4 38.Bxf8 Qxf8 39.Qc5 Qf4 40.Qc6 Qd2+ 41.Ka3 and White went on to win the game.

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