Chess Publishing ECO : A00-A99

Volume 1

Second Edition

CBV to PDF

by Scorpionchess

Thanks to

Echai the master Uploader

& his invaluable
successor bandidobk

All friends who made the All in one Cbv

Dedicated to

Dearanna
She inspired the idea
Introduction to the second Edition
If the first edition had no introduction, the second need one !

The publication of the first edition of this series in 2013 represented an innovation in chess
books shared at forums : It is part of a new trend that migrates from simple sharing to the
creativity .

This publication mainly benefited of the work made in the background by many forums
members (Sharers, collectors, Cbv & pgn makers) and as I'm unable to name All, I just want
to thank All of Them .

Special thanks must go to the master sharer & Uploader Echai & his successor bandidobk :
without their invaluable work & perseverance to update the chess publishing thread, this
second edition would never have been released .

This second edition has an updated material & also some improvements, especially to
enhance readability ...and I will let you discover the rest .

All your suggestions are welcome and will be as far as possible taken into account in the next
editions.

S.C

06/10/2014
 Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
1 A00
Akopian,Vladimir 2660
Mamedov,Nidjat 2341
Open Dubai UAE (1) 28.04.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.b4 The 'vice-FIDE World Champion' likes to
play flank openings, although 1 Nf3 is his
normal preference. e6
[ A more restrained approach than 1...e5
, but quite valid. ]
2.b2 f6 3.b5 White continues to gain
space on the queenside. e7
[ 3...d5 4.e3 d6 5.f3 a6 6.a4 e7
7.c4 seems staid, but dissolved into mind-
boggling complications after dxc4 8.xc4
e5 9.g5! 0-0 10.c2 h6 11.h4! e4
12.c3 f5 ( 12...hxg5 13.hxg5 g4
14.xe4 f5 15.f6+ is very strong) 13.g4!
(no let-up for Black) xg4 14.d5 e8
15.f4 axb5 16.c3 soon winning, Akopian,
V-Ganguly,S/Goodricke Open, Calcutta IND
2000. ]
4.f3 0-0 5.e3 b6 6.c4 b7 7.e2 d5
8.0-0
[ The system's originator didn't obtain much
after 8.a4 dxc4 9.a3 c3 10.xc3 d5
11.b2 f6 12.xf6 xf6 13.0-0 d8
in Sokolsky,A-Chekhover,V/Leningrad 1938,
1-0 (70). ]
8...bd7 9.cxd5
[ White keeps the play fluid, shutting the
a1-h8 diagonal by 9.d4 is also possible, but
less logical, e4 10.bd2 f5 Oliveira,L-
Figueiredo,F/BRA 1999. ]
9...xd5 10.c3 c5 Black must do this
before White uses the b5-pawn to get a firm
hold on c6. 11.bxc6 xc6 12.d4 b7
[ This new move is as valid as the alternative
12...xc3 when 13.xc3 b7 14.f3 xf3
15.xf3 offers little, Furlong,K-Wyeth,A/
Oxford 1998. ]
13.b5 An interesting way to continue,
intending Qe2, and Rfc1, with play on the
queenside, or Qg4, and f4 on the kingside.
xc3 14.xc3 c8 15.f4 f6 Black has no
particular problems here. 16.f5?! d5
[ 16...e5 17.f3 e4 18.d4
is less accurate. ]
17.e2 e4!? An original choice, Black
allows the f-pawn to wind its way toward the
king, but gains the bishop pair. 18.fxe6 xc3
19.dxc3 xc3! 20.exf7+ h8!?
[ Playable, although 20...xf7 21.xf7 xf7
22.f1 is also fine for Black. ]
21.f5 c5 22.ad1 e5 The e3-pawn is a
serious problem. 23.h1 g6 24.h4 xe3
[ 24...d6 25.f3 xf3 26.gxf3 xe3 27.f4
will probably lead to a drawish opposite-
colour bishop position, too. ]
25.g4 d6?!
[ This allows the exchange of queens,
25...c8 keeps an edge. ]
26.d4 xd4 27.xd4 e7 28.c4
W hite hangs on to his f -pawn, which will
b a l a n c e t h e B l a c k p a i r o f b i s h o p s . g7
29.f3 c8 30.b3 c7 31.dd1 e2
32.h3 xf3 33.xf3 f8 34.fd3 ce7
35.d8 e1+ 36.xe1 xe1+ 37.h2 a5
38.g3 The different-colour bishops make
this ending a draw.
½-½
2 A00
Ardaman,Miles 2324
Anka,Emil 2425
Open Chicago USA (4) 27.05.2006
[John Watson]
Inspired by Tony's look at the openings that I
have neglected, I've chosen a Pokish/
Sokolsky's/Orang-Utan opening to examine.
With an average rating of 2375 I thought that
at least the battle would be hard-fought and
not the usual quick advantage and ultimate
win for Black. It is somewhere in between.
1.b4 c6
[ 1...e5! 2.b2 ( 2.a3 d5 3.b2 f6 )
2...xb4 3.xe5 f6 is the easies t way:
Black plays ...0-0, ...d5, ...Re8, and ...c5 in
one order or another. I always thought it was
fun when something like 4.e3 0-0 5.c4
(establishing the central majority) e8 6.f3
d5 7.cxd5 xd5 8.e2? xe5! 9.xe5
f6 happened, based upon 10.f4 xe3
11.b3 xg2+ ]
2.e3
[ Here's an old trick from Sokolsky's book
(late 1960's?), clever if not really worthy of
high praise. 2.b2 b6 3.a3 a5 4.c4!
axb4 ( 4...d6= ) 5.c5 c7 ( 5...xc5??
6.axb4 ) 6.axb4 xa1 7.xa1 a6! 8.c3
1
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

d6 9.d4 f6 , probably about equal, [ 6.xc7+ d8 7.e3 looks rather good, as
although Black is better-developed. ] xc7 8.d5+ forks king and queen. ]
2...b6 This is one of the oldest anti-Sokolsky 6...b4+ 7.c3 e5 8.d5! This must have
manoeuvres. Superficially, it makes more come as a surprise! a5
sense when W hite has played 2.Bb2 and [ 8...xd5? 9.xc7+ f8 10.xd5
Black's 2...Qb6 'pins' in b-pawn, but as we is overwhelming. ]
just saw that's nothing special either. 3.a3 a5 9.bd6+!! cxd6 10.xd6+ e7 Obviously
4.b5!? forced. 11.xf7+ d8
More of that clever-but-so-what stuff.
d5 [ 11...xd6? 12.f4 pins the queen. ]
[ 4...cxb5 5.c3 b4?! 6.axb4 xb4 7.a3 12.f8+ c7 13.e8+ b6 Again Black
yields more than enough compensation ] has no choice. 14.e3+ Going for the attack
5.f3 f6 6.a4 g4 7.h3 xf3!(with every justification!) rather than play
Taking over the centre without further ado. [ 14.xg7 xg7 15.xg7 which also looks
The bishops aren't really a consideration. good, as b4 is threatened. ]
8.xf3 e5 9.b2 bd7 10.g4!? d6 14...a6 15.0-0-0 xc3? Not the best
11.e2 0-0 12.g5 e4 13.f5 d8 14.h4 def ence, by any means, but Black is lost
All bark but no bite. e7 15.c3 ec5 16.f3 anyway, e.g.
ae8 17.f2 d4!? [ 15...g5 16.d6 ge7 17.f7 b5 18.b3
[ 17...g6 18.h3 f6 favours Black's an d t he bla ck kin g, wh ich h a s n o lega l
centralized position and weakness-f ree moves, is unlikely to last long. ]
structure. ] 16.bxc3?! While this move is winning, White
18.e4 dxe3+ 19.dxe3 xe4+ 20.xe4 f5 has much neater moves:
21.gxf6?! xf6 22.c4+ h8 23.ag1 [ 16.d5! is the simplest, xb2+ 17.b1
cxb5 24.axb5 c5! 25.b3? d8 xd5 ( 17...e7 18.c7# ) 18.c7+ a5
Uh-oh. The threat of ...Nd5 is a real problem. 19.xd5 ]
26.c1 e4+! [ 16.a3+ is also strong, a5 17.bxc3
[ Better still 26...e4! ] xe8 18.d5 b6 19.xa5+! bxa5 20.d6+
27.g2 d6 28.h5 d2 29.c3? g5+ b7 21.f4 d8 22.d5+ b6 23.e3+
0-1 c7 24.xa5+ d6 25.xd8 etc. ]
16...ge7
[ 16...xc3+ is no help, as 17.b1 b4+
3 A00 ( 17...ge7 18.c7+ a5 19.f4 )
Arwanitakis,Michael 2286 18.xb4 xb4 19.c7+ a5 20.xa8
Woeber,Friedrich 2195 with a rook more. ]
2nd Bundesliga Mitte 2005-6 (11) 26.03.2006 17.c7+! The only move to keep the win.
[Tony Kosten] [ 17.xh8 xc3+ 18.b1 b4+ draws. ]
17...xc7 18.xh8 The attack has subsided,
1.c3 e5 2.f3 c6 3.d4 exd4 4.xd4 but White has an exchange and pawn more,
f6? This move is fine in the Scotch, where a n d m e r e l y n e e d s t o c o n s o l i d a t e . a5
White hasn't yet developed the knight and has 19.xh7 The queen heads back to the king's
a pawn on e4, but here, amazingly, it just aid. f5 Menacing ...Qxc3+ again with a
loses! perp. 20.d2 Both defending c3 and
[ 4...f6 is Ivanchuk, V-Anand, V, see the threatening e4+. d6!? Black might at least
archives. ] have tried
5.db5 c5 It is already too late to retreat: [ 20...xa2 when White should return
[ 5...d8? 6.f4 d6 7.d5 1-0 Santoro, D- material: 21.xf5 ( 21.e4+ b6 22.f4!
Roman, F/Buenos Aires 1987, although should also win, giving the king room to
Black persevered by d7 8.g3 a6 9.h3+ escape the checks) 21...a3+ 22.c2
before resigning in Simon, P-Balcerak, M/ a4+ 23.b2 xd1 24.e4+ b6 25.d5
Nickenich 1996. ] g4 (else Be3+ wins the queen) 26.d6!
6.e4!? Not bad, but and Be3+. ]

2
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

21.e4+ b5 22.exf5 xa2 23.e3 e5 knight to play ...Nd4, and prepares a tactical
24.xd6+ a5 25.d2 a1+ 26.c2 b4 trick. 11.e3 White must take further control
27.d4?? It is difficult to know quite what to over d4 to stop the knight landing there. b5!
make of the end of this game! 12.xb5!? Incredible, White sacs his queen
[ 27.d5+ is elementary and forces mate: for two pieces.
a4 28.b5+ a3 29.xa1# ] [ 12.b3 e6 13.c2 b4 allows a black
[ 27.d4?? allows Black to mate by b3+! initiative, but this soon runs out after 14.e4
28.xb3 b8+ 29.c2 b1# so I think it , say. ]
must have been incorrectly noted. ] 12...a5 13.xd6 Otherwise White loses a
1-0 piece. xc4 14.xc4 This is the position
White was aiming for, he has a solid structure,
and both e5 and a7 are hanging. e6
4 A00 [ 14...xf3 15.xf3 fe8 transposes. ]
Azmaiparashvili,Zurab 2679 15.xa7
Mahjoob,Morteza 2478 [ 15.fxe5 xe2 ]
FIDE WCh KO Tripoli LBA (1.2) 20.06.2004 15...xf3 Black takes the pressure off the e5-
[Tony Kosten] pawn, but this bishop will have a serious
influence on the rest of the game. 16.xf3
1.g3 f6 2.g2 d5 3.d3 e5 4.f3 d6 e4! 17.g2 White prefers to keep this
Less usual than important piece,
[ 4...c6 of course, but perfectly [ 17.xb8 exf3 18.xc7 fxe2 leaves the
reasonable. ] kingside looking a bit bare. ]
5.c4 dxc4 Black aims for rapid development, 17...exd3 18.exd3 bd8 19.a4 White's plan
[ 5...d4 leads to a Benoni-style position, is clear - he will push the a-pawn supported
and ] by the bishops. Black's problem is deciding
[ 5...c6 holds the centre. ] quite how to stop it! f5 20.d4 fe8 21.a5
6.a4+ c6 7.xc4 0-0 8.0-0 e2 Black counter attacks against the white
Play resembles a Reversed Dragon. g4!? king, at the moment the white pieces are quite
Rather unusual, Azmai has had this position a far away. 22.d5 c2? Very poor, Black
few times, when allows W hite to get his pieces coordinated
[ 8...h6 was played, to control g5 and with gain of tempo.
continue with ...Be6, 9.c3 ( 9.bd2 e6 [ 22...g4 is obviously superior, 23.f1 d3
10.c2 d7 11.e1 h3 12.h1 b4 24.e3 and now f5 with chances to both
13.b1 c5 is pleasant for Black, sides. ]
Azmaiparashvili, Z-Yakovich,Y/Kiev 1986) 23.e3! xb2 24.d4 b4 25.a6
9...e6 10.b5 b8 11.e3 d7 12.fc1 Now this pawn is almost unstoppable. b8
g4 13.d2 f5 with kingside chances, Not very good, but
Azmaiparashvili,Z-Smagin,S/Minsk 1985. ] [ 25...d2 26.xd2 xd2 27.xf6 gxf6
9.c3 Best, 28.a7 a8 29.d6 is also winning. ]
[ 9.g5?! plans to exploit the absence of the 26.d6 Freeing the long diagonal. c6 27.xc6
black bishop from e7, but xf3! is a strong xd6 28.xf6
reply, 10.exf3?! Suttles,D-Karaklajic,N/ [ 28.xf6 xf6 29.xd8+ xd8 30.a7
Chicago 1 97 3 a nd no w ( 10.xf3 d4 and a queen is born. ]
is the point, and the bishop can't move 1-0
without leaving e2 en prise) 10...d4
threatens ...b5. ]
9...d7 10.d1 Better than
[ 10.g5 when e6 11.a4 d5 12.d2
b6 13.d1 h3 with good play, Ivekovic,
M-Medak,B/Zagreb 1997. ]
10...ab8 By defending b7 Black frees his c6-

3
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

5 A00 surely notice a three time repetition! ]

Basman,Michael J 2400 35.c3 d5?! This way Black only obtains a
Bellin,Robert 2395 pawn for his piece. 36.exd5 xd5 37.h5
BCF-ch Edinburgh (10) 1985 xf3 38.exf3 a8 39.a4 Black is better, of
[Tony Kosten] course, he has an extra pawn, but his h and a-
pawns are weak, and his chances of winning
1.g4 e5 2.h3?! This is also possible, but slim. a7?! 40.cc5 fa8 41.f4 a6
doesn't offer any noticeable advantages. c5 42.ce5 White will be better soon, if Black
[ 2...d5! 3.g2 c6 would transpose to the continues to play this passively! h8 43.f5
game Basman-Strauss. ] c5?! 44.f4 White slowly improves his
3.c4 e7 4.c3 a5 5.d3 0-0 6.f3 bc6 position. g8 45.e6
7.g2 d6 8.g5 Starting a kingside pawn [ 45.xc5 with advantage to White, is even
advance before Black plays ...Ng6, and ...f5, better ]
with a kingside attack. e6 9.h4 d5 10.cxd5 45...c4 46.bxc4 c8 47.e5 c5+ 48.d4
xd5 11.e4 White has managed to create ac6 49.xc6 The obvious trick
a useful square for this piece. b4+ 12.f1 [ 49.e8+ g7 50.f6+ fails to win, f7
Unfortunately, White cannot play 51.xc5 xe8 and Black is saved by his
[ 12.d2 as he needs this piece to protect o u t s i d e , p a s s e d h - p a w n . 52.xc6??
his weak dark squares, Black would answer would even lose after bxc6 ]
f4 Anyway, White is hardly likely to castle 49...xc6 50.g5 h6 51.g4 As is often the
kingside, anyway. ] ca se in ro o k a n d p a wn e n din gs, W hit e 's
12...h8 13.h5 f5 14.gxf6 xf6 15.h4!? po sitio n a l p lu s is mo re im p o rta n t th a n a
d4 16.g5? White is embarking on a material advantage. h7 52.d5 h5 53.e4
kingside attack, but he has overlooked a c7 54.e6 g7 55.c5 h4 This should lose,
tactical point, but Black was experiencing severe difficulties
[ 16.h6 is better. ] no matter what he played. 56.g6+ h7
16...xe4!! A winning queen sacrifice. 57.g4 h6 58.f6
17.xd8 xf2 18.b1 axd8?! [ 58.xh4+ W a s sim p lest , a n d o n g5
[ 18...xh1+ 19.g1 xe2+ 20.xh1 59.h8 xf5 60.a8 White will take the a-
axd8 Should win at a canter, the white pawn, and win. ]
position is a mess. ] 58...h3 59.e6?
19.f3 This is forced. g4! This is stronger [ 59.h4+ g6 60.xh3 xf6 61.h8 e7
than 62.a8 still offered chances. ]
[ 19...xh1 20.xh1 g4 ] 59...c6+ 60.e7 c7+ 61.e8
20.h6 e4! 21.hxg7+ xg7 22.dxe4 c4 Now the game peters out. h2 62.h4+ g5
[ 22...xe2! Is convincing, for if 23.xe2 63.xh2 xf6 64.h5 e6 65.d8 c6
then c4+ ] 66.g5 f6 67.d5 e6 68.h5 f7
23.c1 xf3 24.xf3 d2 25.h4 e3+ 69.d7 g6 70.d5 f7 71.d8 e6
26.f2 xc1 Regaining the queen with a 72.h5 f7 73.d7 g6
piece as interest. 27.xc1 d1+ 28.g3 ½-½
e6 29.b3 c6 30.h1 And now, rather than
e3
[ 30...b2 was the best way of springing the 6 A00
knight from the 'trap', e. g. 31.c2 d1 Basman,Michael J 2400
32.xd1 xd1 33.c1 d8 ] Keene,Raymond 2475
31.c3 d1 32.c1 e3 33.c3 Manchester Benedictine op 4th (7) 10.09.81
A whole piece down, White is very happy with [Nigel Davies]
a draw, of course! d1 34.c1 but why didn't
he claim it with this move? e3? This was After playing both Tony Miles and Raymond
the last chance for Ke e ne in th is t ou rna m en t , Mike B a sm a n
[ 34...b2 as on the next go White will commented to me that he thought that Keene

4
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
was much the better player. I think it's true
that he was capable of the deepest and most
stylish chess of any British player, but then
Tony Miles was one of the greatest fighters
I've ever met. In any case this game provides
a great model for Black against the Grob. 1.g4
d5 2.h3 e5 3.g2 c6 Erecting a solid barrier
of pawns against the bishop on g2. From an
exponent of the Modern Defence one would
expect no less! 4.d4 e4 5.c4 d6 6.c3
e7 Black's set-up makes perfect sense,
protecting the d5 pawn whilst keeping open
the option of ...f7-f5. Basman's next move
seems designed against this move, but in
giving Black the f5 square he ends up in even
worse trouble. 7.g5?!
[ Later in the tournament Basman improved
on this with 7.g5 after which f6 8.d2 0-0
9.b3 h8 10.c1 a6 11.e3 f5
also gave Black the better game but by no
means as crushing a position as he obtains
after 7.g5 (Basman, M (2400)-Kudrin, S
(2465), Manchester 1981). Of course none
of this is much of an advert for the Grob
from an objective point of view, though it
can cause Black to get overexcited. ]
7...e6 8.h4 f5 9.h3 0-0 10.cxd5 cxd5
11.xd5 Apparently winning a pawn, but
Keene has seen further. g3! 12.f6+
[ 12.fxg3 xg3+ followed by recapturing on
d5 is just horrible for White. ]
12...gxf6 13.fxg3 xg3+ 14.f1 c6
15.e3 b4 The knight is coming to the
blockading square on d5. 16.g2 d5
17.xg3 A bishop move might have been
held on longer. xe3 18.d2 d6+ 19.f2
f4+ 20.f3 exf3
[ 20...exf3 21.xe3 xh4+ 22.xf3 d5+
is curtains. ]
0-1
7 A00
Basman,Michael J
Miles,Anthony J
Manchester Benedictine op 4th (4)
[Nigel Davies]
At first sight this game looks like a convincing
win for Black but there are mistakes on both
s i d e s . F i r s t o f a l l b o t h p l a ye r s s e e m t o
underestimate the strength of 8...Nf4, and
secondly the position seems to be unclear
after 13.e3. Of course none of it seems to be
particularly promising for White... 1.g4 e5
2.h3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.c4 This all looks like
madness but there is some method to it.
White is fighting for the central light squares.
dxc4 5.a4
[ Objectively speaking the best may be
5.xc6+ bxc6 6.a4 , but this is hardly an
advert for White's system. ]
5...ge7 6.f3 g6 7.c3 e6 8.h4?!
[ In retrospect maybe White should have
tried 8.d3!? cxd3 9.g5 with some play on
the light squares. And White is stopping 8...
Nf4. ]
8...b4?!
[ W h a t d o e s W h i t e d o a b o u t 8...f4
? It seems like both players either
overlooked or underestimated this move. ]
9.g5 d7 10.d5 0-0 11.c2 xg4
[ And here the other knight move looks good
- 11...d4 12.e4 c6 13.xc4 b5
14.xf7 f6! seems to leave White in a lot
of trouble. ]
12.e4 d7 13.xh7 Certainly spectacular
but not the right move.
[ White should prevent Black's knight from
coming to d4 with 13.e3 after which xc3
14.bxc3 f5 15.xc4 e7 16.b3
isn't at all bad for White. ]
13...d4! 14.h5 f4
[ 14...f5! is also very strong, in fact White
doesn't have a good move. ]
15.xf8
[ Both 15.h6 ]
[ and 15.g1 are answered by f5 . ]
15...xf8 16.f1 White doesn't have any
g o o d m o ve s h e r e . e8 17.xc4 c6
18.d5 c5 19.d3 xd5 20.g1 f4
21.e3 f8 22.g3 dxe2
0-1
2400
2565
07.09.81
5
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

8 A00 4.exd5 xg4 5.dxc6! xc6 with a clear

Basman,Michael J 2390 advantage to Black. ]
Strauss,David J 2425 3...e5 And Black has his central constellation.
ch-GB Brighton 1984 [ This seems so natural, but, nevertheless,
[Tony Kosten] Black has found an alternative in 3...h5!?
attacking the exposed white g4-pawn. 4.g5
1.g4 d5 2.g2 A finesse, but one that does f5!? ( 4...h4?! is too ambitious, 5.e4 dxe4
lit t le t o h e lp t h e wh it e p o s it io n , if W h it e 6.c3 a5! 7.xe4 f5 and Black's
defends the g4-pawn, instead, by advantage is minimal, Skembris,S-
[ 2.h3 t h e n B l a c k c a n c o n t i n u e e5 Gheorghiu,F/Skopje 1984.; but 4...e5
with an 'ideal' start- control of the centre, must be best.) 5.f3 d7 6.h4! e6
and an easy development. Still, after 3.g2 7.xf5 exf5 8.d3 e7 9.e4 c5 10.exd5
Black normally bolsters his d-pawn by c6 xd5 11.0-0 when, despite his loose
reaching an identical position as that kingside, White was doing OK, Reprintsev,
brought about after 2 Bg2. ( However, Black A-Rozentalis,E/New York 1997. ]
d o e s h a v e o t h e r o p t i o n s , f o r i n s t a n c e 4.d4 This is an integral part of White's attempt
3...c6 when 4.c4 dxc4 5.a4 ge7 to drum-up some play against the black centre,
6.f3?! g6 7.c3?! e6 8.h4!? if White doesn't play this then it is difficult to
was Basman-Miles, Manchester 1981, but it see what he will do:
is difficult to believe that this position is [ 4.d3 e7! this is a thoughtful move, the
playable for White, and my computer thinks knight will come to the square g6 where it
that he is simply lost. )] can survey h4, and f4, two squares that
2...c6 This is the safest move, deterring White were undermined by W hite's first move.
from playing c4, which is his main source of 5.f3 ( P i n n i n g t h e k n i g h t b y 5.g5
counterplay 9otherwise his g2-bishop will be achieves less-than-nothing, b6 6.b3 g6
'scotched' ), and genuinely menacing the g4- 7.f3 c5 8.0-0?! h5 levering open the
pawn. wh ite kin gsid e, an d exp osing t he kin g,
[ 2...xg4?! Is certainly playable, but Yavez Acin,G-Sutovskij,E/Benasque 1996.)
unnecessary: 3.c4 c6 4.cxd5 White is 5...g6 6.c3 h4!? this leads to an edge
s o f t e n i n g - u p t h e h 1 - a 8 d i a g o n a l . cxd5 for Black, but I would prefer to continue
ra t h e r ac qu ie sce n t , I su gge st ( 4...f6!? development, myself. 7.xh4 xh4 8.e4
5.b3 d7 6.c3 cxd5 7.xd5 c6 c5 Skembris,S-Ivkov,B/ Budva zt 1981. ]
wh e n B l a c k e n jo ys f re e d e ve l o p m e n t .) 4...d7! I like this move, which keeps control
5.b3 f6 6.c3 e6 ( 6...c6!? 7.xb7 of the position. The alternative, and main line
c8 ) 7.xb7 bd7 8.b5 c8 is
wh ich is u n cle a r, P ollio t t o, A -Fige ac, A / [ 4...e4 gaining space, but this allows White
Montpellier - Masters 1998. ] t o a t t a c k t h e b l a c k c e n t r e , b y 5.c4
3.h3 as 5...dxc4 is not possible, because the e4-
[ The move 3.g5 seems to be taking the joke pawn is en prise. d6 6.c3 e7 7.b3
too far, e5 ( 3...h6 4.h4 hxg5 5.hxg5 the game Tuturin,S-Nikitin,A/Moscow 1999,
xh1 6.xh1 d6 is also promising.) 4.h4 continuing: h6 8.d2 c7 9.0-0-0 0-0
g4 5.c4 dxc4 6.b3 cxb3 7.xb3 c7 10.g5 with chances for both sides. ]
8.c3 e6 and White's compensation for 5.c4!? This loses pawn, now, but otherwise
the pawn is non-existent, Muller,E-Heitland, ho w do es W hit e ga in a ny a ctivity f or h is
P/Dortmund 1987. ] pieces? dxc4 6.c3
[ The real point behind Black's second move [ B a s m a n h a s a l s o t r i e d 6.dxe5
is that 3.c4? is no longer feasible, dxc4 and following xe5 7.xd8+ xd8 8.c3
4.b3 cxb3 5.xb3 e5 and Black is a pawn b4 9.e3 White had fair play for the pawn
up with a good position. ] sacrificed, Basman,M-Dawson,K/Torquay
[ 3.e4?! Has been suggested by Skembris, 1982, but the simple 6...Qa5+ is better, 7
but f6! seems to be an effective reply, Nc3 Nxe5 avoiding the displacement of the

6
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
king. ]
6...d6 7.f3 e7 Black calmly completes
his development. 8.e4 c7 9.g5 f6
10.d2 exd4 11.xd4 e5 12.c3 d5
Objectively, White is quite lost, not only has
Black consolidated his extra pawn, but his
knights have found good squares. 13.d2
f4!? Black decides that he would prefer to
take the light-squared bishop. Once more,
this tactic exploits the lacunas of White's first
move.
[ 13...xc3 was, perhaps, simpler. ]
14.g1 xg2+ 15.xg2 d5 16.e3 0-0
17.d1 d8 18.d2 b6 A curious picture,
both white knights are pinned. 19.f3 d3+?
This is a strange combination, due to time
trouble, I suppose, as otherwise, almost any
move was good for Black,
[ 19...g6! 20.g1 f8 to e6, is one
possibility, as is simple development by ]
[ 19...e6 , say. ]
20.exd3 xd4 21.xd4 xd4 22.xd4
xd4 23.dxc4 xd2 24.xd2
W hat a change ! Suddenly W hite has
regained his pawn, controls the open d-file,
and his uncastled king is well-placed in the
centre! e6 25.b3 f8 26.f2 e8 27.f4
c8 28.d6 d8 29.c5 Black is being
dominated. b6 30.b4 bxc5 31.bxc5 e6
32.f5 d5 33.b2 a5 34.a3 h6 35.e3
a8 36.h4 g8 37.f4 f8 38.g5
White increases his space advantage almost
every move. hxg5+ 39.hxg5 fxg5+ 40.xg5
g8? Too passive,
[ 40...a4! and if 41.b7 then a5
still held out some hope. ]
41.b7 f8 else White plays Kg6. 42.a7
f6?! 43.xg7+! xg7 44.e8+ f7
45.xf6 b3 46.g4 d5 47.e5+ e7
48.f6+ e6 49.f7 e7 50.g6 Black must
give his bishop for the f-pawn, the rest of the
game is without interest. xf7+ 51.xf7 e6
52.d6 d5 53.b7 c4 54.f5 a4
55.e4 b3 56.d3 xa3 57.c3 a2
58.a5 a3 59.xc6
1-0
9 A00
Bauer,Christian 2626
Isik,Engin Yasar 2190
23rd ECC Men (1) 03.10.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.b4 c6 This move is quite popular as an
attempt to "refute" the Orangutan, but in my
opinion, it is a rather dumb idea, particularly if
Black proceeds as in the present game, which
is the intention behind the text move. Black
instead should play either 1...e5 or 1...d5. 2.e3
[ This move is supposed to prevent Black's
i n t e n t i o n s , b u t e v e n 2.b2 which is
supposed to be wrong on account of b6
3.a3 a5 and according to Black's scheme,
White now has to play c2-c3 to avoid losing
a pawn, but White instead plays 4.e3! axb4
5.d4!? ( even 5.axb4 xa1 6.xa1 xb4
is a p la yab le ga m b it f o r W h it e , th o u gh
entirely unnecessary) 5...d8 ( 5...c5?
is effectively met with 6.xc5! and if xc5
7.axb4 W hite wins) 6.axb4 xa1 7.xa1
d5 8.f3= ]
2...b6 3.a3 a5 4.b5! The availability of this
move demonstrates the weakness in Black's
idea, and demonstrates that White certainly
has nothing to fear from Black's choice of
variation d5
[ Black's alternatives are: A) 4...cxb5 5.c3
A) 5...b4 6.axb4 xb4
A1) 7.a4!? b6 8.a3 f6 9.c5!?
d8?! ( 9...c7 10.b1 c6 11.b6
b8 12.c4 e6 13.b5 ) 10.b1 d5
11.b6 d7 12.b5 , and Black is
being dispatched in brutal fashion: a6
13.xa5 g4 14.xa6 xa6 15.c7+
d7 16.b5+ 1-0 Andersson, L-
Jansson/ corr 1987;
A2) 7.b5!? c5 8.a3 b6 9.b1
d8 10.f3 c6 11.d4 ( 11.c5!?
b4 12.c3 a6 13.d4 ) 11...d5
12.c4 e6 13.xf8 xf8 , so far Raeva,
E-Videnova, I/Vratsa BUL 2007, and
now 14.e2;
A3) 7.a3 b6
A3a) 8.b1 e6 9.f3 d6 10.d4
g6 11.d3 xg2 12.e4 h3
13.d5! , and Black is very much in
trouble, and in lack of a good answer
to the threat of Nd5-c7+ ( 13.e2 f6
7
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
wi t h a c o m p l i c a t e d g a m e , t h o u g h
W hite's chances seem pref erable,
Bennett, H-Gibbons, R/Auckland
1996 );
A3b) 8.d5! c6
A3b1) 9.e4! a6 10.f3 g6
11.d3 f6 ( 11...xg2? 12.g1
h3 13.xa6 xa6 14.c7+ d8
15.xa6 bxa6 16.e2+- ) 12.e5+-;
A3b2) 9.c4?! b5 10.f3 e6
11.e5 b7 12.f3 d6 13.b6
( White can finish Black off with
13.c5! dxe5 14.xb5+ d8 15.c6
xb5 16.xf7 xc6 17.xf8+
e8 18.d6+ d7 19.b6+ e8
20.c7++- ) 13...a7 14.xf7+
xf7 15.xf7 xf7 16.xc8 b4
17.b2 with a clear advantage for
W hite, Rudenkov-Strugatsch/corr
1988;
B) 5...f6
B1) 6.xb5
B1a) 6...d5?! 7.f3 c6 8.b1 d8
9.d4 f5 10.d3 e4 11.h4 e6?!
( 11...d7 12.f3 f6 13.0-0 e6
14.e4 ) 12.xf5 exf5 13.0-0
Lu k ovs ki, L-B erger, G/ W ie sba d e n
2001;
B1b) 6...d6 7.c4 g6 8.b1 g7
9.e2 0-0 10.a4 a6 11.a3 c6
12.f3 c5 13.0-0 1-0 Sticker, O- 5.bxc6
Werner, A/Ladenburg 1992;
B2) 6.xb5 e6 7.b1
B2a) 7...c7 8.f3 e7 9.0-0 0-0
10.b2 ( 10.e2 d6 11.b5 c6
12.c4 ) 10...d5 11.d3 d7 12.d2
c8 13.xd7 bxd7 14.fc1 e5
15.b5 b8= Kreuzer-Kern, M/corr
1994;
B2b) 7...c6 8.f3 e7 9.b2
( 9.0-0 0-0 10.d4 d5 11.d3 )
9...0-0 10.g5 c5 11.h4 ( 11.f4 e5
12.fxe5 xe5 13.f3 ) 11...d5 12.d4
d6 13.d3 h6 14.f4 xd4 15.exd4
xf4 16.h3 g3+ 17.f2 xg2
18.e2 , and it is doubtful Black has
sufficient compensation for the piece,
Poley, V-Daurelle, H/ St Lorrain 2005 ]
[ B) 4...f6
A) 5.b2 cxb5 ( 5...d6!? ) 6.d4 d8
7.c3 ( 7.xb5 e6 8.f3 ) 7...c6
8.xf6 gxf6 9.xb5 d5 10.f3 f5
11.c4 c8 12.bd4 with approximately
even chances, Bernhard, A-Liedtke, A/
Ruhrgebiet 1998;
B) 5.c4
B1) 5...g6 6.b2 g7 7.f3 0-0
( 7...d6 8.c3 0-0 9.e2 bd7 10.d4
e8 11.0-0 c7 12.b3 e5 13.fd1
e4 14.d2 f8 , and White's chances
seem preferable, Basman, M-Smith, A/
Torquay 1998) 8.e2 d6 9.0-0 e5
10.d4 e4 11.fd2 cxb5 12.cxb5 d5
13.c3 e6 14.a4 d6 15.c5 b6
16.xe6 xe6 17.c1 a7 18.c3
e8 19.c2 f8 20.c1 d6
, Borkowski, A-Pedersen, C/Frome 1998,
and now 21.a4 (intending Ba3 - the
exchange of the dark-squared bishops
will help W hite penetrate Black's
queenside) b4 22.c8 ae7 23.b1
( 23.f1!? ) 23...g7 24.a3 xc8
25.xc8;
B2) 5...d5 6.c3 ( 6.d4?! g4 7.f3
f5 8.c5 c7 9.b6 d8 10.d3 xd3
11.xd3 bd7 12.b2 e5
with chances to both sides, Gibbons, R-
Koeller, O/Auckland 2004) 6...e6 7.d4
( 7.f3!? ) 7...dxc4 8.xc4 c7 9.f3
d7 10.b3 Stejskal, D-Pachmann, A/
CZE 1995 ]
[ This isn't necessarily White's best move, as
he has a few alternatives at this juncture,
which a ll d eserve re co gn it io n: A ) 5.c4!?
dxc4 6.xc4 f5 7.c3 f6 8.f3 e6
1-0 Steffens, O-Doescher, A/Germany 2000
9.d3 e7 10.e4 g6 11.0-0 0-0 ]
[ B) 5.b2 f5
A) 6.c4!? e6 7.f3 f6 8.c3 e7
9.cxd5 cxd5 10.e5 ( 10.e2!? bd7
11.h4 g6 12.0-0 ) 10...0-0 11.g4!?
e4 12.xe4?! ( 12.f3 d6 13.d4 g6
14.h4 ) 12...xe4 13.h4 f6 14.f3 d7
15.d3 d6 16.a4 f7 is better for Black,
but undoubtedly White felt more
comf ortable than Black in this type of
position, and actually went on to win in the
e n d , M a e u re r , C - O b e r s t , T / G e r m a n y
2001;
B) 6.c3 a4 trying to annoy White by not
a l l o w i n g a 3 - a 4 7.f3!? ( 7.g4!?
8
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
looks fun and isn't altogether bad either)
7...e6 8.e2 d6? A bad blunder that
i m m e d i a t e l y l o s e s m a t e r i a l ( 8...f6
is better, but W hite is still doing well:
9.b1!? ) 9.xd5 cxd5 10.xg7 f6
11.d4! g6 ( 11...e7 12.xh8 d7
13.g7+- ) 12.xh8 f7 ( 12...f7?
13.h5!+- ) 13.h4 e5 14.h5 e4 15.d3!
xg2 16.g1+- Schuehler, E-Muller, M/
DDR 1990 ]
[ C) 5.f3 f6 6.a4?! ( White can do better
with 6.c4!? cxb5 7.cxd5 xd5 8.b2 c6
9.c3 xc3 10.xc3 and White has ample
compensation for the pawn) 6...g4 7.h3
xf3 8.xf3 e5 ( 8...bd7!? ) 9.b2 bd7
10.g4 d6 11.e2 0-0 0-1 Ardaman, M-
Anka, E/Chicago USA 2006 ]
[ D) 5.a4 f6 ( 5...e5 6.b2
looks comfortable for Black, but isn't
particularly bad for White either) 6.b2 g4
7.e2 xe2 8.xe2 bd7 9.f3 e6
10.0-0 c8 11.c1 d6 12.c4 dxc4
13.xc4 1-0 Marinelli, G-Petronelli, A/corr
1997 ]
5...bxc6 6.c4 f6 7.c3 e6 8.f3 e7
9.b1 d8
[ 9...c7 10.b2 a6!? ]
10.e2 0-0 11.0-0 bd7
[ 11...a6!? ]
12.d4
[ This will take the game to a pawn structure
akin to a sort of Meran Defence where Black
has played ...a6 and ... b5, followed by the
exchange ...bxc4. Instead White can also
consider keeping the game in flank opening
s t y l e , b y g i v i n g p r e f e r e n c e t o 12.d4!?
, e.g. c7 13.cxd5 cxd5 14.cb5 c5
15.a4 ( 15.d3!? ) 15...b6 16.c2 c5
17.c3 c7 18.a3 a6 19.db5 ]
12...dxc4?!
[ This looks perfectly normal, but Black will
do better to play 12...a6 , e.g. 13.cxd5
( 13.c2 dxc4 14.a4 c5 15.dxc5 xc5
16.b6 b8 17.xc4= ) 13...xe2
14.xe2 cxd5 15.b2= ]
13.xc4 c5 14.e5!
[ 14.dxc5 c7 is perfectly fine for Black ]
14...xe5
[ 14...d6 15.f4 cxd4 16.exd4
17.d3 ]
15.dxe5 xd1
[ Or 15...d7 16.f4 ( 16.f3 b8 17.xb8
xb8 18.g3 d7 19.e4 h4 20.f4 h6
21.b5 ) 16...b6 17.xd8 xd8 18.a2
a6 19.d1 ]
16.xd1 d7 17.f4 b8 18.b5
[ This move is entirely logical, preventing the
exchange of a pair of rooks and tying Black
down, but White can also consider 18.d2!?
d8 19.e1! xb1 20.xb1 f8 21.a4
, and White's position of domination is close
to a winning one as well. ]
18...d8 19.b2 f8
[ Or 19...b6 20.xd8+ xd8 21.e4 d5
22.a4 ]
20.xd8 xd8 21.d2
[ W hite can also opt for 21.e4!? d7
22.a4 xb5 23.xb5 xb5 24.axb5
d7 with an advantage for White in the endgame,
but W hite undoubtedly preferred to stay
clear of heavy exchanges against his much
lower-rated opponent. Often keeping pieces
on the board will allow the weaker player
greater opportunity to play inferior moves
thu s lo se b y h is o wn h an d, ra th er t ha n
White's superior skill. This will also come
to pass in the game. ]
21...e7
[ Black can try to save a tempo over the
game continuation with 21...b7 22.a4 f6
, but W hite can then choose a dif ferent
approach: 23.c4! fxe5 24.f5 f7
25.fxe6+ e7 26.b2! xe6 27.d5 xd5
28.xd5+ d6 29.xb8 xd5 30.b5 ]
22.a4 b7 23.a3 f6?!
[ White's advantage appears rather
comfortable at this juncture, but with
aggressive counterplay, Black can stay in
t h e g a m e , e . g . 23...g5 24.f2 c8
and Black's position isn't that easy to
penetrate, for instance 25.c4 c6 26.d1
d7 , and Black has almost levelled the
game ]
24.exf6 xf6?!
[ The text makes very little sense, as Black's
dark-squared bishop's influence on the play
from its new position on the a1-h8 diagonal
will be of a rather temporary basis, whereas
the def ect of the pawn structure is of a
b6 more permanent basis. Therefore 24...gxf6
deserves consideration, e.g. 25.f5!? f7
( 25...exf5 26.d5 xd5 27.xd5
9
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
also looks appealing for W hite, but may
actually be Black's best) 26.fxe6+ xe6
27.g4 f7 28.c4+ e8 29.b5!+- ]
25.d1 The knight is en route to c4 via b2.
c8 26.c2 e7 27.b2 d8 28.f2!?
[ This is probably okay, but more appealing
seems 28.c4!? d1+ 29.f2 a1
30.d2 d5 31.b2 h1 32.g3
, and Black is more or less forced to xc4
33.xc4 f7 34.b5 , and White is
undoubtedly on top: W hite's minor pieces
are far stronger than their black counterparts
and Black's a5-pawn is doomed after a white
Bc3 ]
28...e4 29.e2 g6?!
[ This is a weird move that pretends to
activate the knight, but in fact misplaces it
and takes the protection away from the
weak e6-pawn. A more active alternative is
29...g5!? 30.c4 gxf4 31.exf4 d3
32.xa5!? xe2 33.xe2 f7 34.c6
c8 35.e5+ f6 36.g3 d6 37.c4
e7 38.a5 b8 39.a6 , and White should
win. Nevertheless this line challenges White
far more than the path chosen by Black in
the game. ]
30.g3 f7 31.c4 d1 32.e1 d3
33.c1 c3 34.b2 b3 35.a1 d3
[ This loses an exchange, but even after the
better alternative, White is winning: 35...d5
36.xa5 a3 37.b2 a2 38.e2 d8
39.c6 with an extra pawn and better
coordinated pieces ]
36.xa5 xb5 37.xb3 xa4 38.d2
The next target is Black's c-pawn. f8 39.c1
d7 40.b2 b5 41.a3 e5 42.e4
Now the c-pawn is forced forward with an
exchange of the dark-squared bishops as a
re s u l t , m a k i n g W h i t e ' s win si m p l e r . exf4
43.exf4 c4 44.xe7 xe7 45.d2 c5
46.e3 d3
[ 46...b3 47.b1 xd2 48.xb5 c3
49.d3+- ]
47.b1 and with the c-pawn dropping as well,
Black finally called it a day.
1-0
10 A00
Bellon Lopez,Juan Manuel 2465
Pecorelli Garcia,Humberto 2460
Premier Casablanca 1997
[Tony Kosten]
1.c3 d5 2.e4 dxe4 3.xe4 f5 4.g3
Just as in the Caro-Kann, but
[ 4.f3!? is also possible, and lends a more
o r i g i n a l f l a v o u r t o t h e p o s i t i o n d5
( 4...xe4?! 5.xe4 c6 6.c4 f6 7.e2
e6 was solid, if not particularly inspiring, in
Spice,A-Angus,J/4NCL967-HE:SWD 1997,;
and 4...e6 5.g3 xc2 6.xb7 d7
7.b5 is probably playable for Black, as
well ) 5.d6+ xd6 6.xf5 c6 7.b5
f6 and Black has obtained a lead in
development in exchange for the bishop pair,
Marroleni-Foguelman, Argentina 1969. ]
4...g6 5.d4 Once again, White continues as
if in a Caro-Kann
[ White can also choose a set-up with the d-
pawn on d3 instead of d4, e.g. 5.h4 h6
6.f3 d7 7.c4 e6 8.d3 although,
following gf6 9.e2 d6 10.h5 h7
11.d2 e7 12.0-0-0 b6 13.b3 a5
Black's position was quite promising, Van
Geet,D-Prins,L/ Amsterdam 1970. ]
5...d7 6.h4 Completely standard in these
formations, White will try to exploit the active
black queen's bishop's placing to advance his
kingside pawns.
[ 6.f3 e6 7.h4 h6 8.h5 h7 9.d3
continuing just as in the Caro main line, Isler,
P-Mantovani,R/Lugano SUI 1999, is
probably not so bad, but, providing Black
chooses a line where he plays ...c5 in one
go, rather than by passing by the c6-square,
he should equalize easily. ]
6...h6 7.h3 Coming to f4, this promises
White little, objectively. e6 8.f4 h7 9.c4
White raises the possibility of a later sacrifice
on e6 gf6 10.0-0 This looks odd with the
white h-pawn on h4, and may well backfire at
some stage. White is following a line of the
Caro-Kann, but Black profits, as ever, from
the extra tempo gained from not having played
...c6. b6! The extra piece developed (in the
corresponding Caro-Kann position, this knight
is still on b8) gains a further tempo. 11.b3
d7?! Keeping a close eye on e6. In a similar
10
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

position from a famous Tal-Botvinnik World time. d1 35.e1 c2 36.h5 h7 37.e2
Championship game (1960), Tal sacrificed his a1 38.h6 a2 39.c1 a5 40.f2 a1
knight on e6, by Nxe6 fxe6 Bxe6, when the 41.h6 b1 42.f4 xb2 43.xb2 xb2
e6-bishop cut the black position in two. 44.f5 a4 White has had enough.
[ That said, I think I would pref er 11...c5 0-1
myself, striking at the centre. The black
qu e e n p ro ve s t o b e ve ry u n f o rt u n a t e l y
placed. ] 11 A00
12.e1 e7 13.gh5 It seems that Black is Bilek,Istvan
in trouble, his g-pawn is menaced, and f8 Geller,Efim P
This is hardly any better Havana 1971
[ 13...0-0?? loses on the spot to 14.xe6 [Nigel Davies]
fxe6?? 15.xe6+ winning the queen ]
14.xe6! Crunch! Bellon is not known for his 1.g3 d5 2.g2 c6
fear of sacrificing. c5 Sad, but what else? [ Black can also play the immediate 2...e5
[ 14...fxe6? Loses the queen after the when 3.d3 f6 4.d2 c6 5.e4
sequence 15.xe6+ e8 16.hxg7+ f7 transposes back into the game. ]
17.c5+ ] 3.d3
15.xf6 xf6 16.xf6!! And again, Black is [ Black's move order also presents White
a llo we d n o re s p it e . gxf6 17.h5 c4 with the opportunity to play a Reversed
Trying to keep one of the white pieces out of Leningrad Dutch with 3.f4 , for example g6
the game 18.xh6+ Not bad, but 4.f3 g7 5.d3 b6 6.c3 f6 7.e3 g4
[ 18.xc4! was strong, for if xc4 then 8.0-0 bd7 9.c2 xf3 10.xf3 0-0
19.d5 wins, for example g6 20.xh6+ 11.d4 e6 12.d2 e8 13.b3 f5 14.c4
( 20.xh6+ is f lashier, but, af te r xh6 led to a tough positional battle in Larsen, B-
21.xh6+ e8 22.xf6+ e7 23.xd7 Day, L/St John 1970. ]
xd7 W hite has a lot of work to do.) 3...f6 4.d2 e5! 5.e4
20...e8 21.f3! with a decisive attack. ] [ It's risky to play 5.gf3 here because of e4
18...e7 19.d2 f5?! Of course, it is 6.dxe4 dxe4 7.g5 e3 8.fxe3 g4 . ]
difficult to defend such positions precisely, but 5...c5
19...Qd6 would have been better, so as to [ After 5...d6 6.gf3 0-0 there's a good
offer some protection to the black king when it c a s e f o r p r e v e n t i n g . . . B g 4 w i t h 7.h3
w a n d e r s t o t h e q u e e n s i d e . 20.h5? , for example e8 8.0-0 bd7 ( 8...a5
A mistake, throwing away a brilliant victory, 9.e1 a6 10.d4! dxe4? 11.xe5!
the right path was gave W hite an edge in Sax, G-Martin, A/
[ 20.e1+ d7 21.g7! cxb3 22.xf7+ Hastings 1983) 9.a3 a5 10.e1 d4 11.f1
and Black can resign, as the white pieces b5 12.g4 f8 13.g3 c5 14.g5 6d7
move in for the kill, e.g. c8 23.e8+ xe8 15.f5 c7 16.h2 e6 17.h4
24.xe8+ c7 25.e6+ d6 26.b4+ and W hite had attacking chances on the
d5 27.c7+ c4 28.axb3+ xb4 kingside in Rigo, J-Groszpeter, A/Kecskemet
29.e1# What a wonderful finish! ] 1979. ]
20...g6 Suddenly, Black defends his position 6.gf3 0-0 7.0-0 e8 8.h3 bd7 9.h2?!
and the material advantage will prove After this passive move Black has a good
decisive. 21.g3 xh6 22.xf5+ xf5 game.
23.xh6 cxb3 24.c3 bxa2 25.xa2 e6 [ W hite should play 9.exd5 cxd5 10.d4
White has only two pawns for his piece, and when exd4 11.b3 d6 12.bxd4
his light squares are weak. 26.a1 a6 27.f4 gives White play against Black's isolated d-
h8 28.g3 h5 29.f3 b3 30.e1+ d7 pawn. ]
31.g2 a5 Black is going to target the weak 9...a5 10.exd5 cxd5 11.d4 exd4 12.b3
b2-pawn. 32.g4 a2 33.c1 c4 34.e2 b6 13.bxd4 e4 If anything White would
White is tied-up and the win is just a matter of prefer to have his king on g1 here so as to

11
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

protect f2. 14.c3 df6 15.f4 h5 16.d2 14.c3 e7 Black's manoeuvre seems time-
d7 17.e1 consuming but he hopes to weaken the white
[ 17.g1 may be White's best, but this queenside and dissuade White from putting
would represent a difficult admission. ] his king there. The last thing a strong player
17...hf6 18.a4 c8 19.g1 d6 20.ge2 wants is to be attacked by a weaker one in an
c4 21.b3 d6 22.d3 de4 23.d1 opposite-castling situation! 15.e5 xe5
e7 24.f3 c5 25.c2 c7 26.h1 h5 16.xe5 0-0-0 A wise decision, castling
27.f2 g5 28.f4 h6 29.f5 xf5 kingside would encourage White to attack:
30.xf5 e4 31.xe4 dxe4 32.e3? [ 16...0-0!? 17.f1 d5 18.0-0-0
[ 32.g2 would have been much better, ( 18.xg7?! xg7 19.xd5 allows xd3!
when White doesn't stand at all badly. ] 20.xd3 exd5+ ) 18...ad8 19.g4 f6
32...g6 33.g5 xg5 34.fxg5 xg3+ 20.f4 with mutual chances. ]
35.xg3 xg3 36.d7? 17.f3?! The queen was better-placed where
[ 36.c4 would have made a better fight of it. ] she stood,
36...xc3 37.fxf7 e5 38.f4? f3 [ 17.0-0!? is possible, White's pressure
39.xh7 xf4 40.h6 e6 along the f-file should insure against any
0-1 black attack. ]
17...hg8 An odd move, played to defend g7,
of course, but
12 A00 [ 17...c5! is strong, hitting the e5-bishop,
Brameld,Arthur F 2076 18.f4 ( 18.xf6?! gxf6 19.xf6? b5
Ward,Christopher 2513 20.b3? e3+ mates ) 18...f5 with a real
Jersey Open Jersey JCI (1) 16.02.2003 plus. ]
[Tony Kosten] 18.f1?!
[ 18.0-0-0 seems more logical, with equal
1.c3 d5 2.e4 dxe4 3.xe4 f5 4.g3 chances, or ]
g6 5.h4 I discussed this move in the notes [ 18.0-0 although c5+ 19.d4 xd4!
to Bellon Lopez,J-Pecorelli Garcia,H/ 20.cxd4 xd4+ is pleasant for Black. ]
Ca p a b la n ca P re m ie r 1 9 9 7 , whe re W h it e 18...f5
preferred to play in Caro style with [ 18...c5! is possible, once again, 19.d4
[ 5.d4 ] xd4! 20.cxd4 b4+ 21.d1 xb2
5...h6 6.h5 and the white position is a mess. ]
[ 6.f3 d7 7.h5 may transpose, h7 19.a4?! g4 White's prevarication should
8.d4 Mestrovic,Z-Rouchouse,S/Cannes now cost him dear, 20.e2
1 9 9 5 , a g a i n wi t h a C a r o - K a n n t y p e o f [ 20.f4?! h2 wins an exchange. ]
position. ] 20...xe5 21.xe5 xd3?? Messing-up his
6...h7 7.c4 For what it is worth, this seems large advantage.
new, but of course the position is quite rare. [ 21...g5 hits h5, and after 22.h1 xd3
[ 7.f3 c6 8.c4 e6 9.d3 occurred in Black wins a key pawn. ]
Ha inzin ge r, J-Do pp e lh a m me r, H/ A u st ria 22.xf7! Ouch! This must have been a shock
1999. ] to our gallant Dragon expert. d6
7...e6 8.f3 d6 9.d3 This seems more in [ 22...xf7 23.xe6+ wins the queen with
the spirit of the opening than check. ]
[ 9.d4 which is like a Caro-Kann where Black 23.xe6+
has avoided ...c6. ] [ 23.xe6+ xe6+ 24.xe6+ b8
9...f6 10.e2 xg3!? An interesting 25.0-0-0 is simpler, White has a
decision, conceding the bishop pair to weaken considerable advantage. ]
t h e w h i t e k i n g s i d e . P e r h a p s B l a c k w a s 23...b8 24.xd6 xd6 25.e7 gd8
worried about White castling long after 26.0-0-0 a5 27.g4 Quite a generous draw
[ 10...0-0 ] offer, but of course White was happy to draw
11.fxg3 c6 12.d2 d6 13.f4 b4+

12
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
with a strong GM.
½-½
13
Collas,Didier
Vehi Bach,Victor Manuel
IX EICC Plovdiv BUL (9)
[Carsten Hansen]
1.b4 e5 2.b2 xb4 3.xe5 f6 4.c4
[ In Palliser's "Beating Unusual Chess
Openings", the coverage is mainly focused
on 4.e3 0-0 5.f3 e8!? , and now 6.e2
( 6.c4 d5 7.cxd5 xd5 8.a3 c6 9.b2
d6 10.e2 g4 is given as comfortable
for Black and playable for White by Palliser)
6...d5
A) 7.c4 c5 8.cxd5 xd5 9.0-0 c6
10.b2 f5 11.c1 ( 11.d3 ) 11...e7
12.c3 ad8 13.a4?! f4! , and Black
is clearly better, Akopian-Ponomariov,
Verdun 1995;
B) 7.0-0 bd7 ( 7...c5 8.c4 ) 8.b2 b6
9.d3 d7 10.c1 a4 11.a3 a5
12.d4 b6 13.f3 c5 14.e2 c7
15.bc3 g4 , is very good for Black as
indicated by Palliser based on the game
Vidoniak-Tiviakov, Gausdal 2005 ]
4...0-0 5.f3 d5
[ 5...e8!? 6.a3 ( 6.e3 d5 7.cxd5 xd5 4
transposes to the line given after e3) 6...a5
( 6...f8!? is an interesting suggestion of
Palliser's) 7.e3 ( 7.g3? d5! is very good for
Black ) 7...d5 8.cxd5 xd5 9.e2 c5
( 9...xe5?! 10.xe5 f6 11.c4 xa1
12.xa5 is a recommendation by Tony K on
t h i s s it e a n d q u o t e d b y P a l l i s e r i n t h e
above-mentioned book) 10.0-0
11.b2 f5 12.b3 ( or 12.d4 cxd4
13.xd4 b6 14.a2
with an initia tive f or Black)
13.xb6 xb6 14.c1 a4 , and now m y
computer was kind enough to indicate that
W hite can play the surprising ( 14...d7!
15.c3 ce5 16.xe5 xe5 is more solid
and about even) 15.xg7! xg7 16.b5!
(the point behind the previous move) e4
17.d3 g4 18.h3 g6
, and White has the upper hand ]
6.e3 c5 7.c3
[ White has tried several other things at this
ju n ct u re : A ) 7.a3 is probably White's best
move a5 8.cxd5 xd5 9.c2
A) 9...e7
A00 A1) 10.d3 g6?! (this is a curious
2446 decision with White's bishop already on
2381 the diagonal and Black's bishop stuck on
30.04.2008 a5) 11.0-0 c6 12.b2 e6 13.c1
b6 14.b5 ac8 15.d3 fd8
16.bd2 Szczepaniak-Kozun/corr
thematic 1991;
A2) 10.e2 c6 11.b2 a6 12.0-0 b5
13.c1 b6 14.c3 e6 15.d3 g6
16.e4 ad8 17.d4 c4 18.xd5 xd5
19.e4 xe4? ( 19...e6! is much better,
e.g. 20.d5 g4 21.dxc6 xf3 22.gxf3
g5+ 23.h1 d2 24.d5 xc2
25.xc2 f5 26.xb6 f4 with unclear
complications) 20.xe4 xe4 21.xe4
xd4 22.xd4 xd4 23.xd4 xd4
24.e1 , and White should win, Kuperski-
Kozun/corr 1992;
A3) 10.c4 e6 11.0-0 d7 12.g3
h6 ( 12...f6!? 13.a2 ac8
may be an improvement for Black) 13.d3
7f6 14.bd2 xd2 15.xd2 ac8
16.ab1 ( 16.h4!? ) 16...h5 17.b3
xg3 18.hxg3 Pilczuk, A-Sternik, R/
corr thematic 1991;
B) 9...g4 10.xc5? ( While the pawn is
hanging, this is definitely not the way to go,
of course unless you're angling to be at
the losing end of a miniature...Instead
10.b2 c6 11.e2 e7 makes much
m o r e s e n s e) 10...c6 11.b2 c8
12.b5 f4! 13.g5 xg5 14.xg5
d4! 15.f3 c2+ 16.f2 f5 17.a2
xe3 18.dxe3 xb1 19.a1 c2+
c6 20.g3 h5+ 21.h4 xb2 22.xh5
c8 23.g4 c5 24.e4 c7 0-1 Algy-
g6 Evoker/ www.playchess.de 2002. White's
12...b6 provocative 10th move was punished with
computer-like (or probably more
accurately computer-assisted...)
accuracy.;
C) 9...c6
C1) 10.xc5?! is simply put too risky for
White who is far behind in development
19.xa4 and with a king stuck in the centre xe5
11.xe5
C1a) 11...e6
13
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

C1a1) ? - a poor move by White, a5 17.ab1 ( 17.xb6!? axb6

instead W hite should have played 18.ab1 looks good for White, but isn't
12.c4 though f6 13.d4! m e n t i o n e d i n t h e L a p s h u n b o o k)
( 13.a2?! b6 14.xa5 xc4 17...c8 18.h3 e6 19.xb6 axb6
15.c3 e5 16.c2 f5 20.f3 c4 21.h7+ h8 22.d4
should win f or Black) 13...xd4 C2b1) From the Lapshun book:
14.exd4 d8 15.c3 xc3 "Trying to win the h7-bishop, but this
16.dxc3 c8 , and Black is clearly allows a tremendous attack on the
better; b l a c k k i n g . I n s t e a d 22...b3!
C1a2) 12.b5 c8 13.c4 (?) f6 23.xe6 fxe6 24.d1 h4 25.f3
14.a2 b6 15.xa5 xa2 C2b11) CH: 25...xf3!?
, and Black wins is given in the new l o o k s l i k e a n o b vi o u s m o v e t o
book by Lapshun, but may in fact be examine, but isn't mentioned in the
a line quoted from an earlier work by L a p s h u n b o o k , e . g . 26.g6
Sokolsky, but I can't locate my copy ( 26.gxf3 g3+ 27.h1 xh3+ )
of that book; 26...f2+ 27.h1 f7 28.xe6
C1b) 11...f5 12.c3 xc3 13.dxc3 c6 29.xd5 xh7;
e8 14.f3 c8 15.xa7 xc3 C2b12) 25...b5 26.e4
16.xb7 e4 17.b2 xf3 18.gxf3 is unclear as Black enjoys some
a5 ( 18...a4!? 19.d2 f6 ) counterplay on the queenside".
19.h3 b8 20.c2 was played in Again this may be a quote from an
Scholbach, T-Roe, P/IECG Email 1999, e a r l i e r b o o k, b e c a u s e t h e l i n e
and now Black should have played given has obvious holes in it and it
a4+ 21.d2 ( 21.f1?! b2 begs for improvements for both
22.c6 d8 gives Black too much sides, improvements which may be
compensation for the pawns) 21...a6 fairly easy to find.;
22.e2 g6 , and Black has C2b2) 22...c3 23.dxc3 g6 24.xg6
adequate compensation for the fxg6 25.c4 f6 26.xg6 xc4
sacrificed pawns White's main concern 27.xh6+ g8 28.g6+ h8
is to get his king to safety, and then 29.a1 f7?? 30.xe6 xe6
get his pieces coordinated, neither 31.b5 1-0 Katalymov, B-Giterman,
task being particularly easy to S/Novgorod 196100 ]
accomplish; [ B) 7.e2?! c6 8.b2 d4! 9.c2 e8
C2) 10.b2 e7 11.d3 h6 12.0-0 10.0-0 g4 11.a3 d7 , and White's
e6 13.c1 b6 14.c3 position is decidedly unpleasant, Amor
C2a) 14...xc3 15.xc3 ( 15.h7+ Alcaide, M-Ionescu, C/Berga 1994 ]
h8 16.xc3 is at first given [ C) 7.cxd5 xd5?! ( 7...xd5!? ) 8.e2
preference by my computer, but Black ( 8.a3! a5 9.xf6 gxf6 10.a4 b6
is fine after f5 17.g6 c4 18.d3 cxd3 11.c3 is an easy improvement for White,
19.xd3 ad8 with a complicated leaving him with the better chances) 8...c6
game. ) 15...f6 16.e4 ( 16.h4!? 9.xf6 gxf6 10.0-0 f5 11.d3 ad8!
looks obvious and attractive, the light 12.a3 a5 13.e4 xe4! 14.dxe4 xe4
squares around Black's king are 15.bd2 f4 16.g3 ( or 16.a2! d4
s c r e a m i n g t o b e e x p l o i t e d; 17.d3!? xf3+ 18.xf3 c4 19.a4 xd3
Another move with the same intention 20.xa5 xf3 21.gxf3 xf3 22.e1 g4+
is 16.c2!? f5 17.c4 xc4 23.f1 h3+ with a draw by perpetual
18.xc4+ f7 19.c3 with a better check ) 16...h6 17.a2 d4 18.h4
game for W hite) 16...a5 17.c2 xe2+ 19.xe2 xd2 20.f5 g5
fd8 "looks about equal" in the 21.xd2 xd2 22.f3 e8 23.xb7 b6
Lapshun book.; 24.c6 e6 25.a8+ d8 , thus far Lalic,
C2b) 14...ad8 15.a4 g4 16.e1 S-De Kleuver, E/ Delden 1993, and now

14
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
26.f3 d2 27.a8+ d8 leads to a draw
by repetition ]
7...bd7!?
[ This idea is quite attractive and proves
difficult for W hite to meet. Earlier games
have tested 7...c6 8.xf6 xf6 9.xd5
g6 ( 9...b2 10.a3 a5 11.b1 xb1+
12.xb1 b6 13.e2 f5 14.b2 e4
15.f4 , Myrberg-Dubleumortier, A/corr
1996 ) 10.f4 ( 10.b3!? f6 11.a3 a5
12.b1 g4 13.d3 )
A) 10...h6! 11.e2 ( 11.d5 g6
of course invites a repetition of moves)
11...g5 12.d5 g4 13.g1 f5
, a n d B l a c k h a s m o re t h a n a d e q u a t e
compensation for the sacrificed pawn.;
B) 10...e4? 11.d3 e7 12.0-0 g4
13.d5 d6? ( 13...d8 14.h3 h5
15.f4 ) 14.xh7+ h8 15.xb4 xb4
16.a3 xf3 17.xf3 xh7 18.axb4 cxb4
19.d4+- c7 20.h5+ g8 21.b5 a5
22.c5 fb8 23.fd1 1-0 Kreuzer-Sikora, A/
corr 1995 ]
8.g3 b6 9.cxd5 bxd5 This position
already seems rather comfortable for Black.
10.c2
[ This definitely doesn't look good, but the
alternatives are also far from promising, e.g.
10.xd5 xd5 11.a3 a5 12.a4 b6
13.c4 h5 14.0-0 b7 , and Black has
the more comfortable game, even if the
bishop on a5 is somewhat out of the game
at the moment. ]
[ 10.b3 e6 11.c4 xc3 12.dxc3 a6
13.e5 b5 14.xd5 xd5 15.d1 f6
16.f4 c4 , and Black dominates the
game. ]
10...xc3 11.dxc3 f5 12.b3 a5
13.c1?!
[ White should have given consideration after
13.c4!? e4 14.e5 g4 15.c2 e8
16.xe4 xc3+ 17.e2 xf3+ 18.gxf3
xe5 19.ab1 b6 20.f4 d6 21.xe8
axe8 22.f3 , and while White is a pawn
down, he has some drawing chances. ]
13...e4! This strong move completely ties
White up, and soon his troubles become very
evident. 14.e2
[ Here 14.c4 is met by g4 , preventing
15.0-0 on account of xf3 16.gxf3 d2
, though this actually looks like a better
chance for White than the game
continuation. ]
14...b6 15.a3?
[ Or 15.0-0 xb3 16.axb3 xc3
, and Black is a pawn up for nothing, yet this
is better for White than the game
continuation, which is completely untenable
for White. ]
15...xc3! This elegant combination wins a
pawn and leaves Black with a won position. It
exposes the issues in White's camp, first an
foremost the vulnerable uncastled king and
the last of overall coordination of the white
pieces. 16.xc3 b1+ 17.d1 ad8 18.0-0
xd1 19.c1 xf1+
[ Black can also reach winning endgame
after 19...xc1 20.xc1 xc1 21.xc1
d8 22.h4 b4 23.c7 d7 24.f4 f6
, and Black shouldn't have any troubles
converting his advantage. ]
20.xf1 b4 21.c1 d8 22.e5 e6
23.a3 c3 24.b1 b3 25.h4 f6 26.f3
xb1 27.xb1 b6 28.e4 d3! Now White
cannot prevent the loss of the a-pawn and
furthermore with the rook and bishops ready
to support the passed c-pawn, W hite is in
serious trouble. 29.b8 c4 30.xa7 c3
31.e1 d2 32.c1 a2 33.c2 b3
34.d4
[ Of course 34.b4? xb4 35.axb4 loses to
xa7-+ ]
34...a4 35.b8 c2 This well-supported
passed pawn will end up costing W hite at
least a piece and the game is already
essentially over. 36.f4 c3 37.e3 b2
38.e1 xa3
[ Black can play even more convincingly with
38...b5 39.h5 xa3 40.e2 d3
, and it is all over. ]
39.xc2 xc2 40.xb6 With an extra piece,
this is of course easily won for Black, even if it
takes a while to convert. b4 41.e2 a1+
42.h2 d1 43.e3 d6+ 44.g3 a3
45.g2 h5 46.xa3 xa3 47.f3 f7
48.f2 e6 49.e3 c1+ 50.f2 d6
51.d4 a3 52.g2 c5 53.c3 c6
54.b2 b5 55.c3 c4 56.b2 d3
57.c1 d6 58.f2 c5+ 59.g2 e2
60.b2 d6 61.d4 c2 62.b6 e5
63.c5 g6 64.b6 f5 65.exf5 gxf5 66.d8
15
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

a4 stopped Ne3-c4 so the knight seeks another

0-1 route. e4?!
[ Perhaps Black had taken fright at the
t h o u g h t o f 15...d7 16.c3 but b5
14 A00 17.xe5 xe5 18.xe5 f4 wouldn't be
Davies,Nigel R 2475 clear there. ]
Lev,Ronen 2480 16.dxe4 xb2 17.e3 xa2 18.c4
Ramat Hasharon 1990 Attempting to cut off the queen's retreat,
[Nigel Davies] though it's not entirely clear that this was
necessary.
1.g3 d5 2.g2 c6 3.d3 [ 18.a1 f7 19.exf5 looks very strong
[ Adopting a Reversed Leningrad Dutch here , f o r example xf5 20.g5 e8
f o r m a t i o n w i t h 3.f4 is also a pretty good 21.xf5 xe2 22.xe2 xf5 23.e4
idea. ] wins the h7 pawn and leaves White with a
3...e5 4.f3 d6 5.e4 e7 More ambitious powerful pair of bishops. ]
than putting the knight on f6 in that Black is 18...c5 19.e5 e8? Losing.
leaving his f-pawn free to advance. 6.0-0 0-0 [ 19...d4 was better, preventing White's
7.c3 f5 Presumably attempting to punish rook from going to a1. ]
me for not playing a proper opening, but Black 20.a1 b2 21.d3 d4 22.xc5 xc5
is taking on a lot of responsibilities with this 23.a5 d4 24.exf5 The f5 pawn is an
move. Pawns do not go backwards so one important one and its loss has catastrophic
sh ou ld b e ca u tiou s ab ou t p ushing t he m . consequences for Black. d7 25.d1 f6
8.exd5 xd5 26.g4 b6 27.a3 c5?! 28.c3 Forcing the
[ 8...cxd5 9.g5 ( 9.b5 bc6 10.c4 win of the c6 pawn. g5 29.xc6 xf5
is also interesting) 9...e4 10.dxe4 dxe4 30.xa8 xa8 31.xa7 g6 32.h4
11.d4 bc6 12.xc6 bxc6 13.d4 h6 1-0
14.e3 ]
9.d2
[ Varying from an earlier game which went 15 A00
9.e1 d7 10.d2 e8 11.e2 7f6 Dergatschova Daus,Anna 2214
12.ac1 d7 13.a3 e4 14.dxe4 xc3 Jussupow,Artur 2628
15.xc3 xe4 16.d3 xc3 17.xc3 Jussopow-Clock Simul (1) 01.05.2000
when Black was doing fine in Marangunic, S [Tony Kosten]
(2470)-Horvath, T (2200)/ Virovitica 1977. ]
[ Another possibility is 9.xd5 cxd5 10.c4 1.b4 e5 2.a3
when dxc4 11.dxc4 c6 12.d5+ h8 [ White wishes to avoid the tactical line 2.b2
13.g5 gives White a temporary initiative. A xb4 3.xe5 f6 ]
sample line is c7 14.ad1 e7 15.xe7 2...d5 3.b2 d6 4.e3 f6 5.c4 c6 6.d3
xe7 16.d6 xd6 17.xd6 e4 18.d4 [ Oddly, at such an early stage of the game,
xd4 19.xd4 e6 20.f3 with the better this seems to be a new move, 6.f3 e7
endgame for White. ] is also fine for Black, see the archives. ]
9...d7 10.e2 b4 6...0-0 7.d2 e8 8.e2
[ 10...e8 was an interesting alternative, White's development is restrained, but this
along the lines of Marangunic - Horvath. simply allows Black to consolidate his centre.
W hite might then do well to consider bd7 9.gf3 f8 10.c2 g6 11.g3?!
11.xd5 cxd5 12.g5 e7 13.xe7 xe7 [ White is worried about some threat to his
14.fe1 encouraging Black to play e4 when kingside, but this weakens his light squares.
15.ad1!? is interesting. ] 11.0-0 is best. ]
11.ac1 f6 12.fe1 a6 13.d1 11...a5 12.c5 c7 13.bxa5 xa5 14.0-0
Aiming to come to c4 via e3 and/or play Bd2- h3 15.fd1 h6 16.e4
c3. c7 14.e3 b6 15.f1 Black has [ This attempt to stabilize the centre only

16
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
succeeds in consolidating Black's space
advantage, possibly 16.db1 was better. ]
16...d4 17.c4 c7 18.a4 d7 19.a3
f6 20.db1 a7 Preparing to attack the a4-
pawn. 21.e1 gf8 22.b4
[ 22.d6?! xd6 23.cxd6 c8 menaces ...
c5, when the d6-pawn is lost. ]
22...e6 23.d2 White is obliged to defend
h i s we a k c - p a wn . ea8 24.ef3 e7
25.b3 White prefers to defend his c-pawn,
t h a n h i s a - p a wn . xa4 26.xa4 xa4
27.bxd4?! A small combo, but it loses
material! xd4?!
[ Of course, this was only a simul, but
27...xb4 is more accurate, as Black wins
the c-pawn after 28.xb4 exd4 29.xb7
dxc5 ]
28.xd4 xb4 29.xb4 exd4 30.xb7 d8
[ 30...a5! would kill the game quickly. ]
31.c4 f6 32.f4 e7 33.c7 g5 34.f5
[ Not 34.e5? when xe5 35.fxe5 xe5
and the double attack on c7 and e2 wins
material. ]
34...e5 Black infiltrates on the dark squares.
35.b4 g4 36.f2 g5!? Black his ha ving
severe problems exploiting his material plus,
a n d m a y, i n f a c t , n o l o n g e r b e wi n n i n g .
37.xd4 f6 38.c8+ h7 39.e3 g7
40.e1??
[ Losing immediately, better 40.f4 when
d7! ( 40...g5? 41.f6 swaps the queens)
41.xc6 xc5 keeps some attacking
chances. ]
40...g5
0-1
16
Desmarais,Chris
Seres,Lajos
FSIMA July Budapest HUN (13) 14.07.2001 xg3+ 19.h1 g4
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3
[ Well, I suppose if I had to pick the worst 0-1
possible opening move, this would probably
be it! W hite weakens his king protection,
and kingside dark squares with no obvious
advantages. W ell, except that f2 is made
a v a i l a b l e f o r h i s k n i g h t o r k i n g . 1.h3
is similar, White will follow with f3 and bring
the knight there. My German team-mate,
Andre Lisanti, plays these variations a lot,
and always seems to get good positions! d5
2.g3 f6 3.f3 g6 4.d3 g7 5.f2 c6
6.c3 e5 7.g2 and now, a 'purist' would
play his queen's knight to c2 via a3! Boeye,
L-Schumacher,H/Antwerp BEL 1998. ]
1...e5 2.f2?!
[ This is a really bad move, the 'normal' line
would be 2.h3 d5 3.f2 f6 4.e3!?
( now, 4.g3 is usual, as in the previous note,
e.g. c6 5.g2 etc. ) 4...c6 5.b5 d6
6.d4 exd4 7.xd4?! 0-0 8.xc6 bxc6
9.0-0 c5 Black has the two bishops and
potential pressure on the e-line, Hunt, T-
Graff,J/ California 1992. ]
2...d5 3.d3
[ This risks further weakening White's dark
squares. The only move with a 'pedigree' is
3.e3 f6 4.d4 c6 5.b5 d6 6.e2
0-0 7.e1 e4 8.g3 h5 9.f4 g4 10.e2
g6 11.g1 e7?! 12.a3 Black has almost
no advantage, W illiams,S-Simons,M/
Scarborough 1999. ]
3...d4! 4.e4 dxe3+ 5.xe3 f5 6.g3 c6
7.g2 f6 8.e2?!
[ O v e r l o o k i n g B l a c k ' s n e x t , 8.c3
had to be played. ]
8...d5 9.d2 d6?!
[ This allows White time to recover, the
immediate 9...f4 10.gxf4 h4+ 11.f1
d6 is very unpleasant for White. ]
10.e1?
[ This allows the previously mentioned
kingside breakthrough, W hite would still
have a playable position after 10.f4 ]
10...f4! 11.gxf4 h4+ 12.g3 0-0 13.fxe5
A00 xe5 14.g1 xf3+ 15.xf3 xf3 16.f2
2180 W hite thinks that he has braved the worst,
2427 however ... xg3! 17.xg3 xg3+ 18.hxg3
[ after 19...g4 20.f1 Black wins by
eliminating the def ende rs of f 3 so : e3
21.c3 xf1 22.xf1 f8 ]
17
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

17 A00 [ 7...g4!? 8.b3 ( 8.cxd5 cxd5 9.0-0

Fedorov,Alexei should be considered as it, like the latter
Ivanchuk,Vassily game in the previous note, leaves W hite
2001 Wijk aan Zee 2001 with a slightly more comf ortable game.)
[Paul Motwani] 8...e6 ( 8...dxc4!? 9.xc4 xf3 10.gxf3
bd7 11.d4 b6 is fine for Black) 9.d3
0-1 bd7 10.bd2 a5 11.0-0 b8 12.h3
xf3 13.xf3 c8 14.fc1 b6 15.ab1
axb4 16.axb4 b7 17.f1 h6 18.g3
18 A00 Le n d wa i, R-S p in d e lb o e ck, G/ O b e rwa rt
Gelashvili,Tamaz 2612 1995 ]
Salgado Lopez,Ivan 2532 8.b5 cxb5
Acropolis Open (4) 12.08.2008 [ Or 8...dxc4 9.xc4 f5 ( 9...cxb5
[Carsten Hansen] 10.xb5 c6 11.d4 ) 10.c3 d3
with approximately equal chances ]
1.a3 g6!? I seem to recall that this is the 9.cxd5
move that was recommended for Black [ 9.cxb5 f5 10.0-0 looks like a better
against 1 a3 in the first edition of BCO. The continuation, White has a tiny initiative ]
argument behind the move may well be that 9...xd5
b2-b4 now is less attractive and that a2-a3 [ 9...a6!? 10.xb5 c7 11.e2 cxd5
isn't particularly useful against the King's 12.0-0 g4 , and the chances are about
Indian. Somebody clearly forgot to tell even ]
Gelashvili... 2.f3 g7 3.e3 f6 4.b4! 10.xg7 xg7 11.xb5 d7 12.b3 xb5
Anyway! Black can move his knight to create 13.xb5 d7 14.b2+ The pawn structure
an attack on the rook on a1, but it doesn't on the board, the extra central pawn for White
serve any real purpose, so Black decides to and the backward b-pawn on the semi-open
proceed as if everything is normal. d5 5.c4 f i l e f o r B l a ck b o t h i n d i c a t e a s o m e wh a t
0-0 favourable game for White. g8 15.0-0 c6
[ 5...a5 6.b2 ( 6.b5 f5 7.b2 16.c1 White's position is easier to play, even
is likely the better continuation for White, if Black has a somewhat more active position.
though the chances here too are about The dark squares in Black's position calls for
equal ) 6...axb4 7.axb4 xa1 8.xa1 0-0 trou ble lo ng-t erm, e ve n if h is p os it io n is
is fine for Black ] fundamentally solid. ab8 17.c3 xc3
6.b2 c6 7.e2 18.xc3 b5 19.ac1 fc8 20.h4!?
[ In some of the few games I could find with [ White points to the weakness of the dark
this variation, White also tried a couple of squares around Black's king. The
other moves as well: A) 7.c3 a5 8.e2?! alternatives don't threaten Black
( 8.d4!? takes the games over in a su bsta nt ia lly, e .g. 20.c5 b4 21.h4
Schlechter Variation of the Slav/Gruenfeld, ( 21.axb4 xb4 22.e5 e6= ) 21...b3
which in this case is quite okay for White) 22.h5 a4 ]
8...axb4 9.axb4 xa1 10.xa1 dxc4 [ or 20.c2 a7 , and Black is more or less
11.xc4 b5 12.e2 a6 13.a5 d6 okay. ]
14.a3 c7 , and Black has a solid 20...a7 21.h5 xc3 22.xc3 d8?
advantage, Raijmaekers-Simmelink, J/corr [ This passive move decides the game in
1988 ] White's favour because Black cannot resist
[ B) 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.e2 f5 9.0-0 a6 White decisive penetration. Instead Black
10.d3 e8 11.xg7 xg7 12.bd2 d6 should have tried 22...c6! , e.g. 23.h6 f6
13.b3 , and White's position is preferable, 24.c5 b4 25.axb4 axb4 26.b3+ f8 ]
Thorsteinsson, E-Elyakim, D/ corr ICCF 23.h6 f8?!
1992 ] [ Or 23...f6 24.b3+ f8 ( 24...h8
7...a5 25.g5! fxg5 26.c8+- ) 25.d4 a4

18
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

26.e6+ e8 27.c2 b6 28.g7+ f8 qu e e n 's ro o k o n t h e a 1 - h 8 d ia go n a l, f o r

29.c7+- ] instance
24.c7 c8 25.e5 b6 26.c6 d5 [ if 14.b3 then f3+ 15.xf3 xa1
27.d7 c8 28.xd5 xc6 29.d8 would be feasible ]
1-0 14...a6 15.b3 b5 Lev Gutman just loves to
play active, aggressive chess. Sometimes he
plays brilliantly, but sometimes things go
19 A00 wrong 16.d2 White plays carefully,
Gulko,Boris F [ 16.f4 seems tempting, but after b6+
Gutman,Lev 17.h2? Black wins with g4+ exploiting
USSR 1978 the h8-rook's uncastled state ]
[Tony Kosten] 16...bxa4 17.c3 First the white a4-pawn
was pinned, but having captured it, it is now
1.c3 c5 2.f3 Black, a Sicilian (Najdorf) t h e b l a c k a 4 - p a w n t h a t i s p i n n e d ! d4
specialist, was obviously hoping to encourage 18.xa4 e2 19.f4 The game reaches its
White to play critical moment, will the active black pieces
[ 2.e4 with a transposition to a Closed find a knock-out punch, or will they be forced
Sicilian ] to retreat? xa4!?
[ 2.d4?! would avoid the well-trod routes, but [ 19...xh3 is more to the point, 20...Qxg2
after cxd4 3.xd4 c6 4.h4 d5 5.f3?! mate is threatened, and 20.xh3? loses to
( 5.e4 is safer, although after d4 6.d5 e6 ( 20.xh3 must be played, ef3+ and now
7.xd8+ xd8 8.f4 f6 9.f3 e5 21.h1 xd2 22.e1! which is unclear)
10.d3 Black has the slightly superior 20...df3+ 21.xf3 xf3+ when White
endgame, Soetewey, S-Le Quang,K/ must play 22.xf3 and lose his queen:
B r u s s e ls 1 9 9 3 .) 5...d4 6.e4 b4 xd1+ or be mated on h2, so ]
rather awkward! 7.d1 f5 8.d2 c6 20.fxe5 xe5 21.bxa4 c4 hitting the a2-
Mordiglia,R-Godena, M/Open, Saint Vincent rook 22.a3 e2+ 23.h1 f6??
ITA 1998, White's unusually-placed king will a baffling move,
lead to his downfall. ] [ 23...xg3+ 24.xg3 xg3 would have
2...d6 and again, 3.g3 g6 4.g2 g7 5.0-0 been the logical continuation, although after
c6 surely W hite will play e4 now? 6.e3 25.xf7 White's two pieces are better then
No! W hite decides to go his own way. h6 the black rook, ]
7.d4 White has no advantage, to speak of, he 24.e4 Naturally, the knight defends g3 f5
suffers from the usual problem of playing his 25.e1 Black is now a whole piece down.
queen's knight to c3 before playing c4- his c- 1-0
pawn is now shut-in. cxd4 8.exd4 f5
forcing the white d-pawn forward, but this
does mean White will have more space 9.d5 20 A00
e5 10.g5 The player with the space Hasangatin,Ramil 2523
advantage should normally avoid exchanges, Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro 2413
of cou rse (s ee 101 Tips to Imp rove you r Aeroflot Open (7) 17.02.2003
Chess) h5 This does weaken the kingside, [Tony Kosten]
but it does safeguard the two black knights, as
f4, and g4, was threatened, driving them away 1.b4 e5 2.b2 xb4 3.xe5 f6 4.e3
from the centre 11.h3 d7 12.a4 c8 Solid, but normally W hite plays more
Black's pieces take -up active posts 13.e2 aggressively with
See the remark on move 7, White is obliged to [ 4.c4 to exploit his central advantage, see
move this knight if he wants to improve his Lindqvist-Soerenfors/corr 1975. ]
queenside pawn structure b6 14.a2 4...0-0 5.f3 d5 6.e2 d6!? A new idea,
A simple precaution, White wishes to play b3, although there seems to be nothing wrong
and c4, and cannot afford to leave his with the standard

19
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 6...c5 7.0-0 c6 8.b2 ( 8.g3? d4 t wo p a wn s a n d a r o o k f o r t h e t wo wh i t e

9.h4 d6 10.c1? f5 11.b2 e4 knights, and various positional advantages,
Black dominates, Vokac,M-Badea,B/Krynica can W hite manage to activate his pieces?
1998 ) 8...d4!? played to complicate White's 25.b2!? xa2 26.c1 a5 27.cd3
development, ( 8...e8 9.d3 a5 10.bd2 e3?!
e7 is fairly level, Rogers, I-Stone,R/ [ 27...e7 is stronger. ]
H e r t o g e n b o s c h N E D 1 9 9 9) 9.c3!? 28.b4?! Missing
the most direct, attacking Black's advanced [ 28.c4! when c8 29.c5! ( 29.b3? xf3!
pawn head-on, ( 9.b5 g4 10.h3 xf3 30.xf3 a1+ 31.d1 dxc4 32.c2 d4
11.xf3 e5 and White had problems with l o o k s s t r o n g) 29...xc5 30.xd5
his b5-bishop, and developing his b1-knight, attacks f7, and menaces Nc4, when White
Arakelov, I-Lomaya,T/Batumi 1961) 9...d3!? has real counterplay. ]
( 9...dxc3 10.xc3 with chances to both 28...b5 29.d1 d8?! Again Black is not on
sides ) 10.xd3 xd3 11.cxb4 xb4 his toes,
12.xf6 gxf6 13.e1 g6 14.c3 d8 [ 29...d4! wins, 30.4d3 d7 31.a4
W hite has the more solid structure, but xf3! 32.gxf3 xh3+ etc. ]
Black the more active pieces, Pedersen, E- 30.d2
Christensen,T/Denmark 1998. ] [ 30.a4!? xa4 31.xa4 c7 32.xd5
7.0-0 c5 The position is similar to the above is unclear. ]
note, except that the black bishop is 'inside' 30...d4 31.c4 a5
his pawn structure, which is normally [ 31...e5!? appears strong, but after
desirable. 8.d4 32.d5 xd5 33.cxd5 c7 White can just
[ 8.c4 c6 9.xd6 xd6 looks very nice hang-on: 34.d6! ( 34.g1? h2+ 35.f1
for Black, with his centralised forces. ] g3 wins immediately) 34...xd6 35.g1
8...c6 9.c3 e7! Threatening to capture as now h2+ 36.f1 g3?? allows the
the bishop and gain the bishop pair, always trick 37.xe3 dxe3 38.d8# ]
an advantage. 10.dxc5 [ 31...d7 ]
[ 10.g3 h5 11.dxc5 xg3 12.hxg3 e6 32.2d3 White has managed to find a good
is similar. ] blockading square for one of his knights, and
10...xe5 11.xe5 xc5 With an atypical n o w h a s r e a s o n a b l e c h a n c e s . ee8?!
IQP position: W hite's weak c2-pawn on the 33.xb7 h5 34.f3 f5 35.d5
open c-file more than balances the d-pawn, Now White is clearly better. c8?? 36.g4
and Black has the bishop pair, as well. 12.f3 e4 37.xc8 xc8 38.e1
e6 Black decides against the tactic 1-0
[ 12...c7!? 13.d3 d6 attacking c3 and
h2, 14.xd5 xd5 15.xd5 xh2+
16.h1 d6 when Black has dissolved his 21 A00
IQP, but White can play c4 and maintain a Hernando Pertierra,Jose Carlos 2403
strong bishop on d5. ] Gallagher,Joseph G 2558
13.h3 c8 14.e2 c7 15.d3 b6 16.c3 Master Open Lausanne SUI (4) 02.06.2000
White is under severe pressure, his c-pawn [Tony Kosten]
ties pieces down to its def ence, and it is
difficult to exploit the squares on f4 and d4. 1.g3 e5 2.g2 c6 3.c3 White wishes to
e4 17.c1 c4 18.c2 The impression is play a sort of reversed Caro-Kann with a
that White is just hanging on. f5 19.g4 kingside fianchetto, and a tempo more. d5
xf2!? An interesting tactic, and afterwards 4.d4
Black maintains the advantage, but I would [ 4.b4!? is taking originality too far, perhaps,
prefer the simple f6 5.d4 exd4 6.b5 a5 7.cxd4 c4
[ 19...xg4 20.hxg4 fd8 ] 8.f3 b4+ and Black had no cause to
20.xf2 xc2 21.xc2 ce8 22.d1 complain, Petran,P-Rechel,B/Olomouc CZE
xe3+ 23.h1 b6 24.f3 e5 Black has 1999. ]

20
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

4...f6 5.h3 31.h4 g5+ 32.h5 h3# ]

[ Just as in the corresponding line for Black, 28.h8+ e7 29.h4+ g5 30.h5 e2!
the knight will come to f2 to support the e4- [ 30...e2 intends the same mate, 31.xe2
thrust. 5.dxe5 is an alternative manner of g2+ 32.xg2 xe2+ ]
playing this, xe5 6.d2 c5 7.gf3 0-1
xf3+ 8.xf3 0-0 with equality, Teske, H-
Siegel,G/Havana 1998. ]
[ However, 5.g5 would be the way to 22 A00
exploit the extra move. e4 6.xf6!? xf6 Hulak,Krunoslav 2495
7.f3 exf3 8.xf3 level, Benjamin,J-Browne, Beliavsky,Alexander G 2640
W/ Philadelphia 1992. ] zt 1.2 Pula CRO (5) 15.04.2000
5...e7 [Tony Kosten]
[ This natural move is a novelty, which
indicates how much rarer this variation is, 1.g3 d5 2.g2 e5 3.f3 A reversed
played with W hite than with Black. 5...h6 Alekhine's Defence, as briefly examined in
6.0-0 f5 7.f3 d7 8.f2 e4 9.b3 d6 the archives. e4 4.d4 c5 5.b3 c4 6.d4
is also fine for Black, Dehn,M-Vogler,T/ c5 7.c3 c6 8.xc6 bxc6 9.b3
Mainz 1989. ] So far, all according to plan for W hite, who
6.f3 Perfectly normal, the square f2 is needed attacks the black centre. cxb3 10.axb3 h5!!
for the knight. 0-0 7.f2 e8 8.0-0 a5! 9.a4 [ A powerful innovation, Black immediately
b6 10.a3 a6 11.b5 White blocks the exploits his space advantage and attacks
light-squared diagonal, so Black immediately the white king in the most direct manner.
tries to reopen it. exd4 12.cxd4 a7! p re vio u s ly B l a ck h a d p re f e rre d s im p l e
13.xa7 development: 10...e7 11.d3 ( 11.0-0 0-0
[ 13.c3 allows c5 which successfully 12.a3 b6 13.c4 f5 14.c3 e8
challenges the d4-pawn, supporting it with 15.c1 with mutual chances, Johansen, D-
e3 being impossible. ] Lau,R/Wuppertal 1986, 1-0 (30)) 11...exd3
13...xa7 14.e1 c5 Black already has a 12.exd3 0-0 13.0-0 e6 14.d4 b6
plus, the white kingside formation is 15.a3 e8 16.d2 and, if anything, White
inappropriate here. 15.e3 d6 Intending to holds the upper hand, Rabeler, G-Stern,R/
d o u b l e r o o k s o n t h e e - f i l e . 16.g4?! Germany 1998, 1-0 (56). ]
White hopes to pressurise the d5-pawn, but 11.a3
this move is anti-positional. xg4 17.fxg4 [ If 11.d3 then Black keeps the centre closed
cxd4 18.xd4 by f6 12.d4 ( not 12.0-0 when h4
[ W alking in to so me ta ct ics, bu t 18.exd4 13.dxe4 hxg3 14.hxg3 g5! planning ...Qh6,
is hardly any better, xe1+ 19.xe1 e7 ] with a mating attack. ) 12...b6 ]
18...c5! 19.xd5? d7 20.f5?! 11...b6 12.h4 h6! Intelligent play, the
[ White falls to pieces, but anyway, 20.f3 knight can come to g4, but, more importantly,
loses the exchange to b4 ] f5. 13.d4 e3! Black is in a particularly
20...d1 White can resign with a clear aggressive mood! 14.f4?!
conscience. 21.xd1 [ If 14.fxe3?! then but c7 ]
[ 21.f2 xe1+ 22.xe1 b4 23.f2 [ 14.d3!? exf2+ 15.xf2 g4+ 16.e1
d1+ 24.f1 c8 is also hopeless. ] may offer better chances. ]
21...xd1+ 22.f1 xe3+ 23.g2 14...g4 The black pieces have good posts on
The c1-bishop is pinned. b7+ 24.h3 xc1 g 4 a n d f 5 . 15.d3 f5 16.0-0 h6!
25.d3 d2! Allowing a couple of checks, but Another fine move, bringing the h8-rook into
this is the most accurate move. 26.xh7+ play. 17.c4
f8 27.f1 e6 [ White desperately searches for counterplay,
[ Effective, but missing the pretty line as if 17.h2 Black simply replies g6 ]
27...e2!! 28.xe2 g2+! forcing mate with 17...dxc4
checks, 29.xg2 xe2+ 30.h3 f1+ [ The strongest, but 17...xg3 18.xe3+

21
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

e6 19.xg3 xd4+ 20.h1 xa1 pawn structure. ]

is also sufficient. ] 16...e8 Threatening to win a rook with ...c5.
18.e4+ d7 19.c3 xg3 20.c2 f5 17.c5
21.c1 xf1 22.xf1 xd4 23.d1 e8 [ 17.cxd5 c5! anyway, winning material
White has no real defence against ...Qxh4, because of the d-file pin. Black's eleventh
and mate on f2. move continues to prove its worth. ]
0-1 17...e7! Another clever move forcing 18.c6
as if
[ 18.cxb6?? c5 forks queen and rook. ]
23 A00 18...d6 19.c3 e8 The first doubled c-
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2740 pawn bites the dust. 20.d4 xc6 21.d2
Anand,Viswanathan 2770 d7 22.d1 d8 23.c3 c5 Not only has
Amber Blindfold, MON (3) 1998 Black won a pawn, but he has managed to
[Tony Kosten] retain his positional plusses, too. 24.d3 a4
25.b2 6d7 26.a3 b5 27.h3 a6 28.1d2
1.c3 e5 2.f3 c6 Black indicates that he g6 29.d1 a5 30.f3 h5 31.h4 c7
i s h a p p y t o t r a n s p o s e i n t o a k i n g - p a w n 32.g3 e5 Black does nothing precipitate, he
p o s it io n a f t e r 3 e 4 . 3.d4 Introducing the knows that he will win, and so slowly improves
'pseudo-Scotch' variation, where W hite will h i s p o s i t i o n b e f o r e e n g i n e e r i n g a
have various occasions to transpose directly, breakthrough. 33.d1 f6 34.g2 h7
by playing e4. exd4 4.xd4 f6 The most 35.3d2 g7 36.a1 g4 37.xg4 hxg4
solid reply. 38.g1 e5 39.a4 b4 Exchanging queens,
[ 4...c5 is also good. 5.f5 f6 6.e3 and bringing play to a rook and pawn ending.
White eschews his last chance to transpose 40.cxb4 xa1 41.xa1 cxb4 42.d4
into the Scotch, by 6 e4. ge7 7.g3 d5! F o r k i n g t h e g a n d b - p a w n s , h a s B l a c k
8.g2 e6 9.0-0 d8 10.d3 0-0 b l u n d e r e d ? a5 43.xg4 d4! No, as the
The white opening has been a complete protected, passed b-pawn is sufficient to win.
disaster, Black has almost total control of 44.xd4 xd4 45.exd4 xd4 46.c1 b3
the centre, Wall,T-Flear, G/Hastings 1991. ] 47.b1 b4 'Rook behind the pawn'! 48.f1
[ 4...xd4?! is a mistake, however, f6 49.e2 f5 50.d3 g4 51.c3 f5
conceding the centre. 5.xd4 f6 6.e4 d6 52.b2 Unfortunately, the king and pawn
w i t h a d v a n t a g e t o W h i t e , D e m i a n , V - ending after
Salahub,M/ROM-chT (CCYB 1988. ] [ 52.xb3 xb3+ 53.xb3 f3 is simply
5.g5 b4 6.e3 So it seems that there won't winning, Black will capture the white f and
be a Scotch opening, after all. 0-0 7.e2 h6 g-pawns, and then queen his own f-pawn. ]
Bla ck wis h es to b re a k t h e a nn o yin g p in . 52...xa4 53.d1 a2+ 54.xb3 xf2
8.xf6 xc3+! Wrecking the white queenside 55.d6 f3+ 56.a4 h5 Black will take the
pawn structure. 9.bxc3 xf6 10.0-0 d5 g3-pawn, and then the h4-pawn, when his two
Black is ready to complete his development, kingside pawns will march to the eighth rank.
when he will be able to turn his attention to 0-1
t h e d o u b l e d c - p a w n s . 11.b1 d8
A useful move, just in case White wanted to
p la y c 4 , a s n o w t h is m o ve is im p o ssib l e 24 A00
because of the subsequent pin on the d-file. Katalymov,Boris N
12.xc6 xc6 13.d4 e6 14.f3 b6 Kupreichik,Viktor D
15.c4 By clever play White has succeeded in Minsk 1971
exchanging one of his weak c-pawns. ab8 [Nigel Davies]
16.b4 White was not satisfied with the
variation I once sat next door to Ilya Smirin and was
[ 16.cxd5 xd5 17.xd5 xd5 When Black amazed to see him meet 1.b4 with 1...c5!?
has control of the d-file to add to his better without even a second thought. It's not at all

22
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

an easy move for White to meet and has quite 20...xf7

a bit of shock value. 1.b4 c5 2.bxc5 [ Maybe Black should have taken with the
[ White can of course transpose into a Wing ki n g a s a f t e r 20...xf7 21.xg6+ f8
G a m b i t w i t h 2.e4!? , though this falls 22.f5+ f7 23.xf7+ xf7 White has
outside my remit. ] inadequate compensation for the
2...e5 3.e3 xc5 4.d4 I don't like this move. exchange. ]
[ 4.c4 looks like a better idea as in Sitnikov - 21.c4 e6 22.xe6?! There was no need
Aveskulov. ] to capture straight away and indeed this frees
4...exd4 5.exd4 e7 6.d3 d5 7.f3 c6 Black's pieces for action.
8.0-0 g4 9.c3 f6 Reaching a kind of [ White should have played 22.f3! when
mutant Petroff Defence in which W hite's b- f2 23.xe6 xe6 24.xf2 xe5+ 25.g3
pawn has been exchange for Black's c-pawn. d3 26.d2 xg3 27.f4 xf4 28.xg3
This would seem to be quite nice for Black e2+ 29.h1 e4+ 30.h2 is a draw.
because he can get play along the c-file and Needless to say this isn't an easy variation
possibly occupy the c4 square. On the other for humans to calculate. ]
hand it seems unlikely that the b-file will do 22...xe6 23.d2 b6?
much for W hite because Black can simply [ 23...f2 was better with ongoing attacking
block any play there with ...b7-b6. 10.h3 h5 chances. ]
11.b3 c7 12.e5?! 24.f3?!
[ 12.bd2 Would have been better. The [ Missing his chance to play 24.c4+ h7
knight's position is unstable on e5 and the 25.e4 when g1+ 26.h1 d1 27.e2
attempts to support it just weaken White's d8 28.b2 leaves Black struggling. ]
position. ] 24...d1 25.e3?? And this loses.
12...0-0 13.f4 [ 25.c4+ h8 26.h4 was quite playable
[ 13.f4 d6 renews the problem White has for White, in fact he's still a pawn up! ]
with his knight. ] 25...xe3! 26.c4+
13...g6 14.f5?! Critical, but very good for [ White can't take the rook because 26.xd1
Black after his combinative reply. f4+ 27.h1 g3+ 28.h2 xe4+
[ 14.xg6 was more stable, though Black wins the queen and mates in a few moves. ]
would have the edge because of the 26...h7 27.xd1 f4+ 28.xf4 xf4
weakness of e4. ] 29.g5+ h6 30.f7+ h5 31.d4 g5
14...xe5! 15.dxe5 c5+ 16.h2 h5! An exciting game!
17.xd5 0-1
[ After 17.fxg6 xe5+ 18.h1 g3+
19.h2 xf1+ 20.h1 h2# White gets
mated. ] 25 A00
[ and 17.e1 would also be good for Black Kokolias,Konstantinos 2211
after fe8 . ] Romanov,Evgeny 2547
17...ad8 IX EICC Plovdiv BUL (1) 21.04.2008
[ 17...ae8! was even stronger, for example [Carsten Hansen]
18.e1 f2 19.e2 d8 20.f3 g3+
21.h1 xe5 22.fxg6 fxg6! 1.c3 d5 2.e4 dxe4 3.xe4 d7 4.c4
is devastating. ] gf6
18.e4 fe8 19.fxg6 hxg6 20.xf7! [ This is fully playable, but allows White's
This counterattack is the best chance. next move which creates complications
[ After 20.c2 there would follow xe5 which aren't necessarily unfavourable for
21.f4 xf4 22.xf4 d6 23.h1 e2 W hite. Therefore in "Beating Unusual
24.c1 c5! when Black is threatening 25... Chess Openings" Palliser gives preference
Qe5. ] to the more solid 4...e6!? For further details,
[ And 20.f3 is similarly bad because of you should invest in that excellent book. ]
xe5 21.f4 xf4 22.xf4 d6 etc. ] 5.xf7+!?

23
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ This option is the principal reason why
Palliser chose 4...e6 as his recommendation.
Now the material unbalance creates unclear
complications that are not entirely easy to
deal with when you show up unprepared on
either side of the board. Yet, with this being
something as unusual as the Dunst Opening,
it is quite likely that White will be the lower
rated player and the one who knows more
about this variation. The alternatives
available to W hite are the following:
5.xf6+ ]
[ 5.d3 ]
[ 5.g5 ]
[ 5.g3 ]
[ 5.e2 All of which are discussed in detail
in the amazingly meticulous book "Knight on
the Left: 1 Nc3" by Harald Keilhack. This
book is a must for anybody remotely
interested in 1 Nc3. ]
5...xf7 6.g5+ g8 7.e6 e8 8.xc7
d8
[ Black has another important option in
8...g6 9.xa8 and now Black has several
moves to choose between:
A) 9...d5 10.f3 ( 10.d3 b6 11.f3
b7 12.c7 e6 13.e2 e5 14.g3
xg3 15.fxg3 xc7 16.f4 d6 17.0-0
is also better for White) 10...7f6 11.e2
e5 12.g3 d6 13.0-0 g4 was played
in Krajnak, M-Obsivac, J/Olomouc 1998,
and now 14.b3 f7 15.h3 gf6 16.d4
e6 17.c4 ( 17.dxe5 xe5 18.c4 e7 9...e5?!
19.e3 c6 20.f4 d6 21.b3 e7
22.b2 ) 17...f4 18.xf4 xc4 19.c2
exf4 20.fc1 b5 21.b3 d5 22.c8+
e8 23.xe8+ xe8 24.c3! c6
25.a4! with all the winning chances be
squarely on White's side;
B) 9...e5? 10.f1 f5 11.d3 d5
12.e2 e8 13.c7 xc7 14.f4 b5
15.c4 xb2 16.b1 xa2 17.xe5 e6
18.a1 1-0 Steger, G-Thoeny, H/Wattens
2000;
C) 9...b5!? 10.f3 ( 10.c7? xg2
11.f3 b7-+; 10.f3!? c5 11.d4 b7
12.g3! (Keilhack) xg2 13.dxc5 xh1
14.c7 is messy, but probably better for
White ) 10...d5 11.e2 f4 12.xb5
xg2 13.c4+ e6 14.xf4 xh1
with an uncle ar position according to
Keilhack, but Palliser continues playfully
with the following (and admitted computer-
assisted) variation: 15.f2 b7 16.c7
c5+ 17.d4 xd4+ 18.e3! e5!
19.c4 xh2+ 20.f1 xc7 21.xe6+
f8 22.d1! e5! 23.xd7 ( 23.c5+!?
xc5 24.d8+ xd8 25.xe5
isn't mentioned by Palliser, but is also
rather unclear) 23...a6+ 24.e2 xe3
25.f5+ g8 26.d5+ f8 27.f5+
with a draw by perpetual check.;
D) 9...xg2 10.f3 xf3 11.xf3 e8
( 11...b6 12.c7 b7 13.e2 e5
14.xe5 xh1 ) 12.a4 b6 13.a5 b7
14.e2 xa8 15.axb6 xf3+ 16.xf3
axb6 This position is rather unusual-
looking with White's king being the only
piece developed by W hite. It is being
evaluated as unclear by both Keilhack and
Palliser, but I have to admit that I prefer
White with his rooks that can easily be put
i n t o p l a y , e . g . 17.d4 e5 18.e1
, and W hite is on top, Van den Berg, A-
Hicker, H/Lignano Sabbiadoro ITA 2005 ]
9.xa8
[ 9.e2!? is an interesting alternative, which
i s n ' t m e n t i o n e d b y P a l l i s e r . N o w b6
is more or less forced, e.g. 10.xa8 xa8
11.f3 d5 12.c4 h5 13.e5 xe2+
14.xe2 g6 15.d4 g7 16.e3
, and W hite has the better chances
Chandler, P-Rutkowski, J/Griesheim 2000 ]
[ This is problematic for Black. Instead
p r e f e r e n c e s h o u l d b e g i v e n t o 9...e5
, although my computer initially hates the
move, e.g. 10.d4 d6 11.f3 ( 11.dxe5
xe5 12.e3 g4 13.d4 f7 14.e2
c6 15.d2 b4 16.c3 xd2+ 17.xd2
d6 , Tolonen, J-Sisatto, O/FIN 2001, and
now White's best is 18.f3 e6 19.f4 d7
20.b6 axb6 21.he1 with a complicated
position, and chances to both sides, though I
give W hite a slight preference) 11...e4
12.g5 ( 12.e5 xe5 13.dxe5 a5+
14.d2 xe5 15.c3 e7 16.d2 e3
17.xe3 xe3+ 18.fxe3 g4 19.0-0 f7
, and Black has the better chances thanks to
his bishop pair, and W hite's impractical
pawn structure, Van Geet, D-Henneberke,
F/Beverwijk 1964) 12...h6 13.e6 e7
24
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

14.f4 h7 15.e3 b6 16.c3 b7 is marginally safer ]

17.xb6 xb6 18.0-0 f8 15.e2 d6 16.a5 b8 17.a6 g6
with a complicated position with chances to [ On 17...e5 , W hite replies 18.0-0 exd4
both sides, Spice, A-Hinks Edwards, T/ 19.f4 e5 20.a4 f7 21.h1
England 1997. Van Geet claims W hite is with the better chances for White ]
b e t t e r , wh e r e a s K e i l h a c k a n d P a l l i s e r [ Or 17...c7 18.b3 e5 19.0-0 exd4
claim serious counterplay for Black, I call 20.f4 e5 21.ae1 b7 22.a4
m y e va lu a t io n t o b e so m e wh e re in t h e , and W hite can start thinking about
middle, White's better, but he will have to consolidating his material advantage ]
be seriously careful. ] 18.f2
[ 9...c5 10.d4 a6 11.f3 e6 12.g5 [ 18.b3!? begs to be considered, e.g. b7
e7 13.h3 d7 , Pel, B-Van Beek, L/ 19.d3 e5 20.0-0 exd4 21.f4 c8
Hoogeveen 1998, and now 14.0-0-0 b5 22.xd4 , and White's position is clearly
15.d5! xd5 16.xe7 xe7 17.he1 preferable ]
l o o k s l i k e a wi n n e r f o r W h i t e , e . g . f6 18...c7
18.xd5 xf3 19.gxf3 exd5 20.e8+ f7 [ 18...e5?! is p re m a tu re : 19.dxe5 xe5
21.xh8 ] 20.d1 c5+ 21.f1 , and White is getting
10.d4!? ready to consolidate his material
[ White should definitely consider 10.e2!? advantage ]
, for instance c6 11.c4+ e6 12.f3 19.d3?
( 12.b4!? deserves attention, e.g. xb4 [ This move allows Black to grab the initiative
13.b2 d7 14.xf6 xf6 15.b1 f7 with a firm hand. This premature retreat
16.c7 a6 17.f3 , and White has somewhat reminds me of the game
excellent winning chances) 12...d7 13.0-0 Nimzowitsch-Capablanca, St. Petersburg
d5 14.d4 d6 15.e1 ( 15.d3 xa8 1914. The white queen should not retreat
16.c4 f6 17.e1 is another attractive unless it is absolutely necessary, because it
option for White) 15...xa8 16.e5 xe5 provides threats against Black's pieces on
17.dxe5 e7 18.c3 f7 , and a draw was, a6, whereas on d3 it is more passive and
very prematurely, agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, in becomes a target of Black's pieces.
Mannhart, M-Rouchouse, S/Turin ITA 2006 Therefore W hite should consider 19.b3!?
after 19.g4 c8 20.c4 b6 21.b3 b7 20.c4! ( 20.d3 e5!?
White appears to have the better chances. ] is more complicated) 20...b6! ( 20...xc4
10...f7 11.f3 e6 12.xb7?! 21.bxc4 g7 22.c5 c7 23.b1 a6
[ 12.e2! d5 13.f3 xa8 14.0-0 b6 24.c4! xc4 25.f4 , and White should
15.c4 xf3 16.xf3 xf3 17.gxf3 e6 win ) 21.a4! a6 22.a5! b7 23.xe6
18.f4 appears to be better for White, but it g7 24.h6+! xh6 25.xd6 f5 26.f4
isn't entirely clear. ] xe2 27.he1! with a complicated game
12...d5 13.c7 xa8 and chances for both sides. ]
[ Or 13...xg2!? 14.xd8 xd8 15.f3 xh1 19...e5! 20.c3 b7 21.dxe5?!
16.f2 e6 17.e3 g5 , and now 18.e2 [ 21.f1!? appears to be a better option for
g4+ 19.fxg4 xa8 20.c4 h5 is clearly White ]
better for Black ] 21...xe5 22.d4 g7 23.d3 c8
14.f3 e6 24.e3
[ 14...e5!? looks attractive, e.g. 15.dxe5 [ 24.b3? i s m e t b y t h e a m a z i n g e4!
b4+ ( or 15...e8 16.h3 d6 17.xa7 25.fxe4 c3! 26.d1 xe4+ 27.f1 b6
xe5 18.0-0 c8 19.f2 xc2 20.g5 , and it's goodnight for White ]
g6 21.h3 with complications that appear 24...b8
better for White) 16.c3 e8 17.d7 xe5 [ This leads to a forced sequence of moves,
18.f5 d6 19.e2 g6 20.c2 xf3 which ends up with an advantage for Black.
21.gxf3 xf3+ 22.f2 g7 with an unclear Yet Black may be able to even better with
position, but I prefer Black because his king 24...xb2!? 25.hb1 c3 , and Black is

25
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

clearly better. But Black probably preferred strange positioning of the black queen prove
a more controlled environment ] a p r o b l e m ? 4.e3 White can also consider
25.b3 xh2 26.c4 e5 27.d2 eg4+! hitting the e5-pawn directly, by
28.f1 xe3+ 29.xe3 f7 30.e1 h5!? [ 4.f3 but after e4 5.d4 c6 6.e3
31.c3? xd4!? 7.xd4 g6 White had some
[ This leads to a lost position for White. problems developing his kingside in Gielen,
Instead White should have played 31.xh2! W-Lucas,F/Dieren 1990. ]
xh2 32.g5 f4 ( 32...f4 33.e4 4...f6 5.d3 bd7 6.f3 c6 Black has
is better for White) 33.xf4 xf4 34.e7 successfully defended his central pawns, it
, and W hite is still in the game, though remains to finish his development. 7.e2 g6
Black should have the better chances ] 8.c4 g7 The king's bishop is certainly better-
31...g3+ 32.f2 xh1+ 33.xh1 g3+ placed on g7 than on the a3-f8 diagonal, as
34.f1 g8 and here the game ended on it s m o ve m e n t wo u l d b e h i n d e re d b y t h e
account of 35 Ne2 Bxc4!, which spells the queen. 9.cxd5 cxd5 10.0-0 0-0 It remains
ultimate end of White's games for Black to find a place for his queen's bishop,
0-1 and his opening will be a success. 11.c3 a6
12.c1 b6 13.c2
[ 13.b3 Is a more active square for the
26 A00 queen. ]
Lalic,Bogdan 13...b7 14.h3?! I am not so keen on this
Uhlmann,Wolfgang move, it might be time for White to try direct
Sarajevo 1980 action with
[Tony Kosten] [ 14.d4 e4 15.d2 , as Black now takes
matter into his own hands. ]
1.b4 d5 14...d4! Grabbing more space. 15.d1 ac8
[ 1...f6 2.b2 d5 could transpose into the 16.b1 d5 The logical follow-up, the knight
next note, but King's Indian players are is targeting the sensitive squares e3, and c3.
m o re li k e l y t o t r y ( 2...g6 3.c4 g7 17.e1
which transposes out of my 'area'. )] [ 17.e4 Is hardly any better, because of
2.b2 f4 ]
[ 2.a3?! takes provocation too far, Black 17...dxe3 18.fxe3 b5 19.f1 7b6
would reply e5 with a strong centre as in the The 'other' black knight has found has also
Hebden game, mentioned in the notes to found itself a good outpost, on a4. 20.d2
?? ] a4 21.a1 f5 Reminding White that Black
2...d6!? A very ambitious move, suggested is also better on the kingside. 22.b3 fe8
by Andersson, attacking the b4-pawn, and 23.a5 a8 24.c3 Black's pieces can
preparing ...e5. hardly expect to find better placements than
[ 2...f6 3.e3 e6 is more normal, and quite they have already, so it is clearly time for a
solid, White replies 4.b5 as the b-pawn was co mb ina t io n : xb2 25.xb2 e4 26.d4
hanging, c5 5.f3 d6 6.c4 bd7 7.d3 xe3! White will pay for his lack of dark-
0-0 8.bd2 b6 9.e2 b7 as in Sokolsky- squared bishop. 27.e2
Keres, USSR Ch. 1950, when Black has a [ 27.xe3 xd4 pins the rook, and wins
pleasant development, but W hite a everything. ]
q u e e n s i d e s p a c e a d v a n t a g e , a n d t h e 27...f4 28.xc8 xc8 29.c1 f8
straight-forward plan of a4-5. ] White has had enough.
3.a3 Tisdall has proposed the line 0-1
[ 3.b5!? b4 4.e5 but, after xb5 5.xc7
c5 6.g3 c6 Black appears to have the
edge, as ...e5 is threatened. ]
3...e5 So, Black ha s achieved his aim- setting
up a pawn centre, will it be strong, or will the

26
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
27 A00 28
Larsen,Bent
Calvo Minguez,Ricardo
Palma de Mallorca (10) 1968
[Nigel Davies]
1.g3 g6 2.g2 g7 3.c3 c5 4.d3 c6
5.a3 I really like this super-flexible move.
White is adopting a plan reminiscent of the
Panno lines of the King's Indian Defence,
aiming to undermine Black's central control
wi t h b 2 - b 4 . e6 6.f3 d6 7.g5 d7
Black is showing signs of being completely
baffled by Larsen's provocative play.
[ It must surely be better to play 7...f6 8.d2
ge7 , reserving the decision as to where to
place his queen. But even so I prefer White
after 9.b1 followed by b2-b4. ]
8.0-0 f6 9.d2 h6 10.b1
[ 10.b4!? was already possible because
cxb4 11.axb4 xb4 12.e4 threatens
both Bxb4 and Bxh6 followed by Nxf6+. ]
10...0-0 11.b4 cxb4 12.axb4 f7 13.b5
e7 14.c1 Larsen's manoeuvres are
masterful. Here his queen is headed for a3
from where it will add to the pressure on
B la ck ' s p o s it io n wh ilst a t t h e sa m e t im e
maintaining great flexibility with his centre. e5
15.a3 d8 16.b4 The rook is headed for
a4 from where it will add to the pressure on
the a -f ile . e6 17.a4 c8 18.b1 f5
19.b6 a6
[ 19...xb6 20.xa7 would be very
unpleasant for Black because of the
weakness of b7. ]
20.e1 e4
[ 20...d5 would have been better, though
White still has strong pressure after 21.a5
e4 22.a4 intending Na4-c5. ]
21.e3 d5 22.c5 f6? Rather premature
desperation.
[ 22...cd6 was a much better move. ]
23.b5 d8 24.c7 b8 25.d4 e5
26.a1 S h a d e s o f R i c h a r d R e t i . d7
27.xd5 d6 28.a5 b5 29.c4 xb6
30.xb6 f3+ 31.xf3
1-0
A00
Larsen,Bent
Gheorghiu,Florin
(ol) Havana 1966
[Nigel Davies]
1.g3 g6 2.g2 g7 3.c3!? The more I
look at this move the more I like it Larsen
develops a piece whilst maintaining a very
flexible pawn structure. c5 4.d3 c6 5.f4
[ Larsen would subsequently show a liking for
5.a3!? , even keeping a decision about his f-
pawn in reserve. The games against Calvo
and Lehmann provide good examples of
this. ]
5...e6
[ Black can also play 5...d6 followed by 6...
e5 when White's best may be to transpose
into a Closed Sicilian with a later e2-e4.
This might be the reason why Larsen
switched to 5.a3. ]
6.f3 ge7 7.0-0 0-0 8.a3
[ 8.e4 would transpose into a Closed Sicilian
Larsen's move gives the game an
independent character. ]
8...f5 This looks a bit odd to me Black is
fighting for the d4 square when W hite can
simply protect it at some point with e2-e3.
[ 8...d5 was certainly an alternative when
W h it e co u ld ch o o se b e t we e n 9 . e 4 a n d
c o n t i n u i n g t o ' f i s h a r o u n d ' wi t h 9 . B d 2
intending Rb1 and b2-b4. ]
9.b1 b8 10.e4 b6
[ 10...e7 might have been a better idea,
maintaining the option of ...b7-b6. ]
11.f2 d5 12.g4! fd4 13.d2!
Highlighting the inadequacy of Black's plan of
putting a knight on d4. As long as it cannot
exchange itself it can simply be driven away.
d8 14.e4 e7 15.c3 dc6 16.f3 f5
17.gxf5 gxf5 18.e5 d4?! A serious mistake
which allows White to close the position and
leave Black without any counterplay.
[ 18...a5!? was a better chance for Black to
get some counterplay. ]
19.c4 b5 20.d2 a5
[ 20...bxc4 21.dxc4 would allow White's f2
knight to come to d3 and attack the weak
pawn on c5. ]
21.c2 b4 22.h1! The start of a profound
manoeuvre the knight wants to go to h5. d7
27
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
23.g3 e8 24.a1 Threatening to
penetrate along the a-file, which encourages
Gheorghiu to close the queenside altogether.
This leaves White's kingside play as the only
game in town. b3 25.d1 h6 26.e2 h8
27.ae1 a4 28.g5 c8 29.h5 g8
30.f3 ce7 31.g2 g6
W hite's pressure is manifesting itself into
direct threats. W hite wants to play 33.Nf6.
xg5 33.fxg5 c6 34.f6 f7 35.xc6
xc6 36.g3 fc8 37.h4 Black's problem
here is that he has no counterplay. So White
c a n i m p r o v e h i s p o s i t i o n a t l e i s u r e . f8
38.e2 6c7 39.g2 d7 40.f4 gxf6
41.exf6 c6 42.h5! h6
[ After 42...xh5 there would follow 43.h2
g4 ( 43...f7 44.g6 ) 44.xg4 fxg4 45.g6
xf6 46.e5 etc. ]
43.g6 xf6 44.xh6 e5 45.h3 e6
46.xf5 xf5 47.xf5 e4 48.f7
1-0
29
Larsen,Bent
Lehmann,Heinz
Palma de Mallorca (12)
[Nigel Davies]
1.g3 g6 2.g2 g7 3.c3 c5 4.d3 c6
5.a3 f6 6.b1 a5 A controversial decision,
preventing W hite's b2-b4 but at the cost of
creating a weakness on b5. 7.a4 0-0 8.f3
[ 8.f4!? is also worth considering here, taking
more space on the kingside. ]
8...d6
[ 8...d5 was certainly another possibility, for
example 9.0-0 e5 10.g5 h6 11.xf6
xf6 12.d2 e6 13.e4 d4 14.d5 b4
ma ke s it d if f icult f or W h ite t o m ain ta in
control of d5. ]
9.0-0 e8 10.e3 d4 11.xd4 cxd4
12.b5 e5 13.c3 d7
[ Maybe 13...c7 was better, though I still
like W hite after 14.xc7 xc7 15.cxd4
exd4 16.c1 b6 17.d2 intending 18.
Nc4. ]
14.cxd4 xb5 15.axb5 exd4 16.a4 d7
17.fc1
[ The simple 17.xd4 was worth considering
as after xd4 18.xd4 xb5 19.fc1
Black has a truly miserable position. ]
17...c7 18.xd4 xd4 19.xd4 xb5
20.a4 fd8 21.e3 a7 22.h4
[ And here 22.b4 looks highly unpleasant for
Black, for example da8 23.d4 e8 24.h4
g7 25.d5 c7 26.xe8 xe8 27.bxa5
32.h3! xa5 28.xb7 leaves White with all the
chances. ]
22...c7 23.d4 b5 24.b6 b8 25.c6
c7 26.xb5 bxc6 27.xc6 xc6
28.xc6 The rook endgame is also good for
White but Larsen doesn't make the most of
his chances. a4 29.a1? It looks like Larsen
missed something here though it's not quite
clear to me what it was.
[ 29.cc1 would maintain the extra pawn
and leave Black struggling for the draw. ]
29...xb2 30.a3 d5 31.d4 a5 32.c7 h5
33.g2 g7 34.f3 f6 35.c1 e6
36.ca1 b4 37.f4 f6 38.f3 a8 39.c1
d6 40.c5 c4 41.b5 c6 42.b1 e8
43.g4 hxg4 44.fxg4 e4+ 45.g3 f5
46.gxf5 gxf5 47.h1 f4+ 48.exf4 cxd4
A00 49.f3 e8 50.h5 g8+ 51.h4 a3 52.h6
a2 53.f2 a4 54.a1 d6 55.h5 a3
56.h2 e6 57.h7 h8
1968 ½-½
30 A00
Larsen,Bent
Panno,Oscar
Palma de Mallorca 1969
[Nigel Davies]
1.g3 g6 2.g2 g7 3.c3 e5
[ This looks like a more solid approach than
3...c5 because playing for b2-b4 would now
be rather pointless for W hite. Instead he
must play on the kingside with f2-f4. ]
4.d3 c6
[ Black might also try 4...d6 in order to
ma in t ain t h e p o ssib ility o f .. . c7 -c5 , f o r
example 5.f4 e7 6.f3 c5 7.0-0 bc6
8.e4 transposes into the Botvinnik Variation
of the Closed Sicilian. Of course there's no
need for W hite to rush into 8.e4 and he
might also play f or b2-b4 with 8.Bd2
intending 9.a3 and 10. Rb1. ]
5.f4 d6 6.f3 ge7 7.0-0 0-0 8.e4 h6!?
9.e3 d4 10.d2 h7 11.ae1 e6
28
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
12.h4
[ T h e i m m e d i a t e 12.f5!? was also worth
considering, for example gxf5 13.xd4
exd4 14.e2 c5 15.h4 fxe4 16.xe4+
f5 17.xb7 b8 18.f4 f7 19.f3 xb2
20.e6 gives White strong play on the light
squares. ]
12...exf4 13.gxf4 ec6 14.f3
[ 14.f2 would have been strongly met by
g5! 15.fxg5 xg5! ]
[ whilst 14.f2 runs into xc2! 15.xg6
fxg6 . ]
14...xf3+ 15.xf3 f5 16.h1
17.d5!?
[ 17.d4? would not be good because of
xd4 18.e5 dxe5 19.fxe5 xf3 20.exf6
xd2 21.fxg7 fd8 when White finds
himself the exchange down. ]
[ B u t h e m i g h t h a v e c o n s i d e r e d 17.g3
to put pressure on the weakened g6 pawn. ]
17...f7
[ It's not clear what Larsen intended after
17...xb2 because 18.xc7 is strongly met
by c3 19.c1 xa2 , leaving White
struggling to find adequate play. ]
18.c4 ae8 19.f2 a6 20.b3 b8 21.c1
c6 22.e3 d7 23.exf5 xf5 24.xf5
gxf5 25.xe8 xe8 26.h3 c5 27.b4
e6 28.e3 c3 29.g3?! f6?!
[ 29...xb4 seems playable here and
expose s the chancy nature of L arsen's
previous move. ]
30.a3 e7 31.g1 g7 32.b6 e6
33.c2 f6 34.g2 f7 35.a4! With Black
tied down on the kingside White operates on
the other flank. The idea is to play b4-b5 to
gain control of the d5 square. e8 36.f3
d8 37.f2 h5? 38.d4! g8 39.b1
h4 40.b5 axb5 41.axb5 c5 42.c3
Threatening to penetrate Black's position via
t h e a - f i l e . e8?! 43.g1 And Black's last
move presented White with more fertile fields
on the other flank. White is now threatening
Qxh5. g8?! 44.xf5+!
1-0
31 A00
Linqvist,Grels
Sorenfors,Per
corr 1975
[Tony Kosten]
1.b4 e5 2.b2 This counter-attack is
probably better than passively defending the
b4-pawn by
[ 2.a3 as this allows Black to build a strong
centre
A) 2...a5 3.b2 e4!? is also interesting,
f6 4.c4 f6 5.b3 a6! so as to answer b5
with ...Nc5, 6.bxa5?! this is too helpful for
Black, as the b-pawn is not really attacked,
( maybe 6.c3 is possible, axb4 7.axb4
and the pawn is immune, because of the
pin along the a-file.) 6...c5 7.c2 d6
8.e3 f5 and White can hardly develop a
sin gle p ie ce , Fo rga cs, G - Fo rin t o s , G /
Hungary 1981.;
B) 2...d5 3.e3 f6 4.b2 d6
Defending e5 and continuing to develop
n a t u r a l l y . ( 4...d6 Appears silly, but
would, in fact, transpose into the game
Lalic-Uhlmann.) 5.c4 c6 Black wants to
keep his centre intact, of course. 6.f3
e7 7.e2 this is better than ( 7.c3
when d4! caused no end of problems,
8.e2 g4 9.exd4 xf3 10.gxf3 exd4
11.xd4 a5 and White's extra pawn was
scant compensation, with his king stuck in
the centre, and the e-file open, Welling,G-
Sadler,M/Ostende 1991.) 7...0-0 8.c3
dxc4 9.xc4 bd7 10.c2 b6 11.e2
h6 12.h3 e4 Black enjoys extra space,
and good piece-play, Steffens,O-Hebden,
M/Hastings 1995. ]
2...xb4 Black banks on quick development.
3.xe5 f6 4.c4 As White has no pawn
presence in the centre, it is normal that he
should want to keep some control like this, but
it m a y b e b e t t e r t o a t t e m p t t o c o m p l e t e
development first,
[ 4.f3 0-0 5.e3 e8 and now 6.e2
would continue this policy, the disadvantage
is that, after ( 6.c4?! d5! 7.cxd5 xd5
would return to the main game.) 6...d5 7.0-0
bd7 8.b2 b6 9.d3 b7 10.bd2 d6
11.e1 c5 Black has a wonderful position,
with more space, Campora, D-German,G/
29
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Lomas de Zamorra op 1995, and there are ( Yudovic has suggested that 8...f4 9.c2
certainly other effective ways to play this c6 is even better for Black, but I am not so
for Black. ] sure, myself.) 9.d4 g6 10.e2 c5
4...0-0 5.e3 'All roads lead to Rome' here, and 11.b3?! c4! 12.d4 d7 coming to e5,
[ 5.f3 will probably transpose after e8 thence d3, Black had a large advantage,
although in Afifi,A-Hakki,I/GM B, Cairo EGY Bobrov-Yusupov, USSR 1974. ]
1997, White tried ( or 5...d5 6.cxd5 xd5 8...xe5! This move devastates the white
7.e3 e8 also bringing us to the main position. 9.xe5 f6 10.f4 What else, the
game, ) 6.a3 instead of ( 6.e3 d5 7.cxd5 knight is pinned, and
xd5 transposing, but it didn't seem to [ 10.d3 xa1 is clearly hopeless. ]
i m p r o v e W h i t e ' s p r o s p e c t s , f o r a f t e r :) 10...xe3 The d-pawn is pinned! 11.b3
6...a5 7.e3 d5 Black continuing in xg2+ 12.d1 xf4 The dust has settled,
id en tica l st yle , 8.cxd5 xd5 9.b3?! and Black has obtained three pawns for the
b u t w i t h t h e e x t r a m o v e s , ( 9.e2 exchange , plus a winning attack. 13.xf7
would now be possible, as xe5?! 10.xe5 xf7 This is good, but
f6 is now met by 11.c4 xa1 12.xa5 [ 13...e6 14.xb4 xa1 is probably even
so Black should play something else at better. ]
move nine, like 9...c5, with an edge.) 9...c6 14.c4 e6 15.xe6 xe6 16.e1 Not
10.b2 e6 11.c2 g4 12.a4 xe3!? [ 16.xb4?? f3+ ]
once again exploiting the pin on the e1-a5 16...c6 17.xe6 xe6 18.xe6 d6
diagonal, 13.fxe3 xe3+ 14.d1 h4 Picking off another pawn, as 19.h4? e5!
15.b5? ( 15.c4! was the only chance, 20.c3 f8 Wins back the exchange,
with the cute tactical point xf3 16.gxf3 because of the twin threats of ...Rf1+, and ...
xf3+ 17.c1 xh1?? 18.xf7+ Kf7, trapping the e6-rook.
wi n n i n g t h e b l a c k q u e e n .) 15...xf3 0-1
winning. ]
5...d5 6.cxd5 This might be a mistake, but
even after 32 A00
[ 6.f3 e7!? redeploying the bishop, McDonald,Neil R 2406
( b u t I h a v e p l a y e d 6...e8 Thipsay,Bagyashree Sathe 2241
with a transposition to the main game after Ron Banwell Masters (6) 23.08.2001
7.cxd5 xd5 ) 7.e2 c5 8.b2 c6 [Neil McDonald]
9.cxd5 ( Adorjan suggests that 9.0-0 f5!
10.a3 d4 is also better for Black.) 1.a3 White wanted to try the Dutch with an
9...xd5 10.0-0 f6! Black counters extra tempo! d5
White's best piece. 11.d4 this doesn't turn [ Or 1...e5 2.e4 f6 3.c3 and Black can't
out so well, but ( 11.c1 e8 12.a3 b6 reach the Ruy Lopez reversed as the little
13.d4 xd4! is also good for Black, pawn on a3 is preventing 3...Bb4. Nor is the
Teichmann, E-Allen,K/Southampton 1986.) Scotch that great because if d5 4.exd5
11...cxd4 12.xd4 b6! 13.d2 xd4 xd5 5.h5! and Black can't play the usual
14.xd4 xd4 15.exd4 e6 16.a3 ac8 riposte 5... Nb4 again thanks to the pawn on
and Black enjoys a positional advantage, a3. Of course none of this prevents Black
because of the weak d4-pawn, Urzica,A- from having a decent position, but it might
Adorjan,A/ Sweden 1970. ] be upsetting for a player to be denied his
6...xd5 7.f3 e8! Preparing a devilish usual opening systems. ]
tra p, int o wh ic h W hite o f t en f alls! 8.e2? 2.f4 f6 3.f3 g6 4.g3 g7 5.g2 0-0
This move loses, and 6.0-0 c5 7.d3 c6 8.c3 White has
[ 8.c3?! i s n o t m u c h b e t t e r , xe5!? reached the 7...Nc6 Leningrad with colours
9.xe5 xc3 10.b3 d5 11.e4 xd2+ reversed. d4 9.a4
with a strong attack. ] [ A l s o i n t e r e s t i n g w a s 9.e4 xe4
[ 8.b2 might be best, although after f5 ( M o r e s e n s i b l e m i g h t b e 9...d5!? )

30
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
10.dxe4 when we have the 7...Nc6 8 d5 Ne5
9 Nxe5 dxe5 variation with colours reversed.
In some lines the inclusion of a3 will help
White as a standard idea is Qe1 combined
with h2-h3 and g3-g4 to bring the queen to
the kingside. Here he can do it withou t
worrying about the reply Nb4 hitting the c2
pawn. ]
9...d6
[ Here 9...d7 10.c4 c7 11.d2 b6
12.b4 b7 13.b1 should be compar ed
with the analysis in ****Madeukwe-
McDonald with reversed colours. ]
10.c4 g4!?
[ Safe enough was 10...dxc3 but aiming at
the e3 square makes sense. ]
11.b1 b8 12.b4 b6 13.bxc5 bxc5
14.b5! White finds a way to gain the initiative
on the queenside, though it doesn't amount to
much advantage- the hole on e3 continually
h a m p e r s h i s a b i l i t y t o m a n o e u v r e . xb5
15.cxb5 d8 16.c2 e6 17.f5 gxf5
18.h4 f6? During the game I had thought
that I had the advantage here but in fact
[ 18...c7! leaves White with nothing e.g.
19.xf5 xf5 20.xf5 xb5 and the knight
gets to c3. ]
19.xf5 e5 20.b6! Now White takes
control. axb6 21.xb6 g7 22.c4 c7
23.f4 d8 24.h6+ xh6 25.xh6 e5
26.a4 e8 27.a5 e6
[ Losing the exchange, but if 27...f5 28.a6!
xh6 ( 28...xa6 29.xf5 ) 29.a7
and the pawn queens. ]
28.c6! g7 29.xe8 xh6 30.xf7+ g7
31.xe6 xe6 32.a6 a8 33.b1! xa6
[ If 33...xc4 34.b7+ xb7 35.axb7
e3+ 36.f2 xf2+ 37.xf2 ]
34.b8 xc4 35.f8+ White gave some
checks to safely reach the time control. g6
36.f5+ g7 37.xe5+ g8 38.e8+
g7 39.f8+ g6 40.f5+ g7 41.dxc4
1-0
33 A00
McDonald,Neil R
Thipsay,Praveen Mahadeo
Ron Banwell Masters 2001
[Neil McDonald]
1.a3 g6 2.f4 g7 3.f3 d5 4.g3 d7!?
Thipsay avoids the usual Dutch Def ence
k n i g h t d e p l o ym e n t wi t h c 7 - c 5 a n d N c 6 .
Evidently he had been talking to his wife, as
against her a couple of rounds earlier in the
tournament I had played a Leningrad reversed
with Nc3- see ****McDonald-B.Thipsay. 5.g2
gf6 6.0-0 0-0 7.d3 c5 8.e1 Black's idea
was that if
[ 8.c3 d4 9.a4? b5 wins material- the
black knight is on d7 rather than its usual
c6 square so that c5 is defended. Still, d7 is
a more passive square than c6 so in some
sense it felt like a small moral victory to
White. ]
8...d4 9.c3?! White drops another tempo!
Here
[ 9.c4! was correct. ]
9...b6! I had thought the knight would be
badly placed on b6- I had completely missed
that it can land on a4 in what follows. 10.c4
c7 11.h3 d8 12.b4? Still missing Black's
13th move. I should have acted on the
kingside with
[ 12.g4 and 13 Qh4. ]
12...h5! Preventing 13 g4. 13.bd2 a4!
Black's knights take control on both sides of
the board. 14.b3
[ More accurate was 14.e4 centralising the
knight. ]
14...b6! Thipsay is playing superb positional
and tactical chess. 15.bxc5? Giving away the
b file is a serious mistake. I was thrown by the
fact that if
[ 15.fxd4 b7! 16.b5 d7 17.xb7
xb7 and not only is a1 hanging but the
knight on b5 is trapped and threatened with
18...a6. ]
15...bxc5 16.h2 c3 17.e4! The only way
to gain space before W hite is put in a
stranglehold after 17...Rb8, etc. b8 18.bd2
h6! 19.e5 f6? Finally Black goes wrong.
After the game Thipsay told me he had
planned to play
[ 19...f6! 20.g4 xg4 21.hxg4 xf4!
31
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
22.gxf4 xf4+ 23.h3 ( White's pieces are
t i e d u p a f t e r 23.h1 g3 24.f2
but it is the best chance for him.) 23...h5!
but he couldn't quite assess how strong the
attack was. It looks tremendous, for example
24.f3 hxg4+ 25.xg4 g7 and 26...Rh8+
will be very strong. ]
20.df3 b3 21.g5! Now White has
counterplay. f8 22.f5! Hereabouts the game
descended into a time scramble-not so
surprising as we had both been thinking hard
since move one! xe5 23.f3 c7 24.xh6
e8 25.e5 h5 26.g4 g7 27.fxg6 hxg6
28.h1 b7 29.f2 f8 30.ae1 b6
31.h4 b2?
[ He had to eliminate the knight with
31...xf3 ]
32.xg7 xg7 33.g5! xg2+ 34.g1
Suddenly the game is over. Black resigned for
if h8 35.xf7+ g8 36.f8+ xf8
37.xh8#
1-0
34 A00
Mestrovic,Zvonimir 2466
Sermek,Drazen 2545
ch-(team) Pula CRO (7) 16.09.1999
[Tony Kosten]
1.c3 c5 2.e4!? There is still a place for
originality in chess! This amazing move hopes
t o p r o v o k e t h e b l a c k p a wn s f o r w a r d . e6
A sensible e, defending the c5-pawn, and
preparing to repel the knight. Actually, it is
this move that is new, as W hite's second
move has already been employed,
[ in Mestrovic,Z-Hulak,K/Zagreb 1977, Black
played 2...e5 instead, and after 3.g3 d5
4.e4 f6 5.d3 c6 6.e2 e7 7.f3 0-0
8.0-0 e8 9.h3 h6 10.h2 d4 11.g4
xe2+ 12.xe2 xg4 13.hxg4 e6
14.f5 f6 15.c4 d4 16.g3 h7 17.g2
White was doing well. ]
3.g3 d5 4.e4 dxe4 Rather a limp reply,
Black is clearly happy with equality. 5.xe4
e7 6.f3 f6 7.b5+ d7 8.xd7+
xd7 9.e2 xe4 10.xe4 c6 11.0-0
0-0 12.d3 f6 Black has no particular
problems here, for sure, but
[ 12...d4 13.xd4 cxd4 might have been
more interesting, hoping to pressurize the
backward c-pawn straightaway. ]
13.g5 g6 14.h4 h5 15.f4 g7 16.e4
e7 17.g5 White has managed to drum-up
a lit t le p la y a ro u nd t h e d a rk squ a re s . b6
18.xe7 xe7 19.b1 c6 20.d2 ad8
21.c3 d4
[ 21...b4! looks stronger, to me, as after
22.xb4 cxb4 Black keeps the bishop's
diagonal open. ]
22.xd4 cxd4 23.f4 d7 24.be1 c8
25.e2 dc7 26.ff2 White has only one
weakness, the pawn on c2, and this is easily
defended. f8
½-½
35 A00
Minasian,Artashes 2571
Becerra Rivero,Julio 2569
It Los Angeles USA (8) 25.08.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.g3 It is nice to see strong GMs playing this
move, I sometimes try it myself, with
reasonable success. g6 2.g2 g7 3.e4 e5
4.e2 c6 5.c3 ge7 6.d4 exd4 7.cxd4
d5! We have discussed this idea before. 8.e5
f6 Attacking the pawn head-on forces White to
close the c1-h6 diagonal.
[ 8...0-0 9.0-0 f5 10.a3 f6 11.f4
is f airly similar, Ubeira,E-Prol,I/Burgas
1999. ]
9.f4 e6!? A new move, although the
[ 9...0-0 10.0-0 g4 of Polgar,Z-Xie Jun/
Jaen 1996, seems pretty effective - see
the archives. ]
10.bc3 d7 11.h3 f5 Black plays this to
stop White from playing Be3. 12.0-0 0-0-0!?
A really aggressive choice, especially
c o n s i d e r i n g t h e o p e n c - f i l e . 13.a4!?
A case of 'you can't make an omelette without
breaking eggs'! White concedes control of b4
but judges the b5 square to be more
im p o rt a n t . a5!? Putting paid to the a-pawn's
advance, but breaking the rule concerning not
moving pawns in front of the king. It is true
that other moves allow W hite to establish
control of c5, e.g.
[ 13...b8 14.a5 a6 15.a4 although even
here f8 seems more than playable. ]
32
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

14.b5 Adding useful support to the d4-pawn, 36 A00

a s w e l l a s m e n a c i n g t h e b l a c k k i n g . b6 Minasian,Artashes 2586
15.d2 b7 16.c1 White's play on the Ramesh,Ramachandran B 2453
queenside seems to be the dominant factor 9th Open Dubai UAE (8) 29.04.2007
here. a8?! Black is taking a very passive [Carsten Hansen]
approach to this game. 17.f3! A nice way to
double rooks. fe7 18.h2 hc8 19.fc3 1.g3 e5 2.g2 c6 3.d3 f6 4.a3!?
ab8 Black has brought his pieces over to Minasian likes to play somewhat unorthodoxly
defend the king, but renounced any chance of in the opening, and here tries something akin
p l a y o n t h e k i n g s i d e . 20.b3 a8? to a 'Tiger's Modern' with the colours reversed.
A b l u n d e r i n a b a d p o s i t i o n . 21.f5!! It will probably not produce an advantage, but
A liberating sacrifice, which opens the h2-b8 against a positional player like former British
diagonal for the dark-squared bishop, and the Champio n Ramesh, it can some times b e
f4-square for the e2-knight. gxf5 The only worthwhile to try something offbeat,
move, particularly when it suits your own style. d5
[ 21...xf5? 22.xc6 xc6 23.xd5 5.d2 e6
is instant curtains. ] [ Also 5...a5 can be considered to prevent
22.f4 White is winning - the main threat is W h i t e 's n e xt m o ve . B u t I gu e s s e i t h e r
Nxe6, then Rxc6 and Bxd5 with a decisive pin Ra m e sh d id n 't e xp e ct it o r p e rh a p s h e
on the c6-knight. xd4 Pretty desperate, but wasn't particular concerned about it. Yet ...
[ 22...f7 is no help: 23.e6 xe6 24.xe6 a7-a5 limits White's options considerably. ]
xe6 25.xc6 xc6 26.xd5 ( or 6.b4!? This is entirely in accordance with
26.xd5 ) 26...xd5 27.xd5 and Black Tiger Hillarp Persson's recipe, except he plays
loses a lot of material. ] it as Black. Normally Tiger develops his bishop
23.xd4 fxe5 24.dxe6 exf4 25.xc7+ to b 2 (7 ) a n d p u sh e s h is c-p a wn f o rwa rd
a7 26.xd5? I can only believe that such a b e f o r e f in is h in g t h e d e ve lo p m e n t o f t h e
move is due to time trouble, as W hite has kingside. It is very provocative and can be
several simple wins, for instance hazardous to your health. Nonetheless, Tiger
[ 26.b5+! a6 27.c7 menacing the has scored very well with his variation against
queen, and if that moves, mate on a7. ] players of all strengths thanks to the variation
26...fxg3+ 27.h1? suiting his very combative and original form of
[ 27.xg3 e5 28.xc8 xg3+ 29.xg3 chess. d6 7.c4 a5 8.b5 b8 9.gf3
is still very good for White. ] [ White can also play 9.cxd5 xd5 10.b2
27...a6?? Returning the compliment, with with a position that looks a lot like it came
interest! from an English Opening, but Minasian has
[ 27...xc3 is far from clear, Black has rook other things in mind. ]
and two pawns for the bishops. ] 9...c6 10.bxc6 bxc6 11.b2 fd7
28.xc8 xc8 [ I suppose 11...bd7!? is a perfectly good
[ 28...xc8? 29.xb6# ] alternative too. ]
29.c7+ a7 30.b5+ 12.0-0 0-0 13.cxd5 cxd5 14.e4 d4
[ 30.c4 is even quicker. ] [ Also 14...c6!? can be considered, e.g.
30...a6 31.c7 15.exd5 ( 15.c1!? c8 16.exd5 xd5
1-0 17.e1 ) 15...xd5 16.c4 c5 17.e1
( 17.fxe5? dxe5 18.xe5 xe5
19.xe5 xg2 20.xg2 d4 ) 17...f6
18.c1
A) Here 18...e8 and only after 19.d2
B l a c k g o e s b8 is probably a better
continuation for Black, leaving him with a
slightly better game 20.fxe5 dxe5
( 20...xg2?! 21.xd7 xe1+ 22.xe1

33
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
xd7 23.xg2 is better for W hite!)
21.xe5 xe5 22.xe5 xf2+ 23.xf2
fxe5 with no more than a pull for Black;
B) 18...b8 19.d4!? xd4 ( 19...xf3
will likely reach the same position as in the
main line through a little transposition
20.xf3 xd4 21.d5+ h8 22.xd4
xd4 23.d6 ) 20.xd4 xf3 21.xf3
xd4 22.d5+ h8 23.d6 b6 24.f1
and W hite's active pieces easily
compensate for the missing pawn. ]
15.xd4!? This is an entertaining way of
shaking the matters up quite a bit, and Black
responds in startlingly terrible fashion by
making a massive blunder. If White had tried
a more King's Indian kind-of-move, Black
would be better thanks to the soft d3-pawn
a n d t h e m a n y we a k s q u a r e s o n W h i t e ' s
queenside, whereas W hite will be far from
p ro d u c in g a n yt h i n g o f su b st a n ce o n t h e
kingside. c5??
[ A dreadful blunder, although it has to be
said that White's strong 17th move can be
overlooked. However, it isn't entirely clear
why Black thought his move in the game is
s t r o n g e r t h a n 15...exd4 16.e5 xe5!
( 16...a6 17.exd6 xd6 leaves White with
an advantage) 17.xa8 b6! 18.c1 ( Or
18.b1 a2 19.c4 xc4 20.dxc4 xb1
21.xb1 d7 22.e4 f6 and Black is
doing rather well) 18...bc6 19.e4 xa8
20.xd6 h3 21.f4 xf1 22.xf1 d7
23.d2 and White has an edge, but Black
has chances too. ]
16.xe6 xe6
[ Or 16...fxe6 17.c4 c6 18.d4 xd4
19.xd4 exd4 20.e5 and White is again
winning ]
17.d4! This may well have been the move that
Black had overlooked since he now resigned
without any further ado. A possible
continuation is d7 18.c4 c7 19.xd6
xd6 20.dxe5 and Black is down two pawns
without any form of compensation
1-0
37 A00
Minasian,Artashes 2574
Van Beek,Alexander 2343
IX EICC Plovdiv BUL (1) 21.04.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.g3 d5 2.g2 e5 3.d3 f6 4.f3 d6
5.0-0
[ 5.c4!? was examined in Azmaiparashvili-
Mahjoob, Tripoli 2004, which can be found
in the PGN archives. ]
5...0-0 6.c4 dxc4
[ This is ECO's preference for Black. An
alternative is 6...c6
A) 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.c3 ( 8.g5 bd7
9.c3 h6 10.xf6 xf6 11.c1 e6
12.d4 e4 13.e1 d7 14.f3 exf3
15.exf3 b5 16.d3 with chances to both
sides, Petran, P-Kreindl, H/Vienna 1998)
8...h6 ( or 8...d4!? 9.b5 c6 10.xd6
xd6 11.d2 e6 12.a4 d5 13.h3
e4 14.b3 exd3 15.f4 e7 16.exd3
e2 , and Black has the initiative,
H o d g s o n , J - S a d l e r , M / L o n d o n 1 9 9 1)
9.b5 ( 9.b3?! d4 10.d5 xd5
11.xd5 c6 12.d2 e6 13.b5 e7
, a n d B la ck 's ch a n ce s a re so m e wh a t
preferably, W arakomski, T-Dziuba, M/
Krakow POL 2006) 9...c6 10.xd6
xd6 11.d4 e4 12.e5 e6 13.xc6
xc6 14.f4 d7 15.d2 h5 16.fc1
e6 was another Minasian game:
Minasian, A-Izoria, Z/ Batumi GEO 2003,
and here White is possibly slightly better
after 17.e5!?;
B) 7.c2 e7 8.e4 dxe4 9.dxe4 a6
10.c3 e6 11.b3 b4 12.e2 a5
13.b2 fd8 with approximately even
chances, Schoene, R-Baumbach, F/
Germany 1995;
C) 7.g5 h6 8.xf6 xf6 9.cxd5 cxd5
10.c3 d4 11.e4 e7 12.a3 c6
13.b4 , and White has the initiative,
Maiwald, J-Kayser, F/Dresden GER 2007 ]
7.dxc4 c6
[ This move is perfectly logical, removing
White's access to the d5-square.
Nevertheless, Black has tried several other
things in this position: A) 7...e7 8.c3 h6
9.d2 c6 10.a3 a5 11.c2 a6 12.b3
g4 13.b2 fe8 14.de4 f5 15.xf6+
34
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
xf6 16.e4 xe4 17.xe4 f5
with chances to both sides, Rajkovic, D-
Alburt, L/Odessa 1975 ]
[ B) 7...e4 8.g5 f5 9.c3 e8 10.c5
( 10.b3 is the only move covered in the
ECO, e7 11.xb7 bd7 12.d5 d8
13.xf6+ xf6 14.b5 c5 15.h3 c7
16.f4 ab8 17.a4 , and Black has
adequate compensation for the pawn, Jansa,
V-Gurevich, V/Andorra 1993) 10...xc5
11.xd8 xd8 12.gxe4 xe4 13.xe4
e7 14.f4 a6 , Maiwald, J-
Steingrimsson, H/Kreuzberg GER 2003
15.fd1 ]
[ C) 7...c6 8.c3 h6 ( 8...g4 9.e3
d7 10.g5 f5 11.xf6 xf6 12.e4
e7 13.xd6 ad8 with a comfortable
game for Black) 9.b5!? ( 9.e1 g4
10.c2 c8 11.e3 h3 , and Black is
more comfortable Agrifoglio, F-Vancini, E/
C e r i a n o 1 9 9 9) 9...e4 10.fd4 e5
11.xc6 bxc6 12.c3 xc3 13.bxc3
, and here a draw was agreed upon, 1/2-1/2,
in Moldovan, D-Grigore, G/Bucharest 2001,
though obviously there is still plenty of play
left in the final position. ]
[ D) 7...e8 8.c3 h6 9.b5 ( 9.e4!? g4
10.e3 c6 11.a3; 9.c5 xc5 10.xd8
xd8 11.xe5 c6 12.f4 a6= ) 9...c6
10.e3 e4 11.xd6 cxd6 12.d4 e5
, and Black has the initiative, thanks to the
weaknesses on the light squares on
W hite's kingside, Bancod, R-Grigore, G/
Genova 1999 ]
8.c3 h6
[ Black has tried a couple of other moves at
this juncture 8...f5 9.c5 xc5 10.xe5
e7 11.c4 d8 12.e1 e6 13.d2
bd7 , and Black has nothing to worry about,
Gerzadowicz, S-Harabor, M/corr 1990 ]
[ 8...e6 9.b3 h6 10.b2 e7 11.c2
bd7 12.ad1 fd8 13.e4 xe4
14.xe4 was Galinsky, T-Madynski, P/
Bydgoszcz 1999, and now Black should
have played c5 15.e3 e4 16.d4 g4
17.f3!? exf3 18.xe7 f2+ ( 18...xe7
19.exf3 h5 20.f5 f8= ) 19.xf2 xe7
20.df1 f6 , and the chances are about
even ]
9.h3
[ Or 9.c2 e8 10.d1 e7 11.d2 e6
12.a3 a5 13.b1 a6 , and Black has
solved his opening problems successfully,
Weber, S-Liwak, P/ Germany 2002 ]
9...e6 10.b3 e7 11.c2 d8 12.b2
bd7 13.ad1 f8 14.h4
[ 14.g4 g6 15.e3 a3 16.a1
is fine for Black after h5 17.g5 h7 ]
14...a3 15.a1 The exchange of the dark-
squared bishops is in Black's interest, so
obviously White doesn't oblige xd1 16.xd1
8d7
[ I think Black can do better with 16...c7!?
17.c3 d6 18.c5 ( 18.e3!? ) 18...e7
19.xe5 xe5 20.xe5 xc5 21.xf6?!
( 21.b2= ) 21...gxf6 is absolutely fine for
Black, in fact I prefer Black's chances in
this position on account of the bishops and
Black's queenside pawn majority ]
17.e3 e8 18.hf5 f8
[ 18...f6 19.f4 c5 20.h2 is better for
White ]
19.g4 d6 20.e4 White has the more
active position and the initiative. f6 21.d1
d8 22.c3 c5 23.d2
[ White has a couple of interesting
alternatives, e.g. 23.ge3!? ]
[ or 23.b4!? a6 24.xd6 xd6 25.b1
c5 26.b5 c7 27.e3 with an advantage
for White ]
23...f7 24.h4 d4 25.f5
[ 25.e3 d8 26.f4 exf4 27.gxf4 d3
opens the game unnecessarily ]
25...d7 26.c3 d8 27.f1 d3 28.e2
c5 29.h4 a5 30.f3 e7 31.ge3 d6?!
[ 31...f8 32.d1 b6 33.g4 h7= ]
32.h3
[ 32.xe7+ xe7 33.d1 f7 ( 33...c5
34.f5 d7 35.xd6 xd6 36.xd6 xd6
37.xa5 ) 34.f1 d7 35.f5 c5
36.xd7 xd7 37.d1 b6 38.h5 ]
32...xf5
[ 32...c5 33.b4 xf5 34.xf5 axb4
35.xe7+ xe7 36.xb4 e6 37.g4 ]
33.xf5?!
[ 33.xf5!? xf5 34.xf5 d6 35.g4 ]
33...xf5 34.xf5 b4= 35.xb4 xb4
36.g4 h8 37.h5 xa2 38.g2 c3
39.c1 a2 40.e1 and here I suspect Black
lost on time, because he isn't worse after
either 40...Nc3 or 40. ..b5.
1-0
35
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
38 A00
Minasian,Artashes 2574
Volokitin,Andrei 2684
IX EICC Plovdiv BUL (2) 22.04.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.g3 e5 2.g2 d5 3.d3 c6 4.a3 f6
5.b4
[ 5.d2 e6 6.b4 was examined in
Minasian-Ramesh, Dubai 2007, which can
be found in the PGN archives. ]
5...d6
[ This move looks perfectly logical, but Black
has in fact tried quite a few different things
in this position: A) 5...a5!? 6.b5 d4
( 6...a7!? 7.f3 d6 8.a4 c6 9.bxc6
xc6 10.0-0 0-0 with a comfortable game
for Black, Conquest, S-Finegold, B/Oakham
1986 ) 7.c3 c6 8.b1 d6 9.e3 e6
10.ge2 0-0 11.0-0 e7 12.a4 d7
13.f4 f5 , and Black is doing fine, Larsen, B-
Ljubojevic, L/Las Palmas 1975 ]
[ B) 5...h6 6.b2 d6 7.c4 d4 8.d2 0-0
9.gf3 e8 10.0-0 ( 10.c5!? ) 10...a6
11.e1!? ( 11.b3 f5 12.e4 dxe3
13.fxe3 d7 14.e4 g4 15.h4 f8
16.df3 ad8 , and Black has the
somewhat better chances, Norri, J-Ebeling,
M/Helsinki 1990) 11...f5 12.h3 d7
13.h2 h7 14.e4 b5 ( 14...a5!? 15.c5
f8 16.b3 e6= ) 15.c1 Mista, A-
Szymanski, M/Warsaw POL 2005 ]
[ C) 5...a6 6.b2 e7 7.d2 0-0 8.c4
e8 ( 8...d4!? 9.gf3 d6 ) 9.cxd5 xd5
10.gf3 f6 ( 10...f8 11.0-0 f6 12.c1
h8 13.b3 a5 14.b5 a7 15.a4
Koshy, V-Sofieva, A/Calcutta 1993) 11.0-0
e6 12.b3 d7 13.c1 h3?!
( 13...ad8 14.c5 xc5 15.xc5 b6
is solid and playable for Black) 14.xh3
xh3 15.e4! b6 16.d4 , and White has
grabbed control over the game, W ohl, A-
Solomon, S/Canberra AUS 2005 ]
[ D) 5...e6 6.f3 d6 7.0-0 d7 8.b2
0-0-0 9.b5 e7 10.xe5 h5 11.xd6
xd6 12.h4 g4 13.bd2 f5 14.e4
, and W hite has taken over the initiative,
Mirzoev, A-Rodriguez Dobladez, V/ Balaguer
2005 ]
6.b2 0-0 7.d2 e8 8.c4
[ In an earlier game by Volokitin, White tried
8.e4 dxe4 9.dxe4 a5 10.c3 g4
( 10...axb4 11.axb4 xa1 12.xa1 g4
13.gf3 d7 is given as better for Black by
my computer, but I like W hite's chances)
11.gf3 e7 12.e2 d7 13.h3 h5
14.c4 ( 14.g4 g6 15.0-0 also looks
promising for W hite) 14...b6 15.e3
( 15.g4!? ) 15...d7 16.0-0 a4 17.ad1
axb4 18.axb4 f6 19.c1 , and White has
the slightly better chances, Movsesian, S-
Volokitin, A/Koelln GER 2003 ]
8...dxc4 9.xc4 a5 10.b5 d4 11.a4
b4+ 12.f1 d7
[ Black can also consider 12...c5 , and after
the normal 13.e3 , the piece sacrifice g4!?
14.f3 e6 15.exd4 exd4 deserves
attention ]
13.e3 f5 14.f3 f6 15.g4!? Obviously
W hite cannot let go of this opportunity to
shake things up a bit. d6 16.xd6 xd6
[ 16...cxd6!? intending ...d5 and ...Nb6 also
deserve consideration ]
17.d2 c5 18.e4 f5?!
[ I don't like this move, but Black
undoubtedly tried to take advantage of the
positio n o f W h ite 's king. A be tter try is
18...xe4 19.xe4 b8 20.f3
with chances to both sides. ]
19.xd6 xd6 22 , and here a draw was
prematurely agreed upon. W hite is doing
rather well after 20 d4 exd4 Qxd4 Qxd4 Bxd4
[ 19...cxd6 20.d4 exd4 21.xd4 c7
22.d5+ h8 23.b6 e7 24.gxf5 xf5
25.g1 ]
½-½
39 A00
Miralles,Gilles 2451
Bologan,Viktor 2663
National I Bordeaux FRA (6) 06.04.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.b4 e5 2.b2 d6 Unusual, Black solidly
defends his e-pawn, but
[ 2...xb4 is more common, and ]
[ 2...f6 is not bad, either. ]
3.g3 f5 4.g2 f6 5.c4 So White takes
play into the English Opening scheme of
things. e7!? This appears a trifle passive,
Black normally prefers to fianchetto his bishop
36
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
by
[ 5...g6 6.d3 g7 7.e3 0-0 8.e2
W hite can delay the development of his
queen's knight to keep this different, a6!?
( 8...c6 9.b5 e7 10.d2!? Kalinin,O-
Hn yd iu k , A / Z a b rza n sk i W rze s ie n 1 9 9 4)
9.d2!? ( 9.bc3 c6 would be fairly
similar to Closed English lines)
10.a3 b8 11.0-0 was another game of
Gilles Miralles, against Hofmann, at
Groningen but played more than twenty
years before! ]
6.b3!? An odd idea, and Gilles was not very
happy with it after the game.
[ 6.c3 c6 7.f3 0-0 8.0-0
was Braley,J-Tomkins,K/Seattle 1984. ]
6...0-0 7.f3 h8 8.0-0 White delays
playing d3 in the hope that Black will play ...
e 4 a n d o v e r - e x t e n d h i s c e n t r e . e8
Standard play in such 'Dutch-style' positions,
Black plans ...Qh5, and ... f4 with a kingside
attack. 9.c3 h5 10.d5 xd5 11.cxd5
d7 12.d3 f6 13.ae1?! After the game
we examined the more natural
[ 13.ac1 d8 as with the bishop on this
less active square W hite is unlikely to be
mated, 14.e4!? f4 ( 14...fxe4 15.dxe4
xe4 16.xe5 d2 17.d1 h6 18.e1
dxe5 19.xe5 and the knight will be trapped
by f4 ) 15.d4 which seemed very favourable
for White. ]
13...f4 14.e4!? White wants to follow with d4
and open the centre, but this weakens f3. h3
All according to plan, ...Ng4 and ...fxg3 come
next. 15.d4 g4 16.dxe5 dxe5
[ 16...xg2 17.xg2 xe5 18.xe5 dxe5
19.f3 looks nice for White. ]
17.xh3 White may already be lost, for
example
[ 17.a3 fxg3 18.fxg3 xg2 19.xg2 xf3!
20.xf3 xh2+ 21.f1 g5! and there is
no satisfactory defence against ...Qh1+, and
then ...Qg2+. ]
17...xh3 18.xe5?! Obviously critical, for if
White can't take this then Black has an attack
for nothing, but all the same it was time to
defend the second rank by
[ 18.e2 ]
18...d6! 19.d4 After this Black wins by a
direct sacrificial attack, but anyway
[ 19.xd6 cxd6 20.e2 f6 is also very
unpleasant. ]
19...fxg3 20.fxg3 xg3! 21.e2 Defending
h2 laterally,
[ 21.hxg3? xg3+ 22.h1 xf3
kills the defender of h2. ]
21...e5! Black plays with great precision.
22.c5?!
9...c6 [ 22.xe5 xe5 further attacks the pinned
white knight, 23.e3 g4+ 24.h1 xf3
25.exf3 xe4 and Black is a pawn to the
good, with a great position. ]
22...f6 23.g2 xh2! 24.xh2
[ 24.xh2 allows a f orced mate: xh2+
25.xh2 xf1# ]
e6 24...xh2+ 25.xh2 g6+ 26.f2 xh2+
0-1
40 A00
Morozevich,Alexander 2748
Kasparov,Garry 2851
Fujitsu-Siemens Giants (10) 25.06.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.c3!? A surprising attempt to take the
World Champion out of his opening
knowledge. c5 2.d4
[ Unusual, 2.f3 is the normal Dunst move. ]
2...cxd4 3.xd4 c6 4.h4 The point, the
queen takes-up an active post on the kingside.
f6 5.f3
[ 5.e4?! whilst apparently desirable, allows
the reply b4 6.d3 xd3+ 7.cxd3 d5
and Black is better. ]
5...d5 6.g5 a5!
[ Already a new move, 6...e6 7.0-0-0 e7
8.e4 a5 9.exd5 xd5 10.xd5 exd5
11.xe7 xe7 12.b1 favoured White in
Becking,F-Staggat,R/Weilburg 1995. ]
7.0-0-0 e6 Odd, but the only way of
defending d5 which doesn't lose a pawn.
8.d2
[ An unnatural reply, but White already has
difficulties, the natural 8.e3?! allows e4!
9.xe4 dxe4 10.xe4 xa2 denuding the
white king. ]
8...g6 Black takes the opportunity to complete
his kingside development. 9.e4!?
[ White hopes to profit from his superior
development to open the position, but the
ta ct ics a re no t u nf a vo ura ble f or B lac k .
37
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

9.a3!? ] Ernst,T/Skelleftea SWE 1999. ]

9...d4 10.e5 g4! 2.e3 I think that this is White's soundest reply.
[ 10...dxc3 11.xc3 xa2 [ 12.exf6
Black's system is designed to counter the
is very risky. ] obvious move 2.b2 as Black replies b6
11.xd4! xd4 12.h3 g7 13.hxg4 xe5 attacking, and pinning, the b-pawn, 3.a3 a5
14.a3 c8 15.d3 White seems well-placed, 4.c4 A trick, based on a tactic, ( 4.c3?!
as the open h-file stops Black from castling, is horribly passive, d5 5.e3 e5 and Black
b u t t h e b l a c k p i e c e s a r e a c t i v e . b3+!
has a good position, Dovzik,J-Revuckij,V/
Black sees a neat perpetual, and decides to S ze g e d 1 9 9 8 .; but I wonder if 4.f3!?
m a k e a d r a w . 16.cxb3 xc3 17.xc3
i s p o s s i b l e ? T h e p o i n t i s t h a t axb4
xc3+ 18.b1? can be countered by 5.d4 c5? 6.xc5!
[ A risky winning attempt, 18.bxc3 xc3+
w i n n i n g a p a w n , a s xc5?! 7.axb4
19.b1 xb3+ 20.c1 c3+
is a standard trick, winning the exchange.)
is an immediate draw. ] 4...axb4 5.c5 This is the same idea, of
18...xb3 19.h2 c3! A key tactical point, course, c7 ( 5...xc5?? 6.axb4
parrying the threatened Qb8+, and menacing wins a rook!) 6.axb4 xa1 7.xa1 d6
mate, too. 20.b8+ c8 21.d2 The only 8.a4 e5 9.f3 d7 10.cxd6 xd6 11.g3
move to defend b2. 0-0 gf6 12.c3 b6 and White had problems
[ 21...xd2?? 22.xc8# ] b e c a u s e o f h i s we a k b - p a w n , a n d t h e
22.h2 h5 Black's threats give him the time imminent advance of the black e-pawn,
to defend his king. 23.hd1 xg4 24.f3 e6 Teichmann,E-Watts,D/Southampton 1986. ]
Now White has two pawns less, for nothing. 2...d5 3.b2 f6 The move
25.g4 hxg4 26.fxg4 xg4 27.g1 xb2+! [ 3...b6?! has absolutely no effect here,
The simplest. 28.xb2 xd3+ 29.c2 d7 4.a3 a5 5.d4 c7 6.f4 keeping a firm
30.d2 xd2 31.xd2 f3 The ending is grip on the e5-square, axb4 7.axb4 xa1
hopeless, the f our extra black pawns are 8.xa1 d7 9.f3 gf6 10.c1!
much more significant than the exchange. very original, the queen is coming to b2 to
32.b2 c6 33.c3 g7 34.b4 e5 emphasize White's control over the a1-h8
35.a4 a6 36.a5 e4 37.c5 e8 38.e1 diagonal. e6 11.b2 b5 12.e2
e6 Black is in no rush, and simply puts his
and the black light-squared bishop is
pieces on good squares, before pushing some se ve re l y in h i b i t e d , H o rt - A n ga n t ys s o n /
o f h is p a wn s . 39.d4 f5 40.h2 f6
Bundesliga 1985. ]
41.h8 d6+ 42.c5 d5+ 43.b6 b5+ 4.f4 The same idea as in the Hort game,
44.c7 xa5 W hite attempts to control the central dark-
0-1 squares.
[ 4.f3 is less effective, g4 5.e2 bd7
6.h3 xf3 7.xf3 e6 8.a3 d6 and Black
41 A00 had a solid set-up, Palac,M-Rosandic,D/
Ornstein,Axel 2425 Pula 1994. ]
Hansen,Sune Berg 2520 4...g4 5.f3 e6 Sensible play by Black,
Troll Masters (8) 14.01.1999 having developed his c8-bishop outside the
[Tony Kosten] pawn chain, he can now put his pawns on
light squ a re s, ju st a s in t h e Cap a b la n c a
1.b4 c6 A strange move, under the Variation of the Reti. 6.a3 bd7 7.c4 d6
circumstances, but one with a definite tactical 8.cxd5 exd5 9.e2 0-0 10.0-0 e8 11.c3
point. In fact, I once saw someone claim that c8 12.d4 xe2 13.cxe2 a5!
this was the refutation of 1 b4. Black attempts to create a weakness on the
[ 1...a5 is worse, as after 2.b5 f6 3.b2 queenside. 14.c2 b6 15.ed4 c5 16.f5
g6 4.g3 g7 5.g2 0-0 6.c4 d6 7.c3 f8 17.bxc5 bxc5 18.g4? Bearing in mind
e5 8.d3 Black has simply encouraged White that Black has the stronger central presence,
to gain space on the queenside, Akesson,R- this weakening of the king's defences seems

38
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

most inappropriate. b6 19.b1 e6 20.h3 3...e5 The position has turned into a type of
h5! Black does not waste his time, but hits King Pawn Opening. If Black omits 3...e5, then
straight at White's weakest point. 21.f2 b8 we will have a g3 Pirc, again, i.e.
22.a4 d4 The thematic hanging-pawns thrust. [ 3...d6 4.d4 or, if Black plays ...c5, a Closed
23.a3 b4 24.exd4 a2 25.b5? Sicilian. ]
This loses a piece, the best chance lay in [ 3...c5 assuming White plays Nc3, there is
[ 25.d3 when hxg4 26.hxg4 xb2 27.fxb2 o n e o r i g i n a l l i n e , w h i c h g o e s 4.c3!?
xa3 wins two pieces for a rook, but there is i n t e n d i n g d 4 , c6 5.e2 but White's
still play in the position. ] results with this line are disastrous, e5 6.d3
25...xb2 ge7 7.e3 d6 8.0-0 0-0 Black has
0-1 adopted a Botvinnik set-up, which is more
than satisfactory, Mozes,E-Wells,P/ Harkany
op 1993. ]
42 A00 4.e2 c6 Black keeps control of d4,
Polgar,Zsuzsa 2550 otherwise,
Xie Jun 2530 [ 4...f6 5.d4
(m/1) Jaen 1996 A) 5...exd4 6.xd4 concedes the centre,
[Tony Kosten] but cannot be too bad, as a Pirc-style
position will be reached, in all likelihood.
1.g3 g6 2.g2 g7 This is a flexible 0-0 7.c3 c6!? ( 7...d6 is safer. )
response to W hite's opening. Black is, 8.xc6!? dxc6 9.0-0 with advantage to
presumably, happy to adopt a King's Indian White because of his extra kingside pawn,
should W hite play d4, or perhaps a Closed King-Ostojic, Mondorf 1991.;
Sicilian if White plays a later e4. 3.e4 B) 5...d6!? 6.bc3 ( 6.dxe5 dxe5
[ 3.c3 Is a pet line of Larsen's, refusing to 7.xd8+ xd8 must be a little better for
t r a n s p o s e i n t o ' n o r m a l ' l i n e s . c5 White. ) 6...c6 7.h3 b5 8.a3 b7 9.e3
Black invites 4 e4, which transposes to the bd7 10.f4 unclear, Wessman-Shirov,
Closed Sicilian. 4.d3 c6 5.f4 but White Moscow 1991. ]
p r e f e r s a r e v e r s e d D u t c h ! ( 5.a3!? 5.c3 The same idea as in the note to move
takes play into entirely new territory: e6 three, W hite tries to set-up a pawn centre.
6.f3 d6 7.g5 when, despite Black's lack ge7! Black prepares ...d5 in reply, and this
of ambition, he still has a good position, will be successful as White has insufficient
L a r s e n , B - C a l v o M i n g u e z , R / P a l m a d e control over this square without his queen's
Mallorca 1968.) 5...b6 6.f3 b7 7.0-0 d6 knight on c3.
8.e4 Against Black's refusal to play ...d5, [ 5...d6 is solid, if uninspiring, 6.d4 ge7
White finally 'concedes defeat', and plays e4. 7.d5 b8 8.c4 0-0 9.bc3 and in this KI
A position not atypical of the Closed Sicilian position, White has an edge, Damljanovic-
i s r e a c h e d . L a r s e n , B - S t r i k o vi c , A / L a s Cvetkovic, 1992. ]
Palmas 1992. ] 6.d4 exd4 7.cxd4 d5 The standard method
[ 3.d4 Is one of the tricky points of this of disarming a pawn centre, before it can do
system. If Black plays f6 mechanically, any damage. 8.e5 f6 9.f4 0-0 10.0-0 g4
expecting to take play into a KI after 4 Nf3, The black pieces are well-placed to pressure
or 4 c4, then he may get a nasty surprise: the white centre. 11.bc3 fxe5 12.fxe5?!
4.e4 of course, White's second move has Better to keep the f-file closed, by
prepared the ground for this by controlling [ 12.dxe5 although Black gets plenty of play
e4. d6 Black has to play a Pirc, whether he after d4 as if 13.b3+ h8 14.d1 then
likes it, or not. 5.e2 0-0 6.0-0 e5 7.h3 c8 wins the exchange. ]
with transposition into the g3 Pirc. Whilst it 12...xf1+ 13.xf1 d7 14.h3? This allows
is true that it is not that worrying for Black, a tactical sequence, but even after
but only providing he knows what he is doing, [ 14.e3 f8 15.c1 Black has a plus, h3
Miles, A-Fedorowicz,J/Ramsgate 1981 ] exchanging White's better bishop. ]

39
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
14...f8 15.f4 g5! 16.hxg4 gxf4 17.gxf4
xg4 The white centre is exposed, both the d,
and f-pawns are going to come under attack.
18.e2 g3 19.f2?! xf2+ 20.xf2
xd4 21.xd5 g6 First the d4-pawn is lost,
now Black attacks the e5, and f 4-pawns.
22.c3?! As White is in a bad way, she
should try to exchange as many pawns as
possible:
[ 22.xc7 is the best chance, therefore,
xf4 23.xf4 xf4+ 24.e3 although
Black has every chance to win after xe5 ]
22...c6! 23.e3? xe5!? 24.d1 xf4
25.xf4 Unfortunately for White, winning the
two pieces for the rook by
[ 25.xd4 xd4+ 26.xd4 e6+ 27.e3
is quite hopeless after xd4 28.xd4 f2
as Black has too many pawns. ]
25...xf4+ 26.e3 f5+ 27.d3 g4
28.h3 d4+ Swapping rooks after this the
game is a formality, despite the opposite-
colour bishops. 29.e2 xd1 30.xd1 d6
31.b4 g7 32.a4 f6 33.f2 d4 34.d3
b6 35.f4 c5 36.d5+ e5 37.bxc5 bxc5
38.e7 a6 39.a5 c4 40.c6+ d6
41.b8 c7? A blunder, allowing a technical
draw,
[ 41...xa5 42.xa6 c4 was simple, and
effective. ]
42.xa6+ b7 Trapping the knight, but
43.xc5+! The best,
[ 43.f5 A l s o l o o ks g o o d , a f t e r xa6
44.d3 as b5 45.xc4+ forces 45...Kxa5,
xc4?? would actually lose after 46.a6
and the pawn cannot be stopped! ]
43...xc5 44.a6+! b6 Forced,
[ 44...xa6? 45.f5 h5 46.d3 b5
47.xc4+ xc4 48.f3 draws, as Black
has the wrong rook's pawn! ]
45.d3? A mistake,
[ 45.c8 should draw, as Black can only
take the a6-pawn with his knight when a
drawn position is reached. ]
45...d6 Stopping the above manoeuvre, and
winning. 46.e2 xa6 47.f3 b6 48.e6
c7 49.g4 d8 50.h5 e3 51.g8 h6
52.b3 e7 53.g6 e4 54.d1 e6
55.g4+ e5 56.d1 g5 57.e2 f4
58.d1 g3 59.a4 h5 60.d7 h4
0-1
43 A00
Pridorozhni,Aleksei 2517
Jakovenko,Dmitrij 2721
RUS Cup rapid final (2.3) 20.12.2013
[Fier, Alexandr]
It's always interesting to see how the top
players react against exotic lines. In this
game Pridorozhni tried 1.g4 and Jakovenko
didn't try to refute it, but just played a solid
and sound idea. It's important to appreciate
that W hite needed to win this game to
co n t in ue in th e Cu p . 1.g4 d5 2.g2
Since this position is not played so often at
grandmaster level, alternatives can arrive
early. 2.Bg2 makes some sense, developing
the bishop and being ready to meet 2. ..Bxg4
with 3.c4, even if it is not clear if this is good
for White.
[ 2.h3 was the choice of one of the experts
in this line when he played against Hebden.
Black played som e st ra nge mo ve s an d
White soon gained the initiative. This order
can transpose to 2.Bg2 c6 3.h3 e5, but
avoiding the line with 2... Bxg4 e5 3.g2 c6
4.d4 d7 5.c4 e4 6.c3 b6 7.c5 c4
8.b3 a5 9.f3 Basman, M (2340)-Hebden,
M (2548)/4NCL rapid Daventry 2013. ]
2...e6 This is much less ambitious than the
other moves.
[ 2...xg4!? it's also OK to fall for this 'trick':
3.c4 c6 4.cxd5 cxd5 5.b3 f6 6.c3
e6 7.xb7 bd7 and White changes the g-
pawn for the b-pawn which doesn't make
much sense. In addition the pieces are
unstable, so I think Black is already better
here. ]
[ 2...c6 3.h3 ( 3.c4 dxc4 here the pawn
would probably be better on g3 instead of g4
4.b3 xg4 5.bxc4 e5 6.b3 c7
a n d B l a c k i s a p a w n u p) 3...e5
would transpose to 2.h3 ]
3.d3 c5 4.c3 c6 5.e4 dxe4
[ 5...d4 makes more sense with the pawn on
g4, compared to the same position with the
pawn on g3 6.ce2 e5 and the break with
f4 is now less effective 7.g3 e6 8.h3
and White is going to try Ng1-e2 and f4 at
some point, but Black should be fine ]
6.xe4 f6
[ 6...e7 7.e2 f6 8.2g3 xe4
40
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
9.xe4 ]
7.g5
[ 7.xf6+ can transpose to the game again
xf6 8.g5 ( 8.e2 also possible, but
doesn't change much d7 9.g5 d8
10.e3 with a balanced position) 8...d8
9.e4 and we are back ]
7...xe4
[ 7...d5 is another interesting option, but
Black doesn't mind changing some pieces
8.e2 e7 9.0-0 0-0 10.a3 e5 11.c4
c7 12.e3 e6 13.d2 with a complex
middlegame ]
8.xe4 e7 9.h4
[ 9.f3 is another setup c7 to castle on
the queenside ( 9...0-0 10.h4 c7 11.e3
and White has decent attacking chances)
10.e3 d7 11.e2 0-0-0 12.0-0-0 b8
with a game full of life ]
9...c7
[ 9...0-0 was still possible and White can
transpose to the last note with 10.f3 ]
10.e3 b6
[ 10...b6 is a provocative idea, when White
will probably sacrifice the pawn 11.b1!?
a5+ taking the a-pawn instead 12.f1
xa2 13.f3 0-0 14.g2 with some
compensation ]
11.f3 b7 12.e2?! White allows some
unnecessary exchanges. With the advanced
pawns it would be better to keep the queens
on to have some attacking chances.
[ 12.0-0-0 avoids the trick of the game e5
13.g2 xe4 14.xe4 d8 ( 14...c6
15.xe5 xh1 and now this move is not
check 16.xg7 f8 17.xh7 ) 15.e2
with a level position ]
12...e5 13.g2 xe4 14.xe4
[ 14.dxe4 d8 and White's king stays in the
middle, since 15.0-0 is not good because of
c4 with a good position for Black ]
14...c6! A good move for those who needs
to draw. 15.0-0-0
[ 15.xc6+ xc6 16.0-0-0 0-0-0
is also ok for Black ]
15...xe4 16.dxe4 g4 And now not only
Black is fine, but he is already slightly better.
17.h3 d8
[ 17...xe3! was more direct and White has
no time to consolidate the position 18.xe3
h6 19.f4 ( 19.g1 hxg5 20.hxg5 h2
is also annoying, Black will play ...c4 and ...
Rd8 and W hite has no clear counterplay)
19...hxg5 20.hxg5 e5 and White has some
problems with the structure ]
18.g1 xe3 19.xe3 d7 Black goes for
the most solid approach.
[ 19...h6 was still possible 20.e5 this can
control the position, but White will be kind of
static hxg5 21.hxg5 h2 22.f4 c4 23.e4
b5 with a small advantage for Black ]
20.f4 d8 21.a4 c7 22.f5 exf5 23.exf5
d6 24.c3 dd8 25.f1 he8 And White
t r i e s i n va i n t o c r e a t e s o m e t h i n g i n t h e
endgame over the next few moves. 26.ff3
xe3 27.xe3 d7 28.c2 e7 29.xe7+
xe7 30.d3 c6 31.e4 d6 32.g1
g3 33.f3 d6 34.b4 cxb4 35.cxb4 a6
36.d4 g6 37.f6 b5 38.a5 f2+ 39.e4
g3 40.d4 f2+ 41.e4 g3 42.e3
Trying to force somehow.
[ 42.d4 f2+ would be a draw ]
42...d5 But now Black is just winning.
43.d3 d6 44.c3 e4
[ 44...f4 45.d3 g3 46.c3 e4 wins ]
45.d2+ d5 46.b3 e5+
[ 46...g3 is still quite interesting 47.c5
xh4 48.xa6 xg5 49.d3 xf6
With a pleasant endgame for Black. ]
47.d3 d6 48.c3 e5+ 49.d3 d6
50.c3
½-½
44 A00
Reti,Richard
Alekhine,Alexander
Baden-Baden Baden Baden (8) 25.04.1925
[Nigel Davies]
Besides playing 1.Nf3 Reti adopted both the
English Opening and 1.g3 as White. Here we
see him venturing the latter move against no
less a player than Alexander Alekhine. 1.g3
e5 2.f3 A kind of Alekhine's Defence with
colours reversed. The move ...g7-g6 is often
useful for Black in the Alekhine so g2-g3 will
be similarly useful for White. e4 3.d4 d5
4.d3 exd3 5.xd3
[ 5.cxd3 would be more in keeping with lines
of the Alekhine Defence. But Reti wants to
play a later c2-c4 and then play along the
41
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

open d- and c-files. ] via tactical means.

5...f6 6.g2 b4+ [ 32.d8+ xd8 33.fxe3 d5! and ]
[ 6...c5 should be considered here. ] [ and 32.fxe3? xd2 33.xd2 xc1
7.d2 xd2+ 8.xd2 0-0 9.c4 a6 are good for Black. ]
[ 9...c5 is well worth considering here, for 32...xf2!
example 10.4b3 a6 11.0-0 b4 [ After 32...xf3 W hite can play 33.xe4!
is more or less equal. ] xe4 34.fxe3 xh1 35.xh1 xg3+
10.cxd5 b4 11.c4 bxd5 12.2b3 c6 36.g2 with good drawing chances. ]
13.0-0 e8 14.fd1 Once again Reti has [ And 32...xd2 doesn't work because of
achieved an excellent position with play along 33.xd2 d3 34.c5! . ]
the open c- and d-files and a useful kingside 33.g2
pawn majority. What's fascinating to see in [ 33.c5 was a slightly better chance but is
this game is Alekhine stirring up massive still winning for Black after ae8 34.g5
complications. And this all goes to show that xh1 35.xh1 xg3+ etc. ]
the opening is not enough. g4 15.d2 c8 33...e6! 34.cc2?
16.c5 h3 17.f3 g4 18.g2 h3 [ 34.b4 g4+ 35.h3 would have been
19.f3 g4 20.h1 the best chance. ]
[ 20.g2 would repeat the position. The text 34...g4+ 35.h3 e5+ 36.h2 xf3!
indicates that White is getting ambitious. ] [ 36...xf3+?! 37.xf3 xf3 38.xe2
20...h5 21.b4 a6 22.c1 h4 23.a4 is also better for Black but much less clear
[ 23.e4 b6 24.c3 is also very nice for than the game. ]
White. ] 37.xe2 g4+ 38.h3 Neither now nor
23...hxg3 24.hxg3 c7 25.b5 before could the white king move to the first
[ 25.e4 e7 26.a5 would strengthen the rank because of the deadly check on a1 e3+
position of the knight on c5 but Reti wanted 39.h2 xc2 40.xf3 d4 41.f2 xf3+
to attack c6. In retrospect this was a fateful 42.xf3 d5 Either the knight or rook will be
decision. ] lost.
25...axb5 26.axb5 e3! Just when it was 0-1
starting to look as if Black's strategy was not
succeeding Black launches this stunning
combinative blow. The position is unclear 45 A00
after this but Alekhine succeeds in confusing Rogers,Ian 2565
his opponent. 27.f3?? Lukacs,Peter 2500
[ 27.fxe3?? xg3+ obviously leads to mate ] Budapest Budapeste 1991
[ but 27.f3 deserved attention. After ea3 [Tony Kosten]
28.bxc6 bxc6 29.g2 White's position
looks pretty good. ] 1.c3 d5 2.e4 dxe4 3.xe4 d7
27...cxb5! 28.xb5 c3 Black's pieces are Played in order to be able to confront the
swarming into the attack but with so many advanced e4-knight by ...Ngf6, and if White
things en prise this hangs by a thread. captures on f6, to recapture on f6 with a piece,
29.xb7 xb7 30.xb7 xe2+ 31.h2 thus keeping the kingside pawn structure
[ 31.f1 is a lso h op ele ss a f t e r xg3+ intact 4.d4 Inviting transposition into a Caro-
32.fxg3 xf3 33.xf3 xf3+ 34.g2 aa3 Kann by 4...c6, normally White tries to defer
etc. ] d4 for a while, and plays
31...e4!! A fantastic move from Alekhine, [ 4.c4 (or first 4 Nf3 Ngf6 5 Nxf6+ Nxf6,
wa s t in g n o t im e in clo sin g in o n W h it e 's and then 6 Bc4) and now Black's safest
position. move is e6 masking the f7-pawn, as if
[ After 31...xc1 32.fxe3 a3 33.g5 ] ( 4...gf6 then 5.xf7+!? xf7 6.g5+
[ and 31...xf3 32.xe2 f5 33.b2 g8 7.e6 e8 8.xc7 is possible.
White would save the draw. ] Following d8 9.xa8 e5 10.d4 d6
32.c4 Reti is trying to exchange some pieces 11.f3 e4 12.g5 h6 13.e6 e7

42
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
14.f4 h7 15.e3 b6 Spice,A-Hinks
Edwards,T/4NCL, Telford ENG 1997, Black
will win the trapped a8-knight by ...Bb7,
when his two pieces may prove stronger
than W hite's rook and pawns. Still, why
get involved in this?) 5.e2 gf6 6.g5
b6 and not ( 6...h6? 7.xf7! decimating
the black position) 7.b3 h6 8.5f3 e7
9.e5 0-0 10.gf3 c5 and Black has
successfully brought play to a Caro position
where he has an extra tempo. Still, after
11.d3 a5 12.a3 a4 13.a2 c7
White unleashed a strong attack with 14.g4!
d6 15.h4 fd7 16.xd7 xd7 17.g5 h5
18.g6 fxg6 19.g5 with wild play,
Schneider,A-Lengyel,L/ Budapest 1995.
Perhaps Black should have deferred
castling? ]
4...gf6 5.xf6+ xf6 6.f3 f5!?
Ambitious in a pure Caro, Black would be
happy to play ...e6, and then an eventual ...b6,
and ...Bb7, bringing this piece into play on the
long h1-a8 diagonal. Here, as he has a tempo
more (in effect) he decides to play the bishop
to a more active square immediately. 7.c3 e6
8.e5 e7 9.b3 c8 the first slight
drawback to Black's sixth move is revealed, b7
is unde f ended . 10.e2 0-0?! A careless
move, Black should have waited for White to
castle before committing his king like this.
The 'I have a tempo more, so I must have a
good position' syndrome strikes!
[ 10...h6 would have been more prudent ]
11.g4! Starting a kingside attack with gain of
tempo . The f 5-bisho p pro ves to be more
'exposed' than 'active' e4 12.f3 d5 13.c4
c6 Finally finding safety, at least the bishop
won't be lost 14.f4 e8 15.xc6 xc6
16.0-0-0 The dust has settled and White finds
himself with the bishop pair, a space
advantage, and the makings of a kingside
attack d6 17.g3 a6 18.b1
This is almost always a useful precaution
when one side has castled long. ab8 19.g5
e8?! 20.d3 g6 21.e4 d7 22.c5!
Black is being pushed off the board xg3
This is hardly desirable, opening up the h-file
onto his king, but
[ 22...e7 loses material after 23.c6 24
and cxb7 ]
23.hxg3 c6 24.g4 c7 25.c2 Coming to
the h-file f5 26.gxf6 xf6 27.h6! bf8
28.dh1 xf3 Desperation, but other moves
were also hopeless, e.g.
[ 28...8f7 29.g5 f4 30.xg6 when the
black king is not long for this world ]
29.xf3 xf3 30.xg6+! Pretty, and
effective!
[ 30.xg6+ hxg6 31.h8+ f7 32.1h7+
f6 33.xd7 wins easily ]
1-0
46 A00
Short,Nigel D 2683
Caruana,Fabiano 2782
5th Classic GpD 2013 (2.1) 11.12.2013
[Fier, Alexandr]
Short tries an unusual setup and Caruana
punishes it in a good way. It's interesting to
play some exotic lines, but to develop the
pieces and control the center can't be bad
either. 1.b4 d5 2.b2 f6 3.e3
[ 3.f3 is normal, trying to enter a normal
position with some expansion on the
queenside g4 4.e3 bd7 this was the
setup chosen by Kobalia last year in a blitz
game 5.e2 e6 6.b5 d6 7.h3 h5 8.0-0
and there is nothing wrong with the position.
Later White managed to win in Nadanian, A
(2428)-Kobalia, M (2651)/FIDE World Blitz
2013 blitz 2013. ]
3...f5 4.e2 Still avoiding the normal paths
[ 4.f3 is again possible and was tried this
ye a r b y Mo ro vic , e6 5.c4 c6 6.c5
but despite Black's loss, the opening was
not the main problem in Morovic Fernandez,
I (2560)-Obregon Rivero, J (2501)/
Capablanca Memorial op-A 48th 2013. ]
4...e6 5.a3 e7 6.d3 Trying to keep some
flexibility, but basically it doesn't matter so
much for Black
[ 6.g4 I don't believe this move is completely
sound, but it would be a legitimate try to use
the fact that the knight is still on g1. With
ideas of g5, h4-h5, White tries to disrupt the
harmony between the Black pieces e4
this should be critical, trying to immediately
p u n i s h W h i t e ' s e x o t i c p l a y ( 6...g6
is a solid option and, of course, playable
7.g5 e4 8.h4 and Black needs to keep
43
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
one eye on the h5-h6 idea. Still Black is
bringing the knight to d6 and it's not so clear
if W hite can continue the attack in a
dangerous way. ) 7.f3
A) 7...g6 now the knight is not going to
e4 anymore 8.g5 fd7 9.h4 e5 ( 9...0-0
is also possible 10.f4 with the idea of h5)
10.f4!? anyway exf4 11.h3!?
this idea is also played in the lines with 1.
d4 e6 2.c4 b6 where Black plays .. .f5 exf5
Nh6 fxe3 12.dxe3 b6 13.f4
with nice counterplay;
B) 7...xg4!? again critical, going for what
looks like a decisive attack, 8.fxe4 h4+
9.f1 f2 10.b5+! an important detail,
t o a c t i v a t e t h e q u e e n . ( 10.c1
d o e s n ' t w o r k b e c a u s e o f dxe4
and White's pieces have no place to go)
10...c6 11.h5 at the cost of one piece
White activates his forces, cxb5 12.xg7
g8 13.xh7 xg7 ( 13...d7
trying to keep the rook is not so good
14.exd5 xh1 15.dxe6+ xe6 16.c3
c6 17.f3 and despite being a rook
down White is better. Black's king is too
exposed and his pieces are more or less
hanging. For example: f2 18.d4 d7
19.d5 e7 20.xh4 xg7 21.xf2
with a huge advantage) 14.h8+ d7
15.xg7 xh1 ( 15...dxe4 Black can wait
one more move to take the rook, since it's
still hanging, 16.xf7+ e7 17.xe7+
xe7 18.g2 xh1 19.xh1 a5
and the material is back to normal, Black
has some compensation for the pawn, but
the position is unclear.) 16.xf7+ e7
17.xe7+ xe7 18.exd5 f2 19.c3
and Black kept the piece, but for 3 pawns.
The game is still full of life. ]
6...h6 7.d2 bd7 8.gf3 Finally White
brings the knight into the game. 0-0 9.h3?!
The beginning of a flawed plan. White has not
sufficient resources to start an attack against
Black's king and he will be severely punished
for this.
[ 9.0-0 would be normal, and after a5
10.b1 c6 11.c4 the position is about
equal ]
9...g6 10.b3 d6 Since White has no
intentions of using the center, Black prepares
t o o c c u p y it . 11.g4? Now there is no going
back anymore. W hite moves a knight to f5,
and after ...Bxf5 gxf5 he is going to put the
rook on the g-file. And after that? It's not clear.
Meanwhile Black plays natural and strong
moves.
[ 11.c4 this would be my preference, but it
doesn't make much sense to play 9.h3 then
c5 ( 11...e8 lets White create a weakness
on the queenside 12.c5! f8 13.a5 c8
14.c6 bxc6 15.xc6 with a slight
advantage for W hite.) 12.cxd5 xd5
13.bxc5 xc5 14.xc5 xc5 15.0-0
and the position is quite normal ]
[ 11.0-0 was still rational and prudent c5
12.xc5 xc5 13.bxc5 xc5 14.a4
and one day White can prepare the rupture
on c4 to activate his pieces. ]
11...e5 12.h4 h7 13.f5 xf5 14.gxf5
e8 15.g1
[ 15.d2 would be interesting, to try 16.0-0-0,
but there is no time for it c5 16.bxc5 xc5
17.xc5 xc5 and the king won't be safe
on the queenside, either. ]
15...c5! Opening the other side too. 16.bxc5
xc5 17.xc5 xc5 And apparently both
p l a ye r s m a n a ge d t o p u t t h e i r p l a n s in t o
practice. White opened the file for the rook to
attack Black's king and Black took the center
and opened the queenside. The problem is
that White needs one more piece at least to
attack, and it's not so easy to bring the queen
i n t o t h e g a m e w i t h o u t s p a c e . 18.f1
This move can't really work, but it's already
hard to suggest anything decent for White.
[ 18.c4 is the move suggested by the
computer, but it also helps Black to open
the position c8 ( 18...dxc4 19.dxc4 e7
20.f1 ed8 21.c2 ac8 and maybe
White can bring the king to g2 and exchange
some pieces) 19.cxd5 xd5 20.a4 f8
and it's still not clear what White is going to
do next. ]
18...c8 19.d2 Since the queen can't go to
the kingside, it tries to stay there, defending
the pawns
[ 19.f3 would be the plan, but now it's not
possible because of b6 20.g2 ( 20.c1
e4 is just winning for Black) 20...f8
and both the bishop and the c2-pawn are
hanging. 21.0-0-0 is not going to be
enough. ]
44
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

19...b6 20.d1 a5 21.c3 h8 m o v e t h o s e k i n g s i d e p a w n s b a c k . exd4

Final prophylaxis. 28.c1 d3 29.xd3 e5 30.d1 fd7
[ 21...d7 there was nothing wrong with this 31.g3 Breaking up Black's kingside pawns.
t o o , b u t i t ' s a m a t t e r o f t a s t e 22.c1 fxg3 32.xg3 Suddenly the knight has
xf5-+ ] access to the juicy f5 square. f6 33.f5
22.f3 d4 23.g2 g8 24.cxd4 d5 25.f2 f8?! 34.a2
b6 26.e2 b3# mate [ 34.h4! would have been very strong, for
0-1 e x a m p l e a f t e r h6 ( 34...gxh4 35.f4 )
35.hxg5 hxg5 36.b2 White's rook is
coming to h2. ]
47 A00 34...g6 35.b2 h6 36.g2 h5 37.f4!
Sitnikov,Anton 2443 xd1 38.xd1 f7?
Aveskulov,Valeriy 2457 [ After 38...gxf4 39.xf4 Black loses the
Kharkov Femida (11) 26.10.2005 pawn on h6, but moving the knight from e5
[Nigel Davies] is the last thing he should do. Now White
comes crashing through... ]
White's 4.c4 is a very sensible way of playing 39.b2+ h7 40.b1 be8 41.h4 g8
against this system, but I can't say it looks 42.hxg5 hxg5 43.h2+ g6 44.dd2
that promising. Black was doing well here until [ Missing mate via 44.e7+ xe7 45.f5#
he overreached. 1.b4 c5!? 2.bxc5 e5 3.e3 . I guess they were in time trouble. ]
xc5 4.c4!? 44...f6 45.e7+ g7
[ This makes much more sense than the 4.d4 [ 45...xe7 46.e5+ is disastrous. ]
of Katalymov - Kupreichik. Now if Black's 46.xg8 xg8 47.dg2 e3 48.e5 dxe5
wants to play ...d7-d5 he must allow the 49.fxe5
exchange of another more central pawn. ] 1-0
4...c6 5.c3 f6 6.ge2 I quite like this
as a concept bringing the knight in contact
with the e4 and d5 squares. Unfortunately it 48 A00
d o e s n ' t s e e m t o a c h i e ve ve r y m u c h . 0-0 Skembris,Spyridon
7.d5 d6 8.ec3 e6 9.e2 xd5 Mariotti,Sergio 2475
10.cxd5 e7 11.b3 a5 12.b1 zt Budva (3) 1981
[ After 12.0-0 Black can pressure the d5 [Tony Kosten]
pawn with b4! . So White prevents this
before castling. ] 1.g4 e5 2.g2 This may be inaccurate,
12...ab8 13.a4 Preventing 13...b5. a6 [ 2.c4 might be better, trying to control some
14.0-0 fc8 15.c4 d7 16.d3 f5 17.d2 light squares, and in particular d5 . h5!?
d8 18.d1 b6 19.e2 h8 20.a2 3.gxh5 xh5 4.c3 c6 5.d3 d6 6.g2
f6 21.g3 g6 22.b3 a5?! f6 Certain portions of the position
[ White was probably still hoping to equalise resemble an English opening. 7.h4 g4
at this stage, planning to meet 22...exd5 8.f3 d4 9.g5 with an unusual position,
with 23.e4 when fxe4 24.xe4 xe4 which might be slightly better for Black,
25.dxe4 c3 26.xc3 xc3 27.d5 Basman,M-Arkell,K/Southampton 1986. ]
when the opposite colour bishops minimise 2...h5 This is a very popular idea, trying to ruin
the value of Black's extra pawn. If anything the white pawn structure, and isolate the h2-
it's Black's ambition that proves to be his pawn, but I still think that
undoing. ] [ 2...d5 is the best move. ]
23.e4 f4 24.e2 b6 25.h1 g5 26.f3 3.gxh5 g5!? 4.f3 h4 5.c3 f6
g6 27.d4! With the opening of the centre 6.e4?!
W hite's position looks decidedly more [ 6.d3 Is less committal. ]
promising. In fact Black's king position now 6...c5 7.d4!? xd4 8.e2 xc3+ 9.bxc3
leaves something to be desired as he can't xh5 In return for his pawn minus, White

45
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

seems to have a rotten position! 10.e3 f4 2.b2 xb4 3.xe5 f6 4.f3 0-0 5.e3
11.b5 c6 12.0-0-0 a6 13.a4 f6 e7 Despite having scored excellent results,
14.e2 e6 15.g4 d6 16.b3 c5! this preference of Adorjan's remains a rarity.
T h i s s h o u l d w i n . 17.xc5 g5+?! In fact other moves also seem fine for Black,
This is unnecessary, for example:
[ 17...xg4 18.xb7 0-0 19.xc6 xe2 [ a) 5...e8 6.e2 ( 6.c4 f8 7.b3 b6
wins at least an exchange, for no 8.b2 e4 9.c3 d6 10.d4 xf2!?
compensation. ] 11.xf2 c5 12.d5 cxd4 13.xd4 b7
18.e3 xg4 19.g3 b8 20.hg1 e6 was fine for Black in Hecimovic, I (2220)-
21.c4 f3 A computer would greedily Lalic, B (2575)/Pula 1996) 6...d5 7.0-0
capture, bd7 8.b2 b6 9.d3 d7 10.c1 a4
[ 21...xh2 and after 22.f5 xe4 started to get troublesome f or W hite in
23.xg7+ f8 Black should be able to Vid oniak, R (2 41 7)-Tivia kov, S (263 1)/
defend. ] Gausdal 2005. ]
22.f5 xf5 23.exf5 h7 24.c5! [ b) 5...d5 6.e2 c5 7.0-0 c6 8.b2 f5
W h i t e t r i e s t o g e n e r a t e s o m e p l a y . d5 9.d3 a5 10.bd2 c7 11.c4 dxc4
Black plays 'safe', but 12.xc4 was about equal at this point in
[ 24...dxc5 i s f i n e , a s 25.d7!? Schoenwaelder, B (2120) -Ikonnikov, V
can be answered by xf5 ] (2549)/Deizisau 2007. ]
25.xd5 xf5 26.g5 e4 27.d2 6.c4
With a few careful moves Black will win, but [ Varying from Adorjan's earlier game which
he must take care as the white pieces are went 6.e2 d5 7.c4 c5 8.cxd5 xd5
active. e2 28.g3! f1+ 29.b2 b5+ 9.0-0 c6 10.b2 f6 11.d4 cxd4
Black has a perpetual check, and perhaps he 12.xd4 b6 with an excellent game for
should take the draw? 30.c1 f1+ 31.b2 Black in Urzica, A-Adorjan, A/ Stockholm
b6 32.gxe5+! f8? 1970. But despite this (apparent) home
[ After 32...xe5 Black must have been cooking, White does not gain any
wo rrie d a b o u t 33.xe5+ f8 34.xc7 advantage. ]
but he has the resource b5+! with at least 6...c5 7.c3 c6 8.xf6 xf6 9.c1 d6
a draw, and probably more after 35.a1 10.e2
bxc5 ] [ White has partial control of the d5 square
33.e3 bxc5+? but the problem is in using it. For example
[ 33...c4 is better. ] 10.d5 b4 11.xb4 cxb4 gives Black a
34.b3 Now Black has problems because his dangerous queenside pawn majority, not at
h7-rook is out of play. c8? 35.xc5 e2 all the kind of thing that's to Smyslov's
36.e3! The knight must move, and then the c- taste. ]
pawn drops, and along with it the rest of the 10...e6 11.0-0 c8 12.c2 h6 13.a3 e8
black position. 14.d3
1-0 [ T h i s w a s t h e l a s t c h a n c e f o r 14.d5
but after xd5 15.cxd5 a5 16.d3 b5
Black gets excellent play in a double
49 A00 edged position. Smyslov no doubt balked at
Smyslov,Vassily 2620 the prospect of playing this against the
Adorjan,Andras 2475 yo u n g a n d ve r y d a n g e r o u s H u n g a r i a n
Hoogovens Wijk aan Zee (2) 01.1972 player. ]
[Nigel Davies] 14...xc3! 15.xc3 b6 16.fd1 d5
½-½
1.b4 In playing this Smyslov must have noted
Adorjan's game against Urzica and thought he
could do better f or W hite. Indeed his 6th
move varies from the earlier encounter. e5

46
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

50 A00 position typical of a reversed King's Indian,

Sokolsky,Alexey but Black is better, as he enjoys more space.
Veresov,Gavriil N g6 9.g3 c8 10.g2 h3 11.0-0 g7
ch Moscow (7) 1944 12.h4 0-0 13.d2 xg2 14.xg2 e6
[Tony Kosten] 15.e2 d7 16.h1 f5 Normally, White
should have played f4 before Black plays ...f5.
1.b4 e5 2.b2 f6 Erecting a barrier against 17.exf5 gxf5 18.f3 ae8 19.ae1 h8
the b2-bishop along the a1-h8 diagonal, and 20.c1 f7 21.g2 h5 22.b3 f4
preparing to continue with 3...d5 with a good This appears anti-positional, but Black has
centre, is also a viable way of continuing- decided to attack the white king, and must
especially if Black doesn't like giving-up his we a k e n t h e p a w n c o v e r . 23.h3 f5
central pawns. This is the point behind Black's play, the h4-
[ 2...d6 is solid, and aims for a King's Indian knight is pinned, so Black will be able to ruin
set-up, 3.c4 f6 4.e3 bd7 5.d4 g6 the white structure. 24.xf4 Desperation,
6.dxe5 dxe5 7.a3 g7 Jaszczuk,J-Geller,E/ W hite plays a combination relying on the
W oerishofen chs 1991, Black winning by looseness of the d7-knight, but there is a flaw.
direct attack, after playing an eventual ...e4, xh4
and ...Ne5-f3+. ] [ Not 24...exf4? 25.xe8 xe8? 26.xf5
[ On t he ot he r h an d , 2...c6? is a bad and White is better. ]
mistake, and loses a pawn to 3.b5 ] 25.gxh4?! Losing quickly,
3.b5 A common idea in this variation, the b5- [ 25.c1 was a better chance, but even so,
pawn cramps the black queenside. after xf3 Black has a plus. ]
[ White played in gambit style in the game 25...exf4 26.d2 Admitting defeat,
Sokolsky,A-Zagorovsky,M/corr 1968, by [ h i s i n t e n d e d 26.xd7 loses to xe1
3.e4?! but after xb4 4.c4 c6 5.f4 d6 27.xe1 xf3+ 28.g1 g8 threatening
6.c3 a5 7.e2 e7 8.0-0 b6+ 9.h1 an evil discovered check. ]
d7 10.d4 0-0-0 With the bishop on c4, 26...e5
c a s t l i n g s h o r t wa s a l wa ys g o i n g t o b e 0-1
problematical, so the black king goes the
o t h e r wa y . 11.d2 h6 12.d5 a5
13.a4 f5! and, by careful defence, Black has 51 A00
disarmed the white initiative, and having Stein,Leonid
completed his development, has a clear Book,Eero
advantage. ] Tallinn 1969
3...d5 4.e3 e6 The most accurate move, as [Nigel Davies]
White's counterplay depends on the move c4,
Blac k a tt em p ts t o m ake t his p awn b re a k 1.g3 d5 2.g2 c6 3.d3 f6 4.d2 g4
impossible. A standard development of the bishop against
[ 4...d6 is also possible, but allows 5.c4 ] both the King's Indian Attack and the Reti
5.f3?! Black takes complete control of the Opening, but here there are a few twists. 5.h3
centre after this, in later games Sokolsky f5?! White's reply gains an important tempo
preferred on the bishop.
[ 5.d4 when, after e4 6.d2 c6 7.a4 d6 [ Perhaps Black should have played just
8.c4 he would have achieved the c4-move, 5...h5 though he might have been
in a 'French-style' position, and would be concerned about his bishop being shut out
r e a d y t o c o n t i n u e wi t h Q b 3 , a n d B a 3 , of pla y af te r 6.f4!? ( Stein would probably
exchanging his dark-squared bishop. ] have played just 6.gf3 ) 6...e6 7.g4 g6
5...c5! 6.c4 d4 The white position is critical, 8.e4 dxe4 9.dxe4 h6 10.f5 , though in this
for his b2-bishop is 'biting on granite', and he final position White's game looks none too
risks being swept-away by the black central compact. ]
pawns. 7.d3 h6 8.e4 transposing into a 6.e4 dxe4 7.dxe4 e6 The bishop will prove

47
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

non e to o c om f o rta ble he re eith er, n ot t o Jonny Hector! ]

mention the fact that Black cannot move his e- 3...f6 When played in the Caro-Kann this
pawn for the time being. 8.gf3 a6 m o ve d o e s n o t h a ve a p a rt i cu la rly go o d
[ 8...bd7 is strongly met by 9.g5 . ] reputation, still, at the time that this game was
9.0-0 a5 10.d4 0-0-0 Accepting the played that was not the case. 4.xf6+ gxf6
mangling of his pawn structure in order to Opening the g-file, and strengthening the
avoid losing further time. black centre, however, the doubled f-pawns
[ 10...d7 is indeed none to pleasant for may turn into a liability
B l a c k a f t e r 11.c4 c5 12.b3 [ 4...exf6 is the other possibility, and in
, for example 0-0-0 13.a3 h5 14.e5 Hector, J-Preuss,F/Roskilde 1998, play
xd1 15.axd1 d5 16.e6 xe6 17.xe6 returned to a 'pure Caro' following 5.d4 c6 ]
fxe6 18.e5 g8 19.c4 gives White a 5.c4 Pointing the bishop aggressively at f7,
large advantage. ] [ 5.d4 c6 leads to another Caro-Kann
11.xe6 fxe6 12.e2 g6 13.c4 c7 position ]
There's really no good square for Black's 5...c6 Black, who likes to play Dunst's
queen, just relatively bad ones. Opening himself, decides to take play in a
[ After 13...a4 14.b3 b5 15.a4 resolutely original direction,
she also gets pushed from pillar to post. ] [ 5...c6 would be more standard ]
14.f4 d7 15.fd1 e8 16.xd8+ xd8 6.h5 You don't often see this sort of crude
17.d1 e8 18.f1 d7 p l a y f r o m s u c h s t r o n g p l a y e r s ! e5
[ Stein's last move prepared to meet 18...g7 parrying the menace to f7, with gain of tempo
with 19.b6+! axb6 20.xa6! bxa6 7.b3 d6 8.f4 g6 9.e2 f5 Stopping
21.xa6# . Book manages to avoid this but the onward advance of the f-pawn 10.d4 e6!
does little to repair the rest of his position. ] The positionally correct decision, Black swaps-
19.e3 c5 20.b3 ab8 21.a5 b6 off his lesser bishop, after which he will be
22.xe6 able to place all his pawns on light-squares
[ After 22.xe6 bxa5 there follows 23.a6+ 11.g4!? White, clearly not happy with the
xa6 24.c6+ d8 25.a8+ ab8 outcome of the opening, decides to introduce
26.xb8# . ] a tactical element to the play xb3 12.axb3
1-0 d5
[ 12...fxg4? i s i m p o s s i b l e , a s 13.f5
would leave the knight bereft of squares,
52 A00 and win for White ]
Suba,Mihai 13.f1 e6 14.c4 e4 15.gxf5 exf5
Bellon Lopez,Juan Manuel The black pawn structure leaves something to
Bucuresti 1978 be desired, but White's is hardly better, and
[Tony Kosten] his light-squares are sensitive 16.d2 c2
17.c1 xb3 Now, if Black can bring his king
1.c3 d5 2.e4 Presenting Black with a to safety, he should be winning 18.xf5 e7
choice of two good replies: dxe4 19.g4 h4+ 20.g3 f8 The black king
[ 2...d4 is the alternative ] might be safe here, but it will be difficult to
3.xe4 develop the h8-rook henceforth. Perhaps
[ Hector has played 3.c4?! but it looks [ 20...0-0 could have been played, as there
rather dubious f6 4.d3 g4 5.ge2 is hardly time for 21.f5 ae8+ 22.f2
exd3 6.cxd3 e6 everything seems under xb2 23.cd1 f6 when Black will have an
control, but 7.f3 f5 8.g4!? g6 9.h4 attack, and several pawns, as compensation
t h r e a t e n i n g t o s u r r o u n d t h e b i s h o p h6 for his knight ]
10.f4 h7 11.g5 with a dangerous 21.f2 e8+ 22.f1 d3+ 23.g1 xd4?
initiative for the pawn, Hector,J-Vafeas,A/ this loses the queen
Komotini GP-1 1992, White going on to win [ 23...f6 must be stronger, returning the
in 18 moves. Still, we can't all play like bishop to the fray, and planning to capture

48
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

on d4 with the minor piece. Black must be [ 19.fd1? a6! 20.a3 c3! wins on the
better ] spot. ]
24.c3 e3 hitting the rook on c1, but, 19...xf4 20.f3 a6! 21.d6 cd8
unfortunately, after 25.e1 the position is lost 22.xb7 xd4 23.a3 Intending 24.Rb4. d3!
for Black xe1+ 26.xe1 xe1+ 27.f1 24.a4
xg3 28.hxg3 e3? this loses, but anyway, [ After 24.a1? Black has an attractive
although material is nearly equal, without the combinative sequence in h3+! 25.h1
use of the h8-rook, things were looking bleak xf3! 26.gxf3 d5 27.g2 f4+ 28.g3
for Black 29.f5 e5 30.d4 Forking the only e2+! 29.g2 xb7 etc. ]
two black pieces in play. [ And after 24.b4 h e c a n p l a y h3+!
[ 30.d4 xg3+ 31.h2 d3 32.xe5 ] 25.h1 xa3 just winning a pawn. ]
1-0 24...c8 25.a5 g6! 26.fd1
[ 26.b7 c5 27.c6 d6 28.b8 e2+
29.h1 a5 leaves White's minor pieces
53 A00 stranded in a way that they won't be able to
Urzica,Aurel help the weak a-pawn. ]
Adorjan,Andras 26...c2! 27.b7?!
Stockholm 1970 [ After 27.xd3 xd3 28.e4
[Nigel Davies] A d o r j a n i n t e n d e d f5! 29.xf5 gxf5
with an edge because of his well placed
1.b4 The Orang Utan Opening. It got its name minor pieces. Still, this would have been
because of Savielly Tartakower's friendship better for White than the game. ]
with one of these apes at New York zoo. e5 27...xd1+ 28.xd1 a2 29.h3
Adorjan's recipe in this game is simple and [ 29.c6 e2+ 30.f1 c3 would also
effective. lead to the loss of the a-pawn. ]
[ Those who are looking for a good answer to 29...xa4 30.c6 g7 31.e5 a5 32.c6
W hite's provocative opening might also a2 33.h2!? c2
consider the sensible 1...d5 followed by 2... [ 33...xf2 would not have been good
Bg4. ] because of 34.g3 ]
[ A more exotic option is 1...c5!? 2.bxc5 e5 [ but Black could also have played 33...e2
, though naturally this 'risks' a W ing 34.f3 xf2 35.g3 c2 when he wins a
Gambit after 2.e4. ] second pawn. ]
2.b2 xb4! 3.xe5 f6 4.c4 0-0 5.f3 34.e4 e2 35.d4 xf2 36.c6 a2
d5 6.e3 e7 7.e2 c5! This makes perfect 37.f3 xh3 A nice game which well
s e n s e , t a k i n g s o m e sp a c e in t h e c e n t r e illustrates the 2...Bxb4 approach.
b e f o r e W h i t e ' s c e n t r a l p a wn m a s s g e t s 0-1
properly established. 8.b2 c6 9.cxd5
xd5 10.0-0 f6! 11.d4
[ After 11.c1 Ad orjan ga ve ju st f5! 54 A00
a f t e r w h i c h ( 11...db4 12.xf6 xf6 Watson,William N
13.c3 was less good in the game Volke, K Hartston,William R
(2480)-Schaefer, M (2460)/Germany 1994/ BCF-ch Torquay (10) 1982
GER-chT ) 12.a3 xb2 13.xb2 db4 [Tony Kosten]
14.c4 b6 is better for Black. ]
11...cxd4 12.xd4 b6 1.c3 d5 2.e4 d4 While this may not appeal
[ 12...f4 was also pretty good. ] to players who prefer open positions, it has a
13.d2 xd4 14.xd4 xd4 15.exd4 e6 lot of advantages. Firstly, Black gains a space
16.a3 ac8 17.ab1 d6 18.b5 advantage. 3.ce2 e5 4.g3 White makes-
[ After 18.c4 Black can play f4 19.e3 way for his king's bishop.
b6 with an unpleasant position for White. ] [ 4.f3 Hitting the e5-pawn, is the other
18...f4! 19.xf4 m a i n p o s s i b i l i t y d6 5.g3 e6!

49
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
careful play, stopping Bc4 6.b5+ d7
7.e2 c6 8.c4 so White manages to play
this anywa y, albeit at t he co st of som e
tempi. c5 9.0-0 f6 with a good position
for Black, Oppici,G-Marcoli,P/FIDE Open,
Corsico ITA 1997. ]
4...e6! A good move, hindering White's
natural development plan of Bc4, d3, Nf3, etc.
5.f3 f6 6.b3 White finds a way to bring his
king's bishop to an active square. Naturally,
he could not be happy with
[ 6.d3?! when the light-squared bishop would
be seriously confined. ]
6...c6 7.c4 White has achieved his aim-
exchange his lesser bishop. How will Black
react? xc4 8.bxc4 d3! Well-played! Before
White gets a chance to play d3 himself, Black
takes control of the square. At the same time
he frees the d4-square, and this will provide a
fine square for a knight, or his bishop, and
frees the g1-a7 diagonal. So much achieved
wi t h j u s t o n e p a wn m o ve ! . 9.0-0 c5
The first fruit of his eighth move, the bishop
enjoys a wonderful diagonal. 10.b1 ge7
11.cxd3 xd3 12.a4?? An awful blunder
in a difficult position.
[ 12.xb7? allows the bishop to be trapped
by b6 13.c5 a6 of course, but ]
[ 12.b3 held out better prospects, although
Black is clearly better, anyway- W hite's
backward d-pawn will never go away (unless
Black captures it!) ]
12...xb1 13.d4 b4! After this, White
should resign, a whole rook down for zero
compensation, but continues a bit. 14.c2
xd4 15.xd4 xd4 16.d2 c5 17.b1
xf2+ 18.f1 xg3 19.hxg3 c6 20.b5
Allowing further simplification. d4 21.xc5
xc2 22.xc7 0-0 White was quite young
wh e n t h i s g a m e w a s p l a ye d , a n d ye t t o
achieve GM status.
0-1
55 A00
Zschalich,Arndt
Werner,H 2087
World Seniors (4) 27.10.2004
[John Watson]
1.b4 e5 2.b2 xb4 3.xe5 f6 4.e3 0-0
5.f3 d5 6.c4 e8
[ Also good is 6...c6 7.b2 f5 8.cxd5
xd5 with wonderfully centralised pieces to
pit against White's centre, e.g., 9.b5 de7
10.0-0 d3 11.xd3 xd3 ]
7.b2 e7!? Conservative yet not so easy to
meet. This just shows how fundamentally
sound Black's position is. Black has other
promising moves:
[ 7...c5 is the normal continuation. Then
8.cxd5 xd5 9.e2 f5 is pleasant. ]
[ 7...c6 8.cxd5 ( 8.a3 a5 9.cxd5 xd5
10.b5 de7 ) 8...xd5 9.e2 e6
with free play. ( Probably insufficient but fun
would be 9...xe3!? 10.fxe3 xe3 11.b3
xg2+ 12.f2 f4 , with ...Bg4 the major
theme. )]
8.e2 c5 9.0-0 c6 10.cxd5 xd5 11.d3
[ 11.d4 f6 should favour Black. ]
11...b6 12.c3 xc3 13.xc3 f6 14.xf6
xf6 15.d4?! cxd4 16.exd4
[ Black stands much better here after
16.exd4 g4! ( 16...b7 is also goo d)
17.d5? ( 17.h3? xe2; 17.e1 ad8
with a large advantage. 18.d5 xf3 19.xf3
xe1+ 20.xe1 d4 21.e4 e2+
22.f1 e8 ) 17...xe2! ]
½-½
56 A01
Arencibia Rodriguez,Walter 2513
Kaidanov,Gregory S 2624
34th Olympiad (13) 10.11.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 d5 4.b5 d6
Black's most aggressive line, he constructs a
full centre, if White can't successfully knock it
d o w n t h e n B l a c k w i l l b e b e t t e r . 5.f4
Increasing the pressure on e5, the pawn is
'untakeable', as g7 is vulnerable. e7!?
[ 5...h4+ 6.g3 e7 7.f3 g4 ( or 7...f6
are more popular, giving W hite a slight
50
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
light-squared weakness on the kingside. )]
6.f3 f6 7.c3 e6 8.0-0 h6!?
[ Black brings his knight to f7, to further
support his centre, but it appears to be too
slow, the alternative 8...a6! allows 9.xc6+
bxc6 10.fxe5 fxe5 11.xe5?! but now,
instead of
A) 11...xe5! 12.h5+ f7 should be
played, 13.xf7 xh2+ 14.xh2 xf7
15.e5+ e7 ( 15...e7? 16.xd5 cxd5
17.xg7 ) 16.xc7 gives White some
dark-squared compensation for the
exchange, but no more after 0-0;
B) 11...f6 12.xc6 ( 12.e2!? )
12...d7 13.d4 g4 14.f3
and W hite has a solid two-pawn lead,
Naszadi,F-Pal,F/Hajduboszormeny 1995. ]
9.fxe5 fxe5 10.e4! White is fully developed,
and strikes at the centre before Black can
fully strengthen it. dxe4?!
[ I don't like this, 10...d4 11.d5 d8
is worth consideration. ]
11.xe4 0-0 12.xc6 bxc6 The black pawn
structure is a mess, and his light-squared
bishop does not provide sufficient
compensation. 13.e2 g4 14.c4+ h8
15.fg5 d7 16.ae1 f5 17.f3
The knight simply returns to control d4, and
pressure e5. ae8 18.f2 Winning the e5-
pawn. e6 Black prefers to give the c-pawn.
19.xc6 d4 20.xd4 exd4 21.e4!
[ 21.xd4? h4 22.f3 allows Black back
into the game, h5 ( 22...xf3? 23.xe8+
f8 24.xf8+ xf8 25.xe6 ) 23.e4 xf3
24.xf3 d5 with at least a draw for Black.
Anyway, why complicate? ]
21...d7 22.d5 f5 23.xd4 a3 24.f2
d8 25.xe8+ xe8 Thus we see the real
horror of a weak pawn structure, Black has
already lost his weak c6, and e5-pawns, but
his structure remains weak! 26.e1 c8
27.e3 f8 28.d3 d6 29.fe5 c8
30.c4 Rather than grab the a7-pawn, White
p r e f e r s t o e x c h a n g e s o m e p i e c e s . b7
31.xd6 cxd6 32.h4
[ Creating an escape square for the king,
32.e8?? f1+ ]
32...h6 33.e8 f1+ 34.h2 xe8
35.xe8+ h7 36.e1 f7 37.e6 d7
38.c4
1-0
57 A01
Asimenios,Asterios
Timoshenko,Georgy 2536
Open Kavala GRE (1) 31.07.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.b3 e5 2.e3 d5 3.b2 c6 4.b5 d6
5.f4 The critical line, but the weakening of the
white kingside has its drawbacks. h4+ 6.g3
e7 7.f3 f6!? Defending e5, but this is
actually a pawn sacrifice.
[ 7...g4 is more solid. ]
8.xc6+ In the notes to Bagirov,V-Mainka,R I
suggested that
[ 8.c3 is safer, as in Chandler,M-Crouch,C/
Birmingham ENG 1998. ]
8...bxc6 9.fxe5 fxe5 10.xe5 White really
has to take this pawn now, as otherwise he
has no compensation for the bishop pair and
Black's strong centre. f6 Black continues his
development obviously
[ 10...xe5? is met by 11.h5+ ]
11.f3?! The worst of several tries,
[ 11.d3 0-0 12.0-0 h3 shows the
problem for W hite in this line - the weak
kin gsi d e li gh t sq u a r e s , 13.xf6 xf6
14.xf6 xf6 15.c3 f8 16.e2 g6
with a dangerous initiative, Pridorozhni,A-
Gipslis,A/Decin 1997. ]
[ 11.xc6! is really greedy, but best! e4
12.0-0 h3 13.f2 ( 13.f3? xf1
14.xe4+ xe4 15.xf1 0-0+ is almost
winning for Black, Sandhu,M-Fedorchuk,S/
Oropesa del Mar 1998) 13...g4 14.f3
( 14.c3?! h1+! 15.xh1 xf2+ 16.g1
xd1 is at least equal for Black, who has an
exchange for two pawns, Krnic,Z-Vuruna,
M/Yugo slavia 1 97 4) 14...f8 15.d4
Forced, ( 15.xf8+? xf8 16.e2 xc2
wins ) 15...0-0-0 ( 15...e5 16.xf8+ xf8
17.e2 g6 also keeps some initiative for
the pawns ) 16.c3 g6 17.e2
Blatny,P-Van Buskirk,C/Agoura Hills USA
20 04 , a nd no w I t h in k B la ck sho uld t ry
( 17.xd5 xh2! 18.xh2 g4 19.f4
h6+ 20.g2 g5 is messy ) 17...c5 ]
11...0-0 12.0-0?! This novelty makes matters
worse, the previous move was
[ 12.e2 g4 and only now 13.0-0 e4
( t h r e a t e n i n g . . . N g 5 ) 14.g2 d7
but Black is clearly better here, too, 15.c3
51
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

h3 16.e2 xf1 17.xf1 xc3 18.xc3 ma in ga m e o r va ria t io n 'B ' b e lo w 6.b5
g4 ( 18...f5 19.d4 xf1+ 20.xf1 ( 6.c4 h6 7.0-0 0-0 8.fxe5 g4 9.e2
xf1+ 21.xf1 c5 was also effective in gxe5 10.xe5 dxe5 11.f3 e8 12.d3
Rosales,E-Asbjornsson,A/Caracas 1976) f5= Rotstein-Hertneck, Austrian League
19.g2 f7 20.g1 e4+ winning the c- 1999 )
pawn, and soon the game, Lakic, N-Vukic, A) 6...ge7 7.fxe5 0-0 8.0-0 , Wunder,
M/Yugoslavia (ch) 1976. ] S-Vlasov, I/St Petersburg 1992, and here
12...h3 13.e1 g4 14.e2 xf3! Jacobs/Tait offer dxe5 9.c4 ( 9.c3
Already winning. 15.xf3 f8 16.e2 f2 a6 ) 9...h6 , "and White has nothing very
Good, but much at all";
[ 16...xg3! 17.hxg3 d6 18.h1 xg3 B) 6...d7 7.0-0 ge7 8.fxe5 dxe5
is even stronger. ] B1) 9.g5 0-0 ( 9...f5?! 10.xf7
17.xf2 xf2 18.xf2 f7+ 19.e2 xf7 11.e4 Gutierrez, J-Castro
[ 19.g1? f3 is mate next move. ] Gonzales, G/ Bogota 1976) 10.c4
19...h5+ 20.d3 The king is forced to go for ( 10.a3 a5 11.e2 b6 12.b4 b7
a stroll on the wrong side of the pawns! b4 13.b5 d6 14.c3 c8
[ 20...f3! Forces a quick mate. ] with a complicated position with chances
21.c3 to b o th side s, Fo rin to s, G -Hoe n , R/
[ 21.c3 is no improvement. f5+ 22.e4 S k o p j e 1 9 7 2) 10...e8 11.c3
dxe4+ 23.c2 e3+ ] ( 11.g4 h6 12.e4?? b5! (Oops)
21...f3! Pinning the e-pawn and threatening 13.xb5 f5 , and Black is on top,
a deadly check with the bishop on f5. 22.a3 Georgiev, K-Ermenkov, E/Sofia 1984)
f5+ 23.d4 c5+ 24.e5 xc3+ 11...a5
Black's next move is ... Qe4 mate. B1a) 12.d3 c8 was played in Tait-
0-1 Mutton, Notts League 2000 as
mentioned in Jacobs/Tait's book
13.f3 ( 13.g4!? leads to a crazy
58 A01 line only my computer can take credit
Bacrot,Etienne 2695 for: h6 14.e6!? d7 15.b4 xe6
Adams,Michael 2729 16.xa5 d6 17.b5 , and White
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (19) 21.11.2007 may have an edge; 13.ce4!? h6
[Carsten Hansen] 14.c3! c6 15.f3 e7 16.f2
d6 17.e4 f5 18.e2 d7
1.b3 e5 2.b2 d6 3.e3 g6 4.f4!? wi t h a c o m p l e x g a m e) 13...d6
[ This complex move allows the game to 14.a3 f5 15.e4 f4 16.e1 g5;
move over towards a Bird Opening. White B1b) 12.e2
could keep it in the Nimzo-Larsen proper B1b1) 12...c8!? is suggested by
with 4.f3 g7 5.d4= though this is hardly Jacobs/ Tait, one possible
critical for Black ] c o n t i n u a t i o n i s 13.ce4 d6
4...g7 5.f3 14.a3!? ( 14.c3 c6 15.f3
[ 5.fxe5 h6 ( 5...c6 ) 6.e2 0-0 7.f3 xe4 16.xe4 f5 17.xa5 fxe4
g4 8.0-0 xe5 9.xe5 dxe5 Stretch, W- 18.g4 ) 14...c6 15.d3 h6 16.f3
De la Rosa, E/Buenos Aires 1978 10.c4!? f5 17.xd6 cxd6 18.b1
f5 11.d3 c6 12.e1 ] , and with ready to expand on the
5...d7 queenside with c4 and b4, White's
[ This is just one of many possible chances are preferable;
continuations for Black at this juncture, so B1b2) 12...f5?! 13.ge4 d7
let's have a brief overview of the others: A) 14.b4 c6 15.b5 ce7 16.a4
5...c6 is the main line, but I think Black will , and White is in control of the game,
do best to stay clear of this line and give Wall, T-Clegg, C/Sutton 1999;
preference to either Adams' choice in the B2) 9.c3!? 0-0 10.g5 f5 11.ge4

52
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
a6 12.e2 ce7 13.e1 c6
was played in Rahman, Z-Dzhumaev, M/
Kuala Lumpur 1993, and now I prefer
White after 14.f2!?;
B3) 9.c4 ]
[ B) 5...f6!? 6.fxe5 g4
A) 7.c4 c6!? ( 7...d5 8.e2 d7
"seem OK for Black" Jacobs/Tait) 8.0-0
0-0 9.c3 cxe5 10.h3 xf3+ 11.xf3
e5 , and Black is already slightly on top,
Bartholomew, J-Friedel, J/ Connecticut
USA 2004;
B) 7.c3 dxe5 8.a3 e6 9.h3 h6
10.e4 d7 11.e2 ( 11.c4 xc4
12.bxc4 c5 13.0-0 0-0 14.d5=
Horn in CB M) 11...c6 12.0-0-0 a5=
Minasian, A-Hansen, C/Groningen 1990 ]
[ C) 5...g4 6.fxe5 xe5 7.xe5 dxe5
8.e2 d7 9.c3 Opitz, F-Klein, A/
Chemnitz 1997 ]
[ D) 5...e7?! 6.c4 0-0 7.fxe5 bc6
8.0-0 ( 8.d4?! dxe5 9.d5 e4 10.xg7
wa s p l a ye d i n Ra f o l s A l b e t , J- G a r r e t a
Martinez, A/Barcelona ESP 2007, and now
Black should have continued wit h xg7
11.dxc6 xd1+ 12.xd1 exf3 13.gxf3
xc6 with a slightly better game for Black)
8...xe5 9.xe5 ( 9.xe5 dxe5 10.g5
f5 11.xf7 xf7 12.xf7+ xf7 13.g4
Van Run, J-Van Beek, A/Hengelo 1999)
9...dxe5 10.c3 ( 10.e4 c6 11.f3 e8
12.g3 Verot, M-Sorin, B/Hyeres 2000)
10...f5 11.e4 ( 11.a3! e8 12.e4 )
11...b6 12.a3 c5= Takalo Eskola, A-
Lehtinen, H/Oulu 2000 ]
6.c4
[ 6.a3!? e7 ( 6...h6!? ) 7.fxe5 xe5
8.xe5 dxe5 9.e2 f5 10.0-0 0-0
11.c4 , and although the chances are
about even, White's position seems easier
to play, Duche, J-Rocher, O/Sindelfingen
1984 ]
[ 6.e2 e7 7.0-0 0-0 8.c4 ( 8.fxe5 xe5
9.xe5 dxe5 10.e1 e6 11.d3 f5
12.f3 c6 , and Black is doing fine, Canteli
Martinez, D-Rodriguez Modrono, J/Asturias
2001 ) 8...e4 9.xg7 exf3 10.xf8 fxe2
11.xe2 xf8 12.c3 a6 13.ac1 f5
14.d5 c6 15.c7 a7 16.d3 b6
, thus far Ranby, H-Winsnes, R/Stockholm
1991, and now my trusted digital f riend
claims W hite has a way out with 17.xd6
f6 18.c5 bxc5 19.e8 f7 20.c7 f6
21.e8 with a draw by repetition as the best
result for both players ]
6...h6
[ Black can also consider 6...e7 7.0-0 h6
8.fxe5 xe5 9.xe5 xe5 10.xe5 dxe5
11.f3 0-0 12.c3 c6 13.d4 , Rustemov,
A - Y a n d e m i r o v, V / S t P e t e r s b u r g 1 9 9 6 ,
( 13.a4!? ) 13...g4 14.e4 ae8= ]
[ Whereas 6...e7? is a bad idea: 7.xf7+!
xf7 8.g5+ f6? ( 8...g8 9.e6 e8
10.xc7 d8 11.xa8 b5 12.g4! c5
13.h4 b7 14.0-0 xa8 15.a4 ) 9.c3!
c5 10.f3! f5 11.g4 , and it is already
game over for Black, Melnikov, D-Fedoseev,
V/St Petersburg RUS 2007 ]
7.0-0 0-0 8.fxe5
[ 8.a4 c6 ( 8...e4!? 9.xg7 xg7 10.g5
f6 appears pleasant for Black) 9.fxe5
xe5 10.xe5 xe5 11.xe5 dxe5
12.c3 g7 13.e1 Novikov, M-Bakutin,
A/ Tula 2000 ]
8...xe5!?
[ This appears to be slightly stronger than the
line chosen in the only previous game I
could find with this line: 8...dxe5 9.e4 c6
10.c3 b6 11.e2 e6 12.e1 f5
13.exf5 gxf5 with a complicated game and
chances to both sides, Bagoly, J-Loginov,
V/Hungary 1991 ]
9.xe5 dxe5 10.c3
[ 10.e1!? c6 11.a4 seems like the right
way for White to go, as Black in the game
continuation has the better chances. ]
10...c6 11.a3 e8 12.e4
[ 12.f3 e6 13.xe6 xe6 14.e4 f5 ]
12...b5 13.d3?!
[ 13.e2 f5 14.g3 e6 ]
13...e6?!
[ 13...f5!? 14.d6 f8! 15.xe8 xa3 ]
14.e1?!
[ 14.d6!? e7 15.e4 c7 16.c5= ]
14...a5!?
[ Black can also consider 14...f5!? 15.c3
e4 16.e2 a5 , and he is control of the
game ]
15.c5 c8 16.b2 f5
[ 16...e7 17.e4 f5 18.g3 e6 ]
17.a3 g4 18.h3 f6 19.b4 d5?!
[ 19...d7 20.xd7 xd7 21.e2 e6 ]
53
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
20.c4 bxc4 21.xc4 h8 22.e4
[ 22.d3 b6 23.xd5 cxd5 24.c1 axb4
25.xb4= ]
22...f4
[ 22...fxe4 23.f7 axb4 24.axb4 xa1
25.xa1 e3 ]
23.exf5
[ 23.e3 axb4 24.axb4 xa1 25.xa1
g5 ]
23...xf5
[ 23...g5 24.g3 xh3+ 25.h2 xf5 ]
24.e3
[ 24.h1 to take some of the potency out of
Black's upcoming ... Qg5 is much better.
From here onwards it is play to one goal ]
24...g5 25.g4 h5 26.e4 xe4 27.xe4
hxg4 28.h4 xh4 29.xf4 g3+ 30.h1
xf4 31.xg6 h6+ 32.xh6+ xh6
33.bxa5 xa5 34.c3 a4 35.b3 aa8
36.g2 g7 37.e1 f4 38.a4 f6 39.a5
ed8 40.e2 h8 41.e4 f5 42.c2 e6
43.b3+ d6 44.d4 c7 45.dxe5 h2+
46.g1 h3 47.xf4 xc3 48.f7+ b8
49.f8+ a7 50.xa8+ xa8 51.f7 e3
52.e6 g3 53.g2 a7 54.h5 a6 55.f3
c5 56.xg3 xe6 57.f4 e7 58.e4
xa5 59.e3 b4 60.d3 c4+ 61.d4
d7+ 62.e3 c3 63.g6 b2 64.f5
d8
0-1
59
Bagirov,Vladimir
Manika,Reinaldo
Gausdal
[Tony Kosten]
51/3 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 d5 xd5
T h i s i s B l a c k ' s m o s t a m b i t i o u s l i n e . B y pawn grab bing, althou gh, it is true, if h e
completing his centre in this way, he calls doe sn 't do th is he m ay be a little worse .
White's bluff. 4.b5 d6 The e5-pawn needs xe5? Black goes astray, when his good play
defending.
[ 4...f6 is an inferior method, 5.d4 e4 6.e2
a6 7.xc6+ bxc6 8.c4 f5 Larsen,B-Balinas,
R/Manila 1975, and now 9.c2 f6 10.a3
would have given White a superior reversed
Winawer-French type of structure. ]
5.c4 This is the thematic positional counter, 11.xe5 g5 12.g3 Simply masking the g2-
but the tactical
[ 5.f4 is the critical test of this system, to get play on the light squares, his c8-bishop
exploiting the undefended g7-pawn. h4+
Rather than defend e5 by the immediate 5...
Qe7, Black first weakens White's kingside.
( 5...f6 6.h5+ g6 7.h4 exf4 8.exf4 f7
9.f3 ce7 Gonsior,E-Novak,I/CSSR 1979,
is also a sound way for Black to react.) 6.g3
e7 7.f3 g4 Black relieves the pressure
on his centre by pinning the attacking piece.
( 7...f6 is also possible, when White should
play 8.c3 e6 9.e2 a6 10.xc6+ bxc6
11.0-0-0 with unclear play, Chandler,M-
Crouch,C/ Birmingham ENG 1998, as the
line 8 fxe5 fxe5 9 Bxc6+ bxc6 10 Nxe5 Nf6!
11 Nxc6 Qe4 is very wild.) 8.h3 xf3
9.xf3 f6 Black has conceded a bishop
for a knight, but should now be able to finish
his development in peace. 10.c3 0-0
Barczay,L-Hardicsay,P/Budapest 1978, and
now 11.xc6 ( 11.xd5? xd5 12.xd5
b4 is exceedingly awkward for White.)
11...bxc6 12.0-0-0 is best, with chances for
both sides. ]
[ 5.f3 seems inferior, although rather than
e7 ( 5...f6 is better ) 6.d4 e4 7.e5
which would not be possible were the black f-
pawn on f6, xe5 8.dxe5 e6 9.xc6+
bxc6 10.d4 threatening Ba3, with a
powerful grip on the dark squares,
Groszpeter,A-Zimmerman,Y/2nd Perenyi
mem, Gyula HUN 1998. ]
5...ge7 The alternative is
[ 5...dxc4 when 6.f3 cxb3 7.xb3
A01 gives White good play for the pawn. ]
2485 6.f3 0-0 Good, logical, play by Black, he
2430 completes his development rather than waste
1991 too much time defending his centre. 7.xc6
xc6 8.cxd5 b4 A standard ploy to regain
th e d 5 -p a wn, .. . Nd3 + is t h rea t en e d . 9.d3
10.xe5!? Very risky, White goes
was about to bear fruit,
[ 10...xe3! is very strong, 11.fxe3 g5
regains the piece with advantage, as neither
12.f3? ( 12.c4 xg2 13.f1 h3
14.f3 xh2 are sufficient.) 12...xg2
forking h1-rook and b2-bishop, nor ]
pawn. h5 13.h4! g6 14.e4 Black is hoping
54
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

has no opposition, and so White cleverly sets- activity might even give him a small
u p a l i g h t - s q u a r e d p a w n b a r r i e r . f5!? advantage. 9.g3!?
Black cannot afford to do nothing, he will just [ 9.0-0 , intending f4 at some point, looks
be a pawn down, so throws some wood on to equ al. W h ite tries so met hin g d if f ere nt ,
the fire. preparing 0-0 and f4. ]
[ 14...e3!? is a lso in terest ing, 15.c1 9...b5 10.xd6 cxd6 11.0-0 e8
xg2+ 16.f1 f6 17.c3 e3+ [ 11...d5 and ]
and now 18.e2 may be strong, as after [ 11...c5 are options. ]
g4 19.d5 is awkward. ] 12.f4!? Loosening.
15.exd5 f4 16.h2 xg2 So, at the cost of [ 12.e2 ]
a piece, Black has achieved his light-squared 12...g4!? An ambitious move that threatens
attack. 17.d2 xf2+ 18.e2 d4?! ...Qh4.
[ 18...xh4 Might be better, Black does have [ 12...g4 13.e1 ad8 14.h3 d7
three passed pawns. ] is equal. ]
19.c3 g4 20.f1 ae8 The black attack 13.f3? White goes astray.
is r e a c h i n g i t s a p o g e e . 21.g1 b4? [ Instead, 13.h3 h6 ( 13...f6 14.fxe5
A let-off for White. dxe5 15.f5 xf5 16.xf5 ) 14.fxe5 dxe5
[ 21...e3! brings a further piece into the 15.h5 is solid and even promising. ]
business zone, and relies on the fact that 13...exf4? Black could punish White's mistake
22 Bxe3+?? fxe3 is check, and discovers an by
attack on the white queen. 22.h2 and now [ 13...e4! 14.e2 h4 15.h3 xg3
e2!! which certainly deserves a diagram, 16.hxg4 xg4 winning a pawn, although
as almost all Black's attacking pieces are en winning that position will take some doing. ]
prise. 23.xe2? ( 23.xe2? xd3+ 14.exf4
wins immediately,) 23...xd3+ 24.c1 [ Or 14.xf4= ]
xc3+ winning. In fact, to avoid defeat 14...a7+ 15.d4!?
White will have to find the, far from obvious, [ 15.h1 makes 14...Qa7+ look useless. ]
move 23 Qe1!!, with unclear play. ] 15...e3
22.c2! After this, the white king finds safety. [ 15...e7! has the simple idea of ...Qe3+,
f3 23.f2 f7 24.c5 Proposing the exploiting the newly-made weakness on
exchange of queens, after which the game e3. ]
should be a formality for White. f4 25.f2 16.fe1 My copy of this game says '0-1' at this
fe7 26.ae1 xe1 27.xe1 point. Unless White had an illusion regarding
1-0 capturing the c-pawn by ...Nxc2 or didn't see
17 Qf2 and 16. ..Bg4, then my guess is that
the game continued at this point with
60 A01 approximate equality. The opening looks equal
Barnaure,Vlad Victor 2433 to me, and quite interesting.
Grunberg,Mihai 2414 0-1
ch-ROM Predeal ROM (9) 05.12.2006
[John Watson]
61 A01
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6 Bello,J
5.a3 Here we go again. See the notes to Benko,PP
Karayannis-Banikas. a6!? 6.xc6!? 1971 Palma de Mallorca 1971
[ 6.e2 is the other natural continuation, [Paul Motwani]
when b5 (to prevent Nc4) 7.f3?! ( 7.c4! )
7...e7! 8.b1 0-0 gives Black space and B31: "W ho's attacking who in the Nimzo-
development. ] Larsen Attack?!" IM Byron Jacobs and
6...dxc6 7.c4 e7 8.e2 0-0 Jonathan Tait, a former British
Fairly normal thus f ar. Black's space and Correspondence Chess Champion, are very

55
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
open and honest right from the outset in their
new 192-page Everyman book entitled "Nimzo-
Larsen Attack". They do not make any false
attempt to claim an opening advantage for
White after 1 b3, but it's fair to say that this
quite rare starting-move does carry some
surprise-value which may unsettle opponents
with little or no experience of having faced it.
Numerous illustrative annotated games in the
14.99 (UK pounds) book provide the reader
with lots of noteworthy strategies and neat
tactical ideas in the opening phase, and well-
beyond there too. On many occasions Black
gets punished for overreacting to the
innocuous-looking 1 b3, but instead a wiser
approach is to seize a share of the centre
with 1...e5!, for example, and then continue
calmly with further sound, sensible moves
which do not make brash attempts to instantly
refute White's opening. Nevertheless, super-
qu ic k m in ia t u re vict o rie s a re so m e t im e s
possible, and for your enjoyment now I've
chosen and annotated a short attractive GM-
encounter from my own personal files. 1.b3
e5 2.b2 d6 A good move, which already
blun ts t he e f f ect of W hite's f ia nche ttoe d
bishop on the long a1-h8 diagonal. 3.d4
[ B31.1: The more common 3.e3 occurred,
for example, in the game M.Munoz Muriel-X.
Mateu at the 1996 Spanish Team
Championship. The continuation was c6
4.b5 d7 5.e2 a6 6.xc6 xc6 7.0-0
g5! 8.g3 h5! (a case of "h for hunting!",
which is the favourite attacking motto of
Belgium's Gorik Cools) 9.f4 g6 10.f2 h4
11.f1 f6 (11...h3 would force 12 f5,
since 12 g3? Qe4 is just too horrific for
White) 12.d4? (certainly not the most
t e n a c i o u s d e f e n c e ) h3 13.f5
White resigned in view of 14 g3 Ng4 15 Re2
Qxf5 or 15...Bf3. ]
3...exd4 4.xd4 c6 5.d2 f6 6.c3
d5! With the terrible threat of ...d4 followed by
...Bb4. 7.e3 b4 8.b5? White plans to
answer 8...Ne4 by 9 Qd4, but instead Black
simply castles now, thereby really making ...
Ne4 a huge threat. Therefore, 8 Bd3 should
have been preferred. 0-0 9.0-0-0 9 a3 would
also have lost to 9.. .Ne4 because of 10 Qd3
Qf6!. e4! 10.e1 d4!!
After 11 exd4 Nxc3 12 Bxc3 Qg5+ Black picks
o f f W h i t e ' s l o o s e b 5 - b i s h o p . xc3
GM Juan Bellon resigned, since White cannot
avoid heavy loss of material.
0-1
62 A01
Berkes,Ferenc 2614
Balogh,Csaba 2513
54th ch Budapest HUN (6) 24.08.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6
5.a3 a5 6.e2 The bishop retreats
immediately, to allow the black knight to take
its place.
[ 6.f3 was already analysed in Hodgson,J-
Speelman,J/GBR 1998. ]
6...a6 7.c4 This move, gaining space on the
queenside, and preparing a safe spot on c2
for the knight, has gained quite a following in
recent years.
[ 7.f3 e4!? was another Hodgson game in
the archives, against-Barsov. ]
7...c5 Black gains more control of d4, and
gives the d6-bishop some space to retreat.
[ 7...0-0 8.f3 e8 9.c2 e4 10.h4
c6 11.f4?! c5 12.f5 d5! 13.cxd5 b4
was very promising for Black in Zurek,M-
Hracek,Z/CZE 2002. ]
[ 7...c6 8.c2 0-0 9.d3 it seems wise to
stop Black from playing ...e4, e8 10.f3
f8 11.e4!? White stops Black from playing
...d5 with Sicilian-style play, Grabuzova, T-
Prudnikova,S/Varna BUL 2002. ]
8.f3
[ 8.d4?! cxd4 9.c2 d3?! ( 9...dxe3!?
10.xd6 exf2+ 11.f1 fxg1+ 12.xg1
g5 c6 wins two pawns, but White has good
p o s i t i o n a l c o m p e n s a t i o n) 10.xd3
1/2-1/2 Odesskij,I-Potkin,V/Pardubice CZE
2001, but now I prefer White. ]
8...c6 9.d3 c7 This is a new try, keeping
the bishop on the queenside. In Teske,H-
Berndt,S/Tegernsee GER 1999 Black
preferred
[ 9...0-0 10.0-0 e8 11.c2 f8
keeping the bishop on the other side of the
board, 12.d4 cxd4 13.exd4 e4 14.e5 d6
11.xc6 15.xc6 bxc6 16.d5 and White has an
edge. ]
56
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
10.0-0 0-0 11.c1 e7 12.b1 A different
idea for these positions, normally the knight
goes to c2, but then where? Berkes decides
that the best place for the knight is c3, with
some control over d5, or d2, and so heads
there instead. d5 Otherwise White plays Nc3.
13.cxd5 xd5 14.bd2 White opts for a
typical Sicilian type of position, although
objectively play is equal. d7
[ 14...b6 15.a3 b7 seems more logical. ]
15.c2 b6 16.fe1 Typical Hedgehog play,
W h it e is r e a d y t o re a ct t o a n y a t t a ckin g
gesture from Black. fe8 17.f1 a5 18.a3
ad8 19.g3 c8 20.b1 White plays a very
can ny gam e, pla cin g his piece s o n goo d
squares and asking Black how he intends to
proceed. d8?! Black hastens too remove
his queen from the same file as the white rook,
but I prefer
[ 20...cd8 as then 21.d4?! is met by e4 ]
21.d4! This is possible now that Black cannot
play .. .e4 - White controls e4 with two pieces.
exd4 22.exd4 cxd4 23.xd4
24.xd4 Strictly speaking White has only
liberated his position, but the white pieces
have slightly be tter squ ares in this ope n
position. e7?! Black's tact ical neurons must
have been switched off by the long
manoeuvring phase!
[ 24...g5 is obviously stronger, 25.e4
g6 wh en a f t e r 26.a6 Black can simply
play cd8 ]
25.a6 White takes a move to force the rook
off the open file. b8 26.d3 Returning with
gain of time. g6 27.b2 Forcing a slight
kingside weakness. f6
[ 27...xe1+ 28.xe1 f8 is very passive. ]
28.c2 White seems to be doing everything
with gain of tempo. now g6 and c7 are
attacked. d6 29.c4
[ 29.xg6?! hxg6 30.xg6
throws White's advantage away. ]
29...f8 30.xb6? This wins quickly, but I
think it is a mistake. Better
[ 30.xg6 hxg6 31.xg6 which seems
good, b5 32.e3 xa3 33.cd1
and White has a very aggressive setup, for
instance b4 34.d5! and wins. ]
30...xb6 31.xb6 xe1+?? A bad blunder,
that can only be explained by time trouble.
[ 31...xb6 seems OK, 32.c4+
can be answered by
A) 32...e6!? c a n b e m e t b y 33.xe6!
xe6 ( 33...xe6 34.xe6+ xe6
35.c4 f7 36.e1 transposes) 34.f5
f7 35.e1 e5 36.xe6+ xe6
37.xe6+ xe6 38.f4 xa3 39.fxe5
fxe5 and I prefer White;
B) 32...h8 33.f7 d8 when Black is at
least equal. ]
32.xe1 xb6 33.c4+! The point, Black's
b a c k r a n k i s t o o w e a k . h8 34.f7
White attacks d7, and threatens to capture on
g6 when f8 is hanging. d8 The only move to
defend both pieces, but ... 35.xg6 hxg6
36.d1
[ 36.d1 e7 37.d5 leaves White with a
solid exchange more. ]
[ 36.e4 is also winning, menacing Rh4
mate: g5 37.d4 e7 38.h5+ g8
39.d1 and the bishop drops. ]
1-0
xd4
63 A01
Bernadskiy,Vitaliy 2475
Nevednichy,Vladislav 2580
Albena Masters op (5) 05.06.2013
[Fier, Alexandr]
W h it e t rie s a n e xo t ic n e w se t u p a ga in s t
Black's exotic setup in White's exotic opening,
but maybe this time it has all gone a bit too
far! 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6
[ 3...d6 is another main line ]
4.b5 d6 For me this is the beginning of a
strange path, but somehow it all makes sense.
With the bishop on d6 Black goes for quick
development and doesn't need to care about
Bxc6 5.a3 a5 Avoiding Nc4 6.e2 a6
A v o i d i n g N b 5 7.c4 c5!? This move was
xa3 played sometimes before and even analyzed
here, but it's still kind of exotic. In a strange
way it usually transposes to a Maroczy system,
since White's knight can go back to d2 via b1
and Black usually plays with ...Nc6, .. .Bc7
and ...d5 at some point. 8.g4 But not today!
This is a move that I would consider during a
game, but W hite's position is probably not
solid enough to go for it. If Black can open the
center after this White has good chances to
be close to lost
57
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 8.f3 c6 9.d3 0-0 10.0-0 c7 11.c1 B) 15.g1 xd3+ 16.f1 xb2
e7 12.b1 d5 13.cxd5 xd5 14.bd2 17.xd5 xd5 18.f3 d8 19.c4
was too normal in Berkes, F (2614)-Balogh, xc4 20.bxc4 f6 21.xb7 0-0
C (2513)/HUN-ch 54th Budapest 2004, ] and White is still alive ]
8...h6 12...hxg5 13.hxg5 xh1+ 14.xh1 b4!
[ 8...c6 can bring some complications after Maybe W hite overlooked t his move, no w
9.g5 g8 10.f3 e4!? 11.xg7 exf3 Black is winning 15.d4
12.xh8 fxe2 13.xe2 xg5 14.g1 [ 15.gxf6 d3+ 16.f1 xf6 17.f4 h4-+ ]
h5+ 15.e1 xd1+ 16.xd1 ge7 [ 15.c1 g4 16.cxd5 xg5-+ ]
17.g7 with an unclear position ] 15...g4 16.dxe5
9.h4 The problem is that after 8...h6 White [ 16.c2 xg5 17.xb4 a5! 18.a3 cxb4
needs to spend one more tempo to play g5 19.axb4 xb4+ 20.c3 xf2! 21.xf2
c6 10.f3 c7 11.e2?! Going for a h4+ 22.g1 xc3 23.xc3 g3+
wrong plan 24.g2 xe3+ 25.h1 xc3 would be a
[ 11.g5 would be a logical continuation nice end ]
A) 11...hxg5 allows White to organize his 16...xg5 17.cxd5 xe5
pieces 12.hxg5 xh1 13.xh1 h7 [ 17...xe5 was also winning 18.xe5 xe5
A1) 14.f4!? exf4 15.h5 xg5 19.c1 ( 19.g3 xe3 20.fxe3 xg3+-+ )
16.xh7 xg1+ 17.e2 g6 19...f6 20.f4 g5 wins ]
the queen needs to be defended 18.f4
( 17...g5? 18.g8+ e7 19.xg7+- ) [ 18.d2 ed3 19.c4 g4 20.g1
18.g8+ ( 18.xg6 fxg6 19.g1 e7 d8-+ ]
is ok for Black) 18...e7 19.xg7 d5 18...ed3+ 19.d2 g6 20.c3 g4
( 19...d6 20.f8+ d7 21.f1 21.f1
is dangerous for Black) 20.f8+ e8 [ 21.b1 gives more resistance but it's still
21.g1 ( 21.xg6 fxg6 22.xc5 g4+ losing f5! defending e4 square ( 21...h5
23.f1 fxe3 24.xe3 d4 25.xc6+ 22.xb4 xb4 23.e4+ f8 24.g2 e8
bxc6 26.xd4 d8 and the bishop pair 25.h1 xh1 26.xh1 xe4 27.xe4
comp ens ate s t he pawn in a unclea r xa2 White is just a pawn down) 22.c4
position ) 21...xg8 22.xg8 e7 0-0-0 23.xb4 xb4 24.c3 b5 25.e5
23.xe7+ xe7 24.xd5 fxe3 25.d3 xe5 26.fxe5 c6 27.g1 xe5
b8 is a pacific equal endgame; and Black has compensation for the extra
A2) 14.h5 xg5 15.xh7 xg1+ pawn! ]
16.e2 g5 17.f3 with some 21...0-0-0 22.g3 xd5 23.e4 e6
compensation for the pawn, but nothing 24.g2 3b4 25.f5 xc3+ 26.e1 xg3+
more; 0-1
B) 11...g8! 12.h3 ( 12.gxh6 xh6
13.h5 f6 14.e2 d5 and Black is
better ) 12...d6 13.gxh6 xh6 14.g5 64 A01
f6 15.b1 f5 is more harmonious for Bischoff,Klaus 2556
Black, but things are far from clear, the Khenkin,Igor 2633
position is playable ] Bundesliga 2000-1 (5) 07.01.2001
11...d5 12.g5 [Tony Kosten]
[ 12.cxd5 would be still better, but White's
position is already collapsing b4 13.d3 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.f3
xg4 14.xg4 xd5! Very unusual, W hite lures the black centre
A) 15.e4 xd3+ 16.f1 xe4 17.h2 forward. d6!?
d8 ( 17...f6 18.h3 xb2 19.xd5 [ According to my databases this is already a
xd5 20.b1 e4 21.xb2 0-0 ) 18.c3 novelty! Normally Black plays 4...e4 5.d4
xc3 19.xc3 b5 brings no joy for xd4 ( 5...d5!? 6.b5 d7 7.xc6 bxc6
White; 8.e2 d6 9.d3 0-0 is also possible,

58
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Karlsson,L-Gausel,E/Hillerod 1995.) 6.xd4 65 A01

e7 7.c4 0-0 8.c2 c6 9.c3 d5 Bischoff,Klaus 2533
10.cxd5 cxd5 11.e2 e6 12.0-0 c8 Sutovsky,Emil 2604
13.b2 which looks equal, despite the 3rd Julian Borowski A (6) 08.05.2001
possible pressure along the a1-h8 diagonal, [Tony Kosten]
Larsen,B-Parma, B/Vinkovci 1970. ]
5.d3 0-0 6.bd2 e8 7.a3 b5!? 8.c4 b4 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6
9.a4 b7 Black has found a way of 5.e2
developing his pieces 'around' his d6-bishop. [ The most logical reply, 5.a3 was seen in
10.c2 c5 11.e2 g4!? Black is the archives. ]
planning to attack on the kingside, and 5...a6 Forcing the exchange of the bishop,
commences with a threat to sacrifice on e3. which can only retreat at the cost of its life.
12.f1 6.xc6 dxc6 Thus Black gets his d-pawn
[ 12.a5?! xe3 13.fxe3 xe3 14.b1 'around' the d6-bishop. 7.bc3
xg2+ ] [ The most thematic, 7.d4 aims for a central
12...f6? This whole idea is mistaken. 13.h3 presence, e4 8.c4 0-0 9.bc3 e8
h6 14.g1! White breaks the pin on the h- , f a irly le ve l, G a rcia P a d ro n , J-Ro m e r o
pawn to drive the g4-knight away. The loss of Holmes,A/Cordoba 1995. ]
castling rights is unimportant as he can castle 7...e4!?
queenside. xf2?! [ An innovation, unusually Black advances
[ Sacrificing a piece, as unfortunately for his e-pawn, which serves to hinder the b2-
Black, 14...f6? actually loses a piece to bishop. More normally 7...e7 8.g3 g4
15.g4! xh3 16.g3 h1 17.0-0-0 h6 9.f3 e6 10.ce4 xe4 11.xe4
18.g5 ] , but this is level, Lein,A-Malbran,G/
[ However, 14...e4 15.dxe4 ge5 Philadelphia 1989. ]
is a better try. ] 8.g3 e7 9.e2 0-0 10.0-0-0?!
15.xf2 f5 16.e1!? xe3 17.xe3 xe3 [ The king is not ideally placed here, 10.f3
18.d2 c5 19.f1 a5 20.g5!? exf3 11.gxf3 may be better. ]
[ White decides to counterattack, although 10...a3 Typically exchanging the king's
20.d4 exd4 21.xd4 is more than defender. 11.xa3 xa3+ 12.b1 e8
sufficient. ] 13.f3 exf3 14.gxf3 a5 Black plays for a
20...xb3 21.d1 xf3 standard attack on the a-file. 15.ge4
[ The re is no way to de f e nd f 5 , 21...f8? [ It appears that Black's attack is stronger
22.xe5 ] than W hite's along the g-file, i. e. 15.hg1
[ 21...g6 22.g4 fxg4 23.xe5 ] a4 16.g2 g6 and the attack gets
22.xf3 c6? nowhere. ]
[ Why not 22...f4! when Black has three 15...xe4 16.fxe4 a4! 17.d3
p a w n s f o r t h e p i e c e ? A s i f 23.xa8?? [ It is difficult to know how to react, 17.xa4
e3# ] is met by the exchange sac b5 18.c3 b4
23.xf5 f8 24.e4 ae8 25.h5 xf1+ 19.a4 xa4! 20.bxa4 e6 with mate to
26.xf1 d5 27.cxd5 cxd5 28.e2 e6 follow. ]
29.f3 With a threat. a5? 30.d4 the e-pawn 17...e6 18.d2 b5 19.c1 b4 20.b2
is p inn e d, s o B lack will lose b o th ce nt re axb3 21.axb3 a3 The build-up on the a-file,
pawns. with a passing threat of a sac on b3, is too
1-0 strong. 22.e2 ea8 23.hg1 Menacing
mate! g6 24.c3 d6 25.f4 b4 26.b2
c5 This time the tripling on the a-file is really
decisive.
0-1

59
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

66 A01 43.f3 d2+ 44.g3 xf5+

Blatny,Pavel 2456 0-1
Arencibia Rodriguez,Walter 2528
III Festival Olimpico (1) 17.02.2005
[John Watson] 67 A01
Blatny,Pavel 2479
So far I've neglected 1.b3, which doesn't seem Mueller,Karsten 2518
to be hot at the moment. It's most famous TCh-2002-3 Frohnleiten AUT (1) 05.12.2002
modern advocate was Bent Larsen, and for [Tony Kosten]
some years now GM Pavel Blatny has used it
with regularity. 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 Harvey Williamson writes: "I was wondering
f6 4.b5 d6 This has become a popular what you thought about 4...e4 instead of ...
defence. Black's idea is to castle quickly and Bd6 in the line 1.b3 e5 2.Bb3 Nc6 3.e3 d5 4.
move the bishop again after driving White's Bb5 e4 then 5.Ne2 and what next, maybe ...
bishop away. So f ar it seems the perf ect Qg5!?" 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 d5 4.b5
solution. W hite may need to return to 4.c4. e4!? There is no mention of this move in my
5.e2?! A little inconsistent. Instead, ECO A, rather than defend the attacked e-
[ 5.g4 0-0 ( 5...a6 6.e2 ) 6.g5? e4 pawn with the standard
is over committal. ] [ 4...d6 Black simply advances. On the one
[ But 5.f3 e4 6.g5 h6 7.h3 hand this gains space, but on the other
was a plausible alternative. ] Black weakens his control of the a1-h8
5...0-0 6.g4?! Blatny likes such moves. The diagonal, and make the b2-bishop more
po int is n 't ve ry cle a r, ho weve r, sin ce g5 influential. I prefer setting-up a barricade
appears to help Black. b6 against this piece myself. ]
[ 6...c5! would meet 7.g5 by e4 8.h4 5.d3!? Blatny, a Larsen's Opening specialist,
d5! 9.d3 d6 with advantage. ] attacks W hite's advanced pawn head-on,
7.g5 e8 8.h4 b7 9.f3 e7 10.c3 although the most natural move seems to be
a3!? 11.d5 d6 12.xa3 xa3 13.e2 [ 5.e2 when Harvey writes again: "The
[ 13.c4 is also logical. ] game I am playing by email - these are the
13...d8! 14.g3 c6 15.c3 d5 16.f5 moves so far. They may be of interest"
It's hard to find a good plan, and Arencibia g5!? there are no games with this
gradually takes over the game. c8! 17.e4 aggressive move in my databases, so I
d4 assume it is a novelty. Black puts
[ Or 17...f6! ] immediate pressure on the white kingside,
18.e2 g6!? 19.h6+ g7 20.g3 e6 ( 5...a6 6.xc6+ bxc6 7.d3 g5 8.dxe4
21.g4? White had to bring his pieces to xg2 9.g1 xe4 10.xg7! favoured
safety by White in Stojanovic,M-Pap,M/Palanka YUG
[ 21.g4 ] 2001 ) 6.f4 g4 7.h4 xf4 this is forced,
21...f6! 22.xe6 xe6 23.gf5+? ( 7...xd1?! 8.hxg5 xc2 9.g6 h6
Desperate, but W hite was going to lose a 10.xd5 is better for White) 8.exf4 xd1
pawn and position in any case gxf5 24.exf5 9.xd1 ge7 ( 9...h5!? planning ...Ne7-f5)
d5 25.g4 h8 26.g1 The only problem 10.h5 0-0-0!? 11.h6 g8 12.hxg7 xg7
is that this doesn't threaten anything. White's and Black has a pleasant position, with all
w h o l e p l a n w i t h g 4 h a s f a i l e d . a5! h is p ie ce s d e ve lo p e d , a lt h o u gh o n t h e
Second-rank defence. The rest is easy. 27.g6 downside his h-pawn is weak. ]
a7 28.h5 b2 29.d1 xc2 30.d3 e4 5...f6!?
31.g3 e7 32.f1 e3 33.fxe3 dxe3 [ 5...exd3 6.xd3 g5 7.c3 f6 8.0-0-0
34.e2 c5 35.e1 d6 36.g4 g7 was unclear in Schober,M-Mosionzhik,I/
37.exe3 xe3 38.xe3 h2 39.e7 d2 Rowy POL 2000, but why not ]
40.f7+ xf7 41.xf7 xd3+ 42.f2 e8 [ 5...g5!? , attacking the g2-pawn? 6.e2
xg2 7.g1 xh2 8.dxe4 dxe4

60
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
might just favour Black. ]
6.d2 e7?! Black must have a better move
than this. 7.dxe4 dxe4 8.e2 White intends
Ng3, attacking the e4-pawn, which causes
Black a little inconvenience. f5!? 9.d4
d7 10.xc6 bxc6 11.e2 So, White has
managed to cause structural damage to the
black queenside without having to concede
his bishop - he now has a positional plus. 0-0
12.g4!? Wow!
[ 12.0-0 was quite satisfactory, but Blatny
has more aggressive ideas. ]
12...e8 13.c4 White menaces the win of a
piece with g5, as d5 was the knight's only
square. b4? I prefer
[ 13...c8 as then 14.g5 d7 15.xe4
c a n b e m e t b y b4+ 16.c3 xc3+
17.xc3 xg5 with chances. ]
14.a3 White gains the important dark-squared
bishop. Black was ready to answer
[ 14.g5?! with g4 as the double capture on
g4 would lose to ... Qxd2+. ]
14...xd2+
[ 14...xg4 is tricky, but loses to 15.g1!
( 15.axb4? xf2 16.xf2 h4+ 17.g1
g5+ draws ) 15...xd2+ 16.xd2
and Black has severe problems along the
open g-file: h4 17.0-0-0 f6 18.c3 f8
19.b4+ g8 20.xd7 should win. ]
15.xd2 xg4?! Opening the g-file is
extremely risky. 16.0-0-0!? This is not bad,
although
[ 16.g1! is more accurate, h4 17.0-0-0
wins a piece, as it transposes to the last
note. ]
16...f5? Hoping for the exchange of queens.
[ 16...xf2!? loses to 17.hg1 xd1
18.xg7+ ( 18.xg7? g4! ) 18...f8
19.xd1 f5 20.f2 f6 21.g1 g6
22.xf6 with a powerful attack. ]
[ 16...f6 is Black's best chance, 17.hg1
h8 18.a5 ( 18.xd7!? xd7 19.xg7+
g8 20.f6+ o f f e r s l e s s) 18...g8
and Black is still in the game, although his
position is quite unpleasant to play. ]
17.a5! This wins immediately. c8 18.xg4
xg4 19.g5 A lovely manoeuvre the queen
moves from d2 to g5 despite there being a
pawn on e3! f6 20.xf6 g6 21.h6 f7
Black could resign with a clear conscience,
but decides to continue until mate.. 22.g7+
e6 23.h4 xd1 24.f6+ d7 25.xd1#
1-0
68 A01
Blatny,Pavel 2547
Yudasin,Leonid 2568
Mayor's Cup New York USA (7) 24.06.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.b3 c5
[ 1...d5 is more common,
A) t h e i m m e d i a t e 2.f4 is likely to
transpose: f6 3.f3 g6 4.b2 g7
5.e3 g4 6.e2 c5 7.h3 xf3
but now White should certainly avoid the
'clever' 8.b5+? fd7! Ouch, White was
( expecting 8...bd7 9.xf3 ) 9.xg7?
( 9.c1 xg2 10.xg7 offered some
small chances) 9...xd1 10.xh8 xc2
W hite could, and should, resign,
Khomeriki,G-Ehlvest,J/New York 1998.;
B) 2.b2 f6 ( 2...c5 3.e3 c6 4.b5
f6 5.f4 is quite interesting for White, he
can capture on c6 and play a favourable
Nimzo-style position: f5?! 6.f3 e6
7.e5 White's f4-move prepared e5 for
the knight's use, c7 8.0-0 e7 9.g4!
the black bishop proves to be misplaced,
g6 10.e2 (menace: Nxc6 and f5) h6
11.xg6 fxg6 12.d3 , Blatny,P-
Sivasailam,J/ Saint Paul USA 2000, Black
is in so m e t ro u b le , b u t co u ld t r y g5!?;
2...g4 3.f3!? interesting, White doesn't
want to put his knight on f3 and allow
Black to capture it, but tries to profit from
the g4-bishop's exposed position. h5
4.h3!? e6 5.f4 f6 6.xh5 xh5
7.g3 f6 8.g2 c5 with chances for both
si d e s , D u s s o l , P - B a u e r , C / P a r i s F R A
2001. ) 3.e3
B1) 3...c6 4.e2!? (to dissuade Black
from ...Bg4) f5 5.g4!? e4 6.f3 g6
7.h4 h5 8.g5 fd7 9.f4 a bit late, e6
10.f3 White has an interesting kingside
space advantage, Zurek,M-Polak,T /
Team Championships, CZE 1998.;
B2) 3...e6 4.f4 c5 5.b5+!? d7!
( 5...c6 will transpose to the Rogers
game ) 6.xd7+ bxd7 7.f3 d6
8.0-0 c7 and having established
61
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
control of e5, Black has few problems,
Wall,T-Tiviakov,S/Bunratty IRL 1999.;
B3) 3...bd7 4.f4 g6 5.g4?!
This is how to play real chess!? g7
6.g2 e5! A flank attack is countered in
the centre... 7.e2 0-0 8.fxe5 xg4!
9.xg4 xe5 10.d4 d3+ 11.cxd3
( 11.xd3 xb2 wins an exchange)
11...xd4 12.xd4 f5 13.c3 c6
14.e2 d6 White's three pieces are
not quite a match for the queen here, the
white king is too open, Blatny,P-
Rodgaard,J/ Istanbul TUR 2000.;
B4) 3...c5 the most natural, but there
are others: 4.f3 c6 5.b5 e6 6.0-0
d6 7.e5 c7 8.f4 White has
achieved a favourable Nimzo position,
this could also occur after an earlier f4.
0-0 9.xc6 bxc6 10.f3 exploiting the
b2-bishop and e5-knight to attack on the
kingside, d7 11.h3 f6! 12.h5!?
whilst watching this rapid game (I was
doing the commentaries) I thought that
this verged on a decisive attack, fxe5
13.xh7+ f7 14.g3 e8 15.xg7
a6! Rogers,I-Bacrot,E/Cap D'Agde
F R A 1 9 9 8 , a n d n o w 16.g6 exf4
17.xe6+ d8 18.g7 e8 19.xe8+
xe8 is very unclear. ]
[ 1...b6 2.b2 b7 3.e3 d5 ( 3...e6 4.f4
f5 5.f3 f6 6.c4 c5 7.c3 c6
tries to suggest that W hite's set-up is so
good that it has to be copied! Arencibia,W-
Ridameya Tatche,J/3rd Open, Malaga ESP
2000. ) 4.f4 e6 5.f3 f6 6.e2 d6
7.0-0 0-0 8.e5 fd7 is a very solid line
f o r B la c k , h e co n t e st s e 5 , 9.e1 f6
10.xd7 xd7 11.c4 a6 12.c3
fairly equal, Fernandes, A-Bruzon,L/Lisbon
POR 1999. ]
2.b2 f6 3.e3 b6 4.f4 b7 5.f3 g6
A very sensible line for Black, he neutralises
the pressure on the long diagonal thus. 6.g3
[ Against such a strong opponent White
decided not to repeat his 6.g4!? g7 7.g2
d6 8.0-0 bd7 9.e1 0-0 10.h4 e6
11.h3 e7 12.c3 and it is not clear if
the advanced white kingside pawns are a
plus or a minus, Blatny, P-Donaldson,J/
Stratton Mountain USA 2000. ]
6...g7 7.g2 0-0 8.0-0 d5 9.e2 c6
Black plays in classical style. 10.e5 c7
11.xc6 xc6 12.d3 ad8 13.e5 b7
14.d2 fe8 15.f3 h6!? Black wants to
drive the e5-bishop back, and then play ...e5,
without allowing an exchange on g7. 16.b2
d7 17.f5!? e5 18.fxg6 fxg6 19.h4 f8
20.e4 d4!?
[ 20...dxe4 i s t e m p t i n g : 21.xe4 xe4
22.xe4 ( 22.dxe4? d2 ) 22...xe4
23.dxe4 e3+ 24.h1 d2 but White can
minimise his disadvantage by 25.c1 e2
26.xe3 xe3 27.ae1 ]
21.c1 g7 22.h3 xc1 23.axc1 e7
24.f2 f7 25.xf7 xf7 26.f1 e7
Black has extra space, but the white position
is rock-solid. 27.g4 h8 28.f3 d7
29.g5 xg5 30.xg5 xh3 31.xh3
g7 32.g5 d7 33.a4 e7 34.f3 d7
35.d2 b8 36.c4 e6 37.f2 c6
38.f1 f6
½-½
69 A01
Cicak,Slavko 2480
Hansen,Curt 2595
VISA GP Reykjavik (4) 1998
[Tony Kosten]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 d6 Positionally speaking,
blocking the a1-h8 diagonal with pawns is a
very so und st rat egy f o r B lack. Bla ck will
almost certainly have to fianchetto his king's
bishop, which will take play into positions
r e m i n i s c e n t o f t h e K i n g ' s I n d i a n . 3.c4
W hite takes a hold of d5, much as in the
English Opening. Normally he will play this
move sooner or later, others:
[ 3.e3 f5 this is an ambitious continuation,
ga in in g sp a ce o n t h e k in gs id e . ( 3...f6
4.c4 g6 is more normal, heading for the KI
p o s it i o n s . 5.g3 g4!? Black adds a new
twist, trying to exploit White's unusual mix of
g3, and e3. 6.f3 e6 7.g2 c6 8.e2
g7 9.0-0 Now, 9...0-0 would be normal,
wi t h a r e a s o n a b l e p o s i t i o n , b u t B l a c k
decides to inject a dose of 'unbalance' into
t h e p o s i t i o n . h5?! 10.d4 Of course,
everyone knows how to react to a wing
attack. exd4 11.xd4 xd4 12.xd4 h4
13.g4 h3 14.h1 which was quite obscure,
62
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Hodgson, J-Sadler,M/1998-9 French Team
Ch FRA 1999.) 4.d4 e4 5.c4 White has
decided to go for a reversed French set-up,
which is the standard reaction whenever
Black plays ...e5, and ...f5. f6 6.c3 e7
7.ge2 c6 8.f4 a6 The knight is
coming to c7, to support the ...d5 push. 9.d5
So White plays it himself. 0-0 10.e2 c7
11.h4 1/2-1/2 Hodgson, J-Agrest,E/It,
Harplinge SWE 1998, although White has
an edge, as he has gained a couple of tempi
on a line from the English. ]
[ 3.g3 f6 4.g2 The ultimate in flexibility,
a double fianchetto! c6 ( 4...g6 5.c4 g7
6.f3 0-0 7.d3 e8 8.0-0 c6
resembles a King's English, which is fairly
typical, Spraggett,K-Barlov,D/ Paris 1991.)
5.e3 g6 6.e2 g7 7.d4 and White took
play into a type of King's Indian position,
Bezold,M-Piket,J/ 1998-9 French Team Ch
FRA 1999. ]
3...g6
[ 3...c6 Is also perfectly reasonable, of
course, 4.g3 g6 5.g2 g7 6.c3 e6
7.d3 d7 and, once again, a King's English
set-up has occurred, Ehlvest,J-Atalik,S/
Beijing (open) 1996. ]
4.d4 More often, White prefers to defer this 'in
your face' move, and plays 4 Nf3. g7 5.dxe5
d7 Black exploits the pin on the e5-pawn,
along the a1-h8 diagonal, to avoid losing his
castling rights . 6.d2!? A new idea in this
position, protecting the b2-bishop, and
obliging Black to capture the e5-pawn.
[ 6.f3 is more usual, dxe5 7.c2 e7
8.a3 c5 9.e4 f6 10.c3 c6 11.d1
0-0 12.c1 h5!? 13.a4 b6 14.xc5
bxc5 15.e3 and White wins a pawn, when
it is not clear that Black's compensation is
sufficient, Zak, U-Rechlis,G/Ramat Aviv ISR
1998. ]
6...dxe5 7.f3 c6 8.c3 By retarding his
kingside development, W hite gives himself
other options, like exploiting the open d-file,
but he has to take care that he doesn't find
h i m s e l f b e h i n d i n d e v e l o p m e n t . gf6
9.g5!? Elaborate, simply
[ 9.d1 e7 10.e4 gives a small plus. ]
9...0-0 10.ge4 White's time-consuming
manoeuvre aims to establish a knight on the
weakened d6-square. xe4 11.xe4 f5
12.d6 White has achieved his goal, can he
now finish his development so that he might
exploit his mighty knight? c5 13.d1 e7
14.a3 b6 15.b4?! Played to support the
knight with Pc5, but
[ 15.xc5!? bxc5 16.e4 was an interesting
option, but possibly too slow d8 17.exf5
gxf5 18.e2 e6 looks dangerous for
White. ]
15...e4 16.xe4 fxe4 White has doubled
Black's pawns, but opened the f-file. 17.e3
g4 18.c1?! ad8 19.c2 h4
The black position begins to appear very
active. 20.h3 h6! 21.g3 h5 22.e2 f3
There is not much chance that White will be
able to castle kingside now with all his weak
light squares, but what else can he do with his
king? 23.d1 White tries to exchange pieces.
xd1+ 24.xd1 f5? missing the
combination,
[ 24...xe3! 25.fxe3 g5 26.xf3 xe3+
winning everything. ]
25.xf3 exf3 26.g4 e6 Black is still better.
27.c2 e4 28.0-0 g7 29.h1 d8 30.c1
d3 31.b2 xb2 32.xb2 Despite the
reduced material, Black's advantage is still
consequent, he controls the d-file, and can
attack the white king. h5 33.g1 hxg4
34.hxg4 g5! Black forces mate, by ...Qh6+.
0-1
70 A01
Gorovets,Andrey 2345
Fedorov,Alexei 2603
ch-BLR Minsk BLR (4) 07.03.2005
[John Watson]
These Reversed Sicilians ought to be very
n i c e f o r W h i t e wi t h h i s e xt r a m o v e , b u t
somehow White never seems to get anything
out of it. In this game with Larsen's 1.b3 he
spends two moves playing b3-b4, which is
hardly the way to exploit the tempo. 1.b3 e5
2.b2 c6 3.c4 f6 4.e3 d5 5.cxd5
xd5 6.a3 d6 7.c2
[ You could argue that the queen does little
he re a n d t h a t W h it e sh o u ld h e a d f o r a
Scheveningen setup as soon as possible by
7.d3 0-0 8.f3 e7 9.e2 intending 0-0
and Nbd2, with Re1 when appropriate. ]
63
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

7...0-0 8.f3 e7 9.d3 f5 10.bd2 h8 3.e3 g4 4.f3 h5 5.g4! g6 6.h4!
[ Black could already play 10...f4 11.e4 b6 If nothing else, such early pawn pushing looks
12.b4 a6 13.e2 e6 unclear. ] like a lot of fun. h5
11.b4?! White has to be careful to get [ 6...h6 was the choice of a very young
developed. Etienne Bacrot, but White seemed to retain
[ 11.e2 is more cautious, when Black's some advantage: 7.e2 e6 8.bc3 c6
plan in the game is less impressive: d7 9.f4 d6 10.b5 xf4 11.xc6+ bxc6
12.0-0 ae8 13.c4 e4 14.dxe4 ( or 12.exf4 h5 13.f5 exf5 14.g5 d7
14.xd6 cxd6 15.dxe4 fxe4 16.d2 g5 15.e2+ e7 16.xe7+ xe7 17.a3+
17.h1 g6 18.ad1 ) 14...fxe4 15.fd2 d8 18.d4 f8 19.xf8 xf8 20.d2 f4
and W hite may even have a small 21.e2 f5 22.xf4 g6 23.ae1 d7
ad va n t a ge wit h t wo b ish o p s a n d sligh t 24.e5 f6 25.gxf6 xf6 26.he1 e4
pressure on Black's e-pawn. ] 27.fxe4 xf4 28.exd5 xd4+ 29.c3 xd5
11...d7 12.e2 ae8 13.c4? 30.e7+ c8 31.1e6 b7 32.xg6 c5+
[ 13.0-0 e4 14.d4 h4 yields a winning 33.b2 a6 34.h7 e5 35.g5 e2
advantage af ter ( or 14...xe3 15.fxe3 36.hxh5 d8 37.c5 d6 38.a4 h2
h4 ) 15.g3 xe3! 16.gxh4 ( 16.fxe3 39.c4 b6 40.b4+ a7 41.h7
xg3 17.2f3 exf3 18.xf3 h3 ) 1-0 Relange, E (2420)-Bacrot, E (2300)/
16...xd4! 17.b1 ( 17.xd4 xc2 ) Epinal 1995 ]
17...xe2+ 18.h1 xf1 19.xf1 f4 7.g5 fd7 8.c3!? c6 9.h3
threatening ...Nxd3 or ...Bc6, e.g., 20.c4 It is noteworthy that White doesn't play f4 too
( 20.dxe4 fxe4 and ...Bh3 is still another soon, keeping this square available for a
threat ) 20...c6 21.b5 xb5 22.xd6 knight. In previous games White had played f4
cxd6 23.g1 f7 ] and achieved merely some extra space, but
13...e4! 14.xd6 now Black's structural integrity soon comes
[ 14.fd2 xb4! 15.axb4 b5! 16.a5 into question. e6
cxb4 17.b3 exd3 18.xd3 xe3! etc. ] [ 9...e5 is possible, but the position gets very
14...cxd6 15.dxe4 fxe4 16.d4 g5!? sharp after 10.f4!? intending to snuff out the
17.g3? White stood badly anyway but this bishop on g6. exf4 11.exf4 d4 12.f5!?
allows a pretty finish: xf2! 18.xc6 dxc3 13.xc3 is just off the top of my head,
[ 18.xf2 xe3+ 19.e1 xd4 20.xd4 but Rybka seems to find it vaguely
xd4 21.d1 e3! ] plausible. ]
18...xe3! 19.c3 ef8 20.d4 xe2+ 10.ce2!? A devious manoeuvre that gives
[ The finish could be 20...xe2+ 21.xe2 this line some sting. c7
( 21.xe2 g2+ 22.d1 a4+ ) [ 10...f5 11.xf5 exf5 12.g3 ]
21...g4+ ] 11.f4 e5
0-1 [ 11...f5 12.xf5 exf5 13.g6 ]
12.xg6 fxg6 13.e2 d6 14.f4 f7
15.0-0-0 e4 16.d3 e8 17.f5 e5 18.fxg6+
71 A01 xg6 19.f1 xb2+ 20.xb2 f8 21.xf8
Hertneck,Gerald 2572 xf8 22.f1 f7 23.e2 a6 24.dxe4
Medvegy,Zoltan 2430 dxe4 25.g3 f3 26.f5+ f7 27.xe4
Schwarzach op-A (9) 02.09.2001 xf1 28.xf1+ e7 29.f5+
[Jonathan Rowson] 1-0

1.b3 d5 2.b2 f6

[ 2...g4 Paradoxically, this move makes it
harder for W hite to create immediate
problems with the kingside pawns, simply
because e3 is prevented, but as we see
below, it invites different kinds of trouble. ]

64
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

72 A01 d i a g o n a l , a n d p r e p a r i n g . . . d 5 . 12.d3?!
Hodgson,Julian M 2605 Opening the centre only seems to f avour
Barsov,Alexei 2539 Black here, perhaps
Vikings GM York ENG (8) 20.12.1999 [ 12.f4!? was best, xd4 13.exd4 d5
[Tony Kosten] 14.cxd5! (creating the famous Irish pawn
centre) xd5 15.xd5 xd5 16.c1!?
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6 ( 16.c1 ) 16...c6 17.c5 d6 18.c1
Played as lon g ago as1859 , in t he gam e hoping to play Qc3, and d5, but Black may
Suhle-Anderssen, at Breslau! 5.a3 a5!? have sufficient resources. ]
This move of Sveshnikov's, which he played 12...d5 13.cxd5 exd3
as far back as 1975, is becoming all the rage. [ 13...xd4 14.exd4 exd3 15.xd3 g4
6.e2 was also interesting, although I can
[ Perhaps more accurate than the immediate understand that Black might have been
6.f3 which transposes after a6 7.e2 worried about the loss of his dark-squared
, as W hite obtains other possibilities on bishop. ]
move seven. ] 14.xd3 xd5 15.xd5 xd5 16.f3 d6
6...a6 7.f3 17.0-0-0 White has little choice about this,
[ In another game from December '99, White although the king's position does look quite
tried a different idea, 7.c4 gaining some exposed. b6 18.c2 A pragmatic draw
space on the queenside, and controlling d5 offer, White can only be worse here,
c5 8.f3 c6 9.d3 0-0 10.0-0 e8 [ 18.c2 c5 19.e2 xb2+ 20.xb2 c4
11.c2 f8 ( 11...c7 would be my with an attack. ]
p r e f e r e n c e) 12.d4 cxd4 13.exd4 e4 ½-½
14.e5! d6 15.xc6 bxc6 16.d5
with a plus, Teske,H-Berndt,S/ Tegernsee
GER 1999. ] 73 A01
[ However, 7.c4?! seems to give Black all Hodgson,Julian M 2575
he wants, xc4 8.bxc4!? ( 8.xc4 b5 Hall,Jesper 2485
9.e2 b7 is too easy for Black, but the Harplinge (2) 16.08.1998
text is risky) 8...e7 9.a4 0-0 10.h3 c5 [Jonathan Rowson]
11.f4? xe3! 12.xe5 ( 12.dxe3? b4+ )
12...a7 13.f2 d6 14.b2 e8 15.d4 A positional classic, in which the Trompovsky
g4 0-1 Sakaev,K-Sveshnikov,E/ Gausdal trend setter wins in Trompovsky style with 1.
1992. ] b3! Instead of d4, Bg5 and Bxf6, b3, Bb2 and
7...e4!? Bxf6 gets the same job done in the same
[ A principled decision from Black, who n u m b e r o f m o v e s . I n s o m e c a s e s t h i s
d o e s n ' t f e a r t h e o p e n i n g o f t h e a 1 - h 8 achievement comes at the cost of weakening
diagonal. 7...e7 had been tried previously, the queenside, and W hite will need time to
8.c1 ( 8.b1 was played by Hodgson, see play d4 later. But in this case White makes
the archives) 8...b5 9.c4 bxc4 10.xc4 good use of the d4 square for other purposes.
xc4 11.xc4 a5 with counterplay, Murey- The following reminded me of Karpov's fairly
Sveshnikov/USSR, 1975. ] f a m o u s s t r a t e g ic vi c t o r y a ga i n s t W a lt e r
8.d4 g6 Keeping the knight out of f5, Browne in a line that is quite similar. 1.b3
although at a cost to the kingside dark [ 1.c4 c5 2.b3 f6 3.b2 g6 4.xf6!?
squares. 9.c4 0-0 10.b1!? exf6 5.c3 g7 6.g3 c6 7.g2 f5 8.e3
[ 10.0-0!? might be possible, although e7 0-0 ( 8...xc3 9.dxc3 gives White an
looks annoying, White is forced to get his advantage based on the d-file.) 9.ge2 a6
knights into a tangle by 11.Ndc2, as he is 10.c1 b5 11.d3 b7 12.0-0 d6 13.d2
probably far from OK after 11.b1? e5! a5 14.fd1 ab8 15.d5 xd2 16.xd2
12.g3 c5 13.f4 exf3 14.xf3 e4 ] b4 17.d4 fd8 18.cd1 cxd4 19.exd4 f8
10...e8 11.c3 e5! Fighting for the a1-h8 20.c5 a7 21.e3 xg2 22.xg2 dxc5

65
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
23.dxc5 xd2 24.xd2 c8 25.d5 xc5
26.xb4 a5 27.d5 c6 28.e3 c5
29.f4 h6 30.d5 xd5 31.fxd5 xe3
32.xe3 e7 33.c4 c6 34.f3 e6
35.e3 d5 36.a3 e6 37.d3 d5
38.f3 h6 39.c3 h5 40.d3 f6 41.f4 g5
42.e3+ e6 43.h4 gxh4 44.gxh4 e7
45.c4 g6 46.g2 d6 47.b5 d5
48.xa5 e4 49.b4 f3 50.b5 xg2
51.b6 f8 52.b5 d7 53.a4 xb6
54.xb6 f3 55.a5 xf4 56.a6 e3
57.a7 f4 58.a8 f3 59.e8+ 1-0 Karpov,
A (2630)-Browne, W (2530)/ San Antonio
1972 ]
1...f6 2.b2 g6 3.xf6 exf6 4.c4 g7
[ 4...d5!? 5.cxd5 xd5 6.c3 a5 7.a3! ]
5.g3 f5 6.c3 d6
[ 6...xc3 7.dxc3 0-0 I think to play 1.b3
successf ully, you have to be excited by
tiny advantages in positions like this. In
this case W hite will have a slight lead in
development, a marginally better bishop,
a n d t h e p a wn b r e a k c 4 - c 5 l o o k s m o r e
feasible than f5-f4. ]
7.g2 d7 8.c1 f6 9.d3 0-0 10.f3
d7 11.b4 a6 12.0-0 e8 13.a4 c6?!
14.e3 b6 15.b5 b7 16.d4! xg2
17.xg2 d5 18.c6 d6 19.b3 dxc4
20.xc4 a5 21.fe1 d7 22.d5 c5
23.e4 Complete positional domination and a
great advert for this way of playing with White.
fxe4 24.dxe4 h5 25.cd1 e6 26.c2
ac8 27.a7 h4 28.xc8 h3+ 29.g1
xc8 30.c4 g4 31.f1 xe4 32.xe4
xe4 33.xh3 xa4 34.e1 f8 35.f6+
g7 36.h7+ xf6 37.h8+ g7 38.d8+
f5 39.d5+ g4 40.xf7 d4 41.xg6+
f3 42.h5+ g4 43.e3#
1-0
74 A01
Hodgson,Julian M 2575
Speelman,Jonathan S 2605
4NCL Birmingham (11) 1998
[Tony Kosten]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6
T h i s m o ve l o o ks l ik e t h a t o f a c o m p l e t e
beginner, developing his king's bishop in front
of the d-pawn, how will it ever be able to
move forward? In fact it is a good move, for
White intends to capture on c6, so Black can
recapture with his d7-pawn when his queen's
bishop will be free to develop. That said, as
soon as Black plays this move, White tries to
a v o i d c a p t u r i n g o n c 6 , o f c o u r s e . 5.a3
I t s e e m s t h a t W h i t e h a s ca u g h t B l a c k ' s
disease, for what sort of square is a3 for a
knight?
[ 5.c3 0-0 6.ge2 achieves nothing. e7
7.d4 c6 8.d3 exd4 9.xd4 b4
f ollowed by ...d5, with a good position,
Bellon Lopez,J-Narciso Dublan,M/ Havana
CUB 1999. ]
[ 5.e2 0-0 6.0-0 e8 7.g3 e4
this illustrates a different method of
development for Black, 8.e2 e5 9.xe5
xe5 10.d4 exd3 11.cxd3 d5 and Black
has managed to play ...d5 anyway, and now
has a good position, Morozevich,A-
Sveshnikov,E/Podolsk 1993. ]
[ After 5.f3 e4 White tried an unusual
move in Mikhalevski-Avrukh, Ramat Aviv
1998, 6.h4!? instead of 6 Nd4. 0-0 7.0-0
e5 8.xe5 xe5 But Black has a fine
position here, 9.f4 exf3 10.xf3 e7
11.c3 d5 12.e1 and now Black played
c5!? planning to play ...c4 and trap the b5-
bishop. This led to obscure complications,
and an eventual Black victory, but he had
simpler options, like 12...c6 for instance. ]
5...a5!? I am not sure whether this a case of
two of the most original chessplayers in the
world battling out to see who can find the
most original moves, or an example of modern
GMs being guided less by established
principles, than by concrete appraisal of the
position!
[ In fact, Black wants to stop the white knight
se tt lin g o n c4, as in t h e gam e L ein , A -
Gruzmann,B/Grieskirchen GER 1998, which
c o n t i n u e d : 5...a6 6.xc6 dxc6 7.c4
with a position not untypical of the Exchange
Ruy Lopez. e7 8.e2 0-0 9.0-0 b5!
10.xd6 cxd6 but Black could have no
reason to complain about his opening. ]
6.f3 a6 7.e2 e7 Putting the question to
the a3-knight. 8.b1 Rather than acquiesce
to exchanging the a5-knight. 0-0 9.c4 b6
Black finally decides to leave the d7-pawn
where it is, and develop the c8-bishop another
66
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

way. 10.c3 b7 11.0-0 fe8 12.d3 a3 probably lead to Black taking en passant
13.c1 xb2 And the players, exhausted by which would be the same as 9.d3. ]
having to find so many original moves, agreed 9...0-0 10.h3 c5 11.f2 e8 12.g4 d6
to split the point. Seriously, this was a key 13.g5 d7 14.h4 f8 Hereabouts Black
battle for team supremacy in Britain, and the starts to play rather passively, which will
quick draw suited both sides. The position is prove fatal with his opponent charging up the
level, anyway. kingside like this. 15.h5 f5 16.g4 d7
½-½ 17.e2 a5 18.0-0-0
[ 18.xf5 xf5 19.g4 looks quite strong
here, preparing to diagonalise Black with 20.
75 A01 h6 or 20.Qg2 intending 21.Nh6+. ]
Ipatov,Alexander 2507 18...a4 19.dg1 axb3 20.axb3 a5
Fierro Baquero,Martha Lorena 2372 21.a1 c6?! 22.g6
Andorra Open (5) 21.07.2010 [ 22.xf5 xf5 23.g4 seems very strong
[Nigel Davies] here too. ]
22...fxg6
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6 [ 22...hxg6 would be decisively met by
5.a3!? This odd looking move makes sense 23.h6! with a winning attack. ]
when Black can no longer play ...d7-d5 to 23.h6 gxh6?? A blunder in a poor position.
keep the knight out of c4. a6 6.e2 [ 23...e7 would have put up more
[ I think there's a good case for 6.xc6 dxc6 resistance. ]
7.c4 , simply making sure the knight 24.xf5 xf5 25.g4 There's no good
doesn't get misplaced on a3. This doesn't defence to the threat of 26.Nxh6 mate.
look like much for White, for example after 1-0
e4 . But his position would at least be
nicely coordinated. ]
6...b5 Preventing the knight from coming to c4 76 A01
but at the cost of weakening his queenside. Ismagambetov,Anuar 2531
Black has also tried other approaches which Lahiri,Atanu 2361
seem better, for example: 9th UIL&UL GM (4) 23.08.2009
[ a) 6...b4 7.c4 e4 8.a3 e7 9.d4 d5 [Nigel Davies]
10.e5 b8 11.f4 0-0 12.h3 c5
13.g5!? c6 14.h4!? was the enterprising 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 d5 4.b5 d6
but rather wild continuation of Karlsson, L 5.f4 This thematic pawn thrust hasn't been too
(2493)-Wang Hao (2624) / Taby 2007. ] popular lately. It does seem that if Black
[ b) 6...e7 looks like an eminently sensible knows what he's doing he gets fully equal
choice for Black simply arguing that White's play. h4+ It makes sense to weaken White's
knight will now be badly placed on a3. After kingside before dropping back to e7. 6.g3
7.c4 e4 8.f4 d5 9.e5 d6 10.d4 exd3 e7 7.f3 f6 8.c3 e6 9.e2
11.cxd3 xe5 12.xe5 b6 13.f2 c5 [ White has also played 9.0-0 , for example
14.c1 d4 was simply good for Black in h6 10.fxe5 fxe5 11.e4 dxe4 ( 11...c5+
Ivanov, M (2470)-Vyskocil, N (2315)/ Brno is strongly met by 12.d4! exd4 13.xd5! )
2009. ] 12.xc6+ bxc6 13.xe4 was agreed drawn
7.c4 b4 8.c2 e4 9.f4 An ambitious looking (1 / 2 - 1 / 2 ) in M e l la d o T r ivin o , J (2 4 2 2 ) -
move, trying to gain space on the kingside. Strikovic, A (2498)/Lorca 2005. I prefer
[ On e ea rlie r ga m e sa w W h it e pla y 9.d3 White's position though the rating difference
af t e r wh ic h exd3 10.xd3 0-0 11.f3 may have accounted for the early
( 11.h3!? ) 11...e8 12.f5 e7 13.d1 negotiations for peace. ]
looked slightly better for White in Jarvenpaa, 9...a6 10.xc6+ bxc6 11.0-0-0
J (2090)-Tiitta, S (2204)/ Jyvaskyla 2008. ] This sensible moves seems new, though it
[ 9.d4 is another idea, though this would does little to change the assessment of this

67
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
position as being very comfortable for Black.
Earlier games had gone as follows:
[ a) 11.a4 e4 12.d4 d7 13.c4 f7
( 13...c5 makes sense here) 14.c5 e7
15.f5 h6 16.f1 g6 17.g4 g8 18.0-0-0
gxf5 19.gxf5 looked quite nice for White at
this stage in Schramm, C (2350)-Rabiega, R
(2520)/Germany 2003. ]
[ b) 11.fxe5 fxe5 12.e4 d4 13.a4 h6
14.0-0-0 0-0 15.h3 c5 16.g4 f7 17.c4
d7 essentially refuted White's strategy in
Krupkova, P (2293)-Polushkina, S (2159)/
Varna 2002 because she can not prevent a
timely ...Bxa4. ]
11...h6 12.a4? Blundering away the
exchange.
[ 12.h3 is better, trying to cover up the
kingside light squares. ]
12...e4 13.d4 g4 14.f1 xd1 15.xd1
c5?! 16.e2?
[ 16.h5+ f7 17.e6 was a better try,
and maybe Black should have avoided this
by castling on his previous move. ]
16...0-0 17.h3 c4 18.b1 a3 19.c3
ab8 20.g4 c5 21.g1 Trying for g4-g5 but
there's no way that White has enough here.
f7 22.g5 fxg5 23.h4 d7 24.hxg5 d6
25.a1 f5 26.e5 b7 27.ec3 cxb3
28.cxb3 c8 29.b1 b4 30.a3 a5
31.c2 c4
[ 31...c6 might have been a steadier way
to play it. Now White manages to selotape
his queenside together for a while. ]
32.b4 c7 33.b2 d6 34.bc3 f8
35.b1 e6 36.e2 a5! 37.bxa5 b3
38.c1 b5 39.c3 xb1+ 40.xb1 xa3
41.a2 xc1 42.xc1 b8 43.a3?! d4!
This break through spells the beginning of the
end of White's resistance. 44.exd4 xd4!
45.c5 c6 46.xc6 xc6 47.b6 h5
48.gxh6 gxh6 49.xc4 h5 50.a3 h4
51.e5 a7 52.a4 h3 53.g4 f7 54.f5
c6 55.e5+ xe5 56.xe5 d8 57.f4
xd2!
0-1
77 A01
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2731
Le Quang,Liem 2703
SportAccord Blitz Men 2013 blitz (29.6)
[Fier, Alexandr]
1.b3 is becoming more fashionable, especially
for rapid and blitz games. Le Quang tries the
idea played by Jakovenko last month and also
gets into trouble. 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3
f6 4.b5 d6 5.a3 e7
[ 5...e4 is one of the critical variations and
was tried in two elite games from this month
6.e2 a s o l i d a p p r o a c h ( 6.c4
is more direct, keeping the bishops e7
7.xc6 dxc6 8.e2 0-0 9.0-0 e8 10.f3
and the position was level in Ivanchuk, V
(2731)-Vachier-Lagrave, M (2745)/
S p o r t A c c o rd B a sq u e M e n 2 0 1 3 (3 . 1 ) .)
6...e5 7.c1 e7 8.xc6 dxc6 9.c4
xb2 10.xb2 arriving into a typical position
for this variation. In this long game the
knight proved to be stronger than the bishop,
Nakamura, H (2786)-Jones, G (2654)/5th
Classic GpC 2013 (4.2) ]
6.c4 d6 7.xc6+ bxc6 8.e2 0-0 9.0-0
c5 10.f4
[ 10.d4 is strong, and was analyzed by me
f o r C h e s s P u b l i s h i n g l a s t m o n t h , exd4
11.exd4 a6 12.a5 and White has good
chances to obtain an advantage, as seen in
Jobava, B (2694)-Jakovenko, D (2719)/29th
ECC Open 2013 (6.4). ]
10...e4 To keep the f-file closed is quite
natural and probably right.
[ 10...exf4 was another possibility when the
po sition h a s a dif f e re nt cha racte r th a n
compared to the game. White has an open
diagonal and the f-file for the heavy pieces,
on the other hand Black has the bishop pair
and good central control. 11.xf4 c6
12.f3 d5 13.e5 d6 14.d3 could be a
natural sequence when the position is level,
but easier for White to play. ]
11.g3 e8 12.d3 Since the pieces are now
well placed, it's time to open the position.
b7?! I'm not a fan of this move. White
always has Na5 when he can get back the
bishop pair at least.
[ 12...exd3 was a respectable option and
n o w b o t h r e c a p t u re s a re p o ss i b l e a n d
68
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
interesting 13.cxd3 with the idea of making
the center more solid and concentrating the
p i e c e s o n t h e k i n g s i d e ( 13.xd3
m o r e a i m e d t o p l a y i n t h e c e n t e r a5
14.ad1 a4 15.e4 g4 16.d2 axb3
17.axb3 a2 with a complex position)
13...a5 14.e4 d5 15.e5 f8 with a level
position ]
13.a5 c8 14.xb7 A concrete approach,
which is good with the right sequence.
[ 14.d2!? since the bishop has no good
squares to go to, it makes sense to wait a
bit before taking on b7. d8 ( 14...a6
15.c4 exd3 16.e4 and the bishop is hitting
rock ) 15.ac1!? another good prophylactic
move, threatening 16. Bxf6. Now Black
has difficult problems to solve. ]
14...xb7 15.f5 d8 16.e1
[ Makes sense, but is slow compared to the
option 16.g4! this is the move which should
be connected with 14.Nxb7, now Black's
pieces are not well placed to defend the
king,
A) 16...e6 doesn't really help 17.xg7
xg7 18.g5 and the attack is much faster
than any counterplay in the center;
B) 16...exd3 17.cxd3 g6 18.h6+ f8
19.d2 and Black's king is in much more
danger than White's.;
C) 16...d5 17.f2! with the simple idea
of bringing the rook to the g-file ( 17.xg7
xg7 18.g5 f5 and Black is fine)
17...e6 18.xg7 xg7 19.f5 d5
20.g5 and White is much better;
D) 16...c8 again trying to go to f5
17.dxe4! xe4 18.f3 d5 ( 18...e6
19.g3 wins an exchange) 19.c4 c6
20.ac1 and it's hard for Black to defend
against all the threats ]
16...d5 Black takes his chance and creates
c o u n t e r p l a y i n t h e c e n t e r . 17.g3
A sad move to make.
[ 17.g4 was still possible, but now things are
completely unclear exd3 18.h4 h6!
( 18...dxc2 19.g5 wins a piece) 19.xg7
xg7 20.g5 h8 21.gxf6+ f8
with unusual chaos. ]
17...exd3 18.d1 c4 19.cxd3
[ 19.bxc4 w a s a l s o p o s s i b l e b7
( 19...xc4 20.cxd3 xa2 21.a1
would be similar to the game) 20.c3 dxc2
21.d2 b6 and Black has few problems. ]
19...cxb3 Ambitious.
[ 19...cxd3 doesn't win a pawn, but leaves
Black with a comfortable position 20.d2 c6
21.xf6 ( 21.xd3 b6 22.d4 xd4
23.xd4 xd4 24.xd4 d5 is about
equal ) 21...xf6 22.xd3 e6 23.f3 d5
and White has more reasons to be worried
than Black ]
20.axb3 xb3 21.a1 White finally was able
to stabilize the center at the cost of the a-
pawn, which is not so important. After all the
position remains unclear. g4
[ 21...b6 was a good idea, trying to fight
against W hite's center and avoid 22.e4
22.f3 ( 22.d4 c5 23.a1 d5 is good for
Black ) 22...b8 23.h1 d5 and Black's
position is slightly preferable ]
22.e4
[ 22.e2 could bring strange positions after
xe3 23.f5 c6 24.xg7 b6 25.xe8
xd1+ 26.h1 f2+ 27.xf2 xf2
28.f6+ g7 where I'm not able to say who
is better. ]
22...f6 23.xf6 xf6 It's rational to
exchange the dangerous white bishop, but it
gave White time to consolidate the center and
start a new attack with the remaining pieces.
24.f5 g6 25.h4 h5
[ 25...gxf5 this was better and the position
will be probably be drawn by perpetual at
s o m e p o i n t 26.g5+ ( 26.xf6 fxe4
27.g5+ h8 28.f6+ g8= ) 26...f8
27.xf6 fxe4 28.h6+ g8 29.f5 h8
and W hite has nothing better than
perpetual. ]
26.e7+ g7 Now the position becomes just
too dangerous for Black.
[ 26...f8 was necessary, putting the king
near the rook, 27.d5 c6 28.e3 ( 28.f6
xf6 29.xf6 g8 is less dangerous)
28...g8 29.f5 with the initiative. ]
27.f5 f6 Now Black's king is too exposed and
also the knight on h5 has no squares. 28.d5
c6
[ 28...f8 would be another idea to defend,
but after 29.h3 f7 30.g4 c6 31.e3
wins a piece ]
29.b1 And suddenly the attack comes from
the other side. xd3 30.b7+ h8 31.fxg6
hxg6 32.xf6 Now it 's f in ished . e3+
69
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
33.h1 h6 34.g5! g3+ 35.xg3
[ 35.g1 7 wa s m a t e i n e2+ 36.f2
xh2 37.xe8 ]
35...ab8 36.h7+ xh7 37.xh7 xh7
38.xd6 f8 39.xf8
1-0
78 A01
Jadoul,Michel 2342
Fontaine,Pierre 2143
TCh-2003-4 Belgium BEL (1) 14.12.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.b3 f5 2.b2 e6 Black tries to play a
Classical Dutch against the queenside
fianchetto, but is this wise? 3.e4!? Maybe not!
The problem is that Black can hardly answer
White's Qh5+ with ...g6 as the h8-rook would
be lost. fxe4!? 'In for a penny ...' but the
alternatives are not particularly enticing:
[ 3...d6?! 4.exf5 exf5 Ventura,S-Tocco,P/
Saint Vincent 1999, when 5.h5+ forces
e7 which is horrible. ]
[ 3...f6 is th e be st b e t : 4.exf5 ( 4.e5
gains a lot of space) 4...exf5 5.e2+ e7
( 5...f7!? ) 6.xf6 ( 6.g3?! c6?! 7.g2?!
d5?! 8.h3?! is a bit limp, Skripchenko,A-
Gervais, C/Cannes 1993) 6...gxf6 7.xe7+
xe7 and the doubled f-pawns give White a
plus, Jadoul, M-Froeyman,H/Antwerp BEL
2000. ]
4.h5+ e7
[ 4...g6?? 5.e5 wins material. ]
5.c3! A novelty, but obviously this position is
very rare.
[ 5.d3 is similar, White is happy to make his
pawn sac permanent and open the central
files, f6 6.h4 exd3 7.xd3 d6 8.f3
with sufficient compensation for the pawn,
and good practical chances for W hite
Sinowjew, J-Wach,M/Voitsberg 1995. ]
5...f6 6.h4 d5 This is White's idea, he
forces Black to defend his e-pawn before
playing d3, this way the long diagonal cannot
be closed by .. .d6 and ...e5. 7.d3 exd3
8.xd3 f7 9.0-0-0 e7 10.f3 White is
close to completing his development, and is
ready to attack Black before he manages to
secure his king position. e8?! Retreating
one of Black's only two developed pieces
seems odd, he should prefer
[ 10...c6 , say, to control e5. ]
11.e5+ g8 12.h5 d6 13.b5
Aiming to deflect the knight from its defence of
f7. d7?! Initiating a tactical sequence which
just favours White,
[ 13...e8!? was the best bet. ]
14.xd6 xe5 15.xc8 xd3+ 16.xd3
g5+ 17.b1 xc8 The fog clears and we
see that White's initiative has increased: the
black king is stuck in the corner stopping his
rook from moving, and W hite has gained a
swinging rook along the third rank. 18.g4
e7
[ 18...f7?! is worse, 19.e1 e8 20.g3
f6 21.xf6 xf6 22.f3 winning the
queen. ]
19.e1
[ 19.xd5! is also tempting, as the e-pawn is
pinned. ]
19...h5! This is Black's best chance, the rook
might be able to re-enter the game. 20.xe6+
xe6 21.xe6 c6 Black has a solid position,
but the white pieces are very active. 22.g3?!
White misses a trick,
[ 22.c4! is strong, trying to batter the rook's
way through to the seventh rank: dxc4?!
23.d7 h7 24.bxc4 with a consequent
advantage. ]
22...f7?! Black misses it too!
[ 22...h6! is possible, solving Black's
problems at a stroke! 23.xg5!? ( 23.xh6
xh6 is level ) 23...xe6 24.xg7+ f8
25.xb7 e1+ 26.c1 ce8 with good
play. ]
23.d6 hd8?! Another error, Black resigns
as after
[ 23...hd8?! 24.xd8 xd8 25.xg7+ e6
26.xb7 he is two pawns down with a bad
position. ]
1-0
79 A01
Jobava,Ba 2694
Jakovenko,D 2719
29th ECC Open 2013 (6.4) 25.10.2013
[Fier, Alexandr]
Jobava had one more success with 1.b3 and
this time against a 2700 player. 5.. .Be7 is not
70
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
played so often (5...e4 is kind of critical lately
and 5...Na5 is the mainline) and after some
natural moves White already had a pleasant
position. Maybe 9...c5 is already not the best,
but it's nice to see how much poison there is
in White's position 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3
f6 4.b5 d6 5.a3 e7 The basic idea
is to come back with the bishop now that the
pawn is not hanging on e5. So, after 6...d6
Black can finish normal development, which is
not that common in this variation.
[ 5...e4 was already played twice against
Jobava 6.c4 looks more natural than
( 6.e2 e5 7.c1 0-0 8.h3 e7
where W hite was not really successful in
Jobava, B (2711)-Aronian, L (2815)/Beijing
Sportaccord blitz 2012) 6...e7 7.xc6
dxc6 8.e2 0-0 9.0-0 with an interesting
position in Jobava, B (2711)-Giri, A (2720)/
Beijing Sportaccord blitz 2012. ]
[ 5...a5 was analyzed by me some months
ago in Bernadskiy, V (2475)-Nevednichy, V
(2580)/Albena Masters op 2013. ]
[ 5...a6 is another popular alternative and
was analyzed in games such as Ipatov, A
(2507)-Fierro Baquero, M (2372)/Andorra
Open 2010. ]
6.c4 d6 7.xc6+ bxc6 8.e2 0-0 9.0-0
c5 Somehow I think Black starts to have some
problems after this move. Nothing serious,
b u t s t ill I t h in k t h e p o sit io n ca n b e co m e
unpleasant quickly
[ 9...e6 trying to get rid of the knight could
be another option
A) 10.d4 enters an unusual structure
xc4 ( 10...exd4 11.xd4 only helps
White ) 11.bxc4 b8 12.b1 d7 13.c5
f6 ( 13...exd4? 14.xd4 and Black has
problems with the c6-square) 14.cxd6
cxd6 15.d3 with chances for both sides;
B) 10.a5 is more in the spirit of the
position and after d7 11.d4 e4 12.c4
d5 13.c2 d6 with a double-edged
position. White needs to decide whether
it's worth closing the position with c5 or not.
An expansion on the queenside might be
successful, but also there are not many
people defending the other side. ]
10.d4 exd4
[ 10...cxd4 11.exd4 e4 12.d5! and White
can use the e3, d4 and c6 squares.
Meanwhile it is not entirely clear where
Black is going to put his pieces. For
example: a6 13.e1 d7 14.e3 xe2
15.xe2 followed by 16.c4 with advantage ]
11.exd4 a6
[ 11...d5 is the main option, trying to open
some space to activate the pieces and after
12.e5 e8 is better, aimed against the
d x c 5 i d e a s ( 12...d6 if White opens the
diagonal, all the pieces can go easily onto
t h e a t t a c k 13.dxc5 xc5 14.g3 e8
15.f3 with some initiative for W hite)
13.c6 getting back the bishop pair
( 13.g3 d6 14.e1 cxd4 15.xd4 c5
16.d2 d4 is fine for Black) 13...d7
14.xe7+ xe7 15.g3 c4!? it's important
to keep the diagonal closed for the moment,
White has the slightly better prospects, but
the game is balanced. ]
[ 11...cxd4 12.xd4 d7 13.a5
and Black will always have problems with
the c6-square. White can put the queen on
f3 and bring the rooks to the central files
with some advantage. ]
12.a5 d7 13.e1
[ 13.c4 can bring some nice complications
it's less precise than the move in the game
d5 ( 13...cxd4 14.xd4 c5 15.dc6 )
14.dxc5 dxc4 15.xd7 xd7 16.b4!
this works because the bishop on e7 is not
defended c3 17.xc3 xc5 the best move
order ( 17...xe2 is good for White 18.fe1
xc5 19.xe2 d6 20.c6 with strong
control ) 18.fe1 b6 19.c6 and because
of the bishop pair the position is equal. ]
13...b5 Trying to disrupt the harmony
between White's pieces and defend against
dxc5, but now the queen and bishop are on
the wrong diagonal
[ 13...cxd4 again this is not good 14.xd4
fe8 15.f3 with the usual problem on the
c6-square ]
14.c4 ae8 15.e3!? Bringing the pieces
to the kingside. e4 16.c4
[ 16.d5 was also interesting d7 17.ec3
xc3 18.xc3 threatening 19.dxc5 again c4
19.f3 with pressure ]
16...d7 17.dxc5 xc5
[ 17...h4 exchanging one piece, trying to
free some space for the pieces, but still not
e n o u g h f o r e q u a l i t y 18.g3 xg3
71
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
( 18...xc5? 19.xg7 xg7 20.d4++- )
19.hxg3 xc5 20.b4 e6 21.d5
and almost all W hite's pieces are more
active than Black's corresponding ones. ]
18.g3 d8 This move is too passive.
[ 18...g5 is interesting, trying to exchange
the bishop, Black needs to be aware of the
bishop sacrifice 19.xg7!? ( 19.gf5 f6
20.d4 e6 21.xa7 f4 and after ...Bb7
and ...Be5 Black has some decent
compensation for the pawn.) 19...xg7
20.ef5+ h8 21.d4+ f6 22.xe8 xe8
23.h4 and the bishop has no square to go to
e5 24.xe5 fxe5 25.hxg5 e6
and Black is in the game. ]
19.h3 This move also looks too slow, White
could try more direct approaches with
[ 19.gf5 f6 20.d4 e4 21.d5+ f7
22.d2 ]
[ or 19.b4 e6 20.gf5 f6 21.f3
in both cases with an initiative ]
19...b7
[ 19...f5!? trying to free Black's pieces
20.h5 ( 20.gxf5 xf5 21.xf5 xe1+
22.xe1 xf5 23.e8+ f8 24.e1
is a hard to evaluate endgame. My feeling is
that Black should be fine.) 20...e6 21.d5
c6 22.df4 xf4 23.xf4 e4 and Black
is ok. ]
20.gf5 f6 21.b4 a4 22.d4 b6?!
[ 22...g6 was also more active 23.h6+
g7 24.d2 e4 trying to sacrifice the
exchange. ]
23.c5 d5 24.g4 h8 25.cxd6 cxd6
26.xd5?!
[ 26.c4 just wins a pawn, xe1+ ( 26...c7
27.xe8 xe8 28.fxd6+- ) 27.xe1 g6
28.fxd6 c6 29.xd7 xd7 with a much
better endgame for White. ]
26...xd5 Now things are not clear anymore.
27.e3 e6 28.f3 b6 it's dangerous to
leave the a-pawn passed.
[ 28...g8 29.ed1 f5 30.ac1 and White
still has some initiative, but looks better
compared to the game ]
29.xb6 axb6 30.a4 a8 31.e4
[ 31.d5! can enter an endgame with a
pawn up where White has good chances to
convert the point xd5 ( 31...ab8 32.a5
bxa5 33.bxa5 and the pawn becomes too
dangerous ) 32.xd5 xa4 ( 32...h6 33.b5
and Black is dominated) 33.xa4 xa4
34.xd6 c8 35.xb6 h6 and it's not clear
if the endgame is winning or not, but White
is much better anyway. ]
31...f5
[ 31...d5 was another option 32.d4 xa4
33.xa4 xa4 34.xb6 e8 ]
32.f4 g8 Black has no active plan and a
lot of weak pawns, in a few moves the position
is close to collapse. 33.b5 b3 34.a3
f7?! 35.b1 e6 36.d1 d5 37.c3 a7
38.e5 f6 39.d4 Black can't do much
now. af8 40.c6 winning material. f4
41.c7
[ 41.xd5 xd5 42.xf6 gxf6 43.xd5
also wins ]
41...b8 42.xf4 xc7 43.xc7 xf4
44.xb6 g8 45.a5 And the passed pawns
decide the game. d4 46.g4 4f5 47.a6
d5 48.a7 d3 49.e3 d2 50.h2 d1
51.xd1 xd1 52.c7 dd8 53.b6 a8
54.d6 fe8 55.c5
1-0
80 A01
Jobava,Baadur 2710
Andriasian,Zaven 2604
Fujairah Masters 2012 (5.6) 17.11.2012
[John Bartholomew]
Jobava played the Nimzo-Larsen five times at
the Fujairah Masters, scoring a stellar 4.5/5.
Perhaps even more impressively, all but one
of his opponents were Grandmasters! He kept
the 1. b3 tra in rolling a t his next e vent in
December, the prestigious SportAccord World
Mind Games. There he achieved only
mediocre results playing 1.b3 in all his White
games (+4, =2, -7), though he did manage to
beat Ivanchuk, Mamedyarov, Giri, and
Bologan. Thanks to Mr. Jobava's herculean
efforts there is suddenly a wealth of high-level
Nimzo-Larsen theory to digest. As such, I
think it's only appropriate that we examine
some of his fine efforts this month. 1.b3 e5
The main line, as played by Jobava's
opponents in 10 of his 18 games. 2.b2 c6
[ T h e f l e x i b l e 2...d6 was preferred by
Bologan and Guseinov. ]
3.e3 f6
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ Leave it to Ivanchuk and Morozevich to try
t h e l i t t l e - k n o w n m o v e 3...ge7!?
. Those two games proceeded 4.e2 d5
5.d4 , and now:
A) 5...exd4 6.xd4 xd4 7.xd4 f5
8.d2 c6 9.c3 e6 10.0-0-0 b4
11.a3 ( 11.g4!? ) 11...a5 12.b4 c7
Jobava, B (2711)-Morozevich, A (2748)
Beijing CHN 2012 13.e4 dxe4 14.xd8+
xd8 15.xd8+ xd8 16.xe4 0-0=;
B) 5...f6!? 6.bc3 e6 7.d2 d7
8.0-0-0 0-0-0 9.b1 b8 10.a4 b6
11.h4 f5 12.dxe5 fxe5 13.g3 b4
14.c1 f7 Jobava, B (2711)-Ivanchuk,
V (2766) Beijing CHN 2012.3...Nge7!? is
very intriguing and virtually unexplored.
Based on these games, I think we'll be
seeing it again. ]
[ Nakamura went straight for one of Black's
most ambitious lines: 3...d5 4.b5 d6
5.f4 h4+!? (a disruptive check, forcing a
light-square weakness) 6.g3 e7 7.f3
f6!? 8.c3 ( 8.xc6+ bxc6 9.fxe5 fxe5
10.xe5 f6 Asimenios, A-Timoshenko, G
(2 5 3 6 ) K a va la 2 0 0 4 [ T o n yK ] h e re T o n y
indicates that W hite should play 11.xc6!
, when d7!? 12.xf6 0-0! is a fantastic
reply that might be Black's best) 8...d4!?
( a n o v e l t y ) ( 8...e6 was played in
Ismagambetov, A (2531)-Lahiri, A (2361)
Dh a k a 2 0 0 9 / [ Nig e l Da vie s ]) 9.d5
( natural, but maybe 9.exd4!? is better, e.g.
exd4+ 10.e2 d3 11.cxd3 h3 12.f2!
and Black needs to prove compensation)
9...f7 10.fxe5 fxe5 and now Jobava
sacrificed a piece for insufficient
c o m p e n s a t i o n : 11.0-0? ( 11.c4!? )
11...xd5 Jobava, B (2711)-Nakamura, H
(2760) Beijing CHN 2012. ]
4.b5 d6 5.a3!? Preparing Na3-c4. This
has been the 'tabiya' of Jobava's Nimzo-
Larsen experience thus far.
[ Alternatives like 5.e2 ]
[ 5.e2?! ]
[ and 5.h3!? can also be found in the
archives, but apparently Jobava does not
believe in them (rightly so, I think!). ]
5...a5!? Countering White's idea and
similarly distinct fashion.
[ 2700-rated Etienne Bacrot fell victim to the
Jobava 1.b3 steamroller in classical chess
after 5...e7 6.e2 0-0 7.c4 e4 8.xc6
bxc6 9.0-0 a5 10.g3 d5 11.e5 e8
12.c4 d6 13.d4 exd3 14.xd3 e4
15.cxd5 cxd5 16.f4 xf4?! ( Black is not
w o r s e a f t e r 16...xg3 17.hxg3 b7!
because 18.xd5?? e4-+ wins ) 17.exf4
xg3 18.hxg3 d7 19.e1 b7 20.d4
and th e Geo rgian e nde d u p cru is ing t o
victory Jobava, B (2710) -Bacrot, E (2702)
Fujairah City UAE 2012. ]
[ Instead, Jobava's highest-rated foe, Levon
Aronian, preferred 5...e4 . After 6.e2 e5
7.c1 0-0 8.h3 e7 9.xc6 xb2
10.xb2 dxc6 the Georgian got a bit frisky
with 11.0-0-0? and paid the price after
( 11.0-0=; 11.c4!? ) 11...a5 12.c3 b5
when White fell under serious pressure in
Jobava, B (2711)-Aronian, L (2815) Beijing
CHN 2012. ]
6.e2
[ For 6.c4!? see Karagiannis, A (2361) -
Banikas, H (2568) Salonica 2006/[John
Watson]. ]
[ The Trompowsky pioneer Julian Hodgson
has played 6.f3 on a couple occasions. It
could transpose to the game after a6 7.e2
e7 ( 7...e4!? Hodgson, J (2605)-Barsov, A
(2539) York 1999/[TonyK] ) 8.b1 . ]
6...a6 7.f3 e7 8.b1 Funny, but this is
the best move!
[ 8.c4 xc4 9.bxc4 0-0 10.0-0 e4
( 10...b6!? ) 11.e1 b5! 12.cxb5 axb5
13.xb5 b8 Utegaliev, A (2288)-
Sherbakov, R (2500) Izhevsk 2009 ]
8...0-0 9.d4
[ W hite obtained no advantage with 9.c4
in Hodgson, J (2580) -Speelman, J (2605)
England 1998/[TonyK]. ]
9...exd4 10.xd4N
[ 10.xd4 c6 11.h4 b4+!? 12.bd2
e4 13.xe7 xe7 14.a3 c3 15.xc3
xc3 16.d3 d5 17.b1 xb1
1/2 -1 /2 Filipo vic, B (2 44 4)-Bo sioc ic , M
(2571) Sibenik 2009 ]
10...e5 11.c3 b5
[ Karjakin improved Black's play a bit in
China: 11...c6 12.0-0 d6 13.f3
( 13.f3 ) 13...f5 14.c1 b4 15.d1 c5
16.e1 e4 17.xe5 xc3 18.xc3 dxe5
19.a3 c6 20.b2 f6= Jobava, B (2711) -
Karjakin, S (2775) Beijing CHN 2012. The
73
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

game was drawn. ] view. 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 g6

12.f3 b7 13.xe5 This move was never analyzed on Chess
[ Here 13.d5!? xd5 14.xe5
Publishing before, but it's a logical one. Black
deserved attention. ] wants to enter a King's Indian type of position,
13...xe5 14.f3 f5 15.xb7 xb7 where W hite is not expanding on the
16.0-0 fe8 17.e2 White has a small but queenside so easily. 4.h4 Not a surprise in
stable advantage, so his opening can be Jobava's games.
considered a success. From here it's [ 4.f4 is typical in 1.b3 positions g7 5.b5
interesting to see how utterly helpless Jobava ge7 6.f3 d6 7.fxe5 0-0 8.0-0 g4
makes his 2600 opponent look! c5 18.f3
an d Bla ck will re co ve r t he pa wn with a
d6 good position, Pap, G (2569)-Szamoskozi, G
[ 18...xe3?! is met by 19.g3 d5
(2368)/HUN-chT 1213 2012. ]
20.xd5 xd5 21.d4 , winning the
[ 4.c4 trying to expand on the queenside
exchange. ] g7 5.f3 d6 6.d4 exd4 7.e2 g4
19.e4 g5 20.g3 ad8 21.f5 e6 8.a3 ge7 9.b5 is ok for White, but
22.g4!? f4?! 23.e1 g5 24.g2 e6 not hin g spe cial, a nd se en in It urrizaga
25.d1 d7 26.h4! Jobava launches his Bonelli, E (2604)-Harika, D (2473)/Dubai op
attack. f6 27.h1 12th 2010. ]
[ N o t b a d , b u t W h i t e m i s s e d 27.d5!+-
4...h5 Black doesn't want to allow White's
with the unstoppable threat of 28.Bc1. ] expansion on the kingside, and thinks that the
27...g6 28.c1 pawn on h5 will be more useful than the one
[ 28.d5! ] on h4.
28...e5 29.h6+ g7 30.g5!
[ 4...g7 was also played and White went
Excellent! Andriasian's king is exposed to the 'all-in': 5.h5 a6 6.f4 d6 7.g4?! e7 8.g5
elements. b4 31.g4 c3 32.f2 h5? h6 but White could not control the position
[ Lo sing quick ly, bu t 32...fxg5 33.hxg5
in Mandiza, F (2404)-Liou, Y (2283)/
was no picnic either! ] Northern California op 2012. ]
33.d3 a1 34.gxf6+ h7 5.f3 White tries to play like in an English, but
[ On 34...xf6 35.h6+ decides. ] this pawn on h4 makes things more
35.d2 df8 36.f7! Black resigned, as he's comfortable for Black. g7 6.c4 d6 7.d3
facing a decisive loss of material. The line ge7 8.bd2 a5 9.a3 0-0 10.c2 b8
with 1...e5 and 4...Bd6 is one of Black's most This looks a bit mysterious, but it's aimed
theoretically respected answers to the Nimzo- against White's long castling. 11.e2 g4
Larsen, and the analysis here shows he is fine 12.e4 d7 13.0-0-0?! This move is not
in m o re t h a n o n e wa y. No n e t h e le s s, it ' s
prudent and after it Black's position should be
awesome to see how a creative and strong better. Dubov now plays actively and precisely
player like Jobava can play for the full point!and quickly gets the better position.
1-0 [ 13.0-0 would be normal, and better f5
14.g3 and the position looks slightly better
for Black, but nothing serious. ]
81 A01 13...b5 W ithout losing any time. 14.cxb5
Jobava,Baadur 2706 xb5 15.d4 The beginning of a nice
Dubov,Daniil 2614 sequence. White is pushing all Black's pieces
Minsk Bronstein Memorial op-A (7) 17.02.14 to the first two ranks. The big problem is that
[Fier, Alexandr] after all the pieces have gone back White is a
tad over extended and the king has no safe
Following the saga of 1.b3, this month we take place to go. b6! Important, the rook can go
a look at another game of Jobava from a to c6 in some variations.
tournament that he won convincingly. This [ 15...bb8 is less precise 16.dxe5 xf3
time the approach can't be considered good 17.gxf3 xe5 18.f4 g4 19.xg7 xg7
for W hite and 0-0-0 is a bit too much in my 20.b2 White is safe with the queen going

74
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
to c3 and can even be slightly better ]
16.c5 Using the rook on b6.
[ 16.dxe5 now this is worse compared to the
note to the last move xf3 17.gxf3 xe5
18.f4 c6 this is the point 19.c3 g4
20.c4 b8 and White is under heavy
pressure ]
16...f5! Provoking White's bishop. It will be
more exposed on d3 than e2.
[ 16...c8 17.a4 b8 18.dxe5 ( 18.d5
a7 19.b1 e4 20.xg7 exf3 21.gxf3
f5 22.e4 xg7 23.exf5 xf5 ) 18...xf3
( 18...e6 19.c4 xc4 20.xc4 f5
21.c2 g4 ) 19.gxf3 xe5 20.b1 e6
21.a2 ]
17.d3 c8 18.a4 b8 19.d5 a7
[ 19...d8 to go to e6 was another
interesting option 20.c4 c6 21.dxc6 xc6
also with advantage. ]
20.c4 So, finally White got what he wanted,
but his position is now really unstable.
[ 20.e4 gives the important d4-square c6
21.dxc6 axc6 22.c4 xf3 23.gxf3 d4
and White's position is close to lost ]
20...c6 21.dxc6 xc6
[ 21...d5!? was active, but there is no reason
for Black to avoid the game continuation
22.xd5 ( 22.xd5 xd5 23.xd5 e6
24.xe6 xe6 is also good for Black)
22...xd5 23.xd5 e6 24.c7 xd5
25.cxb8 xb8 26.d2 xg2 and with the
Bishop pair for nothing, Black should be
winning. ]
22.e4
[ 22.c3 a4! 23.xa4 ( 23.d5 xd5
24.xd5 d7-+ ) 23...f5 24.c3 b5
25.xb5 xb5 and White's position
collapses ]
22...b5 23.b1 fc8 I don't like this plan
so much.
[ 23...xf3 was another way to proceed and
it would be my preference 24.gxf3 d4
25.xd4 exd4 26.a2 fc8 27.he1 d5!?
28.exd5 d6 29.e4 f8 30.c1 f5
and White has little to do ]
24.a2
[ 24.c1 could exchange some pieces, but
th e p o s it io n re m a in s goo d f o r B la ck d5
25.xd5 xc2+ 26.xc2 xc2 27.xc2
xd5 28.exd5 f5+ 29.d2 d8
and there is no way to defend the d5-pawn
30.b6 ( 30.d1 e4 31.g5 f6 32.h3
g4 33.e1 xd5+ ) 30...d6 31.c4
xd5+ 32.e2 d3+ and White is in
trouble ]
24...e6
[ 24...b7 can give White some counterplay
25.d3 d5 26.xd5 and White releases the
pressure with massive exchanges xd5
27.xd5 xd5 28.xd5 xf3 29.gxf3 c2
30.b4! axb4 31.b3 xf2 32.axb4 xf3+
33.c4 and things are not so clear ]
25.c1 h6
[ 25...b7 26.d3 d5 27.exd5 e4
28.xe4 xd5 29.xg7 b4+ ]
26.g5 xc4 Now things become more
unclear.
[ 26...xg5 27.hxg5 e8 with the idea of
28...Nc6 keeps the advantage ]
27.xc4 e8 28.d3 f6?! After this move
things are more or less ok for White. During
half a move!
[ 28...c6 is still possible, and after 29.c3
xc3+ ( 29...bd4 30.d5 g7 31.c3
W h it e is in t h e ga m e) 30.xc3 a4!
White is still under pressure ]
29.f4? An original idea, but White is just lost
after this move.
[ 29.xc8 is quite decent and White is
a l r e a d y o k xc8 ( 29...xc8 30.c4+!
xc4 31.bxc4 fxg5 32.cxb5 xb5 33.c1
with a balanced endgame) 30.b6! b8
( 30...fxg5 31.xc8 xc8 32.d5+ h7
33.a4 d4 34.c1 and White is already
better ) 31.d5 and it is Black who needs to
take care to not be worse ]
29...fxg5 30.hxg5 f8? This is still not losing,
but complicates the position for no reason.
[ 30...g7 is quite simple and I don't see
h o w W h i t e ca n co n t i n u e t o a t t a c k 31.f5
( 31.fxe5 xe5-+ ) 31...gxf5 32.exf5 e4
33.xe4 xb2 34.xb2 xc1 35.xc1
f7 and Black is winning ]
[ 30...xc1 31.xc1 f8 32.f5 gxf5 33.exf5
f7 followed by 34...Qd5 and Black is a
piece up ]
31.fxe5 dxe5 32.xe5 xc1 33.xc1 c8?
This is already pleasant for White.
[ 33...d8 was good and Black is still better
34.c4+ h7 35.e6 g8! and White
can't increase the pressure ]
34.c5 c6
75
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 34...g7 Black needs this move to defend Morozevich, A (2731) -Karjakin, S (2777)/
the position 35.xg7 xg7 36.a4 a7 Moscow 2014 (1-0 (33)), when Black could
37.e6+ g8 38.d4 f7 and somehow consider opening the position by exf3 ]
Black is holding ] 8.e2 0-0
35.d7 xe5? Now Black is basically lost. [ 8...e6 9.d3 ( 9.0-0 ) 9...b4+! 10.c3
[ 35...g7 was still possible and necessary, xc3+ 11.xc3 e7 12.0-0 0-0-0
but White can at least take the piece back with play on the two central files, Bromann,
36.xg7 xg7 37.f6 d8 38.xd8 xd8 T (2385)-Jones, G (2624)/Reykjavik 2011,
39.xc6 d2+ 40.a1 xg2 but Black has 0-1 (47), although White is fairly solid. ]
counterplay because of the active rook and 9.0-0 Now Black has a wide choice. b6
the h-pawn ] However, this is the first time for this move.
36.d5+ f7 Black plans to bring his light-square bishop to
[ 36...g7 37.f6 f7 38.xc8 either b7 or a6.
is also good enough for White ] [ 9...e8 is sensible, 'over-protecting' the
37.xf7+ advanced e4-pawn, 10.f3 ( 10.d3 f5
1-0 11.g3 g6 Bromann, T (2395)-
Christensen, S (2290) Denmark 2013, 1-0
(56), 12.f4!? exf3 13.xf3 I like White here,
82 A01 e4 is co ming.) 10...exf3 11.xf3 e6
Jobava,Baadur 2713 12.e1 e4 13.d3 h4 14.f1!? xc4
Dukaczewski,Piotr 2288 15.bxc4 d2 16.xf7! e7 ( 16...xf1?
Tromsoe ol (Men) 41st (2.1) 03.08.2014 17.xg7+ f8 18.xf1+ forces f6
[Kosten, Tony] 19.xf6 xf6 20.xh7! with advantage.)
17.xe7 xe7 18.f4 f8 19.g4?
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6 ( 19.e5 ) 19...xe3+?! ( 19...f6! wins, as
5.a3 e4 An ambitious alternative to the 20.xf6? xf6 attacks a1 and threatens
more popular moves mate on f1.) 20.h1 f6 21.xf6 xf6
[ 5...a5 and ] 22.g3 Ivanchuk, V (2731)-Vachier Lagrave,
[ 5...a6 ] M (2745) Beijing 2013, 1/2-1/2 (68). ]
6.c4 Normal. [ 9...c5 is also positionally well-founded,
[ 6.e2 allows e5 exchanging dark square 10.g3 g4 11.e1 e6 Jobava, B
bishops, as in Jobava, B (2711)-Aronian, L (2711)-Giri, A (2720) Beijing 2012, 0-1 (83),
(2815)/Beijing Sportaccord blitz 2012, and when W hite should probably play his
Nakamura, H (2786)-Jones, G)/5th Classic thematic 12.f3 here, exf3 13.xf3
GpC 2013 (4.2). ] with the typical play down the f -file and
6...e7 7.xc6 strong centre. ]
[ 7.f4?! is met by b4! threatening to win [ 9...g4 10.d3 d5!? 11.h3 h5
the bishop, 8.e5 0-0 9.a3 bd5 10.e2 is more aggressive, 12.e1 ( 12.hxg4?!
d6 forcing White's pieces to retreat, xg4 13.e1? is met by h4! 14.f4
K a rl s s o n , L ( 2 4 5 3 )- Na rc i so D u b la n , M xf2+ 15.f1 h4 winning. ) 12...e6
(2535)/ Montcada 2010, but 1-0 (55). ] 13.f4 f5 14.xe6 fxe6 15.e2 ad8
7...dxc6 Black accepts 'Exchange Spanish' 16.ad1 b4 17.f1 d5 18.a3 d6
doubled c-pawns to free the bishop and use 19.dxe4?! ( White has repelled the early
the open d-file. a t t a c k , a n d c o u l d n o w p l a y 19.f4
[ The more ambitious 7...bxc6 was preferred with advantage.) 19...xe4 20.d2?! g5
by Karjakin this year, 8.e2 ( 8.d3 0-0 21.h4?! xc2! 22.a1? f3+! 23.gxf3
9.e2 d5 10.d2 exd3 11.cxd3 c5 g6+ 24.h1 h5 25.c4 f4
with the bishop pair and more space in 0-1 (25) Bromann, T (2413) -Ris, R (2407)
return for the doubled pawns, Ipatov, A Copenhagen 2014. ]
(2613)-Karjakin, S (2771)/Dubai 2014, 0-1 10.a4 e8
(31). ) 8...0-0 9.0-0 d5 10.e5 e8 11.f4 [ 10...c5 would stop White's next. ]

76
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11.d4! Aiming at both c6 and f 5. d5
Defending both squares.
[ 11...b7 12.f5 c5 was still possible, but
maybe White could play 13.f3! anyway: exf3
14.xf3! xf3 15.xf3 with strong threats. ]
12.f3 exf3 13.xf3 xf3 14.xf3 c5
15.b5
[ 15.f5 is more natural, but White may
have been put off by xf5 16.xf5 e4
17.af1 f6 18.d3 d6 19.xd6 xd6
although he still has some advantage after
20.e4 and g4. ]
15...d8? This is passive, and leads to the
sort of endgame that any strong player would
strive to avoid.
[ 15...d5! kept the game interesting, 16.e4
a6 17.exd5 axb5 18.axb5 xa1+ 19.xa1
d7 regaining the pawn with equality. ]
16.xf6 Of course. gxf6 17.af1 a6 18.c3
b7 19.g3+
[ 19.f4 was stronger, with d3 and e4 as in
the game. ]
19...h8 20.d3 e7
[ 20...f5!? was a good chance, the point
being that 21.xf5 h4 wins the exchange,
22.xf7 ( 22.h3 c8 ) 22...xg3 23.hxg3
ac8 24.e4 White is better, but Black is still
alive. ]
21.e4 Now the game is over, the white knights
have nice outposts on the light squares and
Black's pawns are terribly weak. g8 22.gf3
g6 23.e3 ag8 24.g3 d8 25.g2
There is absolutely no rush. h5 26.f5
[ 26.cd5! xd5 27.xd5 g7 28.e3
would also leave Black with a bad bishop to
add to his other woes. ]
26...h6 27.cd5 gg6?
[ 27...c8 28.5f3 h4 ]
28.f4 g5 29.h4 xf5 30.xf5 h7
Now the black rook is in a mess! 31.d5
[ 31.d1! and d4 would be difficult to
counter. ]
31...g8 32.g4!? Creating a passed h-pawn,
but making the black rook useful again. f8?!
Black decides to leave his rook on the h-file
and centralise his king.
[ 32...hxg4 33.g3 h8 34.xg4 h7
was more natural, when White has quite a
lot more work ahead of him. ]
33.g3 hxg4 34.h1 c6 35.de3 c7+
36.xg4 c8 Black has managed to do
something with his bishop pair, but it won't
save him. 37.h5 e6 38.h6 e5 39.f3
e8 40.g4 d7 41.xe5+
[ 41.g7 xe6 is also good. ]
41...fxe5 42.g7 e7 43.xe6 xe6
44.g4 The rook ending should always be
w i n n i n g w i t h s u c h a c o n f i g u r a t i o n . f6
45.h5 h8 46.f1+ e6 47.f5 a5 48.c4
Forcing a sort of zugzwang. f6
[ 48...h7 49.g5 h8 50.f6+ e7
51.f5 wins lots of pawns. ]
[ 48...g8 49.h7 g1 looks like it might
defend, but then 50.f6+! e7 ( 50...xf6?
51.h8+ is check. ) 51.h6 forces h1+
52.g5 f6+ 53.xf6 xh7 54.xc6
which is hopeless. ]
49.f1 f7 50.g1 h7 51.g3 If the rook
retreats then Rg7+ wins, and if the king goes
back then Kg6 wins. h8 52.g7+ e6
53.g6
1-0
83 A01
Jobava,Baadur 2711
Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar 2764
SportAccord Rapid Men 2012 (2.7) 14.12.2012
[John Bartholomew]
Jobava opts for a strategically rich line with 3.
Bxf6!? and dismantles his formidable
opponent in a mere 25 moves! 1.b3 f6
Arguably the most f lexible answer to th e
Nimzo-Larsen, and the third most popular
re p ly o ve r a l l ( b e h i n d 1 . . . e 5 a n d 1 . . . d 5 ,
respectively).
[ J o b a v a f a c e d t h e c o p y - c a t 1...b6
a couple times in Beijing. His game with
Anish Giri proceeded 2.b2 b7 3.e3
( 3.c3!? c6 4.d4 d5 5.e3 e6 6.d2
d7 7.0-0-0 0-0-0 8.b1 b8
(apparently Kamsky had resolved to take the
copy-cat strategy to an extreme!) 9.f3 g6
10.ge2 g7 11.h4 h5 12.f4 ge7=
13.a3 hg8 14.ce2?! e5 15.h3 exd4
16.exd4 f5 and Black went on to win in
Jobava, B (2711)-Kamsky, G (2762) Beijing
CHN 2012. ) 3...e6 4.c3 c5 5.ge2 f6
6.d4 e7 7.d2 0-0 8.0-0-0 c6?! 9.d5!
exd5 10.xd5 xd5 11.xd5 f6 12.c3
b8 13.f5 d8 14.d3 f8 15.xh7
77
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
and our hero prevailed in Jobava, B (2711)-
Giri, A (2720) Beijing CHN 2012. ]
[ I ' v e n e v e r b e e n a b i g f a n o f 1...d5
(perhaps I've seen too many classic
Nim z o wi t s c h -s t yl e e xp l o it a t i o n s o f t h e
weakened d4 and e5 squares!), but it's
certainly viable. Jobava faced this as well.
2.e3 f6 3.b2 and now:
A) 3...c6 4.f4 f5 5.f3 bd7 6.h3 h6
7.c3 e6 8.g4 h7 9.g2 d6 10.d3
0-0 11.d2 e5 12.0-0-0 d4?! ( 12...exf4!
13.exf4 c7 14.e2 a5 ) 13.exd4 exf4
14.g5 hxg5 15.xg5 Jobava, B (2710) -
Ma Qun (2534) Fujairah City UAE 2012;
B) 3...g4!? 4.f3 f5 5.g4!?
(here comes the pawn roller) g6 6.h4
h5?! ( 6...h6! ) 7.g5 g8 8.e2 e6
9.f4 f5 10.c3 e7 11.ce2 d6
12.g3 d4 ( this seems risky Black should
probably just continue developing, e.g.
12...bc6 ) 13.fe2 dxe3 14.dxe3 g6
15.xd6 cxd6 16.0-0-0 bc6 17.e4
0-0-0?! 18.f4! Jobava, B (2710) -Yu
Ruiyuan (2538) Fujairah City UAE 2012;
C) 3...g6 4.c4 g7 5.cxd5 0-0 6.f3
xd5 7.e2 c5 8.0-0 c6 9.d3
(W hite is happy to adopt a Hedgehog
setup) b6 10.bd2 b7 11.a3 ad8
12.b1!? a5 13.c4 d7? 14.e4! h5
15.xg7 xg7 16.b2+ g8 17.fe5
h4 18.xd7 xd7 19.xb6
J o b a v a , B ( 2 7 1 1 ) - K a m s k y, G ( 2 7 6 2 )
Beijing CHN 2012 ]
2.b2 g6 3.xf6!? A Trompowsky-style
approach to the position. White spoils Black's
structure and aims to fight for the central light
squares with c2-c4, Nb1-c3, g2-g3, Bf1-g2, e2-
e3, Ng1-e2, etc. Ideally he'll combine this
scheme with an eventual pawn storm on the
queenside.
[ The opponents met in the blitz with the
s a m e c o l o rs . T h e re Jo b a va t rie d 3.c3
, but after d5 4.d4 g7 5.e3 c5! 6.d2
c6 7.0-0-0 cxd4 8.exd4 0-0 9.f3 h5!?
10.b1 f5 11.a3 c8 Black had achieved
a comfortable position. Jobava, B (2711)-
Mamedyarov, S (2764) Beijing CHN 2012. ]
[ White has a number of other development
schemes, e.g. 3.e4 ]
[ 3.e3 , ]
[ 3.f3 , ]
[ 3.g3 , etc. ]
3...exf6 4.c4 g7
[ Wang Hao had a unique take with 4...d5!?
, opening the center before White can clamp
down on d5. Following 5.cxd5 xd5 6.c3
d8 7.g3 g7 8.g2 0-0 9.e3 c6
10.ge2 f5 11.0-0 d7 12.d4 a5 13.a3
e8 the play was dynamically balanced in
Jobava, B (2711)-Wang Hao (2737) Beijing
CHN 2012. ]
5.c3
[ No small wonder this line attracted the
attention of the Trompowsky "Godfather",
Julian Hodgson: 5.g3 f5 6.c3 d6 7.g2
d7 8.c1 f6 9.d3!? 0-0 10.f3 d7
11.b4 (White's play is reminiscent of the
English) a6 12.0-0 e8 13.a4 and White
won a superb positional game in Hodgson, J
(2575)-Hall, J (2485) Harplinge 1998/[JR]. ]
5...f5
[ Typical play for this line is 5...0-0 6.g3 f5
7.g2 e8 8.e3 d6 9.ge2 d7 10.d4
f6 11.0-0 g5 12.b4 , as in Mellado Trivino,
J (242 6)-Va lle jo Po ns, F (2 674 ) Calvia
2005/[González, JW ]. Readers looking to
familiarize themselves with this structure
should definitely check the notes to this
game. ]
6.c1 0-0 7.g3 e8 8.g2 f4?!
Black seizes the chance to offload his doubled
f-pawn, but this is not without risk.
[ More normal is something like 8...d6 9.e3
d7 10.ge2 b8 11.0-0 f6 . Now
12.h4?! (I would be hesitant to play this if
Black had not yet committed to ...h7-h5) h6
13.f4 c6 14.d3 was Orlova, Y (1961)-Pina
Vega, S (2332) Mexico City MEX 2012,
when g5 15.hxg5 hxg5 16.h3 g4
looks good for Black. White should play 12.
d 4 o r e ve n 1 2 . d 3 i n p re p a r a t io n f o r a
queenside assault ala Hodgson-Hall. ]
[ Another example: 8...c6 9.e3 d6 10.ge2
d7 11.0-0 f6 12.b4 e6 13.b5 c7
14.d3 ac8 15.a4 d7 16.b1 h5
17.b3 h4 18.fb1 Barkhagen, J (2430) -
Holm, M (2315) Stockholm 1994. ]
9.gxf4 h4 10.f1! xc3 An unfortunate
necessity if Black wants to regain the pawn.
[ The problem is that 10...xf4? 11.d5
is already decisive, as Black cannot defend
c7: d6 ( or 11...e5 12.d4 ) 12.c5+- . ]
78
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11.xc3 Conveniently, White has managed to
lif t h i s ro o k b y m o ve 1 1 ! xf4
Black's king is vulnerable and his queenside
lies dormant, so Jobava decides it's time to
strike. d6
[ Nor does 12...h5 13.h3 d4 14.g3
promise an easy life. ]
13.h5 c6 14.h3 d4
[ 14...f6!? ]
15.e3 f6 16.f4 e7 17.f3 g5?
A serious loss of time.
[ Black must hasten to exchange queens:
17...g5! 18.d5 xd5 19.cxd5 ( 19.xd5
c6 20.f3 f5 ) 19...xf3 20.xf3 e7
with a worse but defensible position, e.g.
21.g2 f5 22.hc1 c8 23.g3 . ]
18.h3 c6? This doesn't help either.
19.hxg6 hxg6 20.xc8 axc8 21.h5! f5
Unfortunately for Mamedyarov, this was the
o n l y m o v e . 22.d3! Black's position is
collapsing. f7 Other tries fail:
[ 22...d5 23.g1 h4
24.f6++- ) 24.d4! h2
and Black is unable to pary the monster
t h r e a t s o f R g 1 - h 1 o r N f 4 xg 6 , e . g . h6
26.xg6! xg6 27.xf5+- . ]
[ 22...cd8 23.g1 h4 24.d4 h2
25.f4 is virtually the same ]
[ 22...ed8 is the best try, but 23.g1 h6
24.f4 g5 25.e4!+- shreds Black's position
beyond repair. ]
23.f4 cd8 24.h7+ f6
A beautifully timed retreat! Black resigned in
view of the irresistible threat of 26.Qa1+.
Should he interpose his rook (i.e. 25...Ng8 26.
Qa1+ Re5), then 27. Nh3 followed by 28.f4
decides. Bravo, Baadur!
1-0
84
Juan
Vallejo Pons,Francisco
Calvia II op (2) 22.10.2005
[Gonzalez, JW]
Julio Alberto GonzÃ!lez writes: "I am a
ChessPublishing subscriber. I write f rom
Argentina. I attach a game commented in
Spanish (you excuse me for not
understanding the English language very well).
I think that it is an interesting game with the
12.h4! Nimzo-Larsen Attack." I've put in selected and
severely abbreviated notes of Julio's. This
involves a translation f rom the Spanish -
forgive me if I've introduced errors but I think
the gist of it is there. 1.b3 f6 2.b2 g6
3.xf6!? Giving a type of Nimzo-Larsen
Attack. It tries to interfere with Black's
development. Just when the f8 bishop was
about to contest the long diagonal W hite
ch a n g e s p l a n s a n d f o c u s e s o n t h e l ig h t
squares via c2-c4, Nc3 Bg2, and eventually
the advance of the queenside pawns. exf6
4.c4 g7 After the game in the post-mortem,
V a lle jo h a d d o u b t s a b o u t t h is m o ve a n d
suggested the immediate
[ 4...h5?! which has not appeared in the
databases. This commentator has his
doubts about that. If Black wants to play ]
[ 4...d5 at this point, an example is 5.cxd5
( 5.e3!? ) 5...xd5 6.c3
( 23...h6 A) 6...a5 7.a3 c5 8.c1!? . JW Note:
25.f4+- This isn't very convincing after c6 9.e3
( 9.e4 e7 10.b2 0-0 ) 9...e6
10.c2 0-0-0!? or 10...Bd6;
B) 6...d8 7.g3 f5 8.g2 g7 9.c1 c6
10.h3 0-0 11.f4 d7 12.d4
with initiative, Lovric-Turci, Montecatini
Terme 1999. JW : this isn't much but I'd
indeed rather be White. ]
5.c3 0-0 6.g3
25.d1!! [ 6.c1!? deserves attention, defending the
knight against possible counterplay: f5 7.g3
d6 8.g2 c6 9.e3 d7 ( 9...a6!? 10.ge2
b5 11.0-0 e6 Martinez-Perelshteyn,
Catonsville 2000) 10.ge2 e8 11.0-0
reaching a ion in which Black has
experimented with various moves: 11...a5,
11...Nf6 and 11...h5!?. ]
6...f5 7.g2
A01 [ Undoubtedly 7.Rc1!? again deserved
2426 attention. 7.c1!? ]
2674 7...e8 8.e3
[ 8.h3 was looked at in the post-mortem. ]
8...d6
[ Black could use the counter-method
8...xc3!? (to avoid the suggested Rc1)
9.dxc3 d6 10.e2 d7 11.0-0 a5 12.c2
a4 13.fd1 e7 14.f4 c6 A.Segal-U.
Andersson, Sao Caietano 1999 ]
9.ge2 d7 10.d4?! Al Nimzo-Larsen
79
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

player might disagree with this return to a threatening one if flipping the colours, the
classical central scheme. Perhaps it's a a idea employed by Black in our main game,
matter of taste. would be no threat against the Pirc/Modern.
[ 10.0-0 c6 11.c1!? ] Obviously, with a tempo less, it is even less
10...f6 11.0-0 g5!? An ambitious decision. dangerous. There are two main alternatives:
[ Mellado hoped for 11...e4 12.d3 xc3 A) 5...c5
13.xc3 followed by b4-b5 with good play A) 6.d2?! xf2+ ( 6...g4!? 7.e3 xe3
for White. ] 8.fxe3 xe3 9.e2 xc2+ 10.d1
12.b4 b8?! xa1 11.xe5 0-0 12.xa1 e8 )
[ Mellado thought that it was better to play 7.xf2 g4+ 8.e1 e3 9.c1 xg2+
12...d7 13.b5 ( 13.xb7 b8 14.g2 10.f2 h4 11.gxh4 xh4+
xb4 ) 13...c6 ] Ca sas, E -Rod rigu e z, I/ Bu e n os Aire s
13.b5 d7 14.d3 1975;
[ Maybe directly 14.a4!? ] B) 6.e3 g4 ( 6...d4!? 7.e4 a5 8.a3 h5
14...h5 15.a4 JW: this is the end of the 9.h4 e7 10.d2 g4 11.gf3 a6
opening so I'll just give the moves from here Bezold, M-Aagaard, J/Budapest 2003)
on out. Note that the above are truncated 7.c1 0-0 8.a3 a5 9.h3 e6 10.d2
co m m e n t s b a s e d u p o n Ja vie r G o n za le z' d7 11.e2 b6 Castro Rojas, O-
extensive notes. h8!? 16.a5 h4 17.a6 b6 Gipslis, A/Budapest 1977;
18.gxh4 C) 6.f3 0-0 7.0-0 ( 7.xe5 xf2+
[ 18.d5 ] 8.xf2 xe5 9.h3 e8 10.f1 xh3
18...gxh4 19.f4 11.xh3 eg4+ 12.xg4 xg4+
[ 19.h1!? ] 13.g1 e3 14.c1 xf1 15.xf1
19...h6 20.h1 g8 21.g1 was played in Craveta, C-Hervas, F/IECG
[ 21.fd5! f4 ( 21...xd5 22.xd5 ) Email 1998, and now Black's best seems
22.xf4 xf4 23.exf4 g6 24.g1 ] to be e7 16.e1 f5; 7.d4 exd4
21...xf4! 22.exf4 g6 23.d5 xd5 8.xd4 xd4 9.xd4 e7 10.xc5
24.xd5 e7!? xc5 Zimmermann, J-Kund, W/ICCF
[ 24...f6 25.xg6 ( 25.f3!?; 25.ae1!? ) Email 2001) 7...e8 ( Black has a couple
25...fxg6 26.e1 ] of alternatives at this point: 7...e7!? 8.a3
25.g5?! e4 9.dxe4 dxe4 10.d4 , Lovati, P-
[ 25.ae1! bg8! 26.f3! f6 27.h5+ Sbarra, M/ Bratto 1998, and now xd4
g7 28.xg6+ fxg6 29.g5! ] 11.xd4 d8 12.e3 xd4 13.exd4 c5
25...xg5 26.fxg5 xg5 27.g1 h5! 14.c3 f5; and 7...e4!? 8.dxe4 dxe4
28.e3 g8! 9.xd8 xd8 10.fd2 e3 , Zimmermann,
[ 28...e8? 29.f4 ] J-Korosec, S/ICCF Email 2001, and now
29.e7?? 11.xf6 gxf6 12.e4 exf2+ 13.h1 b6
[ 29.xg8+ xg8 30.f3 ] 14.a3 e5 ) 8.c3 b6 9.a3 g4
29...xg1+ 30.xg1 d1+ 31.g2 h3+ 10.h3 h5 11.h4 e4 12.e1 d7
0-1 Flesch, J-Szekely, M/Budapest 1969 ]
[ B) 5...d6!? 6.c3 ( 6.d2 0-0 7.e4 g4
8.e2 dxe4 9.dxe4 e7 10.h3 xe2
85 A01 11.xe2 a3 12.xa3 xa3 Keskinen,
Kamsky,Gata 2714 S-Lehtivaara, P/Finland Team Ch 2002)
Ponomariov,Ruslan 2705 6...d4 7.b1 0-0 8.f3 e6 9.0-0 d7
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (36) 22.11.2007 10.e1 fe8 11.c3 dxc3 12.xc3 h3
[Carsten Hansen] 13.h1 h6 14.c1 ad8= Vajda, A-Tincu,
R/Tusnad 1997 ]
1.g3 d5 2.g2 f6 3.b3 e5 4.b2 c6 6.h3
5.d3 h5?! [ 6.f3!? ]
[ A novelty, but not really a particularly 6...b4+

80
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 6...c5!? 7.f3 e7 ] 86 A01

7.d2 e6 8.a3 d6 9.e3 Karayannis,Athanasios 2361
[ White's set-up looks like something you Banikas,Hristos 2568
would see in games between much lower 56th ch Salonica GRE (8) 04.12.2006
rated players, but it is quite flexible and not [John Watson]
entirely bad as Kamsky soon will
demonstrate. An alternative is 9.gf3 d7 More original chess is stemming from the
10.c4!? ] variation in this game that any other 1.b3 line.
9...e7 10.b4 0-0-0 11.b5 b8 12.a4 The highest-rated players seem to be treating
bd7 13.gf3 b8 it as a main line just two years ago it was only
[ 13...e4 14.d4 is fine for White ] a 'surprise' opening with great shock value.
14.a5 c8 15.a6 b6 16.g5 c6 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6
[ 16...c5 17.xe6 fxe6 ( 17...xe6 5.a3 The idea is to play Nc4 and make the
18.0-0 e8 19.f3 is pleasant for White) bishop on d6 look foolish.
18.d4 cd7 19.c4 exd4 20.xd4 ] [ 5.e2 has also been played. but commits
17.xe6 White's bishop to exchange on c6 after a6
[ 17.bxc6 xc6 18.0-0 cc8 19.c4!? ] 6.xc6 dxc6 . Compare the lines below. ]
17...fxe6 18.bxc6 xc6 19.0-0 c7 20.c4 5...a5!? Now an established move, this
hc8 21.e2 stops Nc4 and clears the way to drive White's
[ 21.f4!? ] bish o p a wa y b y . . . c6 . B u t 5 . . .a 6 is a ls o
21...b4 possible, as in this month's game Barnaure-
[ 21...g5!? ] Grunberg. 6.c4!? An interesting new try.
[ 21...e4!? ] [ We've seen 6.f3 a6 7.e2 on this site,
22.fc1 d6 with e4!? and 7...Qe7. ]
[ 22...g5!? 23.f3 e4 24.dxe4 dxc4 ] [ The line 6.e2 a6 (versus Nb5) 7 c4 and 7
23.f3 e4?! Nf3 have also been analysed. White hasn't
[ 23...h7!? ] really gained anything special in all these
24.dxe4 dxe4 25.d4 e7 26.b5 c6 lines, but they have all yielded f ighting
27.c2 e5 28.a4 c5? ideas for both sides. ]
[ This more or less stops Black's counterplay 6...xc4 7.xc4 c6 8.f3 e7
by blocking the open c-file. Instead 28...d6 White seems to be losing the centre.. Black
p r o v i d e s B l a c k wi t h b e t t e r c h a n c e s o f threatens ... Bc7 and . ..d5, while ...e4 can
obtaining sufficient counterplay, e.g. 29.d2 also be a strong move. So he should move
c5 30.a1 e6 31.ad1 c7 fast. 9.d4?!
, and Black is still in the game, for instance: [ 9.h4! g6 10.f4 exf4 11.0-0 goes for the
32.d4 exd4 33.exd4 e3 34.fxe3 ce4 initiative, with unclear prospects. ]
35.d5 d6 36.dxc6 xg3 , and now Black 9...e4 10.e5 Probably best, but the knight
is actually better ] lacks good retreat squares and has to be
29.c3 6c7 30.xe4 xe4 31.xe4 f6 handled carefully. 0-0 11.a4
32.g2 e4 33.xf6 gxf6 34.xh5 d7 [ 11.0-0 c7 12.e2 d6 13.c4 b5
35.a1 cd8 14.d2 d5 obviously favours Black, who
[ 35...e6 36.h6 e8 37.b1 f8 has the centre and attacking prospects. ]
38.h5 f5 39.c5 c8 40.c6+- ] 11...c7 Now 12...d6 is threatened, winning a
36.f5 e8 37.cc1!? piece! So White prepares a retreat square.
[ 37.xe4! ] 12.h3 d6
37...e6 38.xe6 xe6 39.d1 c7 [ 12...h5?? 13.g6 ]
40.xd7+ xd7 41.d1+ c6 42.g4 b5 13.g4 d7 14.f4!? White wants to secure
43.cxb5+ xb5 44.f1+ b4 45.b1+ f2 for his knight this is too ambitious. Better is
c3 46.c1+ b4 47.c4+ [ 14.0-0 , although h5 15.h2 d5 16.e2
1-0 g5! launches a serious attack. ]
14...h4+ 15.f1

81
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 15.f2? g3 hits g2 and e3. ]
15...b6! 16.e1?!
[ 16.e2 f5 17.f2 g3 18.d2 f6
keeps the attack going. ]
16...xe1+ 17.xe1 xc4 18.bxc4 e6
19.c5 Forced, if White is not to lose material.
But structura lly, it dooms his po sition . f5
20.f2 dxc5 21.dxc5 fd8 Two bishop s,
central control, and W hite's weak pawns
make success very likely f or Black in the
position. The rest is easy to understand.
22.d1 a5+ 23.f1 xd1+ 24.xd1 d8
25.d4 b6 26.f2
[ 26.cxb6 c5 ]
26...bxc5 27.xc5 d2+ 28.g3 a6!
Black is in no hurry, and saves his a-pawn
before picking up material. 29.f2 xc2
30.d4 c5 31.e5 e2! 32.b1 e1
33.b8+ f7 34.b7+ e8 35.d6 xf2+
36.h2 d7
0-1
87
Kovacevic,Blazimir
Marzolo,Cyril
6th EICC Warsaw POL (6) 23.06.2005
[John Watson]
It's silly to call the variation in this game the
'Ma in L in e ' o f 1 . b 3 , b u t B la ck 's se t u p i s
certainly popular! So nice to see professional
players having some fun. I'll try to incorporate
as much theory as I can of what Tony has
already laid out on this site. 1.b3 e5 2.b2
c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6!? This has been
all the rage versus 1.b3. 5.a3 Heading for
c 4 t o e m b a r r a s s t h e b i s h o p . a5!
We've seen this before. White really only has
one idea so far, and Black prevents it at all
positional cost! 6.e2
[ The main alternative has been 6.f3
7.e2 e7 8.b1 Rather than acquiesce
to exchanging the a5-knight. ( 8.c4 xc4
9.xc4 b5 10.e2 b7 or 10...0-0 looks
fine: Black has space and actively-placed
pieces. ) 8...0-0 9.c4 ( 9.h4 threatens Nf5.
It is consistent to put yet another knight on
the side of the board, and perhaps e6
10.g4 b5 11.g1 with the i dea of g5 (and
perhaps Bg4) would complete the insanity.
This time W hite's position is a bit hard to
believe in.) 9...b6 10.c3 b7 11.0-0
fe8 12.d3 a3 13.c1 xb2
1/2-1/2 Hodgson-Speelman, Birmingham
1998. ]
6...a6 Versus Nb5, and thus 'threatening' ...
Qe7. 7.c4 The games that Tony cites as
options are still relevant (one might also want
to look at Jeroen Bosch's SOS volumes), e.g.,
:
[ 7.f3 e4!? ( 7...e7 8.c1 b5 9.c4
bxc4 10.xc4 xc4 11.xc4 a5
'with counterplay' (Kosten), Murey-
Sveshnikov/USSR, 1975.) 8.d4 g6 9.c4
0-0 10.b1!? ( TK: 10.0-0!? e7 11.b1?
e5! 12.g3 c5 13.f4 exf3 14.xf3 e4 )
10...e8 11.c3 e5! ]
7...0-0
[ 7...c5 has also been played ]
8.c2 e8 9.d3 f8 10.f3 c6
[ 10...e4 11.dxe4 xe4 12.0-0 gives White
a standard English Opening advantage, and
Black's a5 serves no purpose. ]
A01 11.e4 White's d4 is almost always met by ...e4,
2510 so he looks for an alternative plan. Now Ne3-
2388 d5 is a possibility. b5 12.0-0 bxc4 13.bxc4
c5 14.d2 d6 15.b3 a7 Since Nxc5
wa s n ' t r e a l l y a t h r e a t , B l a c k c o u l d a l s o
consider
[ 15...a5 ]
16.c3 e7 17.e3 d7 18.d2 g6
19.fe1 f4 20.f1 g4 Neither side is
doing much but at least Black has kingside
ideas like ...Qg5/h4 and ...Re6-g6. Thus he
should consider
[ 20...6h5 ]
21.xg4 xg4 22.d4 c5?!
[ 22...g5 ]
23.d5 d7
[ 23...g5 ]
24.c1 b6
a6 [ 24...h4 Black now has a bad bishop on
a7 and no attack. Still, it's hard for White
to undertake anything. ]
25.d3 xd3 26.xd3 h4 27.g3 g4
28.f4 exf4 29.xf4 c7 30.ab1 ab8
31.b3 f6 32.a3 a5 33.b3 xb3
34.axb3 xf4 35.gxf4 b8 36.c2 f7
37.f2 g6 38.f3 This must have been a
time forfeit, or the result was really a draw.
1-0
82
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
88 A01
Larsen,Bent 2660
Andersson,Ulf 2535
Teeside (10) 1972
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5
[ 4.c4!? is also perfectly playable. ]
4...d6
[ 4...d6!? now seems to be critical here,
Black intends 0-0, Re8, Bf8 and d5 or ...e4
followed by Be5. Although there is now
plenty of scope for creativity, no clear path
to an advantage has been found for White.
One idea that appealed to me was 5.a3
( 5.e2 0-0 6.0-0 e8 7.g3 a6 8.xc6
dxc6 9.d3 is about level, but might appeal to
certain players who like to play the
Rossolimo anti-Sicilian or the exchange Ruy
Lopez. Personally I would tend to prefer
W hite in such positions, because I can
look forward to playing f4 in the long term,
while with Black I am less sure about what
I should be trying to do, if anything.) 5...a5
I know, it's all a bit weird, but it has been
seen several times before and does make
some sense- it's all about the e5 pawn.
6.e2 a6 7.c4!? xc4 8.bxc4 e7
The structural change is not obviously bad
for White, and Black's piece still look odd, so
I feel White might have some chances to be
b e t t e r h e r e . 9.a4?! looks too slow- white
s o o n s u f f e r s f o r l a c k o f d e ve l o p m e n t .
( 9.h3!? 0-0 10.0-0 intending f4.; 9.f3
e4 10.d4 g6 11.g4!? food for thought.)
9...0-0 10.h3 c5 11.f4? xe3 12.xe5
a7 13.f2 d6 14.b2 e8 15.d4 g4
0-1 Sakaev, K (2540) -Sveshnikov, E (2525)/
Gausdal 1992 ]
5.f3
[ I include the following game to show
another polished positional win with 1.b3.
Once again, W hite gained no theoretical
advantage, but he did gain some strategic
imbalance, and this was enough to
demonstrate his relative strength. 5.e2 g6
6.d4 g7 7.dxe5 d7 8.xc6 bxc6 9.f4
dxe5 10.0-0 0-0 11.g3 f5 12.d2 e7
13.e2 b6 14.f3 exf4 15.xg7 xg7
16.exf4 xe2 17.xe2 c5 18.c4 b7
19.e5 fd8 20.ad1 d6 21.c3 ad8
22.fe1 f6 23.f2 a6 24.g3 xd1
25.xd1 xd1 26.xd1 e6 27.e3 d7
28.xd7 xd7 29.f2 g2 30.d3 d6
31.e5 e4 32.d2 e6 33.h4 e7
34.c3 a5 35.b2 d6 36.f7+ e7
37.g5 h6 38.h3 c6 39.f2 d6
40.d3 e8 41.a3 d7 42.b2 e8
43.c3 d7 44.d2 e8 45.e3 c6
46.e5 e8 47.g4 fxg4 48.xg4 h5
49.e5 e6 50.e4 a4 51.bxa4 xa4
52.f5+ gxf5+ 53.f4 c2 54.f3 d6
55.d2 e6 56.f1 d6 57.e3 b1
58.a3 c6 59.xf5 b6 60.e3 a5
61.g5 a4 62.xh5 xa3 63.g5 h7
64.h5 b3 65.h6 e4 66.g7 c3
67.h6 d4 68.f1 c2 69.d2 e5
70.b3 d6 71.f6 h7 72.d2
1-0 Hodgson, J (2590)-Van der Sterren, P
(2555)/Germany 1998 ]
5...d7 6.0-0 e7 7.e2!? A noteworthy
idea. On the one hand this move simply loses
a tempo, but because the bishop was on b5
Bla ck d e ve lo p ed h is p ie ce s t o re la t ive ly
passive squares, so although the tempo was
'lost' it was not entirely 'wasted'. 0-0 8.c4 e8
9.c3 f8 10.d3 h6 11.a3 a5 12.d2
e7 13.de4 g6 14.xf6+ xf6 15.g4!
I love the simplicity of Larsen's play. Now he
has a pleasant initiative on the light squares.
xg4 16.xg4 c6 17.ac1 ad8 18.fd1
e6 19.h3 e7 20.g3 d7 21.e4 e7
22.h1 f8 23.f1 h5? An unprovoked
error? Well not exactly provoked, but some
p l a ye r s f in d i t e xcr u c i a t i n g ly d if f i c u l t t o
manoeuvre indefinitely. That said, I would not
have though Ulf Andersson was one of them,
so this move must simply have been based on
an oversight. 24.xh5 h8
[ 24...f4 25.gxf4 h6 26.f5
My best guess is that Black missed this
move when deciding to play ...h5. ]
25.g4! f5 26.exf5 h6 27.d1 xf5
28.xf5 xf5 29.g2 g6 30.e3 fh5
31.g4 h8 32.h1 f6 33.c3 b6 34.b4
axb4 35.axb4 f7 36.a1 b8 37.a7+
e7 38.e1 hh8 39.d4 a8 40.b7 hb8
41.xb8 xb8 42.dxe5 dxe5 43.xe5 a8
44.xf6 gxf6 45.h6+
1-0
83
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
89 A01
Larsen,Bent 2660
Cafferty,Bernard 2440
Teeside (14) 1972
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 d5 4.b5 d6
5.c4!? I like this move, but only when it is tied
to the noteworthy follow-up.
[ 5.f4!? would be the first choice of most
players, but it would appear that after f6
White has no advantage and might even be
in danger of being worse. Ilya Odessky
seems to admit as much in his recent book.
A) 6.fxe5 fxe5 7.xc6+ bxc6 8.xe5
h4+! 9.g3 e4;
B) 6.f3 e4 ( 6...exf4!? ) 7.d4 ge7;
C) 6.h5+ g6 7.h4 exf4 8.exf4 f7!?
Black threatens ...Nce7-f5. 9.xc6 bxc6
10.e2 is just about playable, but White's
play does not convince, for instance after
t h e s i m p l e e7 intending Qe4, White's
position does not add up.;
D) 6.h3!? ge7 7.fxe5 fxe5 8.0-0
f5! is comfortable for Black. ]
5...dxc4 6.f3! A significant detail. White
forces Black to slightly misplace his pieces
before recapturing on c4.
[ 6.xc4 f6 is easier for Black. ]
[ 6.bxc4 is playable, but looks odd, partly
because now that the queenside is open,
Bxc6 doesn't feel like a positional threat. ]
6...ge7
[ 6...e7!? 7.xc6+ bxc6 8.c1!? f6
( 8...a6 9.a3 seems to work.) 9.xc4
0-0 And I don't think White is actually better,
but the position is strategically rich, and
Black will have to play well to show the
dynamic compensation for his damaged
structure. ]
7.xc4! And now the knight on e7 is badly
placed and W hite has chances of retaining
some initiative. f5 8.c3 h4 9.g3 xf3+
10.xf3 0-0 11.h4!? Larsen became famous
f o r p u s h i n g h i s r o o k ' s p a wn s , o f t e n f o r
mysterious reasons, but I noticed that very
often they provoked anti-positional reactions,
as was the case here. e6?! 12.xe6 fxe6
13.e2 f6 14.e4 f5 15.d3 White has
control. ad8 16.g4 f7 17.a3 e7
18.0-0-0 d6 19.b1 e7 20.a2 a5
21.h5 d7 22.h6 g6 23.d4 exd4 24.xd4
e5 25.b2 b5 26.a1 b8 27.d5 e7
28.d3 e6 29.hd1 b6 30.g5 c8
31.f4 c6 32.g2 e7 33.fxe5 c5
34.d7 xe3 35.xe7 xg5 36.g7+ h8
37.e6
1-0
90 A01
Larsen,Bent
Eley,Brian
Hastings 1972
[Nigel Davies]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6?!
B l a c k p l a ys a m o ve t h a t l o o k s s e n s i b l e
enough but it proves to be rather too passive.
[ B l a c k ' s b e s t l i n e i s p r o b a b l y 4...d6
which featured in a couple of games from
last month's update. The treatment I most
like d f o r W h it e wa s u se d in V a iss e r, A
(2515) -Gozzoli, Y (2520)/Belfort FRA 2010,
which went 5.e2 a6 6.xc6 dxc6 7.d3
e7 8.e4 d7 9.0-0 0-0 10.d2 c5
11.f4 g4 12.f5 with slightly the better
game for White. ]
5.e2 d7 6.0-0 e7 7.f4! e4
[ 7...exf4 8.xf4 would also be far from
pleasant for Black with White having such
active pieces. ]
8.g3 0-0 9.xc6 bxc6
[ 9...xc6 10.f5 d7 11.xe7+ xe7
would also be very nice for White because
of his powerful bishop on b2. Though this
migh t h a ve b e e n b et t e r t h a n t h e ga m e
because Black would at least have simplified
the position a little. ]
10.c4 d5 11.c3 e8 12.c1 g4
13.ce2 d7 Clearly intending to challenge
the bishop on b2 with 14...Bf6 but this bishop
is also needed to defend Black's weaknesses
on the c-file.
[ 13...a5 looks like a better move, trying to
generate some counterplay on the a- or b-
files. ]
14.h3 xe2 15.xe2 c5? After this White
generates a dangerous kingside attack.
[ 15...f6 would also have left Black in
trouble after 16.xf6 xf6 17.cxd5 cxd5
18.f5 d7 19.d4 intending to double
84
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

rooks on the c-file. ] 4...e4 5.d4 c5 Black simply gets-on with
[ T h e b e s t w a s t h e r a d i c a l 15...g6 his development. 6.xc6 dxc6! This is the
, taking away the f7 square from W hite's most direct, the c8-bishop is freed. 7.e3 f5
knight. ] Overprotection! 8.c2 e7 9.e2 0-0-0
16.g4 g6 The black rook goes straight to the open file.
[ The knight on c5 is the problem after both 10.f4? White wants to target the e4-pawn, by
16...f6 17.xf6 xf6 18.cxd5 ] playing 11 Bxf6, and then Nc3, but
[ and 16...f8 17.xg7 xg7 18.cxd5 . ] [ 10.c3 and 0-0-0, is sounder. ]
17.f5! d3 10...g4! Avoiding the threat, Black is fully
[ Or if 17...f8 there is 18.fxg6 hxg6 mobilised, and starts to attack. 11.g3 h5
( 18...fxg6 is met by 19.f5 f6 20.xf6 Simple, and effective! 12.h3 Hoping to drive
xf6 21.cxd5 ) 19.f5! d3 20.xe7+ the annoying knight away. h4! But Black is
xe7 21.f6 etc. ] h a v i n g n o n e o f i t ! 13.hxg4 hxg3
18.fxg6 hxg6 19.xf7! Tearing down the Black's piece sacrifice served to open up the h-
barricades... xf7 20.f1+ f6 21.xf6 file, and get at the white king, who is almost
1-0 devoid of defenders. 14.g1 The only move,
bu t it is t o o lat e . h1!! Black sacrifices a
whole rook for one tempo!
91 A01 [ 14...h4 is also good, as 15.g2 xg4
Larsen,Bent is winning for Black, but the played move is
Spassky,Boris V far prettier. ]
Belgrade 1970 15.xh1 g2 16.f1 Hopeless, of course, but
[Tony Kosten] [ 16.g1 is no better: h4+ 17.d1 and
h1 is the point. ]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 The most natural move 16...h4+ This forces mate. 17.d1 gxf1+
for defending the e5-pawn. 3.c4 White aims 0-1
for a reversed Sicilian position. f6 4.f3!?
A risky move, played in the style of Alekhine's
Defence, Black invites the advance of the e5- 92 A01
pawn, and consequent opening of the b2- Liascovich,Lucas 2432
bishop's diagonal. Tristan,Leonardo 2288
[ 4.e3 is sounder. ch-ARG s/f Buenos Aires ARG (3) 23.03.2006
A) 4...e7 5.a3 0-0 6.d3 d5 7.cxd5 [Tony Kosten]
xd5!? ( 7...xd5 is more normal.) 8.c3
d6 9.f3 f5 10.c2 also leads to a 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 d5 4.b5 d6
typical Sicilian-style position, with chances 5.f4 f6 A solid choice, and maybe strongest, I
for both sides, Fischer,R-Tukmakov,V/ had only previously looked at
Buenos Aires 1970.; [ 5...h4+ and ]
B) 4...d5 5.cxd5 xd5 playing these [ 5...e7!? ]
'Sicilian' positions with Black is often the 6.fxe5 fxe5 7.xc6+ bxc6 8.f3!
simplest way to equalise in these [ 8.xe5? is a blunder, h4+ ( 8...xe5?
openings. 6.a3 d6 7.c2 to control e4. 9.h5+ ) 9.g3 e4 10.xg7
0-0 8.f3 e7 9.c3 ( 9.d3!? A) 10...g4 11.c3 ( 11.d3 g6
is interesting, h8 10.e4 and now, 12.xh8 xd1 13.xd1 should favour
rather than b6?! 11.xc6 bxc6 12.d3 Black ) 11...g6 ( 11...xh1?! 12.xg4
with the superior structure, Petrosian,T- xg1+ 13.e2 xa1 14.xd5 ) 12.xh8
Balashov,Y/USSR 1978, 10...Be6 is fine.) xd1 13.xd1?! e7 and Black won in
9...xc3 10.xc3 f5!? 11.b5 e4 Alexandrou, A-Hadjiyiannis, C/Cyprus
12.xc6 bxc6 13.e5 c5 threatening ... 1992.;
Ba6, with unclear play, Larsen,B-Spassky, B) 10...xh1! 11.h5+ d8 ( 11...e7!
B/Leiden 1970. ] looks winning to me, 12.f1 f6 13.h4

85
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

a6+ 14.c4 af8 etc. ) 12.f1 xg3 B la ck h a s re ga in e d h is r o o k, a n d k e e p s

13.g5+?! e7 14.xh8? control of the initiative. 20.b2 f1 21.h2
Romero Arraya, D-Godoy, J/Pan American xh2 22.xh2 f2 23.e5 xd2 24.xd2
19 9 8 , a n d n o w xh2 was the simplest, xd2 25.f1 Phew! White finally scrapes into
winning on the spot. ] a p la ya ble po sit io n with a pa wn les s bu t
8...e7!? A good move, although opposite coloured bishops. h5 26.f6 b7
[ 8...g4 is not bad e ither: 9.h3 xf3 27.e6? White goes active at the wrong time,
10.xf3 e7 11.c4 f6 12.c3 he still had to passively defend by
Koenig, B-Leddin, M/Greifswald 2004, 0-0 [ 27.h6 g6 28.h2 ]
looks good, 13.cxd5?! e4! 14.f5 xd5 27...g6 28.e7 xc2+ 29.a3 e2
15.g4 ( 15.xe4?? g3+ 16.d1 30.xc7 b1 This is the problem, White has
xc3+ ) 15...e5 with advantage, as White's to jettison another pawn. 31.b4?! c5+!
king must stay in the centre. ] T h e m o ve h e m u s t h a ve m i s s e d . 32.c3
9.xe5 Well, this looks risky, but if White Now the king gets caught in a mating net, but
doesn't play this trick he is worse as Black has [ 32.xc5 c2+ 33.d6 c6+
a strong centre and bishop pair. g5!? wins a piece. ]
[ 9...h4+ is the theoretically approved 32...c2+ 33.d3 xa2+ 34.c3 c6
move: 10.g3 h3 11.f3 ( 11.e2? f6 35.b8 a5 36.c7+ b6 37.d7 c2+
12.a3 g4 13.xg4 xg4 14.f1 h5 38.d3 g2+ 39.c3 e4
wi t h s t r o n g p l a y o n t h e l i g h t s q u a r e s) 0-1
11...f6 12.f1 ( 12.xc6 e4 13.f1
xg3+ 14.hxg3 xg3+ 15.d1
W olf, R-Kindl, P/Moeglingen 1989 g4+ 93 A01
16.c1 g3 17.e1 e2+ draws ) Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar 2752
12...h5 13.e2?! g4 14.d4 0-0 Bacrot,Etienne 2695
and White was already losing in Blatny, P- World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (22) 22.11.2007
Nyback, T/Dos Hermanas 2004. ] [Carsten Hansen]
[ 9...xe5? 10.h5+ forks king and
bishop. ] 1.b3 d5 2.b2 c5 3.e3 c6 4.b5 a6
10.f3 xg2!! This looks like a blunder, but To me this move seems awfully
is very strong! accommodating, Black plays a sort of
[ 10...h6 11.e2 f6 Krumpak, H-Furlan, Saemisch Nimzo-Indian with a tempo less...
A/ Slovenia 1992, 12.0-0 is balanced. ] Hmm! 5.xc6+ bxc6 6.f4 f6
11.g1 h3 12.xg7 White wins the h8- [ Black has also tried: A) 6...f5 7.f3 e6
rook. xh2 13.f2?! Did he overlook Black's 8.0-0 ( 8.e5 c8 9.d3 f6 10.d2
next? d7?! 11.xd7 xd7 12.e2
[ 13.xh8 xg1 14.xg1 is the best Hofmann, K-Brieger, S/W ildflecken 1993)
chance, although g3+ 15.f1 e7!? 8...f6 9.d3 e7 10.bd2 0-0 11.e1
( 15...h3+ 16.xh3 xh3+ draws ) Timman, J-Matute, M/Zuerich simul 1988 ]
16.h5 a6+ 17.c4 f8+ with an attack. ] [ B) 6...h6!? 7.f3 f6 8.0-0 e6 9.d3
13...f6! 14.xh8 , Lopez, F-Gonzalez Perez, L/Stockholm
[ 14.xf6? f8 wins. ] 1994, and here d6 looks interesting ]
14...e4+ Not bad, but [ C) 6...f6 7.h5+ ( 7.f3!? ) 7...g6
[ 14...g4! is very strong, 15.f1 e4+ 8.h4?! h6 9.f3 g7 10.c3 f5
16.e2 g3+ 17.d3 xf1 regains the with a pleasant game for Black, Essing, A-
material, and will soon add considerable Siemes, R/GER 1999 ]
interest. ] [ D) 6...d6 7.f3 f6 8.0-0 e6 9.e5
15.e2 xg1 16.xg1 g4 The knight is e7 10.d3 0-0 11.d2 e8 12.e1
pinned, and W hite can't defend it. 17.d1! , a n d W h i t e h a s a ve r y go o d r e v e r s e d
The only try the king heads to relative safety Saemisch Variation, Kalajzic, I-Tomic, T/
on c1. 0-0-0 18.e5 f8 19.c1 xf3 Zadar 1998 ]

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

7.f3 a5 12.e5
[ Black has a number of alternatives at this [ I think White with advantage could have
ju n c t u re : A ) 7...f5 8.d3 e6 ( 8...c8 interpolated an exchange on c4 with 12.bxc4
9.e2 e6 10.0-0 e7 was Nothnagel, M- dxc4 , a n d o n l y t h e n p l a y 13.e5
Magiera, R/Hessen 1999, and here 11.e5 , leaving W hite, in my opinion, with the
0-0 12.d2 is White's best ) preferable game. ]
A) 9.e5 c7 10.d2 d7 11.df3 f6 12...cxb3 13.cxb3 b6 14.d2 g4 15.d4
12.xd7 xd7 13.0-0 ( 13.h4!? ) c5
13...g4 14.e1 Simon, P-Bauer, T/ [ 15...xe5!? looks like an attractive
Kettig 1994; alternative, for instance 16.fxe5 a6 17.f2
B) 9.bd2 b6 10.e5 h5 11.e2 f6 , and I prefer Black ]
c4!? 12.dxc4 xc2 13.c1 f5 16.c1 c4 17.a3 cxb3 18.b1 xe5
Drel, N-Benensonaite/Moscow 1972 ] 19.fxe5 e6
[ B) 7...g6 8.0-0 ( 8.e5 c7 9.0-0 g7 [ 19...f5 20.xb3 ( 20.xf5 looks attractive,
10.c3 0-0 11.a4 c4 12.bxc4 b8 bu t is p ro b a b ly n ot t h a t go o d , e . g. gxf5
13.d4 e4 Dominguez Sanz, J-Ridameya 21.xe7 fe8 22.xb3 c6 ) 20...c7
T a t c h e , J / G r a n C a n a r i a 1 9 8 9 , 14.d3!? ) , and Black shouldn't be worse. ]
8...g7 9.e1 0-0 10.e5 b6 11.c3 20.xb3 f6 21.c5 c6 22.h4 a7
c4 12.a4 ( 12.a3!? ) 12...b5 23.exf6 xf6 24.g3 a6 25.f4 c4
, Vandenbruane, C-Tabak, S/Antwerp 2000, 26.h4 aa8
and now W hite can obtain an advantage [ B l a c k c a n a l s o c o n s i d e r 26...e8
with 13.d3! cxd3 14.cxd3 f5 15.d4 intending ... .e7-e5 to open up the game
h5 ( 15...xd3?? 16.c3+- ) 16.c5 ] for Black's bishop pair. ]
[ C) 7...g4 8.h3 ( 8.0-0 e6 9.e1 c7 27.h5 g5 28.h6
10.e5 f5 11.d3 d6 12.d2 [ 28.f5!? ]
Amini, A-Noroozi, O/Tehran 2001) 8...xf3 28...d6
9.xf3 e6 10.d3 [ 28...fb8!? ]
A) 10...b6 29.g4?
A1) 11.0-0!? e7 ( 11...c4 12.dxc4 [ This loses an exchange without further ado.
c5 13.e1 ) 12.c4; A better choice is 29.h2!? intending Rf5
A2) 11.d2 e7 12.g4 0-0 13.g5 with a pleasant game for White ]
e8 14.h4 f5 15.h5 d6 16.c4 29...e2! 30.xe2 gxf4 31.f1 h8
, and White dominates the entire board, 32.xf4 g5 33.e4 xh6 34.xg5 xg5
Kalajzic, I-Bazaj Bockai, S/Pula 2001; 35.g4 f6 36.f4 g7 37.g4 f6
B) 10...e7 11.0-0 0-0 12.d2 b8 38.f4 e6 39.h4 g8 40.h5 g6
13.g3 d4 14.e4 c7 15.c4 41.e5
Raupp, K-Yahkind, A/Detroit 1992 ] [ 41.f3 ag8-+ ]
[ D) 7...e6 8.0-0 d6 41...c6
A) 9.d3 0-0 10.bd2 d7 11.e1 f6 [ 41...h3! settles everything immediately, e.
12.c4 e5 13.h4 ( 13.f5!? ) 13...b6?! g. 42.xe7 ag8 ]
( 13...exf4 14.exf4 e8 15.g3 f8 ) 42.f5 ag8 43.f2 e6 44.f3 f6
14.fxe5 fxe5 15.g3 Slagter, R-Van 45.e2 e4
Vliet, H/Hengelo 2005; 0-1
B) 9.e5 c7 10.d3 0-0 11.d2 d7
12.h5 f6 13.ef3 Reales Murto, M-
Costa Costa, E/Lorca 2005 ]
8.a4
[ Nimzowitsch would probably approve of this
move, but also 8.e5!? looks pleasant for
White. ]
8...g6 9.0-0 g7 10.d3 0-0 11.e1 c4

87
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

94 A01 17.f2?!
Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar 2752 [ 17.g1!? ]
Kamsky,Gata 2714 17...g4 18.d5?
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (19) 21.11.2007 [ 18.d5 xd5 19.xd5 xf2 20.c7+
[Carsten Hansen] f7 21.xa8 e4 ]
18...xf2 19.xf2?-+
1.b3 c5 2.b2 b6 3.f3 b7 4.d4?! f6 [ 19.g5 g8 20.xf2 b5 is clearly better
5.c4 cxd4 6.xd4 With some effort from f or Bla ck, bu t n eve rthe less b ett er tha n
White, we have landed in something similar to what happened in the game where Black is
a Hedgehog, but thanks to White's innocuous now just winning ]
handling of the opening, one that is absolutely 19...h6 20.d3 0-0+ 21.g1 h7 22.e1
harmless for Black. d6 7.c3 bd7 f6 23.c3 ad8 24.d1 g4 25.d5
[ 7...e6 8.e3 a6 9.c1 bd7 10.f3 e7 f2 26.c2 xd1?
11.e2 0-0 12.0-0= Casagrande, H- [ Black has a mate in seven with 26...h3+
Elsness, F/Yerevan 1996 ] 27.g2 f2+ 28.h1 f1+ 29.g2 g1+
8.d2 30.xh3 c8+ 31.f5 xf5+ 32.h4
[ Two examples of the game heading to a g5# ]
normal Hedgehog are 8.f3 a6 9.e4 e6 27.xd1 b5 28.cxb5 axb5 29.f3 a7+
10.e2 e7 11.0-0 0-0 12.d2 c7= 30.g2 xa2 31.c3 c8 32.d3 xb3?
Diapetis, A-Kyriakides, T/Patras 2002 ] [ A dumb blunder in a winning position. Right
[ and 8.c1 a6 9.f3 e6 10.e4 e7 11.e2 is 32...a7 in order to be able to swing the
0-0 12.0-0 c8= Srba, M-Meduna , E/ queen back to defend his majesty. ]
Prague CZE 2006. In both cases Black 33.h4 xd5+ 34.xd5 xc3 35.xd6
doesn't have any problems, though much g8 36.d7+ g7 37.xb5 e4 38.d5
depends on which player understands the e3
position better. ] [ 38...e3!? ]
8...a6 9.g1?! 39.f2 a3 40.xe4 e3 41.d5 ge7
[ A reminder that we are looking at blitz 42.b5 xe2+=
games. Although g2-g4 being seen more ½-½
and more frequently in the English Opening,
it is hardly what I call a critical line. Sadly
for White, Kamsky is less than impressed 95 A01
by Mamedyarov's idea, and soon White is Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar 2752
just worse. Normal, but harmless is 9.e3 e6 Karpov,Anatoly 2670
10.f3 e7 11.e2 0-0 12.0-0 c7 World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (24) 22.11.2007
with another equal position. ] [Carsten Hansen]
9...h5!? Stops White's g2-g4 dreams, which
leaves the rook looking quite silly on g1. 10.g3 1.b3 d5 2.b2 f5 It is quite amazing, it
[ 10.h3 c5 is better for Black ] don't find any mention of this move in either
10...e6 11.f4 ECO A (both 2nd and 4th editions),
[ 11.g2 xg2 12.xg2 c8 13.f1 e7 ChessBase's Opening Encyclopaedia 2007 or
14.g1 is probably about equal, but the J a c o b s / T a i t ' s " N i m z o - L a r s e n A t t a c k " !
fianchettoed rook doesn't exactly impress. ] Nevertheless, it has been played more than
11...c7 12.f5 e5 13.c2 g6!? 250 times according to by database. Often it
[ This appears to complicate the game Black transposes to other variations, including the
can also play the fully adequate and good Reti (quite frequently) with 3 Nf3, 4 g3, 5 Bg2,
13...e7 , e.g. 14.e3 b5 15.g2 6 0-0, 7 d3 etc or other lines in the Nimzo-
( 15.cxb5 axb5 16.xb5? b6 17.c3 Larsen Attack (not as frequently). However,
g4 wins for Black) 15...xg2 16.xg2 Mamedyarov's next move is new, though the
bxc4 is also better for Black ] idea isn't new, but loses a tempo over the 2...
14.fxg6 fxg6 15.g2 xg2 16.xg2 b7 B g 4 va r i a t i o n , a n d t h e r e f o r e c a n n o t b e

88
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
p a r t i c u l a r l y g o o d . 3.h3?! e6
Bold, but hardly any good. g6
[ 4...e4!? looks very attractive as well, e.g.
5.f3 xf3 ( 5...h5 6.g2 c6!? ) 6.exf3
f6 7.f4 c6!? ]
5.f3 d7 6.d3 h5 7.g1 hxg4 8.hxg4 c6
9.bd2 h7?!
[ This doesn't appear to make any immediate
sense unless Black intends to develop his
bishop shortly, but the bishop doesn't get
developed until move 28!. The normal move
is 9...c7!? , intending to castle queenside,
e.g. 10.c4 0-0-0 followed by ...Ne7 and ...
e5 with a better game for Black. ]
10.e4 c7 11.e2 f4 12.exd5 cxd5
13.e5 xe5 14.xe5 b4 15.f4?!
[ 15.a3!? b6 16.e3 xe3+ 17.fxe3 f6
18.b2= ]
15...b6 16.f3 f6
[ 16...c5!? 17.d4 b4+ 18.d1 0-0-0 ]
17.d4 a6?!
[ 17...c5!? 18.xc5 xc5
( 19.xe6+ f8 20.0-0-0
19...d7 ]
18.f5 f7 19.g5 h5 20.fxe6 c8
[ 20...xf3 21.xf3 xe6+ 22.d2 0-0-0
23.e1 h2+ 24.g2 xg2+ 25.xg2 ]
21.h3
[ 21.c3!? ]
21...xf3 22.xf3 xc2 23.f5?!
[ White appears to be winning after 23.d1!
, for instance: c7 ( 23...xa2 24.c1 b4
25.c8+ e7 26.gxf6+ gxf6 27.c7+ d8
28.e7++- ) 24.f5 h2 25.gxf6 xf6
26.g3+- ]
23...a5+?!
[ 23...hh2!? ]
24.f1 hh2 25.g3
[ 25.f4!? ]
25...e7?!
[ 25...b4 26.b8+ e7 27.xa7 fxg5
28.a3 xb3 29.e1 ]
26.b8+
[ 26.gxf6! gxf6 27.g6+ ( 27.b8+ c8
28.g6+ e7 29.f4!? ) 27...d8
28.b8+ c8 29.f7 e7 30.f4 h6
31.c1 xc1+ 32.xc1+- ]
26...c8?
[ T h i s i s a m i s t a k e b e t t e r i s 26...d8
27.g6+ ( 27.xd8+ xd8 28.gxf6 gxf6
29.g4 c6 30.xf6+ e8-+ ) 27...xg6
4.g4?! 28.xd8+ xd8 29.gxf6 gxf6 30.xg6
h1+ 31.g1 xg1+ 32.xg1 with decent
drawing chances for White ]
27.xb7??
[ 27.gxf6! gxf6 28.xb7 c7 29.b4 xb7
30.bxa5 d6 31.g4 b4 32.e3 a4
33.a3 ]
27...c7 28.b8??
[ A blunder that loses the game, but this
position is almost impossible to play
accurately in blitz. The correct move is
28.g6+ , a n d a f t e r d8 29.a8 d2
30.xd5+ d6 31.e4 , keeping the game
alive: c1+ 32.xc1 xc1+ 33.e1 f4+
34.f2 c5 ]
28...d6 29.gxf6
[ Or 29.g6+ d8-+ ]
29...d2 30.b5+
[ Or 30.g6+ d8 31.e7+ xe7 32.fxe7+
xe7 , and it is game over ]
30...d8 31.e7+ xe7 32.fxe7+ xe7
19.0-0-0 33.a5+ xa5
e8 ) 0-1
96 A01
Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar 2752
Kramnik,Vladimir 2785
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (20) 22.11.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 d6 4.f3
[ 4.b5 is considered the main line ]
4...g6 This isn't seen that often 4...Bd7 is the
normal move. 5.d4
[ The normal mover here are 5.b5 and ]
[ 5.c4 though the text move has been played
at International Master/Grandmaster level a
few times before. ]
5...g7
[ 5...f6 6.c4 g7 7.c3 h6 8.e2 0-0
9.a3 f7 10.b4 f5 11.d5 e7 12.e4
, and the play now resembles a King's Indian,
th o u gh o n e wh e re B la ck' s kn igh t o n f 7
appears to be a bit in the way, Gonzalez, J-
Gonzalez Velez, F/Castellar 1999 ]
[ 5...exd4? 6.xd4 f6 7.b5 ( 7.xc6
bxc6 8.f3 g7 9.xc6+ d7 10.a6
is also better for White, but not as accurate,
Bobanac, M-Bozanic, I/ Solin CRO 2007)
7...d7 8.xc6 bxc6 9.f3 g7 10.xc6
89
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
xc6 11.xc6+ , and White is winning
Jadoul, M-Geirnaert, S/Belgium BEL 2003 ]
6.b5
[ 6.dxe5 xe5 7.c3 ( For those playing
for a draw as White 7.xe5 xe5 8.xe5
dxe5 9.xd8+ xd8 is possibly worth
considering, though those of us who are
eager to play a more interesting game, this
is hardly worth our time. Nevertheless one
continuation is 10.c4 e7 11.c3 f6
12.e2 c6 13.a4 f5 14.f3 h5
, and a d raw was a greed upo n 1/2-1/2 ,
Nielsen, P-Kjeldsen, J/DEN 1989 )
A) 7...xf3+ 8.xf3 h5?! ( 8...e7 ) 9.h3
( 9.c4!? ) 9...h6 10.e4+ f8
11.0-0-0 f5 12.d3 a5 13.a4
with an obvious advantage f or W hite,
Zurek, M-Blatny, P/CZE 2001;
B) 7...e7 8.e2 0-0 9.0-0 ( 9.d2!?
has been suggested by Horn in CBM, but
Black is fine after 7c6 ) 9...d5 10.b1
xf3+ 11.xf3 e6= Rogers, I-Solomon,
S/Sydney 1991 ]
[ 6.e2 ge7 7.d5 b8 8.c4 0-0 9.bd2
f5 10.c2 a5 11.h3 a6 12.a3
Wager, J-Maxwell, A/Leeds 1999 ]
6...ge7
[ 6...d7 7.d5 ( 7.xc6?! xc6 8.dxe5
dxe5 9.bd2 e7 10.e2 0-0-0 11.0-0
f5 , and Black has obviously no problems,
Flu via P o ya t o s, J-Flu via P o ya t o s , J/ S t
Cebria 1997; 7.bd2 ge7 8.dxe5 xe5
9.xd7+ xd7 10.xe5 dxe5 11.c4
e6= was Puranen, J-Molander, R/Finland
FIN 2002 ) 7...ce7 8.xd7+ xd7 9.0-0
f6 10.c4 is in my opinion a pleasant King's
Indian for White on account of the exchange
of the light-squared bishops, Huebsch, H-
Pesch, H/Nickenich 1998 ]
7.d5 a6 8.e2 b8 9.0-0 0-0 10.c4 a5
11.c3 a6 As in some of the sidelines
covered in the notes above, we have reached
a King's Indian type of position, where it is
hard to assess who is better. My computer
prefers W hite, and I slightly prefer Black,
despite my dislike for the King's Indian as
Black, because it seems like it is the easier
position to play. Nevertheless, the game is
probably about even. 12.a3 d7 13.d2 f5
14.f4 exf4 15.exf4 c6 16.h1 cxd5
17.cxd5
[ 17.f3!? seems like an interesting
a l t e r n a t i v e , e . g . c7 ( 17...dxc4?!
18.xc4+ h8 19.d2 leaves White with
amble compensation for the pawn) 18.d2
c6 19.cxd5 xd5 20.c4!? ( 20.xd5
exd5 21.c4 xb2 22.xb2 b5= )
20...xc4 21.bxc4 ]
17...b5 18.f3 b6 19.g5 c7
[ 19...c5!? ]
20.d2
[ 20.e1!? b4 ( 20...ae8 21.f3 )
21.axb4 axb4 22.a4 ]
20...h6 21.e6 xe6 22.dxe6 d5 23.a4
[ 23.fe1 fd8 ]
23...b4 24.b5 xb2 25.xb2 xe6
26.ae1
[ 26.e5 ad8 27.f3 d7 ]
26...c5 27.d4 ab8 28.c4!? e4
29.xd5+ xd5 30.xd5+ g7
[ 30...h7 31.d7+ h8 32.xe4! fxe4
33.d6 e3 34.f7+ xf7 35.xf7 c6
36.e1 b7 37.f8+ h7 38.f5! e4
( 38...g5 39.f6 ) 39.fxg6+ xg6= ]
31.g4!?
[ 31.e5+ h7 32.c7 b7 33.e6
ff7 ]
31...bd8 32.e5+ g8 33.gxf5 fe8?!
[ , and here the game, probably by White
forfeiting on time, though now having an
acceptable position if he could get to play 34
Qc7. Instead on move 33, Black should
have opted for 33...d2!? 34.e6+ xe6
35.fxe6 xf1 36.e7 d2 37.d1 f7
38.exf8+ xf8 with a better endgame for
Black ]
0-1
97 A01
McShane,Luke J 2706
Grischuk,Alexander 2761
Tal Memorial Blitz, Moscow blitz (6) 07.06.12
[Richard Palliser]
1.b3 f6
[ Following in Fischer's footsteps, Hikaru
Nakamura is something of an occasional
dabbler in Nimzowitsch-L arsen waters ,
especially in blitz games. He was the first to
punt 1 b3 in this blitz tournament and after
1...c5 2.b2 c6 3.e4 ( 3.e3 would be
90
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
more normal, keeping play in independent
waters ) 3...f6 play had transposed to a 3.g3 Very hypermodern, but not overly critical.
l i n e o f t h e 2 b 3 S i c i l i a n i n N a k a m u r a - The alternatives:
Grischuk (round 3). This is really outside
our remit here, but you never know - Sam
may give the line a bit of coverage at some
point in the future! ]
2.b2 g6!?
[ Undeterred by the result of this game, the
plucky Englishman repeated his choice of
opening in round 8 where Tomashevsky
preferred the solid 2...d5 . Play continued
3.e3 c6 4.h3!? ( a rare move, but this
prevents Black from developing normally
with ...Bg4 and now g2-g4 will be possible in
the event of ...Bf5 - full marks for creativity
t o L u k e ! a l t e r n a t i v e l y , 4.f4 is quite never been too certain about this mix of b3
thematic,; 4.f3 g4 5.e2 e6 6.0-0
bd7 7.d3 xf3 8.xf3 d6 9.d2 h5!?
saw Black follow up his simple, classical
development by boldly looking to attack in
S a n c h e z - P a v l o v i c , G i b r a l t a r 2 0 1 2 ,; is a strange-looking Alekhine where White
and in the high-level game Short-Almasi,
Gibraltar 2012, 4.c4 f5 5.e2 e6 6.c3
bd7 7.f3 h6 8.0-0 d6 9.cxd5 exd5
10.d3 0-0 11.e4 g6 was fine too for
Black ) 4...bd7 (keeping it solid, but now
Black's light-squared bishop won't be able to
t a k e t h e e a r l y a i r i t w a s a f t e r ) 5.f3
( in an earlier game 5.g4!? was tried, but 10.c3 f6?! ( 10...d8! was the correct
after e5 6.g2 d6 7.d3 f8! 8.d2 h6
White's kingside expansion was likely more
of a weakness than a strength in Bromann-
Holst, Aarhus 2002,; bu t p e rh a p s 5.f4!?
and only then d3 followed by g4 could be
tried, Bird style) 5...g6 6.c4 g7 7.cxd5
cxd5 8.e2 0-0 9.0-0 b8! (the knight
would h ave achie ved little o n b 6 a nd a
second fianchetto might well have left Black
weak on the queenside, but even this fine
regrouping isn't enough to fully equalise)
10.c3 c6 11.c1 f5 12.b5! c8
13.a3 ( White wants to expand on the
queenside, which is very logical besides,
Nbd4 ideas can be kept in reserve, although
I can't help feeling Reti himself might well
have gone 13.bd4 xd4 14.xd4 d7
15.xc8 xc8 16.a1 ) 13...b6 14.b4
a5 15.b3 axb4 16.axb4 and White was a 3...g7 4.g2 c5
little better, going on to triumph in
McShane-Tomashevsky, Moscow (blitz)
2012. ]
[ a) 3.xf6!? exf6 4.c4 g7 is the critical
line in my view: will Black's bishop-pair
compensate for his inferior structure? Who
to prefer here is really a matter of taste,
but Black must be prepared to manoeuvre
for quite a while before obtaining any real
activity and counterplay. For some helpful
coverage please see Jonathan Rowson's
notes to Hodgson-Hall, Harplinge 1998,
and especially Julio Alberto González's to
Mellado Triviño-Vallejo Pons, Calvia 2005,
which can both be found in the Archive. ]
[ b) 3.e4 is also quite tempting, although I've
a n d e 4 . F o l lo wi n g g7 ( recent Sicilian
practice suggests that Black can even get
away with 3...c5!? here - again keep an eye
on S am 's co lu m n) 4.g3 ( 4.e5 d5
doesn't want to block his bishop with d4, but
in any case ...d6 will give Black decent
counterplay) 4...0-0 5.g2 d5!? ( 5...d6
6.e2 followed by a double advance of the
c- o r e -p a wn m igh t well h ave b ee n t h e
choice of a Pirc practitioner) 6.exd5 xd5
7.xg7 xg7 8.d4 c5! 9.dxc5 a5+
follow-up to Black's fine, active start after
11.xd5 xc5 Qxc5 the pin down the d-file
ensures he will regain his piece with ...e6)
11.b4 c7 12.e2 Naka had stolen a
pawn, albeit not exactly for zero
compensation, and went on to convert in
Nakamura-Altounian, Internet (blitz) 2011. ]
[ c) 3.f3 g7 4.e3 0-0 5.c4 c5 6.e2 d5
7.cxd5 xd5 8.d3 c6 9.a3 d8
10.bd2 g4! 11.xg7 xg7 12.0-0 b6
13.c2 ge5 14.fd1 b7 was all very
thematic from Black and later led to a draw
in Finegold-Altounian, Las Vegas 2012. ]
[ d ) F i n a l l y , I c a n r e m e m b e r 3.g4!?
being mentioned in David Norwood's fine,
old work on the Modern, but I dare say this
is rather too radical for us to be covering
on these hallowed theoretical pages! ]
[ It makes sense to me to seize space like
this, but of course there are many set-ups
91
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
B l a c k c o u l d e m p l o y . A f t e r 4...d6
I doubt Luke would have pushed his d-pawn
t wo s q u a r e s , b u t W h i t e d i d i n a b a t t l e
between two young (and already 2600+
back in the day when that really mean t
something) stars, where 5.d4 c5! 6.d5 0-0
7.h3! g4 8.f4 d7 9.c1 e5 10.dxe6
fxe6 had certain Trompowsky connotations
and was ab out e qua l in Ad ams-S hirov,
Hastings 1991/92. ]
5.e3 0-0 6.e2
[ New according to the database. I can see
why W hite wouldn't want to obstruct his
light-squared bishop and Luke did enjoy
some success as Black in this event with the
Hippo (d3 and Nd2 here would lead to a
r e s e r v e d f o r m ) , b u t p e r h a p s 6.c4!?
was a better try, comfortable though Black
does look after d5 7.cxd5 xd5 8.xg7
xg7 9.a3 c6 . ]
6...d5! Grischuk decides he might as well take
the space that's on offer - and why not? 7.c4?!
[ This seems to ask too much of White's
position, but presumably Luke was no longer
so certain about going down the Hippo route
and conceding a big centre with 7.d3 c6
8.d2 e5 9.h3 . ]
7...d4
[ The reversed Benoni structure after this is
at least OK for Black, but 7...dxc4!? 8.bxc4
f5 followed by ...Bf5 also looks quite
attractive, since White is going to have to
hurry with d4 and so be saddled with
hanging pawns. ]
8.exd4 g4! Now if h3 the knight will come
round to f 5 via h6 and all the time W hite
needs to try and make sure Black lands up
recapturing with a pawn on d4. 9.a3 c6
10.c2?
[ This innocent-looking move concedes the
initiative and quickly leaves W hite in hot
w a t e r . A f t e r 10.0-0 cxd4 11.d3 e5
a n d o n ly t h e n 12.c2 a reserved Benoni
position would have arisen, very much with
chances f or both sides, even if I would
prefer to move the knight from e2 to f3! ]
10...cxd4 11.d3 Pretty much essential, but
this creates a new weakness on which
Grischuk is quick to pounce. a5+! 12.f1
[ 12.d2 xd2+ 13.xd2 xf2 14.hf1
g4 would have cost White a pawn, ]
[ but perhaps he had to try 12.b4!? xb4
13.0-0 , hoping to at least obtain some
Benko-like pressure for his pawn. ]
12...f5 It's all gone wrong already for White.
Suddenly there's no time to thinking about
picking of f d4 in view of the mate threat.
13.f4?!
[ White soon loses a piece after this. That
said, it was very hard to readjust and find a
defence here in a blitz game, and even after
the machine's suggestion 13.f4!? e5
14.e4 f6 15.h3 I rather doubt that White
would have survived. ]
13...b4! Neat. The weakness of the e3-
square is going to cost White. 14.exd4
[ This doesn't help, but grovelling with 14.c1
xd3 15.xd3 xd3 16.h3 would have
been most unpalatable too. ]
14...c5 15.a3 a5
[ Perhaps 15...xc2!? 16.xc5 ge3+
17.e2 xd4 was also rather dangerous,
but Grischuk keeps it simple. ]
16.h3? A final slip in a very tough position.
xd4! 17.xd4 e3+ 18.e2 xd1
19.axd1 xd4 20.he1 d8 21.d2 e6
22.e2 xa2
0-1
98 A01
McShane,Luke J 2683
Jansa,Vlastimil 2513
12th ch-EUR Aix les Bains FRA (6) 27.03.2011
[Nigel Davies]
1.b3 d5 2.b2 g4 3.f3 f5 4.e3 e6
5.c3!? It's rare that you get a 'theoretical
novelty' in on move 5, but this is one of the
joys of playing Larsen's opening. W hite is
angling for e3-e4 and might also prepare
castling long with Qd1-e2.
[ In earlier games White has played 5.f4 ]
[ and 5.e2 . ]
5...f6 6.g4
[ 6.e2 is possible here, xc2 losing the
bishop after 7.d3 . ]
6...g6 7.ce2 c6
[ 7...fd7! looks like a better idea when 8.h4
e7 seems good for Black. Of course none
of this is easy to work out over the board. ]
8.h4 h5 This leads to a difficult position for
92
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Bla ck an d he th ink h e sho uld h ave b ee n
looking to push the h-pawn one square rather
than two.
[ After 8...h6 9.f4 d6 10.b5
Black is under some pressure. ]
[ So perhaps he should first play 8...b4!?
after which 9.d3 h6 10.f4 h7 11.g5
g8 looks OK for him. ]
9.g5 d7 10.f4 e7 11.e2 c6
[ 11...xc2? 12.d3 wins the bishop. ]
12.xg6 xg6 13.f4 White is clearly better
now because of his bishop pair and space.
Could he have achieved this kind of opening
advantage with something more standard?
Probably not. a5 14.f3 c5 15.a3 e4
16.g1 0-0-0 17.h3 b8 18.b4 c7
19.c4 dxc4 20.xc4 d6 21.c2 d7
22.f2 I wouldn't be surprised if Jansa was
running short of time at this stage. He often
finds himself in time trouble and in a planless
position like this it isn't easy to find decent
moves for Black. f5 23.xf5 exf5 24.d4
g8 25.a4 a6 26.a5 d6 27.b6 c8
28.b5!? Prising open Black's queenside at the
cost of a pawn. axb5 29.a4 c7 30.a7
[ 30.axb5 is good for White but McShane
wants the queens on so he can play for
mate. ]
30...b8 31.a5 d7 Heading for the hills!
32.b6 c8 33.axb5 c5 34.a2 e8
35.c4 f8 36.a7 e7 37.g6
1-0
5...a6
99 A01
McShane,Luke J 2671
Jones,Gawain C 2624
German Bundesliga (10) 25.02.2012
[Richard Palliser]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6
5.c3!? It may seem strange to block the
bishop, but the knight is hardly great on a3 as 6.xc6 Consistent. dxc6 7.ge2 0-0
we've seen. Moreover, from c3 it fights for the
pivotal e4-square and may later come round
to the kingside via e2.
[ Another route for the knight is 5.xc6 dxc6
6.d3 , but here e4! ( 6...0-0 7.d2 e8
8.e4 d7 9.e2 f8 10.0-0 gave White 8.0-0 e7
t h e s e t - u p h e wa s a f t e r i n N a k a m u r a -
Ponomariov, Saint Louis (rapid) 2011, not
that this was exactly terrible for Black after
e6 11.h1 c5 ) 7.dxe4 xe4 is quite
awkward, since 8.xg7? runs into b4+
9.c3 xd1+ 10.xd1 g8 11.e1 d6
, as I pointed out in BUCO. ]
[ Perhaps that's why Nakamura later
switched to 5.e2 and after 0-0 ( 5...a6
6.xc6 dxc6 is, as usual, a sensible
alternative and after 7.d3 e7 8.e4
I w o n d e r a b o u t h5!? ) 6.xc6
( White should really go in for this exchange
the dangers of not doing so were revealed in
Cie za -Ne gi, Ca p p e l le la G ra n d e 2 0 1 2 ,
where 6.g3 e7! 7.c3 c6 8.e2 c7
9.d4 d5 didn't leave the white pieces overly
well coordinated) 6...dxc6 7.d3 ( 7.bc3!?
would transpose to our main game) 7...e6
8.e4 e7 9.0-0 d7 10.g3 g6 11.d2
a3 12.c1 xb2 13.xb2 a5 14.a4 f6
15.c3 c5 16.xc5 xc5 17.f4 exf4
18.xf4 White eventually ground out the win
in Nakamura-Hovhannisyan, Internet (blitz)
2011, but Black didn't have to be so
compliant and play for exchanges. ]
[ F i n a l l y , I s h o u l d m e n t i o n t h a t 5.f3?!
is rarely seen these days, probably because
e4! 6.h4 e5 7.xe5 xe5 just looks a
lit t le t o o cre a t ive f o r W h it e . No w h e i s
supposed to castle, since 8.f4?! g6 9.f5
(T.W all-Palliser, York 2008) 0-0 10.0-0
( 10.g4 d5 is even worse) 10...d5 11.g3
d4 can hardly be correct. ]
[ Gawain, like many grandmasters, doesn't
m i n d t h e e x c h a n g e o n c 6 . 5...0-0
is also possible, whereupon 6.g4? b4
7.g5 saw White entering into the spirit of
t h in gs, a lb e it ra t h e r u n wi se ly, a s xc3!
8.dxc3 e4 9.h4 d5 10.f3 g3 11.h2
e7 with advantage to Black demonstrated
in J . K a r l s s o n - P e t i t c u n o t , C a p p e l l e l a
Grande 2009. ]
[ This position can also come about via a 5
Ne 2 m o ve o r d e r, a s i t d id i n B i s c h o f f -
S u t o v s k y , E s s e n 2 0 0 1 , w h e r e 7...e4!?
8.g3 e7 9.e2 0-0 should have been
met by 10.f3! exf3 11.gxf3 (Kosten). ]
[ Again Gawain holds off 8...e4!? . After
9.g3 g4 White might well go 10.ce2
93
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

and only later f3. ] 24...h5 25.f3 xf3 26.gxf3 g5

9.f4!? A thematic advance, if quite risky here. 27.xc5 . ]
Black may be about to lose a centre pawn, but 25.xe5 xe5 26.f2 d6 27.d3 xd3
his pieces are well centralised and will exert 28.cxd3
good pressure in return. g4 10.e1 ad8 [ 28.xd3? c4 had to be avoided, ]
11.fxe5 xe5 12.g3 Logical play from both [ and after 28.cxd3 xe3 29.xc5 a5
sides and the position seems unbalanced but 30.f2 e5 the ending would have been
about level to me, although if pressed I'd take pretty level. ]
Black thanks to his actively placed pieces. ½-½
fe8 13.a4
[ Black's bishop was too strong to leave on
e 5 a n d , o f c o u r s e , it ' s f a r t o o e a r l y t o 100 A01
mobilise White's central majority, with 13.d4! Minasian,Artashes 2545
shedding a pawn to xg3 14.xg3 xe3+ Adams,Michael 2620
.] EU-chT (Men) (9) 1992
13...b5! Likely to come under pressure on the [Jonathan Rowson]
kingside at some point (after Nf5), Gawain
decides it's time to stake out some space and 1.b3 e5! 2.b2 c6! 3.e3 d6!
begin play on the other flank. 14.xe5 xe5 My impression is that these three first moves
15.c3 c5 16.f2 h5!? poses the stiffest test to 1.b3 because White
[ Driving the knight back and fighting hard for st ruggle s t o do be t te r t h a n get a n orm a l
the initiative. Another possibility was 16...b4 English kind of position where b3 looks a bit
17.a4 c4 18.bxc4 d7 , when the knight committal without really getting anything in
is trapped, but White may be OK after 19.d4 return.
xe3 20.xe3 xe3 21.c5 . ] [ 3...a6 As suggested in what follows, there
17.h3 e6 18.ad1 White is undoubtedly on is no need for this move because Bb5 is not
the back foot, but Black must continue with really a threat. 4.c4 g6 5.c3 g7 6.g3
some energy or else his pawn weaknesses h5 7.g2 ( 7.h3!? ) 7...d6 ( Black should
will begin to cost him. b4 19.a4? definitely take the chance to play 7...h4!
[ Eyeing c5, but this may be too ambitious. A because the pawn is a bit of a nuisance for
se ns ib le a pp ro ach wo uld ha ve b ee n t o White. ) 8.h3 h6 9.d3 0-0 10.d2 d7
finally use those centre pawns with 19.d4! 11.ge2 White has a good reversed Closed
, and after cxd4 20.exd4 g5 21.ce4 Sicilian! b8 12.c1 White's position
xe4 22.xe4 g6 23.g3 seems easier to play, though it is difficult to
White's position doesn't seem too terrible, in sa y wh y. I wo u l d a t t r i b u t e i t m a i n l y t o
view of the possibility of h4 24.f5 . ] coordination, though that is easier felt than
19...h4 20.h1 This retreat might have e x p l a i n e d . ( 12.0-0 h4 13.g4 f5
heralded good things for Nimzowitsch and looks like too much trouble.) 12...f5
Keene in a couple of famous games, but here ( 12...b5 13.d5 ) 13.d5 ce7 14.0-0
I doubt Luke enjoyed having to play it. e4 c6 ( 14...xd5 15.cxd5 ) 15.dc3
[ Direct, although one can also make a good ( 15.xe7+ xe7 16.e4 d4 17.xd4
case for 20...g5!? 21.f4 g6 22.f2 exd4 18.f4 Ftachnik in CBM.) 15...e6
d5 , hitting both g2 and c2. ] 16.e4 d5 ( 16...f6 17.f4 ) 17.cxd5 cxd5
21.xh4 xd2? 18.g5! ( 18.c5 c8 19.f4 b6 ) 18...c8
[ White is able to grovel out after this. Instead 19.h4 c6 ( 19...f6 20.h3 e6 21.d4 )
21...xd2 22.fe1 (there's nothing better) 20.c5 d4 21.exd4 cxd4 ( 21...exd4
c4 would have kept pieces on and left White 22.fc1 ) 22.xd4 xd4?! Perhaps failing
under continuing pressure. ] to anticipate the pending fireworks. ( but
22.xd2 xd2 23.d1 e4 24.f4! 22...exd4 23.f4 also leaves White in
Offering a timely queen swap. f5 command. ) 23.e1 ( 23.f4 exf4 24.xf4
[ White also seems to be OK in the event of g4 25.h2 ) 23...g4 ( 23...b6 24.d5

94
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
c7 25.a3 g4 26.d6; 23...d6
24.d5 b6 25.a3 ) 24.exe5!
A crushing exchange sacrifice, stemming
from the power of the bishop on b2. The
weaknesses on the a1-h8 diagonal soon
prove to be decisive. xe5 25.xe5 c8
( 25...f6?! 26.d5+ g7 27.xd4 fxe5
28.xe5++- Ftachnik.; 25...c6 26.d5
e7 27.e4 f6 28.h6 g7 29.xg7+
xg7 30.d6 Ftachnik.; 25...e6?
26.xe6! xe6 27.c3+- Another Elegant
line- all given by Ftachnik in ChessBase
magazine. ) 26.d5 e2+ ( 26...c2
27.xd8 e2+ 28.xe2 xe2 29.f6+- )
27.h2 c7 28.e4 Black has no
defenders in the relevant sector. f5 ( 28...f6
29.c5 d7 30.xc8 xc8 31.f3 xg3
32.xg3+- ) 29.h6! 1-0 Sasikiran, K
(2573)-Shabalov, A (2601)/Istanbul 2001
And W hite's position is suddenly so good
t h a t r e s ig n a t io n m u s t h a ve c o m e a s a
slight disappointment. ]
4.b5?! This just doesn't make sense here,
so the best approach to this early d6 system is
to play a type of closed English, or else angle
for an early d4 (but always in such a way that
you can recapture with a knight.
[ Odessky tries hard to find a novel way to
play this position, including 4.f3
A) 4...g6! 5.d4 g7 looks rock solid to
me. 6.b5 ( 6.dxe5 xe5 7.xe5 xe5
8.xe5 dxe5 9.xd8+ xd8 10.c3 c6
gives White nothing.) 6...ge7! 7.dxe5
( 7.d5 a6 was Mamedyarov-Kramnik,
W orld Blitz 2007, which Kramnik won.)
7...0-0!;
B) 4...f5 5.d4 e4 6.d5!? but it doesn't
seem very convincing. For more details
see Odessky's book. ]
[ 4.c4!? is probably best, with an unusual
kind of closed English/ reversed Closed
Sicilian. ]
[ 4.d4 exd4 5.exd4 d5! has been known to
be fine for Black for some time. ]
4...d7
[ 4...ge7 also looks comfortable. ]
5.e2 /\ f4 a6 6.xc6 xc6 7.0-0 g5!
[ 7...f6 8.f4 ]
8.f3!?
[ 8.g3?! h5 with a promising attack. ]
8...f6 9.c4 intending to plug the light
squares with e4 and Nc3-d5, but Black hits
first. d5! 10.bc3?
[ 10.f4!? exf4 11.xf4 dxc4 12.bxc4 d6 ]
10...0-0-0 11.a4?
[ 11.cxd5 xd5 12.xd5 xd5 13.c3
d7 ]
11...dxc4!-+ 12.bxc4 c5 13.h1 xe3
14.c1 xd2 White is completely lost, and
the following is just a desperate attempt to try
to complicate. 15.b5 b8 16.ed4 xc1
17.xc6+ bxc6 18.b3
[ 18.xc1 xc1 19.axc1 cxb5 ]
18...cxb5 19.axb5 e3!
[ 19...e3 20.bxa6+ b6 21.c5 ]
20.a4 b2 21.xa6
[ 21.a2!? ]
21...xa1 22.xa1 d1+ 23.xd1 a7
24.c6 b6-+ 25.c5 xc6 26.bxc6 e8
27.g4 h6
[ 27...e6? 28.d8+ a7 29.d1 ]
28.h4 g5 29.hxg5 hxg5 30.g2 c8
/\ Re6
0-1
101 A01
Nielsen,Peter Heine 2700
Svidler,Peter 2734
Politiken Larsen Blitz b3 blitz (7) 04.08.2010
[Nigel Davies]
1.b3 d5 2.b2 g4 3.f3 h5 4.e4!?
A fascinating gambit line that contains a nice
trap for a blitz game. The critical line is of
course for Black to take it. dxe4 5.e2
Threatening 6.Qb5+, picking up the bishop on
h5. A lesser player than Svidler might have
missed this given the time limit. c6
[ Black has also played 5...a6 here, for
example 6.xe4 ( 6.c3!? exf3 7.xf3
would be the way to continue in gambit
style ) 6...c6 7.d3 e6 8.c3 f6 9.e2
b4 10.0-0-0 e7 11.e4 xe4 12.dxe4
e5 was about equal at this stage in
Medancic, R (2260)-Guido, F (2351)/Verona
2002. ]
6.c3!?
[ I see this as being much more consistent
than the wimpy 6.xe4 . ]
6...exf3 7.xf3 f6
[ A l t e r n a t i v e l y B l a c k c o u l d p l a y 7...d7
95
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
, for example 8.h3 gf6 9.0-0-0 e6 10.g4
g6 was Koganov, M-Handke, F (2496)/ICC
INT 2009, and now one intriguing possibility
is 11.h4!? , f o r e x a m p l e ( 11.g2
was played in the game) 11...xg4 12.h5
f5 13.d4 h6 14.xf5 xf5 15.e4
(Threatening 16.h6) h6 16.h3 d6
17.xe6 fxe6 18.xd6+ xd6 19.xg7
with a vitriolic attack. ]
8.0-0-0 e6 9.h3 xf3 Svidler understandably
prevents g2-g4 ideas.
[ In the game Ypma, P (2074)-Michalczak, T
(2367)/ Dieren NED 2010 Black playe d
9...a5 10.b1 a3 after which 11.xa3
( 11.a1 was played in the game) 11...xa3
( 11...xf3 12.xf3 xa3 13.g4
is also very dangerous for Black) 12.g4 g6
13.h4 gives White a strong initiative. A
sample line is xg4 14.h5 f5 15.d4
h6 16.g2 f8 17.cb5! with a strong
initiative. ]
10.xf3 a5 11.b1 a3 12.a1
[ I think there's a good case here for 12.xa3
xa3 13.g4 , for example 0-0 ( 13...bd7
14.g5 d5 15.xd5 cxd5 16.h4
also gives White an ongoing initiative for the
pawn ) 14.h4 a5 15.h5 bd7 16.h6
creates dangerous threats on the kingside. ]
12...bd7 13.g4 With Black's queen covering
g5 this is much less threatening, so White's
compensation starts to look a bit nebulous.
0-0-0 14.g2 h5 15.e4? Losing a second
pawn.
[ 15.e2 was a better chance, though I
doubt White's compensation. ]
15...hxg4 16.hxg4 xh1 17.xh1 e5
18.e2 exg4 19.xf6 xf6 20.g2 f8
21.f2 c5 22.f3 e7 23.d3 h8 24.a4
h5 25.b2 f5 26.g3 g6 27.g1 g4
28.e1 d5 29.e4 b4 30.f1 c3+
Finishing off nicely. 31.xc3 xc3 32.f3
b4
0-1
102 A01
Petrosian,Tigran L 2657
Naroditsky,Daniel 2479
Golden Sands Open (3.3) 06.06.2012
[Richard Palliser]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6!?
W hen this first became popular in the late
nineties it looked provocative and trendy, but
time has shown that the bishop move very
much deserves consideration as one of the
main lines of the Nimzowitsch-Larsen. 5.a3
[ Back in 2006 when I covered this line in
BUCO ('Beating Unusual Chess Openings'),
this was considered the main line. It's also
received the most coverage of any 5th move
on Ch essPu b a nd th is wa s P et ros ian 's
second game of late with it against strong
o p p o s i t i o n . H o w e v e r , n o wa d a y s 5.e2
and/or the exchange on c6 seems to be at
least as popular - for those and some other
ideas, see the notes to McShane-Jones. ]
5...a6 This solid move has been pretty popular
of late, but is by no means obligatory:
[ a) 5...e4!? is ambitious, but not necessarily
bad and after
A) 6.c4 e7 7.xc6 bxc6!?
is probably OK for Black ( and in Bromann-
Jones, Icelandic League 2011, 7...dxc6
8.e2 e6 9.d3 b4+! also was );
B) 6.f4 a6 7.xc6 dxc6 8.c4 0-0
9.e2 a5! 10.a4 b4 11.h3 d7!
12.d4 b6 13.xb6 cxb6 14.0-0 h4
Black's fine handling of the queenside
gave him rough equality in T.L.Petrosian-
Kravtsiv, Dubai 2012. ]
[ b) 5...a5!? was my main recommendation
in BUCO , m ee ting on e stran ge -lo ok in g
knight move with another. For some reason
this has fallen from favour, although 6.e2
( f o r H o d g s o n ' s 6.f3 a6 7.e2
please see Tony's notes to both Hodgson-
Speelman, British League 1998, and
Hodgson-Barsov, York 1999,; while 6.c4!?
xc4 7.xc4 was considered by John
Watson with Karayannis-Banikas, Salonica
2006 here I still feel that 0-0 8.e2 c6
9.g3 c7 is thematic and fine for Black)
6...a6 (wisely preventing any nasty notion of
Nb5) 7.c4 0-0 ( again, ChessPub has been
here before, with 7...c5 examined by Tony
96
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
in his notes to Berkes-Balogh, Budapest
2004,; and 7...c6 covered in Kovacevic-
Marzolo, W arsaw 2005, this time by John
Watson ) 8.c2 ( 8.f3 e8 9.0-0 f8
10.d3 c6 followed by ...d5 sees Black
regrouping along classical lines, as
examined in BUCO) 8...c5!? ( 8...e8
is a g a i n a n a t u r a l a lt e rn a t ive , b u t it i s
tem pt in g to set u p a bind o n d4 b ef ore
retreating the knight back to c6) 9.d4?!
(an understandable bid for freedom, but as
in McShane-Grischuk, the weakness of the
e1-a5 diagonal will now help Black) exd4
10.exd4 c6 11.f3 ( 11.d5 a5+
12.f1 e5! is similar) 11...a5+ 12.b4!?
xb4 13.0-0 surely didn't give White more
than some practical chances for his pawn
in Calugar-Sambuev, Guelph 2011. ]
6.xc6
[ T h i s m u s t b e c r i t i c a l . A f t e r 6.e2?!
ChessPub has considered a few moves, but
not e4! , which worked out well after 7.d4
( 7.c4 e7 8.d3 d5 9.e5 xe5
10.xe5 0-0 still leaves White with the
problem of his knight on g1) 7...exd3
( 7...d5!? 8.c4 g5 is a brave engine
s u g g e s t i o n) 8.cxd3?! ( 8.xd3 c5
is rather pleasant for Black, but White had to
try this ) 8...b4+! (a familiar motif) 9.f1
d5 10.c1 0-0 11.f3 d6 12.h3 b4!
13.d2 c5 and White never recovered in
Filippov-Bacrot, Khanty-Mansiysk 2011. ]
6...dxc6 7.c4 e7 8.e2 0-0 The black
position resembles the DERLD to some extent
and as John Watson says: 'Fairly normal thus
far. Black's space and activity might even give
him a small advantage.' 9.0-0
[ W atson examined 9.g3 b5 10.xd6
cxd6 11.0-0 e8 in Barnaure-Grunberg,
Predeal 2006, which is hardly inspiring for
White. ]
9...e4?!
[ An overambitious novelty. Black should
prefer 9...b5! 10.xd6 cxd6 , as advocated
by Tony. Now
A) while both Bagirov and Lein tried
11.f4!? , which makes good sense, even if
g4 12.e1 xe2 13.xe2 d7 14.f5
( rather than this gung-ho approach, White
might try to exert some positional pressure
with 14.fxe5 dxe5 15.a4! ) 14...f6
did seem pretty solid for Black in Lein-
Gruzmann, Grieskirchen 1998.;
B) 11.g3 would transpose to our last
note, ]
10.xd6 cxd6 11.g3 d5
[ 11...e8!? would have allowed Black the
possibility of 12.f3 exf3 13.xf3 g4
, but this still looks bad for him after 14.h5!
.]
12.f3! Thematically blasting open lines. exf3
13.xf3 e4! Good defence from the young
American, showing that it won't be so easy
just to roll Black over on the kingside.
14.h5!? The most ambitious, keeping the
knights on and so hoping to drive Black back
after Rad1 and d3. f6
[ The solid response, but White's kingside
play gives him a definite edge after this. A
ke y que stio n is co u ld Black h a ve go n e
14...g5!? , b ase d on th e lin e 15.xg7
( 15.xg7 g4! is an important point, when
White must avoid 16.f6+ xg7 17.xg4?
h5 ) 15...xd2 16.f4 f6 . After 17.xg5
fxg5 18.xf8+ xf8 19.h5 White keeps
up t h e initia tive, b u t t his m igh t we ll b e
tenable for Black, not least with the
opposite bishops lurking in preparation for
any endgame. ]
15.ad1 f7 16.d3 g5
[ At least the knight gets in the way of
White's attack here, unlike after 16...d6?
17.xf6+! gxf6 18.g3+ ]
[ or 16...c5? 17.a3 b6 18.d4 . ]
17.e2 g6 18.h1 Petrosian is in no hurry.
Realising that his opponent will have grasped
the opening has not gone well for Black, he
avoids any tricks down the g-file while giving
Black the chance to lash out. d7
[ 18...c5? was just the sort of aggressive-
looking move that Black might have played
in a bid to fight for the initiative, but
Naroditsky is too good for such things and
no doubt spotted 19.f4! f5 20.a3 b6
21.d4 when White will win at least a pawn. ]
19.f4 e6!
[ With 19...a5 s i m p l y m e t b y 20.a4
it's not easy to find any counterplay for Black,
but Naroditsky begins preparations for a
gradual advance in the centre to stymie the
dark-squared bishop. ]
20.h4!? A dangerous manoeuvre, even if my
97
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
machine isn't so impressed. Now everything
will b e a im e d a t t h e b la ck kin g on ce t h e
queen's rook comes across to join the party.
ae8 21.f1 h8
[ Black might have wanted to return the
knight to keep the second rook out, but there
was no time f o r 21...g5? on account of
22.f4 f7 23.a3 , netting the
exchange. ]
22.f3 This was by no means obligatory, but
was clearly very consistent. The battle is
clearly heating up: will White manage to crash
through on the kingside being the big
question. c5 23.g3?
[ Obvious, but this falls into a masterful
positional trap. White should have begin with
23.f2 , a n d i f t h e n g5 ( and not
23...f7?? 24.xf6! gxf6 25.xf6 ) 24.f4
f7 25.g3 , maintaining a rough balance. ]
23...f7 Observe how the knight on e6
defends g7, while the king's rook has stayed
on f8 to help shore up the defence of f6. I
might have been unimpressed with Black's
p l a y i n t h e o p e n in g , b u t N a r o d it s ky h a s
regrouped impressively since then. 24.f2
[ In view of what happens, one might wonder
about 24.d1? to keep the knight covered,
but then d4! 25.exd4 g6 26.f4 g5
is rather awkward. ]
24...d4! 25.exd4
[ 25.e4?? g6 was definitely not the way to
go. White's aggressively-posted pieces are
actually in a slight pickle and so Petrosian
has to keep the long diagonal open. ]
25...g5!
[ After 25...g6 26.dxc5! gxh5 27.f3
White would have three pawns and ongoing
pressure for the piece, rather unclear though
this would have been. Naroditsky prefers to
force matters. ]
26.d5 d4!
[ White is being outplayed by his young
adversary. Here Naroditsky rightly went for
glory and so rejected 26...gxh4 27.xf6+
g7 28.xg7 xf6 29.xf6 xf6
30.xh7+ xh7 31.xh4+ g7 32.g5+
g6 ( 32...f7! , and if 33.h3 f1+ 34.h2
f5 , looks a better try) 33.d2 when White
surely has enough pawns to be the only side
able to win the resulting endgame. ]
27.xd4! Again, the only real chance for
White. cxd4 28.xf6!?
[ The ending after 28.xg5 e5 29.xe5
fxe5 30.xf7 xf7 31.g1 g4 32.g3
c7 would have been pretty bad for White,
so Petrosian goes all in. ]
28...xf6 29.f3
[ Trying to bluff, whereas even if Naroditsky
was down to just a 30-second increment
h e ' d s u r e l y s p o t t e d 29.xd4 e1+!
30.xe1 xd4 . ]
29...f4??
[ A strange move and a terrible blunder,
which leads me to suspect Black was very
low on time, or just panicked having missed
the sacrifice on f6. He had to avoid both
29...g7?? 30.xd4 ]
[ and 29...e7?? 30.xd4+ , ]
[ while 29...f5 30.xf5 xf5 31.xd4+
f6 32.xf6+ xf6 33.xf6+ g8 34.g1
would have left a tricky ending. ]
[ However, there was a clear win available
wit h the calm 29...g8! , and if 30.xf6
xf6 31.g1 ef8 when there's nothing to
be done about ...Rf1. ]
30.h3 The bluff has paid off! By creating some
luft W hite leaves Black unable to save his
qu e e n (go in g t o d 6 d ro p s d 4 t o a r a t h e r
terrible check). h6 31.xf4 xf4 32.d2
Black does have two rooks for the queen, but
h i s k i n g i s s i m p l y f a r t o o e x p o s e d . g8
33.b4 e2 34.d6! xc2 35.g6+
[ Either all the kingside pawns fall or it's
mate after 35.g6+ f8 36.a3+ . ]
1-0
103 A01
Rapport,Richard 2704
Golod,Vitali 2574
Riga Tech op 4th (5) 20.08.2014
[Kosten, Tony]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6
5.a3 e7 Quite trendy, the bishop retreats
so that Black can play ...d6.
[ 5...a6 is also considered this month in
Rapport, R (2704)-Onischuk, A (2659)/
Tromso 2014. ]
[ While 5...e4 is seen in Jobava, B (2713)-
Dukaczewski, P (2288)/Tromso 2014. ]
[ We've previously considered Sveshnikov's
98
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

5...a5 a lot, see the Archive. ] exf4 18.e4 f3 would be rather

6.c4 unpleasant.; 16.f4 exf4 17.exf4 was best. )
[ 6.e2 0-0 7.c4 Jobava, B (2710) - 16...xf5 17.e4 f4 18.exf5 xf5
Bacrot, E (2702) Fujairah City UAE 2012, would oblige W hite to guard against
could transpose after d6 8.xc6 bxc6 ] sacrifices on g2 - Black can never be worse
6...d6 7.xc6+ bxc6 8.e2 This is a Super- here. ]
GM position (!), as so far only very strong 16.f4! f6 Solid.
p l a y e r s h a v e r e a c h e d i t . 0-0 9.0-0 [ 16...exf4 17.h5! f6 18.e4 with similar
Black has the bishop pair and more space, play to the game. ]
but typical 'Spanish' doubled c-pawns, which 17.e4 f8?! If Black has to play this then
occurs a lot in Larsen's Variation. W hite is maybe his ...Re8 wasn't so good after all?
ready to play either f4 or d4 to open the a1-h8 [ 17...exf4 18.xf4 d5 19.exd5 xd5
diagonal and weaken Black's central control. 20.e4 was similar to the game except that
e8 A logical novelty, Black figures that the his rook was still on the useful open e-file. ]
rook will always be useful on the e-file at 18.f2 Getting ready to double rooks.
some point, and defers deciding where to put [ 18.ae1 is more natural, but leaves the a-
his pawns or minor pieces. pawn undefended, xc4 19.dxc4 c6
[ 9...c5 Alex didn't like this move, 10.d4! 20.f5 d4 still, White is better here. ]
( 10.f4 e4 Ivanchuk, V-Le Quang, L.) 18...exf4 19.xf4 d5!? Active, but it leaves
10...exd4 11.exd4 Jobava, B-Jakovenko, D - Black's queenside very weak. 20.exd5 xd5
both games are in the PGN Archive ] [ 20...xd5 21.af1 is also good for White. ]
[ 9...e6 was mentioned by Alex, "to get rid 21.e4 Something has gone very wrong for
of the knight", 10.f4!? exf4 ( 10...xc4 Black, as W hite's knight is now very strong
11.bxc4 b8 12.b1 is a little better for and he has strong pressure on the e-line. f7
W hit e be cause of his sup erio r bishop .) 22.xa5 A pawn is a pawn! f5 23.xe7!
11.xf4 d7 12.f3 with the usual [ 23.ee1 was also playable, but less pretty:
aggressive kingside stance, Aravindh, C f4 24.e4 b4 25.c4 xc4 26.dxc4
(2467)-Rausis, I (2578)/ Riga 2014, 1-0 xd2 27.xd2 and Black has a little
(63). ] compensation for the pawn, but not much. ]
10.g3 White also keeps his options open. 23...xe7 24.b7 g6
[ Both 10.f4 ] [ 24...d5 25.xc5 c6
[ and 10.d4 were possible. ] was an alternative. ]
10...e6 11.d3 d7 12.d2 A strange idea, 25.e1?! An inaccuracy.
do es he ju st wa nt t o kee p p ie ces o n t h e [ 25.xc5 d6 26.c3 f7 27.e1
board? was simpler. ]
[ 12.e4 must be a little better for White. ] 25...f4?! Black returns the favour.
12...a5!? A double-edged move as this pawn [ 25...d5! stops White from playing Qc3,
was safer on a7. 13.a4 Fixing the a5-pawn on and 26.xc5 d6 is not completely clear. ]
a dark square, White certainly shouldn't allow 26.xc5 Now White is back on track. c6
it to advance as then Black would be able to [ 26...d6 27.c3 f7 28.ge4
e x c h a n g e o n e o f h i s w e a k n e s s e s . d5 is little better. ]
14.c4 Back again? Does this mean that he 27.c3 Defending c5 with gain of tempo. f7
felt his 12th move was wrong, or that he has 28.e6 d5 29.e5 c6 30.ge4
tricked Black into weakening his a-pawn? c5 All White's pieces are on active squares, and
W h e n y o u h a ve t h e p a i r o f b i s h o p s yo u he also has two pawn for the exchange. f3
should always put your pawns on the same 31.gxf3 xe4?! Now Black goes down
colour as your opponent's remaining bishop. without a fight.
15.d2 Looking at a5. b4 A good move, but [ 31...d5 can be met by the neat tactic
maybe it was time to move over to the 32.xd5!? ( 32.d4 xe4 33.xe4
offensive: also keeps a plus.) 32...xd5 33.xg7+
[ 15...f5!? 16.xf5 ( 16.xa5?! f4 17.exf4 xg7 34.f6+ f7 35.xd5 which must be

99
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
better for W hite with his 4 pawns for two
exchanges. Still, Black must have some
chances here. ]
32.xe4 xc3 33.xc3 g6 34.c5
This ending is lost for Black, W hite has 3
pawns for the exchange and active pieces.
af8
[ 34...xf3?! 35.xc7 hits g7, and after f7
36.xf7 xf7 37.a5 the 4 connected
passed pawns will triumph. ]
35.g5
[ 35.a5 was more incisive. ]
35...f5 Taking advantage of the opportunity
to exchange a pair of rooks - this is nearly
always advisable when you are an exchange
ahead. 36.xf5 xf5 37.e4 xf3 38.a5
f8 39.b4 White has a 4 to 1 majority on the
queenside, but the black c-pawn does a useful
job of holding the white pawns up. Can Black
find a way to hinder White from playing c4, b5
a n d a 6 wh e n h is p a wn c h a i n wi l l b e t o owhich had been met by
strong? e7
[ 39...f4 looks more active, 40.d2 e2+
41.g2 but d4 42.c4 transposes below. ]
40.d2 c6 41.g2 f7 This looks slow,
but
[ 41...d4 42.c4 should also be enough. ]
42.b5 d4 43.c4 b3 44.b4 d8 45.a6
Now it's cle ar t hat W hit e is win ning. e6
46.f2 xd3 47.d6! d1
[ 47...cxd6 48.a7 queens. ]
48.xc7 d7 49.e5 c1 50.b6 c2+
51.g3 The white pawns can no longer be
stopped.
1-0
104 A01
Rapport,Richard 2704
Onischuk,Alexander 2659
Tromsoe ol (Men) 41st (8.3) 10.08.2014
[Kosten, Tony]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 This is slowly
taking over mainline status from
[ 3...d5 , especially for the elite, although I
can see no obvious reason for this. ]
4.b5 d6
[ 4...d6 is the main alternative, 5.xc6+!?
( 5.e2 is Larsen, B-Eley, B, in the
Archive. ) 5...bxc6 6.e2 e7 7.0-0 0-0
8.f4 d7 9.bc3 d5 10.a4 d6 11.e1
e7 12.h1 f6 and there was certainly
nothing wrong with Black's position, although
1-0 (46) Rapport, R (2701)-Petersen, T
(2334) Helsingor 2014. ]
5.a3 a6 Grabbing the bishop pair.
[ Sveshnikov's 5...a5 is the mainline. ]
[ 5...e7 is Rapport, R (2704)-Golod, V
(2574) Riga 2014 ]
[ and 5...e4 is seen in Jobava, B (2713)-
Dukaczewski, P (2288)/ Tromso 2014, both
this month. ]
6.xc6 dxc6 7.c4 e7 8.a4!? Rapport's
new idea , which he'd already tried a f e w
months before. White hinders ...b5, and plans
both a5, to fix Black's weakened queenside,
and also possibly Nxd6 followed by Ba3.
[ In his first outing with 1 b3, Rapport, R
(2691)-So, W (2719) Wijk aan Zee 2014, he
h a d p l a y e d t h e ' a u t o m a t i c ' 8.e2
A) 8...0-0 is normal, 9.0-0 is Petrosian, T-
Naroditsky, D ( and 9.g3 b5 is Barnaure,
V-Grunberg, M, both in the PGN Archive. );
B) 8...b5 9.xd6+ cxd6 10.a4 b4
11.0-0 0-0 12.g3 d5 13.f4 f6
when Black had equalised, and went on to
win. ]
8...0-0
[ 8...b5!? is still possible, when 9.axb5
( 9.xd6+ cxd6 10.e2 would transpose to
his game against So.) 9...cxb5 10.xd6+
cxd6 11.e2 still looks fine for Black. ]
9.a5
[ 9.e2 e4 10.xd6 xd6 ( 10...cxd6 )
11.g3 ( 11.d4 w i t h a t h r e a t ! exd3
12.xd3 xd3 13.cxd3 with a structural
advantage, but opposite colour bishops.)
11...e8 12.0-0 ( 12.f3! exf3 13.xf3
is stronger, White is better.) 12...g4 13.f3
exf3 14.gxf3 h3 15.f2 ad8 16.e2
d5 17.h1 h6 18.g1
1/2-1/2 Grandadam, N (2306)-Antoli Royo, J
(2443) Biel 2014. ]
9...g4!? Onischuk's new move.
[ 9...d7 10.e2 b5 illustrates the
advantage of having the a-pawn on a5:
( 10...e4!? ) 11.axb6 cxb6 12.xd6 xd6
13.d4 exd4 14.xd4 xd4 15.xd4 e5
16.f3 e8 17.f2 a7 18.hd1 ae7
Rapport, R (2687)-Stevic, H (2611) Austria
100
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
2014, 1-0 (65), when 19.e2 followed by
Rd6 assures W hite a considerable
advantage - he can double rooks on the
open d-file and maybe capture on e5 to
avoid opposite bishops. ]
10.e2 d7
[ Or 10...e4 first. ]
11.0-0 e4 12.xd6 Ironing out Black's
structure, and introducing opposite bishops,
but making sure that the powerful b2-bishop
has no counterpart. cxd6 13.f3!? Essentially
White is swapping the g-pawn for the e-pawn,
he gains the g-file and a central majority, but
weakens his king position.
[ 13.d3 is a good alternative. ]
13...exf3 14.gxf3 h3 15.f2 White will play
Nf4 and Rg2 with a potentially strong attack on
g7. How should Black react? e5
[ 15...fe8 16.f4 h4 17.xh3 xh3
18.g2 g6 19.f4 looks unpleasant for Black,
sooner or later the white queen will get to
the a1-h8 diagonal. ]
[ 15...c5! 16.f4 ( 16.h1 f6 ) 16...f5
17.g2 g6 is a better way of blocking the
g-file, Black has nothing to fear. ]
16.f4
[ 16.f4 also has it's points. ]
16...g6
[ 16...d7 17.g3 f6 18.e4 and Qf3 or
Qh5 and the makings of a strong initiative. ]
17.f5 g5+ 18.g3 e5 19.a4!!
This might not be the best move, but what a
great way to bring your final piece into the
game, and what a way to justify playing a4-5!
[ 19.h5! is a l s o r a t h e r s t ro n g : xh5
20.xh5 menaces Ra4 to trap the bishop,
g4 21.xe5 dxe5 22.g3 g6 23.a4
with advantage. ]
19...g4
[ 19...g6! 20.h1 f6 kept Black in the game,
although he is still worse. ]
20.f1 f6?? Stopping White from advancing
his f-pawn, but losing on the spot.
[ 20...fe8 21.af4 d5 22.h3 is hardly any
better. ]
21.xe5
[ 21.xe5 fxe5 22.c4+ wins the bishop. ]
1-0
105 A01
Rasulov,Vugar Ural Oglu 2488
Mchedlishvili,Mikheil 2633
Baku op (5) 23.09.2013
[Fier, Alexandr]
White tries a solid double fianchetto, but 7...
d5 changes the character of the position and
it l o o ks l i k e B l a c k is f i n e . O n e p o s s i b l e
improvement is 10... Bg4!? 1.b3 e5 2.b2
d6 Looking for a King's Indian setup 3.g3 g6
4.g2 g7 5.c4 e7 6.e3 0-0 7.e2 d5
Opening the position bef ore W hite has a
chance to play d4, reaching a kind of
structure similar to some Kan lines with ...g6.
W hite needs to be careful about the white
squares but, if nothing serious happens, he
has a solid position.
[ 7...bc6 if Black continues with the normal
plan White can try to get some advantage
with d4 8.0-0 f5 9.d4 and the knight on e7
is worse than on f6 ]
8.cxd5 xd5 9.0-0
[ 9.d4 c a n b e a b i t p r e m a t u r e c5!?
forcing the center 10.dxc5 ( 10.dxe5 b4
11.f4 xd1+ 12.xd1 d8+ 13.c1 g5
and Black has the initiative. One possible
continuation can be 14.a3 gxf4 15.axb4
fxe3 16.fxe3 cxb4 and Black has the better
prospects ) 10...b4 11.0-0 ( 11.xd8
xd8 and White can't avoid both 12...Nc2
and 12...Nd3.) 11...xd1 12.xd1 c2
13.bc3 xa1 14.xa1 and White has
compensation for the exchange but probably
not more than enough. ]
9...c6
[ 9...b4?! does not work now since it's not
possible to en te r in to d 3 10.d4 exd4
11.xd4 8c6 12.xg7 xg7 13.a3
and White has pressure on the queenside ]
10.a3
[ 10.d4 g4 is annoying ]
10...e6
[ 10...g4!? I like this move, and it can enter
into an improved version of the position
played in the game 11.h3 ( 11.bc3 xc3
12.xc3 d3 13.f3 e6 14.f4 g4
15.f2 ad8 and White is under pressure)
11...e6 12.d4 ( 12.c2 d7 now this
move attacks the pawn on h3 13.h2 ad8
with some advantage to Black) 12...b6
101
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

13.dxe5 xd1 14.xd1 xb3 and White term Black's pawns can prove more
needs to work to equalize ] important than the exchange. ]
11.c2 18.xc3 e4 Closing the Bishop, but White still
[ 11.d4 g4 again is possible and good ] has the f1-a6 diagonal at his disposal. 19.f1
11...d7 12.d1 f5 h8 20.b4 xc3 21.xc3+ g7
[ 12...a5!? is more forcing, trying to put The weakness of the d-pawn is not enough for
pressure on the queenside before W hite Black to try anything serious. Meanwhile
f in is h es his de velo pm e n t 13.b4 c4 White can try to use the c-file for his rooks.
14.xc4 ( 14.bc3 xb2 15.xb2 c6 ) After all the position is about equal 22.f2
14...xe3 ( 14...f4 does not work 15.c2 [ 22.ac1 xc3 23.xc3 fd8 24.b3
xe2+ 16.f1 and the knight is trapped) e7! 25.xc7? d5 and 26...Nxe3 is
15.xe6 xe6 16.dxe3 b3 17.bc3 coming ]
ad8 18.db1 with unclear consequences, 22...fd8 23.e1 e7 24.ac1 xc3
d e s p i t e t h e c o m p u t e r' s p re f e r e n c e f o r 25.xc3 d5 Now it's hard for anyone to
Black. ] make progress. 26.cc1 c6 27.b3 g7
13.bc3 Finally White's knight can get out 28.a5 f6 29.c4 6d7 30.e5 d6
a n d t h e p o s i t i o n i s c l o s e t o e q u a l . ad8 31.c4 b6 32.b5 cxb5 33.xb5 e6
14.a4 34.c7 d5 35.cc1 e7 36.c4
[ 14.xd5 xd5 15.xd5+ xd5 16.d4 ½-½
would probably bring a drawish endgame ]
14...f7 15.c5 c8 16.f4!? This move is
in te re s ting, b ut it 's risky f o r W hite to le t 106 A01
himself get cramped after ...e4. Rebel Century
[ 16.b4 is a normal move, searching for Nimzo 7.32
counterplay before Black's attack begins f4!? Cadaques Tournament (12) 28.01.2000
17.c3 ce7 18.ac1 xc3 ( 18...fxg3 [Tony Kosten]
19.fxg3 does not help Black) 19.xc3 d5
20.c4 c6 with a complex middlegame ] 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 d5 4.b5 d6
16...d6 5.f3
[ 16...b6 is natural and both escapes are [ A rare alternative to 5.f4 or ]
possible 17.d3 looking at e5 ( 17.a4 [ 5.c4 ]
i s m o r e n o r m a l b7 18.ac1 e4 5...e7
but at some point W hite might have [ 5...f6 would be my preference, I think,
p r o b l e m s t o c o n t i n u e h i s co u n t e r p l a y) firmly defending the e5-pawn. ]
17...a6! 18.fxe5 xd3 19.xd3 xe5 6.c4 f6 7.c5 the point of White's opening,
( 19...f4 looks scary but the queen still has swapping the c-pawn for Black's e-pawn.
o n e s q u a r e 20.b5 xe2+ 21.xe2 xc5 8.xe5 0-0 9.xc6 bxc6 10.xc6
xe5= ) 20.c2 c5 with a harmonious [ And why not? The 10.e2 d6 11.0-0?!
position for Black ] e4 12.c3 f5 is fine for Black, Zwaig,A-
17.c3 Poulsson,E/Sandefjord 1975, but 11 d3
[ 17.fxe5 xe5 18.f4 is a nice way to might offer White something. ]
combat Black's central control ] 10...b8 11.c3
17...xc3 [ This new move appears to be a sound idea,
[ 17...exf4! was tempting 18.xd5 ( 18.gxf4 the knight can come to e2 if necessary, so
d4! 19.exd4 xd4+ 20.h1 xc5 that W hite can castle if the black bishop
21.xd5 xd5 with a pawn up) 18...xb2 comes to a6. 11.f3 d6 12.a4 g4
19.xb2 xd5 20.xd5 ( 20.b4 fxg3 13.g3 a6 14.f3 also seems good for
21.hxg3 d6 ) 20...xd5 21.b4 fxg3 White, as the white queen didn't prove too
22.b3 ( 22.hxg3? f3-+ ) 22...gxh2+ exposed, Wolf,W-Wrobel,F/Germany 1990/
23.xh2 xb3 24.xb3 e5 GER-chT2. ]
and the position is not clear, but in the long 11...e6 12.a4 One problem for White is

102
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

the offside position of this piece. a6 13.e2 success, his pieces are well-placed, and he is
d6 14.f3 d7 The knight wants to come to r e a d y t o e x p a n d w i t h . . . d 5 . 16.e4
c5, threatening intrusion on d3, and the bishop Aiming for the weak g5-square, Black's sixth
on a4. 15.xd7 Probably best, but now Black move has a cost! d5 17.cxd5 cxd5 18.g5
has the bishop pair, and the weak white light c8 19.h4 c6?!
squares offer him some compensation for the [ Perhaps 19...f6!? should be considered? ]
pawn. xd7 16.0-0 fe8 17.e1 c5 18.c1 20.c5! Black's last move weakened his
d8 19.f4 d4 A typical pawn thrust in such co nt rol of d 5 , a nd W h it e wa st es no tim e
p o s i t i o n s , t h e h a n g i n g b l a c k p a wn s a r e
la t c h i n g o n t o i t . d4 21.exd4 cxd4
22.xd4 xd4 23.e1 g4?
s t a t i c a l ly we a k , b u t d yn a m i ca l ly st ro n g .
20.g3 a5 21.c2 b7 22.a1 a6 [ Black should certainly defend e5 more
23.b2 c6 An odd position, both computers s e c u r e l y , a l t h o u g h 23...e8 24.f4
are lining-up on the opposing g-pawn, like two is favourable to White. ]
patzers. 24.d3 f6 25.e4 dxe3 26.c4 24.exe5! A powerful exchange sac, to
I n d i r e c t l y d e f e n d i n g t h e f - p a w n . bd8
deprive Black of his key dark-squared bishop.
27.xe3 xf4 Aiming for a drawn opposite- xe5 25.xe5 c8
c o l o u r b i s h o p e n d i n g . 28.xf6+ xf6 [ This doesn't last long, but Black is probably
29.xe8+ xe8 30.xf6 gxf6 31.xf4 l o s i n g a n y w a y , 25...b6 avoids White
e1+ 32.f1 e2 Both sides are obliged to gaining a tempo with his rook, but even so,
repeat moves. 33.f2 e1+ 34.f1 e2 26.e4 fd8 27.h6 threatening Ng5, is
35.f2 e1+ 36.f1 decisive, ]
½-½ [ 25...c6 may be the best, as the knight is
no longer a target, but 26.d5 e7 27.e4
f6 28.f4 f5 and now, 29.d6
107 A01 i s t h e s i m p l e s t , xe4 30.xe4 g7
Sasikiran,Krishnan 2573 31.xf6 winning. ]
Shabalov,Alexander 2601 26.d5 e2+ 27.h2 c7 28.e4 f5
34th Olympiad (4) 31.10.2000 [ 28...f6 is only a slight improvement:
[Tony Kosten] 29.xf6+ xf6 30.xf6 ]
29.h6
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 a6!? [ 29.h6 h7 30.xh7+ xh7 31.d7+
Clearly played to stop Bb5, but not especially forces mate. ]
useful. 4.c4 g6 5.c3 g7 6.g3 1-0
W hite brings play into a hybrid English
Opening where the black ...a6-move seems
out-of-pace. h5!? 108 A01
[ A typical, aggressive, move in such Spraggett,Kevin 2495
p o s i t i o n s , b u t a n e w m o v e h e r e , 6...d6 Dorfman,Josif D 2575
7.g2 f5 8.ge2 f6 is more typical, with France 1991
chances for both sides, Degenhardt, H- [Tony Kosten]
Berndt,M/Germany 1996. ]
7.g2!? d6 1.b3 d5 2.b2 g4 Black decides to play in
[ 7...h4 would justify his previous move, but the style of the Capablanca line against the
Black has decided to keep the pawn on h5. ] Reti. 3.h3
8.h3 h6 [ 3.g3 Is also logical, when c5!? ( 3...c6
[ Now 8...h4 can be answered by 9.g4 ] 4.g2 d7 5.f3 Transposes directly into
9.d3 0-0 10.d2 d7 11.ge2 White has a a main line Reti, e.g. gf6 6.0-0 c7 7.d4
harmonious set-up, much employed by e6 8.bd2 d6 9.c4 Minasjan,A-Akopian,
Howard Staunton. b8 12.c1 f5 13.d5 V/USSR 1991.) 4.g2 c6 5.f3 e6
ce7 14.0-0 c6 15.dc3 e6 Leads to a standard type of position, with
Black's opening seems to be a reasonable the exception that the black light-squared

103
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

bishop is outside the pawn chain. 6.e5 29.xb6 xb6 Not only has Black gained the
xe5 7.xe5 f6 8.c4 e7 9.c3 0-0 d5-square for his knight, he has also lef t
offering a pawn sacrifice that W hite was W h it e's b isho p s lo oking m isp la ce d . 30.f5
loathe to accept, Tu Hoang Thong- This is White's best chance, ridding himself of
Nogueiras,J/Yerevan (ol) 1996. ] the doubled pawn. hxg4 31.fxg4 xg4
3...h5 4.f3!? Provocative, 32.fxe6 xe6?! Keeping all the rooks on the
[ 4.g3!? would be safer, with a likely board by
transposition to the Reti Opening. ] [ 32...fxe6 was more accurate. ]
4...xf3! 5.exf3 White gains the bishop pair, 33.xe6 fxe6 34.a6?!
bu t his pa wn st ru ct ure lo ses som e of it s [ 34.c4 had to be played. ]
elasticity. 34...c7 35.c4? f2+ 36.g2 d3
[ Ca p tu rin g to ward t h e ce nt re, b y 5.gxf3 Black is winning material. 37.b1 xb2
i s n o b e t t e r e6 6.e3 f6 7.f4 g6 38.xb2 xd4 39.b3 Without the rooks this
Black places his pawns carefully on light would be a draw, because of the opposite-
squares. 8.f3 g7 is level, Bucholz- colour bishops, but with the rooks, it is a
Makarychev, Mexico 1977 ] different matter, altogether. h7 40.g3 f6
5...f6 6.f4 e6 7.g3 g6! This is the same 41.c8 f7 42.e3 e5 43.c5 White is
p l a n a s i n t h e n o t e t o m o ve f i v e . B l a c k unable to hold his h-pawn, as
constructs a light-squared blockade, and is [ 43.e4 is met by b3 forcing the rook to
particularly careful to stop White from playing move off the fourth rank. ]
f5, which would liquidate his doubled pawn. 43...xh4+ 44.f3 e7! 45.xe5 h5!
8.e2 bd7 9.g2 c6 White was B l a c k h a s co rr e ct ly wo rk e d - o u t t h a t t h e
threatening to capture on d5. 10.0-0 g7 b i s h o p e n d i n g i s n o w wi n n i n g, b e c a u s e
11.d4 The owner of the bishop pair often puts Black's two passed pawns are too far apart.
his pawns on the same colour squares as his 46.xh5 gxh5 47.c6 d6 48.e4 f6
opponent's remaining bishop, in order to 49.h3 c7 50.g2 e6 51.d4 d6
inhibit it. 0-0 12.d1 a5 13.a4 The position 52.c4 h4 53.d4 b6+ 54.c4 e5
is reasonably level, as with such a relatively The king goes towards the h4-pawn, to help it
static structu re, knigh ts are th e equ al o f queen. if the white king follows, then the b-
bishops. b6 14.d2 a6 15.e1 pawn will advance, to deflect it. Notice that
A slight concession, but White doesn't want to the black a5-pawn is the right rook's pawn!
play the endgame. fc8 16.f3 The knight is 55.h3 c7 56.d7 e4 57.e6 e5
c o m i n g t o t h e s t r o n g o u t p o s t o n e 5 . b5 58.d7 f4 59.d3 g3 60.e2 h3
Black continues his light-squared campaign. 61.e6 g2
17.e5 b4 18.g4 Black is making headway 0-1
on the queenside, so White decides to make
a d e m o n s t ra t i o n o n t h e o t h e r wi n g . b7
19.e2 ab8 20.e1 e8! Careful defence 109 A01
f r o m B l a c k - W h i t e wa s l i n i n g - u p a N xf 7 Svidler,Peter 2734
sacrifice. 21.h4 h5 22.f3?! White is trying to Nielsen,Peter Heine 2700
maintain his pawn flexibility, but Politiken Larsen Blitz b3 blitz (6) 04.08.2010
[ 22.g5!? is tempting, gaining considerable [Nigel Davies]
s p a c e o n t h e k i n g s i d e , h7 23.f3
and White can prepare a sacrifice on h5. ] 1.b3 d5 2.b2 g4 A popular and
22...c5 Now that the white kingside is weaker, supposedly solid method of defence, though
Black can afford to open the centre. 23.ac1 there are things that White can try. 3.f3 h5
c7 24.h1 c4!? offering a pawn sacrifice 4.h3 Aiming to gain the bishop pair with Nh3-
that W hite is under pressure to accept, as f4. This looks like a reasonable plan for White,
Black's queenside pawns are threatening to though he has to be careful about the opening
swamp W hite's b2-bishop. 25.bxc4 dxc4 of the h-file and his potential vulnerability
26.xc4 xc4 27.xc4 ec8 28.f1! b6 along the b8-h2 diagonal. e6 Some strong

104
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

players have tried o ther m oves he re, f o r top here.

example: 0-1
[ a) 4...f6 5.d4 e6 6.e4 b4+ 7.c3 d6
8.d3 c6 9.d2 e7 10.e2 e5!?
11.dxe5 xe5 12.g4 g6 13.f4 d6 110 A01
14.0-0-0 gave White some initiative in Oral, Svidler,Peter 2734
T (2565)-Gyimesi, Z (2613)/Germany 2005. ] Nielsen,Peter Heine 2700
[ b) 4...c6 5.f4 g6 6.xg6?! Politiken Larsen Blitz b3 blitz (2) 04.08.2010
(W hite could certainly have delayed this [Nigel Davies]
exchange) hxg6 7.d4?! ( 7.e3 was better
W hite doesn't realise the danger to his 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 d5 Occupying the
kingside ) 7...e6 8.g3 d6 9.f4 g5! 10.e3 centre like this is a principled way to play the
gxf4 11.exf4 g5 put White in serious position, though the broad pawn centre also
trouble in Ask, J (2191)-Brynell, S (2471)/ brings obligations in its wake. 4.b5 d6
Helsingor 2009. ] 5.f3
5.f4 g6 6.e3 [ There are alternatives to this sensible move,
[ Another mode of development is with 6.g3 for example 5.f4 ]
after which f6 7.xg6 hxg6 8.g2 d6 [ and 5.e2 . ]
9.0-0 bd7 10.c4 e7 11.d4 was quite 5...e7
pleasant for W hite because of his bishop [ 5...g4 is a solid alternative, see Valejo
pair in Ibragimov, I (2485)-Novikov, I (2550)/ Pons - Gustafsson for details. ]
Moscow 1991/URS-ch. ] 6.c4 a6 7.xc6+
6...f6 7.xg6 hxg6 8.f4 d6 [ After 7.a4 Black has an interesting
[ T h e d a n g e r o u s l o o k i n g 8...e4 possibility in b5!? 8.cxb5 b4 9.bxa6+
can be answered by 9.g4 . ] f8 with dangerous compensation for the
9.f3 e7 10.c3 c6 11.e4 dxe4 pawn. ]
12.xe4 a3 13.d4 bd7 14.g3?! 7...bxc6 8.c5! An excellent idea which takes
Developing rather too slowly after which Black out Black's important e5 pawn and leaves him
opens up the centre. with weaknesses along the c-file. W hite is
[ 14.e2 would have been better. ] b e t t e r n o w . xc5 9.xe5 b7 10.0-0
14...e5 15.xf6+ gxf6 16.e3 exf4 On the other hand this seems too automatic.
17.xf4 c5 18.f2?! Leaving White's king [ 10.c2! looks much better, one of the
in permanent danger. p o i n t s b e i n g t h a t f6 can be met by
[ 18.0-0-0 was better. ] ( 10...f6 is better ) 11.xc6! xc6 12.a3
18...xe3+ Perhaps the clock played a part in , winning back the piece with a pawn as
Black's willingness to enter and endgame. interest. ]
[ 18...h5! would have been much stronger 10...d6 11.f3
because of the ongoing danger to White's [ \/A wild gambler might well take a chance
king. ] on 11.xc6!? xc6 12.c2 b7 13.xg7
19.xe3 xe3+ 20.xe3 f5 21.g2?! e5 14.xh8 xh8 15.c3 , though Rybka
[ 21.e2 followed by 22.h4 would have been likes White's position a lot more than I do. ]
better. ] 11...f6 12.d3 c5 13.bd2 0-0 14.c2
21...f6 22.f3 0-0-0 23.d3 de8+ fe8
[ 23...h3 was stronger. Now White should [ The immediate 14...a5 would have been
have been OK, but then again this is a blitz more incisive. Now the c5 pawn comes
game. ] under fire and White gets an edge. ]
24.d2 g4 25.h4 f6 26.ae1 xe1 15.ac1 a5 16.a3 a6 Black is scrambling
27.xe1 d7 28.f2 d6 29.c3 a5 30.a4 here.
d5?! 31.xd5 cxd5 32.e3 e5 33.d4+ [ 16...d7 is strongly met by 17.d4 cxd4
f6 34.c4 e8+ 35.d3 e4 36.cxd5 g4 18.xd6 cxd6 ( 18...xd6 19.xc7
This looks like a win on time as White is on is strong ) 19.xd4 with a clear advantage

105
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

for White because of his queenside pawn fails to xd5 ]

majority. ] 8.fd2 e8 9.c4 f8 10.c3 d6
17.xc5 xc5 18.xc5 xd3 19.fe1 a4 A logical move to which White responds with
Understandably trying to exchange off some abandon. Somehow it seems to be a mistake!
pawns rather than get passively tied down to [ 10...d5 is more aggressive and keeps the
c7. bishop on b2 hemmed in. There could follow
[ After 19...xc5 20.xc5 e7 21.ec1 11.cxd5 b4 12.0-0 bxd5 ]
a7 22.d4 Black's position would be 11.a3 To stop ...Nb4, although this was
desperate. ] probably unnecessary. Black responds with a
20.xc7 axb3 21.xe7 xe7 22.axb3 g6 loss of time, so it evens out. a6?! 12.g4!
23.a1 ea7 24.xa7 xa7 25.h3 Why not? This is the reason for including this
A bit slow. game. Remarkably, Black faces real troubles
[ 25.e5 would have been much stronger. concerning g5 and Nxe4. The move g4 is
Now Black's rook takes up residence on the being played in every kind of position these
7th rank. ] days! h8
25...a2 26.c1 b2 27.c3 e4 28.c8+ [ 12...h6 13.h4 e7 ( 13...g5 14.hxg5
g7 29.c7 xf3 30.xf3 e4 31.e5 hxg5 15.c2 xg4 16.g1! leads to a
xf2 32.b4 g8 33.c6 powerful attack, e.g., xe2 17.xg5+ g7
[ 33.d7 would have been a slightly better 18.xe2! h7 19.g2 f5 20.ag1 e7
try. ] 21.d5 f7 22.f4 and Nh5 or a well-
33...b2 34.e7+ g7 35.xd5 h5 timed d5 wins. )]
36.c4? g3? 13.h4! b5 Trying to divert White. There's
[ Missing 36...b1+ 37.h2 d2 nothing to be done about g5. 14.g5 g8
when W hite is face with the threats of ... 15.cxb5 axb5 16.xb5
Nxc4 and ...Nf1+ and goes a pawn down [ 16.cxe4! is also very strong. ]
after 38.d4 f1+ 39.g1 xe3+ 40.f2 16...d7 17.dxe4 d5 18.g3 b8 19.d3
xd5 41.xd5 xb4 Admittedly he should W hite is winning. A smooth attack follows.
drawn the rook and pawn endgame but it c8 20.c2 ce7 21.d3 g6 22.h5 g7
wouldn't be especially pleasant. ] [ 22...f5 23.xf5 xf5 24.xf5 gxf5
37.h4 f5 38.f4 d2 39.e4 d4 40.h2 25.d2 ]
b2 41.e5 c6 42.e4 d2 43.f4 d4 23.hxg6 fxg6 24.0-0-0 c6 25.ce2 f5
44.b5 xb5 45.e6 fxe6 46.xe6 d6 26.f4 ge7 27.xg6+ xg6 28.xf5
47.xd6 xd6 xf5 29.xf5 e6 30.f7
½-½ 1-0

111 A01 112 A01

Tumini,Juan Pedro 2142 Vaisser,Anatoli 2573
Samur,Arturo 2164 Flear,Glenn C 2489
IRT Eduardo Orosco (10) 17.03.2005 FRA-chT poule haute (10) 10.05.2004
[John Watson] [Jonathan Rowson]

In a game between two lower-rated players, 1.b3 d5 2.b2 g4 3.f3

Black shows another solid setup but then [ 3.d3 An early b3 combined with d3 raises a
overextends. 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 tactical issue that I f irst learned f rom a
4.d4 b4+ 5.c3 d6 Now we have a strange game between Josh W aitzkin and Victor
variant of Black's setup from the previous Kortchnoi: e6 4.d2 c6 5.gf3 f6 6.h3
game. 6.f3 0-0 7.e2 e4!? Committal. xf3 7.xf3 a3! 8.xa3 a5+
[ 7...exd4 8.exd4 ( 8.cxd4 b4+ 9.c3 and Black equalises. ]
d5= ) 8...e8 9.0-0 f4!? with ...d5 next [ 3.f3 A simpler way to play, and if Black
yie ld s s p a ce an d equ alit y, sin ce 10.d5? responds too automatically he runs into

106
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
some trouble: xf3 4.exf3 f6 5.g3 g6?!
This is quite a standard way to try to
neutralise the bishop on b2, but here there is
a tactical problem. ( 5...e6 6.g2 g6!
The move e6 is not entirely wasted, because
it supports the centre, and Black has a very
comfortable position here e.g. 7.0-0 g7
8.f4 0-0 9.d3 e8 10.xg7 xg7 11.d2
d7 12.f3 c6 ) 6.e2! Causing some
annoying tactical problems. The reason I
c h o s e t o s h a r e t h is ga m e is t h a t wh il e
figuring out how Black could prevent the two
threats- Bxf6 and Qb5+ I found a pleasing
idea that is obviously bad, but is still
somehow elegant:
A) 6...d7!! 7.b5+ ( 7.h3+ e6 8.0-0
is presumably much better for White, but
at le a s t B la ck d o e sn 't lo se m a t e ria l!)
7...c8;
B) 6...bd7 7.xf6 xf6 8.b5+;
C) 6...g7 7.b5+ bd7 8.xb7 0-0
9.h3 e6 10.0-0 c5 11.a6 Black never
quite achieves adequate compensation.
c7 12.e2 ab8 13.d3 e8 14.xg7
xg7 15.d2 d6 16.c4 fe8 17.f4 d4
18.f3 a5 19.e5 f6 20.xd7 xd7
21.fe1 f7 22.d2 b4 23.ab1 a4
24.bxa4 xa4 25.e2 f5 26.g2 e7
27.e1 d6 28.b5 a6 29.b1 ea7
30.h4 c7 31.f3 d6 32.b3 f6
33.eb2 a3 34.g2 xb3 35.axb3 a3
36.b4 cxb4 37.xb4 a5 38.b8 a2
39.a8 xa8 40.xa8 xa8 41.b6
1-0 Rogers, I (2570)-Stripunsky, A (2475)/
New York 1998. ]
3...h5 4.h3!?
[ 4.e4!? is a curious Gambit idea examined
in some detail by Odessky. c6! is simplest,
with an obscure Caro-Kann where Black is
fine, e.g. ( 4...dxe4 5.e2! intending Qb5+
to pick up the bishop on h5 is complex-
see Odessky's book for details.) 5.e2 e6
6.exd5 cxd5 7.b5+ d7 8.h3
is mentioned by Odessky, but he readily
admits that it is dangerous only for White if
Black simply develops normally and heads
for the ending. ]
[ 4.g3!? intending Bg2 and perhaps f4 later. ]
[ 4.e3 intending Ne2. ]
4...f6
[ 4...e6 also looks fine e.g. 5.f4 g6
6.h4!? The enjoyable thing about 1b3 is that
it allows you to explore such obscure lines.
d6 7.e3 ( 7.xg7 xf4 8.xh8 g3# )
7...f6 8.g4 e5! ]
5.d4 d7 It's not clear that this was a knights
before bishops moment.
[ 5...e6 6.f4 f7 7.e4 b4+!? 8.c3 d6
was an idea tried by Hungarian GM Zoltan
Gyimesi, and looks comfortable for Black. ]
6.c3 c6 7.e4 e6 8.e2 e7 9.0-0-0
White appears to have some initiative. 0-0-0
10.f4 f7 11.d3 h5 12.a4 h6
13.b1 e8 14.c4 b8 15.c5 g5 16.h4
gxh4 17.exd5 exd5 18.d2 g6 19.e1
f7 20.a5 e8 21.c1 a8 22.b2 f5
23.b6+ xb6 24.cxb6 a6 25.xe8+
xe8 26.f4 b8 27.xa6 bxa6 28.e1
c8 29.xg6 g8 30.f4 d6 31.e6
xf4 32.xf4+ b7 33.xf6 xg2+ 34.a3
d7 35.c5 e2 36.e5 xe5 37.dxe5 h3
38.e6 d6 39.f7+ b8 40.xd6+ xd6
41.h7
1-0
113 A01
Vaisser,Anatoli 2515
Gozzoli,Yannick 2520
ch-FRA NatB Belfort FRA (3) 11.08.2010
[Nigel Davies]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6
An interesting plan that has found favour with
some strong players. The d6 square isn't such
a natural place for Black's bishop but it does
the job of developing whilst protecting e5.
5.e2 a6 6.xc6 dxc6 7.d3 Sensibly
posting his pawns on the opposite colour to
the remaining bishop.
[ After 7.bc3 B l a c k c a n t r y e4!?
, f or exam ple 8.g3 e7 9.e2 0-0
10.0-0-0 a3 11.xa3 xa3+ 12.b1
e8 13.f3 exf3 14.gxf3 a5 suddenly gave
Black a very dangerous attack in Bischoff,
K (2533) -Sutovsky, E (2604)/Essen 2001.
Vaisser seems to be very well aware of the
possibility of ...e5-e4 so sets about
preventing it. ]
7...e7 8.e4
[ Preventing ....Bd6-a3 with 8.a3 looks like a
waste of time and after e4 9.d2 exd3
107
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

10.cxd3 e5 11.xe5 xe5 12.h3 c5 11.e2 f5 12.g4 f4 13.e4 exd5

13.c1 b6 14.0-0 b7 Black had a very 14.c4 f6 15.f5 b5 was quite unclear
comfortable game in Sokolowski, R (2089)- in Rogers, I (2594)-Gormally, D (2472)/
Malaniuk, V (2522)/ Koszalin 2007. ] Caleta 2005. ]
[ On the other hand 8.d2 a3 also seems 8.c3 This seems to be a theoretical novelty,
ve ry c o m f o rt a b le f o r B la ck a f t e r 9.xa3
not something that often happens on the 8th
xa3 10.0-0 g4 11.f3 e6 12.d4 exd4 move of other openings. Alternatives are as
13.xd4 0-0-0 14.e2 he8 , all of which follows:
was played in Vaisser, A (2542)-Maze, S [ a) 8.xc6+ bxc6 9.d3 0-0 10.d2 a5
(2553)/ Pau 2008. ] 11.a4 e8 12.0-0 d7 13.e4 was slightly
8...d7 9.0-0 0-0 10.d2 The position now better for White in another game from the
looks more like an Exchange Variation of the L a r se n 's O p e n in g t h e m e d b lit z m a t c h ,
Spanish (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Bxc6 Svidler, P (2734)-Nielsen, P (2700)/
dxc6) than a Larsen's Opening. And I prefer Copenhagen DEN 2010 ]
W hite here because of his nice pawn lever [ b) 8.c4 0-0 9.xc6 ( 9.cxd5 b4
with f2-f4. c5 11.f4 g4 12.f5 f6 13.h3 will regain the pawn with some initiative for
xe2 14.xe2 a5 15.a3 b5 16.h1 d7 Black ) 9...bxc6 10.c5 xc5 11.xe5
17.a4 fb8 18.a2 bxa4 19.xa4 b6 is tempting but not really that great f o r
20.a2 a4 Black hurries to exchange off his White ]
queenside weaknesses, but he's always going [ c) After 8.0-0 0-0 White should really
to be worse. 21.bxa4 xa4 22.xa4 xa4 capture on c6 because 9.d3?! b4 10.e2
23.a1 b4 24.b1 f8 25.c4 c3 c6 causes unexpected embarrassment to
26.xc3 xc3 27.xb8 xb8 Despite the his bishop. ]
simplification the position is still very 8...e4
dangero us f or Bla ck b eca use of the wa y [ 8...a6 looks better, just keeping his e- and
queen and knight cooperate well, especially d-pawns united. Now White gets an edge. ]
against a weakened king. Black does pretty 9.e2 a6 10.xc6+ bxc6 11.d3 exd3
well to defend himself so easily. 28.d1 b4 12.cxd3 0-0 13.0-0 e8 14.a4 e6
29.g3 g6 30.fxg6 This could probably have 15.ac1 d7 16.h1
waited. hxg6 31.g4 g7 32.h4 e1 33.h5 [ Obviously White is not going to fall for
g3 34.g2 f4 35.f3 c3 36.b1 h6 16.xc6 h2+ etc. ]
37.hxg6 xg6 38.e2 d4 39.e1 g5 16...c5 17.d4 cxd4 18.xd4 h4 19.f3
40.h1 g6 41.f3 c3 42.d1 g5 g5 20.c5 xc5 21.xc5 c6 22.d4 a5
43.e3 xe3 44.xe3 g6 45.f3 23.g4 xg4 24.hxg4 Black is worse in this
½-½ endgame because of his inferior pawn
structure and the fact he has to fight against
White's bishop with his knight. Many moves of
114 A01 suffering result in defeat. a4 25.b4 b8
Vallejo Pons,Francisco 2703 26.a3 f8 27.h2 b6 28.xb6 xb6
Gustafsson,Jan 2640 29.c5 a6 30.fc1 e7 31.g3 h6
38th World Open (2) 30.06.2010 32.1c3 d6?! After White's reply Black
[Nigel Davies] can't hold his d5 pawn.
[ 32...g6 would have been more
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 d5 4.b5 d6 tenacious. ]
5.f3 g4 33.b5 cxb5 34.xb5 e5 35.f4+ f6
[ This seems to be more solid than 5...e7 36.xd5 ac6 37.cd3 c2 38.f3 a2
. White gets the bishop pair but will probably 39.f5+ g6 40.a5 b6 41.xa4
be giving them back. ] After the fall of this second pawn it starts to
6.h3 xf3 7.xf3 f6 look like a question of time. bb2 42.a6+
[ 7...ge7 is and interesting alternative, for h7 43.g3 g2 44.g5 hxg5 45.fxg5 af2+
example 8.c4 0-0 9.cxd5 b4 10.a3 a6 46.g4 g1 47.a4 fg2 48.f5 h2

108
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
49.h4+ xh4 50.gxh4 f1+ 51.g4
52.f3 a1 53.h5 h1 54.d5
55.f2 h4 56.a5 f6 57.gxf6
58.g3 e4 59.f3 h4 60.e4
61.f5 h3+ 62.g4 xa3 63.xf6+
64.e5 a1 65.h6+ h7 66.f5
67.e6 a6+ 68.f5 a2 69.e6
70.f7+ xh6 71.e7 f2+ 72.e6
73.d7
1-0
115
Williams,Simon Kim 2520
Ledger,David 2245
2nd Big Slick GM (7) 01.07.2011
[Nigel Davies]
1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 d6 4.b5 d7
5.f3 e7 6.0-0 h5?! Not surprisingly this is
a new move and it's kind of difficult to
understand Black's motives.
[ 6...f6 is the sensible move after which
7.d4 exd4 8.exd4 a6 would give Black a
solid if slightly cramped game. ]
7.d4 f6? Another rather astonishing move
which is testimony to the effectiveness of
taking the right opponent 'out of book'.
[ 7...e4 8.fd2 f6 has to be the sensible
way to play this position, and Black can
argue that the pawn on h5 might give him
some attacking chances. ]
8.d3 h6 9.c4 f8 10.dxe5 fxe5
11.c3 e8 12.d5 d8 13.e4 ce7?!
[ Officially I suppose this is a mistake and
th a t I s h ou ld b e reco mm e nd in g 13...f6
. Unofficially it probably just saves Black
from unnecessary suffering. ]
14.xe5! dxe5 15.f4 This Larsen's opening
su d de n ly lo o ks mo re like a 1 9t h ce nt u ry
K in g 's G a m b it . B la c k i s ge t t in g k ille d o f
course... xd5 16.xd5 e6 17.fxe5+
e8 18.d4 c6 19.a3 b6 20.f8#
1-0
g1+ 116 A01
h3+ Williams,Simon Kim 2520
gxf6 Mista,Aleksander 2569
h6 TCh-Top 12 2011 (10) 04.06.2011
g7 [Nigel Davies]
a2
e2 1.b3 e5 2.b2 c6 3.e3 f6 4.b5 d6
e2+ 5.h3 Fifteen (!) different moves have been
tried in this position, the text being one of the
rarer choices.
[ Even less frequent, but possibly of some
appeal to Englishmen, is the hyper-
A01 aggressive 5.g4!? for example a6 ( 5...0-0
6.c3 b4!? 7.g5 xc3 8.dxc3 e4 9.h4
d5 was rather good for Black in Arencibia
Rodriguez, W (2534) -Efimov, I (2465)/
S a i n t V i n c e n t 2 0 0 1) 6.f1 ( 6.d3
strikes me as being 'logical', getting ready
for Nc3, Qe2 and castling long) 6...h6 7.g2
e7 8.d3 d5 9.h3 e6 10.e2 d7
11.d2 0-0-0 12.a3 h5 13.g5 h7 14.h4
brought about a Hippo set up with an
extended fianchetto on the kingside in Vitor,
A (2365)-Oral, T (2535)/Ortigueira 2005.
Perhaps this isn't a bad way to play if you
like to improvise over the board. ]
5...a6 6.e2 e7 7.d4
[ The most thematic looking pawn lever here
is 7.f4 but after d6 8.f2 exf4 9.exf4 0-0
White is left wishing his f-pawn was back on
f2 and his knight was on f3. ]
7...exd4 8.exd4 d5 9.f4 d6 10.d3
The net result of the opening hasn't been very
f avourable f or W h ite . B lack's p iec es are
simply better placed for this kind of pawn
struct ure . 0-0 11.0-0 e8 12.d2 e4
13.f3 a3
[ Black might also have tried delaying this
with 13...f6 but after 14.c4 a3 15.c1
xb2 16.xb2 e6 17.f4 White is doing
OK. ]
14.xa3 c3 15.d2 xe2+ 16.h1
exd4 Winning a pawn, but White is going to
get some play for it but basically he's
struggling to draw. 17.xd4 xd4 18.f4
b5 19.b2 g5 20.ad1 c6 21.c4
A tough decision. Whittling away Black's d5
pawn certainly gives White more play, but on
the other hand there are now new
weaknesses on c4 and a2. dxc4 22.bxc4
c7 23.d6 e7 24.d4 After this Black
109
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
seems to get White's initiative under raps.
[ 24.h5!? looks critical after which xd6
25.xd6 g4 ( 25...f6 26.xf6 ) 26.xg7
e2 27.f6 may give White enough
counterplay in the endgame. ]
24...f6 25.b6 f5 26.c3 e6 27.fe1
f7 Missing his chance.
[ 27...c5 28.xc5 xc5 leaves Black well
on top in the endgame. ]
28.e2 g5 29.g3 c2 30.xe8+ xe8
31.d8 h5 32.h4 e4 33.xe4 xe4
The disappearance of the knights makes the
position very drawish. If rooks and queens
also come off it will be a dead draw. 34.f3
g6 35.xe8+ xe8 36.xb7
½-½
117 A02
Antoshin,Vladimir S
Panchenko,Alexander N
USSR 1983
[Tony Kosten]
1.f4 e5 From's Gambit may be one reason
that Bird's Opening is not that popular. 2.fxe5
White takes the 'bull by the horns',
[ 2.d3 is an alternative which entails less
risk, c6 ( 2...exf4 3.xf4 d5 4.f3 f6
5.d2 Hort-Bronstein, Amsterdam 1994, is
also fine for Black.) 3.f3 d6 4.e4
W hite has engineered a sort of 'reversed
Philidor Counter-Attack'. f6 5.e2 e7
6.0-0 Martinovsky,I-Downey,G/Vancouver
BC CAN 1999, and now 0-0 seems level. ]
[ 2.e4 refuses the pawn, and brings us to a
King's Gambit, of course. ]
2...d6 Black sacrifices a pawn for
development, and to exploit the weaknesses
created around the white king by White's first
move. 3.exd6
[ 3.f3
A) If 3...dxe5 t h e n , a s we l l a s 4.e4
transposing into a King's gambit, there is
( 4.xe5 which seems OK );
B) 3...g5!? Black tries to bring play back
to the main line, expecting 4 exd6 Bxd6,
with a transposition. 4.e4 but White has
other ideas! g4 5.c4!? gxf3 6.xf3
W hite has sacrifice d a piece in the
manner of the Muzio Gambit, but this
version is even better, as there is no black
pawn on f4 to impede White's play along
t h e f - f i l e . e6? this is not very good,
( 6...h6 7.0-0 e7 is suggested by
Larsen, but even so, after 8.exd6 cxd6
9.c3 White's compensation for the piece
is fully adequate.) 7.xe6 fxe6 8.0-0
e7? 9.exd6 cxd6 10.c3 and Black is
in big trouble, Weis-Wirz/Zuerich 1966. ]
3...xd6 4.f3 g5 This pawn thrust is the
standard continuation here, threatening to
displace the f3-knight and make a deadly
check on h4.
[ Black has other, less direct, methods, too:
4...c6 5.d4 f6 6.c3 g4 with active
piece play, Krause,C-Weinreich/corr 1969. ]
[ 4...f6 5.e3 g4 with the crude threat of
ca p t u rin g o n h 2 wit h t h e b i sh o p . 6.e2
t h i s m o v e i s u n wi e l d y, b u t f 2 m u s t b e
defended. c6 7.c3 ce5 8.g3 h5
and the black kingside attack is well
underway. 9.d4 xf3+ 10.xf3 h4
Malaniuk,V-Dyachkov,S/Russian Club Cup,
Maikop RUS 1998 ]
5.g3 The best move, providing a square for
the f3-knight (on h4), and stopping a later . ..
Qh4+.
[ 5.d4 g4 6.e5 c6!? more enterprising
than ( 6...xe5 7.dxe5 xd1+ 8.xd1
c6 which leads to equality.) 7.f4 f6
8.d2 ge7 9.c3 xe5 10.dxe5 xe5
having recaptured the pawn, Black has
equal chances, Djordjevic, R-Ljubojevic,L/
Yugoslavia 1969. ]
5...g4 6.h4 e7! This knight is coming to
g6 to defy the h4-knight. 7.d4 g6 8.xg6
This falls in with Black's plan to open the h-file,
the alternative is
[ 8.g2 , but it is passive, h5? ( 8...c6
is better, menacing tactics on the d4-pawn,
9.c3 e7 stopping White from playing e4,
and intending long castling, with good play
for Black, Kanel-Krizsany, Saanen 1994.)
9.e4 c6 10.e5 c7 11.f4 White has
o ve r c o m e h i s d e v e l o p m e n t p r o b l e m s ,
Kovacic,P-Marjanovic,S/Nova Gorica SLO
1999. ]
8...hxg6 Black lines-up two powerful threats: ...
Rxh2, and ...Bxg3+. 9.d3 White defends g3,
o f c o u r s e . c6 White gets no respite, the
new menace is 10...Nxd4, as 11 Qxd4?? loses
110
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
t h e q u e e n t o 1 1 . . . B xg 3 + . 10.c3 f5
Black gives a lesson in the art of gambit play,
constantly trying to keep White off-balance.
11.e4 e7 Pinning the e-pawn. 12.g2 0-0-0
Every single one of Black's pieces is
developed, and well-placed. 13.0-0 e5!
There is still no let-up for White. 14.d1
[ Panchenko prefers 14.e3 the point being
t h a t , a f t e r f3+ 15.xf3 gxf3 16.exf5
a n e x c h a n g e o f qu e e n s is t h r e a t e n e d ,
xh2!? is still possible, with transposition to
t h e g a m e a f t e r 1 7 Q x f 3 , b u t 17.xe7
only leads to a draw after g2+ 18.h1
h8+ 19.h4 a useful resource! xh4+
20.gxh4 h2+ ]
14...f3+! Black sacrifices further material to
open the white king position, and kill the
d e f e n d e rs . 15.xf3 gxf3 16.exf5 xh2!
17.xf3 This is forced, for
[ 17.xh2?? allows mate in three after
h4+ ]
17...h3 18.f4 xf4 19.xf4 dh8
The end is nigh! 20.f3 g5 21.f2 h2+
22.g1 h1+!
[ 22...h1+ as 23.xh1 e3+ 24.g2
e4+ 25.f3 xh1 wins material ]
0-1
118 A02
Bacrot,Etienne 2695
Leko,Peter 2755
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (29) 22.11.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.b3 c5 2.b2 c6 3.f4 d5 4.f3 g4
5.e3 a6 6.d3?!
[ This move is often seen in the Bird, but
usually not this soon, though exceptions are
m a d e a ll t h e t im e . W h it e 's b e st o p t io n
p r o b a b l y c a n b e f o u n d i n 6.e2!?
, and then:
A) 6...e6 6...e6
A1) 7.d3 f6 8.bd2 e7 9.0-0 c7
10.c1 0-0-0? ( 10...0-0 ) 11.e5 xe2
12.xe2 xe5 13.fxe5+- Sarasola, J-
Dominguez Sanz, J/ Cajas 1989;
A2) 7.c4 f6 8.0-0 g6 9.h3 xf3 7.bd2
10.xf3 g7 11.cxd5 exd5
Rudolph, J-Herfurth, T/Leipzig 1997;
A3) 7.0-0 f6 8.e5 xe2 9.xe2 7...f6
d6 10.xc6 bxc6 11.d3 e7 12.e4
Rogers, I-Parakrama, A/Buenos Aires
1978;
B) 6...f6 7.e5 xe2 8.xe2 c7
9.d3 d7 10.xc6 xc6 11.d2 e6
12.0-0 Mohota, N-Foisor, C/Moscow
2001;
C) 6...xf3 7.xf3 f6 8.0-0 e6
C1) 9.d3 d6 10.d2 c7 11.c1 e5
12.e1 0-0-0 13.fxe5 xe5
Carrera Perez, F-Corradine, J/Bogota
1991;
C2) 9.f5 d6 10.fxe6 fxe6 11.xf6
gxf6 12.c4 e5 13.cxd5 exd5 14.c3
( 14.h5+!? d7 15.c3 c7
16.f3 ) 14...d6 15.xd5 0-0-0
Gretarsson, H-Olafsson, H/Reykjavik
1995;
C3) 9.c3 e7 10.e2 c8 11.h1
( 11.c4!? ) 11...0-0 12.g4 ( 12.d3!? )
12...d4! 13.exd4 cxd4= Abou el Zein, E-
Tissir, M/Cairo 2002;
C4) 9.c4!? d4 ( 9...e7!? ) 10.xc6+
bxc6 11.f3 d7 was played in Bahr,
A-Meyer, J/SWH 1992, and now White
sh o u ld h a ve o p t e d f o r 12.d3 e7
13.d2 ]
[ We also have the forcing 6.h3 , which has
been played by one of the finest specialists
of the Bird these days, the Danish-Icelandic
(wh o m h e i s r e p r e se n t in g t h e s e d a y s )
G r a n d m a s t e r H e n r i k D a n i e l s e n : xf3
7.xf3 d6 ( 7...f6 8.a3 e6 9.g4 d4
10.g2 d5 Bergeron, M-Burke, M/IECG
E m a i l 2 0 0 0 , a n d n o w 11.c4!? de7
12.f5 ) 8.g4 f6 9.g2 e6 10.d3 ge7
11.d2 0-0-0 12.0-0-0 c7 13.b1 a5
14.h4 b8 15.g5 , White massive space
advantage along with the long-term
advantage of the bishop pair ensures White
the upper hand, Danielsen, H-Wedberg, T/
Munkebo 1998 ]
[ Another try is 6...h6!? 7.e2 f5 8.d2
e6 9.e4 ( 9.0-0 d4 10.exd4 cxd4 )
9...dxe4 10.dxe4 xf3 11.xf3 xd2+
12.xd2 fd4= ]
[ 7.e2 ge7 8.0-0 f5 9.c1 d4
10.exd4 cxd4 is rather pleasant for Black ]
111
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 7...ge7!? ]
8.h3?!
[ Now White is starting to make mistakes. A
better choice is 8.e2 d4 9.e4 c7 ]
8...xf3 9.xf3
[ 9.xf3 d4 10.e4 b4! 11.d1 c7
12.g3 g5 ]
9...d4 10.e4 h5 11.d2 f6 12.g4?!
[ 12.c1 g3 13.g1 e7 ]
12...xf4 13.gxh5 xf3 14.g2 xh5-+
White is down two pawn with absolutely no
compensation in sight, so I will leave the rest
of the game without any further comments.
15.0-0 d6 16.f3 0-0 17.af1 e5
18.3f2 g6 19.c1 h6 20.e5 xe5
21.xb7 a7 22.g2 g6 23.e1 g3
24.e4 xf2+ 25.xf2 e5 26.g4 e1+
27.f1 h4 28.f3 e7 29.h5 h7
30.f3 f5 31.g3 f6 32.a4 c7 33.h1
e5 34.d5 f4
0-1
119 A02
Basman,Michael J
Tal,Mihail
Hastings 7374 (11) 1973
[Nigel Davies]
A game which shows the potential for
originality in chess. Basman's 1.f4 is met by
Tal's 1...d6 and the players can construct
their own patterns on the board. Curiously
en ou gh a Ch rist ma s t re e is crea te d wit h
W h i t e ' s 1 0 t h . T h e S a n t a s p i r i t ? 1.f4
These were the days when Mike Basman still
played sensible openings, the Bird being
positively mainstream compared to his later
r e p e r t o i r e . d6!? And this is a somewhat
offbeat reply by Tal, perhaps evincing a sense
of humour more than anything else. 2.f3 g6
3.g3 g7 4.g2 f6 5.c4!?
[ White can of course opt for a more regular
L e n i n g r a d D u t c h t y p e s e t u p w i t h 5.d3
and after 0-0 6.e4 c5 7.0-0 c6 8.c3
t h e g a m e m i gh t e ve n t r a n s p o se i n t o a
Closed Sicilian. Of course such well trodden
paths would not appeal to the man playing
White. ]
5...0-0 6.c3 c6
[ 6...c5 is certainly worth considering here. ]
7.0-0 d5 8.cxd5 cxd5 9.e3 c6 10.e2
Completing a formation that looks curiously
like a Christmas tree - at least more than the
Sicilian Dragon looks like a Dragon. Actually
there is some strategic urgency behind
preventing ...d5-d4. d6 11.a4 d7
12.a3 b4
[ Playing against a lower rated player Tal
avoids the exchange of Queens. Actually it
wouldn't be half bad for W hite after
12...xa3 13.bxa3 e4 14.b1 . ]
13.ed4 a5 14.d3 g4 15.d2 e5
T h is m a k e s se n se st ra t e gica lly s o a s t o
expose the weakness on e3. B ut Black's
po sit io n is n o t t oo b e a ut if u l h e re eit h e r.
16.fxe5 xe5 17.xe5 xe5 18.b3 c6
19.b5 a4 20.xd5
[ 20.xd6 axb3 21.xf7 xb2 would be
qu it e goo d f o r B la ck an d right u p T al's
street. ]
20...e7?! Continuing to play 'for a win' but
taking ever greater risks.
[ 20...xd5 was objectively much better,
though Black is struggling to draw. ]
21.c3
[ 21.d4! is better, for example e6 22.e4
c4 23.dxe5 xb5 24.fd1 is just good for
White because of his bishop pair. ]
21...b4 22.xb7 ab8 23.a7 xd3
24.d5 e6 25.c3 b5 26.c7?
Letting his illustrious opponent off the hook.
[ 26.f6! would have been very strong, for
example xf6 27.xf6+ h8 28.d5 c8
29.g4+ f6 30.xf6 with a mating attack. ]
26...xc7 27.xc7 a3? But now Tal goes
astray!
[ 27...xe3+ 28.h1 f2+ 29.xf2 xf2
looks risky for Black because of the
weaknesses around his king, but 30.e5 f6
is solid enough. ]
28.xf7!
[ And not 28.bxa3? xe3+ 29.h1 bc8
etc. ]
28...xf7
[ 28...xf7 29.d5 wins the Queen. ]
29.xb8+ e8 30.d4
[ And not 30.bxa3?? b e c a u s e o f xe3+
31.h1 f2+ 32.g1 h3+ 33.h1
g1+ 34.xg1 f2# . ]
30...axb2 31.d1 f2?
[ And here 31...d7 was better. ]
112
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

32.f1?! as 15.g5? , s a y , i s m e t b y xh2+!

[ 32.b1! would have won. ] 16.xh2 g3+ 17.g2 xe1
32...d3 33.xf7! xf7 34.d5 winning material. ]
[ And not 34.xb2?? f2+ 35.h1 e1+ 15.xh2 g3+ 16.g1 0-0-0
36.f1 xf1# . ] [ Presumably Black had missed that after
34...b1+ 35.xb1 xd5 36.xd3 xa2 16...xe1 17.xe1 xe3 he loses a piece
37.e4 b5 38.g4 c4 39.a8+ f7 to the e-file pin: 18.e2 ]
40.f3+ e8 41.a8+ d7 17.f2?!
½-½ [ 17.h3 ]
17...xh2+ 18.xh2 d6+ 19.g1
Black has no compensation for the piece. d4
120 A02 20.xd4 g3+? 21.g2 xd4 22.e2
Broutin,Philippe 2013 1-0
De Boer,Albert 2185
22nd Open Bethune FRA (2) 26.12.2001
[Tony Kosten] 121 A02
Chernyshov,Konstantin 2570
1.f4 e5 2.fxe5 d6 3.exd6 xd6 4.f3 c6 Gorbunov,Igor 2242
[ An alternative to the more direct 4...g5 3rd Geller mem Open A (7) 14.09.2007
which I analysed some years back, see the [Nigel Davies]
classic Antoshin,V - Panchenko,A/USSR,
1983. ] 3.e6 is another way to decline the From that I
5.g3 hadn't seen prior to preparing this update. I
[ 5.d4 is also played, g4 6.e3?! e7 don't see much 'advantage' as such, but the
7.f2 0-0-0 and Black is already on top, position is totally original. Let's play chess!
Albin,A-Tarrasch,S/Monte Carlo 1903. ] 1.f4 e5 2.fxe5 d6 3.e6 This method of
5...h5!? An innovation, Black heads straight declining the From has found favour amongst
for the weakness on g3. some strong players. xe6 4.f3 f6
[ 5...f6 is more common, aiming to Amazingly we've reached a little explored but
complete development: 6.g2 g4 7.0-0 interesting looking position after just four
h5!? ( 7...e7 and ...0-0-0 is also feasible) moves! Some more examples feature quite
8.d4 d7 9.c3 0-0-0 10.g5! hindering ... strong players:
h4, Reinderman,D-Van Beers,E/Antwerp [ a) 4...d5 5.d4 c5 6.e3 h6 7.xh6
1992. ] (This is all wonderfully bizarre!) gxh6 8.c3
6.d3 c6 9.e3 g8 10.d2 c4 11.e2 f5
[ 6.g2 is another possibility. ] 12.c3 d6 13.g3 e7 14.g2 0-0-0
6...h4! The logical follow-up. 7.gxh4 15.0-0 d3 16.e1 e4 17.f4 b8
[ This weakens the kingside, but 7.xh4?! was probably about equal at this stage
is worse, g5 8.f3 xg3+ ] t h o u g h W h i t e l a t e r wo n i n G i r i n a t h , P
7...g4 8.g5 f6 9.e3 e7 10.d2 xf3 (2 4 3 0)-S ara va na , K (2 24 3 ), Ne w De lh i
11.exf3 d4!? Tempting, Black menaces to 2008. ]
capture on f3, and also c2, but [ b) 4...c6 5.c3 d5 6.d4 f6 7.g5
[ 11...c5! 12.f2 0-0-0 leaves Black with e7 8.e3 e4 9.xe4 dxe4 10.xe7
more than enough compensation for the xe7 11.d2 g5 12.e2 g4 13.h4
pawn (assuming he captures on h4), . ..f5 g6 14.h5 f5 15.f2 b4 16.xf5 xf5
is coming next. ] 17.f2 was if anything slightly better for
12.f2 f5 13.c3 xh4 14.e1 W hite in Kozel, R (2387)-Dolzhikova, K
The pressure along the e-file causes a slight (2339), Illichevsk 2008, though Black went
h i c c o u g h i n t h e b l a c k a t t a c k . xh2+? on to win. ]
The right combination, ... at the wrong time! 5.b3 And now a queenside fianchetto!
[ The obvious 14...0-0-0 should be played, [ A similar way of introducing this idea is via

113
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
5.e3 , for example g6 6.b3 g7 7.b2 0-0
8.e2 bd7 9.0-0 c6 10.d4 c7
11.c3 ae8 12.xe6 gave White the
bishop pair in Schmitt, O-Boulineau, F,
France 1996, though obviously there are
many other possibilities for both sides. ]
5...d5 6.b2 d6 7.e3 g4 8.e2 c6
9.g3
[ I don't actually see anything clear for Black
after 9.xg7 g8 10.b2 . ]
9...h5 10.c3 a6 11.0-0-0 e7 12.b1
0-0-0 13.g2 he8 14.hf1 g6 What can
one say about this position except that it's a
rich looking chess game with only a pair of
pawns having been exchanged. And after a
few moves the better player starts to gain the
ascendancy... 15.h1 ge5 16.f2 xf3
17.xf3 e5?!
[ 17...a3 was better as now White gets to
advance his centre pawns. ]
18.d4 h8 19.e4 dxe4 20.xe4 f5
21.fe1 b4 22.c3 b6 23.a1
Now it's clear that White is better as his knight
wants to come to c5. And maybe Black should
have exchanged it with 23...Bxe4 rather than
let this happen, though that would present
W h i t e w i t h a u s e f u l b i s h o p p a i r . e7?!
24.c5 de8 This loses a pawn, but I don't
see a good move for him. 25.xe7 xe7
26.xh5! b8
[ 26...gxh5 27.xf5+ Overloading Decoy
Deflection Discovered attack Double attack ]
27.f3 a7? Losing immediately, though the
position is bad for Black in any case. 28.g4
c8 29.a4
[ After 29.a4 b5 30.d5+ Black loses a
piece. ]
1-0
122 A02
Danielsen,Henrik 2526
Hardarson,Robert 2315
Jonsson Mem Open (2) 24.10.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.f4 e5 2.fxe5 d6 3.f3 What is the point of
this move? In fact, White is not bothering to
d e f e n d h i s e x t r a p a wn a t a l l, b u t r a t h e r
tra n s p o s e s in to a ra re lin e o f t h e K in g's
Gambit with the advantage that he avoids
those variations that are probably
disadvantageous for White - where Black can
c a p t u r e o n f 4 . dxe5 This seems to be the
preferred move nowadays, although Black has
a wide choice:
[ 3...g5 is the 'real' From move: 4.d4!?
( I looked at 4.e4 g4 5.c4!? in the notes
to the classic Antoshin - Panchenko, gxf3
6.xf3 e6?! 7.xe6 fxe6 8.0-0 e7?!
Zach,A-Schmid,G/ Germany 1996, when
9.exd6 cxd6 10.c3 is strong, hitting h8
and threatening a check on c8.; 4.exd6
xd6 brings us back to the main line) 4...g4
5.g5 e7 ( 5...d7 6.fd2 dxe5 7.dxe5
f5 8.h4 c6 is also playable, Bachler,R-
Kiss,A/Graz 1993) 6.exd6 is interesting,
cxd6?! ( 6...xd6 7.xe7 xe7 is better,)
7.xe7 xe7?! 8.fd2 d5 9.c4
gaining the centre, with advantage, Katulic,
Z-Ciganovic,N/Velika Gorica CRO 2002. ]
[ 3...g4!? is also possible: 4.e4 ( 4.d4 d7
5.f4 xf3!? 6.exf3 dxe5 7.dxe5 h4+
8.g3 b4+ 9.d2 c5 10.e2!? 0-0-0
11.0-0-0 leaves Black with little for the pawn,
Pawliko wski,J-Pu gh, L/P arsipa nny US A
2002 ) 4...dxe5 5.c3 f6 6.c4 c6
7.0-0?? Rasmussen,M-Brantzeg,P/
Copenhagen DEN 1999 when, inexplicably,
B l a c k m i s s e d xf3 8.xf3 d4+
snaffling a piece for nothing! ]
[ 3...c6 4.e4 ( 4.exd6 xd6 returns to
main lines again, Rasmussen, M-Rosenberg,
J/Copenhagen DEN 1999) 4...dxe5 5.b5
d7 6.d3 with a fairly level position,
Sikorova,O-Koenigova,P/Tatranske Zruby
SVK 2000. ]
4.c3!? An important move, threatening to
capture the e-pawn, and therefore stopping
Black from playing his optimum set-up.
[ 4.e4 might transpose should White play
Nc3, c5 ( 4...e6!? 5.b5+ c6 6.a4
f6 7.d3 c5 8.b3 xb3 9.axb3
is fairly level, Markovic,G-Randjelovic,D/
Herceg Novi YUG 2001) 5.c3 this is sort of
t h e m a i n m o v e h e r e , a l t h o u g h ( 5.c3
might lead to our main game) 5...c6 6.b4
d6 ( 6...b6 is better ) 7.a3 f6 8.c2
0-0 9.e2 h5 10.d3 f5 11.0-0
with chances to both sides, Danielsen,H-
Lyell,M/Copenhagen DEN 1999. ]
[ 4.xe5 i s O K , b u t a f t e r d6 5.f3
114
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
we reach the main line, with both sides
having played an extra move, Deacon,F-
Steinitz,W/London 1863. ]
4...c6
[ 4...c5?! 5.xe5 is the point, when Black
really doesn't have too much
compensation. ]
5.e4
[ 5.e3!? is a bit timid, f6 6.c4 c5 7.0-0
0-0 and Black should be happy enough,
Solano Cruz,A-Trejos,E/ch-CRC, San Jose
CRC 2001. ]
5...c5 6.b5 This move, with the positional
threat of capturing on c6, is only possible
be c a u se B lac k h as p la ye d . .. Nc6 , wh ich
explains the thinking behind W hite's fourth
move. Incidentally, this position is most likely
to arise from a Vienna Gambit, with 1 e4 e5 2
Nc3 Nc6 3 f4 Bc5 4 fxe5 d6 5 Nf3 dxe5 6 Bb5,
say, than from a King's Gambit with 1 e4 e5 2
f4 Bc5 3 Nf3 d6 4 fxe5 dxe5 5 Nc3 Nc6 6 Bb5,
although the proper classification is
undoubtedly [C30]. g4 Pinning the knight
protects the e-pawn, but others are possible:
[ 6...d7 7.xc6 ( 7.a4!? ) 7...xc6 8.d3
( 8.xe5 d4 9.d3 b6 10.e2
is unclear.) 8...d6 9.e2 0-0-0 10.e3
is fairly level, Nabil,F-Bereolos,P/
Philadelphia USA 2001. ]
[ 6...ge7 7.a4!? ( 7.xe5!? d4 8.d3
i s a g a i n p o s s i b l e) 7...d6 8.d4
Prins,L-Cuellar Gacharna,M/ Moscow 1956,
when exd4 9.e5 b4+ 10.c3 is wild. ]
[ 6...d4!? 7.e2 ge7?! Muris,P-Erwich,F/
H e n g e l o 1 9 9 5 , 8.c3 b6 9.xe5
wins a good pawn for nothing. ]
7.h3!? The first new move, and one that asks
the question of the bishop.
[ 7.xc6+ is also very logical, wrecking the
black queenside: bxc6 8.d3 ( 8.e2 e7
9.h3 xf3 10.xf3 is better for White, his
structure is rock-solid, Gunsberg,I-Mieses,
J/Has tings 1 89 5) 8...d6 9.h3 d7
it makes sense to keep the bishop pair,
but Black's ragged pawns give him a
permanent headache, Yakovich,Y-
Shabanov,Y/Kursk 1987. ]
7...e6
[ 7...xf3 8.xc6+ bxc6 9.xf3 is similar to
the Gunsberg game, in the note above. ]
8.xc6+ bxc6 9.d3 f6 Black has the bishop
pair, but White's pawn structure is 'fire-proof'
and it is instructive to see how he goes about
winning the game. 10.b3!?
[ 10.e2 and Be3 is also possible. ]
10...e7 11.a4 b6 12.a3 0-0 13.d2
e8 Black frees the knight from the pin so that
h e c a n s e t - o f f t o wa r d s f 4 o r d 4 . 14.0-0-0
And why not, Black can hardly attack on the
queenside because of his immobile pawns.
g6 15.c5 f7 16.he1 f8 17.c3
e6 Black play s sensibly, he refuses to
capture on c5, but tries to bring his knight to
d4, and hopes that W hite will take on b6.
18.d4! Just in time. exd4 19.xd4 xd4?!
Capturing a second bishop, but bringing the
knight to a powerful square.
[ 19...e7 20.xc6!? xd4 21.xd4 e5
is a better way of doing things, with some
compensation for the pawn as White must
capture on b6. ]
20.xd4 d6 21.xc6 f4+ 22.b1?!
This move appears to lose the extra pawn,
[ 22.b2! is better, as then f2 ( 22...xe4
23.g3 xe1 24.gxf4 xd1 25.f3
wins an exchange) 23.f1 xe4?? 24.d2
wins a piece. ]
22...f2 23.e2 The point is that now
[ 23.f1 xe4 24.d2?! achieves nothing:
e1+ ]
23...g3?! Strange, why not take the pawn?
[ 23...xe4 24.e7+ f8! 25.xf2 xf2
26.c6 le ad s no wh ere xe7 27.xa8+
e8 ]
24.c5! Now White is back on track. h8
[ 24...xe4?? loses, 25.e7+ h8
26.c6 ]
25.c3 h4 26.f1 g6?!
[ 26...h5 27.d2 g6 is stronger. ]
27.d5 a6 28.e5! White liquidates his
w e a k e s t p a w n . fxe5 29.xe5 h5
30.xg6+ hxg6?! 31.c6 f8 32.xf8+
xf8 33.xa6 e5 Hoping for some play on
the dark squares, but it never materialises,
and meanwhile White has two extra pawns.
34.b2 g5 35.c6 f1 36.b4 f4 37.a3
f6 38.b3 h7 39.d5 b1+ 40.a4
The king is safe here. f1 41.xf6+ gxf6
1-0
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

123 A02 gets interesting. c6 35.b4 a4 36.xe7

Danielsen,Henrik 2520 d7 37.xd3!? b2 38.xg6 xd1
Ismagambetov,Anuar 2420 39.d6 cxd3 40.xd3 b2 41.d4
37th Olympiad (10) 31.05.2006 White's a rook down, but has the attack and
[John Watson] five extra pawns! e8 42.xe8+ xe8
43.xc7 xc7 44.f2 a4 45.c4 c3
In this game White plays the Leningrad Dutch 46.cxb5 xb5 47.d3 a7 48.g5 c6
Reversed. This can't be bad, although White's 49.b5 e7 50.g3 g6 51.d6 f8 52.f5
extra tempo isn't worth much (the Leningrad xe5 53.xe6 Four passed pawns should do
is mostly reactive). 1.f4 c5 2.f3 g6 3.g3 the trick.
g7 4.d3 c6 5.g2 e6 6.a4 This again! 1-0
Larsen liked this in the Leningrad. I'd be more
tempted to play 0-0 and c3, or even Qe1.
ge7 7.c3 d6 8.a3 0-0 9.0-0 b8 10.e4 124 A02
a6 Natural and not very exciting moves follow. Dimitrov,Pavel 2448
Perhaps Black could have played ...e5 earlier. Stojanovic,Andjelija 2310
11.e3 b5 12.axb5 axb5 13.c2 c7 25th Festival Open A (4) 25.02.2008
Neither side wants to make contact with the [Nigel Davies]
other. 14.fe1 d7 15.f2 fc8
[ 15...f5 and ] Against the 4...Nf6 variation of the From there
[ 15...e5 are the natural English/Closed doesn't seem to have been much experience
Sicilian moves. ] with a solid construction based on d2-d4 and
16.f1!? An odd move, indirectly hitting b5 e2-e3. But I don't see why not as it looks
and supporting c4 if a knight has to go there. rather good. 1.f4 e5 2.fxe5 d6 3.exd6
d8 17.b1 a5 18.bd2 e8 19.e5! xd6 4.f3 f6 Using pure piece play to try
Finally! I like W hite. b7!? Good if White and generate compensation. 5.d4 White has
plays e xd6 , b ut whe re will t his kn igh t go tried other moves here too, for example:
otherwise? I think that he wanted to defend c5 [ a) 5.e3 g4 6.e2 0-0 ( 6...c6 7.c3
in advance of ...d5, but that's a little exotic. ce5 8.g3 h5 9.d4 xf3+ 10.xf3 h4
19...Nec6 or 19...Ra8 was more to the point, 11.b5+ c6 12.xc6+ bxc6 13.xc6+
challenging the file. Still, White stands better was good for White in Obukhov, A (2475)-
at this point. 20.g4!? Nikitin, A (2452), Alushta 2004) 7.g3 e8
[ or 20.d4 ] 8.g2 c6 9.0-0 h5 10.c3 h4 11.gxh4
20...d5?! The plans look mixed up if this were d4 12.xd4 xh2+ 13.h1 xh4
going to be played Black's last move doesn't 14.f3 h5 15.d1 was Rendle, T (2366)-
make much sense. 21.h4 c6 22.f6 Heinis, V (2156), Catalan Bay 2007 and now
h6? This really is a mistake, inviting attack Black should have forced a draw with d6+
a n d l o s i n g t i m e . 23.g5! This is getting ( Rather than the 15...e6 o f t h e g a m e)
dangerous. You can sense Ndf3, Qf2-h4. So 16.g1 h2+ etc. ]
Black takes action, but in doing so cedes [ b) 5.g3 c6 6.g2 g4 7.d3 d7 8.c3
more squares. d4?! 0-0-0 9.g5 f5 10.d2 b4 11.h4
[ 23...g7 , to get ...h6 in quickly. ] c5 12.xf6 gxf6 13.a3 a5
24.de4 xe4 was Danielsen, H (2511)-Vea, O (2085),
[ 24...g7 25.f5! ] C o p e n h a g e n 2 0 0 5 a n d n o w 14.b1!?
25.dxe4 Remember that knight on b7? Now would have been very annoying for Black as
b5 is attacked. c4 26.f2 d3 27.h4 xg5 White is threatening b2-b4. ]
28.xg5 It's really over now there dark 5...f5
squares can't be protected. c7 29.e3! c5 [ 5...g4 has also been played but seems to
Finally, 4 or 5 moves too late. 30.h3 f8 be well met by 6.c3 0-0 7.e3 . ]
31.xh7 e8 32.d1 c8 33.g7 d7 6.e3 A nice compact way to play it which
34.xf7 The rest isn't important, although it l e a v e s t h e o n u s f i r m l y o n B l a c k t o

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
demonstrate his 'compensation'.
[ W h i t e u s u a l l y p l a y s 6.g5 here, for
example h6 7.h4 g5 8.f2 g4 9.g3
f6 was Boerner, J-Heinrich, S, Eisenberg
1 9 9 3 , a n d n o w 10.c3 would have been
good because xf2 11.xf2 g4 is met by
12.e4 . ]
6...e4 7.d3 d7 8.bd2 df6 9.0-0
e7 10.c4
[ 10.e5! would have been even stronger
because xe5 11.xf5 leaves Black
without a good move. ]
10...g4?!
[ Here and over the next few moves Black
gambles on a speculative attack. Of course
he is a pawn down, but the calmer 10...0-0
would have been better. ]
11.xd6+
[ 11.fe5! would have been very strong
because the bishop on f5 is hanging. For
example after h4 12.h3 xe5 13.xe5
xe5 14.xf5 g6 15.f3 Black is in big
trouble. ]
11...cxd6 12.h3
[ Even in this position 12.e5! is strong
because of dxe5 13.xf5 g6 14.xg4 gxf5
15.xf5 d6 16.xe5 etc. Two bishops
and three pawns are more than a match for
a rook and knight. ]
12...h5?!
[ Objectively speaking Black should play
12...gf6 , though he doesn't have much for
his pawn. ]
13.e1 d5? Still overstraining to demonstrate
his 'compensation'.
[ 13...gf6 was better, though there's still
the issue of him being down a pawn. ]
14.e5 g5
[ 14...xe5 15.xf5 c6 16.xd5 g6+- ]
15.b5+ f8 16.h4
[ 16.hxg4 hxg4 would be very dangerous for
White because of the opening of the h-file. ]
16...f6 17.d7+ xd7 18.xf6 gxf6
19.b4+ e8 20.b3 a6 21.xd7+ xd7
[ Or 21...xd7 22.a3 d8 23.xb7 etc. ]
22.xb7+ e6 23.a3 he8 24.f1 ad8
25.c6+ d6 26.xd6
[ W hite is winning material after 26.xd6
xd6 27.xf6+ etc. ]
1-0
125 A02
Grunberg,Mihai 2445
Kotronias,Vasilios 2578
11th Open Kavala GRE (8) 16.08.2002
[Nigel Davies]
This game was of some theoretical
importance with the superbly prepared
Kotronias coming up with 11...h6 to stop any
Bg5-f6 ideas. It seems to be a theoretical
novelty, and a good one at that. 1.f4 e5
2.fxe5 d6 3.exd6 xd6 4.f3 g5 5.d4
This leads to an approximately even
endgame.
[ 5.g3 is more complex but has greater
attendant risks, for example g4 6.h4 e7
7.d4 ( 7.d3 g6 8.g2 h5 9.e3 h4
10.gxh4 xh4 11.d2 1/2-1/2 was Pavlov,
M (2451) -Derjabin, I (2391), Alushta 2004,
which really poses more questions than it
answers. ) 7...bc6 8.c3 g6 9.xg6
( 9.g2 h5 10.d3 h4 11.f4 g5
12.g2 hxg3 13.hxg3 xh1+ 14.xh1
ce7 15.e4?! c6 16.e3 f5 was very
good f or Black in Paichadze, L (2410) -
Isgandarova, K (2230), Tbilisi 2009) 9...hxg6
10.d3 f5 11.e4 e7 12.g2 0-0-0
13.e3 e6 was Rendle, T (2370) -
Kotronias, V (2585), Caleta 2005, and now
maybe W hite should have forced a draw
with 14.e5 xe5 15.xc6 d6 16.xb7+
xb7 17.b5+ c8 18.a6+ b8
19.b5+ etc. ]
5...g4 6.e5 xe5 7.dxe5 xd1+ 8.xd1
c6 9.c3 e6 10.f4 0-0-0+ 11.e1 h6
Up to here it had all been played before but
this is new all Black is doing is stopping any
Bf4-g5-f6 ideas which might be quite
annoying.
[ A century old precedent, Chigorin, M-
Tarrasch, S, Vienna 1898, had gone
11...ge7 12.e3 g6 and now 13.g5
( Instead of 13.d3 ) 13...de8 14.f6 hf8
15.b5 would have been unpleasant. ]
12.e3 ge7 13.d3 g6 14.xg6 fxg6
15.d1 g5 16.g3 h5 17.e4 dg8
18.c5 e8 19.e4
[ 19.xe6 xe6 20.e2 he8 is also fine
for Black who will recover the e5 pawn via ...
h5-h4 and have wonderfully active pieces. ]
19...h4 20.f2
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ And not 20.xe6? hxg3 etc. ] [ 6...c6?! 7.xc6 h4+ ( 7...bxc6 8.g3
20...g3 21.hxg3?! h5 9.g2 h4 10.d3 the black initiative is
[ 21.e3 was better as now White loses the insufficient, Tartakower,S-Spielmann,R/
exchange. ] Vienna 1913) 8.g3 xg3+ 9.hxg3 xh1
21...g4 22.gxh4 10.e5 h5 11.d3 with a clear white
[ 22.d5 hxg3 23.xh8 gxf2+ would cost a a d va n t a g e , L a u , R- M ic h a il o w, S / K a s s e l
whole piece. ] 1995. ]
22...xd1 23.xd1 xe5 24.h5 g4 7.dxe5 xd1+ 8.xd1 c6 9.c3 e6
25.e2 b6 26.d3 xe4+ 27.f3 f6 10.f4!? White hangs-on to his extra pawn,
[ 27...c4! was better. ] often he prefers
28.h6 c5 29.e1 e6 30.c3 c4 31.e5 [ 10.g5 to st op Bla ck ca st lin g, xe5
d5 32.g6? ( 10...ge7!? allows Black to castle, but
[ And here White should hang on to the g6 after 11.e4 0-0-0+ 12.d3 hg8 13.f6
pawn with 32.g4 . ] W hite is better, Szlabey,G-Emodi,G/
32...h7 33.f8 f7+ 34.g4 xf8 35.h7 Kobanya 1991) 11.b5 d7 12.e1 f6
xc3 36.h8 xh8 37.xh8+ b7 13.d1+ c8 White's bishops are
38.bxc3 e2 39.h2 xc2 40.xg5 xa2 countered by Black's superior structure,
41.h7+ c6 42.g4 a5 43.f4 f2+ Williams,S-Quinn,M/Witley 1996. ]
44.e3 g2 45.g7?! 10...0-0-0+ Automatic, but maybe
[ 45.f4 looks like a better try. ] [ 10...ge7!? i s s t r o n g e r , 11.e3 g6
45...b5 46.g5 a4 47.f3 c2 48.g6 12.g5 (when Black has castled this gains a
xc3+ 49.f2 d3 50.c7 b4 51.g7 d8 t e m p o o n t h e r o o k ) gxe5 13.e4
52.c6 b5 53.g6 a4 54.g8 xg8 Berescu,A-Tomescu,V/Sovata 1998, when
55.xg8 a3 56.e3 c3 57.e4 a2 f5 looks good. ]
58.g3+ b2 59.g2+ b3 60.g3+ b2 11.e1 So as not to block-in the a1-rook, but
61.g2+ b3 62.g1 c3 63.d3 b4 [ 11.c1 i s s i m i l a r , ge7 12.e3 g6
64.h1 c2 65.c1 b2? Falling at the final 13.g5 de8 14.f6 hg8 15.d3
hurdle. Grunberg, M-Cechalova,E/Stockerau 1993,
[ 65...a3 66.xc2 b3+ 67.d2 b2 cxe5 equal. ]
wins for Black. ] 11...h6!? A novelty, Black wants to play the
66.xc2+ b1 67.h2 b3 68.c4 n o rm a l p la n , . . . Nge 7 -g6 xe 5 , b u t wit h o u t
½-½ allowing Bg5 in reply, hitting the d8-rook.
[ 11...ge7 is the habitual move, 12.e3 g6
( 12...d5!? 13.xd5 xd5 14.g1
126 A02 1/2-1/2 Grunberg,M-Nisipeanu,L/ROM-chT
Grunberg,Mihai 2445 1992, is quite good) 13.g5 Caamano,J-
Kotronias,Vasilios 2578 Ra va zzo li, O / V illa B a lle st e r 19 9 4 wh e n
11th Open Kavala GRE (8) 16.08.2002 ( 13.d3?! cxe5 14.xg6 xg6 15.f1
[Tony Kosten] is nice for Black, Chigorin, M-Tarrasch,S/
Vienna 1898 .) 13...de8 14.f6 hg8
1.f4 e5 2.fxe5 d6 Now both players go down 15.d3 cxe5 16.xe5 xe5 17.xh7
the mainline. 3.exd6 xd6 4.f3 g5 5.d4 h8 18.d3 seems logical, when Black has
Preparing a square for the knight, about to be almost enough for his pawn. ]
hit by ...g4, we considered the alternative 12.e3 ge7 13.d3 g6 14.xg6
[ 5.g3 in the game Antoshin,V-Panchenko, Otherwise Black simply captures on e5. fxg6
A. ] 15.d1 g5 16.g3 h5 Opposite-colour
5...g4 6.e5 bishops are on the board, which makes it
[ 6.g5?! is worse, f5 and the knight is in fairly drawish, but Black's pawns are more
trouble. ] mobile, and so, if anyone, it is he with the
6...xe5 Black concedes the bishop pair but better chances. 17.e4!? dg8!?
heads for a reasonable ending. [ 17...b4!? 18.xg5 xc2+ 19.f2 xa2

118
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
is also worth trying. ]
18.c5 e8 19.e4?! h4 20.f2 g3!
21.hxg3 g4 Both threatening the rook, and
hxg3 which wins a piece. 22.gxh4
[ 22.d2?? hxg3 23.xh8 gxf2+ ]
22...xd1 23.xd1 xe5 24.h5 g4
25.e2 b6 W inning the e-pawn. 26.d3
xe4+ 27.f3 f6 28.h6 This pawn is
White's only hope. c5 29.e1 e6 30.c3
c4 31.e5 d5 32.g6!? h7 33.f8
f7+!? A mistake, White wins a piece, but
allows the h-pawn through.
[ 33...exh6 34.xh6 xh6 should be
winning. ]
34.g4 xf8!?
[ 34...f4+! i s t h e m o ve , 35.xg5 xf8
36.g7 ( 36.h7 xc3 37.h8??
n o l o n g e r w o r k s b e c a u s e o f e4+
which actually leads to mate!) 36...g8
and whilst White has some chances, Black
should win. ]
35.h7 xc3 36.h8 xh8 37.xh8+ b7
38.bxc3 e2 Black is much better, anyway,
for although as we all know rook endings are
fairly drawish, and here the white king is active,
unfortunately all his queenside pawns will drop
off. 39.h2 xc2 40.xg5 xa2 41.h7+
c6 42.g4 White decides to ditch his
queenside and run his g-pawn, which is a
standard plan. a5 43.f4 f2+ 44.e3 g2
45.g7 b5 46.g5 a4 47.f3 c2 48.g6
xc3+ 49.f2 d3 50.c7 b4 51.g7 d8
52.c6 b5 53.g6 a4!? This must win, but
can White really stop the passed pawns after
[ 53...g8 54.e2 b3 ]
54.g8 xg8 55.xg8 a3 56.e3 c3
57.e4 a2 58.g3+ b2 59.g2+ b3
60.g3+ b2
[ 60...c3 61.g1 b2 62.d3 c2 wins. ]
61.g2+ b3 62.g1 c3 63.d3 b4
64.h1 c2 65.c1 b2?? An appalling
blunder
[ 65...a3! 66.xc2 b3+ 67.d2 b2
wins easily, Black must have been in severe
time trouble. ]
66.xc2+ b1 67.h2 b3 68.c4
½-½
127 A02
Karlsson,Lars 2486
Tairi,Faruk 2275
Swedish Team Ch 2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f4 e5 2.fxe5 c6 This is an interesting
alternative to the traditional From Gambit.
However, as you will see from the coverage
below, the number of quality games between
players of a decent level is painfully small.
This is unf ortunately often the issue with
these off-beat gambits. 3.f3 g5 4.d4
[ 4.h3!? looks like a rather obvious move,
but one that has yet to be explored in detail.
d6 5.d4! dxe5 6.d5 e4! 7.xg5 d6
8.xe4 f5! 9.f2 g3 10.e4 h4
11.d3 xf2+ 12.f1 d4! 13.e1
xe1+ 14.xe1 b4 15.exf5 xd3+
16.cxd3 e7 17.f1 xd5 is one very
long variation f rom Bucker, though this
hardly constitutes model play from both
sides. ]
4...g4 5.g5 d6
[ 5...d5!? was the subject of Reddmann-
Langrock, 2001, which can be found in the
PGN archives. ]
[ 5...h6 was mentioned in the notes to the
Reddmann-Langrock game as a possible
improvement, but I think White can get the
better chances in this particular line: 6.e4
xc1 7.xc1 xd4 , and now 8.d2!?
( 8.c3?! c6 9.f4 e7 10.f6+ xf6
11.exf6 e5 was Tony's main line.)
8...c6 9.bc3 e7 10.h3!? ( 10.d5
xe5 11.g5 xe4 12.xc7+ f8
13.xa8 b4+ 14.c3 xb2 15.c1 d6
, and matters are totally unclear.) 10...gxh3
11.0-0-0 xe5 12.xh3 , and White has a
lead in development and the initiative. ]
6.exd6
[ White has tried a number of other things at
this juncture: A) 6.d3
A) 6...h6?! 7.e4! ( 7.xh7?! f5
8.f6+ xf6 9.exf6 xd3 10.exd3 xd4
11.d1 0-0-0 12.c3 e6 13.e2
K r o g e r , H - G e rs t e l , J/ G e r m a n y 1 9 8 8)
7...dxe5 8.g5 xd4 9.f6+ d8
10.g8+ e8 11.xh6 xb2 12.b3
, and White is winning;
B) 6...h6 7.xf7? xf7 8.e6+ xe6
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

9.xh6 xh6? ( 9...h4+ 10.d1 xh6 should be. It appears that White has the
11.d5 f5 12.e4 e5-+ ) 10.d5 f5 better chances:
11.d2 f6 12.dxc6 xb2 13.cxb7 A1) 7...b4 8.c3 ( 8.e4?! e5
xa1 14.bxa8 xb1+ 15.f2 g3+! 9.bc3 f5 10.a3 xe4 11.axb4
, and Black won shortly, Franke, C- xb4 Rost, H-Svendsen, T/corr 1987)
Leeners, H/corr ICCF 1986 ] 8...f6 9.e4 h6 10.a3 hxg5 11.axb4
[ B) 6.e6 fxe6 7.e4 f6 ( 7...h6 8.xe6 with a good game for White.;
xe6 9.d5 e5 10.dxe6 h4+ 11.g3 f6 A2) 7...ce7 8.c3 f6 9.ce4
12.g2 e7 13.c3 0-0-0 , and Black has xe4 10.xe4 e5 11.c3 d7
clearly solved his opening problems, Cvejn, 12.g3 ( 12.e4 0-0-0 13.g3!?
J-Haba, Z/ Usti nad Orlici CZE 2006) 8.b5 followed by Bf4 looks good for W hite)
h6 9.e5 hxg5 10.exf6 xf6 11.f1 g7 12...g6 13.d3 0-0-0 14.g2 c5
with a better game for Black, Wiest, L-Nissl, 15.d2 f5 16.0-0-0 , and White has the
M/Augsburg 1995 ] better chances, already beginning to
[ C) 6.e4 consolidate his position and extra pawn,
A) 6...h6 7.xf7 xf7 8.c4+ g7 9.e6 Ressler, E-Koegler, K/corr BdF 1991;
f6 ( 9...h4+ 10.g3 h3 11.c3 f6 A3) 7...e5 8.c3 f5?! ( 8...g7
12.f1 e7 13.e3 with some 9.ge4 g6 10.e3 ) 9.f4 g7 10.e4
compensation for the piece ) 10.0-0 h6 11.b5+! ( 11.b5? c5
A1) 10...e7 11.c3 g8 12.f5!? was already fine for Black in Bohn, T-
( 12.d5?! e5 13.e2 e8 14.f5 Gallinnis, N/Germany 1997) 11...e7
g6 , and Black is beginning to stablize ( 11...c6 12.xe5 xe5 13.dxc6
h i s p o s i t i o n .) 12...xe6 ( 12...h7 wins for White) 12.e6 xe6 13.dxe6
13.g5! ) 13.xe6 xe6 14.d5; , and White is more or less winning;
A2) 10...a5?! 11.d3 xe6 ( 11...c5 B) 7.c3
12.d5 e7 13.e3 ) 12.d5 c6 B1) 7...f5 8.b3 ( 8.d5!? e5 9.a3
13.dxe6 e5 14.c3+- Williams, S- looks like an improvement for W hite.)
Howell, D/Halifax ENG 2004; 8...e7
B) 6...e7!? 7.xf7 xf7 8.e6+! e8 B1a) 9.h3 h6 10.h4 g7?!
9.b5; ( 10...f6! ) 11.xh7 xd4 12.g5?
C) 6...dxe5 7.c4! ( 7.d5 h6 8.xf7 ( 12.cxd4! is simple and good. After
xf7 9.dxc6 xd1+ 10.xd1 bxc6 W hite's 12th move, Black is clearly
11.c4+ e6 12.xe6+ xe6 13.e3 better. ) 12...e5 13.c4 ( Black has
f6 14.d2 Cools, G-Henris, L/BEL excellent compensation for the piece.
1997 ) 7...xd4 8.xf7+ e7 9.c3! In fact, my computer suggests 13.d1
C1) 9...xd1+! 10.xd1 f6 11.d5+ as W hite's best move, though
( 11.f1 h6 12.c4 d8= ) 11...xd5 obviously Black is doing very well after
12.xd5 h6 13.f7 h7 14.f1; d7 14.d2 g3 followed by ...
C2) 9...f6? 10.e2 h6 11.e3 0-0-0 ) 13...f6 Albert, M-Ebbecke, S/
hxg5?! ( 11...b4 12.0-0 hxg5 13.f2 Landau 1988;
wins for White - Correspondence Chess B1b) 9.d5 e5 10.e6 xe6
Yearbook ) 12.xd4 xd4 13.c4 c6 11.dxe6 0-0-0 12.g3 c6?! ( 12...h6!
14.g6 xc2+ 15.d2 e6 16.c5+ not allowing White to consolidate looks
Hayward, K-Johnson, R/corr 1990 ] like a better try.) 13.e3 h6 14.d4
[ C) 6.e4 dxe5 7.d5 ( 7.dxe5? f5 d5 15.g2 b5 16.c2 xe6
Volf, R-Wiesinger, J/ Wattens 1997) 7...b4 17.0-0 Sehner, N-Buecker, P/Enger
8.ec3 c5 9.a3 a6 10.e3 ] Spenge 1978;
6...xd6 B2) 7...g6
[ Black has a wonderfully complicated B2a) 8.d5 e5 9.a4+ ( 9.f4 g7
alternative in 6...xd6 10.d2 e7 11.b3 f5
A) 7.d5 is played less frequently, but , Birtz, C-Arroyo, A/IECG Email 1998,

120
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

12.e3!? xd5 13.b5+ c6 14.0-0 Black. 11.e3 hxg5 ( 11...g7 12.ge4

xf4 15.exf4 0-0 16.e2 ) 9...d7 f5 13.b5+ f8 14.0-0-0 ) 12.exd4 xh1
10.e4 d6 11.f4 g7 , Fawbush, 13.xg5 ]
G-W heeler, K/ corr 1980, and now [ 10...d7 11.xf7 xf7 12.d1 b4
12.d2 f5 is also quite unclear; 13.xd7+ e8 14.xc7 f6 15.e5 f8
B2b) 8.h3 f6 9.d5 d8 10.a4+ 16.e3 a6 17.h6 a5 18.d6 f7
( 10.e6? xe6 11.dxe6 gxh3! 19.xf6 xf6 20.e7+ d8 21.c7+ xc7
12.xh3 xe6 is given as winning for 22.xc7 xf1+ 23.xf1 xc7 , and White
Black by Buecker, but that is has two pawns for the exchange, but Black
exaggerating matters quite a bit Black is probably still clearly better. ]
is clearly bet ter af te r 13.d3 c6 11.d1 g7!
, but not more than that) 10...d7 [ 11...b6 12.xe6 xe6 13.b5 c8
11.e4+ e7 12.xg6+ hxg6 14.xc7+ xc7 15.xc7 xa2 16.h5
13.e4 xd5 14.c4 , and White is f6 ]
fine; 12.b5 c8 13.e3 a6
B2c) 8.d3 f5 9.h3? ( 9.e3+!? [ 13...xa2!? picks up further material.
e7 10.d5 d8 11.h3 f6 However, the lower-rated player with Black
12.d4 ) 9...e7 10.e3 f6 seems to almost panic while h aving a n
Jendrian, M-Labahn, W/Bad Segeberg opportunity to beat a grandmaster. ]
1998 ] 14.d4 e7??
7.c3 [ 14...xa2! is again perfectly viable ]
[ A) 7.c3!? f5 8.e4 h6 9.e5 e7 10.h3 15.c4!? d8?
gxh3 11.h5+ f8 12.c4 e8 13.xh3 [ Now Black ends up in a lost position.
g6 14.0-0 , and despite only having two Instead, he could have developed another
pawns for the piece, W hite has obviously piece with 15...f6 , e. g. 16.gxe6 fxe6
amble compensation, Rujzam, G-Goris, T/ 17.xe6 g6 18.h6 e4 19.xc8 xc8
Budapest 1992 ] 20.g5 f8 , and Black is still in the game,
[ B) 7.e4?! h6 8.e5 hxg5 9.exd6 xd6 though White has the better chances after
10.c3?! ( 10.c3 f5 11.b5 e7+ 21.d2 ]
12.e2 0-0-0 13.xe7 gxe7= ) 10...xh2 [ However, 15...g6 is ultimately Black's
( 10...f5 11.xg5 f6 12.e3 xh2 best option, e.g. 16.gxe6 fxe6 17.0-0
13.xh2 xh2 ) 11.e2+ f8 12.xh2 , and White has sufficient compensation for
xh2 13.g3 xg3+ 14.f2 xf2+ 15.xf2 the pawn. ]
f6 Philippin, O-Wege, J/Wuerzburg 1996 ] 16.xe6 fxe6?
7...xd4 8.xd4? [ Or 16...xd4 17.xd4 fxe6 18.xc7
[ The Swedish grandmaster is clearly having , and White wins, but the text move is even
fun, but the queen sacrifice is in all fairness worse. ]
n o t a n y g o o d a n d l e a ve s B l a c k wi t h a 17.gxe6 g6 18.xd8 xd8 19.c6+
s ize a b le a d v a n t a ge . W h it e co u ld h a ve 1-0
claimed an advantage with the safer and
saner 8.ge4 , for instance e5 9.g5 f6
10.e3 fxg5 11.exd4 xd4 12.xd4 xd4 128 A02
13.0-0-0 , and White is way ahead in Kogan,Artur 2518
development. ] Afek,Yochanan 2360
8...g3+ 9.hxg3 xd4 10.f4 e6! Pyramiden-Franken Cup (5) 25.08.1999
[ A long piece of analysis is given in the [Tony Kosten]
S we d is h c h e ss m a ga zin e st a rt in g wit h
10...h6!? , and although the analysis is quite 1.f4 c5 2.f3 c6 Inviting White to play 3
flawed, it is also entertaining. Therefore I e4, with transposition to the Grand-Prix Attack,
will give the line in its entirety, though the which he declines. 3.e3 g6 4.e2 g7 5.0-0
game continuation is likely the best play by e5?! An innovation already, Black hopes to

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
weaken the white kingside.
[ 5...d5 or ]
[ 5...f6 would be normal. ]
6.fxe5 xe5 7.xe5 xe5
This is very awkward for Black. g7 After
[ 8...d6?! 9.e4 almost obliges Black to play
f6 ]
[ 8...cxd4? is even worse, for after 9.exd4
b o t h t h e e - f il e a n d c 1 -h 6 d ia go n a l a r e
opened for White's benefit. ]
9.dxc5 f6 Black decides to get on with his
development, rather than waste more time
chasing after his lost pawn. 10.c3
11.e4 e7 12.d6 After this it is clear that
Black is lost- a pawn down with a bad position.
xd6 13.cxd6 h6 14.e5 e8 15.d5
xe5 16.xh6 g7 17.e7+ h7 18.f4!
A strong choice, returning a pawn to keep his
powerful d6-pawn.
[ 18.xg7 xg7 19.ad1 is simpler, but not
nearly so effective. ]
18...xb2 19.ab1 d4+ 20.h1 g7
Allowing White a nice finish,
[ but 20...b6 is little better after 21.f3 b8 12.d2! Clearly best - the knight is headed for
22.c6! dxc6 23.d7 c7 24.xc7 xd7 e4. Previously, White hadn't shown anything
25.xb8 xb8 26.bd1 and White wins. ]
21.b4! The point of White's play, the rook
c o m e s t o c 4 . f6 22.c4 The bishop is
trapped, and so Black has little choice over
his next move. xe7 23.dxe7 h8 24.e5+
f6 25.xf6! The final nail in the coffin. xf6
26.f4 e8 27.xf6+
1-0
129
Lie,Kjetil A
Sulskis,Sarunas
18th European Teams (8.16) 10.11.2011
[John Bartholomew]
1.f4 e5 2.fxe5 d6 3.exd6 xd6 4.f3 g5
5.g3 g4 6.h4 e7 7.d4 g6 8.xg6
hxg6 9.d3 c6 10.c3 e7 11.g2
e6!? Sulskis chooses a rare continuation.
[ The main line is 11...f5 12.e4
and now either 13.e3 Rendle, T (2370)-
Kot ron ias , V (258 5)/ Calet a 2 005 /[Joh n
Watson]. ( or 13.0-0 e5 Antoshin, V -
Panchenko, A /USSR 1983/[TonyK].
Analysis of both of these continuations can
be found in the archives. )]
[ 11...d7 is also commonly played. 12.d2
(other moves are possible, but I believe this
8.d4! is strongest) 0-0-0 ( 12...f5 13.c4 0-0-0
14.xd6+ cxd6 can transpose.) 13.e4
h5!? ( M o r e p r o m i s i n g t h a n 13...f5
14.xd6+ cxd6 15.e3! f7?! 16.d5 e5
17.xa7 Taylor, T (2297)-Becerra Rivero,
J (2552)/Minneapolis 2005.) 14.xd6+ cxd6
Here I propose ( 14...xd6 15.f4 e7
Ga rd ne r, R (2 25 7)-Rekhso n, V (20 00 )/
Edmonton 2004. Now 16.0-0!? looks good,
0-0 intending to meet dh8 with 17.d5 xh2
18.e3! when the endgame after xe3+
19.xe3 e5 20.d4 2h5 is pleasant for
W hite with the bishop pair and 4-3
queenside majority.) 15.e3!? , which is
just as useful as in the Taylor - Becerra
game above. Black isn't thrilled about a
queen trade, but has to beware of the d4-d5
threat. ( 15.e3?! Dimitriadis, M-Kiss, A
(2409)/ Oberwart 2003. f5 16.d2 e8
17.f2 e4 18.xe4 xe4 19.0-0-0 d5 )]
convincing:
[ 12.e4?! White has to be judicious with this
p a w n p u s h . 0-0-0 13.e3? xh2!
In the 11...Bf5 12.e4 0-0-0 main line, 13.Be3
is fine because W hite would simply meet
13...Rxh2 with 14.Rxh2 Bxg3+ 15.Kf1 Bxh2
16.exf5. Here, Black's light-square bishop is
safe, so 13. Be3 is just a blunder. 14.0-0
c4! 15.d2 ( 15.xc4 xg2+ 16.xg2
xe4+ 17.f2 xg3+ 18.e2 e5!
A02 is totally crushing.) 15...xf1 16.xh2
2560 h8+ 17.g1 xg2 18.xg2 h3 19.f2
2577 g5 20.a3 xa3 21.bxa3 d2 22.e1
e3+? 23.f1 d3+ 24.g1 xd4
25.cxd4 xd4+ 0-1 Simonsen, O (2115)-
Nolsoe, R (2150)/Faroe Islands 1997. ]
[ 12.0-0 0-0-0 13.e4? Czarekk2-BornOfFire/
playchess.com INT 2004. Again, this is
misguided: xh2! and White can't recapture
because 14.xh2 h4+ 15.g1 xg3
0-0-0 is decisive, e.g. 16.d1 e5! 17.e2
h2+ 18.f1 c4+- ]
[ 12.e3 We've seen that this move can be
good, but with the bishop on e6 White isn't
threatening a queen trade. Also, d4-d5 isn't
yet a threat. h5!? ( 12...0-0-0! is stronger
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

be c au s e o f 13.d5? c5 ) 13.d2 0-0-0 f5-+ ) 27...xg3+ 28.g2 e3+ 29.f2

14.b3 dh8 Bachler, R (2226)-Steinbacher, g3+ ( 29...g3 30.g4+ d8 31.dxc7+
T (2059)/Jenbach AUT 2009. ] xc7 32.af1= ) 30.g2= ]
[ Finally, only White can get in trouble with 14...xd6?!
12.d5?! , f o r i n s t a n c e e5 13.b5+? [ Here 14...cxd6! is preferable. On 15.d5
( 13.d4 f5 ) 13...d7! 14.xb7 0-0-+ e5 16.d4 , a7 is indeed hanging, but f5
White is fatally underdeveloped and unable A) 17.e3! is best, when dh8 18.0-0-0
to ward off threats like 15...Nd3+, or 15... xh2 19.xh2 xh2 20.h1!
Rfb8 followed by 16...Bb5. ] A1) 20...xg2?? 21.h8+ c7 ( or
12...0-0-0 13.e4 h5!? 21...d7 22.xa7+- ) 22.xa7+-;
A nice, multipurpose square for the rook in this A2) 20...xh1+ 21.xh1 b6 is only a
line. Black def ends against the imminent little better for White.;
threat of 14.Bg5 and prepares to double on B) 17.xa7? i s n ' t a d v i s a b l e : d3+
the h-file. A future d4-d5 push is also 18.f1 e8 19.e3 (this or the
discouraged. equ iva len t 1 9. Qe3 - the re's n o o the r
[ The forcing continuation 13...d5 14.g5 defense) xe3 20.xe3 xe3 21.exd3
xe4 15.xe7 xd3 16.xd8 e8 17.0-0 xd3+ 22.g1 d7 ]
xe2 18.g5 xf1 19.xf1 is quite similar 15.f4 d7 16.e4? This results in an
to the note to Gardner-Rekhson (11...Bd7). opposite-color bishop scenario where Black
The static advantages of the bishop pair has ample counterplay.
and queenside majority give White a stable [ 16.0-0! dh8 17.f2! is a familiar and
edge. ] effective motif. Black's counterplay stalls
[ 13...e5!? takes advantage of the d-file pin. because of xh2?? 18.xc6+- ]
An intriguing line runs 14.g5 ( 14.b5!? ) 16...g5 17.e3 e5 18.c2
14...f5 15.e3 f6 16.dxe5 fxg5 17.xc6! [ or 18.d1 f3+ 19.xf3 gxf3 20.xf3
bxc6 18.xa7 e4 19.a6+ b8 g4 21.g2 b5! ]
( 19...d7 20.f1 is dangerous for Black.) 18...f3+ 19.xf3 gxf3 20.d5 h3 21.0-0-0
20.e3! c5 ( 20...xh1?? 21.a7+ a8 e8 22.he1 g4 The game is balanced.
22.c5++- ) 21.b5+ c8 22.f1 23.d4 f5! 24.g1 fxe4
, when W hite has some advantage in a [ 24...e5!? ]
messy position. ] 25.dxe4 hh8 26.d6!? h5 27.e7
14.xd6+! Simplification is best. [ 27.xe8+ xe8 28.xe8+ xe8
[ We've seen that castling short isn't ( 28...xe8 29.f5+?! ) 29.dxc7 e6!
altogether unusual in the main-line From's, 30.d1 xc7 31.xf3 xa2
so 14.0-0!? is interesting to investigate. is just symbolically better for White. ]
After dh8 15.f2! is a good response. 27...cxd6 28.xe8+ xe8 29.xe8+ xe8
Ho we v e r , t h e c o m p l i c a t i o n s a f t e r xh2 30.f5+ b8 31.xg5 g6
16.g5 f8 17.d5 e5 18.d4 f5 [ The most clear-cut is 31...e1+ 32.c2
19.xd6+ xd6 seem fine for Black, e.g. e2+ ( 32...xg1?? 33.d8# ) 33.d2
( 19...cxd6 20.xa7+- ) 20.f4 ( 20.xa7 g6+ 34.c1 e6 with sufficient light-
f3+! 21.exf3 xg3 forces White to take a square play to keep the balance ]
perpetual: 22.a8+ d7 23.a4+ c8 32.f2
24.a8+= ) 20...f6 21.xa7 g5! 22.xe5 [ 32.b3! ]
xe5 23.d6! e4 32...b6 33.f4 e2 34.xd6+ b7
A) or 24.d7+ xd7 25.a4+ c6 35.d7+ b8 36.d2 Playing for the win.
26.xc6+ bxc6 27.xh2 xg3+ 28.g2 f1+ 37.e1 b7?! Unnecessary.
e3+ 29.f2 g3+= ( The rook ending [ 37...f2! was an immediate draw: 38.xf2
after 29...g3 30.d4+ xd4 31.cxd4 d3 and one side will give perpetual. ]
gxf2+ 32.xf2 e6 is level. ); 38.b3! Now White has an escape route for his
B) 24.a8+ d7 25.a4+ c6 king via b2-a3. f2 39.xf2 d3 40.b2
26.xc6+ bxc6 27.xh2 ( 27.xg4+?? b1+ 41.a3 c1+ 42.b4?

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ White's king is in a precarious position after 130 A02

42.a4 , but this is the only try for victory! Mailbox Mike Ridge Question
For example, e8+ 43.b4 a5+ 44.c4 From,Sigfred
d1 45.d2! g4+ 46.d3 and White is [John Watson]
escaping the checks. ]
42...a5+ 43.c4 d1! Now it should be A question from reader Michael Ridge: 'I've
drawn, but it is W hite who has to secure it! noticed that a lot of club players play From's
44.d2?? There were two ways to ensure the G a m b it wit h t h e t h e o re t ica l n o ve lt y (n o t
half point: covered in the scant literature on the gambit,
[ 44.g2+ a7 45.d2 is equal, but White including Taylor's new book) 1.f4 e5 2.fxe5
has to endure a scary-ish king walk: g4+ d6 3.exd6 xd6 4.f3 g4 . I wondered
46.d5 ( 46.d4?? e2+-+ ) 46...d7+ what you thought was the best line against this.
( 46...f5+; or 46...f3+ also result in I take it the idea is just to strand the king in
perpetuals.) 47.e5 ( 47.c4?? c6+ the centre after ...Bxf3 and ...Qh4+. That
48.d4 e4# ) 47...f5+ 48.d6 c5+ makes me think 6 g3 might be the best way to
49.d7 f5+ 50.e8 c6+ 51.d8 f6+ cut across this, with Bg2, d4, and Qd3 all to
52.e8 e6+ follow. Thoughts on this sideline? No doubt its
A) 53.d8?? g8+ 54.e7 g7+! not a real threat to Bird's Opening or
55.e8 ( 55.d6 f6+ 56.c7 e7+ someone would have at least discussed it by
57.c6 c5# ) 55...g6+ 56.d8 f8+ now, but even in these sidelines it seems easy
57.c7 and now ( 57.d7 f5+ 58.c7 f o r Bla ck t o whip u p a da n ge ro u s at t a c k
c8+ 59.d6 c5# ) 57...f5!! because of the activity of his pieces, so I
and White is helpless against either 58... wo n d e r e d wh a t t h e b e s t c o u n t e r t o t h i s
Qc8+ or 58...Qb8+.; particular set up might be...' [John Watson:
B) 53.f8! O n l y t h i s w a y ! f6+ Good Question! I checked Taylor's book and
( A n a t t e m p t t o m a t e w i t h 53...g6 he does give a game in which 4...Nc6 5.d4
w o n ' t s u c c e e d , f o r e x a m p l e 54.g7 ) Bg4 occurred. Taylor as White played 6.e3.
54.e8 e6+= ] I'll throw out a few moves, including
[ The simplest draw is 44.b4 , e.g. something similar to that: 5.e4!? This move is
A) 44...d3+ 45.b3 b1+ 46.a3 interesting because both main lines 4...Nf6
axb4+ 47.cxb4 c1+ ( or 47...d3+ ) and 4...g5 prevent it, and 4...Bg4 doesn't, at
48.b3 b1+=; least immediately.
B) 44...a4!? the trickiest, taking away the [ (a) The move you mention, and indeed the
b3-square. W hite is fine, though, after standard one in a majority of From's
45.d2 g4+ 46.d5 d7+ 47.e5 Gambits, is 5.g3?! . But it seems to fail (or
e7+ 48.d5 e4+ 49.d6 c6+ at best draw) versus h5! threatening ...h4.
50.e5= ] This should give at least enough for a pawn,
44...g4+ 45.d5 f o r e xa m p l e , 6.d4 h4 7.xh4 xh4!
[ 45.d4 e2+ 46.d5 f7+ 47.d6 8.gxh4 xh4+ 9.d2
e6# ] A) 9...c6!? 10.c3 xh2 11.g2 g5+
45...d7+ 46.e5 e7+ 47.f4 12.e1 ( 12.c2? f5+ ) 12...g3+
[ The difference compared to the 44.b4 a4!? 13.f1 and White probably escapes;
variation is that 47.d5 now just loses to B) 9...g5+ draws after 10.e1 ( 10.d3
f7+ 48.d4 c5+ - no control of c5! ] g6+ i s a t b e s t v e r y d a n g e r o u s)
47...f6+ 48.e3 e5+ With 49...Qe4 next. 10...h4+ 11.d2 g5+;
0-1 C) 9...f6! 10.c3 ( 10.g2 f2! )
10...h5!! ( 10...f2 is strong, but this is
better ) 11.d3 c6 12.e3 e5+!
13.dxe5 d8! and White can resign, e.g.,
14.d2 a3+! 15.c1 xb2+ 16.xb2
b4+ 17.c1 xc3 ]

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ (b) 5.e3 (a la Taylor) c5! (the idea is to
gain spa ce and restrain W hite's centre
( 5...f6!? 6.e2 c6 7.0-0 e7 8.c3
0-0-0 . White stands pretty solidly and
should be better) 6.c3 ( 6.b5+ c6
7.0-0 c7 8.h3 h5 9.c3 f6 ) 6...f6
7.e2 ( 7.d3 c6 8.e4 c7 ) 7...c6
8.0-0 a6 9.d4 c7 10.h3 ( 10.dxc5 xc5
unclear ) 10...cxd4 11.exd4 xf3 12.xf3
xd4 unclear ]
5...e7! This leaves open the possibility of ...
f5.
[ 5...f6 6.c3 e7 7.d3 c6 8.e2
0-0-0 9.0-0 h5!? , but the attack is hard to
continue with. ]
[ 5...f5!? is also worth thinking about. ]
6.c3
[ 6.d3 f5! 7.c3 f6 8.g5 bd7 9.e2
h6 10.xf6 xf6 11.d4 xh2!?
wit h t he id e a 12.xh2 ( 12.xg4 xg4
13.xf5 g5 ) 12...e5 13.h1 xd4 ]
[ 6.e2 f5 ( 6...xe4!? 7.c3 e6 8.0-0
f6 )]
6...f5 7.d3 f6 8.e2 c6 9.exf5
[ 9.g5 0-0-0 10.0-0-0 he8 with pressure
and unclear compensation for the pawn. ]
9...e5! This threat ens ...Nd4 and in many
cases ...Bxf3 will follow. White is tied up and
Black can be happy. Conclusions: I think that
5.g3 is a mistake. 5.e3 is solid but at least 5...
c5 prevents an easy buildup in the centre.
Finally, Black should play some kind of ...f5
idea against 5.e4, because pieces alone
won't break down White's structure. 4...Bg4
looks as good a try here as any, and perhaps
the best one, especially since Taylor debunks
some of Black's other continuations. That's
just a surface-scratcher. Great question!
131 A02
Mena Sanroma,A 2020
Canal Oliveras,Joan 2245
Catalunya-chT (4) 1999
[Nigel Davies]
1.f4 e5 2.fxe5 d6 3.f3
[ 3.exd6 xd6 4.f3 f6 would reach the
same po sition as the game bu t a move
faster. ]
3...dxe5 4.xe5 d6 5.f3 f6 6.d3 g4
7.g5 f6 8.c1 c6 This makes perfect
sense, lining up against h2.
[ Black's main try in this position has been
just to develop as quickly as possible with
8...c6 , though in this case I find his play
le s s t h a n co n vi n c i n g b e c a u s e W h i t e ' s
position is rather solid (two central pawns!)
even if he is behind in development. After
9.c3 ( Perhaps it's better to start controlling
some central squares with 9.c3!? when 0-0
10.g3 ce5 11.g2 e8 12.0-0 h5
13.h3 h6 14.xe5 xe5 15.e4 xd1
16.xd1 xg3 17.d4 saw White reach a
slightly better endgame in Markovic, M-
S t a d l e r , T / B e l g r a d e 1 9 6 8) 9...c5
( Black has tried other moves here but 9...f5
f a i l s t o c o n v i n c e a f t e r 10.g5 d7
11.d2; whilst 9...ce5 10.g3 0-0 11.g2
xf3+ 12.xf3 xh2 13.xh2 xg3+
14.f2 f5 15.e3 was good for White in
Bocharov, I-Khlichkova, T/Berdsk 2007.)
10.e3 xe3 11.xe3 ( 11.e2 is better
af ter which e7 12.d5 f2+ 13.d1
xe2+ 14.xe2 b6 15.f1 0-0
is about equal) 11...xe3 12.e2 e7
13.d2 xf1+ 14.xf1 e6 and Black
wa s b e t t e r i n F lo ri a n , J-K o ska , J / B rn o
1957. ]
9.c3 c7 10.e4
[ W h i t e h a s a n o t h e r p o ssi b i li t y i n 10.g3
after which xg3+ 11.hxg3 xg3+ 12.d2
f2 ( 12...f4+ 13.e1 g3+ is a draw )
13.g1 xg1 14.xg1 xd1 15.xd1
produces a messy endgame. ]
10...xh2 11.xh2 xh2 12.g3
[ W h i t e h a s a l s o p l a y e d 12.d2
, for example 0-0 ( 12...xf1 13.xf1 a6
seems more precise when 14.f4 0-0
is equal ) 13.f4 xf4 14.xf4 g4
15.d6 and White has the better endgame
in Ja n se , L -Lo gda h l, U/Ha llsta h am m a r
2001. ]
12...g4? After this White gets a strong
initiative.
[ 12...xf1 was better after which 13.xf1
( 13.f4 e3! ) 13...0-0 14.f4 b6
is about equal. ]
13.f4 a5+ 14.c3 g5 15.d6+ d7
16.c4 c5 17.e3 d8
[ 17...gxf4 18.xg4+ wins a pawn and
keeps a strong attack. ]
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

18.b4 e7 19.d6 e6 20.h3 b5 compensation for the pawn. 6.g3
21.xg4 xg4 22.xg4 xg4 23.a5 [ 6.e4 g4 7.e2 ( 7.g3 xh2 8.xh2
White is also better in the endgame, at least xg3+ 9.f2 xf2+ 10.xf2 c6 11.c3
for the time being. d7 24.c5 h5 25.f2 e6 is a line that more enterprising might
c7 26.e7?! like to test!) 7...xh2 8.xh2 h4+ 9.d2
[ 26.d4 was the right move, still with a g5+ 10.e1 ( Or 10.c3 c5+ )
slight edge. ] 10...h4+ 11.d2 g5+ is a draw by
26...d7 27.b3 he8 28.c5 e5 perpetual check. ]
29.c1 a5 30.e4 6...g4 7.g2 c6 8.c3 0-0-0 9.f4
[ 30.bxa5 xa5 31.e4 was better. ] he8 10.d2 b4 11.a3 A slip which could
30...axb4 31.xb4 have lost material.
[ After 31.cxb4 Black has a3! . ] [ 11.g5 was the right move, pinning that
31...d7 32.b3 b6 33.d4 Trying to knight on f6, though after h6 12.xf6 xf6
stabilise his dark square control, even if it 13.0-0 c5+ 14.h1 e3 Black has terrific
means losing a pawn. compensation. ]
[ If 33.a4 there follows c5 34.a5+ c6 11...xc3
35.a3 e6 etc. ] [ 11...e4! is very strong here. ]
33...xe4 34.he1 xe1 35.xe1 e8+ 12.bxc3 d5 13.h3 h5 14.e4 f5 15.d4
36.f2 e2+ 37.f1 f5 [ 15.g5 f6 is very good for Black. ]
[ 37...b2 would have been more patient. ] 15...fxe4 16.xc6 bxc6 17.0-0?
38.e1?! [ 17.d4 should be played here after which e3
[ 38.a4 was a better try. ] is met by 18.d3 , menacing a check on
38...xa2 39.c5 h3+ 40.g1 f4?! a6. ]
[ 40...xc5 41.xc5+ a5 looks like it [ After 17.0-0? Black can get what looks
should win. ] close to a winning position via e3 18.e1
41.xd7+ xd7 42.gxf4 g4 43.e5? g5! 19.c4 xf4 20.gxf4 e2 21.f2 gxf4
[ 43.e7 was the right move. ] etc. ]
43...h4 44.g5 h3 45.c5+ a5 46.g7 ½-½
h2+ 47.h1 g3 48.xg3 e6 49.c4 bxc4
[ 49...b4! was better. ]
50.a3+ xa3 51.xa3 a4 52.c1 b3 133 A02
53.xh2 c2 54.a3 c3 55.g3 d1 Reddmann,Hauke 2337
56.f3 c2 57.e4 c1 58.xc1 xc1 Langrock,Hannes 2261
59.e5 d5 60.d6 c2 61.f5 c3 IHEM Hamburg GER (7) 08.06.2001
62.c5 White will win the c6 pawn by [Tony Kosten]
distracting the bishop with his f-pawn.
½-½ 1.f4 e5 2.fxe5 c6 A sensible alternative to
the standard
[ 2...d6 ]
132 A02 3.f3 Otherwise Black would simply recapture
Pribyl,Josef 2376 t h e e - p a w n . g5! The tactical point,
Hausner,Ivan 2412 threatening to drive the white knight away and
Steinitz Memorial-A 1st (9) 03.01.2001 recapture the sacrificed pawn.
[Nigel Davies] [ 3...d6 would return to 2...d6. ]
4.d4
1.f4 e5 2.fxe5 d6 3.exd6 xd6 4.f3 f6 [ 4.g3!? is a reasonable alternative, g4
5.d3 e7!? A novelty on move 5! Actually this 5.h4 xe5 6.g2 Kloster,O-Pedersen,L/
makes perfect sense as Black will bring his Oslo NOR 2002, W hite has returned the
pieces out to natural squares and castle long, pawn to help his development, and can try
arguing that his lead in development and the to exploit the f5-square. ]
weaknesses in W hite's camp are good [ 4.h3?! justifies Black's play, d6 when the

126
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
p a wn c a n n o t b e t a ke n 5.exd6?! xd6
and the weakness of g3 is a problem. ]
4...g4 5.g5
[ 5.g1!? might be better, although d6 6.e4
dxe5 7.d5 ce7 8.g5 f6 9.h4 g6
gave Black reasonable play, Maroja,S-Zelic,
M/Zadar CRO 2000. ]
5...d5!? Black threatens to win the knight, but
as in the 'long whip' variation of the King's
Gambit, the knight is happy to sacrifice itself.
[ 5...h6! is the strongest, I think: 6.e4
( 6.h4?! gxh3 7.f3 xc1 8.xc1 xd4! )
6...xc1 7.xc1 xd4 8.c3 c6
( 8...e6!? ) 9.f4 e7 10.f6+ xf6
11.exf6 e5 White's structure is looser than
Black's, who has a small edge, Clausen,M-
Skaaning,K/Gausdal NOR 2000. ]
[ 5...d6 6.a3?! ( 6.exd6 see the main
line ) 6...dxe5 7.d5 ce7 8.c4 f6 9.c2
f5 is very pleasant for Black, Psathas,T-
Vouldis,A/Kavala GRE 2001. ]
6.e4!?
[ 6.exd6 might be the better choice
objectively, although certainly not quite so
much fun for White: xd6 7.c3 (there was
a threat to d4) e7 with typical gambit play -
open lines and better development. ]
6...h6 7.xf7 xf7 8.e3 The black king is
in the open, and White has a couple of pawns,
but as White has no development advantage
to speak of, I wonder if this is really enough.
ge7 9.c3 g7?!
[ 9...g7!? is a sensible move, removing the
king from the open f-file, and the exposed
a2-g8 diagonal. ]
10.exd5 xd5 11.c4 e6 12.0-0+ g8
13.xd5 xd5 14.xg4 Picking-up a third
pawn. e7 15.xd5 xd5 16.f6!
White could also try to advance his centre, by
[ 16.b3 and c4. ]
16...h7 17.af1?!
[ 17.e6! is almost winning: ae8 18.g5!
and Black is in trouble as hxg5? 19.h5+
g8 20.xe8+ is catastrophic. ]
17...af8 The rook cannot be captured:
[ 17...xf6?? 18.xf6 menaces mate on h6,
g8 19.g6# ]
18.c4!? xc4 19.xh6 White forces a draw,
but he could still continue the game by
[ 19.e4+ g8 20.xf8+ xf8 21.xb7 ]
19...xh6 20.xh6+
[ 20.e4+ g8 21.g4+ is another way. ]
20...xh6 21.h4+ g6 22.g4+ h6
23.h4+ g6
½-½
134 A02
Rendle,Thomas 2370
Kotronias,Vasilios 2585
Gibraltar Masters (1) 25.01.2005
[John Watson]
1.f4 e5 2.fxe5 d6 When's the last time you
travelled through From's Gambit territory? I'll
try to give you an update and inspiration!
3.exd6
[ Tony has thoroughly covered the options as
shown in his e-book - the key games
referred to there can be found on ChessPub.
One suchdeviationis 3.f3 g5!? ]
3...xd6 4.f3 g5 He also discusses games
with
[ 4...c6 and ]
[ 4...f6 ... ]
5.g3
[ ...as well as 5.d4 g4 6.e5 ! ]
5...g4 6.h4 e7 7.d4 bc6 This amounts
to a transposition to the 'main lines', that is,
those arising from
[ 7...g6 8.xg6 ( 8.g2 is the other main
line the interpolation of 7. .. Nbc6 8.c3 also
transposes into the main line of that
variation after c6 9.c3 e7 ) 8...hxg6
9.d3 c6 10.c3 etc. ]
8.c3 g6 9.xg6 hxg6 10.d3 f5 11.e4
e7 12.g2 0-0-0 13.e3
[ (a) 13.0-0 e5!? is a position known to all
From Gambit lovers, but it's not clear that
Black has enough: A correspondence game
Poel-van Oirschot, corres 1986 went
14.e3! ( Tony analysed Antoshin-
Panchenko, USSR 1983, which went
14.d1 f3+ 15.xf3 gxf3 16.exf5 xh2
17.xf3 h3 18.f4 xf4 19.xf4 dh8
20.f3 g5 21.f2 h2+ 22.g1 h1+!
23.xh1 e3+ 24.g2 e4+ 25.f3
xh1 )
A) 14...f3+? 15.xf3 gxf3 16.exf5
xh2! was played in one brilliancy alas,
after 17.f2! the attack falls short ( or
17.xf3 );
127
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
B) 14...d7 15.d2 ( 15.b4!? c4
16.e2 and c5 is covered and White
seems to stand better after xh2! 17.e5
dh8 18.f2! xe5 19.dxe5 xe5
20.f4 2h5 21.d2 Blankenberg,B-
Henke,S email 2002) 15...f5 ( 15...b5
16.d1 ) 16.f2 ( 16.exf5 (Given '??' in
' H o w t o p l a y t h e F r o m G a m b i t ' ) f3+
17.xf3 gxf3 18.xe7 xe7 19.xf3
xf5 20.e5 is slightly better for White)
16...df8 17.f1 ( 17.b4! ) 17...b5
18.exf5 xf5 drawn. White has good
options throughout and stands better at
the end, so what was Kotronias (who is
so theoretically inclined) thinking? My
guess is that he would have settled for 13...
Be6 or 13...Bd7, with ideas similar to the
game but a little better. ]
[ (b) 13.f4 xf4 14.gxf4 has been played
a lot over the years. Black seems to do fine
in the line beginning with h3! ]
[ (c) 13.d5? e5 14.c2 f3+ 15.xf3
gxf3 16.d2 xg3+ ]
13...e6!? A move that is seldom played here
and may not be very good. Alternatives are:
[ (a) 13...de8 has been tried in a couple of
g a m e s , b u t 14.d2 f6 15.0-0-0
leaves White harmoniously placed, and 15.
exf5 Qxe3+ 16. Qxe3 Rxe3+ 17. Kf2 also
favours White ]
[ (b) A wonderful correspondence game went
13...xh2 (I'd give this a '?!?') 14.xh2
xg3+ 15.e2? ( 15.d2 pretty much wins,
but the game is astonishing:) 15...e5
16.g5! xd3 17.xe7 f4+ 18.f1 e8
19.exf5? ( 19.g5! ) 19...gxf5 (White is
temporarily a rook and two pieces ahead!)
20.h6 ( 20.h7 xe7 21.a3 e2
22.h8+ ) 20...xe7 21.a3 e2 22.h8+
d7 23.xb7 f2+ 24.g1 h3+
25.xh3 gxh3 ( Now due to ...c6 Black has
a draw any times he wants if 26.Bd5, 26...
c6 drives the bishop away) 26.b1 c6
27.d5 f4 28.xc6+ c7 29.c4 a6 30.a8
g2+ 31.h1 1/2-1/2 Arnold,G-Bennborn,J/
ICCF Email 2000/MegaCorr2 (31). ]
[ (c) 13...d7! has scored quite well. The
immediate idea is 14.e5? xe5 15.dxe5
xe5 16.e2 d3+! 17.f1 he8
with a winning game ]
14.f2 More choices:
[ (a) If White takes up the challenge by 14.e5
(u n t rie d ? ), t h e n I t h ink t h at B la ck ge t s
surprising play following xe5 15.xc6
d6! ( 15...bxc6? 16.a6+ and dxe5 )
16.g2 xh2! 17.xh2 xg3+ 18.d2
( 18.f2 xh2 19.d1 f5 ) 18...xh2
19.a3 f5 with two pawns and attack for the
piece ]
[ (b) 14.d2? xh2! 15.xh2 xg3+
16.d1 xh2 is clearly better for Black, e.g.
, 17.e2 f5 18.f1 e5! 19.c2 f4 etc. ]
[ 14.f4 xf4 15.gxf4 g5 16.e3 gxf4
17.xf4 h4 18.d2 g8 19.g3 f5
20.0-0 h3 21.f4 h4
1/2-1/2 Westerman,H-Markus,J/NED-ch20
corr 1990/Corr Nr. 1 (21). ]
[ 14.d5 xh2! 15.xh2 xg3+ 16.e2
xh2 17.c2 f5! ]
14...f5 15.d2!
[ This time Black meets 15.e5 with xe5
16.xc6 f6 17.g2 c4+ 18.e3 f7 ]
15...f7!?
[ Keeping threats in the position, as opposed
to 15...fxe4 16.xe4 ( or 16.xe4 df8
17.e2! ) 16...d5 17.0-0-0! xa2 18.e2
, attacking g4. Still, that wouldn't be so bad,
whereas 15... Qf7?! is a big risk. ]
16.0-0-0!?
[ Perhaps it was time to pull the trigger:
16.d5! fxe4 ( 16...e5 17.d4 ) 17.xe4
e5 18.d4 f5 19.0-0-0 b6 20.a4
b8 21.d4 with a nice advantage. ]
16...xa2?! More provocation!
[ 16...fxe4 17.xe4 xa2 was a sounder
course. ]
17.b5?
[ White seems intent upon playing "safe"
moves. Could Black really have survived
17.e5! ? Then the logical follow up would be
xe5 18.xc6 f6 ( 18...d6 19.d5! )
19.b3 , with Kb2 to follow in most cases. Not
only does White miss this opportunity, but
now Black gains full counterplay. ]
17...fxe4 18.xe4 he8
[ 18...h5 is another way to proceed,
preventing White from reaching defensive
squares on the kingside. ]
19.e3 xe4!? Kotronias is in a wild mood!
This speculative sacrif ice gains the light
squares and tries not to cede the initiative. It
is a gamble that pays off, although
128
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 19...a6 was a sounder option. ]
20.xe4 c4 21.g5 e2 22.xd6+?!
[ The natural move is 22.de1 but White
didn't want Black to keep pieces on the
board, e.g., e7 23.f4 c4 with the idea
of ...Nb4 and ...Rd5-a5 in some cases. ]
[ The best try for a serious edge was 22.d5!
, f o r e xam ple , xd1 ( 22...e7 23.f4
xf4 24.xf4 xd1 25.xd1 ) 23.xd1
e5 24.xd6+ cxd6 25.xa7 ]
22...xd6 23.he1!?
[ 23.de1 d5 ( 23...d3?! 24.xg4+ f5
25.hf1! and Rxf5 follows) 24.f4 f5
25.xe2!? ( 25.h6 f3 ) 25...xf4 26.xf4
g5! 27.e5 is unclear ]
23...d5 24.xe2? Right idea, poor timing.
[ 24.f4! f5 25.xe2 xf4 26.xf4
improves for White over the last note. ]
24...xg5 25.xg5 f5 Now Black takes
control of the light squares with tempo and
stands better. 26.d2 b6
[ Perhaps enough to win, but Black also had
t h e s t r o n g m o v e 26...a5! 27.b4
( 27.e5?? b3#! ) 27...c4
with a wonderful outpost and domination of
the light squares. Then 28.e7? can be met
by a3 29.b2 c2+ 30.xa3 xd1 ]
27.de1 a5 28.e4! b5! 29.c2?!
[ 29.b4 c4 30.1e2 was a better chance,
with ideas like Be1 and d5. Black is still
bet te r af te r a5! 31.e1 axb4 32.cxb4
d6! ]
29...b3+ 30.d3
[ 30.b1 c4 31.c1 a3+ 32.a1
c2+ 33.b1 xe1 34.xe1 a5
is convincing ]
30...xb2 31.e7
[ 31.e5 c6! illustrates the dominance of
Blac k 's k n igh t ove r W h ite 's bisho p : ( or
31...b3 ) 32.e6 b5+ 33.c2 c4
34.b2 a5 etc. ]
31...b5+ 32.c2 b3+ 33.d3 c4+
34.c2 c6! 35.7e4 b4+ 36.d1 d5
37.xg4?
[ But 37.c2 b4+ 38.d1 d3 39.f1
b2+ 40.e1 b3! threatening ...Qd1+
decides after 41.f2 c2 42.e2 d1+
43.g1 xc3 ]
37...d3!
0-1
135 A02
Szlos,Leonardo
Quinteros,Miguel Angel
ARG-ch qual Mar del Plata 1967
[Nigel Davies]
1.f4 e5 2.fxe5 d6 3.exd6 xd6 4.f3 f6
5.d3 g4 6.g5 f6 7.h4
[ 7.c1 is another idea, keeping control of
e3. ]
7...0-0 A simple approach from the
Argentinian GM. Black has tried other moves
here, for example:
[ a) 7...g5 8.f2 ( 8.g3 xg3+ 9.hxg3
d6 10.h3 e3 11.d2 xf1 12.xf1
xh3 won the exchange in Bermejo, E-
Bartis, G/Buenos Aires 1966) 8...xf2
9.xf2 g4 ( 9...c6 10.e3 c7 11.bd2 g4
12.d4 h5 13.g3 h4 14.g2 hxg3+
15.hxg3 xg3+ 16.e2 h4 17.f1
saw White assume the initiative in Nielsen,
E-Eiholdt, B/Copenhagen 2003) 10.fd2 f5
11.g3 c5+ 12.e3 0-0 13.b3 d5
14.d4! d6 ( 14...xh1 15.c4+ ) 15.1d2
f7 16.c4 e6 17.xe6 xe6 18.e2
left Black short of compensation for the
pa wn in B a ile y, G-Ra f t sho l, W / De tro it
1990. ]
[ b) 7...e3 8.d2 f4 9.c3 c6 10.f2
g4 ( 10...d6 11.d2 drives the knight
from e3 and leaves Black with only
nebulous compensation) 11.bd2 e7
12.c4 xf3 13.gxf3 d4 was Saint Pierre,
S-Caire, F/Quebec 2004, and now 14.xe3!
xe3 15.d1! 0-0-0 16.xe3 xe3
17.d2 would have left Black struggling to
find enough play for the pawn. ]
8.c3?! I don't like this because White's
queen lacks escape squares.
[ I think that White had better ways to play it,
f o r e x a m p l e 8.d2!? g5!? 9.h3 f4
10.c3 e3 11.f2 ]
[ or 8.c3 g5 9.b3+ g7 10.h3 e3
11.f2 . In either case I remain unconvinced
about Black's compensation. ]
8...e3 9.d2?
[ White's queen needs to get out of the way
o f B l a c k ' s c o m i n g . . . B d 6 - f 4 wi t h 9.b1
t h o u g h a f t e r e8 his position is deeply
disgusting though perhaps not lost. ]
9...f4! Leaving White with no way to save his
129
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
queen. 10.g3 xg2+ 11.xg2 xd2+
12.xd2 c6 13.0-0-0 a5 14.b1
[ 14.c4 looks like a better try, at least
having some activity for the lost material.
Black would have to be careful. ]
14...e6 15.e4 a6 16.b3 xb3 17.axb3
c7 18.hf1 b5 19.xb5 xb5 20.f5
b4 White could still play on here but
probably thought he had better things to do.
0-1
136 A02
Taylor,Timothy 2330
Aigner,Michael1 2245
Masters Las Vegas USA (7) 13.06.2006
[Nigel Davies]
Another good example of White playing d2-d4
and e2-e3 against the 'piece play' versions of
the From. And I don't see much compensation
for Black. 1.f4 e5 2.fxe5 d6 3.exd6 xd6
4.f3 c6 This keeps open options of either
piece play (...Ng8-f6) or a push with the g-
pawn (...g7-g5). 5.d4 g4 6.e3 Once again
a conservative approach, putting the onus on
Black to show that he has something. e7
7.e2 This simple developing move appears
to be new.
[ 7.c3 f5 8.e2 f6 9.d3 e4 10.bd2
0-0-0 gave Black a good game in Olszynski,
K (2256)-Bjornsson, S (2329), Reykjavik
2007. But can 7.c3 really be the right
move? ]
7...f6 8.c3 0-0 9.0-0 ae8 10.a3
Is it my imagination or does Black have very
little for the pawn? The latter, I believe... d7
11.b5 d5 12.xd6 xd6 13.d3 h5
14.c4
[ Continuing his conservative ways with
14.d2! seems better. Now Black gets a
brief opportunity for counterplay... ]
14...g6 15.b3 f4?! Missing the moment.
[ He should have tried 15...a5!? when
16.b5 xe3 17.xa5 c2 18.d1 xa1
19.c3 is probably good for White because
of Black's trapped knight, but at least it
would have been a contest. ]
16.d1
[ And not 16.exf4? xd4! 17.xd4 xd4+
18.h1 xe2 etc. ]
16...e6 17.c5 d7 18.d5 xc5 19.dxc6
simply winning a piece. And Black's
compensation is non-existent. xc6 20.c3
b6 21.b4 d3 22.d4 e5 23.c2 xc1
24.axc1 fe8 25.xg6 xg6 26.f3 c6
27.cf1 f6 28.f5 h8 29.g3 f7
30.d6
1-0
137 A03
Bagirov,Vladimir 2460
Heemskerk,Fenny 2025
GMA op Moscow (2) 1989
[Nigel Davies]
1.b3 f6 2.b2 e6 3.e3 d5 4.f4 c5 5.f3
c6 6.b5 d7 7.0-0 e7 8.d3
As a waiting move this makes perfect sense
and there's another one he can play with 9.
Nbd2. Does Black have anything better than
to force the bishop on b5 to declare its
intentions with 8...a6? a6
[ Heemskerk doesn't think so or perhaps
wondered what could be done after 8...0-0
9.bd2 . But playing devil's advocate for a
moment I think it's reasonable for Black to
play b4 10.xd7 xd7 , keeping the
pieces needed to challenge White's control
of e5. It's true that White wins a tempo on
the b4 knight with 11.a3 but after c6
intending 12...Bf6 it doesn't look like
anything special. ]
9.xc6 xc6 10.e5 b6
[ After 10...0-0 White should at least be able
to claim a slight edge with 11.xc6 ( 11.f3
is the more violent interpretation) 11...bxc6
12.d2 because of Black's weakened pawn
structure. ]
11.e2 0-0 12.f3 d4 Exaggerated urgency
(or should I say panic?) seems to be par for
the course in these positions for Black. But is
it necessary at this stage?
[ 12...d7 looks playable here, for example
13.h3 xe5 14.h5 h6 15.xe5 f6
seems fine for Black. ]
13.xc6 bxc6?!
[ Black is understandably unwilling to jettison
a pawn with 13...xc6 , but there seems to
be some play for it after 14.exd4 cxd4
15.xd4 fd8 . For my money this seems
130
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
like a far better chance than the
strategically gruesome capture with the
pawn. ]
14.d2 fd8 15.c4 a7 16.h3
[ 16.f5 might have been even stronger. ]
16...h6 17.f1 h7? A blunder in a poor
position, White's reply just forks the f7 and c6
pawns. 18.e5 f8 19.xc6 d7 20.xe7
xe7 21.exd4 d5 22.f5 exf5 23.xe7
xe7 24.a3 g6 25.xc5 fe8 26.c4
ac8 27.e3 c6 28.fe1
1-0
138 A03
Balashov,Yuri S 2510
Sveshnikov,Evgeny 2560
RUS-ch m5-8 Elista (1.5) 21.05.1997
[Nigel Davies]
1.f4 Hoping no doubt to sidestep
Sveshnikov's considerable theoretical
knowledge. But even here it looks like the
Russian Grandmaster knew exactly what he
was doing. d5 2.f3 c5 3.e3 c6 4.b5
d7 5.b3 f6 6.b2 e6 7.0-0 e7 8.xc6
Simple and direct White tries to establish a
knight on e5 and then build a kingside attack
behind it. But in the light of Sveshnikov's
precise defence in this game it is tempting to
try and find improvements.
[ With this in mind White might try 8.d3 ]
[ or 8.a4 in his attempt to eke out an
advantage. ]
[ On the other hand it see ms tha t 8.e1
is well met by b4 . ]
8...xc6 9.e5 c8 A simple and logical
defence, which when combined with Black's
11th move seems to solve his opening
problems.
[ Delving into the history books I found a
game in which Black played 9...c7 10.d3
g8?! through concern against White's
kingside pressure and possibly intending to
strike back with ...g7-g5. But after 11.d2
d7? 12.h5 g6? 13.xh7 0-0-0 14.xf7
de8 15.xe6 Black found himself with
inadequate compensation for the decimation
of his pawns in Bird, H-Riemann, F/Hamburg
1885. ]
10.d3 0-0 11.d2 d7! The right way to
defend the position, immediately challenging
White's knight on e5. 12.xc6 xc6 13.e4
f5! Once again a very instructive move from
Black, preventing any further kingside
expansion by White. It also places pawns on
the opposite colour to Black's bishop,
p ro d u cin g a kin d o f st ra t e gic 'h a rm o n y' .
14.e2 f6 15.xf6 xf6 16.ae1 dxe4
17.dxe4 d4+ 18.h1 xe4 Simplifying
into a drawn rook endgame. 19.xe4 xe4
20.xe4 fxe4 21.xe4 d8 22.g1 d4
23.fe1 xe4 24.xe4 f7 25.f2
½-½
139 A03
Danielsen,Henrik 2512
Luther,Thomas 2507
Petermaennchen GM (2) 10.08.1999
[Tony Kosten]
1.f4 d5 2.f3 g4 Not a particularly popular
move, but quite a logical one. However, after
th is gam e it m igh t sim p ly b e co ns id e re d
doubtful. 3.e3 d7 Black wants to play ...e5.
4.h3! This seems very strong,
[ 4.e2 e6 5.0-0 was played in one of
Larsen's games, against Barcza, Zurich
1959, but offers White little. ]
4...xf3 5.xf3 gf6 Necessary, to defend
d5. 6.g4! A powerful move, intending to push
Black off the board. Previously, W hite had
played
[ 6.c3 e6 and only then ( 6...c6 7.g4 e5
8.g5 g8 9.d3 also allows b4 10.d2
e7 11.a3 d6 which is similarly solid for
Black, Vigus, J-Pert,N/Witley 1999.) 7.g4
b u t t h i s a l l o w s B l a c k t o p l a y b4
and following 8.g5 g8 9.d3 c6 10.d2
h6 Danielsen,H-Salmensuu,O/Open, Koge
1997, White was only slightly better. ]
6...e6 7.d3 b4+ 8.c3 The point, Black is
not allowed to pin the white queen's knight.
d6 9.e4! White plays concretely, forcing
Black's developed pieces back, and gaining a
la rge kin gsid e sp a ce a d va n t a g e , b e f o r e
continuing his development. dxe4 10.dxe4
e5 11.g5 g8 12.f5 h6 13.h4 Keeping the
kingside pawn-roller intact. e7 14.h5 b6
15.e3 Having achieved everything he wanted
on the kingside, it is time to develop some
131
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

bits. d6 16.a3! c6 17.c4 xc4 game ) 12...b4 13.d2 would have been a
18.xc4 0-0-0 The f7-pawn couldn't be bit better for Black. ]
d e f e n d e d , a n y w a y . 19.h2 Suddenly it 6.d3 h6
becomes clear that Black is quite lost. White [ Black can also bring the other knight out,
intends Rd2, swapping Black's one, active, for example Danielsen, H (2520)-Ricardi, P
rook, when the rest of Black's pieces remain (2515), Turin 2006 went 6...a6 7.e3 h6
trapped on the kingside. c7 20.xf7 hxg5? 8.0-0 f5 9.e2 h5!? 10.e5 e6 11.d4
De sp e ra t io n , b ut ot he r m o ve s we re also h4 12.g4 h3 13.h1 h4 14.d2 c7?!
hopeless. 21.xh8 h6 22.xg7 g4 ( 14...0-0-0 is better ) 15.b3 a6 16.d3
23.f6 This is good, but b6 with a complex struggle ahead. ]
[ 23.xa7 was even stronger, i.e. xh2 7.e4 dxe4 8.dxe4!?
24.e6+ ] [ 8.xe4 would have been easier to play,
1-0 but with little chance of being able to make
life difficult for Black. ]
8...a6 9.e2 d7 10.a3 0-0-0 11.e5 g4
140 A03 12.e3 With a nice space advantage but an
Davies,Nigel R 2457 uncastled king, White steers for an endgame.
De Vassal,Thibault 2424 c5 13.0-0 f6 14.e4 b8 15.h1 f5
Corres. FICGS (1) 01.07.2006 16.b4!? Attempting to set light to Black's
[Nigel Davies] queenside. cxb4 17.axb4 xb4
[ 17...xb4 18.b1 is very dangerous for
I ' v e e x p e r i m e n t e d wi t h t h e B i r d a b i t i n Black. Here too there's an open b-file but
correspondence chess, largely because I felt at least he gains time on the knight on c3. ]
it would get my opponents 'out of their book'. 18.e1 c4 19.b1 b4 20.b5 d5
Unfortunately it god me out of mine as well [ 20...a5 21.a3 would give White long-
and I didn't fare too well in these encounters, term compensation because of the
though it would probably help if I understood weakness of Black's queenside. ]
the Leningrad Dutch a bit better. 1.f4 d5 21.f2 b6 22.e1 h5 23.d2 a4
2.f3 g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 c6 24.xa7! xa7
[ Another Correspondence game of mine [ White also has a powerful attack after
went 4...f6 5.0-0 0-0 6.d3 c5 7.e1 24...xa7 25.c4 , for example c8 26.e6
( 7.c3 is a better try here.) 7...c6 8.e4 threatens 27.Bxd5 followed by 28.Nxb6+. ]
dxe4 9.dxe4 e5 10.c3 d4 11.d2 25.xd5 d4 Bailing out into a worse but
exf4 12.gxf4 g4 13.e5 e6 with Black tenable endgame.
having a nice game in Davies, N (2457)- [ 25...xd5? 26.xb6+ leads to mate. ]
Weber, K (2343), Corr. 2006. ] 26.xd4 xd4 27.e4 fxe5 28.c3 e6
5.c3 29.a1+ b8 30.a8+ c7 31.a7+ c8
[ Attempting to improve on Davies, N (2457)- 32.c4 c5 33.g2 b8 34.xe7 f8
Zubac, M (2387), Corr. 2006, which went 35.f7 e6 36.xe5 xf7 37.xf7 d3
5.d3 h6 6.c3 ( 6.c3 is better.) 6...d7 38.f1 c5 39.c6 c7 40.xh8 xh8
7.e4 dxe4 8.dxe4 0-0 9.0-0 c5 10.d4 41.d5 h4 42.g2 hxg3 43.hxg3 xc1
e5 11.fxe5 g4 with the better game for 44.xc1 g5 Breaking up White's kingside
Black. My ef f orts in this opening would pawns after which the draw becomes clear.
p r o b a b l y b e h e l p e d b y p l a y i n g m o r e 45.f5 g4 46.a1 d6 47.e6 h5 48.a4
Leningrad Dutches with Black. ] ½-½
5...b6
[ A high level game, Malaniuk, V (2600)-
Gelfand, B (2675), Elista 1998, went 5...d4
6.e4 f6 7.f2 c5 8.0-0 c6 9.e4
dxe3 10.dxe3 xd1 11.xd1 0-0 and now
12.e4 ( Rather than 12.c3 , as played in the

132
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

141 A03 [ 20.gxh3? g3+ 21.h1 xf2

Dimitrijevic,Aleksandra 2292 is disastrous. ]
Sebag,Marie 2414 [ Objectively speaking 20.bd2 was best,
Stork YM Hengelo NED (9) 14.08.2004 but pretty hopeless, all the same. ]
[Tony Kosten] 20...g3! 21.xh3 e5 The only way to
avoid mate on h2 is to capture on e5 and
1.f4 d5 2.f3 g6 3.e3 g7 4.e2 f6 concede the queen, so White resigns.
5.0-0 0-0 6.d3 c5 7.e1 c6 8.c3 0-1
This stops ideas of ...Nd4 or ...Nb4. In the
game Karlsson-Kindermann I looked at
[ 8.d1?! and ] 142 A03
[ 8.h4 ] Gardner,Robert 2221
8...d4! Black attacks immediately on the dark Novikov,Igor A 2611
squares, rather than wait for W hite to play Canadian Open (7) 13.07.2000
Q h 4 a n d t h e n p re p a re e 4 a t h is le isu re . [Tony Kosten]
9.cxd4 A new try here.
[ 9.e4 is met by the strong c4! 10.e5 1.f4 d5 2.g3 g6 3.f3 g7 4.g2 h6
( 10.dxc4?! xe4 11.cxd4 xd4 5.0-0 f5 6.d4!?
is fantastic for Black) 10...cxd3 11.xd3 [ An odd idea, that isn't even popular with
dxc3 12.xc3 ( 12.exf6?! xf6 attacks the colours reversed. White decides to exploit
bishop on d3, and threatens to capture on the fact that Black has not yet played ...c5,
b 2 , r e g a i n i n g t h e p i e c e w i t h i n t e r e s t) and sets-up a 'Stonewall' structure. 6.c3!?
12...b6+ 13.h1 g4 14.e1 b4 is another try, c6 7.e4 dxe4 8.xe4 0-0
15.e4 f5! Black has a powerful initiative, 9.c3 d6 10.f2 d7 11.d4 Rechel,B-
Parr,F-Mishra,N/ Eastbourne 1991. ] Atalik,S/Groningen 1998 ]
9...cxd4 10.e4 g4 This is the point of 6...h5!? Aggressive, but straightforward
Black's play, the knight aims for e3. 11.a3?! development is perhaps simpler. 7.h1!
This looks wrong to me, White stops ...Nb4 [ A u s e f u l p r o p h yl a c t i c m e a s u r e , 7.c3?!
and frees his queen, but would allow h4 8.g4 h3 9.h1 h4 ]
[ 11.a3 is better, developing a piece and 7...c5 8.c3 d7 9.e5 cxd4 10.cxd4 b6
then playing Nc2 to cover e3. ] 11.e3 xe5
11...b6 Black continues her play on the dark [ Black was faced with a dilemma, and
squares, ...Ne3 will soon become a serious chooses a tactical solution, although this
threat. 12.b4 a5! White's queenside is opens the f-file for W hite. Perhaps 11...e6
starting to creak. 13.bxa5 xa5 14.h3? was better, followed by kingside castling,
This is a tactical/ strategical mistake, allowing although Black may have bee n worrie d
Black to exchange the one piece that controls about the weakness he himself created on
e3. move six. ]
[ 14.b4 was the best bet, a6 15.a2 or 12.fxe5 h6 13.d3 e6?!
( 15.e5!? and White is still in the game. )] [ A careless move, weakening the dark
14...b3 Of course! The young French player squares, 13...e6 14.c3 d8 kept the
never misses a tactic. 15.a2 xc1 16.xc1 white position in check. ]
e3 17.b2? 14.c3 d7?!
[ 17.f2 f6 is obviously very good for [ 14...0-0 had to be played, for better, or
Black, with her enormous knight on e3, and worse. ]
bishop pair, but 18.c5 counter attacks d4, 15.xd5! Sacrificing a piece for two pawns to
with some chances. ] c a t c h t h e b l a c k k i n g i n t h e c e n t r e . exd5
17...f6 Black attacks both f4 and the rook on 16.xd5 d8 17.e4 The white attack
f 1 , a n d win s a ke y p a wn . 18.f2 xf4 develops apace. e7 18.f6+ f8 19.f3
19.c5 xh3! Black continues to find the [ Making Black regret opening the f-file, but
best moves. 20.g5?! for tactical reasons, 19.b3! is stronger, as

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
now h3 20.f2 xc1 21.xc1 xd4
22.d1 leaves the black queen without a
retreat square. ]
19...h3 20.g4!?
[ 20.d7+ e8 21.f6+ forces a perpetual
check, but, despite the enormous grading
difference, White clearly wants more. ]
[ Now, the line 20.f2 xc1 21.xc1 xd4
22.d1 allows a4 i.e. 23.d7+ g7
24.xf7+ h6 and the d1-rook is en prise. ]
20...xf1 21.xh6+ xh6 Forced, other
moves allow mate in one. 22.xh6 g7
[ 22...c4 23.d5 g7 also offers defensive
chances. ]
23.xf7 xd4+ 24.h1 g2+!
[ A u s e f u l reso u rce , if 24...c4? then
25.f6+ h7 26.g5+ h6 27.xe7
should win. ]
25.xg2 xb2+ So Black manages to play
this with check, and pick-up the a1-rook.
26.h3 xa1 27.f6+ Despite being a rook
down, White has all the chances. g8?
[ 27...h7 is better, when 28.g5+ h6
29.e6 g8 will draw. ]
28.h8+ xf7 29.e6+ White wins the black
queen. xe6 30.xa1 c8 31.d4 b6
Objectively Black is lost, 32.f2?
[ A mistake, after 32.a4! Black is obliged to
play c7 when White can progress with his
king, 33.h4 ]
32...c5! Black sets-up a fortress, the white
king can no longer pass the fifth rank. 33.d4
c6 34.g7 e7 35.d4
[ W hite decides to take the draw, 35.f8
a5 and Black can just keep his rook on the
fifth rank, when everything is defended. ]
35...c6 36.g7 e7 37.d4
½-½
143 A03
Gelashvili,Tamaz 2535
Skembris,Spyridon 2450
Master Open Lausanne SUI (4) 24.05.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.f4 d5 2.f3
[ 2.b3 c5 3.e3 a6 like a reversed 4.a3
Queen's Indian, 4.f3 c6 5.b2 g4!?
6.h3 xf3 7.xf3 d6 8.g4 f6 9.g2 e6
10.d3 ge7 11.d2 0-0-0 12.0-0-0 c7
13.b1 both sides have a flexible position,
but White's two bishops give him the edge,
Danielsen,H-W edberg,T/Munkebo DEN
1998. ]
2...f6
[ One problem with this particular move order
is 2...g6 3.e3 g7 when White can't play
b3. ]
3.e3 g4
[ A very typical 'solid line', Black lets his light-
squared bishop out before putting his pawns
on light squares, just as in Capablanca's
system versus the Reti. 3...g6 4.b3 g7
5.b2 0-0 was examined in Yin Hao-Zhang
Zhong/Shenyang CHN 1999. ]
4.b3 bd7 5.b2 e6 6.h3 xf3 7.xf3
d6 8.c3 c6 9.g4 h6 10.h4 This type of
kingside advance is quite justified here with a
closed centre. h5!? 11.g5 g4 12.0-0-0
[ 12.h3 can be met by f5 ]
12...e7 13.e4!?
[ White hits-out in the centre, but the
prophylactic 13.b1 was worth considering,
a3 14.a1 and White can retain his
bishop. ]
13...d4 14.e2 e5 15.f5 Else Black may
gain use of the e5-square. a3 16.h3 a5
Black plays for an attack along the a-file. It
shouldn't force mate, but will certainly give
W hite something to worry about. 17.xa3?!
I always think twice before encouraging my
opponent's queen to take up residence too
close to my king! xa3+ 18.b1 a4 19.c1
axb3
[ The pretty interference 19...d3! is good, the
knight and c2-pawn are both on defensive
d u t i e s s o : 20.xg4 ( 20.xd3?! f2 )
20...dxc2+ 21.xc2 hxg4 22.xg4 axb3+
23.axb3 c5+ with a nasty attack. ]
20.cxb3 c5 21.xg4 hxg4 22.g3
The queen is needed on the third rank to
d e f e n d b 3 . f6!? 23.gxf6 gxf6 24.xg4
d3! Trying for a deflection. 25.g6+ d8
26.xf6+ c7 27.c2
[ The only move, 27.xd3?? allows mate:
xa2+ 28.c1 a1+ 29.c2 a2+ ]
27...b4+
[ 27...b2+ 28.xd3 b1+ 29.e2 xe4+
30.f2 f4+ 31.e1 e4+ was another
way of forcing a perpetual. ]
28.b1 he8!? Black eschews the perpetual,
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

and plays for a win! 29.f7+ b6 30.dg1 problem is the doubled e-pawn which leaves
xa2 31.c2 b4+ 32.d1 It seems that e 5 a s a we a k n e ss a n d W h i t e h a v i n g a n
the white king is on its way to safety, but... effective kingside pawn majority. 19.d2 d6
xc1+! 33.xc1 a1+ 34.b2 a2+ 20.f1
[ 34...a2+ White has to allow a repetition, [ T h i s i s b e t t e r f o r W h i t e b u t 20.g3
with 35.c1 ( as 35.b1?? ea8 was even stronger. ]
actually forces mate! ) 35...a1+ ] 20...xf1+ 21.xf1 f8+ 22.e2 f6
½-½ [ Black could have defended more
economically with 22...e8 23.g3 g6 . ]
23.g3 g6 24.g5 e8 25.f3 f5 26.g3
144 A03 b5 27.e4 f4 28.d2
Giffard,Nicolas 2317 [ 28.e3! was better with more serious
Moret,Vincent 2178 problems for Black. ]
FRA-chT poule basse (9.8) 08.05.2003 28...e7 29.e3 d6 30.h3 c6 31.e3
[Nigel Davies] c4?! Overreacting to White's pressure.
[ 31...g4 would have been more stubborn. ]
1.b3 d5 2.b2 e6 3.f4 c5 4.e3 c6 32.bxc4 bxc4 33.dxc4 d4+ 34.d3 f2
5.b5 d7 6.f3 f6 7.0-0 d6 8.xc6 35.g3 f6 36.g5 a5 37.a3 b7 38.c5+
xc6 9.e5 c7 xc5 39.xe5+ d6 40.c4+ e7
[ Now that White's f-pawn is on f4 already he 41.xa5 f2 42.a7
can meet 9...xe5 with 10.fxe5 d7 1-0
11.g4 with attacking chances on the
kingside. ]
10.d3 0-0 145 A03
[ I think I might have been tempted to play Granda Zuniga,Julio E 2680
10...0-0-0!? for Black, though I'm not Semcesen,Daniel 2502
convinced that a respectable GM should Karpos Open 2014 (9.10) 05.04.2014
a d m i t t o t h is . C e r t a i n ly I wo u ld n 't f e e l [Fier, Alexandr]
comfortable with the position Black has in
the game and W hite's pieces taking pot This was the most exotic game of the month.
shots at his king. ] W h i t e go e s f o r a ki n d o f r e ve r s e d c o l o r
11.f3 d7 12.h3!? I'm not surprised that Stonewall Dutch with the bishop out and the
Giffard chose the spectacular line. queenside developed. Basically it is not so
[ 12.xc6 xc6 would be insipid by easy to explain. Despite the result I don't think
comparison. ] I can recommend this variation for White! 1.f4
12...xe5 13.fxe5 xe5 It's interesting to d5 2.f3 g6 3.d4 There are already a few
see how facing an attack can foster great high level games in this position. Usually
trepidation on the part of the defender. W hite goes for 3.g3 or 3.e3. g7 4.c3
[ I t s e e m s t h a t 13...e7 is OK here, for And now we are practically in new territory.
example 14.h5 h6 15.g3 g5 16.h4 White's idea is quite rudimentary: develop the
g6 17.g4 e7 is fine for Black as White is queenside pieces, castle long and push the
not attacking with enough pieces. ] kingside pawns. Unfortunately, Black has
14.h5 f6?! Going for the deceptive 'safety' enough resources to defend against this pre-
of an endgame, but one which turns out to be historic attack. f6 5.e3
worse for Black. [ 5.e3 was too normal for Granda ]
[ 14...f5 was better, for example 15.xh7+ 5...0-0 6.d2 a6?! This move is mysterious.
f7 16.h5+ e7 sees the king slip I f B l a c k w o u l d c o n t i n u e w i t h 7 . . . b 5 t h e
away. ] position would still be quite nice, but it looks
15.xh7+ f7 16.h5+ e7 17.xe5 like he changed his mind in the middle of the
xe5 18.xe5 fxe5 Although this looks safe road.
f o r B l a c k h e i s s l i g h t l y wo r s e n o w. T h e [ 6...e4 was direct, and probably enough

135
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
for an advantage 7.xe4 dxe4 8.g5
( 8.e5 is also not a heroic route for the
knight f6 9.c4 e6 10.a3 ) 8...d5
and the knight will just be running around
9.g3 h6 10.h3 c5 with good central
pressure ]
7.h3 e4 Mixing plans.
[ 7...b5 this would be the logical continuation,
and one more time enough for some
advantage 8.g4 ( 8.a3 e4 9.xe4 dxe4
and Black has an improved version of the
game, where he can start an attack more
easily if W hite castles long, 10.e5 f6
11.g4 d5 with a weird position) 8...b4
9.d1 e4! energetic ( 9...a5 10.f2 e4
11.xe4 dxe4 12.g5 followed by 13.Bg2
is interesting for W hite) 10.xb4 c5
11.dxc5 c6 12.a3 d4 13.d2 b8
and Black is two pawns down, but there is
no c o mp ariso n b et wee n t he W h it e a n d
Black pieces ]
8.xe4 dxe4 9.e5 f6 10.g4 e6
The bishop is slightly exposed here, and
White has an interesting pawn sacrifice.
[ 10...d7 would also be logical and after
11.f5 ( 11.0-0-0 b6 White needs to take
care of all the weak squares) 11...b6
12.fxg6 hxg6 13.h6 xg4 14.hxg4 d5
is the computer's idea, but the king will need
to go to the center again 15.xg7 xg7
16.h6+ f7 17.h7+ e6 18.xg6 g8
with a double-edged position ]
11.g3 Giving some space to the bishop on f1.
[ 11.f5!? w a s a l r e a d y p o s s i b l e xf5
12.h6+ xh6 13.xh6 e8 14.g4 e6
15.g2 with some compensation for the
pawn ]
11...d7 12.g2
[ 12.f5 was interesting one more time
A) 12...gxf5 is too dangerous 13.h6+
xh6 ( 13...h8 14.d5 ) 14.xh6 e8
15.g4 with a dangerous initiative;
B) 12...xf5 13.h6+ xh6 14.xh6
e8 15.g4 reaching the same position as
in the last move's analysis, but with a
tempo less. Still, the position is not clear ]
12...b8? Ignoring White's idea.
[ 12...f5 13.e5 c5 14.c3 and somehow
White's position looks normal again! ]
13.d5 Now Black's position already looks less
harmonious than White's.
[ 13.f5 is still on the pocket xf5 14.h6+
xh6 ( 14...h8 15.xf5 gxf5 ) 15.xh6
e8 16.0-0-0 with the usual 17.g4 idea ]
13...f7 14.f5 Finally. b6 15.h6+ h8?!
After a series of strange Black moves the
position is already delicate. After this move
W hite has a material advantage and Black
has no compensation. There were several
ways for him to not be worse in the 15 moves
after White's opening, but sometimes exotic
play leads to exotic answers!
[ 15...xh6 was necessary 16.xh6 e8
17.xe4 xd5 18.xd5+ xd5 19.xd5+
xd5 20.0-0-0 bd8 and White can be
slightly better in the endgame, but compared
to the position of the game, it's much better
for Black. ]
16.xf7+ xf7 17.xb6 cxb6 18.xe4
Now W hite is much better. In the endgame
the position was again far from clear, but as
we are going to see, he had some ways to
keep the advantage. d6 19.0-0-0 e5
20.d3 gxf5 21.xf5 b5 22.b1 h6
23.hf1 g7 24.f3 It's not only the
difference in the number of pawns, but also
the bishops. W hite's one is centralized and
looking to both flanks. Black's bishop would
be wonderful on e5, but there is no way to get
there. b4 25.e4 A solid choice.
[ 25.g4 would be one way to continue the
attack. The advance of the pawns on the
queenside is far less dangerous than on the
kingside a5 26.h4 a4 27.e3 a3 28.d4
d6 29.g5 fxg5 30.e6 and White will
bring the rooks to the attack with
devastating effect. ]
25...xe4 26.xe4 gg8 27.f5 a5 28.d4
gd8 29.fd3 b5 30.h4 g7 31.dd4
h8 32.de4 b7 33.h5
[ 33.e3 wo u ld a vo id B la ck's id e a c7
34.h5 followed by 35.Rg4 wins ]
33...d2 34.g4+ f8 35.xh7 xh7
36.xh7 White wins a second pawn, but Black
can finally liberate his pieces e6 37.g8+
f7 38.e4 White starts to lose control.
[ 38.dxe6+ was still winning. For example:
xe6 39.e4 e7 ( 39...c7 40.h4+- )
40.c6! d6 41.xb5 defending the pawn
on e2 ]
38...exd5 39.exd5
[ 39.d8 also loses a pawn e1 40.exd5
136
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
xg3 41.f5 with chances c7 and White's
queenside is a problem at the moment, so
Black has chances to hold ]
39...e7 40.c3 bxc3 41.bxc3 xc3
Now the endgame is not clear at all and Black
even managed to recover the second pawn
after some moves. 42.c8 e1+ 43.c2
e5 And with g3 and a2 weak, there is no way
to keep any advantage. 44.d3 a1 45.xb5
xa2+ 46.d3 a3+ 47.e4 xg3 48.d7
a4 Somehow the pawn on h3 is more
dangerous than the pawn on a4. The white
rook controls the ...a3 advance well, but on
the other hand Black's bishop is not able to
help in the defence. Of course, the position is
still drawn, but White has something to work
with.
[ 48...b3 with the idea of 49...Rb4+ should
be sufficient to draw ]
49.e6+ e7 50.a8 a3 51.h4 b2?
Black tries to liberate the rook to def end
against the promotion, but now the d-pawn is
also free.
[ 51...d6 bringing the king up was quite
logical 52.h5 g5 53.f7 f5+ this is the
point 54.d3 g2 with a probable draw. ]
52.a7+ d6 53.a6+ e7 54.f5 e5
55.h5 b3 56.h6 b4+ 57.d3 d4+
58.e2 h4 59.h7 h2+ 60.d3 a2
61.xa2
1-0
146 A03
Jakubiec,Artur 2532
Gdanski,Jacek 2529
ch Warsaw POL (13) 07.05.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.f4 d5 2.f3 g6 3.g3 c6!? Black plays an
idea of Korchnoi's with reversed colours, a
route is opened for the queen to the g1-a7
diagonal. 4.g2 b6 White is stopped from
castling. 5.c3
[ 5.d4 is a less flexible alternative, g7
6.0-0 f6 7.e3 with a Stonewall-style
position, Koc, P-Gleizerov,E/Koszalin 1998. ]
5...g7 6.e3
[ 6.e4!? is more ambitious, dxe4 7.xe4
f6 8.xf6+ ( 8.f2!? allows White to
castle ) 8...xf6 9.a4 0-0 10.a5 b5
with reasonable play for Black, Adorjan,A-
Varga,Z/Budapest 1995. ]
6...h6 A novelty, although obvious, as Black
continues using White's standard plan (with
opposite colours): the knight will go to f5 to
support ...h5-4.
[ 6...d7 7.0-0 e5 8.fxe5 xe5 9.xe5
xe5 10.h1 g7 gave equal chances in
Danielsen,H-Berg,K/Aalborg DEN 2000. ]
7.a4 a5 8.d4
[ 8.0-0 f5 threatens ...d4, and so after
9.d4 will probably transpose to the game. ]
8...a6 9.0-0 f5 10.e5 h5 Other moves
are possible, but this is the key move here.
11.f3 The bishop moves to a 'safe' square,
the point of White's previous move. If instead
[ 11.e2 then the tactic h4 12.g4 h3
is possible, 13.h1 h4 with aggressive
play. ]
11...e6
[ 11...d6 is also sensible, controlling c4
and e4, and preparing to bring the bishop to
h3. ]
12.e1 d8 Black stops White from playing
e4. 13.b3 As the white bishop is hemmed-in
by the pawn structure in the centre, W hite
prepares a route out to the a3-f8 diagonal.
d6
[ 13...g5!? is a tactical alternative. ]
14.a3 f5 15.g2 b4 Black brings all his
pieces to powerful posts before castling.
16.c1? A bad mistake, allowing a simple
tactic.
[ 16.d3 blocks the threat to the c-pawn,
and keeps play balanced. ]
16...xc2! 17.xc2 xb3 This is the point,
forking the rook and bishop and so
recuperating the piece with two-pawns
interest. 18.e4
[ 18.a2 xc3 19.b2 c2+ 20.xc2
xc2 21.c3 f5 22.xa5 regains one
pawn, but is barely an improvement. ]
18...dxe4 19.xe4 xe4 20.xe4 xa3
Black has won two pawns, unless White finds
some real compensation soon he can resign.
21.xg6!? Maybe the best chance. xe5
Simplest,
[ 21...fxg6? 22.xg6 hits e7 (with mate) and
the h8-rook. ]
22.fxe5 fxg6 23.exd6 xd6 The black
queen returns and everything appears to be
137
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

u n d e r c o n t r o l . 24.ce2 The open e-file the variation from the game is also interesting.
provides some counterplay for W hite. d5+ 1.b3 d5 2.b2 g4 3.f3 f5
25.g1 0-0! The best move, rather than [ 3...h5 4.e4 is a possible idea, and
defend the e-pawn by against ...Bf5 it can be interesting too. Here
[ 25...d7 when 26.e5 c4 27.xa5 there is a trick for blitz players and it was
xd4+ 28.xd4 xd4 29.a7 d7 tried by Nielsen in his thematic blitz match
30.a8+ d8 31.a7 b8 32.a5 against Svidler. ( 4.h3 is more solid, trying
gives White fair drawing chances as he will to catch the bishop pair and it was Svidler's
win the b-pawn. ] choice when he had White e6 5.f4 g6
26.xe7 f7 Black certainly doesn't want to 6.e3 f6 7.xg6 hxg6 8.f4 with chances
swap too many pawns by for both sides in Svidler, P (2734)-Nielsen,
[ 26...xd4+ 27.xd4 xd4 28.xb7 f7 P (2700)/Politiken Larsen blitz b3 2010.)
29.b6 g7 30.xc6 xa4 ] 4...dxe4 5.e2 c6 smartly avoiding 6.
27.7e4 g7 Black has consolidated his Qb5+, Nielsen, P (2700)-Svidler, P (2734)/
position, and remains a pawn to the good. Politiken Larsen blitz b3 2010. ]
28.c2 d6 29.c3 h7 30.e3 df6 4.e3
31.e7 xe7 [ 4.e4 I can't say that this gambit is sound,
[ 31...c4! is strong, threatening a deadly but still it's a way to use the 3.f3 move and
check on f1, and the a4-pawn. ] bring the pieces into the game, dxe4 5.c3
32.xe7+ f7 33.e5 f3 The queen ( 5.fxe4 was never played but also possible,
comes to menace the white king, but opening the center at once xe4 6.c3
[ 33...c4 is strong, again. ] g6 7.f3 f6 8.e5!? now the queen
34.e3?! White figures his best chance lies in has the f3-square to go to, and White will
the rook endgame, but he would be better probably take the g6 bishop at some point.
keeping the queens on the board, for better, The main issue with White's position is the
or for worse. xe3+ 35.xe3 h6 36.h4 lack of control of the d4-square.) 5...f6
d7 37.e5 d5 38.e4 ( 5...exf3 6.xf3 c8 7.d5 threatening 8.
[ 38.xd5? cxd5 leads to a lost king and Nxc7+ or bringing the knight to e3 followed
pawn endgame. ] by 0-0-0; 5...e3 is supposed to be less
38...b5 Black gets his queenside pawns going. dangerous, but W hite recovers the pawn
39.axb5 cxb5 40.f2 b4 with an initiative, 6.dxe3 xd1+ 7.xd1
The two connected passed pawns are was seen in Bosboom, M (2455)-Van Veen,
decisive. 41.e3 b3 42.d2 b5 43.c1 O (2 1 9 9 )/ V lis sin ge n HZ o p 1 4 t h 2 0 1 0 .
a4 44.b1 b4 45.f4 c4 46.e4?! a3 xc2?? i s t o o g r e e d y : 8.c1 g6
0-1 9.d5+- )
A) 6.e2 exf3 7.xf3 ( 7.b5+
doesn't work at all d7 8.xb7 c6
147 A03 and White is already in trouble) 7...c6
Jobava,Ba 2694 8.0-0-0 e6 and it's not sure White has
Navara,D 2703 enough compensation for the pawn, it's
29th ECC Open 2013 (3.5) 22.10.2013 not easy to find where to put the pieces.;
[Fier, Alexandr] B) 6.g4!? is another option g6 7.e2
c6 8.0-0-0 d4 9.c4 with some
Jobava is a player with a lot of new ideas in counterplay ( 9.g2 with the idea of 10.h4
the openings and for more than one year he is playable )]
is playing 1.b3 with quite decent results. In 4...e6 5.f4
t h is g a m e h e t r a n sp o se s t o a B i rd s t yl e [ 5.c3 is kind of weird, but played by
position and introduces 8.h3 instead of the McShane and analyzed on ChessPublishing
normal plans with Be2. Navara tries to exploit in McShane, L (2683)-Jansa, V (2513)/12th
it and the position was quite interesting. I ch-EUR Aix-les-Bains FRA 2011. ]
would prefer 11.Rxf1 to castle queenside, but 5...f6 6.f3 e7 7.d3

138
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 7.e2 is the main line and it usually comes
from Bird's. White spent a tempo playing f3-
f4, but Black also played ...Bg4-f5 h6 8.0-0
0-0 9.d3 Minasian, A (2530)-Boensch, U
(2490)/Munich op 9293 1993. ]
7...c5 8.h3 h5 Trying to refute White's idea.
But to use 4 tempi with the knight just to take
the bishop on f1 is not so dangerous. After
this move W hite has good chances to gain
the advantage.
[ 8...0-0 is possible, but there is no reason to
give the bishop 9.g4 g6 10.e5 c6
with chances for both sides ]
[ 8...h6 is the natural answer and maybe
White would try the most direct approach
with 9.g4 ( 9.e2 kind of transpose to the
main lines, but there is no reason to play 8.
h3 then ) 9...h7 10.g1 but it's hard to
believe White's attack is strong enough with
more than half of the pieces on the first rank
c6 and with ...d4 afterwards, Black should
be better. ]
9.g4 g3 10.g1 xf1 11.xf1
A concrete approach, but it's also risky.
[ 11.xf1!? makes a lot of sense, since the
kingside is not a safe place for the king.
Jobava probably thought the rook would be
more useful on g1, which is true, but the
cost is high. f6 12.c3 with the king going
to c1, it's better to keep the bishops, g6
13.d2 c6 14.0-0-0 and White has good
attacking chances. ]
11...f6 Otherwise the pawn on g7 is hanging.
12.xf6!? Following a concrete idea. The
main point is that White is able to play e4 by
tactical means and with this the bishop on g6
is n o t go o d . B la ck n e e d s t o a n swe r in a
precise way as well. xf6 13.a3 g6
14.b5 e7 15.e4 Probably this was the
po sition J ob ava wa s aiming f or whe n h e
played 11.Kxf1, White is going to expand on
the kingside and there are chances for Black
to stay in a passive position. White needs to
take care not to overexpand, since if the
position opens in a bad way the king will be in
the wrong place. a6 16.c3 dxe4 17.dxe4
f6! Giving the d5-square to keep the bishop
active.
[ 17...h6 would be the option to keep the d5-
square under control, but it's hard to leave
the bishop 'dead' on h7, 18.f5 h7 19.g2
0-0 20.d2 followed by 21. Rad1 gives
White a stable advantage. ]
18.f5 f7 19.fxe6 xe6! The bishop is
better on f7 than e6.
[ 19...xe6 if Black exchanges the
dangerous knight on d5, W hite creates a
passed pawn and after some moves, when
the position stabilizes, W hite is slightly
better, 20.d5 xd5 ( 20...d6? 21.xf6+
that's the difference) 21.exd5 ( 21.xd5
is just bad, White can't avoid Black castling
for too long, c6 22.g2 d8 23.c4
d4 24.ad1 b5 ) 21...d7 22.g2
0-0-0 23.e1 e5 24.c4 and White is
positionally better. ]
20.d5 d6 Now White has some problems
with the dark squares and his king is still not
safe. White has enough resources to hold the
balance, but for sure, not more than this.
21.e3
[ 21.g5 was a crazy idea, but probably it's
working, fxg5 22.xg5 finally the 11.Kxf1
makes sense, 0-0 23.f5 necessary and
threatening 24.Nxf6+
A) 23...d7 24.f6+ is embarrassing;
B) 23...d8 24.xf7!? going all-in xf7
25.g5+ g8 26.h5 the attack looks
quite dangerous since Black still needs to
finish development, but there is enough
resources for equality, f8+ ( 26...h6
also works 27.f7+ h8 28.e6 e5
def en ding g7 and a tt acking a 1 29.e1
c6 with dynamic balance) 27.g2 h6
( 27...h6 falls to a beautiful trick 28.g6!
xg6 29.e7+ h8 30.xg6+ g8
31.xf8 xf8 32.e6+ with a clear
a d v a n t a g e .) 28.e7+ h8 29.f1
( 29.f7+ xf7 30.xf7 c6 and Black
is fine ) 29...c6 30.f7+ xf7 31.xh6
xf1 32.g5 f6 33.xc5
with an unclear position, but Black should
be fine.;
C) 23...g6 is more dangerous 24.e5!
d8 25.xf8+ xf8 26.c7 e4
27.xa8 c6! forced since ( 27...xf3
28.d6 exchanges the queens) 28.e6
xf3 29.e7 xe7 30.d6 with a complex
position. ]
21...f4
[ 21...xd1+?! without queens White doesn't
need to worry about the king's safety
139
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
anymore 22.xd1 c6 23.f5 and White
can fight for an advantage. ]
22.f5 The start of a wrong plan.
[ 22.d5 repeating the position was White's
best move, but nobody would be proud of
this. xd5 is more ambitious, but again
improves White's structure a lot, ( 22...d6
23.e3= ) 23.exd5 d7 24.e2+ e5
25.g2 0-0-0 26.xe5 de8 27.f2
xf2+ 28.xf2 xe5 will be drawn. ]
22...0-0 23.g5? Losing control, but the
position is already not good for White.
[ 23.g2 c6 24.e1 ad8 and Black is
better. ]
23...xe4 Now the position is just lost.
24.d6 e6 25.xf7 xf7 26.g2
[ 26.g6 hxg6 doesn't really make a
difference. ]
26...c6 The rest of the game is just a matter
of time. 27.c3 f5 28.h2 e5 29.g3
xf3+ 30.xf3 xf3 31.xf3 fxg5 32.af1
af8 33.xf7 xf7 34.d1 f2+ 35.g3
xa2 36.d8+ f7 37.d7+ g6 38.xb7
c2 39.c4 h5 40.f3 h4 41.b4 xc4
42.bxc5 xc5 43.b6+ h5 44.xa6 c2
45.a3 h2 46.e4 g4 47.a7 g6
0-1
148 A03
Johansen,Darryl Keith
Budde,Vladimir
1986 Wuppertal 1986
[Paul Motwani]
B32: "The case of the gobbled galloping g-
pawn!" 1.b3 f6
[ 1...e5 starred in game B31. ]
2.b2 d5 3.e3 e6 4.f4 g6!? This move
leaves Black's f6-knight temporarily with only
one defender (namely the lady at d8), and
th a t f a c t p ro voke s W h it e in t o (u n wise ly)
lunging speedily forward towards the black
steed. 5.g4?! g7 6.e2?
[ 6.g5 h5 7.xg7 ( 7.c3 d4; 7.d4 h6 )
7...xg7 is also unpleasant for White as
Black threatens ...h6. Furthermore, the f5-
square is a powerful post ready for the g7-
knight, but at least the battle would
continue longer than in the actual game... ]
6...xg4! GM Darryl Johansen resigned in
view of 7 Bxg7 (or 7 Bxg4 Bxb2) 7...Qh4+ 8
Kf1 Qf2, but perhaps he could have struggled
on a bit with 7 Bb5+ c6 8 Bxg7 Qh4+ 9 Ke2,
although Black should still win after 9...Rg8.
0-1
149 A03
Kabanov,Nikolai 2521
Riazantsev,Alexander 2632
Polyarniy Krug (4) 02.12.2006
[John Watson]
Larsen's Opening seems to bring out the worst
in people. Here a 2521 player loses with White
in 23 moves! 1.b3 d5 2.b2 f6 3.e3 c5
This always seemed a little cooperative to me,
since it gives White's light-squared bishop the
typical Nimzo/Bogo b5 square.
[ Something along the lines of 3...f5 ]
[ or even 3...g6 (without playing ...c5 in the
foreseeable future) makes strategic sense. ]
4.f4!? This move is often held to be consistent
with the move b3 or b4 but that's not so clear,
because White's e3 square can be weakened
and subject to moves such as ...d4 and ...Nd5/
g4. Still, the plan of Nf3-e5 can't be too bad.
[ 4.f3 is a Queen's Indian Defence a
tempo up. That may be only equal if Black
p l a y s s l o w l y , f o r e x a m p l e , b y c6
( or even more safely, 4...e6 ) 5.b5 d7 ]
4...g6 5.f3 g7 6.b5+
[ 6.e2 0-0 7.0-0 c6 8.e5 c7
is comf ortable f or Black. Then perhaps
9.xc6 xc6 10.f3 f5 could follow. ]
6...d7
[ 6...bd7!? 7.0-0 a6 8.e2 leaves Black's
knight slightly misplaced on d7, but that is
still no great achievement for White, who in
fact will probably play Ne5 and Bf3 anyway,
si n c e t h e m o ve d 3 c a n we a k e n h i s e 3
square in a number of lines. ]
7.xd7+ xd7!? Good enough, and
[ 7...bxd7 is safe and equal. ]
8.e5 c7 9.0-0 0-0 10.d3
[ 10.c4 is a natural move, or perhaps ]
[ 10.a3 c6 11.c4 ]
10...fd7 11.d4 cxd4 12.exd4 c6
13.d2? It's so easy to go wrong when you
think that nothing's happening!
[ 13.h1 is one improvement, again about
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
equal. ]
13...dxe5! 14.fxe5
[ 14.dxe5 b4! and White can't defend c2
in view of 15.c3? d3 16.c2 c5+ ]
14...b6 Winning a pawn. 15.h1
[ 15.f3 xe5 16.xe5 xe5 offers even
less counterplay. ]
15...xd4 16.c4!?
[ W hite gets nothing from 16.c4 dxc4
17.xd4 e6 ]
16...f5! 17.f3 e3
[ 17...h6! is another good move. White is
suffering. ]
18.xe3 xe3 19.f3 d4 20.e4 g4
[ Or 20...ad8 with the idea 21.xd4? c2 ]
21.xd4 xe5 22.d3 ad8 23.ad1 f5
The simple point is that after White's knight
moves, .... Bxd4 followed by ...Nf2+ wins.
0-1
150 A03
Karlsson,Lars 2475
Hector,Jonny 2532
ch-SWE Vaxjo SWE (9) 07.07.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.g3 d5 2.f4 c6 This position isn't even
mentioned in the ECO, that's how quickly we
have exited mainstream theory. To add a fun
little side note, my computer at this point, 6...dxc4
claims a clear advantage for Black! Not so fast,
my little digital friend. 3.f3 g4 4.g2 xf3
5.xf3 e5 This is the point behind Black's 2nd
and 3rd moves, but White has a somewhat
surprising and quite strong answer up his
sleeve. 6.c4!
[ White has a few alternatives available at
this juncture. A) 6.fxe5 is the most obvious
and also the best of W hite's alternatives
xe5 7.g2 f6 8.0-0 ( 8.d4 g6 9.c3
c6 10.d3 b4 11.g5 h6 12.d2 xc3
13.xc3 0-0 , and here a draw was agreed
upon, 1/2-1/2, in Grunberg, M-Popa, V/ROM
1993, though Black is already quite
co m f o rt a b le a n d p ro b ab ly sh o u ld h a ve 7.a4 d7?!
played on. W hite's pair of bishops aren't
exactly a scary bunch.) 8...c6 9.d4 c4
10.d3 d6 11.c3!? ( 11.g5 e7
12.d2 0-0 13.c4 xc4 14.xc4 dxc4
15.xc4 , Gershtein-Chebanenko, V/
Moldova 1979, and here Black should opt
for a5 16.f4 d5 with approximately
even chances. ) 11...e7 12.f4 0-0
A) 13.e5?! g4 ( 13...c4!?
looks like an excellen t altern ative f o r
Black ) 14.xd6 xd6 15.e4 h6 16.h3
e3+ 17.xe3 xe3 18.f2 f6 19.e5
g5 with a small plus for Black thanks to
White's central pawns being fixed on dark,
the colour of Black's bishop, Putjatina, N-
Korneev, O/Karvina 1992;
B) 13.ae1!? d7 14.xd6 xd6 15.e4
dxe4 16.xe4 xe4 17.xe4 f6
18.e3 ac8! 19.c3 c5 20.dxc5 xc5
21.xc5 xc5 22.d1 c7
, and although W hite has the initiative
thanks to his control over the central files
and his pawn majority on the queenside,
Black should be able to hold the balance,
Gurevich, M-Kuijf, M/Wijk aan Zee 1990 ]
[ B) 6.d3 f6 7.c3 ( 7.fxe5 xe5 8.g2
c6 9.e3 d6 10.e2 e7 is very pleasant
for Black, Sanz Sixto, J-Korneev, O/Corunha
2000 ) 7...c5 8.g2 d4 9.e3 b6
10.fxe5 xe5 , Ricca, R-Korneev, O/Asti
1997, and now 11.d4 g6 12.d3 0-0
leaves the game more or less balanced. ]
[ C) 6.e3?! e4 7.g2 f6 8.c3 b4
9.0-0 d7 is comfortable for Black,
Vaatainen, T-Halmeenmaki, T/ FIN 1997 ]
[ Black can also try the pawn sacrifice
6...d4!? 7.fxe5 xf3+ 8.exf3 dxc4
9.a4+ d7 10.xc4 e7 11.0-0
( White achieves nothing by delaying d2-d4
and giving up on his extra pawn. Therefore
White should go for 11.d4!? 0-0-0 12.c3
xd4 13.xd4 xd4 14.e3 d8
, and W hite has a little more space, but
objectively the chances are about even.)
11...c6 12.c3 0-0-0 13.d4 xd4+
14.xd4 xd4 15.f4 b4 16.d1 hd8
, and Black has already taken full control
over the game, Lutikov, A-Petrosian, A/
Leipzig 1977 ]
[ I don't like this move which leaves White
with the better pawn structure and overall
advantage. Instead I think Black should
have given consideration to 7...ge7 , e.g.
8.xc4 d4 9.b3 0-0-0 10.e3 b6
141
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11.xf7 exf4 12.xf4 b4 13.e4 a6
, and Black has compensation for the pawn ]
8.xc6 bxc6 9.fxe5 f6 10.xc4 fxe5
11.f1 f6 12.c3 b8 13.a3 e7 14.d3
f8 15.b4 White has a clear positional
advantage, but the position is the kind of
muddy water Grandmaster Hector enjoys
operating in. g4
[ 15...c5 16.b5 d4 17.e3 xc4
18.dxc4 ]
16.xf8+ xf8 17.e4
[ 17.h3 f6 18.g4 ]
17...xh2 18.e3 a5 19.c5 h3 20.d2
[ White can do better with 20.c1!? because
xg3+ i s n ' t a t h r e a t d u e t o 21.d2
, and Black can't do anything against the
numerous threats with the knight and on the
light squares in general. ]
20...axb4 21.h1?
[ 21.g4!? g2 22.e6+ e8 23.xg7+
f8 24.e6+ e8 25.xc7+ d8 26.f7
f3+ 27.xf3 xf3 28.exf3 xc7 29.axb4
xb4+ 30.e2 , and White has the better
chances in the endgame ]
21...f3+ 22.c2 xh1 23.d7+ e8
24.xb8 e1+ 25.d2?!
[ 25.b3! xd3 ( 25...d5 26.d2 xc4+
27.dxc4 g2 28.a4 gives White excellent
winning chances) 26.exd3 d1+ 27.c2
xc2+ 28.xc2 bxa3 29.b3 h5 30.xc6
d6 31.f2 d7 32.a5 e6 , and it is
highly doubtful White can win ]
25...d5 26.xe1 bxa3 27.c1?
[ This loses. Instead White should have
played 27.a6 , which more or less holds
the balance. a2 28.f2 c5 29.c6 f6
30.a8+ f7 31.xe5+ xe5 32.xa2+
, and White is only a pawn down and should
be able to draw without too much trouble. ]
27...a2?
[ Here Black misses an easy win: 27...xc4
28.dxc4 e4! (this is probably the move Black
o v e r l o o k e d ) 29.d2 a2 30.b2 f6
31.c2 a1 32.xa1 xa1 33.xc6 d7
34.a5 e5 , and Black should win without
too much trouble ]
28.xd5 cxd5 29.b2 a3 30.xe5 c5?
[ Black can play more accurately with
30...d6 31.a1 xg3+ 32.f1 c5
33.c6 f4 , and Black should win ]
31.a1 b4+ 32.d1 d4 33.c2 c3
34.b2 e7
[ Or 34...h5 35.a6 g5 36.xc5 h4
37.gxh4 gxh4 38.e4 h3 39.f2 h2
40.b3 a1 41.xa1 xa1 42.c4
, and a draw is around the corner ]
35.c6+ d6 36.d8 a1 37.xa1 xa1
It is pretty astounding that White manages to
save a draw in this endgame which looks
rather easily won for Black due to his capacity
to create a passed pawn on the kingside at
will. 38.b7+ d5 39.a5 c3?
[ 39...h5! seems to win in a rather
straightforward fashion, but Black's mistake
indicates that the players undoubtedly were
in time trouble at this stage. 40.b3 g5!
41.d2 h4 42.gxh4 gxh4 43.f3 h3
44.d1 c3 45.h2 e5 ]
40.e4+! Now White can at least get his king to
the kingside to participate in the defence of
a g a i n s t a p o s s i b l e p a s s e d p a w n . e6
41.b7 b4 42.d8+ e7 43.c6+ d6
44.d8 e1
[ 44...h5!? 45.d1 c4! 46.dxc4 d7
47.f7 d6 48.e5 c7 , and Black should
win ]
45.g4 e5 46.d1 b4 47.c6+ d6
[ 47...f4 48.e5 g5 49.e2 g6 50.f3
f7 51.e4 is perfectly acceptable for
White. ]
48.d8 h6 49.e2 a3 50.b7+ c6
51.a5+ b5 52.c4 Finally the game is
completely in balance. c1 53.f3?!
[ White has a much simpler path to a draw
with 53.d6+ c6 54.f5 g6 55.e7+
b5 56.xg6 ]
53...c6 54.a5+ d7 55.e5 d2 56.c4
e1 57.e4 e6 58.d6 a5
[ 58...g6 59.b7 b4 60.d8+ d7
61.f7 h5 62.gxh5 gxh5 63.d5 h4
64.g5 , and White holds on ]
59.f5 g6 60.xh6
[ The text move can hardly be constituted as
a way to play for a win, and therefore White
sh o u ld p ro b a b ly h a ve lo o ke d a t 60.h4
as a safer path to reach a draw: f7 ( or
60...h5 61.gxh5 gxh5 62.f5 f7 63.d5
d8 64.xc5 e6 65.g7+ xe5
66.xh5 h4 67.f4 xf4 68.xd4= )
61.d5 d8 62.g2 ( 62.e6+ f6
63.xc5 xe6 64.xg6 f6 65.f4+
e5 66.g6+= ) 62...e7 63.f4 f8
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

64.e4 ( 64.e6?? c4!-+ ) 64...e7 IZ 1958. ) 10...e8 Black prepares ...e5.

65.d5 f8 , and neither side can make
progress. ]
60...c7 61.f5! xe5
[ After this move, all White needs to do is to
place his knight on c4 and keep his king
strategica lly in th e middle b etween th e
pawns on d3 and g4 and a draw is result.
Obviously we need to examine, what
happens if Black takes the knight: 61...gxf5+
62.gxf5+ f7 63.d5 e7 64.e4 a5
65.d5 b4 66.e4 f7 67.d5 g7
68.e4 h6 69.d5 g5 70.e6 f6
71.c4 , and neither side can win ]
62.h4 g5 63.f3 f4 64.e1 d6
65.c2 c1 66.a1 c6 67.b3 f4
68.a5+ b5 69.c4 c7 70.f3 b4
71.e2 c3 72.d2 f4 73.c4
½-½
151 A03
Karlsson,Lars 2520
Kindermann,Stefan 2535
Gausdal 1994
[Tony Kosten]
1.f4 d5 2.f3 g6 3.e3 White adopts a
traditional 'Dutch' approach. g7 4.e2
[ 4.d4 Introduces a Stonewall Attack, and
whilst this can be very effective against
computers, is less so against humans, with
their better positional sense. f6 5.d3 c5
6.c3 b6 7.0-0 0-0 8.e2 b7
One advantage for W hite, compared with
the Dutch, is that he has managed to avoid
the immediate exchange of light-squared
bishops by ...Ba6. 9.d2 c8 10.e1
Somewhat laboriously, the white queen's
b i s h o p f i n d s t h e l i g h t o f d a y . a6
so, Black has managed to effect this move,
anyway. 11.bd2 xd3 12.xd3 a6
with equality, Bellin,R-Tiviakov,S/Kilkenny
IRL 1998. ]
4...f6 5.0-0 0-0 6.e1 White plays a
Classical Dutch with an extra tempo. c5 7.d3
c6 8.d1?! A standard move, White
prepares e4, but
[ 8.h4 may be better. b6 9.bd2 a6
10.f2?! ( 10.e5 xe5 11.fxe5 d7
12.e6!? is unclear, Larsen-Benko, Portoroz
11.c3 e5 12.xd8 xd8 Black has an edge
in t h e e n d ga m e , L a rse n , B -S ch m id t , W /
Aarhus 1971. ]
8...e8! Black plays as if he were White (in a
Dutch) and attempts to expose the e3-pawn
after the break ...e5. 9.g3 e5 The point of
Black's p reviou s m ove . 10.xe5 xe5
11.fxe5 xe5 Black is at least equal. 12.e4?!
[ Note that 12.xe5? is impossible, because
of h5 , but 12 Nc3 is slightly superior. ]
12...e8 13.exd5 xd5 14.f3? f5
Black has a large lead in development, and,
on top of that, it is not evident just how White
will manage to complete his development.
15.c3 f6! The d3-pawn has nowhere to
hide. 16.c2 c4 17.xb7 cxd3
The d3-pawn has magically changed colour!
18.b3 e7 19.b4 e2 20.d1 b8
21.c5 e4 White is lost, which is hardly
surprising when the only white piece not on
the back rank is the queen! 22.xa7 a8
23.b7 d4+! A nice finish.
[ 23...d4+ after 24.cxd4 xd4+
there is the standard suffocation of the white
king: 25.h1 f2+ 26.g1 h3+ 27.h1
g1+ 28.xg1 f2# ]
0-1
152 A03
Karlsson,Lars
Seirawan,Yasser
Haninge 1990
[Tony Kosten]
1.f4 d5 Thus we reach a pure reversed Dutch
Defence position. Obviously, the same plans
that are available to Black in the Dutch, are
also available to W hite, here, but with an
extra tempo. 2.f3 g6 3.g3 White decides
to play a 'reversed Leningrad'. g7
[ 3...f6 is similar, and can transpose. 4.g2
g7 5.0-0 0-0 6.d3 c5 Both players mimic
the Leningrad Dutch main line, will White's
extra move change anything?
A) 7.e1 is another 'Leningrad move', d4
8.e4 ( 8.a3 c6 9.c3 b8 10.d2 b6
equal, Rebers, E-Polgar,S/Breda NED
1999. ) 8...dxe3 9.e5 White puts the e5
outpost to good use, so he does manage

143
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
to exploit the fact that Black has not yet
played . ..Nc6, after all. fd7 10.c4
b6 An unusual 'knight chase'. 11.ba3
d5 12.b1 e6 White's extra move
hasn't changed the impression that
Black's superior pawn structure is more
important, Blatny,P-Babula,V/Zlin 1998.;
B) 7.c3 d4 8.e4 c7!? Black avoids
the sharp line ( 8...xe4 9.dxe4 ) 9.h3
d5 This is a great square for the knight,
c o ve r in g e 3 . 10.h4 f5 11.c4 f6
12.g5 c6 with unclear play,
Movsziszian,K-Arencibia,W/Open, Ubeda
ESP 1998. ]
4.g2 c5 Normal, Black takes space in the
centre, but
[ 4...c6 is solid, and quite playable. 5.c3!?
d4 6.e4 f6 7.f2 c5 8.0-0 c6 9.e4
W hite would like to continue with d3, but
dxe3 fortunately for Black, there is the en
passant rule! 10.dxe3 xd1 11.xd1 0-0
12.c3 e5!? 13.g5 c4 the passive
c1-bishop is a long-term problem for White,
Malaniuk,V-Gelfand,B/ Elista 1998. ]
5.0-0 h6!? Obviously, 5...Nf6 would be
standard, and would transpose into the note
to move three. With the text, Black intends to
play his knight to f5, to control the e3-square.
6.c3!? c6 7.d3 0-0 And not
[ 7...d4?! 8.a4 when the c5-pawn is
difficult to defend. ]
8.d2?! White should play
[ 8.e4! dxe4 9.dxe4 with a good position. ]
8...f5 9.h1
[ 9.e4 is still possible, although now dxe4
10.dxe4 allows fd4 when the knight is
much more active. ]
9...d4 Black fixes the weakness on e3.
10.a4 b6 11.g4 White tries to evict the
knight. Attempts to exploit the open h1-a8
diagonal rebound:
[ 11.e5? xe5 12.xa8 g4! and Black
will regain the exchange by ...Ne3, with
advantage. ]
11...d6 12.h3 b7 The white position is
looking a bit loose. 13.e4 dxe3 14.xe3
d7 Black completes his development, all his
pieces are on near-optimum squares. 15.c3
f5! 16.g5 f7! White can do nothing about
the coming ...e5 break, which will expose the
white underbelly. 17.d2 ae8 18.ae1 e5
19.fxe5 fxe5! 20.xe5 xe5! This type of
structure can arise from other openings, for
instance the Closed Sicilian, and is very good
f o r B l a c k . 21.f4 xe1 22.xe1 d4!
For one thing, he has control of the important
d 4 - s q u a r e . 23.xb7?! xb7+ 24.g2
xg2+ 25.xg2 xc2 Black's play begins to
bear fruit. 26.e7 f7 27.e6 White can ill-
afford to change pieces. f8 28.e7 d8!
Attack is the best form of defence! 29.xa7
e1+! 30.f1 xd3 31.c7 d7 32.a4?
White was in time-trouble, and this mistake
accelerates matters, but, anyway, Black's
e xt r a p r o t e c t e d p a s s e d f 5 - p a wn s h o u l d
decide. b5 33.b6 d4 34.a8+ f7
35.a7 e6 As is often the case, time-trouble
checks have only succeeded in driving the
king to a better square. 36.a6 b4 37.a5
d1+ 38.e2 b1 39.xb5 xb2+ 40.f3
d4 41.a4 a2 42.a5 d3 43.a8 f2+
44.g3 Suddenly, the white king is looking
extremely uncomfortable. c1! 45.e8+ f7
46.d8 e2+ as it is mate in four,
[ 46...e2+ i.e. 47.h4 f4+! 48.xf4
f2+ 49.g3 xg3# ]
0-1
153 A03
Kharlov,Andrei 2600
Raetsky,Alexander 2453
RUS-chT St . Petersburg (5) 20.05.1999
[Nigel Davies]
1.f3 d5 2.b3 c5 3.e3 c6 4.b5 d7
5.b2 e6 6.0-0 f6 7.d3 e7 8.xc6
xc6 9.e5 c8
[ Black can also let White give him doubled c-
p a w n s w i t h 9...0-0 though White was
certainly on the positive side of the position
after 10.xc6 bxc6 11.e2 d7 12.e4
c7 13.f4 ae8 14.c4 in Psakhis, L (2480)
-Moehring, G (2400)/Sochi 1979. ]
10.f4 This has to be the challenging way to
play it.
[ 10.d2 0-0 11.xc6 xc6 12.e2 c8
13.e4 c7 14.a4 dxe4 15.dxe4 f4
16.g3 g4 17.xg4 xg4 soon led to a
draw in Hort, V (2605)-Parma, B (2530)/
Moscow 1971. ]
10...0-0 11.d2 b5 I don't particularly like
144
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
this move as it presents another potential
target on the queenside.
[ The immediate 11...d7 looks much more
to the point. ]
12.f3 d7 13.h3 This looks dangerous
but Black can defend.
[ I think there's a good case for playing it
positionally with 13.xc6 xc6 14.a4 b4
15.e4 , when Black's pawns are moving on
to the same colour as his bishop. ]
13...xe5 14.h5 h6 15.xe5 f6 16.b2
d4
[ There was an interesting alternative in
16...e8 intending 17.g4 c4!?
with counterplay. ]
17.g3 dxe3 18.f1
[ After 18.xh6 Black defends comfortably
with f7 19.f3 xf3 20.gxf3 d6 etc. ]
18...h8 19.g6 g8 20.h3 f8 21.xe3
e8 22.g3 c4!? Sacrificing a pawn to get
some counterplay. Had Black chosen a better
24th move it would have given him equality.
23.bxc4 bxc4 24.xc4 d5
[ Black should first play 24...c5+ 25.h1
( 25.d4 e7 gives Black more than enough
for the pawn because of the weaknesses
along the c-file.) 25...d5 when 26.e3?
is bad because of xe3 27.xe3? xc2
etc. ]
25.e3 b5 26.d4 a8 27.g6 e8
28.g4 d7 29.c3 c5 30.xc5 xc5
31.d1 b8 32.e3 b6 33.d4 cb5
34.e1 b1 35.xb1 xb1 36.e2 d5
37.f1 a1 38.e3 xa2?! This looks like
a mistake as the endgame isn't easy for Black.
[ H e s h o u l d h a v e p l a y e d 38...xe1+
39.xe1 e4 , for example 40.g3 h1+
41.f1 g2 42.h4 h3 keeps White tied
up and unable to use his extra pawn. ]
39.xa2 xa2 40.e2 a1+ 41.f2 e4
42.c4 a5?
[ Black should have brought his king across
with 42...g8! a f t e r wh ic h 43.d5 exd5
44.cxd5 f7 gets to the d-pawn in time. In
the game Black is too late. ]
43.d5 exd5 44.cxd5 c1
[ 44...a4 45.d6 c6 46.c2 b5 47.b2!
c6 48.b6 would also be very good for
White. ]
45.d2 c8 46.d6 d8 47.c4 a4 48.e3
c6 49.d4 g8 50.c5 e8 51.b6
f8 52.f5 g6 53.fxg6 xg6 54.c6 a3
55.c7 b1 56.xd8 a2 57.xa2 xa2
58.d7
1-0
154 A03
Larsen,Bent 2660
Keene,Raymond 2465
Teeside (3) 1972
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.b3 d5 2.b2 f6 3.e3 g6 4.f4
[ 4.xf6!? exf6 5.d4 Would be a strange
kind of Trompovsky, where b3 may prove to
be useful, but could also be a liability. If
Black plays quietly with ...Bg7, ...0-0 and ...
f5, White will have time to play g3, Bg2, Ne2,
and c4 with a pleasant position, so Black
should probably try to make something
happen more quickly e.g. c5 6.c3 cxd4!?
7.exd4 ( 7.cxd4 b4+ 8.d2 a5 )
7...d6 And Black has a position
reminiscent of a line in the Caro-Kann (e4 c6
d4 d5 Nd2 de Nxe4 Nf6 Nxf6 ef!?) but it
doesn't look like a bad version because
the unopposed bishop on d6 looks very
strong. ]
4...g7 5.f3 0-0 6.e2 a5!? 7.a4 g4
8.0-0 bd7 9.g5!? xe2 10.xe2 e8
11.xg7 xg7 12.c3 c6 13.g4 h6
14.f3 f6 It would appear that White has
achieved approximately nothing out of the
opening and that Black is very comfortable.
Even so, I included this game because it
shows that when there are a full set of pawns,
there is plenty of scope to outplay people
from equal positions, especially if you are
enjoying yourself, and not dispirited by the
lack of a theoretical advantage. 15.h3 h5
16.e2 d7 17.h4 f5 18.e1 c7
19.g3 e6 20.xf5 exf5 21.h4 e7
22.c4!? ad8
[ 22...g7!? ]
23.c5!? fe8 24.fc1 g7 25.d4 d7
26.xe7 xe7 27.ab1 a8 28.b4 axb4
29.xb4 a7 30.f2 b8 31.b3 e4
32.d4 e7 33.f3 a6 34.b6 b8
35.a1 d7 36.a5 b8 37.c1 d7
38.b3 f6 39.a2 e8 40.g3 e4
41.ba3 h4 42.g4 fxg4+ 43.xg4 f5+
145
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
44.f3 g5 45.fxg5 xg5+ 46.f2 e4+
47.g2 h6 48.e2 g8+ 49.f1 f6
50.f4 g4 51.g2 aa8 52.e2 f6
53.xg8 xg8 54.a1 f6 55.d3 g4
56.h3 f6 57.e5 e4 58.a6 bxa6
Perhaps a premature resignation, but after
taking on c6 white follows up with Ne7 and
threatens the d and f pawns at the same time
as preparing the c-pawn coronation.
1-0
155 A03
Ljubojevic,Ljubomir 2550
Zuidema,Coenraad
Skopje ol (Men) fin-A (4) 30.09.1972
[Nigel Davies]
1.f4 d5 2.f3 f6 3.e3 c5 4.b3 c6
5.b5 d7 6.b2 e6 7.0-0 e7 8.a4
This kind of waiting move is often seen in
analogous positions in the Queen's Indian
Defence. Here there's the interesting point
that White can play Nf3-e5 on his next move
without first exchanging his b5 bishop for the
knight on c6. 0-0
[ After 8...a6 9.xc6 xc6 10.e5
White would be better off than after 8.Bxc6
Bxc6 9.Ne5 because of the additional
possibility of blockading Black's queenside
pawns with a4-a5. ]
9.e5 xe5 10.fxe5 e8
[ And not 10...xb5? 11.exf6 xf1 12.fxe7
xe7 13.xf1 when the two minor pieces
are stronger than Black's rook and pawn. ]
11.d3!? c6
[ B l a c k s h o u l d h a v e p l a y e d 11...f5
but he has to be careful. For example after
12.exf6 xf6 White has an interesting
s a c r i f i c i a l p o s s i b i l i t y i n ( 12...xf6
is much better when it doesn't look like
W hite has much) 13.h5! g6 14.xg6
hxg6 15.xg6+ g7 16.xf8+ xf8
17.xg7+ xg7 18.c3 e7 19.h7
, with two pawns and ongoing pressure for
the sacrificed piece. ]
12.g4 g6 13.c3 g7 14.f4 c4?
W ith Ljubojevic feeding pieces over to the
kingside Black panics.
[ 14...f5 would have been a much tougher
nut to crack. ]
15.bxc4 dxc4 16.xc4 a5 17.e4 xe4
18.xe4!
[ Maybe Black only saw 18.xe4 xd2
, but after the text taking on d2 loses the
queen to 19.Bc3. ]
18...f5 19.c3 Black is a pawn down with a
completely rotten position, though resignation
at this stage could hardly have been very
cheering for his team mates.
1-0
156 A03
Malaniuk,Vladimir P 2563
Thorfinnsson,Bjorn 2395
Quebec Open Montreal CAN (9) 25.07.2009
[Nigel Davies]
The Bird is a good opening for player with
experience in the Dutch - you get the same
position but with colours reversed. Malaniuk
certainly fits the bill - he's a great expert in
the Leningrad Variation. 1.f4 d5 2.f3 e6
At first sight this looks like a rather stately
approach by Black though as we'll soon see
he has some aggressive ideas in mind. 3.d3
b6 4.g3 e7 5.g2 h5!? Well that's
interesting, Black wants to play ... h5-h4.
Unfortunately for him this plan is foiled in
typical Leningrad Dutch fashion. 6.h3! b7
7.0-0 d7 8.e1 Malaniuk's favourite move
in the Leningrad. White is preparing to play e2-
e4 and vacates the d-file. c5 9.e4 c7
10.c3 a6 11.d2 dxe4 I tend to see this
exchange as a bad thing for Black as now
when White plays e4-e5 he can gain access to
the e4 square. 12.dxe4 0-0-0 13.e2 gf6
14.g5 hf8 15.e5 e8 16.xb7+ xb7
17.ce4 Black's early play has been rather
unsuccessful. W hite has a nice space
advantage and Black's king looks weak on
the queenside. h4 18.g4 c7 19.f3 f5
20.eg5
[ 20.gxf5! is much stronger as after xf5
W h i t e c a n p l a y ( 20...exf5 21.eg5
is ve ry u n p le a s a n t) 21.xh4! xh4
22.d6+ etc. ]
20...c4? Slipping up on the verge of equality.
[ 20...fxg4 21.hxg4 b8 intending ...Nc6
wo u ld h a ve p u t Bla ck righ t b a ck in t h e
game. ]
146
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
21.gxf5 xg5 22.xg5 xf5
[ 22...exf5 23.e6 would be a complete
killer. ]
23.e4 Threatening the most horrible fork on
d 6 . B l a c k ' s p o s i t i o n i s c o l l a p s i n g . e8
24.xc4+ b8 25.ae1 d5 Losing, but
then what else? 26.xd5 exd5 27.g5 c7
28.c3 f8 29.e6 g6?
[ 29...e8 30.f2 would protect the e6 pawn
because of fxe6 31.fe2 etc. ]
30.f7 g8 31.d6 xf4 32.xf4
[ 32.e7 would have been even better, for
example xf1+ 33.xf1 e8 34.xe8
xe8 35.e6 xe7 36.b4 is a killer. ]
32...xf4 33.e7 xh3+ 34.h2 g5
35.e8+ So White goes a piece up and the
rest should be a 'matter of technique'. As one
might expect, Malaniuk does a very
prof essional job. xe8 36.xe8+
37.xe8 d4 38.b4 a5 39.d6+ c8
40.xg7 f3+ 41.h3 e1 42.f5 d3
43.c3 d2 44.e3 d3 45.d1 d7
46.h2 c6 47.g1 c1 48.xh4 xa2
49.g4 b5 50.f3 d5 51.e2 c4
52.xd2 b3 53.c5 a4 54.a3 b4
55.cxb4 xb4 56.e3 c6 57.f5 e5
58.d4+ c4 59.e2 f3+ 60.e3 e1
61.c1 c2+ 62.d2 d4 63.f8 e6
64.e7 d4 65.a3
1-0
157 A03
Marin,Mihail 2549
Brunello,Sabino 2468
Edinburgh rap 1st rapid (2.6) 11.03.2007
[Nigel Davies]
1.b3 d5 2.b2 f6 3.e3 c5 4.f4 c6
5.b5 d7 6.f3 e6 7.0-0 e7 8.e1
[ White wants to wait before adopting the
standard plan of taking on c6 and plonking
his knight on e5, but this is not the best way
to do it as we shall see. Instead of this he
should probably play 8.d3 0-0 9.bd2
b4 10.xd7 xd7 11.a3 c6 12.e4
will give him a somewhat freer gaem. ]
8...0-0
[ Black could also play the immediate
8...b4! , f o r e x a m p l e 9.xd7+ xd7
10.d1 ( 10.a3 defends c2 whilst
developing a piece but leaves the knight on
a3 just horribly placed) 10...0-0 11.a3 c6
12.d3 f6 13.xf6 xf6 14.bd2 ae8
( 14...c3 is another good move here)
15.h1 e5 gave Black a nice game in
Deuter, L (2041)-Mueller, M (2415)/Germany
2002. ]
9.d3
[ White was successful with the nonchalant
9.h1 in one game but only because his
o p p o n e n t p l a y e d t h e w e i r d e4?!
a f t e r w h i c h ( 9...b4 10.xd7 xd7
is fine for Black) 10.xc6 xc6 11.d3 f6
12.e5 got the knight to e5 with the
associated attacking chances in Gonzalez
Menendez, I (2276)-Trujillo Delgado, D
(2118)/Aviles 2003. ]
9...b4 10.xd7 xd7 11.f2 With 9.d3
xe8 having been played this more rational defence
of c2 becomes possible, but it still doesn't
give White anything special because he can't
get a knight established on e5. c6 12.bd2
f6 13.xf6 xf6 14.ac1 b4
[ 14...b2 looks quite annoying for White
here, though it's often best not to get into
such tricky lines in a rapidplay game. ]
15.a3 a2 16.ce1 c3 17.g3
[ The knight on c3 is likely to become a thorn
in W hite's side so he should take the
opportunity to exchange it with 17.b1 . ]
17...e5 18.fxe5 xe5 19.xe5 xe5
20.f4 ae8 21.a4 a2 22.xe5 xe5
23.f3 e7 24.f2?!
[ 24.e4 was better. ]
24...fe8 25.d4
[ I wonder if W hite missed 25.fe2 c3
when he played 24.Rf2. Possibly, this was
rapidplay. ]
25...cxd4 26.xd4 xe3 27.xe3 xe3
28.f5 b4 29.f2 c3 30.e5 f8
31.e2 c6 32.xd5 xd4+ 33.xd4
xc2+ 34.d3 c7 35.d8+ e7 36.a8
a6 37.d4 d6 38.h8 h6 39.h7 f6
40.h8 d7 41.g8 e6+ 42.c5 f5
The pawn majority starts trundling forward.
43.b4 f6 44.b5 axb5 45.axb5 g5 46.h8
g7 47.c8 f4 48.gxf4 gxf4 49.b6 f3
50.c2 f7 51.f2 g6 52.c5 g5
53.d4 g4 54.e3 e7+ 55.d2 h5
56.d3 h4
0-1
147
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

158 A03 24.xe5?? allows c5+ forking king and

Moreno Carnero,Javier 2506 bishop. ]
Bhat,Vinay S 2398 24.xc3 xe2 25.f3 e3 26.xe5 xe4
Qualifier Internet ICC (1.2) 18.03.2000 27.xg7 xg7 28.ae1 xe1 29.xe1
[Tony Kosten] d6?!
[ Missi n g t h e t a ct i c 29...d2!? 30.f2
1.g3 d5 2.g2 f6 3.f4 White transposes ( 30.d5?? xd5 31.cxd5 f3+ ) 30...gxf5
into Bird's Opening, and achieves a reversed 31.gxf5 d4 with a trivial win. ]
Leningrad position, without permitting Black to 30.e7 gxf5 31.g5?!
play 1...e5. g6 4.f3 g7 5.0-0 b6 6.d3 [ Better 31.xc7!? fxg4 32.xg4
b7 7.e1 0-0 8.e4!? with some drawing chances. ]
[ White exploits a typical tactical motif, the 31...hxg5 32.hxg5 xc4
p in a lo n g t h e h 1 -a 8 d i a g o n a l, t o f o rc e [ 32...c8 33.h5 f8 is simpler. ]
through this advance. 8.h3 c5 9.g4 c6 33.xc7 d3??
10.h4 is a less confrontational method, [ A quick-play blunder which throws away a
Teran Alvarez,I-Izeta Txabarri,F/Palencia n i c e p o s i t i o n , 33...e5 34.h5 d7
1999. ] does the trick. ]
8...dxe4 9.g5 The point, recuperating the 34.h5??
pawn. a6! [ Missing the obvious 34.e2 a3 35.xc4
[ A n im p ro v e m e n t o n t h e m o ve 9...bd7 turning the tables. ]
although play is similar on 10.xe4 xe4 34...e5 35.f2? a3 36.e7
11.dxe4 c5 12.c3 xc3! 13.bxc3 f5 [ 36.c2 f4 ]
14.exf5 xg2 15.xg2 gxf5 and the black 36...g6 37.e2?? xa2 38.e3
knight comes to e4, Houska, M-Shaw,J/ [ 38.d7 doesn't change anything: f4 ]
Rotherham 1997, 0-1 (45). ] 38...f4+ 39.f3 xe7
10.dxe4 0-1
[ Perhaps 10.xe4 is superior, as in the
previous note. ]
10...h6 11.h3 e5 12.f5 159 A03
[ Now White gets more space on the kingside, Novikov,Maxim 2524
but 12.c3 b4 13.f2 exf4 14.xf4 e8 Selin,Oleg 2400
was superior, although Black is fine. ] Ch Tula RUS (3) 05.08.2007
12...d4+ Black gets strong play along the [Nigel Davies]
open d-file after this, and pressure on e4.
13.f2 ad8 14.c3 Else ... Nb4 may prove 1.b3 d5 2.e3 A way of avoiding 2...Bg4 I
awkward. a4 15.g4?! guess. f6 3.b2 c5 4.f4 Transposing into
[ White finds himself in more trouble after a Bird's Opening, but having avoided some of
this, 15.b3 d7 16.e2 is safer. ] Black's independent tries there (such as the
15...c5 Now White is obliged to defend e4 From Gambit with 1.f4 e5).
passively, and his position goes downhill. [ W h i t e c o u l d a l s o h a v e p l a y e d 4.f3
16.d2 d3 with a reversed Queen's Indian Defence,
[ 16...a6 is not bad either. ] an d th is wo uld p ro ba b ly h ave b ee n m y
17.xd3 xd3 18.e2 fd8 19.h4?! choice. ]
Difficult to suggest a satisfactory move here, 4...g4 Aiming for an exchange of pieces but
b u t t h is d o e s n o t h in g t o co n t e st B la ck' s this helps to speed White's development.
control of the centre. a6 20.b3 [ A high level game Morozevich, A (2765)-
[ 20.c4!? was slightly better, although c2 Kramnik, V (2799)/Nice 2008 went 4...g6
21.f2 gxf5 22.gxf5 f8 wins material. ] 5.b5+ d7 6.xd7+ bxd7 7.c4 dxc4
20...a5 21.c4 xc4 22.bxc4 xc3 8.bxc4 g7 9.f3 0-0 10.0-0 a6 11.a4
23.b2 d2 b8 12.c3 c6 13.b1 d3 14.a3
[ N o t b a d , b u t 23...b4! is excellent, as xc4 15.xb7 d5 16.e2 xe2

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

17.xe2 a5 18.d7 fd8 19.xd8+ [ 9.h4 e6 10.g4!? was played by the great
with an eventual draw. ] endgame composer, Kasparian,G-Ebralidze,
5.e2 xe2 6.xe2 c6 7.f3 e6 8.e5 A/Tbilisi 1937. ]
c7 Probably Black was already envisaging 9...b7 Natural, but the bishop may prove
castling long at this point, though it's not clearbetter on a6, so perhaps Black should prefer
that this is such a great idea. [ 9...e8 10.g3 when ( 10.e4?! dxe4
[ 8...xe5 9.fxe5 d7 intending ...Be7, 11.dxe4 e5 ) 10...e6 is Johannessen,S-
castling short and a quick ...f7-f5 seems Keene,R/ Siegen 1970, but Black might
more solid. ] prefer the trick ( 10...e5!? although there is
9.0-0 d6 10.xc6 xc6 11.d3 0-0-0 a twist, 11.fxe5 xe5 12.xe5 xe5
Needless to say Black's king is going to be far 13.xe5 h5 and the queen is trapped, but
from safe over here because of the ease with with the pawn on b6 W hite has the tactic
which White can open files on the queenside 14.xd5 xd5 15.f3 however, after d6
with c2-c4. Can he create play on the other 16.xa8 e5 White finds himself behind in
flank, where White has more space? Well this development, 17.g3 xg3! 18.hxg3 xg3+
is what I don't like about his strategy. 12.d2 19.h1 h3 20.d2 xf1 21.xf1 e1
c7 13.f3 h5 14.e5 d7 Perhaps by 22.g2 e2+ 23.g1 xc2 and White's
this stage Black was agreeing with me about position is very loose. )]
his kingside prospects, so he gives up his g- 10.c3 e8 11.g3 a6 Picking out the
pawn for what looks like nebulous weakness on d3.
compensation. 15.xg7 hg8 16.b2 f6 [ 11...e5 is again thematic, but after 12.fxe5
17.c4 dxc4 18.dxc4 g4 19.f2?! xe5 13.xe5 xe5 14.e4 ( 14.xe5
This could probably have waited until Black h5 traps the queen) 14...h5 15.f2
plays ...Rdg8. Now Black switches his plan White attacks f7. ]
and gets some play. e5! 20.fxe5 xe5 12.e2?! Why play the bishop to d1, to follow
21.xe5 xe5 22.xe5 xe5 23.af1 up with this?
dg8 24.h1 h4 25.f3 c7 26.d2 b6 [ 12.c2 looks right. ]
27.fd1 4g7 28.d5 b2 29.f4+ b7 12...e5 Now the d-pawn is pinned Black could
30.5d2 e5 31.f3+ a6 32.c6 c7 also consider
33.d5 xd5?! [ 12...e4!? 13.e1 d6 and ...e5 next
[ 33...e8 would have been better with some move, with an edge. ]
prospects for survival. ] 13.xe5 xe5 14.fxe5 d7!
34.xd5 cg7 35.1d2 h3 36.g3 h7 [ 14...xe5 is again possible, but Black
37.g1 e8 38.f2 wants to put more pressure on d3. ]
1-0 15.a3 xe5 16.b5 b7 17.d4?
Positionally this looks wrong, although White
drives the knight from a strong post, e4 will
160 A03 stay permanently weak. a6 18.a3
Rasidovic,Sead 2303 [ 18.dxe5 axb5 19.xb5 xe5
Fressinet,Laurent 2640 favours Black. ]
20th ECC Izmir TUR (3) 05.10.2004 18...d7 19.h4?! f6 The knight heads
[Tony Kosten] straight for e4. 20.b1 e7 Black stops
White from playing Nd2. 21.f3 c8 22.e1
1.f4 d5 2.e3 g6 3.f3 f6 4.e2 g7 f5 Black controls e4 four times with his
5.0-0 0-0 6.e1 c5 7.d3 c6 8.d1 pieces, much more than W hite could ever
White defends c2 and prepares e4, but I am hope to. 23.d2 ac8 24.e2 c4 25.f1
not too keen on this move myself. b6 e4 26.h2 f6 White is completely lost.
[ 8...e8 planning ...e5, worked well for 27.h5 h4 28.g3 g5 29.f3 c6
Black in Karlsson,L-Kindermann,S/ Gausdal The black pieces gravitate to the kingside.
1994. ] 30.g4 d7 31.e2 f6 32.g2 gxh5!
9.a4 With two of White's pieces out of play on the

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queenside Black opens the g-file to decide [ 12.h4?! fxe4 13.xe4 e7 14.d3 f5
matters. 33.gxh5 h8 34.xe4 dxe4 15.xf5 xf5 16.xf5 xf5 17.xf5 xf5
35.h2 18.xf5 d5 ( 18...a5 might be even
[ 35.xg5?? xf1+ and the queen is lost. ] s t r o n g e r h e r e) 19.e4 c4 actually
35...g8 36.g2 f3 37.d2 h3 38.g3 t ra n s p o se s d i re ct ly i n t o t h e L e n i n gra d
xf1 39.h1 This is obviously hopeless, but Mainline discussed by Neil McDonald (if you
[ 39.xf1 xe3+ 40.xe3 gxg3+ change the board around)! ]
wins everything. ] 12...xf5!? Black decides to liquidate the
39...xg3 40.xg3 h6 Sufficient to win, annoying f-pawn, although other moves, such
Black is a piece up for nothing, but as
[ 40...xe3! i s e v e n s t r o n g e r , 41.xe3 [ 12...e4 were also possible. ]
h4+ ] 13.xe5 Discovering an attack on f5. e7
0-1 14.exd4 cxd4 15.d3 A nice blockading
s q u a r e f o r a k n i g h t . g6!? 16.g5
W h it e pref ers no t to gra b th e pa wn , an d
161 A03 relinquish the initiative, by
Ricardi,Pablo 2544 [ 16.xb7 b8 17.g2 d5 ]
Dominguez Perez,Leinier 2608 16...c7 17.f4 b6 18.a4 White's pieces
Olympiad Bled SLO (6) 31.10.2002 are harmoniously placed, and he enjoys the
[Tony Kosten] better pawn structure. f5 But Black can land
his knight on the e3-square, and this gives
1.g3 d5 2.g2 f6 3.f4 g6 4.f3 g7 h i m u s e f u l p l a y . 19.a5 b5 20.f3
5.0-0 0-0 6.d3 c5 7.c3!? Well, why not? Not bad, but
White is a tempo up on a playable line in the [ 20.a6!? is tempting, e3 21.xe3 dxe3
Leningrad Dutch. d4 8.e4 xe4 9.dxe4 22.axb7 ad8 Black has some play for the
c6 10.e3 This is the extra move that White pawn, but not enough. ]
enjoys, he can attack the d4-pawn and try to 20...c4 21.f2 e3 22.e5 e6 23.xg6
exchange his doubled e-pawn. e5 Ambitious, hxg6 24.xb7 White as won a pawn, for not
and played as with colours reversed, but too much. xg2 25.xg2 Simplest, as if
[ 10...dxe3 is also possible, 11.c3 xd1 [ 25.xg2 then d3! is p o ss i b l e , 26.c3
12.xd1 e2 ( 12...a5 13.xe3 c4 ( 26.cxd3? d4 ) 26...ad8 and the d-pawn
14.c1 and White has a little extra space in is potentially dangerous. ]
this endgame) 13.e1 e5 14.xe2 e6 25...ac8 26.f3 c4 Black must press the
15.e3 b6 was fine for Black in Knezevic,M- backward c2-pawn, and try to tie White to its
Dely,P/Skopje 1967. ] defence. 27.af1?! A waste of time,
11.f5!? This is a perfectly normal move in a [ 27.d1 fc8 28.dd2 was better, although
Dutch. f5 gives Black fair comp. ]
[ 11.fxe5 xe5 12.exd4 cxd4 13.xe5 27...fc8 28.c1 a6 29.h4 4c5
( 13.xd4?? g4 ) 13...xe5 14.f4 Black has picked-off the a-pawn, so W hite
offers nothing, Pimenov,S-Ilivitzki,G/Yerevan sues for peace. 30.c3 dxc3 31.bxc3 xc3
1955. ] 32.e2! xf3 33.xe6 xc1 34.e8+ h7
11...gxf5! Before annotating this I had a quick 35.xf3 c5 36.e7 g8 37.e8+ h7
look at the Leningrad Dutch eBook, and this 38.e7 g8 39.e8+
move (which is actually an innovation here) is ½-½
given an exclamation mark, in an almost
identical position.
[ 11...b5?! is probably doubtful, as White can
continue 12.g4 with a powerful kingside
attack brewing, Laine,H-Kauko,J/ Tampere
1996. ]
12.exf5

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
162 A03
Schnelzer,R 2230
Andersson,U 2556
16th OIBM 2012 (8.14) 03.11.2012
[John Bartholomew]
Ulf Andersson meets 1.f4 in his usual fine
intuitive style. 1.f4 f6
[ If Black intends to enter a reversed Dutch,
then 1...d5 may be the most flexible move.
One high-scoring possibility is 2.f3 g6
3.g3 g7 4.g2 c5 5.0-0 h6!?
, wherein Black transfers the knight to f5
and aims to exploit the e3 square after a
subsequent d2-d3. See Karlsson, L (2520)-
Seirawan, Y (2595)/Haninge 1990/[TonyK]
( 5...f6 would tranpose to the text game)
6.g4 ]
2.f3 g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 d5 5.0-0 0-0
[ Another good option is the double-
fianchetto with 5...b6 , i.e. 6.d3 b7 7.e1
0-0 8.e4!? dxe4 9.g5 a6!
Moreno Carnero, J (2506)-Bhat, V (2398)/
Internet ICC 2000/ [TonyK]. ]
6.d3 c5 We now have a main-line Leningrad
Dutch with colors reversed. The only
difference is that Black has yet to play ...Nb8-
c6, so he's effectively a tempo behind. Funnily,
this hasn't helped W hite much in practice
(Black even scores fractionally better in this
tempo-down version). Hence, when asked
why he doesn't play 1.f4, the noted Leningrad
Dutch expert GM Vladimir Malaniuk
responded by saying "that extra move's gonna
hurt me"! 7.e1 Black's most popular move in
the Leningrad (by a fairly wide margin) is 7. ..
Qe8, so no surprise here.
[ In t ere st ingly, 7.c3!? is played slightly
more o f ten here, proba bly b ecause it's
amb itious in t he normal L eningrad an d
easier to justify with an extra tempo.
Nevertheless, after d4 8.e4 xe4 9.dxe4
c6 10.e3 e5 Black held his own in
sharp hand-to-hand combat in Ricardi, P
(2550)-Dominguez, L (2608)/Bled 2002/
[TonyK]. ]
7...d4
[ I like this a bit better than 7...c6 , allowing
8.e4 , but even then dxe4 9.dxe4 e5!
gives Black plenty of counterplay. ]
8.c3
[ Also frequently seen is 8.a3 c6 9.d2
( 9.c3 transposes to the game) 9...d5
10.c3 . Black has several good responses, i.
e. b8!? ( 10...e6 11.c2 dxc3 12.bxc3
b6 13.d1 b7 14.e4 de7 15.e3
c7= Dietz, J (2185)-Mirzoev, A (2565)/
Calvi FRA 2010; I would personally avoid the
sharp 10...e5!? , though it's fine too) 11.b1
b6 12.c2 dxc3 13.bxc3 b7 14.g4 e5
15.fxe5 xe5 16.xe5 xe5 Boric, E
(2292)-Gabrielian, A (2532)/Aix-les-Bains
FRA 2011. 17.e4 c7 18.d4 cxd4 19.cxd4
xd4+ 20.xd4 xd4+ 21.e3 d7
22.h6 fd8 23.g3 e6 0-1 Boric, E
(2292)-Gabrielian, A (2532)/Aix-les-Bains
FRA 2011 ]
8...c6 9.a3 b8!? Useful. Black prepares
...b7-b5 and reveals little else about his setup.
[ In 2010, 9...d5 was played against...
Vladimir Malaniuk! Yes, the originator of the
famous 1.f4 quote actually DOES play the
Bird f rom time to time (28 of his 1400+
W hite games in MegaBase). 10.d2 e5
( again, I would shy away from this instead,
10...b8!? transposes to Boric - Gabrielian
above ) 11.fxe5 xe5 12.xe5 xe5
13.c2 g7?! ( 13...a5!? ) 14.c4 f6
15.b4! cxb4 16.xb4 g4 17.d5 d7
and W hite went on to win in Malaniuk, V
(2573)-Bindrich, F (2512)/Dresden GER
2010. ]
[ T h e c o m p u t e r i s f o n d o f 9...e6!?
, both here and on the next couple moves.
On e e xa mp le : 10.c2 b6 11.c4 a5
12.h3 d7 13.f2 b4 14.a3?!
Tzambazis, G-Parligras, M (2564)/Agios
Kirykos 2004. Here e8!? 15.d2 d6
is pleasant for Black. ]
10.d2 b5 11.c1 It's not clear what White
should do here.
[ 11.c2 b6 12.h1?! e6 13.h3 fd8
14.cxd4 cxd4 15.b4 xb4 16.xb4
dc8 Beim, V (2544)-Karpov, A (2355)/
Pardubice 2003 ]
[ 11.h1 a6 ( 11...e6 ) 12.c1 b7
13.c2 d7 14.h3 e5 15.cxd4 exd4
Hickl, J (2570)-Zueger, B (2470)/Altensteig
1995 ]
11...dxc3 12.xc3 b4!
[ Worse is 12...d4?! 13.xd4 cxd4
14.a5 d7 15.c7 , as in Kislinsky, A
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

(2384)-Solomaha, A (2379)/Kiev 2006. ] too bad. 3.b3 Other moves:

13.xf6 xf6 14.c4 e6 15.b3?! [ 3.g3 g4 4.g2 xf3!? 5.xf3 e5 6.d3
Weakening. f6 and at the cost of the bishop pair Black
[ It looks better to play 15.f2 c8 16.fd2 has achieved good development, and a
with roughly equality, though I'd take Black b e t t e r c e n t r e , R icca , R-K o rn e e v, O / A s t i
and the bishop pair. ] 1997. ]
15...c3 16.d1 xc4!? 17.dxc4 a5 [ 3.e3 is possibly the most logical, g4
18.c2 d4! Black opts to play the 4.b5 d7 otherwise White could simply
middlegame with bishops of opposite color. double the black c-pawns, Reinderman,D-
Th is is a s m a rt de cision , as he en joys a Berelovich,A/Hoogeveen NED 1999, when i
slightly better structure and a bishop with a think I would play 5.h3 xf3 6.xf3 ]
tad more potential. In other words, 3...e5!? This move is very sharp, but Black
Andersson's preferred type of game! 19.xd4 can also consider
xd4+ 20.h1 b6 21.f5?! Creating more [ 3...g4 4.b2 f6!? 5.g3 d7 6.g2
weaknesses. g7 22.e4 e6?! As always, 0-0-0 with mutual chances, Stipic,M-Klaric,Z/
Andersson searches f or complete saf et y Zadar 1997. ]
before undertaking any active operations. 4.fxe5
[ Black has nothing to fear: 22...xa2! ] [ 4.xe5?? allows xe5 5.fxe5 h4+ 6.g3
23.fxg6 hxg6 24.c2?! c3 25.f4 bb8 e4 7.g1 and now Black wins a rook with
26.f3 d8!? 27.cc1 b6! Andersson hits the surprising fork d4 ]
on a neat way to coordinate his heavy pieces. 4...g5!? A new move borrowed from From's
28.cd1 d6 29.d3 xd3 30.exd3 e7 Gambit, Black wants to displace the white
31.e2 h8 32.f3 d8 33.g2 d6 king's knight, and attack on the kingside - he
34.h1 d8 35.d1 d7 36.c2 d4 can always bring his king to safety on the
37.e2 a5! Continuing to soften White up. queenside. Alternatives:
38.h4 a4 39.d2 e7 40.g2 a6 41.h5 [ 4...xe5!? 5.b2 ( 5.xe5 h4+ 6.g3
g5 42.h6+? White has a thankless defensive d4 regains the piece) 5...xf3+ 6.exf3
task on his hands, but there's no reason to f6 7.d4 f5 with a good game, Lammi,J-
pitch this pawn. xh6 43.h1+ g7 44.h5 Maki Uuro,M/Tampere 1993. ]
f6-+ 45.h3 axb3 46.axb3 a3 47.d1 [ 4...g4 5.b2 xf3?! ( 5...e7!? ) 6.exf3
d8 48.e3 d4 49.f3 a2 50.e2 e5 g5 7.g3 c5 8.f4 e7 9.d4 with a large
51.d1 d2 52.a8 f5+ White resigned. A white advantage, Auer,H-Oden,E/Pirmasens
patient exploitation of positional trumps in 1992. ]
classic Ulf Andersson style. I like Black's play 5.g3?! White had a number of choices here,
quite a lot, especially the semi-waiting but this is probably not the best,
approach with 11... Rb8!?. I see no advantage [ 5.b2 g7 is possible ( 5...g4!? 6.e6! )]
for White in the reversed Leningrad Dutch. [ 5.e6!? as well, with the point xe6?! 6.b2
0-1 f6 7.xg5 ]
5...g4 6.h4 e7 7.g2 xe5
The opening has been a success for Black
163 A03 who is ahead on development, and has more
Strain,Hugh M control of the centre. 8.d4 g6 9.d3 f6
Shulman,Yuri 2591 10.d2 d6 11.b2 e7 12.0-0-0 d7
21st NAO Las Vegas USA (1) 30.08.2002 13.e1 0-0-0 14.b1? White is already
[Tony Kosten] behind in development, and certainly cannot
afford any unnecessary moves,
1.f4 d5 2.f3 c6!? Over the years I have [ 14.e4 was indicated: dxe4 15.xe4 xe4
considered a number of moves in this position, 16.xe4 g5+ 17.d2 although Black is
but this one is definitely new to me. Still, this still better. ]
is very similar to the 2 Nc3 line against the 14...de8 Black immediately takes control of
Dutch, which has a fair reputation, so can't be e4. 15.e3 h5 16.e2 h4 Although the white

152
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
king has escaped to the queenside Black is
still stronger on the kingside, and should
attack there. 17.d1?!
[ 17.c4 was the only chance. ]
17...hxg3 18.hxg3 xg3 19.ef1 h3
Black is a pawn up with the better position.
20.a4 eh8 21.hg1 h2 22.h1 h5
23.a2 g3 24.a3 e8 25.f4? xf4
26.xf4
[ 26.exf4 xh1 attacks the queen and wins
a whole rook. ]
26...xh1 27.xg4 xg4?! Possibly this last
move should be
[ 27...xf4 ]
0-1
164
Tartakower,Saviely
Alapin,Simon
Karlsbad Karlstad (19) 15.09.1911
[Nigel Davies]
1.f4 d5 2.f3 c5 3.e3 c6 4.b5 d7
5.0-0 e6 6.b3 f6 7.b2 e7 8.d3
[ It's interesting to note that two rounds
e a r l i e r T a r t a k o w e r h a d p l a y e d 8.e2
but after c8 9.d3 b6 10.c4 a6 11.xc6
xc6 12.bd2 0-0 13.e5 e8 14.f2
d7 15.xd7 xd7 16.g4
didn't really achieve very much in
Tartakower, S-Suechting, H/Karlsbad 1911.
And it's entirely possible that a theoretician
such as Alapin had prepared an
improvement for Black. ]
8...c7 9.e2 0-0 10.bd2 a6 11.xc6
xc6 12.e5 fe8?!
[ Black should try and tackle that knight on
e5 before the rest of White's army lines up
behind it. So repositioning the knight on f6
looks like the thing to do and the best way to
do it seems to be 12...d7 . ]
[ Another possibility is 12...e8
13.e4 f6 14.xc6 xc6 15.exd5 xd5
16.ae1 c7 17.f5 e5
looks very nice for White. ]
13.f3 d4
[ It seems to late for 13...d7 now because
of 14.h3 xe5 15.h5 . After h6
16.xe5 d6 17.xg7 Black's king position
gets ripped limb from limb. ]
14.h3 ad8 15.f1 This massive gathering
of force on the kingside is looking very
ominous for Black. g6 16.e4 f8 17.df3
g7 Losing, but it's not easy to find a move for
Black here.
[ The disgraced Rybka 4 program wants to
recommend 17...h5 here, but then
18.xh5 ( Or maybe 18.c1 f5 19.xh5
gxh5 20.g5 ) 18...gxh5 19.xc6 xc6
( 19...bxc6 20.d2 h4 21.g4+ h8
22.xh4 gives more than enough for the
exchange ) 20.e5 c7 21.xh5 f6
22.g4 g7 23.f5 provides ample
demonstration of the superiority of non-
materialist organic GM thinking. At least I
think it does. ]
18.g5 e7 19.xc6 xc6 20.e5 d5
A03 21.xh7 That's just about it. This is an
important pawn and White has snaffled it for
free. f5 22.exf6 xf6 23.xf6+ xf6 24.c3
h7 25.e5 f7 26.xh7+ xh7 27.cxd4
d5 28.h8 f8 29.dxc5 xc5+ 30.h1
xd3 31.h3 d5 32.g7+ e8 33.a3
1-0
165 A03
Taylor,Timothy 2330
Fontaine,Robert 2521
d4 Masters Las Vegas USA (1) 10.06.2006
[John Watson]
This one was similar but White gets c3 in early,
which has to be right (cutting down on the g7
bishop's range, opening a square for the
knight on c2, freeing the queen - very flexible).
Although it still doesn't work out, the opening
was fine and may even have favoured White.
1.f4 d5 2.f3 g6 3.e3 g7 4.e2 f6
5.0-0 0-0 6.d3 c5 7.a4 c6 8.a3 g4
9.c3 c8 10.h3 xf3 11.xf3 d4?!
This seems to help White's pawn structure.
but then 12.cxd4 cxd4 13.e4 d7 14.d2 h6
15.g3?!
18.e4 [ 15.e5!? activates White's pieces and
readies b4-b5. I like White. ]
15...c5 16.g4
[ 16.e1 would intend b4. ]
16...e6 17.f5?! e3+
[ 17...xd2! 18.xd2 e5 takes over a
great outpost and makes W hite's bishop
153
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
look a little funny out there. ]
18.xe3 dxe3 19.c1!? This hits c5 and
plays for tactics but the centre can collapse..
This is a bad sign unless it wins outright. exf5
[ 19...b3 20.xe3 xa1 21.fxe6 ( 21.f6
h8 ) 21...f5! 22.exf5 b3 is wild after
23.f6 xf6 24.e7 xf1+ 25.xf1 xe7
26.e6+ f8 , but White has to take time to
recover his material and his knight on a3 is
a re al prob lem . 27.f4+ f5 28.xc8
xc8 29.g4 c5! 30.gxf5 xf5!
with a pawn-up ending. ]
20.exf5 e2! 21.xe2 d4+?! A strange
move.
[ 21...d4 is obvious and pretty much killing.
It's not clear what Black was thinking. ]
22.h1 ce8 23.b5 d5+ 24.f3 xf5
25.g2 e5 26.c4! a6 27.c3 d6
28.b4!?
[ 28.ad1 ]
28...d7 29.f4?!
[ 29.xc6! bxc6 ( 29...xc6+ 30.xc6
bxc6 31.ae1= ) 30.e4 d5 31.ac1 ]
29...e3! 30.af1 ce5 31.d4 xd4
32.xd4 xg3 With a clear pawn up. Again,
the opening was reasonable. 33.d1 c8
34.e4 e3 35.d6 c2 36.c4 ee2
37.xb7 h2+ 38.g1 xh3 39.b5 axb5
40.axb5 g3+ 41.f1 Now instead of g4!?
[ 41...h5 ]
[ or 41...f3 was very strong. Black went on
to win, less convincingly: ]
42.d2 c1+ 43.e2 de5 44.b2 gg1
45.xe5 xe5 46.b6 b1 47.xb1 xb1
48.d6 f8 49.a8 e7 50.d5 b2+
51.d1 d7 52.b7 h5 53.c1 b6
54.d2 f6 55.e3 g5 56.f3 h4 57.g4
e6 58.a5 b4+ 59.f3 b3 60.e4 f5+
61.d4 b6 62.a1 h3 63.e1+ d6
64.e8 g4 65.h8 b1 66.e3 e6
67.h6+ e7 68.f4 b5 69.h5 d6
70.h6+ c7 71.c6+ b8 72.c8+ a7
73.h8 b8 74.h6 d5 75.d4 xd4+
76.xf5 a4 77.h8 b4 78.h7 a4
79.h8 c6 80.h7 b6 81.h6 a7
82.xc6 g3
0-1
166 A03
Taylor,Timothy 2330
Golod,Vitali 2571
National Open (6) 18.06.2006
[John Watson]
Tim Taylor plays as he preaches. Tim wrote a
book on Bird's Opening and put it to the test
four times in the latest batch of TWICs. The
1-3 result probably doesn't condemn the
opening however, and I hope we see some
more of it as time goes by. He faced two very
high-rated opponents, for one thing. And he
was asleep for this game: 1.f4 d5 2.f3 g6
3.e3
[ 3.g3 , for the Leningrad Reversed, was of
course possible. See Danielsin-
Ismagametov. ]
3...g7 4.e2 c5 Black accedes to a
Classical Dutch Reversed. He can also just
develop. 5.0-0 c6 6.d3 f6 7.a4!?
An interesting move: very Larsen-like,
although I'm not sure what the idea is (where's
my copy of that book?). Taylor intends Ne5
and Bf3. I would think that one plan of the
reversed position, Qe1-h4, could be prepared
(W hite should wait for Black to castle, so
perhaps
[ 7.h1 0-0 8.e1 was a shot. Also,
something like the 'Antoshin System
Reversed' could come up after ]
[ 7.c3 0-0 8.c2 ]
7...0-0 8.a3 a6 9.e5 Back to the original
Alekhine plan for this Dutch. c7 10.xc6
bxc6!? This fights for the initiative.
[ On 10...xc6 , 11.a5 might be tried, ( or
11.c4 )]
11.f3 In a few moves White lands in trouble
but I'm not sure why. The problem seems to
be a lack of direction. On bold idea would be
[ 11.c3 (in any case this prepares to cover
e3 by Nc2) with the idea e5 (unfortunately,
( 11...e8 may be better.) 12.fxe5 xe5
13.e4! dxe4 14.c4 , emphasizing the
weak c-pawns. Bf4, Nb6, or Be3 will follow,
depending upon Black's decision. e6 ]
11...e5 12.d2?! Is that the best White can
do? e8 13.e1 This is beginning to look like
Amateur vs Master. Taylor is a strong and
experienced player, which makes you wonder
about his position approach to this game. As I
154
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

know and many others have stated, once you [ 11...d7 12.e3 h6 is not so clear. ]
write about something you start to have bad 12.d2!?
results with it. Probably something to do with [ 12.h3 h6 13.f4 gxe5 14.fxd4
over thinking. e4 14.e2 b8 15.b1 h5! has its points, as White has won a pawn for
16.f1 Oh no. Better to stay on the e-pawn or very little compensation. ]
protect the b-pawn, but what move to make? 12...h6!
Black may already be winning regardless. [ 12...gxe5? 13.fxd4 wins a pawn. ]
g4 17.c3? exd3 18.xd3 c4 19.c2 13.f6 xf6 14.exf6 xf6 15.xh6 xe2
xe3 20.xe3 xe3 21.f5 e5!? Black would probably have been happy with
[ 21...e5 ] this position, material is equal and he has the
22.fxg6 fxg6 23.xg6 g4 24.c1 e2 bishop pair, but W hite has something
25.c2 h3! 26.e1 f8 27.f3 u n p l e a s a n t i n m i n d ! 16.ae1!?
Utter despair. xg2+ 28.h1 xf3 Very ima ginative . xc2 17.g5 xg5
0-1 18.xg5 Having forced the black queen away
from the defence of the kingside W hite
menaces Bd5, and Rxf7, so Black has to find
167 A03 a p r e c i s e d e f e n c e i m m e d i a t e l y . b4?
Vasiukov,Evgeni 2537 But this is not it! Black had two good lines,
Bykhovsky,Anatoly A 2378 against which I can see no clear win:
Botvinnik Mem A (1) 17.08.2002 [ 18...e6 19.f6!? ( 19.xe6 xd3!
[Tony Kosten] defends g6) 19...fe8 20.e4 keeps the
a t t a c k g o i n g , b u t e5! ( 20...e7?
1.f4 d5 2.f3 g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 c6!? 21.xe6! fxe6 22.xg6 wins ) 21.xe5
Black aims to play a quick ...e5, we have d2 22.ef1 e3+ 23.1f2 ( 23.h1
already considered several other moves here, f5! ) 23...e1+ 24.f1 draws ]
[ 4...c5 is the mainline. ] [ 18...d8 i s e v e n s i m p l e r , 19.xf7
5.c4!? As far as I can see, this flanking blow is ( 19.d5? a6! ) 19...xf7 ( 19...xf7?
a new idea in this position. 20.xg6+ f8 21.h6+ g7 22.h8+
[ 5.d4 h5!? 6.e3 h6 7.c3 g4 wins ) 20.xg6+ h8 and now White might
equalised for Black in King, D-Langner,L/ be forced to take a perpetual, as 21.e4?
Espoo 1991. ] allows f2+!! 22.xf2 e5+ ]
5...d4 Black goes for space, but he might also 19.xf7!! Destroying the black defences.
have considered xd3
[ 5...dxc4!? e.g. 6.a4 d5 7.c3 xc3 [ 19...xf7 20.xg6+ f8 21.h6+ g7
8.dxc3 d7 ] 22.f6+ g8 23.e8+ h7 24.e4+
6.d3 White has a typical Leningrad position mates. ]
with colours reversed, except that Black's c- 20.xf8+
pawn is not on c5. h6 The knight aims for f5, [ 20.xf8+ xf8 21.f6+ g8 22.e8+
t o c o v e r t h e w e a k e 3 - s q u a r e . 7.a3 h7 23.h8# ]
Touche! White brings his queen's knight to c2 1-0
to cover the e3-square. 0-0 8.c2 a5 9.0-0
e5?! This move backfires, Black had plenty of
good choices here, 168 A03
[ 9...f5 for instance. ] Williams,Stephen M 2421
10.fxe5 g4 It seems Black will recapture on Zhao,Zong Yuan
e5, opening the e-file against the weak e2- WJun Yerevan ARM (11) 28.09.1999
pawn, but it is White's turn to move: 11.g5 [Tony Kosten]
[ 11.e3!? dxe3 12.d4 is also possible, and
may even be stronger. ] 1.f4 d5 2.f3 g6 3.e3 g7 4.e2 c5
11...e8?! The queen should stay on the d- 5.0-0 c6 6.d3 f6 7.a4 Prophylaxis,
file to guard the d4-pawn. White shows that he is prepared to keep an

155
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
e y e o n t h e q u e e n s i d e . 0-0 8.h1!?
A Simon W illiams' speciality, removing the
k in g f ro m t h e g 1 -a 7 d ia go n a l wh ic h ca n
become sensitive, should W hite play e4, or
Black ... d4.
[ 8.e1 is more usual, ready to bring the
queen straight to the kingside, b6
b7 10.c3 e6 11.b1 a5 with equal
chances, Bellin,R-Kotronias,V/Gausdal
1992. ]
8...c7 The question is: how should Black
best employ the free move?
[ 8...e8 is also possible, likewise intending
t o p l a y . . . e 5 : 9.e5 ( s t o p p i n g i t ) c7
10.c3!? a6!? ( (if 10...xe5 then 11.b5
b8 12.fxe5 xe5 13.e4 with the menace
of Bf 4 , b ut pe rha p s g5 i s p o s s i b l e ))
11.xc6 xc6 12.f3 b6 13.e4 e6 14.g4
b7 15.g5 dxe4 16.dxe4 h5?! 17.e5
c7 18.e3 with an edge, Williams,S-
Ferguson,M/8th S&W Masters, Witley ENG
1998. ]
[ 8...b6 seems the most logical, continuing to
develop, 9.e5 b7 10.f3 c7 11.xc6
xc6 12.c3 e5 with a good position to
Black, Williams,S-Haslinger,S/Witley ENG
1999. ]
9.c3 a6 10.e4 dxe4!? It is amazing how
quickly Black's position disintegrates after this,
perhaps
[ 10...d4 is better, with the possible
c o n t i n u a t i o n : 11.b1 g4!?
unclear. ]
11.dxe4 d8 12.e1 d4 Black must have
been feeling pretty happy with himself after
this move, however, a shock was in store!
13.c4!! A fantastic move! White jettisons a
rook for an obscure attack.
[ Following 13.d1 e6 Black would be
better. ]
13...xc2 My computer considers this position
to be completely winning for Black, but this
just shows how lacking in imagination they
are. 14.h4 xa1
[ Obvious, and no doubt Black felt that he
would be able to defend against the white
attack, and then make his extra rook count.
If instead 14...d4 then 15.a2! ( following
15.xd4? cxd4 three white pieces are
threatened, and the dangerous f3-knight is
removed from the board.) 15...xa1 16.e5
g4 17.xd4 cxd4 18.d5 White has a
powerful attack, which should be sufficient
compensation. ]
15.f5 A whole rook down, but with the strong
threat of Ng5, ganging-up on f7, and h7. b5?
[ A natural reply, by opening the a-file Black
9.a3 assures the defence of his a1-knight.
However, it seems to lose, and therefore we
must search for an improvement
hereabouts: 15...d4!! was his best chance,
attempting to pester the powerful c4-bishop.
After 16.f4 d8 17.xd4 ( 17.a2 c2
18.g5 can now be met by c4 cutting-off
the a2-bishop's diagonal.) 17...cxd4 18.fxg6
hxg6 19.d5! the attack continues, e.g.
c2 20.e5 xd5 21.xd5 which should
be good enough for a draw, at least. ]
16.axb5 axb5
[ 16...b7 seems little better, 17.g5 gxf5
( 17...f8? 18.fxg6 and win s, e.g. hxg6
19.xf6 and mate) ) 18.xf7+ h8 19.xh7
xh7 20.g6 h6 21.xh7 e6 22.xf5
exf5 23.xh6 and White recuperates his
material whilst maintaining the attack. ]
17.xb5 b7 18.g5 e6 The only try,
attempting to block the a2-g8 diagonal, if
[ 18...f8 19.xf7 e8 20.fxg6 hxg6
21.e5 d8 22.h7! and its all over. ]
19.xh7! xh7 20.xd8+ f8 21.h4
Preparing f6. The immediate
[ 21.f6 leaves the white queen too far from
12.c3 the black king. ]
21...f6 What else?
[ 21...gxf5 22.exf5 c6 is met by 23.g3!
exf5 24.d6 e6 25.h6 and the game is
finished. ]
22.e5! White insists. g5 Forced, for if
[ 22...fxe5 23.f6 wins the bishop. ]
23.g4 e7 24.xg5 There were several
good paths now, for instance
[ 24.exf6 xf6 25.xg5 xg5 26.f6
is also winning. ]
24...fxg5 25.f6 f7 26.d3 Again,
[ 26.d6 g6 27.xc8 is also decisive. ]
26...xf6
[ 26...a6 27.xg5 is also quite hopeless. ]
27.exf6 h7 28.d6 Possibly
[ 28.xh7+ xh7 29.f7+ is even simpler, as
after f8 30.xg5 forces mate. ]
28...d7
[ 28...xf6 i s n o b e t t e r , 29.f3 b7
156
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

30.xb7 ] 10...h6 Winning a pawn, the b2-bishop

29.f7+ f8 30.xh7 doesn't appear so well-placed now! 11.g3
[ 30.xh7 Black, still reeling from the blows, exf4 12.0-0
g i v e s u p . A f t e r xd6 31.xg5 b7 [ Hoping to profit from the pin on f4, 12.gxf4
32.g8+ e7 33.f8+ his remaining h5 is disastrous. ]
pieces drop off the board. ] 12...g4 13.gxf4 e3 14.f2 xf4
1-0 All of White's kingside dark squares, which
seemed so strong after the first few moves,
are no w f irmly in B la ck's ha nd s. 15.bd2
169 A03 h3 16.f1 f5 Bringing further bits over to
Yin Hao 2401 t h e s c e n e o f t h e a c t i o n . 17.e5 xe5
Zhang Zhong 2541 18.xe5 g5+ 19.g4
Asian Team Ch. (1) 10.10.1999 [ Otherwise, if 19.h1 g2+ ]
[Tony Kosten] 19...fxg4 20.g3 xg3 The simplest,
exchanging off the king's defenders. 21.hxg3
1.f4 d5 2.f3 f6 3.e3 g6 4.b3 xf2 22.xf2 f8+ 23.g1
Th is de ve lop m en t o f t he qu ee n 's b ish o p [ 23.e1 e5 is also hopeless. ]
certainly makes positional sense now that 23...e5
W h it e ' s k i n g s id e p a wn s a r e s e t o n d a r k 0-1
squares. g7 5.b2 0-0 6.c4!?
[ An ambitious move, attacking Black's
central pawn. 6.e2 is more normal. ] 170 A04
6...c5! Ansell,Simon 2383
[ The best reply, preparing ...Nc6, and ...d4. Nunn,John DM 2601
6...c6 whilst solid, is passive, and tends to 4NCL Birmingham ENG (9) 29.04.2000
justify White's move. 7.e2 g4 8.0-0 e6 [Neil McDonald]
9.d3 with a slight plus, Alexandre,J-Pereira,J/
Lisbon 1994. ] 1.e4 c5 2.f3 e6 3.d3 c6 4.g3 ge7
7.c1?! 5.g2 g6 6.0-0 g7 7.e1 d6 The same
[ Defending the b2-bishop against various old story, as in Malisov-Psakhis. Black stops
tactical operations, for if 7.e2 for instance, any white expansion in the centre with e5,
then d4 8.exd4 h5 is possible. ] then next move he hinders d4. So White has
[ Normally 7.cxd5 is preferred, though, with to look to the queenside to gain space, but it
level play after xd5 8.c4 h5 9.c3 is all pretty harmless. 8.c3 e5 9.a3 0-0
c6 10.a3 g4 11.e2 fe8 intending ... 10.b4 a6 Nunn is trying to turn the position
e5, W oe st ma nn ,U-K ro eger,F/Mue nste r into a weird form of a Ruy Lopez! 11.bd2
1993. ] h6 12.b1 b8 13.b3 This isn't the best
7...c6 8.d3?! d4! The positional refutation way to engineer the advance d4. It was better
o f W h i t e ' s p l a y, B l a c k cl o s e s t h e a 1 - h 8 to develop with
dia go n a l, a f t er wh ich W h it e will f e e l t h e [ 13.b2 though Be6 then looks OK for
absence of his dark-squared bishop from the Black- or was Nunn intending b6 and Bb7,
c1-h6 diagonal. 9.e4 a 'Spanish' deployment of the bishop? In
[ 9.exd4 cxd4 10.e2 h6 menacing ...e5, either case, White should be able to force
is equally unpleasant. ] through d4 at some point. However, this
9...e5 10.e2?! wo u ld re su l t in a liq u i d a t io n o n t h e d 4
[ It is difficult to know what to do with White's square combined with a .. .d5 thrust by
position. After this move his f-pawn drops off Black, which should lead to equality. ]
the board, but even after 10.fxe5 the move 13...b6 14.d4?! This is consistent but bad. He
g4 is very difficult to meet, with threats of ... could still play
Ne3, and ...Bh6, not to mention the simple ... [ 14.b2! ]
N(either) xe5. ] 14...c4! 15.d5

157
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ Instead 15.bd2 exd4 16.cxd4 d5! Fernandez Aguado,J-Vallejo Pons,F/Linares

wo u ld b e ve ry n ice f o r Bla ck- if 17.exd5 1994, 1-0 (18). ]
xd5 18.xc4? c3 etc. wins. ] 10.g5 xf2?!
15...cxb3 16.dxc6 e6 17.e3? He had to [ I can't really believe this combination, as it
bail out with doesn't really do anything about the e6-
[ 17.d2 when c8!? 18.xb3 xc6 pawn. 10...f6 i s b e t t e r , b u t 11.c3
is slightly better for Black. ] and the e6-pawn is a thorn in Black's side,
17...c7 18.c1 h7 19.c4 The method h6? i s i m p o s s i b l e : 12.f7
White uses to regain his pawn leaves c4 weak winning material. ]
and a serious hole on d4. xc6 20.xb3 11.xf2 d4 12.f4 xf2+?!
d4 21.c3 fc8 22.d2 b5! 23.c5 [ At least 12...xb2 13.d2 d4
This leads to the creation of a black passed wins another pawn, although the two white
pawn which, as it is supported by all the black pieces are better than the black rook and
pieces, proves unstoppable. The only hope pawns, anyway. ]
was to stand his ground with 13.xf2 f6 14.c3! h6
[ 23.f1 which at least brings the king's [ Black's thirteenth move threatened nothing,
bishop into the fight. ] 14...xe6? 15.xe6 xe6 16.d5
23...d7 24.f3 dxc5 25.bxc5 a5 26.d2 wins the rook. ]
xf3+ 27.xf3 xd2 28.xd2 b4 29.axb4 15.ge4
axb4 30.cc1 b3 31.e2 b2 32.cd1 b3 [ 15.f7 Seems even simpler. ]
Nunn wrapped things up very nicely. 15...xf4+
0-1 [ Losing more material, but 15...f8 16.g1
g5 17.h5 wins anyway. ]
16.gxf4 xe6 Black's two pawns are
171 A04 in su f f icie n t co m p e n sa t io n f o r t h e p ie c e .
Aronian,Levon 2518 17.d2 f8 18.e1 f7 19.g1 g7
Jorge Bort,Emilio 2233 20.d5 xd5 21.xd5+ h7 22.b3
VII Anibal Open (1) 07.01.2000 f8?! 23.xb7 d4 24.c3 e6 25.g5+
[Tony Kosten] Exchanging Black's last minor piece. xg5
26.fxg5 e5 27.xa7 hxg5 28.a4
1.f3 f5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 g6 4.0-0 g7 Black could have resigned before. f4 29.a5
5.d3 0-0 6.e4 This is one of the problems f6 30.a6 h6 31.b8 f2 32.a7 d2
with playing the Dutch against a Reti set-up, Black's one threat of the game! 33.f1
White can oppose the f5-pawn directly. fxe4 1-0
[ 6...d6 might be preferable, 7.exf5 gxf5
( 7...xf5 8.h4 c8 ) 8.d4 e6 9.c4
with th e supe rior p awn structure , Frie s 172 A04
Nie ls e n , J -P la ske t t , J/ G ro n in ge n 1 9 7 9 , Bellin,Robert 2388
although 0-1 (49). ] Williams,Simon Kim 2550
7.dxe4 d6 London Classic FIDE Open (4) 11.12.2009
[ Of course not 7...xe4?? 8.d5+ e6 [Nigel Davies]
9.xe4 1-0 Moreno,A-Figari,E/Bariloche
1991. ] 1.f3 f5 2.d3 d6 3.e4 e5 4.c3 c5!?
8.e5! T h e s h a r p e s t re p ly. g4 9.e6! An interesting and ambitious approach from
The point, W hite tries to retard the black Williams. Black rules out d3-d4 by White and
development. c6 argues that without this he will be unable to
[ A new idea, with a tactical point. 9...c6 e x p l o i t h i s l e a d i n d e v e l o p m e n t . 5.g3
10.g5 f6 11.c3 a6 12.h4! This looks sensible but I suspect that White
is similar to the game, Black cannot get rid should be playing more directly for a pawn
of the e6-pawn, or the g5-knight. d5 13.e2 lever. To this ef f ect I suggest one of the
c7 14.f4 h6? 15.f7 winning a pawn, following possibilities:

158
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ a) 5.a3 c6 6.b4!? is an interesting
gambit line, for example cxb4 7.axb4 xb4
8.a3 c6 9.e2 f6 10.0-0 e7
11.b1 0-0 12.b3+ h8 13.exf5 xf5
14.xb7 recovers White's pawn with some
pressure. ]
[ b) 5.d2!? c6 6.c4 f6 7.f4!?
is an interesting and thematic plan in which
the knight on c4 becomes very well placed,
for example exf4 8.xf4 e7 9.e2 0-0
10.0-0 fxe4 11.dxe4 d4 12.e3 xe2+
13.xe2 intends 14.Rad1 with pressure. ]
5...e7!? An interesting new move from
Williams.
[ After 5...c6 W h i t e c a n t r y 6.h4!?
, f or example fxe4 ( 6...f4 7.g2 f6
8.gxf4 is good for White) 7.dxe4 f6 8.c4
g4 9.f3 h3 10.g5 was nice for White in
Mozharov, M (2424)-Potapov, P (2386)/
Sibenik 2007. ]
6.h3 g6
[ 6...fxe4 7.xc8 xc8 8.dxe4 is just good
for White because of the hole on d5. ]
7.exf5 h5!? This truly amazing move is
probably the best!
[ After 7...xf5 8.xf5 gxf5 White can play
9.h4 xh4 10.h5+ f8 11.gxh4
when Black is in serious difficulties. ]
8.g2 Faced by his opponent's ingenious play
Bellin reacts passively.
[ He should play 8.h4! , for example xh4
9.gxh4 xf5 ( Or 9...xh4 10.f3 ) 10.xf5
gxf5 11.g5 is good for White. ]
8...gxf5 9.d2?! Pointless.
[ A more logical plan would be to play 9.d2
c6 10.c4 with ideas such as f2-f4. ]
9...c6 10.e2 e6 11.h4?!
Another pointless looking move.
[ 11.0-0-0 makes more sense. ]
11...f6 12.g5 g8 13.f4? After Black's
reply White is in all sorts of trouble.
[ He should have tried 13.xc6+ bxc6 14.f4
to try and break up Black's pawns. ]
13...d4 14.d1 g4 15.d5 e4 16.dxe4
xg5 17.hxg5 xd5 18.exd5 b6 19.c3
0-0-0!! A fantastic sacrifice which White
should have rejected. 20.cxd4?
[ 20.0-0 was better when there's still
everything to play for. ]
20...de8+ 21.f1 b5+ 22.g1 xb2
23.e1 e2 24.f3 h2 White has no good
defence to the threat of 25...Rxh1+ and 26...
Qh2+.
0-1
173 A04
Bindrich,Falko 2513
Werle,Jan 2581
IX EICC Plovdiv BUL (10) 01.05.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f5 2.d3 d6 3.e4 g6?!
[ This is at best dubious. Black's best is
u n d o u b t e d l y 3...e5 which is the subject of
Skoberne, J-Milchev, N/Plovdiv BUL 2008,
also to be found in this update. ]
4.exf5
[ This is White's most direct continuation.
Other tries include: 4.g3 ]
[ 4.h4 ]
[ 4.c3 ]
[ and 4.c3 ]
4...xf5 5.d4 This position looks like Balogh's
Defence, which arises after 1 e4 d6 2 d4 f5 3
exf5 Bxf5. What we have in the game should
be an improved version for Black because
White has spent two moves to play the pawn
to d4. Nevertheless, W hite has a small but
clear advantage. g7
[ Black has also tried 5...f6 6.d3 g4
7.bd2 h6 8.h3 xd2+ 9.xd2 xf3
10.xf3 c6 11.b5 ( 11.0-0-0 d7
12.he1 0-0-0 13.c3 ) 11...d5 12.xc6+
bxc6 13.h6 Zysk, R-Feldbacher, H/Bad
Wiessee GER 2006 ]
6.d3
[ Or 6.c3!? e5?! ( 6...f6 is better ) 7.dxe5
dxe5 8.b3 d7 9.c4 , Black's position
is a toilet, Weindl, A-Gengler, P/Kemer TUR
2007 ]
6...d7
[ 6...xd3 leaves Black with terrible
weaknesses on the light squares: 7.xd3
d7 8.0-0 c6 9.e3 ( 9.d5 e5
10.xe5 xe5 11.e1 0-0-0 12.f4 f6
13.e6 h6 14.c4 ) 9...f6 10.bd2 e6
11.ab1 a5 Saheli, N-Gomes, M/Bikaner
IND 2004 12.fe1 ]
7.0-0 c6
[ In an early game in this variation, Black
tried 7...f6 8.c3 0-0 9.xf5 xf5
159
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
10.d5 e5 11.g5 h8 12.f3 d7 13.e3
, a n d B l a c k 's p o s it i o n is a l r e a d y q u i t e
depressing, Keene, R-Platzack, S/
Barcelona 1965 ]
8.c3
[ A m o re lo gica l co n t in u a t io n is 8.xf5!?
xf5 9.c4 e5 10.d5 d8 11.c3
with an absolutely horrendous King's Indian-
like position for Black the conclusion of the
gamewas f6 12.e2 ( 12.g5!? ) 12...0-0
13.g5 h5?? ( 13...c6 14.f3 ) 14.g4
d7 15.gxh5 h6 16.ge4 1-0 Strikovic, A-
Pena Dieguez, M/Seville ESP 2004 ]
8...e5
[ 8...f6!? ]
9.dxe5
[ 9.b5 can also be considered, e.g. e4
A) 10.h4!? d5 11.xf5
A1) 11...xf5 12.xc6+ ( 12.f3!? )
12...bxc6 13.f3 is even worse for Black;
A2) 11...gxf5 12.h5+ f7 13.xf7+
xf7 14.f3 e6 15.g4 gives White
some initiative;
B) 10.d5?! exf3 11.dxc6 bxc6 12.xf3
( 12.e1+ is probably better, but still
nothing for W hite f7 13.xf3 e8
14.e2 f6 ) 12...e7 13.d3 0-0
14.xf5 xf5 15.d3 ab8 with a very
comfortable game for Black, Braun, S-
Ruettinger, J/Bayern 2002 ]
9...dxe5 10.b5
[ 10.xf5 gxf5 11.xd7+ xd7
doesn't accomplish anything for White after
12.d1+ e6 13.a3 a6 14.g5+ f6
with a satisfactory game for Black ]
10...0-0-0 11.a4!? d3
[ 11...ge7 12.g5 d3 13.xd3 xd3
14.xe7 xe7 15.xa7 ]
12.xc6 xc6 13.xc6 bxc6 14.e1 f6
15.e3?!
[ Over the next few moves White simply
plays too passively, and Black gain
counterplay to outweigh the deficiencies in
the pawn structure. 15.xe5! he8 16.g5
leaves White with a solid advantage, and of
course now d5? loses to 17.xf6 xf6
18.xd3 xe1+ 19.xe1 d1 20.f1 g5
21.e2 c1 22.g3 , and then Black's rook
will be trapped on c1. ]
15...d5! 16.bd2 e8 17.h3?!
[ 17.b3 e4 18.fd2 d7 19.f3 ( 19.d4
h6 ) 19...exf3 20.xf3 c5 21.f4
with at best a tiny edge for W hite, though
Black's pair of bishops and generally
active pieces provide excellent counterplay. ]
[ 17.c4!? dd8 18.xa7 e4 19.d4 b7
20.c5 d7 21.2b3 a8 22.a3 xc4
with another complicated queenless
m i d d l e g a m e i n wh i c h b o t h s i d e s h a v e
chances, but I prefer Black ]
17...e4 18.d4 c5 19.c6 b7 20.a5+
a6 Black's king is actually rather well-placed
on this square. 21.ac4
[ 21.c4!? f5 22.g4 fe5 23.b4 cxb4
24.c6 5e6 ( 24...d7 25.xb4+ b7
26.d4 h6 27.b3 xc4 28.xe5 xe5
29.ad1 ) 25.xb4+ b7
with a complicated game and chances to
bot h sid es. T his is p ro bab ly W h it e las t
active option before drifting into a difficult
passive position. ]
21...d7 22.f4 b6 23.e3 d7 24.a4
c6 25.b3 f8 26.g4 c4 27.f6
[ White wins the exchange, but that's about it.
The 'problem' with rooks is that they need to
be on open files to be really effective, and
White doesn't have any open files for either
of the rooks. Therefore in this case, Black
with his active pieces has adequate
compensation for the exchange. The
a l t e r n a t i ve 27.d4 d5 28.g3 d6
29.xd6 xd6 is also pleasant for Black. ]
27...cxb3 28.xe8 d5 29.g5?!
[ White throws a couple of tempi away with
this move. Nevertheless even af ter th e
superior 29.g3 Black is doing quite well:
c5 30.ad1 a5 31.d2 xa4
, and I prefer Black's chances White has a
nominal material advantage, but Black's
pieces are far better placed, and W hite's
rooks are quite useless. ]
29...f7! 30.h4
[ 30.c4?! is met by b4 , and Black is
clearly better ]
30...c5 31.g3 e3! 32.fxe3 xe3??
[ Oh no! Black should play 32...e7! , e.g.
33.d6 xc3! 34.c8 ( 34.ac1 c2!;
34.h4? xd6 35.xe7 xe7 36.bxc3 b2
37.ad1 c2 38.b1 xb1 39.xb1 a3
wins for Black; 34.bxc3? xe3! 35.h2 b2
, and Black is probably winning) 34...e6
35.bxc3 b2 36.ab1 xe3 37.f2 xe1+
160
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

38.xe1 xf2+ 39.xf2 b1 40.xb1 weak. ]

xb1 41.e3 c2 42.d4 xa4 43.c5 14.exd5 xd5 15.c4 a6 16.e2 e8
b7 , and Black has excellent winning 17.e3 f8 18.d2 f6 A concession but the
chances ] pressure was getting intolerable. 19.f4! f7
33.f2?! [ If 19...exf4 20.xd5 xd5 21.c7
[ White can end the game more effectively wins at once. ]
with 33.d6! xd6 ( 33...b6 34.a5 c2+ 20.f2 d7
35.axb6+ xb6 36.ed1 , and White will [ If 20...exf4 21.xe8 xe8 22.xd5+
end up with an extra piece.) 34.xd6 e7 xd5 23.c7 xd3 24.xa6 winning the
35.f2 d5 36.xe7 xe7 37.e3 c2 exchange. ]
38.d4 ] 21.ad1 White has no need to hurry. In fact
33...xf2 34.xf2 c2+ 35.f3 xa1? by showing some patience he gives Black the
[ This loses without further ado. Black should chance to self destruct. b6
have tried 35...xe1+ 36.xe1 , and now [ He had to try to muddy the waters with
a3! 37.e3 c2 38.c7+ b6 39.bxa3 21...exf4 ]
b2 40.e6 b1 41.xb1+ xb1 22.xb6 xb6 23.e3! b3 24.xc5 xd1
, and White has excellent winning chances 25.xb6 xa4 26.c7 e7 27.d5
thanks to active king after 42.d4 f5 Black resigned for if f7 28.fxe5 fxe5
43.d8 ] 29.f6+ wins the exchange. A fine game by
36.xa1 a5 37.f6 h5 38.d7 Bologan to exploit Black's opening errors.
1-0 1-0

174 A04 175 A04

Bologan,Viktor 2651 Cacho Reigadas,Sergio 2470
Firman,Nazar 2485 Khamrakulov,Ibragim S 2545
Aeroflot Open (4) 07.02.2002 Spanish Team Ch Gp2 (1) 27.06.2007
[Neil McDonald] [Carsten Hansen]

1.e4 e6 2.d3 c5 3.f3 c6 4.c3 ge7
5.g3 g6 6.g2 g7 7.0-0 0-0 8.e1 e5
9.a3 a5?
[ We have already seen the solid approach
9...d6 10.b4 a6 in Ansell-Nunn. ( Here
10...h6 intending Be6 etc. is also sufficient. )]
10.a4! White fixes the b5 square for his knight.
d6? Soon after is Black realises that the plan
of Be6, h7-h6 and f7-f5 isn't promising and
decides he wants to break in the centre with
d6-d5. So he should save time with
[ 10...d5 ]
11.a3 h6 12.d2! The other knight has
also spied a fine square on c4. Note that 9..
a5 hasn't only given away the b5 square- it
has also prevented Black from challenging for
the c4 square with b7-b5 as was possible after
a7-a6 in the Ansell game. e6 13.b5 d5
[ After 13...f5 White has attractive lines
b a s e d o n d 3 - d 4 , b u t p e r h a p s 14.c4!?
is th e strongest response - xc4 ( or
14...fxe4 15.cxd6 ) 15.dxc4 and d6 is
1.f3 c5 2.g3 b6 3.g2 b7 4.0-0 f6
5.d3 d5 6.bd2 g6?! (This double
fianchetto looks perfectly normal and even
logical, but will usually lead to major
headaches for Black as demonstrated in both
our main game and the supporting analysis.
Black's best is 6...e6 leading to a balanced
game with chances to both sides) 7.e4 dxe4
[ This is very likely a bad move that
immediately puts Black on his heels. The
alternatives should therefore be considered
carefully, although they don't exactly
promise Black an easy game either. A)
7...g7
A) 8.e5 fd7 9.e6 fxe6 10.g5 f8
11.g4 c8 , A.Giesenberg-W.Stroka,
Dortmund 2001, and here 12.f4 f6
13.c4 leads to favourable complications for
White, e.g. c6 ( 13...h6 14.ge4 c6
15.cxd5 d4 16.xf6+ exf6 17.e1 )
14.cxd5 d4 15.e1 xg5 16.xg5
b7 17.b4 c2 18.b2;

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
B) 8.e2 e6 ( 8...0-0 9.e5 fd7 10.e6
f6 11.g5 c6 12.exf7+ h8 13.e6
d6 14.f3! xf7 15.fg5 ff8
16.f4+- P.Scheeren-T.De Jong,
Rotterdam 1974) 9.e1 0-0 10.c3 c6
11.f1 dxe4 12.dxe4 c7 13.e5 d5
14.h4 ad8 15.1h2 a6 16.g4
V.Karlik-J.Hlavnicka, Znojmo 2005 ]
[ B) 7...e6 8.e1 g7 9.c3 dxe4 10.dxe4
0-0 11.e5 fd7 12.c4 c6 13.d6 c7
14.a4 , and White is already clearly better
Black has problems on both the h2-b7 and
the a4-d7 diagonals, S.Martinovic-J.
Vanheste, Dieren 1984 ]
[ C) 7...c6
A) 8.e5!? h5 9.e6!? fxe6 10.g5 c8
( 10...d6 11.e1 d8 12.g4 f6
13.e2 with a small advantage for White)
11.c4! , and White has excellent
compensation for the pawn;
B) 8.c3 dxe4 9.dxe4 g7 , so far H.
Suradiradja-Hsu Li Yang, Singapore 1997,
and now 10.e5 d5 11.e6 fxe6 12.g5
, and Black will have a long uphill battle to
get his position to work for him ]
8.dxe4!
[ Weaker is 8.g5?! , but for the sake of
completeness, we will cover it: g7
A) or 9.dxe4 0-0 10.e1 h6 11.h3
fd7 ( 11...e5!? looks positionally wrong
by blocking the scope of the g7-bishop
and permanently weakening the d5-square,
but the knight on h3 is all of a sudden
exceptionally poorly placed, and Black
gains both space and the initiative, e.g.
12.c3 c6 13.f3 c8 14.f2 d8
15.c2 e6 ) 12.f4 c7 13.e5 xg2
14.xg2 c6 with chances to both sides,
L. Niko laiczu k-D. P olajze r, Sch oe ne ck
1988;
B) 9.gxe4 xe4 10.dxe4 0-0 11.c3
d3 12.e1 d8 13.f1 d7 14.c2
c6 15.f3 e5 , and a draw was
agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, A.Lein-M.Suba,
Hastings 1978 ]
8...g7?!
[ 8...c6 is Black's best move at this point,
though White obtains a clear advantage in
multiple ways: 9.e5 d5 ( 9...g4 10.e6!
h6 11.e5!+- ) 10.e6 f6 11.h4
( 11.e2!? slightly improves, e.g. c7
12.e1 g7 13.c4 0-0 14.f4 )
11...c7 12.e1 d4 13.xd4 xg2
14.xg2 ( 14.c3 cxd4 15.xg2 d5+
16.f3 ) 14...xd4 15.c4 ( 15.f3 d5 )
15...0-0-0 16.a4 b7 17.f3 d6
18.f4 c6 19.xc6+ xc6 20.h5
, a nd W hit e h a s a sm a ll, bu t cle a r a n d
enduring advantage, V.Mikenas-V.
Alatortsev, USSR Ch (Moscow) 1950 ]
[ 8...c8 9.e5 h5 10.e1 g7 ( 10...g7
11.e6!? f5 12.c4 0-0 13.g5 c7
14.c3 ) 11.e4 h6 12.b4!? ( 12.d3 c6
13.b3 e6 14.b2 ) 12...cxb4 13.b2
e6 14.d4 a6 15.xe6 fxe6 16.g4
f7 , so far, P.Biyiasas-M. Suba, Hastings
1978, and here could have nailed Black's
coffin shut with 17.d6+ exd6 18.xb7
xb7 19.exd6 , and White wins material
while continuing the attack ]
9.e5 g4
[ 9...h5? is an incredibly poor move that
places the knight on the verge of being lost
t o a we ll -t i m e d g3 - g4 p a wn p u s h , e . g .
10.c4 c8 11.h3 ( White can do even
b e t t e r w i t h 11.g5! (White is threatening
Bxe7 followed by Nd6) c6 12.e1 a6
13.c3 , and Black literally has no decent
moves, the fact that my computer favours
13...Kf8 speaks volumes) 11...f5 12.exf6
xf6 13.e1 f8 14.e2 d5 15.g5
(this is getting very embarrassing for Black
only the fact that this was played in the
Olympiad can justify Black struggling on a
f e w m o r e m o ve s ) f6 16.e4! d7
17.h6+ g7 18.ed6 exd6 19.xd5
xh6 20.e7# 1-0 P.Hohler- P.Griffiths,
Siegen OL 1970. Black's team mates can't
have been particularly pleased by this effort
by the well-known author of several
excellent biographies. ]
[ 9...d5 10.g5!? ( 10.e6! is a thematic
punch that Black should keep in mind when
playing this line. W ith Black's bishop
already occupied in the long h1-a8 diagonal,
Black's pawn structure will now be disrupted:
f6 11.e2 White follows up with moves
like Nc4, Rd1, c3 and a4 with an
unpleasant defensive task for Black ahead
of him ) 10...h6 11.xf7! (the idea behind
the previous move) xf7 12.f3+ ( 12.c4!?
e6 13.e1 a6 14.e4 f8 15.f3+
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
g8 16.g4; 12.e6+?! xe6 13.c4 f7
14.cxd5 xd5 15.e4 d4 is fully playable
for Black ) 12...g8 13.c4 d7 14.cxd5?
( 14.e6! 7f6 15.e4! xe4 16.xe4
h7 17.cxd5 is pretty horrible for Black)
14...xe5 15.b3 h7 , and Black is back
in the game and in fact soon took over the
initiative, V.Loginov-T.Tolnai, Budapest
1993 ]
10.e2
[ Here 10.e6!? looks very good for White, e.
g. f5 ( 10...fxe6 11.e2 d7 12.g5
xg2 13.xg2 c6+ 14.g1 e5
15.f4 ) 11.c3 0-0 M.Geveke-C.Pritchett,
German 2.Bundesliga 1995 12.e2 a6
( 12...a6 13.c4 c6 14.f4 ) 13.c4
c7 14.f4 c6 15.h4 c8 16.fd1 ]
10...0-0 11.h3
[ 11.e6!? ]
11...h6 12.d1 c8
[ 12...c7 looks normal, but the queen will
often end up becoming a target when White
follows up with the natural Bf4, e.g. 13.e4
f5 14.f4 , and the queen will have to
move again. ]
[ 12...c6 13.c4 c8 transposes to the
game continuation ]
13.c4 c6 14.f4
[ While the text move is perfectly logical,
W hite can possibly consider saving it for
later as Black, as we will see in the note to
Black's next move, can with advantage
attack with the gain of a tempo. So how
should White improve his position. A crucial
square in this type of pawn structure is the
d 4 - s q u a r e , a n d t h e r e f o r e 14.c3!?
makes perfect sense, and now a possible
continuation is d8 ( or 14...a6 15.f4
e6 16.g5 xc4 17.xc4 xc4
18.xc6 ad8 19.b3 d3 20.d2 )
15.e3 e6 16.g5 xe5 17.xd8
axd8 18.xb7 f5 ( 18...xg5
19.g4+- ) 19.g2 ]
14...f5?!
[ This just turns out to be a waste of time
after White's 15th and 16th moves, which,
by the way, are incredibly simple and should
have been predicted by the 2500+ rated
player behind the black pieces. Instead
Bla c k c a n t ry 14...d8!? 15.g4 ( 15.c3
e6 16.e3 c7 17.g4 ad8 18.a4 )
15...e6 16.h2 d8 17.xd8+ xd8
18.d1 c7 19.c3 , and while White has
the better chances, Black is still well in the
game, whereas Black in the game loses two
tempi for no apparent reason. ]
15.c3 d8 16.g4! e6 17.h2 h6
18.e3 h8?!
[ 18...f5!? 19.exf6 exf6 20.d5 ( 20.c4
f7 ) 20...e8 21.c4 f7 22.d2 ]
19.d5 (Black's position is a real toilet if the
previous move didn't give it away, Black's
next move will) g8 20.d2
[ 20.c4!? looks very good too, e.g. h6
( 20...f5?! 21.g5+- ) 21.a4 f5 22.exf6 exf6
23.a5+- ]
20...f5??
[ This is a very bad move that I struggle to
see the point behind. Though Black's
position by no means is great, Black has
several other moves that can be considered:
A) 20...c7 21.xc7 ( 21.c4 xd5
22.cxd5 f5 23.c4 also looks amazing for
White ) 21...xc7 22.e6 c8 23.xb7
xb7 24.f3 h6 ( 24...fxe6 25.g5+- )
25.exf7 xf7 26.h4 c6 27.c2 f6
28.f4 ]
[ B) 20...c6 21.f3 ( 21.f1 b7
22.fe3 ad8 23.f4 ) 21...b7 22.c4 ]
21.exf6 exf6 22.c4 (Now Black is toast at
lightning speed White creates more threats
than Black is capable of dealing with) a6
23.dxb6! axb6 24.xa8 e8
[ 24...f5 is 'sort of' Black's last chance,
although White still wins comfortably after
25.g2 fxg4 26.hxg4 f4 27.xf4 xf4
28.xb6 xe2 29.xc8 xd1 30.xd1
xg4 31.b6+- ]
25.d6 (This is where the game should have
ended, the rest is just a waste of everybody's
time) h6 26.xc8 xe2 27.xb6
[ 27.e1 xc8 28.xe2 is even simpler ]
27...xd1 28.xd1 f5 29.c6 f8 30.f3
f7 31.e1 fd8 32.d5
1-0
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

176 A04 25...c8 so as to activate his rook as quickly

Carlhammar,Magnus 2350 as possible. ]
Marin,Mihail 2556 26.c6 bxc6 27.xc6 c8 28.xe4 c4
Open Reykjavik ISL (3) 26.03.2009 29.xh7 d7 30.f5+ xd6 Although
[Nigel Davies] White has three pawns for the piece and an
exposed enemy king his position is the worst
1.f3 f5 2.d3 d6 3.e4 e5 4.c3 f6 it has been in some time. The problem for him
5.exf5 xf5 6.d4 e4 7.h4 g4 is that Black's pieces are finally getting active.
[ Carsten Hansen previously examined 31.d1+ c7 32.d5 c1+ 33.g2 c6
7...c8 (plus various alternatives) in the 34.g1 b8 35.h4 a8 36.b4 b7
game Skoberne, J (2492)-Milchev, N (2415)/ 37.d1 c3 38.b5 c8 39.h2 e8 40.a4
Plo vd iv B UL 2 0 08 . Ma rin 's m o ve lo o ks e4?? It looks like there was a time scramble.
critical but is it good enough? ] This should have lost to 41.Rd8+. After the
8.e2 xe2 9.xe2 d5 10.g5 c6 exchange of queens Black is better because
It's not quite clear to me whether this was of his powerful bishop and the weakness of
inspiration or perspiration but I suspect the W hite's pawns. 41.xe4+?? xe4 42.a5
latter. After other moves White has done very e5 43.b1 e2 44.b6 xf2+ 45.h3 a6
well, for example: 46.b7+ b8 47.b6 e5 48.xa6 f3
[ a) 10...b4 11.b5+ c6 12.xb7 xd4 49.g6 xb7 50.h5 c7 51.a6 d7 52.a7
13.0-0-0 xc3 14.bxc3 b8 15.xf6 gxf6 a3 53.h6 gxh6 54.a8 xa8 55.xh6
16.xa7 b5 17.c5 d6 18.xd5 g8 56.g4 e7 57.h5 e6 58.h6+ f6
was good for White in Dizdar, G-Grunberg, 59.h5 g5 60.g3 f6 61.h1 a8
S/Triesen LIE 2005. ] 62.f1+ g6 63.f3 f6 64.b3 e5+
[ b) 10...c6? 11.f3 h6 12.g6 hxg5 65.f3 a4 66.b6+ f7 67.g5 f4+
13.xh8 b4 14.0-0 was winning in 68.e2 g4 69.g6+ g7 70.b5 f6
Zacurdajev, M-Romcovici, V/Peterhof RUS 71.f3 a4 72.d5 xg6 73.b5 a1
2007 ] 74.e3 f6 75.d3 e5 76.b7 d4+
11.xf6 xf6 12.xd5 xh4 13.xc7+ 77.e3 h4 78.d3 f5 79.b1 h3+
d7 14.xa8 Fritz 12 still likes White's 80.c4 c3+ 81.d5 c8 82.f1+ f4
position because even with the loss of the 83.e1 d8+ 84.c4 e5 85.h1 d4+
knight on a8 it figure that it will have a rook 86.c5 d2 87.h5+ e4 88.h4+ f4
and two pawns for two minor pieces. I kind of 89.c6 c2+ 90.b5 c8 91.b4 e5
agree, but it's not easy. d6 15.g3 g5 92.h1 d2+ 93.b5 c3 94.h5+ d6
16.0-0 g6 17.ad1 95.a4 e5 96.b5 d5 97.b4 b8+
[ 17.b5!? was also worth considering. ] 98.a5 b1 99.a4 c4 100.a5 d4
17...xa8 18.c4 e7 19.c5 f6 20.b5 101.a6 b6+ 102.a5 e6 103.h4 g6
c8 21.d5 104.f4 g2
[ T h e r e w a s a n o t h e r m o v e i n 21.c4 0-1
, for example d7 ( 21...c7 22.d5 e5
23.d6+ d8 24.d5 would leave Black's
rook out of play) 22.a4 c7 23.d5 e5 177 A04
24.c6 and White's attack looks the Carlsen,Magnus 2484
stronger. ] Dolmatov,Sergey 2591
21...d4? This should lose. Aeroflot Open (3) 19.02.2004
[ 21...a6 should have been tried. ] [Tony Kosten]
22.xd4 xd4 23.a4?
[ T h e w i n n i n g m o v e w a s 23.d1! 1.f3 f5 2.d3!? An interesting anti-Dutch
, f o r e xa m p l e f6 24.c6 gives White a s y s t e m , W h i t e f o r c e s e 4 t o e x p l o i t t h e
winning attack. ] weaknesses caused to the black kingside by ...
23...f6 24.d6 d8 25.b5 f7 f5. d6 The most sensible, defending f5.
[ And here Black should have played [ 2...f6 tries to stop e4, 3.bd2 ( 3.g5!?

164
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
c6 4.xf6 exf6 5.d4!? led to a sort of
Du t c h , S p e e lm a n , J-G a rci a I lu n d a i n , D /
Pamplona 1996; 3.e4!? is also possible,
fxe4 4.dxe4 xe4 5.d3 with some
initiative, Ef imov,I-Corvi,M/Montecatini
Terme 199 7) 3...d5 4.e4 dxe4 5.dxe4
xe4 6.c4 c6 7.0-0 with good
compensation for the pawn, it will be
difficult for Black to castle, Gulko,B-
Shmulevich,M/St Martin 1992. ]
3.e4 e5 4.c3 This position resembles a
Latvian Gambit, and can transpose from it,
except that White rarely plays d3 in that line.
c6
[ 4...f6 5.exf5 xf5 6.d4 e4 7.h4 d7
8.e2 e7!? 9.xe4 0-0
left White a pawn up in Benjamin,J-Gurevich,
D/St Martin 1992, although Black has
some compensation. ]
5.exf5 xf5 6.d4 xd4
[ 6...b4!? seems worse, 7.b5+ c6 8.a4
e4 9.g5 d5 ( 9...f6!? ) 10.f3 exf3
11.0-0! and Black was facing a strong attack
on the f-file, Krasenkow,M-Kindermann,S/
Panormo GRE 2001. ]
7.xd4 exd4 8.xd4 f6
[ 8...xc2!? is legal, but very greedy. ]
9.c4! A strong novelty.
[ 9.d3 xd3 10.xd3 gives little, Black
can play ...c6 and ...d5 with a strong central
presence, c6 11.0-0 e7
( 12.e4 xe4 13.xe4 0-0 led to a very
quick draw in Romanishin,O-Malaniuk,V/
Tallinn 1987) 12...d5 13.d4 d7 14.g5
0-0 15.ae1 d6 Black is fine, Lerner,K-
Bareev,E/Kiev 1986. ]
9...c6 10.g5 Black prepares to castle long
and harass the black king. b5?! Not a good
idea, Black would like to play
[ 10...d5 to block the a2-g8 diagonal, as it
will be impossible to castle otherwise, but
then 11.0-0-0 e7 ( 11...dxc4? 12.e5+
e7 13.xf5 is crushing) 12.he1 0-0
13.e5 forks e7 and f5, forcing c8 when
14.xd5+ cxd5 15.xe7 should win. ]
[ 10...xc2!? stops queenside castling, and
may be the best bet, although after 11.0-0
d5 12.fe1+ f7 13.xf6 gxf6 White has
strong compensation for the pawn.
( 13...xf6? 14.xd5+ cxd5 15.xd5+
g6 16.e6 )]
11.b3 e7 12.0-0-0 d7 13.he1
Now it is difficult to find an acceptable reply
for Black. d8?!
[ 13...0-0-0 might hold on longer. ]
14.xe7! A neat solution. xe7 Forced,
[ 14...xe7 loses on the spot to 15.xf6+
gxf6 16.e1+ d8 17.xf6+ ]
15.f4 Forking f5 and d6. d7 16.e4 d5
17.xf6 Black can resign. h6 18.h4 g5
19.d4!
[ 19.d4! gxh4?! 20.xd5 cxd5 21.xh8+
e8 22.xh6 leaves White two pawns
ahead with a dominating position. ]
1-0
10.f3
178 A04
Cheparinov,I 2702
Jones,G 2654
45th Italian Teams 2013 (4) 29.04.2013
[Danny Gormally]
1.f3 c5 2.b3 d6 3.e3 e5! If Black is
offered the center, he should take it. 4.b5+
c6 5.0-0 f6 6.b2 This line is very rare
wit h ve ry f e w ga m e s i n t h e d a t a b a s e . I t
seem s stran ge to me t hat Ch erap ino v, a
player who ha s worked very close ly wit h
Topalov, should be prepared to leave the
normal paths of opening theory so quickly.
12.e2 e7 7.d3 White continues his ultra quiet
strategy, but you could argue he's already
worse if he is not able to put any real
pressure on the impressive black center.
[ 7.d4?! was a tempting way to try and
sharpen up the game, but it just turns out to
be bad: e4! ( 7...cxd4? 8.exd4 e4 9.d5!
a6 10.dxc6 axb5 11.cxb7 xb7 12.d4
looks good for W hite, who is threatening
both Nf5 and Nb5) 8.d5 a6 9.dxc6 axb5
10.cxb7 xb7 and White has not solved his
problems. ]
7...0-0 8.bd2?!
[ In light of what happens, the unambitious
8.xc6 bxc6 9.bd2 may have been
preferable. ]
8...a5! Jones is very tactically aware and
already notices the problem with White's set-
up- the white bishop marooned in enemy
t e r r i t o r y . 9.c4? White intends to sacrifice a
pawn to reactivate the bishop, but Jones
165
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

clearly demonstrates the drawbacks of this 11.c3 b6 12.a4 c7 13.f4 b5
strategy. 14.c3 b6 15.e2 f6 16.c1 cxd4!?
[ 9.d4 cxd4 10.exd4 e4 11.e1 d5 This temporary sacrifice destroys W hite's
is also slightly unpleasant- albeit probably centre and so ensures Black complete
necessary - Black will have a ready-made equality. But more fighting was perhaps 16...
kingside attack after a subsequent ...Bd6. ] Ba 6 p la nn ing 17 .. . b 4 . 17.fxd4 xd4
9...a6 10.a4 b8! 11.b4 cxb4 12.c2 18.xd4 fxe5 19.xc8! This counter
What is White intending to play? He wants to sacrifice allows W hite to stay alive. axc8
play d4 of course. In light of this Jones takes 20.xe6! exf4 21.xf8 xf8 22.xd5+
a prophylactic measure - he intends to put the h8 23.b4 fxg3 24.hxg3 d4 Here 24...a6
Knight on c4. b5! 13.cxb5 axb5 14.d4 or 24.. .Rf5 was more solid. It was too late to
c4 15.b1 b7 Returning the pawn, but begin playing for a win. 25.f3 a6 26.g2
gaining an impressive clump of queenside g7 27.e1 f5?? 27...Rf7 was necessary.
pawns in return. 16.dxe5 dxe5 17.xc4 28.e7+ f8 29.d7 b8 30.c6
[ 17.d1 xf3 18.xf3 c7 doesn't help White gets in first with Re8.
much. ] 1-0
17...bxc4 18.xe5 a8 19.d1 a5
20.d4 h5 21.e4 fd8 22.h3 c5
23.xf6 180 A04
[ 23.b2 xe4-+ ] Greenfeld,Alon 2541
23...gxf6 24.xd8+ xd8 Black is just Rodi,Luis Ernesto 2357
winning here- W hite can do little about the VI Magistral Hebraica (4) 23.04.2009
cramping pawns on c4 and b4, not to mention [Nigel Davies]
the raking black bishops. 25.f1 c8 26.d1
f5 27.e1 c3 28.e2 fxe4 29.xe4 xe4 1.f3 f5 2.d3 d6
30.xe4 g6 Black played a very good [ If Black intends to put his knight on c6 then
game! usually he does it now. The advantage in
0-1 playing 2...c6 is that Black does not need
to play ...d7-d6 in order to prepare ...e7-e5. ]
3.e4 c6
179 A04 [ A n d h e r e B l a c k u s u a l l y p l a y s 3...e5
Datu,Idelfonso 2335 without first bringing his knight to c6. ]
Watson,John L 2365 4.exf5 White tries to expose the drawbacks in
Saitek US Masters (5) 1998 Black's unusual move order.
[Neil McDonald] [ 4.c3 e5 would transpose into normal
lines, but perhaps Black would have tried 4...
1.e4 e6 2.d3 c5 3.f3 c6 4.g3 g6 Nf6!?. ]
5.g2 g7 6.0-0 ge7 7.c3 0-0 8.d4 4...xf5 5.d4 e5 I couldn't find any other
cxd4 9.cxd4 d5 10.e5 f5! games in this line which is quite strange given
[ Instead 10...f6!? 11.e1 f5 12.c3 d7 the fact that both players have played fairly
13.g4 draw agreed was Glek-Sakaev, St. natural looking moves. 6.b5 exd4 7.xd4
Petersburg 1998, while with a slight [ Perhaps White should try delaying this
transposition ] move with 7.0-0!? when f6 8.e1+ e7
[ 10...b6 11.a3 f6 12.e1 d7 13.b1 9.xd4 d7 10.xc6 bxc6 11.e2
ac8 14.f4 fxe5 15.dxe5 xf4!? 16.gxf4 prevents Black from castling. ]
b4 led to a wild struggle which Black won 7...d7 8.0-0 xd4 9.xd7+ Greenfeld is
in the rapidplay game Bologan-Ivanchuk, playing for a slight, risk free space advantage.
Moscow 1996. Since Black is also fine in [ Here too White had an interesting
th e p re se n t ga m e, we h a ve t o give t h e alternative in 9.e1+!? a f t e r wh i c h e7
thumbs down to W hite's plan of seizing 10.xd4 f6 11.c4!? would temporarily
space with d4 and e5. ] stop Black from castling. ]

166
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
9...xd7 10.xd4 f6 11.c4 e7 12.c3
0-0 13.b3 White is slightly better here
because of his extra space and better bishop.
But with the position becoming simplified it
will prove difficult to win. f7 14.b2 g4
15.xg4 xg4 16.d5 f6 17.xf6+ xf6
18.fe1 This endgame is also better for White
what with the asymmetrical pawn structure
and a bishop against a knight. f8 19.f3 e8
20.f1 g6 21.xe8+ xe8 22.e1+ d7
23.b4?! This looks like the wrong plan.
[ White should be looking to advance his
kingside pawns with the support of his king
and to this end 23.f2 looks like the right
move. I think Black has some problems
here. ]
23...e8 24.d1 f5 25.f2 b6 26.e3 a6
27.g4 f7 28.c5 bxc5 29.bxc5 c6
30.cxd6 xd6 31.d4 e7+ 32.d3 b5
33.c1+ b7 34.c5 e6 35.f4 c8 36.a4
d6 37.d4 d7 38.h4 e4 39.f1 e6
40.d1 d7 41.f1 e6
½-½
181 A04
Halkias,Stelios 2533
Grunberg,Mihai 2403
Open Olomouc CZE (9) 12.07.2004 14.fxe3 h4+ 15.e2 0-0-0 A curious
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f5 2.d3 d6 3.e4 e5 4.c3 f6
[ 4...c6 has suffered recently, see Carlsen,
M-Dolmatov,S, for example. ]
5.exf5 xf5 6.d4 bd7! I think this is best,
defending e5.
[ 6...e4 7.h4 d7 8.e2 e7 ( 8...c6!? h5?!
9.d5 xd5 10.h5+ g6 11.xg6 f6
12.h4 looks good for W hite) 9.xe4 17.a5 d7 18.a6 xg4 The pin avoids mate,
wi n s a p a w n f o r s o m e c o m p e n s a t i o n , but Black finds himself in a worse ending.
Benjamin,J-Gurevich,D/St Martin 1992. ]
7.c4 White will try to control the a2-g8 h1?
diagonal to stop Black from castling.
[ 7.e2 is less ambitious, e7 8.0-0 0-0
9.dxe5 xe5 and Black is OK, Renet,O-
Koch, J/Strasbourg 1992. ]
[ 7.dxe5 dxe5 gives Black an isolated king's
pawn, but allows his dark-squared bishop
to develop to an active square. ]
7...g4!? A new idea, but can it be right to use
another developing move to move a piece that 22.xh1 gxh1 23.xh1 c5?! 24.b5
is already developed?
[ 7...e4?! is a mistake, 8.g5 e7 9.f7+
d8 Speelman,J-Bartel,M/playchess.com
I NT 2 0 0 4 , a n d n o w 10.d5! looks very
strong, xd5 11.xd5 winning a pawn after
g6 12.xb7 ]
[ 7...b6!? is interesting, 8.b3 and now, as
the bishop cannot return to e2 e4 9.h4
( 9.g5 d5 ) 9...g4 looks reasonable. ]
8.e3!? e4 Critical, but
[ 8...c6 9.e2 e4 is also worth
consideration. ]
9.h3 exf3 Black has a wide choice here:
[ 9...b6 10.b3 h5 11.g4 g6 12.h4
or ]
[ 9...h5 10.g4 exf3 11.gxh5 c6 12.xf3
d5 which both seem reasonable. ]
10.hxg4 fxg2 11.g1 Once White recaptures
on g2 his bishop pair will give him an edge.
b6 12.d3 fd5 Black aims for opposite-
colour bishops. 13.f3?! I am not at all sure
about this,
[ 13.xd5 xd5 14.d2 keeps the bishops,
and a clear edge. ]
13...xe3
[ 13...xc3 14.bxc3 d5 seems like a good
solution to Black's problems, 15.xg2 d6
followed by long castles. ]
position, the white king is stuck in the centre,
but it is well protected by the white centre.
[ 15...d5!? 16.xd5 xd5 17.xd5 xg4+
18.d2 c6 19.xg2 looks a bit better for
White, but the opposite-colour bishops make
a draw likely. ]
16.a4! Menacing to push the a-pawn to a6.
[ 16...d7 is more circumspect, 17.a5 a6 ]
19.axb7+ b8 20.xg4 hxg4 21.e4
An appalling move, allowing White to
keep the monster on b7.
[ 21...b6! threatens to play ...d5 and take
the b-pawn, 22.xa7!? ( 22.a5 ) 22...d5
( 22...xa7? 23.a1+ a4 24.xa4+ b6
25.xg2 is excellent for W hite) 23.a8+
xa8 24.bxa8+ xa8 25.xd5 b8
26.xg2 White is on top, but Black also has
his chances. ]
167
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Winning a7 when Black will do well to avoid 23.h3 g6 24.ad1 c5 25.d4 e5
being mated! 26.fd1 f3 27.1d2
1-0 [ 27.f7 might have been better intending
f6 28.d5 . ]
27...c6 28.d5 xd5 29.xd5 xd5
182 A04 30.xd5 e8 31.e3 e5 32.g3 f6
Janssen,Ruud 2503 33.c8+ f8 34.g4 c5 35.d5 c3
Wiersma,Eelke 2419 36.f5 xf5 37.xf5 xe3 38.f8+ h7
TCh-NED 2008-9 (2) 01.11.2008 39.f5+ h8 40.c8+ h7 41.f5+ h8
[Nigel Davies] 42.f8+ h7 43.f5+
½-½
1.f3 f5 2.d3 d6 3.e4 e5 4.c3 f6
5.exf5 xf5 6.d4 bd7 Supposedly a solid
line for Black but W hite's reply sets some 183 A04
interesting new challenges. Lalic,Bogdan 2489
[ 6...e4 is examined in the game Rendle,Thomas 2389
Carlhammar - Marin. ] Bunratty Masters (6) 09.02.2014
7.g5!? An interesting new try, aiming at [Lalic, Bogdan]
queenside castling.
[ For 7.c4 see Halkias, S (2533)-Grunberg, 1.f3 f5 2.d3 d6 3.e4 e5 4.c3 c5
M (2403)/Olomouc CZE 2004 which was Black stops White opening the position with
presented early by Tony Kosten. ] d4.
7...e7 8.dxe5 xe5 [ 4...c6 5.exf5 xf5 6.d4!? exd4 7.xd4
[ After 8...dxe5 W h i t e c a n p l a y 9.e2 xd4 8.xd4 f6 9.c4 c6 10.g5
threatening e5 and preparing to castle long, (seen in this month's update) b5 11.b3
for example g4!? 10.d2!? c5 11.0-0-0! e7+ 12.f1 ]
xf2 12.g5 c8 13.xd7! xd7 5.g3 c6
14.xe5 e6 ( 14...d6 15.b5 [ 5...e7 6.h3! fxe4 ( 6...g6 7.exf5 h5!?
leaves Black with no good square for his was Bellin, R-W illiams, S, see the PGN
queen ) 15.b5+ c6 16.xc5 xh1 Archive. ) 7.xc8 xc8 8.dxe4 f6 9.g5
17.b5 cxb5 18.xb5+ followed by mate. Fre ssin e t , L (2 6 9 3 )-V a isse r, A (2 5 4 8 )/
Not all of this is f orced of course but it Haguenau 2013, 1/2-1/2 (69). ]
does look very promising for White. ] 6.h4! fxe4
9.xe5 dxe5 10.f3 xc2 11.xb7?! [ 6...d4? 7.d5! Le Roux, J (2571)-
Not the best. Rendle, T (2384)/England 2013, 1-0 (18). ]
[ White should first play 11.c1 , for example [ 6...f4 7.g2 f6 8.gxf4 Flores, D (2514)-
g6 ( 11...e4 12.e3 d3 13.xf6 xf6 Ravi, L (2390)/Andorra 2006, 0-1 (26). ]
14.xe4 xe4 15.xe4+ forces either the 7.dxe4 f6 8.c4 g4 9.f3 h3 10.g5
wi n o f a p a wn o r f8 ) 12.xb7 0-0 The position already looks unpleasant for
13.c4+ h8 14.0-0 h6 15.xf6 xf6 Black, whose light squares are weak. d7?N
16.b3 and Black's pair of bishops does not [ 10...e7 11.f5 ( 11.d5?! xd5
fully compensate him for his ragged pawn 12.xd5 f8 13.xe7 xe7
structure. ] solves Black's problems, 14.b5 c7
11...0-0 12.c4+ h8 13.0-0 b8 14.xa7 15.0-0-0 0-0-0 16.xc6 bxc6 ) 11...xf5
xb2 Now Black's active pieces give him 12.exf5 d4 13.xf6 xf6 14.d5
excellent counterplay. 15.d1 b4 16.e3 ( 14.e6?! g6 Mozharov, M (2424)-Potapov,
a4 P (2386)/ Sibenik 2007, 1-0 (54).) 14...xf5
[ There was a good case for the immediate 15.f4 d7 16.g4 g6 17.0-0-0 ]
16...h6 . ] 11.xf6
17.b7 e4 18.b5 a8 19.xe5 d6 [ 11.g4!? d4 12.xf6 gxf6 13.d5 ]
20.e6 a5 21.h4 h6 22.xf6 xf6 11...gxf6 12.d5 g7 13.f4!? g4?

168
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 13...0-0-0 14.f5 b8 15.g4! weak Bh3. ] 184 A04

[ 13...exf4 14.gxf4 ( 14.h5+?! d8! Lazzaro,Mark
weak Qh5.; 14.xf4 0-0-0 15.xh3 xh3 Barletta,Antonio
16.h5 e5 17.d5 ) 14...0-0-0 15.d3 Estensi Open, 2001 2001
e6 16.0-0-0 h6 ] [Paul Motwani]
14.e2 Obviously the exchange of light
square bishops favours White. xe2 15.xe2 W48: "Qh5+: rarely subtle, but almost always
d4? strong!" 1.f3 e6 2.g3 b6 3.g2 b7
[ 15...0-0-0 ] 4.0-0 f5 5.d3 f6 6.bd2 e7 7.e4!
16.h5+ f7 An excellent exhibition of energy emanating
[ 16...d8 17.c1 ( 17.0-0-0 a4; 17.0-0 f ro m t h e e -p a wn ! fxe4 8.dxe4 xe4?
xc2 18.fxe5 dxe5 ) 17...exf4 18.c3 e6 Black should have been more suspicious than
19.gxf4 ] that about quickly accepting White's 'gift', and
17.xf7+? now he will have to pay a very high price...
[ T h e s im p l e 17.c7+ e7 18.xf7+ 9.e5! Suddenly Black is in deadly double
xf7 19.xa8 w i n s e a s i l y , a s xa8 trouble, f acing threats at e4 and h5. d6
( 19...xc2+ 20.d2 xa1 21.c7+- ) 10.xb7 xb7 11.h5+ Ouch! g6
20.0-0-0+- ] [ In the actual game, Black prefers to reach
17...xf7 18.0-0-0 exf4 19.gxf4 ae8 a slightly more respectable move-count
[ 19...h6 20.c3 e2+ 21.c2 xf4 in st e a d o f le t t in g th in gs b e t e rm in a t e d
22.f5 xd5 23.xh6+ g6 24.f5 immediately by 11...f8 12.f7# ]
f4 25.hg1+ h5 26.xd6 hg8 12.xg6 hxg6 13.xh8+ f8 14.e4 e7
27.g7+ h4 28.xf6+- ] 15.f6+ d8 16.h6 But now it really is time
20.he1 to 'call it a day'!
[ 20.c3!? e2+ 21.c2 xe4 22.f5 f8 1-0
23.d3 e6 24.fe3 traps the knight,
xf4+ 25.xf4 e5 26.c4+- ]
20...hg8 21.c3 e6 22.f5 White has 185 A04
achieved a clear positional advantage with Leko,Peter 2725
strong knights on advanced light squares, FRITZ on Primergy K800
while Black has a poor dark square bishop. FSC Computer Match (8) 18.06.2000
f8 23.d3! [Neil McDonald]
[ 23.e5?! fxe5 24.fxe5 dxe5 25.f1 f4
26.xf4 exf4 27.xf4 e6 ] 1.e4 c5 2.f3 e6 3.d3 c6 4.g3 g6
23...g4 24.g3 xg3 5.g2 g7 6.0-0 ge7 7.e1 d6 8.c3 e5
[ 24...xf4 25.xf4 xf4 26.c4+- ] 9.a3 0-0 10.b4 h6 The computer adopts the
25.hxg3 c4? routine plan of ...h6 and ...Be6, but Leko's
[ 25...h5 ] subtle play seems to render this dubious. In
26.h1+- c5 Ansell-Nunn, Black preferred the less
[ 26...g6 27.xh7! xh7 28.xf6+ g6 committal
29.xe8 d5 30.fd6+- ] [ 10...a6 ]
27.xh7+ g6 28.c7! xe4 29.g4 11.bd2 e6 12.c4! b5 The positi on is
The black king is in a mating net, the crying out for the advance f7-f5 which is the
immediate threat is Nde3, Nh4+ and Nef5 logical culmination of Black's play so far.
mate. b5 30.xa7 e6 31.c7 However, W hite then appears to gain the
1-0 advantage, for example
[ 12...f5 13.exf5 gxf5 14.bxc5 xc4
15.cxd6! xd6 16.dxc4 xd1 ( A better try
is 16...f6!? ) 17.xd1 e4 18.d4
an d it is d if f icu lt t o see h o w B la ck c a n
regain his pawn, e.g. xd4 19.cxd4 fd8

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
20.b1 xd4 21.xh6 ]
13.e3 a5
[ Here also 13...f5 should be seriously
considered. ]
14.bxc5 dxc5 15.c4! b4 16.d5
A nice position to have against a computer.
White can quietly manoeuvre and prepare the
f4 advance at his leisure. d6 17.b2 fb8
18.a4 g4 19.h3 e6 The white knight will
be an excellent blockader on b3, so
[ 19...xf3 20.xf3 d4 was more logical.
Of course, Fritz cannot comprehend the
superiority of the knight to the bishop. ]
20.d2 d4 21.xd4 Of course the human
player doesn't hesitate to exchange a bishop
for a knight in such a position! cxd4 22.b3
a7 23.d2 h7 24.e2 c8 Fritz cannot
f in d a p la n . 25.f4 At last it is the moment to
strike. c6?! 26.f5! gxf5 27.exf5 xd5
28.xd5 f6 29.f2 f8 30.g2
W h it e ' s p l a n i s t o a d va n c e t h e ki n g si d e
pawns. b6 31.e4 d7 32.e1 c5
33.a2 g8 34.f3 d6 35.h4 c7
36.h3 h7 37.xc5! White relinquishes
his blockade on the queenside as he judges
that his kingside attack will become decisive
before Black can utilise his passed b pawn.
This was a brave decision which shows the
excellence of human intuition. After all, this
was a 25 minute game and deep calculation
was not possible. xc5 38.g4 b3 39.g2
h8 40.g5 d6 41.g4 d7 42.h5 f8
43.g3 d6 44.eg1 b2 45.c5!
White deflects the black rook from the second
ra n k wh i c h m a ke s p o ssib le t h e d e cisive
combination. xc5 46.gxh6 xh6 47.g6!
The winning breakthrough comes just in time.
xg6 48.fxg6 g7 49.gxf7+
Leko succeeded in completely outwitting the
com put er in the st ra tegica l stru ggle t ha t
preceded the violent denouement.
1-0
186 A04
Malakhov,Vladimir 2709
Andreikin,Dmitry 2723
Siberian Bank Cup (8) 18.11.2012
[John Bartholomew]
Rapid chess is prime proving ground for lines
like 1.Nf3 b5!?. The b-pawn spike is given the
occasional punt by strong players and in fact
seems quite playable at master level. 1.f3
b5!? 2.e4 The supposed antidote to Black's
first move. White will not hesitate to exchange
e-pawn for b-pawn.
[ The most popular reply is 2.g3 , but Black
scores well in the "extended fianchetto" after
b7 3.g2 , where lots of approaches are
viable (3...Nf6, 3...e6, 3...c5, 3...g6, etc.). ]
2...b7 3.xb5 xe4 4.0-0 f6
[ 4...c6!? 5.c3 xf3 6.xf3 f6 7.d4 d5
is a similar co ncep t t o t he ga me . A f t e r
8.d3?! ( 8.e2! e6 9.g3 g6 10.f4 )
8...e6 9.h3 bd7 10.f4?! g6 11.xg6
(sort of desperate-looking, but White was
not looking forward to facing a wall of pawns
in the middlegame) fxg6 12.xe6+ e7
13.f5 g7 14.g5 gxf5 15.xc6 0-0
Black's unorthodox opening strategy had
succeeded in Cordova, E (2566)-Pardo
Simon, D (2421) Montcada 2012, and he
went on to win. ]
5.e1
[ Critical is 5.d4 e6 6.c4 e7 7.c3 b7
( 7...xf3?! makes less sense here, e.g.
8.xf3 c6 9.a4 0-0 10.f4 d5 11.c5 )
8.d5! , as played by Vladimir Kramnik. The
d5-pawn is a serious hindrance to Black's
development, and W hite dominates the
center (despite having one less central
pawn). After 0-0 9.f4 a6 ( 9...d6!?
Velikanov, I (2273)-Gubanov, O (2326)
Kolo mna 201 2 10.xd6 cxd6 11.d4;
9...e8 10.e1 f8 Mackle, D (2065)-Arkell,
K (2 4 09 ) P aign t on 2 0 1 1 11.g5!? c6
12.a4! cxd5 13.cxd5; Houdini's
suggestion of 9...a5!? followed by 10...Na6
is intriguing) 10.e1 c8 11.d4 b4
12.g5 e8? ( 12...e7 13.e4 )
13.e3 Black was struggling in Kramnik, V
(2791)-Carlsen, M (2823) Moscow 2011.
( 13.a4! is e ve n st r o n ge r, e . g . xc3
14.xd7 c5 15.xc8 xa4 16.xb7
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

b8 17.bxc3 xb7 18.e7 )] 187 A04

5...e6 6.d4 e7 7.d3?! Malisov,Boris 2320
[ It wasn't too late for 7.c4 . Play could Psakhis,Lev 2599
transpose to 5.d4 after 0-0 8.c3 b7 Israeli League (5) 10.03.2000
9.d5! . ] [Neil McDonald]
7...xf3! A strong and unexpected positional
decision. 8.xf3 d5 Good fundamentals: 1.e4 e6 2.d3 c5 3.f3 c6 4.g3 ge7
Black exchanges his light-square bishop, then 5.g2 g6 6.0-0 g7 7.bd2 0-0 8.e1
immediately goes about arranging his pawns d6! Not allowing 9 e5. 9.a4 b6 10.c4 h6
on light squares, thereby restricting his White 11.c3 e5! As always in this line, Black must
counterpart. 9.d2 0-0 10.b3 c6 11.d2 respond to any threat to gain space with d4
a5! Black has absolutely no problems. The by moving his e pawn a second time. 12.b1
advantage of the bishop pair often hinges a6! This is the third accurate pawn move from
upon the possibility of pawn breaks, and here Black which I have awarded an exclamation
White has none. With no meaningful way to ma rk f or em ph asis. Here h e pre pa re s t o
alter the structure and open the position, I neutralise White's plan of expansion on the
d o n ' t t h in k W h it e c a n p o s s ib l y c la i m a n q u e e n s i d e . 13.b4 cxb4 14.cxb4 b5
advantage (though the computer does just 15.axb5 axb5 16.a3 b8 17.d4?
that!). 12.a4 After his lacklustre opening White suddenly
[ 12.c4?! dxc4 13.xc4 a4 14.c1 gets ambitious, but this simply drops a pawn.
xd4 ] Instead
12...bd7 13.g3 g6 Andreikin furthers the [ Black would be slightly better after 17.e3
strategy he undertook on move seven. 14.h6 f5 or ]
[ 14.c4?! is still bad in view of b6 . ] [ 17.c2 d5 ]
14...e8 15.d2 b8 16.xb8 Uninspired, 17...exd4 18.c2 d5! 19.fxd4 xd4
but there wasn't much else. exb8 17.b3 20.xd4 dxe4 21.b2 White cannot regain
c5 18.dxc5 xc5 19.xc5 xc5 20.f4?! his pawn as if
[ 20.c1! ought to keep things level. ] [ 21.xe4 f5 wins. ]
20...g4! 21.e2 xb2 22.h3 b4 23.d2 21...f5 22.f1 d5 Now Psakhis gradually
f6! 24.xb4 xb4 Black's structure is wears down W hite's defensive resources.
perfect, and his compensation is obvious. His 23.c2 xb2 24.xb2 e5 25.d4 c6
position is easier to play - especially in a rapid 26.xe5 xe5 27.d1 e6 28.a3 c4
game. 25.c4?! d4 26.d1 c8 27.g4 d7 29.xc4 bxc4 30.b5 d3 31.c2 fc8
28.f4 c5 29.f5? 32.g2 f7 33.b6 e6 34.b7 xb7 35.f3
[ It wasn't pretty, but 29.a2 offered far cc7 36.a2 d5 37.fxe4+ fxe4 38.h3
better chances to defend. xd3 30.xd3 d4 39.g2 e7 40.da1 b2
xc4 ] 0-1
29...exf5 30.gxf5 xa4 31.fxg6 hxg6
32.e5?? Blundering in a dismal position.
b2 White resigned. Andreikin's conception 188 A04
with 7...Bxf3! is straightforward and convincing. Miles,Anthony J
White needs to play accurately even against a Andersson,Ulf
line like 1...b5 thus, you should follow Las Palmas 1980
Kramnik's example with 5.d4 e6 6.c4 Be7 7. [Tony Kosten]
Nc3 Bb7 8. d5!.
0-1 Rare are the players who could so
comprehensively outplay Ulf Andersson, one
of the strongest positional players of all time.
1.g3 c5 2.g2 c6 3.f3 g6 4.c3!?
An interesting idea, White wants to transpose
into a KID formation. g7 5.d4 cxd4 6.cxd4

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

d5 7.c3 e6!? d o m i n a t i o n ! be7 34.f1! There is no

[ N o r m a l w o u l d n o w b e 7...f6 defence to Bd3xg6.
when a symmetric King's Indian is reached, 1-0
with a small plus for White, but Black prefers
to avoid this by keeping a hold on e5. ]
8.f4 ge7 9.d2! White defers castling, 189 A04
and instead aims to exchange Black's one Morozevich,Alexander 2742
active bishop. 0-0 10.h6 xh6 11.xh6 McDonald,Neil R 2398
f5 Forcing the queen to return. 12.d2 b6 4NCL Birmingham ENG (10) 05.05.2002
The black bishop will come to the active f1-a6 [Neil McDonald]
diagonal, when a rook can occupy the c-file
and his development will be complete. 1.e4 e6 2.d3 c5 3.f3 c6 4.g3 ge7
13.d1! White carefully overprotects the d4- 5.g2 g6 6.0-0 g7 7.c3 0-0
pawn, and guards against any central [ An alternative method was to prevent
counterplay by ...e5. a6 14.h4! The reason White's next move with 7...e5 when if 8.e3
behind White's delayed castling is revealed, d6 9.d4? exd4! 10.cxd4 g4 is awkward
he wants to open the h-file and attack the for White. ]
black king. a5? A mistake. Black is relying [ Also 7...d5 was an option. ]
on a tactical operation involving this piece, but 8.d4 cxd4
the loose bishop on a6 is a problem. 15.g4! [ I n t e r e s t i n g i s I v a n c h u k ' s i d e a 8...d5!?
d6 By delaying the exchange on d4 he doesn't
[ A f t e r B l a c k ' s p r o j e c t e d 15...c4!? give White the chance to go Nc3. Then 9.e5
M i l e s i n t e n d e d 16.d3?! ( Although ( I assume that if 9.exd5 xd5 10.dxc5
16.c1! followed by b3, and h5 seems e7 regains the pawn with a good position
somewhat simpler, and good f or W hite) f o r B l a c k .) 9...b6 10.a3 cxd4!
16...ce3 17.xa6 xg2+ 18.f1 fxh4 Only now when White's knight cannot go to
19.h2 when the knights are a bit tangled, c3. 11.cxd4 f6 12.e1 d7 13.b1 ac8
but f5! 20.g1 f4 favours Black. ] 14.f4 fxe5 15.dxe5 xf4! A splendid
16.h5 f6 At first sight Black seems OK here. exchange sacrifice to free Black's game.
17.hxg6 fxg6 16.gxf4 b4 17.b3 f8 18.bc1 xb3
[ A n t i - p o s i t i o n a l , b u t f o r c e d : 17...hxg6? 19.axb3 xf4 20.c2 f5 21.e2 h6
18.g5 g7 ( or if 18...e7 19.f4 22.ce1 g5 23.d3 e4 24.ee1 g4
intends Qh2, g7 20.e5+ f6 21.gxf6+ 25.d2 d4 26.c5 xd2 27.xd7 fd4
xf6 22.xd5! wins ) 19.f4 and Ne5-g4-f6 28.c5 xe5 and Black won after a hard
is catastrophic. ] struggle in Bologan,V-Ivanchuk,V/Moscow
18.h6 f7 19.g5 Black's kingside dark 1996. ]
squares are horribly weak. g7 20.e5 9.cxd4 d5 10.e5 f5 11.c3 f6
xh6 21.xh6 ff8 [ Black emerged with equality after 11...b6
[ 21...e7? 22.xd5 exd5 23.xd5+ 12.a4 c7 13.f4 b5 14.c3 b6
wins the a8-rook. ] 15.e2 f6 16.c1 cxd4 17.fxd4 xd4
22.d7 f7 23.f6+ h8 24.h3 c8 18.xd4 fxe5 19.xc8 axc8 20.xe6
[ P a s s i v e , b u t 24...f5 25.xf5 gxf5 exf4 21.xf8 xf8 22.xd5+ h8
26.d2! and Rdh1 wins quickly. ] in Datu, I-Watson,J/Hawaii 1998. ]
25.d2 g7 26.f4 b8 Black is reduced to 12.e1 fxe5?!
complete passivity. 27.h1 ac4+ 28.d3 [ Black broke free after 12...h8!? 13.h4
bb7 d7 14.f4 fxe5 15.dxe5 xh4! 16.xh4
[ T h e b - p a wn wa s p o i s o n e d : 28...xb2+ g5 17.g4 gxh4 in Van der Weide,K-Glek,I/
29.c2 bc4 30.xe6! xe6 31.xh7+ Germany 1998. ]
mates. ] 13.dxe5 h6
29.b3 a3 30.e4! dxe4+ 31.cxe4 xe4 [ Here 13...h8 14.f4 d7 as in the Glek
32.xe4 b5 33.e5 Total dark-squared game of the previous note, is less effective

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

for Black because he has already crushing position. ]

exchanged pawns on e5. If he still had a 24.xd4 d5 25.xf5 gxf5!? If
pawn on f6, then White would have to worry [ 25...xf5 26.f4 Black's problem is that
about g6-g5 chasing his bishop back. Here, while one of his bishops is great on d5, the
however, he has no need to worry about g6- other one is shut in on g7. Meanwhile White
g5 unless Black plays h7-h6. I tried this has the c file for counterplay. ]
move straightaway and the response was 26.h2
predictable. ] [ If 26.xh6 d7!? leaves the knight
14.h4! An important move to prevent Black stranded on h6. ]
from gaining counterplay with g6-g5. W hite 26...b6 27.f4 b7 28.f1 d7 29.c2
therefore safely maintains the pawn on e5. e8 30.e2 a8 31.c3 c8 32.ec1
Black is solid and has no real weaknesses xc3 33.xc3 d8 34.c1 d3 35.e3
and can develop all his pieces, but he d2 36.c4 e8? The losing blunder in time
remains somewhat boxed in. d7 15.f4 trouble. Instead
e8 16.d2 c8 17.ac1 c7 18.h2 [ 36...d7 keeps the advantage. ]
cf7 19.g4 h7 If 37.xf5! Uncovering an attack on Black's
[ 19...xh4 trying to undermine the bishop rook. d5 There's nothing to be done as if
o n f 4 t h e n 20.xh6!? looks very strong for [ 37...h5 38.h4 ]
White. ] 38.f1?
20.b3? A surprising oversight. [ Much simpler was 38.xg7 xg7 39.c7+
[ 20.e2! leaves Black bottled up: he cannot White was also in bad time pressure. ]
break through on the f file or play g6-g5, so 38...exf5 39.xd2 h5 40.f3 xf3 41.f4
all he can do is wait and see if W hite can e4 42.c7 h1+ 43.f2 h2+ 44.e3
strengthen his position. ] xa2 45.d1! The killer move, defending b3
20...xh4! I half expected that there was a and threatening 46.e6. a5 46.e6 g6
trap waiting for me when I played this, but 47.e7 b5 48.c8!
when Morozevich slumped into a long think I 1-0
s t a r t e d t o t h i n k t h a t I m ig h t b e win n in g !
21.e2
[ If 21.xh6 xf4! 22.gxf4 xh6 190 A04
wins. The key variation is ] Petkov,Vladimir 2570
[ 21.xh6 xf2! 22.xf2 ( or here 22.e2? Gretarsson,Hjorvar Steinn 2511
xg2+! 23.xg2 f3+ ) 22...xh6 ETCC (Open) Warsaw POL (7.51) 15.11.2013
when Black will regain all his material with [Fier, Alexandr]
a couple of pawns as a bonus by taking on
g2 and c1. ] 4.c3 is a good way to avoid the Symmetrical
21...f5 22.e3 A good defensive move English, Black can transpose to the
l o o k i n g f o r c o u n t e r p l a y w i t h N f 4 . d4!? Fianchetto Grünfeld, but it's not to everyone's
Objectively the best move though it lets White taste. In this game Black tried an ambitious
complicate the position. Perhaps safest was app ro ach an d th e posit io n so on b ec am e
to grab another pawn with chaotic where Gretarsson lost track in a better
[ 22...xe3 23.xe3 h5 24.f6+ xf6 position. 1.f3 c5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6
25.exf6 xf6 ] 4.c3 e5 The most ambitious way, trying to
23.xc6 xc6? An automatic recapture but punish the lack of white pawns in the center
much stronger was [ 4...g7 is supposed to transpose to the
[ 23...bxc6! After the game Morozevich Fianchetto Grünfeld 5.d4 cxd4 6.cxd4 d5
s h o w e d m e t h e v a r i a t i o n 24.xd4 ( 6...b6 7.e3 is also possible )]
( 24.xd4 d7 i s s i m i l a r .) 24...d7 5.d4 cxd4 6.cxd4 e4 7.e5 d5 Here White
25.ed1 h5 26.e3 xd4 27.xd4 xe5 has tried several different moves and it's not
28.xe6 ( 28.ec2 c5 ) 28...xd2 29.xd8 clear if any one is better than the others. 8.0-0
fxf2 when Black is a pawn up with a [ 8.c3 e6 9.0-0 g7 10.xc6 bxc6

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11.b3 trying to use the c5 square with Na4
and Ba3 was the choice of the World Cup
finalist in Andreikin, D (2700)-Kotsur, P
(2548)/Wch Blitz Astana blitz 2012. ]
[ 8.a4 is another idea, to lure Black's
queen to the defence of c6, g7 9.xc6
d7 10.c3 bxc6 11.b3 ( 11.h3 f5
12.f4 was draw in a complex position in
Georgiev, K (2671)-Ivanisevic, I (2645)/
Skopje Karposh op 2012.) 11...e7 12.a3
with a different version of the 8.Nc3 line. ]
8...g7 9.xc6 bxc6 10.d2 This idea
seems a bit strange to me. I don't know if the
knight is better on b3, compared to a4, and
the bishop is now going to the kingside. Still,
it's kind of provocative, since the d4-pawn is
now hanging.
[ 10.c3 was still possible and probably
transposed to 8.Nc3. ]
10...h5!? With the exchange of the knights
White's kingside is not so well defended. And
it's possible to start an attack without
hesitation.
[ 10...xd4 was playable, but with the king in
the center, W hite can try to make a quick
attack: 11.a4 b6 12.xe4! using the
fact that Black's position is not so stable,
dxe4 ( 12...e7 is more prudent, but
White's position has improved without the
central pawns. 13.b3 g7 14.g2 0-0
with a double-edged position. White will play
e4 at some point and try to take advantage
of the better structure, on the other hand
Black will have active pieces.) 13.c4 c5
14.f4 and all the white pieces have a a
huge potential - the rooks are going to the
open files and the d6-square is going to be
used by the knight, f6 15.d6+ f8
16.ac1 d5 17.fd1 c5 18.xc8
and W hite recovers the piece with
advantage. ]
[ 10...e7 followed by 11...0-0 would be
normal. ]
11.a4 e7 12.b3 White continues his
counterplay on the queenside without
worrying about the attack on the other flank.
Soon the position will be really dangerous for
both players. h4 13.g5 Coming for the c6-
pawn, now Black needs to make a highly
c o m m i t t a l m o v e . f6!? 14.f4 h6
This move is quite logical because the bishop
on f4 is much better than the bishop on g7.
W ith only the queen and knight on the
queenside it's not clear that anything will
happen. 15.xh6 xh6 16.f3?!
A brave move, but not the best. Now the
position enters such a level of complications
that it's hard to make, and even to know the
best moves.
[ 16.ac1 would be the natural idea and
Black will continue his attack, obtaining a
complex middlegame with an exchange for
some pawns, f7 17.c3 h8 18.xc6!
not losing time, 18...hxg3 and 19...Bh3
would be dangerous, d7 19.xf6+ xf6
20.xd7 f5 21.d6 and now
A) 21...ah8 amazingly in this position
B l a c k i s u n d e r a t t a c k ! 22.g4! f6
( 22...xg4 23.f3 and White opens the file,
just winning, exf3 24.xf3+ e8 25.e3
6h7 26.h3 d7 27.f6
with a dominating position) 23.xf6+ xf6
24.f3 e3 25.f4 6h7 26.c1
with advantage.;
B) 21...c8 22.c5 and White's position
is slightly preferable. ]
16...hxg3 17.fxe4 This is the idea.
[ 17.hxg3 d6 18.f4 e6 and with ...Qg4
and ...Nf5 Black will be just winning. ]
17...xh2
[ 17...d6 was crit ica l 18.c5 ( 18.exd5
h3 without the bishops the position
becomes much more dangerous for White
19.xh3 xh3 20.f3 gxh2+ 21.h1 xf3
22.exf3 xd5 and Black has the better
queen and safer king) 18...h3 19.xh3
xh3 20.f3 xh2 and White needs to be
really careful to not get mated. ]
18.c5
[ 18.f3!? activating the rooks immediately is
also interesting, h3 ( 18...d6 19.af1
and there is no good way to def end f 6 ,
xg2+ 20.xg2 e6 21.h1 and White
can start to attack now.) 19.xg3 xg2+
20.xg2 xg2 21.xg2 dxe4 22.h1
with compensation for the pawn. ]
18...d6 19.exd5 xd5
[ 19...b8 is the computer move, as usual
not easy for humans to find, 20.ab1 b5
with the idea of taking on c5 ]
20.b3
[ 20.e4! it's important for White to take the
174
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

g3-pawn, e6 21.xg3 h4 22.e4 f4 somehow ]

and both kings are in danger. I think the 35.h2 f3 36.exf3 f4 And suddenly Black
position has a dynamic equilibrium. ] is now lost.
20...f5 Avoiding Ne4. [ 36...f5 was necessary and after 37.f2
[ 20...h3 was once more the option and W hite coordinates the pieces d2+
21.xh3 xh3 22.f3 c7 heading for the 38.g3 g5+= ]
h-file, probably White is forced to exchange 37.xa7+ f6 38.h7! Probably this is the
queens, 23.b7 ( 23.xf6 fails in a move Black overlooked. d3+
b e a u t i f u l w a y h1+! 24.xh1 h7+ [ 38...xf3 39.h4++- ]
25.g2 h2+ 26.f3 f2+ 27.g4 39.g1 e3+
xf6+ 28.g5 f5+ 29.h6 g2 [ 39...xd4+ White also stabilizes here,
and the pawn on g2 will make the 40.h1 e3 41.h4+ g7 42.g3+- ]
d i f f e r e n c e .) 23...xb7 24.xb7 h4 40.f2 g5+ 41.h1 f4 42.h2 xd4
25.xg3 xd4 26.xg6 f7 27.g3 d2 43.d6+ g7 44.g2 A sad end for Black,
with advantage for Black. ] no w it 's ju st o ve r. e5 45.d7+ f8
21.xd5 cxd5 22.e3+ f8 23.f3 g7 46.d8+ e8 47.d6+ g7 48.h1 f5
[ 23...g2 24.f2! ( 24.h3?? f4 wins ) 49.c7+ f6 50.h7 e3 51.f7+
24...f6 25.f4 h1 26.g1 1-0
and everything is under control. ]
24.d3 a6 25.xg3? Now White is lost.
[ 25.f4! xf4 26.xf4 ah8 27.xg3 191 A04
was possible, trying to sacrifice the Radlovacki,Jovan 2411
exchange with chances to defend. ] Micic,Cedomir 2408
25...xd3! 26.xh2 e4 In the last 3 moves It Pancevo YUG (10) 29.06.2003
the bishop went from c8 to e4 and with all the [Tony Kosten]
piec es c om in g, th e at ta ck is irresistible .
27.g1 f4?! Right idea, wrong order. 1.e4 c5 2.f3 c6 3.d3 g6 4.g3 g7
[ 27...h8 wins immediately 28.h3 f4 5.g2 e5 Heading directly for a Botvinnik
now it works better 29.c3 ( 29.a3 xa3 position. 6.0-0 ge7 7.e1 As White avoids
30.xa3 h1+ 31.f2 xa1-+ ) 29...f3 playing Nc3 this position is not a Closed
30.xh8 g3+ with mate. ] Sicilian, but a Reti, KIA. However,
28.a3 The position is really hard to defend [ 7.c3 is more normal. ]
for White, even more so in time trouble. e6 7...0-0 8.e3!? Presumably played to deter ...
29.b3 Now there is a square for the rook! d5, but this doesn't seem to fit-in with Re1. d6
g4+ 30.f2 h4+ 31.f1 h1+ 32.f2 9.bd2 This actually appears to be a novelty
h4+ 33.f1 e8 in this position,
[ 33...h8 bringing one more piece to the h- [ 9.c1 f5 10.c3 b8 was played in Stratil,
file was the best. It's also not easy to see, L-Ulibin,M/Oakham 1990, but now W hite
since the king will be in the way, 34.xa7+ made an instructive mistake: 11.h6?! f4!
A) 34...f6 this is draw, since White can 12.xg7 xg7 with advantage to Black has
e xc h a n ge t h e qu e e n s 35.b6+ g5 he has exchanged his lesser bishop, and
36.e7+ g4 37.xh4+ xh4 38.e1! can advance his kingside pawns. ]
only move g3 ( 38...h1+ 39.f2 9...b6!? Very thoughtful, as normally Black
h2+ ) 39.b3+ f3 40.g1! h2 41.exf3 brings his bishop to e6, but here he decides
g2+ 42.h1 h2+=; that a6 is the right square. 10.c3 a6 11.c2
B) 34...h6!! 35.a3 f5! 36.g1 h5 d7 12.h3 White's moves are lacking in
and the king will be safe on g4! now there purpose, why not play
is no defence for White, 37.d6 g4-+ ] [ 12.a4 and then Nc4, say? ]
34.h3 g5 12...ac8 13.ad1 h6 14.f1 d5
[ 34...g4 35.xa7+ f6 36.h2 f3 Black plays this move now that the white
37.a6+ g5 38.a3 is defending knight cannot hop to c4, but even now

175
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 14...d4 15.cxd4 cxd4 is possible. ] 12.c4+ d5 13.xd5 as the g6-bishop is

15.c1 White continues on his way, and si t t i n g i n t h e b l a c k k in g 's o n l y e s c a p e
prepares to play Ne3, but Black immediately square ) 12.g3 b6?! an inaccuracy in an
s t o p s t h a t . d4! 16.g4? Obviously White awkward position ( 12...f6 13.h3+ c7
wants to play Ng3,but he is oblivious to the 14.e6 is unclear) 13.h3+ d8?! ( better
problems he will soon have. 13...c7 although after 14.xd6+! xd6
[ I would prefer to close the position with 15.xg7+ b8 16.c1! xf2 17.e4
16.c4 ] (mate on c2 was threatened!) f7 18.xf7
16...dxc3 17.bxc3 fd8 Suddenly the d3- xf7 19.xd6 White is winning) 14.g5+
pawn is under heavy fire, and the bishop is c7 15.d5+! 1-0 Seel, C-Horstmann,O/
u n a b l e t o d e f e n d i t f r o m f 1 . 18.e3 Bad Wiessee GER 2003, as after the forced
What else? d4! 19.b1 a4!? The simple cxd5 16.c1+ Black loses his queen. ]
[ 19...e6 20.g3 f4 is better as White is 10.d2! The critical reply. d5 Black could
in big trouble. ] also consider
20.ee1?? White misses a simple tactic, [ 10...xb2!? 11.b1 xc2 12.e3+ e7
[ 20.b2 is better, although e6 21.g3 13.xb7 but White is better - Black will have
f4 is still rather good. ] problems finishing his development, and the
20...e2+! rook on b7 is annoying. ]
[ 20...e2+ White loses an exchange and 11.0-0-0 0-0-0 12.d3 Simple chess, White
pawn af ter both 21.xe2 ( and 21.h2 exchanges Black's most active piece. xd3
xc3 ) 21...xd1 ] 13.xd3 h6?? It is difficult to understand
0-1 the reasoning behind this move, why not play
the natural
[ 13...f6 when 14.f5+ d7 15.e5 e7
192 A04 is a little better for W hite, who has more
Sandner,Gunter 2311 mobility, but there is everything to play for
Rechel,Bernd 2420 still? ]
Bundesliga 2003-4 (13) 28.03.2004 14.h3+ d7 15.xd5! d8
[Tony Kosten] [ 15...cxd5 16.xd5 c6 17.hd1
wins the hapless pinned d7-rook, and forces
1.f3 f5 2.d3 This line is obviously set to a quick mate. ]
gain in popularity after last month's win by 16.xh6 cxd5
Carlsen! d6 3.e4 e5 4.c3 c6 5.exf5 [ 16...gxh6 17.f6 xf6 18.xd7+
xf5 6.d4 xd4 7.xd4 exd4 8.xd4 c6 is equally unappetising! ]
Black avoids the 17.xd5 c7
[ 8...f6 of Carlsen,M-Dolmatov,S/Moscow [ 17...gxh6 18.hd1 as before. ]
RUS 2004, which we analysed last month. ] 18.f4+
9.f4! White aims for swift queenside castling, [ 18.f4+ d6 19.xd6 xd6 20.d1
and this move certainly seems to score very is decisive. ]
well - Black hasn't yet made it to move twenty 1-0
in this line!
[ 9.d3 is less effective, xd3 10.xd3 f6
11.0-0 e7 12.e2 d5 13.d4 d7 193 A04
controlling e6, Black is doing well with his Schandorff,Lars 2501
extra central pawn, Lerner, K-Bareev,E/Kiev Bartel,Mateusz 2609
1986/URS-ch. ] 17th TCh-Eur (6) 27.10.2009
9...b6!? An attempt at improving on [Nigel Davies]
[ 9...xc2!? when 10.d2!? g6 ( maybe
10...f5!? is preferable, so that after 1.f3 f5 2.d3 g6 3.e4 d6 4.exf5 xf5
11.e1+ f7 is possible) 11.e1+ d7 5.d4 g7 6.d3 d7 7.0-0 f6
( now 11...f7?? loses immediately to [ I think this is more flexible than 7...c6

176
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

which Carsten Hansen presented in the 26.g5 f5 27.f3?

game Bindrich, F (2513)-W erle, J (2581)/ [ 27.xd5 was better. After Black's reply he
Plovdiv BUL 2008. ] loses a pawn. ]
8.xf5 27...f4 28.c4+ h8 29.e3 h6!
[ In the game Keene, R-Platzack, S/ Renewing the threat of 30...Nxh3+. 30.e5
Barcelona 1965 White played 8.c3 0-0 xh3+ 31.f1 c2 32.e2 c1+ 33.e1
9.xf5 xf5 10.d5 and now rather than 10... xe1+ 34.xe1 g5 35.e5 g7
e5 (a mistake similar to that made in the Black is a good pawn up now and handles the
game Roiz - Belyavsky in the note to White's technical phase without much difficulty. 36.d5
9th) Black should consider fd7!? . After cxd5 37.xd5 f5 38.f4 xe5 39.g4
11.d4?! xd4 12.xd4 xc2 13.h6 [ Deciding that this would give him better
f7 14.ac1 f5 White is struggling to find swindling chances than 39.xe5 but it looks
enough compensation for his pawn in view a bit desperate to me. ]
of Black's rock solid position. ] 39...xf4+ 40.xf4 xf4 41.e7 d6
8...xf5 9.c4 42.xb7 c5 43.g2 h6 44.c7 b6
[ In the game Roiz, M (2658) -Beliavsky, A 45.d7 g8 46.e7 f8 47.b7 f7
(2662)/Natanya ISR 2009 W hite played 48.g3 g7 49.f4 f6 50.d7 e6
9.c3 which also seems quite interesting. In 51.d1 c7+ 52.e4 g5+ 53.e3 e5
the game there followed d5 ( 9...c6!? 54.h1 b6+ 55.e2 f7 56.f1 e6
intending 10.d5 b4 11.d4 h5 57.h1 f6 58.f1+ g7 59.f4 e5
is interesting) 10.e2 0-0 11.c4 b6 60.d2 g5 61.e4 f6 62.e2 e6
12.b3 c6 13.e3 e5?! ( Continuing to 63.a4 d5
wait with, say, 13...ae8 would have been 0-1
better ) 14.g3 d7 15.d5 d8 16.g5
a n d n o w W h it e h a d a cl e a r a d va n t a g e
because of his grip on the e4 square. ] 194 A04
9...0-0 10.c3 bd7 11.e3 c6 12.e2 Skoberne,Jure 2492
ae8 13.ad1 d5! Good strategy, fixing the Milchev,Nikolay 2415
pawns on the opposite colour to his bishop. IX EICC Plovdiv BUL (7) 27.04.2008
14.h3 dxc4 15.xc4+ d5 16.b3 7b6 [Carsten Hansen]
17.a4 h8 18.fe1?! Missing some fine
print. 1.f3 f5 2.d3 d6 3.e4 e5 4.c3 f6
[ W hite should play the immediate 18.a5 [ 4...c6 was discussed in Carlsen-
a f t e r w h i c h xe3 ( 18...xc3 19.bxc3 Dolmatov, Moscow 2004 - see the PGN
xa5 20.a1 d5 is better with archives ]
approximate equality) 19.fxe3 xa5 20.a1 5.exf5 xf5 6.d4 e4
h5 21.xa7 is now better for White [ A) 6...bd7 7.c4 ( 7.h4 e6 8.d5 f7
because he doesn't have to worry about an 9.g3 c6 10.dxc6 bxc6 11.g2 d5 12.0-0
exchange sacrifice on f3. In the game this e7 13.f5 0-0 didn't achieve anything for
becomes a major issue. ] White in Kosten, A-Alonso Moyano, J/Pobla
18...e6 19.a5 xe3 20.xe3 d e L i l l e t 2 0 0 5) 7...g4 ( 7...e4?!
[ Perhaps it was only now that White realised is discussed in the notes to Halkias-
t h a t a f t e r 20.fxe3 xa5 21.a1 h5 Grunberg, Olomuoc 2004 in the PGN
22.xa7 xf3 23.gxf3 xf3 24.xb6 archives ) 8.e3 b6 ( 8...e4 is the topic of
g3+ 25.f1 f3+ 26.g1 Black can play Halkias-Grunberg, Olomuoc 2004, which
for more than a draw with f8! 27.e4 h6 can be f ound n the PGN archives, and;
. Because of this he has to go into a position 8...c6!? was suggested in the notes to the
in which Black has a strong bishop and the same game by our webmaster) 9.d3 e7
better pawn structure. ] 10.dxe5 dxe5 11.h3 h5 12.g4
20...xa5 21.xe6 xe6 22.xe6 f5 ( 12.e2!? e4 13.xe4 xe4 14.xe4
23.e7 f7 24.e1 g8 25.e2 d5 xe4? 15.b5++- ) 12...f7 ( 12...e4!? )

177
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
13.g5 Varga, Z-Galyas, M/Budapest
2000 ]
[ B) 6...c6 7.b5 exd4 ( 7...d7 8.e2
e7 9.dxe5 xe5 10.xe5 xe5
11.xd7+ xd7 12.e3 0-0-0 13.0-0-0
e7 14.d5 e6 15.a5 Flores, D-
Beltran, J/Balaguer ESP 2007; 7...a6
8.xc6+ bxc6 9.dxe5 dxe5 10.xd8+
xd8 11.xe5 xc2 12.0-0 Lalic, B-
Ledger, D/Hastings ENG 2005) 8.xd4 d7
9.0-0 e7 10.c4 ( 10.e1!? looks very
pleasant for Black) 10...xd4 11.xd4 c6
12.g5 d5 13.xf6 xf6 14.fe1+ f8
15.c5+ e7 16.e3 g5 ( 16...d6
17.ad1 f6 18.xd5! cxd5 19.xd5 e8
20.e4 g6 21.e2! , and W hite wins)
17.g3?! h4 18.d6+ e7 19.f4+ f6
20.ad1 ( 20.xd5!? cxd5 21.d6+ e7
22.xd5 e8 23.xb7 b8 24.xa7
is pretty disgusting for Black) 20...b8
21.f3 d6 22.e4 e7 , Cyborowski, L-
Gormally, D/Cappelle la Grande FRA 2005,
and now 23.xf6 xf6 24.b3 b8
25.a4 , and with the dual threat of Bxd5
and Qxa7, White wins material and keeps
the initiative. ]
7.h4 c8
[ Black has a number of alternatives at this
ju n c t u re : A ) 7...d7 was discussed in the
notes to Halkias-Grunberg as mentioned
above. ]
[ B) 7...g4 8.e2 xe2 9.xe2 d5
( 9...e7 10.xe4 xe4 11.xe4 0-0
12.f5 Deglmann, L-Hoennekes, K/Bad
W iessee GER 2005) 10.g5 ( 10.b5+
c6 11.g5 d7 12.xf6 gxf6 13.xd5
xd5 14.xd5 0-0-0 , and Black has
nothing to worry about, Roos, M-Graf, A/
Dresden GER 2007) 10...b4 ( 10...c6?
11.f3 h6 12.g6 hxg5 13.xh8 b4
14.0-0 , and White is winning, Zacurdajev, M-
Romcovici, V/ Peterhof RUS 2007) 11.b5+
c6 12.xb7 xd4 13.0-0-0 xc3
14.bxc3 b8 15.xf6 gxf6 16.xa7 b5
17.c5 d6 18.xd5 and White is winning,
Dizdar, G-Grunberg, S/Triesen LIE 2005 ]
[ C) 7...e6 8.d5
A) 8...d7 9.g3 ( 9.e2!? ) 9...e7
10.g2 0-0 1/2-1/2 Shavtvaladze, N-
Bronznik, V/Corfu GRE 2007;
B) 8...f7 9.f5 ( 9.g3 c6 10.g5 cxd5
11.b5+ c6 12.xf6 gxf6 13.0-0
with excellent compensation for the pawn,
Laznicka, V-Potapov, A/Olomouc 2005)
9...c6 ( 9...g6? 10.d4 c6 11.g5 e7
12.e6+- d7 13.c4 xd5 14.xd5
cxd5 15.xg7+ f8 16.xd5 xg5
17.e6+ e8 18.xg5 c6 19.f6
1-0 Odendahl, R-Van der Elburg, F/
Amsterdam 2002) 10.g5!? ( 10.dxc6
bxc6 11.f4 d5 12.d4 bd7 13.a6
c5 14.d6+ e7 15.f5+ e8
16.d6! b6 17.xc5 xc5 18.b7
xd4 19.xd4 b8 20.xc6 xb2
21.b5 a6 22.xa6 b6 23.b5 e7
24.a4 d6 25.a5 bb8 26.a6 c5
27.b3+ b6 28.a7 a8 29.b1 b7
30.a5+ c7 31.c6 c5 32.b5+
1-0 Naumann, A-Genocchio, D/Baden
1999 ) 10...a5? ( 10...h6 11.h4 cxd5
12.xf6 xf6 13.e3 ) 11.xf6 gxf6
12.d4 xd5 13.xf6 , and White is
winning, Kosten, A-Lapeyre, P/Sautron
FRA 2005 ]
[ D) 7...d7
A) 8.g5 e7 9.c4 e6 10.xf6 xf6
11.h5+ g6?! ( Here Black should give
preference to 11...f7! 12.xf7+ xf7
13.xe6+ xe6 14.d5+ e5
with a decent game for Black) 12.xe4!
xd4 13.e2 0-0?! ( 13...xb2!? )
14.0-0-0 c6?! 15.g5 xc4 16.xc4+
, and W hite is winning, Taleb Moussa
(UAE)-Jasim A R Saleh (UAE)/Abudhabi
(United Arab Emirate 2004;
B) 8.e2
B1) 8...e7 9.0-0 ( 9.xf5 xf5
10.0-0 is simple and effective, e.g. d5
11.f3 d7 12.fxe4 dxe4 13.b5 c6
14.c4 is much better for White) 9...e6
, Kuehn, P-Hisler, T/Saint Vincent ITA
2005, and now 10.d5! f7 ( 10...xd5
11.h5+ d8 12.xd5 xh4 13.g3
e7 14.xe7 xe7 15.e1
gives White the better chances as well.)
11.f3 xd5 12.xd5 xh4 13.fxe4 0-0
14.f4 with a better game for White;
B2) 8...c6 9.0-0 d5 10.xf5 xf5
11.f3 g6 12.fxe4 dxe4 13.d5 0-0-0
14.xf6 xd4 15.g4+ d8 16.e2
gxf6 17.f5 e8 18.e3 d5 19.c4
e5 20.xe4 , and Black doesn't even
178
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
have a pawn in return for his suffering,
Kapnisis, S-Klokas, K/Litohoro GRE
2006;
C) 8.d5!? e7 9.e2 c6 10.f3 cxd5
11.xf5 xf5 12.0-0 e6 13.b5
, and Black is already in serious trouble,
Mikac, M-Zorko, J/Bled 2001;
D) 8.f3 e7 9.xf5 xf5 10.e2 exf3
11.xf3 c6 12.0-0 d7 13.d5 0-0
14.c3 xd5 15.xd5+ with a small, but
clear advantage for W hite, Seeman, T-
Berg, E/ Stockholm SWE 2003 ]
8.g5
[ Now the following sequence is more or less
forced. In another recent game, White tried
8.e2 e7 9.g4 xg4? ( 9...c6 10.g5
d5 11.xe4 0-0 offers Black excellent
compensation for the pawn; or 9...e6 10.g5
d5 11.xe4 0-0 12.0-0 f4 13.g4
xg4 14.xg4 d7!? with some
compensation for the pawn) 10.xg4 xh4
11.xc8 (now White is already winning) c6
12.g4 xf2+ 13.xf2 h4+ 14.g2 0-0
15.xe4 h6 16.g3 ae8 17.c3 e7
18.e6+ h8 19.g4 1-0 Sulava, N-Zelic,
M/Sibenik CRO 2006 ]
8...e7 9.xf6 xf6 10.h5+ g6 11.xg6
hxg6 12.xg6+ d7 13.d5! f8?
[ This is definitely wrong and more or less
loses on the spot! Instead Black should try
the less obvious (thank you, computer)
13...e7! 14.g4+ ( 14.f5+ e8
15.g6+ d7 doesn't accomplish
anything ) 14...e8 15.g7 f8 16.g6+
d7 17.e2 e8 18.xe4 f7 19.0-0
with an ongoing initiative and three pawns
for the piece ]
14.e2 c5
[ 14...c6 15.xe4 a6 16.0-0-0 e8
17.d3 e6 18.xf6 xf6 19.d5+ xd5
20.xd5+ b6 21.f3 isn't really desirable
for Black either ]
15.dxc5 e5
[ In an earlier gam e Black trie d 15...c6
, but after 16.xe4 e8 17.f3 ( 17.a4+
xd5 18.0-0-0+ e6 19.xd6+
wins, if anything, faster) 17...xb2 18.d1
a6 19.f6+ d5 20.xe8 a5+ 21.f1
e6 22.f4 xc5 23.a4+ b6 24.b1
1-0 Zacurdajev, M-Melnikov, D/St
Petersburg RUS 2007 ]
16.0-0-0 e8 17.g4+ c6 18.xe8+
xe8 19.xc8 a6 20.f5 and being two
pawns down, Black is obviously lost, and it
means we shouldn't spend too much time on
the remaining moves. xc5 21.b4 a4
22.he1 f8 23.xe4 b5 24.f4 b2+
25.b1 ae8 26.e6 e5 27.g4 b2
28.d2 c4 29.xc4+ bxc4 30.fxe5 dxe5
31.c3 b8 32.f3+ c7 33.a3 a5 34.b5
b6 35.b2 bd8 36.e2 f5 37.e4
c5 38.e2 d4 39.g4 f2 40.xe5+ b6
41.h4 h2 42.h5 h3 43.g5 g3 44.e6+
c7 45.g6 h4 46.f6 d7 47.b6
1-0
195 A04
Speelman,Jonathan S 2597
Ward,Christopher 2473
MSO Masters London ENG (4) 24.08.1999
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 c5 2.b3 By playing this move now,
White manages to avoid the main 1. b3 lines
where Black can play an immediate 1...e5. d6
3.e3! Probably the most flexible move, for as
Black will block the a1-h8 diagonal with ...e5 it
makes sense not to develop the c1-bishop
straight-away.
[ 3.b2 e5 4.d3 f5 5.g3 c6 6.g2 f6
7.bd2 is the type of position White should
avoid , An tosh in,V -Gurgenid ze,B /USS R
1974. ]
3...e5 4.b5+ Already at move 4 the players
have reached a very unusual position. White
wishes to exchange light-squared bishops,
then, by placing his pawns on light squares he
can inhibit Black's remaining bishop.
[ 4.d4?! e4 5.fd2 cxd4 6.exd4 d5 7.b2
offers White nothing, Roeder,M-Rytshagov,
M/Groningen 1997. ]
4...d7 Alternatively:
[ 4...c6 m i g h t b e b e t t e r , 5.0-0!?
E n c o u r a g i n g B l a c k f o r wa r d . ( 5.xc6+!?
bxc6 6.e4 is worth a try.) 5...e4 6.e1 f5
7.b2 f6 8.d3 e7 9.c3 e6 10.f3
b6!? 11.fxe4 fxe4 12.xc6+ xc6
13.xe4 xe4 14.dxe4 xe4 15.xg7
g8 gave Black reasonable compensation
f o r t h e p a wn . M a n t o va n i, R - S e rm e k , D /
Montecatini Terme 1999. ]
179
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 4...d7?! 5.xd7+ xd7 6.e4 would fall [ Correct was 15...a6! ]

in with White's designs. ]
5.0-0 f5 6.d4 cxd4? Opening the c1-h6
diagonal for White's dark-squared bishop.
[ 6...e4 first, has to be stronger, as White is
thereby denied the use of the g5-square. ]
7.exd4 e4 8.g5 Following Black's fourth
move, e6 is no longer covered by his bishop.
gf6 9.e6 b6 10.d5! The b5-bishop is
indirectly protected by the possibility of a
knight fork on c7. f7 11.a4! This move
contains a vicious threat. e5? A natural
reply, but it loses the queen!
[ 11...a6 would avoid the worst, but Black is
still in a bad way, e.g. 12.e3 c5 13.a5
a7 14.c4 ]
12.e3 a5 13.b4 xb4 14.d2 b2
15.c3 Staggering! The trap closes on the
unlucky monarch. xa1 16.xa1 xe6
Black could resign, but presumably wanted to
reach move twenty! 17.dxe6+ xe6 18.xe5
xe5 19.d2 e7 20.a1+ f4 21.c3
1-0
16.xd6+ cxd6 17.e2 Now White has
positional pressure for his pawn. He proceeds
to outplay his opponent but doesn't quite
succeed in clinching the win. b6 18.g4 0-0
19.f1 d7 20.d2 ac8 21.f5 c6
22.f3 d4 23.g1 fe8 24.h3 f8 25.d5
e5 26.xc6 xc6 27.xd4 e4 28.c3
ce8 29.f2 d5 30.b4 e1 31.c4 f7
32.a4 1e7? 33.xg7+ g8 34.f6 c7
35.g5 xc4 36.g6 f8 37.gxh7+ xh7
38.d4 fc8 39.f4 g8 40.h4 f8
41.a3 g8 42.g3 h7 43.hg4 xa2
44.f6 f7 45.a3 c7 46.g7 xg7
47.fxg7+ g8 48.h4 c4 49.d3 a5
50.xb6
½-½
197 A04
Stohl,Igor 2549
Heidrich,Manfred 2368
Czech Open A (2) 25.07.2009
[Nigel Davies]

196 1.f3 f5 2.d3 d6 3.e4 e5 4.c3 c6

A04
Stocek,Jiri 5.exf5 xf5 6.d4 xd4 Trying to avoid any
2460
Trang,Hoang 2360
damage to his pawn structure but with the
FSGM Aug Budapeste (10) 1996
p o si t io n o p e n in g u p B l a ck 's k in g wil l b e
[John Watson] temporarily vulnerable. 7.xd4 exd4 8.xd4
c6
1.f3 f5 2.e4!? fxe4 3.g5 e5! [ 8...f6 was played in Carlsen, M-Dolmatov,
This is the simplest way to draw the fangs of S/Moscow RUS 2004, a game presented
White's Gambit. 4.d3 e3! earlier by Tony Kosten. The text may also
[ Instead 4...exd3 5.xd3 looks risky, so be promising for W hite but not after the
Bla ck re t urn s t h e p awn in a way wh ich move he plays. ]
hampers White's attempt to open lines in the [ 8...xc2!? is legal, but very greedy. ]
centre. ] 9.d3 Fritz 12 likes this move at first but then
[ Note that much less good is 4...f6 5.dxe4 changes its mind after a few moves.
when W hite is ready to play Bc4 [ W h i t e s h o u l d p r o b a b l y o p t f o r 9.f4!
immediately. ] wh ich was p re viou sly co ve re d b y T o n y
5.xe3 e7 6.f3 c6 7.d4 exd4 8.xd4 Kosten in the game Sandner, G (2311)-
xd4 9.xd4 f6! 10.e4+ e7 Rechel, B (2420)/Plauen GER 2004. ]
So far Black has played the opening perfectly 9...xd3 10.xd3 f6 11.0-0
and here simply [ White could also try to play more
[ 10...e7 planning 11...d5 looks at least aggressively with 11.g5 e7 12.0-0-0
OK. ] but after 0-0 13.he1 d5 Black's position is
11.xe7+ xe7 12.c3 d5 13.b5 way too solid for White's temporary activity
White finds a way after all to gambit a pawn to have much effect. ]
for positional pressure. xb2 14.b1 e5 11...e7 12.e2 d7 13.d4 0-0 14.f5
15.f4 d6? ae8 15.d2 d5 16.xe7+ xe7 17.ae1

180
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

White doesn't have anything here, his bishop 14.b1! Aiming for a1 with powerful pressure
being compensated for by Black's greater on the black king's diagonal. c5 15.a1
control of terrain. d7 18.f3 xe1 19.xe1 bd7 Black could also try
e8 20.xe8+ xe8 21.e3 xe3+ [ 15...f4!? in order to play ...Bh3, but then
22.xe3 b6 23.c3 f7 24.f2 e6 16.g5 g4 17.h3 is good, h6 18.hxg4
25.e2 d7 26.f4 e5 27.xe5 hxg5 19.f3 fxg3 20.fxg3 and White will
½-½ continue with Kg2 and use the h-file. ]
16.e4!? White decides that his pieces are all
ideally placed and so it is time to break in the
198 A04 centre, but moves like
Tkachiev,Vladislav 2654 [ 16.fd1 were also fine, of course. ]
Clarke,Thomas 2128 16...fxe4 17.g5 f5 18.xe4 This is the
ECC Rethymnon GRE (3) 30.09.2003 point, the f6-knight is pinned so W hite has
[Tony Kosten] brought his knight to the powerful e4-square,
and opened the e-file. c7 19.fe1 e5
1.f3 f5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 g6 4.b4!? Black blocks the long diagonal, and unpins the
W e have examined this theme against the f6-knight, but now e5 will be a target. 20.c2
Dutch set-up in several games, although Time to return the offside knight to the game..
previously W hite had played c4 before b4. xe4 21.xe4 ae8 22.g2 b6 23.e3
g7 5.b2 a5!? Black tries to disrupt White d3? Black's first real mistake in the game,
on the queenside immediately. Other moves his bishop goes to the 'active' square on d3,
are more popular, e.g. but will not be able to stay there, he should
[ 5...d6 6.c4 0-0 7.0-0 e5 8.d3 with typical have preferred keeping d5 covered by
Closed English play, Vaganian,R-Ehlvest,J/ [ 23...e6! which also attacks c4, and
Horgen 1995. ] restricts White's possibilities. ]
6.b5 This pawn gains lots of queenside space 24.d5! xd5 25.xd5 Black pays the price
for W hite, and stops the black knight from f o r ign o rin g t h e d 5 -squ a re , a s t h e wh it e
using the c6-square. a4!? A novelty, Black's a- bishop cuts through his position like a knife!
pawn continues its progression. b6 Removing the pawn from the bishop's gaze,
[ 6...0-0 was played in Meenakshi,S- as
Lagvilava,G/Istanbul TUR 2000, when 7.c4 [ 25...e4? loses a pawn immediately to:
seems most appropriate. ] 26.xg7+ xg7 27.xg7+ xg7 28.xb7 ]
7.c4 c6 8.a3! Not the ideal square for a 26.f3! The winning plan: White fixes the e-
knight, but from here it both keeps an eye on pawn on e5, and can double his rooks on the
c4 and b5, and at the same time stops the e-file when the pawn will drop. g5 27.e3
black a-pawn from advancing even further. 0-0 f5 So, the bishop didn't manage to stay on
9.0-0 d5?! Black continues to harass the d3 for very long! 28.ce1 White's position
white queenside, but this leaves no pawns to reaches its zenith. h3 29.xe5! The neatest
control e5. I prefer capture. xe5 30.xe5 Obviously winning,
[ 9...d6 planning ...e5, and putting the although
queen's knight on c5, but apart from 10.d4 [ 30.xe5! is m o re e le g a n t , h6 31.g4
leading to a Dutch, W hite could also with the decisive threat of Re6xh6+. ]
consider playing 10 d3, English Opening [ After 30.xe5 Black resigned because
style. ] xe5 31.xe5+ xe5 32.xe5 h6 33.g4
10.c1 h8 11.d3 Obviously White doesn't leaves him a pawn down with a trapped
want to block the a1-h8 diagonal with a pawn bishop. ]
now that he has full piece control of e5. e6 1-0
I have to say that Black is single-minded, he
puts pressure on the white queenside
whenever he can, but then why play ...f5 in
the opening? 12.c2 dxc4 13.dxc4 c8

181
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

199 A04 14.e5 dxc4 15.xc4+ g6 16.xc2+

Vachier Lagrave,Maxime 2758 f7 17.b3+ g6 18.d1 with a crushing
Vaisser,Anatoli 2531 attack. ]
FRA-chT Top 12 (4.1) 27.05.2014 11.h4 d5 This is certainly the move that
[Kosten, Tony] Black would like to play, gaining space in the
centre and closing the a2-g8 diagonal, but
1.f3 f5 2.d3 d6 3.e4 e5 4.c3 c6 afterwards he has to be very careful to stop
[ 4...c5!? is seen in Bellin, R-Williams, S, White sacrificing on d5.
and this month's Lalic, B-Rendle, T. ] [ 11...b5!? is interesting here,
5.exf5 xf5 6.d4 exd4 7.xd4 xd4 A) 12.b3 c a n b e m e t b y e7+!
8.xd4 f6 wh ich f orces W h it e t o mo ve his k in g,
[ 8...c6 9.f4! is Sandner-Rechel, in the 13.f1 ( 13.e2!? is risky, g5 14.g3 c5
PGN Archive. ] a n d . . . c 4 .; 13.d2 transposes to De
9.c4! Carlsen's novelty. c6 10.g5 h6!? Verdier, M (234 5)-Kalinins, V (2204)/
A new move, but does it help? B u n r a t t y 2 0 1 4 , 0-0-0 14.ae1 d7
[ 10...b5 11.b3 15.xf6 gxf6 16.xf6?! d5 17.e5?!
A) 11...h6 12.e3+! ( 12.h4 e7+! e4 draw, but White is actually in some
see below.) 12...d7 ( 12...e7 13.xf6 troub le h ere a s .. .Bg7 is t hreat ened .)
gxf6 14.0-0 xe3 15.fxe3 d7 16.e4 13...0-0-0 with unclear play where neither
wins a pawn.) 13.xf6 xf6 14.0-0-0 king is particularly happy, 14.a4 b4!
looks dangerous for Black.; 15.xb4 d5;
B) However, 11...e7+!? is actually quite B) 12.g4!? is a favourite with Stockfish 5,
annoying for White, 12.f1 ( 12.e3 d5 d7 13.d3 f7 a bit wild.;
13.0-0-0 d7 14.he1 e7 Black wins C) 12.d3 xd3 13.xd3 e7+ 14.e2
an important tempo, and can now castle.; e4! getting the queens off, with near
12.d2 0-0-0 13.he1 d7 14.ad1 c5 equality. ]
15.f4 c4 16.xb5 cxb3 17.xa7+ [ 11...xc2?! 12.d2! f5 13.ae1+ d7
is unclear.) 12...0-0-0 13.a4 b4! 14.xb4 ( 13...e7 14.xf6 gxf6 15.g4 h7
d5 15.xe7 xe7 Black has some 16.xf6 ) 14.g4! and Black is in trouble, as
compensation for the pawn as W hite's h7 15.e6+ c7 16.d5+! cxd5
king is awkwardly placed.; 17.c1+ b8 18.xf6 gxf6? 19.c8+
C) 11...e7? 12.0-0-0 a5?! wins. ]
( Back in 2004 I remember annotating the 12.0-0-0 This is the problem, White doesn't
impressive game Carlsen-Dolmatov, which even have to move his bishop, and meanwhile
continued 12...d7?! 13.he1 Qe5+ is a massive threat. e7?! Very human,
and W hite caused an upset.) 13.he1 but probably not very good.
Black is already lost, f8 Karavade, E [ 12...f7 had to b e tried , 13.he1 g5
(2307)-Navabi, S (2107)/Beirut 2004 , 14.g3 g7 and Black develops while
14.f4! g6 15.xf6 gxf6 ( 15...xf6 finally threatening the bishop on c4, and
16.xd6 c7 17.xf6+ gxf6 18.xf6+ ) maybe something along the a1-h8 diagonal.
16.h6+ e8 17.e4 ] I think I would prefer to have White anyway,
[ 10...d5 11.0-0-0 is similar to the main but this certainly seems playable for Black. ]
game, e7?! ( 11...f7 ) 12.e5 ( 12.he1 13.he1 Natural and strong.
0-0 13.e5 forks e7 and f5, forcing c8 [ Still, 13.e5 i s j u s t a s g o o d , c8
when 14.xe7 dxc4 as below. ) 12...d7? ( 13...g6 14.xd5! cxd5 15.xd5
Lock, G (2212) -Rendle, T (2397)/Hastings i s w i n n i n g , f8 16.xf6 c8 17.c3;
2008, ( 12...g6 ) 13.xd5! xd5 14.xd5 13...g4 14.f3 d6 15.xd6 xd6
cxd5 15.b5 winning the queen. ] 16.xf6 gxf6 17.xd5 cxd5 18.fxg4
[ I had thought 10...xc2? might be playable, will leave White two pawns up.) 14.he1
ten years ago, but now I think it is losing: 0-0 15.xe7 dxc4 16.f3 with a clear
11.0-0 d5 12.fe1+ f7 13.xd5! cxd5 advantage, f or instance g6 ( 16...b5

182
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
17.d6 f7 18.g4 h7 19.e6 ) 17.c5
f5 (threatening mate!) 18.xc4+ h8
19.d2 ]
13...0-0 14.e5 g4?
[ 14...c8 was the best try, 15.xe7 dxc4
as above. ]
15.f3 Strong, but the flashy
[ 15.xd5! cxd5 16.xd5! xd5 17.xe7
b6 18.xf8 xf8 19.xd5+ is also totally
crushing. ]
15...d6 Presumably the point, but MVL has
seen further. Black has nothing better anyway
a s t w o p i e c e s w e r e h a n g i n g . 16.xd5!
Beautiful! cxd5
[ 16...xe5 17.xf6+ (double check!) h8
18.xd8 axd8 19.xg4 ]
17.xd5 xe5 18.xd8+ h7 19.d3+
g6?! Weakening the 7th rank doesn't help.
[ 19...g8 20.xf8+ xf8
with an extra two pawns and the bishop pair
to boot. ]
20.xa8 f4+
[ 20...xa8 21.xe5 both black minor pieces
are hanging. ]
21.b1 xa8 22.xf6 Anyway, the answer
to the question at move 10 is that yes, 10...
h6 is useful if Black follows up with 11...b5.
[ 22.xf6 f5 23.e7+ g8 24.c4+ f8
25.g7 forces e8 26.g8+ d7 when
27.xa8 wins a rook to add to the pawns. ]
1-0
200
Van Mil,Johannes AJ
Gurevich,Mikhail
Bundesliga 2001-2 (3) 24.11.2001
[Neil McDonald]
1.e4 e6 2.d3 c5 3.f3 c6 4.g3 ge7
5.g2 g6 6.0-0 g7 7.e1
[ More flexible was 7.c3 f o r e x a m p l e d6
8.a3 e5 ]
7...d6!
[ After 7...d5 8.e5 the rook on e1 performs a
useful function in defending the pawn on e5.
So Gurevich heads for a dif ferent pawn
structure with the aim of making 7. Re1 an
irrelevant move. ]
8.c3 e5 9.a3
[ Perhaps 9.a4 followed by Na3 and Nc4
was the safer plan. ]
9...0-0 10.e3 White prepares d3-d4, but
Black's piece deployment is very efficient and
not surprisingly he benefits the most from the
opening of the centre. h6 Preparing Be6
without being disturbed by Ng5. 11.d2 h7
12.d4 exd4! This capture rather than c5xd4 is
often the best idea for Black in this pawn
centre- Black activates his bishop
straightaway. 13.cxd4 d5! 14.exd5
[ After 14.e5 Black has many promising
continuations, e.g. f5!? 15.dxc5 d4
16.f4 g5 17.g4 fe7! 18.g3 xg4 ]
[ Meanwhile if 14.dxc5? dxe4 White is in
trouble as b2 will drop. ]
14...xd5 15.dxc5 xe3 16.xe3 e6!
Gurevich is in no hurry to recapture the pawn.
He develops and takes away the c4 square
21.xe5 from W hite's knight, so that it can't be
activated as occurs after say
[ 16...xb2 17.ad1 f6 18.c4 ]
17.b5
[ After either 17.ad1 or ]
[ 17.e2 Black can play a5 when sooner
or later he will regain the pawn thanks to
the bishop pair bearing down on W hite's
queenside. So Van Mil brings his knight
back to the centre while he still has the
chance. ]
17...xb2 18.ab1 g7 19.ed1?
This merely chases the black queen to a
good square. He had to play
[ 19.d6 with counterplay. ]
A04 19...a5 20.bd4? White collapses. Now
2416 [ 20.d6 was imperative. ]
2605 20...xa2 21.xb7 ad8 The pin is fatal.
22.b2 xd4! 23.xd4 fe8 24.xe8
xe8 25.xc6?
[ 25.xc6 was the only way to fight on. ]
25...e1+ 26.xe1 xe1+ 27.g2 c4
However W hite plays, either Qc3 or Qf1+
followed by either Qh1+ or Qd3+ will win for
Black.
0-1
183
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

201 A04 Nb6.

Venkatesh,Marani Rajendran 2515 [ 7...xd7 was played before, trying to bring
Vallejo Pons,Francisco 2693 the knight to c6 instead of d7 8.e2 f5
Bangkok op 14th (4) 14.04.2014 9.0-0 e7 10.e1 f6 Vidonyak, R (2452)-
[Fier, Alexandr] Cvitan, O (2562)/ Zuerich op 26th 2002. ]
8.e2 d5 9.c4 gf6 10.cxd5?
B l a c k u s e s a g o o d s e t u p a g a i n s t t h e A big imprecision. Now Black has easy play
queenside fianchetto, he closes the diagonal, against the isolated pawn.
controls the center and gains some space. [ 10.0-0 was better and White has a nice
This same plan was suggested before on p l a n a t h i s d i s p o s a l d6 ( 10...b4
Chess Publishing against a similar setup and is not so different 11.h4 0-0 12.f5 )
one more time it proves effective. 10.cxd5 was 11.h4!? the knight will be much better on
a bad idea, I think the position is quite f5 or e3, where it is a strong blockader
interesting after 10.0-0. 1.f3 c5 2.b3 d6 A) 11...g6 avoids White's idea but
3.e3 e5 4.d4 Immediately acting in the weakens the kingside 12.h6 ( 12.g3
center. is another possibility, to bring the knight
[ 4.b5+ is thematic and was played on via g2 0-0 13.g2 c8 14.e3
s e v e r a l o c c a s i o n s c6 ( 4...d7 with a level position) 12...f8 13.xf8
is also possible, but the knight is in the way xf8 ( 13...xf8 14.cxd5 xd5 15.c3
on d7 5.0-0 f5 6.d4 cxd4 7.exd4 xd4 16.b5 b6 17.fd1 ) 14.c3
and White was already better, as analysed g7 and the exchange of the dark
in Speelman, J (2597)-Ward, C (2473)/MSO squared bishops favours W hite, though
Masters London ENG 1999.) 5.0-0 f6 the position is double edged;
( 5...e4 ambitious, but White can strike in the B) 11...0-0 12.f5 b8 13.c3
center before Black has time to finish his and compared to the game this is a much
development 6.e1 f5 7.b2 f6 8.f3 d5 better version for White. ]
9.c4 with dangerous activity for W hite) 10...b4+ Black doesn't waste any time and
6.b2 e7 7.d3 0-0 and Black is activates his pieces. 11.d2 0-0!?
supposed to be fine, as analysed in [ 11...xd2+ was also ok, but Black prefers
Cheparinov, I (2702)-Jones, G (2654)/45th to keep the bishops on, 12.fxd2 0-0
Italian Teams 2013. ] 13.c3 b6 14.0-0 e8 with a small
4...cxd4 advantage for Black ]
[ 4...e4 is also interesting, since after 5.fd2 12.e5
cxd4 6.xe4 ( 6.exd4 d5 7.c4 f6 [ 12.xb4 is too dangerous, now the king will
is ok for Black) 6...d5 7.g3 dxe3 8.xe3 be exposed for a long time exf3 13.xf3
c6 and the White pieces would be much b6 ( 13...e8+ 14.f1 a5 15.d2 b6
better if the bishop was on b2 and the knight is also possible with full compensation)
on f3 ] 14.c3 b5 15.d2 ae8+ 16.e3
5.exd4 e4 6.b5+ White tries to get rid of the ( 16.d1 is better, but also not pleasant for
bishop, winning a tempo to finish his White ) 16...xd5 with the idea of ...f5-f4 ]
d e v e l o p m e n t . d7 Black doesn't mind 12...d6 Keeping the pieces on.
exchanging his 'bad' bishop. [ 12...xd5 White has more chances to dry
[ 6...c6 gives White a nice opportunity the position here
7.e2 f6 8.d5!? xd5 9.xe4+ e7 A) 13.xe4 7f6 14.f3 ( 14.d3 f4!
10.xe7+ xe7 11.b2 and Black is still wins ) 14...b6 15.0-0 xd4 16.xb4
fine, but I don't think it's the kind of xb4 ( 16...xb4 17.c3 ) 17.d7!
position he was aiming for ] xd7 18.xd5 fd8 and Black has some
7.xd7+ xd7 This is not a bad square for pressure, but with precise play W hite
the knight if you stop to think. Black will push should hold;
...d5 when it's possible and with the knight on B) 13.0-0 xd2 14.xd2 f5 15.dc4
d7 he can answer any c4 and cxd5 idea with ... xe5 16.dxe5 e7 is also not so

184
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
interesting for Black, even if he has a
small advantage ]
13.c4
[ 13.xd7 xd7 14.c3 ac8 15.0-0 fe8
is also good for Black, the d5-pawn will soon
fall and White has no clear plan. ]
13...b6 14.c3 bxd5 15.xd5 xd5
16.0-0 e8 17.ad1 White tries to bring the
knight back to e5, but it can easily be
attacked.
[ 17.ac1 at least brings the rook to an open
file
A) 17...c8? 18.xd6 xc1 ( 18...xd6
19.xc8 xc8 20.xe4 wins a pawn)
19.xc1 xd6 20.b5 and White
activates;
B) 17...c7 18.g4 g6 19.g3
and the position is still unpleasant for
White ]
17...c7 18.e5 f6 19.c4 d7
Black improves his position and soon he is
ready to attack 20.e3? This is too early to
be desperate. White just allows Black's knight
to enter his position, with serious
consequences.
[ 20.g3 b5 21.e3 b6 22.xd5 xd5
23.e3 ad8 24.d2 would be better for
Black, but White's position is not so easy to
break ]
20...f4 21.c4+ h8 22.c5 Apparently
White's pieces are more active than before
and he's managed to unblock the d-pawn. But
this is too superficial and is soon punished.
ad8 23.h1 d3 24.xa7 xh2!
Nice idea! Now the queen defends b7 and
White's queen is kind of trapped. 25.xh2
[ 25.b6 was possible, but without the h-
pa wn B la ck will at t a ck m ore ea sily b8
26.a4 f7 27.g1 d6 and it's hard to
believe White can survive ]
25...a8 26.b6 a6 27.xa6 bxa6 28.d5
f5
[ 28...e5 was more direct 29.g1 h5
30.c1 ( 30.c3 c7-+ ) 30...d6 31.g3
d7 and it's time to resign ]
29.f4 c8 Going to the wrong place, but the
position is still winning. 30.c4 xd5?!
I see no reason for this plan. The rook would
do a good job on the kingside.
[ 30...f8 was still possible 31.d6 f6
with the idea of 32. ..Rh6 and 33...Qe8 ]
31.b6 b7 32.xc8 xc8 33.e3 h6
34.c1? And I see no reason to give back the
exchange.
[ 34.d2 was better, trying to hold the
position together after c3 35.e2 ]
34...xc1 35.xc1 There is no time and
insuf f icient material f or W hite to setup a
fortress, and now Black finishes the game in
a precise way. d8 36.g3 a5 37.c2
e1+ 38.f2 d1 39.c3 g4+ 40.h2
xf4+ 41.g3 g4 42.e5 f4
0-1
202 A05
Amin,Bassem 2544
Leitao,Rafael 2620
7th World Team Championship (2) 06.01.2010
[David Vigorito]
T h is ga m e is n o t ve ry t h e o re t ic a l, b u t i t
provides a nice example of how to meet the
King's Indian Attack. Leitao plays a simple,
but steady game, and gradually takes over.
He beats a 2550 player with Black and makes
it looks very easy. 1.e4 c5 2.f3 c6 3.g3
g6 4.g2 f6!?
[ An interesting move order. Black wants
White to protect the e4-pawn immediately.
Also good is 4...g7 5.0-0 e5 when Black
will often end up a tempo up on the KIA vs
French line: 1.e4 e6 2.d3 c5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.g3
g6 5.Bg2 Bg7 6.0-0 Nge7 7.c3 e5 because
he has played ...e5 in one move. Still, the
tempo is not so important here and the
position is still equal. ]
5.d3 d6 6.0-0 g7 7.c3
[ 7.c3 would transpose to a fairly harmless
line of the Closed Sicilian with an early Nf3.
This position more of ten results with
colours reversed in the English Opening. ]
7...0-0 8.e1 e5! This looks like a mix of
sys t e m s , b u t t h i s i s a g o o d p l a n . I n t h e
Botvinnik setup, the e7-knight sometimes has
trouble finding an active role. The f6-square is
very flexible - the knight may go to e8, d7, or
even h5 or g4. 9.a3
[ A slow move typical of this system. 9.bd2
still looks better to me. ]
[ N o t e t h a t ' p u n i s h i n g ' B l a c k w i t h 9.d4
runs into the typical King's Indian idea cxd4
185
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

10.cxd4 exd4 11.xd4 g4! when Black is th e p o sit io n m u ch . I t wa s a n a lyze d f o r

ahead in development and has pressure Chess Publishing in Roiz, M (2659)-
against d4 and f2 (with ...Qb6 coming too). ] Aleksandrov, A (2582)/IX EICC Plovdiv BUL
9...b5! 10.h3 2008. ]
[ 10.b4 a5! forces a favourable (to Black) 6.e4 d6 7.d4!? An exotic idea, taking
resolution on the queenside. ] advantage of the undefended pawn on b5 and
10...b7 11.bd2 c7 12.f1 d5 also the diagonal. It's only possible with the
W hy not? It is as if Black is playing W hite bishop on e7.
here. 13.g5?! [ 7.a3!? this move is quite interesting and
[ 13.exd5 xd5 14.e3 was still pretty safe it's a way to try to exploit the early ...b5 a6
for White, although I do like Black's space 8.c4 c6 now the bishop is not well placed on
advantage. ] b7, ( 8...bxc4 9.xc4 and White has a
13...d4! Seizing more space. Now the g5- b e t t e r s t r u c t u r e) 9.e1 with a slight
bishop and f1-knight look rather odd. 14.cxd4 advantage for White Romanishin, O (2515)-
cxd4 15.d2 White tries to justify the odd Morawietz, D (2449)/Kerkyra op 2009. ]
placement of the bishop on g5, but [ 7.a4 is another logical move, b4 8.bd2
considering W hite does not really want to 0-0 9.c4 and both players had chances in
exchange dark-squared bishops (which would Kuzubov, Y (2628) -Kulaots, K (2592)/ISL-
leave him with his own bad bishop), this does chT 1011 2010 (1.1). ]
not help much. a5 16.ac1 d6 17.g4?! 7...a6
This creates a (useless) square for the [ 7...d7 was a move played in
f1-knight. White is playing the position like a Correspondence. It looks a bit weird to
Closed Spanish, but Black has too much play defend the pawn like this, but it avoids the
on the queenside for this to succeed. d7! pla n p layed in th e gam e 8.f4 ( 8.b3
18.g3 f6 19.h6 xh6 20.xh6 c5 could be a coherent sequence c5 9.a5
21.h4 White's obvious threats are easily c6 10.xb7 xb7 and White took the
repelled. e7 22.ed1 e6! Highlighting bishop pair, but Black is well developed
the weakness created by White's 17th move. and already started the queenside
23.h2 f4 24.g5 White opens lines for expansion.; 8.e5 doesn't work now xg2
Black's pieces. h8 25.gxf6 xf6 26.g5 9.exf6 xf6 and the knight is hanging) 8...c5
af8 27.d2? This takes away White's 9.b3 c6 and the position is balanced
queen's only retreat square. e6 28.g4 Simon, B (2305)-Glauser, P (2165)/WSTT/1/
[ 28.h6 g8 ] 11/2 ICCF 2011. ]
28...f4 8.b3 Putting the knight away from d4 and
0-1 threatening Na5.
[ 8.e5 still doesn't work properly xg2 9.exf6
xf6 10.xe6 fxe6 11.xg2 0-0
203 A05 and Black has not much to worry about. ]
Aronian,Levon 2801 8...c5 And Black accepts the challenge. Not a
Ipatov,Alexander 2630 b a d c h o i c e , s i n c e t h e a l t e r n a t i v e i s
World Teams 2013 (7.3) 03.12.2013 unpleasant.
[Fier, Alexandr] [ 8...c6 without ...c5 this move is not so
harmonious 9.a4 0-0 10.d4 and White has
Ipatov plays 2...b5 to enter less theoretical good central control. ]
positions and Aronian also plays an exotic 9.e5 Finally this move is possible. xg2
idea. Soon they exchange two pieces for a 10.exf6 xf1 11.fxe7 xe7 12.xf1
rook and pawn, and because of the lack of After the exchanges White has a bishop and
o p e n f i l e s I t h i n k W h i t e h a s a s m a l l a kn igh t aga in st ro ok a nd p a wn . B la c k 's
advantage. 1.f3 f6 2.g3 b5 3.g2 b7 position has no weaknesses, so the position
4.0-0 e6 5.d3 e7 is quite hard to play, since W hite has no
[ 5...d6 is another idea, but doesn't change advanced post for any of his pieces. Still,

186
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
there are no open files which makes the rooks
less useful in the position. It's not possible to
say for sure that someone is better here, but
my preference would be White. c6 13.e3
White's basic idea is to finish development
and use the e-file to create a weak point in
Black's position. 0-0 14.c3 f5 Black, on the
o t h e r h a n d , s h o u ld t ry t o e xp a n d o n t h e
queenside and open some files for the rooks.
15.g2
[ 15.a4 this move is thematic in this kind of
position where Black has a6 and b5, but it's
always dangerous to exchange the last
white rook. e5 ( 15...b4 16.e2 e5
17.d2 and W hite controls c4) 16.axb5
( 16.g2 b4 17.e2 c4 and Black can
make good use of the c-file) 16...axb5
17.xa8 xa8 18.g2 b8 19.d4 cxd4
20.xd4 d7 with an unclear position. ]
15...ac8 16.a3 Not forced, but a good move
to control the b4 square. f6
[ 16...b4 is not so interesting anymore, now
the a-file will be more useful for White than
the f ile t hat will open f or B lack, 17.axb4
xb4 ( 17...cxb4 18.a4 e5 19.f4 d7
20.a5 and White's knights are much more
active than before) 18.f4 and the knight can
go to a5-c4 later ]
17.d1 With the idea of 18.d4. d4 18.f4!?
White is not afraid to damage the structure
because after 18...Nxb3, W hite is going to
create a block on the dark squares and the
bishop and knight have no opposition. fe8
[ 18...xb3 19.cxb3 d5 20.d4 c4 21.b4
and White can play a4 in good conditions or
to make some pressure on the e-file, Black
on the other hand can just wait ]
19.xd4 A forcing move, giving the bishop
and putting the knight on a strange square to
s h a k e B l a c k ' s c e n t e r . cxd4 20.a2
The knight is going to b4 Where it defends c2,
attacks a6 and looks to d5. d8 To meet 21.
Nb4 with a5.
[ 20...e5 21.b4 with a clear advantage ]
21.f1 A smart idea, now White is threatening
to take on d4 because if Black comes with ...
Qb6 and ...e5, White can take on f2 with his
rook, defending the pawn on c2.
[ 21.xd4?! is not good, since Black recover
t h e p a w n w i t h a n a c t i v e p o s i t i o n b6
22.f2 e5 23.xf5 xf2+ 24.xf2 xc2+
25.f3 exf4 26.gxf4 xb2 and Black is not
worse ]
21...b6 22.f2 e5 23.c3?!
Not so necessary.
[ 23.fxe5 White could play this move and
j u s t t a k e o n f 5 dxe5 24.xf5 h8
( 24...e6 25.xe6+ xe6 26.b4+- )
25.f2 with a clear advantage ]
23...b7
[ 23...a5!? this move can complicate matters,
since if White takes any of the pawns, Black
can activate his position 24.fxe5 ( 24.cxd4
exf4 25.xf4 c2 26.xf5 b7 27.d5
xb2 and the knights are in an awkward
position, but still the position is unclear)
24...dxe5 25.cxd4 e6 again using the
strange position of the knights 26.ac1 f4
with interesting compensation ]
24.cxd4 Again Black has a chance to
complicate.
[ 24.fxe5!? to avoid ...exf4 dxe5 25.cxd4
d5 26.ac1 and White is better ]
24...exf4
[ 24...d5!? was possible
A) 25.ac1 doesn't work so well now,
exf4 26.gxf4 ( 26.xf4 c2 and Black is
better ) 26...e6 with a dangerous position
for White;
B) 25.bc1 xd4 ( 25...exf4 26.c3
that's the dif f erence with bringing the
other knight to c1 fxg3 27.hxg3 e6
28.xf5 and W hite is better) 26.xd4
exd4 27.g2 c2+ 28.f2 ec8 29.e2
xb2 30.xd4 xf2+ 31.xf2 g6
and the endgame is double edged ]
25.c3
[ 25.xf4 would be good if possible, but
loses immediately e2 26.f2 e1+ 27.f1
c2 and W hite is in big trouble 28.d2
xf1+ 29.xf1 h1+-+ ]
[ 25.b4 it's hard to understand if the knight
is better on c3 or b4, from here it can go to
c6 at some point, but from c3 it controls the
invasions on e2 and c2 fxg3 26.hxg3 f4
this is an important source of counterplay
27.gxf4 f7 28.d5 g6+ 29.g2 f6
30.c6 e3 and the position is one more
time unclear ]
25...fxg3 26.hxg3 f8 A bit slow.
[ 26...f4!? I like this try again, opening
W hite's king by force 27.gxf4 ( 27.xf4
187
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
is also playable, but Black's counterplay is
quick f8 28.c1 b4 29.axb4 xb4
30.c2 xf1+ 31.xf1 f8+ 32.e2 b8
and Black is fine) 27...f7 threatening ...b3
28.c1 ( 28.d5 g6+ 29.g2 xd3 )
28...f5 29.d5 and White can be better, but
he needs to be extremely careful. ]
27.d5 f6
[ 27...f4 now this loses power 28.gxf4 f7
29.f5 This move is possible because the
knight on b3 is not attacked in this
variation. ]
28.d4 With this knight in the game, White is
much better. b4 29.axb4 xb4 30.c6!
[ 30.e6 is not so effective, since Black's
queen is free to go to the kingside g4 ]
30...b7 31.e1 h8 32.e7 b3 33.d7
Now it's impossible to stop White's initiative
e8 34.d4 b4 35.e6 g6 36.f7 g4
37.e2 f6 38.xg7 b4 39.xh7+
[ 39.xh7+ xh7 40.a7+ 5 with mate in ]
1-0
204 A05
Artemiev,Vladislav 2621
Khismatullin,Denis 2714
15th ch-EUR Indiv 2014 (3.1) 05.03.2014
[Fier, Alexandr]
Artemiev goes for an interesting idea with 7.
c4 and easily gets a better position. 13.Bc6
was good for an advantage and again I think
that this is a nice setup for White against 2...
b5. 1.f3 f6 2.g3 b5 3.g2 b7 4.0-0
e6 5.d3 e7 6.e4 0-0 A provocative move.
[ 6...d6 avoids 7.e5 and after 7.d4!? a6
8.b3 c5 9.e5 was analyzed by me some
months ago in Aronian, L (2801)- Ipatov, A
(2630)/WchT 9th Antalya 2013. ]
7.c4!? This can transpose to 7. e5, but gives
Black the alternative of not taking on c4,
where I believe White has good play.
[ 7.e5 d5 8.c4 bxc4 9.dxc4 b6 10.c2
( 10.e2!? maybe the queen is better here,
to bring the knight to c3 at some point d5
11.exd6 cxd6 12.d1 8d7 13.c3 )
10...c6 and White's position is slightly
better, but both players have chances in
Libeau, R (2420)-Emunds, H (2315)/
Muenster 1992. ]
[ 7.d4 was the same idea as in Aronian's
game, but 28 years before! a6 8.b3 c6
9.e5 d5 10.e1 with an unclear position,
since White still needs some time to develop
his queenside Bilek, I (2400)-Portisch, L
(2635)/Hungary 1985. ]
7...b4 I'm not convinced about this move. Now
White has a tangible space advantage and in
a few moves Black has a strange position.
[ 7...bxc4 8.e5 d5 9.dxc4 b6
would transpose to 7.e5 ]
8.e5 e8 9.d4 d6
[ 9...c5 was another idea, since 10.d5 is not
so scary 10.dxc5 ( 10.d5 exd5 11.cxd5 d6
with a level position) 10...f6!? 11.e3 c7
12.a3 a5 with a messy position ]
10.c2 d7 11.g5! A known theme in a
diff erent position. xg5 12.xb7 b8
13.xg5 Missing a strong idea. Now Black
has chances to equalize.
[ 13.c6! a hard move to make, but here
W hite has good chances to create some
strong pressure. Black's pieces are poorly
placed and Black has no way to win the
pawn on e5 xc1 14.xc1 dxe5 15.d1!
the key move and now Black's position is not
so comfortable
A) 15...exd4 loses a piece 16.xd4 ef6
( 16...d6 17.c5 ) 17.d1 and Black has
no way to defend the knight;
B) 15...b6 16.a4 b8 17.dxe5 e7
18.g2 and Black's knights are on terrible
squares ]
13...xg5 14.c6 d8 15.f4 e7 16.g2?!
With this move Black can more or less free
his position. White runs from the check on c5,
but development was more important.
[ 16.d2 was interesting and Black should
play precisely to avoid getting into trouble
dxe5 17.fxe5 b8 ( 17...xe5
is insufficient 18.xe8 xd4 19.b5 c6
20.b3 and White is better) 18.e4 f5
( 18...xd4 19.f3 d8 20.xh7+ h8
21.g2 and Black's position is precarious,
for example: g6? 22.xg6 fxg6 23.h4
and Black loses material) 19.exf6 xf6
20.f3 c5 and I still prefer White's chances,
but the position is not so clear ]
16...dxe5 17.dxe5
[ 17.fxe5 b8 18.e4 now is not so nice,
si n ce a f t e r ( 18.f3 xd4 19.d2 c5
188
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

and W hite has compensation, but Black [ 35...e6 was a better practical chance
s h o u l d b e o k) 18...f5 19.exf6 xf6 36.xa7+
White has no 20. Nf3 to defend the pawn ] A) 36...g6 37.d7! and the extra pawn
17...f6 18.exf6 exf6 And Black is fine. in the knight endgame is enough for the
19.d2 g4 Now Black goes into a long win;
variation that leads to an equal position where B) 36...f8 37.xe6+ ( 37.d7? xc5
he needs to make a difficult choice. 38.xd6 i s n o t c h e c k n o w e4+-+ )
[ 19...e5 it was possible to keep the game 37...xe6 38.a4 c5 39.a5 e5 40.f3
a l i v e w i t h 20.e4 ( 20.fxe5 xe5 and White is probably winning;
and the bishop has no good squares 21.e4 C) 36...e8 37.xe6 xe6 38.a4 e4
fg4 and W hite is almost lost already) 39.xb4 xg4 40.b3 and Black has some
20...e6 21.xd7 xd7 22.g5 c6+ chances to survive ]
23.g1 g6 with a level and complicated 36.e3 e6 37.xa7+ g6 38.d3 f4
position ] [ 38...c5 39.e5+ h6 40.f7 wins ]
20.ae1 c5 21.e4 de5 Exchanging a 39.e5+ h6 40.a6 g2+ 41.e2 f4
lot of pieces and entering a delicate endgame. 42.xc6+ h7 43.c5
22.b3 xc6 23.fxe5 xe5 24.xc6 1-0
xc6 25.xe6 d4?! This doesn't change
t h e c o m p u t e r ' s e va l u a t i o n , b u t n o w t h e
position is harder to play for Black. 205 A05
[ 25...xf1 was the best way to go, avoiding Bacrot,Etienne 2695
White's idea 26.xf1 d4 27.xd4 xd4 Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar 2752
28.b3 d2 and Black is fine ] World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (3) 21.11.2007
26.xf8+ xf8 27.c5 c6 During the game [Carsten Hansen]
this is a hard decision to make. One
misevaluation and the game can be over if 1.f3 f6 2.g3 g6 3.b4 g7 4.b2 d6
Black exchanges the rooks and knights. With 5.g2 c5!?
some pieces on the board it's still possible to [ 5...0-0 is the normal move in this position. ]
fight if something goes wrong. In this case, 6.bxc5 dxc5 7.c4 0-0 8.0-0 c6 9.d3 g4
the exchange was good and after the move of 10.e5?!
the game White is slightly better. [ The first new move, but not a very good one.
[ 27...xe6! 28.xe6+ e7 29.xd8 W hite has done reasonably well with
xd8 30.f3 d7 31.e4 d6 10.bd2 , though the test games have
a n d W h i t e c a n n o t p a s s, h e r e I sh o w a mostly been online games between GMs:
possible continuation: 32.f5 c5 33.b3 A) 10...d7 11.b1 ( 11.e1 ad8
d6 34.h4 d7 35.h5 e7 36.g4 c6 12.a4 e5 13.a3 d6 14.g5 b6!?
37.g5 d6 38.h6 gxh6 39.gxh6 e7 15.xc6 xc6 16.xe5 fe8 17.gf3
40.e5 a6 ( 40...a5?? 41.c5+- ) 41.c5 a5 h6 18.b2 d7 19.c3 xd2
with draw ] 20.xd2 xf3 21.exf3 xf3 22.xe8+
28.e4 f7 29.f2 With a better knight and xe8 23.e1 xe1+ 24.xe1 f8
rook, White has good practical chances in the 25.e4 d1+ 26.g2 c2 27.a8+
endgame. g5 30.h4 h6 31.hxg5 hxg5 e7 28.e4+ d8 1/2-1/2 Dumpster-
32.g4! The knight on d4 is centralized, but it's W i s e g u y / w w w . p l a y c h e s s . d e 2 0 0 2)
not doing much in the position and it's also 11...ad8 12.e1 b6 13.e5 xe5
not stable. d6 33.e5 f6? This is a bad 14.xe5 h3 15.f3 xg2 16.xg2
plan. W hite's rook is going to a8 and the f5= Dumpster-GM Miles/www.playchess.
position is close to lost for Black. de 2002;
[ 33...f6+ was the right way to defend the B) 10...c7 11.b1 ad8 ( 11...b6
pawn 34.e3 f3 35.e4 h2 12.h3 d7 13.a3 ad8 14.c2 h6
and Black is just slightly worse ] 15.bd1 c8 16.e3 b7 17.b1 a6
34.e8 f7 35.a8 f6+ 18.e5 d7 19.xd7 xd7 20.c3

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Corovic, D-Dizdar, G/Makarska 1993) Roiz, M (265 9)-Aleksand ro v, A (258 2)/

12.e1 h6 13.c3 e5 14.b3 c8 Plovdiv 2008/[Carsten Hansen] ]
15.b2 h5 16.f1! f5 17.e3 de8 4...b4 This gives White a hook with a2-a3, so
18.d2 h7 19.d5 Dobrzynski, W- Black ought to consider his choice carefully.
Lipski, T/Krakow 1978 ] [ 4...a6 is more logical, restricting the knight.
[ Another move is 10.h3 f5 ( 10...xf3 5.c4
11.xf3 d7 12.g2 ac8 13.c3 h5 A) 5...e5!? might be the way to go. 6.cxb5
14.b1 b6= Majer, D-Schneider, H/Hessen ( Simply 6.0-0 looks better.) 6...xa3
2000; 10...d7 11.b3 c8 12.h2 b6 7.bxa3 axb5 has been played a few times.
13.c3 a5 14.c2 c6 15.e4 Now the course of Karasev, V (2465) -
D'Amore, C-Lilly, R/Mount Buller AUS 2004) Razuvaev, Y (2540)/Elista 2002 took an
11.bd2 c7 12.c3 ad8 13.b3 e8 amusing turn: 8.b1 0-0 9.xb5 c6
14.fe1 c8= Weindl, A-Zelic, B/Baden 10.xe5?? ( 10.b4 ) 10...a4-+
1996 ] and White's queen was rather
10...xe5?! embarrassed.;
[ Here Black had 10...b6!? available, e.g. B) 5...b4 6.c2 Naturally, theory is
11.c3 xe5 12.xe5 e6 13.f4 h3 ] ch a o t i c h e r e . e6 ( 6...c5 7.0-0 e6
11.xe5 b6?! could transpose. ) 7.0-0
[ 11...d7!? ] B1) 7...e7 8.d4 is a kind of bizarre
12.c3 d7 13.xa8 xa8 14.d4 d8 Queen's Indian. ( 8.a3!? );
[ 14...h3 15.e1 cxd4 16.xd4 xd4 B2) 7...c5 8.d4!
17.xd4 ] B2a) 8...b6 9.g5 cxd4 10.cxd4
15.dxc5 c8 16.a4 xc5 17.xf6 exf6 ( 10.xf6 gxf6 11.xd4 xd4
18.fd1 c8 19.xa7 f5 20.ac1 d4 12.fxd4 xg2 13.xg2 f5 14.a3
21.f1 bxa3 15.b4! Veingold, A (2465)-
[ 21.d7! xf2+ 22.g2 e3 23.d5 g5 Illescas Cordoba, M (2545)/Linares
24.c2+- ] 1991. ) 10...e4 11.e3 Lingnau, C
21...xc4 22.b5?? (2395)-Grosar, A (2470)/Biel 1993.;
[ 22.h3! ] B2b) 8...cxd4 9.cxd4 e7 10.f4
22...xf2+! 23.xf2 xe2+ 24.g1 e3+ ( White has played other moves here,
25.g2 xc1 26.xc1 d2+ e.g. 10.a3!? bxa3 11.b3 0-0
0-1 12.xa3 Andersson, U (2655)-
Chiburdanidze, M (2535)/Kalev 1997.;
10.b3 ) 10...0-0 11.c1 b6 12.b3
206 A05 c8 13.c5! d8 14.d6 Vaganian,
Berkes,Ferenc 2706 R (2590)-Popovic, P (2540)/Sarajevo
Fedorchuk,Sergey A 2635 1987. ]
Schachbundesliga 2011-12 (3) 16.10.2011 5.c4 e6 Safest.
[John Bartholomew] [ 5...c5 6.a3!? ( This looks more testing than
6.0-0 which has also been played.) 6...d5?!
1.f3 f6 2.g3 b5 The "Extended 7.ce5 bxa3 8.g5! Drasko, M (2508)-
Fianchetto" is an attractive and high-scoring Heberla, B (2510)/Banja Luka 2008. ]
reply to 1.Nf3 and 2.g3. Black grabs as much [ 5...a5 rules out Nc4-a5, but leaves Black a
queenside space as possible and prevents little overextended. One example: 6.0-0 ( or
transpositions to many problematic c2-c4 6.a3 like 5...c5 6.a3 above.) 6...e6 7.a3 d5
systems. 3.g2 b7 4.a3!? This move 8.ce5 bd7 9.d4 e7 10.axb4 axb4
caught my eye awhile back, as some quick 11.d2 c5?! ( 11...e4 ) 12.dxc5 xc5
research found White scoring >60% with it. 13.d3 Loginov, V (2530)-Timoshenko, G
Clearly 2700s like Berkes pay attention to the (2475)/Budapest 1991. ]
statistics too! [ Finally, I can't resist mentioning a possible
[ For lines associated with 4.0-0 e6 5.d3 "Double Extended Fianchetto" with 5...g5!?N

190
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
The idea isn't completely stupid! ]
6.0-0 e7 7.a3 By now we're well-familiar
with this prod.
[ Despite the "knight on the rim, " 7.a5!?
also isn't bad. ]
7...a5 8.d3 d5 9.ce5 bd7
[ 9...0-0 10.axb4 axb4 11.xa8 xa8
Benidze, D (2491)-Arutinian, D (2566)/Tbilisi
G E O 2 0 1 0 , a n d n o w 12.c4! would be
similar to the game. ]
10.c4 0-0 11.cxd5 xd5 12.c4
[ or 12.e4 b7 13.e3 ]
12...b6 13.axb4
[ 13.e3!? ]
13...xc4 14.dxc4 axb4! 15.xa8 xa8
16.e3 e4 17.xd8 xd8 18.e5 a8!
Black has essentially equalized, but W hite
can hope to maintain a slim endgame edge
due to his better pawn structure. A similar
situation occurs in some Catalan endgames.
19.d1 h6 20.h4! a2?! Giving White a
window of opportunity.
[ 20...d6 is safer. ]
21.xe4 xe4 22.d7 f6 23.d3 c5!
Black defends accurately.
[ After 23...b3 24.xc7 xb2 25.b7 f6
26.b8+ h7 27.xb3 xe2 28.c5
Black must endure an unpleasant defense. ]
24.b3 xe2 25.g2! c2 26.f3 d2+
27.xd2 xd2 28.xc5 b2 29.h5 f8
30.d3 c3! Now the position is equal.
31.d7+ e8 32.c5?! The remainder of the
game seems like time trouble.
[ 32.c5= ]
32...c2?!
[ Missing a chance to turn the tables with
32...e1! 33.c6 xf2+ 34.g4 c2
and White is the one who has to think about
drawing. ]
33.b6 e1?
[ After 33...e5! Black will be able to play ...
Bc3-d4, e.g. 34.d5 d4 35.c4 c3+
36.e4 xb3 and Black should hold. ]
34.c4 xf2+?
[ The endgame following 34...c3 35.xc3
xc3 ( 35...bxc3 36.e3+- ) 36.e4
is likely losing, it will at least tax W hite's
technique. ]
35.g4+- The c-pawn is unstoppable. e7
[ 35...a2 36.c6 f2 37.d6+ d8
38.b5+ c8 39.c7+- ]
36.c6 f5 37.d7+ f6 38.c7 g5+
39.f3 c5 40.d6 c3+ 41.e2 xg3
42.e4+
1-0
207 A05
Davies,Nigel R 2460
Fishbein,Alexander 2495
Tel Aviv (7) 1992
[Nigel Davies]
The play of ...c6 and ...a5 is quite a challenge
for White's system because the attack on the
b4 pawn encourages the self-blocking c2-c3.
But in this game I try a different approach of
just taking on a5. White's pawn island gets
split but there's compensation too. 1.f3 f6
2.g3 g6 3.b4 g7 4.b2 0-0 5.d3 c6
6.bd2 a5 7.bxa5!? Although this splits
White's queenside pawns he has the open b-
f i l e a n d s o m e d a r k s q u a r e we a k n e s s e s
(notably b6) to aim at.
[ I didn't think that 7.a3 was anything for
White because after axb4 8.axb4 xa1
9.xa1 a6 the best seems to be to block
the a1-h8 diagonal with 10.c3 . ]
7...xa5 8.g2 b6 9.c4 c7 10.0-0 d5
11.cd2 bd7 12.c4 e6 13.c2 e8
14.fc1 d8 15.a4 h5 16.xg7 xg7
17.b3
[ I t w a s a l s o w o r t h c o n s i d e r i n g 17.e4
, trying to open things up in order to exploit
Black's dark square weaknesses. ]
17...dxc4?! giving up the central pawn
voluntarily feels like a concession. 18.xc4
b6 19.b4 d5 20.d2
[ 20.c5 might be better, but I was staring
longingly at the h6 square. ]
20...e5 21.b2
[ Again White could change pace with 21.e4
c7 22.c3 f6 23.d4 . One of the difficult
things about playing this kind of game is in
knowing when to change pace from purely
positional play to something more direct. ]
21...f6 22.fd2 e6 23.e4 e7 24.a5
Threatening to push on to a6. dc7 25.ec5
a6 26.a4 b8 27.e3 d8 28.d1 ec7
29.ac1?! After Black's reply White is no
longer better.
[ This was definitely the time to initiate play
191
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

in the centre with 29.d4 . ] W h i t e a f t e r 12.d3 e6 13.b2 h6

29...b4 30.bc5 xb2 14.a3 , for example. ]
[ 30...xa5 31.d4 would be very dangerous 12.f4 d7 13.xg7 xg7 14.c3 b6
for Black with his queen so far out of play. ] 15.d3 e3+ 16.h1 d7 This leaves Black
31.xb2 xc5 32.xc5 e6 33.a1 a8 with insufficient compensation but what else
34.f1 d5 35.xd5+ xd5 36.xd5 cxd5 should he play?
37.e4 dxe4 [ After 16...b8 17.a4 Black's position is
[ It's dead equal after 37...dxe4 38.dxe4 b6 truly horrific. ]
39.c4 bxa5 40.xa5 xa5 41.xa5 . ] 17.xb7 ab8 18.f3 h5 19.a3 g4
½-½ [ Perhaps 19...h4 was a better try, but White
h a s a l a r g e p l u s a f t e r 20.gxh4 xf4
21.xc5 . ]
208 A05 20.c1 d4 21.b5 d7 22.c3 h4
Davies,Nigel R 2518 [ Had Black repeated the position with
Gormally,Daniel 2476 22...d4 I would probably have opted for
BCF-ch 86th Scarborough (11) 12.08.1999 23.xg4 hxg4 24.f5 . But with Black
[Nigel Davies] needing a win at any cost I didn't think this
was likely. ]
This was a big game in which my opponent 23.e3 xf3+ 24.xf3 hxg3 25.xg3
had to win so part of my job was to frustrate c6+ 26.f3 f6 27.c1 h8 28.e4
him and get him to take risks. Even without h4 29.h3 d7 30.cg1 In addition to the
this the position looks nice for White after 9. extra pawn White has strong pressure on the
Ne5, and I like Dizdarevic's treatment with 11. kingside. b2?! 31.g5! Closing in for the
Nc3. 1.f3 f6 2.g3 g6 3.b4 g7 4.b2 kill. f8 32.a4 b6 33.e3 e8 34.f5! f8
d6 5.g2 c5 6.bxc5 dxc5 7.0-0 0-0 8.c4 35.xc5 f6 36.f3 h5 37.a5 b2 38.c6
c6 9.e5 White has played other moves 1-0
here but it makes sense to open the h1-a8
diagonal. The bishop on g2 exerts a lot of
pressure. xe5 209 A05
[ There's a case for Black avoiding this Erdos,Viktor 2637
e x c h a n g e w i t h 9...a5 , for example Khenkin,Igor 2655
10.c2 d7 ( 10...f5 11.d3 d7 Bundesliga 1213 (12.1) 17.03.2013
12.xd7 xb2 13.xb2 xd7 14.a3 [Danny Gormally]
was slightly better for W hite in Simic, R
(2495)-Cosma, I (2435), Belgrade 1994) 1.f3
11.xd7 xb2 12.xb2 xd7 13.d3 c8 [ When I looked at the game we are
14.c3 c6 15.h4 e6 restricted White to currently discussing, I was immediately
j u s t a s m a l l p l u s i n D i zd a r , G ( 2 4 6 5 ) - reminded of the following game: 1.c4 c5
Velimirovic, D (2575), Sarajevo 1986. ] 2.b3 f6 3.b2 g6 4.xf6! Diagram An
10.xe5 b6 11.b3 With my opponent excellent decision, wrecking the structure.
needing a win for a GM norm I wasn't Perhaps one of the most outstanding facets
concerned about an excess of solidity. of the current world champion challenger
[ In Dizdarevic, E (2515)-Licina, A (2125), Magnus Carlsen is his photographic recall. I
Bled 1994 W hite offered a pawn sacrifice was stunned when during the course of a
with 11.c3 e6 12.f4 after which xc4 press co nf eren ce a t last ye ars Lo nd o n
13.b1 a6 14.a4 e6 15.a3 d8 chess classic, the young Norwegian
16.xb7 xb7 17.xb7 c4 18.b1 g4 superstar mentioned this game in passing
19.xg7 xg7 20.xa8 xa8 21.b7 (along with a number of other obscure old
gave him a clear advantage. ] games that have mostly been forgotten.)
11...e6 How, I thought, can someone so young
[ Maybe 11...d8 was better but I still prefer kn o w a b o u t so m a n y g a m e s t h a t we r e

192
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
played before he was even born? This not
only shows his remarkable memory, but
also demonstrates a classical training that
goes far beyond the usual computer clones.
exf6 5.c3 g7 6.g3 c6 7.g2 f5 8.e3
0-0 9.ge2 a6 10.c1 b5 11.d3 b7
12.0-0 d6 13.d2 a5 14.fd1 ab8
15.d5 xd2 16.xd2 Karpov, A (2630)-
Browne, W (2530)/San Antonio 1972. ]
1...c5 2.b3 b6 3.b2 b7 4.g3 f6 5.g2
g6 6.xf6! A strong strategic decision, similar
to the Karpov game. W hite exchanges the
bishop for the knight on f6 like he does in the
Trompovsky, but here he already has a n
important concession- the enduring weakness
of the d5 square.
[ Nevertheless the straightforward approach
wasn't bad either- 6.c4 g7 7.0-0 0-0
8.c3 a6 9.d4 d5 10.e5 e6 11.dxc5
bxc5 12.cxd5 exd5 13.d3 e7 14.a4
ac8 15.c1 White has strong play against
the hanging pawns, Andersson, U (2585)-
Miles, A (2510)/La Valetta 1980. ]
6...exf6 7.c4 f5 8.c3 g7 9.c1 c6
10.0-0 0-0 11.e1 a6 12.d3 b8 13.f4
d6 14.e3 White has an obvious long-term
strategic edge, and more importantly it is not
so easy to suggest improvements for Black,
who is devoid of any aggressive or creative
ideas due to the clamp White has on the d5
square. e8 15.fd5 a8 16.a4 d7
17.c2 e5 18.b1 c6 19.f4! To use one
of those clichés us chess writers are all too
familiar with, "White's game plays itself". xd5
[ 19...g4 20.h3 f6 21.xf6+ xf6
22.xc6 xc6 23.d5 would be a dream
position for White- devotees of the Najdorf
are all too aware of the dangers of allowing
a dominant knight to reach the d5 square. ]
20.xd5 c6 21.b4! e7 22.bxc5 bxc5
23.b6 c7 24.a5 f6 25.a4 bd8
26.d5 xd5 27.xd5 e7
[ 27...b8 28.b7! is one of those happy
tactics that tend to happen when you have
such overwhelming strategic advantages. ]
28.b6+- h5 29.fb1 c8 30.c6 d7
31.bb6 h4 32.b3 g7 33.xa6 g5
34.ab6 hxg3 35.hxg3 gxf4 36.gxf4 e8
37.xd6 xd6 38.xd6 d4 39.f3 h8
40.d1 h4 41.g2 xe3 42.dxe3 xe3
43.a1+ g8 44.h1 f2+ 45.h3 xf4
46.d8+ h7 47.g2
1-0
210 A05
Miroshnichenko,Evgenij 2599
Krasenkow,Michal 2609
5th IECC Antalya TUR (10) 25.05.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 c5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.0-0 g7
5.d3 f6 6.c3 I prefer to push this pawn an
e x t r a s q u a r e m y s e l f ! 0-0 7.a3 e5
An innovation, Black wants to counter White's
threatened b4 tactically.
[ 7...d6 8.b4 e5 9.bd2 is more normal,
Utasi,T-Stohl,I/Stary Smokovec 1984. ]
8.b4 e4!? Blowing the diagonal open,
[ 8...d6 is more solid. ]
9.dxe4 xe4 10.d5!! White shows he is
also ready to play tactically, this move sacs
the c-pawn to stop Black from playing ...d5
a n d f i n i s h i n g h i s d e v e l o p m e n t . xc3
11.xc3 xc3 12.g5 The point, the f-pawn
is pinned so the black queen must move. e8
13.xc5! White offers the exchange for
control of the dark squares. xa1 Black has
to capture, otherwise he is positionally worse
f o r n o t h i n g . 14.xa1 e6 15.d1
White has to stop Black from freeing himself
by ...d6. e8 16.d6! Brilliant! The game will
be decided without the participation of Black's
qu e e n si d e p i e ce s . xe2 17.f6 e6
I think that Black should stop White's next by
[ 17...b5! e.g. 18.g5 e6 19.h6 xf6
20.xf6 b2 21.f4 g7 22.xg7+ xg7
23.e5 with the advantage, but Black is still
on the board. ]
18.b5 xd6? The decisive mistake, I don't
see any clear win after
[ 18...xf6 19.xf6 b2 20.d6 d8 ]
19.xd6 xb5?! Black had to take his
chances with
[ 19...e6 20.f4! ( 20.xe6 fxe6 21.bxc6
bxc6 is not too bad for Black) 20...e7
21.g5 e1+ 22.f1 f5 23.g4
but he is in big trouble. ]
20.g5 W hite's attack is decisive. b1+
21.f1 e1 22.xh7! e8
[ 22...xh7 23.f8 forces mate. ]
193
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

23.f4! e7 24.c3 Rimavska Sobota 1991. ]

1-0 13.h3 A new, but very obvious, continuation.
[ 13.b3 a6 14.b2 a8 15.a1
is roughly level, Popovic,P-Banas,J/Trnava
211 A05 1980. ]
Narciso Dublan,Marc 2544 13...xf3 14.xf3!? White wants to keep
Pedersen,Jan 2339 good control of e4, should Black try ...e5. a6
Open Andorra AND (6) 05.07.2001 15.c2 e6 The solid line, Black asks how
[Tony Kosten] W hite will break him down . 16.e3 a8
17.b2 c5!? With all his pieces in action
1.f3 f6 2.g3 g6 3.b4!? This is favoured Black passes onto the offensive. 18.d4!?
by Angus Dunnington in his book on the Reti. [ 18.bxc5 axc5 19.a1? xa1+ 20.xa1
W hite gains space on the queenside, and a6 loses a pawn. ]
prepares to counter the pressure of the g7- 18...cxb4?!
bishop along the a1-h8 diagonal. g7 4.b2 [ 18...cxd4! 19.exd4 c7 is strong, how
0-0 5.g2 d5 does White rid himself of the c3-pawn? ]
[ A n g u s g i v e s m o s t a t t e n t i o n t o 5...d6 19.c4! White frees his position at the cost of a
and ...e5, with more typical KI play, and doubled pawn. c7 20.b3 f6 21.b1
considers this line via the alternative move- f8 22.c3 If White an successfully
order ] recapture the pinned b-pawn he will have an
[ 5...c6 6.0-0 a5 7.a3 axb4 8.axb4 xa1 undeniable positional edge. dxc4 23.xc4
9.xa1 b6 10.c3 d5 ] b5 24.xb4 xb4 25.xb4 xb4
6.0-0 c6 7.d3 a5 8.a3 axb4 26.xb4 a1+ 27.g2 b5 28.e5
[ 8...b6 9.c3 ] [ 28.d6! is much more to the point. ]
9.axb4 xa1 10.xa1 b6 11.c3 28...a2 29.b3 c2 30.g4 fd5 31.e4
White has a flexible position, but I don't think a2 32.b1
Black would be too concerned about that. The [ 32.g5 looks good, fixing the black
position is level, but there is lots of play for kingside. ]
both sides. g4 32...a7 33.h4 h6
[ More active than 11...bd7 12.bd2 c7 [ 33...f6!? ]
13.c4 e5 14.c2 with a small edge, 34.g3 b7 35.e4 e7 36.g5 White is
Polugaevsky-Kortschnoi, Moscow 1966. ] completely outplaying his opponent,
12.bd2 fd7!? Unusual, advancing his kingside pawns while Black is
[ 12...bd7 is more common, 13.a4 e5!? obliged to passively defend his b-pawn. hxg5
the most forthright move, ( 13...c7 14.c4 37.hxg5 g7?
dxc4 15.dxc4 c5 16.b5 b6 17.b3 a8 [ 37...c8 is much better, the knight can
is equal, Smyslov,V-Bronstein,D/Amsterdam defend both f7 and b5 from the d6-square. ]
1964/IZT. ) 14.h3 garnering the bishops, 38.f3 e8 39.xf7+ g8 40.f4?
( 14.e4 c7 15.c4 dxe4 16.dxe4 [ Time trouble, I suppose, White allows the b-
led to a quick draw in Balashov,Y-Khalifman, pawn to advance, 40.a2 wins quickly. ]
A / L v o v 1 9 9 0) 14...xf3 15.xf3 h6 40...b4 41.g4 g7 42.f6 d6 43.h4
16.a2 Angus' f avoured line, ( 16.b3 b3 44.h7+ f8 45.h8+ f7 46.d5?!
allowed e4 17.g2 c7 18.a7 h5! A peculiar move, without this W hite is still
19.dxe4 dxe4 Chechelian - Baikov, Moskau- better. exd5 47.exd5 ef5+ Black finds a
ch 1974 when the threat of ...e3 is difficult square! 48.g2 b2 49.h7+ f8 50.xb7
to counter, e.g. 20.e3 xg3 21.fxg3 xg3 xb7 51.d7+ g7 52.e5 bd6
22.h1 e5 winning quickly.) 16...d8 Black's b-pawn saves the day, W hite can
( 16...b8!? 17.b1 d8 would allow Black hardly win it without allowing Black into his
t o ga in c o n t r o l o f t h e a -f ile , b y . . . Ra 8) kingside. 53.f1?! e7 54.e2
17.b1 planning e4, with a small plus due to [ If 54.d3 xd5 55.xb2 f7 draws. ]
the bishop pair, Poley,V-Fries Nielsen,J/ 54...xd5 55.d2 f4 56.c3 f7

194
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

57.xf7 xf7 16...c4!? 17.bxc4 b4 ( 17...c5+

½-½ 18.h1 exf4 19.xf4 e5 20.e3 )
18.f5 ( 18.fxe5 c3 19.xa3 xe5 )
18...d6 19.fxe6 fxe6 20.h2 0-0;
212 A05 C3) 7.h4 d5 8.e2 dxe4 9.dxe4
Roiz,Michael 2659 C3a) 9...d6 10.f3 0-0 ( 10...e5
Aleksandrov,Aleksej 2582 11.xb5 b8 12.bd2 0-0 13.e2
IX EICC Plovdiv BUL (9) 30.04.2008 c5 14.d1 ) 11.e5 xf3 12.xf3
[Carsten Hansen] xe5 13.xa8 xa8 14.xa8
xa8;
1.f3 f6 2.g3 b5 3.g2 b7 4.0-0 e6 C3b) 9...c8?! 10.d1 b8 11.d2
5.d3 d6 6.c3 c6 12.b3 c5 13.e5 xg2
[ White has tried a few other things at this 14.xc5 ( 14.exf6!? xb3 15.axb3
early stage: A) 6.c4 bxc4 7.dxc4 c6 16.e5 g8 17.fxg7 xg7
A) 7...c5 8.c3 e7 9.c2 0-0 18.c5 d5 19.e1 d8 20.c4 b7
( 9...c6 10.d1 0-0 11.a3 h6 12.b1 21.h5 , and Black is in serious
c7 13.h3 fd8 14.e4 d7 15.e2 trouble ) 14...a8 15.exf6 xc5
ac8 16.e3 e5= Motwani, P-Guidarelli, 16.fxg7 g8 17.e3 b7 18.f3 b6
L/Port Barcares FRA 2005) 10.d1 b6 19.xc5 ( 19.f5 xe3+ 20.xe3
11.a3 bd7 12.f4 fd8 13.b4 cxb4 xg7 21.a4 b4 22.d3 ) 19...xc5+
14.axb4 a6 15.a4 c7 16.b3 ac8 20.f2 xf2+ 21.xf2 xg7
17.ac1 Akopian, V-Pogorelov, R/Ubeda , and Black is over the worst, Soppe,
1996; G-Dorin, M/Pena City 1996;
B) 7...e7 8.c3 0-0 9.e1 c5 10.b3 C4) 7.bd2 (this is the most frequently
c6 11.b2 a6 12.d2 c7 13.ad1 seen move, and also the normal
ad8 14.c1 d7 15.e4 fd8 continuation against other set-ups from
Anand, V-Kortschnoj, V/Roquebrune 1992 Black, but other moves are not without
16.f4!? ] merit either)
[ B) 6.e4 (this is White's most popular C4a) 7...c5 is a solid alternative, e.g.
choice) C4a1) 8.e2 c7 9.d4 cxd4
A) 6...c5 7.a4 a6 8.axb5 axb5 9.xa8 10.xd4 a6 11.c4 b6 12.2b3
xa8 10.a3 c6 11.e5 fd7 12.exd6 bxc4 13.xc4 e5 14.f5 b5
xd6 13.g5 b4 ( 13...b6!? ) 14.c4 15.c7 c6 16.xc6 xc6 17.d1
f6 15.e2 xg2 16.xg2 e7 17.e3 ( 17.e1!? ) 17...xe4 18.xd6+
0-0= Vukic, M-Karpov, A/Bugojno 1978; xd6 19.xd6 xg2 20.xg2
B) 6...e7 7.e1 0-0 8.e5 xg2 9.exf6 e7= Vladimirov, E-Novopashin, A/
xf1 10.fxe7 xe7 11.xf1 d7 Volgodonsk 1981;
12.e2 c6 13.f3 Quinteros, M-Minev, C4a2) 8.e1 c7 9.f1 e7
N/Cienfuegos 1972; 10.h3 0-0 11.g4 h8 12.g3
C) 6...bd7 ac8 13.g5 d5 14.exd5
C1) 7.e1 b8 8.a4 b4 9.bd2 e7 , and a draw was agreed upon, 1/2-1/
10.c4 0-0 11.c3 a8 12.c2 d5 2, in Nikolic, Z-Mackic, Z/Niksic 1997,
13.exd5 xd5 14.fe5 f6 15.d4 c5 even if Black is doing rather well
, Kirov, N-Anastasian, A/Aegina 1993, after xd5;
and here W hite would do best to play C4a3) 8.a4 a6 9.g5 b8 10.f4
16.e4 g6 17.h6 xe5 18.dxe5; h6 11.h3 e5 12.axb5 axb5 13.c4
C2) 7.c3!? b4 8.e2 c5 9.h3 e7 c6 14.b3 e7 15.h1 0-0=
10.g4 h6 11.a3 a5 12.g3 c7 Vasiukov, E-Donchenko, A/Arvier
13.e2 e5 14.xe5 dxe5 15.f4 ITA 2006;
, Conquest, S-Krasenkow, M/Dhaka C4b) 7...e7 8.e2 ( 8.e1 e5 9.a4
1995, bxa3 16.b3 ( 16.bxa3 c4 ) a6 10.b3 c5 11.d2 b4 12.c1 c4

195
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
13.dxc4 xe4 14.xe4 xe4
15.d3 Fiorito, F-Dorin, M/ARG
1995 ) 8...c5 9.a4 a6 10.b3 0-0
11.b2 b6 12.e5 dxe5 13.xe5
xe5 14.xe5 xg2 15.xg2 fd8=
Huebner, R-Aleksandrov, A/Batumi
1999 ]
[ C) 6.a4 b4
A) 7.e4 e7 8.e1 bd7 9.f4 b8
10.e3 1/2-1/2 was Quinteros, M-Panno,
O/Buenos Aires 1975 c5 11.g4 h6
is unclear;
B) 7.a5 c5 8.c3 ( 8.e4 a6 9.bd2 c6
10.c4 e7 11.e1 1/2-1/2 Maletin, P-
Geller, J/Nishnij Tagil RUS 2005) 8...bxc3
9.xc3 e7 10.a6 c6 11.d4 cxd4
12.xd4 xg2 13.a4+ d7 14.xg2
xa4 15.xa4 fd7 16.e3 c5
Lysyj, I-Geller, J/Nishnij Tagil RUS 2005
17.a3;
C) 7.bd2 (this is, again, probably the
best move for White) bd7 8.c4 a5
9.e4 e7 10.c3 d5 11.exd5 xd5
12.d2 c5 13.e2 0-0 14.fd1 c7
15.ce5 xe5 16.xe5 f6 17.g4
e7 18.c4 b6 19.f4 Todorcevic, M-
Mackic, Z/Tivat 1995 ]
[ D) 6.a3!? b4 7.c4 c5 8.e4 e7 9.a3
d5 10.exd5 exd5 11.ce5 , and White has
the initiative, Sergeev, V-Manik, M/Czech
Rep CZE 2004 ]
6...bd7 7.a4
[ A) 7.b3!? aims to take advantage of the
loose b5-pawn and the unprotected bishop
placed behind it. b8 8.a4 d5 9.c2 b4
10.c4 ( 10.e4!? b3 11.e2 looks clearly
better for White.) 10...a8 11.bd2 g6
12.b3 c5 13.h3 ( 13.e4!? g7 14.g5
leaves White with a slight initiative to build
on, whereas Black's queenside operations
are at a standstill for now.) 13...g7 14.e3
0-0 15.d2 b6 ( 15...c7 16.h6 d5
17.cxd5 xd5!? ) 16.h6 xf3 17.xf3 d5
with chances for both players, Oztan, D-
Mach, P/Rimavska Sobota 1996 ]
[ B) 7.bd2 c5 8.e4 e7 9.e1 0-0
10.e2 b6 11.a4 a6 12.h3 c6
with a comfortable game for Black, Lenic,
L-Barnaure, V/Balatonlelle HUN 2003 ]
7...a6 8.a3
[ This is a novelty over 8.axb5 axb5 9.a3
d5 10.b4 c6 11.f4 b6 12.b3 e7
13.e4!? 0-0 14.e5 fd7 15.h4 ( 15.d4!?
obviously deserves attention with the bishop
being buried on b7 for some time to come.
Black will likely continue with g5 16.e3 f6
, claiming some counterplay, though
White's chances still seem preferable. With
the text move, White aims to prevent Black's
p a w n a d v a n c e .) 15...a4 16.c2
( White should give consideration to 16.d4
a8 17.a2 a7 18.fa1 a8 19.d2 f6
20.h3 f5 21.d1; 16.a2 a8 17.fa1
a7 18.h5 h6 19.d4 a8 20.d2 )
16...c5 17.d4 cxb4 18.xb4 c7
, and Black is now fully in the game,
Smyslov, V-Savon, V/Odessa 1974 ]
8...c6 9.d2
[ 9.axb5!? axb5 10.d4 d5 11.e4!? b4
is complicated, but not necessarily any
better for White despite his lead in
development ]
9...d5 10.b4
[ This looks like the normal move, but White
can do better with the more aggressive
10.f4!? , and after e7 , then White strikes
with 11.e4! with the initiative in White's
hands, e. g. dxe4 12.dxe4 xe4 13.e5!
xe5 14.xe5 xd1 15.fxd1 f6
16.axb5 axb5 17.xb5 ]
10...e7 11.d4 bxa4
[ 11...0-0!? can also be considered. The
ga m e m o ve sh o u ld le a d t o a b a l a n c e d
game ]
12.xa4 a5 13.b5?!
[ White sharpens the battle, probably with
Black's uncastled king in mind. But Black's
position is solid and the king's situation is
only a matter of temporary concern. Solid
and leading to equality is 13.bxa5 xa5
14.b3 c5= ]
13...c5! And Black has taken over the
initiative... 14.c2 cxb5 15.axb5 0-0
16.fb1 a4!?
[ 16...g4!? 17.b3 ( 17.c4?! dxc4
18.dxc4 xg2 19.xg2 f6 20.e3 e5
is better for Black) 17...c6 18.xc5 xc5
19.d4 b6 20.h3 f6 21.c4 , and White
has the initiative ]
17.c4 d7 18.b4 fc8 19.a2?
[ This is a mistake of serious proportions.
Instead W hite should play 19.c3! b3
196
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
( 19...dxc4 is probably better, though these
lines are quite complicated, e.g. 20.xc5
xg2 21.xe7 xd4 22.xg2 cxd3
23.xd3 xd3 24.exd3 xc3 25.xa4
cc8 , and the players can get ready to
shake hands.) 20.xb3 xb4 21.d2
xc3 22.xc3 d4 23.a3 xg2 24.xg2
a5 with a Benko Gambit-like position with
the colours reversed. White is at least equal,
bu t b e ing a 'B e nko 'it e ' m yself , I p re f e r
White. ]
19...dxc4?
[ 19...e5! 20.f3 dxc4 , and White's
position falls apart with a thud. ]
20.dxc4 xg2 21.xg2 fe4 22.d1 e5
23.f3 e6 24.d5 f6 25.e1 ab8
26.xc5 xc5 27.e4 h5 28.h4 a8
29.c3 a6
[ Black should consider the promising
29...a3!? 30.b5 d7 31.b3 b6
32.xa3 xa3 33.xa3 xa3 34.xa3
xd5 35.cxd5 d7 , and Black has some
winning chances, though the weakened
kingside pawn structure is a concern for
Black. ]
30.e2 g6 31.d1 f8
[ Or 31...f7 32.d3 b6 33.xc5 xc5
34.xa4 xc4 35.xc4+ xc4 36.b6
xa2 37.xc4= ]
32.c2 e6
[ 32...ab8 33.e3 c6 ]
33.e3 a6
[ Black has other moves available as well,
though none of them promise any particular
a d v a n t a g e : 33...c6!? 34.ed5 b3
35.b1 cb8 ]
[ or 33...h6!? ]
34.ed5 f7 35.da1 ca8 36.b5 c8
37.bc3 ca8 38.b1 b3?
[ 38...a3! is perfectly fine for Black, but time
trouble likely played a serious role in the
events on the board. ]
39.xa4! xa4 40.xa4 d4 41.d1 f5
[ 41...c8 42.ab6 c6 43.a4 ]
42.b6 e6 43.exf5 gxf5 44.c6 h7
[ 44...f4!? ]
45.ab6 e8?? 46.f6+! when Black takes
the knight, then follows Qd1xh5+xe8.
1-0
213 A05
Smyslov,Vassily 2550
Petrelli,Mark 2200
Los Polvorines op 1980
[Nigel Davies]
This game is a bit of a mismatch but provides
an interesting illustration of some strategic
themes. W hite takes space with 11.e4 and
then more and more of it as the game
progresses. Eventually Black is strangled
without ever having played an active move.
1.f3 f6 2.g3 g6 3.b4 d5 4.b2 g7
5.g2 0-0 6.0-0 b6 Black's moves look
sensible enough but they don't fit together
that well a double fianchetto defence would
be better without ...d7-d5 for example.
[ A much better idea is 6...d6 though there
to o W hit e h as ch an ces of a n e d ge , f o r
example 7.a3 a5 8.e5 b6 9.c3 c6
10.a4 b5 11.c5!? fd7 12.xg7
xg7 13.d3 e8 was Davies, N (2505)-
Lane, G (2420), W rexham 1997 and now
14.b1 intending 15.Qb2+ would have given
me more of a pull. ]
7.d3 b7 8.bd2 bd7 9.c4 e6 10.c2
[ I think there's also a good case for
m u n c h in g a wa y o n e o f B la c k' s c e n t r a l
p a w n s wi t h 10.cxd5 , f or example xd5
11.xg7 xg7 12.c2 e5 ( 12...xb4??
13.c3+ ) 13.a3 would put Black under long-
term positional pressure. ]
10...c6 11.e4 e7 12.a4 fc8 13.a5 a6?
Overawed by the occasion (it's not every day
that one plays against a former W orld
Champion) and the problems of the position,
Black commits strategic suicide.
[ He had to try 13...bxa5 when 14.xa5
xb4 15.c3 e7 16.b1 c7
is unpleasant for Black but he's definitely on
the board. After the text he finds himself in
a vice like grip. ]
14.axb6 xb6 15.c5 bd7 16.b3 b8
17.a5 a7 18.e5 e8 19.d4 c7 20.h4
Aiming to open a second front on the kingside.
b5 21.d3 d7 22.fe1
[ White could win a pawn with 22.xb7 xb7
23.xa6 , but Smyslov probably figured this
would give his opponent some undeserved
freedom. ]
22...f8 23.c1 d7 24.g5 e8 25.e3
197
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
f8 26.h3 b8 27.h2 e8 28.g4 c8
There's no defending those kingside dark
squares.
[ After 28...d7 29.f6+ xf6 ( 29...xf6
30.exf6 ) 30.exf6 h8 31.h6 Black even
loses his queen. ]
29.f6+ xf6 30.exf6 d8 31.h6 e8
32.f4 h8 33.xb8
1-0
214 A05
Stein,Leonid
Rodriguez Gonzales,Jesus
Capablanca mem 1968
[Nigel Davies]
T h is ga m e is a n e xce lle n t i llu st ra t io n o f
White's strategic aims with 3.b4. He manages
to nibble away Black centre pawns with 13.
bxc6 and 14.c5 and then eventually takes
control of the centre with his own. 1.f3 f6
2.g3 g6 3.b4 Stein liked this move, as did
Smyslov. And as these are two of my
favourite players I started using it myself. g7
4.b2 0-0 5.g2 d6 6.d3 bd7 7.bd2
e5 8.0-0 a5 It's not clear that Black should
seek conflict on the side of the board on which
he has less space. In subsequent encounters
other moves have been tried, for example:
[ a) 8...e8 9.c4 a5 10.a3 c6?!
(Weakening the central dark squares, kind
of like Rodriguez does) 11.c2 e7 12.e4
(An instructive switch to central play) f8
13.h3 h5 14.c5! dxc5 was Poley, V (2395)-
Hausner, I (2415), Manhems 1998, and now
15.bxa5 was probably the simplest. White is
better here because it's so difficult for Black
to defend his important e5 pawn. ]
[ b) 8...h5 is interesting because it
threatens 9. ..e4. Camara, H (2340)-Braga,
C, Caxias do Sul 1975 went 9.d4 ( 9.e4!?
is interesting because f5 can be met by
10.exf5 gxf5 11.xe5! ) 9...e8 10.dxe5
dxe5 11.e4 b6 and now 12.c4
was probably best, meeting a4 with
13.a3 . ]
9.a3 b6?! The knight is all wrong here, not
least because of its vulnerability to the idea of
c2-c4-c5. 10.c4 d7 11.b5 a4 12.c1 c5?
And this is very helpful to White because it
significantly weakens Black's central pawn
formation.
[ 12...e7 wa s b e s t w h e n 13.c5 dxc5
( 13...bd5 14.e4 wins a piece) 14.xe5
still gives White an excellent game because
of his cen tral pawn majority and active
bishops on g2 and b2. After xb5 15.xb7
ab8 16.c6 xc6 17.xc6
Black's position is unpleasant. ]
13.bxc6 xc6
[ 13...bxc6 14.c5! is very strong. ]
14.c5! dxc5 15.xc5 fd7 16.c2 e7
17.a1! Very picturesque, and something like
a White ideal in the Reti Opening. Although
White's pieces are posted at a distance they
exert tremendous pressure. fe8 18.fc1
d5 19.e4 c7 20.d4 Finally White's
central pawns push forward, and in doing so
leave Black with a miserable position in which
his minor pieces have difficulty finding decent
squares. exd4 21.xd4 xd4 Black really
wouldn't have wanted to do this, but with the
bishop on c6 about to be taken he had little
choice. 22.xd4 b5 23.b2 e5 24.c4
xc4
[ On 24...d3 White has 25.f6 . ]
25.xc4 d6 26.b4 ec8 27.c5 e8
28.c1 d7 29.bc4 xc5 30.xc5 c6
31.c3 f6 32.e5 After the exchange of light
square bishops Black will find it difficult to
defend his queenside. xg2 33.xg2 b6
34.c6 d8 35.xb6 fxe5 36.b4 d4
37.xd4 exd4 38.xd4 A clear pawn up and
with ongoing pressure this is totally won for
White. b7+ 39.g1 f7 40.h8 e4
41.xh7+ e6 42.h3+ d6 43.f1 c7
44.d1+ d5 45.h4 e6 46.d4 f5
47.xa4
1-0
215 A06
Bagirov,Vladimir 2485
Polgar,Sofia 2430
Brno Morava-B (1) 1991
[Nigel Davies]
1.b3 c5 2.b2 d5 3.e3 f6 4.f3 c6
5.b5 d7 6.0-0 e6 7.d3 d6!
[ This looks like an improvement on 7...e7
when White can try to set up some pressure
198
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

with 8.xc6 xc6 9.e5 . ] d8 28.h6 c8

8.e4 [ 28...b5 29.d2 a5 would have been
[ With the bishop on d6 Black can meet quite good for Black. ]
8.xc6 xc6 9.e5 with xe5 ( 9...c8 29.d2 f6 30.e1 b8 31.xc8 xc8
10.f4 would make it harder for Black to 32.xc8+ xc8 33.c4 g7?!
defend ) 10.xe5 after which I wonder if [ 33...d8 would have been safer. Now
B l a c k c a n s a c r i f i c e a p a wn wi t h d7!? W hite gets the better endgame and it
( Of course 10...0-0 is also quite playable requires good defence for Black to hold the
when 11.f4 e7 12.d2 d7 13.f3 d4 draw. ]
14.exd4 xf3 15.xf3 f6 16.c7 cxd4 34.g5!
was at least equal for Black in W ettstein, [ 34.d2 d8 35.b4 c7 fails to make
M-Postler, R/Ybbs 1968) 11.xg7 g8 an impression on Black's solid position. ]
12.b2 h4 13.e2 0-0-0 . White's king is 34...xg5 35.hxg5 b5 36.axb5 axb5
certainly under pressure with the g-f ile 37.d6 e6 38.f3 xb3 39.xe5 e8!
being open and Black's bishop on c6 Aiming for an opposite colour bishop
shadowing the g2 square. ] endgame. 40.xe8 xe5 41.f4 b4!
8...d4! 42.xb4 a4 43.fxe5 xe8 44.f2
[ After 8...dxe4 9.dxe4 xe4 10.e1 [ 44.c5? b5 45.xd4 xd3
W hite gets more than enough for the is also nothing. ]
sacrificed pawn, for example f5 11.bd2 44...b5 45.e2 a6 46.c5 b5 47.xd4
xd2 12.xd2N e7 13.ad1 c7 f8 48.c5+ e8 Despite the two extra
14.g5 creates very strong pressure. ] pawns White will not be able to break through.
9.bd2 ½-½
[ One of the points behind Black's play is that
9.xc6 xc6 10.e5 can be answered by
xf3 11.xf3 xe5 12.xb7 0-0 216 A06
with a very comfortable game for Black. ] Blatny,Pavel 2476
9...e5 10.c4 e7 11.c3 0-0 12.xc6 Narciso Dublan,Marc 2447
xc6 13.cxd4 cxd4 14.a4 Trying to get a FSGM October (5) 06.10.1999
slight initiative with Nxd6 followed by Bb2-a3, [Tony Kosten]
but this shouldn't worry Black too much. fc8
[ 14...e8 looks fine for Black here, for 1.f3 f6 2.b3 d5 3.b2 g4 4.h4!?
example 15.xd6 xd6 16.a3 f5 [ This must have come as something of a
brings some kingside counterplay. ] surprise f or B lack! 4.e3 is the standard
15.h4 d7 16.f3 move here, whilst ]
[ Black can meet 16.f5 with xf5 17.exf5 [ 4.e5 is sometimes played. ]
b4 , preventing White's rook from coming 4...c6 5.h3 h5
to e1 and at the same time targeting the c3 [ In some ways this justifies Whites
square. ] outlandish knight move, perhaps 5...d7
16...g6 17.c1 e8 18.g3 c7 19.e2 could be tried. ]
g7 20.g2 White wants to play f2-f4 at a 6.g4 g6 7.g2 e5 8.xg6 hxg6
moment when he will hopef ully get some Black has a solid position, with good
initiative on the kingside. But it's not easy to development, but White is probably happy as
get this in without Black hitting back with ...f7- he has two well-placed bishops. 9.c4 c5
f5. c6 21.a3 d7 22.d2 10.c1 d4 11.d3 The players have reached
[ After 22.f4 Black can play exf4 23.gxf4 f5 a Benoni-type position where W hite's g2-
with an excellent game. ] bishop is unopposed. e4!?
22...e8 23.ae1 b6 24.c1 [ Ra t h e r s p e c u la t i ve , t h e s im p l e 11...a5
[ Here too 24.f4 is met by exf4 25.gxf4 f5 was fine. ]
.] 12.dxe4 xg4 The idea behind Black's
24...b7 25.c2 a6 26.fc1 e6 27.h4 previous move, but it might not be completely

199
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
sound. 13.hxg4 xh1+ 14.xh1 h4
Hitting the h1-bishop and threatening ...d3,
with an attack on f2. 15.g2
[ 15.f3 h2 16.f1 e5 is worse. ]
15...xg4 16.f1 0-0-0 17.d2 d3
18.exd3?!
[ This brings the black rook too close for
comfort, 18.d1 might be more circumspect,
defending the e2-pawn. ]
18...xd3 19.e5
[ Freeing the e4-square and h1-a8 diagonal.
19.e1 wa s a lso p o ssib le , wh e n f4
20.c1 e3 21.d1 d3 leads to a draw. ]
19...d4 20.e1?
[ To control e2, but it almost loses. 20.xd4
xd4 21.e4 is forced, although Black has
no problems after a3 ]
20...e6? Missing a great chance.
[ Clearly White's idea is to answer 20...c2?
with 21.e4! xe4 22.xe4 xa1
23.xc5 winning, ]
[ but Black has far stronger, 20...g3!! with:
21.e4! ( 21.xb7+ is answered by b8!
22.fxg3 h3+ 23.g2 f5+ 24.f3 xf3
25.d1 g1+!; whilst 21.fxg3? loses to
f5+ 22.f3 xf3 ) 21...xg2 22.xg2
e2+ 23.g1 xd2 24.xd4 xd4
when Black is slightly better, because of
his activity and pressure on f2, but White
may be able to hold. ]
21.e4! After this, White consolidates easily.
f4 22.xb7+ d8 23.b8+ e7
[ Black's position goes from bad to worse. He
can't play the normal 23...d7? because of
24.c6+! xc6 25.b5# ]
24.xc7+ f8 25.xc5+ g8 26.c6
Just in time to stop the mate on g2. xd2
27.f3 White can afford this simplification
because of his extra queenside pawns. xf3
28.xf3 xb2 29.d1?!
[ Missing the thematic 29.c5! as we all know
that 'passed pawns must be pushed'! For
example: d3 30.c6! xf2+ 31.g1 c2
( following 31...xf3?? 32.c7 the pawn
queens. ) 32.e4 c3 33.xd3 xd3
34.c1 winning at a canter. ]
29...xa2 30.d8+ h7 31.e1 b2
32.d1 a5 Black has actually managed to
regain material equality. 33.d7 g8 34.c5
The problem, this pawn is very difficult to stop.
b1 35.d2 b2+ 36.c2 a4 37.bxa4
e6 38.c6 b8 39.c7! The simplest, this
pawn sells itself dearly. c8 40.b3 xc7
[ 40...xc7? loses a piece to 41.xe6 ]
41.xf7+ f8 42.e6 g5 43.e3 Black can
hardly move.
1-0
217 A06
Carlsen,Magnus 2872
Anand,Viswanathan 2773
Zurich Chess Challenge Blitz blitz (4) 29.1.14
[Fier, Alexandr]
This was a blitz game between two W orld
Champions in what we can describe as a
'blitz' variation. Actually Carlsen's idea is not
that bad, so we can take a look. 1.f3 d5
2.b3 c5 3.e4!? In my database this is called
the Rieger/Simon gambit, but we can think of
it as a Budapest with reversed colors. White
has the extra move b3, and this can bring
some funny implications. dxe4 Critical, of
course.
[ 3...e6 would transpose to a Sicilian, coming
from the moves 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.b3 d5
4.exd5 exd5 5.b5+ and White can try to
get a small edge, but this is a diff erent
story ]
4.g5 Apparently this is already a novelty!
White usually tries to bring the knight to e5
because of the well known trick.
[ 4.e5?! is the most played move and
analyzed by Rieger in an old ChessBase
article. It looks like White is losing a piece,
but it turns out that it's not that simple. d4?
after this attractive move, White is just better
( 4...a6 this is a normal move in the
Budapest and I don't see any problem with
playing it here 5.b2 f6 and I don't think
W hite has enough for the pawn in
Ma gh so o d lo o , P ( 2 0 3 0 ) -K o wsa ri n i a , A
(2289)/IRI-ch Zahedan 2012.; 4...f6
is another natural alternative and better than
the text 5.b2 bd7 6.c4 b5 7.e3 a6
an d t he kn igh t is n o t d oin g well o n e 3 ,
Bisguier, A (2370)- Krush, I (2260)/
Parsippany m 1998.) 5.b2! and now the
queen will have huge problems coming back
home xb2 accepting the challenge
( 5...d6 would be the last chance to come
200
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
back, but then 4...Qd4 makes no sense)
6.c3 White threatens simply 7.Nc4 e6
( 6...a3 7.b5+ d7 8.c4 b4 9.a3
wins the queen) 7.b5+ is given as the
main line by Rieger ( 7.a3 this would be
simpler, since c6 8.xc6 g4 9.e2
xe2 10.xe2 doesn't change the
evaluation) 7...c6 8.xc6 a6 9.d4+
( 9.a4 is the move analyzed and things
here are not that clear b5 10.xb5 axb5
11.b1 a3 12.xb5 xa2 with some
c h a o s a h e a d) 9...axb5 10.dxb5
and the queen is still trapped g4 11.f3
exf3 12.gxf3 xf3 13.xf3 xa1+ 14.e2
and Black's king will have some problems,
nothing is developed ]
4...f6
[ 4...f5 would also be possible, and
probably would transpose to the note to the
next move after 5.c3 f6 6.b5+ c6
7.e2 ]
5.c3
[ 5.c4 I would prefer this move first, forcing
5...e6 and going for the pawn, transposing to
the game e6 6.c3 c6 ]
5...c6 Anand gives back the pawn without a
fight. This line is also playable with reversed
colors, but for me it looks like b3 can be more
useful now.
[ 5...f5! is critical and it's not clear if White
can have enough for the pawn 6.b5+ c6
7.e2 ( 7.xc6+ is another option and
again we are following in the steps of the
Budapest bxc6 8.e2 d4 9.b2
using the extra move to develop the bishop
h6 10.d1 d6 11.e3 e6 12.xf5 exf5
and again White has compensation, but I'm
not sure if it's enough to hold the balance)
7...h6! Black can use b3 in his own favor
( 7...d4 would be the normal answer, but
here I like White's position 8.f3 exf3 9.xf3
d6 10.b2 with nice play, since Black
c a n ' t p l a y xc2 b e c a u s e o f 11.d3
winning the piece) 8.gxe4 xe4 9.xe4
d4 10.c3 xc2 and Black has time to
get out with the bishop before d3 comes
11.b2 g6 12.c1 e6 13.0-0 and White
has some compensation, but Black is fine.
Playing 5.Bc4 would avoid all this, and
Black playing 4...Bf5 could bring play back
to this line ]
6.c4 e6 7.b2 The next few moves are
normal. e7 8.0-0 0-0 9.cxe4 xe4
10.xe4 e5? And here Black probably
underestimated White's response. The attack
will become really dangerous, really fast.
[ 10...b6 is much better than the text and the
position offers chances to both sides 11.g4
tries to bring more pieces to the kingside
( 11.e1 is ok, but afterwards White doesn't
ha ve a cle ar p la n b7 12.h5 d4
13.ac1 c8 and maybe White can come
with c3-d4 at some point) 11...d4 12.c3
f5!? ( 12...f5 13.d4 cxd4 14.cxd4 g6
15.ad1 is interesting for White) 13.h3
c6 14.g3 and even if White manages to
take on f5, Black's pieces are better placed
A) 14...xd2 can be dangerous 15.ab1
( 15.xf5 is also possible, but White will
lose an exchange in the complications
xb2 16.f3! d7 17.ad1 h8
18.xd7 e5 19.e3 xd7 20.xe7
ae8 21.xe6 d2 and Black is slightly
better ) 15...h8 16.b5!? Black can
d e f e n d t h e k n ig h t i n a g o o d wa y e5
( 16...b7 17.fd1 and the rook will enter
the 7th rank g5 18.d7 a6 19.f4! xf4
20.xc6 xc6 21.xe7 and White is a bit
better, but the position is still unclear;
16...d6 17.bd1 c7 18.fe1 e5
19.h5 with compensation) 17.h5
and White can come with 18.Rfd1 and the
position is far from clear;
B) 14...e5 15.xf5 f6 16.e3 xc4
17.xc4 b5 with compensation for the
pawn ]
11.f4! Suddenly the position is quite
d a n g e r o u s f o r B l a c k . exf4 12.h5?!
One more time I think that the idea was right,
but the move order not best.
[ 12.xf4! d4 13.h5 g6 14.e5
would transpose to the game, avoiding 12...
Be6 ]
12...d4 Now Black is already lost. It's
interesting to see how the position went so
wrong in 12 moves.
[ 12...e6 was necessary and things are not
so clear 13.xe6 other moves are not good
( 13.xf4 xc4 14.bxc4 d4 is fine for
Black; 13.d3 f5 14.ae1 g6 15.h6
d4 and the attack is under control, so
Black is better) 13...fxe6 14.g4 d4
201
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
15.c3 f5 16.xf4 c4! closing the long
diagonal, with a double-edged position ]
13.xf4 g6 14.e5 b6
[ 14...e6 was the last chance to play this
move, but White already has a clear edge
after 15.xe6 fxe6 16.xf8+ xf8
17.xc5 xc5 18.xc5 c6 White has an
extra pawn and the bishop is quite strong ]
15.af1 All White's pieces are centralized and
look ing at Black's kin g. The re is alread y
nothing to do and the computer gives at least
+10! f5 16.g4
[ 16.xf5 gxf5 17.xf5 c8 18.g5 d6
19.xf7 xe5 20.xe7+ e6 21.xe6
could be another way to finish the game ]
16...e6 17.xe6 fxe6 18.xf8+ xf8
19.f6+ h8 20.c3
[ 20.e8+ was quicker, with a beautiful mate
that Carlsen sees on the next move g8
21.h8+ xh8 22.xf8# ]
20...c6 21.e8+
1-0
218 A06
Chaplin,Erik 2140 4...d7 5.e2 c6 6.0-0 gf6 7.d3 d6
Prie,Eric 2516 8.bd2 e7 Actually, it is exactly the same
Ouest Toulousain 2007 (3.1) 20.02.2007 position as against Karpatchev and the reason
[Eric Prié]
1.b3 d5 2.e3
[ 2.f4 g4! ]
[ 2.b2 g4
A) 3.f3 xf3 ( 3...d7 4.c4 c6
Of course is also playable but it is
instructive for the d-Pawn Specials' World
to note that this idea of giving deliberately
up the queen's bishop against the Nf3 may
be promising only in the case of an
opposite queenside fianchetto like 1.d4
Nf6 2.Bg5 b6 3.Bxf6 and the same plan 9...e5 10.h4 e6 11.hf3
of annihilating the potential of the
opposing pair of bishops precisely on the
long diagonal. );
B) 3.c4 c6 4.f3 xf3 5.exf3 f6 6.g3
g6! So if White takes on f6 to inflict his
opponent a symmetrically defective
structure, he will still have to deal with
some annoying dark-squared weaknesses 11...h6 12.b4
because of the move b2-b3. A concern
that is not symmetric, itself, because of
the natural development of the bishop to
g4 saves one tempo! 7.g2 ( 7.xf6 exf6
8.e2+ e7 9.g2 0-0! 10.cxd5? e8 )
7...g7 8.0-0! 0-0! 9.f4 e8! 10.xg7
xg7 11.d3 e6 12.d2 d7 13.f3
b6 Black squared strategy while the
opposing bishop hits a granite wall of
pawns on his own colour. 14.c2 fd8
15.c3 a5 16.fd1 b4 17.b2 a4
18.e1 axb3 19.c2 b6 20.axb3
xa1 21.xa1 c5 22.c3 dxc4
23.bxc4 f5 24.c2 b3 25.xb3
xb3 26.f1 a8 27.g4 h4! 28.d4
a2 29.e3 d2+ 30.g1 xg2
31.xg2 e4 32.f1 d2 33.f5 exf5
34.gxf5 xd4 35.b1 d7 36.e1 g7
37.f3 c5 38.e2 h5 39.fxg6 fxg6
40.a2 f7+ 41.g2 d3 42.c2?
e1+ 0-1 Brunelliere, P (2294) - Prie, E
(2489) Nantes op 2002 Clear, wasn't it?! ]
2...f5 3.b2 e6 4.f3 So the London
approach also works with reversed colours,
with the slight difference that W hite could
have played
[ 4.f4 here under reasonable conditions. ]
why I materialize it as a bonus game in this
update... with the one difference that Black
has spared the h-pawn move! 9.a3
[ 9.h4 g6 Indeed, the fact that White has
already castled kingside provides Black with
the clear plan of action of castling queenside
and himself creating attacking opportunities,
thanks to the open h-file, when White will
have taken the bishop. That is the problem
with playing defensive set-ups as the first
player: Black systematically finds a way to
adapt... ]
[ 11.e4!? xe4 ( 11...0-0 ) 12.xe4 dxe4
13.dxe4 c5! ( 13...xh4 14.xd6 xe4
15.d3 d5 16.c7 ) 14.f5 xf5
15.exf5 0-0-0 16.d2 f6 ( 16...e4
17.e3 e5 18.xe5 xe5 19.b4 a4
20.xa7 c3 21.c4 ) 17.a5 b8
18.ad1 ]
[ 12.e4! ]
[ 12.c4 f5? 13.cxd5 cxd5 14.e4! dxe4
202
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

15.dxe4 xe4 16.c4 0-0 17.d3 dc5 h7 9.g1 e5 10.h2 reaching an original
18.xe4 xe4 19.xd6 ] position, but one that should be a bit better
12...f5! 13.b3 for Black Francsics,E-Eperjesi,L/
[ 13.e4 dxe4 ( 13...h7 14.e1 ) 14.dxe4 Budapest1997 ]
xe4 15.c4 0-0-0 16.d3 e6 6.g3 g6 Black does not rush to capture the
17.xd6+ xd6 18.xe5 xe5 19.xe5 ] bishop, as it is not going to run away! 7.e4
13...0-0 14.fd2 fe8 15.d4 exd4 16.xd4 [ 7.h4 h6 and ...g5, forces the retreat of
g6 17.c4 a5 18.bxa5 xa5 19.a4 e5 the white bishop to g3, anyway ]
20.2b3 7...g7 8.b3 d4 Black gains space in the
[ 20.cxd5 xd5 ] centre. 9.c1 xg3 10.hxg3 0-0 11.d5?!
20...aa8 21.cxd5 xd5 22.a5 ad8 An original idea, but not particularly effective.
Y e s , I a m a c e n t r a l p l a y e r ! 23.a6? dxc3 12.bxc3 xd5 Black is happy with a
time trouble already. bxa6 24.xa6? b4-+ promising endgame, but
25.a4 c5 26.b5 c2 27.a1 xb3 [ 12...a5! was even better, Black can
28.a7 e6 29.xd6 xd6 certainly play for the attack with a lead in
0-1 development, and with the white king stuck
in the centre 13.b3 e6 , black enjoys a
strong initiative. ]
219 A06 13.exd5 b8 14.d4 d7 15.b3 cxd4
Francsics,Endre 2245 16.fxd4 White has managed to obtain some
Eperjesi,Laszlo 2340 sort of position, but his hanging pawns, and
FSIMA Nov, Budapest HUN (3) 1997 Black's bishop pair, are likely to tell against
[Tony Kosten] him in th e lo n g ru n . b6 17.c4 d7
18.h4!? Another original move from White,
1.d3 d5 2.f3 f6 3.f4 One of the few developing his out-of-play king's rook. fc8
lines that leads to truly original positions. It 19.e4 f6 20.g4 a5! 21.c2 a4
is a speciality of Francsics, and, in actual fact, 22.cd4 b6 23.c2 h5! After a little
he is th e only p layer who seems to have repetition, Black finds a better plan. 24.f3
played it. It is reminiscent of a known line for Unfortunately,
Black against 1 d4. c5 The most ambitious [ 24.gxh5 loses rapidly, to f5 25.e2 xc4
reply when the white position falls apart. ]
[ 3...c6 is a solid alternative 4.c3 ( 4.bd2 24...hxg4 25.fxg4 g5 26.d2 a4
b6! 5.b3 g6 6.c3 g7 exploiting the Black is winning material. 27.d4 c5
a1-h8 diagonal 7.c2 h5 8.g3 d7 28.e5 f6 29.2f3 xe5 30.xe5 g7
and black already has an edge, Francsics, E- 31.b1 a4 Black's extra exchange is more
Mas,H/Budapest 1997.) 4...g4 ( Now, than sufficient to win. 32.b6 a6 33.b2 e6
4...b6 achieves nothing af ter 5.c2 ) 34.d3 exd5 35.cxd5
5.bd2 bd7 6.h3 h5 7.a4 e6 0-1
is level, Francsics,E-Szeberenyi,A/
Budapest 1997 ]
4.c3 220 A06
[ 4.bd2 g4 ( 4...b6 causes more Hodgson,Julian M 2640
problems ) 5.e4 e6 6.h3 h5 7.c3 c6 Speelman,Jonathan S 2623
8.b3 b6 is fairly equal, Francsics,E- ch Millfield ENG (2) 01.08.2000
Lehmann,Z/ Budapest 1997 ] [Tony Kosten]
4...c6 5.bd2 h5! Black forces the
exchange of White's active bishop, and gains B y wh a t a b e rr a t io n o f t h e S wis s p a ir in g
the bishop pair. sys t e m t h e t wo st ro n ge st p la ye rs i n t h e
[ 5...g6 is simpler, but allows White to tournament were facing each other as early
maintain his dark-squared bishop on the h2- as round two, I don't know! 1.b3 d5 2.f3
b8 diagonal, 6.h3 g7 7.g4!? h5 8.g5 f6 3.b2 g4 4.xf6!?

203
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ Well, according to my databases this is
already a novelty. 4.e5 is usual, when f5
5.d3 bd7 is level, Grigorian,K-Lein,A/Baku
1972. White is trying to play 'Trompowsky-
style' with a tempo less. ]
4...gxf6 5.e3 g7 6.h3 xf3!?
Another surprising move, Black voluntarily
concedes one of his bishops. 7.xf3 f5 8.d4
c5 Logical play, Black is softening the white
queenside dark squares, weakened by White's
first move, and left without a defender by his
fourth. 9.c3 c6 10.b5 a5 11.xc6+
bxc6 12.0-0
[ Presumably, White is happy with his
position, else he would have played 12.xf5
w h i c h l e a d s t o a d r a w , b y f o r c e : cxd4
13.exd4 xd4! 14.b4 b6 15.cxd4 xd4
(this seems to win the rook, but) 16.c2!
xa1 17.xc6+ f8 18.xa8+ g7
19.xd5 (forced) xb1+ 20.e2 xh1
21.g5+ f8 22.h6+ with a perpetual
check. Still, when analysing lines as long as
this there is always the fear that something
will be missed! ]
12...e6 13.a3?!
[ Careless, White wishes to achieve the
positionally desirable advance of his b-pawn,
b u t t h e r e i s a s n a g . 13.c1 is better,
relieving the knight of the defence of c3, 0-0
14.a3 ab8 15.d2 cxd4 16.b4 c7
17.cxd4 when Nb3 is coming, so Black must
react with a5! and equality. ]
13...b8! 14.b4?!
[ This loses a sound pawn, and the game.
W hite had to try 14.d1 0-0 ( 14...f4!? )
15.d2! xc3 16.c1 b2 17.xc5
level. ]
14...cxb4 15.cxb4 xb4 The point, the a-
pawn is pinned. 16.axb4 xa1 17.g3 0-0
18.c7 b2 Keeping the knight under
control. 19.xa7 f4! White's dark squares
a re c re a k in g u n d e r t h e p re ssu re . 20.exf4
xb4 21.d1 b3 22.c1 b2 Now Black
is really on top. 23.a3 b8 24.f5 xa3
25.xa3 b3 26.b1
[ B a c k t o b a se , 26.c2? loses to c3
, 'pinning and winning'. ]
26...xd4 27.fxe6 fxe6 28.d2 b2
29.f3 Losing the f-pawn with check, although
t h e r e wa s n o t h i n g t o b e d o n e , a n yw a y .
Despite this early setback, the defending
champion, Julian Hodgson, went on to an
emphatic victory.
0-1
221 A06
Kortschnoj,Viktor 2568
Vallejo Pons,Francisco 2679
Match g/1h+25s (4) 10.07.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 d5 2.b3 This is the best way of playing
Larsen's Opening, in my opinion, with his first
move W hite stops Black from playing ...e5,
and blocking the a1-h8 diagonal. The one
disadvantage is that White can no longer play
'Bird's style' lines involving an early f4. g4
3.e3 White stops the doubling of the pawns,
[ 3.b2 xf3 4.exf3 was analysed in
Taimanov, M-Volzhin,A. ]
3...d7 4.b2 gf6 5.h3 xf3 Black aims
for a solid structure, and quick development.
[ 5...h5 is more ambitious, but Black has to
beware W hite playing an appropriate g4,
followed by g5 or h4. ]
6.xf3 c6 7.g4! With the bishop pair White
can afford to advance his pawns more easily,
here he intends to embarrass the knight on f6,
and soften the long diagonal. e5 The most
ambitious move, although the solid
[ 7...e6 is a popular alternative, 8.c3
( 8.h4!? h6 9.d3?! a5+! and White had
some problems, Garcia Palermo,C-Godena,
M/ R e g g i o E m i l i a 1 9 9 4 , b e ca u s e 10.c3?
i s i m p o s s i b l e , e5 win s t he g-p awn .)
8...d6 9.g5 g8 10.h4 e7 with sharp
p l a y, B a s a gi c , Z -M i ka c, M / M a ri b o r S L O
2004. ]
8.g5!? In the same match, Korchnoi also tried
[ 8.c3 here: g6 ( 8...c5 9.e2!? d6
10.g3 g6 Grivas,E-Gavrilakis,N/Athens
1996 ) 9.h4 d6 10.h5 (single-minded!)
e7 11.0-0-0 0-0-0 12.b1 c5 13.hxg6
hxg6 14.g2 e6 and Black is at least
equal, Korchnoi,V-Vallejo Pons,F/Vera ESP
2004. ]
8...e4 9.h4 d6
[ 9...b4!? 10.h3 e7 11.xd7+ xd7
12.xe5 ( 12.a3 d6 13.b4 is interesting,
threatening to win the e4-knight) 12...0-0
13.a3 a5 14.b4 c7 15.xc7 xc7
204
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

with some compensation for the pawn in
Taimanov,M-Davies,N/Gausdal 1992. ]
10.h3 e7 11.d3 ec5
Play is balanced, White has the bishop pair
and his kingside spearhead, whilst Black has
a better central presence. a5!? Black tries to
dissuade White from castling long. Previously,
Black had bravely played
[ 12...0-0!? when 13.0-0-0?!
plans Qg2 and h5, the white king looks
reasonably safe in the centre; 13.e4 d4
14.c4 immediately is also possible) 13...a5
14.e4 d4 15.g4 a4 16.c4 axb3
17.axb3 c7 looked rather good for Black
who threatens ...b5 and ... Ra2, Barle, J-
Zelcic,R/Balatonbereny 1994. ]
13.e4 d4 14.c4 c7
An annoying pin, White threatens to capture
on d7. f8 16.c3! A clever tactic. d8
[ 16...dxc3?! is met by 17.e3 b6 18.c1
when W hite will regain the c3-pawn and
then shatter the black structure by capturing
on c5. ]
17.b4!? Korchnoi continues to play sharply.
axb4 18.cxb4 b5! Black is up to the task,
[ 18...a6?! allows the forcing line 19.b5
b4 20.d1 cxb5 21.b1 bxc4 22.a4+
d7 23.xb4 with advantage. ]
19.xe5 xe5 20.bxc5 g6
A f t e r a ll t h e t a ct ica l p la y t h e p o sit io n i s
approximately level, White has an extra pawn
but his structure is worse. f4 22.c1 g6
23.g4 a8 24.xf4 White heads for the
opposite-colour bishop ending, which should
be drawn, but otherwise the knight on f4 was
to o s t ro n g. xf4 25.xf4 xf4 26.d1
The bisho p is ide ally p laced on b3 , b ot h
defending a2 and attacking f7. h6
hxg5 28.hxg5 a3! 29.b3
This is OK, but Black must have been very
short of time as h e co uld simply ca pture
immediately:
[ 29...xg5 the bishop cannot be captured
because of ...Rh1+ winning the a1-rook. ]
30.e2 xg5 31.h1 e7 32.xh5 gxh5
33.g1 f8 34.g3 a7
White finally manages to attack f7, but Black
is prepared for its defence. xc5 36.f5 a3
37.xh5 c5? A very bad move, almost
anything else drew easily, e.g.
[ 37...g7 38.f4 c7 intending...c5-c4. ]
38.h8+ e7 There was no way to avoid
losing a pawn,
12.d2 [ 38...g7 39.b8 b4 40.c8 and the c-
pawn drops. ]
39.xf7 T h e p o i n t . c4? 40.xc4
Another pawn drops, Rh7+ is still threatened,
so the bishop is still safe from capture.
1-0
( 13.f5!?
222 A06
Nogueiras Santiago,Jesus 2528
David,Vincent 2356
Open Cappelle la Grande FRA (7) 27.02.2003
[Tony Kosten]
15.a3!? A friend of mine has just taken up 1 e4, and
was telling me how much shorter his games
seemed to be. Perhaps I should show him
this miniature, where Black makes no obvious
blunder and gets completely flattened by 1
Nf3! 1.f3 d5 2.e3!? An interesting move-
ord er, p erhap s W hite wa s worried ab ou t
Black trying to hang on to the pawn after
[ 2.c4 dxc4 3.e3 which is the normal way
this position arises. ]
2...f6 3.c4 dxc4 4.a3!? Unusual, but
perfectly logical, W hite brings the queen's
21.f5 knight to the useful c4-square, rather than
play the obvious
[ 4.xc4 as in Zvjaginsev,V-Svetushkin,D/
Linares ESP 2000. ]
4...e6
[ 4...g6 5.xc4 g7 6.b3 0-0 7.b2 c5
8.e2 is fairly level, Froehlich,P-Hjelm,N/
Budapest HUN 2000, but there is a lot of
play in the position, of course. ]
27.g1 5.xc4 a6 A new move, but hardly surprising
h5 in a position that has hardly ever been played!
[ 5...c5 6.b3 e7 7.b2 0-0 8.e2 c6
9.0-0 b6 10.b1!? b7 11.d1
was seen in Suba,M-De la Villa Garcia,J/
Sevilla 1993. ]
6.b3 e7 7.b2 b6 8.ce5!? White's play
is original, and aggressive,
35.f3 [ 8.e2 would be similar to the Suba game. ]
8...b7 9.g5 The first point, White forces
Black to castle to prot ect the f -pawn . 0-0
10.c4 With nasty threats to f7 and e6. d5
Of course, no human would seriously
consider capturing the g-pawn:

205
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 10...xg2? 11.g1 ( 11.exf7!? xf7
12.xe6 xh1 13.xf7+ h8 14.c2
is also rather strong) 11...d5 12.c2 xc4
13.bxc4 and Black is lost, as h6 ( 13...bd7
14.xd7 xd7 15.xf6 a t t a c k s h 7)
14.xe6! fxe6 15.xg7+! xg7 16.g6+
h8 17.0-0-0 forces a quick mate. ]
[ 10...d5 might be a better try. ]
11.h4 xg5 Black must have been reluctant
to open the h-file, but
[ 11...h6 12.f4 looks very uncomfortable. ]
12.hxg5 xg5 13.f3 The immediate threat
is Rh5, followed by a concerted attack on h7.
f5?! The black position is very difficult, but
this doesn't seem to help too much,
[ 13...a7 14.h5 e7 15.h3 f6
16.g5 might resist longer, but I know which
side I would like to be on! ]
14.0-0-0 b5 15.h5 This just wins! xh5
Desperation, but
[ 15...f6 16.dh1 h6 17.g3 h7
18.g4! fxg4 19.xf6 is crushing. ]
16.xh5 bxc4 17.bxc4 Black has little
compensation for the queen, and the white
attack continues anyway.
1-0
223 A06
Short,Nigel D 2687
Wells,Peter K 2489
98th ch Sheffield ENG (10.2) 04.08.2011
[Nigel Davies]
1.b3 d5 2.b2 c5 3.e3 a6 There is some
logic behind this move in that it prevents
W hite f rom playing h is bish op ou t t o b5 ,
indeed this motivates the Petrosian System of
the Queen's Indian Defence (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6
3.Nf3 b6 4.a3) . But is it really worth doing this
when you're Black? 4.f3 c6 5.d4
[ I w o u l d b e s e r i o u s l y t e m p t e d b y 5.c4
at this point, arguing that 'active play' is
more likely to exploit Black's slow
development. Here is Viktor Korchnoi's
interpretation: d4 6.exd4 cxd4 7.d3!? g6
8.0-0 g7 9.e1 h6 10.e4 0-0 11.d3
e8 12.e2 a5 13.xc6 bxc6 14.bd2
f5 15.e4 h5 16.a3 e5 17.c5 f8
18.xf8 xf8 19.a3 and at this point White
wa s d o i n g q u i t e we l l i n K o r t s c h n o j , V
(2659)-Rabinovich, A (2406)/Ramat Aviv
2000, though he later went on to lose. ]
5...g4 6.e2 e6 7.0-0 f6 8.bd2 c8
Another slow move after which W hite
manages to trouble his opponent by opening
things up. Other moves have done better
here:
[ a) 8...e7 9.c4 0-0 10.h3 f5 11.h4
e4 12.hf3 g6 13.h4 cxd4 14.xg6
hxg6 15.exd4 c7 16.cxd5 xd5
and Black stood quite nicely in Rodriguez,
A-Bronstein, D (2455)/Ubeda 1996. ]
[ b) 8...a5!? 9.e5 xe2 10.xe2 cxd4
11.xc6 bxc6 12.xd4 b4 13.f3 c3
14.xc3 xc3 15.d3 e4 and White's
position was far from comfortable in Pohla,
H (2340)-Khenkin, I (2530)/Cappelle la
Grande 1992. ]
9.c4 cxd4 10.xd4 xe2 11.xe2 xd4
[ Another possibility is 11...e7 , but there
too Black's position is far from comfortable.
After 12.cxd5 xd4 13.xd4 xd5
14.c4 b5 15.xf6 gxf6 16.g4 f8
17.ad1 Black's difficulty in getting his h8
rook into play left him worse in Vassallo
Barroche, M (2290)-Eslon, J (2420)/Valencia
1992. ]
12.xd4 c5 13.xf6 xf6 14.cxd5 exd5
15.f3 0-0 16.ad1 fd8 17.d3 d4?!
This seems like an overreaction to W hite's
slight pressure af ter which Black loses a
pawn.
[ 17...e6 18.fd1 e4 is better, when
Black's position seems quite playable. ]
18.exd4 xd4 19.e4 b6 20.xd8+ xd8
21.xb7 g6 Maybe Black thought that the
vulnerability of White's f2 square would give
him adequate counterplay here. But his forces
now get distracted by the possibility of a
W hite passed pawn emerging on the
queenside. 22.b4 d3 23.a4 d6 24.a5
c7 25.g3 b3 26.c1 d8 27.e1 f6
28.e4 d1+ 29.e1 g7 30.g2 b2?
A blunder after which it's easy for White.
[ 30...b1 would have made it a lot harder
for White. ]
31.xa6 c3 32.c4 d2 Losing on the
spot.
[ 32...xe1 33.xe1 d2 34.c5 xb4
was the way to continue fighting, though
after 35.e5+ g8 36.e4 the combined
206
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

problems of the threats against Black's king [ 15...dxe3! wa s s t r o n g e r , e . g . 16.gxh5

and the passed a-pawn would be too ( 16.dxe3 b4+ 17.c3 g6 18.a4
much. ] is safer, but White's light squares are weak)
33.d3 c2 34.e7 16...exf2+ 17.xf2 e4+ 18.f1 f4!?
1-0 threatening ...Nxd2+, ( 18...g3+ 19.g2
xh1 20.xh1 is not so clear, but I prefer
the two knights over the rook) 19.d4!
224 A06 ( 19.h2 ad8 20.d3 fe8 might favour
Speelman,Jonathan S 2583 Black ) 19...ad8 20.g1 g3+ 21.g2
Cooper,John Grantley 2318 fe8 22.c2 f5 with a strong attack. ]
4NCL West Bromwich ENG (1) 23.11.2002 16.hxg4 xg4 17.g1 xf3?! This is too
[Tony Kosten] acquiescent,
[ 17...h5?! didn't keep the pin, because of
1.f3 d5 2.b3 c5 3.e3 c6 Quite normal, 18.g5 but ]
although it does give White a tempo over a [ 17...f5! was reasonable, 18.c5!? d5
Nimzo position. We have already looked at 19.g3 xa2 with play for the piece,
[ 3...a6 as in Speelman,J-Nikolic,P/Solingen although White is on top. ]
GER 2001. ] 18.xf3 a3 19.d1 Forced (as the knight
4.b5 g4 5.h3 has no squares), but good. ab8 20.g3
[ 5.b2 c8 6.c4 e6 7.cxd5 exd5 8.0-0 fe8 21.f1 dxe3 22.xe3
f6 was fairly level in Timman,J-Sokolov,I/ White consolidates. d6 23.c3
Wijk aan Zee NED 1999. ] 1-0
5...h5 6.a3!? Typical Speelman originality,
and an innovation of course!
[ 6.g4 g6 7.e5 d6 8.b2 would be a 225 A06
'Nimzo' method of continuing, except that, Speelman,Jonathan S 2623
wi t h t h e b la ck ki n g ' s kn i gh t s t i ll o n i t s Nikolic,Predrag 2657
original square, f6!? is possible, 9.xc6+ Bundesliga 2000-1 (9) 18.02.2001
( 9.xg6 hxg6 10.d3!? can be met by [Tony Kosten]
0-0-0!? 11.xg6 e5 12.f5+ e6
wit h go o d c o m p e n s a t io n f o r t h e p a wn) 1.f3 d5 2.b3 c5 3.e3
9...bxc6 10.xg6 hxg6 11.d4?! cxd4 [ White has to be careful, the natural 3.b2?!
12.xd4 e5 and Black had built a handy- allows f6! and Black might already be better,
looking centre, Pinterne Kovacs,M-Berecz,A/ th e f a mo u s P et rosian , T -Fisch e r, R 6 t h
HUN 1995. ] ma t ch ga m e , f ro m Bu e no s A ires 19 7 1 ,
6...e6 7.c4 d6 continuing 4.c4 d4 5.d3 e5 6.e3 e7
[ 7...c8 would avoid the immediate doubling 7.e2 ec6 8.bd2 e7 9.0-0 0-0 10.e4
of the c-pawns. ] a6 ]
8.cxd5 exd5 9.xc6+ bxc6 10.c3 3...a6!? Why not? Black plays a reverse 4 a3
It is clear that White plans a full assault on Queen's Indian will the extra tempo change
the c5-pawn, in classic Nimzovitch style. f6 anything? 4.b2 c6 5.d4 cxd4 6.xd4
11.c1 0-0 12.a4 c4!? f6 7.c4
[ 12...xf3! 13.xf3 e4 is an alternative, [ So there is some advantage to be had from
as t h e c 5 -p a wn is in d ire ct ly d e f e n d e d : the extra move. With colours reversed this
14.xc5? a5 15.xe4 dxe4 would allows an annoying bishop check, but
and the double attack wins a piece. ] here Black's e-pawn is still unmoved. 7.d2
13.xd6 xd6 14.bxc4 d4!? White plays exactly as if he had Black! e6
[ 14...xf3 15.xf3 b4 16.d1 d4 ( or 8.e2 d6 9.c4 0-0! 10.cxd5 exd5
16...dxc4!? ) 17.0-0 fd8 seems to offer gave Black a very comfortable IQP game
ample compensation for the pawn. ] in Andersson,U-Spassky,B/ Gothenburg
15.g4 xg4!? This is fun, but 1971. ]

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
7...e6 8.cxd5!?
[ Actually a novelty, if very logical. 8.d2
xd4 9.xd4 e7 10.e2 0-0 11.0-0 d7
12.cxd5 xd5 13.f3 b5 is level,
Hodgson,J-Rogers,I/Breda 1999. ]
8...xd4
[ Black plays for equality in the coming
e n d g a m e , b u t 8...b4+ 9.c3 a5
is an interesting alternative. ]
9.xd4 xd5 10.d2 d7 11.a3 c8
Black is first to reach the open c-file. 12.c4
xd4 13.xd4 b5 14.e2
[ 14.b6?! c6 15.xb5?! axb5
traps the white knight. ]
14...c5 15.xf6!? gxf6 Black is not too
worried about the doubled pawns, his bishop
pair provides sufficient compensation. 16.f3
c7 17.0-0 e7
[ Black obviously likes his position, 17...xc4
18.bxc4 leads to an immediate draw. ]
18.fc1 hc8 19.g3 d7 20.b2 f5
21.d1 e8 22.a4 b6 23.e2 b5 24.axb5
axb5 25.d3 d6 26.b4 c3 27.f1
White is on the defensive, but his position is
solid. 8c7 28.a6 c6 29.b6 b3
[ The game peters-out after this, 29...e5!?
s e e m s s t r o n g , b u t t h e n 30.e1
( rather than 30.c5 xc5 31.bxc5 xc5
32.b1 e4 33.1xb5 xb5 34.xb5 c1
and W hite can def end by 35.b3 f3
36.b2 . Still, this is not a very pleasant
proposition as W hite can only move his
rook! ) 30...xb4 31.xb5 ]
30.c5 xc5 31.bxc5 f3 32.c1 b4
33.g2 xg2 34.xg2 c3 35.b1 3xc5
½-½
226 A06
Speelman,Jonathan S 2596
Sermek,Drazen 2577
EuTCh Leon ESP (9) 15.11.2001
[Tony Kosten]
The part played by White's backward c2-pawn
in this game seems incredible, although it
never quite made it to the queening square.
1.f3 c5 2.b3 d5 3.e3 g6 4.b2 f6
5.b5+
[ Normal, although Kramnik preferred 5.c4
when he had this position. ]
5...d7
[ 5...c6?! allows White to double the c-
pawns, 6.0-0 g7 7.xc6+ bxc6 8.d3
White has a promising Nimzo-style position,
Hansson,D-Thorhallsson,T/Grundarfjordur
1986. ]
6.xf6!?
[ Played in Trompovsky style, and
reminiscent of Hodgson, J-Speelman,J, also
t o b e f o u n d u n d e r [ A 0 6 ] . 6.e2
is 'standard', g7 7.xd7+ bxd7 8.c4
seems fairly level, Larsen,B-Donner,J/Palma
de Mallorca 1971. ]
6...exf6 7.xd7+ xd7 8.0-0 g7 9.d4
White hastens to close the a1-h8 diagonal. f5
Black frees his bishop, and gains control of e4,
the position closely resembles the
Trompovsky with 3...d5 now, except that
White would keep his b-pawn on b2 there, of
course. 10.c3
[ Perhaps surprisingly, this exact position is
not new, as in Savoya,A-Olivier,J/Metz 1994,
W hite continued 10.c4!? dxc4 11.bxc4
c6 12.c3 0-0 with absolutely no
problems for Black. ]
10...0-0 11.e2 The idea behind White's plan,
t h e kn ig h t c o n t r o ls b o t h f 4 a n d d 4 . cxd4
12.fxd4 d6 13.c1 d8 14.d2 d7
B l a c k d e ve l o p s s e n s i b l y , h i s d - p a w n i s
'nothing to write home about', but the
backward white c2-pawn is no better. 15.fd1
f6 e4 is a fine square for the black knight in
such positions, as chasing it by f3 will weaken
the white dark squares. 16.a5! a6 17.c4
Watch this pawn! White opens the game to
take advantage of his slightly superior
development, and anyway, he couldn't
realistically achieve anything with his c-pawn
stuck on c2 anyway. dxc4 18.bxc4!?
[ More double-edged than 18.xc4 ]
18...ac8 19.c5
[ This move fixes the black b-pawn and
prepares to attack this on the b-line. Note
that there are no tactics for White along the
d - f i l e , a s 19.xf5?? loses to the back-
ranker xd1+ ]
19...e5 20.b6 g4 21.h3?!
[ It is difficult to know what to say about such
a m o ve ! I c a n o n l y a s su m e t h a t W h it e
decided to pursue a win at all costs, as the
'forced' 21.f3 xd1+ 22.xd1 xc5
208
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

23.xb7 appears quite level. ] 35.a1 f6+ 36.b1 b6+ 37.a1

21...h2+ 22.f1 h1+ 23.g1 h2+ ½-½
24.e2 xd4!
[ This appears winning, whilst 24...xg2?
allows the riposte 25.xf5! xd1 26.e7+ 227 A06
with fair chances. ] Taimanov,Mark E 2490
25.xb7! Volzhin,Alexander 2510
[ White hopes to gain some swindling Petrov mem, St Petersburg RUS (4) 1998
chances with his passed c-pawn, 25.xd4?! [Tony Kosten]
xd4 26.exd4 e8+ 27.d3 xg2
is the ugly point, mate is unlikely to be far 1.f3 d5 2.b3 This is might seem the best
off. ] time to play this move, after having controlled
25...b8 e5, so that Black cannot reply ...e5 and close
[ 25...g7 26.c6 e8 ( 26...xg2? the a1-h8 diagonal. However, there is also a
27.xd8+ xd8 28.c7 xb7 29.cxd8+ ) disadvantage. g4 The best reply. 3.b2
27.c7 is far from clear, the black queen and If instead
knight are stuck out of play. ] [ 3.e3 then e5! ]
26.c6! Forced, the black rook cannot be 3...xf3 4.exf3
allowed to the second rank. xg2 [ 4.gxf3 e6 5.e3 f6 6.f4 is also possible,
[ Taking the chance to extract his queen, with complicated play. ]
whilst pinning the c-pawn. However, 4...e6 5.d4
26...e8! 27.xd4 xb7 28.cxb7 xg2 [ 5.f4 first, may well prove to be a better
seems crushing, as 29.b4 g7 30.b8 move order. ]
xb8 31.xb8 and now f4! starts a 5...g6! A strong new move, Black intends to
dangerous attack. ] change the dark-squared bishops, before
27.xd4 dc8?! exploiting his structural plus. 6.d2 g7 7.f4
[ 27...xb7 28.xd8+ g7 29.cxb7 xb7 White takes a firm grip of e5. c5!? 8.b5+
30.d2 is better than the previous variation, c6 9.0-0 ge7 10.f3 0-0 Black has
but should still offer more fun to Black. ] completed his development, and can now turn
28.d7 his attention to the attack on d4. 11.b1?!
[ White decides that it is time to keep his White unpins the d4-pawn, by defending b2,
queen on the board, as 28.xb8 xb8 but
29.c7 c a n b e m e t b y t h e f o rce d a8 [ 11.c3 was better, as after cxd4 12.cxd4
30.cxb8+ xb8 ] b6 White will be able to play a later Ne5, to
28...b2+ 29.d2 mask the d4-weakness. ]
[ White finds himself in a mating net following 11...cxd4 Not bad, but
29.d3? f8 30.c7 xf2 ] [ 11...xd4! 12.xd4 b6 seems to win a
29...xd2+ 30.xd2! pawn. ]
[ The white queen is required to support the 12.xc6?! After this move, Black gains a clear
c-pawn, 30.xd2 xc6 31.d8+ g7 positional advantage, but even
32.d4+ f6 favours Black. ] [ 12.xd4 xd4 13.xd4 xd4 14.xd4
30...xf2+ 31.d3 f8 32.c7 f1! is better for Black after a5 as c2, and c3,
W i t h o u t t h i s m o v e B l a c k wo u l d b e l o s t ! are weak, and Black can simply double
33.c3! rooks on the c-file. ]
[ Not 33.c8?? d2+ 34.c4 xc1+ 12...xc6 13.xd4 xd4 14.xd4 xd4
35.b4 xc8 ] 15.xd4 a5 The dust has cleared, and all
33...xe3+ 34.b2 b6+ the minor pieces have been exchanged. It is
[ It is understandable that Black didn't want clear that Black has a structural plus, f4, and
t o r i s k t h e e x c h a n g e s a c 34...xg1!? a2, are weak, but it is the white weakness
35.c8 xc8 36.xc8+ g7 37.c7 along the open c-file that is the most telling.
but it was his last winning try. ] 16.fc1 ac8 17.h4 h5 There is no point

209
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Black allowing his opponent any counterplay Typical Shirov, this may not be best, but in a
on the kingside. 18.a4 c6 The worst thing rapid game it will certainly set some problems.
about this position for W hite, is that Black 17.xc5?!
doesn't even have to do anything clever to win. [ 17.g5!? is int e re st in g: fd7 18.xc5
First, he doubles his rooks on the only open xc5 19.xc5 ( 19.b4!? d3 20.xe4
file. 19.g3 fc8 20.b4 Desperation, but xb4 21.xb7 is wild, but may favour
passive defence by White ) 19...xc5 20.xe4 g3+ 21.g2
[ 20.d1 c3 21.g2 c5 22.b2 xg5 22.d5 looks fairly drawish. ]
is completely hopeless, anyway. ] 17...xc5 18.xc5 xc5 From here the
20...xa4 21.a1 b5 22.xa7 c4 23.c3 queen surveys g5, so W hite can no longer
d4 An elementary conversion of positional kick the knight from the defence of e4. 19.e2
advantage into material advantage. 24.a5 fe8 20.ac1 ad8 Black is a little better, he
c6 25.e5 dxc3 26.b5 d7 27.e3 c2 has more space and a useful e-pawn.
There is a certain poetic justice in the fact that 21.c3?! An odd move, why not contest the d-
W hite's weaknesses on the c-file have file by
disappeared, but been replaced by an [ 21.cd1 ? ]
e n o r m o u s b la ck c -p a wn ! 28.h2 d6 21...d4 22.e3 ed8 Black controls all the
29.e2 d4 30.f3 d2 31.e3 dark squares. 23.e1 b4?
W hite could easily have resigned here, he [ Allowing a stupid tactic, the positional
has absolutely no counterplay. d4 32.e1 23...g5 keeps White 'under the cosh'. ]
xc1! 33.xc1 d1 24.g5 Winning the key e4-pawn. d3?!
0-1 [ 24...h7 25.xe4 xb2 is not too clear. ]
25.c1
[ 25.xd3! xd3 26.c1 h5 27.xe4
228 A07 is very good for White. ]
Azmaiparashvili,Zurab 2676 25...h5?!
Shirov,Alexei 2715 [ 25...h7 26.xe4 xc3 27.bxc3 xc4
FIDE GP Dubai UAE (3.3) 05.04.2002 is a better chance. ]
[Tony Kosten] 26.xe4 d2 27.d5 8xd5 This looks nice,
but has an enormous flaw! 28.cxd5 f4
1.g3 d5 2.g2 f6 3.d3 c6 4.d2 g4 29.f3?? Terrible, White misses
5.h3 h5 6.gf3 bd7 7.0-0 e5 8.e4 d6 [ 29.xd2!! (or White can play a check first)
9.exd5 cxd5 10.g4!? A novelty in this well- xd2 30.c8+ h7 31.ee8 xg5+
known position. 32.f1 when Black has no sensible way to
[ The speciality of Vaganian 10.c4 0-0 stop Rh8 mate. ]
11.cxd5 xd5 is standard, and I have 29...xf3 30.xd2 f4 Now White has only
c o n s i d e r e d t h i s i n t h e g a m e B r i c a r d - one way to avoid mate on g2, what a turn-
Kosten. ] around! 31.xf4 xf4 32.d1 xg5+
10...g6 11.h4 White takes the two bishops 33.f1 f8
but loosens his kingside. 0-0 12.xg6 hxg6 0-1
13.c4 Softening-up the long diagonal.
[ 13.g5!? is best met by h7 ( rather than
13...h5 14.xd5 xg5+ 15.g4 ) 229 A07
14.xd5 xg5 when the white kingside is Berkes,F 2679
weak. ] Spoelman,W 2541
13...c5! 14.b3 dxc4 15.dxc4 c7 Bundesliga 2012-13 (7) 02.02.2013
Black must avoid the exchange of queens, [John Bartholomew]
the endgame would be very unpleasant for
him because of W hite's bishops, but in the The Réti line featured in this contest tends to
middlegame White's weakened kingside will produce finely nuanced middlegames. 1.f3
o f f e r c o m p e n s a t i o n . 16.e3 e4!? d5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 g4 5.d3

210
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
bd7 6.e1 Eschewing the usual Nb1-d2 for
now.
[ Refer to the archives for extensive coverage
of 6.bd2 , which is more popular by a
factor of six. Play could easily transpose of
course, and the position after move nine in
this game is in fact most frequently seen via
the 6.Nbd2 move order. ]
[ A different path altogether is 6.c4 , i.e. e6
7.cxd5! as we saw last month in Carlsen, M
(2861)-Karjakin, S (2780) W ijk aan Zee
2013/[John Bartholomew]. ]
6...e5
[ Nikita Vitiugov (recent winner of the
Gibraltar Open) headed for a standard setup
against 6...e6 in the following game but
failed to achieve much: 7.bd2 d6 8.h3
h5 9.e4 c7 10.b3 0-0 11.b2 e5
12.h4 fe8 13.f5 c5 14.h1 a5
15.a3 ad8= Vitiugov, N (2703)-Frolyanov,
D (2564) Tyumen 2012. Here White struck
boldly with 16.f4!? , but exf4!? ( 16...dxe4
17.xe4 xe4 18.dxe4 g6 19.h4 exf4
20.gxf4 f8 21.e2 e7 22.g4
was the game continuation) 17.xf4 g6!
would have been exceedingly sturdy for
Black. He's threatening ...Nf6-h5 and one
gets the impression that W hite is
overextended. ]
7.e4 dxe4 8.dxe4 An important position. c5
This natural bishop development is chosen
more than half the time at this juncture.
[ 8...e7 is probably the most solid choice.
Following 9.bd2 0-0 10.h3 h5 11.h4
e8 12.c4 f8 13.g5 c7 14.a4
Blac k 's po s it io n h a s b ee n sho wn t o b e
reliable enough, e.g. a5 15.h2 e6
16.d2 b6 17.e3 c5 18.f3 d8
19.c3 ee8 20.f2 e6 21.d1 c5
Aronian, L (2825)-Tomashevsky, E (2738)
Moscow 2012. ]
[ Also worthy of consideration is 8...d6!?
, intending to retreat the bishop to c7 when
harassed. White has been unable to show
much against this unusual approach, i.e.
9.a4 0-0 10.bd2 e8 11.h3 h5
12.h4 c7 13.c4 c5 14.f5 g6
15.d2 b5 Vaganian, R (2590)-Gelfand, B
(2719) Almaty 2008. ]
[ Dreev's 8...a5!? is intriguing as well,
staking out space on the queenside. 9.bd2
a4 10.h3 xf3 11.xf3 c5 12.h4 0-0
13.f5 e8 14.e2 b6 15.c3 f8
16.f3 e6 17.h4 e8 18.h5
Zh a n g Zh o n g ( 2 6 0 3 ) - Dr e e v, A ( 2 6 9 0 )
Taiyuan 2004 ]
9.bd2 0-0 10.h3 h5 11.c4 e8 12.a4
My database finds 66 games from this
position. b6 Challenging White's knight
before committing to anything else.
[ Also common is the immediate 12...c7
. T h e n a f t e r 13.h4 f8 play has
transposed to the solid line considered
a b o ve ( 8 . . . B e 7 ) . ( For what it's worth Black
h a s p l a ye d s e ve ra l o t h e r m o ve s h e r e ,
including 13...b5!? . The position after
14.a5 b6 was seen in Aronian, L (2783)-
Kramnik, V (2780) Shanghai 2010 and led to
tangled play: 15.b3 a6 16.g5 c5 17.a5
a7 18.c4 ab8 19.d2 h6 20.e3 f8
. )]
[ I t h i n k t h e c o n s e n s u s i s t h a t 12...a5
is premature and/or unnecessary, though
this is likely playable too, e.g. 13.d2 b6
14.h4 c7 15.g5 b4 16.c3 f8
17.d2 e6 18.c2 c5 19.g4 g6
20.f5 fd7 21.fd1 ee8 22.e3
Dzagnidze, N (2535)-Stefanova, A (2523)
Tbilisi 2012. ]
[ 12...b5 could transpose to Aronian-Kramnik
above after 13.a5 c7 14.h4 b6 . ]
13.a5 A fine square for the knight. White's
dream of a4-a5 will be inhibited, but he gets
t o e xe rt p re ssu re o n b 7 / c6 a n d lim it t h e
movement of his rival on b6.
[ 13.cd2!? was Akopian, V (2703)-
Dimukhametov, A (2347) St Petersburg
2012. W hite intends to chase the knight
from b6 with a4-a5, probably followed by
Bc1-d2. Thus, a5 14.b3 b4 is a normal
continuation where I can't see much for
W h i t e , e . g . 15.c3 f8 16.e2 fd7
17.e3 c7 with balanced play. ]
[ 13.fxe5?! misfires after xc4 14.xc4
xe4! 15.xe4 f5 , ]
[ and 13.cxe5? xf3 14.xf3 xe4
is even worse. ]
13...c7
[ Nobody has tried the computer's suggestion
of 13...e7!? , so it's safe to say that
h u m a n s f in d t h e c7 squ a re t o b e m o r e
natural! ]
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

14.h4 f8 Again, Black has more than once t o h o m e w i t h 19...c8! . After 20.f1
acceptable move here. h8!? (preparing to kick the knight with ...g7-
[ Amazingly, the Hungarian Grandmaster g6 Black doesn't want Nf5-h6 to come with
Zoltan Gyimesi has defended this position check) 21.c4 xc4 22.xc4 b8
f i v e t i m e s a s B l a c k , c h o o s i n g 14...fd7 Black has slightly less space but an
on eve ry oc ca sio n! His gam es are well otherwise completely viable position. ]
worth examining: 15.b4 ( 15.b3 f8 20.f1 b5 21.axb6 dxb6 22.xd8 xd8
16.c3 a5 17.g4 g6 18.xg6 hxg6 23.e2 Berkes enjoys a tiny advantage
19.g5 b4 20.g3 c5 21.xc5 xc5 thanks to his superior structure. c5 24.e3
22.h4 d7 23.b3 d4 24.a2 f8 d6!? Spoelman searches for counterplay by
25.h3 ad8 Laznicka, V (2702)-Ter way of a pawn sacrifice. 25.xc5 c8 26.b4
Sahakyan, S (2578) Plovdiv 2012) 15...f8 d7 27.a5 b6? A big mistake.
( improving on the 15...e7 of Movsesian, S [ Black could come close to equality with
(2716)-Gyimesi, Z (2591) Mainz 2009, which 27...b7! 28.xa7 dxc5 29.bxc5 b8
led to an initiative for W hite after 16.f5 , e.g. 30.a1!? xc5 31.a6 d6
f8 17.f4! ) . W hite's extra pawn isn't significant, and
A) 16.f5 f6 (solidifying Black's structure Black's minor pieces make a good
and preparing a retreat square for the impression. ]
bishop) 17.e3 ( 17.c3 f7 18.d1 28.xd7
Kosic, D (2481)-Gyimesi, Z (2595) [ 28.a3! may be even stronger. ]
Hu n ga ry 2 0 1 0 ad8= ) 17...f7 18.c3 28...xc3 29.xb6 axb6 30.a6 b5 31.a8
c8! (a standard maneuver for this line g6?
the knight angles for greener pastures on [ Black was understandably hesitant to bite
d6) 19.e2 d6 20.d2 a6 21.fc1 b6 the bullet wit h 31...c8 32.xc8 xc8
22.ac4 xc4 23.xc4 b5 24.b2 33.d2 , but this pawn-down ending was
b6 25.f1 c4 26.xc4 xc4 27.e1 his best shot. ]
f7 1/2-1/2 (27) Werle, J (2574)-Gyimesi, 32.g4! Now Black should lose immediately.
Z (2595) Germany 2010; xc2 33.h6 e8 34.d1?! Time trouble?
B) 16.c4!? c5 17.b5 a6 (it doesn't [ W hite missed a clean win with 34.xf6+
appear that this move is necessary, but f7 35.xf8 , e.g. c6 ( 35...xf8
G y i m e s i h a s p l a y e d i t t w i c e ) 18.d2 36.xe8 xe8 37.xb5+- ) 36.d8+-
( 18.b2 axb5 19.axb5 Movsesian, S and White will emerge with an extra piece. ]
(2661)-Gyimesi, Z (2571) Ohrid 2001 f6!? ) 34...c8
18...axb5 19.axb5 e7 ( 19...f6!? [ 34...b2! offered more chances to resist
looks better) 20.f5 f8 21.f4 f6 because W hite is unable to get his light
22.g4 g6 23.g5 Malakhov, V (2690)- square bishop into the fray after 35.xf6+
Gyimesi, Z (2610) Sibenik 2007. ] f7 36.xf8 xf8 (no Nf6xe8 and
15.f5 fd7 16.b3 Be2xb5!) ]
[ 16.e3 c5 17.b3 e6 18.c3 f6 35.b3+ f7 36.xf6+ h8 37.xc8 xc8
19.f4?! Marin, M (2530) -Galego, L (2435) 38.xf8 xb3 39.c5 e6 40.g2
Benasque 1996. Here it would have been This endgame should be lost for Black. h5
strong for Black to play g6 20.h4 exf4 41.h4 g7 42.d5 f7 43.f3 d7
21.gxf4 d6 22.d2 ad8 with a shaky 44.e3 c6 45.f4 e6 46.c3 d6
position for White. ] 47.xd6! A winning simplification. xd6
16...f6 This was Gyimesi's preferred 48.e2 e8 49.g1 exf4+ This would have
procedure as well. The bishop is bound for f7. been forced anyways after Ng1-f3. 50.gxf4
17.c3 f7 18.d1 ad8 f7 51.f3 e8 52.d3 e6 53.d4 d6
[ Interesting is 18...c4!? , intending 19.f1 54.e5 e6 55.c5 g5 56.hxg5 h4
b5 . ] 57.f3 h3 58.f5+ e7 59.g6 f6 60.d6
19.a5 c4?! g7 Black resigned. Precise theoretical
[ It looks stronger to keep this knight closer recommendations for Black against the line at

212
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
issue here are a little unnecessary, as he can
o b t a i n a f i n e g a m e b y wa y o f n u m e r o u s
c o n t in u a t io n s . T h e i m p o rt a n t t h in g is t o
familiarize yourself with the typical
middlegames (i.e. studying Gyimesi's games
with 14...Nfd7 would be a good idea) . Same
goes for White!
1-0
230
Bosboom,Manuel
Giri,Anish
Corus C Wijk aan Zee NED (4) 20.01.2009
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.d3 g4
5.bd2 bd7 6.0-0 e5 7.h3 h5 8.h4!?
This has been seen before, but it was a new
concept for me. c5 9.c4! This also looks
critical.
[ 9.e1 intending e4, looks less dangerous
for Black. ]
9...0-0 10.cxd5!?
[ 10.b3 b6 11.g4 dxc4 was Ubilava-
Sturua 1993 where Black emerged quite
comfortable- playing g4 only really makes
sense when there is a target on d5. ]
10...xd5 The safe option, but obviously
some sort of concession. I am not sure if
White is better in what follows, but I think I
would prefer to have his position
[ 10...cxd5 11.g4 ( 11.b3!? given that g4
m i g h t h a p p e n , t h e r e i s s o m e va l u e i n
keeping the knight closer to the kingside.
b6 12.g4? xg4 13.hxg4 xh4 14.gxh5
f6 gives Black a raging attack. )
A) 11...xg4 12.hxg4 xh4 13.gxh5
f6 14.f3 xh5 15.d4! exd4 16.f4
and White has some sort of control.;
B) 11...xg4 12.hxg4 xg4 13.hf3
Black has lots of moves here, but I think
White will feel more comfortable after d4
s o I w o u l d c o n s i d e r ( 13.df3
13...b6!? and now Rybka seems to think
W h it e is b e t t e r a f t e r e 4 , b u t t h is is a
tricky position to play, and clearly a line
that needs to be checked.;
C) 11...g6 12.b3 b6 ( 12...c8!? )
13.xg6 hxg6 14.g5 h5 15.xd5
and even here, when W hite gets
everything, the position is still not totally
clear. c5 16.xc5 ( 16.f3 e6 17.h4
g3 18.e1 f5 ) 16...xd5 17.e4
does look relatively safe though. ]
11.e4 b6 12.f5 c5 13.c3
In general exchanges favour White in such
structures, so I am not too impressed by
W h it e's m an o e uve ring a ro u n d h e re . e7
14.e3 e6 15.c4 c7 16.b4 d7
17.b1 b5 18.d2 a5 19.a3 f5 Now Black
A07 is very comfortable. 20.f3 d4 21.g5
2418 axb4 22.axb4 a3 23.c1 xf3 24.exf3
2469 xc3 25.xc3 d5 26.d2 xc3 27.xc3
f4 28.e1 fxg3 29.fxg3 f5 30.h2 f7
31.e4 g6 32.e1 h6 33.xe5 xe5
34.xe5 xd3
½-½
231 A07
Bricard,Emmanuel 2506
Kosten,Anthony C 2515
Toulon (5) 02.11.1999
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 g4
5.d3 bd7 6.bd2 e5 7.e4 d6
Capturing on e4 is common, see the archives,
but is less ambitious, as it concedes the c4-
square to White. 8.h3 h5 9.exd5
[ This active move is the current preference,
alt e rn a t ive ly 9.b3?! 0-0 10.b2 e8
11.e1 a5 12.a3 b5!? 13.f1 dxe4
14.dxe4 c5 with a plus to Black, Sturua,Z-
Kramnik,V/ Moscow (open) 1992. ]
[ 9.e1 is also common. ]
9...cxd5 10.c4 Trying to break the black
centre. 0-0
[ Simplest, trying to complete development.
10...d4 11.e2 0-0 12.g4 g6 13.h4
was pleasant for White in King,D-Norwood,D/
BL9394 1994. ]
11.cxd5 xd5 12.c4!?
e4 ) [ White is returning to this move after 12.b3
lost its charm, but I'm not sure why, 5f6!?
Adams' move, ( 12...5b6!? is considered
worse, but it is not sure that this is the case,
13.e4 e7 14.a4 h8! 15.a5 f5
with unclear play, Vaganian,R-Khalifman,A/
Eupen 1994.) 13.c4! c5 14.a3 xf3
15.xf3 e7 16.xe5 with advantage to
213
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

White, Vaganian,R-Kaidanov,G/Glendale/ 232 A07

1994. ] Carlsen,Magnus 2714
12...c7 13.b3 Hitting d5 and b7, and Gelfand,Boris 2736
emphasising the absence of Black's light- World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (30) 22.11.2007
squ a re d b is h o p f ro m t h e qu e e n sid e a n d [Carsten Hansen]
centre, but Black has sufficient resources.
c5! 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
[ A s t r o n g i n n o v a t i o n a f t e r 13...5b6 5.f3 c6 6.0-0 e7 7.d3 0-0 8.a3 a5
White has 14.g5! e8 15.ac1 xc4 9.b3 e6
16.xc4 c8 17.h4 with active play, [ L i k e i n t h e S i c i l i a n D r a g o n , 9...e8!?
Hodgson,J-De la Villa Garcia,J/Dos is a perfectly good move, and so it is in this
Hermanas 1992. ] line: 10.b2 f8 11.bd2 g4 12.c1
14.a3?! ( 12.c4!? ) 12...d7 13.c2 d4
[ Perhaps a bit doubtful, but 14.b5 xd3 14.xd4 exd4 15.e4 f5 16.g5?!
forces 15.fxe5 xe5 16.xe5 xe5 ( 16.c5 f7 17.xd4 b6 18.a4
17.xd5 e8 with equality. ] ad8 ) 16...h6 17.f3 c5 Czebe, A-
14...xf3! Cebalo, M/Baden 2000 ]
[ 14...d7 is probably fine, but the text is 10.b2 f6 11.bd2
stronger, Black concedes one of his bishops [ German International Master Sehner has
to control d4. ] tried 11.c2 a cou ple of t im es : e8
15.xf3 e6 16.g2 a5! ( 11...d7 is less accurate, e.g. 12.d1
[ A good move, threatening ...Nb4, if fd8 13.bd2 b6 14.c4 a4 15.xb6
16...d4 then 17.c5 ] cxb6 16.bxa4 a5 17.d2 dc8 18.c3
17.b3! Sehner, N-Thormann, W/Nuremberg 1988)
[ I f t h e n a t u r a l 17.e1? then d4 12.bd2 f7 13.d4 exd4 14.xd4 fd8
wins the exchange. ] 15.c5 b6 16.xe7 xe7 17.e3=
[ I h a d e xp e ct e d 17.d2 but then b5! Sehner, N-Aseev, K/Berlin 1992 ]
18.e3 xe3 19.xe3 a6 followed by ... 11...d7
Rd6, and then ...Bb6 and Black's hold on [ An alternative is 11...h8 , though the king
d4 confers him the advantage. ] move is hardly necessary: 12.e3 e8
17...b4 18.e3 b8 19.a7 a8 20.e3 13.d4 exd4 14.xd4 xd4 15.xd4 c5
[ 20.e3 Instead of the repetition, there is: 16.b2 d8 17.c2 b5 Keeling, K-Evans
xd3 ( 20...b5!? was the move I wanted to Quek, D/Birmingham 2002 ]
play, although after 21.a3 b8 White has 12.c2 h8
22.a7 and Black has to sacrifice the [ 12...b6 13.fd1 ab8 14.ac1
exchange, although after the further d4!? ( 14.c4!? ) 14...fc8 15.e3 e8 16.c4
23.d1 b6 24.xb8 xb8 Black has Panno, O-Maller, M/ Buenos Aires 1992
great dark square control, and White has ( 16.h4!? g5 17.hf3 g6 18.e4 )]
problems developing, still, this is not without [ 12...ad8!? ]
risk for Black. 25.d2 f5 ) 21.xd3 xd3 13.fd1 b6
22.xb7 ab8 23.d5 xb2 24.xe6 fxe6 [ 13...h3 14.xh3 xh3 15.e4 b6
25.fc1 Black's extra pawn is useless. ] 16.d4 exd4 17.xd4 xd4 18.xd4 c5
½-½ 19.e3 ]
14.ac1 fd8 15.e4 e8
[ 15...a4!? ]
16.fd2 d5 17.c5 xc5 18.xc5 de7
19.c2
[ 19.b5!? ]
19...h5 20.e1 f7 21.c3 d5 22.a1
de7 23.b1 d5 24.e4 f5 25.e3 d6
26.h4

214
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 26.f4!? ]
26...xe4 27.dxe4 e6 28.c3 d7
29.ed1 ad8 30.xd7 xd7 31.b4 axb4
32.axb4 a7 33.f4 b5
[ 33...c4!? ]
34.b2 d2
[ 34...exf4 35.exf4 g4 36.h2 c6 ]
35.xd2 xd2 36.a1 a3 37.c1 c4
38.c3 d7
[ 38...e2! ]
39.f2 d6
[ 39...c6!? ]
40.f1 c6 41.g4 exf4 42.exf4 d2 43.e5
fxe5 44.xe5 d7 45.e2 g8 46.a1
[ 46.e3 b3 47.c2 d5 48.c3 ]
46...c4 47.f5 d5 48.c3 d8 49.a7
d6 50.e5 e4+ 51.e3 e8 52.f4 c5
[ 52...f6!? ]
53.f3 f6 54.xf6 xf3 55.xg7!?
[ 55.xf3!? gxf6 56.bxc5 e5 57.a8+
g7 58.c8+- ]
55...c6
[ 55...d5 56.e5 cxb4 57.g5+- ]
56.f6
[ 56.e5! cxb4 57.g5 d5 58.g6 f3
59.a5 e2 60.c5 hxg6 61.fxg6 f8+
62.g5 d3 63.h5+- ]
56...cxb4
[ 56...e4+ 57.g5 cxb4 58.a8+ e8 ]
57.g5
[ 57.e5!? b3 58.g5 ]
57...b3 58.a3 d5 59.a1 f7 60.c3
e4 61.d1 c6 62.d6 c4 63.h8
[ 63.f6+!? e8 64.e6+ f7 65.e3 d5
( 65...h6+ 66.xh6 xg4 67.h5 g2 )
66.e5 e4 67.xe4 xe4 68.f4
A) Attacking White's pawns from behind is
the only way to defend against W hite's
pawn majority on the kingside. An example,
a very long one though, illustrates why:
68...d5 69.g5 c4 70.h5 d3 71.g6+
hxg6 72.hxg6+ f8 73.g5 e4 74.f6
d5 75.f5 c4 76.b2 b5 77.d4 b4!
78.e4 ( 78.a1 d3+ 79.g5 c4
80.d4 ) 78...e6 79.e5 g8 80.b2
f8 81.c1 c4 82.d4 e6 83.c5
e8 84.xb4 The many moves invested
in picking up this apparently irrelevant
move becomes obvious in another half
d o ze n m o ve s d5 ( 84...d7 85.c5
g8 86.a3 e6 87.b2 d7 88.d4
e6 89.e3 d7 90.f4+- ) 85.c3
( 85.c5? b2! 86.xb2 e4 87.g7
f7= ) 85...g8 86.d2 e6 87.e3
d5 88.f4 c4 89.g5 f8 90.a3+
T h e a c ce s s i b il i t y t o t h i s m o ve i s t h e
reason why the b4-pawn had to be
r e m o ve d b y W h i t e ' s k i n g e a r l i e r g8
( 90...e8 91.h6+- ) 91.f4 , and the
marches down to e7 and forces f6-f7-f8
through.;
B) 68...c2! 69.h5 d1 70.h6 c2
71.g5 g8 72.g6 hxg6 73.f6 g5+
74.xg5 f7= ]
63...f3 64.d7+
[ 64.d4!? b4 65.f6+ e8 66.e6+
d7 67.e3 xd4 68.xf3 b4 69.f1
e7 70.b1 b6= ]
64...e8 65.xh7??
[ Here White should have played the simple
65.d3! xg4+ 66.f6 b4 67.g5 e4
68.d4 xd4 69.xd4 , and White should
draw without too much effort. ]
65...xg4+ 66.h6 xh4+ 67.g6 g4+
68.h6 h4+
[ 68...g2! 69.e5 b2-+ ]
69.g6 xh7??
[ With this move, Black throws his last
winning chance over board. The correct way
t o p r o c e e d i s 69...g4+ 70.h6 g2
71.e5 b2 72.h8+ ( 72.xb2 xb2
73.g5 b5-+ ) 72...d7 73.xb2 xb2
74.g5 d5-+ ]
70.xh7 d7 71.g6 c6 72.g5 b5
73.f4 d5 74.e3 c4 75.b2
½-½
233 A07
Christiansen,Larry Mark
Kortschnoj,Viktor
Lone Pine 1981
[Tony Kosten]
1.g3 d5 2.g2 e5 3.d3 The standard
'Mo d e rn De f e n ce' m o ve , b u t L ars e n h a s
experimented with a sort of 'reversed
Alekhine's Defence':
[ 3.f3!? e4 4.d4 c5 one of many
possibilities, that assures Black good
chances, if he is more ambitious he might try
( 4...c5 5.b3 c4 6.d4 c5 7.c3 f6
215
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
8.0-0 0-0 as in Poutiainen,P-Polugaevsky,L/
Budapest 1975) 5.b3 b6 6.0-0 f6
7.d3 exd3 8.cxd3 0-0 9.c3 c6
wh i c h i s l e v e l , L a r s e n , B - B r o n s t e i n , D /
Vinkovci 1970. ]
3...c6 Black immediately supports his d5
bulwark with a pawn, if
[ 3...f6 4.f3 d6 then White can play
the f lan kin g b lo w 5.c4 more easily, as if
Black replies 5...dxc4 there is now 6 Qa4+
and 7 Qxc4. c6 6.0-0 h6!? 7.b3 0-0
8.cxd5 cxd5 9.c3 d4 10.d5 xd5
11.xd5 which is level, Hickl, J-Kindermann,
S/Nussloch 1996 ]
4.f3 The normal move,
[ 4.d2 tends to restrict White's options, and
following f6 5.e4 c5 6.gf3 0-0 7.0-0
e8 8.h3 bd7 Black could be happy with
his opening, Bilek,I-Geller,E/ Havana 1971 ]
4...d7 5.0-0 d6 6.c3 This way White
c a n p re p a re e 4 , a n d ye t k e e p t h e c1 -h 6
diagonal open for his queen's bishop. e7
This move keeps the f6-square free for the d7-
knight, and allows the black f -pawn to
advance.
[ 6...gf6 is perfectly logical, if rarely
played. ]
7.e4 d4 8.e2 h6 9.d2 b6 10.f4 f6
A reversed KI structure has been reached.
11.fxe5!? Many players would prefer the
standard kingside onslaught with
[ 11.f5 here, intending g4, h4, etc., although
Black is by no means obliged to put his king
in the way, and will certainly castle
queenside. ]
11...fxe5 12.c3 dxc3 13.bxc3 e6 14.f3
0-0 15.e3 f6 16.a4 c7 17.a5 d7
18.d4 White has ad vantage, and after driving
the black knight from its post, proceeds to
expand in the centre. d8 19.a4 b8
20.dxe5!? This seems like a strange decision,
handing permanent control of the e5-square
to Black, but, in fact, White prefers activity,
freeing the d4, and f4-squares for use by his
knights. xe5 21.xe5 xe5 22.d4 f7
23.b4 d6 24.b2 xf1+ 25.xf1 c5
Black would like to bring his knight to e5, but
he needs to keep the f5-square guarded, as
otherwise White would play Nf5, with threats
against the black king. 26.h1 b6 27.axb6
axb6 28.f4 c8 29.b3 d6 30.xd6
xd6 31.d4 White menaces the move e5,
liberating his bishop. g6 32.f5 xf5
33.exf5 f6 34.xb6 xf5 35.xf5
½-½
234 A07
Cornette,Matthieu 2329
Payen,Arnaud 2359
National I Sautron FRA (1) 31.01.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 f5
5.d3 h6 6.fd2!? I have often wondered
about the merits of this move, forcing through
e4, and freeing the f-pawn, for White, as I like
to play this with a tempo less when I have the
black pieces and I have played the King's
Indian against my opponent's London System.
e6 Solid, and typical of Lasker's set-up, but
[ 6...e5 is more ambitious, and makes sense
now that White's knight no longer covers the
square: 7.e4 dxe4 8.dxe4 e6 ( 8...g4
9.f3 h3 10.e1 c5 also seems fine,
Lupu,M-Serafimov,T/Paris FRA 2002) 9.e2
c7 10.f4!? Badea,B-Neumann,A/ Giessen
1995, and now I think I would prefer c5+
11.h1 g4 ]
7.e4 dxe4 Actually new in this position,
otherwise Black can keep his central pawn,
and simply retreat his bishop:
[ 7...g6 8.c3 a5 9.h3 c5 10.h2 h5!?
to dissuade White from f4, which would lose
to ...Ng4+, Istrate, B-Manole,V/Baile Tusnad
1999, but where will the black king go? ]
[ 7...h7 8.c3 e7 9.e2 0-0 10.f4
is the attacking set-up White is aiming for,
he can even consider continuing with g4,
Calotescu,C-Barasiant,M/Bucharest 1999. ]
8.dxe4 h7 9.e5!? With the d-file open the
young French player decides to refrain from
the normal plan of
[ 9.c3 followed by Qe2, and then f4, g4,
etc. and finds an original idea. ]
9...d5 10.e4 xe4!? To stop the knight
going to d6, but this is hardly forced,
[ 10...d7!? 11.d6+ ( 11.c4?!
d ro p s a p a wn , xe4! 12.xe4 5b6 )
11...xd6 12.exd6 and is the d6-pawn a
weakness, or a strength? ]
11.xe4 d7 12.e1 Indirectly defending
216
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
the advanced e-pawn. c7 13.h5 g6!?
Whilst no doubt playable, this is still very risky,
rather than defend I would go for
[ 13...c5 and keep the threat of ...g6 in
reserve, myself. ]
14.xg6 Practically forced,
[ 14.e2 xe5 15.c4 5b6 16.f4 f6
and Black is very solid. ]
14...fxg6 15.xg6+ d8? I don't like this
move, as it allows W hite to re-establish a
rough material equality.
[ 15...e7 had to be tried, it looks ugly, but
e ve r yt h i n g is d e f e n d e d , 16.c4 5b6
and now 17.d2 ( 17.b3?! xe5 18.e4
g7 ) 17...xe5!? 18.e4 g7 19.f4 f7
20.xe6+ d8 and ...Qd7, with unclear
play. ]
16.c4 5b6 17.xe6 Garnering a third pawn
for the piece, and the black king remains
m i s p l a c e d . b4 18.c3 e8 19.xh6
xe5 20.g5+ e7? This move loses
immediately, Black didn't want to leave the
defence of his e8-rook, when the e5-knight
would be pinned on the e-file, but
nevertheless,
[ 20...c8 21.g2! (to stop ...Nf3+) xc3
( 21...f7!? 22.f6 xf6 23.xf6 bd7
24.xe5 xe5 25.xe5 xe5 26.e1 f7
27.e8+ d8 28.e4 is better for White,
b u t B l a c k m i g h t h a v e s o m e c h a n c e s)
22.bxc3 bxc4 ( 22...f7 23.f6! xf6
24.xf6 bd7 25.xe5! xe5 26.xe5
xe5 27.e1 f7 28.e7 leaves Black
helpless against the armada of white
kingside pawns) 23.f4 f7 24.fxe5 xe5
25.d6 f3+ 26.g1 d5 27.xd5 cxd5
28.g2 should win easily. ]
21.ad1+ bd7 22.f4 A second horrible
pin. f8
[ 22...f3+ d o e s n ' t h e l p : 23.h1 c8
24.e3 ]
23.xe5! The most precise. xe5
[ 23...xh6 24.f6+! e7 25.xe7
is a catastrophe for Black. ]
24.h4+ e7 25.xd7+!
[ 25.xd7+ xd7 26.g4+ d6 27.b5+!
( 27.xe5 is also good, of course) 27...cxb5
28.d1+ e6 29.d5+ wins queen for
rook and bishop whilst maintaining a
crushing attack. ]
1-0
235 A07
Davies,Nigel R 2375
Chandler,Murray G 2485
BCF-ch Southport (5) 1983
[Nigel Davies]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.d3 g4
5.h3 h5 6.g4 g6 7.h4 e5 8.e3 d6
[ Another interesting possibility is 8...b4+
which aims at preve nting W hite's quit e
favourable set up with Nc3 and Bd2. After
9.d2 ( 9.f1!? looks interesting to me as
I'm not convinced W hite needs castling
rights ) 9...a6 10.e2 d7 11.xg6
hxg6 12.a3 d6 13.c4 c7 14.b3 e7
15.b2 a5 16.f3 c5 Black was doing
just fine in Danielsen, H (2415)-Berg, K
(2405)/ Espergarde 1992. ]
9.c3 a6 Leaving d7 for the other knight
which will force the knight on h4 to declare its
intentions.
[ Another interesting game of mine varied at
this point with 9...bd7 after which 10.e2
e7 11.d2 b5 12.a3 0-0 13.xg6
fxg6!? 14.h4 a5 15.g5 h5 16.g4 h8
17.e2 c5 18.0-0 e4 19.d4 a4
gave Black good play in Davies, N (2375)-
De Boer, G (2330)/ Copenhagen 1983. ]
10.e2 d7 11.xg6 hxg6 12.d2 e7
13.0-0-0 f5 14.f4 e4 15.dxe4 dxe4 16.h4
0-0-0 17.h5 White has an edge here thanks
to the potential of his light squared bishop.
gxh5 18.gxf5 f6 19.c4 c5 20.e1
[ 20.a4 was worth considering here so as to
prevent ...b7-b5. ]
20...b5! 21.e2 c7 22.d4 xd4 23.exd4
xf4+ 24.b1 b7 25.h4
[ Here too 25.a4 would have been
promising. ]
25...d6 26.f1 h6 27.xf6 gxf6
28.xe4 xe4 29.xe4 White is better here
and should have continued.
½-½
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

236 A07 not active. 12.e5 fxg3 13.exd6 0-0 14.c3

Dubov,Daniil 2629 and I prefer White ]
Shirov,Alexei 2695 12.f3
Moscow Generations m (4) 06.12.2013 [ 12.fxe5 was another variation heading for
[Fier, Alexandr] positions hard to assess
A) 12...xe5 13.dxe5 c5+ ( 13...xe5
Shirov tries the setup with a quick 5...e5 one is also playable 14.f3 xg3 15.a4+
more time. And one more time complications c6 16.xc4 0-0 17.c3 e8 and White
arrive quickly in this game. 1.f3 d5 2.g3 has problems to defend e4, so the position
g4 3.g2 d7 4.0-0 gf6 5.d3 e5 6.h3 remains unclear) 14.h2 xd1 15.xd1
e6 Trying to support the center. The g4+! necessary and good ( 15...hxg5
drawback is that sometimes Black needs to 16.exf6 is just winning for White) 16.hxg4
worry about Ng5. hxg5+ 17.h3 xe4 and White needs to
[ 6...h5 7.g4 g6 Dubov, D (2629)-Shirov, take care of 18...Bf3 and 19...Bxg4 ideas,
A (2695)/Moscow Generations m blitz 2013, to there is good compensation.;
was also analyzed this month in the other B) 12...hxg5 this is less interesting, and
game between the same players. ] probably White is better after 13.exd6 g4
7.c4!? Sacrificing a pawn in order to open the ( 13...cxd6 14.xg5 with advantage to
center immediately. I'm not sure if it's the best White ) 14.e5 gxh3 15.exf6 is possible
move, but it's a forcing one. dxc4 8.d4 because of the bad position of Black's king
[ 8.g5 does not combine with 8.c4 f5 ( 15.xb7 is also good) 15...hxg2 16.fxg7
9.xb7 ( 9.dxc4 h6 does not make much gxf1+ 17.xf1 g8 18.e1+!
sense for W hite) 9...b8 10.g2 cxd3 t h a t ' s t h e d e t a i l e5 19.xe5+
11.exd3 h6 with both structures damaged, and White is better ]
Black has no reason to be afraid. ] 12...xe4 Now Black is not forced to give the
8...d6 It's important for Black to quickly finish piece anymore. He has the choice to give
his development, but with the knight on f6 and nothing and try to defend against W hite's
the bishop on d6 W hite has an important initiative or give a full rook and liberate his
resource. pieces. Shirov prefers the second option!
[ 8...e4 Black can't really hold this pawn 13.e1 Defending g3 and threatening 14.Nh4.
9.g5 f5 10.c3 e7 11.d2!? g6 exf4
12.f4 and White takes the pawn back by [ 13...e7 now the bishop won't be attacked
force, with some advantage ] and there is no 14.Nh4 14.xe5 xe5
9.g5 f5 10.e4 g6 11.f4 Probably this is 15.dxe5 but White's pawns are really
the position White aimed for when he played 7. dangerous d3!? against 16.f5 ( 15...c5
c4!?. White's pawns are threatening to win a 16.f5 d3 17.e4 h7 18.e3
piece and probably he will succeed. On other is not funny for Black) 16.f5 ( 16.h2 c5
hand, the pawns are unstable and Black can a n d B la ck is f in e) 16...xg3 17.f3!
find good counterplay. During the next few ( 17.fxg6 c5+ 18.h2 xf1+ 19.xf1
moves both players have options and it's hard xg6 and White's king is just too exposed)
to evaluate if one is better than another. h6 17...d4+ 18.e3 only forced moves xb2
The most testing move. 19.fxg6 e2+ keeping the knight
[ 11...0-0 was a solid option with some ( 19...xa1 20.gxf7+ f8 21.xg3 xe5
compensation for the piece 12.fxe5 xe5 is also possible and also unclear, but I feel
13.dxe5 xe5 and White has no time to that White is better) 20.h1 xa1 21.xf7
play 14.Bf4 because of the pawn on b2. Still, ( 21.gxf7+ f8 22.f1 b2 and Black is
even if Black manages to take on g3, the better ) 21...f8 22.xb7 g3+ 23.g1
pieces are not so well located, so it's not ( 23.h2 b2+ 24.g2 e4 ) 23...e2+
sure if the compensation is enough ] 24.f1 g3+ is a possible draw ]
[ 11...exf4 was another way to sacrifice the 14.h4 0-0 Going for the rook sacrifice.
piece, but one more time Black's pieces are [ 14...df6 it looks like this move makes no

218
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
sense, but there is a nice intermezzo on the
way
A) 15.c3 b4 16.xf4 ( 16.xg6
xd4+ 17.h1 fxg6 18.xe4 0-0
with chances for both players) 16...xd4+
17.e3 xe3+ 18.xe3 c5 and even
with the knight attacked 4 times, this still
works! 19.e1 0-0-0 20.xg6 fxg6
21.xe4 xe3+ 22.xe3 he8 23.e2
but because of the pawn structure the
compensation is not enough;
B) 15.xg6 b4! anyway! ( 15...fxg6
16.xe4 0-0 17.xg6 is bad for Black)
16.xb4 ( 16.c3 xd4+ 17.h1 fxg6
18.xe4 0-0 t r a n s p o s e s) 16...xd4+
17.h2 fxg3+ 18.h1 fxg6 and with the
pawn on g3 the e4-knight becomes more
powerful (also there are 5(!) pawns for the
piece), so Black has full compensation ]
15.xg6 xg3 16.xf8 xf8
[ It is important for Black to leave the queen
o n d 8 , k e e p i n g a n e ye o n d 4 : 16...xf8
17.xf4! and the bishops are huge xf4
18.xf4 with advantage to White ]
17.f2 Other moves bring nothing for White.
[ 17.xf4 xf1 18.xf1 xf4 19.xf4 e6
and Black is out of danger ]
[ 17.xf4 now this move does not work xf4
18.xf4 xd4+ and the queen proves to be
useful on d8 ]
17...e6
[ 17...d7!? trying to develop the rook as
soon as possible. But during a game it's
hard to give the f4-pawn so easily 18.xf4
e8 19.e5 ( 19.d2 xf4 with 20...Ne2+
c o m i n g n e x t) 19...g6 ( 19...f6?
is refuted in a nice way 20.xf6! gxf6
21.xg3+ g7 22.xd6 cxd6 23.xg7+
xg7 24.a3 and all Black's pawns are
weak ) 20.c3 xe5 21.dxe5 xe5
22.d2 with a hard position to understand,
but with this opposite color bishop, White's
king will never be safe. ]
18.c3 h4 19.e4 Right plan, wrong
execution. White tries to take care of the d6-
bishop, buy maybe he overlooked Black's 21st
move.
[ 19.b5 was another option, defending d4
instead of the g5-square and using the same
i d e a o f e x c h a n g i n g t h e b i s h o p g5
quite active, but not enough to hold the
balance 20.xd6 xh3+ 21.xh3 xh3
22.h2 g4 23.g2 cxd6 24.xf4 xf4
25.xg3 xd4+ 26.h2 and there are
good chances for the rook to prevail ]
19...xd4
[ 19...xe4 20.xe4 c6 21.d2
and White will finally finish his development,
with a good advantage ]
20.xd6 cxd6 21.d2?! Trying to bring the
rest of the pieces into the game, but after
Black's answer W hite's position is easy to
misplay.
[ 21.xf4! giving some material back was the
right way to go ge2+ 22.xe2 xe2+
23.xe2 xf4 24.f1 h4 ( 24...d4+
I would prefer to keep the queens on the
board 25.f2 xf2+ 26.xf2 and White is
bet te r du e t o th e stron g square f o r th e
bishop on d5) 25.e3 and without pieces to
attack, some of Black pawns are going to
fall ]
21...f3! After this move White's rook can't go
to f4 anymore, so Black can breathe more
easily. 22.xf3
[ 22.xf3 was another option xf3+ 23.xf3
xh3 24.f2 e8 and if Black manages to
change the knight he will be better. Since
it 's n o t s o e a s y a n d t h e b i sh o p p a i r i s
a lwa ys d a n g e r o u s, t h e p o si t i o n i s s t il l
unclear ]
22...c2 23.g5 Keeping the light-squared
bishop, but after this move it will take some
time to catch the knight.
[ 23.b1 xa1 24.xa1 e4 25.xe4
xe4 and Black exchanges White's most
dangerous piece. ]
23...e2+ 24.xe2 xg5+ 25.g2 xa1
26.e1 After this move, Black starts to
advance the pawns and he is already better.
There was still one chance for White to keep
the position unclear, but it's difficult to
understand why he should go for the pawns
and leave the knight alive.
[ 26.xc4 d5 27.xd5 ( 27.c7
keeping one eye on c1 is also possible)
27...xd5 28.xd5 and one more pawn will
fall, so the better pieces can compensate
the pawn down ]
26...d5 27.xa1 d4 28.f1 d3!
Black doesn't care about all the pawns, just
the most important ones. 29.xf7 d8 30.f5
219
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

e3+ 31.h2 d4 32.f3 xb2+ 2013. ]

And with two united passed pawns, there is no 7...g6 8.h4 xg4!? Why refuse such a
way White can create enough counterplay. So chance in a blitz game?
Black is winning. 33.h1 d4 34.g2 d2 [ 8...c6 Black could, of course, play this
35.d1 e8 36.f1 e1 37.f3 e4 move again, going to positions alread y
38.xe4 xe4 39.g2 e1 40.f2 xd1 played 9.d2 d6 10.e3 and this kind of
0-1 position is also possible with reversed colors,
Ehlvest, J (2603)-Javanbakht, N (2406)/Al
Ain op 2012. ]
237 A07 9.xg6 hxg6 10.hxg4 h4 Black threatens
Dubov,Daniil 2629 mate in one and after W hite defends both
Shirov,Alexei 2695 players still need to develop their pieces.
Moscow Generations m blitz (1.1) 02.12.2013 Whether the sacrifice is really sound or not is
[Fier, Alexandr] another question, but it certainly forces White
to solve some problems. 11.e1 Natural.
This was a blitz game, so with a few seconds [ 11.f3?! is ugly and should not work, but
on the clock both players missed some moves d e f e n d s t h e p a w n 0-0-0 ( 11...h2+
in the middlegame complications, but the Black can already make a draw if he wants
opening is still quite sharp since Shirov tries 12.f2 h4+ ) 12.e3 d6 and soon White
to immediately punish Dubov's thematic 7.g4 will have some real problems on the dark
and 8.Nh4. 1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 g4 squares ]
4.0-0 bd7 5.d3 e5 This move takes the 11...f6 Black won't mate with only two pieces
c e n t e r wit h o u t lo si n g a n y t im e . I n s o m e so he brings the knight to help with the attack.
variations it can transpose to a line with ...c6, White also needs to bring some pieces to the
but in both games that were played in this defence. 12.e3 Trying to bring the queen via
match the pawn stayed on c7 for a long time. f3-g3. e4 And Black avoids it, opening the d6-
6.h3 h2 diagonal at the same time.
[ 6.c4 can transpose to a recent game and [ 12...xg4 is less scary 13.f3 f5 14.g3
another variation xg3 15.fxg3 e4 16.c3 c6 blunting the
A) 6...dxc4 7.dxc4 c5 ( 7...c6 bishop on g2, and with the f8-bishop soon
again could transpose) 8.c3 c6 coming to attack g3 Black has some
one day or another Black needs to play compensation. ]
this to control d5 and the long diagonal 13.dxe4 dxe4 And here White's position is
9.c2 0-0 10.h3 xf3 11.xf3 e7 already not easy to defend! There are plenty
was a game between two elite players of options, of course, but some of the natural
some decades ago, Petrosian, T (2645)- moves already lose by force. 14.e2?!
Portisch, L (2635)/Milan 1975.; [ 14.c3 this was possibly the best move,
B) 6...c6 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.d4 this is a and Black has an interesting move as an
thematic answer e4 9.e5 e6 10.xd7 option b4!? ( 14...xg4 15.xe4 f5
xd7 with a normal position, as seen in 16.g3 d6 17.f3 looks ok for White )
Van Delft, M (2424)-Pijpers, A (2366)/ A) 15.d4 still looking at the e4-pawn
Wijk Cultural Village rapid 2013. ] xc3 16.bxc3 ( 16.xc3 xg4 17.e2
6...h5 7.g4 Basically this move is already a 0-0-0 18.d2 and White's pieces are
novelty! We still have chances to enter into certainly not on the best squares to defend
more common positions by transposition, but the king. h2 followed by 19...Nf3+ with
with White's idea we are going to play chess mate ) 16...h2+ 17.f1 h4 and 18...
from move 7. Rxg4 is really hard to meet, so W hite is
[ 7.e1 c6 8.e4 would again transpose, already lost.;
and this time there is quite a recent game in B) 15.e2 and here one possible
this position Kramnik, V (2793)-Rowson, J con tinu at ion wou ld b e 0-0-0 16.d2
(2 5 6 9 )/ L o n d o n Cl a ssi c G p -B 5 t h r a p i d h2+ 17.f1 h4 again this strong move,

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but now W hite has resources to defend f8, White increases his chance of defending.
18.ed1! opening some space for the Still, the position is not clear, Black will
bishop on d2 xg4 19.f3 h5 20.e1 come with both rooks to d6 and h5. ]
this is the point xd1 21.xd1 f4!? 16...xe4 17.g2 h4 A lot of things are
the attack continues anyway, 22.d8+! happening on the kingside and both players
to move the queen by winning an still had no time to develop. But when the
important tempo ( 22.exf4 c5! 23.d8+ pieces come into the game, Black's ones have
xd8 24.d2+ c8 25.fxg4 g1+ much more potential. 18.d1 h5 19.e4
26.e2 xg2+ 27.d1 xg4+ 28.e2 c5+
e6 a n d B l a c k i s f i n e) 22...xd8 [ 19...d8! another hard move to play in a
23.d2+ c8 24.fxg4 xc3 25.bxc3 blitz game, trying to exchange one of
xg2 26.xg2 e5 and White is better, W hite's f ew developed pieces. 20.xd8+
but there is still a lot of play for a blitz xd8 21.d2 c5+ 22.f1 f6+ 23.e2
game. ] xb2 with a decisive advantage ]
14...xg4 15.xe4 Trying to release the 20.f1 e7
pressure at the cost of the most important [ 20...d8 is still possible, but now less
defender. strong, 21.xd8+ xd8 ( 21...xd8
[ 15.d2 this move lets Black attack without 22.c3 is another idea) 22.e2 and White
any counterplay f5 16.f1 d6 17.d2 found a good square for the king, so both
0-0-0 and it's hard to believe White can players have chances ]
survive. ] 21.c3 c6 22.e2 ah8 23.e3
[ 15.d1 is m o re o r le ss t h e sa m e f5 Missing the chance to exchange some pieces,
and White is not happy. ] but I imagine both players already have few
15...xf2 This move is logical and Black seconds on the clock.
maintains the initiative, but I think 15...Bd6 [ 23.h1! wa s t h e t rick xh1 ( 23...f6
was already winning by force, because of a 24.xh5 xh5 25.e3 is better compared
beautiful idea. to the game) 24.g5+ f6 25.xh1 xh1
[ 15...d6! 26.f4 g5 27.c7 ( 27.g3 g4!
A) 16.c3 g3! this is the move 17.fxg3 controls important squares in W hite's
( 17.d1 d8 18.d2 xf2 19.xf2 position ) 27...d7 28.b8!? and White can
xf2+ 20.xf2 xe4 and the position is keep a material advantage ]
hopeless ) 17...xg3+ 18.g2 ( 18.g2 23...xe3 24.xe3 f6 Liberating space for
h1+ 19.xh1 h2# is a classical the rooks.
mate ) 18...xe1+ 19.f1 h4 [ 24...g5 was more brutal 25.f1 h2
still with a strong attack and now with 26.e2 h3+ 27.d2 g2 28.e1 f2
almost no material less; 29.g1 f4+ 30.d1 e3 and White is
B) 16.g2 g3! anyway ( 16...xf2 dominated ]
17.xf2 g3 18.e2 xe1 is less clear) 25.f1
17.fxg3 xg3 18.f1 ( 18.c3 h1+ [ 25.h1 was again necessary, exchanging
19.xh1 h2# ) 18...h5 19.e4 0-0-0 one of the rooks. ]
20.e3 d6 ] 25...h3+ 26.e2
16.xf2 [ 26.f3 was possible, but not human xf3+
[ 16.xb7 is a nice way to keep in the game, 27.xf3 g5+ 28.d3 d8+ 29.c4 b5+
the point is not to take one more pawn, but 30.b3 c5 31.f1 0.00 and the computer
to open the c6-square for the bishop, gives the usual ]
disrupting the harmony in Black's position 26...e5 27.f2 h2
h3+ ( 16...e4 17.xe4 xe4 18.g2 [ 27...h5+ comes with a nice trick, with
and because of the missing pawn on b7 the more or less the same idea as in the game
rook is hanging.) 17.f1 d8 18.c6+ 28.e1 ( 28.d2 h6+ 29.e1 e3+
( 18.d2 e7 is less problematic) 18...e7 30.e2 h1+-+ ) 28...e3+! 29.e2
and with the king in the way of the bishop on xe2+! ( 29...h1+ 30.xh1 xh1+

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

31.f1 h2 32.f2 is just drawn) 30.xe2 8.c2 a4!? 9.e4 d4 10.c4 d7 11.h3
h1+ 31.d2 xa1 and Black is winning ] f6 unclear, Hickl,J-Romanishin,O/Polanica
28.g1 xf2+ 29.xf2 h2+ 30.e1 h5 Zdroj 1993. ]
Winning the rook, but now White has time to 7.c2
at least activate one piece, and somehow this [ 7.bd2 e8 8.c2 is quite likely to
was enough in the game. t r a n s p o s e , e6 9.b4 this is why Black
[ 30...xc2 keeps up the pressure 31.d1 might pref er 6...a5. d7 10.b5 a5
xb2 32.d3 but there is still a game ] 11.b3 c5 12.xa5 xa5 13.c4
31.g3 h1+ 32.d2 xa1 33.c7+ Softening-up the long diagonal,
Now the king can't go away. e6 34.c8+ Dzind zich ashvili, R-Ko rt ch no i, V/ Tilb urg
e7 1985. ]
[ 34...e5 is still possible 35.c7+ d4 [ 7.b4!? Might be playable immediately, too,
bu t t h is is ju st su icid e 36.d6+ c4 although: e4! 8.e1 f5 9.d4?! h6
37.b3# ] 10.c2 d7 11.e3 h3 12.f4 exf3
35.c7+ f6 36.d8+ e6 13.exf3 fe8 favours Black, if anyone, Barle,
½-½ J-Tukmakov,V/Geneva 1996. ]
7...f5 8.bd2 All according to plan. d7
9.e4 h3 10.e1 xg2 11.xg2 fe8
238 A07 12.b4 a6 13.b3 ad8 Black has
Dzindzichashvili,Roman 2570 centralised all his pieces while W hite has
Ljubojevic,Ljubomir 2615 been playing on the flank, who is better?
Tilburg (1) 1985 14.g5! h6 15.xf6 xf6 16.a4 b6 17.a5!
[Tony Kosten] W hite's queenside attack is being to show
results, he threatens to win a pawn, and if
1.g3 e5 2.d3 d5 3.f3 c6 4.g2 f6 Black replies 17...b5, then 18 Nc5 is strong.
5.0-0 c8 18.a2 White renews the threat. dxe4
[ The immediate 5.c3 a5 and then 6.0-0 19.dxe4 d3 Black counters by classically
is more committal, and Black can change infiltrating the centre. 20.c2 dd8?!
plans accordingly, and play more [ The obvious move 20...ed8!? loses the
a m b i t i o u s l y : h6 (instead of 6...Be7, exchange after 21.bd4 , of course, but it
transposing) 7.bd2 e6 8.a4 d6 9.e4 might be playable anyway, as Black will
dxe4 10.dxe4 0-0 11.h4 b8!? certainly get some compensation. ]
Full points for imagination! The queen is 21.ed1 xd1 22.xd1 White is quite happy
co m in g to a 7 t o h e lp con t ro l th e g1 -a 7 to exchange pieces, as he is looking-forward
diagonal. 12.f5 c5 13.b5 a7 to an ending where the f6-bishop is inhibited
Black has a plus, Kogan,A-Marciano,D/ by Black's own pawns. d8 23.xd8+ xd8
Serbian Chess Fed, Sabac YUG 1998. ] 24.d3 bxa5 25.d5! e6 26.xe6 fxe6
5...e7 6.c3 This is another Pirc plan 27.bxa5 So, White has reached the endgame
'hijacked' by White. This time he will prepare that he wanted, the black pawns are very
the e4-move with Qc2, and Nbd2, but b4 is weak. e7 28.e1 f7 29.f3 d6
also on the cards. 0-0 30.e3 d8 31.d3 It is important to make
[ Personally speaking, if I had the black good use of the king in the final phase. g5
p i e c e s h e r e , I w o u l d p r e f e r 6...a5! 32.c4 g4 33.d3 c6 34.b4! b8
wh ic h c o n s t ra in s t he wh it e qu e e n sid e . 35.c5 xc5 36.xc5 g6 37.xa6
Although White may not be intending to gain [ 37.xa6 xa6+ 38.b5 b8 39.a6
space on the queenside immediately, with leads to a winning king and pawn
b4, he will want to play this move at some endgame. ]
time, so it makes sense to stop him. 7.bd2 1-0
( If 7.a4 0-0 8.c2 c5 9.e4 dxe4
10.dxe4 then Black can play b6 intending ...
Ba6, Sax,G-Farago,I/Budapest 1976) 7...0-0

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

239 A07 bishop:

Fridman,Daniel 2621 [ 21.f4 xf4 22.xf4 xg2+ 23.xg2
Godena,Michele 2527 and Black still controls the e-file, but the
4th IECC Istanbul TUR (8) 07.06.2003 white position is fairly solid. ]
[Tony Kosten] 21...xe4 22.c1 Played to defend b2, as
now
1.f3 d5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 e5 4.d3 [ 22.f4 xf4 23.xf4 a5 and ...Nc4 is
It is quite a while since we had a look at a very awkward. ]
Reversed Pirc. f6 5.0-0 e7 6.c3 0-0 22...a5 23.g2 c4 This game resembles
7.c2 On the strength of this game, there one of those old Master vs Amateur games,
might be a case made for the move except that here the playing getting
[ 7.bd2 ] overwhelmed positionally has 100 extra ELO
7...f5 8.bd2 e4! This seems to be a very points!! 24.d3 b5 25.h3 a5 26.g4 a4
effective idea. I examined Dzindzichashvili, R- Black places his pawns caref ully on light
Ljubojevic,L/Tilburg 1985 some years ago, squares. 27.hf3 c6 28.e1 f8 29.e2?!
when White won nicely after This appears to lose, but it is difficult to know
[ 8...d7 9.e4 h3 10.e1 xg2 11.xg2 what to suggest in such a position, perhaps
fe8 12.b4 but the text puts paid to any [ 29.b3 but after axb3 30.axb3 a5 31.b4
thoughts of White playing e4. ] c4 and White hasn't improved his
9.h4 exd3 10.exd3 e6 Simplest, position. ]
although 29...c5! A powerful and surprising blow.
[ 10...g4 11.d4 d7 12.e1 ae8 30.dd2?! This is hopeless, but after
13.f1 d8 14.g5 h6 15.xf6 xf6 [ 30.dxc5 Black wins by xe2+ 31.xe2
16.f3 f5 is also reasonable, Odendahl,R- xe2+ 32.f1 c2 33.cxd6 xc1+ and ]
Gurevich,V/Germany 1998. ] [ 30.xe7 is n o b e t t e r , xd3 31.xe8+
11.d4!? A new move here, as previously xe8 and the b-pawn is lost. ]
White had preferred 30...xd2 31.xd2 e4 32.c2 c7
[ 11.b3 to keep the d4-square free, and e4- Black is an exchange up, and he still has his
square covered, d7 12.e3 ( 12.g5 b6 positional advantages (better bishop, more
13.f3 h6 14.f4 f5 15.bd4 xd4 space, e4 outpost). In fact I imagine W hite
16.xd4 h7 17.fe1 fe8 18.d2 c5 would normally resign here, but as Michele is
and Black has more space, Gretarsson,H- always in time-trouble, his opponents often
Haub,T/Pardubice 1999) 12...h3 13.c5 ge t e xcit e d a n d p la y o n t o o lo n g! 33.e2
xg2 14.xg2 b6 15.xe7 xe7 16.ae1 d2! Another shot, this time to exchange a
ae8 with an edge to Black, Roos,D-Moreno piece. 34.eg1 xf3 35.xf3 e1 36.f2
Carnero,J/Mulhouse FRA 2001. ] g3+! 37.g2
11...d7 12.f4!? A very aggressive plan [ 37.xg3 xg1+ ]
aimed at grabbing space on the kingside, but 37...h4 38.f4 g5 39.d6+ g8 40.h2
the downside is the weakening of e4. h3 a1 41.h4 c1 42.xc1 xc1 43.b3 e3
B l a c k d i d n ' t w a n t t o l o s e a p i e c e t o f 5 . 44.bxa4 bxa4 45.d6 xc3 46.e2 c2
13.xh3 xh3 14.f5 fe8 15.df3 d6 47.f1 xa2!? Is this a blunder? It still wins,
It is important to play this before White can but that might be a stroke of chance. Having
play Bf4. 16.g2 g4! 17.d2 h6 18.h1 played with the new FIDE time-control, and
e7 Simple chess from Black (who was being once down to 30 seconds a move, I can
p r o b a b l y a l r e a d y s h o r t o f t i m e k n o wi n g vouch for the difficulty of playing good moves
Michele!) 19.g1 White is getting his pieces at that speed!
in a twist trying to repel the black queen. e4 [ 47...b2 would have been best, I feel. ]
White was worried about Bf4, as the f4-square 48.xc1 a1 49.f4 a3 50.e2 a2
is now defended by the white rook. 20.ad1 T h e a - p a w n r e g a i n s t h e p i e c e . 51.xa2
ae8 21.xe4?! I think that White should xa2+
h a ve t a k e n t h i s c h a n ce t o e l i m i n a t e h i s 0-1

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240 A07 11...a5 12.b3 Opening the second rank for a

Grachev,Boris 2659 rook transfer. e8 A thematic and good plan.
Shirov,Alexei 2702 Black tries to bring the knight to d6, where it
21st TCh-RUS 2014 (2.4) 08.04.2014 controls e4 and also looks at f5. At the same
[Fier, Alexandr] time it makes room for the other knight on f6.
13.g2 d6 14.a2
W hite tried t o pla y a slow game , withou t [ 14.c2 e8 15.b2 again is an important
committing to e4. For me it's too passive and alternative, the rook can go to the e-file by
after 20 moves White needed to take care to normal means ]
avoid being clearly worse. 1.f3 d5 2.g3 14...e8 15.e2 White follows his plan, but
g4 3.g2 d7 4.c4 e6 5.cxd5 exd5 Black is ready to triple on the e-file and when
6.h3 White immediately attacks the bishop. In this happens it will be hard to make progress.
this line the move orders are not so important, e6 16.b2 e7 17.fe1 e8 18.d2 b6
so there are a lot of transpositions. 19.c3 f5 Finally White has finished his
[ 6.0-0 c6 ( 6...gf6 will be similar to the development, but all Black's pieces are more
game 7.c3 c6 8.d3 c5 9.h3 xf3 active. The position is quite solid for White,
10.xf3 was seen on ChessPublishing in b u t a t t h e s a m e t i m e p a s s i v e . 20.d4
Shirov, A (2726)-Short, N (2697)/SuperGM A committal move, but otherwise, what to do?
It Sarajevo BIH 1999.) 7.d3 d6 8.c3 Black is threatening 20...Nxg3, picking up a
e7 9.h3 h5 is a different setup, and also lot of pawns. It's not that the position is worse
p la ya b le , a s a n a lyze d in Ma rko wski, T for White, but he still needs to play something
(2531)-Aleksandrov, A (2606)/1st ch-Europe connected with e4 to activate his position and
2000. ] after d4 it loses a bit of it's strength.
6...xf3 [ 20.e4?? xg3-+ ]
[ 6...h5 is also possible 7.0-0 c6 8.d3 [ 20.f3? xg3 21.fxg3 xe3+ 22.xe3
gf6 9.c3 e7 ( 9...c5 is again xe3 23.xe3 xe3+ 24.xe3 xe3
possible ) 10.e4 dxe4 11.dxe4 c5 25.f2 xd3 and Black has too many
with an interesting game in Jasim, A pawns ]
(2300)-Mchedlishvili, M (2560)/Dubai op 5th [ 20.h2 defends g3, but Black has another
2003. ] idea xe3!? ( 20...g5 increasing the
7.xf3 gf6 8.0-0 c6 9.d3 c5 10.e3 pressure is probably better 21.d4 xg3
White wants to first improve his pieces and 22.fxg3 c7 23.g1 xg3 with more than
only after to play some committal pawn moves enough for the piece) 21.fxe3 d6 22.f2
in the center. It's probably no worse than the xg3+ 23.h1 xe3 with compensation ]
main lines, but now Black will have time to 20...h5 Black follows his plan of attack.
prepare against the e4 break. [ 20...g5 would be another way to continue
[ 10.c3 is a more played move order where and one possible idea for White would be to
W hite's plan is based on a quick e4, and play e4 to force a queen exchange 21.a4
would probably transpose to Shirov - Short c7 22.e4!? xd2 23.xd2 dxe4 24.d5
in the note to move 6. ] and White can activate all his pieces. One
10...0-0 11.a3 possible continuation would be e3 25.fxe3
[ 11.g2 e8 12.c2 was successfully cxd5 26.xd5 xe3 27.xe3 xe3
employed by Roiz a5 ( 12...b6 13.h1 28.xf7+ xf7 29.xd7+ e7 30.xe7+
c7 14.e1 was a more suspicious plan, xe7 with a draw ]
despite the good result for W hite in Roiz, 21.a4 c7 22.e4 dxe4
M (2600)-Warakomski, T (2396)/Zurich op-A [ 22...xg3 i s a l s o i n t e r e s t i n g 23.fxg3
29 t h 2 00 5 .) 13.d2 b6 14.f3 b4 ( 23.c3 will leave White with just a pawn
15.a3 d6 16.d2 and White managed to less dxe4 24.xe4 b8 ) 23...xg3
slo wly out play his op pon en t in Ro iz, M 24.e3 xe4 25.xe4 xe4 26.xe4
(2 5 9 0 )-L a n d a , K (26 0 0 )/ RUS -ch T 1 3 t h dxe4 27.f4 and the king is open, but
2006. ] W hite has good control over the dark

224
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
squares so the position remains unclear ]
23.xe4 d6 24.g5?!
[ 24.xe6 was probably a better way to go
fxe6!? trying to avoid 25.d5 ( 24...xe6
25.xe6 xe6 26.d5 is good for White)
25.d5!? ( 25.c3 f6 and Black's position
is more comfortable) 25...h4! White is not
threatening to take anything 26.e4 f8
27.xf5 xf5 28.xe6 xd5 29.xd5
xd5 30.gxh4 and White is slightly worse ]
24...xe4 25.xe4 xe4 26.xe4 xd4
Now the position is opened and White needs
to be careful of some tricks, since his king
position is still not that safe. 27.xh5 f6
28.h4 e2+ 29.g2 xg3! A nice shot,
taking advantage of the f act that W hite's
queen has no squares. 30.xf6? Now it's
basically over, Black wins a couple of pawns.
[ 30.fxg3 was necessary d2+
A) 31.f1 d1+ 32.f2 ( 32.g2
e2+-+ ) 32...xg3+ 33.xg3 e1+
wins;
B) 31.f3 g5! 32.h7+ xh7 33.d4
g4+!? ( 33...xd4 34.xd4 b5 35.c5
should be holdable for White) 34.xg4
( 34.xg4+ g5+ wi n s t h e q u e e n)
34...e2+ 35.h4 e7+ 36.g4 g5+
37.f3 xg3+ 38.e2 f6 and White will
suffer with a pawn down in this
complicated endgame. ]
30...xe4 31.xe4 h2+ 32.f1 xh3+
33.e2 gxf6 The position is clear and White
has no chances. 34.b4 axb4 35.axb4 d6
36.d4 e6+ 37.f1 b5 38.c3 e5
39.d3 b3 40.d8+ g7 41.d1 xb4
42.e3 b1+ 43.e2 f4
0-1
241
Granda Zuniga,Julio E
Cramling,Pia
III Ruy Lopez (7) 19.06.2009
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g4 4.d3 f6
[ The following old classic is worth knowing has an easy plan of doubling on the e-file and
about, if only because it highlights the issue slowly a dvan cin g on t he qu ee nsid e, a n d
o f w e a k c o l o u r c o m p l e x e s s o c l e a r l y . Cramling didn't find anything to counter this
4...d7 5.h3 xf3 You will find very few idea. ad8 21.e2 a6 22.fe1 d6 23.a3
Grandmasters who will give a bishop for a c7
kn igh t wit h o u t ga in in g so m e t h in g(e . g.
several tempi or structure) in return. 6.xf3
e5 7.d2 gf6 8.e4 dxe4 9.dxe4 c5
10.0-0 e7 11.c3 0-0 12.b4 b6 13.a4
fd8 14.c2 ac8 15.e2 c5?? 16.b5
e8 17.c4 d6 18.g5! f6 19.e3
xc4 20.xc4+ h8 21.a5 c7 22.fd1
f8 23.a2 xd1+ 24.xd1 d8 25.xd8
xd8 26.a6 b6 27.g2 d7 28.e2 g6
29.b3 e7 30.c4 h6 31.f7 h7
32.c4 d6 33.h4 d1 34.e8 f5
35.exf5 xf5 36.g8+ h8 1-0 Botvinnik,
M-Szilagyi, G/Amsterdam 1966/MCL ]
5.h3 xf3?! 6.xf3 e6
[ 6...e5 is likely to transpose to the Botvinnik
example above, though Black does not have
to invite b2-b4 by putting his bishop on c5. ]
7.0-0 bd7 8.c3 c5
[ 8...h5!? is the sort of hopeful lunge that I
might venture when I am out of form. White
can deal with it in numerous ways, and in
most cases Black will regret weakening his
position. More generally, Black could
consider castling queenside because with
the knight on c3 it will take W hite quite a
while to open lines against Black's king. ]
9.e4 dxe4 10.xe4! If White takes with the
pawn, Black might make good use of the e5
square. xe4 11.xe4 f6 12.f3 0-0
Whatever advantage White has, it obviously
isn't much, but I included this game to show
how the two bishops, which currently appear
to be an unimportant feature of the position,
can gradually show their strength in such
quiet positions. 13.g2 a5 14.c3 e5?!
Perhaps not a mistake as such, but certainly
positionally questionable because it weakens
light squares, and the absence of the light
squared bishop is therefore more keenly felt.
A07 [ 14...a4 15.d4 e7 followed by putting the
2610 queen on a5, a rook on d8 and sitting tight
2528 while mulling over possible pawn breaks,
looks better. ]
15.e2 e8 16.d2 b6 17.g5 d5
18.ae1 h6 19.c1 f6 20.c2
Not much seems to have changed, but White
225
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 23...a4 feels like a reflex to me, but there here: 6...d4!? 7.b4! The point, b5 is
are m any s cenarios when such a pawn t h r e a t e n e d , wi n n i n g t h e e 5 - p a wn , d7
could become a liability. ] ( 7...xb4?! i s a n e r r o r , 8.xe5! xe5
24.c4 d6 25.d2 f8 26.c3 d7 27.b4 9.a4+ c6 10.xc6+ bxc6 11.xb4
a7 28.c5 c7 29.d4 axb4 30.axb4 exd4 is much better for White.) 8.a3 0-0 9.e3
31.xd4 Now White is obviously clearly better, f6 10.a2 a5 11.b5 e7 12.exd4 exd4
and could probably have converted his 13.a4 White has an ideal position, Huzman,
advantage earlier than he did. b8 32.c3 A-Mikhalevski,A/Beer Sheva 1993. ]
f6 33.h5 e5 34.c4+ h8 35.e3! [ but 6...0-0 7.cxd5 xd5 transposes to the
K e e p i n g t h e b i s h o p p a i r . f5 Avoiding English, Reversed Dragon, and is by far the
suffocation, but the pawn soon drops off and most popular method of treating this
after that the result was never in doubt. 36.f4 position. ]
f6 37.g6 a8 38.a2 b8 39.f2 c7 7.dxc4 The best move,
40.e6 b8 41.xf5 f7 42.ae2 a6 [ t h e t y p i c a l P i r c m o v e , 7.a4
43.b1 c7 44.c2 g8 45.d6 b5 is less successful here, cxd3! 8.xe5 dxe2
46.a2 h7 47.xd8 xd8 48.d1 g6 this is the problem for White, the e2-pawn
49.b1 f7 50.d2 xd2 51.xd2 c3 menaces the rook with check, and Black
52.f5 b5 53.d7 xd7 54.xd7 c3 g a i n s a m o ve . T h e e xt r a t e m p o wo r k s
55.c8 xb4 56.xb7 a7 57.f3 g8 against W hite, strangely, for, if his king
58.e4 f7 59.a6 g6 60.g4 e7 61.e3 were still on e1 he would be able to capture
h5 62.gxh5 gxh5 63.f5 b5 64.g6 on c6! 9.e1 0-0 10.xc6 bxc6 11.c3
c3 65.f5 d5 66.f6+ xf6 67.g5 c3 g4 12.h3 e6 13.xc6 b8 Black has
68.c4 d4 69.h4 c3 70.f5 d4 active play, Rajkovic,D-Vaganian,R/
71.b3 c3 72.a4 d4 73.xc6 f7 Kragujevac 1974 ]
74.f3 g8 75.d5+ f8 76.xg8 xc5 7...xd1
77.d5 g7 78.f3 d4 79.xh5 c3 [ 7...0-0 Is also playable, 8.c3 e6!?
80.g6 b2 81.h5 9.b3 but now a5!? is very risky, better to
1-0 play ( 9...b8 perhaps, as in the Short
game. ) 10.c2 xc4 11.g5! d6
12.xe6 fxe6 13.b3 c8 14.h3 f7
242 A07 Black is hanging -on to his e6-pawn like
Hennigan,Michael 2430 grim death, but Julian Hodgson is at his best
Chandler,Murray G 2520 wh e n h e h a s s a c r i f i c e d m a t e r i a l f o r a
4NCL Birmingham ENG (7) 20.03.1999 positional plus. 15.f4! exf4 16.xf4 b5?!
[Tony Kosten] 17.e4 b4 18.d5! dxe4 19.xc7
W hite is winning, Hodgson-Naumkin,
1.g3 d5 2.g2 f6 3.d3 e5 If White London 1990 ]
doesn't want to put his pawns in the middle of 8.xd1 e6 9.b3 The position appears
the board, Black will! 4.f3 c6 5.0-0 equal. 0-0 10.b2 d7 Passive,
White has a classical Pirc position, with an [ 10...fd8 is simpler, contesting the d-file. ]
e x t r a t e m p o . e7 This is the most natural 11.c3 f6 12.d5 d6 Despite White's
move, but advanced d5-knight, Black seems OK, his
[ 5...h6 is also possible, amongst others, to position is very solid. 13.e1! fd8 14.c2
stop Bg5, 6.c4 dxc4 7.dxc4 e6!? 8.b3 a5?
b8 9.d1 d6 10.c3 a6 with equal [ 14...b6! would have avoided what
chances, Mack-Short, BL 1987 ] follows. ]
6.c4 The traditional flanking blow, White has 15.a3! White has cleverly found a weakness
only allowed Black to set-up a centre, so that in t h e b la ck p o s it io n , t h e c 7 - p a wn . ac8
he can attack it. dxc4 A sensible, if not overly This allows White to give Black a backward
ambitious reply. pawn on the d-file, but
[ Aiming for a Benoni-style position is risky [ 15...xa3? would have lost material after

226
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
16.xc7! ]
16.xd6 cxd6 17.a3 It is all too easy for
W hite, now- the knight will come to b5 to
attack the d6-pawn. g4 18.d2 c5
19.b5 f8 20.ad1 The white pieces find
t h e i r i d e a l s q u a r e s . e6 21.dc3
the d6-pawn is lost. a4 22.xd6 axb3
23.xc8 xc8 24.d5! d4 25.e3 c6
26.xe6 xe6 27.axb3 The game is all over,
bar the shouting. c5 28.b1 f5 29.b4 e6
30.c5 e4 31.d5 g6 32.h4 e7 33.d6
e5 34.d5+ f7 35.a1 g5 36.a7 b8
37.c6 f3+ 38.g2
1-0
243 A07
Hickl,Joerg 2500
Hort,Vlastimil 2580
A Dortmund 1989
[Tony Kosten]
1.g3 e5 2.g2 d5 3.d3 c6 4.f3 f6
5.0-0 e7 This is not the only move,
[ 5...d6 and Short's 5...h6, are reasonable.
6.g5 h6 7.xf6 xf6 8.c3 e6 9.d2
e7 10.b5!? fairly equal, Fries Nielsen,N-
Thorhallsson,T/5th Nordic GP, Torshavn FAI
1997. ]
6.g5 White follows a plan used by Black,
with colours reversed. He hopes to play a
favourable e4.
[ 6.c3 is also possible, with similar ideas,
although this does allow Black the option of
playing: d4 7.b1 0-0 8.c3 e8 9.g5
a5 10.a4 d7 11.cxd4 xd4 12.d1
xf3+ 13.xf3 c6 and the players have
reached a Sicilian-type position, Urban,K-
Brodsky,M/Cappelle la Grande FRA 1999 ]
6...e6 Black over-protects his centre, which
is often a useful precaution.
[ 6...0-0 Is obviously fine, too. 7.c3 h6
( 7...e6 transposes to 6...Be6.) 8.xf6
xf6 9.e4 d4 10.d5 e6 11.e1 e8
12.c3 Black's advantage is minimal, Hickl,J-
Kindermann,S/ Dortmund 1989. ]
7.c3 0-0 8.e4 White invites the reply ...d4
when a closed KI position is reached.
[ 8.d2 allows d7 9.xe7 ( 9.e4!? )
9...xe7 10.e4 d4 11.e2 f6 12.f4 c5
When Black has a favourable 'Samisch KI'
set-up, Hulak,K-Quinteros,M/ Amsterdam
1977. ]
8...d4 9.e2 h6
[ 9...d7 Is met by 10.d2! a5 11.c3
dxc3?! ( 11...c5 is an improvement, when
12.cxd4 exd4 13.f4 g4 is fine for
Black. ) 12.xc3 b4 13.d4 exd4
14.fxd4 White has exploded the black
centre. xd4 15.xd4 xc3 16.xc3
with an edge to W hite, Gufeld,E-
Yermolinsky,A/Lloyds Bank op 1994. ]
10.d2 d6 11.e1 White prepares the
standard f4-blow. d7 12.f4 f5 Black wishes
to avoid the white kingside pawn avalanche.
13.h3 fxe4 14.dxe4 a5 15.d3 The white
knight finds a good blockading square. c4
16.b3 f7 17.h1 f6 18.e1 c5
19.ec1 White has no desire to lose the d3-
knight , and gets read y t o rep la ce it . d7
20.e2 c5 Neither side wishes to force the
issue.
½-½
244 A07
Hillarp Persson,Tiger 2491
Smith,Axel 2428
XVI Sigeman & Co (4) 25.04.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.g3 f6 2.g2 d5 3.d3 e5 4.f3 c6
5.0-0 e7 6.a3 a5 7.c3
[ White is heading for a sort of reversed Pirc,
not quite like the one he plays as Black, but
a more normal and less hazardous one. I
don't know much about the guy playing
Bla ck in t h is ga m e , b u t h e st a rt e d t h is
t o u rn a m e n t su rp ri si n g ly we l l, s o T i ge r
probably wanted to slow Black down and
ju s t g r a d u a l l y o u t p l a y h i m r a t h e r t h a n
heading into the typical kind of
complications Tiger used to favour playing.
W hite has also tried other moves in this
position, the main one being 7.b3
A) 7...e6 8.b2 ( 8.c4 dxc4 9.bxc4
d7 10.c3 c5 11.a4 0-0
with chances to both players, Skalkotas,
N-Lirindzakis, T/Athens 1988) 8...d4
( 8...d7 9.bd2 0-0 10.e4 dxe4
11.dxe4 f6 12.e2 b6 with a typical
position of this structure. My computer
227
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
calls this equal, but I have always favoured
White, finding White's game easier to play:
put a rook on d-file, play Nd2-f1-e3, the
other knight to via h4 to f5 and then the
p a wn s c a n b e a d va n c e d . S c h e i n , K -
Aschenbrenner, R/AUT 2002) 9.c3 0-0
10.bd2 ( 10.cxd4 exd4 11.bd2 d7
12.c1 fd8 13.c2 h3 14.a1 xg2
15.xg2 b6 16.c1 c5 , and Black has
the better chances, Andersson, M-Sanden,
S/SW E 1993) 10...dxc3 11.xc3 d7
12.c4 f6 13.fd2 db8 14.b1 a7=
Moldovan, D-Ionescu, C/Baile Tusnad
1999;
B) 7...0-0
B1) The alternatives are less imposing:
8.bd2? e4 9.e1 c5 10.b1 e7
11.c3 h6 , and Black is clearly better,
Mandl, R-Ostermeyer, P/Germany
1986;
B2) 8.e3
B2a) 8...e4!? 9.dxe4 xe4 10.d4
( 10.b2 g4 ) 10...f6 11.b2 e8
12.d2 xd4 13.exd4 f5
, and Black has the upper hand,
Tarmak, M-Kaczorowski, P/ICCF Email
1999;
B2b) 8...c5 9.bd2 e7 10.b2
d8 11.b1 h6 12.c4 d4 13.exd4
exd4 14.e1 d6 15.h3 f5 16.h4
h7 17.e4 xe4 18.xe4 xe4
19.xe4 d7 20.f1 e8
with the chances to both sides, Gausel,
E-Sammalvuo, T/Reykjavik 1995;
B3) 8.b2
B3a) 8...d4
B3a1) 9.c4 h6 10.bd2 f5
11.c2 e8 12.ad1 h7 13.fe1
f8 14.e4 d7 Velez, N-Sariego,
W/Holguin 1991, 15.e3 f5 16.ed2
dxe3 17.xe3 c5 18.e2
, and White has decent chances for
a lasting plus.;
B3a2) 9.c3 e8 ( 9...a6 10.bd2
e8 11.c1 f8 12.c2 dxc3
13.xc3= Roth, J-Dausch, R/
Wuerttemberg 1999) 10.cxd4 exd4
11.bd2 f8 ( 11...f5 12.c1
d7 13.xc6 xc6 14.xd4 c5
15.xf5 xf5 16.xb7 Gelman, A-
Zakharov, A/Moscow 1998) 12.c1
e6 ( 12...d5 13.c4 b6
14.xc6 bxc6 15.xd4 b7
16.xc6 c8 17.e3 Welling, G-
P u l kk in e n , K / K e m e r T UR 2 0 0 7 );
12...a6 13.e1 b6 14.c4 b5
15.a4 h5 16.cd2 h3 17.xh3
xh3 18.c4 Abeln, M-Zaragatski,
I/ Netherlands NED 2007) 13.c2
d5 14.e1 d7 15.a1 ad8
16.c4 g4 17.h3 h6 18.c1
f5 , and Black has the upper hand,
Andersson, M-Hartman, C/ Sweden
1993;
B3a3) 9.bd2 d5 ( 9...e8
10.c4 f8 11.a4 g4 12.h3 f5
13.e4 c8 14.fd2 d7 15.f4 f6
16.f3 b4 , Hennigan, M-Apicella,
M/Oakham 1990, and now W hite
should have opted for 17.fxe5 xe5
18.fxe5 fxe5 19.f2 with the
better chances) 10.c4 f6 11.a4
e8 12.d2 e6 13.ac1 e7
14.a3 xa3 15.xa3 f6 16.e3
, and a draw was rather prematurely
agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, Ujtelky, M-Filip,
M/Prague 1963;
B3b) 8...e4!? 9.dxe4 ( 9.fd2?! e3
10.fxe3 g4 11.f3 ce5 12.f1
xf3+ 13.exf3 f6 14.c3 c6 )
9...dxe4 ( 9...xe4!? ) 10.d4 xd4
11.xd4 c5 12.b2 a4 13.bxa4 b6
14.c1 xa4 15.c3 c4 16.h3
e6 , and Black has the better
chances, Popovic, P-Deze, A/ Novi
Sad 1979;
B3c) 8...d6 9.bd2 ( 9.c4 d4
10.bd2 e8 11.c2 e6 12.e3
b8 13.fe1 e7 14.exd4 exd4
, Scrimgour, A-Bonner, G/Ayr 1974,
15.e4; 9.c3 e8 10.e4 d4
11.e2 a4 12.b4 e6 13.g5 d7
14.c3 dxc3 15.xc3 h6 16.f3
Mayer, S-Schmidt, T/Toronto 1983)
9...e7 ( 9...e8 10.e4 dxe4
11.dxe4 g4 12.h3 xf3 13.xf3
c5 14.g2 e7 15.c3 ad8 16.b4
a7 17.c2 d7 18.fd1
Lima, D-Cuartas, C/Cali 2001) 10.c4
d4 11.c2 d8 12.e3 c5 13.ae1
c7 14.exd4 exd4 15.b4
Ujtelky, M-Fichtl, J/Podebrady 1956 ]
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
7...0-0 8.e3
[ A worthwhile alternative is 8.g5 e6
( 8...d4 9.xf6 xf6 10.e4 e7 11.c4 f5
12.ed2 a6 with chances to both sides,
Nicholson, J-Solomon, S/Melbourne 1997)
9.e4 d4 10.e2 d7 ( 10...d7 11.xe7
xe7 12.d2 c5 13.f4 f6 14.f5 f7
15.a4 b5 16.axb5 b6 , Jurkovic, A-Tian
Tian/ Budapest 2001, and now White should
h a v e t r i e d 17.c4 dxc3 18.c4 xb5
19.xc3 ) 11.d2 ( 11.b1 a4 12.d2
g4 13.xe7 xe7 14.f3 f6 15.h3 h6
16.h2 c5 , and Black has the better
chances, Szilardfy, G-Lengyel, B/ Budapest
1995 ) 11...g4 12.h4 e8 13.f3 e6
14.f4 xh4 15.gxh4 exf4 16.xf4 f6
17.e1 e5 18.h5 , and White has the
upper hand, O rtega, L-Vezzosi, P/Forli
1991 ]
[ Less convincing is 8.e4 dxe4 9.dxe4 g4
10.e3 c8 11.b1 d8 12.g5 xf3
13.xf3 d4 14.g2 c6 , and Black has a
pleasant game, Shchekachev, A-Boidman,
Y/Metz FRA 2007 ]
8...e8 9.b3 f5 10.h3 h6 11.b2 d7
[ 11...d4!? 12.exd4 exd4 13.b5 c5
14.d2 d7 , and chances to both sides ]
12.h2 ad8 13.e2 d6 14.d2 e7
15.b1 g6 16.a2! White is playing in an
almost mocking fashion, but it is amazing how
passively Black sits by, almost clueless to
White's teasing symmetrical play. b8?!
[ 16...h5!? ]
17.ae1 bd7 18.a1 c6 19.f4 c7
20.c1 d6
[ Some alternatives are 20...h7 21.f5 b5
22.e4 d6 ]
[ and 20...e4 21.f5 h7 with a good for
Black ]
21.a4
[ 21.fxe5 xe5 22.f4 a4!? ]
21...b8
[ Here 21...exf4 22.exf4 b6 looks pleasant
for Black, whereas ]
[ 21...e4 22.a3 c5 23.d4 c8 24.c4 b6
is about equal ]
22.a3 c7 23.f5 h5 24.e4 dxe4
[ 24...a7!? invites White to trap Black's
b i s h o p o n h 5 w i t h 25.g4 ( 25.c3!? )
25...xg4 26.hxg4 xg4+ 27.h3 df6
, but this is hardly particularly promising for
W h i t e , e . g . 28.f3 e3 29.h1 h7
, and I prefer Black. ]
25.dxe4
[ 25.xe4 xe4 26.dxe4 xe2 27.xe2
a7 leads to approximately equal chances ]
25...xe2 26.xe2 a7 27.g4
[ Or 27.c4 b6 28.b2 c8 29.c3 b5
with a complicated game and chances to
both sides ]
27...c5 28.f3 d6
[ 28...h7!? ]
29.c4 e7 30.b2
[ Here I like 30.xc5 xc5 31.g5 , e.g.
hxg5 32.xg5 h7 33.g3 e7 34.d1
, and W hite has the better chances it is
difficult for Black to get active counterplay.
Ho we ve r , T i g e r i s t a k i n g i s ve r y s l o w,
continuing to massage Black into
submission. ]
30...a8 31.e1
[ Also 31.g5 hxg5 32.xg5 b5 33.g2 f8
34.d2 is clearly better for White ]
31...b4 32.c3 c5 33.c1 b6?!
[ Black refuses to play actively. Last chance
is 33...b5 34.b2 a3 ]
34.xb6 xb6 35.g2 h7 36.h4 f6?!
[ 36...c5 37.g5 hxg5 38.hxg5
looks outright scary for Black on the
kingside ]
37.e2 c5? 38.c4+
[ 38.g5 hxg5 39.hxg5 fxg5 40.c4+ f8
41.g3+- ]
38...h8
[ 38...f8 39.g5 fxg5 40.hxg5 xg5
41.xg5 hxg5 42.f6 gxf6 43.h4! ]
39.g5 fxg5
[ 39...b5 40.axb5 fxg5 41.hxg5 cxb5
42.xb5 eb8 43.f6 gxf6 44.gxf6 xf6
45.c4+- ]
40.hxg5 hxg5 41.f3 f6 42.h3 e7
43.h1! and on account of the threat of
Qg1-h2, Black decided he had seen enough
and resigned. A beautiful effort on White's part,
and a demonstration how small means are
often adequate when having to beat weaker
opponents.
1-0
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

245 A07 [ Here's another example of this set-up: 7.0-0

Hodgson,Julian M 2385 d6 8.f4 c7 9.d2 bd7 10.f3 0-0
Short,Nigel D 2475 11.e1 fe8 12.d4 (Preventing ...e6-e5
Brighton (2) 1983 perhaps through concern that this would get
[Nigel Davies] drawish, but now Black gets another good
lever) c5! 13.e3 ac8 14.c3 b5 15.e5
1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.d3 g4 b6 16.d3 c4 17.e5 e4 18.h2 f6
5.h3 h5 6.g4 g6 7.h4 e5 8.c3 19.f3 b4 and Black had sufficient
[ This move is more or less interchangeable counterplay in Stanec, N (2566)-Freitag, M
with 8.e3 . Black will be loathe to play ...d5- (2396)/Austria 2005. ]
d4 with his light square bishop about to 7...c5
disappear from the board. ] [ I think it makes more sense to fianchetto
8...e7 this bishop with 7...g6 , one of the points
[ 8...b4 is interesting. ] being that it inhibits a later f4-f5 by White. ]
9.e3 0-0?! This looks natural enough but it is [ Black has also tried 7...d6 which doesn't
incredibly dangerous for Black to commit his look quite right either, for example 8.d2
king here. And the fact that a player of Nigel 0-0 9.f3 bd7 10.0-0 e8 11.e1 e5
Short's considerable abilities does so here 12.fxe5 xe5 13.d4 c7 14.g5 h6
shows that it's an easy mistake to make. 15.e3 was slightly better for White in
[ 9...bd7 was a much better idea. ] Hergott, D (2510) -O'Donnell, T (2425)/
10.xg6 hxg6 11.g5 e8 Calgary 1996. ]
[ After 11...h5 12.h4 f5 (Otherwise White 8.d4 This will only be worth doing if it gains a
will play Bf3 and then capture on h5) 13.gxf6 tempo, and personally I might have resisted
xf6 14.e2 White will be castling long and the temptation even now. e7 9.d2 0-0
then attack Black's doubled g-pawns (and 10.0-0 bd7 11.f3 b6 12.c3 ac8
then his king) along the open g-file. ] 13.e2 b5 14.e3 fe8
12.h4 b5 Seeing the potential danger to his [ 14...c5 is Black's logical pawn lever, which
king, Short hurries to get counterplay. 13.a3 is the reason I'd have preferred to keep
a5 14.g4 c7 15.e4 d4 16.e2 d7 White's d-pawn back. It's only Black's refusal
17.g3 With h4-h5 coming White clearly to use this idea that eventually lands him in
doesn't want a queen swap. e8 18.h3 a passive position. ]
d8 19.h5 d6 20.hxg6 fxg6 21.f4 exf4 15.a4 b6 16.a5 c7 17.b4 b6 18.e5
[ 21...ba6 22.h4 f7 ] xe5?!
22.xf4 xf4 23.xf4 d6 24.0-0-0 [ 18...c5 is still the right idea. ]
W h it e's at ta ck is wa y to o st ro ng n ow. b4 19.fxe5 d7 20.f4?! A slip which might have
25.df1 bxa3 26.h4 axb2+ 27.b1 a3 been inspired by Black's passive play.
28.h7+! [ 20.d2 was better. ]
[ B l a c k i s m a t e d a f t e r 28.h7+ f8 20...f5?!
( 28...f7 29.xg6#; 28...xh7 29.e6# ) [ Missing a chance of counterplay with
29.xg6# ] 20...bxa5 21.xa5 c5! , the point being that
1-0 22.dxc5 xa5! wins material. ]
21.g4 g6 22.h4!? b5? With White charging
down the kingside it was vital to get some
246 A07 counterplay.
Hodgson,Julian M 2615 [ 22...bxa5! 23.xa5 fxg4 24.h5 b6
Sofrigin,Alexej 2285 was a better try, keeping some activity. ]
Bern Cup Berna (4) 1996 23.h5 f8 24.h3 Now White's attack is the
[Nigel Davies] only show in town. d8 25.f3 e7 26.a2
g7 27.h1 e7 28.h2 f7
1.g3 f6 2.g2 d5 3.d3 c6 4.f3 g4 Rightly heading for the hills. 29.d2 e8
5.h3 xf3 6.exf3 e6 7.f4 30.e1 d7 31.g1 c7 32.g2 f7

230
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

33.gxf5 exf5 34.c4! Opening up Black's new later, Ne3-f5. b4 Hoping to encourage White
residence for his king. bxc4 35.b5 e6?! to play c3, perhaps, a more natural alternative
[ 35...b8 was a much better try. ] is
36.bxc6 gxh5 37.xh5? Hurrying a time [ 14...c5 15.f1 f8 16.g4!? A double-
troubled opponent? edged advance, White must be sure that he
[ 37.d2 was strong here. ] can stop Black from playing a knight to the
37...xg2? f4-square that he has just weakened. g6
[ 37...g8! would have helped Black get 17.g3 White builds-up on the kingside.
right back in the game. ] 6d7 menacing ...Ne6-f4. 18.h4 f6 19.g5
38.xf7 xh2+ 39.xh2 xf4 40.g3? f7 20.h5 e6 Finally Black is able to play
Another slip from Hodgson which strongly this, but events are about to overtake him.
suggests a time scramble. 21.gxf6 gxf6 22.h4 h8 23.f3 f4
[ 40.g7 was better. ] 24.hf5 e6 25.h1 White has a violent
40...xc6 41.e8+ kingside attack, Istratescu,A-Acs,P/Krynica
[ Presumably this was on time as after POL 1998. ]
41.e8+ b7 Black is much better. ] 15.c4 xf3 Conceding the bishop pair, but
1-0 this is a common theme in this variation, and
Black wants to reduce the pressure on e5, for
instance,
247 A07 [ 15...ad8?! allows 16.g4 g6 17.fxe5
Istratescu,Andrei 2540 xe5 18.xd8 and White wins the e-pawn. ]
Torre,Eugenio 2545 16.xf3 f8 All part of the plan, the knight is
ol (men) Elista RUS (9) 07.10.1998 c o m i n g t o e 6 . 17.h4! White sets a light
[Tony Kosten] square attack in motion, now that Black has
given his main light-squared defender. 6d7
1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 This is the most common 18.g4 f6!? A difficult move to have to make,
move order for reaching this position, Black his e5-pawn needed more defence, but this
w a i t s b e f o r e W h i t e p l a y s g 3 b e f o r e further weakens the light squares. 19.e3
committing himself to ...d5. 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 e6 20.c4 df8 21.g2 h8 22.h5
g4 Capablanca's System, play should be Threatening to play h6, and then f4, exposing
similar to a reversed Torre Attack. 5.d3 bd7 the a1-h8 diagonal. h6 White's strategy has
6.bd2 e5 As White has not made any effort triumphed, the kingside light squares belong
to attack the black centre, with c4, Black to his pieces, but Black could barely avoid this
boldly constructs a full centre. move anyway. 23.f5 ad8 24.xd8 xd8
[ 6...e6 is normal, although less ambitious, 25.d1 c7 26.c3 White only plays this
B l a c k s e t s - u p a l i g h t - s q u a r e d w a l l o f move now that he can af ford to close the
pawns. ] a1-h8 diagonal, the b2-bishop has achieved
7.h3 h5 8.e4 dxe4 9.dxe4 e7 its objectives here, and now moves to the
A solid choice, leaving the c5-square open for c1-h6 diagonal. c5 27.h4 b6 28.c1
the later manoeuvre ...Nc5-e6, controlling the f7 29.g6+ g8
d4-square. Personally, I prefer [ 29...xg6?! 30.hxg6 forces the passive
[ 9...c5 placing the king's bishop on an move g8 ]
active diagonal. ] 30.f5 d8 Black seeks salvation in the
10.a4! A useful precaution, White hopes to put endgame, but White's control of the d-file will
paid to any possibility of Black playing a later b e t h e d e cisive f a ct o r. 31.xf7+ xf7
...b5, the c4-square will provide a good post 32.e3! A surprising move, White need to
for a white knight. a5 11.e2 0-0 12.b3 e8 exchange the c5-bishop, even if it means
13.b2 By pressurising the e5-pawn he a l l o wi n g t h e d o u b l i n g o f h i s p a wn s . d8
makes it difficult for Black to bring a knight to This is easy for White, but even after
e6. c7 14.fd1 White has the slightly more [ 32...xe3 33.fxe3 Black cannot move any
active position, he can continue with Nc4, and of his pieces without allowing the white

231
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

pieces to infiltrate his position, e.g. e6 16.b3+ h7 17.c2

34.b4 d8 35.xd8+ exd8 36.e7+ f8 [ Why didn't Ivanchuk play the natural
37.c8 ] 17.xh8 xh8 18.xb7 ? Presumably he
33.xc5 bxc5 was concerned about Black's play on the
[ 33...xd1 34.xf8 ] light squa res, but is it really enough t o
34.e7+ h8 35.xd8 xd8 36.f3 compensate for the material deficit? I don't
Black is in zugzwang. c4 The only other move think so. ]
is 17...e8 18.e1 Ivanchuk continues to reject
[ 36...h7 but 37.e3 g5 38.d7 ways of cashing in and gradually runs short of
wins easily. ] compensation.
37.b4 Creating a distant passed pawn. axb4 [ 18.f4 g8 19.xc7 was probably the
38.cxb4 c5 39.bxc5 fe6 40.xe6 xe6 way to go here. ]
41.c6 The black king is still cut-off from the 18...g8 19.b3+ e6 20.xe6 xe6
game, and W hite can queen one of his 21.xe6+ h7 22.f5 e8 23.e5+ g8
queenside pawns however he wants. 24.f4 xe5 25.xe5
1-0 [ 25.dxe5 d5 would also favour Black. ]
25...d7 26.xd7 xd7 27.xc7 c8
28.a5 c2
248 A07 [ Black could also have played 28...xd4
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2764 because 29.d1 can be answered by e5!
Navara,David 2708 .]
53rd Masters (7) 04.01.2011 29.c3 b6 30.e1 f7 31.f1 a4
[Nigel Davies] 32.e2 c1+ 33.e1 xe1+ 34.xe1 xc3
35.bxc3 e6 36.d2 d5 37.d3 b5
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 d5 38.f4 a5 39.g4 f6 40.e3 a4 41.d3
5.0-0 dxc4 6.a3 e6 7.g5!? d8 42.h3 e7
This appears to be a novelty, and a very 0-1
interesting one at that. In playing this way
White almost certainly had in mind the knight
sacrifice on move 10, which makes the whole 249 A07
concept very deep and fascinating. Kamsky,Gata 2720
[ T h e t ra d it i o n a l 7.c2 seems far more Aronian,Levon 2754
c o m f o r t a b l e f o r B l a c k, f o r e xa m p l e 0-0 4th FIDE GP Nalchik RUS (12) 28.04.2009
8.xc4 c5 ( 8...c6 9.d3 d5 10.e4 [Jonathan Rowson]
was Markowski, T (2603)-Romanishin, O
( 2 5 3 7 ) / M o s c o w 2 0 0 4 a n d n o w e6 1.f3 d5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 It is not clear
was best ) 9.d3 c6 10.e3 b6 11.fc1 that Black is obliged to play this move, but I
d5 was fine for Black in Nanu, C (2418)- have noticed that most Slav players do it as a
Lupulescu, C (2348)/Baile Tusnad 2001. ] matter of course, perhaps thinking that with
7...d5 8.e4 c6 9.xc4 h6 10.xf7! their pawns on c6 and d5, nothing can harm
W hite really had to have had this in mind them. 4.0-0 f5 5.d3 e6 6.fd2!?
when playing his 7.Ng5 which makes the Not a new idea, but probably W hite's best
entire concept very interesting. And the result chance to generate a serious initiative in this
of this game is not a f air indication. xf7 line. The point is to free the f-pawn as early
11.e5+ g8 12.xg6 bd7 as possible and force through e4 and f4 and
[ B l a c k c o u l d a l s o c o n s i d e r 12...xe4 possib ly also g4 a nd/ or f 5 dep end ing o n
, for example 13.e1 h7 14.xh8 d6 context. White can also play Nbd2, Qe1 and
15.d4 xg2 16.xg2 xh8 17.d5 e4, or Nbd2, e3, Qe2 and e4, but in most of
looks slightly more comfortable for White but these cases White moves his f3 knight sooner
is far from clear. ] or later anyway, often to a not particularly
13.d4 xe4 14.xe4 xe4 15.d3 ef6 natural square like h4 or e1, so Nfd2 has a lot

232
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
going for it. h6
[ 6...g6!? 7.e4 h5!? was tried by
Sveshnikov here in a rapid game, but looks
a bit suspect to my mind. ]
[ 6...e5!? might be simplest.
A) 7.c4 is probably more challenging, but
there doesn't seem to be much wrong with
B la c k 's p o sit i o n . T h a t s a id , a f t e r t h e
natural e7 ( 7...d4!? ) 8.c3 0-0 9.b3
is already uncomfortable.;
B) 7.e4 dxe4 8.dxe4 e6 Now White's
creative knight manoeuvre looks
q u e s t i o n a b l e . 9.e2 1/2-1/2 Badea, B
(2520)-Malakhov, V (2535)/Tucepi
199698 ]
7.e4 h7 8.c3 bd7 Perhaps not a
mistake, but I would have given preference to
kingside development, retaining the option of
Na6 and/or c5 and Nc6. 9.e2 b6 10.a4
a5 11.f4 b4 12.f5 e7 13.b3 dxe4
14.xe4 xf5
[ 14...xe4 15.dxe4 exf5 16.f2 d7
17.exf5 ]
15.xf6+ gxf6 16.xf5! exf5
White has more than enough compensation
and Black does well to survive. d7 18.f4
[ 18.xf5!? ]
18...e5 19.d4 g6 20.c3 xf4 21.gxf4
In some ways it is a pity to close the f-file, but
fixing 1v3 on one file is not such a bad thing,
and more importantly, White threatens Re1,
w i n n i n g t h e q u e e n . 0-0-0
There was something to be said for delaying
this move.
[ 22.e1 d6 23.e3 looks at least as
strong. ]
22...xb4 23.c2 he8 24.f2
25.d1 de8 26.d2 xa4 27.xf5+ b8
28.c5 c4 29.c2 xc2 30.xc2 d8
31.d2 c7 32.e4 ed7 33.e3 e7
34.f2 ed7 35.e3 e7 36.d3 d5
37.c3 d8 38.e4 d5 39.c3 d8
40.e4
½-½
250 A07
Kamsky,Gata 2702
Robson,Ray 2569
ch-USA Saint Louis USA (1) 14.05.2010
[Nigel Davies]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g4 4.0-0 d7
5.d3 gf6 6.h3 h5 7.bd2 e5 8.e4 d6
9.c3 Kamsky places more trust in his ability to
grind than any particular knowledge of theory.
[ The most challenging line is 9.exd5 cxd5
10.c4 with interesting play. ]
9...a5
[ There are other move orders here, for
example 9...0-0 10.c2 e8 11.e1 a5
12.a4 would transpose into the game. ]
10.a4 0-0 11.c2 e8 12.e1 c5
I must admit to finding White's position totally
unappealing after both this and other moves.
[ 12...c7 13.h4 ad8 14.b3 e7
15.f5 f8 16.e3 h6 was also nothing for
W hite in Savon, V (2485)-Andrianov, N
(2435)/Severodonetsk 1982. ]
17.f2 13.h4 dxe4
[ Black could also keep the tension with
13...f8 , for example 14.f1 b6 15.g2
ad8 16.b1 c7 17.f3 d7 18.e2 g6
19.f1 e7 20.h2 h5 21.g2 e6
was very good for Black at this stage in
Vrana, F (2259)-Meduna, E (2483)/ Kunzak
2001. ]
22.cxb4 [ Another possibility is 13...b6 when 14.g4
g6 15.g5 h5 16.xg6 hxg6 17.exd5
cxd5 18.xd5 d8 gave Black
compensation for the sacrificed pawn in
Cabrilo, G (2490)-Horvath, C (2460)/Niksic
e7 1991. ]
14.dxe4 c7 15.f1 Given the way this turns
out W hite wou ld be well ad vised to see k
alternatives here.
[ One possibility is 15.g4 af t er wh ic h d3
16.xd3 xd3 17.e3 xc1 18.xc1 g6
19.ee1 ed8 would be very comfortable
for Black but maybe not better for him. Of
course this is much better than the game. ]
15...d7 16.b3 cxe4! It must be great to
be so young, talented and fearless! This
sacrifice is new and looks rather good, but
against a great defender like Kamsky it's a
risky way to play.
[ Older and less gifted players would be well
233
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
a d v i s e d t o t r y t h e m u n d a n e 16...e6
here instead, for example 17.e3 ed8
18.c5 ( 18.f5 seems slightly better for
White as f3 is met by 19.d2 . ) 18...xc5
19.xc5 e6 20.f5 d7 21.b3 ad8
a n d B la c k wa s d o in g f in e in I va n o v, M
(2489)-Juhasz, K (2175)/Feffernitz 2008. ]
17.g4 xg4 18.hxg4 xg4+ 19.g2 ad8
[ Perhaps Black should have chosen
19...g5!? , f o r e xa m p l e 20.e2 f3+
21.xf3 xf3 22.d2 h5 leaves him with
three pawns and ongoing attacking chances
for the piece. ]
20.e2 e6 21.c4 f5 22.e3 h3
[ And here 22...d6 23.e2 g6
might have been a better way. ]
23.e2 g4? Allowing White to simplify into
an endgame in which he has all the chances.
[ 23...g5!? would have been much better. ]
24.xg4! xg4 25.d2 f6 26.xg4
xg4 27.c4 xe3 28.gxe3 h5 29.ab1
d3 30.ed1 ed8?! A stereotyped move
after which White gets a clear edge.
[ 30...e4! was much better when the
situation remains far from clear. ]
31.xd3 xd3 32.b4! Despite the reduction
in material W hite has managed to take the
initiative on the queenside. axb4 33.xb4 b5
[ 33...b6 34.xb6 xc3 was a better try.
After the text Black may already be lost. ]
34.axb5 cxb5 35.xb5 xc3 36.b7 d8
37.b8 d3 38.xe5 Going a piece for two
pawns up. The rest of the game represents
very little other than suffering for Black, with a
f a r f r o m h a p p y o u t c o m e a t t h e e n d . d6
39.g2 g6 40.b7 f6 41.3c4 f4
42.d6 h4 43.f3 g5 44.dxf7 f6
45.b8+ g7 46.h8 f5 47.xh5 e1
48.xg5+ xg5+ 49.xg5 f6 50.d3
a5 51.e4+ f5 52.f2 c7 53.e3
b6+ 54.ec5 c7 55.b3 d6 56.d4+
f6 57.e4 g3 58.f4 h2 59.de2
e7 60.f5 d6 61.g4 e5 62.h5
1-0
251 A07
Kasimdzhanov,Rustam 2690
Morozevich,Alexander 2755
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (3) 21.11.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 g4
5.d3 bd7 6.bd2 e6 7.e1 e7 8.e4
0-0 9.h3 h5 10.e5
[ This doesn't accomplish anything for White,
and actually promises Black an easy game.
Similarly 10.h2?! e5 11.f4 exf4 12.gxf4
dxe4 13.dxe4 c5 is very nice for Black
one game went 14.h1 e8 15.e5 d5
16.df3 f5 17.c4 c7 18.e3 7e6
19.d1 c7 20.g1 ad8 21.f1 d3
, and White resigned, 0-1 Horvath, G-Leko,
P/HUN 1998 ]
[ 10.h1 is the normal move in this
position. ]
10...e8 11.h2
[ 11.g4 g6 12.h2 c7 13.f4 f6 14.f5
c5+ 15.h1 f7 with a comfortable game
for Black, Leskowsky, Z-Eisen, D/corr ICCF
1993 ]
11...c7
[ Black has done well with two other moves
at this juncture: A) 11...b6 12.h1 c7
13.f4 f6 14.g4 g6 15.exf6 xf6 16.b3
ae8 Lebredo, G-Savon, V/Lublin 1977 ]
[ B) 11...a5 12.f4 b6+ 13.h1 g6
14.df3 c7 Skeels, J-Hage, H/ICCF
Email 2000 ]
12.h1?!
[ This amounts to waste of time and hands
Black the better chances without a fight.
Instead White should try 12.f4
A) 12...f6!? 13.df3 fxe5 14.fxe5 a6
15.a3 b6+ 16.h1 c5 17.h4 xf3
( 17...ac8!? ) 18.xf3 f7 19.e2 af8
20.c3 with a bet ter game for White, Haub,
T-Reefschlaeger, H/ Schoeneck 1996,
although Black can easily improve on his
play in this game;
B) 12...f5 13.exf6 xf6 14.g4
( 14.df3!? ) 14...xg4 15.hxg4 e5 16.g5
e7 17.f3 c5+ 18.h1 e8 19.h3
e4 20.h4 Tringov, G-Lukacs, P/Sombor
1980, and now d8!? looks very good for
Black ]
12...f6 13.df3 f5 14.d2 c5 15.c4 b8
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
16.a5 b6 17.c3 c6 18.b3 d7 19.c1
ad8 20.g1 b5
[ 20...f4!? ]
21.e2 bxc4 22.f4 f7 23.bxc4 d4
24.a5 b8 25.h4 b2 26.f3 xa2
27.a1 xa1 28.xa1 b8 29.e1 a6
30.g5 xg5 31.hxg5 ab4 32.xb4
cxb4
[ 32...xb4!? ]
33.c5?! b3 34.a6 xe5 35.xe5 b2
36.e1 b1 37.xb1 xb1+ 38.h2 g6
39.c6 c7?
[ 39...e7-+ ]
40.c4 b8 41.xe6 d6?!
[ 41...e5 42.d5 c8 43.a6 b8
44.f4 ]
42.d5 c8 43.c7?
[ 43.f4 ]
43...a5 44.f4 a4 45.h3 and White likely
lost on time here
0-1
252 A07
Kramnik,V 2801
Vitiugov,N 2712
Alekhine Mem (1) 21.04.2013
[Danny Gormally]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g4 4.0-0 d7
5.d3 gf6 6.e1 e5 7.e4 dxe4 8.dxe4
d6?! Black has a wide choice where to put
th e b is h o p , o n e 7 , d 6 o r c5. P la cin g t h e
bishop here will inevitably run into a later Nd2-
c4, which may be why the development to c5
is much more common.
[ Kramnik himself has experience of this
variation, and in an earlier game against
Aronian, adopted the more common and
arguably more active development of the
bishop on c5: 8...c5! 9.bd2 0-0 10.h3
h5 11.c4 e8 12.h4 b5 13.a5 c7
14.a4 b6 15.b3 a6 16.g5 c5?
Pseudo-activity, which runs into a strong
rejoinder. 17.a5 a7 18.c4! ab8 19.d2
h6 20.e3! White enjoys a large strategic
advantage as the bishop on a7 is buried out
of the game, and went on to win in Aronian,
L - Kramnik, V/Shanghai 2010 ]
9.bd2 0-0 10.h3 h5 11.c4 c7 12.a4
e8 13.h4 c5 14.f5 By playing such a
way, White is aiming for strategic strangulation,
as it is far from easy for Black to generate
active play in such positions. But in order to
make serious headway, he will probably need
to advance on the kingside at some point,
which will give Black a certain amount of
counterplay. e6 15.e3 f4 Vitiugov is
desperate to try and mix things up, but
Kramnik just ignores him. The problem is this
knight lunge does not change matters on the
board too much, as White is reasonably happy
to part with this bishop on g2 anyway.
[ 15...d4?! was certainly worthy of
consideration, but this entails a certain
amount of risk, as after the exchange on d4
White's kingside pawns become a
formidable force. 16.xd4 exd4 17.e5!
And although White isn't threatening to take
on f6 directly because of the pin on the e-file,
with moves like Qb4 and Nf5-d6 threatened,
Black is in some trouble. ]
16.f3!
[ I very much doubt Kramnik even considered
16.gxf4? which runs into trouble after exf4
17.d4 f3! ]
16...xg2 17.xg2 g6 18.d1 d5!
[ B l a c k r e m a i n s p a s s i v e a f t e r 18...b8
19.h4 b5? 20.axb5 cxb5 21.d2!
As the knight on d2 will quickly manoeuvre
around to the holes left on the queenside. ]
19.h4 xe3+ 20.xe3 e7 Vitiugov is
happy to adopt a passive, defensive strategy,
but Kramnik aptly demonstrates that such an
approach can only guarantee a prolonged
torture against players of the highest class.
21.b3! ab8 22.f2 ed8 23.xd8+
xd8 24.d2 c7 25.d3 e6 26.b4!
A "creeping" move, as Spassky used to call
them. This move prepares the re-location of
t h e q u e e n t o d 2 , wh i c h d i s c o u r a g e a n y
exchanges on that file, thus dooming Black to
ye t m o re p assivit y. I t's o f t e n th e s e lit t le
positional gems that set players like Kramnik
apart, ensuring that he can turn positions that
are only slightly better into victory, and also
ensuring that he will be writing 1-0 in the
scoresheet at the end when lesser mortals
like ourselves will only manage a desultory
half-half. b6
[ Again, it is very hard for Black to create
a n yt h i n g . T h e b i s h o p o n g 6 i s a m e r e
235
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
spectator, which in any case W hite can
exchange off at any moment if he so wishes.
I f h e t r i e s t o b r e a k o u t w i t h 26...b5
He merely creates more problems af ter
27.axb5 cxb5 28.e3! So with ..b6 Black
slowly prepares the idea of playing ..b5 but
being able to capture back on b5 with the a-
pawn, an admirable positional ideal, but
the problem is it's so slow W hite can
generate serious play in the meantime. ]
27.b3 a6 28.d2 b5 29.d7! bxc4
30.xc7 cxb3 31.b7! Kramnik is like a
great composer, the symphony plays only for
him. This little tactical sequence has greatly
increased his advantage - Black is left with
ho rrib ly we a k qu e e n sid e p a wn s t h a t a re
almost impossible to defend in the long run.
c8 32.xb3 xb3 33.cxb3 f6 34.d6
f7
[ Black's only faint chances of making a
draw consist of somehow gaining a
perpetual check against the white king. To
this end, 34...a5 was worth a try, with the
idea of ..Qa6-e2. However even here White
h a s a n e f f e c t i ve a n s we r 35.g4! a6
36.g3 e2 37.g2 preventing any hopes
of a perpetual, while Black's queenside
pawns will inevitably drop off. ]
35.g4 e8 36.g3 b7 37.b4 c8 38.a5
f7 39.g2! With this move, White makes
clear that it is not possible for Black to hold
the position with passive play alone, as the
knight is going to be funnelled around to the
queenside to breakdown any passive defence.
Essentially Black is now helpless. h5 40.e3
hxg4 41.hxg4 e6 42.d3 c8 43.c4+
f8 44.c5+
[ In such positions, there is often a pleasant
c h o i c e b e t w e e n w i n s , a n d 44.g5!
Is also very strong. b7 45.gxf6 gxf6
46.e6 g7 47.g4+- ]
44...g8 45.b5! axb5 46.b6 f8 47.a6
b4 48.a7 e1+ 49.g2 d2+ 50.g1
Nf 1 will cover any future checks. A good
demonstration of how difficult it can be to get
a result with Black against someone like
Kramnik - it is difficult to indicate exactly
where Vitiugov went wrong.
1-0
253 A07
Littlewood,John Eric 2350
Davies,Nigel R
Chorley (3) 1977
[Nigel Davies]
1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 g4
5.h3 xf3 6.exf3 g6 This feels like the right
way to develop the bishop the pawn on g6
inhibits a White f4-f5 and the bishop will bear
down on W hite's queenside. An analogous
plan to this is thought to be best for White in
the Trompovsky line with 1.d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 g6 3.
Bxf6 exf6 4.c4 followed by a later g2-g3. 7.e1
g7 8.e2 e6 9.d3 0-0 10.f4 c5 11.d2
c6 12.c3 c8
[ Up to this point I had unwittingly followed
t h e p l a y o f t h e g re a t Yu go s la v p la ye r ,
Borislav Ivkov. He played the immediate
12...b5 af ter which 13.f3 c8 14.e5
d7 15.f3 b4 16.c4 dxc4 17.dxc4 d4
18.d3 c7 gave him excellent counterplay
in Ianov, V (2386) -Ivkov, B (2425)/Bijeljina
2001. ]
13.f3 d7 14.h4 True to his style John
L i t t l e wo o d t r i e s t o d r u m u p p l a y o n t h e
kingside. b5 15.h3 b4 16.d2 e8 17.h5
a5 18.hxg6 hxg6 19.cxb4 cxb4
[ Another possibility was 19...a6!? 20.bxc5
xb2 21.ab1 d4 22.xd4 xd4 ]
20.a3 b5 21.axb4 xb2 22.ab1 g7
23.ec1 d4 24.xd4 xd4 25.g2 b7
26.g4 g7 27.f3 b6
½-½
254 A07
Markos,Jan
Kjartansson,Gudmundur
Scottish Open, Edinburgh (5) 2009
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 g4
5.d3 bd7 6.h3 h5 7.e1
[ 7.bd2 is the most standard move, but
another interesting wrinkle was seen in
Markos-Shaw: ]
[ 7.c3!? e5 8.c2 e7 9.e4 dxe4 10.dxe4
0-0 11.bd2 b5?! This looks wrong to me,
but may not actually do any harm. ( 11...e8
intending f6 and (at some point) Bf7 looks
236
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
more reliable- an approach made popular by
the young(er) Kramnik.) 12.b3 c7
13.h4 fd8 14.f5 f8 15.g5 h6
16.e3 It feels like White is a bit better now
because his pieces are more harmoniously
placed. e8 17.c4! f6 18.cxb5 Probably a
m is t a k e - W h it e d o e s n o t se e m t o ga i n
an yt hing s ignif ica n t f rom relea sing t h e
tension. cxb5 19.d3 c5! 20.xb5 db8
21.c4+ f7 22.e2 xb3 23.axb3 xb3
24.fc1 b7 It feels like Black should be ok
now, but John seemed to be a bit impatient
t o r e s o l v e t h e t e n s i o n . 25.c2 h7
( 25...a5!? ) 26.d1 g6 In general the knight
did not look so scary on f5 while the
weakness on the seventh rank proved to be
fatal. 27.c1! c8 28.e3 c5 29.h4 h5
30.h2 d4 31.h3 d8 32.g2 b5
33.f3 e6?! ( 33...a5 ) 34.h3 xh3
35.xh3 c8 36.xc8 d7+ 37.h2
xc8 38.e2 xe3 39.xe3 b7 40.d8
xb2 ( 40...e7 41.d2 b7 42.d5 c7
might hold on a good day.) 41.c4 e7
42.c8 1-0 ]
7...e5 8.e4 dxe4 9.dxe4 xf3?!
[ 9...c5 10.b4!? ]
[ 9...e7 10.h4 0-0 11.f5 ]
10.xf3 c5 11.a4!?
[ 11.b4 e7 is probably playable for Both
sides- White gains space but his queenside
is a bit vulnerable. ]
11...a6?! This looks wrong to me, giving White
a long term structural and space advantage on
the queenside.
[ 11...a5 ]
12.a5 0-0 13.a3 c7 14.c4 fd8
15.e2 e8 16.g5 df6 17.g2 h6
18.d2
[ 18.e3!? xe3 19.xe3 d4! ]
18...e7 19.h2 d6 20.c3 xc4?!
The W hite queen is very strong on c4, so
Black should not allow it to get there without a
fight.
[ 20...d7!? 21.b4 b5 ]
21.xc4 d7 22.ae1 ad8
[ 22...d4 23.b4 e6 24.xe6 fxe6
looks superficially plausible, but Black's
activity doesn't amount to much and the e-
pawns will soon become weak. ]
23.f4 exf4?!
[ 23...d6! is most solid and keeps the
position tense, but Kjartansson had just won
two brilliant games against Indian
Grandmasters and seems to try a bit too
hard here to generate tactics. ]
[ 23...d4 24.b4 e6 ( 24...e8!? )
25.xe6 fxe6 26.c3 a7 27.fxe5 ]
24.gxf4 g4+?! A hopeful lunge, I think in
some time pressure.
[ 24...d4 25.b4 e6 26.xe6 fxe6
27.c3 a7 ]
25.hxg4 h4+ 26.h3 f2 27.xf2 xf2+
28.g2 xf4+ 29.h3! Superficially Black
seems to have chances, but two bishops are
usually worth considerably more than a rook,
and here Black's initiative is about to run out.
g5
[ 29...d5 30.e2 ]
30.e2 f6 31.f3 h8 32.e5 fxe5 33.xe5
g6 34.e3 f8 35.e4 f7 36.f5 e8
37.xh6+ g8 38.g5
1-0
255 A07
Markowski,Tomasz 2610
Burmakin,Vladimir 2605
XXII Open Benidorm ESP (5) 28.04.2009
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.g3 d5 2.f3 c6 3.g2 f6 4.0-0 h6
5.d3 f5 6.c4 dxc4
[ 6...e6 is the main line... 7.cxd5 ( 7.e3!?
intending Qb3, but now it seems that dxc4
8.dxc4 xd1 9.xd1 equalises for Black if
he plays carefully. )
A) 7...cxd5 is very solid, but White has a
few ways to press for some advantage.
8.b3 ( 8.c3 c6 9.a4 intending e4,
is also possible.; 8.d4!? ) 8...b6
and now taking on b6 before or after Nd4
gives some sort of symbolic advantage,
but W hite rarely gets anywhere in the
selected games.;
B) 7...exd5 In general White now aims to
achieve a 4-3 majority on the kingside,
and there are various ways of doing this.
8.c3 ( 8.d4 g6 9.e4!?; 8.b3 b6
9.c2 ) 8...e7 9.d4 g6 10.e4 0-0
11.b3 dxe4 12.dxe4 The following grind
is a good example of what White is aiming
for in these lines. a6 13.e3 b4 14.f3
237
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

e7 15.f2 fd8 16.c2 c5 17.d4 256 A07

e6 18.ce2 c5 19.ad1 xd4 Martin,Andrew D
20.xd4 b6 21.b3 xf2+ 22.xf2 Weller,Jean Luc
c7 23.fe1 b6 24.xd8+ xd8 25.d1 4NCL 2010-11 20.02.2011
c5 26.xd8+ xd8 27.d2 equal, but [Nigel Davies]
White went on to win, Nikolic, P (2623)-
Ferguson, M (2404)/ Budva MNE 2009. ] 1.g3 f6 2.g2 d5 3.f3 Going into
7.e5!? Not new, but new to me, and a nice standard King's Indian Attack territory.
w a y t o c r e a t e s o m e i m b a l a n c e s . e6 [ 3.f4 would probably lead to some kind of
Together with the follow up this looks very reversed Leningrad Dutch. ]
strange at first, but it is important to grasp 3...c6 4.0-0 g4 5.h3 h5
that in the pawn structure with e2/d3 and the [ After 5...xf3 White has an interesting
c-pawn swapped for the d-pawn, the bishop approach in 6.exf3!? , trying to use the half
has nothing to do on the h7-b1 diagonal. The open e-file. ]
equivalent would be White playing against a [ Of course usually White will meet 5...xf3
Sicilian dragon, removing his knight from d4, with 6.xf3 , for example e5 7.d3 bd7
playing h3 and Bf4. W ith this bishop out of 8.e4 dxe4 9.dxe4 e7 10.e2 0-0
play, the queenside minority attack becomes 11.d2 c7 12.g2 c5 13.b3 a5
quite strong, which is why this line has some 14.b2 a4 15.c4 was a bit better for
venom. White in Morozevich, A (2741)-Gelfand, B
[ 7...bd7 8.xc4 e6 9.d2 ( 9.f4 (2733)/ Monte Carlo 2007. ]
Rukavina ) 9...e7 10.b4 0-0 11.a3 b6 6.d3 bd7 7.bd2 e5 8.e4 dxe4 9.dxe4
12.a5 d7 13.c3 e5 14.e1 h3 e7 10.a4 c7 This position has been
15.f3 And White was somewhat better in reached quite often but one can hardly expect
Damljanovic, B (2515)-Anand, V (2610)/ fireworks here. For example:
Manila 19909/ ] [ a) 10...0-0 11.c3 ( I think White should
[ 7...cxd3? 8.b3 ] avoid this move, for example via 11.e1!? )
[ 7...c8?! 8.xc4 h3 9.b3 xg2 11...a5 12.c2 c7 13.c4 fe8 14.e3
10.xg2 e6 11.f4 e7 12.d6 c5 15.h4 xe3 16.xe3 c5
Rukavina-Nikolic, Vrnjacka Banja 1986 ] was fine for Black at this stage in Nureev,
8.xc4 xc4 This looks a bit submissive, but G (2456) -Kolev, A (2318)/Dos Hermanas
in the resulting structures it is really hard for 2003. ]
W h it e to ma ke a n yt hing a t a ll o f t he t wo [ b) 10...a5 11.e2 0-0 12.b3 e8 13.b2
bishops, although in the game White comes c7 14.fd1 b4 15.c4 xf3 16.xf3
very close. 9.dxc4 xd1 10.xd1 e5 11.b3 f8 17.h4 gave White a comfortable edge
bd7 12.b2 c5 13.d2 0-0-0 14.e3 in Istratescu, A (2540)-Torre, E (2545)/Elista
he8 15.a3 f8 16.b4 b6 17.ac1 a4 1998. ]
18.a1 c5 19.f3 d7 20.e1 f6 21.d3 11.e1 U n p i n n i n g . 0-0 12.h4 e8?!
c7 22.e4 db6 23.f1 e7 24.e2 Starting down the wrong path.
f8 25.g4 c8 26.b1 cb6 27.dc1 [ B l a c k s h o u l d p r o b a b l y p l a y 12...fe8
b8 28.h3 White still has a slight plus. c8 , f o r e x a m p l e 13.c4 ( 13.f5 f8
29.b5 cd8 30.e1 c8 31.f3 d6 leaves the rook on e8 opposite W hite's
32.g6 e7 33.c2 b6 34.bc1 ed7 queen so as to discourage f2-f4) 13...c5
35.h4 e7 36.d2 f8 37.b3 a4 14.d2 fd7 15.f5 f8 16.b3 f6 17.e3
38.d2 c7 39.h5 c8 40.xd7+ xd7 e6 gave him an OK position at this point
41.d2 d6 42.c2 b6 43.b3 e4 44.a4 in Damljanovic, B (2585)-Komljenovic, D
e7 45.b1 e8 46.c3 c8 47.a5?! (2495)/Oviedo 1992. ]
bxc4 48.a4 xa5 49.xc5+ b8 13.f5 d8 The bishop is wrong here and
50.a2 b6 51.d5 ac4 52.xc4 the attempt to block the a3-f8 diagonal leads
½-½ to further weakening.
[ 13...c5 was better. ]

238
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
14.c4 g6 15.d2! Threatening to put the
bishop on b4, forcing ...c6-c5. a5 16.b4!?
axb4 17.xb4 c5 18.c3 White has a clear
advantage now because of the weaknesses
on d5 and b5 plus the possibility of using the
open b- and d- files. f6 19.b1! A nice way
to get the queen in play. f7 20.b5 e6
21.fd1 g6
[ 21...b6 would be an attempt to simplify
the position with exchanges but then
22.xb6 xb6 23.xb6 xb6 24.db1
a6 25.a5 wins a pawn. ]
22.fe3 a6 23.ab1 f7 24.f1 f8
[ 24...a7 would have been more tenacious,
but hardly pleasant for Black. ]
25.a5 b8 26.b6 d6 27.d3 e7
28.ed5 c6 29.e3 Now preparing f2-f4
with direct play against Black's king. a7
30.d2 g7 31.f4! exf4 32.xf4 xd5
[ After 32...d8 the move 33.e5!
is devastating. ]
33.xd5 d8 34.e5 fxe5 35.xe5+ h6
[ Or 35...f8 36.h8# mate. ]
36.e3 g5 37.h4!
[ Black gets mated after 37.h4 xe3+
38.xe3+ h5 39.g5# mate. ]
1-0
257 A07
Minasian,Artashes 2571
Sulskis,Sarunas 2578
US Open Los Angeles USA (10) 13.08.2003
[Tony Kosten]
An instructive pawn sac from W hite, and a
nicely judged follow-up, but Black manages to
scrape a draw with a tactic in time-trouble.
1.g3 d5 2.f3 c6 3.g2 f6 4.0-0 f5
5.b3 White continues his development and
eschews c4 for the moment. e6 6.b2 d6
7.d3 0-0
[ Instead, Sveshnikov recommends 7...e7
immediately, to play ...Ba3. ]
8.bd2 e7 9.e4! White strikes immediately,
as preparation by
[ 9.e1 , say, allows a3 10.xa3 xa3
an d B la c k is f in e , P a n o v, V -K rzisn ik, R/
Vrnjacka Banja 1962. ]
9...dxe4 10.dxe4 xe4 Quite forced, as both
[ 10...xe4? 11.xf6 and ]
[ 10...g4? 11.e5 lose a piece. ]
11.h4!? Strictly speaking, this is a novelty,
but the game will later transpose to the original
[ 11.d4 by xd2 ( 11...f6?! is worse,
12.xf5 exf5 13.e1 d8 14.c4
with advantage ) 12.xf5 exf5 etc. ]
[ There is another possibility, though:
11.xe4!? xe4 12.xg7! xg7
( 12...d8!? 13.d4 ) 13.d4+ e5 14.xe4
f5 with unclear play, although I think I would
prefer to have W hite's sounder pawn
structure. ]
11...xd2 This is better than
[ 11...c5 12.e1! ( 12.xf5 exf5 13.e1
e6 is probably OK for Black) 12...g6
13.c4 c7 14.d4 f6 15.a3
when Black is under considerable
pressure. ]
12.xf5 exf5 13.xd2 e5! Black hastens
to block the long a1-h8 diagonal. 14.fe1!
The second novelty! For in the stem game,
Pigusov,E-Sveshnikov,E/St Petersburg 1993,
(which occurred after 11 Nd4 instead of 11
Nh4) White preferred
[ 14.xe5 xe5 15.fe1 c5 16.b4 b6
17.ab1 a5 ( 17...a6! 18.c4 ad8
is about equal) 18.bxa5 xa5 19.xa5
xa5 20.xb7 xa2 21.f1! Black had
problems developing his knight. ]
14...f6 Black can also handle the annoying pin
on the e-file by
[ 14...d6 but then 15.xd6 xd6 16.ad1
c5 17.e5 a6 18.f1 allows White to
capture on f5 with a plus. ]
15.ad1 For the pawn sacrificed White has a
powerful bishop pair, control of the central
files, and a promising lead in development.
Even so, there was much to be said for the
surprising
[ 15.f4!? regaining the f-pawn immediately,
as xf4 16.xe7 e5 17.xe5 fxe5
18.d1 leaves Black in some trouble. ]
15...a6 16.f4! This is still good. Note that
[ 16.f4? is a mistake, as Black simply unpins
with check: c5+ ]
16...c5 17.xe5 fxe5 18.xe5!?
White aims to keep hold of the initiative, but
the simple
[ 18.xe5 xe5 19.xe5 leaves him with a
g o o d e n d g a m e : ad8 20.xd8 xd8
21.a5! d1+ 22.f1 and following Kg2 the
239
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

black queenside will be destroyed. ] 258 A07

18...xc2 19.de1 ad8 20.f1!? Minasian,Artashes 2557
Threatening both Bc4+ and, maybe capturing Tomashevsky,Evgeny 2664
the knight. 10th EICC Budva MNE (2) 07.03.2009
[ 20.e7 h8 ( 20...f7? 21.xf7 xf7 [Nigel Davies]
22.g5 wins ) 21.g5 c3 22.f1
is also dangerous for Black. ] 1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.d3 g4
20...h8 5.h3 h5 6.0-0 bd7 7.bd2 e5 8.e4
[ 20...xa2 21.e7 b2 might offer better d6 9.exd5 Trying to use his slight lead in
chances. ] development to break up Black's pawn centre.
21.e7 White's initiative is reaching worrying The idea is logical enough and has been used
proportions, both Qg5 and Rxb7 are menaced. in several games by Rafael Vaganian. But can
c3 g 7 m u s t b e d e f e n d e d . 22.1e5 W hite count on achieving any advantage?
White cuts the a1-h8 diagonal, but cxd5 10.c4 The logical follow up. If Black
[ 22.g5! is strong, as h6 23.g6 f6 advances with ...d5-d4 then a kind of
( 23...c5? 24.c1! ) 24.xf6 xf6 reversed Modern Benoni would appear. 0-0
25.xb7 c5 26.xa7 is crushing. ] 11.cxd5 xd5 12.b3 5f6
22...h6? Black stops Qg5, but the cure is [ T h i s i s p r o b a b l y b e t t e r t h a n 12...5b6
worse than the illness, when 13.e4 e7 ( 13...c7 is also well
[ 22...c5 23.g5 g8 kept Black alive. ] met by 14.a4 ) 14.a4 h8 15.a5 f5
23.xb7 Now White is materially equal with a 16.eg5 gave White a dangerous initiative
winning position as the black structure falls in Vaganian, R (2625)-Khalifman, A (2660)/
apart. c5 24.xa7 d1?! 25.ee7 Eupen 1994. ]
[ 25.xf5! wi n s i m m e d i a t e l y, a s xf1+ 13.c4 c5
26.g2! ( 26.xf1? d3+ ) 26...g8 [ Black's position is also difficult after
( 26...xf5? is impossible, 27.a8+ h7 13...c7 14.e3 b6 15.fe1 c8 16.d4
28.xf5+ g6 29.a7+ ) 27.f8! ( or xf3 17.xf3 e4 18.g2 which was
27.xf1 ) 27...xf2+ 28.xf2 and wins. ] Vaganian, R (2645)-Torre, E (2535)/Moscow
25...d3 1994. ]
[ 25...d3?? would allow a nice mate by 14.a3 xf3
26.xh6+ gxh6 27.h7+ g8 28.ag7# ] [ B l a c k h a s a l s o t r i e d 14...c8 when
26.f3 a1 Black has some initiative, but 15.xd6 ( 15.g4 g6 16.fxe5
once this peters-out he will be lost. 27.e2 is pro ba bly even st ron ge r) 15...xd6
d8 28.xg7? An obvious move to play, 16.e3 b6?! 17.xe5! d5 18.d4 xe3
especially in time trouble, but it allows Black 19.fxe3 was good for White in Vaganian, R
to draw! (2615)-Epishin, V (2645)/ Moscow 1996. ]
[ 28.ad7! xd7 29.xd7 wins easily. ] 15.xf3 e7 16.xe5 Black seems to get
28...e1! Now White has to force a draw, as enough for his pawn after this.
otherwise he loses the bishop on f1 with check, [ Accordingly I think it may be worth exploring
and the game! 29.h7+ g8 30.hg7+ h8 the line 16.d1!? e6 17.a5
31.h7+ g8 32.ag7+ f8 33.f7+ g8 which seems to offer some initiative. ]
34.hg7+ h8 35.h7+ g8 36.fg7+ f8 16...cd7 17.c3 c8 18.e1 e8
37.f7+ g8 38.hg7+ h8 39.h7+ g8 [ 18...c5 19.xd7 xd7 gave White a
40.fg7+ f8 41.f7+ g8 Surely both slight edge in Vaganian-Kaidanov/Glendale/
players were in severe time trouble as the 1994. ]
same position has been repeated numerous 19.d4 c5 20.xb7?? A 'new move', but one
times! which loses material and the game. W hite
½-½ has reached this position in a couple of earlier
games but without much joy, for example:
[ a) 20.d1 xd4 21.xd7 xd7 22.g5
1/2-1/2 Collutiis, D (2429)-Maiorov, N (2511)/

240
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
St Eufemia d'Aspromonte 2010. ]
[ b) 20.dxc5 xe5 21.d1 xc5!?
( 21...xf3+ 22.xf3 d5 is equal but
maybe too drawish for Lobron facing a lower
r a t e d o p p o n e n t) 22.xb7 d5?!
( R e a l l y c h a n c i n g h i s a r m - 22...c7
would have been better) 23.b3 d7
24.d1 c4 25.xd5 xd5 26.f4
and White was a good pawn up in Weber, U
(2322)-Lobron, E (2524)/Bad Wiessee 2001,
though he later lost the game. ]
[ c) Perhaps W hite's best here is 20.e3
, for example xe5 21.dxe5 xe5 22.c3
e8 23.xc5 exc5 24.a3 leaves him
with the better minor piece. But the has not
been tried in practice. ]
20...xd4 21.xc8 xe5 22.b7
[ I'm not sure what White missed when he
capture on b7, but 22.d1 xc8 23.xd4
f3+ wins the queen. ]
22...b6 23.f4 xb7 24.xe5 xe5
25.d2 b6 Black's minor pieces far
outweigh the rook and pawn here because of
the weakness of W hite's kingside. 26.ae1
f5 27.h2 f3 28.e3 This trick doesn't
particularly help White's chances because it
leads to the creation of new weaknesses.
[ 28.c2 would have been more stubborn. ]
28...xe3
[ And not 28...xe3?? 29.d8+ etc. ]
29.fxe3 h5 30.g2 b8 31.f3 e5
32.f2 h4 33.c2 c7 34.g2 hxg3
35.d2 a5 36.b3 g6 37.d4 g7 38.h4
b6 39.d2 xe3 40.e2 d5 41.xg3
e4+
0-1
259
Morozevich,A
Kasimdzhanov,R
Renova FIDE GP Zug (1.1) 18.04.2013 freehand on the kingside. Kasim intends a
[Danny Gormally]
1.g3 d5 2.f3 g4 3.g2 d7 4.h3
xf3?! Something of a strategic capitulation.
Why give up the bishops for so little?
[ Correct, and much more popular, is 4...h5
If White would then want to exchange this
b i s h o p , t h i s w o u l d i n v o l ve a s t r a t e g i c 15.h4 c5 16.h3 b5 17.f3 a5 18.c1
c o n c e s s i o n h i m s e l f , b y p l a y i n g g 4 , a4 19.d2 a8 20.b4 e6 21.ac1!
weakening the kingside. 5.d3 c6 6.0-0 e5
7.bd2 d6 8.b3 e7 9.b2 0-0 10.e4
a5 11.a4 c7 12.e1 f6 13.c1 fe8
14.h4 ad8 15.h1 c5 16.b1 dxe4
17.dxe4 b5! 18.axb5 cxb5 19.c3 b7
20.a1 b4! 21.b1 b5 And Black had
more than equalised, due to his strong grip
on the center and queenside, and went on to
win in the game Vijayalakshmi, S Korneev,
O Port Erin 2006 ]
5.xf3 The higher up the levels you go, the
more the bishop pair is cherished. I recently
suggested to a friend of mine, who is writing a
book on the Trompovsky, that the opening is
bad because White is simply handing Black
the bishop pair. It is widely agreed at super-
grandmaster level (not that I'm at that level of
course, as much as I'd like to dream that I am,
more th at I'm going on wha t I've see n in
interviews and so on) that a bishop is worth
more than a knight, but perhaps Kazim was
playing on Moro's well-known prejudice for
playing with knight's over bishops. gf6 6.d3!
Slow and steady wins the races.
[ 6.c4? would be somewhat rash and is met
with e5! ]
6...c6 7.d2 g6!?
[ I think personally speaking I would have
d e ve l o p e d t h e b i s h o p o n d 6 h e r e - f o r
example 7...e6 8.0-0 d6 9.e4 h5!
with some reasonable counterplay- Black
is threatening ..h4, and if g4 he controls the
f4 square. ]
8.e4 g7 9.e2 c7 10.g2 0-0 11.0-0
e5 Of course it is vital to prevent f4, when
Black would be in danger of being overrun.
Nonetheless, W hite has a wide-variety of
plans in this position. 12.b3 fe8 13.b2
A07 ad8 14.fe1 d4? But this is a real
2758 concession, as it takes all the tension out of
2709 the center, thus giving White something of a
slow advance on the queenside, but this is
just what it is - too slow.
[ 14...dxe4 15.dxe4 c5 16.ad1 ( 16.a4?!
e6 17.c3 trying to keep control over
everything, runs into c5! with the threat of
taking on d2) 16...e6! would have kept
any disadvantage to a minimum. ]
241
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Intending c3, breaking open the c-file and
exposing Black's queenside weaknesses. It is
very clear now who has won the opening
battle. ad8 22.g5! f8 23.c4 dxc3
24.xc3 6d7 25.ec1 b8 26.a3!
You know when your opponent has time for
such little "indulgences" that something has
gone seriously wrong. h6 27.f3 e6
28.e3 d6 29.d2 h7 30.g2 ed8
31.h1 h5 is now in the air. e7 32.b6 e8
33.hc1 b7 34.e3 e7 35.a2 h8
36.c2 g8 37.e2 h8 38.h2 g8
39.h5! Finally. Just at the right moment, Moro
forces the concession of the f5 square. g5
A grim decision to take, as not only does this
permanently give away the light squares, but
the threat of the white knight landing on f5
hangs permanently over Black's head. It would
not be an exaggeration at this point to say
that W hite is strategically winning. 40.e1
h8 41.g2 g8
[ One of the problems that Black has is that
41...d4 does not solve his problems-
42.xd4 exd4 43.c5 and f4 is a serious
threat. ]
42.c5! xc5 43.xc5 ed8 44.e3 a7
[ 44...xd3 45.d5+- ]
45.5c3 f6 46.f5 e8 47.e3 xe3
48.fxe3 f8 49.g2 ee6 50.d4! exd4
51.exd4 g4 52.f1 d7 53.f4 It is not
often your opponent will resign when there is
complete material equality on the board! The
best games are the most simple.
1-0
260 A07
Morozevich,Alexander 2741
Anand,Viswanathan 2779
Amber Blindfold (1) 17.03.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.d3 g6
[ In a later round, Kramnik had success using
a different set-up against the Reti, but then
aga in , in t h is t o u rn a m e n t K ra m nik h a d
success against nearly everybody in the 5.0-0 g7 6.bd2 0-0 7.e4 g4 8.h3
blindfold event. 4...g4 5.h3 this move has xf3 9.xf3 dxe4
never appealed much to me. I think White
has a decent chance of obtaining an
advantage after ( 5.0-0 bd7 6.b3 e6
7.b2 followed by Nbd2, c2-c4 or e2-e4)
5...xf3 6.xf3 bd7 7.g2 e6 8.0-0
A) 8...c7 9.c4 ( 9.e4!? ) 9...dxc4
10.dxc4 e7 11.c3 0-0 12.c2 fd8
13.a4 c5 14.e3 a5 15.c3 b4
16.b3 e5 was equal in Kortchnoi-
Petrosian, USSR 1971;
B) 8...d6
B1) Here I would prefer 9.d2!? 0-0
10.e4 c7 11.f4 dxe4 ( or 11...e5
12.f5 c5+ 13.h1 dxe4 14.dxe4 e3
15.e2 h6 16.h4 Karasev-Klovans,
USSR 1975 ) 12.dxe4 e5 13.f5 h6
14.e2 e7 15.a4 a5 16.c4 e8
17.h4 ( 17.e3!? b6 18.fd1 ef6
19.h2 looks plea sant f or W hit e)
17...d6 18.e3 xc4 19.xc4 f6
20.f3 h5 21.g2 ( 21.e2!? )
21...ad8 22.ad1 xd1 23.xd1 d8
24.c3 xd1 25.xd1 d7 26.b3 d8
27.f3 b5 28.f1 g4 , and with
Black having equa lised, the players
agreed upon a draw, 1/2-1/2 J.Plachetka-
P.Benko, Sombor 1976;
B2) 9.e4 c7 10.e2 having already
played e2-e4 and Black not having any
threats against the pawn, White should
in my opinion rest the queen for a little
while on d1 until he knows which square
is the optimal one for the queen.
( 10.d2!? transposes to 9.Nd2 given
above and should be given preference.)
10...0-0-0!? Quite a surprise, normally
Black castles kingside in the Reti.
11.d2 b8 12.a4 g5 13.d4 dxe4
14.a5 a6 15.c4?! ( Here Morozevich
lets go and starts getting a little too fancy
for his own good. Simple and good is
15.xe4 xe4 16.xe4 dg8 17.f3
wi t h t h e b e t t e r c h a n c e s f o r W h i t e)
15...h6 16.xd6 xd6 17.d1 e5
18.dxe5 ( 18.e3!? ) 18...xe5 19.e3
he8 and White has insufficient
compensation for the pawn and later lost,
A. Morozevich-V.Kramnik, Monte
Carlo2007 ]
[ 9...bd7 10.e2 ( 10.e1 e6 11.e2 a5
12.e5 e8 13.f3 c7 14.h4 h6 15.f4
Lazic, M-Dragovic, M/Vrbas 1993; 10.d4
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
xe4 11.xe4 dxe4 12.xe4 f6
13.d3 d7 14.b3 fd8 15.c3
with a spatial plus and the bishop pair,
W hite has a slight advantage, Koshy, V-
Murugan, K/ India 1994 ) 10...e6
A) 11.f3 c5 12.e5 fd7 13.h4
( 13.f4!? ) 13...f6 14.exf6 xf6 15.d4
e4 16.g5 xg5 17.xg5 xd4?!
( 17...f5!? ) 18.xe6+ f7 19.c3 e5
20.ae1 Akopian, V-Delchev, A/Rio
Gallegos 1986;
B) 11.e5
B1) 11...h5 12.f3 f5 13.d4 c5
14.c3 c4 15.e1 ( 15.g5!? ) 15...b8
( 15...h8!? 16.f3 g7 ) 16.f3 e8
17.g2 h8 18.xh5 gxh5 19.h4
Kasparov, G-Zarnicki, P/Internet ICC
1998;
B2) 11...e8 12.f3 f5 13.exf6 xf6
14.g5
B2a) 14...f5 15.e7 f7 16.h4 10.dxe4 bd7 11.e2 e5
f8 ( 16...xb2 17.ab1 f6 18.g4
f4 19.g3 a4 20.xb7 ) 17.c3
h5? 18.g5 d7 19.f4 f6 20.f3
6h7 21.e5 1-0 Mrva, M-Betko, L/
Slovakia 2000;
B2b) 14...f7 15.f4 h6 16.h4 ef6
17.h3 fe8 18.ae1 Averbakh, Y-
Bagirov, V/USSR Ch (Baku) 1961 ]
[ 9...e6
A) 10.e1 a6 11.c3 b6 12.b3
fe8 ( 12...d7!? 13.exd5 cxd5 14.d4 )
13.g5 d7 14.d4 c7 15.e5 a5
16.e3 a4 17.d2 Jansa, V-Kupka, S/
Trinec 1972;
B) 10.e2
B1) 10...fd7 11.c3 f5 12.f3 f6
( 12...fxe4 13.dxe4 e8 ) 13.exf5 exf5
14.e6+ h8 15.g5 ( 15.f4!? )
15...d7 16.xd7 bxd7 17.e6 f7
18.e3 e7 19.xg7 xg7 20.fd1
f7 21.c4 f8 22.b4 ( 22.d4!? )
22...e6 23.a4 d7 24.ab1 f4
25.gxf4 h5 26.b5 ( 26.f5 gxf5 ( 22.c4!? ) 22...a8 23.c3 xa1 24.xa1
27.cxd5 cxd5 28.h2 and White is
better thanks to the bishops superiority
over the knights in an open position such 31.d2 h5 32.h6+ h7 33.g5 b8
as this ) 26...hxf4= 34.xb8 xb8 35.f6 c6 36.d5 a7
1/2-1/2 Polugaevsky, L-Nei, I/Moscow
1964;
B2) 10...a5 11.a4 a6 12.c3 dxe4
13.xe4 e7 14.g5 c5 15.e3
cd7 16.h4 ( 16.d4!? ) 16...fe8
17.fe1 f8 18.e2 1/2-1/2 Ivanchuk,
V-Chernin, A/Lvov 1987;
B3) 10...a6 11.e5 ( 11.b3 d7
12.h4 h5 13.g5 e8 14.ae1 dxe4
15.dxe4 xb2 16.b1 f6 17.h6
g7 18.xg7 xg7 19.a5 ac5
20.xb7 xb7 21.xb7
1/2-1/2 Flesch, J-Karaklajic, N/Belgrade
1965 (30) ) 11...d7 12.f4 b6+
13.h2 ae8 14.f3 f6 15.c3 ab8
16.d4 Mischustov, M-Reich, T/Bayern
2000 ]
[ 9...e5 10.e2 ( 10.b3!? ) 10...bd7
11.f3 dxe4 12.dxe4 c7 13.b4 fe8
( 13...a5!?= ) 14.a3 ( 14.d2!? ) 14...a6
15.d2 b5 16.c4 Gundelfinger, K-Liepert, L/
A n s b a c h 1 9 8 5 b6!? 17.c5 a4
18.b3 ]
[ Finally Anand plays a new move, but hardly
one that changes the evaluation as this
being better for W hite. 11...c7 12.a4
ad8 13.b3 b6 14.e3 c5 15.a5 e5?
this is a truly ugly move which clearly shows
that Black has no idea what he is doing. The
black bishop is now buried behind his own
pawns with very little hope of ever
b e c o m i n g a c t i ve a g a i n . W h i t e ' s l i g h t -
squared bishop, on the other hand, can be
activated via f1 and enjoy the full range of
Black's hopelessly weakened light squares.
16.d2! White will route his knight via b1 to
c3 where it grabs hold on the b5 and d5-
squares and protects the e4-pawn,
t h e re f o re r e li e vi n g t h e b ish o p f r o m it s
defensive duties regarding the e4-pawn,
allowing it to become active. e8!? 17.axb6
axb6 18.b1 b7 19.c3 c7 20.b5!?
exchanging Black's defender of the light
squares, thus making the penetration
simpler. c6 21.xc7 xc7 22.b5
b8 25.a6 f8 26.f1 g7 27.a4 b7
28.b5 b8 29.a8 d6 30.d1 c6
37.e8 g8 38.xf7+ xf7 39.xd6
1-0 Fischer, R-Ibrahimoglu, I/Siegen
197002 ]
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
12.a4 This along with the next couple of
moves are s tan dard in this t yp e o f p awn
structure which occurs very often in the Reti
and King's Indian Attack. c7 13.c4 fd8
14.e3
[ Here 14.a5 looks logical to prevent Black's
n e xt m o v e , b u t i n t h a t c a s e B l a c k c a n
consider both 14...b5 and 14...Nc5,
intending 15...Ne6 and then ...Nd4. ]
14...b6
[ Or 14...b5 15.axb5 cxb5 16.a5 a6
17.c4 bxc4 ( 17...b4 18.c5 ) 18.xc4
xc4 19.xc4 ]
15.d2!?
[ Morozevich prefers to keep the knights on
the board this decision makes a lot of sense
as Black's position is a bit more cramped
and thus will helped in his defence through
exchanges. However, my silicon friends
pref er the exchange over Morozevich's
retreat, why can that be? Their reasoning is
undoubtedly that Black will end up with a
doubled pawn where the front pawn is fixed
on a dark square and immediately attacked
by White's dark-squared bishop and Black
will therefore have to tend to it. One line
runs: 15.xb6 axb6 16.b3 ( 16.b4!? )
16...d7 17.fd1 ad8 18.xd7 xd7
and While Black's defensive task may well
be both boring and somewhat painful, he
should be able to hold on. ]
15...e8 16.c3
[ W hite can also consider 16.a5!? c8
17.a6 b6 18.ad1 with better chances for
White ]
16...d7 17.f4!? exf4
[ 17...d6 18.f5 gxf5 19.exf5 f6 20.f2 ]
18.gxf4 d6 19.f2 e8 20.a5 b6
21.axb6 axb6 22.f3 xa1 23.xa1 f8
24.f2 c5 25.h4! d8 26.d1
[ 26.h5!? ]
26...e7 27.e1
[ 27.h5!? ]
27...d8
[ 27...e6 28.g3 d8 29.e2 ]
28.e2
[ 28.h5!? ]
28...h6 29.h3 b7
[ Here 29...e6!? 30.g3 a8 is met by
31.f5 d8 32.f1 and White has a strong
initiative with his mobile pawns and bishop
pair ]
30.h5! e8 31.g2 f5 This is a classic ploy
to somewhat close the position, block the
passed pawn (when it moves to e5) with a
knight and then prepare a pawn break with ...
g6-g5 32.d3 c7
[ 32...e7!? 33.g3 fxe4 34.xe4 h8
is messy, but may be a better chance for
Black than the game continuation, although
a continuation like 35.hxg6 xg6 36.e1
xe4 37.xe4 d8 38.f3 f7 39.f5 f8
40.e5+ looks unappetizing for Black ]
33.e5 f7 34.d5
[ Or 34.g3 e6 35.hxg6 hxg6 36.f3
followed by Nc4-(or Nf1-)e3-d5 also looks
very good for White ]
34...e6 Knights are excellent for blockading
purposes, so White now has to rid himself of
one of the components in his bishop pair in
order to make progress. 35.xe6! xe6
36.g3 c6 37.c4! e7 Black tried to
regroup his pieces and then push the ...g-
pawn forward to destroy the harmonious flow
to W hite's game. 38.d5 e6 39.hxg6
hxg6 40.f3 g5!? A pawn break to open up
the position rather than suffocating in silence.
W hile it shouldn't work, it does, yet Black
doesn't take advantage of White's faulty reply.
41.g2?!
[ This loses a tempo White can do better with
41.f1!? e.g. h7 42.fxg5 xg5 43.xg5+
xg5 44.f4 d7 45.h1+ g6 46.g2
d1+ 47.f2 e7 48.e6 and Black is
completely tied up ]
41...f8?
[ Now it ends rather rapidly. Almost any other
move with the king would have been better:
41...h7
A) 42.fxg5 xg5 43.xg5+ xg5
44.f3 g7 45.b3 h6 46.h2 ( 46.f2
d7 ) 46...a7 47.f2 g6
with a com plicate d stru ggle , t hou gh I
prefer W hite due to his somewhat safer
king;
B) 42.h2 g7
B1) 43.f1 e8 ( 43...gxf4 44.h4
e8 45.f6++- ) 44.fxg5 xg5 45.f4!?
this is why the king had to move to f1, so
that ...Nxf3 wouldn't be a check. xd5
46.cxd5 xf3 47.xh6 xe5 48.xb6
d3 49.d2 d8 and Black can
244
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

defend; cxd5 28.c6+ c7 29.xe6 f7 30.xf7+

B2) 43.fxg5! xg5 ( 43...xg5 xf7 31.d4 a6 32.e8 with excellent
44.f1+- ) 44.xg5 xg5 45.g2 f7 winning chances for White - though this is
46.f3 f8 47.b3 and White has the a f a ir l y l o n g va ri a t i o n a n d l ik e l y s o m e
initiative ] errors have found their way in ]
[ 41...h8?! 42.fxg5 xg5 43.xg5 xg5 25.d5 cxd5 26.cxd5 c7?
44.f2! f4 45.h4! xd5 46.cxd5 xe5 [ Now Black is losing. Instead Black should
47.f6+ h7 48.xe5 xe5 49.e2+- ] opt for 26...e5 27.d3 f7 28.g6 f5
42.fxg5 xg5 29.b5+ e7 30.d4 xg6 31.c6+ f8
[ Or 42...g7 43.d2 xe5 44.xe5 xe5 32.xe5 xe5 33.xe5 d6 34.c6
45.xe6 xe6 46.e2+- ] with better chances for W hite, but Black
43.xg5 xg5 44.d8+ f7 45.f4 has counterplay on account of his active
Now Black decisively loses material f3+ queen and rook along with W hite's open
46.f2 e8 47.c7+ e7 48.b8 king ]
1-0 27.dxe6+ xe6 28.e4?
[ 28.d4! f4 29.xf4 c5+ 30.b1
xb2+ 31.a1 ( 31.xb2? xd4+= )
261 A07 31...xa2+ 32.xa2 a5+ 33.b2 b4+
Morozevich,Alexander 2755 34.c2 c4+ 35.d1 xd4+ 36.d2
Bacrot,Etienne 2695 a4+ 37.c2 a1+ 38.c1 , and Black is
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (8) 21.11.2007 out of good checks and is now a rook down.
[Carsten Hansen] The rest of the game is a rollercoaster up
and down regarding the size of W hite's
1.f3 d5 2.g3 g4 3.g2 c6 4.d3 e6 advantage, and therefore I will only give a
5.h3 h5 6.g4 g6 7.e5 d7 8.xg6 few moves here and there, the narrative
hxg6 9.e3 d6 10.e2 f5 doesn't make much sense given that this is
[ 10...e7 is Morozevich-Rublevsky, also a blitz game, and the players evidently had
from this update. ] more or less no time left. ]
11.d2 gf6 12.e4 e7 13.b3 0-0-0 28...f7 29.g6 f5 30.a4+ d8?
[ 13...a5 14.exf5 gxf5 15.gxf5 e5 16.a4 ] [ 30...b5! 31.xa7+ c7 ]
14.d2 31.xa7?!
[ 14.g5 e5 15.0-0-0 f7 16.e3 ] [ 31.c6! e5 32.d5+ c7 33.xe5+
14...fxg4 xe5 34.xe5+- ]
[ 14...dxe4 15.dxe4 xe4 16.xe4 fxe4 31...c7 32.a8+ d7 33.a4+?!
17.xe4 ] [ 33.d1 d3 34.a4+ c8 35.c6!? ]
15.hxg4 xh1+ 16.xh1 h8 17.0-0-0 h2 33...d8??
18.d4 [ 33...b5! 34.a8 f1 ]
[ Morozevich decides to unbalance the game, 34.c4?!
though 18.g1!? f7 19.g2 [ 34.d4 c5+ 35.c3! g5+ 36.b1
is a perfectly good option ] xg6+ 37.a1+- ]
18...xe4 19.xe4 dxe4 20.xe4 xf2 34...d7?! 35.a4?!
21.xg6 f6 [ 35.xe6! xe6 36.d4+ c8 37.xf2+- ]
[ 21...f7= ] 35...xg6?!
22.e1 d7?! [ 35...f4!? ]
[ 22...g3 23.d3 d6 24.h1 f4= ] 36.d5+ e7?!
23.c4! b6 24.g5 [ 36...d6 37.b5+ c7 38.a5+- ]
[ 24.b1!? ] 37.d4 xd2
24...e8 [ 37...f6 38.b4+ f7 39.xe6 xe6
[ 24...g4 25.e4!? ( 25.d3 f7 26.c5 40.d7++- ]
c7 27.a6 f5 28.xa7 b5; 25.h5 38.xe6+
h2 26.d5 ) 25...h2 26.c5 g3 27.d5! 1-0

245
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
262 A07
Morozevich,Alexander 2755
Gelfand,Boris 2736
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (12) 21.11.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.d3 g4
5.bd2 bd7 6.h3
[ The normal move is 6.0-0 , but Morozevich
is angling for the game to enter the lines we
saw him play against Rublevsky and Bacrot.
However, Gelfand isn't as accommodating. ]
6...xf3 7.xf3 e5 8.0-0 e7
[ This line isn't seen particularly often and
White has previously succeeded in obtaining
the better chances against it. With that in
mind, it is somewhat surprising that Gelfand
doesn't opt for the standard prescription for
Black in this line, which is 8...c5
A) 9.xe5 xe5 10.d4 d6 11.dxe5
xe5 12.d3 0-0= Polugaevsky, L-Geller,
E/Moscow 1969/URS-ch;
B) 9.c4 dxc4 10.dxc4 e7 11.c2 0-0
12.e3 a5 13.b3 a4 14.b2 fe8 15.c3
b4= Quinteros, M-Milos, G/Moron 1982;
C) 9.b1 e7 10.a3 e4 11.dxe4 xe4
12.e3 0-0 13.c3 fe8 14.c2 b6
15.a4 a5 , and Black has a comfortable
game, Ljubojevic, L-Boersma, P/Antwerp
1997;
D) 9.h4!? 0-0 10.e4 e8 ( 10...dxe4
11.dxe4 ) 11.e2 b6 12.c3
Moser, E-Madl, I/Istanbul 2000, and now
13.f5 is pleasant for White;
E) 9.c3 White has tried several other
things at this juncture: 0-0 10.c2 ( 10.b4
b6 11.a4 a6 12.d2 e8 13.e4 f8
14.e2 d7 15.a5 a7 16.e1 ad8=
Petran, P-Westerinen, H/Cappelle 1988)
10...e8 11.e4 dxe4 12.dxe4 a5 13.a4
( 13.b3!? c7 14.a3 f8 15.b2 c5
16.fe1 a4 17.b4 Barcza, G-Bajec, I/
Ljubljana 1969) 13...f8 14.g5 h6
15.ad1 e7 16.c1 ad8 17.h4 c7
18.f5 g6 Cebalo, M-Arun Prasad, S/
Biel SUI 2007, and now 19.d2!? ]
[ 8...d6 9.h4 0-0 10.f5 Krojanski, H-
Langschmidt, D/Dortmund 1993 ]
9.h4!?
[ White has two perfectly acceptable
alternatives in: A) 9.c4 dxc4 10.dxc4 0-0
11.c2 e8 12.b3 c7 13.b2 f8
14.ad1 ( 14.fd1!? ) 14...a5 15.a3 c5
16.e3 f8 17.h4 c5 18.f5 , and White
is in charge of the game, Todorcevic, M-
Campora, D/Sevilla 1992 ]
[ B) 9.b3 0-0 10.c4 c7 11.c2 d4
12.b1 a5 13.a3 a7 14.e1
A) 14...c5 15.e4 ( 15.e3?! e4! );
B) 14...b5?! 15.e3 dxe3 16.xe3
1-0 Maksimovic, S-Batkovic, R/Novi Sad
1996 (32) ]
9...0-0 10.f5 e8 11.xe7+ xe7 12.e4
dxe4 13.dxe4 c5 14.e2 ad8 15.e3
[ 15.b3 e6 16.c3 c5 17.d2= ]
15...cxe4 16.xa7 c5
[ 16...b4!? ]
17.b6 a8 18.b3 a6 19.xc5 xc5
20.c4 a3 21.ad1 e4 22.fe1 h6 23.d2
a5 24.ed1 g6
[ 24...h5!? ]
25.c2 g7 26.dd2
[ 26.d2!? ]
26...e5 27.e3 ea8 28.b6 a1+
29.f1?!
[ 29.h2 h5 30.c5 3a5 31.e3 e5
is uncomfortable for W hite, but playable.
After the text move, Black is clearly better ]
29...xa2 30.xa2 xa2 31.xa2 xa2
32.xb7?
[ 32.b4 d2 33.g2 d1+ 34.f1 d2
35.b5 cxb5 36.cxb5 d7 ]
a5 32...e3 33.fxe3 e4 34.g2 f2+ 35.h1?
[ 35.h2 xg3+ 36.g1 xe3+ 37.h2
c3 is also pretty disgusting, but it's better
than allowing mate ]
35...e1+?
[ 35...xg3+ 36.h2 e2 mates ]
36.h2 xg3+ 37.g1 xe3+ 38.h2
c5
[ 38...c3! 39.a6 ( 39.xc6?? e2!-+ )
39...e2 40.a1+ h7 41.b1 c5
42.h1 c1 , and Black is winning ]
39.b6 e5+ 40.g1 d3?!
[ 40...g5!? 41.b4 d4+ 42.h2 f4+
43.h1 d3 leaves Black with good
winning chances ]
41.xc6 e3+ 42.h2 f4+ 43.g1 d4+
[ 43...e3+!? ]
44.h2 e5+ 45.g1 c5
[ 45...e3+!? ]
246
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
46.b6 e1+ 47.h2 e5+ 48.g1 e1+
½-½
263 A07
Morozevich,Alexander 2741
Harikrishna,Penteala 2673
World Cup ACP 1st rapid (1.3) 06.01.2007
[Nigel Davies]
1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.d3 g4
5.h3 h5 6.g4 g6 7.e5
[ Although this looks more 'aggressive' than
7.h4 it loses the option of a delayed
capture on g6 when Black attacks the knight
with 7...Nbd7. This in turn opens the h-file
early for Black and makes it easier for him
to know where to put the rest of his pieces. ]
7...bd7 8.xg6 hxg6 9.e3 e6 10.d2
It's not incredibly easy to develop the rest of
White's pieces after this.
[ So I prefer the development with 10.c3
followed by Bc1-d2 and Qd1-e2. ]
10...d6 11.e2
[ 11.b3 is another means of developing that
is worth thinking about. ]
11...a5 12.a3 a4 13.f4?! It looks logical to
take space like this though there are issues
about the safety of White's king.
[ Accordingly it might have been better to
play 13.f3 a f t e r w h i c h e5 14.d2
( 14.d2 b5 15.g5 g8 16.h4 e7
was quite comfortable for Black at this stage
in Labuckas, A (2317)-Butnorius, A (2402)/
Siauliai 2007 )]
13...e7 14.0-0 e5 15.f5 gxf5 16.xf5 g6
17.f2 e4?!
[ 17...h7 was probably a better idea,
getting ready to bring the knight to g5. ]
18.dxe4 xe4 19.xe4 dxe4 20.c4 f5!?
If followed up correctly this would have been
very strong. 21.gxf5 gxf5?!
[ 21...g3! is correct here as after 22.f1
gxf5 23.xf5 e5 24.xe4 0-0-0
Black's bishop is not blocking the d-file so
he's ready to play ... Rd1+. ]
22.xf5 0-0-0 23.xe4 e5 24.d2
xh3?? A blunder, probably induced by the
time limit in this game. 25.xe5!
[ And not 25.xh3 because of h2+ . ]
25...xe5 26.xh3+ b8 27.c3 g5+
28.g2 Black is a piece down for zero
co m p e n sa t io n so t h e re st re qu ir e s li t t l e
comment. g6 29.f1 h5 30.f3 h6
31.g3+ a8 32.d4 h4 33.f2 xg2
34.xg2 e6 35.g5 e8 36.a5+ b8
37.a7+ c7 38.xa4 f5 39.g7+ d6
40.b4+ e6 41.xb7 d5 42.f7+
1-0
264 A07
Morozevich,Alexander 2755
Karpov,Anatoly 2670
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (10) 21.11.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.d3 f5
5.bd2 h6 6.0-0 e6 7.e1 h7 8.e4 e7
9.e5
[ The alternatives are 9.e2 ]
[ and 9.b3 ]
9...a6
[ A new move in this position! The usual
continuation is 9...bd7 10.xd7 xd7
11.f4
A) 11...dxe4 12.dxe4 0-0 ( 12...c5
13.b3 0-0 14.e2 xb3 15.axb3
d4+= Gasthofer, A-Scherer, H/GER
2002 )
A1) 13.b3 a5
A1a) 14.a4 b4 ( 14...c5!? ) 15.c3
c5+ 16.xc5 xc5 17.e3 d7
18.d1 Branca, R-Roldan, A/IECG
Email 1999;
A1b) 14.e3 a4 15.d2 c5 16.d1
e7 17.f2 xe3 18.xe3 b4
19.b3 axb3 20.axb3 c5 21.c4
xe3+ 22.xe3 Anastasian, A-Shen
Yang/Beer Sheva 2005;
A2) 13.h1
A2a) 13...a5 14.g4 f5?! ( 14...a4!? )
15.gxf5 exf5 16.e5 c5 17.f3 e6
18.e3 e8 19.g1 Aronian, L-
Delgado Crespo, M/Linares 2000;
A2b) 13...e8 14.g4 e5 ( 14...c7
15.b3 ad8 16.d2 b6 17.a5
B u e s e , R - P o p o vi c , A / I E C C E m a i l
2000 ) 15.f5 g5 16.f3 xc1
17.xc1 h8 18.h4 f6 19.g5
with a good initiative for W hite,
Bakhtiari, K-Vahidi, M/Mashad IRI
247
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
2003;
A2c) 13...c5 14.e3 ( 14.g4!?;
14.e2 a5 15.c4 b5 16.e5 c7
17.d3 xd3 18.cxd3 c5 19.e3
ac8= Vaganian, R-Karpov, A/Moscow
1993 ) 14...d7 15.a4 fd8 16.b3
xb3 17.xb3 c5 18.g4 e7
19.f5 Vaganian, R-Dominguez, L/
Poikovsky RUS 2005;
B) 11...a5 12.h1 0-0 13.e2 ae8
14.g4 dxe4 15.dxe4 h8 16.b3 b5
17.c4 , and White has the game under
control, Zhang Zhong-Yutuc, R/Manila PHI
2006;
C) 11...0-0 12.h1 ( 12.e2 a5 13.h1
a4! 14.f5 dxe4 15.dxe4 exf5 16.exf5
e8 seems very pleasant for Black, Nasir
Ali, S-Hartston, W/Delhi 1982 )
C1) 12...c5 13.g4 a5 14.a4 e8
15.g3 dxe4 16.xe4 xe4 17.xe4
f6 18.g2 Vaganian, R-Short, N/
Luzern 1985;
C2) 12...e8 13.g4 ( 13.e2
14.a4!? c7 15.b3 b5 16.b2 b6
17.g4 with an unpleasant attack,
S c h u l z e , U - L a m b e r t , A / c o r r 1 9 9 8)
13...a5 14.a4 dxe4 15.xe4 ( 15.dxe4
b4 16.e2 h4 17.c4
looks better for Black, Dunhaupt, H-
Vukcevic, B/corr 1988) 15...f5 16.g3
c5 17.d1 f6 18.g5 g4 19.f3
hxg5 20.fxg5 e5 21.f4 , and here a
d r a w wa s a g r e e d u p o n , 1 / 2 - 1 / 2 , i n
Markowski, T-Haba, P/Germany 2002,
though obviously there is plenty of play
l e f t i n t h e p o s i t i o n , e . g . w i t h d6!?
followed by ...Ng4;
C3) 12...h8 13.g4 dxe4 14.xe4 f5
15.g3 g8 16.e2 fxg4 17.xg4
f6 18.h3 d5 19.d2 d6 20.h5
, and W hite has the upper hand,
Vaganian, R-Thorhallsson, T/New York
1997;
C4) 12...a5 13.g4 ( 13.f5!? is an old
suggestion by Vaganian, but it has yet to
tried. ) 13...a4?! ( 13...b5!? has also
been suggested by Vaganian )
C4a) 14.a3 h8 ( 14...h4 15.e2
dxe4?! 16.dxe4 c5 17.c4 b5
18.e5 c7 19.g5 , and White's
attack on the kingside is gaining
momentum, Vaganian, R-Comp
Centaur/The Hague1996; 14...dxe4
15.dxe4 c5 16.e3 f5 17.gxf5
exf5 18.e5 Junge, K-Buhr, C/
Germany 1993) 15.f5 exf5 16.gxf5
dxe4 17.xe4 f6 18.d2 xe4
19.xe4 f6 20.c3 e8 21.g3
xc3 22.bxc3 , and White has
somewhat the b ette r cha nces , bu t
Black's position is solid and with only
few weaknesses, Vaganian, R-
Riazantsev, A/Canada de Calatrava
ESP 2006;
C4b) 14.f5 a3 15.b3 e8 16.b1
exf5 17.gxf5 a5 18.exd5 cxd5
19.g3 b4 20.f3 Vaganian, R-
Sveshnikov, E/ Sochi 1980 ]
[ Then there is 9...0-0 10.f4 a6 11.h1
e8 12.g4 d7 13.xd7 xd7 14.f3 c5
15.g5 hxg5 16.fxg5 d6 17.h4 b4
18.d1 e5 19.d2 ( 19.c3! c6 20.exd5
exd5 21.g6! fxg6 22.g5! )
a5 A) 19...dxe4! 20.d4! c7 21.dxc5 d5
( 21...a6 22.e3 d5 23.g4 )
22.h5 ( 22.xb4?? e5-+ );
B) 19...c6 20.exd5 exd5 21.h5 ad8
22.xf7 xf7 23.g6 xg6 24.xg6 e6
f6 25.g5 d6 26.f1 xg6 27.xd5+
xd5 28.xg6 dd8 29.f7+ h8
30.f3 1-0 Vaganian, R-Van der Vorm, T/
Holland 1996 ]
[ Yet another alternative is 9...c5 10.f4 c6
11.xc6 bxc6 12.h1 a5 13.e2 a4
14.a3 c7 15.g4 with a complicated game
where White has the better chances thanks
to his kingside potential and Black's
somewhat rigid pawn structure, Aronian, L-
Plaskett, J/Hastings 2001 ]
10.e2 b4?!
[ What is this? Karpov must not have thought
t h i s i d e a t h r o u g h . N o r m a l i s 10...0-0
with chances to both sides. ]
11.c3 a6 Hmmm... 12.d4 0-0 13.xc6
bxc6 14.xa6 dxe4 15.xc6 d5
16.a6 e5 17.b3 exd4 18.xd4 c5
19.e3
[ 19.d1!? ]
19...g4 20.ad1 h5 21.h3 xe3
22.fxe3 g5 23.f4?
[ After this move, Black is back in the game
a g a i n . I n s t e a d 23.h2 b6 24.f4
248
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

is clearly better for White ] A2) 11.e2 e7 12.c4 b6 13.a3
23...xg3 24.e2 ad8 25.g4 e5 dxc4 14.dxc4 d8 15.g5 fd7 16.h4
26.f1 d6 a5= Fuller, M-Greenfeld, A/London
[ 26...f5 27.c6 d5 28.xd8 fxg4 1984;
29.d1 g5 ] B) 9.c4 also fails to frighten, e.g. c5
27.c4?! ( 9...d4 10.a3 a5 11.b3 d6 12.f1
[ 27.b4 b6 28.f2 g6 is messy and the g8 13.xg6 hxg6 14.g3 gf6=
label 'unclear' fits well here ] Likavsky, T-Hracek, Z/Trencianske Teplice
27...b6?! 2002 ) 10.xg6 hxg6 11.e3 0-0 12.0-0
[ 27...d7!? 28.ff4 h5 ] d4 13.exd4 xd4 14.f3 b6=
28.gf4 g6 Bradford, J-Georgiev, K/ Catalan Bay ENG
[ 28...d7!? ] 2007;
29.h1 g5 C) 9.e3
[ 29...h8!? ] C1) 9...c5
30.f5 d2 31.g4 h5?? C1a) 10.a3 a5 11.b3 ( 11.xg6
[ 31...xf5! 32.xf5 xf5 33.g3 e6 hxg6 12.g5 h7 13.h4 hf8 14.c4
, and Blac k is by no means worse. In the d4 15.e4 e6 Garcia Luque, A-
game, however, Black dies promptly after K o n o n e n k o , T / S e v i l l a E S P 2 0 0 6)
this blunder ] 11...f8 12.xg6 hxg6 13.b2 e7
32.e7+ h7 33.xg6 14.g5 6d7 15.h4 e6 16.g4
1-0 d6= Michalek, J-Pokorna, R/Czech
Rep CZE 2003;
C1b) 10.e2 f8 11.xg6 hxg6
265 A07 12.f3 e4 13.dxe4 xe4 14.d2
Morozevich,Alexander 2755 f6 15.b3 b4+ 16.c3 d6
Kramnik,Vladimir 2785 17.d2 e6 18.c4 Abramovic, B-
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (6) 21.11.2007 Karpman, V/Belgrade 1992;
[Carsten Hansen] C2) 9...g8 10.xg6 hxg6 11.0-0
gf6 12.c4 dxc4 13.xc4 e7
1.f3 d5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g4 4.d3 d7 14.e2 c7 15.d2 0-0 Giffard, N-
5.bd2 gf6 6.h3 h5 7.g4 g6 8.h4 Lacrosse, M/Paris 1993, and here
e6 White's best is 16.ac1;
[ Black has a serious alternative in 8...e5 C3) 9...d6
, and now: C3a) 10.0-0 g8 ( 10...0-0 11.b3
A) 9.xg6 is harmless for Black, even if in c7 12.b2 ad8 13.e2 c5
accordance with White's game plan: hxg6 Quinteros, M-Servat, R/Villa Martelli
10.e3 ( 10.e4?! dxe4 11.xe4 xe4 1997 ) 11.xg6 ( 11.f5 xf5
12.dxe4 c5 13.e2 b6 14.c3 a5 12.gxf5 e7 13.e4 g6 14.fxg6
, and Black has the more comf ortable was played in Thiede, L-Houska, J/
game, Knudsen, J-Nilsson, N/Copenhagen Kreuzberg GER 2004, and now Black
1987; 10.c4 a5 11.f1 dxc4 12.xc4 should have opted for hxg6!? 15.exd5
c7 13.d2 c5 14.b4 e7 15.c1 cxd5 16.c4 b6 ) 11...hxg6 12.c4
0-0 16.b3 ad8 Labuckas, A- e7 13.b3 c5 14.d4 exd4 15.exd4
Rapoport, I/Polanica Zdroj 1996 ) 10...d6 e6 16.f3 f4 17.xf4 xf4
A1) 11.b3 e7! ( 11...c5?! 12.b2 18.e1 0-0 , Hickl, J-Blauert, J/Bad
e7 13.e2 0-0 14.h4 e6 15.g5 Neuenahr 1989, 19.d3 g5=;
Brkljaca, A-Jakovljevic, V/Niska Banja C3b) 10.b3 e7 11.b2 0-0 12.a3
1996 ) 12.a3?! ( 12.b2!? ) 12...0-0-0 h6 13.e4 c5 14.f5 c7 15.xd6
13.e2 b8 14.b2 g5 15.c4 dxc4 xd6= Bukhman, E-Arbakov, V/
16.xc4 c5 Bonin, J-Yudasin, L/ Warsaw 1992;
New York USA 2004; C3c) 10.e2 e7 ( 10...g8 11.f5

249
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

xf5 12.gxf5 f6 13.e4 d4 [ After this Black takes control over the game
D'Amore, C-Uribe, M/Bled 2002, and and doesn't ever really let go of it again.
now 14.c3!? promises White a good I n st e a d W h it e sh o u ld t r y 14.c4!? g5
game ) 11.a3 c5 ( 11...b6!? 12.c4 15.b3 h5 16.d4 f8 17.cxd5 xd5
0-0-0 13.b3 dxc4 14.dxc4 c7 18.fxg5 hxg4 19.xg4 ]
15.xg6 hxg6 16.b2 fd7 14...e5 15.h4 exf4 16.exf4 he8
Kritz, L-E rdos, V/Dif f e rdange LUX [ 16...c5+!? ]
2007 ) 12.b3 fd7 13.xg6 hxg6 17.f2 c5 18.d4 b6 19.b4
14.b2 f5 15.g1 0-0-0 16.gxf5 gxf5 [ 19.xg6 e4 20.xe4 xe4 21.e3
17.f1 e6 Bilek, I-Varga, P/ de8 22.fe1 d6 23.e5 g5 ]
Budapest 1995; 19...e4 20.xe4 xe4 21.c3 de8
C3d) 10.f1 g8 11.xg6 hxg6 22.xg6 c5!?
12.b3 a5 13.a3 gf6 14.b2 e7 [ 22...e2!? 23.f3 c2 24.a4 d6
15.e2 0-0= Arencibia, W-Pigusov, E/ 25.e5 xe5 26.fxe5 xe5 27.f4 f6 ]
Havana 1985 ] 23.bxc5 xc5 24.f3 a4 25.d2 xc3
9.e3 26.xc3?!
[ The alternatives are: A) 9.df3 d6 [ 26.h1 xd4 27.ac1 e3 ]
10.xg6 hxg6 11.e3 c7 12.e2 e5 26...e3 27.xd5 xc3 28.ae1
13.g5 ed7 14.d2 b6 15.c3 b4= [ 28.ad1!? ]
Roselli, B-Donatti, A/URU 1994 ] 28...d8 29.f5+
[ B) 9.xg6 hxg6 10.e4 c5 11.e2 c7 [ 29.g2 xd4+ 30.h2 e3 31.e4
12.b3 dxe4 13.dxe4 d6 14.e3 f4 d2+ 32.h1 c5 is also pretty
15.0-0-0 g5 16.b1 xe3 17.xe3 f4 devastating ]
18.xf4 gxf4 , Aijala, J-Maidla, V/Lahti 29...b8 30.h2 xd4
1998, 19.g5 h7 20.h4= ] [ Black can probably do better with 30...c2+
[ C) 9.e4?! e7 10.xg6 hxg6 11.e2 31.h1 c3 32.e5+ a8 33.e3 b2
c7 12.c3?! ( 12.b3= ) 12...0-0-0 , and W hite's position doesn't inspire
Brudzinski, M-Przybyla, K/Grodzisk confidence of a successful defence. ]
Mazowiecki POL 2007, 13.d4 e5 ] 31.e2 a6 32.fe1 a7 33.e4 b6
9...d6 34.e5?
[ The alternatives are: A) 9...g8!? 10.xg6 [ 34.g2 is relatively best though after dd3
hxg6 11.e2 d6 12.b3 f6 13.d4 g5 White's position is in shambles ]
14.b2 e7 15.0-0-0 ( 15.e4 f4 ) 34...d4 35.f5 g5 36.fxg5 dd3 37.g2
15...g6 16.f3 e7= Quinteros, M- g3+ 38.f1 g1#
Giorgadze, T/Hannover 1983 ] 0-1
[ B) 9...e7 10.e2 c7 11.df3 0-0-0
12.d2 c5 13.0-0-0 b6 14.xg6 hxg6
15.e1 a6 16.b1 Panno, O-Letelier 266 A07
Martner, R/Casilda 1984 ] Morozevich,Alexander 2755
10.e2 c7!? Rublevsky,Sergei 2676
[ 10...e7 11.df3 0-0 12.d2 fe8 World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (26) 22.11.2007
13.xg6 hxg6 14.g5 c5 15.h4 fd7 [Carsten Hansen]
16.e4 f6 Panno, O-Ricardi, P/Buenos
Aires 1985, and now 17.c3 leaves White 1.f3 d5 2.g3 g4 3.g2
with a comfortable edge ] [ 3.e5!? is discussed in Romanishin-
11.0-0 Sulypa, Lvov 2001, which can be found in
[ 11.b3 f8 12.b2 e5 13.0-0-0 0-0-0 the PGN archives ]
14.g5 6d7 15.f4 exf4 16.xg7 g8 3...d7 4.d3
17.b2 e6 18.xg6 fxg6 Hemming, C- [ Here White also has alternatives to choose
Malbon, P/ corr 1999 ] b e t w e e n . F i r s t 4.c4 which has bee n
11...0-0-0 12.f4 h6 13.xg6 fxg6 14.f3?! discussed in Pigusov-Zhang Pengxiang,

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Moscow 2001 and Markowski-Aleksandrov, 15.exd4 xd4 , Dannevig, O-Haugli, P/

Saint Vincent 2000, and ] Norway 1993 16.e1+ ]
[ 4.0-0 which was recently covered in [ C) 9.c3 d6 10.d2 e7 ( 10...gf6
Movsesian-Komarov, Clichy 2007 - all of the 11.f3 e7 12.g5 e5 13.e3 0-0-0
just mentioned games can be located in 14.c2 c5 , Rety, J-Crouch, C/Newport
PGN archives. The text move looks less 2001, and no w 15.0-0-0 is about equal)
ambitiou s an d ha s no t previo usly bee n 11.f3 c7 12.c2 0-0-0 13.d2 f6
covered here at Chesspublishing.com, but 14.0-0-0 e5= Bognar, C-Rabovszky, G/
Morozevich soon lights a fire... ] Aggtelek 1995 ]
4...c6 5.h3 h5 9...d6 10.e2 e7
[ 5...xf3 can also be considered ] [ 10...f5 was played in Morozevich-Bacrot,
6.g4!? This was Morozevich's idea: to also covered in this update. ]
eliminate Black's light-squared bishop. g6 11.d2 g5
7.h4 e6 [ Computer suggestions in this type of
[ 7...e5 8.xg6 hxg6 position are often rather peculiar moves, but
A) 9.c3 d6 10.e4 d4 11.e2 c5 here I think my computer may actually be on
12.d2 f8 13.c3 e6 14.a4+ d7 to something with its suggestion of
15.xd7+ xd7= Arce Balluerca, J- 11...a5!? , which prevents White's
Iruzubieta Villaluenga, J/Euskadi 1999; continuation in the game, so White may be
B) 9.c4 dxc4 10.dxc4 f5 ( 10...c5 forced to go other ways, e.g. 12.a3 ( 12.b3?
11.c3 b6 12.e3 ) 11.c3 h6 c3-+; 12.c3 c5 ) 12...0-0-0 13.b1 b8
12.e3 c5 13.d2 f7 14.0-0-0 xe3 14.b4 a4 15.c4 with chances to both
15.xe3 e7 , Socko, B-Yagupov, I/ sides ]
Moscow 2002, and now 16.b1; 12.f3 g6 13.d2 de5 14.0-0-0
C) 9.e3 d6 10.b3 e7 11.b2 g5 [ Or 14.xe5 xe5 15.0-0-0 f6 16.d4
12.c4 g6 ( 12...a5+ 13.d2 g6!? ) c7 ]
13.cxd5 h4 14.0-0 xg2 15.xg2 14...f6
cxd5 16.f3 b6 17.c3 Hodgson, J- [ Here 14...xf3!? 15.xf3 f6 16.c3 e5
Lputian, S/Yerevan 1986 ] is fine for Black ]
8.xg6 hxg6 9.e3 15.c3
[ A novelty. White has a few alternatives, [ 15.xg5 xg5 16.f4 e7 17.fxe5 xe5
though none are particularly frightening for 18.e4 d4 , and Black is doing fine ]
Black: A) 9.c4 15...xf3??
A) 9...c5 10.cxd5 ( 10.d4!? b4+ [ A scary blunder, probably still registering
11.d2 b6 ) 10...cxd5 11.a3 e7 the white king on e1. Black's perfectly good
12.d4 b6 13.c3 c6 14.e3 a l t e r n a t i ve i s 15...0-0-0 16.hf1 b8
, and a draw was agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, 17.d4 ( 17.xe5 xe5 18.d4 c7
in Jasnikowski, Z-Kuczynski, R/ 19.b4 h4 is pleasant for Black) 17...e7
Czest ocho wa 1 992, tho ugh of c ourse 18.d2 d7 19.f4 ]
the re is st ill plen ty o f play lef t in t his 16.xf6
position. Objectively speaking, however, 1-0
the chances are probably fairly level.;
B) 9...b6!? 10.c3 d6 11.cxd5 cxd5
12.e4?! ( 12.d2= ) 12...d4 13.e2 b4+ 267 A07
14.f1?! e7 15.f4 e5 16.f5 a6 Movsesian,Sergei 2647
, and although White's position is a bit of Acs,Peter 2548
toilet at this stage, he still managed to pull FIDE WCh KO Tripoli LBA (2.5) 22.06.2004
a win out of the hat in Socko, B-Quinn, M/ [Tony Kosten]
Cork IRL 2005 ]
[ B) 9.f4 b6 10.c1 c5 11.e3 a5 1.g3 d5 2.f3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 g4
12.0-0 e5 13.g3 f5 14.d4!? exd4 5.d3 e6 6.bd2 e7 7.h3 h5 8.e4

251
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

This Reti has taken on the contours of a is clearly better for Black) 20...e7 21.g2
King's Indian Attack (which often happens d8 22.xa8 xa8 23.e4 xe4
when W hite refrains from an early c4), and 24.dxe4 xe4 with good comp. ]
the question is whether it is an advantage for 19.h5 h7 20.ac1 c7 The knight heads
Black to have his light-squared bishop outside for d5. 21.g5 White's kingside initiative is
his pawn chain, or whether this piece will becoming serious. d5?
become a target. 0-0 9.e1 White normally [ 21...hxg5 22.xg5 threatens to take on c5,
prefers but Black might be able to play f6!? ]
[ 9.e2 keeping the rook on the f-file to aid a 22.g2! xa2 23.xc5? Fancy, but
later f4. ] [ 23.xd4! looks strong, e.g. xd3 24.g6
9...bd7 10.e5 Immediately gaining space, winning material. ]
[ 10.c3 a5 11.g4 g6 12.h4 keeps this 23...xc5 24.gxh6 d5 25.hxg7
option for later, and plans f4-f5, Belenov,D- W hite has completely destroyed the black
Melkonyan,L/Voronezh RUS 2001. ] kingside. fc8 26.h6?! b4
10...e8 11.f1 A typical move in these Perhaps White hadn't noticed that he would
positions, the knight heads for the kingside, be forced to concede a second exchange.
and opens the c1-bishop's diagonal so that 27.g5 xe1 28.xe1 b1 Black should
the e-pawn can be protected by Bf4. c5!? be winning here, but in rapid chess anything
Quite logical now that there is no pressure on can happen... 29.d2 The knight had to be
d5, in their previous game Acs preferred defended. a5
[ 11...c7 12.f4 f6!? ( 12...g5!? 13.d2 [ 29...xd3! ]
f6 14.g4 g6 is a bit risky, Junge,K-Orso,M/ 30.h2 a4 31.e4 a3 Black is still attacking
Eger 1987; but 12...xf3!? 13.xf3 g5 on the queenside! Normally he would try to kill
is wo rt h t ryin g) 13.exf6 xf6 14.d4 the attacking pieces by
fixing the e6-weakness, e5!? or does it? [ 31...xe4! 32.xe4 but after a3 33.bxa3
15.dxe5 e7 16.d2 e6 with some xa3 34.f3 a2 he probably saw that the
compensation for the pawn, but not quite shot 35.g5 was possible, threatening
enough, Movsesian,S-Acs,P/ Tripoli LBA mate on h7, however, after the forced f5
2004. ] 36.exf6 xf6 37.f4 xf2+! 38.xf2 c2
12.f4 Black wins easily. ]
[ 12.1h2 c8 13.d2 c7 14.c1 b5 32.bxa3 xa3 33.d6 Now White has
15.g5 was nothing for White in Prosch,C- serious chances again. c1?? A horrific
Baer,A/Hamburg 1999. ] blunder, undoubtedly due to time pressure,
12...b5 13.g4 g6 14.d2 c4 [ 33...a2! 34.g5 ca8 35.xd5
Black's queenside counterplay is very quick. looks nasty f or Black, but there is xf2+
15.g3 cxd3 16.cxd3 c5 Forcing White to ( 35...exd5? 36.e7 threatens mate on f7
defend the d-pawn. 17.f1 d4!? A double- and f8, and wins) 36.h3 f5+ 37.xf5
edged move fixing the d3-pawn, but opening xf5 and Black seems to be on top. This line
the long diagonal. is n o t e a s y t o s e e in a q u i c k g a m e , o f
[ 17...a5 was another option, continuing to course. ]
advance in the sector where Black is 34.xc1 xc1 35.xc1 a1 36.d2 d1
strongest. ] 37.a5
18.h4 White also attacks where he has the [ 37.h6!! xd2 38.xd5 exd5 39.c8
m a j o r i t y o f h i s p i e c e s , o f c o u r s e . h6!? would be the neat way to finish the game. ]
This weakens the kingside, but 37...b4 38.xd5 xe1 39.c4?
[ 18...xh4!? 19.xh4 xh4 20.g5 [ 39.f3 protects the h-pawn. ]
cuts th e quee n o f f f rom he r b ase , xg4 39...xe5 40.xb4 xh5+ 41.g2 xg7
21.e2 h3 22.e7 d7 23.f4 Black almost has some chances to save the
and Black is in some difficulty. ] game with rook and pawn against two pieces.
[ 18...d5! might be best, 19.h2 xh4 42.b5 e5 43.d6 g5+ 44.f1 g6
20.ac1 ( 20.g2? d8 21.xa8 xa8 45.e8+ h7 46.e7 f5 47.d5 e4?

252
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
The last mistake.
[ 47...f4 hits d3, when White's winning
c h a n c e s a r e s e ve r e l y r e d u c e d : 48.e2 16.xb4 c5?!
h5+ 49.f3 g6 50.c7 f6 and everything
is defended. ]
48.dxe4 e5 Black skewers the two minor
pieces, but there is a simple defence. 49.f6+
g7 50.d8 d3 51.f4 The rook has no
squares. d2 52.e2 xe4 53.fxe5
1-0
268
Movsesian,Sergei
Komarov,Dimitri
French Team Ch (8) 31.05.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 g4 3.g2 d7 4.0-0 c6
5.d3 e5 6.h3 h5 7.e4 dxe4 8.dxe4 c5 20.f1! xf1
9.bd2 e7
[ Or 9...f6 10.c3 f7 11.h4 e7 12.f5
xf5 13.exf5 e7 14.e4 c5 15.g4
R.Dzindzichashvili-Qi Jingxuan, Thessaloniki
OL 1984 ]
10.c4 c7 11.e1
[ Also 11.d2 is interesting, e.g. f6 12.b4
b6 13.a4 a6 14.a5 a7 15.e3 xe3
16.d6+ f8 17.fxe3 xf3 18.xf3 d8 21.xf1 f7 22.e3
19.f2 A.Minasian-J.Smeets, Antalya
2004 ]
11...f6 12.b4 b6 13.a4 f7
[ Or 13...a6 14.xb6 ( 14.d2 0-0 15.a5
a7 16.b2 ) 14...xb6 15.a5 d7
16.e3 0-0 17.c3 ]
14.c3 a5!? 15.d1!? axb4?!
[ The text move just hands over the initiative
and the better chances to White without a
real struggle. Also not too impressive is the
move that has been previously tried by Black
in this position: 15...xc4?! 16.xc4 axb4 24...a8
17.xb4 a5 18.b3 0-0-0?! ( 18...b6 27.b7+ e6?
19.b1 a7 20.a3 c5 21.xc5 xc5
22.xb7 xb7 23.xb7 ) 19.e3+- g6
20.ab1 he8 21.c3! gf8 ( 21...df8
22.d2 e7 23.f3 b8 24.g4 d3
25.c4 xc3 26.a2+- ) 22.d2 e6
23.c4 dc5 24.a3 d3
1-0 Stefanova, A-Sedina, E/Leon 200102 ]
[ P o s s i b l y b e s t i s t h e u n t r i e d 15...c8!?
16.bxa5 ( 16.f1!? g6 17.xb6 xb6 28.c7 a6 29.h4 d4 30.f8 g6 31.g4!
18.d3 c7 19.c3 ) 16...xa5 17.xa5
xa5 18.e3 e6 19.d2! 0-0 20.b3 ]
[ I'm not sure I understand what Black
missed when playing this move because he
loses a pawn without too much calculation.
The alternative is also better for White, but
it is u nd o u b t e dly b e t t er t h a n t h e ga m e
continuation: 16...c8 17.a5 a7 18.h4
e6 19.f5 f7 20.b1 b5 21.axb6
xb6 22.xb6 xb6 23.e3 xb4
24.xb4 d8 25.b7 g6 26.h6+ e7
A07 27.c7 , and White is slowly but surely
2642 snaking his way into Black's position, and
2539 W hite's con stricting p ieces are makin g
their presence felt right about now. ]
17.xd7 xb4 18.xc7 xc4 19.xb7 c5?!
[ 19...c5!? is a better choice, e.g. 20.f1
e6 21.a3 xa3 22.xa3 f7 23.a5 ]
[ While the exchange of bishops isn't exactly
what Black needs when considering
potential counterplay, but avoiding it creates
o t h e r p ro b l e m s , e . g . 20...e6 21.d2
( 21.a3!? c8 22.b6 xa3 23.xa3
sh o u ld win f or W hit e wit ho u t t o o m u c h
effort ) 21...c8 22.b6 xd2 23.xd2
d7 24.b5 , and White is winning ]
[ 22.d2!? ]
22...hb8 23.xb8 xb8 24.b1
[ This is the simplest way to proceed: White
activates his pieces and starts his attack on
Black's king and kingside. The alternative is
24.a5 although the win will undoubtedly
b e c o m e m u c h m o r e p r o b l e m a t i c . c8
25.d2 xd2 26.xd2 b2 27.a6 a7
28.b1 xb1+ 29.xb1 e7 30.c4 d6
31.c3 c7 32.a4 c6 33.e2
, and White will win in the long run ]
25.c3! xc3 26.xc5 c6
[ This move looks active, but lets the king
walk into a mating trap just waiting to be
sprung. However, the alternative isn't all
h a p p y d a y s e i t h e r : 27...g8 28.c7
( 28.b3 a5 29.e2 d8 30.a3 )
25.f1 28...a6 29.e2 b4 30.e3 g6 31.g4
a5 32.c8+ f7 33.d3 e7 34.b8
c6 35.g5+- ]
253
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
The final nail in Black's coffin by adding the
last element in the mating net White has been
weaving over the last few moves. White wants
to play 32 Nf5, since 32...gxf5 33 gxf5+ is
also mate, and if Black doesn't take the knight,
then 33 Ng7 will be mate! f5 32.xf5! gxf5
33.gxf5+ f6 34.h4! Next follows Bg7 mate,
unless Black gives up knight and with ends up
no less than three pawns down. Therefore,
Black's choice is obvious...
1-0
269 A07
Nakamura,Hikaru 2778
Solak,Dragan 2599
40th Olympiad Open (7.7) 04.09.2012
[John Bartholomew]
A sleepy King's Indian Attack is a deadly
weapon in Hikaru Nakamura's hands! 1.g3
On us ch es s.o rg, Na kam ura is qu ot ed a s
saying "I felt like my opponent played just
about everything under the sun. I just wanted
a slow position. I didn't feel like spending six
or s eve n ho u rs lo o kin g a t e ve ryt h ing. I n
general I try never to study [that long]. It's
very counterproductive." Indeed, the Réti is a
go o d c h o ic e f o r a p la ye r o f Na k a m u r a ' s
temperament and versatility. White aims for
less theoretical positions where a superior
feel for the position is often the biggest factor.
d5 2.f3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.d3 f5 5.0-0 e6
Though this is the most popular move, it does
give White the opportunity to hunt down the
bishop pair.
[ 5...h6 would be my personal choice. Fairly
s t a n d a r d i s 6.bd2 ( White tried to spice
things up a bit with 6.c4 dxc4 7.e5!?
in Markowski, T (2610)-Burmakin, V (2605)/
Benidorm ESP 2009/[JR].) 6...h7 7.e1
e6 8.e4 e7 . See Morozevich, A (2755) -
K a rp o v , A (2 6 7 0 ) / Mo sc o w R US 2 0 0 7 /
[Hansen, Carsten]. ]
6.h4
[ An alternative is 6.fd2!? , trying for both
e2 -e 4 a nd f 2 -f 4 . Ch e ck o u t Ka m sky, G
(2720) -Aronian, L (2754)/Nalchik RUS 2009/
[JR]. ]
6...g6 I think White can count on a slightly
more pleasant position after this retreat.
[ More combative is 6...g4!? , forcing White
to work harder for the bishop. For example,
7.h3 h5
A) On 8.g4 , fd7! is a timely retreat
worth remembering, e.g. 9.f3 g6
10.f4 ( 10.c3 d6 11.e4 0-0 12.e2
c7 13.h4 dxe4 14.xe4 xe4
15.xe4 c5 16.g2 h2+ 17.h1 f4
1/2-1/2 Nikolic, Z (2485)-Todorovic, G
(2455)/Becici 1994.) 10...e7 ( 10...f6?!
11.c1 e5 12.g3 c5 13.c4!
Socko, B (2497)-Midoux, S (2225)/
Cappelle la Grande 1999.) 11.bd2 0-0
12.c4 a5 13.e1 a6 14.c1 b6
15.c2 fe8= Nguyen Duc Hoa (2452) -
Barbosa, O (2514)/Kuala Lumpur MAS
2011.;
B) 8.e1 e7 9.e4 ( 9.f4!? a6 10.e4
d7 11.exd5 cxd5 12.f5 Karasev, V
(2347)-Tunik, G (2442)/St Petersburg
2000. ) 9...fd7 10.f3 0-0 11.c3 e8
12.g4 g6 13.f4 a5 14.a3 a6
15.e2 ac5 16.h1 a4 Movsziszian,
K ( 2 4 9 3 ) - C r u z, F ( 2 4 0 6 ) / S i t g e s E S P
2011. ]
7.xg6 hxg6 8.d2 bd7 9.e4
[ Leading with the c-pawn is possible, too:
9.c4 e7 10.b3 0-0 11.b2 a5 12.a3 b5
13.c2 b6 14.fc1 Dizdarevic, E (2481)-
Radovic, V (2147)/Zupanja CRO 2011. A
characteristic Réti position where White's
bish o ps will be o f va lu e u po n e ve n tu a l
pawn exchanges. ]
9...dxe4
[ 9...d6 10.c3 0-0 11.e2 c7 12.f4!?
dxe4 13.dxe4 e5 14.f5 gxf5 15.xf5 fe8
16.c4 f8 17.g5 h7 18.d2 b5
19.e3 ad8 20.af1 Ivanov, M (2443)-
Semcesen, D (2195)/Skovlunde 2006. ]
10.dxe4
[ 10.xe4 is also good for an edge, i.e.
xe4 11.xe4 d6 12.g2 , Markowski,
T (2549) -Langheinrich, F (2363)/Germany
2002. I find Nakamura's recapture to be
more promising, especially in view of the
coming plan with h3-h4 and Bg2-h3, seeking
a new horizon for the bishop. ]
10...e5 11.e2 c5 12.f3 c7 13.h4 0-0
14.h3 fe8 15.g2 f8 16.g5 ad8
Outwardly, Black's position is fine. He is well-
centralized and White's bishop pair hasn't yet
254
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
made an impact. The problem is that Solak
has virtually no targets to attack, and
Nakamura has the luxury of probing on either
flank. Notice that W hite has even refrained
from the typical move c2-c3, which might
allow Black a chance to infiltrate on the d3
square. 17.a3 e7 18.d2 8h7 19.ae1
xg5 20.xg5 c7? This gets Black into
trouble.
[ Better is 20...d6! , overprotecting f6 and
slowing down White's kingside initiative. ]
21.h5! gxh5 22.xf6 gxf6 23.f5 f8
24.h1 e7 25.xh5 h8 26.g4!
[ Most players would probably choose
26.eh1 here, but Nakamura isn't like most
players (or ANY player, for that matter)! ]
26...dg8?! This doesn't accomplish much.
[ Black should probably attempt something
on the queenside, e.g. 26...b5!? . ]
[ Not 26...xh5?! 27.gxh5 . ]
27.f3! The king feels perfectly safe here.
d8 28.eh1 hf8 Black cedes the h-file,
and punishment is swiftly forthcoming. 29.h7
a5?
[ Keeping the queen out of c4 with 29...b5
was now almost mandatory. ]
30.c4+- b5 Overlooking White's threat,
but Black is lost anyways.
[ 30...d6 31.g6 d8 32.xf7 xf7
33.xf7+- ]
31.e6# A tidy Epaulette mate to end things!
W hite's play in this game was remarkably
easy after he secured the bishop pair. My
belief is that Black should either play 6....
Bg4!? or avoid Nh4xg6 altogether with 5...h6.
1-0
270 A07
Romanishin,Oleg M 2575
Sulypa,Alexandre 2513
It Lvov UKR (8) 25.12.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 g4 3.e5!? I suppose this
must be the critical test of an early ...Bg4.
[ We have considered 3.g2 in the games
Shirov - Short, and Pigusov - Zhang
Pengxiang. ]
3...f5 4.g2 f6!? Very ambitious, planning
to set-up a strong centre whilst gaining time
on the knight.
[ The simple 4...d7 is normally preferred,
a i m i n g f o r q u i c k d e v e l o p m e n t , 5.xd7
( 5.xf7?! is too optimistic, three pawns are
rarely worth a piece in the opening: xf7
6.xd5+ e6 7.xb7 b8 8.g2 gf6
Black has a lead in development, although it
is true that the white pawn structure has a
pristine look about it, Vebic,K-Kharlov,A/
Pula 1990 ) 5...xd7 6.c4 e6 7.b3 c6
and having solidly defended his light
squares, Black has every reason to feel
happy with his position, Poley,V-Rublevsky,
S/Aalborg 1993. ]
5.f3 c6!? A novelty, that allows Black to
answer White's thematic c4-move with ...d4,
as the b7-pawn is no longer exposed to attack
from g2.
[ 5...e5 is quite playable, nonetheless, 6.c4
A) 6...d4!? might still be playable, 7.b3
( or 7.h4 c8 ) 7...e4;
B) 6...c6 7.b3 d7 8.cxd5 cxd5
9.c3 e6 10.d4 e4 and a reversed
French-style structure is reached, where
Black's space seems to give him the upper
hand, Szakall,F-Urbanec,M/Prague 1964. ]
6.c4 d4 7.h4 g4 Now the bishop can
stay active, and doesn't have to return to c8
to defend the b-pawn. 8.h3 d7 9.e4
W hite decides to close the position, which
implies that the position is equal- he simply
hopes to outplay his opponent later-on. g6
Black had to contend with the threat of Qh5+.
10.d3 e5 11.0-0 h6 The knight heads for
f7 which is a good square f or the knight,
although it is far from c5, where it would really
like to be. 12.a3 f7 13.c2 a5 14.d2
e7 15.f3
[ The knight is too exposed to play the
immediate 15.f4?! exf4 16.gxf4 f5 17.f3
fxe4 18.dxe4 e6 the white position is too
loose. ]
15...0-0 16.h2 White prepares the standard
flanking blow f2-f4. g7
[ Black can cut across White's plans with the
annoying 16...g5! 17.h4 e6 when not
only has the knight found its way towards c5,
but he has also inhibited White from playing
f4, as his kingside is that much weaker, i.e.
18.f4 exf4 19.gxf4 f5 20.h5 c5
with pressure on the white centre. ]
255
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

17.f4 c8 18.h4 b8 o p t i o n s o p e n . e6 The most solid, we

[ Now 18...exf4 19.gxf4 f5 is less effective,considered
20.e5 xh4 21.f3 attacks h4 and d4. ] [ 6...e5 in Azmaiparashvili,Z-Shirov,A and
19.a4 White stops Black from playing the Bricard,E-Kosten,A. ]
thematic . ..b5, and puts all his 'eggs' in the7.b3 c5 8.b2 0-0 9.a3 a5 10.e4 b5
kingside 'basket'. a8 20.b3 cd8 21.e1 This move, gaining space on the queenside,
a6 22.a2 Both players strengthen their
is often seen in such positions, the weakening
positions. f5!? o f c 6 i s t h e o n l y d r a w b a c k . 11.e1
[ 22...exf4 23.gxf4 f5 is another possibilityTo the uninitiated this move seems less logical
to generate play in the centre, but I don't than
know why Black didn't wait a few moves, [ 11.e2 but it is important that White
and bring his d8-knight to c5 first, say. ] breaks the pin on his f3-knight. c7 12.h3
23.fxe5 xe5 24.f4 ef7 h5 13.e5 xf3 14.xf3 e8 15.h4 g6
25.af2
The white pieces are nicely bunched on the 16.h2 g7 1/2-1/2 Szabo,L-Keres,P/
kingside. fxe4 26.xe4 e6 Budapest 1970/MCD (16) ]
[ There is something to be said for 26...f6!11...e8 Black takes the force out of White's
first, so as to exchange a further pair of e5-move, and brings the king's knight to c7 to
rooks. ] help-out on the queenside, and to support e6
27.c1 d6 28.xf8 xf8 29.d5
should Black need to use his f-pawn.
Black is OK, but I feel his position would be [ 11...b6 12.h3 h5 13.h2 e8
even better had he exchanged his offside rook is also possible, D'Amore,C-Tatai,S/Andorra
for one of the white ones, see move 26. f5?! 1987. ]
[ This is inappropriate, 29...c6 12.h3 h5 13.h1 Again, White is in no rush
puts the
question to the white bishop. ] as in such a closed position, where the forces
30.f3 e8?! have yet to come into real contact, tempi are
[ A further mistake, 30...c6 is still possible. ]
not too important so both sides try to place
31.g4 xh4? This just loses a piece to a
their pieces on optimum squares ready for the
queen fork. moment when things liven-up. By unpinning
[ 31...e7?! may also lose, but more prettily:
the f-pawn W hite prepares to push on the
32.h6+!! ( r a t h e r t h a n 32.xb7 b6
kingside. c7 14.c4!? Just when White
33.h6+ g8 ) 32...xh6 33.xb7 b6? se e m e d t o b e re a d y o n t h e kin gs id e , h e
( 33...g7 34.xa6 c5 gives a little
strikes-out on the queenside! This innovation
compensation, but probably not enough) is possibly no better than the previous try but
34.f6 and g5+ is a killer. ] leads to a more tense position.
[ 31...e3! is Black's best chance, 32.xe3 [ 14.e5 b6 15.h2 c5 16.g4 g6 17.f4
dxe3 33.g5 intending Ng4, but Black has
is more typical of play here, White advances
some chances. ] on the kingside, Black on the queenside, f5!
32.f6+ 18.exf6 xf6 with chances to both sides,
1-0 Bezold,M-Kipper,J/ Muenster 1996. ]
14...dxc4!? Perhaps Black should have kept
the central tension with
271 A07 [ 14...b8 , say. ]
Sasikiran,Krishnan 2670 15.d4! This is the point, White gains time on
Anand,Viswanathan 2755 t h e b i s h o p t o e xp a n d i n t h e c e n t r e . e7
FIDE World Cup Gp C (2) 11.10.2002 16.bxc4 b4 17.e3 I suppose from an
[Tony Kosten] aesthetic viewpoint W hite must have been
feeling quite pleased with himself - he
1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 g4 retarded his central pawn thrusts till after
5.d3 bd7 6.bd2 White adopts a KIA set- completing the development of this pieces,
up, and plays for e4 rather than c4, but first and a few moves later has removed the black
he develops his pieces, thus keeping his pawn centre and constructed an impressive

256
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
one of his own. Richard Reti would have been
pleased! a6 18.fc1 e5!? Black decides
on a temporary pawn sacrifice to break-up the
impressive white pawns. 19.g4 g6 20.dxe5
e8!?
[ 20...c5 21.d4 xd4 22.xd4 e8
might be simpler, as Black will soon
recuperate the e5-pawn, the problem is that
he has to do it without allowing White to play
f4-f5, trapping the bishop, at the end. ]
21.b3! The knight comes to d4 to attack c6,
and possibly hop into f5, whilst at the same
time stopping ... Bc5. ac5
[ 21...a4 is critical, 22.bd4 c5 23.d1!?
a n d n o w i f b3?! ( 23...b6 is stron ge r)
24.e6! fxe6 25.c3 leaves Black facing
nasty threats to g7 and c6. ]
22.axb4 xb3 23.xb3 xb4 24.e3 h5!?
25.g5 c5 26.d4 e7 27.d1 a4?
Black can regain his e-pawn immediately by
[ 27...xd4 28.xd4 xe5 29.xe5 xe5
but the problem is that after 30.f4 c5
31.c3 ( 31.f5?? xf5 ) 31...h4 32.f3
White threatens to bury the black bishop by
f 5, s till t his is prob ab ly be tt er t ha n th e
game. ]
28.e6! A neat tactic that Black had probably
missed, W hite returns the pawn but on his
terms. xd4
[ 28...fxe6 29.xc5 xc5 30.e5
is the other point, forcing h7 ( 30...h7??
31.g6 ) 31.xc6 with a big advantage. ]
29.xd4 f8!?
[ 29...fxe6 30.e5! frees the dormant white
bishop which will capture on c6 with only
its second move of the game. ]
30.f4 This is positionally strong, as the black
bishop will be blotted out of the game, but
[ 30.e5! xe6 31.xc6 wins a solid
exchange for zero compensation. ]
30...xe6 31.f5 xd4 32.xd4 h7 33.h4
This is the sort of position a computer can
never understand, material is equal but in
reality the h7-bishop is only worth a pawn, as
it m a y ne ver b e a ble t o e scap e f ro m t h e
kingside. ed8?! A tactical error to compound
matters,
[ 33...c5 avoided losing Black's only trump -
the a-pawn. ]
34.xa4! A back-rank trick! ab8
[ 34...xd4?? 35.xa8+ ]
35.a1 xd1+ 36.xd1 e5 37.b4
And again, not only does the h7-bishop have
no squares, it also stops the black king from
escaping to h7. a8 38.a4 b8 39.a3!?
f4 40.e1 g6? This is pretty desperate,
Black obviously hopes to set-up some sort of
stalemate trick,
[ 40...h8 m u st b e b e st , 41.g3 xg3
42.xg3 f6 43.d3 ( 43.g6!? g8 44.f1
is also an effective plan, the black bishop
still has no moves.) 43...c5 44.gxf6 gxf6
45.d6 g7 46.c6 winning a second
pawn, and the game. ]
41.f6 h8 42.g3 c1+ 43.h2 b1
This counterplay leads nowhere, the white
kin g will be pe rf e ctly saf e on h3 . 44.d6!
Threatening mate in two. g8 45.h3 b8
Black beats a hasty retreat, as Qf8 was once
again the threat. 46.g3 b2 47.c5 b3
48.xb3 According to Fritz,
[ 48.f8 leads to a forced mate, xg3+
49.xg3 e5+ 50.f3 c3+ 51.f4
c1+ 52.e5 and the king escapes to d6,
but the text is also good. ]
48...xb3+ 49.h2 e3 50.f8 f4+
51.g1 e3+ 52.f1 d3+ 53.f2
As in the previous variation the white king will
escape to d6, and c7 when the checks will
expire and Black will have no way to counter
the threat of mate on g7.
1-0
272 A07
Stein,Leonid
Averbakh,Yuri L
USSR (ch) 1970
[Nigel Davies]
1.g3 d5 2.g2 e5 3.d3 c6 4.f3
Reaching a reversed Pirc Defence, which is
quite common when you open 1.g3 as White.
g6 5.c4
[ It's now or never with this lever as after
5.0-0 g7 6.c4 dxc4 7.a4 Black can play
cxd3 because e5 is protected by his bishop
on g7. Of course White could also play for
e2-e4 as Black usually does in a g3 Pirc, but
this would most likely lead to simplification
via ...dxe4. ]
5...dxc4 6.a4 g7
257
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ In this position 6...cxd3 is strongly met by
7.xe5 attacking the pinned knight on c6. ]
7.xc4 ge7 8.0-0 0-0 9.c3 e6
[ In a later game Black took action against
the possibility of W hite playing Qh4 with
9...h6 but after 10.e3 ( 10.h4
can be met by g5 ) 10...e6 11.a4 d4
12.ac1 c5 13.d2 d5?! 14.xd4 exd4
15.xd5 xd5 16.xc5 xg2 17.xg2
found himself a pawn down for inadequate
compensation in Bezold, M (2495)-Raetsky,
A (2455)/Werfen 1996. ]
10.h4 f5 The endgame specialist
Averbakh is not worried about the exchange
of queens, but maybe he should have been
less nonchalant about it.
[ 10...f6 was playable. ]
11.xd8 fxd8? This looks like a serious
mis tak e b ec ause B la ck will b e una ble t o
support a later ...f7-f6.
[ After 11...axd8 the line 12.g5 ( 12.b5
d7 13.g5 fd4 gives White nothing)
12...d7 13.ge4 b6 14.g5 is harmless
because of f6 . ]
12.g5 d7 13.ge4 fe7
[ In this position 13...b6 is strongly met by
14.g5 . ]
14.g5! A p owerf ul m ove h ere t oo . h6
15.f6+ h8
[ 15...f8 was worth considering, but White
has a useful pair of bishops after 16.xd7+
xd7 17.e3 . ]
16.xd7 xd7 17.e3
[ S t e i n l a t e r t h o u g h t t h a t 17.xe7!
was even stronger, intending no doubt to
meet xe7 ( 17...xe7 18.xc6 bxc6
19.ac1 leaves Black with very weak c-
pawns ) 18.xb7 b8 19.f3 xb2 20.a4
b4 21.c5 d6 22.ac1 with an edge for
White because of Black's weak pawns and
inactive dark squared bishop. ]
17...b8 18.fc1 d4 19.f1 c5 20.ab1
b6 21.b4 Starting to open the position for his
two bishops. cxb4 22.xb4 c8 23.bb1
dc7 24.d2 ef5
[ S t e i n f e l t t h a t 24...f8! was a better
def e nce , b ut W hit e is be tte r a f te r 25.e3
e6 26.b5 . ]
25.e3 e6 26.b5 xc1+ 27.xc1 xc1+
28.xc1 a6 29.c3 c5 30.e2 g8?
[ 30...h5 was better to stop White's next
move. ]
31.g4! d6 32.c6 f8 33.d5 f5
[ 33...b5 is strongly met by 34.b2 . ]
34.gxf5 gxf5 35.xb6 e4 36.d4 d3
37.d2 b5 38.b7 b4 39.a4 d6
40.a8 a5 41.xb4 axb4 42.a5
1-0
273 A07
Stein,Leonid
Portisch,Lajos
Moscow (8) 1967
[Nigel Davies]
Another game in which Black plays 'sensibly'
but imprecisely and presents White with a nice
edge. 1.e4 c6 2.d3 d5 3.d2 g6 4.gf3
g7 5.g3 f6 A rather unsophisticated move
which leaves Black passively placed.
[ Better is 5...e5 intending to develop the g8
knight on e7. ]
6.g2 dxe4 7.dxe4 0-0 8.0-0 a6 9.e5
d5 10.b3 g4 11.e2 c8 12.e1
ac7 13.d2 f6 An attempt to free Black's
cramped position, but one which leaves him
with a weak e-pawn. 14.exf6 xf6
[ 14...exf6 15.c4 e8 16.d3 e7 17.b4
gives White a powerful initiative. ]
15.c3 f7 16.e4 f5 17.c4 b6 18.f1
a4 19.c1 d7 20.e5 Gaining the two
bish op s an d lea ving th e da rk squa re s in
Black's camp very weak. xe5 21.xe5 b5
22.f4 d8 23.c5 xc5 24.xc5 c7
25.e5 e6 26.h6 d6 27.e2 g7
28.e1 d3 29.g4 f5 30.c4 xe5
Probably overlooking White's 33rd move, but
his position is dire in any case. 31.xe5 d1+
32.f1 h3 33.xe7 xf1+ 34.xf1 xf1
35.xf7 xf7 36.xf1 f5 37.e3 a6
38.e2 h5 39.d3 b5 40.e4 e6 41.h3
a5 42.c5 a4 43.f8
1-0
258
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

274 A07 [ 20.g4? b5 21.e3 d6 winning quickly. ]

Ubilava,Elizbar 2540 20...ad8 21.g2?! Allowing a further shot.
Van der Wiel,John TH 2520 f3+! 22.xf3 exf3+ 23.xf3 e5 24.g2
It Elgoibar ESP (6) 26.11.1998 e4+ 25.h2?! After this, the attack gathers
[Tony Kosten] even more momentum,
[ 25.g1 was best, although the rook and
1.f3 d5 Obviously this reply is fine if you pawn ending arising after xg3 26.fxg3
have some variation of the Queen's Gambit in xe3+ 27.xe3 xe3 is very favourable to
your repertoire. If you don't it is a bit risky, Black. ]
as one of my opponents replied with 2 d4 here, 25...f3! 26.c1 h5 The threat is ... h4,
many years ago, and I found myself playing White is quite lost. 27.h4 d4 28.g1 xh4
something I didn't know! 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g4 [ 28...xh4 29.gxh4 h3 is too catastrophic
By playing this before the habitual ...Nf6, to bear. ]
Black gives himself several extra options. 4.d3 0-1
d7 5.bd2 e6 Solid, and good. 6.0-0 d6
7.e4 e7 This is the extra option I mentioned,
rather than play 7...Nf6, and have to worry 275 A07
about an eventual Pe5, forking two pieces. Wunder,Stefan 2180
8.e1 h5!? Normally Black only plays this in Bunzmann,Dimitrij 2544
reaction to White's h3. Now, 9 h3 0-0 would 8th OIBM Bad Wiessee GER (2) 30.10.2004
t r a n s p o s e i n t o k n o w n l i n e s , b u t n o t [John Watson]
surprisingly, White tries to make-do without
h3 for a while. 9.a3 0-0 10.b3 Sensible This game shows how subtly powerful the Reti
development. An example of the advantages c a n b e e v e n w h e n t h e r e ' s a 4 0 0 - p o i n t
of having the black knight on e7 is shown by difference between opponents. 1.f3 f6
the line 2.g3 d5 3.g2 f5 4.d3 e6 5.0-0 h6 6.c4
[ 10.e5?! which is simply answered by c7 bd7 7.cxd5! exd5 8.c3 The seemingly
and now the pressure on d5 is diminished, minor threat of Nd4 followed by Nxd5 in some
Black can continue with ...c5, and Nc6, cases causes Black quite an inconvenience!
and possibly win the e5-pawn. ] c5
10...e8 11.b2 e5 Black is well developed, [ 8...c6 9.e4 is also not easy for Black, for
and decides to take some central space. example, dxe4 10.dxe4 h7 11.e5 g4
12.h3!? g6 13.f5 f6 14.h3?! 12.e2 e7 13.e1 c5 14.d1
This is not the right time for this move, White with advantage. ]
wants to threaten g4, but only succeeds in [ 8...c5 9.e4!? e6 10.exd5 xd5
compromising his kingside. e7! It seems the 11.xd5 xd5 12.e1+ e7 13.d4!
f5-bishop is in trouble. 15.h2 is quite interesting: xg2 14.f5 d5
[ 15.g4?! fails to xf5! 16.exf5 xg4 15.g4!! and White is winning. ]
17.hxg4 xg4 and Black gets three pawns 9.d4 g6 10.b4 cd7 11.b3 c6 12.e4!
a n d a c ru s h in g a t t a ck in re t u r n f o r h i s Already White is better developed and taking
piece. ] over the center. So simple! e7?!
[ and if 15.xe5? then xf5 16.exf5 d7 [ 12...dxe4 13.dxe4 e7 14.d1 ]
wins. ] 13.exd5 b6 14.dxc6! xd4 15.b5!
15...xf5 16.exf5 e4 Black takes full White launches a powerful attack. Moves like
advantage of the awkward placing of the 16. cxb7 and Bf4 are in the air, but Black
white queen, opposite his rook. 17.xf6 xf6 mustn't take the rook. e5
18.dxe4 dxe4 19.c4 c7 White tries hard [ 15...xa1 16.f4 xf1+ 17.xf1
but his two knights are no match for the black followed by cxb7. ]
bishops. 20.e3 Note that White cannot win 16.cxb7 d8 17.c6+ fd7 18.f4
the h5-bishop because of the resulting [ Effectively winning would have been
weakening of the h2-b8 diagonal: 18.b2! b8 19.xg7 h7 20.d4

259
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
wit h 4 p awns f o r t he piece a nd Black's
position a shambles. ]
18...f6 19.xa7 0-0 20.d4?!
[ 20.c7! picks up more material, eg, b8
( 20...e5 21.ae1 xc6 22.xd8 xd8
23.xc6 xc6 24.xe7 ) 21.xd8 xd8
22.e4 xe4 23.dxe4 d7 24.ac1 xb7
25.c8 and White has too many powerful
extra pawns. Compare the game. ]
20...d6 21.e3? Passive. White should just
exchange by
[ 21.xd6 xd6 22.g2 keeping the
powerful b-pawn with ideas like a4-a5. After
t h is W h i t e ' s g a m e g o e s d o wn h i ll . O n e
le ss on o f th e o pe ning sho u ld b e clea r,
however: top players can feel very
uncomfortable against the Reti. ]
21...b8! 22.c8 f5 23.g2
24.bxc8 xc8 Black's pieces have become
very active and he has won back the b-pawn
a s we l l . F o r a l l t h a t W h i t e h a s d yn a m i c
chances based upon his passed queenside
pawns. 25.fc1 a7 26.d1 d6 27.b5
f6 28.a4?
[ 28.a4 is the best move - the queenside
pawns are White's main strength. ]
28...b6 29.c6 xc6 30.bxc6
31.b5? xe3 32.fxe3 Things are
collapsing now.
[ 32.xb6 xg2 33.xg2 e4+ 34.g1
c8 wins the light squares and another
pawn. ]
32...xd4! 33.e1 c3 34.c1 d2 35.a1
xe3+ Now it's a slaughter. 36.h1 d4
37.e1 d2 38.e5 c4 39.f1 e6 40.a3
c8 41.d6 a5 42.e5 c7 43.e4 c5
44.b4 h5 45.c3 d8 46.e1 d1
0-1
276
Fedorov,Alexei
Dolmatov,Sergey
Calcutta
[Neil McDonald]
1.e4 e6 2.d3 c5 3.f3 c6 4.c3 d5
For a discussion of the opening moves, see
the archives 5.e2 ge7 6.g3 g6 7.g2
g7 8.0-0 b6 9.a3 a6 10.e5 h6 11.h4
c7 12.e1 b5 In Morozevich - Gleizerov
Black tried to attack on the kingside with 12...
g5?. Here he goes for a pawn attack on the
queenside. Best, though not very promising is
p r o b a b ly 1 2 . . . 0 -0 - 0 - s e e m y co m m e n t i n
Morozevich - Gleizerov. 13.c2 b4 14.cxb4
cxb4 15.f4 b6 16.d2! h5? It is very
easy to criticise this move. Indeed it makes a
very bad impression as it gives away the g5
square and so opens up the dark squares on
the kingside to White's bishop. But what else
could Black do? He would like to develop his
game by castling and bringing his rook on h8
into the game. But having pushed his pawns
on the queenside, he doesn't want to castle
there if he plays 16...0-0? then 17 Bxh6 wins.
Therefore Black doesn't have a convincing
continuation here, for which we must blame
xc8 his opening strategy. Nevertheless, 16...h5
ce rt a in ly ma kes t h in gs ea sie r f or W h it e .
Probably best was the redeployment 16...Bc8
a n d 1 7 . . . B d 7 f o llo we d b y . . . a 5 e t c . T h i s
wouldn't solve the problem of what to do with
the king, but it would make it harder for White
to devise a plan to break through Black's solid
position. 17.d4 f5 18.h3 c8 Black is in
disarray. First of all he played ...h6 and then
d5 changed his mind with ...h5 now he decides
the bishop belongs on d7, not a6. 19.b3 d7
20.ac1 a5 21.xf5! In some positions
knights are worth more than bishops. This
exchange clears the way for W hite to seize
control of the dark squares. gxf5 As a general
rule, the recapture away from the centre with
...exf5 is the correct response in such
positions, in order to keep the kingside intact.
Then the d pawn can be supported if
necessary by moves such as ...Be6. However,
in this instance 21...exf5 would hardly help
Black as he would be in a stranglehold after
22 Ne3 Be6 23 Rc5! Rd8 24 Bg5 Ne7 25
A08 Rec1, as given by Kavalek. 22.g5! a7
23.f6! xf6 24.exf6 b5 25.g5!
This threaten s simply 26 Qxf5. Now the best
1999 chance to survive looks like 25... Nc3 0-0-0
26.xb4+ b7 27.d3! xd4 28.xd4
xd4 29.ed1! b6 30.c5 e5 31.g7!
The queen finds an unexpected way to join in
the attack. c6 32.xf7 d4 33.a4+ xa4
34.bxa4 d6 35.b1+ c5 36.b7
1-0
260
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
277 A08
Kaidanov,Gregory S 2625
Benjamin,Joel 2595
[ch United States 1998
[Neil McDonald]
1.e4 e6 2.f3 c5 3.d3 c6 4.g3 d5
[ It would be a bad idea to combine ... Nf6
wi t h a f i a n c h e t t o . F o r e xa m p l e , 4...f6
5.g2 d5 6.e2 g6?! -standard is 6...Be7-
worked out badly in Glek-Saltaev, Cappelle
la Grande 1998: 7.0-0 g7 8.g5 dxe4
9.dxe4 c7 10.c3 0-0 11.ad1 a6
12.fe1 and in this unpleasant position
B l a c k i m m e d i a t e l y b l u n d e r e d w i t h h6?
allowing 13.xf6 xf6 14.e3! attacking
both c5 and h6. ]
5.bd2
[ 5.e2 ge7 6.h4?! wo u l d a l l o w e5!
Now if 7.exd5?! xd5 8.xe5? d4
when White is in big trouble. Therefore in
Certic-J.Horvath, Yuoslavia 1997, he bailed
out with 7 Nbd2 f 6 8 c3 Bg4 9 Bh3 an d
achieved a draw. ]
5...g6 6.g2 g7 7.0-0 ge7
[ Black could also relinquish the tension in
the centre with 7...d4!? e.g. 8.a4 e5 9.c4
f6 10.e1 h6 followed by ...Nf7 was
unclear in Chernov-Sakaev, Chisinau 1998. ]
8.e1 b6 9.c3 b7
[ A critical alternative is 9...a6 10.exd5
( 10.d4; 10.a4 are alternatives) 10...xd5
11.a4 b7 12.d4 cxd4 13.xd4 d7
turned out OK for Black in Meszaros-
Tibensky, Ceske Budejovice 1994. ]
10.e2
[ After 10.h4 h6 11.f1 d4 12.c4 e5
13.h5 g5 14.a3 White had some advantage
in Van Mil-Van Wely, Leueuwarden 1997. ]
10...d7 11.f1 Because Black has avoided
putting pressure on d3 with ... Ba6 there is no
threat of ...dxe4 winning the d3 pawn.
The re f o re , th ere is no n ee d f or W hite t o
commit himself straightaway to the e5
advance. Instead he maintains the tension in
the centre. h6 12.h4 dxe4
[ It was better to close the centre with
12...d4! with similar play to the note at move
10 above after the reply 13 c4. In the
game White's knight reaches the excellent
c4 square, from which Black can only evict it
by weakening his pawns with ...b5. ]
13.dxe4 0-0-0 14.e3 d3 Black is solid
but he has no obvious plan. Meanwhile White
has many moves with which he can
strengthen his position, such as Nc4 followed
by Bf4 and Rad1. Therefore Black seeks to
relieve the pressure by simplification. 15.xd3
xd3 16.f1 d7 17.c4 b5 If left alone
W hite would play a4 and a5, answering a
subsequent ...b5 with a6! attacking the bishop
on b7 rather than moving his knight from c4.
This would prevent Black consolidating his
pawns with ...a6. 18.cd2!! This begins an
excellent manoeuvre to exploit the weakness
of Black's queenside pawns. c4 19.a4 a6
20.axb5 axb5 21.b1! b8 22.a3!
This ties Black down to the defence of b5. c6
23.f4! The next step in White's plan is to
acquire the two bishops which will open the
way for b3! to unpeel the black queenside
and menace the black king. hd8 24.e5
xe5 25.xe5 a7 26.f4 h5 27.f3 b7
28.b3! cxb3 29.eb1! d7 30.xb5 xa1
31.xa1 xb5 32.xb5 c5 33.e3 c8
34.b1 Now the b pawn is doomed. Black
makes a great effort to achieve counterplay,
but ultimately it is hopeless. f5 35.c4!
One of the golden rules in the endgame is 'do
not hurry!' The b3 pawn won't run away so
W hite targets the e6 pawn. fxe4 36.fxe4
c6 37.xc5 xc5 38.xe6 d8 39.xb3
d3 40.f2 c6 41.a3 e5 42.h3?!
According to Kaidanov he should have played
[ 42.a5+ d6 43.h3 as Black could now
put up a tough resistance with 42.. .Kb6!
This would deny the white rook a way to
activate itself with check and so tie it down
to the defence of the c3 pawn. ]
42...d2+? Black misses his chance. It often
happens that a player becomes depressed at
having to defend a miserable position such as
this and fails to put up much of a fight. That is
probably the main difference between humans
and computers the latter never give up hope
because they had none to start with! 43.f1
c4 44.a5 Black will succeed in winning the
c pawn but meanwhile the e pawn will be
f o r c e d t h r o u g h wi t h d e c i s i ve e f f e c t . f3
45.g2 h2+ 46.g1 g4 47.f3 f2
48.f1 xc3 49.e5 d3 50.e2 b4
51.c5+ b2 52.e6 d5 53.e1 d4
261
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
54.c4! xc4 55.xc4 e7 56.d2 f5
57.d3 e7 58.c2
1-0
278 A08
Klenburg,Mikhail 2376
Bykhovsky,Avigdor 2455
It Tel Aviv ISR (9) 17.08.2002
[Neil McDonald]
1.e4 e6 2.d3 d5 3.d2
[ Long term subscribers will be aware I prefer
3.e2 to keep the option of Na3! if Black
adopts the set up he chooses in this game. ]
3...c5 4.g3 g6 5.g2 e7 6.gf3
[ In the same tournament Bykhovsky had to
face 6.h3 and succeeded in making the
knight on the edge irrelevant: g7 7.0-0
bc6 8.f4 b6 9.e5?! h5! Fixing the f5
square for his knight. 10.c3 a5 11.f3 f5
12.d2 a6 13.e2 d7 14.fd1 0-0-0
15.b3 b8 16.a3 a7 17.b4 c4!
and Black won in Livshits,G-Bykhovsky,A/
T e l A viv I S R 2 0 0 2 b e ca u se W h it e wa s
unwilling to block the position up with 18.d4 ]
6...g7 7.0-0 bc6 8.e1 b6 9.c3 a5!
[ Instead 9...b7 10.e2 transposes to
Kaidan ov-Ben jamin on Ch essPub , wit h
some edge for White. Note that if White had
played the 3.Qe2 line, then in answer to 9...
a5 he would have 10.Na3 followed by Nc2,
e4-e5 and an eventual b2-b4. ]
10.a4?! By delaying the development of his
queen's bishop Bykhovsky has given himself
the chance of answering
[ 10.e2 with a6 threatening to win a
p a w n w i t h d 5 x e 4 . T h e n a f t e r 11.e5
White no longer has any direct pressure on
t h e c e n t re a n d f5 looks solid for Black.
Still White should have preferred this to the
game move which begins a losing plan. ]
10...0-0 11.exd5
[ If 11.e5 a6 is awkward. ]
[ Perhaps best was the embarrassing retreat
11.c2 ]
11...exd5 12.d4? This leads to the loss of
material as Black's pieces are much better
positioned to take advantage of the opening of
the c f ile. cxd4 13.xd4 xd4 14.cxd4
d7 15.a3 c6 16.f3 b4! Much better
than capturing on d4. 17.b3 c8 18.e2
b5 19.d2 c4 20.d1 h6 Winning the
exchange. 21.b3 xd2 22.xd2 a6
23.f4 e8 24.f1 xf1 25.xf1 f6 26.h4
d7 27.g2 f5 28.b5 d3
White resigned, for if 29.e3 xe3 30.fxe3
c2+ 31.g1 xf3 wins.
0-1
279 A08
Morozevich,Alexander
Gleizerov,Evgeny
Tomsk 1998
[Neil McDonald]
1.e4 e6 2.d3 c5 3.f3 c6 4.c3
Since W hite plans a quick Qe2, it makes
sense to rule out any possible ...Nd4 rather
than rush to fianchetto with g3. d5
[ This is a very natural move but rather
inflexible. I'm sure that Black should be OK
in the game continuation, but I would advise
you to avoid it until a good answer has been
found to the system developed by
Morozevich and others. Wait until Bareev or
Dreev show us how to handle the black
pieces! Therefore I would suggest 4...ge7
which keeps open the option of pushing the
d pawn one or two squares. Have a look at
the lines given on the Black's solid system
with ...e5 sub page. ]
5.e2 Now Black is committed to the kingside
fianchetto, as 5...Bd6? 6 exd5 loses a pawn,
5...Be7 6 e5!? leaves the knight on g8 with no
good way out [though 6...f6 might be
in t e re st in g h e re ] a n d 5 . . . d xe 4 is a n a n t i
positional exchange in this type of position,
especially when White can change his mind
about g3 and play Qc2 planning Bb5. ge7
6.g3 g6 7.g2 g7 8.0-0 b6 9.a3!
This move undoubtedly sets the most
problems f or Black. W hite has avoided a
routine Nbd2 development and instead found
a far more promising square for the knight.
Sometimes Nb5, in combination with e4-e5 will
be strong, threatening to invade on d6 or
perhaps, after ...0-0-0, the alternative Nc2
and b2-b4 will begin an attack on Black's king.
And as the d2 square isn't blocked by the
knight, the bishop on c1 has an easy
262
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
development. a6 An attempt to play actively.
Instead
[ 9...b7 allows White to consolidate a
space advantage in the centre. For example
10.e5 0-0 ( 10...d4?! 11.c4 ) 11.f4
and White can start an attack with h4 etc.
Black will find it hard to achieve
counterplay with ...f6 because of the
weakness of e6. ]
10.e5 h6 11.h4! This seems to prevent ...g5,
but Black isn't deterred. c7 12.e1 g5?
This begins a faulty combination. In a
previous game Black tried 12...b5?! which
also worked out badly. Perhaps he should try
[ 12...0-0-0 though 13.c2 planning b4
would give White good attacking chances
against the enemy king. ]
13.hxg5 hxg5 14.xg5 g6 It looks as
though White has nothing better than 15 Bf6,
when 15...Bxf6 16 exf6 0-0-0 leaves Black
fully mobilised with a solid centre and
attacking chances on the kingside. The extra
pawn on f6 wouldn't mean much. Instead,
White found a way to completely destroy his
opponent. 15.d1! An insidious little move
which exploits the loose position of the bishop
on a6, as will be seen. White breaks the pin
on the d3 pawn and so threatens 16 d4, when
he would be a centre pawn up for nothing.
Be side s, th e bisho p on g5 wou ld st ill b e
preventing Black castling queenside.
Therefore, Black is compelled to take the
pawn and face the storm. gxe5 16.xe5
xe5 The first problem: he cannot play 16...
Nxe5 because of 17 Qa4+ winning the bishop
on a6. 17.a4! b7 ...and now he has to
concede b5 to the white knight as 17...Bxd3
18 Rad1 c4 19 Rxe5! or 17...Qb7 18 Rxe5 b5
1 9 Q f 4 ! w i n s f o r W h i t e . 18.b5 b8
Perhaps the best chance was to head for the
ending with 18...Qd7 19 Rxe5! Nxe5 20 Nd6+
Kf8 21 Qxd7 Nxd7 22 Nxb7, but as he cannot
trap the wayward white knight Black faces
defeat. 19.xe5! xe5 20.f4 e2
21.d6+ d7 22.xb7 xb2 23.c1!
A temporarily passive role for the rook, but it
deprives Black of any counterplay involving ...
Q x c 3 a n d t h e n . . . N d 4 . ab8 24.d6
Not of course 24 Bxb8?? Qxc1+. b5 25.d1!
The queen has enjoyed all its visits home! h7
26.c2 a3 27.xd5! The light squared
bishop has the final word. Black resigned as
27...exd5 28 Qg4+ Ke7 29 Nf5+ Kf8 30 Bd6+
Ke8 31 Re2+ is a complete wipe-out.
1-0
280 A08
Morozevich,Alexander 2749
Lastin,Alexander 2628
Lightning Moscow RUS 02.09.2001
[Neil McDonald]
1.e4 e6 2.d3 c5 3.g3 c6 4.g2 g6
5.f3 g7 6.0-0 ge7 7.c3 d5 8.e2 b6
There is a big cloud over this set up for Black
t h a n k s t o W h i t e ' s n e x t m o v e . 9.a3!
Players who have studied previous games in
this line will be familiar with the development
of the knight to a3 rather than d2. It revitalises
the system for W hite: the knight is not only
ready to swoop into b5 if Black plays Qc7 but
also planning to support a queenside attack
by retreating to c2. a6 10.e5 h6 11.h4
c7 12.e1 0-0-0
[ Neither did 12...b5 turn out well in Fedorov-
Dolmatov. ]
13.b1 g5 This gambit also failed a move
earlier in the game Morozevich-Gleizerov, but
t h e re i s n o wa y e ls e f o r B la ck t o c re a t e
counterplay before White starts an attack with
b2-b4. 14.hxg5 g6 15.gxh6 xe5
[ A w i l d v a r i a t i o n w o u l d b e 15...xh6
16.xh6 xh6 17.b4 dh8!? 18.b5 f5
19.exf6 ( If 19.bxc6? h7 and Black has a
lethal attack) 19...h7 20.xe6+ b8
21.d6+ a8 22.xc6+ b7 23.e8+
xe8 24.xe8+ and White mates. ]
16.b4! xc3 A forced move as otherwise 17.
b5 just wins a piece. 17.b5 xe1 18.xe1
b7 19.bxc6 xc6 Materially speaking it
isn't too bad for Black. What will kill him is the
g i g a n t i c p a s s e d p a w n o n h 6 . 20.d4
Stopping Black mobilising a big pawn centre
with e6-e5. c4 21.b5 xb5 22.xb5 c6
23.b1 b7 24.e5 xe5 25.xe5
The shrewd exchange of the minor pieces
has cleared the way for the advance of the h
pawn. a4 26.g5 xa2 27.e1 c8
28.g7 hf8 29.xe6 c3 30.e7+ a8
31.xf7 fe8 32.xd5+! A nice finish. Black
resigned as if xd5 33.xa7+ b8 34.f4+
263
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
mates.
1-0
281
Movsesian,Sergei
Likavsky,Tomas
Hustopece op rapid (5) 06.06.2009
[John Shaw]
1.e4 c5 2.d3 c6
[ Another move order is 2...d5 3.d2 c6
4.g3 f6 5.g2 e5 ]
3.g3 f6 4.g2 d5 5.d2
[ Another option is 5.exd5 xd5 6.c3 losing material, but White should gain an edge
xc3 7.bxc3 g6 8.e2 with an interesting due to the contortions his opponent must
almost unexplored position. ]
5...e5 6.gf3 If you play a King's Indian with
black, you may be happy to play the same
thing with an extra tempo. If not, then White
can avoid this by choosing one of the various
e x d 5 l i n e s . e7 Black has many options of
course. It would be tough for me to cover
every anti-KID line, so just a quick tour to
point at some lines.
[ 6...d4 You need to know the KID to play
this particular line (with either side). For a
non-KID player, a few minutes of
preparation will do no good. ]
[ 6...dxe4 7.dxe4 e7 ]
[ 6...g6 7.0-0 g7 8.c3 0-0 9.b3 d4
( 9...dxe4 10.dxe4 h6 11.e1 c7 12.f1
e6 13.c2 fd8 ) 10.c4 e7 11.cxd4
cxd4 12.d2 ]
7.0-0 0-0 8.c3 e8
[ 8...d4 ]
9.e1 Giving Black one more chance to play ...
d 5 - d 4 . P e r h a p s m o r e a c c u r a t e i s t h e 15.cxe5!
immediate
[ 9.exd5 xd5 10.c4 f8
as Movsesian had played previously. ]
9...f8
[ 9...d4 ]
10.exd5 xd5 11.c4 White's extra tempo
means that standard KID tricks arrive quickly
enough to catch out even very classy players.
f6
[ 11...c7 allows 12.g5 when White had
fun play in Planinec-Rubinetti, Nice 1974. ]
12.b3 e6 An awkward-looking move, but
played for good reason, as the natural moves
all drop something.
[ After 12...e6 13.xb7 c8 14.fd2
Black's compensation is a long way short of
enough. ]
A08 [ 12...h8 13.cxe5! xe5 ( 13...fxe5?
2747 14.g5 is a huge point) 14.xe5 e6
2487 15.c4 ( 15.c4!? looks to me like a pawn up
f o r n o t a lo t) 15...b6 16.c2 xc4
17.dxc4 xc4 18.f4 White eventually
won in Movsesian-Gelfand, Moscow (blitz)
2008. A great player like Gelfand rarely falls
for such tricks, but of course it was just a
blitz game. ]
13.a4 With sufficient care Black might avoid
endure. h8
[ Instead 13...g6 14.h3 was Renner -Hort,
Germany 2000, but ( 14.fd2!? was more
to the point. White has ideas of Ne4 and/or
f 2-f 4. Fo r example : g7 15.f4 b6
16.fxe5 xc4 17.xc4 xe5 18.xe5
xe5 19.xe5 fxe5 20.e3!? The idea is
that White's initiative lasts all the way into
the endgame. xd3 21.g5 c4 22.b5
d6 23.f1 c5+ 24.h1 xb5 25.axb5
And Black must start shedding material. Just
an illustrative line rather than f orced or
necessarily best play, but it does give a
good idea of what can happen if White plays
with enough force. )]
[ 13...c7 is worth a look, although 14.h4
is pleasant. ]
14.a5
[ 14.cxe5! was working right now. ]
14...b8?
[ 14...c7 ]
Okay, just a rapid game, and
maybe it continued on from here. Anyway, it
11.e1 makes a useful structure for looking at the line.
KID players will be feeling happy here.
1-0
264
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

282 A08 283 A08

Shirov,Alexei Stein,Leonid
Hernandez,G Zinn,Lothar
Yucatan 2000 WchT U26 08th (5.1) 21.07.1961
[Neil McDonald] [Nigel Davies]

1.e4 e6 2.d3 c5 3.g3 The most flexible This game was one of the ones that 'proved'
move here is Black shouldn't take on e4 in such positions.
[ 3.f3 ] In fact it was his later moves that lost him the
3...c6 4.g2 This commits White to the game but such details tend to get lost in the
development of his queen's knight to d2. wash. 1.f3 d5 2.g3 c5 3.g2 c6 4.0-0
Instead e5 5.d3 e7 6.bd2 f6 7.e4 g4
[ 4.c3 d5 5.e2 would preserve the option If Black really wants to exchange in the centre
of the alternative deployment to a3, for this is probably as good a time as any to do it.
example ge7 6.f3 g6 7.g2 g7 8.0-0 Giving White 8.h3 for free doesn't help him.
b6 9.a3! is Morozevich-Gleizerov. ] 8.h3 e6 9.e2 dxe4 Black probably felt
4...d5 5.d2 There is little choice, as obliged to do this because of White's growing
[ 5.e2 d4 is annoying. Thus with his pressure against the e5 pawn. 10.dxe4 0-0
move order White has deprived himself of 11.c3 d7?! Taking his eye off d5 like this is
t h e d a n ge ro u s kn ig h t m o ve t o a 3 . T h e the start of the wrong plan.
alte rnat ive pla n he ado pts in the gam e [ I think that Korchnoi would have chosen
proves unsatisfactory. ] from 11...c7 ]
5...g6 6.gf3 g7 7.0-0 ge7 8.h4 h6 [ 11...h6 ]
9.e1 b6 10.exd5?! Shirov isn't satisfied with [ and 11...a6 , all of which look quite
the modest playable. ]
[ 10.c3 and so prepares a pawn sacrifice to 12.c4 b5 13.e3 c4 14.d1 c7?!
set Black problems. ] Black seems curiously determined to plant his
10...exd5 11.d4?! cxd4 12.b3 g4 chin on White's fist.
Now W hite is unable to regain the pawn, [ 14...b8 would have taken at least some
though he does gain considerable pressure of the sting out of 15.Nd5. ]
on Black's centre. 13.f4 0-0 14.d2 xf3 15.d5 xd5?!
15.xf3 h7 16.e2 d7 17.ae1 fe8 [ 15...b7 would have been much more
18.g2 a5! 19.a3 stubborn. ]
[ A better try might have been 19.a4!? ] 16.exd5 a5 17.d4! exd4 18.xe7 ae8
19...ad8 20.d3 a4 21.d2 a5! 22.h2 [ On 18...d3 there would follow 19.d6 c8
b7! Black prepares to return the pawn to 20.xa8 e8 21.g5 xa8 22.f4
seize the initiative. 23.h3 f5 24.a6 c5 followed by 23.Re1. ]
25.xb6 d3! 26.e5 Shirov makes a 19.f4! xf4
de s p e ra t e co m b ina t io n in vo lvin g a h u ge [ Or 19...xe7 20.xc7 b7 21.d6 etc. ]
sacrifice of material as 20.xd7 f6 21.xd4 Emerging a good
[ 26.cxd3 xd3 would be just horrible for pawn up. The rest is fairly easy. e2 22.f4
White. ] b6 23.b4 b7
26...xe5 27.xe5 dxc2 28.h5 c1 29.f6 [ 23...cxb3 24.axb3 xb3 25.xa7
c6 30.xg6+ h8 31.xe8+ xe8 would even threaten 26.Qxf7+ Rxf7 27.Ra8+
32.xh6+ g8 33.g6+ h8 34.h6+ leading to mate. ]
h7 Of course. Now White's attack has been 24.a4 d6 25.axb5 xb5 26.c6 c2
refuted. 35.f6+ g8 36.xc6 xh5 27.xb6 axb6 28.xc4 xc3 29.c6 f5
37.f3 c2 30.f1 xc6 31.dxc6 d6 32.d1 c8
0-1 33.c4+ h8 34.c7 g6 35.d8 g7
36.e6 A convincing looking game by Stein
which probably did a lot to discredit ...dxe4

265
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
ideas by Black.
1-0
284 A09
Anand,Viswanathan 2785
Salem,AR Saleh 2581
Wch Blitz Dubai blitz (4) 19.06.2014
[Kosten, Tony]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.g3 c6 4.g2 e5
5.0-0 f6 6.d3 h6!? Stopping Bg5, this
move is not so popular, but makes a lot of
sense.
[ 6...e7 is very common, but also allows
7.b4!? xb4! 8.xe5 0-0 9.a3 a6
10.d2 when d6 11.ef3 is similar to this
game, except that Black has moved his dark
square bishop twice, see Odendahl, R-
Kasimdzhanov, R in the PGN Archive. ]
[ 6...a5 may be best, stopping b4 for a long
time, and is the most popular, see Speelman,
J-Koneru, H, again in the PGN Archive. ]
7.b4 Standard. xb4! Probably best.
[ 7...xb4 8.xe5 xe5 9.a4+ c6
10.xc6+ bxc6 11.xb4 White has
conceded his powerful bishop, but wrecked
the black structure and stops Black from
castling. d7! ( 11...h3 is worse, 12.e1
and now e3 is a threat, so d6 13.a3!
and Black is in trouble, Mitter, G (2185) -
Pacher, S (1850) Feffernitz 2007, 1-0 (25),
as xb4 14.xb4 d7 15.d2 c5
16.a3 and Nb3, winning the c5-pawn.)
12.e1 ( 12.d2 c5 13.a5 0-0 14.e4
is stronger, winning a pawn.) 12...a5
13.a4 c5 and Black was close to equality
in Djuric, S (2485)-Pyhala, A (2350)
Jarvenpaa 1985, 1-0 (40). ]
8.xe5 d6 This way it appears Black has
gained a move (...h6) over the 6...Be7 line in
the note above, but there is a slight flaw. 9.a3
[ 9.a4+! is the way to exploit Black's 6th
move, as he has not yet castled compared
to the 6... Be7 line. d7 10.f4 ( 10.a3!
a6 11.f3 leaves Black's minor pieces
m i s p l a c e d .) 10...a6 11.xd7 xd7
12.xd7+ xd7 13.xd6 xd6
should be a bit better for W hite, Delchev,
A (2587)-Mellado Trivino, J (2460) France
2001, 1/2-1/2 (37). ]
9...a6 Often Black would be happy to put his
knight here, as it might then go to c5, but in
this exact position the d4-pawn will need
defence so Black might have to play his pawn
to c5 instead.
[ 9...xe5?! 10.axb4 ]
10.f3 c5 Black should delay this as long as
possible.
[ 10...0-0 is best, 11.bd2 ( 11.b2 c5
12.e3 dxe3 13.fxe3 would aim to play as in
the game, but with the bishop already on b2
Black has extra possibilities, such as g4!
14.e1 e8 ) 11...c5 12.b1 b8 13.b3
c7 14.e3 dxe3 15.xe3 g4 16.d2
c6 17.d4!? cxd4 18.c5 e7 19.f4 d8
20.h3 f6 21.e5 d5 22.xc6 bxc6
23.xd4 Gurevich, M (2315)-Tseitlin, M
(2455) Severodonetsk 1982, 1-0 (38), when
d7 was not too bad for Black. ]
11.e3! dxe3 12.fxe3!?
[ 12.xe3 0-0 13.c3 is nice and active. ]
12...0-0 13.c3 b8?! Heading for the
natural c6-square, but in the light of what
follows Black should prefer something else
here, such as
[ 13...c7 keeping better control of d5. ]
14.b2 c6 15.d5! Suddenly Black is in
trouble, first he has to solve the problem of
the capture on f6. e7?!
[ 15...g4 is the best bet, but not easy to
find in a blitz game, 16.d2 f5 17.h3 ge5
but White is better anyway. ]
[ 15...xd5 16.cxd5 e7 17.d2 f5
18.e2 is very good for White, he has a nice
centre and very active minor pieces, i.e. f6
19.e4 e7 20.f2 and Raf1. ]
16.h4 h7
[ 16...xd5 17.cxd5 a5 18.f5 xf5
19.xf5 is a slight improvement, but clearly
better for W hite with his centre and
bishops. ]
17.f5 xf5 18.xf5 With his powerful minor
pieces White is already winning. g5
[ 18...d6 19.g4 f6 20.af1 e5
21.xe5 xe5 22.h5 h8 23.e4
will soon be mate, Black is too weak on the
light squares. ]
19.h4 e6 20.g4 g6 21.af1 Rxf7 is the
immediate threat. g7 22.f6! Other moves
were winning, too, but this is pretty and a
thematic way to exploit Black's weakened
266
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

dark squares. h5 19.a6 c8 Now White sacrifices an

[ 22...xf6 23.xf6+ h8 24.xc6 bxc6 exchange to decimate the black structure.
25.f4 f5 26.g4 is overwhelming. ] 20.xc7! xc7 21.xd6 a7 22.xe5!
23.g5 d7 24.h6 [ 22.xf8 is good, but why swap this bishop
1-0 for a mere rook? ]
22...fxg3 23.hxg3 g4 24.xg7 xg7
25.a1 Now it is the turn of the d4-pawn to
285 A09 fall. c8 26.xd4 f6 27.c6
Anand,Viswanathan 2784 The endgame is a breeze f or W hite, who
Svidler,Peter 2713 maintains a dominating position with extra
Hoogovens Blitz blitz (12) 18.01.1999 material. xa1 28.xa1 af7 29.f4
[Tony Kosten] Removing Black's only target. e3 30.f3 h6
31.ab4 g5 32.d5 White's light-squared
1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 Black plays this natural c a m p a i g n c o n t i n u e s t o b e a r f r u i t s . gxf4
advance, and forces W hite into a reversed 33.xf4 f5 34.h5+ h8 35.e5
B e n o n i , o r B e n k o s t r u c t u r e . 3.g3 W in ning b ack th e excha nge, a nd e nd in g
The immediate Black's resistance.
[ 3.b4 is also a good choice, obtaining a 1-0
Benko Gambit-style position, without losing
a pawn! ]
3...g6 4.d3 g7 Fianchettoing the king's 286 A09
bishop has a good theoretical reputation, but Anastasian,Ashot 2545
Black often suffers because of his lack of Ponomariov,Ruslan 2616
control over the a3-f8 diagonal. 5.g2 e5 Eu Team Ch Batumi GEO (8) 07.12.1999
6.b4 Here is the advantage of that extra [Tony Kosten]
tempo. To achieve the related advance, ...b5,
as Black, in the Benoni, can often be difficult 1.c4 c5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.f3 c6
or well-nigh impossible. d7!? A novelty, 5.0-0 d4 6.e3 e5 7.exd4 exd4
normally Black completes his kingside [ The invariable choice in this position. The
development thus: more ambitious 7...cxd4 is always avoided,
[ 6...e7 7.0-0 0-0 ] although I don't know why. Perhaps Black
7.bd2 h6!? Another original development. players are concerned about the possibility
8.0-0 f6 9.b5 White has a very simple, and of White exploiting his extra tempo to good
effective, plan in these positions: advance on effect, but no immediate problem is evident.
t h e q u e e n s id e . 0-0 10.a4 f7 11.a5 For instance, 8.e1 ( 8.d3 would lead to a
The immediate threat is a6, levering open the reversed Benoni position) 8...d6 9.xe5
h 1 -a 8 d ia go n a l . b8 12.e1! A typical xe5 10.f4 but Black can counter with d3!
'English' plan, the knight is heading for b4 to 11.fxe5 c5+ 12.h1 g4 with at least a
complete W hite's domination of the critical draw. ]
l i g h t s q u a r e s , d 5 , c 6 , a n d a 6 . f5 8.d3 e7 9.f4 An important part of White's
B l a c k ' s q u e e n s i d e s i t u a t i o n i s s e ve r e l y plan. he needs to exchange a piece, as he
compromised, and he must look for play on has less space, and at the same time, open
the other side of the board. 13.c2 f6 the h1-a8 diagonal. 0-0 10.e5 xe5
14.b4 d7 15.b3 Black has to stop this 11.xe5 e8!?
knight from going to c5. b6 16.axb6 [ A new plan. Previously, other moves were
[ 16.a6 c8 17.b7 wins the exchange, t r i e d h e r e e . g . 11...g4 12.f4 d6
but the text is much clearer. ] 13.xd6 xd6 14.d2 b6?! 15.e1 d7
16...axb6 17.a7 f4 Black's counterplay is 16.h3 f6 17.b3 with an edge, Kasparov,
much too slow, White has already infiltrated G-Pinter,J/Skara 1980, or ]
the queenside. 18.a3 White's pieces seem [ 11...d7 or ]
to flow naturally to powerful squares. d6 [ 11...g4 ]

267
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
12.xf6! White shows a good understanding
of the position. His dark-squared bishop is not
particularly useful with this fixed structure.
xf6 13.d2 e7 So as to eject the white
knight with ...f5 should it come to e4. 14.d5!
Both pinning the f7-pawn, and establishing
the bishop on a powerful central square. b8
15.f3 f8 16.fe1 b6 17.e2 The white
pieces come easily to strong squares. d6
18.ae1 d7 19.e4 c7 20.h5
W hite menaces Ng5 which would lead to a
quick mate. h6 21.h4 Repeating the threat.
e6
[ Positionally ugly, but tactically forced. Black
had to do something about the strong
t h re a t s t o h is k in g, f o r m o ve s s u c h a s
21...a6? lose immediately to 22.g5! i.e.
hxg5 23.e7 ( 23.e4 is also effective)
23...e6 24.1xe6! d6 25.e4 f5 26.h6
with mate in two. ]
22.xe6 fxe6 23.f4 Fixing the frail e6-pawn.
With this weakness on the open e-file, and
possessing the superior minor piece, White
has a consequent advantage. d7 24.d2
f6 Black is obliged to defend grimly, but this
leads to passiveness, of course. 25.g4?!
e8 26.f3 f7 Black manages a threat of
his own: ...Bxf4! 27.e5 xe5 28.xe5 f5
[ This looks like a misjudgement to me. After
a s e n s i b l e a l t e r n a t i v e l i k e 28...h7
Black is worse, but may be able to hold on. ]
29.xf5! The two rooks should comfortably
out-gun the lone queen. exf5 30.xe8+ h7
31.8e7 g6 32.f2 b5!? An attempt to
confuse White. 33.7e6
[ 33.1e6 g4 34.cxb5 h3 35.xa7
looks strong, menacing Ree7, but af ter
h2+ the white king proves to be too
exposed. ]
33...f7 34.cxb5 d7 35.c6
[ 35.a4 may be more effective, as after d5
36.e7 b3 37.xa7 xd3 Black has
some counterplay, but not nearly enough. ]
35...c4! 36.xc4
[ Not 36.dxc4? as after d3 37.b3 d4+
38.f3 c3 Black has mustered serious
chances, with his active queen and
dangerous passed pawn. ]
36...xb5 37.b3 a5 38.c2?!
[ T h e s i m p l e 38.e2 s h o u l d w i n , d5
39.c7 h1 40.ee7 and when Back's
checks run out W hite will play Rxg7+. Of
course, White may have been short of time,
and worried about a possible perpetual
check. ]
38...a6 39.d2 g6 40.e7 c6
41.h5+!? A double-edged move, which wins
material, but allows the black king to become
active. xh5 42.xg7 f6 43.xa7 g4
44.g2 c6+ 45.h2 f3
[ 45...f3 It is true that the position is far
messier than it was, but even so W hite
should continue, e. g.: 46.e7 g6 47.g2
h5 48.g1 f6 49.ge1 h4?? 50.h3!
with a mating net. ]
½-½
287 A09
Bezold,Michael 2513
Svidler,Peter 2727
Bundesliga 2008-9 (3) 25.10.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
This game is of a length that will normally
disqualify it from being included in our updates.
Nevertheless, I find it to be of some interest, I
trust you will agree. 1.g3 d5 2.g2 f6
3.c4 d4 4.d3 e5 5.f3 c6 6.0-0 e7
[ This natural move is actually considered an
inaccuracy on account of W hite's f airly
obvious response in the game. It is a bit
surprising that Svidler willingly goes into this
line. The alternative, 6...a5 is the topic of
Speelman-Koneru, Torquay 2002, where
W hite continued with 7.e3 , and Koneru
opted for the main line move 7...Be7 - see
the PGN archives, The alternative is dxe3
8.xe3 e7
A) 9.c3 0-0 10.h3 ( 10.e1 g4!? )
10...f5 11.d4 exd4 12.xd4 xd4
13.xd4 xd4 14.xd4 c6 15.fe1 e6
16.b3 fd8 , and Black has equalized,
T o m a s h e vs k y , E - W a n g H a o / N i z h n i y
Novgorod RUS 2007;
B) 9.d4 exd4 10.xd4 xd4 11.xd4
0-0 12.c3 c6 13.a4 xd4 14.xd4
e6 15.b3 d7 , and Black has solved
opening problems successfully, Vallejo
Pons, F-Gelf and, B/Monte Carlo MNC
2005. ]
7.b4! xb4
268
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ The only truly playable move for Black in
this position. Other tries include: A) 7...d7
8.b5 cb8 9.e3 ( 9.a4 a5 10.e3 c5 11.e4
0-0 12.e1 f6 13.f4 g4 14.h3 e3
15.xe3 dxe3 16.c3 exf4
with an unclear position and chances to both
sides, Kantans, T-Plat, P/Mlada Boleslav
2008) ) 9...0-0 10.exd4 exd4 11.b2 c5
12.bxc6 xc6 13.xd4 xd4 14.xd4
c5 15.c3 ( 15.d5!? )
16.xd3 xd3 17.d2
with a comfortable game for Black, Nguyen
Huynh Minh Huy-Varga, C/ Zalakarosi HUN
2008. ]
[ B) 7...xb4 8.xe5 xe5 9.a4+ fd7
( 9...c6 10.xc6+ bxc6
leaves W hite with a pleasant advantage,
Z o n t a k h , A - M a r i c , D / B e l g r a d e 1 9 9 8)
10.xb4 c5 11.a3 0-0 12.d2 c7
( 12...a6 13.b1 a7 14.e3 dxe3 15.fxe3
, and White is comfortably better,
Radziewicz, I-Stef anova, A/ Bled 2002)
13.e4 a6 14.e3 dxe3
Bischoff, K-Kitte, S/Germany 1998 ]
8.xe5 0-0 9.b2
[ This isn't the most common move in this
position. White's two main alternatives are:
A) 9.a3 a6
A) 10.e4 c5 11.b2 e8
( 12.a4!?= ) 12...fd7!? 13.f3
14.e1?! ( 14.e1 e5
xe5 ) 14...b6 15.f4 ba4 16.c1 a5
(At first I must admit I didn't see Black's
intended idea with this move. By the way,
Black is doing very well already.) 17.a2
a6! 18.af2 b6 19.c2 b3 20.d2
c3 Aha, this was the thinking behind 16...
a5!. Black is clearly better, Elorta, D- 9...d6!?
Nguyen Anh Dung/Manila PHI 2008;
B) 10.b2 (This move was recommended
by Watson in his notes to Blatny-Ricaurte
Lopez, Salinas 2005) g4!? ( 10...c5
11.f3 e6 12.bd2 c5 13.c2 e8
14.e3 with a slight plus for White is
Watson's line.) 11.xg4 xg4 12.d2
c6 13.e1 c5 14.c2 f6 15.a4 e8
with chances to both sides, Makarov, M-
Ibragimov, I/Maikop 1998;
C) 10.d2 c5
was the subject of Odendahl-
Kasimdzhanov, Vlissingen 2004, which
c a n b e f o u n d i n t h e P G N a r c h i v e s .)
11.b2 ( 11.b3 was played in Blatny, P-
Ricaurte Lopez, J/Salinas ECU 2005,
which can be found in the PGN archives.)
17.gxf4 11...g4 12.ef3 f6 13.a4 e8
( 13...e6 14.a5 b8 15.h3 h6
16.a3 c5 17.c1 e7 18.b3 f5
with a comfortable game for Black, Roeder,
M-Bukal, V/ Porto San Giorgio ITA 2004)
15...xd3 14.a3 e7 15.b1 c6 16.h3 f6
b8 17.xc5 xc5 18.b3 d6 19.xc5
xc5 , and the chances are about even,
Bauer, C-Mirzoev, A/ Elgoibar ESP 2005 ]
[ B) 9.d2 promises White less:
A) Black's best option is probably 9...e8
11.xb4 10.b3 ( 10.a3 a6 11.b2
is an alternative) 10...f8 11.f3 c5
12.a3 c6 13.e3 dxe3 14.xe3 f5
15.e1 c8 16.xc5 , Vukic, M-Pajkovic,
/Niksic 1996, and now Black could gain a
simple advantage with xc5 17.xc5 b6
18.a4 e5;
15.xe3 B) 9...d6 10.a3 a6 11.ef3 c5
12.b1 e8 13.g5
B1) 13...g4 14.e1 d7 15.de4
e7 16.h3 f5 17.xb7 b6 18.f4
c8 was played in Odendahl, R-Rothuis,
V/Dieren NED 2008, and now W hite
12.h3 could have gained a decisive advantage
f6 with ( 18...d7 ) 19.xf7 xf7
15.xe5 20.d6+ g8 21.xe8 xb7 22.xb7
xe8 23.e3;
B2) 13...h6 14.ge4 xe4 15.xe4
f8 16.f4 b8 17.f5 c6 18.g4
leaves White with a kingside initiative,
Danielsen, H-Fries Nielsen, N/
Espergarde 1992 ]
[ As far as I can see, this move is new, and is
also approved by my computer which claims
an edge for Black. Previously Black has tried
a few other things: A) 9...e8 10.a3 a6
11.e1 f8 12.f3 c5 13.e3 dxe3
14.fxe3 , and I prefer White's chances,
Franke, R-Teschner, R/Germany 1980 ]
[ B) 9...g4 10.xg4 ( 10.f3 c5 11.bd2
c7 12.b3 f5 13.d2 ad8 14.g5
e3 15.fxe3 xg5 16.xd4 cxd4
( 10...d6 17.xb4 xe3+ 18.h1 g4 , and Black
has the more comfortable game, Plachetka,
J-Dobrovolsky, L/Frenstat 1982) 10...xg4
269
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

11.xb7 b8 12.e4 xd3 ( 12...f5!? ) and Qa4+, whereas a5 might be met by
13.xh7+ h8 14.xd3 xb2 7.a3 ( 7.0-0 f6 8.a3 xd2 9.xd2
with an unclear position and chances to both 0-0 10.c2 ) 7...f6 8.c2 xd2+
sides, Kaidanov, G-Khmelnitsky, I/ 9.xd2 ( or 9.xd2 )]
Philadelphia 1993 ] 6.0-0 e7!? Surprisingly this makes things
10.f4!? difficult for Black. Better was
[ 10.f3 c5 11.bd2 d7 is of course also [ 6...a5 with the possible line 7.e3
playable, but doesn't represent any A) 7...e7 8.exd4 exd4 9.f4 ( 9.a3!?
problems for Black whatsoever. ] 0-0 10.b5 e6 11.f4 c8 12.e1
10...c6?! unclear ) 9...0-0 10.e5 xe5 11.xe5
[ 10...g4!? 11.xg4 xg4 12.d2 c6 e8 12.e1 with a position that has been
13.a3 , and despite my computer's claim re a ch e d b e f o re a n d is a p p ro xim a t e ly
to the contrary, both sides have their share equal.;
of the chances. ] B) 7...c5 ]
11.c5! Now White gains the initiative. Of 7.b4! Tony has already discussed this line in
course the pawn cannot be taken on account the game R Odendahl-Kasimdzhanov,
of 12 Nxc6 bxc6 13 Ba3, winning a piece. e6 Vlissingen 2004. I think that W hite is doing
12.xc6!? rather better than that game shows if he plays
accurately. xb4!
[ I think White is over-careful at this juncture.
In my opinion, W hite should have trie d [ 7...xb4?! 8.xe5! xe5 9.a4+ c6
12.xc6! e3+ ( 12...bxc6 13.xd4 10.xc6+ bxc6 11.xb4 and White's pawn
is clearly better for White) 13.h1 bxc6 structure gives him a nice edge. ]
14.a3 xc5 15.c2 e7 16.xd4 [ 7...e4?! 8.dxe4 xb4 9.e5 ( or 9.b2 )
with a very nice game for White. ] 9...e4 10.b2 c3 11.xc3 dxc3
12...bxc6 13.xd4 d7?! 12.b3 ]
[ 13...d5 seems like the better choice, e.g. 8.xe5 0-0 9.a3
14.e3 xc5 15.c3 d6 16.xc5 xc5 [ 9.d2 e8 10.b3 is also worth a
17.d2 ] thought. ]
14.xd7 xd7 15.e3 And here the players 9...a6 10.d2
agreed upon a draw, much too soon. W hite [ Possibly 10.b2! is a better order, e.g.,
has a clear advantage, including an extra c5 ( Now 10...d6 loses a pawn to
pawn. 11.xd4 ) 11.f3 e6 12.bd2 c5
½-½ 13.c2 b8 14.e3 But White seems to
have a small advantage after 10.Nd2
anyway. ]
288 A09 10...c5
Blatny,Pavel 2456 [ Kasimdzhanov played 10...d6 11.ef3
Ricaurte Lopez,Juan Carlos 2333 e8 and Odendahl responded with 12. Nb3
III Festival Olimpico (6) 20.02.2005 c5 13.a4?! Bg4 and got the worse game.
[John Watson] Instead the normal idea of 13.Rb1 followed
by e3 was critical. But I also t hin k t ha t
1.g3 Black's oddly-placed pieces can be better
[ This game could also have arisen by the e x p l o i t e d b y 12.b1! (threatening Nxd4,
more common move order 1.f3 d5 2.c4 since ...Be5 no longer pins the knight) c5
d4 3.d3 c6 4.g3 e5 ] A) T h e s t a n d a r d p l a n o f 13.g5
[ See also how White ends up a tempo is also interesting because it hits b7 and
ahead of the reversed variation 1.d4 f6 prepares the e3 idea in another way, for
2.f3 c5 3.d5 d6 4.c3 g6 5.e4 ] example, b8 14.de4 xe4 15.xe4
1...e5 2.g2 d5 3.c4 d4 4.d3 c6 5.f3 c7 ( 15...f8 16.f4 ) 16.e3! f5 17.d2
f6 dxe3 18.fxe3 when 18...Qxd3?? 19.Bd5+
[ 5...b4+ 6.d2 has the threat of 7. Bxb4 and Rb3 is not advised, nor 18...Rxe3 19.

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Bd5+ and in most cases Ne4. Otherwise more like White's best try. Alex covered the
W hite plays Bd5+ anyway and stands alternatives in January, but there have been a
better. But this isn't as straightforward as few games since then:
13.e3; [ Delchev's recommendation 6.b5+?! c6
B) 13.e3 dxe3 14.fxe3 h6 (stopping Ng5 7.c4 has been seen a couple of times
( 14...b8 15.g5 h6 16.ge4 xe4 recently, axb4! 8.xe5 fxe5 9.h5+ g6!
17.xe4 or 17.Bxe4; 14...g4 15.e4 10.xe5+ e7 11.xh8 f6
c7 16.e2 and White has many ideas A) 12.b2 e6 13.xe6 ( 13.xd4
such as Nfg5, Nh4, and Nc3-d5, for bd7 14.xe6 xe6 and ...0-0-0 -
example, f5 --to stop Nc3-- 17.fg5 Thiele. ) 13...xe6 14.g4?! bd7 15.g5
xe4 18.xe4 e5 19.c3 ) 15.h4 e4 16.xd4 0-0-0 17.f3 xg5 18.0-0
b8 16.f5! e5 17.e4 with a small h6 0-1 Stella, A (2463)-Bertagnolli, A
but distinct advantage. ] (2329) Ortisei 2013.;
11.b3 B) 12.d3 e6 13.d2 bd7 14.0-0
[ 11.b2 g4 12.ef3 f6 13.b3 xb3 0-0-0 15.exd4 might be the best bet, but
14.xb3 is unclear but I'd rather play h6 16.xd8+ xd8 17.e1 d5
White. ] f a vo u rs B lack (aga in t h is is Rein ho ld
11...a5?! Thiele's analysis).;
[ B e t t e r s e e m s t h e n a t u r a l 11...xb3 C) 12.0-0 e6 13.d3? ( 13.xe6
12.xb3 c5 ( 12...g4?! 13.xg4 xg4 is better, but xe6 14.exd4 bd7 15.d3
14.xb7 ) 13.f3 e8 14.e1 b8 15.f4 0-0-0 -Thiele. ) 13...xc4 14.dxc4 d7
( 15.d2!? ) 15...d7 16.e5 h5 15.d1 g7 16.xd4+ c7 and White
17.xd7 xd7 18.d2 c6 when Black h a d t o p l a y 17.d8+ xd8 18.xd8
stands solidly. ] t o a v o i d l o s i n g h i s q u e e n , b u t xd8
[ But 11...a4? 12.f3 c3 13.c2 c5 19.b2 bd7 is hopeless, Davis, T
14.e3 leaves the first player well on top. ] (1945)-Zelesco, K (2143) Cammeray 2013
12.f3 e6 13.a4 0-1 (24). ]
[ Or 13.b2 c5 14.e3 a4 15.c1 dxe3 [ 6.c4?! axb4! 7.b3 ( 7.exd4 e4! )
16.fxe3 . The extra centre pawn tend to be 7...h6 8.exd4?! ( 8.0-0 ) 8...e4 9.e3
a n a d v a n t a g e i n t h e s e p o s i t i o n s e ve n e7 10.h4 g5 ( 10...f5 11.g3 g5
though they are initially backward-looking. ] 12.g2 c6 is also strong.) 11.d3 ( 11.f3?!
13...a6 14.d2!? gxh4 12.fxe4 e6 should have been
[ 14.b2! c5 15.e3 d6! 16.exd4 cxd4 winning for Black in Bosiocic, M (2542)-
17.h3!? , or less greedily, ( 17.e1 )] Kadric, D (2471) Zadar 2013, but 1/2-1/2
14...b4 15.h3 c5? (26). ) 11...gxh4 12.dxe4 c6 13.0-0?!
[ Black can come close to equality by 15...c5! g4 14.d3 h3 ( 14...ce5! ) 15.xh3
16.xb4 cxb4 17.d2 d6 ] xe4 ( 15...xd4 ) 16.b2 d7 and Black
16.xb4! axb4 17.xc8 xb3 18.xb7 went on to convert his material advantage,
b6 19.xb3 xb7 20.c5! e7 21.c6 b6 although it got a bit messy, Hakobyan, A
22.xd4 g4 23.a5 (2103) -Chibukhchian, A (2446) Yerevan
1-0 2014 0-1 (40). ]
[ 6.exd4?! e4 7.e2 e7 8.g1 c6 ]
[ 6.xe5?! is Van Wely, L-Kramnik, V in the
289 A09 PGN Archive. ]
Demuth,Adrien 2476 6...d7
Duda,Jan Krzysztof 2587 [ 6...d7 7.b5 c6 8.c4 was the sharp
Mitropa Cup Ruzomberok (7.1) 29.05.2014 game Hillarp Persson, T-Hector, J, analysed
[Kosten, Tony] by Alex. ]
7.b5 xc5 8.c4 e7 9.exd4 exd4
1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.b4 f6 4.e3 e5 5.c5 a5 10.a3 a6 'White has good compensation,
6.a4+ This is beginning to look more and since Black's king will never be safe' - Alex.

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11.0-0 b4 12.d3 f5 The first new move,
and it's a good one. Black wants to play ...b6,
move his queen and then castle long, trying to
keep the queenside closed.
[ 12...c6 13.bd2 b6 is also quite
playable, 14.bxc6 xc6 ( 14...xc6
15.d1 0-0-0 is also unclear.) 15.b3 b5!?
( 15...a4 ) 16.f7+ f8 17.ac1 b6
18.e4 c8 19.fe1 Bukavshin, I (2539) -
Shukh, N (2421) Saratov 2013 1-0 (33),
when a6! 20.xc5 ( 20.e6 is a Houdini
move, a4 21.xc5 xc5 22.d1 xc1
23.xe7+ xe7 24.xd7+ xd7 25.xc1
c7 ) 20...xc5 might be OK. ]
13.c1
[ 13.e1 xd3 14.xd3 xd3 15.xc5
xc5 16.c4 d6 17.bd2 is actually
fairly equal, White will play Ne4 and regain
the d-pawn, and retain sufficient play for
the other sacrificed pawn. ]
13...b6 14.b3 d6 15.bd2
[ 15.f7+ d8 16.c4 g6 17.bd2 f4
18.e1 is unclear. ]
15...0-0-0 So, Black has found a reasonable
square for his king, can he exploit his extra
pawn? 16.h4 g6 17.e1 ed5 18.df3
[ 18.xg6 hxg6 19.h3 can be met by the
tactic c2!? 20.xc5 xa1 21.xd6
xb3 22.xd5 c5 ( 22...xd2?! 23.e6+
b8 24.f4 ) 23.xc5 xd5 24.a3 xb5
when I suppose Black has any chances
going. ]
18...f4
[ 18...b7 ]
19.xg6 hxg6 20.c1 bd5 21.e4
de8?!
[ 21...g5 must be a little better for Black, and
if he wants to put a rook on the e-file it
should be the h-rook ]
22.g3!?
[ 22.xf4 xf4 23.ae1 xe4 24.xe4
is a simple alternative, d8 25.g3 d5
26.xd4 with equal material and opposite
colour bishops. ]
22...h3+ 23.g2 xf2?
[ 23...c3 24.xe8+ xe8 forces 25.f7
( 25.xh3? a4 26.c2 e2 27.d2 xf2
when the white king is in trouble.) 25...e7
26.xg6 d7 when my computer tells me
it's equal! ]
24.xd5
[ After 24.xe8+! xe8 25.xd5 White was
possible worried about xd3 26.c6 xc1
27.xc1 e2+ 28.f1 d3 but 29.g8+
forces the queens off, with advantage as the
3 black pawns are not worth a piece.. ]
24...xe4 25.dxe4 Reaching an interesting
material imbalance. d7 26.h4?!
[ 26.a3! i s t h e r i g h t m o ve , a s h3+
27.g1 and White doesn't have to worry
about ...d3+, xa3 28.xa3 with advantage,
as the black rooks have little scope and the
c7 and d4-pawns are weak. ]
26...g4
[ 26...g5! would turn the tables, and now
White should probably play 27.a3 gxh4
28.gxh4 although g4+ 29.f2 xa3
30.xa3 g5 looks unpleasant. ]
27.d3?!
[ 27.a3 should again be played, the c5-
bishop is too strong. ]
27...g5! Now White must be very careful.
28.h2 h5 29.f3 gxh4!? Offering the
exchange for some winning chances.
[ If Black tries to keep the queens on by
29...h7 then 30.g4+ b8 31.f3 gxh4
32.gxh4 g5 (those g-pawns!) 33.h5 d8
34.e6 and Black doesn't have anything
better than xh5 35.xh5 xh5 36.g4
fairly level. ]
30.xh5 xh5 31.f7 hh8 32.xe8 xe8
33.gxh4 xe4 34.f3 With more activity and
3 pawns for a piece, Black has most of the
chances going, although White should be able
to hold a draw. d7 35.d2 c6
[ 35...e6 36.e1 d5 can be met by
37.h5 ]
36.e1! xe1 37.bxc6+ xc6 38.xe1
d5 39.f3 c4 40.h5 Fixing the g-pawn
on a dark square. a4 41.e2?! White wants
to bring his knight to the nice central square
on d3, but this is passive.
[ 41.e4 is more active, and natural, and b5
can be countered by 42.f3 ( 42.d3??
f5+ ) 42...b4 43.c1 c3 ( 43...b3
44.axb3+ axb3 45.b2 ) 44.d5! a3
45.d2! ( 45.xc5 is possible, but White
would need to find lots of only moves: b3
46.xa3 bxa2 47.b4+ d3 48.e1+
e4 49.c2 f5 50.c4 f4 51.b3 f3
52.e1 d3 53.xa2 dxc2 54.b2 )
45...b6 46.b3 and only White can win
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

this, d3 47.e4 c2 48.d2 but c5! and White is not worse.) 9...h4 10.g1
Draw. ] d6! A strong move. White has problems
41...b5 42.d3 d e f e n d i n g h i s n u m e r o u s we a k n e s s e s .
[ 42.c1 ] 11.f4?! White has misdirected the Black
42...a3! 43.f4 c3 44.c7 f8 45.a5+ knight, but at the cost of falling behind in
c2 46.b6 b1 47.xd4 xa2 d e ve lo p m e n t . ( 11.g3?! h5!; 11.e3!?
Black has made real progress, his king and xh2 12.d2 is suggested by Marin, who
bishop support his two passed pawns, and thinks White might have some
White must be precise. 48.d2 b4 compensation in view of his slightly better
[ 48...a3! keeps more chances, 49.c3 development and his strong centre. Perhaps
b1 50.g1 d6 51.e3 a3 52.b4 a2 so, but most strong players would certainly
but ( 52...xb4+ 53.xb4 a2 54.d4 a1 take Black here.) 11...e5! 12.f5 h5! 13.h3
55.xa1 xa1 56.xb5 b2 is a draw.) d4! 14.g3 hxg4 15.hxg4 g6!
53.c2! a1+ 54.xa1 xa1 55.b3 Vallejo's vigorous p lay ma kes a stron g
b1 56.d2 traps the king and draws! impression- White is not given any time to
Fantastic! ] settle down. 16.fxg6 xg6 17.e3 d8
49.c5! The only move not to lose. xc5 18.d2 e6 19.a4 f4 0-1 (29) Rausis,
50.xc5 a3 51.c2 b3+ 52.b1 f5 I (2506)-Vallejo Pons, F (2677)/Port
53.d3 Zugzwang! b2 54.xb2 b3 Barcares 2005 White has no compensation
55.xa4! The simplest. xa4 56.c2 b4 for his exposed king and for the weaknesses
57.d3 c5 58.e3 d5 59.f4 e6 on dark squares. ]
60.g5 e5 8...d8 I suspect this might be better than
[ 60...e5 61.g6 f4 62.xg7 f3 63.h6 going to d6, where White tends to gain time
f2 64.h7 f1 65.h8 ] with c4-c5.
½-½ [ 8...d6 9.d4 f5 10.d2 g6 11.c5 d8
12.c4 g7 13.d1 0-0 14.0-0
looked quite comfortable for W hite in
290 A09 Fontaine, R -Markowski, T Dresden 2004. ]
Devereaux,Maxim 2415 9.d4 f5 10.d2 g6 11.d1 g7 12.e2
Rowson,Jonathan 2582 0-0 13.0-0 a5 14.c1 d8 15.d5 cxd5?
4ncl 03.05.2008 Too much too soon. While this more or less
[Jonathan Rowson] wins a pawn by force, it also gives White a lot
of activity so I would have been better of
1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.e3 keeping the tension.
[ 3.b4 feels critical to me, and we can revisit [ 15...d7! simply intending Rac8 and
this line another time. ] keeping options open, was best. ]
[ 3.a3!? Suba, is not as silly as it looks. ] [ 15...xc3!? 16.xc3 ( 16.bxc3 cxd5
[ 3.g3 is of course fine, though it seems 17.cxd5 xd5 ) 16...xc3 17.bxc3 d7
Black can equalise quite easily. ] 18.f4 ac8 19.g4 And White just about
3...c6 4.exd4?! I now think this is probably keeps the balance. ]
just a mistake. xd4 5.xd4 xd4 6.c3 16.xd5
c6 7.d3 h6! 8.e3 [ 16.b4 xb4 17.xd5 a5 18.b6 axb6
[ 8.e2!? was recommended by Zviagintsev, 19.xe7+ f8 wins for Black, but I must
but I am not sure how carefully he admit I was a little taken aback when I first
considered it. f5 9.g4?! This pseudo- noticed this possibility. ]
active move was thought to be the best 16...e6 17.b4 xa2 18.d2 a4
a n t i d o t e t o B l a c k ' s u n u s u a l s ys t e m o f [ 18...b3 19.d1 ]
development, but it appears to be unsound. 19.c7 xe3
( 9.0-0!? The d4 square isn't everything, so [ 19...ac8 20.xe6 fxe6 21.fd1 f8
W hite should consider playing around it. 22.b1 ]
d8 10.g4 g6 11.e1 g7 12.g5 20.xd8+ xd8 21.xe6 xf1

273
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 21...fxe6 22.xe3 xb4 23.xa7 d4 [ 5...a5 had been played, allowing the bishop
24.a2 c5 25.c2 f8 26.d3 e5 t o e s c a p e : 6.c4 h6 7.0-0 e7
27.g3 b6 28.e2 I didn't think I could make Namgilov,S-Dao,T/Budapest 1996, with
progress here. ] unclear play. ]
[ 21...c6 22.xe3 ] 6.b3 This does not work-out too well,
[ 21...d6 22.c5 xb4 23.xe3 d4 perhaps White should attempt to stop Black
24.d3 xc4 25.xe7 e6 26.d8+ g7 from defending the d3-pawn, by
27.f4 ] [ 6.c3 ]
22.xd8 d7 23.xf7 6...e4 7.d4 a5 8.c3 f5 An unusual
[ 23.d1 xd1 24.xd1 d2 25.e2 b6 position, W hite is a long way ahead in
26.c6 f8 27.xa7 c3 keeps the game d e ve lo p m e n t - B la ck h a s o n ly m o ve d h i s
alive. ] pawns- but can he do anything with his lead?
23...d2 24.g5 h6 25.h4 d4 26.d1! 9.e6 e7 10.xf8 xf8! Black needed to
W hite has def ended well and Black is no keep his light-squared bishop. 11.b5 e6
longer better. xg5 27.hxg5 e5 12.a4 d7 13.a3 The threats along the
[ 27...f4 ] a3-f8 diagonal are worrying, but Black has
28.f3 xf3+ 29.xf3 xc4 30.xb7 sufficient resources.
c1+ 31.h2 f4+ 32.g1 c1+ 33.h2 [ The move 13.c6 is no better, bxc6 14.bxc6
f4+ b6 and Black has time to remove his
½-½ pieces from the c1-bishop's diagonal-to-be. ]
13...xc5 14.d4 b6 15.a4 f7
The king had to get out of the way. 16.xc5
291 A09 bxc5 17.xc5 g5 White is winning the
Gabriel,Christian 2578 battle on the queenside, but it is a temporary
Kortschnoj,Viktor 2676 victory. Next move Black will be able to bring
Ehrat mem (SUI vs GER match) (4) 16.08.99 his knight out, and then his king's rook, when
[Tony Kosten] h i s e x t r a p i e c e s w i l l t r i u m p h . 18.g4!?
White attempts to bring his h1-rook into play
1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.b4 f6 4.e3 e5 5.c5 at any cost. xg4
Termed 'the modern approach' by Dunnington, [ 18...fxg4?! allows White to develop his
in his book on the Reti, White opens the a2- f1-bishop: 19.g2 f6 20.0-0 ]
g 8 d i a g o n a l a n d g a i n s s p a c e o n t h e 19.e5 c8 20.h3 g5 21.d4 f6
queenside. However, in the light of this game, Black has solved his development problems
it might simply be a mistake! and now the 'writing is on the wall' for White.
[ Alternatively, there is 5.b3 a5 6.c5 22.h2 hd8 23.g1 h4 24.c1 e8
with similar ideas, whilst avoiding the game 25.c5 g6 26.a4 d5 27.c6 d8 28.c3
continuation. axb4 7.c4 h6 8.0-0 xc5 d6 29.h4 Hoping to lever open the g-file for
9.exd4 xd4 10.xd4 xd4 11.b2 d6 t h e g 1 - r o o k . d7 30.h5 g5 31.h6
12.d4 White has a strong initiative, Ilinsky, V- This loses, but so does
Lev,R/Gausdal 1991. ] [ 31.a6 , albeit more prettily: h6 and if
[ 5.exd4?! is less good, however, as after e4 32.xa5 f6! ( 32...a8 33.xd6!
6.h4 ( 6.e2 e7 7.h4 allows g5 is less clear.) 33.c3 c5! profiting from
although W hite will certainly obtain some the back-rank mate. 34.f3 xc3 35.dxc3
compensation for his piece.) 6...xd4 xc3+ 36.d2 a3 when the threat of ...
is already favourable for Black, because of Nc4 wins, e. g. 37.fxe4 xe4 38.xd3
White's awkward h4-knight, Liberzon,V-Ree, c1+ 39.e2 b2+ 40.e1 f2+
H/Amsterdam 1977. ] 41.d1 d8 and White must resign. ]
5...d3!! A stunning ! If Black can get away with 31...xc6 32.h5+ e6
this provocative move, then he will probably [ 32...e6 33.bxc6 b8 is crushing. ]
be winning- the white kingside pieces will be 0-1
to escape the trap. Previously,

274
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

292 A09 continue 17.xf5! exf5 18.d4 opening the

Granda Zuniga,Julio E 2641 d-file, and if xf3 19.xf3 cxd4 20.b5
Lima,Darcy 2519 regains the d-pawn with an edge. ]
zt 2.4 Sao Paulo BRA (8) 26.09.2003 16...c6 17.e4 Aiming for f6, but Black can
[Tony Kosten] easily parry this. The problem is that
[ 17.d4?! loses a pawn to xf3 18.xf3
1.f3 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.e3 xd4 and ]
[ 3.e4 is also possible, see Krasenkow,M- [ 17.xf5 exf5 now gains a tempo, and
Volzhin,A. ] permits Black to stop d4 by 18.f4 d3 ]
3...f6 4.xc4 e6 5.e2!? A novelty! Of 17...d5 Black has completed his
course this may transpose to something else, development, and has two great light squares
but here White has a special idea in mind. f or his knights. 18.g3 h5 19.h3 b5
[ 5.0-0 which we looked at in Zvjaginsev,V- 20.d3?! White wants to reroute his dark-
Svetushkin,D/Linares ESP 2000, is typical, squa red bish o p t o t he c1 -h 6 d ia gon a l t o
whilst ] e xp lo i t B l a c k 's we a k e n e d k in g s id e d a r k
[ 5.d4 is a QGA, of course. ] squares, but there is a tactical flaw.
5...c5 6.e4!? This is the new plan, [ 20.c1 is one of several superior moves, e.
reminiscent of Krasenkov's 3 e4!?, but isn't g. b4 21.d4 c4 22.fe1 d5
W h it e a t e m p o d o wn h e re ? c6 7.e5 which looks very nice for Black, but White is
White hopes to use this space-gaining pawn still in the game. ]
move to mount a kingside attack. d5 8.0-0 20...c8 21.c1? This is obviously White's
e7 9.c3 0-0 10.e4 White forces the intention, but he has missed a tactic. c3!
knight to retreat. b6 22.de1? This loses immediately, but even
[ 10...xc3?! is an error, as after 11.dxc3 after the forced
White has evened-out his pawn structure, [ 22.xc3 xf3 White is in a bad way:
with advantage. ] 23.de1 ( 23.xb5 a5 24.a4 a6
11.d3 g6 12.b3 d4!? Black decides that and Black can capture on d1 or play the
it will be difficult to exploit the d4-square by even stronger ...Nd4 (when mate is
gaining piece control, and so hopes to gain t h r e a t e n e d b y . . . N e 2 )) 23...d4
an a d va n c e d p a wn t h e re in st e a d . 13.b2 the b1-bishop is hopelessly offside, and can
W hite decides to keep the structural do nothing to contest the h1-a8 diagonal,
imbalance, as 24.e3 g4 25.g2 f3+ winning an
[ 13.xd4 is met by xd4 14.xd4 cxd4 e xch a n ge wh ile m a i n t a in in g p o s it io n a l
when 15.e2 ( 15.b5 a6! is the tactical advantages. ]
j u s t i f i c a t i o n , a s 16.xd4? d8 22...xb1
w i n s a p i e c e) 15...f6 16.exf6 xf6 0-1
with good chances. ]
13...f5 White doesn't get a second chance
to capture this piece, which moves to a strong 293 A09
kingside square. 14.ad1 Hillarp Persson,Tiger 2547
[ 14.ac1!? is an idea, hoping to press on c5 Hector,Jonny 2503
before Black can play ...b6, d5 ( 14...b8 DEN-chT 1314 52nd (5.1) 12.01.2014
is less effective now, 15.e2 d7 16.e4 [Fier, Alexandr]
c8 17.f6+ with an attack) 15.c4 b6
16.e2 d5 17.d4 cxd4 18.xd4 Of all the games from this month, this is the
with advantage, as Black hasn't managed to one which most impressed me. Black tries the
develop his queenside. ] most ambitious setup one more time and
14...b8 Black defends the b-pawn to free his White comes with a really strong idea. I have
queen's bishop. 15.b1 Freeing the d-pawn. no idea quite how much of this was home
d7 16.g4?! This isn't the best square, preparation. 8...dxe3 and 10...exf3 are the
[ 16.f4! means that after c6 White can alternatives. 1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.b4 f6

275
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
I confess I was always curious about this
position, but never really understood what is
going on here. Black is building a strong
center, that can bring him an advantage if he
finishes his development. On other hand, the
a2-g8 diagonal is really weakened and there is
a chance Black simply won't get out of the
opening alive. And that's what happened in
this game. 4.e3 e5 5.c5 a5
[ 5...d3 if this move works it's the best.
Different evaluations of this position were
given and until now it's not clear if the idea
is good or not for Black
A) 6.a4+
A1) 6...d7 7.b5 ( 7.b3 e4 8.d4
c6 9.b2 f5 10.e6 xe6 11.xe6+
e7 12.xf5 xb4 and White's
position is quite strange) 7...e6 8.c6
bxc6 9.c3 h6 with chances for both
players;
A2) 6...c6 7.b3 there is some small
difference in the positions with the pawn
on c6 instead of c7. One of the important
ones is that the knight cannot go to c6
any more. e4 8.d4 a5 9.c3 f5
10.b5 xc5 11.e6 e7 12.xc5
xc5 13.g4!? and White has good
compensation fxg4 ( 13...b4 14.gxf5
xf5 15.g1 xb3 16.axb3 f7 17.f3
exf3 18.g3 with a slight advantage for
White ) 14.xe4! e5 15.xd3 xa1
16.d6+ d7 17.0-0 and the attack is
really strong f6 18.e4 f8 19.a3
e7 20.c4 c7 21.d3 d7 22.c5
cxb5 23.xb5 and White is winning;
B) 6.b3 this was played in some games,
and apparently Black is ok here e4 7.d4
a5 8.c3 f5 9.e6 e7 10.a4+
( 10.xf8 was Korchnoi's game, analyzed
by Tony in Chess Publishing xf8 11.b5
e6 12.a4 d7 and Black was fine in
Gabriel, C (2578)-Korchnoi, V (2676)/
Ehrat mem (SUI vs GER match) 1999.)
10...f7 11.xf8 f6 12.xh7 xh7
13.a3 e5 and White is cut in half
because of this pawn on d3 ]
6.a4+
[ 6.xe5?! is not dangerous, and Black can
draw immediately if he wants fxe5 7.h5+
d7 8.f5+ e8 9.h5+ d7 10.f5+
e7 trying to keep the game alive
( 10...e8 11.h5+= ) 11.xe5+ e6
12.c4 d7 13.b5 c6 maybe this is not so
necessary ( 13...f6!? 14.exd4 f7
is also possible and probably W hite does
not have enough for the piece) 14.a3 f6
and Black should be ok in this complex
position. It was analyzed for Chess
Publishing in Van Wely, L (2681)-Kramnik, V
(2799)/Amber-rapid 17th 2008. ]
[ 6.c4 axb4 7.b3 h6
A) 8.0-0 xc5 9.exd4 xd4 10.xd4
xd4 11.b2
A1) 11...d6 was played and after
12.d4 e4 13.d2 f5 ( 13...f5
was necessary, but White has good play
after 14.f3 ) 14.xe4 and Black was in
trouble in Ilinsky, V (2350)-Lev, R (2425)/
Gausdal Int 1991.;
A2) 11...b6!? is probably better 12.d4
c6 13.dxe5 a5 14.c2 xc4
15.xc4 e6 16.e2 f5 and White has
insufficient compensation;
B) 8.exd4 e4 9.e3 e7 and Black is
already better, Bosiocic, M (2542)-Kadric,
D (2471)/Zadar op-A 20th 2013. ]
[ 6.b5+ it's still not clear if it's good or not
to provoke Black to play ...c6 c6 7.c4
axb4 this looks like the most testing move,
8.xe5 h6 ( 8...fxe5? 9.h5+ d7
10.f5+ c7 11.xe5+ d7 12.e6+
e8 13.xc8+ with a decisive advantage)
9.d3 f5 White's pieces are not so active
this time 10.0-0 dxe3 11.dxe3 xd3
12.xd3 a6 and Black is fine, as seen in
Aranaz Murillo, A (2244)-Klek, H (2244)/Wch
U18 Girls 2012 ]
6...d7
[ 6...d7 this is another reasonable option
7.b5 xc5 8.c4 e7 9.exd4 exd4
10.a3 a6 was seen some months ago
and White has good compensation, since
Black's king will never be safe Bukavshin, I
(2539)-Shukh, N (2421)/RUS-ch U26
Saratov 2013. ]
7.b5 c6 8.c4 a6 It's almost impossible
to see it here, but it looks like Black already
has issues to solve after this move.
[ 8...dxe3 was played in a correspondence
game, clearing the center before the
complications 9.fxe3
A) 9...a6 10.d4 axb4 11.0-0 e4
276
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

( 11...e7 Black needs to take care since with a winning position) 15.xc5 xc5
12.f7+! and Black can't take on f7 d8 16.bxc6 bxc6 17.d4 d6 18.c3
13.dxe5 and the position should be better and Black won't survive ]
for White ) 12.fd2 f5 13.xg8 xg8 [ 10...b8 11.g1 a funny answer, but now
14.c4 c7 15.xb4 d5 16.b3 W hite is a pawn up with a better position
and White's position is more comfortable, g4 ( 11...xd4?? 12.f7++- ) 12.g3 e7
since he will exchange the strong knight 13.c3 and our famous magician gives
on d5, as seen in Voll, A (2555)- almost +3 for White ]
Mannermaa, J (2493)/W-ch30 q03 email 11.a3
2010.; [ 11.bxc6 gives time to reorganize the pieces
B) 9...g4!? this is also dangerous, but xc6 12.d5 exf3 13.dxc6 bxc6 14.0-0
Black take some pawns 10.b5 e4 11.d4 xc5 15.e1+ e7 and the position is
xg2 12.f1 xc5 13.a3!? xa3 playable for Black ]
( 13...xd4 14.exd4 xh2 15.c3 11...exf3 12.axb4 xd4 13.d3 e5+
a n d t h e b i s h o p s a r e j u s t t o o s t r o n g) [ 13...fxg2 14.g1 e7 ( 14...e5+
14.xa3 xh2 15.c3 and Black is 15.e3 xh2 transposes to the game)
material up, but it's not so clear he will 15.xg2 d7 16.e3 b2 17.d2
survive with no development at all. So it's and it's still not clear what Black is going to
time to give some of the pawns back c5!? do wit h h is p ie ce s, so W h it e h a s a b ig
16.xc5 d7 17.d5 e5 18.xe4 advantage ]
e7 and Black is surviving according to 14.e3 fxg2 15.g1 xh2 It looks like Black
my computer ] h a s e n o u g h t im e t o t a ke t h e p a wn s a n d
9.exd4 e4 control the position with 16...Ne7. However,
[ 9...exd4 usually this move is not good, with [ 15...e7 was necessary and would
the e-file open W hite has an advantage transpose to the 13...fxg2 note ]
10.0-0 axb4 11.e1+ d8 ( 11...e7 16.bxc6!! White does not care about what is
12.b2 also gives White good play) 12.a3 happening on the kingside and just opens
( 12.e6 there is no need for this move files near Black's king!
xc5 13.xa8 xe6 with an unclear [ 16.f4 e7 and Black has a quite decent
position ) 12...c7 13.xb4 e7 14.b2 position ]
and White is better ] 16...xg1+ 17.d2 Black is a rook up and
10.b5 b4 Makes sense with the plan, but can make a second queen, but because of his
now White is already better. lack of development and exposed king, the
[ 10...exf3 this was probably the best chance, position is already gone. b5
going into some chaotic position 11.bxa6 [ 17...d8 is also not enough to survive
A) 11...fxg2 12.g1 e7 13.c3 18.c3 h2 ( 18...xa1 it's hard for Black
looks good for White; to have any chance without extra material
B) 11...e7+ 12.f1 ( 12.d1 fxg2 19.c7+ xc7 20.d5+ d8 21.xa1
13.g1 e4 ) 12...e4 13.g4! xg4 and the attack will continue, the queen can
( 13...xg4 14.h3 ) 14.g1 h3+ come back to the game via d4.) 19.d5
15.e1 xh2 16.f1 and now the Threatening 20.c7+ g1 20.xg1 bxc6
situation on the queenside is delicate; 21.xc6 b8 22.f4 xf2+ 23.c3 axb4+
C) 11...b5!? to change the strong bishop 24.b3 the checks are over and when
on c4 12.cxb6 fxg2 13.g1 xa6 White's checks start it will be mate in a few
and the position is unclear ] moves ]
[ 10...xc5 takes one pawn, but loses a [ 17...d7 is ingenious, but doesn't work
tempo 11.dxc5 exf3 12.0-0 xc5 13.e1+ 18.cxd7+ d8 19.c6 d6 20.cxb7 b8
e7 14.a3 and Black has no time to 21.b6+ e7 22.c3 h2 23.e1+
stabilize d6 ( 14...xa3 15.xa3 d8 with mate ]
16.e3 d5 17.xd5 cxd5 18.c3 d4 18.cxb6 xb4+ 19.c3 And now Black can't
19.d3 c7 20.c5+ b8 21.d5 stop W hite's pawns, so the position with a

277
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

rook and pawn up is just lost! h2 20.b7 b8 [ 9...h6? 10.eg5 (threatening e4) g6
21.c7+ f8 22.cxb8 xb8 23.bxc8+ 11.e4 h5 12.h3 leaves Black in big, big
xc8 24.g1 With a piece up everything is trouble. ]
much easier. h5 25.xg2 h4 26.b5 e7 10.dxe4 g5!? Black certainly gets the prize
27.c2 h3 28.h2 c7 29.d5 xd5 for imaginative play! He advances on the
30.xd5 g5 31.xh3 xh3 32.g8+ e7 kingside, but White hasn't castled there yet.
33.e6+ 11.b4 g4 12.d2 a5?! I don't really
1-0 understand this, as now Black can hardly
castle long as his queenside is too exposed.
13.b5 d8 14.e2 h5 15.b2 g6
294 A09 16.c4 The knight finds a lovely square and
Huzman,Alexander 2580 can't be touched by the black pawns. 0-0?!
Maryasin,Boris 2398 The king position is too insecure for this.
TCh ISR (2) 18.01.2002 17.h3 Of course, White opens the h-file as he
[Tony Kosten] can still castle queenside. g5
[ 17...g3 18.f4 h4 19.0-0 Puts intolerable
1.f3 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.e3 pressure on the e-pawn and long diagonal. ]
[ We have also considered the aggressive 18.hxg4 hxg4 19.0-0-0
3.e4!? , see Krasenkow,M-Volzhin,A/MK [ A simple, and very human, move but most
Cafe Cup, Koszalin POL 1998. ] computers would play 19.d1! winning the
3...c6 g - p a w n , a s g3? 20.f4! exf4 21.d4
[ Perfectly reasonable, Black wants to play ... menaces mate on h8 and wins a piece. ]
e5 with a Sicilian-type position with colours 19...e6 20.d5 fd8 21.b1
reversed. 3...c5 would aim for a QGA: This is almost always a useful prophylactic
4.xc4 e6 5.0-0 f6 6.e2 have a look at move when W hite castles queenside. g7
Zvjaginsev,V-Svetushkin,D/Linares ESP 22.d1
2000. ( 6.d4 a6 transposes directly into a [ 22.f4 i s a l s o s t r o n g : gxf3 23.gxf3
QGA, as in Espig,L-Keres,P/Tallinn 1975 for when f4 is on the cards again, and W hite
example. )] can also use the g-file. ]
[ 3...f6 4.xc4 e6 5.d4 is a QGA, of 22...e7?
course. ] [ 22...f6 23.f4 gxf3 24.gxf3 is also good
4.xc4 e5 5.c2!? for White, but this should lose. ]
[ A new move in a relatively rare position, 23.d2?!
5.c3 is one of several other moves here, to [ White misses an immediate win: 23.xe5!
stop ...e4, d6 6.0-0 f6 7.d4 0-0 8.h3 xd5 24.h8+! xh8 25.xf7+ ]
seems fairly equal, Vladimirov,E-Gleizerov, 23...g3?! 24.xe5! gxf2 25.h8+!
E/Podolsk 1992. ] Now White sees it! xh8 26.xf7+
5...d6 6.a3 As in many other King's English 1-0
lines White aims for a Paulsen-type schema
reversed where he has extra moves (the black
g8-knight would normally be on d5 quite early. 295 A09
) f6?! Korotylev,Alexey 2600
[ This is aggressive, the queen heads for the Kramnik,Vladimir 2785
kingside, but it is not particularly natural, World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (22) 22.11.2007
6...f6 7.g5!? 0-0 8.c3 h6 9.h4 [Carsten Hansen]
looks dangerous, but maybe Black can play
e7 and ...Bf5. ] 1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.b4 f6 (This line is
7.c3 f5 8.d3 ge7 9.e4 xe4 recommended in Palliser's excellent "Beating
[ Unfortunately Black has to part with his Unusual Chess Openings") 4.e3 dxe3
important light-squared bishop, as 9...g6?! [ Palliser only discusses 4...e5 , and on 5.c5
10.h4 is not too nice, and ] d3!? - see for example Gabriel-Korchnoi,

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Zurich 1999, in the PGN archives we will D2) 9.b2 f6 10.e2 xc5 11.0-0
return to this line in a future update ] xd4 12.xd4 0-0 13.c2 c6
5.fxe3 e5 And rather amazingly we are now 14.b2 e6 15.c3 c8 with a double-
out of all the books I have access to on the edged position and chances for both
Reti, even if this position has been played sides, Nutu Gajic, D-Feustel, P/
several times before 6.c5! Thessaloniki1984 ]
[ This is in my opinion sharper and better [ B) 6.b3
than the alternatives: A) 6.a3 A) 6...c5 7.bxc5 xc5 ( 7...c6!? ) 8.d4
A) 6...a5!? 7.b5 e4 8.d4 f5 9.b2 exd4 9.b5+ d7 10.exd4 e7+
( 9.e2!? ) 9...d6 11.f2 a6 12.b3 a7 13.c5
A1) 10.g3 looks ugly but is probably Lisitsin, G-Ravinsky, G/Leningrad 1955;
necessary to survive, e.g. f6 11.e2 B) 6...e6 7.d4 e4 8.fd2 f5 9.g3 g5
0-0 12.0-0 f4!? 13.c5!? ( 13.gxf4 h3 10.a3 a6 11.c2 is messy with a
14.f2 bd7 15.c3 c5 , and Black bunch of positional factors counting for
has a dequa te co mpe nsation f o r th e and detracting from the overall evaluation
pawn ) 13...xc5 14.xf4 d6; on both sides, but I still believe White is
A2) 10.e2?! f6 11.c2 bd7 better in this line too, Gjokaj, G-Meschke,
12.bc3 c5 , and Black is much better, A/Bad Wiessee 1998;
Mazel, I-Alatortsev, V/ Leningrad 1934/ C) 6...a5 7.b5 e4 ( 7...c5 8.d3 g6
URS-ch; 9.b2 a4 10.c2 e7 Gajarsky, J-Feco,
B) 6...e6?! J/CCASR Email 2002 11.a3 0-0 12.c3
B1) 7.e2 h6 ( 7...a5 8.b5 d6 , and I prefer White) 8.d4 f5 9.a3
9.0-0 h6 10.c3 0-0 11.d4 h6 10.c3 c5 11.bxc6 xc6 12.db5
looks very nice for White) 8.0-0 e7 xa3 13.xa3 0-0 14.e2 e6 15.d5
9.c3 f5 10.d4 exd4 11.exd4 b8 16.0-0 e7 17.f4 Lisitsin, G-
Leskowsky, Z-Soto, J/corr 1975; Rabinovich, I/Tbilisi 1937 ]
B2) 7.b2 a5 8.b5 d7 9.d4 e4 6...e6
10.fd2 f5 11.c3 h4+ 12.g3 h6 [ Black's alternatives are: A) 6...g4 7.b3
13.e2 d6 14.g2 gf6 a5 8.c4 h6 9.0-0 axb4 10.d4
with an unclear position and chances to Halmeenmaki, T-Terho, J/ Tampere 1990 ]
both sides, but I must admit that I favour [ B) 6...e4 7.d4
White thanks to his avalanche of pawns A) 7...a5 8.b5 d5 ( 8...xc5?
on the queenside, Kavnatsky, V- 9.h5++- ) 9.a3 xc5 10.c3 e5
Thompson, D/Jackson 1988; 11.xc5 xc5 12.xe4 e5 13.d3
C) 6...h6?! 7.c3 e7 8.d4 0-0 9.d3 with a large advantage for White;
g4 10.0-0 a5 11.b5 exd4 12.exd4 f5 B) 7...c6?! 8.xc6 bxc6 9.c4 h6
13.d5 Bertholee, R-Van Riemsdijk, H/ 10.0-0 with a close to winning positional
Dieren 1989; advantage for W hite, Benjamin, J-
D) 6...c5!? 7.bxc5 ( 7.b5 g4 8.e2 Brookshear, T/USA 1990 ]
d6 9.b2 e7 10.c3 0-0 11.e4 7.b5+
g6 12.0-0 Schneider, F-Beyer, H/ [ A perfectly good alternative is 7.d4 e4
Hassloch 1999 ) 7...e4 8.d4 f5 ( 7...a5 8.b5 ) 8.fd2 f5 9.c4
D1) 9.b3 c6 10.b2 ( 10.xc6 Neckar, L-Gorla, L/Bern 1990 ]
bxc6 11.b2 f6 ) 10...f6 11.e2 7...c6 8.a4 h6
xc5 12.b5 xd4 13.exd4 d7 [ 8...a5 9.b3 ( 9.d4!? axb4 10.0-0 )
0-1 Xu Hanbing-Zhang Pengxiang/Wuxi 9...xb3 10.axb3 d7 11.0-0 axb4
CHN 2005 ( 13...0-0!? 14.d5 a6 12.xa8 xa8 13.d4 Pastushkov, M-
15.b3 a5 16.c3 b5 17.c5 f7 Pechenov, V/Tula 2001 ]
18.d6 e6 looks better for Black) 9.0-0
14.c5!? a5 15.d6!? b6 [ 9.d4 suggests itself, e.g. e4 10.fd2 f5
16.c3; 11.b3 with a complicated and fascinating

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struggle ahead ] lack of time left on the clock.

9...e7 ½-½
[ I'm sure some players will be attracted to
t h e o b v i o u s 9...c4 10.e1 d3
, trying to restrain White centre ambitions, 296 A09
but I nonetheless still like White's chances Kosten,Anthony C 2519
after 11.c3 e7 12.a3 ] Brochet,Philippe 2388
10.b3 d7 11.c3 a6 12.a3 Le Mans 2004
[ 12.d4!? xb4 13.xe6 xe6 14.b1 a5 [John Watson]
15.a3 a6 16.xb7 is also quite pleasant
for White ] 1.f3 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.e3
12...c7 13.d4 0-0-0 14.dxe5 xd1?! [ Tony gives a game Krasenkov-Volzhin,
[ 14...g4 15.xe6 xe6 16.e2 xe5 Koszalin POL 1998 beginning with 3.e4!?
17.xe5 fxe5 18.d1 c7 19.b2 ] c5 4.xc4 c6 5.0-0 . Then a
15.xe6+ xe6 16.xd1 fxe5 17.c3 straightforward approach is f6 6.c3 e6
[ 17.xe5 hf8 ( 17...f6 amounts to 7.e5 ( 7.d3 e7 ) 7...d5 when both sides
nothing 18.b2 d2 19.c4 , and White is have play but I don't think that Black is in
much better) 18.xf8 xf8 19.b2 f5 any trouble. ]
20.c4 ] 3...e6!? An unusual defence that Tony treats
17...d3 very rudely. But it's definitely worth looking
[ Black tries activity, hoping it will create into. 4.g5!? Going for it. The assessment
sufficient counterplay to balance out the depends in part upon Black's 5th-move option.
weak e5-pawn. Another continuation is [ 4.a3 with the idea of Nxc4 is more
17...hf8 , though White looks comfortably common, but Black usually comes close to
be t t e r a f t e r 18.a2 f7 19.af2 d3 or achieves full equality. ]
20.e4 ] 4...d5 5.e4 Here we've arrived at a position
18.e4 g4 19.e1 hd8 20.h3 f6 that strong players have entered into a few
21.f2 b3 22.xe5 d5 23.c4 c3? times but has no serious theory. 3. ..Be6 is
[ 23...f6!? is better for the reason pointed probably playable but Tony shows that Black
out in the note to White's next move 24.a2 has to be careful. c6
b8 25.e4 c3 26.xc3 xc3 27.d6 [ A strange-looking but crucial and promising
, and White has an extra pawn and a nice alternative is 5...e6 Panchenko-Rozentalis,
k n i gh t o n d 6 , t h o u gh t h e la t t e r c a n b e Lvov 1987 continued
dislodged at no great effort and expense A) Perhaps White should try 6.d4 c6
and Black's pieces are rather active and will 7.c3 ( 7.xc4!? e7 8.h4 h6 9.xf7!?
be able to generate some amount of xf7 10.h5+ f8 11.xe6 e8! )
counterplay. ] 7...e7 ( 7...b4 8.xc4 h6 9.f3 xe4
24.a5? 10.0-0 xc3 11.bxc3 with full
[ Trapping the rook with 24.d2 looks better, compensation) 8.h4 h6 9.f3 b5 10.d5
e.g. xd2 25.xd2 b5 26.a4 a3 exd5 11.exd5;
27.ac1 , and I don't see any reason why B) 6.exd5 xg5 7.dxe6 e5+ 8.e2
White wouldn't win. ] ( 8.e2 fxe6 9.0-0 d6 10.g3 c6
24...b1 25.xb1 xb1 26.c4 c3 11.xc4 d4! ) 8...c6 9.exf7+ ( 9.f4
27.b2 b5 28.d1 xd1+ 29.xd1 g6 xe2+ 10.xe2 fxe6 11.xc4 d4 )
30.f2 d7 31.e2 d8 32.f2 b6 9...xf7 10.d1!? xe2+ 11.xe2 e5
33.cxb6 axb6 34.d3 d6 35.de5+ c7 12.a3 xa3 ( or 12...d3 13.xd3
36.xd6 xd6 37.f7+ d5 38.d3 c5 cxd3 14.c4 d8 ) 13.bxa3 f6
39.e4+ c6 and a draw was agreed upon, 14.b2 d3 15.xf6 and while 15...gxf6
but of course W hite still had some winning was good, xf6! would have left Black a
chances, but was probably deterred due to a clear advantage ]
6.xc4 e6 7.d3

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[ Too speculative is 7.d4 h6 8.xe6? b4+ 297 A09

9.c3 fxe6 10.h5+ f8 11.xe6 f6 Kramnik,Vladimir 2785
and White's initiative is dying. ] Topalov,Veselin 2775
7...e7 This position has arisen a few times 20th Amber Blindfold (3) 14.03.2011
and White's piece setup has proven hard to [Nigel Davies]
handle:
[ (a) 7...f6 8.0-0 h6 9.f3 e7 10.c3 1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.g3 c6 4.g2 e5
0-0 11.e2 a6 12.a4 a5 13.d4 a6 5.0-0 f6 6.d3 e7 Allowing White to play a
14.d3 b4 15.b1 b6 16.d1 b7 known blow on the flank.
17.e5 h8 18.a3!? Van der Sterren- [ I don't think there's much wrong with 6...a5
Flear, W ijk aan Zee 1987, with attacking , though some Black players might be wary
chances ] about giving away the b5 square. ]
[ (b) 7...h6 8.f3 f6 9.c3 a6 10.a4 7.b4!? xb4
b4 11.0-0 0-0 12.f4 e7 [ Another possibility is 7...xb4 8.xe5
Szekely-Khenkin, Kecskemet 1990, and xe5 9.a4+ fd7 10.xb4 c5
White has a small edge, e.g., 13.e5 d8 , though White's bishops seem to give him
14.f3 ] an edge there, for example 11.a3 0-0
8.h5! This direct attack appears to be new. 12.d2 a6 13.b1 a7 14.e3 dxe3
Two mini-games by Szekely had gone 15.fxe3 c7 was Rajlich, I-Stefanova, A/
[ 8.f3 f6 9.0-0 ( 9.c3 a6 10.a4 bd7 Bled 2002 and now 16.b2 looks better for
11.0-0 0-0 12.e1 1/2-1/2 Szekely,P- White. ]
Kishnev, Netherlands 1993) 9...0-0 10.c3 8.xe5 0-0 9.d2
a6 11.e3 bd7 12.d4 1/2-1/2 Szekely, [ White has also tried 9.b2 , for example c5
P-Lputian, Lvov 1986 ] 10.a3 a6 11.e3 dxe3 12.fxe3 c7
8...g6 What else? White was threatening 13.d2 d7 14.ef3 b8 15.c2
Nxe6 and Bxe6, whereas was slightly better for White at this stage in
[ 8...xg5 9.xg5!? ( or 9.xg5 ) 9...xg5 Gelfand, B-Ponomariov, R/Moscow 2010. ]
10.xg5 gives White a favourable two- 9...d6 10.a3 a6 11.f4!? Holding the
bishops position for free. ] knight in the centre like this appears to be new,
9.g4 b5?? This ends up being a blunder. and also quite good.
Perhaps Black had foreseen White's next and [ In an earlier game W hite played 11.ef3
underestimated it. but after c5 12.b1 e8 13.g5 h6
[ 9...f6 10.h3! keeps the pressure on e6 14.ge4 xe4 15.xe4 f8 Black was
and makes Black's development somewhat solidly placed in Danielsen, H-Fries Nielsen,
awkward. It's fair to say that W hite has a N/Espergarde 1992. ]
practical and perhaps theoretical 11...c6 12.b1 e7 13.df3 g4
advantage. ] Fishing in troubled waters.
10.xf7! d4 [ 13...c5 was probably better, simply
[ 10...xf7 11.xe6+ e8 12.f7+ d7 protecting the d4 pawn. ]
13.e6+ d6 14.d4 or 4.Nc3, and Black's 14.xd4 xe5 15.fxe5 xe5 16.e3 g6
king will only escape at great cost. ] 17.b3 g7 18.d4 b8?! Mistakenly
11.xe6 f6 12.e2 f8 13.g5 b4+ allowing White to build a broad pawn centre.
14.d2 e5 15.e3! c5 16.df3! xe3 [ 18...f5 was better, though White can then
17.xe5 xf2+ 18.xf2 g4+ 19.e2 s p e c u l a t e w i t h 19.xf5 gxf5 20.h5
xe5 20.d4 The rest is straightforward: h6 and have good compensation for the
21.dxe5 hxg5 22.xg5 xe4 23.ad1 c6 exchange. ]
24.d7+ f7 25.hf1+ g8 26.e6+ h8 19.e4 b6 20.f4 b7 21.e5 e8 22.d2
27.xf8+ xf8 28.f6+ f5 23.a4 b8 24.be1 White already
1-0 has a dominating position and it's about to get
a lot worse for Black. d7 25.d5 cxd5
26.xd7 xd7 27.xd5 bb8 28.e6 fxe6

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29.xe6+ xe6 30.xb8 Winning the Preparing a 'luft' for the c4-bishop. b5 12.a2
exchange for nothing. f5 31.d6 c8 b7 13.e4 White begins to mass his pieces
32.f3 d3 33.f2 xc4 34.c2 b5 on the kingside, ready for an eventual attack.
35.e7 c5 36.xa7 e4 37.e5 f8 d4!? If one of the first rules to engage a
38.d4 d8 39.c7 g5 40.g4 successful attack on the king, is to exchange
1-0 the king's defenders, then a good rule for
defending is to exchange the attacking forces.
Black sets about this in consistent fashion
298 A09 14.xd4 cxd4 15.g4 xe4!
Krasenkow,Michal 2660 Black eliminates the second white knight as
Volzhin,Alexander 2510 well, otherwise, if
MK Cafe Cup Koszalin (5) 1998 [ 15...h8 16.d6 xd6 17.exd6 e5
[Tony Kosten] 18.xe5 xe5 19.xe5 xd6 20.ae1
and White 's control of the e-file gives him
1.f3 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.e4!? An aggressive the advantage. ]
move that I hadn't known, before seeing this 16.xe4 h8! Both countering the threat of
game, Bh6, and introducing a more disguised threat
[ 3.e3 is likely to transpose to a Queen's of his own: 17...f5 18 exf6 Nxf6 winning the
Gambit Accepted, but both ] exchange. 17.e2
[ 3.a3 and ] [ 17.xd4? wou ld b e silly, c5 18.e4
[ 3.a4+ are more common methods of a n d B l a c k c a n p l a y t h e s a m e t r i c k : f5
recapturing the c4-pawn. ] 19.exf6 xf6 with material advantage. ]
3...c5 Black immediately takes control of the 17...c8 18.g3 c5 19.d1 Neither of
d4 square, weakened by White's third move. White's bishops have much perspective at the
4.xc4 c6 moment. d7
[ 4...f6 5.c3 e6 6.d4 cxd4 7.xd4 [ 19...xd3? seems strong, as the knight is
leads to a line of the QGA, with a slight plus untouchable, but 20.ed2 c5 21.xd4
to W hite, Sebenik,M-Lekic,D/ Bled SLO turns the tables. ]
1999. ] 20.f4 c7 21.f3 g6 Black is on his toes,
5.0-0 The most logical move, although in the White was planning to open the position for
earliest game I could find in this line, White his bishops by f5. 22.f2 a5! Black looks for
played his counterplay on the queenside, where he
[ 5.b4!? e6?! 6.b5 ce7 7.c3 f6 8.0-0 h a s t h e a d v a n t a g e . 23.g4 And White
and had gained the advantage, Kramer-Fine, advances where he is strongest. a4 24.h4!?
New York 1948/9. ] Planning to go all the way to h6 with this
5...e6 6.c3 a6 7.d3 Naturally, White has to pawn. b3 25.xb3 axb3 26.h5 c2
be content with a slightly more restrained 27.h6 Not a tactical move, a positional move,
c e n t r e t h a n i n t h e Q G A , b u t t h e c l o s e d as trapping the black king on the back rank
position will make it more difficult for Black to allows W hite to consider various endgame
find counterplay. f6!? In the game Neverov, possibilities. fc8 28.de1 b4 Short of time,
V - I b r a g i m o v , I / M o s c o w 1 9 9 1 , B l a c k h a d Black overlooks White's next. 29.a4! xa4
preferred 30.xd4 c6 31.xc6 8xc6 32.g5
[ 7...ge7 and after 8.e3 d4 9.xd4 What's this, another pawn on a dark square?
cxd4 10.e2 c6 had a good position, but It might seem odd, but it is all part of White's
there are no doubt many improvements on p l a n t o e m b a r r a s s t h e b l a c k k i n g . g8
White's eighth move. ] 33.f2 f8 Black hastens his king out of the
8.e5 White does not need to be asked twice, trap. 34.a1 c5 35.a8+ e7 36.xc5+
but immediately grabs more space in the 6xc5 37.b8 It seems that White has
centre. The e5-pawn will be used to attack gained a clear ascendance, but Black still has
the black kingside. d7 9.e1 e7 10.f4 su f f ic ie n t re so u r ce s . xb2 Flash, but it
Nimzovich would like this move. 0-0 11.a3! amounts to the same as

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 37...xe2+ 38.xe2 c2+ 39.e3 xb2 ]
38.xb2 c2+ 39.e3
[ 39.xc2!? bxc2 is also drawn, as 40.b7+
d8 41.b8+ forces a perpetual, as c7
loses to 42.xb4 c1 43.c4+ ]
39...xb2 40.xb4 White is slightly better,
because of his extra space, but the nature of
this position means that a draw is certain. d7
41.d4 f2 42.xb3 xf4+ 43.c5 a4!
Greed could still cost Black his half-point,
[ 43...g4?! 44.b7+ e8 45.d4 xg5?
46.d6 and wins ]
44.b7+ e8 45.b8+ e7 46.h8
A little trick, a5+
[ 46...g4 would be answered by 47.a8!
and Black cannot get back to check from the
side. ]
47.d4 a4+
½-½
299
Labollita,Martin
Leitao,Rafael
American Continental (7) 12.08.2005
[John Watson]
Here's a whacky opening that just won't go
a wa y. I n t h i s g a m e it s u f f i c e s t o b e a t a
2600-level player! Perhaps the whole idea of
this line was inspired by Stephan Buecker's
advocacy of a similar line by Black. 1.f3
[ 1.d4 f6 2.f3 c5 3.d5
is Buecker's order, a system he calls
HABICHD ("Gotcha!"), also known as the
Hawk. In that case 4.c3 a5 follows our
f e a t u re d ga m e b u t W h i t e h a s a n e xt r a
tempo. ( incidentally, 4...b5 5.xb5 a5+
6.c3 b7 is another Buecker idea, but it
falls badly short after 7.d2 xd5 8.e4 )]
1...d5 2.c4 d4 3.c5 This is the point! White
prevents ...c5 and would like to play 4.Qa4+
Nc6 5.b4!, when Black's d-pawn is in trouble.
Of course Black gets a move first.
[ 3.e3 c6 4.c5?! is another variant on the
theme, but this time dxe3 5.fxe3
is fairly simple. White can try 6.b5 xc5
7.xc6+ bxc6 8.xe5 h4+ 9.g3 e4
10.0-0 xe5 11.d4 d6 12.dxc5 xc5
but Black must be better ]
3...c6
[ 3...e5!? 4.xe5 xc5 hasn't been played,
to my knowledge , pre sumab ly be caus e
White gets two center pawns. On the other
hand, Black has space and open lines .
There are so many different move orders
and ideas in that position that I'd hate to
even guess what's going on. ]
4.a4
[ 4.b4 xb4 5.a4+ c6 6.b2 d7
7.xd4 e5! is insufficient, even a tempo
ahead of Buecker's line above. ]
4...d5 5.b4 e5 6.e3 d7 These are all
mo re o r less n a t u ral m o ve s an d in d e e d ,
they've occurred before in Gruenberg-Rahman,
C a i r o 2 0 0 0 . 7.a3 TN! Probably not
objectively a good one. Gruenberg played the
natural
[ 7.b5 d8? ( 7...xc5 8.a3! b4 9.b2
was another Gruenberg game) 8.c4 e4
9.c3! f5 ( 9...dxc3?? 10.xf7+ ) 10.d5
e6 11.c6 bxc6 12.bxc6 c8 13.0-0
A09 with a huge advantage. ]
2383 7...e4 The obvious refutation.
2598 [ White has the better practical chances
although objectively it's nothing impressive
after 7...d3 8.b5 ( 8.b5 c8 9.c3
c4! ) 8...d8 9.e4! xc5 10.b2 f6
11.xd3 ]
8.b5 c8!
[ Tempting but inferior is 8...0-0-0?
A) or even 9.fxd4 xd4 10.exd4 xb5
11.xb5! c6 ( 11...xd4 12.c6! ) 12.c4
c4!? xd4 13.xd4 xd4 14.a3 with two
strong bishops.;
B) 9.xa7+! b8 10.xc6+ xc6 11.b5
exf3 ( 11...dxe3 12.bxc6 ) 12.bxc6 fxg2??
( 12...xc6 13.xc6 bxc6 14.a3
l e a v e s B l a c k a t a l o s s) 13.b1
and White's attack is decisive. ]
9.fxd4 xd4 10.exd4 a6 11.c3 xd4
Uh-oh. Although Black had to make some
accurate moves it appears that 7. b5 was
better than 7.Na3. Now Black stands
somewhat better, although not disastrously so.
12.b3?! A waste of time.
e5 [ 12.c2! was more accurate and rather
unclear: f6 13.a3! c6 ( 13...e7
14.b2 0-0 15.e2; The softening move
13...a5! may be best 14.b1 axb4 15.axb4
e7 and now 16.b2 0-0 17.e2?
runs into xb4 ) 14.b2 d8 15.d1!
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Hoping for d3 at some point. e7 16.e2 33.a3 c3 34.xd6 c1+ 35.d1 c3+
0-0 17.0-0 with d3 or Nb5-d4 to follow. ] 36.f1 cxd6 37.xe6 b5 38.xd6
12...e6 13.c2?! 1-0
[ 13.a4+ c6 14.b2 may be better,
planning 0-0-0 in some lines: d8 15.c2!
f5 16.a3 f6 17.b5 d7 18.d4 e7 300 A09
19.xf5 xf5 20.c4 ] Laznicka,Viktor 2617
13...f6 14.b1 e7 15.d1 0-0 16.e3 Rombaldoni,Denis 2465
W hite's blockade can hardly make up for Czech Open A (6) 29.07.2009
Black's bind. cd8 17.b2 d7 18.d1 [Jonathan Rowson]
d5!?
[ 18...g4 is a good option. ] 1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.b4 g4!? Favoured by
19.a3 f5 20.c6!? Not a great idea but it Nigel Short.
shakes things up. Otherwise there may occur [ 3...g6 ]
something like [ 3...c5 ]
[ 20.c4 c6 21.0-0 f4! etc. ] [ 3...f6 ]
20...bxc6 4.b2
[ Or 20...xe3!? 21.dxe3 ( 21.fxe3 d6 [ 4.e5 f5 doesn't seem to lead anywhere
threatens ...Bh4+) 21...xd1+ 22.xd1 special for White. ]
xd1+ 23.xd1 d8+ 24.c2 b5 25.e2 [ 4.b3 xf3 5.xf3 c6 6.e3 e5 7.g3
( 25.e5 d6 26.b2 d5 ) 25...d6 d7 8.b2 h6 9.d3 f6 10.c5 a5
wins the c-pawn. ] 11.a3 e7 12.0-0 0-0 13.f4 fd8 14.exd4
21.xa6 f4 22.c4! c5! 23.e5 exd4 15.c3 xc5 16.bxc5 dxc3 17.xc3
[ 23.xe4 f5 ] xc5+ 18.h1 d4 19.ab1 b5
23...d6 24.c4 White is putting up winning for Black in Ghaem Maghami, E -
maximum resistance. cxb4 25.axb4 f5?! Short, N Teheran 2003 ]
Too fancy. Better was 4...xf3 5.exf3
[ 25...f5 26.0-0 f3! is strong. ] [ 5.gxf3?! looks a bit suspect to me. e5
26.xe4 f6 27.d4 xb4+ 28.d2 6.g2 c6 with Ne7-g6 or f5 to follow. ]
Amazingly, everything has held and W hite 5...c5 6.bxc5 c6 7.b3 b8 8.d3 e6
has turned the corner. d6 You'd think that 9.0-0 f6 Playable, but if I were Black here,
some capture on e5 would expose d2 but the my inclination would be to play
pin along the a2-g8 diagonal prevents this. [ 9...xc5 10.e4 ge7 followed by
[ 28...xe5 29.dxe5 a5 30.d3! castling and f5 if possible, and meeting Ba3
and 0-0. ] with ...b6 to keep the knight on b1 inactive
29.h4?! for as long as possible. ]
[ 29.d3! ] 10.e4 d7 11.d3 xc5
29...f3!? [ 11...xc5 12.xc6+ bxc6 13.xd4 d3
[ 29...xe5 30.dxe5 xd2+! 31.xd2 f6+ ( 13...b4!? ) 14.c3 d7! gives Black
32.d4 ( 32.exd6?? xe4+ 33.d3 excellent compensation. ]
xf2+ ) 32...xd4+ 33.xd4 xc4 34.exf6 12.f4 f6
c5 leaves some advantage but not enough [ 12...b6 13.a3 f5 14.xc6 bxc6
to win. ] 15.e1 f7 16.xc5 xc5 17.a3 d6
30.g3 h5 31.d3 f8?? 18.c2 c5 also looks better for Black. ]
[ 31...b6 32.c6 b3 33.e5 b4 13.f3 0-0 14.a3 b4?! off target.
is a draw. ] [ 14...e8 intending e5 was still comfortable
32.c4! e7?? A blunder, although Black is for Black. ]
in trouble: 15.b3 a6 16.ab1 d6 17.g3 d7 18.d3
[ 32...a6 33.0-0 threatens Ba3, but Black h6
cannot defend adequately: d7 ( 33...f7 [ 18...e5 19.c1! ]
34.c2! and Ne5+ ) 34.b1! ] 19.c1 fc8 20.e1 c6 21.e2

284
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 21.c2? b5! 22.d2 looks ok until you
spot bxc4 23.xc4 xb1 24.xb1 ce5!
winning for Black. ]
21...b4! 22.g2 c5 23.d1 c3 24.c2
b5 25.cxb5 axb5 26.h4 b4 27.h2 b6
[ 27...e7!? With the idea of Qa6 hitting d3
looks very strong. 28.f5 e5 29.g4 f6
30.f4 e4! doesn't help. ]
28.a1 a5 29.e5 c6 30.e2 a6
31.b3 ca8 32.xc5 xc5 33.b3 8a7
34.g4!? A good practical try to change the
nature of the position, but Black should still be
a bit better. b5 35.e4 e7 36.a3 h8
[ 36...h5! seems to oblige White to play g5
sooner or later, and therefore takes away
any fear on the kingside. ]
37.d1 b8 38.h3 b6 39.axb4 xb4
40.xb4 xb4 41.f5 exf5 42.gxf5 b5
[ 42...b6 ]
43.f6 g6? Black's first major error, but now
White has a slight initiative.
[ 43...d7+ 44.g3 d6+ 45.g2 xf6
46.b3 g8 47.a2 xa2 48.xa2 g6 ]
44.g1 h7 45.g4 h5 46.f3 gxf6
47.xf6 d7+ 48.h2 b4 49.f4 a5
50.b2 e7 51.xg6+ fxg6 52.xe7+
xe7 53.b7
1-0
301
Lima,Darcy
Vescovi,Giovanni P
BCX Open Brasilia BRA (6) 30.01.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.g3 e5 2.g2 d5 3.c4 d4
[ The most ambitious reply, forming a pawn
w e d g e i n t h e c e n t r e , a l t h o u g h 3...f6 20...g4
4.cxd5 xd5 is more common, with a
Reversed Dragon. ]
4.d3 c5 5.f3 c6 6.0-0 f6 7.e3 e7 21.g2 Forced. h3! 22.e2
8.exd4 cxd4
[ As I mentioned in the archives (in a slightly
different position), there is nothing obviously
wrong with this optimistic recapture. 8...exd4 22...g4 23.g2 h3 24.e2
9.f4 would transpose to this game. ]
9.b4!?
[ Clearly critical. 9.e1 d7 10.a3 a5
11.bd2 0-0 12.e4 c7
is a Benoni position with a tempo more for
W hite, but it does little to change the
asse ssm e nt of t h e p osition , S a ba o , R-
Szmetan,J/Caseros 1974, 1/2-1/2 (21). ]
9...xb4
[ This is certainly the acid test of White's play,
but 9...xb4 is perfectly playable, too:
10.xe5 0-0 11.e1 d6 12.a3 a6
13.d2 e8 14.ef3 c5 with equality,
Vujadinovic,G-Ivanovic,B/Kladovo 1992, 0-1
(53). ]
[ 9...d7?! is worse, 10.b5 cb8 11.e1
c7? ( 11...f6 ) 12.e2 and White wins an
important central pawn, Freisler,P-Kiselev,
S/Marianske Lazne 1989, 1-0 (40). ]
10.xe5 xe5 11.a4+ The point of White's
combination, recovering material. fd7!
[ 11...c6?! is a positional mistake,
12.xc6+ bxc6 13.xb4 stopping Black
from castling kingside, b6 14.a3 xb4
15.xb4 e6 16.d2 0-0-0 17.b3 f5
18.ad1 d7 19.c5 and the d4-pawn is
weak, Norwood,D-Ivanchuk,V/Baguio 1987,
1-0 (48). ]
12.xb4 xd3 13.b5 a6 14.h5 0-0
15.a3 In this open position, White's two
bishops provide compensation for the pawn.
e8 16.d2 7e5 Black tries to show that
h is kn i gh t s ca n b e s t ro n g, t o o , b u t t h e i r
central posts are far from stable. 17.e4 g6
18.e2 a5 19.d6 This cluster of knights
A09 and bishops in the central files is certainly an
2514 unusual sight! h3
2511 [ Black decides to force a draw, he could try
for more with 19...c5!? although 20.b3
xb3 21.axb3 c3 is unclear. ]
20.f4!
[ 20.xd3? xd2! 21.xd2 f3+
is good for Black. ]
[ If 20...xf1?! 21.xf1 and one of the
knights is lost. ]
[ White cannot afford to avoid the perpetual
attack, f or if 22.xh3?! xd2 23.fxe5?
Black wins by e3+ 24.h1 xe4+ ]
½-½
13.g4
285
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

302 A09 20.a7 b3 21.b1 e7 22.xc8 xc8

Mac 2075 23.b7 a4 24.b4 b6 25.d2 xd2
Dergatschova Daus,Anna 2237 26.xd2 c8 27.e2 f7 28.hc1 f5
MM SVR RL Ruhrgebiet (8) 06.03.2005 29.exf5 h6+ 30.d1 xh2 31.g4 h1+
[John Watson] 32.c2 h6 33.h5+ xh5 34.xh5+ g6
35.fxg6+ hxg6 36.f3 e7 37.d2 d6
Another question from Mr. Naundorf: 1.f3 38.b8 c8 39.c5 d7 40.b6 h4
d5 2.c4 d4 3.c5!? "What do you think of this 41.d5 xc7 42.dxd6
move? I think it was a recommendation of BÃ1/ 1-0
4cker a long time ago. GM Grunberg used to
play it too as you pointed out in one of your
great books on the middlegame." c6 4.a4 303 A09
d5 5.b4 e5 6.a3 This would be my first Matamoros Franco,Carlos S 2472
instinct since it covers c1 and thus eliminates Vallejo Pons,Francisco 2645
...Qxc5 after b5. TCh Lanzarote ESP (2) 07.05.2003
[ N a u n d o r f g i v e s 6.e3 , which is quite [Tony Kosten]
reasonable and may well be best. I'm not
sure what comes next. Natural is d7 ( or 1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.g3 c6 A perfectly
6...g4!? 7.e2 xf3 8.xf3 e4 9.e2 d3 re s p e c t a b l e m o ve , a i m i n g f o r a S c h m i d
10.c3 e5 11.d1 unclear ) 7.b5 ( 7.b5 Benoni reversed, although
xc5; 7.e2 e4! ) 7...f6 8.0-0 e4 9.xd4 [ 3...c5 is more ambitious. ]
xd4 10.xd7+ xd7 11.xd7+ xd7 4.g2 e5 5.0-0 White aims to defer playing
12.exd4 This looks awful at first sight, but d3, which offers some extra possibilities,
after Nc3 and Re1 W hite seems to stand [ 5.d3 f6 6.0-0 was seen in Speelman,J-
well. ] Koneru,H/Torquay ENG 2002. ]
[ After 6.b5 , my computer engine finds 5...f6 6.b4!? This sharp flank blow is the
xc5 7.a3 b4! Ouch! ] possibility alluded to earlier, White still had
6...e7 time for
[ 6...d7! is the move I'd worry about. Then [ 6.d3 transposing to the previous note. ]
7.e3 ( 7.b5 d8; 7.b5!? d8 8.e3 a6 ) 6...e4 The strongest move,
7...d3 8.b5 c8! 9.c3 c4! 10.a3!? [ 6...xb4 is met by the standard 7.xe5
e4 11.g5 a5 12.b5 xa4 13.xa4 b4 xe5 8.a4+ c6 9.xc6+ bxc6 10.xb4
14.xb4 axb4 15.xe4 xb5 16.b2 d8 with advantage. ]
17.f3 is messy but hard to trust. So maybe 6. 7.g5 xb4 8.xe4 xe4 9.xe4 h3
e3 was best. ] [ 9...0-0 is an alternative, 10.a3 e7 11.d3
7.e3 e5 12.d2 c6 13.b1 with chances to
[ 7.b5 is supposed to be the point of this both sides, Plaskett,J-Balashov,Y/Hastings
line: d8 8.b6+ f8 ( 8...d7 9.c4 1985. ]
xc4 10.xc4 ) 9.c4 e6 10.c6!? 10.a4?! An amazing novelty, White avoids
(Fritz of course) bxc6 ( 10...xc6 11.xc6 the obvious
bxc6 12.bxa7 e4 13.b1! ) 11.cxe5 cxb6 [ 10.e1 f6 11.a4 0-0-0 12.xc6
12.xc6 unclear. ] when Black played the surprising piece sac
7...dxe3 8.fxe3 bxc6 ( 12...xc6 is fine, though, menacing
[ 8.dxe3!? ] mate on g2, 13.xc6 bxc6 with the bishop
8...e4 9.c4 b5 10.cxb6 d7 11.d3 d5 pair ) 13.xb4 he8 (menace ...Rxe2! and
12.e4 xb4 ...Qf3) 14.f4 d3 with sharp play ending in a
[ 12...e6? 13.b5 ] draw by perpetual, Psakhis,L-Zhuravliov,V/
13.b3 e6 14.bxc7 f6 15.e3 USSR 1979. ]
[ 15.a3 c6 16.b7 c8 17.e3 ] 10...xf1 11.xc6+ bxc6 12.xc6+ f8
15...a5? 16.a3 a6 17.b7 The game is 13.xf1 After the excitement White has taken
over. c8 18.b6 c5 19.xc5 xc5 a pawn and displaced the black king in return

286
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
f o r t h e e x c h a n g e . d3! Black cuts across
White's natural development, and weakens
the light squares. 14.e3?! I don't know if this
is a good idea, leaving the advanced d-pawn
which cuts across the white position. b8
15.a3 f6!? Black fancies his chances in
the endgame, but
[ 15...h5! is stronger, threatening both ...h4
and ...Rh6, when Black is just winning. ]
16.xc7? This move leads to a quick
disaster,
[ 16.xf6 was far better, ruining the black
s t r u c t u r e , gxf6 17.b5 a6 18.d4
with fair chances, although Black is
favourite. ]
16...d6 17.c6 e5 This is the problem,
White is forced to exchange into a hopeless
endgame. 18.xf6 xf6 19.b1 xb1
20.xb1 e7 The black rook enters the
g a m e w i t h g r e a t e f f e c t . 21.e1 b8
The resignation might seem premature, but
after
[ 21...b8 22.c3 xc3 23.dxc3 b1
24.d2 a1 25.a3+ e6 26.xd3 xa2
27.c5 a5 White has to give his bishop to
stop the a-pawn. ]
0-1
304 A09 12.c2 0-0 13.b4 cd8
Minasian,Artashes 2584
Zvjaginsev,Vadim 2650
Petrosian Mem Internet (4) 21.12.2004
[John Watson]
This game between two high-powered players 15...dxe3 16.xe3
shows just h ow dif f icult it is f or W hite t o
progress in a Reti/Benoni Reversed situation
when Black has played ... e5 and ...d5-d4, 16...c6
and then played ...Nc6 without ...c5. Versus
the apparently tepid setup involving ...g6, 17.bxc6 bxc6 18.e1 d6 19.b4 xd3
White has two possible ideas: e3, to break up 20.xa4 xa4 21.xa4 e4! 22.d1 c3?!
the centre, and/or trying to enforce b4. With
t h e f i rs t p l a n p r o m is in g a lm o s t n o t h in g ,
Z v j a g i n s e v s t r u g g l e s t o e x p a n d o n t h e 23.b3 e5
queenside and accomplishes little there. 1.g3
e5 2.g2 d5 3.d3 A Modern Defence
Reversed, this soon turns into an obscure
form of the Reti. g6 4.c4 d4 5.f3
[ 5.e3!? may be the best way to mix things
up, e.g., c6 6.e2 ge7 7.exd4 exd4
8.0-0 g7 9.a3 0-0 10.f4
. White doesn't get this chance again. ]
5...g7 6.0-0
[ Now 6.e3 is at best ill-timed after dxe3
7.fxe3 ( 7.xe3? e4 ) 7...e4! ( 7...c6= )
8.dxe4 xd1+ 9.xd1 e6
with pressure. ]
6...c6 7.a3
[ The plan to enforce b4 might also have
b e e n st a rt e d b y 7.a3 , and by analogy
with the game h6 ( 7...ge7 8.c2 a5
9.b3 0-0 ) 8.c2 a5 9.b1 0-0 10.b3 e8
11.a3 ]
[ This time 7.e3 dxe3 8.fxe3 ( 8.xe3 e4 )
8...ge7 ( 8...e4!? 9.dxe4 xd1 10.xd1
e6 11.a3 a6 ) 9.c3 0-0 looks equal. ]
7...a5 8.b3 h6!? The knight isn't particularly
useful here.
[ 8...f5 looks a bit loosening but may in fact
be effective, having in mind the simple . ..
Nf6, ...0-0, ...Qe7 and ...e4. ]
9.bd2 f5 10.b1 e7 11.e1 This stops .
..e4. White hopes to play Nc2 and b4, which is
a good enough idea but slow. f7
[ 11...0-0 12.c2 e6 13.b4 axb4 14.axb4
g4!? 15.a3 d8 16.a1 e8 17.b3
has the idea of Nc5. Then something along
the lines of c6 18.h3 f6 19.b5 c7
20.bxc6 xc6 retains the balance. ]
[ 13...axb4 14.axb4 cd8 15.a3 d7
has the idea of Ra1 and b5, although that
isn't much to fear. ]
14.b5 a4 Played versus a4 and Ba3. 15.e3
[ 15.b4 e6 ]
[ More interesting is 16.fxe3 e6 17.b2
d8 18.b4 ]
[ Or 16...e6 17.b2 d6 ]
[ 22...e2! leaves Black with the more active
position, intending ...Ne5. ]
[ In view of 23...e5 24.d2 b2 25.b4
e8 26.d2 b1+ 27.d1 b2 28.d2
etc. A well-played snippet it looks as
though W hite has to play an early e3 in
these lines in order to try for the
287
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

advantage. ] [ 13...g4!? 14.d5! xe3 15.xe3 e4

½-½ 16.xe4 f5 17.e1 xa1 18.dxc6 bxc6
19.xa1 cxb5 20.d4 with more than
enough for the exchange. ]
305 A09 14.f4!?
Morozevich,Alexander 2758 [ 14.fxd4 d8 15.f3 is also possible with
Svidler,Peter 2735 some advantage ]
57th ch Moscow RUS (4) 18.11.2004 14...e8 15.d2?!
[John Watson] [ A little fancy. It was probably time for
15.fxd4! xd4 16.xd4 with the more
The Reti is made for original positions. Here active pieces. ]
W h ite p ut s re a l p re ssure o n Bla ck b ut it 15...d7 16.ad1 g4 White's having
dissipates after inaccurate play. 1.g3 d5 trouble regaining his pawn, so he rids the
2.g2 f6 3.f3 g6 4.c4 d4 A somewhat board of its defender on g7: 17.h6 d8
unusual formation. Usually Black plays ...d4/... 18.f4
g6/...Bg7 in conjunction with ...e5 and ...Ne7. [ 18.xg7 xg7 19.bxd4! xd4 20.xd4
5.d3 xd4 21.xd4 xd4 22.xd4 d8
[ 5.b4 is one drawback to Black's move is roughly equal. ]
order, putting pressure on the center by 18...a4 19.h3 xf3 20.xf3 axb3 21.axb3
discouraging ...c5. ] xh6 22.xh6 g7 23.e4!?
5...a5!? [ 23.xc6 xc6 24.xd4 f6 favors Black
[ This prevents White's space grab after, e.g. slightly. ]
, 5...g7 6.b4 ( or 6.0-0 0-0 7.b4! ) 6...0-0 23...f5 The natural
7.bd2 of Reti-Rubinstein, Karlsbad 1923, [ 23...e6? runs into 24.h4 f6 25.d5 f7
where White stood better. But 5...a5 also 26.xc7! ]
wastes time. ] 24.f4 d6 to protect c7 and simplify.
6.a3 White's usual idea here is Na3-c2 25.xd6 The game was drawn here. There
followed by aiming for b4 and or e3. As we could f ollo w xd6 26.h6 f6 27.h4
will see, Black faces an additional problem. h8! and Black's pawn makes up for White's
[ 6.f4 does little and may make White's activity. The moves ...Ne5 and ...c5 might
central break e3 more difficult: g7 7.bd2 follow.
0-0 8.0-0 h5 9.e5 xe5 10.xe5 f6 ½-½
11.ef3 c6= ]
[ The natural 6.0-0 g7 7.e3 is worth
considering, for example, c6 8.exd4 306 A09
xd4 9.xd4 xd4 10.c3 and White Neverov,Valeriy 2508
has a potentially powerful center, e.g., 0-0 Balogh,Csaba 2651
( 10...g4 11.d5! ) 11.e3 d6 12.h3 15th ch-EUR Indiv 2014 (5.39) 07.03.2014
f5 13.d4 with freer play ] [Fier, Alexandr]
6...c6 To enforce ...e5. The natural
[ 6...g7 runs into 7.b5! with the ideas A g a m e wi t h p le n t y o f c h a n c e s f o r b o t h
Nbxd4 and Bf4. ] players, and probably decided in time trouble.
7.b5! An interesting move in place of the White's way to play is logical and the position
usual Nc2. White threatens Bf4. e5 8.0-0 will always be full of life. Black can try to
g7 9.e3 This is White's only logical idea. avoid the 10.g4 idea with 9...Qd7. 1.f3 d5
dxe3 10.xe3 0-0 Else Bc5 might be a 2.c4 d4 3.e3 c6 4.exd4 xd4 5.xd4
problem. 11.e1 xd4 6.c3 c6 This move has become the
[ 11.d4 is an alternative but White may have main variation against this setup. Compared to
feared g4 ] t h e s a m e p o s it io n wit h re ve rse d c o lo rs ,
11...e6 12.b3 c8!? Clearing the d-file for coming from 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3
...Rd8. 13.d4 exd4 exd5 5.Nxd5 Nxd5 6.Qxd5 d6, White already

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
has the knight on f3. This is not necessarily
good for White, since the knight is far from d5.
In this position Black uses the tempo down to
bring the knight to f5 via h6 or e7.
[ 6...f6 7.d3 g4 is considered dubious
and was analyzed for Chess Publishing in
Tihonov, J (2503)-Smirnov, A (2249)/ Minsk
Open 2005. ]
[ 6...e5 is another possible way, now the
knight can come to f5 from e7, 7.d3 e7
8.e3 d8 was seen in Karlsson, L (2506) -
Ernst, T (2456)/SWE-ch Gothenburg 2006. ]
7.d3 h6 8.e2 White does not hurry to
attack the queen. Sometimes the bishop is
slightly exposed on e3, so he prefers to make
some useful moves first.
[ 8.e3 d8 9.d4 ( 9.xh6?! doesn't make
much sense, W hite's weaknesses on the
d a r k s q u a re s a re m o r e im p o r t a n t t h a n
Black's pawn structure) 9...f5 10.d2 g6
11.d1 g7 see M Devereaux (2415)-J
Rowson (2582)/4ncl 2008. ]
8...g6
[ 8...f5 9.0-0 d8 is also possible, but in
this variation its good that the bishop is still
on c1 10.e1 g6 11.g5 is interesting ]
9.e3 d8
[ 9...d7 looks exotic, but avoids White's
idea in the game. Later, with the knight on f5,
Black can put the queen on a more
reasonable square. 10.d4 f5 11.g4 g7
12.0-0 0-0 with chances for both sides
13.d2 Fridman, D (2526)-Short, N (2675)/
FIDE-Wch k.o. 1999 (2.2). ]
10.g4!? I think if Black allows this move then it
should be played. Now ...f5 is forced, sooner
or later, to bring the knight back into the game
and the position becomes double-edged. g7
[ 10...f5 Black has to play this move at some
point to bring the knight back 11.h3
looks a bit too ambitious, but I couldn't find
any way to refute it. For example 12.c2!?
fxg4 13.d2 now there is no 13...f4
anymore f5 14.hxg4 xe3 15.fxe3 a5
with a hard to assess position. ]
11.h3 `Threatening 12. Qd2. f5 12.d2 f7
13.0-0-0 0-0 14.d4 b5 It's quite an
in t e r e s t i n g p o s i t io n . W i t h o p p o se d s i d e
castling and contact points for both players
it's natural that big complications soon arrive.
Apparently Black is quicker to attack, since
gxf5 is not so dangerous for the moment. Still,
it's not so clear how he is going to follow up to
create something concrete. Resuming, the
position has a dynamic balance. 15.f4 a5
16.a3
[ 16.cxb5 can be played, however it's not
good for White to open the queenside cxb5
17.f3 ( 17.d5 shows the danger of the
position xa2 18.xe7+ h8 19.f3
e6! and the attack is decisive 20.xa8
a1+ 21.c2 b3+! 22.xb3 a4+
23.c3 c4# ) 17...b8 18.b1 b7
and even if W hite changes the queens,
Black is ok ]
16...b8
[ 16...bxc4!? is another way to handle the
position, and I prefer this compared to the
game 17.xc4 h8 and Black can use the
b-file in exchange for the active bishop on
c4 ]
[ 16...b4 17.a2 is White's point ]
17.c5 d8 18.b1 e6 19.a2 c7?
With the queens on the board and a strong
knight on b4, White has a big advantage.
[ 19...xd2 was called for, and after 20.xd2
a5 21.f3 b4!? 22.axb4 axb4 23.xc6
fxg4 24.hxg4 xg4 will bring an endgame
with chances for both players ]
20.b4 b3? Now White is winning.
[ 20...bc8 is not so nice to make, but was
necessary according to my computer 21.f3
d7 and clearly Black's idea went wrong, but
the position is not lost, at least ]
21.a6 The position is still winning for White
with this move, but W hite could play
something more immediate:
[ 21.gxf5! was the best, the knight on b4 is
much stronger than the rook on b8 for the
moment, xd1 ( 21...gxf5 22.dg1
e5!? is also sad for Black) 22.xd1 gxf5 23.d5
a n d B la ck ' s p o s it io n i s c o l la p si n g cxd5
24.xd5 xd5 ( 24...b7 25.c6! wins )
25.xd5 d8 26.e6 with a decisive
advantage ]
21...d7 22.xb8 xb8 23.f3!?
[ 23.de1 was also possible, but Black can
b u i l d s o m e k i n d o f f o r t r e s s w i t h d5
24.hg1 h6 and it's not so easy for White
to break through ]
23...xd1 24.xd1 fxg4 25.hxg4 e6
Black has we ak pawns and badly place d
289
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

pieces. White was not supposed to allow any [ 41.c6 c7 42.d2 and the c-pawn will be
counterplay, but probably he missed some decisive ]
lines in time trouble. 26.g2 d8 27.b3?! 41...a4+ 42.e2 exf4 43.f2 At least now
This is a mysterious move. White's king is safe and Black's pieces are
[ 27.f5! was good, Black is too still not playing together. e5 44.c6 e7
uncoordinated to defend the position exf5 45.d5+ h8 46.b4
( 27...b4 28.f4 b7 29.fxe6 xe6 30.d5 [ 46.b3! would be good, but again the
also wins ) 28.d5 e8 29.f4 c8 30.dxc6 machine finds a resource to try to keep the
xc6 31.d5+ h8 32.h1 and White's g a m e a l i v e h5! opening some air for the
attack is enough for the full point ] king
27...b7 28.e4 e8 29.h1 e7 A) 47.gxh6 d3 liberating the important d4
Now Black is at least not losing. 30.h3 f6 square 48.xd3? ( 48.g2 is better, but
31.c2 a5 32.e4 d7 33.g5 h8 not clear ) 48...d4+ 49.f3 b5
Black can't take on d4 because the rook is tied 50.xd4 e2+ 51.xf4 e5+;
to h7. 34.c2? This allows Black to create B) 47.b4! Now this move is good,
some chaos and counterplay. Black's queen is out of play c7 48.d3
[ 34.c2 f7 35.d1 would keep the h7 49.e4 f7 50.h3
advantage ] and the position will collapse soon ]
34...f7! T h r e a t e n i n g d 4 . 35.d1 a4 46...c7 47.d2 b5 48.f3 f7 49.e4
36.bxa4 e5! Opening the position at any cost. g7 50.c2
37.d5 [ 50.b2! was winning on the spot,
[ 37.fxe5 leads to an immediate draw a2+ threatening a check on f8, and the queen
38.c1 xa3+ 39.c2 ( 39.d2? xd4+ also needs to defend the bishop on e5 in
can only be good for Black) 39...a2+ case of Bxf7 b8 ( 50...d6 51.e6 xb4
with a perpetual ] 52.xb4 c5 53.f6+ g8 54.b8++- )
37...cxd5?! The pawns on the queenside are 51.xf7 xf7 52.f8+! this is possible to
more dangerous than the central ones. overlook xf8 53.xe5+ g8 54.b8
[ 37...exf4 would be enough for Black to hold and Black is lost. ]
the position 38.d4 xd4 39.xd4 cxd5 50...f3 51.c5 e2+ 52.xe2 fxe2
40.axb5 e6 41.xd5 d4+ 42.d3 53.xe2 xg5 54.b5? Now Black can
xd5 43.xd5 xd5 44.c8+ f7 finally equalize.
45.c7+ e6 46.c8+ with a perpetual ] [ 54.a5! w a s d i r e c t a n d b e t t e r e7
38.axb5 d4 39.d3 White tries to create a ( 54...c8 55.c7 followed by 56.Bb7)
shield for the king to run away, but there was 55.d3 c7 56.xc7 xc7 57.xd4
no need for this. and the c6-pawn is going to decide the
[ 39.f2! was precise since Black can't really game ]
take the bishop a2+ 40.c1 a7 41.c6! 54...f6 55.b7 e6 56.a4?? A sad end to
a n d e v e r y t h i n g i s u n d e r c o n t r o l xa3 a tense game.
( 41...a1+ 42.d2 b2+ 43.e1+- ) [ 56.e4 was the move and the position is
42.d5+ xd5 43.xa3 and the c6-pawn still complex ]
decides xb5 44.a2+ f7 45.c7 c5+ 56...f4+
46.c2 xc2+ 47.xc2 d6 48.fxe5 0-1
xe5 49.xd4 wins ]
39...c4+ 40.d1 xb5 It's a really hard
position to control, so now W hite has the
advantage again.
[ 40...e6!? this is the computer move and
here I show a computer variation 41.c6 f7
42.b6 dxe3 43.b7 e2+! 44.xe2 xe4+
45.d1 a4+ with a draw ]
41.d2

290
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
307 A09
Nisipeanu,Liviu Dieter 2693
Sasikiran,Krishnan 2690
MTel Sofia BUL (5) 14.05.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.a3 a6 (This move
and the plan Black follows in this game is
easily the surest way to obtain even chances
against White's 3rd move) 4.xc4 b5 5.e3
b7 6.g3
[ White has an important alternative in 6.a4
d7
A) 7.axb5 axb5 8.xa8 xa8 9.b3
a1 10.c3 c5 11.g3 gf6 12.g2 e6
13.0-0 e7= G.Sperber-M.Acosta,
Dresden 1969;
B) 7.d4 e6 8.c2!? ( or 8.g3 gf6
9.g2 d6 10.b3 b8 11.axb5 axb5
12.0-0 0-0 13.d1 c5 , and a draw was
agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, in G.Tunik-V.
Kuporosov, Gorky 1989) 8...c5 9.e3 b6
10.e2 gf6 11.0-0 d8 12.axb5 axb5
13.d2 Chan Peng Kong-Yeo Min Yang,
Ho Chi Minh City 2003;
C) 7.c2!? e5 8.axb5 axb5 9.xa8
xa8 10.e3 a4 11.e2 gf6 12.0-0
d5 13.a3 b3 14.e1 c6 15.d4 e4
16.d2 b4 17.f3 0-0 18.h4 xd2
19.xd2 d5 , so far J.Fedorowicz-J.
Waitzkin, New York 1994, and now White
can try 20.fxe4 xe4 21.d1 a6
22.c2 f5 23.b4;
D) 7.g3 e6 8.g2 gf6 9.0-0 ( or
9.axb5 axb5 10.xa8 xa8 11.b3
a6 12.0-0 c5 13.c3 e7 14.b3 0-0
15.b2 c6= E.Tomashevsky-S.
R u b l e v s k y , M o s c o w 2 0 0 6) 9...e7
10.axb5 axb5 11.xa8 xa8 12.b3
a6 13.d4 xg2 14.xg2 c6 15.d3
0-0 16.g5 h6 17.d2 b6 18.c2
a8 19.e3 c5 20.xc5 xc5 21.d4
b6 22.f4 c5 23.dxc5 xc5=
A.Yermolinsky-Y. Yakovich, Kujbyshev
1986 ]
[ 6.c2!? c5 7.b3 f6 8.e3 e6 9.a4 b4
10.e5 c6 11.b2 a5 12.b1 xb3
13.xb4 xd2+ 14.xd2 xd2 15.xa6
xa6 16.xd2 e4+ 17.c2 , and the
players agreed upon a draw in E.Pigusov-V.
Chekhov, Kharkov 1985, but why doesn't
Black continue in the final position? One
possibility is f6 18.xa6 xa6 19.f3 d6
20.d3 xa4 21.a1 xa1 22.xa1 c4
23.a8+ f7 , and it isn't entirely clear how
long W hite's limited initiative will provide
White some compensation for the pawn, but
it can't be long. ]
[ 6.d4 e6 7.a3 f6 8.g3 bd7 9.g2 c5
10.0-0 e7 11.b3 0-0 12.b2 b6=
L.Vadasz-V.Kuporosov, Budapest 1990 ]
6...f6
[ Black has several other options available at
this juncture: 6...xf3?! 7.exf3 f6 8.g2
( 8.a4 b4 9.d4 e6 10.c4 ) 8...d3 9.f1
d8 10.d4 c6 11.d5 b4 , M. Kebrdle-
M.Stefanski, Lansing 1988, and now 12.a4
b8 13.axb5 axb5 14.b3 d6 15.d2 ]
[ 6...e5?! 7.g2 e4 8.h4 f6 9.b3
( 9.0-0 c6 10.b3 d4 11.b2 c5 12.d3
a7 13.dxe4 xe4 14.xe4 xe4
15.d3 g5 16.ef5 C. Adelman-A.
Bisguier, Chicago 1996) 9...bd7 10.b2
c5 11.0-0 0-0 12.c2 d6 13.hf5 e5
14.xe5 xe5 15.ac1 c8 16.b2 e8
17.d3 V. Neverov-T.Thorhallsson,
Reykjavik 2002 ]
[ 6...d7!? 7.g2 c5 8.d4 cxd4 9.xd4
xg2 10.xg2 e5 11.b3 b4+ 12.d2
xd2+ 13.xd2 gf6 14.0-0 0-0 15.fd1
e7 16.d6 xd6 17.xd6= V.Topalov-N.
Sulava, French League 2004 ]
7.g2 bd7 8.0-0 e6 9.b3
[ 9.d3 d6 10.d2 0-0 11.a4 c5 12.b1
( 12.b3 soon led to a very double-edged
position, which can appear attractive for
either player, e.g. b6 13.c3 d5
14.xd5 exd5 15.d4 c4 16.c2 b4 17.a5
b5 18.d2 fe8 19.f4 b3 20.d1
xf4 21.gxf4 c3 22.bxc3 b2 23.b1 xe2
24.e5 xe5 25.fxe5 c8 26.f3 e4
27.xe4 dxe4 28.d2 d7 29.e3 g4+
30.h1 xc3 31.xc3 e3+ 32.f3 xf3+
33.xf3 xf3+ 34.g1 g4+ 35.f1
f3+ 36.g1 f2+ 37.h1 1/2-1/2 M.
T a i m a n o v - S . L p u t i a n , Y e r e v a n 1 9 9 4)
12...e7 13.c1 fb8 14.axb5 axb5
15.xa8 xa8 16.b4 cxb4 17.d4 xg2
18.xg2 e5 19.g1 c5 20.b2 fg4
21.h3 xd4 22.xd4 f6 23.f4 xe3
24.xe3 g6 1/2-1/2 J.Stocek-Y.Yakovich,
Port Erin 2001 ]
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

9...c5 [ 20.xf6!? is more ambitious, but Black can

[ B l a c k a l s o h a s 9...d6 available, e.g. nonetheless still keep the balance without
10.b2 0-0 11.c1 c5 12.d4 c8 13.dxc5 too many headaches: xf6 21.xd8+ xd8
xc5 14.d4 a5 15.xc5 xc5 16.d4 22.e5 cd7 23.d4 xd4 24.xd4
fd8 17.b2 b6 18.fd1= T.Nyback-M. xg2 25.xg2 f8 26.c6 d2 27.e7+
Rytshagov, Jyvaskyla 2001 ] h8 28.c8 6d7 29.c2 xc2
10.b2 e7 11.c2 30.xc2= ]
[ 11.d4 0-0 12.c1 c8 13.c2 ( 13.d2 20...xg2 21.xg2 h6 22.f3 e4
b6 14.dxc5 xc5 15.d4 fe4 16.b2 23.xc8 xc8 24.c1 d8 25.d1 c8
f6 17.xf6 1/2-1/2 A.Kveinys-T. 26.c1 d8
W a r a k o m s k i , W a r s a w 2 0 0 6) 13...c4 [ 26...xc1 27.xc1 xb2 28.xb2
( 13...a5!? 14.a3 d5 15.e3 c4 8f6= ]
16.xd5 exd5 17.e5 c7 18.h3 d6 27.d1
19.xd7 xd7 20.bxc4 dxc4 21.e4 ) ½-½
14.bxc4 xc4 15.d2 xg2 16.xg2
a8+ 17.f3 a4 18.a1 c8 19.e4 b6
, and Black has no reason to complain about 308 A09
the outcome of the opening, A.Filipowicz-S. Odendahl,Reiner 2377
Kostyra, Lubniewice 1981 ] Kasimdzhanov,Rustam 2640
[ 11.c1 0-0 12.c2 ( 12.d3 d5 13.xd5 HZ Open Vlissingen NED (4) 09.08.2004
xd5 14.c2 a5 15.e4 b7 16.e1 a4 [Tony Kosten]
17.d4 axb3 18.axb3 c8 19.d5 exd5
20.exd5 f6 21.xf6 xf6 22.d3 1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.g3 c6 4.g2 e5
1/2-1/2 M.Sher-D.Kumaran, Copenhagen 5.0-0 f6 6.d3 e7!? Black normally prefers
1996 ) 12...c8 13.a1 b6 14.fc1 a7 the prophylactic
( 14...fd8 15.d3 f8 16.h4 a7 17.e5 [ 6...a5 to stop White's next, see my analysis
xg2 18.xd7 xd7 19.xg2 b7+ of Speelman,J-Koneru,H. ]
20.g1 d5 , and Black has equalised, T. 7.b4 xb4!
Nalbandian-A. Volzhin, Moscow 1999) 15.d3 [ 7...xb4 8.xe5 xe5 9.a4+ c6
fd8 16.h3 h6 17.g4 xg4 18.hxg4 f6 10.xc6+ bxc6 11.xb4 is thought to
19.g5 hxg5 20.xg5 xg2 21.xg2 b7+ favour White, mainly because of the doubled
22.f3 e8?! ( The beginning of a time- c-pawns, and the fact that Black cannot
consu ming and inf erior p lan, corre ct is c a s t l e , f o r e x a m p l e h3 ( 11...d6!?
22...d5!? 23.h1 h5 24.cc1 d5= ) 12.a3 xb4 13.xb4 is also promising for
23.h1 f6 24.xf6 xf6 25.h4 f8 ( or W hite, Pytel,K-Mancini,M/Orange 1990)
25...d5 26.h1 f8 27.c1 ) 26.c1 12.e1 d7?! Pilz,D-Muendle,K/Triesen
d5 27.d4!? ( 27.b4!? ) 27...cxd4 LIE 2004, when 13.e3 looks nasty. ]
28.xc8 e7 29.xd8 xd8 30.f4 8.xe5 0-0 9.a3 a6 10.d2 d6
, and W hite wins a pawn, S.Danailov-R. 11.ef3 e8 New, and pointing to Black's
Bernard, Warsaw 1990 ] plan in this line: pressure on the backward e2-
11...0-0 12.fd1 b6 13.ac1 ac8 pawn.
14.b1 [ 11...c5 12.g5!? h6 13.ge4 xe4
[ Previously White has only tried 14.d3 fd8 14.xe4 e7 15.b1 c7 16.d2 b8
15.b1 d5 16.g4 5f6 17.e3 d5 17.f3 d6 Schirm, F-Pohlers,J/Binz 1995,
18.f1 f6 19.1d2 h6 20.a3 e8= when I think I would play 18.e3 dxe3
J.Gonzalez Zamora-J.Estrada Nieto, Merida 19.xe3 b6 20.d4 with plenty of activity,
2003 ] although Black is solid. ]
14...fd8 15.a1 e8 16.d4 df6 17.a3 12.b3 The a6-knight would like to come to
e4!? 18.dxc5 xc5 19.b2 f6 20.e1 the c5-square, so W hite f orces the FIDE
[ 20.g4?! xb2 21.xb2 e4 22.xd8 World Champion to defend d4. c5 13.a4?!
xd8 23.e3 ( 23.e3 f6 ) 23...8f6 ] g4 14.a3 d7 Black has a good position

292
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

with more space and good squares for his 38.gxf5 g5+ 39.h1 xf5 which should
pieces. 15.e1 e7 Black's position appears win. ]
to play itself, however, in retrospect 35.h3 h4?!
[ 15...ad8 may be somewhat superior. ] [ 35...hxg4 36.hxg4 e5 is winning again. ]
16.fxd4! This somewhat surprising tactic 36.f5 Forced. xf5 This looks good,
really comes 'out of the blue' - I certainly although
didn't see it coming, and neither did Fritz! e5 [ 36...g5 may be even better, 37.h1 xf5
Pinning the knight. 38.gxf5 g3 etc. ]
[ 16...cxd4 17.c5 is the point, when e5 37.gxf5 g5+ 38.f1 xf5 39.f2 xh3
18.f4 b8 ( 18...xf4!? ) 19.c6 bxc6 Now Black is a pawn up with attacking
20.xe7 xe7 21.xc6 wins the rook on chances. Surely the result is a formality?
a8. If we continue this a bit further: e3+ 40.g1 g6?
22.h1 c7 23.c1 White threatens to [ 40...h2+ 41.g2 e5 looks simple
swap queens and play a superior endgame enough, as after 42.xe5 xe5 43.e4 a5
as the black pieces are not very well co- Bla ck will have a lot of out side pas se d
ordinated. ] pawns. ]
17.b5!? White could have continued 'the 41.e4 d8 42.e3! The king is well
joke' by defended by the pawn phalanx, and will prove
[ 17.b1! cxd4 18.xe7 xe7 19.a5 a boon should White reach an endgame. d7
with excellent play, as the b7-pawn is sure to 43.d4 xa4 44.a1 c6 45.xb4 f6
drop. ] 46.b2 g5+ 47.d3 g3 48.e3 h3
17...xa1 18.xa1 ae8 Black has extra 49.h1 c8 50.h2! White will have good
material and strong pressure on e2, however chances in the rook and pawn ending. xh2
the white position is surprisingly solid. 19.f3 51.xh2 xc4 52.xh3 b5 53.d5 f6
h3 20.c2! 54.d3 g5 55.h1 a4 56.c1 f7
[ 20.xh3 xh3 21.xa7 is a bit greedy, as 57.c7+ e8 58.b7 a3+ 59.d4!
h5! 22.c2?! h4 23.g4 xg4! 24.fxg4 Activity! xf3 60.d6 g4 61.d5 If White can
xg4+ 25.h1 xe2 wins. ] play Ke6 he will win! e3 The only defence.
20...xg2 21.xg2 e6 22.d2 b6 23.b2 62.c6 White is happy with half a point, but
b8 The knight was completely out of the [ 62.e5! is worth a punt: xe5+ ( 62...fxe5?
game. 24.xf6!? The bishop seemed strong, 63.e6 shows the importance of activity
but White wants the d5-square for his knight. against material in rook endings, f8 64.d7
xf6 25.e3 c6 26.d5 g6 27.f4 d3 65.b6 xd7 66.xd7 and wins. )
W hite's solid structure and the lack of 63.c6 e1 64.b8+ f7 65.d7 d1
completely open files make Black's task very 66.d8 xd8 67.xd8 although Black
d i f f i c u l t . b4!? The d5-knight had to be should draw by e6! ]
e x c h a n g e d . 28.xb4 cxb4 29.c7! 62...c3+ 63.d5 e3 64.c6 c3+
The only move, .. .a6 was threatened and the 65.d5 e3 White can still play for the win,
point is that the knight had nowhere to go: but anyway this was an excellent
[ 29.d4? d6 30.b3 xd3 as the e- performance.
pawn is pinned. ] ½-½
29...e6 30.f4?!
[ 30.xa7! not only wins a pawn, but also
stops Black from attacking the knight with ... 309 A09
a6! ] Panjwani,Raja 2440
30...f6 31.d2 e7 32.b2 a6 33.d4 So,Wesley 2744
e3 So that if the knight moves ...Rxf3 will Edmonton 9th (3) 23.06.2014
win. 34.g4 h5 [Kosten, Tony]
[ 34...e5! i s ve r y s t r o n g , 35.e3 f4!
menacing ... Rxd4, so 36.f1 ( 36.f2 b3! 1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.b4 f6 4.e3 e5 5.c5 a5
and ...Rxd4 wins) 36...xe3 37.f5 xf5 6.b5+?! This was played just a day after I

293
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

posted my last Flank update, where I'd stated 22.e2 fxd3 23.d4?
that: "Delchev's 6 Bb5+ is definitely dubious"! [ 23.g3 f6 24.d2 xe6
[ 6.a4+ is White's best try, see Demuth, A- is overwhelming. ]
Duda, J, from the June 2014 update. ] 23...f2+
[ 6.xe5?! is Van Wely, L-Kramnik, V/Nice [ 23...f2+ 24.d1 c2# ]
FRA 2008, in the Archive. ] 0-1
6...c6 7.c4 axb4 8.xe5 fxe5 9.h5+ g6
10.xe5+ e7 11.xh8 f6 12.d3!
I think this is White's best chance. 310 A09
[ 12.b2 e6 Stella, A (2463)-Bertagnolli, A Ragger,Markus 2670
(2329), and ] Postny,Evgeny 2651
[ 12.0-0 e6 Davis, T (1945) -Zelesco, K, TCh-FRA Top 12 2012 (4.3) 03.06.2012
were both considered in the notes to [Tony Kosten]
Demuth-Duda. ]
12...e6 13.d2 1.f3 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.e3 f6
[ 13.xe6 xe6 14.0-0 bd7 15.exd4 [ In his 'Modern Reti' book Delchev devotes
0-0-0 16.g5 f7 is Reinhold Thiele's most of his analysis to 3...c5 but, this can
original analysis, ...Be7 will win the white transpose at almost any point. ]
queen. ] 4.xc4 e6 5.0-0 a6 6.e2 White follows
13...bd7 14.a3!? Trying to dissuade Black Delchev's basic scheme: he delays d4 hoping
from castling long. to be able to play other useful moves longer
[ I t h o u gh t t h a t 14.0-0 0-0-0 15.exd4 than Black can, in particular he will react to ...
might be the best bet, but h6 16.xd8+ b5 by playing a n im media te a4 to c reat e
xd8 17.e1 d5 favours Black (again queenside weaknesses. b5 This obvious
this is Reinhold Thiele's analysis). ] move appears to be a novelty.
14...dxe3 15.fxe3?! White misses his one [ 6...c5 7.d1 Marin's idea, b5 8.b3 b7
chance. 9.a4 "the cunning idea behind 7.Rd1" -
[ he had to try the surprising 15.0-0! as exd2 Delchev. ( 9.d4 reaches a mainline QGA.)
( 15...b3 16.e1!?; 15...0-0-0 16.axb4 9...b4 10.d3! Now that c4 is weakened
g8!? 17.xg8 g7 18.xg7 xg7 White can change plans and play d3 and e4
19.e6 exd2 20.xd2 i s a w k w a r d .) to blunt the h1-a8 diagonal.
16.xd2 xc4 17.dxc4 looks messy, Re1 is A) 10...c6 Delchev's mainline, 11.bd2
a big threat. ] A1) 11...a5 12.c2 e7 13.e4 c7
15...b3! Quite forced, Black can't allow White 14.b3 xb3 15.xb3 h6 16.e3
to o p e n t h e a -f ile wh e n h e ca st le s lo n g. ( 16.d2 "with good prospects" -
16.e4?! Desperately trying to free the queen, Delchev. ) 16...g4 17.ac1 xe3
but this exposes White to a strong attack. 18.xe3 0-0 19.d4 ac8 20.e5
[ 16.0-0 0-0-0 17.b2 is met by f5! 18.e4 Sundararajan, K (2506)-Shumiakina, T
h6 and Black wins material. ] ( 2 3 3 4 ) / B a d a l o n a 2 0 0 9 , d6
16...xe4 Black changes strategy, and with no particular problems.;
instead of going for the white queen ... he A2) 11...c7 12.c4 g4?!
goes for the white king! ( 12...e7 ) 13.g3! ge5 14.fxe5
[ 16...0-0-0 is also winning. ] xe5 15.xe5 xe5 16.e4 c8
17.xe6 h4+! 18.g3 xg3 19.g1?! 17.c4 e7 18.f4! c7 19.f1 f6
[ 19.xd7+ xd7 20.f1 xf1+ 21.xf1 20.f5 e5 21.e3 e7 22.h4 0-0
xh2 is better, but still winning for Black. ] 23.f2 h8 24.af1 fd8 25.g2
19...e4+ 20.d1 dxc5 Black's pieces threatening g4-5, Black has no
pour into the attack. 21.e5 c o u n t e r p l a y . d4 26.xd4 exd4
[ 21.dxe4 xh2 and ...Rd8+. ] 27.h5 f8 28.g4 g6 29.h6 g5
21...f2+ 30.hxg5 1-0 Tomashevsky, E (2624)-
[ 21...xd3! ] Ganguly, S (2571)/Moscow 2007, as

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
xg5 31.f6;
B) 10...e7 11.bd2 0-0
B1) 12.a5 fixing the a6-pawn, but
conceding the b5-square, which Black
exploits by c6! 13.d4!? ( 13.e4 b5
14.c4 c6 ) 13...bd7 14.e4 b8
15.e5 d5 16.c4 b5 17.e4 cxd4
18.xd4 c5 19.g4 xb3 20.h6
g6 21.xb3 c8 22.d6 xd6
23.exd6 xd6 24.d4 f6 slightly better
for Black, Kramnik, V (2791)-Karjakin, S
(2760)/Moscow 2010.;
B2) 12.c4 a5 13.e4 c7 14.h3
( 14.g3 c6 15.f4 is given as
advantage White by Delchev.) 14...c6
15.e3 ad8 16.ac1 a6 Safin, S
(2490)-Egin, V (2437)/Tashkent 2007. ]
7.b3 bd7!
[ 7...b7 8.a4 ]
8.d1 b7 Black's move order is very clever,
he delays ...c5 until W hite plays d4. 9.a4!?
The only way to continue according to the
'Delchev recipe'. At the time I was looking
across from my board and wondered if Marcus
had simply overlooked Black's next, but I
shouldn't have worried.
[ 9.d4 c5 reaches a mainline QGA [D29]. ]
9...c5 The problem, with no black pawn on
c5 Black can put his knight t here ! 10.c2
xa4 11.xa4 bxa4 12.d4 White has
conceded the bishop pair, but has a slight lead
in development. c5!? Black doesn't have to
play this, but then he would have to worry
ab ou t W h it e playin g e 4 an d also t he c5 -
square.
[ However, it is difficult to believe White has
anything much after, say, 12...e7 13.c3
0-0 ]
13.c3 c7 14.xa4 The position looks
fairly innocuous for Black, but he soon gets
into trouble. cxd4?! Black might have missed
White's, far from obvious, next two moves.
[ 14...e7 15.dxc5 xc5 16.e4 c8
and ...0-0 looks solid enough, W hite can
play e5 and swing his rook to the kingside
but Black should be able to defend. ]
15.c4! b8 16.c2! Very nice! d6 Best.
[ 16...dxc3?? loses to 17.a4+ e7
18.e5 ]
[ 16...xf3? 17.a4+ d7 18.cxd4! b7
19.xd7!? ( 19.gxf3 is simpler, d8 20.b3
with a big advantage as the black king is
stuck. ) 19...xd1 hits the queen on a4, and
so 20.xd1+ e7 21.b3 White has a
st ro ng a tt ack f o r th e exch an ge , e. g. h6
22.a3+ ( 22.b2 ) 22...f6 23.d7 xd7
24.xd7 xa3 25.h4! hd8 26.e4+ g6
27.h5+ ]
17.a4+ e7
[ 17...f8!? 18.cxd4 xf3 19.gxf3 xh2+
20.g2 c7 21.e4 is also unpleasant for
Black. ]
18.cxd4 xf3 19.gxf3 d8
[ 19...xh2+? 20.g2 c7 loses to 21.e4
h6 22.a3+ e8 23.e3 the black king's
demise is just a question of time. ]
20.g2 White just needs to play b3 and Ba3
t o e xch a n ge h is o n e in a ct ive p ie c e . b6
21.b3 T h re a t e n in g Rxd 6 ! c5 22.a3
xa3?!
[ 22...a5! to stop a later b4, and Black is still
in the game, 23.c4 xa3 24.xa3+ e8 ]
23.xa3+ e8 24.a4+ e7 25.a3+
e8 26.xd8+ xd8 27.xd8+ xd8
[ 27...xd8 28.xa6 also wins material. ]
28.f8+ e8 29.xf7 xb3 Black pins his
hopes on the passed a-pawn.
[ 29...c7 30.xc7+ xc7 is possible,
W hite's extra pawn is doubled and
meanwhile the black king is close to the
white b-pawn. ]
30.e2! The knight heads for d4 or f4. b1
31.f4 c7 32.f8+ d7 33.xg7+ c6
34.e4 a5 35.c3+ b6 36.d4+ b7
37.xe6! xe6 38.d5+ c7 39.xe6
b6 40.e7+ c8 41.f4 c7 42.e6+
d7 43.a6+ b7 The white king is outside
the square, so Black can afford to offer the
queen swap. 44.e2
[ After 44.xa5 xe4+ 45.g3
Ma rc u s wa s wo r r ie d a b o u t b1 but
46.c5+ d7 47.f5 g1+ 48.h3 f1+
49.h4 will probably win. ]
44...c6 45.f5 a4 46.g4 b7 47.f3
Sto pp in g th e a -p awn an d sup po rt in g th e
advance of the white f-pawn. f6
[ 47...a3? 48.xa3 xe4+ is met by
49.f3 ]
48.e5+ c6 49.f6 xf3+ 50.xf3 a3 51.f7
a2 52.f8 a1 Both sides queen but now
W h i t e h a s a cl e a r t wo p a wn a d va n t a ge .
53.g7+ c6 54.f6+ b7 55.g2 d4
295
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Threatening a perpetual. 56.f3+ c7 57.e6
d6 58.e7! xe7 59.e3+ xe3 60.fxe3
T h e p a wn e n d i n g is lo s t , o f co u rse . e6
61.f3 f5 62.e4+ e5 63.e3 e6
64.f4 f6 65.h3 e6 66.h4 f6 67.h5
1-0
311 A09
Reti,Richard
Rubinstein,Akiba
Karlsbad Karlstad (5) 04.05.1923
[Nigel Davies]
Rubinstein's 4...d4 is not a move that many
modern players would venture. But at the time
this game was played Benoni type positions
were thought to confer a huge advantage on
the player taking the space. 1.f3 d5 2.g3
f6 3.g2 g6 4.c4 d4
[ In my own games I've noticed that 4...c6
tends to be the most popular reply when
I've played either 5.b3 or 5.Qa4. ]
5.d3 g7 6.b4 0-0 7.bd2 I've always liked
the smooth harmony that you find in Reti's
games by delaying the development of his
qu e e n ' s b is h o p W h it e h a s e xt ra o p t io n s
available, such as the a3 square.
[ After the more forceful 7.b2 Black can
play a5 , for example ( 7...c5 8.bxc5 c6
9.bd2 d7 10.b3 xc5 11.xc5
a5+ 12.d2 xc5 13.0-0 h5 14.e1
h3 15.h1 ab8 16.b1 was very
pleasant for White in Geller, E-Novopashin,
A, Kiev 1963.) 8.b5 c5 9.bxc6 xc6
10.a3 e5 11.b5 e8 12.0-0 f8
13.d2 f5 14.c1 d7 15.c5 h3
was not bad for Black in Larsen, B (2625)-
Pfleger, H (2540), Manila 1975. ]
7...c5 8.b3
[ 8.bxc5 is also better for White, for example
fd7 9.b3 xc5 10.xc5 a5+ 11.d2
xc5 12.b1 gives definite pressure. But
R e t i m a y h a ve p r e f e r r e d t o a vo i d t h i s
because of the resultant simplification. ]
8...cxb4 9.b2 c6 10.bxd4 Gaining a
central pawn for a flank one is one of the
major themes of the Reti Opening. Now it will
be W hite who gains a major share of the
centre, despite the fact that he did not stake
an early claim to this part of the board. xd4
11.xd4 b6 Contesting the h1-a8 diagonal.
12.a3 Getting rid of the annoying b4 pawn and
setting up a position in which W hite has a
single pawn island (c4 to h2) against Black's
two.
[ Note that 12.d2? is bad because of xd4
13.xa8 g4 14.0-0 xf2! etc. ]
12...b7 Threatening 13...Bxf3. 13.b2 bxa3
14.xa3 c7 15.a1! These days there is
nothing strange about this development of the
queen. But in Reti's time it was highly original
and raised more than a few eyebrows. e8
16.xg7 xg7 17.0-0 e6 18.b1
[ And not 18.xa7?? xa7 19.xa7 a8
, winning the queen. ]
18...c6 19.d4 So now it is White who gains
control of the centre. And this spatial control
will a llo w W h it e t o pu t h is p ie ce s o n b ig
squares. e4 20.d1 a5
[ And not 20...xc4? because of 21.d2 . ]
21.d5 c5 22.d4 xg2 23.xg2 fd8
24.c6 d6 25.e3 e8 26.e5 f6
[ On 26...d7 t h e r e f o l l o w s 27.xe7+
exe7 28.xc7 xc7 29.d6 as after xe3
30.dxc7 e8 31.d8 the passed c-pawn
will promote. ]
27.b2 With the mission accomplished
(creation of further weaknesses in Black's
camp) the queen latches on to a new target,
the weak pawn on b6.
[ 27.xe7+? i s b a d b e c a u s e o f f7
by the way. ]
27...e5 28.b5 f7 29.b1 d7 30.f3 c8
31.d3 e4 With his position held in a vice like
grip, Rubinstein makes a desperate bid for
some counterplay. 32.fxe4 e5 33.xb6
xc6
[ 33...xd3 34.exd3 would be hopeless for
Black because of White powerful clump of
pawns. ]
34.c5 d7 35.dxc6 xd3 36.xc7+ xc7
37.exd3 xc6 38.b7+ e8 39.d4 a6
Getting his rook behind the passed pawn. But
this rook endgame proves to be too much for
even Rubinstein. 40.b6
[ And not 40.xh7?! because of a4 . ]
40...a8 41.xf6 a4 42.f2 a3 43.a2 d7
44.d5 g5 45.f3 a4 46.e3 h5 47.h4
gxh4 48.gxh4 e7 49.f4 d7 50.f5
1-0
296
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
312 A09
Sadorra,J 2525
Kacheishvili,Giorgi 2612
UTD GM Invitational (4) 12.03.2012
[John Bartholomew]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 Despite the prevalence of
2...c6 and 2...c6, Delchev calls 2...d4 "the
m o s t u n p l e a s a n t r e t o r t t o 2 . c 4 " . 3.b4
Probably the most ambitious reply.
[ Delchev's thesis is that White does not
stand to gain an advantage against the
Reversed Benoni with slower plans. Thus,
he says, the first player should be keen to
use his tempo to immediately destroy
Black's center. His analysis suggests that
Black has an easier time in the lines 3.g3
c6 ]
[ and 3.e3 c6 , and I am inclined to
agree. ]
3...c5
[ Delchev believes that the main line 3...f6
is best, with 4...e5 to come. W e also
scru tin ize d t his in Van W e ly, L (26 81)-
Kra mnik, V (279 9)/ Nice 2 008 /[Hansen ,
Carsten]. Delchev presents a lot of
ent erta in in g and o rigina l ana lysis, so I
recommend that you check these lines in his
book. ]
[ For the interesting 3...g4!? see Laznicka,
V (2617)-Rombaldoni, D (2465)/[Rowson]. ]
[ For 3...g6 I again refer you to "The Modern
Reti: An Anti-Slav Repertoire". ]
4.e3
[ 4.bxc5 totally backfired on White after c6
5.e3 ( White should choose 5.d3 e5 6.g3
xc5 7.g2 with a type Reversed Benoni
play. ) 5...e5 6.exd4? e4! in Schaeffer, V-
Bronznik, V (2410)/Elancourt 2004/
[TonyK]. ]
4...dxe3 A strange omission from "The
Modern Reti", as accepting the pawn must be
critical. Moreover, 4...dxe3 is approximately
three times more popular than any othe r
continuation here.
[ Delchev's only gives 4...f6 , with a likely
transposition to 3...f6. ]
5.fxe3 cxb4 6.a3!? Benko-style! This is
certainly consistent with 3.b4, and I find this
direct approach rather tempting.
[ "Official" theory is pretty sketchy here
(Black has yet to commit a piece yet, so he
especially has a ton of flexibility), but in 71
o f 8 6 g a m e s W h i t e h a s c h o s e n 6.d4
, occupying the center. For example,
A) a recent game saw 6...e6 7.d3 ( 7.a3
would transpose to Sulskis-Skytte (see the
note to 7.a3); 7.c5!? deserves attention)
7...e7 8.0-0 f6 9.b2 bd7 10.e2
0-0 11.bd2 ( 11.a3!? ) 11...b6 12.ad1
c7 13.e5 xe5 ( after 13...b7!
White's compensation appears
insuf f icien t) 14.dxe5 d7 15.xh7+
( t h i s l e a d s t o a d r a w b y f o r c e ) xh7
16.h5+ g8 17.f3 f5 18.h3 xe5
19.e4 d7 20.xe5 xe5 21.xd7
a1+ 22.d1 e5 23.h7+ f7
24.h5+ g8 25.h7+ f7 26.h5+
1 / 2 -1 / 2 T u rn e r, M ( 2 5 1 7 ) -H a m m e r , J
(2647)/Hinkley Island ENG 2011;
B) 6...g6 (first employed by Predrag
Nikolic in the late 1980s) 7.d3 ( 7.a3!?
m a ke s s e n se wi t h B la c k in t e n d in g t o
fianchetto) 7...g7 8.0-0 h6 9.bd2
0-0 10.b2 ( 10.e2 f5 11.e4 c6
12.b2 c7 13.h3 e5! Seirawan, Y
(2595)-Nikolic, P (2600)/Sarajevo 1987.)
10...e5!? 11.b3 g4 12.xe5?!
( 12.ae1 ) 12...xe5 13.dxe5 c6
14.f3 e7 15.a3 xe5 16.xe5 xe5
17.xe5 xe5 18.axb4 xe3+ 19.h1
e6 Baramidze, D (2528) -Meister, P
(2407)/Bad Liebenzell GER 2010. ]
6...bxa3
[ 6...e6 7.d4 f6 Sulskis, S (2497)-Skytte,
R (2323)/Lisbon 2000. Here I think 8.c5!?
is worth consideration. ( 8.d3 c6 9.0-0
wa s t h e g a m e , w h e n B l a c k g e n e r a t e d
counterplay with the unexpected e5!? )]
[ T h e a c t i v e 6...e5!?N is Houdini's first
choice. Then 7.axb4 ( 7.xe5 h4+ 8.g3
e4 9.f3 c6 ) 7...e4 ( 7...xb4
8.b2!? ) 8.d4 d6 9.g3 f6 10.g2
( 10.c5!? ) 10...0-0 11.0-0 ]
7.xa3 A natural novelty.
[ 7.xa3!? f6 8.b5 c6 9.d4 e6
10.d3 b4+ 11.d2 0-0 12.0-0 xd2
13.xd2 e5 14.c2 exd4 15.exd4 g4
Bandza, A-Chekhov, V (2495)/Tbilisi 1985.
Here 16.c5! would leave no doubt about
White's compensation. ]
[ 7.e2 g6 8.xa3 g7 9.b1 is similar, e.
297
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
g. f6 10.0-0 0-0 11.d4 Erlich, V-Drexel,
C (2227)/ Augsburg 2001. At this moment it
l o o k s n a t u r a l f o r B l a c k t o p l a y b6
as in our game. ]
7...f6 8.c3 g6 9.e2
[ White would like to play 9.d4 and put the
bishop on d3, but maybe he didn't like h6!?
. However, White can go ahead and sac a
pawn he re wit h 10.d3! , as accepting is
dangerous for Black: xe3?! ( 10...g4
11.d5! defends e3 and hits e7, i.e. xe3
12.e2 xd5 13.cxd5; 10...0-0
is s af es t, b ut a f te r 11.e2 followed by
castling White has an improved version of
the game. ) 11.e2 f4 ( 11...xd4??
12.xd4 xd4 13.xe7# ) 12.0-0
with a fully mobilized position and quite
obvious compensation. ]
9...g7 10.0-0 0-0 11.b1 c6 12.d4 b6
Both sides have proceeded logically. White
enjoys definite compensation for the missing
pawn with his slightly better pieces and strong
centralization. At the same time, Black's
margin of safety is reasonably high and he
suffers from no positional defects. The
chances are balanced. 13.h1 White plays a
useful move, waiting for Black to show his
hand.
[ 13.d3 was more constructive. ]
13...f5 14.b5?! Borrowing an idea of
Delchev's (see p. 39)!? White hopes that the
rook will inf luence matters on b5, but it's
o c c u p yin g a ra t h e r u n st a b le p o st in t h is
position. c8 15.e5?! This compounds the
previous error. e4
[ Even better is 15...xe5 16.xe5 e6!
targeting the c4-pawn, i.e. 17.b3 ( 17.d5
d7 ) 17...e8! when another piece will be
brought to bear down on the pawn after 18...
Nd6. ]
16.xe4 xe4 17.f3 a5 18.c5 h6
[ 18...d5! would have put Black firmly in the
driver's seat. ]
19.cxb6 axb6 20.e5 c2 21.e1?! c6
22.b5 a4?!
[ Strike while the iron is hot: Black should
have snatched the pawn immediately with
22...xe3 . It's possible he thought the
double-attack 23.c3 worked for White, but
xd4 24.xe3 xe2! leaves Black clearly
bet te r, i.e . 25.h6?! ( 25.xe2? d3-+
is the idea; 25.xe7? d3-+ is also very
b a d f o r W h i t e) 25...f6! leaving White
floundering. ]
23.b2 xe3? Now this is poorly timed.
[ 23...d5= ]
24.a6 xd4
[ Black has to enter complications, as
24...a8? 25.b7 is downright terrible. ]
25.d2!?
[ A f t e r t h e f o r ce d l i n e 25.xc8 xb2
26.xb2 xc8 27.c3 e5 ( 27...f6?
28.c4+ picks up the bishop) 28.xe5
xe5 29.xe5 f6 30.xf6 d7!
(the only move) we are faced with a peculiar
opposite-color bishop ending where the
weakness of the Black king is more
significant than Black's extra pawn. After,
for instance, Black will still have to show
some accuracy. 31.h4!? ( 31.xf8+ xf8
32.h8+ e7 33.xh7+ d8= )]
25...c7 26.xd4 xd4 27.b2?
[ 27.e5! was called for, hitting the rook on
c7 as well. a8! 28.xc7 xa6 29.g1 ]
27...a8! 28.xd4 xa6??
[ With 28...c2! Black threatens mate on g2
and completely turns the tables, i.e. 29.e2
xb2 ( 29...c6!? ) 30.f3 a6 ]
29.xa4! xa4 30.e5 Oops, that wins the
rook. f6 31.xc7 b5 32.c1 White has
prevailed in the tactical tug-of-war, and now
he o n ly ha s t o n ego tiat e so me t e ch n ic a l
problems. c5?! 33.d2
[ 33.a3! would immediately force the
queens off. ]
33...c8 34.h3 b5 35.c1 f5 36.xc8+
xc8 37.d5+ g7 38.xb5 e6 39.c5
f7 40.c3 h5 41.g1 h4 42.d4 g5
43.d3 g7 44.f2 c6 45.f3 c5+
46.e3 f5+ 47.f3 c5+ 48.e2 f7
49.d2 d6+ 50.c2 c5 51.e4 f2+
52.b3 g3 53.d5+ f8 54.c4 g4!?
Kacheishvili is defending tenaciously. 55.b4!
c7+ 56.c5 f4+? Only this loses.
[ After 56...d7! Black can continue
fighting. ]
57.b3! g3+
[ Black is losing either e7 or g4, i.e. 57...e4
58.c8+ f7 59.xg4 d3+ 60.b2+- ]
58.a4 gxh3 59.xe7+ g8 60.e8+
h7 61.f7+ g7
[ or 61...h8 62.xf6+ h7 63.f7+ h6
298
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

( 63...h8 64.c3+ ) 64.d2++- ] the extraordinary white pawn formation is

62.xg7+ xg7 63.gxh3 g6 64.e1 g5 almost worth a piece! ]
65.b4 White has the right color bishop, so 10...f5! Black stops d4, and leaves the c5-
Black resigned. Alexander Delchev believes pawn short of protection. 11.b5 xc5!
that the ambitious 3.b4 will be increasingly Black goes for gold.
debated at Grandmaster level - especially (in [ 11...d8 would avoid losing a rook,
his opinion) the lines with 3...f6. The gambit- although 12.d6 would leave Black with
accepted line 3...c5 4.e3 dxe3 5.fxe3 cxb4 problems completing his development. ]
warranted inclusion in "The Modern Reti: An 12.c7+ d8 13.xa8 d4 14.b2 f6
Anti-Slav", but fortunately W hite has 15.gxf3
reasonable compensation with 6.a3!? or the [ 15.0-0-0 would avoid problems along the e-
usual 6.d4. f i l e , b u t a f t e r f5 16.e1 d7
1-0 Black recuperates the knight on a8 with
advantage. ]
15...e8+ 16.d1 g4!! There must have
313 A09 been a brilliancy prize in this tournament!
Schaeffer,Vincent [ T h e p r o s a i c 16...f5 17.d3 d7
Bronznik,Valerij 2410 again wins the trapped knight, with
7th Open Elancourt FRA (3) 20.04.2004 advantage. ]
[Tony Kosten] 17.fxg4
[ 17.xd4 is no improvement, xd4 18.fxg4
1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.b4 c5 Black is happy xg4+ 19.c2 xa1 20.d3 e5 21.b1
with a reversed Benko Gambit. 4.bxc5 b6 and the knight will be lost once again,
[ 4.e3 is more usual, but clearly White didn't when the two black bishops will make short
want to play with a pawn less after dxe3 work of White's straggling pawns. ]
5.fxe3 cxb4 ] 17...xg4+ 18.e2 Forced,
[ whilst 4.g3 is probably the most natural, [ 18.c1?? e1# ]
pla yin g a B e nko p o sit io n wit h an e xt ra 18...xe2+ 19.c1 xc4 The black minor
tempo. ] pieces completely dominate here. 20.xd4
4...c6 5.e3 As it is too late to take on d4 [ 20.d6 is the best chance, trying to extract
[ 5.g3 e5 6.d3 would be my preference. ] t h e kn igh t , d5 21.f1 e2+ 22.d1
5...e5 6.exd4? This 'obvious' move nearly xd6 and ...b6 to capture the unhappy
loses outright! knight. ]
[ 6.d3 is safer, xc5 7.e4 ( 7.e2 ge7 20...xd4 21.b1 xd5 What a pair of
8.0-0 0-0 is also pleasant for Black, Varadi, bishops! 22.g1 d7 23.b4? The position
A-Balogh,L/Gyongyos 1999) 7...ge7 was hopeless, anyway. c8+! Forcing mate.
8.e2 0-0 9.0-0 g6 10.e1 f5 11.exf5 [ 23...c8+ 24.d1 ( 24.b1 e4+ )
xf5 Black has more space, and a clear plus, 24...f3+ 25.e1 c1# ]
Menchik,V-Sergeant,E/Scarborough 1930. ] 0-1
6...e4! Very unpleasant for White, his central
pawns look very nice but they will cost a piece.
7.e2 Pinning the pawn is best, 314 A09
[ 7.g1?! xd4 8.c3 xc5 is a dream for Speelman,Jonathan S 2583
Black. ] Koneru,Humpy 2473
7...e7 8.d5 White decides his best chances ch Torquay ENG (9) 07.08.2002
lie with this piece sac. [Tony Kosten]
[ 8.g1 xd4 9.d1 e5 10.b2 xc5
is positionally crushing. ] 1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.g3 c6 4.g2 e5
8...exf3 9.xe7+ cxe7 10.c3?! 5.d3 f6 6.0-0 Play has wandered into a
Hoping for tactical chances based on Nb5, but reversed Schmidt System, where Black has
[ 10.d4 f5 11.e3 is worth consideration, preferred to keep the a3-f8 diagonal open

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
r a t h e r t h a n p l a y . . . c 5 . a5 Generally
considered best, Black takes prophylactic
action against White queenside expansion.
[ 6...e7 allows 7.b4! xb4 8.xe5 xe5
9.a4+ regaining the piece with an edge. ]
7.e3 To my mind this is logical, as Black
hasn't bolstered d4 with his c-pawn it makes
sense to attack it.
[ 7.a3 c5 8.c2 is an alternative way of
playing. ]
7...e7
[ 7...dxe3 is a good alternative, refusing to
bother defending the d-pawn, 8.xe3 e7
9.c3 0-0 10.h3!? (else Black plays ...
Ng4) f5 11.b3!? c8 hitting d3 and h3
( 11...d4!? 12.xd4 exd4
is also interesting) 12.d5 xd5 13.cxd5
b4 14.xe5 xh3 15.a3 a4 16.c4
was messy in Makarov,M-Muse,M/Berlin
1996. ]
8.exd4 exd4 9.a3 0-0 Black rarely
captures on a3 to double the pawns, as it
gives White the bishop pair and open b-file,
and especially when it involves a waste of
t e m p o ( . . . B e 7 x a 3 ) . 10.b5 This is the
problem with Black's sixth move, the
we ak ne s s of b5 - it is d if f icult f or him t o
arrange to play ...c6 to drive the knight away.
e8 Black defends c7 against the possibility
of Bf4, and prepares to play ...Bf6 and ...Nd6,
or ...Na7 to exchange the b5-knight.
[ 10...f5?! 11.f4 1/2-1/2 Szekely,P-Tal,M/
Porz 1991, although White is better here,
after e8 12.e5 ]
11.e1 e6 A new move, although it doesn't
change too much compared with
[ 11...f6 12.f4 e6 13.h3 a7 14.xa7
xa7 15.d2 when White has slightly the
mo re p le a sa n t p ositio n, Na lba n dia n, T -
Minasian,A/Yerevan 1996. ]
12.b3! As c7 is well covered White decides to
find another diagonal for his dark-squared
bishop.
[ 12.f4 is similar to the above note. ]
12...f6 13.b2 g6?! With the white bishop
on b2 Black can no longer exchange the b5-
knight without losing his d-pawn, but this
na tu ra l mo ve h as severe re pe rcussion s.
14.d2 White threatens to play Qf4 and
attack the d-pawn a fourth time. f5?! 15.h3
h5 16.a3! Suddenly, almost 'out-of-the-blue',
Black is in trouble. b4
[ 16...d6 17.c5 and the d-pawn drops. ]
17.bxd4!! This must have been a shock for
Black. xd4 18.xd4 xd4 19.b2
The point, the bishop returns to b2 having
eliminated its opposite number (at the cost of
a piece). d6 20.h6 Threatening mate on
h8. f6?!
[ 20...f6 21.a3 xd3 22.d5+ f7 23.g4
also gives White a powerful attack, e.g. hxg4
24.hxg4 xe1? ( 24...f8 25.h3 xe1
26.gxf5 c6 keeps Black in the game)
25.gxf5 f8 26.xg6+ g7 27.xe1
and wins. ]
21.c5 d8 22.e5! Threatening to capture
on f5. d7?! Losing immediately, but
[ 22...xd3 23.d1 pins and wins. ]
23.e4 This is good enough, but how did
'Spec' miss the simple
[ 23.e8!! axe8 24.xf6 with immediate
mate? ]
23...a6 24.xf5 gxf5 25.g5+ h8
26.xf5 There is no defence to Qh6+ and
Bxf6 followed by Qh7 mate.
1-0
315 A09
Tihonov,Jurij 2503
Smirnov,Aleksander 2249
inAUTOmarket Open (3) 12.07.2005
[John Watson]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.e3 Many players prefer
3.g3 here. c6 4.exd4 xd4 5.xd4 xd4
6.c3 White is a tempo up on the Franco-
Benoni line 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3
exd5 5.Nxd5 Nxd5 6.Qxd5 Nc6, but that still
makes it difficult to drive the queen away and
e s t a b l i s h a c e n t r a l a d v a n t a g e . f6
Nothing clearly neutralises the play here:
[ (a) The slow move 6...c6 has scored well
over the years. At first I didn't understand
this move. White's options of Nb5 and Nd5
are prevented, of course, but that wasn't
much of a threat after most moves anyway.
The real point is that without Nb5, Black is
prepared for d3 followed by Be3 because he
can play something like ... Nh6-f5 or ,,,e5
and ...Ne7-f5. Whereas ...c6 is also a useful
move if White tries to play d4, for example,
300
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

7.d3 h6!? 8.e3 d8 9.xh6? 7...e5, but it's still a good move here. 7...e5
W hite pays too high a price to create 8.e3 d8 9.d4 ( 9.e2 e7 10.d4 exd4
weaknesses that probably wouldn't have 11.xd4 xd4 12.xd4 c6 13.0-0 0-0
any deleterious effect on Black's game until 14.ad1 e6 15.h3 fe8 ) 9...g4
t h e e n d g a m e . ( On the other hand, 9.d4! 10.dxe5 xd1+ 11.xd1 xe3 12.fxe3
f5 10.d2 xe3 11.xe3 trades the should be okay for Black after b4 ]
bishop pair for development and central 8.f3!
control. This results in mutual chances [ 8.d2 has also been played, when h3
although I'd rather be W hite.) 9...gxh6 follows. ]
10.e2 g7 11.0-0 0-0 12.f3 8...c6
the pro blem is th at W hit e h as n o d ark- [ 8...e5!? 9.h3 b4 10.d2 f6 11.a3
squared counterpart to the g7 bishop so d4 c5 12.b4 d6 13.c1 c6 is probably
is almost permanently stopped. f5 13.e4 better for White, but not much. ]
g6 ( 13...e6! followed by a queen move 9.e2 e5 10.h3 h5!?
and rook to d8 should favour Black.) 14.e1 [ 10...f6 ]
e6!? 15.c2 c7 16.ab1 ad8 17.b4 b6 11.0-0 h6? 12.e3!?
18.e2 c5 19.bxc5 xc5 20.f4 c7 [ 12.xh5! is also safe and sound, winning a
21.g3 e5 22.xg6 hxg6 23.a4 d4 clear pawn. ]
24.a5 h5 25.a6 g7 26.g2 d6 27.b5 12...d6? Black's last chance to get some
h4 28.f3 h8 and Black maintained real counterplay was
pressure in Rashkovsky-Giorgadze, Ubeda [ 12...h4 , for example, 13.e4 ( 13.e4 )
1999. ] 13...e7 14.xh5?! xh5 15.xh5 f5
[ (b) 6...e5 has always been considered the 16.e2 , when at least Black is in the game,
easiest equaliser, but that doesn't mean a l t h o u g h o b v i o u s l y w o r s e , a f t e r xe3
hands must be shaken. The idea is 7.d3 17.fxe3 f5 and ..Bc5. ]
( 7.b5 d8 8.h5!? e7 and ..Nf6 ) 13.e4 c7 14.xh5 and White had a
7...e7 8.e3 ( 8.e2 is possible, perhaps winning advantage. The score goes oddly: f5
intending Nd5 in cases where the e7 knight 15.f4 0-0-0 16.f3 g6 17.fxe5 xe5
moves to c6 or f5. f5 ) 8...d8 and ...Nf5 18.f4?!
can follow, so 9.d4! exd4 10.xd4 xd4 [ 18.xa7! ]
11.xd4 c6 12.e3 d7 13.0-0-0 0-0-0 18...xf4 19.xf4 f5 20.f2 c5 21.fe1?!
14.e2 , but it's not much ] f7 22.f1 d4 23.f3 he8 24.xe8
7.d3 g4 Not very impressive, although xe8 25.b1 e5 26.e2 f7 27.b4 d8
playable. Of the options, 7...e5 looks best. 28.b5 cxb5 29.xe5 Did Black really resign
[ (a) Alekhine-Euwe, Netherlands 1937 here? Probably the scoresheet's wrong:
showed what can happen if Black is a little [ 29.xe5 xe5 30.xb5 e8 with only a
too conservative and foregoes both ...e5 and pawn versus the bishop pair. ]
. . . Ne 7 - f 5 : 7...c6 8.e3 d7 9.d4 g6 1-0
10.e2 g7 11.h3 Preventing ...Ng4.
( 11.0-0 0-0 12.e1 must be somewhat
better for White in view of his better centre. 316 A09
g4 13.xg4 xg4 14.f3 h5 15.d5!? ) Tomashevsky,Evgeny 2624
11...0-0 12.0-0 b6 13.f3 b7 14.a4 Ganguly,Surya Shekhar 2571
ad8 15.a5 c7 16.b3 d7 17.axb6 Aeroflot Open (3) 16.02.2007
axb6 18.a7 a8 19.fa1 e6 20.xa8 [Carsten Hansen]
xa8 ( 20...xa8 21.xa8+ xa8 22.a3
b7 23.b4!? ) 21.d5 cxd5 22.cxd5 c5?! 1.f3 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.e3 f6 4.xc4 e6
( 22...xc3? 23.d6! xd6 24.xc3 xf3 5.0-0 a6 6.e2 c5 7.d1 b5 8.b3 b7
25.h6; 22...exd5! ) 23.c4 exd5 24.xd5 9.a4
xd5 25.xd5 and White stood better. ] [ 9.d4!? takes our game into a Queen's
[ (b) Arguably 6...e5 is better than 6...Nf6 and Gambit Accepted, which of course isn't

301
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

covered under Flank Openings. bd7 10.a4 Maybe Black had missed this simple move,
b4 11.a5 c7 12.bd2 e7 13.c4 0-0= threatening f7 and supporting the g3-g4 pawn
Vijayalakshmi-Suvrajit, Calcutta 2000 ] advance? It is a little hard to believe that this
9...b4 is the explanation, but any better reason is
[ 9...b6 10.d4 this could be interpreted as difficult to come up with. f8 28.g4 g6
a Queen's Gambit Accepted, but very few 29.h6 g5
players would choose the moves for Black [ Or 29...g7 30.f4 e5 31.f6 e8
that he has picked in this game... bd7 32.g5 d6 33.b3 and White will prepare
11.c3 b4 12.a5 c7 13.a4 cxd4 t o b re a k o n t h e h -f ile wit h d e va s t a t in g
14.exd4 d5 15.xd5 xd5 16.g5 d6 effect ]
17.dc1 b8 ( 17...xa5 18.c3 xc3 30.hxg5
19.bxc3 b6 20.d5 ) 18.c5 xc5 1-0
19.dxc5 f4 20.c4 1-0 Marin, M-Kaeding,
R/Sitges 1997 (39) ]
[ 9...bd7 10.axb5 axb5 11.xa8 xa8 317 A09
12.a3 xf3 13.gxf3 b4 14.b5 b8 Tomashevsky,Evgeny 2646
15.d4 1-0 Nikcevic, N-Adla, D/Mondariz Morozevich,Alexander 2755
1998 ] 60th ch-Superfinal (3) 20.12.2007
[ 9...c4 10.c2 b6 11.axb5 axb5 [Carsten Hansen]
12.xa8 xa8 13.d3 cxd3 14.xd3 b4?
( 14...b4 15.bd2 bd7 16.c4 c7 1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.g3 c5 4.e3 c6
17.b3 c5 18.b2 ) 15.e5? ( 15.xb5+ 5.exd4 cxd4 6.g2 e5 7.0-0 f6!?
c6 16.d4 ) 15...e7? 16.xb5+ c6?? [ This is a relatively rare bird in this variation.
( 16...f8 ) 17.c4+- c5 18.d2 Black normally plays 7...f6 ]
( 18.b4+- ) 18...0-0 19.xc6 xc6 20.xc6 8.d3
xc6 21.c1 d7 22.b4?? ( 22.b4+- ) [ After 8.e1 g4?? White, a strong
22...d8 23.d2 h6?? ( 23...a8! 24.xc5 Californian International Master, several
xc5 25.xc5 xd2 26.c8+ d8 times missed out on the fairly simple
27.xa8 xa8 ) 24.b3+- a4 25.xc5 ( 8...d6!? )
xc5 26.xc5 1-0 Vujic Katanic, B-Savic, A) 9.d3 d6 10.a3 ( 10.xe5!+- ) 10...a5
M/Vrnjacka Banja 199900 ( 26.xc5 d1+ 11.bd2 ( 11.xe5!+- ) 11...ge7
27.e1!+- )] (and now it's too late...) 12.b1 0-0
10.d3 c6 11.bd2 c7 12.c4 g4 13.e4 a4 14.b4 axb3 15.xb3 a5
[ 12...e7 13.a5 0-0 14.e4 ] 16.b2 , and White has the better
13.g3 chances, thanks to his superior minor
[ 13.d2 e7 14.h3 ge5 15.cxe5 pie ce s a n d p re ssu re d o wn t h e b -f ile ,
xe5 is fine for Black ] Altounian, L-Akopyan, H/San Francisco
13...ge5 14.fxe5 xe5 15.xe5 xe5 2000;
16.e4!? c8 17.c4 e7 18.f4 c7 19.f1 B) 9.xe5! xe5 ( 9...xd1
through very simple means White has gained 10.xc6++- ) 10.xg4+- ]
a position of strength f ro m which he ca n 8...ge7
conduct a kingside attack, while Black [ A novelty previously Black had tried 8...e6
currently has nothing that can match it on the on a couple of occasions: 9.e1!? ( 9.bd2
queenside or in the centre. The bishop on c4 h6 10.a4 d7 11.a3 f7 12.e1 e7
is ideally placed to support White's activities 13.b4 0-0 14.b5 cd8 15.d1 e8
on the kingside by applying pressure on the 16.b1 h3 17.h1 e6 with chances for
a2-g8 diagonal. f6 20.f5 e5 21.e3 e7 both sides, Zvjaginsev, V-Hauchard, A/
22.h4 0-0 23.f2 h8 24.af1 fd8 Belfort 1999) 9...d7 10.a3 a5 11.a4
25.g2 d4? This is quite desperate and also ( 11.bd2 h6 12.e4 f7 is similar to
unnecessary. W hite is winning now without the Zvjaginsev game and is fine for Black)
any f urther ado. 26.xd4 exd4 27.h5 11...a6 12.bd2 ge7 13.e4 c8

302
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

14.fd2 b6 15.c2 c7 16.f4! 32.e2 h3 33.e7+ xe7 34.xe7+
, and W hite is in control of the game, f8 35.ee1 xg3+ ( 35...g5 36.fxg5 f4
Polugaevsky, L-Gerusel, M/Buesum 1969 ] 37.f2 fxg3+ 38.g2 c6 39.f1 g7
9.a3 a5 10.bd2 g6 11.h4 e7 12.e1 40.be1 h2+ 41.xg3 2h3+ 42.g2
0-0 13.h5 h8 14.h4 h2+= ) 36.f2 g4 37.e5 h2+ 38.f1
[ 14.h6 g5 15.h2 f7 is better for Black ] h1+ 39.f2 h2+= ]
14...g5 [ 27.f2 h5 ( 27...a4 28.e2 c6
[ 14...e6!? 15.d5 ( 15.f4!? d7 16.f3 29.ae1 ) 28.f3 c6 ( 28...a4 29.h4
f5! 17.fxe5 f7 ) 15...xd5 16.cxd5 xd5 f8 30.ab1 b8 31.e5 c6 32.xc6
17.g4 xc6 33.e6 b3 34.e2 ) 29.e6 d7
A) 17...f7 18.f5 g5 19.e4 ac8 30.e2 h3 31.g2 h5 32.f1 ( 32.f2
20.f4 exf4 ( 20...e6? 21.fxe5 fxe5 h3 33.g2 h5= ) 32...a8 33.ae1
22.xg7! xg7 23.h6 ) 21.xe7+ b7 ]
xe7 22.xg5 fxg5 23.xe7 c2 [ 27.g2!? ]
24.gxf4; 27...b7?!
B) 17...ad8 18.f5 ( 18.c4 ) 18...g6 [ 27...h5! 28.f3 f8 29.h4 e8
19.e4 d7 , and White doesn't have 30.d2 eh8 31.e2 g5! 32.xg5 xg5!
enough for the pawn ] 33.fxg5 xg3+ 34.xg3 h2+ 35.xh2
15.hxg6 hxg6 16.e4! xh2+ 36.f1 h1+ 37.f2 h2+= ]
[ 16.f4!? exf4 17.gxf4 ] 28.ab1 h5!?
16...f5 17.xc6! bxc6 18.hf3 f7 [ 28...a4 29.d1 ( 29.f3 c6 30.d1
[ 18...e4!? 19.dxe4 d3 20.e5 f6 c8 31.b4 axb3 32.xb3 h5!! 33.e2
21.df3 fxe4 22.xe4 f7 23.xd3 xe5 xg5 34.fxg5 f4-+ ) 29...a8 30.b4 axb3
24.xe5 xd3 25.xd3 f5 26.e3 ae8 31.xb3 b8 ( 31...h5? 32.b6 f8
27.f4 d4 , and Black has decent 33.d8+- ) 32.a2 xb1 33.xb1 f8
compensation for the two pawns he has ( 33...c7 34.e7 a7 35.f3+- ) 34.e7
sacrificed ] b8 35.c1 c6 36.d1 ]
19.xe5 xe5 20.xe5 d6 21.e1 c5 29.f3?
22.f3 [ 29.b4! axb4 30.axb4 cxb4 31.c5 c7
[ 22.f3 b8 ] 32.e7! ( 32.b2? d5 33.xb4 xh4!!
22...g7 34.xh4 c6 35.e2 xf4! 36.gxf4 b7
[ 22...f4!? 23.e5 fxg3 24.fxg3 a6 37.xb7+ xb7 38.d1 c6 ) 32...d5
25.f4 f6 ( 25...g5 26.h5! )] 33.d6 xd6 34.cxd6 xd6 35.e5+ ]
23.g5 29...c6 30.g1?-+
[ 23.b4 axb4 24.g5 b6 25.axb4 xa1 [ 30.h4!? xf4 31.gxf4 xf3 32.e7 c6
26.xa1 b7 27.bxc5 xc5 28.h4 a8 33.e5+ h7 34.e6 xe6 35.xe6
29.c1 f7 ] xh4 36.xf3 h3+ 37.g2 xd3 38.c6
23...c7 24.h4 d2+ ]
[ 24.b4!? ] 30...f8! 31.h4
24...f7 25.e2 [ 31.h4 e8 32.e5 xe5 33.fxe5 f4
[ 25.f4!? ] 34.g4 d7 35.d1 fxg3+ 36.xg3 f8+
25...d7 26.f4 37.e1 f3!-+ ]
[ 26.g2 b7 27.d2 h8 28.f4 xf4 31...xg5! 32.fxg5 f4 33.g4 e8 34.d2
29.xf4 h3 30.f3 c6 31.b4 xf3 e3!?
32.e5+ h7 33.f4 h1+ ( 33...xg3+ [ 34...h8! 35.f1 xh4 36.b4 axb4
34.f2 g5 35.e6 ) 34.f2 h2+ 37.axb4 h3!-+ ]
35.g1 ] 35.b4 e7 36.bxc5 xg5 37.h1
26...h8! 27.f2 [ 37.f5+ gxf5 38.gxf5 g3-+ ]
[ 27.ab1 h5 28.f3 f8 ( 28...b7?! 37...xh1
29.h4 f8 30.e5 e8 31.f3! ) [ 37...e7! 38.h2 xg4 39.g2 f3
29.e7 e8 30.xd6 xd6 31.d2 eh8 40.bh1 g3+ 41.f1 e2+ 42.g1 f3-+

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

isn 't th is a b ea utif ul p ositio n? W h ite is the better chances, Bernstein, S-

completely tied up. ] Moskowitz, J/New York 1941;
38.xh1 xc5 39.d1 e7 B) 6.b3 6.Bb2!? had been played before,
[ 39...d6! 40.f3 xg4 41.g1 h3 the move which would prevent the white
42.g2 e7!-+ ] phalange on the queen side to get
40.a4 destroyed. e4 7.d4
[ 40.g2!? g3 41.e1 d6 42.b1! c7 B1) H e r e B l a c k h a s t r i e d 7...c6
43.e4 g5 44.e1 xg4 45.f3 g3 on a couple of occasions, but W hite
46.b5 ] appear to have the better chances, e.g.
40...g3 41.g2 b4 42.h2 e5 43.c5 8.b2 ge7 ( or 8...a5 9.a3 xd4
[ 43.h1 f3 44.h7+ g8-+ ] 10.xd4 e7 11.g3 c6 12.b2 e7
43...f3 44.h4 f4 13.g2 f5 14.f3 e6 15.c3 d5
0-1 16.0-0 , and White has grabbed the
initiative, Peralta, F-Palo, D/Copenhagen
2002 ) 9.xc6 bxc6 10.c3 f5 11.f3
318 A09 exf3 12.gxf3 b8 , Wells, P-Timman, J/
Van Wely,Loek 2681 London ENG 2007, and now W hite
Kramnik,Vladimir 2799 should have played 13.a3 a6 14.g2
Amber Rapid Nice FRA rapid (7) 22.03.2008 , and White is clearly enjoying the better
[Carsten Hansen] chances thanks to a better pawn
structure and better development.;
1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4 3.b4 f6 4.e3 e5 B2) 7...a5 8.c3 f5 9.e6
[ In our December 2007 update we saw B2a) 9...xe6 10.xe6+ e7 11.b5
Korotylev-Kramnik continue with 4...dxe3 d7 12.a3;
5.fxe3 e5 6.c5! with a better game for B2b) 9...a4 10.c4 e7 11.xf8
White - this game can obviously be found in ( 11.f4 f6 12.a3 ) 11...xf8
the PGN archives ] is given as better for Black in Palliser's
5.c5!? book, basing it on a recommendation
[ 5.b3!? can also be considered ] by H.Williamson, but this isn't entirely
[ 5.b2 dxe3 6.fxe3 xb4 7.e2 clear, e.g. 12.b5!? f6 13.a3 e6
is possibly also playable for White ] 14.b4 c6 15.g3 f7 16.g2
5...a5!? followed by f2-f3 and I believe White
[ This is Kortchnoi's recommendation, but has the better chances;
the alternative also deserve serious B2c) 9...e7 10.a4+ ( In the game
consideration: A) 5...d3!? It is interesting Gabriel-Kortchnoi, Zurich 1999, White
how different this move has been evaluated. continued with 10.xf8? xf8 11.b5
Tony in his annotations to the game (see e6 12.a4 d7 13.a3 xc5
PGN archives) gave this move '!!' and called 14.d4 b6 , and Black has the better
it stunning. Kortchnoi, meanwhile, wrote chances. ) 10...f7 ( 10...c6?
'This move is a bit too optimistic - Black is 11.d5+-; 10...d7 11.xc7+ d8
pushing his pawns too far, without 12.b5+- ) 11.xf8
appropriate support of his pieces. Correct B2c1) This is suggested by Kosten
was 5...a5, exploiting premature white's as Bla ck' s b est a n d rep e at e d b y
activity on the queen side.'. Palliser in his Palliser in his abovementioned book
book, "Beating Unusual Chess Openings" K o r c h n o i o n l y g i v e s 11...xf8
also recommends 5...d3 for Black. 12.a3 ( 12.b5!? Horn ) 12...f6
A) 6.b2 e6 ( 6...e4 7.d4 ) 7.a4+ 13.f3 f7 14.fxe4 fxe4 15.g3 e5
c6 8.c3 d7 ( 8...a5!? (Horn) deserves 16.b5 e8 17.g2 g8 18.0-0 f5
consideration, though 9.a3 a6 10.b5 19.c4+ h8 20.xf5! xf5 21.f1
is fully acceptable for White) 9.a3 a6 after which Kortchnoi claims a clear
10.c1 d8 , and Black appears to have advantage for White;

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

B2c2) 11...xf8 14.d5+ xd5 15.xd5 fxg2 16.g1

B2c21) 12.d5?! d7 13.a3 xc5 17.e3 ) 10...axb4 11.0-0 g4
( 13.d1!? ) 13...a6 14.xa5 12.d4 xf3 13.gxf3 ge7 ( 13...0-0-0
e7 15.xc7 ( 15.xe7 xe7 14.xc6 g6+ 15.h1 bxc6 16.a3+- )
16.b2 he8 17.g3 b6 18.a3 14.a3 d5 15.b2;
bxc5 19.bxc5 xc5 20.c3 g8 A2) 7...exd4 8.0-0 d7 ( 8...axb4
i s b e t t e r f o r B l a c k) 15...c6 9.e1+ e7 10.b3 g4 11.b2 )
16.b6 xc7 17.xc7 c8 9.e1+ e7 10.d3 xb4 ( 10...axb4
wi t h a b e t t e r g a m e f o r B l a c k - 11.b3 ) 11.xd4 c6?! ( 11...xb5
Kosten; 12.xb5 xd3 13.xc7+ xc7
B2c22) 12.a3 axb4 13.xa8 14.xd3 ) 12.c4 , and Black is
a6 completely busted, Peralta, F-Bromann,
B2c221) This is the only given by T/Aarhus 2002;
Kosten and Palliser, but W hite B) 6...c6 7.c4 g4 ( 7...axb4!? (Horn)
can easily improve on this, e.g. 8.xe5 dxe3 9.fxe3 h6 10.f3 xc5
14.c6! b6 15.xe4 fxe4 16.b2 11.0-0 , and with his d- and e-pawns ready
e7 17.g3 c5 18.g2 to advance in addition to the control over
and with W hite being ready to the a2-g8 diagonal, W hite has excellent
break with f2-f3 followed by 0-0, compensation for the sacrificed pawn;
he is clearly better; 7...dxe3 8.fxe3 g4 9.0-0 h6 10.e1
B2c222) 14.xe4 fxe4 15.b2 e4 11.d4 axb4 was Peralta, F-Cafolla,
f6 ( 15...xc5 16.a5 b6 P/Port Erin 2002, and now White should
17.xb4 f6 18.d4 h a ve t rie d 12.f4 e7 13.g3 d7
and W hite has all the winning 14.b2 with a very sharp position and
chances ) 16.c6 b6 17.g3 c5 probably better chances for White )
18.g2 with the better chances B1) 8.b3!?
for White; B1a) 8...a4 9.c2 e7 10.b2 d5
B2c223) 14.xb4? xb4 11.exd4 ( 11.a3 ) 11...xb4 12.e4
15.b1 c2+ 16.d1 f6 xf3 13.gxf3 d7 14.0-0;
is promising for Black according B1b) 8...h6
to Kosten ] B1b1) 9.exd4?! xf3 10.gxf3
[ B) 5...g4 6.c4 ( 6.e2?! d3 7.a4+? ( 10.xf3? xd4 11.c3 e4+
d7-+ 8.c6 xc6 9.b5 dxe2 10.bxc6 12.f1 axb4 13.xb4 d4 14.b2
xc6 11.xe2 d7 12.d1 d4+ xc5-+ Horn )
0-1 Kureza, S-Mezheritsky, Y/Kiev 2002; B1b11) Horn only offers 10...xd4
6.h3!? xf3 7.xf3 c6 8.a3 d7 11.b2 f4 12.a3 ( 12.d4?! exd4
9.c4 ) 6...a5 7.b3 h6 8.d3 axb4 13.0-0 axb4 14.e1+ d8
9.bd2 dxe3 10.fxe3 xc5 11.e4 e7 15.xd4 xc5 16.xc5 g5+
12.0-0 c6 Vodicka, V-Jirka, J/CZE 2001 ] 17.h1 xc5 18.a3 ) 12...axb4
[ C) 5...e7 6.c4 d5 7.xe5 e6 13.axb4 xa1 14.xa1;
8.f3 xe3 9.dxe3 xc4 10.xd4 a5 B1b12) 10...axb4! 11.0-0
, Bae, T-Westerinen, H/Gausdal 2000, and ( 11.b2?! exd4 12.xb4 b5!-+ )
now 11.d2 d5 12.e4 f7 13.b2 axb4 11...xd4 12.b2 h4 13.d4
14.2b3 ] d7 14.e1 ( 14.a3?! exd4
6.xe5 15.axb4 xa1 16.xa1 e5 )
[ Hello! This is a novelty. Previously White 14...e7 , and White's initiative is
has tried the following moves: A) 6.b5+!? rapidly running out, leaving Black
A) 6...c6?! 7.exd4 t o c o n s o l i d a t e 15.e6 f8
A1) 7...e4 8.d5 xd5 9.c3 h5 16.dxe5 xc5 17.f7+ ( 17.e2
10.xe4 ( 10.xc6+!? bxc6 11.a4 g6 18.exf6 gxf6 ) 17...xf7
exf3 12.xc6+ d8 13.xa8 axb4 18.exf6+ d8 19.d1+ c8

305
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
20.h1 gxf6 21.xf7 g6
22.d7+ b8 23.d2 b6-+;
B1b2) 9.bxa5!? xf3 10.gxf3 xc5
11.a3 xa5 12.xb7 a7 13.b2
xa3 14.xa3;
B2) 8.exd4 e4 9.e2 e7 10.h3 exf3
11.xe7+ xe7 12.hxg4 fxg2 13.g1
h5! ( 13...axb4 14.xg2 h5 (Horn)
15.h2 ) 14.bxa5?! ( 14.gxh5 xh5
15.xg2 h1+ 16.f1 axb4 17.b2
(Horn) d5 18.g3 a6 ) 14...hxg4
15.xg2 h1+ 16.f1 f5 , and Black
has the initiative, Nikolaevsky, Y-
Savchenko, S/Kiev 1995 ]
[ B) 6.b3 axb4 7.c4 h6 8.0-0 xc5
9.exd4 xd4 ( 9...exd4 10.e1+ f8
11.b2 c6 ) 10.xd4 xd4 11.b2 d6
12.d4 with an unclear position, Ilinsky-Lev/
Gausdal/1991 ]
[ C) 6.exd4 e4 Kortchnoi 7.e2 e7
8.g1 c6 Horn (CBM) ]
6...fxe5 7.h5+ d7 8.f5+ e8 9.h5+
d7 10.f5+ e7
[ 10...e8 11.h5+ d7 12.f5+
wo u l d h a v e b e e n a d r a w, b u t K r a m n i k
evidently felt like a fight after all ]
11.xe5+ e6 12.c4 d7 13.b5
[ 13.xe6 xe6 14.xc7+ d7 15.0-0
f7 16.exd4 c6 17.g3 gf6
is given as much better for W hite by my
computer, but I'm not so sure. ]
13...c6
[ 13...f6 14.b2 dxe3 15.fxe3 f7
16.xe6+ xe6 17.xc7+ ]
14.a3 f6 15.b2
[ 15.exd4 f7 16.0-0 d5 doesn't look as
dynamic for White as the game continuation,
but is possibly just as good... ]
15...f7
[ This posit ion is almost impossible to
evaluate W hite obviously has some if not
full compensation for the piece. 15...d3!? ]
16.xd4 cxb5
[ Also 16...e7 17.b1 d5 18.0-0 d8
should be given some thought, though it is
extremely difficult to evaluate ]
17.xe6+ xe6 18.xe6+ xe6 19.xb5
a6
[ 19...e8!? 20.e2 a6!? ]
20.xf6!? gxf6 21.d4 The smoke as cleared
somewhat, and only somewhat because the
NQE (Not Quite Endgame, thanks Flear) is
ve ry co m p lic a t e d t h a n ks t o t h e m a t e ria l
imbalance and the two rooks on either side of
the table. A hard assessment of the position
is very difficult to give. I would prefer to play
Black (thanks to my somewhat materialistic
attitude to chess), but objectively speaking I
think White has very good winning chances.
b6!? 22.cxb6
[ Here White can consider keeping the c-
pawn on the table with 22.c6!? c8 23.e4
f5 24.f3 , but putting all the pawns on light
squares will make it easier f or Black to
blockade them, which is probably the reason
why White took on b6 instead. ]
22...b8 23.c1 xb6 24.a4 d7
[ 24...b4 25.e2 d6!? ]
25.e2 d6 26.f3 b8 27.h4 c7
28.c3
[ Also 28.a3!? b4 29.c4 a7 30.xa5
xa4 31.a1 xa1 32.xa1
deserve consideration ]
28...f5 29.e2 e6?!
[ 29...a6!? 30.g3 d6 is an interesting
alternative, because White doesn't have the
same opportunities as in the game
continuation ]
30.d5 d8 31.d4 f7 32.b1 e5+
33.e2 b4 34.xf5!?
[ 34.xb4!? axb4 35.b1 a7 36.xf5
c5 37.e4 ( 37.c1 c8 38.f4 g4 39.e4
f6 40.d3 b3 41.b1 b8 isn't easy to
assess, but advancing the pawns is
becoming quite difficult.) 37...a8 38.f4
g6 39.g3 xa4 40.e5 e7 41.xe7
xe7 42.g4 looks tempting the pawn chain
looks very imposing and White should have
very decent winning chances ]
34...c8
[ Kramnik didn't like 34...xa4 35.b7+ c7
36.c1 ( 36.d6?? a2+-+ ) 36...c4
37.xc4 xc4 38.f4 after which only White
seems to have winning chances, e.g. f8
39.e4 xf5 40.exf5 d6 41.a7 xf5
42.g4 xh4 43.f5 ]
35.xb4 axb4 36.d4
[ Also 36.b1!? c2+ 37.d1 xf2
38.xb4 xf5 39.xb8 offers White winning
chances, but Van Wely undoubtedly wanted
to keep the pawns together to make them
more powerful. ]
306
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
36...a7 37.b1 c4 38.f3?
[ This is a straight-forward error White will
have a hard time making the pawns count
after doubling two of them on the f -file.
Instead White should have given preference
to 38.b5!? c5 39.f4 g4 40.d3
xe3 41.a5 , and White has all the chances
to win, but Black still has decent chances
of obtaining a draw, but at the moment his
pieces are tied up defending each other. ]
38...xf3 39.gxf3 d6 40.e4 c5 41.b3
e5 42.h5?!
[ Or 42.d2 xf2 43.h5 c5 44.a5 f4
45.a6 d6 46.b1 c7 , and Black has
decent winning chances ]
42...c2+ 43.d3 xf2
[ 43...c1! is likely much stronger, even if it
doesn't appear to be anything particularly
clever. W hite's problem is that with the
material he has left, his pieces are ideally
placed, and any change to that will change
that status. Therefore it is a kind of
zu gzwa n g h e is in a f t e r 4 3 .. . Rc1 . , e . g.
44.b2 ( 44.d2 a1 45.b2 xa4; 44.a5
a1 45.c4 xa5 46.b2 ) 44...c3+
45.e2 b3 46.a5 f4 47.b1 xf3
with excellent winning chances for Black ]
44.c4 c2+ 45.b5 d6
[ Th e im me d ia t e 45...c3 is also worth a
look, e.g. 46.b1 b3 47.a5 d4 48.a4
xf3 49.xb3 f7 50.a6! xe4 51.b7
xb7 52.axb7 e5 , and now a draw
becomes obvious because Black cannot
k e e p W h i t e ' s k i n g a wa y f r o m h 1 wh i l e
picking up the d- and h-pawns... 53.b3
d3 54.b4 d4 55.b3 xd5 56.c2
e4 57.d2 f3 58.e1 g2 59.e2
with a draw ]
46.a5 c3 47.a4 d4 48.a6 c5 49.d6?
[ 49.xb4+? xb4 50.xb4 xf3 51.a7
f8-+ ]
[ 49.a7! c1 50.b5 xa7 51.xb4+
, and White shouldn't lose. ]
49...xd6
[ Black could have considered 49...c1!?
, e. g. 50.b5 xd6 51.a7 a1 52.c6
c5 with excellent winning chances for
Black. After the text move, the game
quickly settles in a draw. ]
50.xc3 bxc3 51.a7 c2 52.a8 c1
53.d5+ e3 54.xd6 xf3 55.e5 f4+
56.b5 e4 57.c6+ xe5 58.c7+ e4
59.xh7+ f5+ 60.xf5+ xf5
½-½
319 A09
Van der Werf,Mark 2450
Burg,Twan 2492
Tata Steel Chess 2013 (3.1) 14.01.2013
[John Bartholomew]
T h e r e h a s b e e n s o m e d is c u s si o n in t h e
forums about the theoretical status of the
pawn advance 2...d4 against the Réti, which,
in practice is dwarfed in popularity by 2...c6
and 2...e6. As the saying goes, however,
"numbers don't lie", and indeed, Black scores
significantly better with 2...d4 than any other
choice at that juncture. GM Alexander Delchev,
author of "The Modern Reti: An Anti-Slav
Repertoire", even calls it "the most
unpleasant retort to 2.c4". 1.f3 d5 2.c4 d4
3.b4 Delchev's principle recommendation for
White.
[ Other options include 3.g3 ]
[ 3.e3 ]
[ and 3.c5!? . Refer to the "Réti 2 c4 - 2. ..
d4" guide in the archives. ]
3...f6 '!' - Delchev. Black prepares reliable
support for his d-pawn with ...e7-e5.
[ 3...c5 can lead to a Benko-style position i.
e. 4.e3 dxe3 5.fxe3 cxb4 6.a3!?
, which was successful in Sadorra, J
(2525)-Kacheishvili, G (2612) Richardson
2012/[John Bartholomew]. ]
[ A n o t h e r p o s s i b i l i t y i s 3...g4!?
. See Laznicka, V (2617)-Rombaldoni, D
(2465) Pardubice 2009/[Rowson]. ]
4.d3 A calm choice, as played by Radjabov
and Ivanchuk.
[ Delchev endorses 4.e3 , with much of his
analysis centering around the line e5 5.c5
a5 6.b5+!? c6 7.c4 . However, shortly
after the publication of "The Modern Reti"
the publisher, Chess Stars, published a
letter from a reader, Reinhold Thiele. Mr.
Thiele queries Delchev's sharp line axb4
8.xe5 and proposes an improvement for
Black: fxe5 ( Delchev only examines
8...h6!? ) 9.h5+ g6!? 10.xe5+ e7
11.xh8 f6 "when Black continues Be6, ...
307
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Nbd7 ...0-0-0" (Thiele). In many of the lines
W hite's queen is hopelessly marooned.
Thiele's improvement is corroborated by
d e e p H o u d in i a n a lysis , a n d in t e re st e d
readers should investigate his variations
here: http://www.chess-stars.com/Reti letter.
html . As far as I know Delchev has yet to
offer any counter-analysis, so his line with 4.
e3 can rightly be called into question at
present. Interestingly, one game did reach
this position in the past month, and the
result was favorable for Black: 12.0-0 e6
13.d3? xc4 14.dxc4 d7! 15.d1 g7
16.xd4+ c7 (Her Majesty is trapped)
17.d8+ xd8 18.xd8 xd8-+
and Black soon won in Davis, T (1945)-
Zelesco, K (2143) Cammeray 2013. ]
4...e5 5.a3
[ I v a n c h u k t r i e d t h e c r e a t i v e 5.a3!?
in a blitz game against Wang Hao. It proved
s u c c e s s f u l a f t e r e6 ( Black has many
v i a b l e a l t e r n a t i v e s h e r e , i . e . 5...a5;
5...g4!?; 5...c5 , etc. ) 6.g3 c6 7.g2 a5
8.b5 , when c5? ( 8...xa3 9.xa3 e7
looks more flexible) 9.0-0 d6 10.e3 dxe3
11.fxe3 e7 12.c3 d7 13.d2 c8
14.de4 b8 15.a4 b6 16.exc5 bxc5
17.xa8+- was disastrous for Black.
Ivanchuk, V (2766)-W ang Hao (2737)
Beijing CHN 2012. ]
[ Radjabov played 5.b5 without success: a6!
(a good reaction) 6.bxa6 xa6 7.g3 b4+
8.d2 e7 9.g2 0-0 10.0-0 d7
11.xb4 xb4 12.b3 ec6 13.bd2
e7 14.b2 a7 15.b3 fa8
Radjabov, T (2781) -Naiditsch, A (2712)
Porto Carras 2011. ]
5...a5
[ B l a c k c a n a l s o t h i n k a b o u t 5...c5
, a move that brought down Korchnoi twice
i n t h e 1 9 8 0 s . 6.b3 ( 6.g3 cxb4
(play takes on a Reversed Benko character)
7.g2 c6 8.0-0 a5 9.e3 g4 10.h3
xf3 11.xf3 c5 12.d5 ge7 13.e4
xd5 14.cxd5 e7 15.a4+? d7
16.b3 a4 17.c4 d6 18.axb4 b5
19.a2 xh3-+ Kortschnoj, V (2635) -
Seirawan, Y (2525) London 1984) 6...a5
7.b5 d6 8.g3 f5! 9.g2 f6 10.0-0 0-0
11.g5 bd7 and Black could be more
than satisfied with the opening in Kortschnoj,
V (2625)-Short, N (2615) Brussels 1987. ]
6.b5 e7 Black has tried 10(!) different
moves at this point in only 14 total games
(going back to 1972). Results have been
favorable for the second player: he scores +5,
=4, -4. Some Flank devotees may identify
with W hite's characteristic Réti setup, but
personally I find Black's position easier to
handle. He dominates the center and has
made very logical moves thus far. 7.g3 d7
The c5-square is a natural home f or this
knight. 8.g2 c5 9.a4 g6 10.a3 e6
11.fd2 c8 12.h4!? d6 13.h5
[ I think 13.b3! is preferable. After xb3
14.xb3 e7!? 15.d2 0-0 16.e4 d7
17.c5 xc5 18.xc5 ab8
White possesses the bishop pair while Black
retains a solid position. ]
13...f8! 14.b3 xb3 15.xb3 d7
Black's knight replaces his fallen comrade on
c5. 16.d2 c5 17.c2 0-0 18.b3 xb3
19.xb3 f5 20.c2 xa3 21.xa3 f6
22.a1 f4 23.d2?!
[ 23.gxf4 xf4 24.h6!? g6= ]
23...fxg3 24.fxg3 f2 25.f3 g4 26.hf1
h2!? 27.c5 h8 28.c4 f5 29.d5
g5+ 30.c2 c6?!
[ B e t t e r w a s 30...xf3! 31.xf3 e7
, winning the c-pawn. ]
31.bxc6 bxc6 32.f7? An error.
[ W h i t e p r o b a b l y r e j e c t e d 32.xc6
because of c8 , but 33.d6 xf3 34.xf3
xe2+ 35.b3 is actually fairly safe for him.
Black would have to secure his own king
with h6 , b u t a f t e r 36.af1 White has
sufficient counterplay. ]
32...h6 33.ab1?! e4! A decisive line-
opening blow. 34.xg4
[ 34.dxe4 xc5+ ( or 34...d3+ ) 35.d1 d3!
crashes through. ]
34...exd3+ 35.xd3 e3+ 36.c2 d3+!
37.b2 dxe2 38.fe1 d4+ 39.a3
xg4-+ White's king is far too exposed and he
can scarcely cope with the advanced passed
e-pawn. 40.b3 d8 41.c7 d1 42.f7
h7 White resigned. Black's play in this game
was natural and strong. My view is that 3.b4 f6
is a very reliable continuation for Black (no
surprise here), so W hite players ought to
think hard about what they're going to play
308
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

against the unjustly unpopular 2...d4. gain anything by passive play.

0-1 [ 14.b4!? would upset the equilibrium, e.g.,
xb4 15.b1 a5 ( 15...xd2 16.xd2 b8
17.e4 ) 16.a3! xa3 17.xd4! exd4
320 A09 ( 17...xd4 18.a4+ d7 19.xa3 )
Vukic,Milan 2474 18.xb7 d6 19.a4+ d8 ( 19...f8?
Kovacevic,Aleksandar 2556 20.e4 ) 20.a1 and Black's bishop can't
Open Banja Luka BIH (5) 08.12.2004 escape due to b4 21.xb4 ]
[John Watson] 14...0-0!?
[ Or 14...a5 with at least equality. White has
This game tests the idea of playing a to move quickly to compensate for Black's
Saemisch variation/Bg5 Benoni with reversed two bishops. ]
colours, and how White might address that in 15.e2
order to try for an advantage. 1.f3 d5 2.g3 [ 15.b4 should be tried. ]
c5 3.g2 c6 4.c4 d4 5.d3 e5 6.0-0 15...a5 16.e1 ab8 Preparing ...b5. 17.a4
[ 6.b4!? cxb4 7.a3 is not really a genuine f7?! Going backwards. With White lacking
reversed Benko Gambit because Black has queenside play Black should be able to build
will have little trouble castling. Many times up an attack at his leisure.
ann ot at ors ta lk a bou t re ve rsed " Be nko [ I t h i n k t h a t 17...h8! was preferable to
Gambits" with an extra tempo (which indeed prevent any tricks based upon the e-file and
helps White) even though Black pays less of Bd5. ]
a price for accepting the pawn in terms of [ , or 17...be8 18.c2 f5 ]
king position. Here a possible sequence 18.c2! d8?!
might be bxa3 8.0-0 ( 8.a4 b4+ 9.d2 [ 18...be8! would meet 19.f4 by d6 ]
xd2+ 10.bxd2 f6 11.xa3 ge7; 19.f4! exf4? 20.xf4 Suddenly the d-pawn is
8.xa3 xa3 9.xa3 f6 ) 8...d6 9.a4 under fire and White's pieces are active. d6
ge7 10.xa3 0-0 . White has some [ 20...c5 21.b3! ]
compensation, but I doubt that it's as much 21.xd4 c7 22.f1 e5 23.e4 f5
as Black in the original Gambit. ] 24.d4! xe4 25.xe4 d6 26.c5 e7
6...f6 The Saemisch reversed, soon to 27.ce3
become a Benoni. 7.e3 g4 8.exd4 xd4 [ Or 27.e1! e8 28.fe3 would threaten
[ 8...cxd4 gives White a choice between Nd5 and give White a clear advantage. d7
several Benoni setups with an extra tempo. 29.d5+ xd5 30.xd5 f7 31.c7 h8
Whether this suffices for an advantage is 32.e3 with Nc4 to come. ]
unclear, but Kovacevic avoids it. ] 27...d7?
9.e3 d7 10.xd4 [ 27...e8 28.e1 d7 29.d5+ xd5
[ 10.c3 is also possible, when ] 30.xd5 c6! is better than the last note. ]
10...cxd4 11.bd2 h6 28.d5+ xd5 29.xd5+ f7 30.f5
[ 11...e7 invites 12.b4 ] [ Or 30.c4! fd8 31.fe3 but White has a
12.h3 nice grip on the position regardless. ]
[ A more dynamic idea was 12.a3 a5 30...fe8 31.1e3 f8 32.c4! d8
13.b4!? axb4 14.axb4 xa1 15.xa1 33.g2 e2+ 34.f1 c2 35.fe3 h2
with pressure on the b-pawn and moves like 36.g2 Black has been just flailing about, and
c5 and Nc4 in the air. ] now loses the exchange back. c7 37.g4
12...e6 xg2 38.xg2 d8 39.d1 g5 40.d5
[ 12...xh3?! 13.xe5 fxe5 14.h5+ ] e8 41.f2 e2 42.d2 e1 43.h4 f7
[ 12...f5 13.e2 e7 14.h2 0-0 44.d3 e4 45.b3 f5 46.f2 e1 47.d1
15.h4 e6 16.f4 exf4 17.xf4 g5 Perhaps White should quit messing around
18.e4 gxh4 19.xe6 hxg3+ 20.g1 and win the game by
intending Bd5. ] [ 47.d6! d8 48.d5 and Nd3. ]
13.h2 e7 14.a3 White cannot hope to 47...e8 48.c3

309
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ Or 48.d6! ]
48...d7 At least Black has prevented
progress for a while. Now White settles for a
rook-and-pawn ending that should be winning
but is not easy. 49.b5 e5 50.xe5+
xe5 51.c2 c7 52.c6+?!
[ 52.xc7 xc7 53.f3 d1 54.d6+ c6
55.f4 g6 56.c3 intending Kg5 looks
good. ]
52...bxc6 53.xc7 xc7 54.xc6+ d7
55.a6 e3 56.xa5 xb3 57.a7+ d6
58.xg7 a3 59.f7?
[ 59.xh7! xa4 60.f7 e5 61.h5! a5
62.h6 a2+ 63.h3 a6 64.h7 h6+
65.g2 xd5 66.a7 ]
59...e5 60.d6 xa4
[ Poor is 60...xd6 61.xf5 xa4 62.f7
h5 63.f5 ]
61.d7 d4 62.xh7 f6 63.h5 d3 64.f2
d2+ 65.e3 d1 Suddenly White can't
make progress! 66.g4!? fxg4 67.e4
[ 67.f4 d4+ 68.g3 g5 ]
67...d2 68.h6 g6
[ Or 68...g3 ]
69.e7 xh6 70.e5 g3 71.e6+ g7
[ 71...g7 72.d6 xd6 73.xd6 g2
d r a ws . A d i s a s t e r f o r W h i t e , w h o wa s
winning at many junctures. ]
½-½
321 A09
Vukic,Milan 2468
Stojanovic,Dalibor 2452
TCh-BIH Prem (6) 09.06.2005
[John Watson]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 c5 3.g2 c6 4.c4 d4
5.d3 e5 6.0-0 f6 7.e3 e7 8.exd4 exd4
9.f4 This position an arise in a number of
ways. It is exactly a variation of a Benoni in
reverse, but here White gets time to play the
critical Ne5. W het her that give s him an y
advantage is unclear, but in these two recent
games Black followed a line that was
supposed to be equal but left him clearly
worse. 0-0 10.e5 xe5 11.xe5 g4
T h i s i s t h e m a i n l i n e i n E C O , wi t h a l l 3
alte rn at ive s th ey give lea ding to a sma ll
advantage for White, i.e.,
[ 11...g4 12.b3 d7 ( 12...d7 13.d2
ae8= ) 13.f4 b6 14.e1 fe8 15.a3
- Minev ]
[ 11...d7 12.f4 -Korchnoi ]
[ 11...d6 12.xf6 xf6 13.d2
- Bagirov. The idea is that a knight is better
than a bishop in this position, but that's not
clear. Play might continue f5 14.e4 d7
15.xb7 ab8 16.g2 xb2 17.b3 ]
12.e1!
[ 12.f4 d6 13.xd6 xd6 14.d2
Kasparov-Pinter, Skara 1980 and Kasparov
suggests e5 15.h3 ( 15.e4 c7 16.h3
f5= ) 15...f5 16.e4 c7 17.f4 d7
18.g4 xe4 19.xe4 f6 20.g2 ]
12...d6!?
[ T h e o b v i o u s 12...xe5 13.xe5
resembles the reversed Benoni mentioned.
The position is slightly deceptive because
W h it e ha s act ivit y an d th e p owerf u l g2
bishop. Nevertheless, Black has the bishop
pair and no weaknesses, so he shouldn't
stand much worse if at all. ]
13.xd6 xd6 14.h3 f6 15.d2! d7?!
16.xb7 ab8 17.g2 a5
[ In he same tournament Vukic had it easy
after 17...c6 18.xc6 xc6 19.b3 a5
20.f3 d7 21.g2 a4 22.e5! a7
23.ae1 axb3 24.xb3 xa2 25.xc5 h6
26.e7 a3 27.d7 xd7 28.xd7
1-0 Vukic-Ribic, Neum BIH 2005. ]
[ 17...xb2 18.b3 almost traps the rook
and forces concessions: e8 ( 18...c6?
19.xc6 xc6 20.c1 ) 19.xe8+ xe8
20.c1 e2 21.a3! d7 22.xa7 ]
18.b3 b6 19.f3 a4 20.b1 axb3
21.axb3
[ or 21.xb3 a6 22.xb8 xb8 23.e2 ]
21...d6 22.a1 b6 23.a5!? fb8
24.d2 Vukic-Stojanovic, Neum 2005. White
went on to lose, but here he is a clear pawn
up with nicely-placed pieces.
0-1
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

322 A09 19...dg8! 20.f4

Zvjaginsev,Vadim 2652 [ 20.xf6? xh3! would actually lose! ]
Svetushkin,Dmitry 2486 20...d6 21.f3 g4 22.h1 So, White has
VII Anibal Open (3) 09.01.2000 erected a solid defence, with so many pieces
[Tony Kosten] around his king, but exploiting his extra pawn
won't be easy. b8?!
1.f3 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.e3 f6 4.xc4 e6 [ Can Black really afford to use two moves to
5.0-0 One advantage of playing a Reti move- bring his king to a safer square like this?
orde r a gain st Q u ee n 's Ga mb it A cce pt e d 22...g6 is more in keeping with his previous
players, is that you can delay d4, to keep gung-ho play. ]
them guessing. c5 6.e2 a6 23.ae1?!
[ 6...c6 7.d1 e7 and now White [ Safety-first play, but 23.ac1 is better,
transposed into a QGA: 8.d4 cxd4 9.exd4 counter-attacking the c5-pawn. ]
Kortschnoj,V-Huebner,R/Brussels 1987, 0-1 23...a8 24.b3?! g6 25.d1 The bishop
(55). ] is brought over to help, too, but why use two
7.b3 moves to bring the piece to an inferior square?
[ 7.d1 is similar: b5 8.b3 b7 9.a4 c4 f5 Softening-up the long diagonal. 26.xd6
10.c2 b6 11.axb5 axb5 12.xa8 xa8 xd6 27.f4 d4! 28.b3 a7?!
13.d3 cxd3 14.xd3 with the initiative, Vujic [ Another wasted move, 28...e5 29.f2
Katanic,B-Savic,M/Vrnjacka Banja YUG gh6 30.h3 xd3 and Black has regained
1999, 1-0 (26). ] his pawn, and continues to attack. ]
7...b5!? 29.a5 e5 30.f2 gh6 31.h3 xd3
[ Clearly, Black doesn't wish to play 7...c6 32.xd3 xd3 33.e3
as perhaps this line isn't in his repertoire: [ 33.f3? fxe4 34.xe4 xe4 35.xe4
8.d1 e7 9.d4 cxd4 10.exd4 0-0 xh3+ and the black attack breaks through. ]
11.c3 back to a QGA again, Zvjaginsev,V- 33...d2 34.e2 h4 35.f2 fxe4 36.g1
Magem Badals,J/Pamplona 1996, 1-0 (28). ] f8 37.f3?
8.a4 b4 [ Time-trouble, perhaps, 37.d1 holds on. ]
[ This concedes the c4-square, but 8...c4 37...c8??
9.c2 b7 10.d3 cxd3 11.xd3 [ The obviou s 37...xf3 38.xc5+ a8
is also awkward. ] 39.gxf3 f4 should win. ]
9.d3! So White is not going to play d4 after all! 38.f7 d4? 39.d1 On time, probably,
Now that Black has shown his hand, W hite although now White is clearly better.
prefers to play a set-up with pawns on d3, and 1-0
e4, keeping the c5-pawn backward on the
o p e n c - f i l e . c6 10.bd2 This knight is
heading for the important c4-square. a5 323 A10
11.a2 b7 12.e4 This pawn acts as a Agrest,Evgenij 2607
barrier to the b7-bishop, thus negating Black's Atalik,Suat 2575
habitual counterplay on the h1-a8 diagonal, in Olympiad Bled SLO (13) 08.11.2002
the QGA. e7 13.c4 xc4 14.xc4 c7 [Tony Kosten]
15.g5!? Having fixed the queenside, White
will now use his extra space on the kingside 1.c4 e6 2.c3 b6 It is time to have another
to a t t ac k with f 4 -5 . h6 16.h3 g5!? look at the English Defence. 3.e4 b7 4.f3
Black decides that his king is safer on the b4 5.d3 e7 6.e2 g6! Lalic's move.
queenside, and tries to attack on the kingside 7.c2!? A new idea. Before we had
himself. 17.f4 0-0-0?! This pawn sacrifice considered
may offer practical chances, but it is difficult [ 7.0-0 and ]
to believe that it is correct. 18.fxg5 hxg5 [ 7.a3 d6 8.c2 when f5! led to sharp
19.xg5?! play, Marjanovic,S-Ivanisevic,I. ]
[ 19.e5! d5 20.xf7 is critical. ] 7...h4

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 7...f5!? should also be possible here, [ 28...exf5?? is not advisable: 29.e6+ g7
8.exf5 h4 9.xh4 xh4 but with the 30.d4+ h6 31.e7 which defends a3
black dark-squared bishop on b4, instead of and forces mate. ]
d6, W hite can play 10.0-0 as there is no 29.b1 b4+ 30.a1 a3+
mate threat on h2. ] ½-½
8.a3 White is not scared of the capture on f3,
which strengthens his e-pawn. d6 9.xh4
xh4 10.g3 c6 The thematic 324 A10
[ 10...f5!? must also have been considered, Agrest,Evgenij 2531
11.d4 ( 11.exf5 xg2 12.g1 xh2 Ehlvest,Jaan 2638
13.h5+ xh5 14.xh5 f3 15.xg7+ TCh Lunds SWE (11) 18.03.2001
f7 favours Black as the knight is misplaced [Tony Kosten]
on g7 ) 11...fxe4 12.e2 with complicated
play. ] 1.c4 e6 2.c3 b6 3.e4 b7 4.f3 b4
11.d4 0-0 12.e3 It is a good idea to defend 5.d3 e7 6.e2 Menacing to trap the b4-
d4, as after the natural bishop. bc6!?
[ 12.0-0 f5 13.e5 e7 it looks like White [ An innovation, we have seen 6...f5 and, ]
c a n s t r e n g t h e n h i s c e n t r e w i t h 14.f4? [ 6...g6 before. ]
b u t t h e n c o m e s xd4! and the knight is 7.a3 d6 8.c2 f5 9.d4 fxe4 10.xe4
untouchable. ] 0-0!? So far this all seems very natural.
12...a5 13.d3 11.c2 f5 12.d5 This seems strong, Black
[ 13.e2 is slightly superior. ] is forced to weaken his structure, but relies on
13...f5! Black must strike before White his full development. e5 13.xe5 xe5
completes his development. 14.exf5 14.dxe6 xe4 15.xe4 d6 16.g3
[ 14.b4 allows xc4 15.xc4 f4 ] [ Who would like to be White following
14...xg2 15.g1 f3 If White had played 16.exd7?! xd7 17.0-0 ae8 ? ]
his queen to e2 this move, which stops White 16...dxe6 17.0-0!
castling, would not be possible. [ The correct approach, 17.xe6+?! h8
[ 15...xh2?! 16.0-0-0 is very risky for Black, 18.0-0 h4 can only favour Black. ]
who has opened files against his own king. ] 17...f6 18.e2 Black's activity compensates
16.b3 xh2 17.d2 xg3!? his potentially weak e6-pawn.
[ 17...xa3!? is very dangerous: 18.c3! ½-½
( 18.h1?? b4+; 18.xa3? xg1 19.fxe6
g6 and W hite has no attack.) 18...c6
19.fxe6 b4+ 20.b2 g6 (else Rh1) as I 325 A10
wouldn't like to be in Black's shoes here Agrest,Evgenij 2605
after 21.h1! (anyway!) xh1 22.xh1 Kanep,Meelis 2452
g2 23.xh7! ] EuTCh Plovdiv BUL (9) 20.10.2003
18.xg3 xf5 19.ag1 g6 20.d5 [Tony Kosten]
White has a useful initiative for his pawn. h5
[ 20...exd5?? allows a quick mate after 1.c4 e6 2.c3 b6 3.e4 b7 4.f3 b4
21.xg6+ ( 21.xf5 is also winning, of 5.d3 e7 6.e2 bc6!?
course ) 21...hxg6 22.xg6+ h8 23.xf5 ] [ 6...g6 might be the best - see the
21.c1 h4 Black hastens his bits back for eBook. ]
the defence. 22.dxe6 dxe6 23.d7?! 7.a3 d6 8.c2 f5 9.d4 fxe4 10.xe4 0-0
[ 23.g5 seems strong: h2 24.f4 f2 11.c2 f5 12.h4! A brave innovation, by
25.e4 with nasty threats. ] controlling h4 with the rook as well as the f3-
23...f6! 24.xf5 White must take the rook knight W hite threatens g4 to drive the f5-
and concede a perpetual. c3+ 25.b1 knight back, and expose the h7-pawn. W e
xb3+ 26.a1 xa3+ 27.b1 b3+ had previously looked at
28.a1 c3+ [ 12.d5 which Agrest had played against

312
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Ehlvest. ] 326 A10

12...h5?! A bad reaction, weakening the g5- Avrukh,Boris 2595
square. Black probably rejected Shachar,Ehud 2374
[ 12...h6 b e c a u s e o f 13.g4?! but then he ch Tel Aviv ISR (9) 03.12.2002
h a s a f a n t a s t i c r e s o u r c e : ( 13.d2 [Tony Kosten]
f o l l o we d b y l o n g c a s t le s a n d g 4 l o o k s
better ) 13...b4+!! ( 13...fe7 loses the 1.f3 e6 2.c4 f5 3.g3 f6 4.g2 d5 5.0-0
exchange to 14.c5 bxc5 15.dxc5 xc5! c6 6.d3! As I pointed-out in my book, the
16.xc5 d5 (so that the bishop can't defend Stonewall Dutch doesn't work too well against
f3) 17.fd4 dxe4 18.xe6 although Black an English set-up, as White can organise e4
h a s s o m e c o m p e n s a t i o n a f t e r d5 ) quite easily.
14.axb4? ( 14.d1 is unclear) 14...xb4 [ 6.d4 would lead to a mainline Dutch. ]
15.b1 xe4 16.xe4 d6 and Black 6...c5 This move has its drawbacks, but then
wins as the white queen cannot f3. ] so does
13.g5 The bishop doesn't need a written [ 6...d6 which can be countered by 7.c3
invitation to come to g5! e8 14.0-0-0 b8 0-0 8.e4 so perhaps Black should be happy
15.he1 As g4 is under control White turns his with the more passive ]
attention to the centre, and the semi-open e- [ 6...e7 ]
f i l e , p o i n t i n g a t t h e b l a c k q u e e n . a5?! 7.c2! This is strong, threatening a
The knight turns out being misplaced here, discovered attack on the c5-bishop. bd7
a n d l i k e l y t o b e h i t b y a l a t e r b 4 . 16.d5! Perhaps the other method of defending the
W hite has no reason to exchange pieces. bishop,
a6! Black looks for counterplay by attacking [ 7...e7 is best, 8.g5 ( 8.f4! bd7 9.d4
the c-pawn, but White's central possibilities d6 10.xd6 xd6 11.cxd5 is good )
a r e m o r e s i g n i f i c a n t . 17.ed4! xd4 8...0-0 9.bd2 d4 Ovod,E-Zaitseva,L/
18.xd4 The rook defends c4, but can it be Moscow 1999, when 10.b3 leaves White
deflected? e5!? on top. ]
[ 18...c5 is the alternative, but then 8.cxd5 cxd5 This is the point, Black is forced
19.dxe6! dxe6 ( 19...xd4 20.xd4 dxe6 to make an anti-positional recapture.
21.xe6! is crushing.) 20.d5! exploits the [ 8...exd5?! 9.d4 d6 10.xf5 e5
e-file pin, exd5 21.xe8 bxe8 22.xd5 11.c2 xf3+ 12.xf3 0-0 13.c3
xc4 23.d3! xd3 24.xd3 xf2 25.b4 leaves W hite a pawn up for nothing,
winning the knight. ] Makarov,M-Stock,J/Berlin 1996. ]
19.d3 The e-pawn is pinned, of course, and 9.f4!? An innovation, White intends to bring
m e a n w h i l e b 4 i s a s t r o n g t h r e a t . b5! his knight to d2 instead of c3 in order to utilise
The only chance. 20.c5! Deflecting the bishop the c-file more quickly.
from its defence of e5. xc5 The point. [ 9.c3 0-0 10.f4 is also better for White,
21.xe5 Now White is clearly winning. though, e7 11.a4 d6 12.xd6 xd6
[ 21.xc5?? b3+ ] 13.fc1 f4 14.c7 with a significant
21...xe5?! This loses, but after advantage, Makarov,M-Arnold,L/Cappelle la
[ 21...c8 22.h7+ h8 23.g6 Grande 1996. ]
is decisive. ] 9...0-0 10.bd2
22.xe5 xd4 23.h7+ Black's weakened [ 10.c3 would transpose into the last
kingside allows White to wrap-up quickly. h8 note. ]
24.g6+ xh7 25.e7+! h8 26.g6 10...b6
b3+ 27.b1 There is no way to avoid Qxh5 [ 10...h5!? ]
mate. 11.ac1 g4!? 12.e3 h6 Planning to trap
1-0 th e f 4 -bish op wit h . . . g5 , bu t t h e re is n o t
enough time,
[ 12...e5? loses material: 13.xe5 dxe5
14.xd5+ h8 15.xe5 xe5 16.xc5 ]

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
13.b3 d6
[ 13...e7 avoids the exchange of bishops,
but can hardly have tempted Black. ]
14.xd6 xd6 15.fd4 a6 16.c7
Just as in the Makarov game, White uses the
c-file to bring a rook to the seventh. xc7
17.xc7 b6 Hoping to play ...e5. 18.h3 f6
19.f4! Fixing the black central pawns on light
squares, positionally White is already winning.
f7 20.c2 e7 21.f3 The dark squares
on d4 and e5 beckon to the white knights. b8
22.bd4 d7 23.e5 e8 24.fc1
The white position is a picture, reminiscent of
one of those Master v Amateur games from
the nineteenth century! f7 25.g4 g6 26.c7
be8 27.g5 hxg5 28.fxg5 h7 29.h4 f8
30.e4 Time to bring White's one inactive piece
into the fray. dxe4 31.dxe4 fxe4 32.xe4
d5 33.xe7 xe7 34.c8 g7 35.h5!
Black has had enough punishment.
[ 35.h5 gxh5? 36.xd5 exd5? 37.f5+ ]
1-0
327 A10
Claesen,Pieter 2392
Hovhanisian,Mher 2294
BEL-ch Westerlo (5) 07.07.2004
[Nigel Davies]
1.c4 d5!? Shock tactics!
[ A more respectable move order would be
1...c6 2.e4 d5 3.cxd5 f6 . ]
2.cxd5 f6 3.e4 Evidently deciding to punish
his opponent for his presumptuousness.
[ 3.f3 xd5 4.d4 transposes into an
unusual Queen's Gambit line which is not
thought to be great for Black. ]
3...c6 4.dxc6 xc6 5.c3 e5 6.b5 c5
7.f3
[ Better than 7.ge2 as played in Dezelak, B
(2160)-Galeev, S (2275)/Bled 1996. ]
7...0-0 8.0-0 d4 9.xe5
[ In an earlier game W hite played 9.xd4
exd4 10.e5 , with Black getting a good
g a m e a f t e r g4 11.e4 d5 12.c2
xe5 13.f4 h5 14.h3 b6 in Henneberg,
I-Serdjuk, I/Ronneburg 1996. ]
9...d6 10.f3
[ Another possibility was 10.c4 e7
11.e3 xb5 12.xb5 xe4 ]
10...g4 11.e5 xf3+ 12.xf3 xe5
13.g3 xg3 14.hxg3 d8
Black's pressure continues into the endgame.
15.a4 f5 16.a5 d3 17.xd3 xd3
18.a4 f5 19.f4 g6 20.e1 ad8 21.f1
d6 22.a4 a6
[ Black could also play 22...xf2 23.xf2
xg3+ 24.e2 xe1 when he has all the
chances. ]
23.e2 e5 24.e1 c6 25.e3 b4
26.d1 c5 27.e2 3d7 28.g4 d3
29.gxf5 gxf5 30.c2?!
[ 30.f3 was better. ]
30...xf2 31.g4?
[ And here White should play 31.b3 . ]
31...f4 32.ae4?!
[ 32.xf4 xf4 33.xf2 would have allowed
White to fight on. ]
32...f3 33.e8+ xe8 34.xe8+ f7 35.e4
a7 36.d1 f2 37.xf2 xf2 38.f4+
g6 39.d4 c7+
0-1
328 A10
Damljanovic,Branko 2535
Kindermann,Stefan 2519
ECC Halkidiki GRE (2) 23.09.2002
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7
5.d3 d6 6.e4 fxe4 7.dxe4 0-0 8.ge2 c5
Botvinnik fans should know that they can use
the plan of this game to treat almost all these
Dutch positions where Black tries to post a
knight on d4, for instance,
[ 8...e5 9.0-0 c5!? ( 9...e6!? is covered in
Kharlov, A-Minasian,A/Batumi GEO 2002.)
10.h3 e6 11.b3 c6 as in my game
against Santo Roman,M/France N1 2002, as
now I could play 12.f4 and if d4 13.f5! ]
9.h3
[ 9.0-0 c6 10.f4 e6 11.b3 d7
is an alternative method of treating this
position, Smejkal,J-Kindermann,S/ Germany
1998. ]
9...c6 10.0-0 e5 11.f4!? A strong new idea,
Black is loathe to capture on f4 as it weakens
h i s b a s e o n d 4 a n d t h e re f o r e le a ve s d 6
exposed.
[ 11.g5 i s we a k e r , e6 12.d5 d7
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
13.h2 f7 ( 13...d4 14.xd4 cxd4
wa s n o t h i n g s p e c i a l f o r W h i t e e i t h e r ,
Psakhis,L-Grinshpun,E/Israel 1999.) 14.d2
af8 Danailov, S-Avshalumov,A/Cannes
1990. ]
11...d4 Perfectly logical, this is the whole
idea behind Black's plan, nevertheless he
should prefer
[ 11...exf4!? perhaps,
A) 12.gxf4!? is preferred by Damljanovic,
who continues h5 13.e3 ( 13.d5+!?
h8 14.b5 has its points) 13...d4!
14.xd4 cxd4 15.xd4 xd4+ 16.xd4
xf4 unclear.;
B) 12.xf4!? e8 ( 12...e5! is best,
13.b5 e6! 14.xd6 h5 15.xb7
b6 is a complete mess) 13.d5+ h8
14.ad1 w i n s a p a w n , e . g . d4?
( 14...b6 i s b e t t e r , b u t 15.b5
certainly favours White) 15.xd4 xd4+
16.xd4! cxd4 17.xd4+ f6 18.e5!
dxe5 19.xf6 exd4 20.xf8+ g7
21.xe8 dxc3 22.bxc3 and Black can
resign. ]
12.f5! gxf5 Positionally, acceptance of the
pawn seems f orced, otherwise W hite will
continue with g4, reinforcing his kingside
phalanx. However,
[ 12...d5!? is also possible, so that White
c a n n o t u s e t h e d 5 - s qu a r e f o r a p i e c e ,
13.fxg6 dxc4 14.gxh7+ xh7 is not too
clear, although I would prefer White after
15.g4 followed by Ng3 and either Nf5 or g5,
Qh5. ]
13.exf5 xf5
[ 13...xf5 14.xd4 cxd4 15.xf5 dxc3
16.bxc3 favours White because of his
bishop pair and light-squared control. ]
14.d3! What has White achieved with his
p a wn s a c ? B a sica lly h e h a s o p e n e d t h e
h1-a8 diagonal for his g2-bishop, and freed
the e4 and d5 squares for his knights. d4
15.g5 This pin further accentuates White's
control over the central light squares, which
are no longer defended by the knight, in effect.
e6? This gets Black into real problems, he
should unpin the knight immediately:
[ 15...e8 when 16.xd4 exd4 ( 16...cxd4
17.b5 d8 18.a3 regains the pawn with
advantage.) 17.ae1 h5 18.xf6 xf6
( 18...xf6 19.g4 xf1+ 20.xf1 xg4
(forced) 21.hxg4 xg4 22.d5 is good for
White ) 19.d5 e5 20.c7 ( 20.e7+!?
g7 21.xf8 xf8 22.xc8 xc8 23.g4
g6 24.e4 g5 is equal ) 20...b8
21.d5+ g7 22.xf8 xf8 23.f1+ e7
24.g4 is dangerous for Black. ]
16.e4 Now the pressure on the f6-knight
forces the black queen to stay where she is,
while White can bring another piece to bear.
c8 17.2c3 c7 18.h4? Played to
protect the bishop, but
[ 18.xf6+ xf6 19.xf6! xf6 20.e4
was rat he r go od , winn in g an e xc ha nge
immediately. ]
18...f5 19.d5 cf7 20.xf5? To unpin
the e4-knight, and win two pieces for a rook,
but there is a problem. xf5 21.exf6+ xf6
22.xf5 xh4 23.g4+ g7?
[ 23...g5! 24.h4 g7 25.hxg5 xg5
26.e6+ ( 26.xg5 xg5 27.f1 xf1+
28.xf1 xg3 is a better bet, although
Black has all the chances.) 26...h8
27.xd6
A) 27...f2!? is also quite good: 28.b8+
( 28.xf2?? xg3+ 29.e2 xg2+
f o r c e s m a t e) 28...g8 and now White
must give his queen by 29.xg8+ xg8
30.xf2 d2+ 31.f1 xb2 which is
unclear;
B) 27...f5! and White has difficulty
defending against the g-file pressure. ]
24.xh4 xh4 25.gxh4 Now White has two
extra pawns when compared with the similar
ending considered in the last note, and this
added to his light-squared control makes all
the difference. f3 26.f1 xf1+
[ 26...xh3? 27.e7+ xe7 28.xh3 ]
27.xf1 f8 28.e3 f7+ 29.e2 b6
30.e4 e7 31.h5 d7 32.h6 Fixing the h7-
pawn on a light square, Black's extra central
pawns have no future. d8 33.b3 d7
34.h4 d8 35.f5
[ 35.d5 followed by h5 and Bg6! was a
neater winning method. ]
35...f6 36.h5 b5! 37.f3
[ 37.cxb5? d5 would turn the tables. ]
37...bxc4 38.bxc4 d5 Desperation, but after
[ 38...d7 White would win by advancing his
king. ]
39.cxd5 a6 40.e3 xh6 41.g4 a6
42.xh7 xa2 43.c2 a1 44.h6 h1
315
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

45.h7 a5 46.g2 One of many winning 330 A10

moves, Black will have to concede his rook for Edouard,Romain 2658
the h-pawn. Rapport,Richard 2691
1-0 Gibraltar Masters 12th (5) 01.02.2014
[Fier, Alexandr]

329 A10 They often say that the Dutch is not so good
Dezelak,Brane 2160 against 1.Nf3 because White can play d3 and
Galeev,Shamil 2275 e4 in some variations. Here Black goes for an
Bled op-B (9) 1996 exotic Stonewall setup with a knight on c6.
[Nigel Davies] 1.f3 e6 2.c4 f5 3.g3 f6 4.g2 e7
5.0-0 0-0 6.d3
1.c4 d5!? Black probably took a certain [ 6.d4 would transpose to normal Dutch
delight in playing this unsettling move. lines. ]
[ A more 'standard' way of getting into this 6...d5 The position after 6.d3 d5 is a bit funny.
gambit would have been 1...c6 2.e4 d5 Apparently nobody cares about the e5-square
3.cxd5 f6 . ] for the moment.
2.cxd5 f6 3.e4 c6 4.dxc6 Refuting the [ 6...d6 is the normal setup in this position,
gambit by accepting? and here W hite can use the fact that the
[ It certainly doesn't turn out this way in the pawn is not on d4 7.c3 e8 8.e4!?
pres ent enc ount er, wit hin a f ew m ove s and Black cannot attack so easily after this
White was probably wishing he had played move fxe4 9.dxe4 e5 10.c5 and White's
4.c3 cxd5 5.e5 . ] chances are slightly preferable, but the
4...xc6 5.c3 e5 6.b5 c5 7.ge2 position is full of life Edouard, R (2657)-
[ 7.f3 looks like a more natural move as in Narciso Dublan, M (2521)/Barcelona Casino
Claesen, P (2392)-Hovhanisian, M (2294)/ 18th 2013. ]
Westerlo 2004. ] 7.c2 This is one of the many ways to handle
7...0-0 this position. White makes a useful move and
[ Black could already play 7...g4 when awaits developments.
8.d4 ( 8.0-0? h4! ) 8...exd4 9.d5 d3 [ 7.c3 is more direct and aims to enter into
10.xd3 xf2+ 11.f1 0-0 is very good for some kind of reversed Benoni d4 8.b5 c5
Black. ] 9.e3 c6 10.exd4 cxd4 at first sight it
8.xc6 looks like W hite is better because of the
[ 8.0-0 would have been better. ] strange pawn on f5, compared to the normal
8...bxc6 9.0-0 d3 Benoni. However, W hite's knight is only
[ 9...a6 was also very good it's difficult to stable on b5 when Black's pawn is already
see how White can develop. ] on a5. 11.e1 a6 12.a3 d6
10.g3 g4 11.a4 h5 12.h4?? and the position remains thematic, both
A horrible blunder under pressure. sides playing normal Benoni plans, Dobrov,
[ W hite should play 12.e1 , which is far V (2537) -Pelletier, Y (2604)/Nancy Meurthe
from pleasant but not necessarily lost. ] KO 11th rapid 2013 (2.2). ]
12...xg3 13.d4 xd4 14.g5 [ 7.bd2 is a bit strange, but was also
[ 14.xd4 exd4 15.fxg3 dxc3 leaves White played before c6 8.cxd5 exd5 9.b3
a piece down. ] and W hite wants to bring the knight to c5
14...f3 after some moves a5 10.a4 and against
0-1 10...b6 W hite has good play on the c-file
and also a good square for the knight on d4,
Ibragimov, I (2546)-Ponfilenok, V (2392)/
Nezhmetdinov Memorial 34th 2012. ]
7...c6 To me this looks like a strange move,
even though it doesn't contravene any chess

316
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
rules. W ith the pawn on d3 instead of d4,
Black can play without ...c5 ideas, and this
square is not in the way of the c8-bishop.
Also the knight controls any queenside
expansion at the moment.
[ 7...c6 would be normal and White still has
many ways to continue. One of them is
p l a y i n g w i t h 8.c3 again trying to go for
some Benoni-style position d4 9.a4
but the knight is also not ideally placed here
c5 10.e3 c6 11.exd4 xd4 12.xd4
cxd4 with chances for both sides ]
8.a3 Forcing Black to make a choice: either he
allows queenside expansion when the knight
will soon have to leave c6, or he plays ...a5
and gives White's knight a good square on b5.
Black chooses the second option.
[ 8.cxd5 was also played and later White
changed the position by playing 10.d4 exd5
9.c3 h8 10.d4 e4 11.f4 g5!?
n o t l o s i n g a n y t i m e 12.e5+ xe5
13.xe5 c6 and the position was balanced
in Dudukin, I (2401)-Ponfilenok, V (2445)/
Nabereznye Chelny op 8th 2010. ]
8...a5 9.cxd5 Now that White can create
pressure on the c-file and c7, it makes more
sense to exchange the pawns. exd5 10.c3
h8 11.b5 d7 12.f4 c8
For a computer the position is better for White,
but wit hout a clear plan th e posit ion ca n
become dangerous really fast. During the
game Edouard was unable to find the best
continuation and soon got into trouble.
13.ab1?! The b2-b4 advance is not that
dangerous, and the whole idea is slow. On
the other hand Black has a clear plan.
[ 13.ac1 is also not much to the point and
after h5 14.d2 f4 Black is fighting ]
[ 13.b3! this looks like the best move to me.
Usually it's not advisable to move the queen
one more time and go away from the c-file,
but with the bishop on d7 and the rook on c8,
the pawns on d5 and b7 are targets h5
it's hard to suggest another plan 14.d2
now Black needs to do something about d5,
b e f o r e h e c a n p l a y . . . f 4 ( 14.xd5
is ok, but Black will have some
compensation xf4 15.gxf4 f6 16.d4
g6 17.c3 e8 and the position is not so
clear ) 14...e8 15.bd4 and both the b7
pawn and the fork on e6 are threatened, so
White has an edge ]
13...h5 14.d2 f4 Now the bishop on d7
ha s a mu ch be tt er squ a re t o go t o . 15.b4
Following with his plan, finally it went nowhere.
axb4 16.axb4 fxg3 17.hxg3 g4
White is still not in trouble, and even not worse,
but compared to some moves ago I think
Black's position improved more than White's.
18.c3
[ 18.h2 was exotic, and it's hard to believe
that it is going to work d7 19.h1 a8
20.g1 but at least the king is safe and the
rook is active ]
18...d7 19.bd4 xd4 20.xd4 d6
[ 20...h3 was a good idea. Black didn't
want to let White's knight get to e5, but it's
not so dangerous 21.e5 e6 22.h2
( 22.c3 f6 23.e4 dxe4 24.xh3 xh3
25.dxe4 cd8 is another interesting
position ) 22...xg2 23.xg2 f6 ( 23...f5
will probably lead to a draw 24.f4 h4!?
25.gxh4 xe5 26.xe5 g4+
with a perpetual) 24.f4 g5! and both kings
are in danger, but the position is slightly
easier to play for Black ]
21.c5? More important things are happening,
there was no time for this. Now Black has a
st ro ng init iat ive a n d is b a sica lly a lre a d y
winning!
[ 21.e5 was better and makes a lot of
sense xe5 22.xe5 h3 23.f3!?
creating some space for the defence f5
24.b2 fe8 25.e4 and White will change
some pieces, the pawn on g3 is not hanging
since the rook is still on c8 xe5 26.xe5
xe5 27.xh3 f8 28.h2 and White is
ok ]
21...h3 22.xd6 cxd6 23.d1
[ 23.d2 f6 would be more or less similar
to the game. Note that W hite's rooks are
doing nothing and ...Nf4 is still a big threat ]
23...f6 The key move. White has no good
way to avoid ...Nf4 24.h2
[ 24.h4 also doesn't help xg2 25.xg2
f4+ 26.g1 g4 27.e3 e2+ 28.g2
cf8 with a winning attack ]
24...xg2 25.xg2 f4+! 26.gxf4 h6
White has no way to defend the knight and
stop the mate threats. 27.f5 xf5 28.f4
g6+ 29.f2 xh2+ 30.e1 g3+ 31.d2
d4 32.e1 e3+ 33.d1 e8 34.b2 a8
317
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
35.b1 a2 36.c1 e8
0-1
331 A10
Franciskovic,Borka 2193
Sargac,Rajna 2208
Mediterranean Flower WGM (5) 09.03.2005
[John Watson]
1.c4 b6 This is the right move order if one
wants to prevent or at least discourage g3.
More specifically, there are many players who
open with 1.c4 and play g3/Bg2/Nc3/e4/0-0
against nearly every setup. That is not
possible now. 2.f3
[ Or 2.g3 b7 3.f3 ]
2...b7 3.g3 xf3! The point. Black cripples
White's pawn structure in order to achieve an
unbalanced game. In return White gets the
two bishops. 4.exf3 e6!?
[ Daniel King's English Defence book deals
only with 4...c5, which is by far Black's most
popular move. Generally there follows 4...c5
5.d4 cxd4 ( 5...c6!? 6.d5 d4 7.e3
f5 8.d2 g6! of Knott-A Summerscale,
Millfield 2000, as examined by Tony) 6.xd4
c6 and depending upon White's reply
Black has various plans. Among others he
can build up by ...e6, ...Nge7, and/or ...g6 or
he can play ...e6 and ..Bb4, with ...Rc8
and perhaps ...Na5. The ...e6 idea may be
underrated, however. ]
5.g2
[ A wonderful miniature that used to be
published from time to time went 5.d4 d5
6.c3 dxc4!? 7.xc4 c6 8.d5! exd5
9.xd5 e7 10.f6+!? ( 10.xe7 xd1+
11.xd1 xe7 12.e1 d7 13.f4 )
10...gxf6 11.xf7+ xf7 12.xd8 d5
and White's queen is trapped! With ...Bb4+
threatened, the game (Bilek-Schuessler,
Helsinki 1978) was drawn on the spot in
view of 13.f1 g7 14.d6 f8 15.d8
g7= ]
5...c6 6.0-0
[ 6.d4 d5 7.0-0 f6 transposes into a
position that has been reached several
times. White may have some advantage, but
it's hard to break through. ]
6...e7!? 7.d4 d5 8.e2
[ 8.cxd5 cxd5 9.c3 f6 is about equal. ]
8...f6 9.f4 e7
[ 9...xd4 10.d1 is very risky. ]
10.d1 0-0 11.c3 d7
[ 11...f5! would force a concession from
W h i t e , e . g . , 12.e5?! ( 12.e3 a5!?
13.h3 d6 14.b3 a6 ) 12...d7 13.f4
e7! ]
12.e5 g6!?
[ Or 12...dxc4 13.f4 c8 14.xc4 d5 ]
13.xf6?
[ White might try 13.f4 e7 14.h4 ]
13...xf6 14.f4 d7 15.f3 ac8
[ A go o d lin e is 15...e7 16.b3 ac8
17.ac1 dxc4 18.bxc4 fd8 ]
16.f5 e7 17.fxe6 fxe6 18.e2 f5
[ 18...dxc4!? 19.xc4 fd5 deserves a
look. All these positions look awkward for
White. ]
19.h3 ce8 20.d2 d6
[ Or 20...dxc4 21.xc4 d6 22.e2 d5 ]
21.cxd5 cxd5 22.c2 f5
[ 22...fe4!? 23.xe4 xe4 24.f4 g5
is very unclear. ]
23.d1 c8 24.d3 e8! Heading for d6.
25.e2 xc2 26.xc2 ed6 27.f4
e4!?
[ 27...g5! 28.h5 f7 29.e2 e4
is Black's best chance to retain the
advantage, but White can respond 30.g2!
with equal chances. ]
28.g2 fd6 29.f3 One prefers White
slightly now. It's not much, and the game is
e ve n l y m a t c h e d a f t e r a f e w m o ve s . g5
30.h4 gf7 31.h3 d8 32.e2 f5
33.xf5 xf5 34.b3 f6 35.g2 c6
As so often in these positions, the
weaknesses on d4 and e6 are of roughly the
same importance. 36.b5 d6 37.a6 f8
38.e2 e8 39.e3 b4 40.a4 c6
41.d2 e7 42.e1 c6 43.d1 a5
44.e3 a3 45.xd5 xb3 46.xb3
xb3 47.c3 d8 48.d5 exd5 49.xd5
xd5 50.xd5 c5 51.c3 f7 52.f2
e6 53.e3 e5 54.g4 g6 55.f4+ e6
56.f3 h5 57.g3 f6 58.d5+ e6
59.c3 f6 60.d5+ e6 A well-played
game.
½-½
318
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

332 A10 17.0-0 0-0 18.d1 xf3?! Black is also in

Fridman,Daniel 2577 serious trouble after
Mainka,Gregor 2319 [ 18...c5 19.e3 c2 20.d7 although
13th Summer Open (7) 23.08.2002 a6! 21.xc2 xc2 22.d3 xb2 23.xe7
[Tony Kosten] b5 might offer some chances. ]
19.d3! e2 20.d7 White attacks e7, c6
1.f3 b6 2.c4 b7 3.c3 We have already and the queen on e2! e1+ 21.g2 fc8?
considered the similar line This poor move allows a back-rank trick. On
[ 3.g3 xf3 4.exf3 c5 in Knott,S- [ 21...c5 22.xe7 d5 23.xa7!?
Summerscale,A/Millfield ENG 2000. ] the white bishops are certainly far superior
3...e6 4.g3 Only now. The fact that White has to the rook, but Black can continue a while:
played Nc3, and Black ...e6 makes this more d1 24.e3 h1+ 25.h3 d5
interesting for White than in the previous note. w i t h a f e w t h r e a t s , a l t h o u g h 26.e2!
xf3!? The same idea, conceding a bishop to seems to put paid to most of them. ]
gain more control over d4. 22.xc6
[ 4...f6 5.g2 would transpose into one of [ 22.xc6 xc6 23.xc6 xc6 24.d8# ]
the Hedgehog lines on c5 see [A30]. ] 1-0
[ 4...g5!? is a wild idea of Tony Miles. ]
5.exf3 c5 6.d4 Obviously forced, as Black
c a n ' t a f f o r d t o wa i t f o r . . . Nc 6 , a n d . . . g 6 333 A10
followed by ...Bg7, when Black lords it over d4. From-like Gambit 1.c4 f5 2.e
cxd4 N,Archana
[ 6...c6?! is worse here, 7.d5 d4 8.e3 [John Watson]
f5 9.h3! gh6 10.a4 and White is
better, as he can break through the d-file by Ryan from California asks a question that I
a timely dxe6, which is why Black's ...e6 think many readers will be interested in, so
move changes so much, Davies, N-Plaskett, I've put it in this main section instead of the
J/WFW1991 1991. ] mailbag: Do you know of any chess literature
7.xd4 c6 8.d1 c8 9.f4!? at all that discusses a reversed From's Gambit
A curious, and apparently anti-positional out of the English (1 c4 f5 2 e4 fxe4 3 d3 exd3
no ve lty, b ut it co n t ain s va rio us p o ssib le 4 Bxd3 Nf6 5 g4, followed by g5 and Qc2)? Is
threats on the dark squares. this sound? Maybe I'm blind, but I've looked in
[ 9.f4 appears more logical, but after f6 5 E n g li s h b o o k s & M C O , B C O , e t c . a n d
10.a3 a5 11.a4 c7 White had real cannot find anything on it. I've played it vs
problems defending his c-pawn, Gelashvili,T- people at my level with lots of success, but I
David, A/Nagykanizsa 1993. ] know that this means nothing at all regarding
9...b4 10.c1 ge7 So far Black's moves its theoretical soundness. jw: A great question.
appear very sensible. 11.a3 White breaks the This is a fun idea and a fairly natural one
pin, and obliges Black to give another bishop. (From's Gambit Reversed with c4 in) , but I
xc3+ 12.xc3 d5 The simplest, although see a couple of problems here, mostly due to
[ 12...0-0!? 13.d6 e8 is also possible, as t h e f a c t t h a t c 4 s e e m s t o h u r t W h i t e i n
Black threatens ...Nf5. ] comparison with a Bird's Opening. First, on a
13.cxd5 xd5 This is stronger than less important level, 1. c4 f5 2.e4 e5!? looks
[ 13...xd5?! when you have to prefer the playable since a bishop can't get to c4. I've
white bishops after 14.a6 xd1+ 15.xd1 looked at the normal solutions to the King's
d8+ 16.c1 0-0 although Black should be Gambit and see nothing too attractive - Black
able to make good use of the d5-square. ] even has the advantage in most lines. Best
14.xc6! Forced, but not bad. xc6 15.b5 looks 3.exf5 [see my analysis in the game].
e7 16.a4 d5?! Black's first slip-up, The main problem I see is 2...fxe4 3.d3 exd3
[ 16...d7 17.0-0 0-0 18.d1 b7 4.Bxd3 Nf6 5.g4 d5! [again, see my analysis
is equal. ] below]. You might look into 5.Nc3. 1.c4 f5

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
2.e4 fxe4
[ 2...e5 3.exf5 ( 3.f3 fxe4; 3.d4!? exd4
4.e5 c6 5.f3 b4+; 3.c3 f6 4.exf5;
3.h5+ g6 4.e2 fxe4 )
A) 3...c5 is also interesting, with a
Bishop's Gambit reversed: 4.h5+ ( 4.d4
xd4 5.f3 c6 ) 4...f8 5.c3 ( 5.f3
f6 6.h4 d5 7.cxd5 xf5 ) 5...f6
6.h4 d6 7.g4 c6 8.g5 g8;
B) 3...f6
B1) 4.f3 c5 ( 4...c6 5.c3 c5 )
5.xe5 d6 6.d4 b4+ 7.d2 xd2+
8.xd2 dxe5 9.dxe5 0-0 10.exf6
xf6;
B2) 4.g4 c5 5.g5 and now 5...Ne4 6.
Qh5+ Kf8 is a mess (at least White has
many options), while 0-0! 6.gxf6 xf6
7.f3 d6 is a messy Muzio. c4 helps
make ...d5 less good (at least without ...
c6) but also weakens d4 in the ..d6/...
Nc6-d4 and/or ... Bxf 5 lines. I'd sa y
Bla c k h a s ga in e d m o re t h an W h it e ,
enough that I'd rather be Black. Maybe
one of the odd lines (3.Qh5+) is worth
looking into? ]
3.d3 The main problem, probably more
serious than 2...e5, is exd3!
[ 3...f6 4.g4! ( 4.dxe4 e5 ) 4...d5 5.g5
g4 6.dxe4 is unclear ]
4.xd3 f6 5.g4?
[ 5.c3!? is probably the best direction to
look in. e5 6.f3 c5 ( 6...c6 7.g5!? )
7.0-0 d6 ( 7...0-0 ) 8.g5 0-0 9.b1! h6
10.b4 b6 11.h4?! g5 12.g3 a5 ]
5...d5! I just can't seem to get around this one,
where the extra move c4 definitely looks a
negative: 6.g5 There are other tries, but g4 is
attacked and ..dxc4 is a problem.
[ 6.cxd5 xg4-+ ( 6...xd5-+ )]
[ 6.c2 xg4 ( 6...dxc4 )]
[ 6.d2 xg4 ]
[ 6.h3 e5 ]
6...dxc4! 7.gxf6
[ 7.a4+ b5 8.xb5+ c6 9.xc4 a6 ]
[ 7.xc4 xd1+ 8.xd1 e4 ]
7...xd3 seems way too strong: 8.h5+
[ 8.fxg7 xd1+ ( 8...xg7 9.h5+ g6 )
9.xd1 xg7-+ ]
[ 8.xd3 cxd3-+ ]
8...g6 9.e5 c6 10.f7+ xf7 11.xh8
g7 12.xh7 g4 and White should resign.
334 A10
Gofshtein,Leonid D 2509
Williams,Simon Kim 2473
Hastings Masters 2006/07 (6) 21.02.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.c4 f5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 e6 4.b3 e7
5.b2 0-0 6.h3!? This position is almost
unknown, neither the ECO nor MegaBase
p ro vid e m u c h a ss is t a n ce in t h is m a t t e r ,
alth o ugh t he re a re so me tra nspo s it ion a l
possibilities from this English set-up to a
regular Classical Dutch. However. W hite's
move order prevents a number of lines for
B la c k, wh ile a ll o win g W h it e t o g o in t o a
pleasant line of the Dutch when he so desires.
It should also be added that W hite is also
doing quite well after the normal 6 Nf3
followed by 7 0-0 and 8 d3. d6 7.d4 e8
8.f4 d8 9.d3!?
[ With 9.0-0 White can allow a transposition
into a line that is mentioned in the ECO
u n d e r c o d e A 9 1 ( C l a s s i c a l D u t c h ) : e5
10.dxe5 dxe5 11.d5 Ulibin-Poluljahov,
Budapest 1992. ]
9...bd7 10.d2 e5 11.e3 c6 12.c2 a5
[ I can picture that many less experienced
players will be worried about 12...e4 13.f4
g5 bu t W h it e is b e t t e r a f t e r: 14.e2
and 15 h4. ]
13.a3 f7 14.dxe5 dxe5 15.c5 c7
[ Or 15...e4 16.f4 g5 17.e2 e7
18.d4 and thanks to Black's numerous
structural weaknesses, White is comfortably
better. ]
16.0-0 g5 17.f4! This effective counterpunch
ends Black's hope of a kingside offensive
while leaving Black with an open king (the
a1-h8 diagonal and the soon to be opened g-
file) and lacking development. gxf4 18.gxf4
e4 19.f2 d5 20.h1 h6?! Black wants
the king to be able to crawl to h7 in case the
threats against it become too severe. However,
20...N7f6!? is probably better.
[ 20...xe3?? is of course taboo due to
21.c3 ]
21.g1 f8
[ U n f o r t u n a t e l y f o r B l a c k , 21...h7?!
doesn't work on account of 22.xe4 xe3
23.c3 f6 24.xe3 xe4 25.fxe4 fxe4
26.d4 f8 27.xe4 and Black is toast ]
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

22.f1 e7 335 A10

[ Before we move on, please note that Hertneck,Gerald 2571
22...xe3? 23.c3 d5? ( 23...g4 King,Daniel J 2514
24.xg4 fxg4 25.e1 f6 26.xe4 Bundesliga 1999-2000 (12) 12.03.2000
is also an unqualified disaster for Black runs [Tony Kosten]
into ) 24.g8+! ]
23.d4 h4 24.c4 7f6 25.g3 xf4?! 1.c4 b6 2.g3 b7 3.f3 xf3 4.exf3 c5
This is a rather desperate measure to save The point of Black's play, he tries to establish
the queen (W hite threatened 26 Rh3) and control of d4, which can no longer be
generate some counterplay in an otherwise controlled by either the e-pawn, which has
extremely difficult position. moved to the f-file, or the f3-knight, which has
[ 25...g4 is the normal move, but after disappeared from the board. 5.b3!?
26.xg4 fxg4 27.e5 Black has a [ W hite can also play the immediate 5.d4
positionally completely lost position without although Black is fine after cxd4 6.xd4
the shadow of counterplay. ] c6 ]
26.exf4 xf4 27.e5! After this practical 5...c6 6.g2 e6 7.f4 ge7 8.0-0 f5
move, Black's flimsy counterplay is 9.b2 e7 10.a3 f6 Black has
completely diffused. xg3 established complete control of d4. 11.c3
[ 27...g4 28.xg4 xg3 29.xg3 xg4 0-0 12.c2 g6
30.d6+ ] [ A perfectly logical novelty, and superior to
28.xg3 g5 29.h3?! 12...c8 13.e1 g6 14.c1 although play
[ 29.d6+ is even better: g7 30.b6 a7 is equal, Hausner,I-Kalinitschew,S/Germany
31.c4 , and Black can resign. The rest of 1998. ]
the game looks like it is played in heavy 13.e3 fd4 14.a3 a5 15.b1 g7!?
time trouble with numerous mistakes on [ Black is not worried about his rook on the
both sides. ] g2-bishop's diagonal, but 15...b8 is safer. ]
29...g7 30.d6+?! 16.b4 Possible because of the pin along the
[T h e i m m e d i a t e 30.e5!? h1-a8 diagonal. axb4 17.axb4 cxb4
is more accurate. ] [ 17...a2!? 18.b5 e7 is worth
30...g8 31.e5 f8?! consideration. ]
[ 31...e7 is a better chance, e.g. 32.c3 18.xd4 xd4!?
xe5 33.xe5 d5 and Black is still [ The most exciting, although there is nothing
playing, although White should win without wrong with 18...xd4 19.c2 f6 20.xb4
too many headaches. ] fc8 ]
32.d6?! 19.c2
[ 32.b6!?+- ] [ It is probably sensible to refrain from
32...e7 33.d4 d5 34.c4 e6 35.xd5 19.xa8 when Black gains a powerful
xd5 36.f4 h7 37.g1 d8 38.h3 position for the exchange after xa8 20.f3
and with this little move, Black's tricks and b3 ]
hopes are over, and with 39 Nh5 looming, 19...a5 20.xb4 c7 21.xd4 xd4
Black decided to call it a day. 22.b3 The position seems drawish, because
1-0 of the opposite-colour bishops, but the black
bishop is rather the more useful of the two,
and Black risks nothing by playing on. d6
23.a4 c5 24.a2 d4 Targeting f2, and
tying a white piece to its defence. 25.c2 a1
Threatening mate by ...Qxf2+. 26.e3 xf1+
27.xf1 a1 Black does not want to allow the
exchange of queens. 28.c3 White insists.
xc3 29.xc3 a8 30.c2 f8 31.g2
a3 32.e2 White is quite passive, but his

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

position seems sufficiently solid. e7 33.h4 De f e n ce . W hite trie s a n u nu su a l bu t n o t

h5 34.f3 d4 35.g4?! unheard of solution. 4.g3
[ A questionable decision, White manages to [ 4.ge2 f6 5.d3 ( 5.g3 c5 is easy to
exchange a couple of pawns like this but play. ) 5...d5!? ( 5...c5 is 'normal') 6.cxd5
inflicts chronic weaknesses on his kingside exd5 7.e5 fd7 8.d4 c5 9.f4 c6!
s t r u c t u r e . 35.e4 d6 36.f1 c510.dxc5 ( 10.xd5 cxd4 ) 10...xc5
37.e2 keeps everything intact. ] 11.xd5 0-0 and Black will regain his pawn
35...hxg4 36.xg4 c5 37.h5 f5 38.e2 with a clear advantage. ]
gxh5 39.xh5 d3 Now Black will win the f4- 4...f5 5.g2 f6 6.f3 I believe that this was
pawn by force. 40.e2 d4 41.f3 suggested by Speelman. White unpins the e-
[ 41.f3 d6 ] pawn and threatens e5 but also gives Black
41...xf4 42.c1 d4 43.d3 d6 44.h1 time to get established in the centre. The
e5 45.g3 d6 The rook finds its way alternatives haven't been so great, for
back into the game. 46.h4 e3 47.f1 f4+ example,
48.g4 d4 Black has managed to retain [ 6.d3 fxe4 ( 6...b4 7.ge2 fxe4 8.0-0
many of his plusses, as well as the extra 0-0 9.dxe4 c6 10.h3 e5!?
pawn. 49.h2 c3 50.a2 c6 51.a7 Smejkal-Kavalek, Rapids 1997) 7.ge2
c8!? c6! 8.dxe4 e5 9.b3 c5 10.h3 e7
[ Black wants to win either the f, or d-pawns 11.f4 f7 and Black was already better in
w i t h a t a c t i c a l o p e r a t i o n , b u t 51...d5
Heinbuch-Kengis, Bonn 1995. ]
was quite acceptable. ] [ 6.c2 a6!? 7.ge2?! b4 8.b1 fxe4
52.xd7 g8+ 53.h4 g3 54.h3 e5 9.xe4 xe4 10.xe4 d5 ( or 10...xe4
55.g4 d4 The point of Black's play, the 11.xe4 d5 12.xe6+ e7 ) 11.cxd5
bishop can no longer defend both pawns. xe4 12.xe4 xd5 13.xd5 exd5
56.g5 xd3 57.c7 g1 Black will turn his 14.d1 d3 and Black was clearly better,
attention to the c4-pawn. 58.f5?! Greenis-J Watson, Las Vegas 2004 ]
[ This loses another pawn, but even after 6...fxe4
58.c8 e4! ( 58...c1 59.e6 allows more [ 6...c6 stopping e5 is worth considering in
re s is t a n c e) 59.xf4 e3 60.f5+ c3 view of 7.ge2?! ( 7.exf5 d4!?; 7.d4!
61.e8 xc4 the two passed pawns will fxe4 8.fxe4 e5 9.d5 d4 10.f3
decide. ] looks about equal ) 7...fxe4 8.fxe4 e5 ]
58...c1 59.e6 xc4 Black is happy to 7.fxe4 b4!?
allow the exchange of rooks now, as his b- [ Here too the change of pawn structure by
pawn will cost White a piece in the resulting 7...e5 comes into consideration, e.g., 8.f3
opposite-colour bishop ending. 60.f5+ c3 c6 9.d5 c5 etc. ]
61.b7 d2 62.d5 c3 8.ge2 0-0 9.0-0 a6!?
0-1 [ Or 9...e5 ]
10.h3 c5!?
[ Again possible is 10...e5 11.a3 c5+
336 A10 . This idea obviously d oesn't a ppeal t o
Janz,Frerik 2376 Black. ]
Boyle,Bernard 11.d3 e5 12.a3 xc3 13.xc3 e6
ch-EU Cork IRL (1) 22.03.2005 [ 13...a5!? ]
[John Watson] 14.e3 d6 15.b4 c5 Without this move
Black has nothing to show for the bishops.
The slow variations of the English Defence Now at least he has control of d4 and his
ca n b e c la s s if ie d in o u r Fla n k O p e n in gs pawns are on the right colour. 16.e2 e7
section. In lower-level practice, a 'Botvinnik 17.d2 f7 18.f5 af8 These moves are a
setup" with g3, Bg2, e3, d3, Nge2 is popular. bit strange but the game seems balanced
However, Black has several effective answers. overall. 19.a4 c8 20.af1 e8 21.d1
1.c4 b6 2.c3 b7 3.e4 e6 The English [ 21.xe8 xe8 22.b5 is the other idea only

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

White can be better. ] to keep his c-pawn well-covered. Similar

21...d8 22.5f2 e6 play was seen after 8.a4 bc6 9.d3 a5
[ 22...e6 ] 10.e4 in Pigusov,E-Ehlvest,J/Novosibirsk
23.g4 d7 24.g3 c6 25.f5 h8 1993. ]
26.a4 g8 27.g5 b8? 8...d6 9.e4 d7 10.e1?! e5 Black has
[ 27...c7 28.b5 d4!? ] waited for White to move his rook to the e-file
28.xd7! xd7 29.e7? before playing this, so that White cannot play
[ 29.b5! Black is tied up and passive f4 too easily. 11.a4 a5 Black his happy with a
whereas White can expand upon either side static structure, without pawn mobility, as he
of the board. ] wishes to inhibit the white bishop pair. 12.d4!?
29...xf2 30.xf2 cxb4? [ A normal plan in such a position would be
[ 30...xe7! 31.f8+ g8 32.xb8 cxb4 12.d2 i n t e n d i n g N f 1 - e 3 - d 5 , b u t f5
33.axb4 c6 and ...Nxb4. ] is an effective response. ]
31.xg8 xg8 32.axb4 c6 33.b2 12...g6 13.a3 The bishop is normally
d4!? considered to be misplaced on a3 in such
[ 33...b5! 34.cxb5 d4 ] positions, as it is 'hitting on granite'. e8
34.e3 c6 35.f2 f7 36.e2 e8 14.c2 f6 15.d2 White refrains from d5,
37.d2 f7 38.c3 d7 39.a2 c8 which hands the c5-square to Black, and tries
40.g5 g6 41.b5 a5 42.f2 xf2 43.xf2 to keep as much central tension as possible.
The bishops should eventually get out and d7 16.f3 a6 This is the downside of
create good winning chances. b7 44.f1 W hite's twelfth move, the c4-pawn needs
a6 45.d4 axb5 46.cxb5 exd4+ 47.xd4 piece defence. 17.f1 h6 18.d3 h7!
b3 48.c4! xc4 49.xc4 c5 50.d5 Play is very similar to various Nimzo-Indian
[ Or 50.e5! ] lines with both sides playing on their strengths.
50...c7 51.e5 dxe5 52.xc5 bxc5 19.f1 At last, the knight heads for d5, to try
53.xc5 e4 54.d4 b6 55.xe4 xb5 to induce a weakening ...c6 move from Black,
56.e5 c4 57.f6 d4 58.g7 bu t B la ck is no t go in g t o sta n d st ill, a n d
1-0 initiates counterplay. g5 20.d1?
[ T h i s a l lo ws a wo n d e rf u l t a ct ic , 20.e3
was a better method of defending f3. ]
337 A10 20...exd4
Kasparov,Garry 2838 [ It is understandable that, in a quick game,
Kramnik,Vladimir 2809 Black should miss the powerful move
Botvinnik Mem Rapid Match rapid (4) 8.12.01 20...d5!! as it appears to be doubly en prise,
[Tony Kosten] b u t it le a ve s W h it e i n se r io u s t r o u b l e :
21.exd5 ( 21.cxd5? lo se s a piec e xd3
1.c4 e6 2.c3 b6 It says something for the 22.xd3? o r a q u e e n , h3+ 23.g2
current reputation of the English Defence gf4+ ) 21...exd4 22.xe8+ xe8
when it features in a match between the two 23.cxd4?! e1 24.xe1 xf3+ ]
best players on the planet. 3.f3 b7 4.g3!? 21.cxd4 f5
b4 [ 21...d5! is again possible, with the same
[ 4...xf3!? 5.exf3 c5 resembles the game ideas of the previous note. ]
Hertneck,G-King,D/Godesberg GER 2000, 22.h4?!
which resulted in a nice win for Black. ] [ It was time to return the dark-squared
5.g2 xc3 Kramnik decides to force bishop to the fray, 22.c1 fxe4 23.fxe4
doubled pawns on the queenside, instead. is fine for White. ]
6.bxc3 e7 This is better than playing this 22...fxe4! 23.hxg5?!
piece to f6, as the thrust ...f5 can be useful. [ U n d e r s t a n d a b l y W h i t e a v o i d s 23.fxe4
7.0-0 0-0 8.d3 h3+ 24.g2 f8 25.a2 (the only move)
[ White avoids pushing his d-pawn two ae8 as his king is at risk, but there is no
squares with a Nimzo position, and prefers obvious win for Black. ]

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

23...exd3 24.xd3 f7 Both defending g6, d4. ]

and hitting W hite's Achilles' Heal- the c4- [ 9...c5!? is a similar idea: 10.h3 e6 11.b3
pawn. 25.gxh6!? xc4 26.c3 xf1!? c6 12.g4!? d4 13.g3 d7 14.d5
Black decides to remove the opposite-colour b6 15.e3 with interesting play, Kosten,A-
bishops. 27.xf1 e2 28.f2 ae8 29.af1 Santo Roman,M/France N1 2002. ]
[ 29.hxg7?! allows Black a violent attack: 10.b3 d7 11.f4!? A new idea, that may stop
8e3 30.c6 f4!? 31.gxf4 xg7+ Black from realising his main plan.
32.f1 xf2+ 33.xf2 xd4 34.g1+ [ 11.d5 c5 12.g5 c6 13.d2
f8 ] le d t o a qu ick d ra w in B rica rd , E -S a n t o
29...8e3 Roman,M/Montpellier 1991, whilst ]
[ 29...2e3 30.a1 gxh6 31.c1 [ 11.b2 a6!? ( 11...c5 and ...Nc6 is more
is not so clear either. ] appropriate,) 12.d2 c5 13.ad1 a5
30.c1 xf2 31.xe3 c2 14.c2 ae8 15.b5 Kupreichik,V-Solonar,
[ 31...xf1+ 32.xf1 c4+ 33.e1 S/Wiesbaden 1998, there is not a lot that
is m e s s y, t h e b la ck kin g is a s o p e n a s Black can do, but White can always prepare
White's. ] an f4 break. ]
32.c1?! 11...c6
[ This was the wrong moment to bring the [ 11...c5?! can now be countered by 12.f5!
bishop back, it was time to capture on g7, gxf5 13.exf5 xf5 14.xf5! xf5 15.xb7
32.hxg7 ] g4 16.e4! f2 17.xd6! when the
32...a2 Threatening mate. 33.f2 xf2 complications favour White. ]
34.xf2 xa4 35.e3 d1+? 12.d3!?
[ The queen was well-placed where she [ 12.b2 would avoid Black's next. ]
stood, 35...gxh6 36.e6+ g7 12...d4!? 13.a3!?
should triumph easily, Black has two extra [ A strange move, 13.xd4 exd4 14.b5
pawns. ] is met by h3! 15.xd4 xg2 16.xg2
36.f2 c2+ 37.e1 h2 38.g5! ae8 17.e1 c5 18.c2 c6 regaining
Gaining serious counterplay. h1+ 39.f2 the pawn, but after 19.b2 xe4 20.xg7
h2+ 40.e1 h1+ 41.f2 h2+ Black has no dangerous discovered check
[ Black decides to take the draw, thinking that and White retains a structural plus. g5+??
41...h7 42.hxg7 xg7 is too risky. ] 21.d5+ ]
42.e1 13...c5!? White had hoped to stop this move,
½-½ but Black offers a pawn to free his pieces.
14.fxe5 g4! 15.xd4
[ After 15.exd6 xd6 16.f4 e5
338 A10 the black knights have excellent central
Kharlov,Andrei 2633 squares. ]
Minasian,Ara 2473 15...cxd4 16.d5
3rd IECC Batumi GEO (11) 23.06.2002 [ 16.xd4? allows Black to mount a deadly
[Tony Kosten] attack: xe5 17.d3 g7 18.b2 d4+
19.h1 xh2! and wins ]
1.c4 f5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7 16...xe5 17.d2 The d-pawn is still
5.d3 0-0 6.e4 Taking play from a Dutch u n t o u c h a b l e . g4 18.b2 d3 19.f4
D e f e n c e i n t o a B o t v i n n i k S y s t e m s t y l e White is trying to win the d-pawn, but even if
position. fxe4 7.dxe4 e5 8.ge2 d6 9.0-0 he does Black's activity will be suf f icient
e6!? compensation. b5?!
[ 9...c6 would be more like a true Botvinnik, [ Hardly necessary, 19...c7 was among
although Black has captured on e4 too soon. several moves that kept the d-pawn safe, as
As played Black tries to stop W hite from 20.xd3? xd3 21.xg7 c5+ 22.h1
playing h3 and g4, and then plants his knight f2+ wins the exchange. ]
on d4 by way of first ...c5 and then ...Nc6- 20.xd3 bxc4 21.xe5 dxe5 22.xf8+

324
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
xf8 23.xd7 xd7 24.bxc4 White has
won a pawn, but Black has some play for it.
c8 25.f1 c6 26.e1?! d8 27.c3 f8
28.g2 c5+ 29.h1 d3! Activity!
30.xe5 d2 31.a4 xa4 32.f4 d1
33.xd1 xd1 34.e5 a5 35.d5+ f8
36.g2 a4 The passed a-pawn is by far the
most dangerous pawn on the board. 37.c1
a3 38.f1 g4 39.e1 b4+ 40.f2 c5+
41.e1 e7!?
½-½
339
Knott,Simon JB
Hodgson,Julian M
ch Millfield ENG (7)
[Neil McDonald]
1.c4 b6 2.c3 b7 3.e4 e6 4.f3 b4
It's a battle between the white knights and
black bishops! 5.b3 a6 6.e2 e7 7.0-0
0-0 8.d3 g6! Simon Knott reached this
position three times at the British
Championship. In the first round his opponent
played the inferior
[ 8...d5?! and was in trouble after 9.exd5
exd5 10.d4! xc3 11.bxc3 c5 12.cxd5
cxd4 13.c4 c5 14.d1! as the d pawn
wa s in d e f e n sib le -K n o t t -B a r t o n , B r Ch .
2000. ]
9.a3 c5! 10.c2 Naturally
[ 10.xb4?? a5 wins the queen. ]
10...xc3 11.xc3 a5! As usual in this type
of centre, Black is keen to cement the position
of his knigh t on t he excellen t c5 square .
12.e3 a4 13.d2 Two rounds earlier Knott
had tried
[ 13.d4 but this had turned out
unsuccessfully after f5! 14.f3 f4 15.f2 e5
16.f5 b3 17.ae1 c5! This prevents the
freeing d3-d4, which ensures that White's
light squared bishop is a useless piece.
18.g4 fxg3 19.hxg3 d6 20.d1 d4
21.xd4 cxd4 22.c1 h5! and Black went
on to win in Knott-Ward, Br Ch. 2000. ]
13...f5 The same move as in the Ward extract
a b o ve . N o w K n o t t w a n t s t o a vo i d b e i n g
paralysed again after 14 f3 f4, but his
d e c is io n t o o p e n t h e p o sit io n le a d s t o a
fearsome Hodgson attack. 14.exf5
Attacking g2. 15.f3 xf5 16.d4 f6! 17.f2
a6 18.e4 h6 19.d5 d6 20.dxe6 ae8
21.d3 xe6 The position is now akin to lines
in t h e B u d a p e st wh e re B la ck swin gs h is
queen's rook over to join the queen in a direct
attack on the white king. 22.c1 h5 23.g4
This looks suicidal, though it is
understandable that W hite has become
frustrated at his inability to generate any
counterplay. g6 24.g3 xg3 25.hxg3
[ A slower way to lose was 25.gxh5 e2+
26.h1 xc1 27.axc1 h6 ]
25...h3 26.c2 c5 27.xc5 xg4!
A10 28.xh7+ h8 White resigned. A possible
2381 finish is 29.f2
2640 [ 29.fxg4 h1# ]
07.08.2000 29...xg3+ 30.g2 xf3 31.xg3 xg3+
32.f1 e2+! 33.xe2 f2+ 34.d1 g1#
0-1
340 A10
Knott,Simon JB 2381
Hodgson,Julian M 2640
ch Millfield ENG (7) 07.08.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 b6 2.c3 b7 3.e4 e6 4.f3 b4
5.b3?!
[ I think that this is unnecessary here, 5.d3
is the best move, and is considered in the
other games in this line. ]
5...a6! Both protecting the bishop, and
planning a neat tactic, reminiscent of the 4
Qb3 Nimzo-Indian. 6.e2
[ Avoiding the trap 6.a3?! c5! 7.c2
( and not 7.xb4?? a5 8.b5 c6 )
7...xc3 8.xc3 xe4 9.xg7 f6
with equality. ]
6...e7 7.0-0 0-0 8.d3 g6!?
[ More risky, but also more in line with
Black's game-plan, than 8...d5 which seems
to come close to equalising, 9.exd5 exd5
10.d4 dxc4 11.xc4 xf3 12.xa6 xc3
13.bxc3 c6 14.d3 d7 15.c2?! xg2!
1/2-1/2 Knott,S-W ard,C/ GBR 1999, as
Black forces a perpetual check after
16.xg2 g4+ ]
9.a3
[ Stronger than 9.d2 d6 10.a3 c5!
h4! 11.c2 xc3 12.xc3 f5! 13.exf5 xf5
325
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
and Black's f-file attack is on its way, Serper,
G-Yermolinsky,A/Lucerne 1993. ]
9...c5!
[ This theme should be familiar by now,
9...d6 10.d4 c5 11.d1 b8 12.d5
a ll o ws W h i t e a n ic e sp a ce a d va n t a ge ,
Uhlmann,W -Bagirov,V/ Gladenbach GER
1999. ]
10.c2
[ Once again, 10.xb4?? a5 11.b5 c6
wins the white queen. ]
10...xc3 11.xc3 a5 Necessary to protect
the c5-knight from being driven away with b4.
12.e3 a4 13.d2!
[ A novelty, White improves over his previous
effort from the same event: 13.d4 f5
14.f3?! ( 14.exf5 h4 ) 14...f4! 15.f2 e5
16.f5 b3 17.ae1 c5 18.g4 fxg3
19.hxg3 d6 20.d1 d4 reaching a closed
position that favours the black knights, Knott,
S-Ward,C/Millfield ENG 2000. ]
13...f5 14.exf5 h4 15.f3 xf5 16.d4
[ The point of White's thirteenth move, the d-
pawn is free to stake its claim in the centre,
but 16.f2 might be even better, as d4 can
hardly be stopped. ]
16...f6!?
[ Obviously, because of the respective ELOs,
Black keeps the tension, but, objectively,
16...xe3 17.xe3 a6 may be superior. ]
17.f2 a6 18.e4 Now White has some
advantage, he has two powerful bishops, and
the a6-knight is 'dim'. h6 19.d5?!
[ Simply 19.ae1 looks good. ]
19...d6 20.dxe6 ae8 21.d3 xe6
Black's prospect s have improved, all his
pieces have joined the fray except for the
knight, but this will return via c5, thanks to
White's nineteenth move. 22.c1!?
[ Part of a faulty plan, once again 22.ae1
was indicated. ]
22...h5 23.g4?!
[ Difficult to justify such a weakening move
u n l e s s i t w i n s o u t r i g h t , 23.g5
is more prudent. ]
23...g6 24.g3?
[ This loses quickly, 24.c5! is an important
resource, xc5 ( 24...bxc5 25.g3 xg3
26.c4+ d5 27.gxh5 e2+ 28.h1 xc1
29.hxg6 is similar) 25.xc5 bxc5 26.g3
xg3! 27.gxh5 e2+ 28.h1 xc1
29.c4+ d5 30.hxg6 b3 31.xb3 axb3
offers Black reasonable compensation for
the exchange. ]
24...xg3! Of course. 25.hxg3
[ This time 25.gxh5 fails to e2+ 26.h1
xc1 and the d3-bishop is attacked. ]
25...h3 26.c2 c5! This attacks the d3-
bishop, and thus threatens ...Rh6, which
would otherwise be answered by Qg2.
27.xc5
[ 27.ae1 h6 28.f2 xe4+ 29.xe4
xg4 menaces ...Rh2+, and wins. ]
27...xg4! The point. 28.xh7+
[ 28.fxg4 h1# ]
28...h8
0-1
341 A10
Knott,Simon JB 2381
Summerscale,Aaron 2459
ch Millfield ENG (10) 10.08.2000
[Neil McDonald]
1.c4 b6 2.f3 b7 3.g3 xf3 4.exf3 c5
Black decides to fight aggressively for control
of the d4 square. In a similar position,
Speelman adopted a milder course which
aimed at restricting W hite's light squared
bishop by setting up a triangle of pawns on c6,
d5 and e6- you can see the game
Yermolinsky-Speelman. 5.d4 c6 6.d5
White seizes space, but on the other hand the
pawn on d5 will curb the action of his light
squared bishop. d4 7.e3 f5 8.d2 g6!
Black isn't afraid to exchange dark squared
bishops as it will increase his control over d4.
The wekness created in his kingside proves
neglible as White's pieces are hardly poised
for an attack. 9.c3 g7 10.xg7 xg7
11.h3 h6! This is much better than the
routine
[ 11...f6?! The knight heads for the d4
square. ]
12.0-0 hf5 13.a3 d4 14.c2 gf5
15.e3 d6 16.f4 0-0 17.b4 c7 18.a4
f5! White has clearly lost the opening struggle
as the black knights are well entrenched in
the centre while the bishop on h3 is the worst
piece on the board. 19.a3 e4 20.d3 e5!
Black uses his pawns admirably to strengthen
326
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

his bind on the centre. 21.fxe5 xe5 22.g2 A) 12.c1 c7 ( 12...hxg4 13.fxg4 f5
ae8 23.bxc5 bxc5 24.f4 b8 25.h1 i s u n c l e a r) 13.h3 was not so good,
b2! Threatening a knight check on f2. Claesen, P (2430) -Groffen, H (2220)/
26.xe4 xe4 27.d6 f7 28.g4 fe8 Antwerp 1998, as White has nowhere to
29.d2 b4 30.xf5 A desperate sacrifice, put his king.;
but in any case the pressure was too much to B) 12.h3 g8 13.d2 followed by long
withstand. gxf5 31.gxf5 e2 A great display castles with good prospects in McNab, C-
by a Daring Defender! Martin, A/Edinburgh 1988. ]
0-1 8.g2 The critical move I suppose, but it does
leave the c-pawn undefended.
[ 8.c3 c8 9.e2 b4 10.0-0 xc3
342 A10 11.bxc3 f6 led to a battle of bishops v
Kosten,Anthony C 2493 knights and better structure in Kosten, A
Paci,C 2379 (2510)-Bauer, C (2592)/ Cap d'Agde 2008. ]
TCh-FRA Top 12 2012 (7.4) 06.06.2012 8...a5!?
[Tony Kosten] [ 8...c8 first is more natural,
A) 9.0-0!? a5 10.b3 b5! ( 10...f6
1.c4 b6 2.f3 b7 3.g3 I've played this a 11.c2 xa1 12.c3 favours White,
few times, but may avoid it in the future. c6 13.e3 xf1+ 14.xf1 f6
[ 3.c3 e6 4.g3 is also possible, and b u t B l a c k h a s r e a s o n a b l e c h a n c e s .)
reduces Black's options as after xf3 5.exf3 11.d2 bxc4 12.xc4 xc4 13.bxc4
lin es wit h .. .g6 a re n o lo nge r po ssib le . xc4 14.e3 looks fairly level to me,
However, I think these lines are worse than Gurevich, M (2643)-Bunzmann, D (2596)/
those with ...e6 so I was happy to allow the Polanica Zdroj 1999.;
possibility. ] B) 9.d2 this was my intention, e5!?
3...xf3 ( 9...b4 10.a3 c5 11.0-0 f6 12.b4
[ 3...f5 4.g2 f6 5.0-0 g6 6.d3 g7 d4 13.a2 is good for White.; 9...a5
7.c3 0-0 8.e1 a6 9.e4 fxe4 10.dxe4 transposes to the game.) 10.e2 c7
c5 11.e5 was Kosten, A (2524)-Bauer, C 11.b3 d3+ 12.xd3! ( 12.f1 xc1
(2630)/ Switzerland 2006. ] 13.xc1 b5 Van der Valk, N (2088)-Bock,
4.exf3 c5 5.d4 cxd4 By far the most J (226 1)/ Ne tte tal 20 10 .) 12...e5+
common move here. 13.e4 xa1 I had been busily analysing
[ Black can also play for long-term control of t h i s m o ve t h e m o r n i n g o f t h e g a m e ,
d4 by 5...c6 but then I was happy to ( 13...b4+? 14.e2 xa1 15.c2 e5
continue 6.dxc5 bxc5 7.h3 16.b2 f5 17.xg7 is winning, Ribli-
as in Matamoros Franco, C (2510) -Pavlovic, Gutman BL 1987/88.) 14.0-0 xa2
M (2494)/Reykjavik 2006 - see the PGN ( 14...e5 15.f4 a5 16.d1 d6
Archive. ] 17.d2 is crushing.) 15.f4 and I felt that
6.xd4 c6 7.d1 White's attack was more than sufficient
[ 7.d2 is possible: e6 8.c3 c8 9.b3 compensation for the material, e.g. d8
f6 10.f4 ( 10.g2 ) 10...d5 11.b2 d4 16.c7 f5 17.xd8 fxe4 18.fxe4 xd8
can be met by 12.0-0-0 ( 12.e4 g6 19.d1 d6 20.e5 a6 21.f3 h6
Titz, H-Kengis, E Wien op 1990.) 12...b4 22.exd6 c8 23.e4 f5 24.d7 b8
13.d3 as the d-pawn is pinned. ] 25.xe6 d6 26.e1 c7 27.b4
7...e6 winning. ]
[ 7...g6 is equally popular, but allows White [ 8...b4+ should be answered by 9.d2
to develop easily, 8.c3 g7 9.e3 h5!? in my opinion, f6 10.0-0 d5 11.f4 c8
( 9...c8 10.c1 f6 11.g2 0-0 12.0-0 12.cxd5 ( 12.f5!? ) 12...xd5 13.a3 e7
d6 is pleasant for White, Nugel, K-Fegebank, Vincent, T-Mu Yuchen/ W innipeg 2002,
F/ Germany 1989.) 10.e2!? h6 11.g4 14.f5 ]
c8 9.d2 c8 10.b3 I had a long think about

327
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

this move. [ 22...xd5 23.xd5 exd5 24.d6 d7

[ After 10.e2 c7 11.b3 I was a bit 25.xb5 l o s e s a p a w n , b u t a f t e r d4
worried about d5 ( 11...e7 12.0-0 f6 Black has some compensation. ]
13.b2 favours White, Renaud, O (2096)- 23.d6! b8
Picard, R (2229) /France 2003.) 12.0-0 [ My opponent had probably intended
( 12.cxd5?? xc1+ ) 12...dxc4 although 23...d7 'trapping' the knight, but then
13.b2 would give White good play, as c3?! realised that 24.e4 wins the rook as the d-
( 13...cxb3?! 14.axb3 f6 15.f4 e7 pawn is pinned. ]
16.ac1 d7 17.xc8+ xc8 18.b4! [ 23...e7 is no better: 24.f5 f6 25.xf6
xb4 19.b5+ wins a piece.; 13...f6 gxf6 26.ac1 xc1 27.xc1
14.fc1 b5 i s s a f e s t .) 14.ac1 b4 wins material. ]
15.e4 e7 16.xc3 with advantage. ] 24.f5? Sloppy. I was so happy to win a pawn
[ 10.a4 was also tempting, as c7 11.0-0! with no risk of losing, that I missed
xc4 12.xc4 xc4 13.xa7 c6 [ 24.b4! xb4 25.f5! d4 26.e7+ h8
( 13...c5 ) 14.a6 and the queen 27.xb4 ]
escapes. ] 24...d4
10...f6 Best. I was concerned by [ 24...f6 25.ac1 xc1 26.xc1
[ 10...f6 11.b1 e5+ but then realised is crushing. ]
that 12.e4! was strong: f5?? 13.f4 ] 25.xd4 xd4 26.xd4 b4 27.ad1 a5
11.0-0 e7 12.b2 0-0 13.e2 d5 14.fd1 28.e2 h6 29.e7 White's extra pawn is the
e8! The best way to unpin. doubled f-pawn, but this is still useful as the
[ 14...dxc4 15.xc4 d5 16.ac1 c6 white king is better protected and the front f-
17.f4 f6 18.e3 with strong pressure on pawn can be advanced without risk.
d5. ] Meanwhile the d-file control is a plus. c7
15.cxd5 c2!? 16.e5 30.d7 c6 31.7d6
[ I completely missed 16.xf6! xf6 17.dxe6 [ I t h o u g h t a w h i l e a b o u t 31.e1!?
h e r e , w h e n a f t e r xa1 18.e7 xa2 threatening Qxf8+ and Rd8+ mating, but
19.exf8+ xf8 20.a6 h6 21.e4 couldn't bring myself to play such a crude
Black is in some trouble. ] move! g6 defends, of course. ]
16...xd5 Now play is equal. 17.f4 c6 31...e8 32.a7 There is no need to
[ 17...c3? fails to 18.d3 when xd1 exchange queens just yet. c8 33.h4 f5
19.xc2 traps the knight. ] [ I had expected 33...c7 and planned to
18.e4 play 34.xc7 xc7 35.a6 c5 36.d7
[ 18.e4 was the alternative, c5 19.b2 with some pressure. ]
f6 20.xf6 xf6 21.a4 but b5 34.6d2 A bit of safety-first as the time
is almost equal. ] control approached. fc8 35.b7 h7
18...c5 My opponent thought a long time 36.d7 g8 37.g2 h5?! 38.f3
about this move, which struck me as odd ... as [ 38.e1 f8 39.ee7 was stronger. ]
the move is forced! 38...g6 39.7d5
[ 18...c3? 19.xh7+ xh7 20.d3+ ] [ 39.1d5 was much stronger, f6 40.f5! ]
19.b2 f6 39...f6 40.e4 g7? The last move before
[ 19...c3?! is still not very good, 20.xh7+ the time control. 41.d6 b2?? However,
xh7 21.d3+ g8 22.xc3 ] now we were no longer in time trouble, so it is
20.c4 xb2 not easy to explain this mistake.
[ 20...c3? 21.xc3 xc3 22.ac1!? [ 41...f5 42.d4+ g8 43.e1 c2
( 22.xh7+ xh7 23.c2+ g8 24.xc3 keeps the game alive, although 44.e7 c3
is also good, as b5? 25.e3 ) 22...f6 45.e4 is still unpleasant for Black. ]
23.d6 d7 24.xc5 bxc5 25.h5 g6 42.xg6+! f8
26.xc5 with an extra pawn. ] [ 42...fxg6 43.d7+ h6 ( 43...f6
21.xb2 b5?! This move leaves the rook 44.e7+ f5 45.f7+ f6 46.d5+ xd5
loose and short of squares. 22.xd5 exd5? 47.xd5+ g4 48.f3# ) 44.e7 h8

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and now we see the value of the f4-pawn: xe1+ 15.xe1 bd7 but White's bishops
45.g5+! xg5 46.fxg5# ] and act ivity outweigh the inf erior pawn
43.d7 structure. ]
1-0 11.xd1! The most ambitious,
[ 11.xd1 exf5 12.a3 d6 13.c3
wastes two tempi, Horvath,C-Radjabov,T/
343 A10 Budapest 1999. ]
Kosten,Anthony C 2507 11...exf5
Popchev,Milko 2481 [ 11...xc3 transposes to the note to move
Clermont Ferrand (5) 21.02.2004 ten. ]
[Tony Kosten] 12.a4! getting a grip on c5, and threatening
to embarrass the dark-squared bishop. a6!?
1.c4 f5 2.f3 f6 3.g3 e6 4.g2 d5 5.0-0 Apparently a new move,
d6 [ 12...e4 also covers the c5-square,
[ 5...c6 6.d3 c5 i s s i m i l a r ( 6...d6 13.d4! ( 13.e3 d7 14.a3 e7
transposes) 7.c2! see Avrukh,B-Shachar, 15.ac1 e8 doesn't give much,
E/Tel Aviv ISR 2002. ] K r a s e n k o w, M - M e n c i n g e r , V / P t u j 1 9 8 9)
6.c3 0-0 13...a6 14.e3 e8 15.a3 f8 16.ac1
[ 6...dxc4?! 7.a4+ d7 8.xc4 e5 g6 Malaniuk,V-Gleizerov,E/Barlinek POL
leads to an inferior Sicilian-style position. ] 2 0 0 2 , a n d n o w I w o u l d p r e f e r 17.b4
7.d3 with queenside possibilities. ]
[ 7.d4 c6 leads to a mainline Stonewall 13.a3 e7 14.f4 To keep the knight on a6.
Dutch. ] e4 15.b4 White's advantage is dependent
7...c6 8.e4!? I had difficulty making-up my upon his extra space on the queenside, c5
mind at this juncture, as I have also played and Bf1 is one possibility. e6 Attacking c4
[ 8.cxd5 exd5 9.e4 with some success, gives Black time to develop his queen's rook.
dxe4 ( 9...fxe4 10.dxe4 dxe4 11.g5 e7 16.ac1
12.cxe4 xe4 13.xe4 f5 14.e1 [ 16.d4? is tempting, but throws away the
d7 15.b3+ h8 16.d1 led to a quick advantage: xc4 17.xf5 xf5 18.xe4
W hite win in Blatny,P-Salai,L/Stary as Black has the tactic xf4! 19.gxf4 b3 ]
Smokovec 1990; 9...d4!? 10.e2!? fxe4 16...ad8 17.d4 c8 18.f3 Driving Black's
11.dxe4 xe4 12.exd4 looks fairly equal, one active piece back.
K o c h y e v , A - P i n n e l , P / D o r t m u n d 1 9 9 3) [ 18.e5 looks like a nice square, but Black
10.dxe4 c5 11.b3+ h8 12.e5 e8 has c5 ]
13.g5 with a big plus, Kosten,A-Williams,S/ 18...f6 19.b3! Aiming for a5.
4NCL, Kenilworth ENG 1997. ] [ 19.c5!? was tempting, d5 20.e5 fe8
8...dxe4 9.dxe4 b4! The best chance. 21.f4 e3 22.e1 xg2 23.xg2
10.exf5 White has to do something about the with a nice bind, and N-b2-c4-d6 coming,
threat to capture on c3, then e4. but I didn't want to concede the d5-square
[ 10.xd8 xd8 11.g5 is an alternative, prematurely. ]
xc3 12.bxc3 fxe4 13.e5 h6 14.fd1! 19...xd1+ 20.xd1 e6? A 'morning round'
f8 ( 14...xd1+ 15.xd1 hxg5? 16.d8+ error,
h7 17.xc8 is crushing) 15.e3 bd7 [ 20...e8 kept White's advantage to a
16.xd7 xd7 17.xe4 xe4 18.xd7 b6 m i n i m u m , a s t h e n 21.b5 ( 21.f2!
which is about equal, Gasimov,R-Radjabov, followed by bringing the a4-knight to b2-d3
T/ Baku 1998. ] with a plus) 21...cxb5 22.cxb5 is met by
10...xd1 White was threatening to play Qb3, e6! 23.d4 c5 24.xe6 xe6 25.c1
ga in in g a te mp o on th e b4 -b isho p wh ilst c8 with counterplay. ]
defending the knight on c3, but 21.a5 b8? Trying to bring the knight back
[ 10...xc3 11.bxc3 exf5 was possible, in t o t h e ga m e , b u t th is lo se s a p a wn f o r
12.a3 xd1 13.axd1 e8 14.fe1 no th in g. B la ck sho uld ha ve a dm it te d his

329
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
mistake by
[ 21...c8 although 22.e3 d8 23.xd8+
xd8 24.xa7 is very good for White. ]
[ 21...h5 22.e5 c8 23.c5 leaves Black
tied-up. ]
22.e1! f7 23.xb7 xc4? But otherwise
Blac k ha s a lost a key pa wn f or noth ing.
24.d6!
[ 24.d6 d5 25.xe7 xe7 26.d6+
wins a piece. ]
1-0
344 A10
Krasenkow,Michal 2643
Rozentalis,Eduardas 2616
Jersey op St Clement Bay (5) 08.03.2013
[Danny Gormally]
1.f3 e6 2.c4 b6 3.e4 b7 4.c3 b4
5.d3 e7 6.0-0 0-0 7.e2?! White cannot
hope to gain an advantage after this. In fact, if
anything he ends up struggling for equality.
This has turned out to be a wise opening
choice by Rozentalis- Kransenkow, a well-
known theoretician, is not so comfortable in
these unusual systems.
[ 7.c2! Was a more resolute examination of
this irregular opening. f5 8.exf5? ( 8.d3!
keeping the tension, was to be preferred.
Although this is not a normal system, so
mistakes are less surprising. It is funny
how often players go wrong when they are
faced with unusual problems in the
opening. ) 8...xf3 ( 8...xf5! With beautiful
co-ordination between the black army, would
have been a kind of dream Nimzo) 9.xf3
bc6 10.e2 c5 11.f6 g6 12.e4
xf6 13.h3 f8 14.d4 xd4 15.xd4
xd4 16.xa8? xf2 17.e3 f4 18.g4
xf1+ 19.xf1 xe3 Black has beautiful
compensation for the exchange, Smirin, I
(2691)-Atalik, S (2537)/ Sarajevo 2001. ]
[ 7.e1 f5 8.e5 g6 9.f1? Heubner is
rattled. It was games like this that brought
this ..b6 line a huge following against the
English xf3! Miles loved to play with
knights against bishops, and here he wins a
clear pawn to boot. 10.xf3 c6 11.d4
xd4 12.d3 c6 13.f4 d6 14.exd6
xd6 15.xd6 cxd6 16.d1 ( 16.xe6
d4 17.e1 c2-+ ) 16...ad8 Huebner, R
(2600)-Miles, A (2555)/Bad La uterberg
1977. ]
7...f5! Classic strategy- exchange a wing pawn
for a center one. 8.c2 a5 9.fd4 fxe4
10.xe4 xe4 11.xe4 bc6 Black has
comfortably equalised, and can look forward
to the future with confidence. 12.xc6 xc6
13.d4 f6! 14.e3 d6 15.f4 f5! 16.g3
xe4 17.xe4 b4 18.ad1 e7 19.a3
c2 Many players would be reluctant to "bury"
their knight in such a fashion but Rozentalis
has seen further- while this piece is in danger,
the time White will expend trying to capture it
will allow Black to build up a strong initiative.
20.c1 d5! Freezing the weakness on d4.
21.cxd5 exd5 22.c3 c6 23.d2 a1!
It's always a pleasure to play such moves.
Now Black has a clear strategical plan- to
build up on the d-pawn- while for White it is
not so clear what he should do. 24.d3 a4
25.e3 c2 26.f2 b5! 27.c1 xa3!
28.e1
[ 28.bxa3 xa3 29.c2 e7 Would be a
horror to defend for White- the armada of
black pawns on the queenside represent a
formidable threat. ]
28...c4 29.xe7 b4
[ 29...xb2 30.g3 f7 was also possible-
again the queenside pawns look extremely
scary. ]
30.xa4 xa4 31.b3 a1+ 32.e1 fa8
33.bxc4 dxc4 34.dd1 xd1 35.xd1 b3
36.e1 a2 37.b4? Having been forced to
play only move after only move for some time
now, Krasenkow finally cracks.
[ 37.c1 b2 38.b1 a1 39.xb2 xe1+
40.f2 e4= Would still have held the
draw. ]
37...c2! Now it's all over. 38.g4 b2 39.a3
c3 40.f5 h6 41.h4 d2 42.e1 xd4 43.g5
hxg5 44.hxg5 e4 45.d1 f7 46.f2
f4+ 47.e3 xf5 48.g1 a5 49.g6+
e6 An excellent creative achievement by
Rozentalis.
0-1
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

345 A10 may offer better practical chances than

Krasenkow,Michal 2647 11...g6 , say, 12.c2 0-0 13.d4
Speelman,Jonathan S 2597 intending Nf4-d5, or simply d5, but ]
Eu Team Ch Batumi GEO (7) 06.12.1999 [ 11...f8 12.g4 0-0-0 13.g3 a5
[Tony Kosten] was worthy of consideration. ]
12.e1 xe1+ 13.xe1 0-0-0 14.b3! hf8
1.c4 e6 2.c3 b6 3.e4 15.h3
[ My personal preference, shutting the h1-a8 [ There is little point grabbing further material
diagonal, and leaving Black's light-squared by 15.xh7 which opens lines against the
bishop 'biting on granite'. 3.d4 would lead to king. ]
'more normal' 1 d4 lines. ] 15...c5 16.d3
3...b7 4.f3 b4 5.d3 e7 6.e2!? [ Without this funny move White would be in
A recently popular idea, hoping to embarrass trouble. If 16.f3? then d4 with more
the b4-bishop. than sufficient compensation. ]
[ 6.0-0 is more common, 0-0 7.c2 ( 7.e1 16...d4 17.b2 e2+
f5 8.e5 g6 9.f1?! xf3 10.xf3 c6 [ The tactics don't quite seem to work for
worked out well for Black in Huebner,R- Black, if 17...e4 then 18.xc5 e2+
Miles,A/Bad Lauterberg 1977) 7...f5 8.d4 19.f1 f4 20.e3 xg2+ 21.g1 de8
xc3 9.bxc3 xe4 10.xe4 fxe4 11.g5 22.a4 xe3 23.fxe3 and White plays an
although Black is fine, Rahman, Z-Speelman, endgame a piece to the good. ]
J/Calcutta 1996. ] 18.f1 f4 19.xf4 xf4 20.d4
6...f5 Of course, White is happy to provoke further
[ B l a c k m u s t t a k e c a r e , 6...0-0? exchanges, even at the temporary cost of a
drops a piece after 7.a3 d6 8.e5 xf3 pawn. df8
9.exd6 xe2 10.dxe7 ] [ 20...xd4 21.xd4 xd4 22.xh7
7.c2 wins comfortably. ]
[ White reintroduces an older line. 7.g3!? 21.e3 e7 22.e1
has recently been the preferred method of [ There is nothing wrong with 22.xe7 xf2+
defending e4, g6 ( 7...0-0 may be better, 23.e1 but why bother to calculate it? ]
8.0-0 d6 9.exf5 xf5 10.xf5 exf5 22...h4 23.g3 f3 24.e2 d8 25.d5
11.e1 f6 12.d4 xf3 13.xf3 c6 W h a t e ve r c h a n ce s B l a ck m a y h a v e h a d
14.d5 e5 15.c3 f4 16.e4 h4 d i sa p p e a r wi t h t h e c lo su re o f t h e h 1 -a 8
17.f3? and now b4! 18.xb4 d3 diagonal. 3f7 26.a3 d6 27.b2 b8
led to a brilliant victory for Black in Hanley, 28.d4 c8 Objectively, Black is quite lost,
C-Plaskett,J/Port Erin IOM 1998) 8.0-0 f4 but tries to generate a little play. 29.g2 g6
( 8...0-0!? Speelman ) 9.e2 0-0 10.b1 30.h3 h5 31.d2 g5 32.e2
h4 11.xh4 xh4 12.f3 shutting out the Ca lm co n solid a t io n . a5 33.e1 d7
b7-bishop, and preparing d4, with a plus, 34.e4?!
Chernin, A-Speelman,J/Slough 1997. ] [ An error, losing the exchange, 34.b4 axb4
7...bc6!? 35.xb4 is simplest, followed by a4-5,
[ Speelman's improvement on 7...d6 8.a3 opening the black king position. ]
( t h r e a t e n i n g e 5 ) g6?! 9.exf5 h4 34...c5! 35.e3!
10.e4! c6 11.fxe6 0-0 12.d4 xg2+ [ The best decision, maintaining a safe edge.
13.f1 with a winning material advantage, 35.c3 i s l e s s c l e a r , xh3+ 36.g1
Mitenkov,A-Ivanov,V/Moscow 1994. ] ( 36.xh3? xf2 with a threat of ...g4)
8.exf5 xf5 9.xf5 White takes the offered 36...h4 with play. ]
pawn. exf5 10.xf5 e7 Black threatens to 35...f5 36.e6 xe6 37.dxe6 f6 38.d1!
castle long, and then attack along the open e xe6 39.xh5 After this, and despite the
a n d f f i l e s , a n d h 1 - a 8 d i a g o n a l . 11.0-0 equal m ateria l, W hit e has a stron g plan :
xe2?! prepare f4, exchanging the g5-pawn, and
[ A typical Speelman queen sacrifice, which then advance the passed kingside pawns.

331
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

ef6 346 A10

[ 39...e5 might be a better chance, for if Lautier,Joel 2676
40.d1 c7 41.d2 Black can play fe8 Taddei,Benoit 2340
holding-up the f4-plan. ] TCh-Nat1 GpA (7) 04.04.2004
40.d1 c7 41.d2 6f7 42.f4! gxf4 [Tony Kosten]
43.xf4 d7 44.h4 f6 45.h5
White's position is easy to play. e5! 46.xe5 1.c4 f6 2.c3 g6 3.e4 e5 4.f3 g7
dxe5 47.e3 e8 Black has created a Forced if Black wants to play a King's Indian
passed pawn of his own, but it is not quick Defence,
enough. 48.h6 e4 49.g4 f7 50.g5 f3 [ 4...d6 5.d4 exd4 6.xd4 g7
Both sides advance their pawns as fast as obliges Black to play a line he probably
possible. 51.e1 f5 52.g3+ b7 53.h7 doesn't like. ]
e3 54.g6 e2 This pawn will queen, but it is a 5.d4 Heading for typical KID play,
move too late. 55.g7! g5! [ 5.xe5 is examined in Ibragimov-Odeev. ]
[ Resourceful play, after the obvious 5...exd4 6.xd4 0-0 7.e2 e8 8.f3 c6
55...e1 W h it e wi n s b y 56.xe1 xe1 Black could always play
57.g8 when Black cannot stop the h-pawn [ 8...d6 which leads to a KID, but he hopes
from promoting, as well. ] to gain advantage from delaying this move. ]
56.xg5 e1 57.g8 9.g5 Hoping to hinder the ...d5 break. d5!?
[ Care is still needed, if 57.d5+ a6 A novelty, and exactly the move White tried to
58.g8 e2+ 59.h3 e3+ the position is stop.
not clear. ] [ 9...h6 is more normal, ready to break the
57...e2+ 58.h3 pin on the h4-d8 diagonal, 10.h4 d5
[ And not 58.f3?? when f2+ 59.g4 11.exd5 ( 11.cxd5!? is not very popular,
d1+ leads to mate! ] although wins a pawn after g5 12.g3 cxd5
58...h1+ 13.db5 a6 14.exd5 Gurevich,M-Jansa,
[ Now, 58...e3+? 59.h2 e2+ fails to V/Forchheim GER 2000) 11...cxd5 12.0-0
60.g2+ which is check. ] c6 13.cxd5?! ( 13.xc6 bxc6 14.f2
59.g4 g2+ 60.f5 f2+ was quickly agreed drawn in Petursson,M-
[ Eventually, Black's checks peter out. Sax,G /Bu en os Aires 1 97 8) 13...xd4
Neither 60...xg5+ 61.xg5 g1+ 14.xd4 xd5! and Black is better, Svirin,O-
when the white king will find refuge on the Khasin,A/Podolsk 1990. ]
eighth rank (answering a check by 10.cxd5 b6?! This is Black's idea, although
in t e rp o s in g t h e wh it e q u e e n , a lso wit h [ 10...h6!? has its points: 11.xf6!? ( 11.h4
check), e.g. 62.f5 f2+ 63.e6 e3+ transposes to the last note) 11...xf6
64.d7 etc. ] 12.c2 cxd5 13.xd5 c6 with more than
[ Nor 60...b1+ saves him, adequate compensation. ]
A) and not 61.e6?? when xg5 11.b3
62.f7+ ( 62.xg5 xh7 ) 62...a6 [ 11.dxc6! bxc6 12.b3 should transpose. ]
63.h8 e4+ 64.d7 b7+ draws; 11...a5?! Giving White a second chance to
B) 61.f6 xg5 62.f7+ a6 63.xg5 capture on c6,
should win easily. ] [ 11...cxd5! 12.exd5 a6 is better, e.g.
61.g6 e4+ 62.h6 h2+ 63.g7 d4+ 13.h4 (to play Bf 2) b4 14.f2 d8
64.f8 f2+ 65.f7+ xf7+ 66.xf7 a6 15.d6 e6 16.0-0 fd5 and Black will
67.g8 regain a pawn. ]
1-0 12.dxc6 bxc6 13.c1! White has to regain
control of the g1-a7 diagonal before he can
castle. a4 14.e3 b4 15.c5 a3
It looks like Black has succeeded in
undermining White's defence of the c3-knight.
16.d3 Forced, but strong. b7

332
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 16...axb2 17.xb4 bxc1+ 18.xc1 14.h5+ is awkward. ]

leaves White a solid pawn up in the ending. ]
[ 16...e7!? ]
17.b1 bd7?! 18.0-0 White has castled
and managed to easily consolidate his extra
pawn, so Black is effectively lost. a5 19.b4
a8 20.b5!? This opens the b-file and gains
cont rol of d5 , altho ugh at the sa me tim e
exchanges a good pawn for a rather weaker
one. a5 21.bxc6 xc6 22.b5
White virtually forces the exchange of queens,
although he could also go for
[ 22.b4 b7 23.cd5 xd5 24.xd5
with a fine knight established on d5. ]
22...xc1 23.fxc1 a6 24.d6 e6
25.c4 xc4 Every exchange brings Black
closer to resignation, but he has little
alternative as
[ 25...a4 is met by 26.b4 xb4 27.xb4
xc4 28.xc4 ]
26.xc4 h5 27.b7 f8 28.cc7 d5!?
A desperate last fling of the dice, but there is
little better, e.g.
[ 28...e5 29.xe5 axe5 30.d4 a5
31.c4 and the position explodes. ]
29.d2! Even stronger than
[ 29.xd7 xe3 30.xf7 ]
29...xc7 30.xa5 As Black drops a piece -
one of the two knights on the 7th rank.
1-0
347
Marjanovic,Slavoljub 2524
Ivanisevic,Ivan 2460
55th ch Subotica YUG (3) 18.03.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 b6 2.e4 b7 3.c3 e6 4.f3 b4
5.d3 e7 6.e2 g6!?
[ Bogdan Lalic's improvement, 6...f5 7.c2
is all the rage. ]
7.a3
[ Im m e d ia t e ly ch a sin g t h e b ish o p , 7.0-0
offered little before. ]
7...d6 8.c2 f5! 9.c3
[ 9.exf5?! h4 10.xh4 xh4 11.fxe6
dxe6 leads to a typical black initiative. ]
9...h4 10.d4 xf3+
[ Sidestepping 10...xg2+?! 11.f1 h4
when 12.g5 e7 13.xh4
11.xf3 h4 This move makes it difficult for
White to castle kingside. 12.g3 h3 13.f4
c6 14.0-0-0?!
[ In view of White's coming difficulties,
14.b5! 0-0 15.xd6 cxd6 16.e3
is better, when White can claim a plus. ]
14...fxe4 15.xe4 0-0 16.xd6 cxd6
17.c3 a5 Suddenly the c4-pawn appears
exposed on the newly-opened c-file.
18.he1?!
[ Better to go for the complications of
18.xd6!? fc8 ( or 18...f3 19.d3 xc4!
20.xc4 c8 21.c7 xd3 which is also
good f or Black) 19.c5 xh1 20.xh1
with some compensation for the exchange. ]
18...ac8 19.c5
[ W h a t e l s e ? 19.b3?? allows xf4
as the g-pawn is now pinned. ]
19...dxc5 20.b1 d5 21.d6
[ 21.dxc5 xc5 22.d3 c4 is also very
good for Black. ]
21...f3
[ Or 21...xf2!? 22.dxc5 c4 menacing ...
Nxd6, and the desperate 23.xd5 exd5
24.e7 fails to f1+ 25.a2 f6 ]
22.d3 xf2 Black has obtained a deadly
initiative. 23.dxc5
[ 23.g4 is tricky, but following xg4 24.g3
xd4 25.e5 xc3 26.xg7+ f8
27.xc3 Black has a winning material
advantage. ]
A10 23...c4 24.xd5 Desperation. exd5 25.e7
Threat ening mat e, bu t B lack can def en d
easily. f1+
[ 25...f6! ]
26.a2 f7 27.d4?
[ This loses more material, White had one
last chance: 27.d3 f2 and now 28.xc4
( 28.xc4!? is also feasible! dxc4 29.xc4
bxc5 30.xd7 and Black should win, of
course, but it is difficult to avoid losing the
f7-rook on the way.) 28...xe7 29.xd5+
f7 30.cxb6! xc3 31.b7 b6 32.b8+
xb8 33.xb8 c2 34.xa7 xh2 35.a4
and the queenside pawns offer a certain
amount of counterplay. ]
27...xd6 28.b3
[ 28.cxd6 is quite h o pe le ss, to o , xc2
29.xd5 c4+ 30.xc4 xc4 ]
xg5

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
28...xe7
0-1
348 A10
Matamoros Franco,Carlos S 2510
Pavlovic,Milos 2494
XXII Open Reykjavik ISL (9) 14.03.2006
[John Watson]
W hite's active move in an old line brings
results, even if Black slips out against poor
technique. 1.c4 b6 2.f3 b7 3.g3 xf3
4.exf3 c5 5.d4 c6 6.dxc5 bxc5 7.h3!
A subtle move that serves as prophylactic in
two different ways. One is simply that Black
has to protect d7 before he castles or
c o u n t e r a t t a c k s w i t h h i s q u e e n . g6?!
Surprisingly, this standard move targeting the
d4 outpost is probably a mistake!
[ Black should play something like 7...f6
8.c3 e6 in order to protect his centre. ]
8.0-0 g7 9.c3
[ 9.d2 f6 10.b3 d6= ]
9...f6 The other is that d7 and c8 are
covered after 9...d6? 10.Qa4.
[ F u r t h e r m o r e , 9...xc3?!
takes d4 away from Black. In spite of the
pair of doubled pawns, White's bishops give
him the advantage, e.g., f6
11.e1 h6 12.d5! ) 11.h6 ( or 11.g5
0-0 12.xf6 exf6 13.d6 ) 11...e6 12.d2
d6 13.fd1 e5 14.e2 ]
10.e3 Uh-oh. The pawn on c5 is
indefensible. a5
[ 10...d6? 11.a4 ]
[ 10...b8 11.b1 a5 12.e4! ]
11.e4 0-0
[ 11...xe4?? 12.xd7+ ]
12.xc5
[ 12.xf6+ xf6 13.xd7 d4 gives Black
plenty of compensation, e.g., 14.xd4 xd4
15.xe7 ab8 16.b3 xa1 17.xa1
xb3! ]
12...d6 13.d3 d5 14.b4 d8 15.c1
[ 15.c2 is also good. ]
15...e6 16.cxd5 xd5 17.c5 d7 18.b5
e7 19.e5 b7 20.f4
[ 20.e2! and Rfc1 would cement White's
advantage. His two bishops and forthcoming
passed pawn on the queenside will decide. ]
20...fd5 21.f3
[ W h i t e i s s t a r t i n g t o s l i p . 21.g2!
would leave him a clear pawn up. ]
21...a6 22.b6?!
[ Missing a tactic. 22.a4! axb5 23.axb5
keeps Black's knights restricted. ]
22...xe5! 23.fxe5 xb6! 24.xd5
[ 24.fc1! xe3 25.xe3 d5 26.e2
Even without the extra pawn White keeps
Black a little tied down, although it's
probably not much. ]
24...b7 25.h6 Threatening Rd3.
[ 25.c5 xd5 26.xf8 transposes to the
next note. ]
25...xd5 26.d1!?
[ 26.xf8 xf8 27.a3= ]
26...e7
[ It's e asiest to f o rce th ings b y 26...fc8!
27.xd5 xd5 28.f6 c1+ 29.f1 xf1+
30.xf1 h1+ 31.e2 e4+= ]
27.xf8 xf8 28.f1 c7 29.xa6 a8
30.f1 xa2 31.e1 h5 32.h4 c5 33.d1
a3 34.d3 a1 35.d1 xd1 Black plays
for a win. It doesn't hurt to try. The remaining
moves require no n otes: 36.xd1 c3
37.e2 g7 38.h2 d4 39.g2 b6
10.bxc3 40.f1 d7 41.f4 b6 42.g2 c4 43.f3
e3 44.h3 c3 45.h2 c1 46.f2
c5 47.e2 d4 48.h3 c3 49.h2
( 10...h5 f5 50.f2 d3 51.g2 e3 52.f3 d4
53.e2 f5 54.e4 e3 55.f3 f8
56.h3 f5 57.e4 h6 58.f3 c3
59.h2 e7 60.f2 f5 61.a7+ f8
62.f2 e3 63.h3 d4 64.e2 e7
65.a6 c5 66.c6 d4 67.a8 d5
68.xd5 exd5 69.a3+ e8 70.a8+ e7
71.a3+ e8 72.a8+ e7 73.a3+
½-½
349 A10
Miezis,Normunds 2518
Svidler,Peter 2689
Keres Mem Rapid rapid (6) 07.01.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 b6 2.c3 b7 3.e4 e6 4.ge2
I like this move, and duly recommend it in my
book on the English Opening. f6
[ Standard, 4...f5!? 5.exf5 exf5 6.d4 f6
7.d3 e4 Miezis,N-Ward,C/Port Erin 1998,
334
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

when 8.e3 has its points. ] bad idea. For White I would take a look at 11.
5.g3!? Ne4!? 1.c4 g6 2.e4 e5 3.d4 f6!? 4.f3
[ [ 4.dxe5 xe4 5.d5 was fashionable in
But I'm not so keen on this, the knight is
not optimally placed on the wing. I prefer the 70's and here Black can choose
5.d3 c5 6.g3 c6 7.g2 d6 8.0-0 between f5 ( or 5...b4+ 6.d2 xd2+
as in McNab, C-Plaskett,J/Southend 1999. ] 7.xd2 xd2 8.xd2 c6 ) 6.exf6 xf6
5...c5 6.d3!? Najdorf, M (2540)-Ribli, Z (2505)/Hoogovens
[ Miezis is trying to improve on his 6.e5 g8 Wijk aan Zee 1973 ]
7.d3?! d6 8.exd6 xd6 9.e3 c6 4...exd4
10.e2 ge7 11.f3 e5 12.d2 0-0 [ 4...b4+ was played sometimes, but I'm
13.0-0-0 d7 when Black is quite a lot
not a fan of trading the fianchettoed bishop
so qu ickl y 5.d2 xd2+ 6.xd2 xe4
b e t t e r , b e c a u se o f h i s h o l d o n d 4 , b u t
blundered, and lost, Miezis, N-Ehlvest,J, ( 6...e7 7.dxe5 xe4 8.e3 b4+
from the same tournament. ] 9.bd2 was Poluljahov, A (2554)-Sutovsky,
6...c6 7.f4 h5! This move is often effective E (2587)/MK Cafe Cup-A 1999.) 7.e3 d5
against knights on g3. 8.e5 h4!8.cxd5 xd5 9.xe5 0-0 10.c4 a5+
9.ge4
xe4 10.xe4 d6 11.exd6 xd6 12.e3 11.c3 and this g7-bishop will be missing at
e7 13.a4 0-0 14.0-0-0 d4 Black seems some point. ]
to have built-up a similar advantage to the 5.e5 e4
E h l ve s t ga m e . 15.d2 f5 16.c3 a6
[ 5...b4+ now it makes more sense 6.d2
17.d1 b5 e7
Black is attacking all over the7.xb4 xb4+ 8.d2 xd2+
board. 18.e1 b6 19.f2 h3 20.h4 d6 9.bxd2 h5 10.xd4 c6 11.xc6
21.g3 a5 22.g1 dxc6 with some strange kind of Berlin, but
[ White cannot defend his a-pawn, 22.b1?? since Black can castle I assume that the
b4 23.e2 b3 ] position is ok. ]
22...b4 23.gxh3?! f7 24.b1 f3
6.xd4 b4+ 7.bd2
White's pieces seem to have found comical [ 7.c3 was seen in a recent game and is
squares, and it is no surprise that Black wins an ambitious try xc3 8.bxc3 c6 9.d3
mo re th a n an e xch a n ge . 25.dg2 c7
e7 10.h6 with an interesting position in
26.f2 xf4+ 27.d1 xg1 28.xg1 e5 Cmilyte, V (2524)-Lahno, K (2553)/Beijing
29.g6 h7 30.g3 xg3 Sportaccord (Women) blitz 2012 ]
[ T h e r e i s n o t h i n g w r o n g w i t h 30...xg6
7...g5 This doesn't look so natural, but with
31.xf4 f6 , either. ] 8...Nc6 ideas it's a good way to check White's
31.xg3 f4 32.g4 e3 33.h4+ g8 setup. 8.a3 A novelty, but I'm not sure if it's a
34.d2 f3+ 35.xf3 xf3+ 36.e1 f5 good one. The idea is to clarify the tension
37.e2 e5 The rest is a massacre, but in
and to try to build a center with f4 later.
rapid chess there is always the chance that [ 8.e2 was the move played before and I
yo ur o p po ne n t blu nd ers. 38.f2 xd3
think Black is fine after c6 9.e3 xf3+
39.f1 xh3+ 40.g1 e3 41.xf4 xe2 10.xf3 0-0 11.0-0 e8 12.xc6 dxc6
0-1 13.f3 g4 Vitiugov, N (2726)-Volokitin, A
(2686)/ Bundesliga 1112 2011 (11.1)/0-1 ]
8...xf3+ 9.gxf3 c6 10.e3 f8
350 A10 Coming back and going to the ideal square on
Nakamura,Hikaru 2775 g7 11.b4
Svidler,Peter 2769 [ 11.e4!? I like this move, it makes Black
Thessaloniki FIDE GP (11) 03.06.2013 less comfortable and tries to pose some
[Fier, Alexandr] problems from the start g7 12.f6+ f8
13.f4 and here Black has two continuations
A really interesting fight! Black is probably xf6 ( 13...d6 14.d2 h6 15.d5 dxe5
better after the opening but it's not easy to 16.0-0-0 with good compensation) 14.exf6
prove it. I think exchanging the queens was a xf6 15.d2 e7 16.0-0-0 xe3 17.fxe3

335
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

with an unclear endgame ] is not what Black was dreaming of.) 31.c2
11...g7 12.b2 0-0 13.f4 Now if White can dxc4 32.f6+ h8 ( 32...xf6 33.exf6
hold the pawns in the center and queenside looks dangerous) 33.ee2 and things are
then everything is fine, but his position is again not clear. ]
overextended. The computer assesses it as 30.d1 d3+ 31.c1
good for Black, but to find a improvement over [ 31.d2 was an interesting option xd2+
the game is not an easy task d6 14.0-0-0 ( 31...e3+ leads to a draw after 32.xe3
dxe5 15.fxe5 h4 16.b5 e7 17.g3 h5 xe3 33.d8+ f8 34.f6+ g7
[ 17...f5 is one of the possibilities, but why 35.e8+ h6 36.f6= ) 32.xd2 xc4
change queens when White's king is much 33.f6+ xf6 34.exf6 h5 35.e8+ h7
more open than Black's? 18.xh4 xh4 36.e7! and Black needs to take care to not
19.d3 e8 20.c2 a6! can give an edge, be worse. ]
but nothing concrete ] 31...e3 Now I think Black's winning chances
18.f4 are not very good any more. 32.c5 xc2
[ 18.e4 g4 19.d2 ad8 20.g1 xd2 33.xc2 xc4+ 34.xd3 xc5 35.a1
21.xd2 e6 22.f4 looks like the same [ 35.b6 was also playable but the text move
kind of position as in the game, but with is more active cxb6 36.d4 c6 37.b1
one defender less for White ] with good drawing chances. ]
18...a6 19.a4 axb5 20.axb5 g4 35...xb5 36.a8+ f8 37.d4 h6
[ 20...c6 here or on the next move this can Gaining some space while getting close to
be played, trying to open the position even move 40. 38.c8 c6 39.c3 d5+
more. 21.bxc6 ( 21.b6 now the endgames W ith just rooks and pawns it's hard to get
are more interesting for Black, the b6-pawn anything. 40.e4 c5 41.d3 b5 42.h4
can fall at any moment d8 22.e1 f5 h5 43.d2 d5+ 44.c2 c5+ 45.d3
23.f2 h4 ) 21...bxc6 22.e4 d5+ 46.c2 g5 Pushing too hard. 47.f5
is logical and now g4 23.d2 f5 24.e1 gxh4 48.c3 g7 49.e6+ f6 50.c7+ g8
fb8 can give Black good prospects even if 51.c8 g7 52.c7+ g8 53.xf6 xf5??
the position is still not clear ] [ 53...c5+
21.e1 fd8 A) 54.c3 xf5 55.e7 xe7 is a draw;
[ 21...c6 22.bxc6 bxc6 23.h3 ( 23.g1 B) 54.b3 b5+ 55.a4 b4+ 56.a5
e6 24.e2 h6 looks like this is the h3 ( 56...b5+ is a draw ) 57.c8 e4
square for the queen and after 25...Rfb8 58.e7 leads to huge complications h2
Black is much better) 23...e6 24.e4 59.xf8+ ( 59.xf8 i s s i m p l e r h1
fb8 ] 60.b4+ g7 61.c3+ h6 62.d2+
22.g1 e6 23.e2 f5 h7 63.c7+ g8 64.c8+ g7
[ 23...h6 again Black can try to put the 65.c3+= ) 59...g7 60.f6+ h7 61.f7
queen on this weird square and keep the f4 62.f6 xf6 63.e7 h1 64.h8+
initiative. Compared to the positions with ... g6 65.g8+ f5 66.f8 with probably
c6, it looks like the rook is more active on some perpetual around;
the b-file than the d-file, so 23. ..Qf5 is C) 54.d3 d5+ and the king can never
consistent with Black's plan, but still the go to the e-file
idea of 24...Nf5 followed by 25... Qh3 looks C1) 55.e3 xf5 now Black can take
tempting 24.e4 f5 25.f2 h3 ] on f5 56.c8 ( 56.e7 xe7 57.xe7= )
24.g4 xg4 25.xg4 xg4 26.xg4 f5 56...xf6 57.e7 e6+ this is the point;
Now Black has an excellent post on f5 and C2) 55.e4 h3! 56.xb7 ( 56.c8 h2
better rooks, but all the pawns and pieces are and the queen promotes with check)
defended, so the task is not easy. 27.g2 56...h2 57.b1 d6 ]
d3 28.e4 Regrouping. a4 29.c2 e3 54.c8 f2+ 55.d3 f3+ 56.d4
[ 29...b4 30.c3! sacrificing the pawn to And Black cannot avoid e7.
activate d4!? ( 30...xc3+ 31.xc3 xc4 1-0
32.c2 a4 33.b3 a8 34.d1

336
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

351 A10 open the f-file: 20.xf7?! hf8 21.b3

Rasmussen 2281 xd3 and f2 is a serious problem. ]
Speelman,Jonathan S 2603 20...a6 21.ad1 xb2 Time to cash-in.
Politiken Cup (4) 19.07.2001 22.d5
[Tony Kosten] [ White pins his hopes on some attacking
possibilities on the h1-a8 diagonal, but it
1.c4 b6 2.c3 b7 3.e4 e6 4.ge2 d5!? p r o v e s t o b e i l l u s o r y , 22.xf7 hf8
[ A move typical of 'Spec'- an innovation at and again f2 will soon be lost. ]
move four! I looked at 4...f6 previously, 22...d4 23.f3 g6 24.g5 he8 25.h6
when if 5.d3 d5 is a sensible possibility, f5!? 26.xh7! f6 27.h6?
that I analysed once. However, the [ This hastens the end, the only chance was
possibility of playing this central thrust one 27.fe1 as now h8 28.e7 and White is
move before, hadn't even occurred to me! ] still fighting. ]
5.exd5 27...h8 28.c1 Black to play and win?
[ 5.cxd5 exd5 6.xd5 f6 is the alternate xh2! 29.c6
pawn sac, when one possible continuation is [ The queen finally gets to the h1-a8 diagonal,
7.a4+!? c6 8.xf6+ xf6 9.c4 d7 but only to swap queens. 29.xh2 h8+
when Black has some comp for a pawn, but 30.g1 h4 forces mate. ]
maybe not quite enough. ] 29...xc6 30.xc6 dh8 31.g3 g5
5...exd5 6.xd5 Expecting to gain the two The black attack continues in the endgame.
bishops, no doubt. f6!? 32.de1 2h6 33.g2 g4 34.b1 f4
[ Offering a pawn for the initiative. 6...xd5 35.gxf4 g3 36.e4 h2 The f2-pawn is
7.cxd5 xd5 8.c3 e5+ 9.e2 finally, and irrevocably, lost.
leaves Black weak on the queenside light 0-1
squares. ]
7.ec3?!
[ White prefers the bishops to the pawn. 352 A10
7.xf6+ xf6 8.d4 c6 followed by long Ribli,Zoltan 2588
castles certainly provides good Muranyi,Karl Jasmin 2357
compensation for the pawn, but at least Bundesliga 2006/07 (9) 21.02.2007
White has something for his trouble. ] [Carsten Hansen]
7...xd5 8.xd5 xd5 9.cxd5 xd5
10.e2 c6 1.c4 f5 2.f3 f6 3.g3 e6 4.g2 e7
[ Black's control of d4, and open central files 5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 d6 7.c3 bd7?!
more than make-up for his lack of light- It looks like Black puts the knight on a wrong
s q u a r e d b i s h o p . N o t e t h a t 10...xg2?? s q u a r e , b u t i t i l l u s t r a t e s h o w W h i t e b y
loses: 11.f3 ] choosing an English Opening move order can
11.0-0 d4 12.e1?! mess with Dutch players, who are used to
[ P e r h a p s W h i t e s h o u l d c h o o s e 12.a6 respond to a set-up that includes d2-d4. Black
(stopping castling) e7 13.e1 d7 14.b3 should probably opt for
0-0 15.b2 f6 with good drawing [ 7...a5 , angling for a transposition to the
chances. ] Dutch if Black can only get White to agree to
12...0-0-0 13.a6+ b8 14.d3 b4 15.c4 play d2-d4. ]
d7 16.f1 8.b2 a6 9.g5!? e5?!
[ The rook must give way, 16.d2?! xd2 [ 9...b6 10.d4 g4 11.h3 e5 12.d2 ]
17.xd2 he8 and the knight will dominate 10.d4 Now when it's convenient for White, he
the bishop. ] ha s n ot h in g a gain st p u sh ing th e d -pa wn
16...b5 17.b3 c5 18.e3 b6 19.xd4!? forward. f7 11.xf7 xf7 The resulting
White seeks salvation in the opposite-colour position looks like a Classical Dutch, albeit a
bishop position. xd4 20.h5 very clumsy one by Black. 12.e4
[ White is loathe to touch the f7-pawn, and [ W h i t e c a n a l s o c o n s i d e r 12.d3!?

337
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

after which Black probably does best to 353 A10

enter a Stonewall set-up with d5 ] Rotstein,Arkadij 2553
12...fxe4 13.xe4 xe4 14.xe4 d5 Conquest,Stuart 2582
15.g2 N1 France 03.05.2002
[ Here 15.c2!? looks like an attractive [Tony Kosten]
alternative the idea is to follow up with 16
Qd3 and then on ...g6 by Black, White will 1.c4 b6 2.c3 b7 3.e4 e5!?
throw either the f- or h-pawn forward. ] [ We have considered 3...e6 in great detail. ]
15...f6 16.d2?! 4.f3 c6 5.e2!?
[ 16.e2!? appeals more to me, as Black [ A new move in this rare position, White
c a n ' t p l a y dxc4 (as in the game) with the avoids the no rma l 5.d4 as after exd4
same effect due to White taking back with 6.xd4 b4 Black has reasonable play,
the queen: 17.xc4 c6 18.f4 and White 7.e3 ( 7.xc6 xc6 8.d3 xc3+ 9.bxc3
dominates the board. ] f6!? White's weak pawns give Black
16...dxc4 17.bxc4 c5 18.d5 exd5 19.cxd5 compensation for the bishop pair,
d6 20.a4 d7 21.a5 af8 22.f4 De ub e lb e iss, R-Ho rn ,P / SW Z-chT 19 9 3)
Here my chess engine and I have a difference 7...f6 8.f3 0-0 ( 8...xc3+!? ) 9.c2 e8
of opinion. It likes Black's position more, 10.0-0-0 White has a useful space
whereas I pref er W hite. However, it isn't advantage, Sjoestroem,O-Hof f mann,M/
entirely clear. b5 23.axb6 xb6 24.xf6 Fuerth 1999. ]
xf6 25.h4!? This prevents Black from 5...ge7?!
playing ...g7-g5, which can be inconvenient [ 5...c5 seems critical, taking a firm hold of
for White in some lines and gives the White d4, 6.xe5!? xe5 7.d4 b4 ( 7...d6
king an extra square. f5 26.fe1 c4+ 8.dxe5 xe5 is also f easible, 9.d5 )
27.h2 d3 8.dxe5 xc3+ 9.bxc3 with chances to both
[ 27...c8!? ] sides in this imbalanced position. ]
28.e4 d6?! 6.0-0 g6 7.d4 Now White can make this
[ This move is the beginning of trouble for ke y m o ve wit h o u t h a vin g t o wo rry a b o u t
Bla ck. I nst ea d 28...xe4 29.xe4 c8 do ub le d c-pa wn s. exd4 8.xd4 xd4
30.c1 c3 31.xc3 xc3 32.xc3 f2+ 9.xd4 h4 10.d5 0-0-0 Black plays
leads to a draw. ] sharply, but White has extra space, and his
29.xd3 cxd3 30.xd3 fd8 31.ab1 knight is strong. 11.e3 e8 12.f4!? c5
[ 31.e5 b2+ 32.e2 xe2+ 33.xe2 13.d3 xe3+
xd5 34.xa6 leads to an endgame Black [ Perhaps Black should accept the pawn:
should draw. ] 13...xd5!? 14.cxd5 xf4 when White
31...f2+ 32.h3 xd5? planned to attack the king: 15.a6+ b8
[ 32...c5! keeps the balance. ] 16.xc5 bxc5 17.f3 when Black's position
33.xa6 h6? is quite unpleasant to play. ]
[ 33...d3! 34.e6+ f8 35.f5+ g8 14.xe3 f5!? 15.e5 h6 Black is
36.e8+ xe8 37.xd3 is still rather de spe ra te ly lo oking f or co u n te rpla y, t h e
uncomfortable for Black, but Black should be immediate threat is to capture on d5, then on
able to defend. ] e5, as the f-pawn would be pinned, but White
34.e7 8d6? keeps firm control. 16.f2 e7! 17.ad1
[ 34...5d6 35.c4+ h8 36.e4 d4 xd5 18.cxd5 g5 19.d4 Centralisation!
37.xd4 xd4 38.bb7 g8 39.f5 hg8 20.c1 Which will be more important:
should win for White. ] B la ck' s o p e n in g o f t h e g-f ile , o r W h it e ' s
35.c8+ h7 36.xg7+ xg7 37.b7+ control of the c-file? b8 21.f3 gxf4
g6 38.e8+ f6 22.fe1 White is not too concerned about the
1-0 f4-pawn, his mobile e and d pawns supported
by his pieces, give him some advantage. g6
23.c2?!

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ Too casual, 23.a4!? hitting d7 , eg8!? 354 A10

24.c2 ( a t t a c k i n g c 7 a n d f 5 ) ( not Savchenko,Boris 2583
24.xd7?? when h3 wins! ) 24...h4!? Bacrot,Etienne 2695
so that 25.xf5 xg2+! 26.xg2 xd5 World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (34) 22.11.2007
forcing 27.e4 g5 28.xg5 xg5 29.f2 [Carsten Hansen]
xg2+ 30.xg2 xe4+ is not too clear, ]
[ but 23.e2! is best, as then g2 is solidly 1.c4 b6 2.f3 b7 3.g3 e6
defended, and ...Qh4 won't hit the rook on [ The continuation chosen by Black on this
e1. ] and the next move hasn't previously been
23...h4 24.ec1? covered here, whereas 3...xf3 has been
[ 24.f2 keeps a plus, but both players were discussed at length in earlier updates, check
ge t t in g s h o rt o f t im e , a n d in p a rt icu la r the PDF e-books for the game references. ]
Black. ] 4.g2 f5 5.0-0 f6 6.d3
24...c8?! [ Two other options are 6.b3!? ]
[ 24...h6 25.h3 comes to nothing, but ] [ and 6.d4 , of which the latter takes the
[ 24...c5! was strong, closing the c-file, game to a Classical Dutch ]
25.c3 ( 25.dxc6 dxc6 and White is unable 6...e7
to capture thrice on c6 because of ...Qe1 [ This move looks so obvious, it is almost
mate. ) 25...h6 26.h3 g3 27.h1 d6! curious how many other tries Black has
28.e6? ( 28.exd6 xd6 is also good for made in this position: A) 6...g6
Black ) 28...exe6! 29.dxe6 xh3+ 30.g1 A) 7.g5 g7 8.d2 0-0 9.c3 d6
xf3 and Black wins! ] 10.e4 1-0 Rygaard, M-Torngarn, T/
25.c4! c6?! 26.xf4? Stockholm 1994;
[ A s A r k a d i j p o i n t e d o u t , 26.e6! B) 7.e4 fxe4 8.g5 c6 ( 8...g7
i s e v e n s t r o n g e r , c5 27.exd7! d8 9.dxe4 h6 10.e5 xg2 11.xg2 hxg5
28.e5+ winning quickly. ] 12.xg5 c6 Mozny, M-Forman, S/
26...xf4 27.xf4 cxd5 28.xc8+ xc8 Czech Rep CZE 2003) 9.xe4 xe4
29.xf5 White's better structure gives him a 10.xe4 g7 11.c3 f6 Pedersen, C-
c l e a r a d v a n t a g e . d4 30.xb7+ xb7 Sedlak, N/Esbjerg DEN 2004, 12.e3!?
31.f4! g5 32.xd4 c6 33.d6+ c7 0-0-0 13.c5 , and White has the better
34.h6 xe5 35.xh7 e2 36.h4 chances, as his pawns a likely to crash in
The point, whilst Black captures some around Black's king before Black's pawn
queenside pawns the white kingside strides reaches their target. Nevertheless, this is
towards the queening square. xb2 37.h5 a complicated position.;
xa2 38.h6 a4 C) 7.c3 g7
[ 38...e2 39.g7 ( 39.g4 a5 40.g7 ) C1) 8.e4 fxe4 9.g5 0-0 10.dxe4
39...e1+ 40.h2 e6 ] c6 ( 10...h6 11.h3 e5 12.f4 c6
39.g3 g4? 13.f5 gxf5 14.exf5 Bilek, I-Jamrich, G/
[ This simplifies matters although 39...e4 HUN 1999 ) 11.e5 e8 12.f4 e7
40.f7! a5 41.h7 e8 42.g4 13.ce4 d8 14.e3 Richter, E-
is also convincing. ] Kottnauer, C/Prague 1931;
40.g7 C2) 8.e1 0-0 9.e4 fxe4 10.dxe4 c6
[ My computer likes 40.xd7+?! xd7 41.h7 C2a) 11.h3!? h8 ( 11...e5!? ) 12.e5
xg3+ 42.h2 when Black cannot stop the g8 13.f4 f7 14.d2 Kelly, B-
h-pawn, but might have time to set-up a Carrasco Martinez, J/Zagan 1997;
fortress. ] C2b) 11.e5 g4 12.f4 a5
40...e4 41.h7 e1+ 42.g2 e2+ 43.h3 13.e2 e7 14.h3 h6 15.ad1
e1 44.g2 e2+ 45.f1 h2 46.g1 Lukov, V-Droulers, D/ Paris 1998 ]
h6 47.g4 a5 48.g5 h5 49.g6 a4 50.g8 [ B) 6...d6? 7.c3 ( 7.e4!? fxe4 8.g5 )
1-0 7...bd7 8.d4 xg2 9.xg2 f7
, Villegas, B-Letelier Martner, R/Mar del

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
P l a t a 1 9 3 6 , 10.e4! , and needless to say,
Black is in serious trouble ]
[ C) 6...c6 7.c3 ( 7.bd2 e7 8.b3 0-0
9.b2 e8 10.e3 h5= 1-0 Reschke, S- 8...fxe4 9.g5 c6!?
Just, W /Baunatal 2001) 7...b4 8.c2
( 8.d2 0-0 9.a3 xc3 10.xc3 e8
11.b4 h5 12.e3 e7 13.a4 a6 14.a5
g5 15.xf6 xf6 16.e5 , and White is
win n in g, L e s k i , M-L a m b , H/ N ic e 2 0 0 0) ( 11.xe4!? c6 12.d4 ) 11...e5 12.h5
8...0-0 9.a3 d6 10.b3 a6 11.b2 e8
12.a4 d8 13.c5! bxc5 14.xc5 c6
15.ac1 ( 15.b4!? ) 15...a5 16.e4
, and W hite has slightly better game,
Buhmann, R-Bunzmann, D/Heringsdorf
2000 ]
[ D) 6...c8 7.g5 e7 8.c3 h6 9.d2
0-0 10.e1 b4 11.e4 1/2-1/2 Trygstad,
K-Johannessen, S/Oslo NOR 2003 ]
[ E) 6...d6 7.c3 0-0 8.g5 h6 9.xf6
xf6 Borg, A-Yagiz, Y/Antalya TUR 2006
10.e3 ]
7.c3 White has also tried several other
moves here, but they are all of little
consequence and do not challenge Black. 0-0
[ 7...c8 8.c2 0-0 9.e4 fxe4 10.dxe4
c6 11.a3 g4 12.f4 f6= Ivanov, M-
Gervasio, R/Le Touquet 1996 ]
[ 7...b4 8.d2 0-0 9.e1 e8 10.a3
xc3 11.xc3 d6 Romanov, V-Merzliakov,
E/ St-Petersburg RUS 2006, and now
12.d2 e5 13.b4 ]
8.e4
[ A) 8.b1
A) 8...a5 9.a3 a6 10.e4 ( 10.b3?! e8
11.c2 h5 12.a2 g4 13.h3 h6
14.xh6 xh6 15.b4 axb4 16.axb4 f4
Nemeth, Z-Jamrich, G/Budapest 2001)
10...fxe4 11.g5 e8 12.gxe4 xe4
13.xe4 g6 ( 13...c5!?= ) 14.f6+
xf6 15.xb7 a7 16.g2 Michalek, C-
Kleinegger, F/Ruhrgebiet 1999;
B) 8...e8 9.b4 d6 10.d4?! ( 10.e4!?
fxe4 11.g5 d8 12.cxe4 xe4
13.xe4 d5 14.c3 f6 15.b2 ) 10.cxe4
10...bd7 11.d5 e5 12.g5 0-1 Mellen,
S-Everett, M/ Detroit 1991 g6 13.c5!
bxc5 14.e6 c4 15.xf8 xf8 16.b5 ]
[ B) 8.c2 a6 ( 8...e8 9.e4 h5 10.e2
fxe4 11.dxe4 b4 12.b5 a6
Kruse, H-Carton, P/Germany 1993/GER-
chT2 ) 9.e4 fxe4 10.dxe4 c6 11.f4 10...xe4 11.xe4 last book move d5!?
g4 12.d2 ge5 13.xe5 xe5
with a pleasant game for Black, Sabaev, E-
Janturin, A/ Pardubice 1998 ]
[ Black has tried several other things at this
juncture, but I don't think any of the
alternatives are as good as Bacrot's choice:
A) 9...b4 10.cxe4 xe4 11.dxe4
h6 13.f3 xe4 14.xh6 f6 15.d2
( 15.f4!? exf4 16.g5 f3 17.xe4 f5
18.xf5 xf5 19.h3 e5 20.c3 xc3
21.bxc3 ) 15...xf3 16.xf3 xf3 17.xf3
xf3 18.xb4= Johansson, L-Svenn, G/
Stockholm 1991 ]
[ B) 9...a6 10.gxe4 b8 11.f4 xe4
12.dxe4 d6 13.e2 e5 14.e3 c5
1/2-1/2 Greiner, H-Doll, S/Baden 1993/GER
(27) 15.d5 ]
[ C) 9...c8?! 10.gxe4 c6 11.d4 b8
( 11...xe4 12.xe4 a5 13.c2 Ribli )
12.d5! exd5 ( 12...e5 13.b3 exd5
14.xf6+ xf6 15.xd5 f3+?? 16.xf3
xa1 17.e7++- Ribli ) 13.cxd5 e5
14.f4 f7 ( 14...d6 15.g5 Ribli )
15.c1! a6 ( 15...d6 16.xf6+ xf6
17.b5 Ribli ) 16.e1 d6 17.b4 f5
18.b5 c8 19.e2!
A) 19...xd5 20.xd6!? ( 20.d4 g6
21.c6 e6 22.xb8 xb8 ) 20...xd6
21.xd6 xd6 22.xd5+ h8 23.xf5
xf5 24.d4 Ribli;
B) 19...xe4 20.d4 f6 ( 20...xd5
21.xe4 xa2 22.c6+- ) 21.xe4 g5
22.g2 b7 ( 22...h3+ 23.xh3 xh3
24.xc7+- ) 23.h4+- Jacobsen, B-Fenn, P/
E u p e n 1 9 9 4 ( The alternatives are also
very good for White, e.g. 23.c6+-; and
23.e6!?+- )]
[ D) 9...c6 10.dxe4 h6 11.h3 e5
12.d5 c5 13.h1 xd5 14.cxd5 d6
15.b1 a5 , Abbasov, F-Hasanov, R/Tehran
IRI 2005, and now 16.f4!? ]
[ 10.d4 a5 11.b3 h6 ( 11...e8!? )
12.gxe4 xe4 13.xe4 d5 14.cxd5
exd5 15.c3 f6 16.e3 , and on account
of the weak light squares around Black's
king, White has the better chances, Espig,
L-Mischustov, M/ Germany 1998 ]
340
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ Rather amazingly only now do we leave
exis t in g t h eo ry. Th e ste m ga me in th is
variation, played some 80 years ago saw
B l a c k e q u a l i z e f a i r l y e a s i l y : 11...e8!?
12.d4?! ( 12.f4!? ) 12...a5 13.e2 g6
14.e1 b4 , and here Black is already is
very good shape: 15.d2 xd2 Ribli calls
this position equal, but at the very least
Black has the initiative, yet he probably
b e t t e r a t t h i s s t a g e . 16.xd2
17.xg2
A) 17...f4!? 18.d5 ( 18.e5?
is almost winning for Black)
19.f3 exd5 20.cxd5 d4 21.ac1 c5
22.dxc6 xc6 , and Black has the better
chances;
B) 17...c2 18.b3 c6 19.e3 f7
20.f3 af8 21.e2 f5 22.e5 xe5
23.dxe5= h5 24.d3 g5 25.d1 g4
26.e4 g5 27.d4 h5 28.d3 g7
29.d2 xe5 30.xd7 xd7 31.xd7
e4+ 32.g1 h4 33.gxh4 e1+ 34.g2
e4+ 35.g1 e1+ 1/2-1/2 Reti, R-
Tartakower, S/Giessen 1928 ]
12.c3 dxc4
[ 12...d4 13.g4 c5 14.f4 f5 15.ae1
f8 16.e2 c6 17.c3 d4 18.e2
c6 19.c3 d4 ]
13.dxc4 xd1 14.xd1 ad8
[ 14...f6 15.f4 ]
15.f4 e5 16.xe5 xe5 17.xb7 c6
18.b3
[ 18.a6 g5 19.xd8 xd8 20.d1 xd1+
21.xd1 g4 22.g2 f7 23.h3 h5
24.hxg4 hxg4 25.c8 f6 26.e3 ]
18...c5
[ 18...b8 19.a6 a3
adequate positional compensation for the
pawn. ]
19.e4
[ To me it looks like White should have tried
19.xd8 xd8 20.d1 to eliminate some of
Black's counterplay. ]
19...d4 20.ac1 f7 21.a6
W h i t e h a s a n e x t r a p a wn , b u t h i s l i g h t -
squared bishop is decidedly out of play at the
moment and bringing it back will take some
time. Black's activity and reasonably well-
coordinated pieces offer him adequate
compensation for the pawn. 22.h3
23.g2 c6 24.c3 b4 25.b5 f8
26.d2 a6 27.a4 xf2+ 28.xf2 xf2
29.a3 d3 30.d1 e3 31.e4 xe4
32.xd3 d4 33.f3 e1 34.c6 f8
35.b4 e7 36.b7 f1+ 37.e4 d6?
[ Black's idea is undoubtedly to let White
grab the pawn on a6 and with that misplace
the light-squared bishop, all the while Black
a c t i va t e s h is p i e c e s. Y e t I t h in k B la c k
should instead have played the obvious and
xg2 simple 37...e1+ 38.f4 a5 39.bxc5 bxc5
, and Black isn't worse ]
af8 38.xa6 e1+ 39.f3 f1+ 40.g4 g6??
18...af8 [ A blunder that allows White an immediate
win instead Black should have given
pre f ere n ce t o 40...c1 41.bxc5+ xc5
42.f5 h1 43.g4 e1 44.b3 g6+
45.g5 e5+ 46.h6 e7 , and White has
some winning chances, but Black should
hold the draw without too many difficulties ]
41.b7??
[ White could have won immediately with a
petite combination: 41.xd4+ cxd4 42.c5+
bxc5 43.xf1 ]
41...e5 42.f3?!
[ Or 42.bxc5 xc5 43.d7 h6 44.a4 c1
45.d5 h5+ 46.h4 g1 47.g7 f6
48.f7+ e5 49.g4 hxg4 50.hxg4 e3
, and Black shouldn't lose ]
42...f6?!
[ Black should have played 42...c1! , e.g.
43.d5 cxb4 44.axb4 b5! , and Black
actually has the marginally better chances ]
43.f4 e1 44.h4 h5 45.d5 f1+ 46.e4
e1+ 47.f3 c1 48.a4 c3
[ Bacrot seeks refuge in an opposite-
coloured bishop endgame, which in the case
gives Black is drawn. A perfectly acceptable alternative
is 48...g5!? 49.hxg5+ xg5 , and White
will have a hard time making progress, but
can of course try. ]
49.xc3 xc3 50.bxc5 bxc5 51.c6 e1
52.e8 g5??
[ This is massive blunder, undoubtedly
c5 played with next to no time left on the clock.
Black should draw after 52...f5 53.d7+
e5 54.c8 d4 55.a6 e5 56.b7
d4 57.d5 e5 , and White has will not
be able to make any progress ]
53.xh5 gxh4 54.gxh4 xh4
e7 [ T h i s l o s e s i m m e d i a t e l y , b u t 54...e7
55.g4 f6 56.e8 will lead to the same
341
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

result, but take longer ] t h e d - f i l e . T h e p r o b l e m w i t h 8.dxe4

55.a5 is that, after e5 9.b3 c5 Black's dark-
1-0 squared bishop takes a strong post, aiming
at the f2-square, 10.h3 e7 11.f4 f7
12.a3 a5 13.d3 0-0 with good play for
355 A10 Black, who won in double-quick time, in
Schmit,Aaron Heinbuch,D-Kengis,E/Bonn 1995. ]
Pribyl,Josef 8...xe4
1990 Altensteig 1990 [ A novelty, although it doesn't change too
[Paul Motwani] much when compared with the move
8...b4+ e. g. 9.d2 xd2+ 10.xd2 0-0
W43: "Czech checked by a cheeky check!!" 11.0-0 with slightly more space for White,
1.f3 d6 2.c4 Smejkal,J-Speelman,J/Germany 1999. ]
[ 2.d4 g4 is the Wade System, but in the 9.xe4 b4+ 10.d2 xd2+ 11.xd2 0-0
actual game W hite has a sneaky idea in 12.0-0 f6 Exerts pressure on the backward
mind involving getting his queen out to b3 pawn 13.ad1 ad8 14.c3 a5 15.xb7
af t e r p la yin g 2 c4 . Ju st wa t ch a n d se e xb7 16.xf6 xf6 17.d4
what happens next... ] [ 17.f4 might be more accurate. ]
2...g4 17...d6 18.b3 f3 19.g2 df8 20.f4
[ Of course 2...e5 was also possible. ] c3 White is forced to exchange this rook, lest
3.b3 c8 4.h3 h5?? Black probably it becomes too active. 21.c1 xc1 22.xc1
played this routine-looking move very quickly, f5 23.e2
but in this instance there's a fatal tactical ½-½
flaw... 5.b5+ Oops. That's bye-bye black
bishop! Reader's Challenge Puzzle W43P1:
Can you think of a similar situation in the 357 A10
Trompovsky Attack where several master- Sorokin,Maxim 2570
level players have made a losing move, as Lalic,Bogdan 2545
White on move 3, allowing Black to respond Goodricke Open (10) 2000
with a winning queen-check!? Look out...here [Tony Kosten]
comes the answer! Solution to puzzle
W43P1:1 d4 Nf6 2 Bg5 c6 3 e3?? Qa5+. 1.c4 b6 Something of a surprise from Bogdan
1-0 La lic, b u t a s h is p rep a ra t io n is n o rm a lly
excellent, we can expect him to have a few
tricks up his sleeve. 2.c3 b7 3.e4 e6
356 A10 4.f3 b4 5.d3 e7 6.e2 This move,
Smejkal,Jan 2526 avoiding ...Bxc3, and threatening to trap the
Kengis,Edvins 2574 b4-bishop, is very much 'a la mode'. g6!
Bundesliga 1999-2000 (12) 12.03.2000 [ And here it is, Black's improvement over
[Tony Kosten] 6...f5 which left Black worse in previously. ]
7.0-0 0-0 8.c2 A natural move, intending
1.c4 b6 2.c3 b7 3.e4 e6 4.g3 d4. f5! 9.d4
[ In my book, The Dynamic English, I [ P r o b a b l y b e s t , t h e c a p t u r e 9.exf5?
recommend 4.ge2 as more flexible, as is strongly met by xf3 10.fxg6? ( 10.gxf3
this takes the sting out of any ... f5-move. ] i s s u p e r i o r , b u t h4 and Black has the
4...f5 Naturally, the e4-pawn is pinned along upper hand because of White's shattered
the h1-a8 diagonal. 5.g2 f6 6.d3 fxe4 kingside ) 10...g5 11.gxh7+ h8 12.g3
7.ge2 Now it is Black's e4-pawn that is g4 and White must jettison lots of material
p i n n e d a l o n g t h i s s a m e d i a g o n a l . c6 to avoid getting mated on g2. ]
8.xe4 9...xe4 10.xe4 fxe4 11.g5 e7
[ Probably strongest, keeping the d3-pawn on 12.xe4 d5 Now that Black has exchanged

342
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
his light-squared bishop, he hastens to place
his pawns on this colour complex. 13.4c3
dxc4 14.a4 d7 15.xc4 c6 16.e3
a5 17.d3 c6 Black's e6-pawn is isolated,
but so is White's d4-pawn, and this last stands
on a dark square. Black has no problems, his
opening has been a success. 18.ac1
½-½
358
Troyke,Christian
Krasenkow,Michal
16th Monarch Assurance (7) 28.09.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.c4 b6 2.c3 b7 3.e4 e6 4.ge2
This move isn't mentioned in the ECO, but is
briefly covered in Daniel King's book on the
English Def ence f rom 1999, where his
coverage focuses on the move 4...Nf6 by
Black as played in game between Kortchnoi
and King himself. c5
[ Black players should take a further look at
4...f6 , and now White's main moves are
5.g3 ( and 5.d3 )]
5.g3 h5
[ This move is extremely rare, but carries
som e p unc h, alt hou gh W hite can ge t a
perfectly fine position in a number of ways.
White's chosen set-up is extremely solid and
can be difficult to break down. As the higher
rated player, you may be inspired to try
s h e n a n i ga n s s u ch a s t h e t e xt m o ve t o
change the pace a little. Black alternatives
are as follows: A) 5...d6 6.d4 e7 7.g2
d7 8.0-0 h5 9.f4 h4 10.g4 h3 11.f3
a6 12.e3 1-0 Czaya, R-Hoenlinger, B/
Bad Nauheim 1948 ]
[ B) 5...c6 6.g2 f6 ( 6...ge7 7.0-0
d4 8.xd4 cxd4 9.e2 c6 10.d3 e7
11.f4 0-0 12.a3 d6 13.b4 e5 14.g4 h4
15.f3 c8 16.f5 , and although this is
evaluated as about even, I clearly prefer
W hite's chances, thanks to her space
advantage and attacking potential on the
k i n g s i d e , wh i l e B l a c k ' s c o u n t e r p l a y i s
rather limited, Ptacnikova, L-Vyskocil, N/
Olomouc CZE 2003; 6...e5 7.d5 f6
8.0-0 e7 9.d3 0-0 10.e3 ) 7.0-0 h6
8.d4 cxd4 9.xd4 f7 10.e3 e7
11.e2 0-0 12.fd1 c8 13.ac1 xd4
14.xd4 b8 15.c2 , and White has the
cl e a rl y b e t t e r c h a n c e s , B la ck s t o c k , L -
Basman, M/London 1974 ]
[ C) 5...b5? is a not very good idea.
executed in a manifestly stupid fashion:
6.cxb5 d5?! ( 6...a6!? 7.bxa6 xa6 8.g2
b4 9.d3 a6 ) 7.exd5 xd5? 8.xd5
xd5 9.g1+- Norwood, D-Savva, A/
Groningen 1984 ]
A10 [ D) Black's main line move is 5...f6 6.g2
2386 A) 6...a6 7.d3 c7 8.0-0 e7 9.h3 h5
2660 ( 9...c6 10.f4 h5 11.e3 d6 12.a3
d8 13.b1 b8 14.f5 e5 15.b4
L e zca n o Ja e n , P -G o n za l e z V e l e z, F /
Barcelona 2000) 10.f4 d6 11.e3 bd7
12.c1 c8 13.a3 b8 14.b4 a8
15.b1 c6 16.b5?! ( 16.f5! e5 17.bxc5
dxc5 18.d5 d8 19.ec3
looks downright ugly for Black) 16...axb5
17.xb5 h4 18.g4 d5 19.e5 ( 19.exd5!?
exd5 20.g5 h5 21.f2 d4 22.xc6
xc6 23.xh4 ) 19...xg4 20.hxg4 h3
21.f3 d4 ( 21...h2+! 22.f2 d4
23.exd4 cxd4 24.xd4 xf3 25.xf3
c5 is complicated but probably better for
White ) 22.exd4 cxd4 23.xd4 xf3
24.xf3 xa3 25.b5 a2
1/2-1/2 Hauchard, A-Rocha, S/ Porto 2000,
and here White should have tried 26.d4
, and Black is facing serious problems
given the wave of counterplay appears to
b e o ve r a n d n o w W h i t e ' s p i e c e s a r e
frothing at their mouths to have a go at
Black's monarch.;
B) 6...d6 7.0-0 a6
B1) 8.f4 c7 9.d3 e7 10.f5 e5
11.f3 h5 12.h4 bd7 13.a4 0-0-0
14.a5 dg8 15.axb6 ( White can also
consider another approach, e.g. 15.g2
g6 16.fxg6 xg6 17.g5 bxa5 18.h3
with a solid plus for White, who's pieces
are b e t t e r co o rd in a t e d) 15...xb6
16.d2 g6 17.a4 bd7 18.e1
( 18.g2 gxf5 19.xf5 ) 18...d8
19.ec3 gxf5 20.exf5 Schwierskott, M-
Kniest, O/Leverkusen 2001, and now
h7 21.g5 hg7 with a complicated
position, where I would be afraid to pick
one side over the other, but I would
probably pick Black if I were to pick one
343
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
side to play.;
B2) 8.d3 c7
B2a) 9.a3 e7 10.b4 0-0 11.b1
c6 12.b5!? axb5 ( 12...e5 13.f4
ed7 14.bxa6 xa6 15.b5 c8
16.ec3 ) 13.xb5 d8 14.f4 d5
15.cxd5 exd5 16.e5 e8 17.ec3
d4 18.e4 h8 1-0 Miezis, N-
Kulaots, K/Biel 1995;
B2b) 9.h3 bd7
B2b1) There is no reason to rush
things with 10.f4 g6 11.a3 ( 11.e5
xg2 12.xg2 c6+ 13.h2
h5 ) 11...g7 12.e3 0-0 13.g4
d5 14.f2 ( 14.cxd5 exd5 15.exd5
ae8 16.d2 d6 17.e4 b8
18.2c3= ) 14...d4 15.b1 e8
, planning ...f7-f5 leaves Black with a
pleasant position, Werner, B-Lyrberg,
P/ Copenhagen;
B2b2) 10.e3 e7 11.f4 0-0-0
( 11...d5?! 12.cxd5 exd5 13.e5 d4
14.xb7 xb7 15.exf6 xf6
16.xd4 cxd4 17.xd4 d7
18.xf6 xf6 19.e2+
, and White is a pawn for insufficient
compensation, Baekgaard, M-Reefat,
B/ Gausdal 2001) 12.a3 b8 13.b4
d5? 14.cxd5 exd5 15.bxc5 bxc5
16.e5 e4? ( 16...d4 17.xb7+
xb7 18.b1 a7 19.exf6 xf6
20.a4 dxe3 21.b3+- ) 17.dxe4
d4 18.xd4 cxd4 19.d5 xd5
20.exd5 c5 21.d3 a7 22.h2
1-0 Hebesberger, T-Aschenbrenner,
R/AUT 2001 ]
[ E) 5...f5 6.g2 f6 7.d3 e7 8.0-0
A) 8...fxe4 9.dxe4 0-0 10.e5 ( 10.f4!? )
10...xg2 11.exf6 xf1 12.fxe7 xe7
13.xf1 c6 1-0 Taylor, P-Berry, S/Rd07-
T e l f o r d 2 0 0 3 ( 4 4 ) 14.g2!? d4
15.e3;
B) 8...c8 9.b3 ( 9.g5!? ) 9...0-0
10.b2 g6 11.d2 ( 11.exf5 xg2
12.xg2 g4 13.f4 gxf5 14.d2 )
11...f7 12.fe1 c6 13.exf5 gxf5
14.d4 xd4 15.xd4 cxd4 16.xd4
1-0 Reiss, A-Peredy, F/Veszprem 2000 ]
6.h3 h4
[ The novelty. In a previous game, Black tried
6...c6 7.g2 d4 8.d3 g5 9.xd4
( 9.f4! e7 10.fxg5 xg5 11.xd4 cxd4
12.b5 b8 13.0-0 ) 9...cxd4 10.e2 e5
11.g1 ( 11.0-0!? g4 12.f4 gxf3 13.xf3
is very pleasant for White) 11...e7 12.f3
f6 13.d2 e6 14.g1 For all of White's
moving around with the knight, Black
compensates for it by moving his queen and
pawns rather than getting some real
d e v e l o p m e n t i n . e7 15.e2 h4
( 15...c6 16.a3 e7 with a complicated
struggle ahead) 16.f3 hxg3 17.fxg3 c6
18.a3 e7 Compagnie, L-Orso, M/Budapest
2002, and despite all of W hite's clowning
around with his knight, he can still obtain a
good position with 19.h4 , and now g4?
20.0-0-0! is very problematic for Black, e.g.
gxh4 21.gxh4 h5 22.h3 and White is
obviously much better. ]
7.g2
[ There is nothing wrong with 7.g4!? , e.g.
c6 8.g2 e5 9.0-0 and White has a
comfortable game. The text, however, is
more ambitious. ]
7...hxg3 8.fxg3 c6
[ 8...f6 9.d3 d6 10.e3 h5 11.b5
e7 ( 11...xg3+? 12.xg3 xg3
13.d6+ e7 14.f4+- ) 12.d2 a6
13.bc3 ]
9.d3 ge7
[ 9...d6!? 10.e3 ge7 11.d2 a6
12.0-0-0 looks better for White, e.g. c7
13.b1 xg3 ( 13...e5 14.hf1 f6
15.b3 ) 14.xg3 xg3 15.f4 g6
16.c7 ]
10.g5!?
[ The immediate 10.e3!? is also perfectly
playable ]
10...f6 11.e3 g6 12.f4?!
[ This doesn't make too much sense, as this
move simply encourages Black to place his
g6-knight on a better square. Other ideas
are 12.d2!? ]
[ and 12.a3!? ]
12...ge5 13.a3
[ 13.h4 a6 14.h5!? d4 15.a4
A) 15...f5?! 16.exf5 ( 16.0-0? g5! )
16...xg2 17.xg2 df3+ 18.e2 d6
19.fxe6 dxe6 20.f4 and White has the
better chances;
B) 15...c7 16.f1 e7 , and I prefer
Black's chances somewhat ]
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
13...a6 14.h4 d6 15.b3?
[ 15.h5!? d4 ( 15...e7 16.b3 d4
17.xd4 cxd4 18.ce2 c5 19.0-0-0 )
16.0-0 f5! , and Blacks pieces are better
coordinated, but this is clearly to be
preferred over the game continuation, which
is just horrible for White. ]
[ 15.f1 e7 16.h5 c7 ]
15...g5 16.hxg5 xh1+ 17.xh1 fxg5
18.d1
[ 18.h5!? xd3+ ( 18...e7!? ) 19.e2
de5 20.f1
A) 20...d4+ 21.xd4 cxd4 22.d5
xd5 ( 22...exd5?? 23.g7+ e7
24.f5++- ) 23.exd5 d3+ 24.d2 c7
25.f6+ d8 26.dxe6 c5 with messy
complications in which no one can be
100% sure to be better;
B) 20...e7!? 21.f6+ d8 22.xb6+
c8 23.fd5! Best, because everything
else pretty much sucks exd5 24.xd5
d8 25.xd8+ xd8 26.xg5+ e8
27.f6+ f7 28.xd7+ e6 29.b6
f8 30.xf8 xf8 31.f4 and Black has
finally stabilized the game, but at least
White in this variation has three pawns for
the piece. Neverth eless Black should
probably win this position. ]
18...gxf4 19.h5+ f7 20.gxf4 e7 21.e5
c7 22.f2
[ 22.e4 0-0-0 23.0-0-0 h8 obviously
doesn't provide W hite any decent
counterchances either ]
22...f8! 23.h4 h6 24.xh6
[ Nor does 24.g4 help the situation: d8
25.g8+ f8 26.h7 h8 and the queens
once again depart the part, leaving Black a
piece up for minimal compensation. White
could just as well have resigned at this point,
but decided to go on for a little while. ]
24...xh6 25.f3 d8 26.h5+ f8
27.xd8 xd8 28.a4 d4 And White
resigned as he doesn't even win the b-pawn, e.
g. 29 0-0-0 Bc6 30 Nxb6? Rb8, and another
piece bites the dust.
0-1
359 A10
Vaganian,Rafael A 2667
Heidrich,Manfred 2415
Bundesliga 2002-3 (4) 17.11.2002
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f5 2.g3 f6 3.c4 g6 4.b4!? g7
5.b2 d6 6.d3 e5 7.bd2!? This move is
something of a favourite of Vaganian, and the
position closely resembles that of his game
against Kuczynski, which we examined a short
time ago, except that there he played Bg2
and castled quickly, here he prefers to
accelerate his queenside play. c6 8.b5
e7 9.g2 0-0 10.b3 This is a good time
to play this move, as then Black has to play ...
K h 8 i f h e wa n t s t o m o ve a wa y f r o m t h e
threatened discovered attack, whereas if he
gets time to play ...h6 the king will be able to
go to the more comfortable square on h7. h6
Black prefers to allow W hite's next. 11.c5+
h7 12.c1 f4 Black starts his kingside
pawns going, but weakens e4. This might not
be too serious, but as White hasn't yet castled,
Black would not have liked
[ 12...g5?! b e c a u s e o f 13.h4! and if g4
14.g5+! ]
13.a4 b8 14.a3 The bishop seemed well-
placed on b2, but was stymied by the e5-pawn,
wh e re a s d 6 is m u ch m o r e se n sit ive . f5
15.cxd6 cxd6 16.e4! e7
[ 16...xe4?! i s d o u b t f u l , 17.dxe4 d4
( 17...e7? 18.d1 ) 18.xd4 exd4
leaves the black pawns shattered. ]
17.0-0 Now is a good time to castle as Black is
too concerned with defending d6, and against
a c-file invasion, to be able to completely
concentrate on his kingside advance. d8
18.fe1 g5?! 19.c2 Aiming along the b1-h7
diagonal, and also the c-file, but White also
had a sharp shot here:
[ 19.g4!? xg4 20.h3 h5 ( and not
20...f6? 21.xc8 bxc8 22.xf5+ )
21.fxg5+ with pressure. ]
19...g4 20.fd2 e8 21.d4! Further freeing
the diagonal to Black's king, weakened by his
reckless eighteenth move. exd4?! 22.gxf4
h8 23.g3 f7 24.b2 The bishop
returns! h4 25.b3!? White does not
bother avoiding the exchange of his light-
squared bishop, but aims to blast through the
345
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

a1-h8 diagonal as quickly as possible. xg2 on such a square, as it has no way to return!
26.xg2 d5+?! This fails to defend d4, d4?! Black only succeeds in opening the f-file
[ 26...xf4?! was no improvement, 27.h5 for W hite with this move. 22.d2 d5
f7 28.xg7 xg7 29.xd4 and the black 23.c4 dxe3 24.fxe3 e7 25.cf2 g6
king is in the line of fire. ] 26.h5 Suddenly White has powerful
[ however, 26...d3 was a reasonable pressure on the kingside while his silly knight
chance: 27.exd3 e6 when White's extra keeps two major pieces from returning to help.
pawn looks pretty ragged. ] e7 27.h3 a6 28.a3 axb5 29.axb5 a8
27.g1 b6?! 28.xd4! [ B l a c k i s i n r e a l t r o u b l e a f t e r 29...e4?
[ 28.xd4 xd4 29.ed1 wins easily, the which is met by 30.xe4! fxe4 31.xf7
attack along the long diagonal after Rxd4 will xf7 32.xf7+ h8 33.g4! (to stop ...
be too strong. ] Qxh3) with a decisive attack. ]
1-0 30.xe7 xe7 31.g4?! Trying to break
through on the f-file, but leaving the queen
short of squares. f4!
360 A10 [ 31...fxg4 32.hxg4 xg4 33.g6 e6
Vaganian,Rafael A 2662 34.e4 is very strong. ]
Kuczynski,Robert 2497 32.e4 h8! With a nasty threat of ...Bf7,
Bundesliga 2001-2 (11) 17.03.2002 trapping the queen, but White has something
[Tony Kosten] prepared: 33.xe5? However, this should
lose.
1.f3 d6 2.g3 f5 3.g2 f6 4.c4 g6 [ 33.bd6!? is a better try, perhaps, cxd6
5.b4!? And why not? This is just like the 'b4 34.xb6 ]
against the KI' line we have examined. g7 33...xe5
How can such an obvious move be a novelty? [ 33...fxe3! is simple and effective, 34.e2
And yet it is, as previously Black had preferred xe5 35.xh6 f4 is winning. ]
[ 5...e5 6.c3 g7 7.0-0 0-0 Nikcevic,N- 34.xh6 f8!?
Troffiguer,O/Paris FRA 2001, and ] [ 34...g7 35.exf4 gxf4 keeps the f-file
[ 5...a5 6.b5 g7 7.b2 Pihlajasalo,A- closed. ]
Paasikangas,J/FIN 1995. ] 35.h7+!?
6.b2 0-0 7.0-0 e5 This can be compared [ 35.xg5+ g7 forces the exchange of
with the games Hoffmann - Wemmers, and queens. ]
Na rcis o Du blan - P ed erse n in [ A0 5] , th e 35...xh7 36.xe6+ f7 Black has an extra
major difference being the black f-pawn which piece, and should still win. 37.d4 h6?
is on f5, not f7. 8.d3 h6 9.bd2!? A comedy of time-trouble errors!
[ 9.c3 would lead to a typical Closed [ 37...g7 seems simple enough, when
English position, but White wants to keep W h i t e c a n n o t c a p t u r e o n f 4 , a s 38.exf4
the diagonal open. ] xd4 wins a further exchange. ]
9...g5 10.c5! e7 11.c4 The point of [ However, 37...fxe3! is the most
White's play is revealed: the knight goes to c4 appropriate, 38.xf7 xf7 39.dxe5 g7
where it defends the b2-bishop, and adds forces the exchange of the last two
pressure to d6 and e5. e6 12.fd2 c6 remaining white major pieces, and certain
13.b5 d8 14.a4 White has a serious space resignation. ]
advantage on the queenside. b8 15.c1 38.d5 g7?!
f7 16.a5!? By taking the pressure off e5 [ Now 38...d6 is better, although I can
White allows Black to play ...d5. d5 17.e3 imagine that Black didn't want to allow the
fe8 b7-knight an honest move. ]
[ 17...g4!? and a later ...Ng5 is more 39.exf4 Now the position is completely
aggressive. ] unclear. f6?
18.c2 d8 19.db3 c8 20.c6 b6 [ Black had to find 39...a3!! 40.fxg5 g3+
21.b7!? I would never dare putting a knight 41.g2 e3+ which gives him at least a

346
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
draw, and maybe more. ]
40.fxg5 Finally opening the f-file, and winning.
xf2 41.xf2 b4?! There was no defence
to g6:
[ 41...a4 42.g6 xd4
( t h e k n i g h t r e t u r n s ! ) xf2+
should win easily enough. ]
42.xf7+ h8 43.h5+ g8 44.g6 e1+
45.g2 e4+ 46.h2 White was very lucky!
1-0
361
Van der Elburg,Freddie
Spoelman,Wouter
3rd ACT Amsterdam NED (9) 23.07.2006
[John Watson]
The system that W hite uses is played a lot
against the English Defence because it looks
safe, but it always seems to lose! Essentially,
W hite grants Black a central majority and
activity. 1.c4 b6 2.c3 b7 3.e4 e6 4.g3
f5 5.g2 f6 6.c2 fxe4 7.xe4 xe4
8.xe4 xe4 9.xe4 c6 10.e2 f6 10.c4 xc4 Simplifying a bit, but repairing
11.d4
[ 11.0-0 c5! 12.d3 0-0 with control of d4. ]
11...b4+ 12.f1
[ 12.d2 0-0 13.f4 ad8 14.0-0-0 d5 to keeping the pawn on b3 (restricts Black's
gives Black the better game. ]
12...0-0 13.e3 h8
[ Or 13...e7! 14.g2 d5 ]
14.g2 d5!? 15.cxd5 exd5 16.g4?
[ 16.xd5 e7 , but this isn't so clear. ]
16...ae8 17.hf1 e4 18.h5 g6 19.xd5
f3+ 20.g1 xe3 Winning a piece.
21.xf3 exf3 22.ac1 3f6 23.a3 d2
0-1
362
Adams,Mi
Kanep,M
11th Gibraltar Masters (3.1) 24.01.2013
[John Bartholomew]
Michael Adams tries his hand at the Anti-Slav
gambit. He obtains no serious edge but wins
anyway! 1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.g2 d5 4.f3
dxc4 5.0-0 bd7 6.a3 b6 7.c2 d5
[ The line in question is similar to 7...e6
8.b3 cxb3 9.axb3 , which I examined in
the December 2012 update. See
Bartholomew, J (2427)-Kojima, S (2340)
London ENG 2012/[John Bartholomew]. ]
43.d8!? 8.b3 White offers a pawn in order to speed
44.xf2 his d evelo pment . He can expect at leas t
adequate compensation in the middlegame.
[ T h e t e xt h a s b e gu n t o su p p l a n t 8.e1
in t heoretical reput e, but still trails th e
knight retreat in overall popularity. ]
8...cxb3
[ Worse is 8...f5?! 9.b2 cxb3 10.axb3
A10 d8 11.c4 g6 , as in Mikhalevski, V
2348 (2525)-Matinian, N (2438) Moscow 2012/
2461 [ J o h n B a r t h o l o m e w ] . H e r e 12.e4!
is quite powerful for White. ]
9.axb3 g6
[ Black hasn't been eager to repeat 9...e6
since the blistering game Timman, J (2571)-
Ernst, S (2606) W ijk aan Zee 2012/[John
Bartholomew]: 10.b4! b3 11.xb3 xb3
12.b5 c5 13.d3 fd7 14.d2 d5 15.e4
e6 16.f4 and the Dutchman crashed
through in 33 moves. ]
White's structure in the process. In fact it's
not altogether clear how much White benefits
from b3xc4, as there were certain advantages
entire queenside structure allows White to use
the c-file c4 as a useful transfer point).
[ R e t u r n i n g t o b a s e w i t h 10...d8
should probably be preferred. Following
11.fe5!? ( White can also keep it simple
with 11.e4 g7 12.b2 0-0 13.d4
, as in Matamoros Franco, C (2548)-
Gonzalez, B (2427) Quito 2012) 11...bd5
12.e4 c7 13.d4 and now: Best is
A) The pawn is poisoned, of course:
13...xd4?? 14.e3 ( or the difficult to
A11 find 14.b2 c5 15.a5 b5 16.b4!!
2725 xb4 17.d3+- ) 14...d8 15.ad1 d7
2512 16.xd7 xd7 17.e5+-;
B) 13...g7 14.b2 0-0 and now:
B1) 15.h3 b5 16.ad1 c7 17.g4!?
Pantsulaia, L (2595) -Alavi Moghaddam,
S (2443) Rasht 2012 here Black should
play d7 18.f3 ( 18.f4 c5! )
18...d8 19.fe1;
B2) 15.fd1!?N;
B3) 15.f4!? e6 16.h3 b5 17.ad1
347
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

c7 18.g4 ad8 (White is fully 19.d8+ e8 20.a5 looks a little better
mobilized, but Black is standing firm) for White. ]
19.f5 c8 20.f2 d7 Pantsulaia, L [ 12.d4 (also refusing to mess around) g7
(2596)-Wang Yue (2644) Yerevan 2006. 13.e4 0-0 14.e5 d7 15.h3 ( 15.c5!? )
Here 21.d3!? intending b6 15...f5 16.b3 c5 Schachinger, M (2360)-
22.ce5 looks best, though Black's Zimmermann, U (2128) Vienna 2011.
defensive resources are considerable. ] 17.a5! ]
11.bxc4 h5 I think the queen is a little 12...g7 13.a3 c5 14.b2 0-0 15.a3
misplaced here. [ 15.fb1!? ]
[ 11...d8 looks less logical now, but might 15...d7 16.fa1 a6 17.e5 ab8 18.h4
b e b e t t e r, e . g . 12.e5!? ( 12.d3 g7 g4! Kanep defends resourcefully. 19.xd7
13.a2 0-0 14.e3 a6 15.b1 d7 f5 ( T h e p o i n t ) 20.f3 xd7 21.xg7
16.d2 c7 17.c5! e5 18.f4 xg7 22.b2+ g8 23.b3 b5 24.xa6
Azaladze, S (2433)-Feher, A (2260) Rijeka b4 25.a1 h5 The position now looks
2010; a game was played with 12.b2 balanced, though I'd still favor Adams'
righ t a s I wa s p re p a rin g t o su b m it t h i s coordinated long-range pieces just a smidgen.
update: g7 13.d4 a6 14.fb1 0-0 26.b1 f5 27.a5 fc8 28.b5 d7
15.d3 g4 16.xg7 xg7 17.c5 f6 29.a5 b6 30.g2 f6 31.b2 d6
18.a4 c7 19.d2 e5 20.b3 f7 [ 31...f5!? ]
21.a5 Arun Prasad, S (2514) -Vorobiov, 32.d4!? Seizing an opportunity to transform
E (2584) Moscow RUS 2013) 12...g7 the pawn structure. cxd4 33.d5 c7
13.b2 0-0 14.d4 d7 15.d3 34.xd4 e5 35.xb4 xf3?
(as usual White has no interest in further Kanep dooms himself to passive defense in a
exchanges) b6 16.c5!? d5 17.fd1 f5 pawn-down heavy piece endgame.
18.b3 h8 , Trella, T (2234)-Ionov, S [ A peace agreement would surely have been
(2 5 2 2 ) Ca p p e l le l a G ra n d e 2 0 0 7 . No w s i g n e d a f t e r 35...xf3! 36.exf3 c6
19.e3 ought to allow White to control the 37.d2 xd4 38.xd4 xc4= . ]
p a c e o f t h e ga m e q u it e n ice ly. He ca n 36.exf3 Black should hold this with computer-
target Black's queenside pawns in a number like precision, but your chances are not good
of ways and may also abruptly change the against a technician like Michael Adams. c6
structure with Bg2xd5, possibly followed by 37.c1 e6 38.d2 e5 39.e1 f6
Nd3-f4. ] 40.d3 c5 41.ee4 8c7 42.d7 xd7
12.d3 Adams trusts the integrity of his position 43.xd7 f5 44.d3 e7 45.d4 c5
and chooses a positionally sound continuation. 46.d7 f6 47.b7 c8 48.e4 g7
White has tried something different in each of 49.d7 f5?! 50.e2?!
the four games to have reached this position [ Surprisingly strong was 50.d4+! e5
and scored a perfect 4-0, suggesting that he ( 50...f6? 51.xf7+! xf7 52.d7+
h a s a n u m b e r o f a c c e p t a b l e o f w a ys t o picks up the rook and wins; 50...h7
proceed: 51.e7!!+- prevents ... e6-e5 and sees Black
[ 12.e4 (straightforward and strong, so why utterly helpless to stop g2-g4; White should
not?) g7 13.e5 d7 14.d4 f5 ( 14...0-0 w i n t h e q u e e n e n d i n g a f t e r 50...g8
15.c5! ) 15.e2 c5? 16.f4 ( 16.a5!? ) 51.d8+ xd8 52.xd8+ g7 53.d6+-
16...h5 17.h3! f8 18.g4 xg4 19.hxg4 , as his king is extremely safe) 51.d6
xg4 20.g3+- and Black was soon swept , since xc4?? loses on the spot to
off the board in Kuljasevic, D (2560)-Zufic, 52.d8+- . ]
M (2409) Rijeka 2011. ] 50...f6 51.d3 f5 52.c3+
[ 12.c3!? g7 13.a5 (a neat idea) g4 [ 52.d4+! ]
14.d3 0-0 15.a3 a6 16.e5!? 52...f6 53.b4 f5 54.b3 f6 55.b7
(creative use of the rook!) e8 17.xe7 e5 56.d3 f6 57.e4 g8 58.a7
xe7 18.xe7 e6 Hausrath, D (2527)- g7 59.a8 c5 60.d3 c7 61.a5 c8
Burg, T (2455) Netherlands 2010. Here 62.c5 Progress! e5 63.c4 d8 64.a3

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
d5?!
[ Missing a great chance to counterattack:
64...d2! 65.c3 ( 65.c6 e1 66.f1
xf1+ 67.xf1 c2 and Black has an ideal
defensive position in the rook endgame)
65...xc3 66.xc3 f6 and I believe Black
can draw due to the proximity of White's c-
pawn (if the White rook and pawn were on
a3/a5 this would most certainly be lost for
the second player in the same vein as the
famous 34th game of the 1927 Alekhine-
Capablanca match). An illustrative line:
67.c6 d8 68.g4 e7 69.g3 d6
70.f4 f6! 71.g5 ( 71.d3+ c7 72.xd8
xd8 73.g5 e5+! 74.g3 fxg5 75.hxg5
c7 76.f4 exf4+ 77.xf4 xc6 78.e5
d7 79.f4 e7 80.f5= ) 71...e5+ 72.e3
fxg5 73.hxg5 c7 74.e4 f8 and Black
will hold. ]
65.c3! d4 66.b3 e1 67.b2 e5?
[ 67...h7! was Black's last chance. ]
68.c1 d2
[ Or 68...b4 69.xb4 xb4 70.c6 b8
71.c7 c8 72.f4! . Compared to 64...Rd2!
here Black's king is too far away, e.g. exf4
( 72...e4 73.f3 exf3+ 74.xf3
changes nothing) 73.gxf4 f6 74.f3 e6
75.e4 d6 76.f5+- and White forces his
way into the kingside. ]
69.xe1 xb2 70.xe5 White still faces a
couple minor technical obstacles, but Black
cannot resist. c2 71.g4! f6 72.g5 e6
73.g3 c4 74.gxh5 gxh5 75.xh5 f6
76.f4 c3+ 77.g4 f7 78.d5 e6
79.d6+ e7 80.c6 Black resigned. I don't
see any reason to doubt White's
compensation in this line, though I'd
personally follow Kuljasevic's or
Schachinger's example on move 12 (Adams'
12.d3 looks a bit limp). From Black's
perspective, 10...Qd8 looks safer.
1-0
363 A11
Agrest,Evgenij 2590
Postny,Evgeny 2647
Politiken Cup (10) 26.07.2009
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.c4 c6
[ To show that these lines do not always
favour Black, Agrest has also won with this
line, albeit via a different move order. 1...f6
2.f3 c6 3.c2 It's hard to believe that
such a fussy move can be a threat to Black.
d5 4.e3 g6 5.b3 g7 ( 5...f5!? 6.d3
a6 probably doesn't lead anywhere good
for Black because White can even play the
simple 7.b2 ) 6.b2 0-0 7.e2 g4 8.d3
bd7 9.0-0 e8 10.h3 xf3 11.xf3 c8
12.d2 e6 13.ac1 a6 14.fd1 e5 15.g3
h5 16.g2 f8 17.f3 d6 18.g5
No t t h e o n ly p la n . b8 19.f1 e7
20.cd1 bc8 21.b1 f8 22.fe1 b4
23.e2 ce8 24.h1 h4!? 25.gxh4 g7
26.c2 h8 27.cxd5 xh4? ( 27...cxd5
28.c7; 27...xd5!? ) 28.dxc6 bxc6 29.g1
eh8 30.c4! and White had control and
went on to win in Agrest, E -Semcesen, D
Helsingor DEN 2009. ]
2.f3 d5 3.e3 f6 4.c3 a6!
One interesting point about this move order is
that at this juncture Black either has to be
willing to play a semi Slav or an a6 Slav or a
Schlecter with ...g6, or else he has to make a
slight concession because both . ..Bf5 and ...
Bg4 run into slight problems with Qb3 related
issues, as we have seen in previous updates.
Now any Slav player worth his salt can play a
system with a6, g6 or e6, but there are a few
who much prefer to take White's pawn on c4.
So if you are sure your opponent likes to play
1d4 d5 2c4 c6 3Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dc, then this
move order can be quite tricky....But of course,
don't' forget that when trying to lure your
opponent into terra incognita, you ought to
know something about it yourself! 5.c2
[ 5.d4!? is not a bad move either, but
Bologan, a great expert on this line, told me
that he can't find any advantage for White
against the a6 Slav. ]
5...g6 6.b3 g7 7.b2 0-0 8.e2 e8
9.d4 Perhaps not plan A, but on the bright
side the moves a6, g6 and Re8 are not a
349
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

particularly powerful trio. f5! 10.d1 12.ad1 b5 13.e4 h7 gave Black a
[ 10.d3!? Odd though it seems, White comfortable game in Yosilevich, D-Polaczek,
probably has more chance of getting an R/Dos Hermanas 2004. ]
edge by taking a tempo to exchange 6...cxd5 7.b3 b5 This seems like the
bishops. ] logical follow up to 4...a6 but White can break
10...e4 11.0-0 xc3 12.xc3 g4 13.c1 open the queenside now.
e6 Black is rock solid. 14.d2 d7 15.a5 [ 7...c8 is worth a thought despite its
b8 16.h3 xf3 17.xf3 f5! 18.a4 f6 retrograde appearance. ]
W h it e i s n o t wo rse h e re , b u t a lr e a d y h e
8.a4! Breaking up the left flank before Black
sho uld give so me th ought to ho lding th e has time to support it with developed pieces.
balance because Black's position is more bxa4 9.xa4+ d7 10.c3 c6
flexible, and the knight on f6 is generally [ White also has the initiative after 10...xa4
slightly more useful than the bishop on f3. 11.xa4 e6 12.b5 . ]
19.c2 11.d3 e5 With White about to explode the
[ 19.b4!? half-hoping to swap queens with centre with e2-e4 Black should keep things as
Qb6-c7, and more generally just fishing tight as possible there.
around, looks better. ] [ 11...e6 was much more solid though White
19...d6 20.e2 f4!? 21.exf4 xf4
still has a lot of pressure, for example 12.e4
22.cd1 e4 Black now has a slight initiative, g4 13.exd5 exd5 14.d4 xd4 15.xd4
mainly because d4 is weak. 23.d3 d6
e6 16.a5 e7 17.e3 0-0 18.fa1
24.c7 ac8 25.g3 f8 26.b6 f5 is unpleasant for Black. ]
27.e2 d6 28.d3 e5!? At first I felt this 12.e4
was anti-positional, but actually it is quite [ It's possible that 12.d4 was even stronger,
timely due to some well concealed tactical for example e4 ( 12...exd4 13.xd4 xd4
details based on the unprotected bishop on b6 14.xd4 is also very good for White, for
and the weakness of W hite's kingside, example e6 15.d1 e7 16.g5 0-0
particularly g3. 29.dxe5 xe5 30.cxd5? 17.e4! etc. ) 13.e5 xe5 14.dxe5 xa4
[ 30.f3! b4 31.a5 and White is not15.xa4 d7 16.xd5 wins a pawn. ]
worse. ] 12...e6 Losing a pawn to a neat combination.
30...c5! White either missed this move, or [ 12...dxe4 13.dxe4 g4 was relatively best
failed to grasp that his bishop losing contact though it's still nice for White after 14.d5
with e3 meant that his kingside would cave in. .]
31.a5 e3! 32.fxe3 xg3+ 33.h1 xh3+ 13.exd5 xd5 14.xd5 xd5 15.xe5
34.g1 g3+ 35.h1 e5 36.f4 xe3 xe5 16.xd7+ xd7 17.xd5 White has
37.e4 xf4 won a pawn and has two mighty bishops as
0-1 well. He makes rather heavy weather of the
endgame but gets there finally. c6 18.xf7
a5 19.e3 b8 20.d5 b4 21.xc6+
364 A11 Snatching at the point a bit.
Alexander,Christian [ 21.fc1! was much better, keeping his
Boekhoff,Andrew 2299 bishop pair. ]
Philadelphia National op 37th (2) 24.11.2006 21...xc6 22.fc1+ d7 23.c5 hc8
[Nigel Davies] 24.xb4 xc1+ 25.xc1 xb4 26.c2 d6
[ The immediate 26...b3 would have made
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 f6 4.g2 a6 it harder for White. ]
5.0-0 f5 6.cxd5 This simple move looks 27.f1 b3 28.e2 g5 29.e3 g4 30.f4
quite good to me. h5 31.g5 b5+ 32.g6 d7 33.d4 d6
[ After 6.b3 the move 4...a6 looks quite 34.c5 xb2 35.xa5 xf2 36.xh5 d2
useful as Black might later expand with ...b7- 37.d5 d4 38.f5 xd5 39.h4 d2
b5. For example h6 7.b2 e6 8.d3 e7 40.xg4 e6 41.h5 f7 42.f4+ g7
9.bd2 0-0 10.c2 bd7 11.a3 c8 43.h4 d5+ 44.g4 g6 45.h5+ h6

350
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

46.f6+ g7 47.f5 d3 48.h4 a3 when e4 14.d4 xe2 15.xe2 b4
49.g4 a1 50.g5 a7 51.c5 f7 52.h6+ is promising. ]
h7 53.h5 f1 54.c7+ h8 55.g5 g1 11...b4
56.c8+ [ 11...e4 12.e5 b4 transposes. ]
1-0 12.d1 e4 13.e5 e8! The only move that
causes White any problems, he will chase the
strong knight away from e5. 14.a3 a6
365 A11 Automatic, but
Anastasian,Ashot 2602 [ 14...f6!? is p o ss ib le , 15.h3 ( 15.axb4?
Sakaev,Konstantin 2649 xb4+ 16.d2 xd2+ 17.xd2 fxe5
7th ch-Euro Kusadasi TUR (2) 05.04.2006 wins a pawn as f2 is hanging) 15...fxe5
[Tony Kosten] 16.dxe5 e7 17.axb4 xb4+ 18.e2
looks a bit awkward for White, but may be
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 f6 4.c3 e6 5.b3 OK. ]
d6 6.b2 0-0 7.c2 I have had a few goes 15.h3 The knight needs a retreat square. f6
with Gurevich's setup myself, but lost one 16.g4 f7 17.e2 c7 18.0-0 White has
very bad game in the Bundesliga, and so gave m a n a g e d t o c o m p l e t e h i s k i n g s i d e
up! e5!? Sharp and to the point! If Black can development without major concessions. His
p l a y t h i s m o v e i m m e d i a t e l y w i t h o u t plan now is to bring his dark-squared bishop
punishment then White's opening will prove to the a3-f8 diagonal, and then break the
doubtful. black centre with f3. d7 19.a4 ac8
[ 7...e7 was Van Wely, L-Sveshnikov, E, in [ 19...b4 20.a3 a5 is possible, to bring
the archives, while ] the knight to an active and well supported
[ 7...bd7 is the normal move, and I've square, 21.d2 ac8 22.ac1 equal. ]
looked at this many times in the past. ] 20.a3 e6!? I don't understand why Black
8.cxd5 cxd5 9.b5 This is the reason Black allows W hite to control the dark squares
avoided playing ...e5 in the past, as he is without a fight.
forced to part with his dark-squared bishop. [ 20...b4 is still good : 21.a5 ( 21.d2
Still, in return he gets a centre, and easy c2; 21.e1 a5 ) 21...b6 22.axb6 xb6
development. c6 10.xd6 xd6 11.d4!? 23.d2 a5 with a level game. ]
An attempted improvement, although it seems 21.f3 Now White begins to assume control. He
a n t i - p o s i t i o n a l t o s h u t t h e b 2 - b i s h o p ' s plays on the kingside, and ignores the c-file.
diagonal like this, W hite sees that he must d6 Now White solves all his problems with a
grab his share of the centre, but does he couple of exchanges. 22.xd6 xd6 23.fxe4
have time? The most obvious other retort is dxe4 24.c4+ Shutting the c-file with gain of
[ 11.b5?! , to pressure the e5-pawn, but tempo. h8 25.f4 e8 26.e2?
then b4 12.c1 ( 12.b1? c5 A waste of a move, which only drives the
wins an exchange, Ramirez Pereales, J- black knight to a better square.
R o m e r o C a l d e r o n , C / B a r c e l o n a 1 9 9 6) [ 26.f2 f5 27.h5 keeps the initiative. ]
12...d7!? ( 12...e4! 13.d4 d7 26...b4 27.f2 f5 28.f1!? Tempting
is nice for Black) 13.xe5 b6 14.a3 ac8 B l a c k i n t o t h e w i n o f a p i e c e . g5!?
15.c3 xb5 16.axb4 Fioramonti, H- This is probably OK, but very risky.
Sherwin, J/Switzerland 1996, when e4 [ 28...d5! 29.xd5 ( 29.h4 f6
favours Black as White's light squares are leaves the white pieces very awkwardly
severely compromised. ] placed ) 29...xd5 30.h5 g8!
[ 11.e2 g4 12.d1 xf3!? 13.xf3 e4 defends e8 and after a couple of prophylaxis
14.e2 d4 15.0-0 fd8 is very comfortable moves Black will take the pawn on b3, and
for Black, Balashov, Y-Kallai, G/Soviet Union maybe e3 too. ]
1991. ] 29.xe4 Forced. g6!
[ 11.c1 g4 12.b1!? a6 13.e2 [ 29...xe4 30.xe4 fxe4 31.h5
Jonasson, B-Gretarsson, H/Reykjavik 1995, is very dangerous for Black, the immediate

351
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
threats are Qxg5-g8 and Rf7. ]
[ 29...fxe4? 30.f6 e6 31.h5 wins, ce7
32.xe6 xe6 33.xe8+ xe8 34.xd6 ]
30.xg5 xg5 31.e4 White has given a
piece for two pawns, but in return he has
significantly improved the harmony of his
pieces, and has a strong centre. In short, he
has obtained excellent practical chances. g7
[ 31...fxe4?? loses to 32.f8+
( 32...xf8 33.xf8+ g7 34.g8+ )
33.1f7+ h6 34.xe8 xe8 35.xc7 ]
32.e5 c6? Time trouble, no doubt, as Black
simply drops the f-pawn which was stopping
the white rooks on the f-file. 33.xf5
With a nasty threat of ...Ne3 (because of the
p r e s s u re o n g2 ), b u t t h i s is e a s il y si d e -
stepped. 34.1f2 g8 35.h2 g7 36.g4! 9.g4
White wants to avoid problems on g2, as
[ 36.h5 s a y , a l l o w s f4! 37.xe8!
( 37.xg8 exg8 forces 38.g4 xg4
39.hxg4 e6 and Black is fine) 37...xe8
38.5xf4 g8 which is far from clear. ]
36...ge7 There was no time to shore up the
d5-square,
[ 36...d7?! 37.5f3 e6
and Rf8 wins. ]
37.d2 e6 38.2f3! preparing the decisive
tripling! a6?
[ 38...6e7! 39.f2 g6 keeps the game
alive a little longer: 40.f8+ g7 41.8f6!?
( 41.d3 xf8 42.xg6 xf3 43.xf3
hxg6 is not that easy) 41...xf6 42.xf6
g5 43.h4 xg4 44.xc6! looks winning ]
39.f2 There is no defence to the threat of
Rf8. g6 40.f8+ xf8 41.xf8+ g7
42.d3! The bishop deflects the queen from
the defence of f7.
1-0
366
Andreikin,Dmitry
Kaplan,Sasha
IX EICC Plovdiv BUL (3) 23.04.2008
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 f6 4.c3 e6
[ 4...g4 ]
5.b3 d6 6.b2 0-0 7.c2 bd7 8.e2
b6
[ 8...e7
A) 9.g4 xg4 10.g1 de5 ( 10...ge5
11.g5!? ) 11.xe5 xe5 12.0-0-0
with typical compensation.;
B) 9.0-0 The great thing about playing this
line as White is that if you are not in the
mood to hack the opponent's kingside, you
can still play positionally. For instance, the
f o l lo wi n g g a m e o f Mo s k a l e n k o ' s i s a
g7 strategic gem, showing why the two
bishops is, as Tony Miles once put it, "an
advantage you can win with". b6 10.cxd5
cxd5 ( 10...exd5 11.d4 e5 12.f4 )
11.b5 b7 12.xd6 xd6 13.ac1
d5 ac8 14.b1 a6 15.a1 fd8 16.h3 h6
17.e5 Moskalenko, V (2569)-Alsina Leal,
D (2517)/ Barcelona ESP 2008. ]
Critical. White can also play Rg1, h4,
castle or take on d5.
[ 9.cxd5!? cxd5 ( 9...exd5 10.d4 b7
11.f5 Kasparov once remarked that a
knight on f5 was almost always worth a
pawn, and here W hite hasn't even
sacrificed anything.) 10.b5 c5 11.a3 a6
12.bd4 b7 13.b4 d6 14.c1 c8
38.f1! 15.b1 xc1+ 16.xc1 b8 17.a1 c8
18.0-0 Hard to believe White has anything
here, but I thought it was worth showing how
such positions can be won. c7 19.g3 e5
( 19...c8!? ) 20.xe5 xe5 21.f4! d6
22.f3 e8 23.d4 b5 24.g4! f6 25.g5
f7 26.f2 d8 27.h4 e7 28.d3 e5?
Black was under pressure, but there was no
reason to buckle in this way. 29.fxe5 fxe5
30.xe5 xf2 31.xf2 xe5 32.xe5
win ning, B an ikas, H (256 7)-P avlid is , A
(2175)/Athens GRE 2007. ]
9...xg4 10.g1 f5
[ 10...de5 11.xe5 xe5 12.0-0-0
Ryb ka is n o t t o o co n vin ced b y W h it e 's
compensation, but I imagine most
A11 grandmasters would pref er W hite here,
2580 because his position is so much easier to
2428 play. dxc4 13.bxc4 g6 14.f4 f5 15.h5
and Black has plenty of defensive resources,
but the initiative endures. ]
11.h3 gf6?! This seems to make things
rather straightforward for White.
[ 11...ge5 is probably better, when White
h a s o p t i o n s . 12.d4 ( 12.xe5 xe5
contesting the diagonal, seems to ease
Black's position.) 12...c5 ( 12...b8!?
352
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
is mentioned by Kosten, but seems
encouraging from W hite's point of view.)
13.f4!? ( 13.0-0-0 f4 Seems to allow Black
to keep more control.) 13...h4+ 14.d1
This might look like madness, but strange
positions often call for strange solutions.
g6 15.b4!? The main point of this move is
that sooner or later White's queen will need
to make way for the king on c2. ( 15.xc6
b7 16.cxd5 exd5 17.d4 xh3
s e e m s b e t t e r f o r B l a c k .) 15...a6
( 15...e4 16.xe4 dxe4 17.c5 bxc5
18.bxc5 c7 19.c4 looks promising for
White. ) 16.xc6 And this is a good starting
point for analysis. My computer is initially
quite happy with white's position, but it is
too sharp to say anything definitive without
giving the position a few hours of work. ]
12.d4 e8?
[ 12...c5 13.xc6 d7 14.cxd5! exd5
15.xd5! ]
[ 12...b8 is meek, but probably
necessary. ]
13.cxd5!?
[ 13.xc6 dxc4 is less clear cut. ]
13...cxd5 14.cb5 e5 15.c7 xc7
16.xc7 As is often the case in this line,
White has complete dark square domination.
b8
[ 16...f7 17.c6 ]
17.d6! White's play is remarkably simple.
The knight on d7 can't move because the rook
on b8 is en prise. f7 18.xe6 Resigns is
just about the only move that doesn't lose
material.
1-0
367 A11
Aronian,Levon 2830
Andreikin,Dmitry 2709
FIDE Candidates 2014 (6.4) 19.03.2014 13.g2
[Fier, Alexandr]
This was one of the decisive games in the and with this he at least made Aronian start to
f irs t h a lf o f t h e Ca n d id a t e s t o u rn a m e n t . think as well.
Aronian was trying to catch Anand and he
played a good line to put his opponent under
pressure. After some good moves Andreikin
could not resist and made a few inaccuracies.
A n d t h e n s o m e t h i n g s t ra n g e h a p p e n e d ,
Aronian lost control in a winning position and
went into a drawn endgame. 1.c4 c6 2.f3
d5 3.g3 dxc4 4.g2 d7 5.0-0 gf6
I think this line is sound and I even play this
position myself sometimes. However, White
has a dangerous initiative and Black needs to
watch every step he makes very carefully.
6.c2 b6 7.a3
[ 7.a4 there are some differences in this
p o s i t i o n wi t h 7 . a 4 a 5 i n c l u d e d . I n t h e
chaotic lines it can be in White's favour, but
now Black can also play in a solid way a5
8.a3 e6 9.e5 d4 ( 9...g6!?
is ok and now we see the pawn moves are
in Black's favour 10.axc4 xc4 11.xc4
g7 Zaragatski, I (2474)-Michiels, B (2502)/
NED-chT 1112 2011 (7.4).) 10.xc6 bxc6
11.xc6+ fd7 now White can't play a5,
but the knight on b5 will be defended, so
the attack is more dangerous than usual, as
can be seen in Tikkanen, H (2591) -Hultin,
J (2307)/SWE-chT 1112 2011 (4). ]
7...e6 8.e5 d4 9.xc6 bxc6 10.xc6+
d8 11.b5
[ 11.xa8?! was another try, but it is less
critical xa8 12.d3 cxd3 13.d1 dxc2
14.xd4+ d7 and Black was fine in a
game with a big material imbalance,
Kaidanov, G (2593)-Holt, C (2513)/USA- ch
Saint Louis 2013 (2). ]
11...c5 12.xa8 xb5
[ 12...f5 is a possible intermezzo and was
tried by Holt 13.c3 ( 13.e4!? I like this
move, Black wins a piece, but White has all
his pieces ready for the attack h3 14.a4
xf1 15.xf1 xa8 16.d3
with a dangerous attack) 13...xb5 14.a4
d7 15.g2 c7 and Black made too
m a n y q u e e n m o ve s , s o W h i t e h a s t h e
initiative, Sadorra, J (2577) -Holt, C (2534)/
Houston op 2013 (4). ]
d7 A novelty. Black develops the
bishop and now the king is less exposed. I
think Andreikin was already out of his theory,
[ 13...h5 was played before, but I think White
has good chances to get an advantage
14.h4 ( 14.d3 will exchange some pieces
cxd3 15.d1 f5 16.e4 xe4 17.xd3+
xd3 18.xd3+ d6 and Black was fine in
353
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Pantsulaia, L (2575) -Smeets, J (2608)/
Istanbul ol (Men) 40th 2012 (3.3).) 14...f5
15.e4 d7 16.a4 xa4 17.e5 and White
was really active in Timman, J-Smeets, J -
see the PGN Archive. ]
14.b3 White needs to open the position before
Black brings his pieces into the game, so this
move makes a lot of sense.
[ 14.d1 would be nice if Black could not
e x c h a n g e t h e q u e e n s b y f o r c e a4
15.xa4 xa4 16.b3 cxb3 17.axb3 xb3
18.f1 a4 White has a nice center and
Black still needs to consolidate his position,
so there is enough compensation for the
material ]
14...e5 15.b1 cxb3 16.xb3 xe2 17.a3
W hite exchanges the bishop and with this
Black's king is safer on the black squares. On
the other hand White is attacking the pawn on
a7 and he is ready for an invasion on the
seventh rank.
[ 17.b2 was also interesting, keeping the
pieces on a4 18.d3+ fd7 19.b1
h5 ( 19...c5 20.f3 is embarrassing)
20.c1 f5 21.e4 e6 again with a
dangerous initiative for White ]
17...xa3 18.xa3 c4 19.b1
[ 19.xc4 is not what White is looking for
xc4 20.xa7 e8 and the position is
level ]
19...e7 20.xa7 d4 21.b7 a4 22.c1
[ 22.b4 can get the knights back
immediately, but Black is out of danger then
xd2 23.d1 c3 24.xd7+ xd7
25.xa4 b8 26.xh7 b2
with compensation ]
22...d8 23.h3 f8 Black is finally going to
put his king in a safe place. Somehow it's
funny, but the king will have problems with the
back rank when it reaches g8.
[ 23...c5 was possible here or on the next
move, but here White can open the position
with 24.b4 d6 25.d4!? ( 25.b6 d4
j u s t r e p e a t s) 25...e6 ( 25...exd4
now the pawn is on the square where the
queen was supposed to be 26.b6 c7
27.b4 c8 28.b7 winning ) 26.dxe5
xe5 27.b7 d4 and White still has some
pressure, but the position is ok for Black ]
24.b3 e4? This pawn will be lost by force.
[ 24...c5 looks losing because of the pin,
but Black survives by tactical means 25.a3
c8 26.b4 d6 27.bc4 e8! 28.xc5
d7 and the rook on c1 is the big problem ]
[ 24...e4 was also ok, and after 25.xe4
xe4 26.d3 ( 26.b4 a8 27.c7
will pro bably le ad to a n equal positio n)
26...d4 27.a3+ g8 28.e7 e8
Black's position is under control ]
25.c4 d5 26.b4+ g8 27.d4
[ 27.xe4! this was possible on this move, or
the next, and the point is that White can use
the last rank after the knight is on e4 xe4
28.b8! is probably what White overlooked
e8 29.xd8 xd8 30.xe4 and White
should be close to winning ]
27...c6 28.bxd7? The position is still good
for White, but he again misses the best move.
[ 28.xe4! this was still possible and now the
p o s i t i o n i s w i n n i n g xe4 ( 28...e6
would be the best, but now White can play
the same with a pawn up 29.bxd7 xd7
30.b8+ e8 31.xa4 and Black is lost)
29.dxd7 wins ]
28...xd7 29.xa4
[ 29.e7!? f6 ( 29...c8 30.xa4
is also good for W hite) 30.xf6 gxf6
31.xa4 and compared to the game Black's
structure is slightly worse c5 32.c4 e6
33.xe4 xd2 34.a4 now some rook
endgames are lost for Black. ]
29...xa4 30.xa4 f8 31.xe4?!
I think Aronian didn't want to stay with his
rook in front of the pawn, but with this move
White's advance is much slower.
[ 31.xe4 was better, but White can't just go
with the pawn, Black has enough resources
t o s t o p i t xd2 32.a8 ( 32.a7!?
White also targets f7 g6 33.a4 e6 34.a5
d1+ 35.g2 a1 36.d5 ) 32...g6 33.a4
this looks good, but Black arrives just in time
g7 34.a5 e6 35.a6 d6 36.b7
( 36.a7 a6 and there is no way to make
progress ) 36...c7 ( 36...c5 does not
work 37.g2 f6 38.a7 xb7 39.b8
a6 40.a8 xa8 41.xa8+- ) 37.a7
b5 leads to a draw ]
31...xd2 32.a4
[ 32.a4 was probably better, but basically
no human would play this. ]
32...a2 Now it's hard to make progress. Still
W hite can try to put the bishop on b5 and
354
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
improve his pieces slowly. He tried to
exchange the bishop, but this endgame is
easy to handle for Black. 33.f3 g6 34.g2
e6 35.c4 g7 36.d5 f6 37.e4 a3
38.xe6
[ 38.c6 was still possible, waiting for the
end of time trouble ]
38...fxe6 39.f4+ e7 40.h4 h5 And finally
we are out of time trouble and the resulting
position is an easy draw for Black. W hite's
rook can't stay on the f-file and the pawn on
a4 is too far from promotion for White to give
one of the pawns on the kingside. Apparently
the pawn is better on e6 than f7. 41.e4 f7
42.f1 a2 43.e1 f6 44.d1 e7 8...cxb3 9.axb3 g6
45.f4 The last try. a3
[ 45...g2 46.a5 xg3 ( 46...a2 47.e5
and W hite improved the position a lot.)
47.a4 was one trick ]
46.c2 xg3 47.d4 e3 48.b2 e5
½-½
368
Bartholomew,John
Kojima,S
4th London Classic Open (6.12) 06.12.2012 so m e t i m e , a n d t h e r e ' s c e r t a in v a l u e i n
[John Bartholomew]
One of the unique selling points of the 3.g3
Anti-Slav Gambit is that White often just plays
b 2 - b 3 in t h e c r i t ic a l l in e s , n o t f e a r in g a
middlegame a pawn down. The present game
is one such example. 1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5
3.g3 f6 4.g2 dxc4 5.0-0 bd7 6.c2
b6 7.a3 e6
[ The text has been gaining momentum over
7...d5 primarily because Black has failed
to demonstrate a convincing solution to the
g a m b i t l i n e 8.b3!? cxb3 9.axb3 e6
10.b4! , as played in Timman, J (2571)-
Ernst, S (2606) W ijk aan Zee 2012/[John
Bartholomew]. ]
8.b3!? In the August 2012 update I suggested
that White players ought to have a look at this
typical pawn sacrifice, and the present game
was a good chance to test this
recommendation. Don't you like it when we
ChessPub authors stick our necks out
there!?:)
[ The continuation 8.g5 g4
xe2 10.e5 ( my opponent faced
10.xb6?! earlier in the tournament: axb6
11.e1 h5 12.e4 d5 13.b3 e6
14.b2 Tozer, P (2176) -Kojima, S (2340)
L o n d o n E N G 2 0 1 2 h e r e b4 15.c4
d3 would have led to a large advantage
f o r B l a c k .) 10...h5 11.e1 has been
subjected to extensive testing and analysis.
Recently h6! solved all of Black's problems
in Dubov, D (2594) -Potkin, V (2651)
Moscow 2012/[John Bartholomew].
Interested readers may also want to check
out GM Viktor Erdos's "CI Lab" survey of this
line in Informant 115. ]
[ A c o u p l e p l a y e r s h a v e t r i e d 9...d5!?
, intending to offload the clumsy bishop on
f3. W hite may want to react with 10.c4
, i.e. ( 10.d3 xf3 11.xf3 e6 12.c4
bd5 Thorfinnsson, B (2402)-Illescas
Co rd o ba , M (2 6 09 ) P ort o Carras 20 1 1;
10.b2 ) 10...e6 ( 10...g6 11.a5 ) 11.a5
c7 12.d3 xf3 13.xf3 bd5 14.d2
A11 e7 15.b2 , angling for b3-b4. ]
2427 10.c4 g7 11.a5 The best place for the
2340 knight. Black will have to monitor b7 for quite
restricting Black's three-on-one queenside
pawn majority.
[ 11.b2 bd5 ( 11...0-0 looks more
flexible ) 12.g5!? c8 13.e4 b4 14.c3
d3?! ( 14...a5! ) 15.xf7! xf7 16.xd3
xd3 17.e5+ e8 18.xd3 Hausrath,
D (2507) -Michalczak, T (2340) Oberhausen
2008 ]
11...c8 A novelty.
[ It seems slightly weaker to play 11...c8
. After 12.b2 0-0 13.e4 e8 (a common
maneuver - Black intends to transfer the
knight to d6) 14.xg7 xg7 15.c3+ g8
16.h4!? White had interesting play with h4-
h5 looming: f6 ( 16...d6 17.fe1 c7
18.h5 ) 17.fe1 c7 18.d4 d7 19.d5
Ha u sr a t h , D (2 5 3 7 )-B ru n n e r, N (2 4 6 2 )
Germany 2010 ]
[ 11...c7 suggests itself. On c7 the queen
won't prevent the rooks from communicating
with each other, but the queen is also a bit
more exposed. For instance, e2-e4 and d4-
d5 could be a bother, or perhaps even Bb2-
9.xc4! e5. A possible continuation is 12.b2 0-0
355
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
13.e4
A) 13...fd8 14.fe1 e8 15.xg7
xg7 16.c3+ g8 17.d4;
B) 13...e8 14.xg7 xg7 15.d4
( or perhaps 15.c3+ g8 16.h4!? );
C) 13...ad8 14.d4 ( 14.fe1!? ) 14...e8
15.fc1 h6 16.d1 g7 17.c4 xc4
18.bxc4 ]
12.b2
[ It occurred to me that 12.a3 also makes
sense against 11...Qc8. However, after c7
I feel the bishop's long-term prospects are
limited on the a3-f8 diagonal. The fact that
this piece now interferes with the defense of
the knight on a5 may also prove to be non-
t r i v i a l . W h i t e ' s b e s t m a y b e 13.b2
with a direct transposition to 11...Qc7. ]
12...0-0 13.e4 d8 14.fe1!? I liked White's
play in Hausrath-Brunner, so here I'm
borrowing a key idea.
[ The point of this semi-waiting move is to
de la y d 2 -d4 u n t il W h it e ca n e n su re a n
exchange of dark square bishops. White will
find it easier to create threats against the
Black king when its primary defender has
been eliminated. For what it's worth, I think
White also enjoys decent compensation with
th e s t ra igh t f o rwa rd 14.d4 , but the text
seems more attractive to me. ]
14...e8 Black could try to delay or omit this
move altogether, but it is the logical
continuation of his plan. 15.xg7 xg7
This surprised me, as I thought the knight
was fairly useless on this square.
[ On 15...xg7 I probably would have played
16.c3+ g8 17.h4!? ala Hausrath-
Brunner. ]
16.d4 b8?! 17.d2! I'm fond of this move.
The queen has potential to influence matters
on either side of the board. f6 Discouraging
Qd2-h6 and Nf3-g5, but... 18.b4 f7?!
It's hard to believe that any good will come
from having the king staring down the barrel of
a d4-d5 push.
[ 18...d7 should have been tried, though
I'm p lea s ed wit h W h it e 's po sit ion af t e r
19.c4 xc4 20.bxc4 . ]
19.ac1 Natural and strong. d4-d5 is on the
cards. d7 20.c4! xc4
[ B e g r u d g i n g l y p l a y e d , b u t 20...c8??
21.fe5+ is far worse. ]
21.bxc4 g4
[ 21...g8!? 22.d5 f7 ]
22.d5 White has a serious initiative. xf3
23.xf3 e5!? A good defensive try. 24.c5!
[ D e f i n i t e l y n o t 24.dxe6+ xe6
, when Black's knight springs to life. ]
24...b6?! Time was becoming a factor for both
players around this point. 25.ed1
[ The immediate 25.a4! was stronger. ]
25...e8 26.a4 bxc5? Opening the
position is nearly fatal.
[ Black had far better chances to hold out
with 26...cxd5! , i.e. 27.c6 c7 28.exd5
a5! . White's passers are blockaded and
it's not at all clear how I can break through. ]
27.dxc6 e7 28.g4! Aiming for the d7
square. g7? Black cracks.
[ Ne c e s s a r y wa s 28...d4 , though after
29.xd4 exd4 30.d7 Black has a very
difficult (and possibly hopeless) defensive
task. ]
29.d7 xd7 30.xd7+- The threats of c6-c7
and Qa4xa7 are too much. e6 31.xe6+!
Simplest. xe6
[ Or 31...xe6 32.xa7+ , picking up the
rook. ]
32.c4+ d6 33.xc5+ e6 34.d5#
W hite has rich compensation after 8.b3!?,
though Black is not without his resources. A
strong player could give this line a go with
either color.
1-0
369 A11
Bartholomew,John 2446
Ostrovskiy,Aleksandr 2377
SPICE Cup Open (7) 18.10.2012
[John Bartholomew]
Lasker's System (4...Bf5) is a solid option for
Black. White normally obtains a slight edge
after 5.cxd5 cxd5 6.Qb3, but here my
op p o ne n t su rp rise s m e wit h me with t h e
enterprising pawn sacrifice 6...Nc6!?, an idea
that injects new life into this variation. 1.c4 c6
2.f3 d5 3.g3 f6 4.g2 f5 5.cxd5
cxd5 6.b3 c6!? Pitching the b-pawn for
the sake of speedy development and central
dominance. In the post-mortem my opponent
said he had specifically prepared this pawn
356
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
sacrifice and that the engines rate it highly
(something my Houdini confirms!). Somehow
this idea has yet to attract much attention,
though it has been tried 11 times since 2003.
[ Black usually plays 6...b6 , when the
q u e e n l e s s m i d d l e g a m e a f t e r 7.xb6
is pleasant for W hite , i.e. ( or 7.c3!?
Georgiev, K (2649)-Kasimdzhanov, R (2690)/
Khanty Mansiysk 2007/ [Hansen, Carsten])
7...axb6 8.c3 c6 9.d3 e6 10.b5
b4+ 11.d2 e7 12.fd4 xd2+
13.xd2 g6 14.f4! Stefanova, A (2503)-
Zhukova, N (2439)/Krasnoturinsk 2003/
[TonyK]. ]
[ 6...c8 is also popular. 7.c3 e6 8.0-0
e7 9.d3 c6 10.f4 0-0 11.ac1
Kosten, A (2542)-Bunzmann, D (2509) /
Montpellier 2001/[TonyK] ]
7.xb7 White is obligated to accept. d7!
Best. White must waste time retreating, as 8...
Rb8 and 9...Nb4 are now threatened.
[ Less accurate is 7...c8 8.0-0 e5 9.d4!?
exd4 10.f4 d6 11.c1 d7?!
, Tarlev, K (2384)-Alexikov, A (2353)/Alushta
2 0 0 5 . H e r e 12.xd7+ xd7 13.xd6
xd6 14.a3 is much better for White. ]
8.b3 e5 The powerful pawn duo is the crux
of Black's compensation. 9.0-0
[ One game from this year went 9.d3 b8
10.d1 b4+!? (a common sortie Black
tries to wrong-foot White's pieces) 11.fd2!
h5 ( I think the simple 11...0-0 is better )
12.c3 e7 13.0-0 h4 14.a3 d6
( maybe 14...xc3!? 15.bxc3 hxg3
16.hxg3 c8 hitting c3 and intending ...Bd7-
h3 promised more) 15.e4! hxg3 16.hxg3
g4 17.f3 h3 18.e1 d4 19.d5 e6
20.c4 f8 21.g5 fg8 22.c1
and Black was in a very bad way Cox, J
(2423)-Thorfinnsson, B (2402)/Hinckley
ENG 2012. ]
9...b8
[ Another example: 9...d6 10.c3 b8
11.d1 d4?! Strangely, this natural move
isn't as ef f ective here ( 11...0-0 12.d3
would transpose to our main game) 12.a4
h6 13.d3 e7 14.d2 b4 15.b3 xa4
16.bxa4 b8 17.c4 ed5 18.d2 0-0
19.b1 d7 20.b5! Griffiths, R (2301)-
Lalic, P (1978)/Sheffield ENG 2011. ]
10.d1 d6 Completing development and
maintaining a fluid pawn structure.
[ I think 10...e4 , as in Mueller, J (2162)-
Reinhart, E (2347)/Pardubice CZE 2012, is
weaker only if Black refrains from following
up aggressively. This becomes apparent
after 11.e1 c5 when White can use the
e4 hook to begin chipping away at Black's
central foundation with ( on the other hand,
11...h5!? deserves serious consideration
compare to Cox - Thorfinnsson [see note to
9.0-0] ) 12.d3 . ( 12.c3 e7 13.a4 0-0
14.c2 d6 15.b3 fc8 was the game )]
[ Black needs to avoid 10...c5?! 11.xe5!
.]
11.d3
[ I was hesitant to play 11.d4 in view o f e4
12.fd2 h5! , with easy play for Black.
( 12...0-0 )]
11...0-0 12.c3
[ 12.fd2 was agreed drawn in Jacobsen,
Bo (2302)-Skytte, R (2401)/Chess House IM
2012. A pity! Black has a number of ways to
proceed, i.e. e7 ( or 12...e8; 12...h6;
or even 12...a5!? )]
[ I strongly considered 12.b3 , but it seems
premature. The c3-square is chronically
weakened, and White also has to watch out
for ... e5-e4, opening the a1-h8 diagonal.
e7 ( definitely not the immediate
12...e4?? 13.dxe4 dxe4 14.xd6+- )]
12...d4 Forcing White to a decision. 13.e4?!
In retrospect, this is questionable.
[ I didn't like 13.a4 on a ccou n t o f a5
( Black should perhaps prefer the patient
13...h6 ) 14.d2 b4 , but actually 15.b3
seems fine for W hite, in spite of the
possibility of ...Nb(f)d5-c3. For instance,
xa4 16.bxa4 bd5 17.c4 c7 18.a3
c3 19.c2 fc8 20.b2 and White is
doing well. ]
[ Actually, it appears that the retreat 13.b1!
is best. White isn't winning any
development awards, but he is also refusing
to create any weaknesses. The first player
has slightly better chances here, and one
(ideal!) way to continue would be Nb1-d2-c4,
a2-a3, b2-b4, and Bb2(d2). ]
13...xe4 14.dxe4 e7 White remains a
p a wn u p , t h o u g h I w i l l h a v e d i f f i c u l t i e s
activating my queenside majority and making
the g2-bishop relevant. Black has a totally
357
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
c o h e r e n t p o s it io n wi t h t h e p o ssi b i li t y o f
playing on either wing. All in all, a roughly
b a l a n c e d g a m e . 15.b3 c5 16.e1!?
Transferring the knight to a superior square.
bc8?!
[ 16...fc8! ]
17.d3 b6 18.d2 a5 19.f4!? f6 20.fxe5
fxe5?!
[ A f t e r w a r d s w e a g r e e d t h a t 20...xe5!
was the superior recapture. ]
21.xf8+ xf8 22.a3 The rook exchange
has improved my prospects. Now I can start
crawling forward on the queenside.
[ 22.c2!? is perhaps more flexible. ]
22...b8 23.c2 a7! The possibility of ...
Na7-b5 is very bothersome to W hite. 24.b4
a4 25.c5?! Parting with my best piece!
[ Simply 25.c1 was better. ]
25...xc5 26.bxc5 e6! ... Qe6-b3 is on the
table. 27.e3! I have to hurry. The idea is Bg2-
f1-c4. dxe3
[ I was expecting the immediate 27...b3
, i.e. 28.xb3+ ( 28.c1 c6 29.f1
e6 ) 28...axb3 29.exd4 exd4 30.b1
e6 ]
28.xe3
[ I thought briefly about 28.f1 , but then I
saw h6! . ]
28...b3 29.d2 e6 30.f2 b2!
An excellent defensive resource that totally
escaped my attention. Black parries the threat
of Qd2-d6 by forcing a queen trade. 31.xb2
xb2 Despite the bishop pair and a pawn
advantage, it's not easy for W hite! Black's
minor pieces are clearly superior, and the a3
pawn is feeling the heat. The computer says
I'm not in much danger, but in mutual time
pressure I couldn't figure things out. 32.d1
f7 33.f1 a2 34.d6?!
[ I should sit tight with 34.d3= . ]
34...xa3 35.c6 c8 36.d7+ f6 37.a6?
S t i l l e r r o n e o u s l y p u s h i n g f o r w a r d . e7
38.d6 c3! Addressing the threat of Ba6-c4
and putting the breaks on the c-pawn once
and for all. Amazingly, White is now dead lost.
39.e1 c1 40.f2 a3 I can't stop this
pawn! 41.c7 a2 42.c8 xc8 43.xc8
a1 White resigned. A nice game by
Aleksandr (who said he reads
ChessPublishing.com!). The computer-
endorsed pawn sacrifice with 6... Nc6!? looks
completely playable, and I wouldn't be the
le a st bit su rp rise d if it b eco me th e m a in
continuation very soon.
0-1
370 A11
Bruzon Batista,Lazaro 2610
Nielsen,Peter Heine 2625
18th North Sea Cup (2) 05.06.2003
[Tony Kosten]
This is an elegant game, where White gains
the advantage in pure 'Reti' style. 1.f3 f6
2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 g6 A perfectly
logical move, Black posts the king's bishop on
the long diagonal, whilst keeping the h3-c8
diagonal open for the other bishop. 5.b3 g7
6.b2 0-0 7.c4 The advantage of delaying c4
like this, is that White doesn't have to worry
about lines where Black captures on c4, as
now W hite can simply recapture with the b-
pawn and gain a big centre. a5!?
[ 7...g4 is more common, but Black tries to
soften-up the long diagonal first. ]
8.d3 a4 T h e p a w n g o e s o n . 9.a3!
Both stopping its further advance, and keeping
the a-file closed. a6 10.c2 And now the
k n i g h t r e t u r n s t o c o n t r o l b 4 . g4!?
This perfectly normal move seems to be an
innovation, as previously Black had preferred
[ 10...e8 when 11.c1 b6 ( 11...g4
12.b4 c8 13.b1 h3 14.b5 cxb5
15.cxb5 c5 16.xh3 xh3 17.xf6
left Black with an awkward decision, as
White continues with Ne3, hitting c5 and d5,
Dizdar,G-Michaelsen,N/Bad W oerishofen
1992 ) 12.d4 c5 13.e5 axb3 14.axb3
d8 ( 14...xb3!? 15.d2 b6 16.cxd5
should favour White) 15.b2 leaves White
with a plus, because of his harmonious
pieces, Dizdar,G-Pfleger,H/Germany 1992. ]
11.b1 This guards against tricks along the
diagonal, and may threaten to capture on a4
and use the open b-file that ensues. xf3
A radical solution, but the bishop isn't very
important in Black's plans. 12.xf3 axb3
13.axb3 e6 Black sets up a solid light-
squared pawn barrier. 14.b4 b5 15.a5!
W hite starts to take control, he first
pressurises the b-pawn. b6
358
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 15...bxc4 16.dxc4 dxc4? 17.xc6 a7 one against Caruana. He didn't get much out
18.b5 is very strong. ] of the opening in that one, though: 1.c4 g6
16.d4 b7 17.cxb5 cxb5 2.e4 e5 3.c3 g7 4.g3 d6 5.ge2 c5
18.b2
A quick look at the position reveals that White 6.d3 c6 7.g2 ge7 8.a3 d4 9.b4
is threatening to double rooks on the a-file, g4 10.h3 xe2 11.xe2 xe2 12.xe2
attacks the b-pawn, and controls the a1-h8 c6= and Black equalized in Carlsen, M-
diagonal. e8 Best. 19.e4! White brings his Caruana, F W ijk aan Zee 2013. Carlsen
other bishop into the fray. ac7 20.fa1 c8 opened with 1 .e4 in all his other W hit e
A concession, but Black could hardly capture games. ]
on a5 and allow W hite a passed a-pawn. 1...f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 Flexible.
21.exd5 exd5 22.e3 Reti players look and [ We recently examined 4.d3 f5 5.0-0 e6
learn! With simple, yet powerful moves, all of ( 5...h6 would be my choice) 6.h4 g6
W hite's pieces participate in the fray, and 7.xg6 hxg6 in Nakamura, H (2778) -Solak,
B l a c k i s b e s e t f r o m a l l a n g l e s . h5
D (2599) Istanbul 2012/[John Bartholomew].
Hardly relevant, but it was difficult to suggest White grabbed the bishop pair and cruised
improvements. 23.g2 c6 24.a7 d6 to victory rather effortlessly. ]
25.h4 White is in no rush and simply improves 4...g4 5.c4 White more often prefaces this
h i s p o s i t i o n - r e a l G M t e c h n i q u e . xd4
advance with d2-d3, but perhaps it's
26.xd4 e6?! unnecessary.
[ 26...g7 was the best chance, e.g.
[ In that case 5.d3 bd7 6.c4 xf3!
27.xd5 xd5 28.xd5 xb4 and Black is an interesting response, i.e. 7.xf3 e5!?
is still fighting. ] 8.g2 dxc4 9.d4 ed7 10.c2 b6
27.xd5 xb4 28.xf7! Suddenly White 11.d1 e6 12.e4 e7 13.a4 a5
turns to a tactical solution, and kills the pawn . See Nikolic, P (2671)-Strating, S (2307)
that holds Black's light squares together. Amsterdam 2004/[TonyK]. ]
xf7? 5...e6 6.d3 bd7 7.cxd5! Judging by the
[ 28...xf7 was hardly appetising, and yet
n u m b e r o f h i g h r a t e d p l a ye r s wh o h a v e
after 29.d7+ e7 30.xc8 8c7
chosen this move recently (and their
31.b7 Black is 'only' a pawn down. ] corresponding winning percentage!), it's fairly
29.xe6 Forking c8 and g6. d6 30.xg6+ clear that this is considered to be the best
[ 30.xg6+ f8 31.h6+ g8 32.d5 path for White. Germany's GM Georg Meier is
is completely crushing. ] particularly fond of this capture, having played
1-0 it on several occasions.
[ 7.e3 is more innocuous. For example,
d6 8.b3 b8 9.cxd5 exd5 10.c3 0-0
371 A11 11.fe1 e8 Frois, A (2346)-Dominguez
Carlsen,Magnus 2861 Perez, L (2534) Lisbon 2000. ]
Karjakin,Sergey 2780 7...exd5
Tata Steel Chess 2013 (8.4) 20.01.2013 [ T h e s y m m e t r i c a l r e s p o n s e 7...cxd5
[John Bartholomew] can be met in many dif ferent ways, i.e.
8.b3 (Meier's preference) ( 8.a4 d6
I could hardly submit this update in good 9.c3 0-0 10.g5 h6 11.xg4 xg4
conscience without commenting on at least 12.xd8 fxd8= 1-0 (86) Laznicka, V
one of Magnus Carlsen's games! He is simply (2674) -Jirovsky, M (2453); common is 8.c3
on a roll as of late, and in W ijk aan Zee he e7 9.h3 when xf3 10.xf3 0-0 11.e4
impressed everybody with his sheer tenacity d4 12.b1 b6 13.d2 a6 14.e2
and willingness to fight every game until bare ac8 15.f4 fd8 was balanced in
kings (usually his opponents resigned before Zaragatski, I (2474)-Van Wessel, R (2375)
then!) This was one such game. 1.f3 Netherlands 2012) 8...b6 9.xb6 xb6
[ Magnus only had one other pure Flank 10.c3 xf3 11.xf3 c5 12.b3 e7
game with White in the tournament: in round 13.b2 ac8 14.ac1 Meier, G (2642)-

359
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Kleiman, J (2371) Saint Louis USA 2012. ]
8.c2
[ 8.c3 could transpose, though c5!?
is intriguing, as Karjakin had played
previously: 9.h3 ( 9.b3 c8 10.f4 0-0
11.ac1 e8 12.h3 h5 13.g4 g6
14.d4 Malakhov, V (2709)-Rublevsky, S
(2688) Novosibirsk RUS 2012) 9...xf3
10.xf3 0-0 11.c2 d4 12.b1 e7
13.d2 e5 14.g2 fe8 with play similar
to the game. Svidler, P (2739)-Karjakin, S
(2788) Moscow 2011. ]
8...e7
[ Again, it's entirely possible for Black to
place this bishop elsewhere, e.g. 8...d6 ]
[ or 8...c5!? . ]
9.c3 xf3 Parting with the bishop in order
to clarify the position.
[ Critical is 9...0-0 10.e4 dxe4 11.dxe4
. W hite has scored fantastically from this
position (+13, =9, -2) despite the engine's
proclamation of near equality. One
illustrative game went c5 12.d1 c8
13.e3 e8 14.e1 h3 15.ad1 h6
16.d4 xg2 17.xg2 with an ideal
position for White in Ehlvest, J (2591)-Bhat,
V (2547) Saint Louis 2010. Karjakin must
have also felt that Black has some problems
to solve in this variation. ]
10.xf3 d4 11.e4 0-0 12.xf6+ xf6
[ 12...xf6 allows 13.b4! , jump-starting
White's queenside play. b6 14.b1 d7
15.b5 ac8 16.bxc6 bxc6 17.d2 fe8
18.fc1 Loginov, V (2507)-Tunik, G (2451)
Togliatti 2001 ]
13.d2 a5 14.a3 d5 15.ab1 d7
16.fc1 fe8 The opening phase has
concluded. White cannot claim a theoretical
advantage, but he has succeeded in obtaining
a position fully suited to his style: no
weaknesses, a pair of bishops, and the ability
to play for another 75 moves! 17.c4 c7
18.h4 a4 19.b4 b5 20.g2 h6 21.c5
g6 22.b4 f6 23.d2 g7 24.c4 a6
25.d1 b6 26.b4 c5 27.d2 c7
28.cc1 d5 29.h1! Carlsen finds a neat
way to generate pressure. e7 30.g1 d8
31.c2 e6 32.g2 a7 33.e1 ad7
34.h2 c8 35.h3 xh3+ 36.xh3
The evaluation doesn't change much following
the queen trade. h5 37.b1 a8 38.g2
a6 39.b3 Magnus gets down to business.
axb3 40.xb3 f6 41.c4 d6 42.f1 f8
43.a4 c3?! A nearly imperceptible error that
Carlsen is quick to exploit.
[ Black should stand still, i.e. 43...g7 . ]
44.f4 e6 45.e3! xa4
[ Not 45...xa4?? 46.bxc3+- . ]
46.d5 e7 47.d6 b5?!
[ 47...c3! presents White with more
problems. ]
48.xe7+ xe7 49.xb5 b6 50.e4 xc4
51.b8+ g7 52.xc4 Karjakin has won
back the exchange, but he's a long way from
surviving the Carlsen Inquisition! Black's f7
pawn is a clear target. a7 53.f4 d6
54.e8 b7 55.a8 e7 56.g2 b1
57.e5 e1 58.f2 b1 59.e8 f8 60.c8
e7 61.a8 b2+ 62.f3 b1 63.d5 e1
64.f2 d1 65.e8 f8 66.c4 b1 67.g4
Going for it! hxg4 68.h5 h1? Karjakin
falters in a complex position.
[ The computers indicate he could have held
with 68...gxh5! 69.f5 h4 70.f6+ g6
71.xf8 f5! , which is a fairly non-human
line. ]
69.hxg6 fxg6 70.e6! Target acquired (g6).
h6 71.d5 h2+?!
[ 71...a1 72.g3 c4! offered more
resistance, but it's already very difficult for
Black. ]
72.g3 h3+ 73.xg4 xd3 74.f5 e3
75.xg6+ h7 76.g8+ h8 77.f4
Carlsen's technique is flawless. c3 78.f6 d3
79.e3 c4 80.e6! h7 81.f5 c2
82.g2+ h6 83.xc2 dxc2 84.xc2+-
Despite the presence of opposite color
bishops, Black cannot hold. g5 85.d4
a3 86.xc4 b2 87.d5 f4 88.f7 a3
89.e6 g5 90.c6 f6 91.d7 g7
92.e7 Black resigned. A brilliant effort -
Karjakin was equal, but never drawing against
the 2013 Tata Steel champion. I think
Magnus's 7.cxd5 is the best way for White to
play, and it's yielding plenty of interesting
games at present.
1-0
360
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

372 A11 control and W hite can also play f3

Clery,Nicolas 2390 s o m e t i m e s .) 17.e1 ( 17.d1 c2 )
Savchenko,Stanislav 2558 17...xe2+ 18.xe2 e4 19.e5 ac8
XXIV Open Cappelle la Grande FRA (7) 21.2.08 looks fine for Black ]
[Jonathan Rowson] 16...ac8 17.d2 c3 18.exd4 exd4
19.fc1 xe2+ 20.xe2 g4 21.e5
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 f6 4.c3 e6 xe5 22.xe5 e6 23.b4 d5 24.xd4 f6
5.c2 d6 It is important to note that Black 25.f3 Black will win back the pawn after Nf4.
does not have to play Nbd7 and as Sakeev ½-½
showed in a previous update(see Anastasian-
Sakeev), if White is not going to play d4 there
is a lot to be said for playing e5 as quickly as 373 A11
possible 6.b3 0-0 7.b2 Davies,Nigel R 2475
[ 7.e2!? Might be a useful alternative move Adams,Michael 2555
order, if only to keep b2 available for the Blackpool zt 1990
queen. e5 8.cxd5 cxd5 9.b5 c6 [Nigel Davies]
10.xd6 xd6 11.b2!? However, after
Bg4 or Re8, Black seems to have his full 1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.c4 dxc4
share of the chances. ] 5.0-0 bd7 6.a3 b6 7.c2 d5 8.h4
7...e5!? e6
[ 7...a6!? is also possible in this move [ L a t e r o n N i c k P e r t w o u l d p l a y 8...d4
order. ] against me after which me liking of this
8.cxd5 cxd5 9.b5 c6 10.xd6 xd6 variation started to diminish. The game
11.b5 continued 9.d1 ( 9.e1 g6 10.f3 d5
[ 11.d4 b4 12.d1 e4 13.e5 11.h4 d4 12.f3 d5 13.e4!?
It is not clear that White is better in this line, played 'for the win' in Ostrowski, L (2385)-
but in general I would prefer White in such Bernard, R (2335), Poznan 1987, but after
situations, because the bishops give d3 14.xd3 cxd3 15.e5 g7 16.xd3
chances in the long term, and although he is 0-0 17.c5 fd7 18.xd7 xd7
quiet at the moment, the pawn structure W h i t e w a s p r o b a b l y a l r e a d y w o r s e .;
means that the dark squared bishop could On the other hand 9.f3 e4 10.d3 cxd3
eventually be very powerful. e8 14.a3 11.exd3 a4 12.b3 a6 13.c4 g4
a6 15.h3 f6 16.g4 f7 17.e2 c7 14.fe5 was rather promising for White
18.0-0 d7 19.a4 Perhaps this is too early. when he agreed a draw (1/2-1/2) in Legahn,
ac8 20.a3 e6? ( 20...b4 D (2250)-Luther, T (2480), Hamburg 1993,
Black should contest the important a3-f8 though note that with 9...Qd5 Black could
diagonal. 21.a5 b6 22.axb6 xb6 repeat the position) 9...g4 10.e3 d3
as indicated in a previous update.) 21.f3 11.xd3 cxd3 12.f1 e5 13.f4 g5
d6 22.xd6 xd6 23.fxe4 dxe4 24.c4+ 14.fxe5 gxh4 15.b3 f5 16.b2 g8
see Anastasian, A (2602)-Sakaev, K (2649)/ 17.f2 e6 18.g2 0-0-0 and the position
Kusadasi 2006, in the PGN Archive. ] wa s t h o r o u g h ly m is e ra b le f o r W h it e i n
11...b4 Davies, N (2491)-Pert, N (2488), Halifax
[ 11...e4 12.d4 b4 13.c1 probably (British Open Quickplay Championship)
with Bc3 and Qb2 (or Qa3) to follow, should 2003 , t hough I man age d to scramb le a
be better for White ] draw. ]
12.c1 d4 13.0-0 a6 14.a3 9.e4 g6 10.b3
[ 14.e2 g4 15.exd4 e4 ] [ In Salov, V (2550) -Torre, E (2540),
14...bd5 15.e2 f5 16.d3 Leningrad 1987 W hite prepared this with
[ 16.exd4!? f4 ( 16...e4 17.e5 f4 10.e1 fd7 a n d t h e n p l a ye d 11.b3
18.d1 is not totally convincing for Black, but there seems to be little need for this.
because Ne5-c4-e3 can wrestle back some After g7 12.b2 xb2 13.xb2 0-0

361
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

14.bxc4 e5 15.d4 exc4 16.xc4 xc4 problems in the endgame because of all the
17.c3 White had compensation, but I think weak pawns. ]
Black finds it easier in such positions when 30...xe1+ 31.xe1 a6 32.d3 a4
t h e r e a r e f e we r m i n o r p i e c e s t o wo r r y 33.b4 a8 34.c2 a6 35.b4
about. ] [ And here W hite's winning try is 35.b5!?
10...cxb3 11.axb3 g7 12.d4 0-0 13.b2 a3 36.b4 a8 37.xb6 , though
d7 14.ad1 One of several moves to have admittedly Black has counterplay after e7
been played here though I don't think it makes . Instead of this I wimp out with a draw. ]
a huge difference: 35...a8 36.c2 a6
[ a) 14.f3 c7 15.fe1 e8 16.e5 ½-½
d7 17.f4 xe5 18.dxe5 f6 19.c4 fxe5
20.xe5 e6 21.b4 d6 22.h1 a6
23.d3 xb2 24.xb2 ad8 25.c5 374 A11
gave White ongoing pressure for the pawn Davies,Nigel R 2512
in Salov, V (2550)-Beliavsky, A (2630), Haslinger,Stewart 2423
Minsk 1987/URS-ch. ] 93rd ch-GBR Swansea WLS (5) 11.08.2006
[ b) 14.c4 d8 15.ad1?! g4 16.f3 [Nigel Davies]
d7 17.f4 a5 18.f5 a4 19.xb6 xb6
20.bxa4 g4 21.d3 c5! gave Black 1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 f6 4.g2 dxc4
e x c e l l e n t c o m p e n s a t i o n i n P i g u s o v, E 5.0-0 bd7 6.a3 b6 7.c2 d5 8.b3
(2570)-Georgiev, K (2615), Moscow 1994. ] f5!? A sharp move which attempts to refute
14...e6 15.fe1 a5 16.f3 e7 17.c4 White's scheme. 9.bxc4
xc4 18.bxc4 I was pleased to get this mass [ I felt this had to be critical because after
of central pawns, notwithstanding Black's 9.b2 cxb3 10.axb3 e6 White's queen is
passed a-pawn. If Black isn't very careful here blocking the square he'd like his bishop on.
his position will be crippled by c4-c5 and Nf3- Mihajlovic, M (2243) -Kuzmanovic, R (1996),
d2-c4. d8 19.d2 Belgrade 2007, continued 11.d3 d8
[ In retrospect I should have played 19.c5! 12.c4 e7 13.xb6 axb6 14.xa8 xa8
here, p re ve nt in g .. .e 6-e5 b y Black an d 15.e3 d8 16.d4 g6 17.a1 c8
leaving the knight on f3 two routes to c4 (d2 18.a3 d5 19.xd5 exd5 20.d6 e7
or e5). ] 21.e5 f6 22.e6 xe6 23.xe6 f7
19...e5 20.d5 cxd5 24.f4 f5 25.xb6 g5 and although
[ 20...a4 might have been better because W hite had recovered his pawn he stood
now I get to target the e5 pawn along the e- worse in the endgame because of Black's
file. ] powerful bishops. ]
21.exd5 f5 22.c1 e4 9...xf3 10.xf3 xc2 11.xc2 xc4
[ 22...d7!? 23.a3 c5 was worth 12.d3 b6 13.a4 Looking to undermine the
considering as af ter 24.d6?! Black can c6 pawn with a4-a5-a6. e5?!
sacrifice his queen with xd6 25.e4 [ I think that 13...e6 makes more sense here
xd1 26.xd1 xe4 etc. ] because it would supply more cover to the
23.h3 h5 24.a1! This would have light squares and take on fewer obligations
gladdened Reti's heart. Adams now makes a (eg the need to defend the e5 pawn). ]
mistake: e8? 25.xg7 xg7 26.xe4 14.a5 bd5 15.b2 d6 16.a6?!
d6 27.xf5 gxf5! Very astute play by Not the best.
Adams, depriving me of the e4 square. Of [ White can cause problems here with 16.e4!
course White is better here but I don't make , for example e7 17.e3 (intending 18.
the most of it. 28.d4 b6 29.f3 e8 Nc4) g6 18.f5 0-0-0 19.fd1
30.b1 ( 19.xg7 f8 would win back d3) 19...f8
[ A much more testing line is 30.xe8+ xe8 20.d4 and White would have a powerful
31.b1 when e4 32.xb6 xb6 33.xb6 initiative that provides more than enough
xc4 34.g2 leaves Black with ongoing compensation. ]

362
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

16...b6 17.g2 home preparation.

[ 17.e4 was still the right way to go, White [ 6...e4 7.d4 again leads to a game that
has to deprive Black's knights of the d5 would be properly categorized as a
square and there's no need to retreat the Grunfeld. ]
bishop before doing this. ] [ 6...0-0 is certainly the most flexible move at
17...0-0-0 18.e4 Finally, though by now Black t h i s j u n c t u r e , e . g . 7.b2 g4
is well developed enough to cope. c7 19.d4 (n e wly p op u lar, an d a lso qu it e lo gic a l)
he8 ( 7...bd7; 7...a5; 7...f5; and 7...e8
[ 19...d7 was better in fact. Now I had a are all common alternatives) 8.d3 xf3
chance which unfortunately was missed. ] 9.xf3 e6 ( 9...bd7 10.c2 e8 11.e3
20.fc1?! e6 12.d2 h5!? 13.ac1 g4 14.d4 h6
[ 20.h3+! was strong, for example d7 15.b4 f6 16.a4 Ivanchuk, V (2771)-
( 20...b8 21.dxe5 xe5 22.xe5 xe5 Karpov, A (2616) Cap d'Agde 2012) 10.c3
23.b4 c5 24.fc1 is very unpleasant for bd7 11.g2 e7 12.c2 fd8 13.e3 a5
Black ) 21.dxe5 xe5 22.xe5 xe5 14.fe1 h5 15.h3 e8 16.ad1
23.b4 c5 24.fc1 and suddenly Black is with a typical microscopic edge for White in
in all sorts of trouble. ] view of the bishop pair. The position is not
20...d7 21.e3 exd4 22.f5? dissimilar to many Slow Slav positions were
A poor move. Black willing parts with his light-square
[ 22.xd4 was better, hitting the pawns on bishop. Radjabov, T (2788)-Le Quang, L
c6 and g7. ] (2693) Astana 2012. ]
22...c5 23.xg7 f8 24.f5 e57.bxc4 e4 Mamedyarov didn't capture on
The d4 pawn is well supported now and that d4 only to proceed normally.
keeps both the bishop on b2 and the knight on [ With that said, it was possible to play 7...0-0
f5 out of play. I don't have much to say about 8.b2 c5 , arriving at a position that can be
my death agonies. 25.f1 f3+ 26.g2 reached through several different move
d2 27.e1 xf1 28.xf1 fe8 29.f3 e6 orders. In f act, Mamedyarov played the
30.fd1 c7 31.f2 d7 32.e2 b5 Black side of this position in a 2007
33.h6 f8 34.g4 g7 35.f2 d3+! encounter with Etienne Bacrot. ]
36.xd3 xd3 37.xg7 xd1 38.e5+ 8.d4 c5 9.c2 c6?! Whoa - Mamedyarov
d6 39.d1 says "go ahead, take my knight"! Interestingly,
0-1 the computer is totally unconvinced by this
sacrifice (Houdini instantly gives an
assessment that is clearly favorable to White).
375 A11 On the other hand, for the human manning the
Dominguez Perez,Leinier 2726 White pieces against a well-prepared 2764,
Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar 2764 the task of proving such an assessment is
FIDE GP Tashkent (9.1) 02.12.2012 something quite different. Still, it seems pretty
[John Bartholomew] reckless to play like this, especially if
Dominguez had chosen 11.Qf4.
"Shak-and-Awe" Mamedyarov introduces a [ 9...f5? is refuted by 10.g4! , i.e. g3
daring (dare I say reckless!?) piece sacrifice 11.gxf5 xf1 12.xf1 . ]
on move 9 in a traditionally restrained line of [ 9...f5?! 10.b2 cxd4 11.xd4!
the Réti. 1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.g3 g6 4.g2 also looks very promising for White, as xd4
g7 5.0-0 f6 6.b3!? A trendy way of 12.d1 xf2+ 13.h1 c7 14.xh8
playing. W hite intends to occupy the a1-h8 is definitely in favor of the first player. ]
diagonal in good Réti style. [ Black could consider the simple retreat
[ Instead, 6.d4 leads straight into a 9...f6 , though 10.b2 0-0 11.bd2
fianchetto Grunf eld, which is obviously is pleasant for White. ( 11.d5!? )]
outside our scope. ] 10.xe4 Dominguez cannot back down, even
6...dxc4!? A small novelty, hinting at some if he is sampling some home cooking. f5

363
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11.e3
[ Houdini prefers 11.f4! xd4 12.c3
, and this does indeed look much better.
After the nearly forced continuation xe2+
( 12...c2? 13.d1 a5 14.d5!+- )
13.xe2 xa1 , White has a couple of
dangerous option, e.g.
A) 14.h6!? f6 ( 14...d6 15.f4
0-0-0 16.d5 intending Bc1-f4) 15.g5
( natural, though 15.d2! may be even
stronger, for instance b8 16.e1! e6
17.b3 with oodles of threats) 15...e6
16.c3;
B) 14.g4 c2 ( 14...c8!? 15.e3 g7
16.xc5 0-0 17.e1 ) 15.e3 f6
16.g5 g7 17.xc5 0-0 18.d4 . ]
11...xd4 12.e1 xe2+?!
[ It looks better to play 12...g4! , a move
that's tough to spot. The main idea is that
Black frees up the f5 square for his knight
f o r e x a m p l e , 13.c3 ( 13.h1!? xe2
14.g1 xc4 15.b2 b6 16.c3 0-0 )
13...f5 14.xc5 xc3 15.b2! xb2
16.b5+ f8 17.xb2 d4! and Black
should equalize. ]
13.xe2 xa1 14.xb7
[ 14.h6!? ]
14...b8 15.c6+ f8 16.d2 b2!
17.b3 xc1 18.xc1 d6 19.d5 g7
20.b3 hd8 21.e3
[ White had a good opportunity to solidify his
advantage with 21.g4! : e6 ( 21...c8!?
22.d3 ) 22.f3 d3 23.xd3 xd3
24.e5+ g8 25.g2 . In the game,
Mamedyarov manages to organize
sufficient counterplay before W hite
coordinates his pieces. ]
21...e6 22.f3 g8 23.g2
[ Or 23.xc5 d4! . ]
23...a6! Targeting White's weaknesses in
timely fashion. 24.xc5 d3 25.e1 xc4
26.e3 xb3 27.axb3 xb3= Black has
managed to equalize. 28.g2 b6 29.e7
dd3! 30.g4 d8 31.f6+ g7 32.e8+
g8 33.f6+ g7 34.e8+ Prudently,
White issues a cease-fire. g8 Draw agreed.
W h ile f a sc in a tin g, I se rio usly d ou bt th a t
Mamedyarov's piece sacrifice is anything more
than a one-off attempt. If Black wants to play
6...cxd4!?, then his best bet appears to be 7.
bxc4 0-0 8.Bb2 c5, transposing to established
lines.
½-½
376 A11
Dubov,Daniil 2594
Potkin,Vladimir 2651
65th ch-RUS Moscow RUS (5) 07.08.2012
[John Bartholomew]
Black has been the victim of a few disasters
in the pawn-snatching line featured here.
Potkin, fortunately, is a great theoretician, so
now we get to see how a well-prepared 2650
plays the complicated 7...Be6 variation. 1.f3
f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 c6 4.c4 dxc4 5.0-0
bd7 6.c2 b6 7.a3
[ The line in this game can also be reached
with the inclusion of 7.a4 a5 , i.e. 8.a3
e6 9.g5 g4 10.xc4 xe2! 11.e5
h5 when 12.b4!? was a creative try in
Radjabov, T (2761)-Smeets, J (2601)/Wijk
aan Zee NED 2009/[Nigel Davies] . ]
7...e6
[ See the "Reti - 1 c4 c6 with g3" guide for
7...d5 . The queen move has received the
lion's share of coverage on ChessPublishing.
com, but the text is no less critical. ]
8.g5 This knight lunge is presumably the
reason why 7...Be6 has yet to achieve main-
line status.
[ White does have a couple valid alternatives
a t t h i s j u n c t u r e . F o r i n s t a n c e , 8.e5
invite s the contin uatio n d4! 9.xc6
(the only consistent follow-up to White's last
move) bxc6 10.xc6+ , leading to double-
edged play. Potkin recently scored a win in
the Black side of this line after d8!? 11.d3
( 11.xa8 xa8 12.b5!? Pantsulaia, L
(2557)-Keler, F (2238)/Konya TUR 2012.
d7 ) 11...cxd3 12.d1 dxc2 13.xd4+
d7 14.xa8 xa8 15.xc2 b6 16.f4
e6 17.d6 xd6 18.xd6 e7
S h i m a n o v, A ( 2 6 0 0 ) - P o t k i n , V ( 2 6 4 2 ) /
Tyumen RUS 2012. Black doesn't have
anything to fear if the queens come off the
board, so I'm curious to see whether White
can demonstrate anything here (Pantsulaia
would be the guy to keep an eye on, as
h e ' s a l r e a d y ve n t u r e d 8 . N e 5 a c o u p l e
times). ]
364
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ White players may want to investigate the 13.f3! xe5 14.xh5 g6 15.xg6 hxg6
typ ic a l p a wn sa c 8.b3!? cxb3 9.axb3 16.xe6+ (looks scary, but Black is fine)
. Here g6 is a very reasonable response, i. e7! 17.e2 0-0 18.f3 e8 19.g5
e. 10.c4 g7 11.a5!? ( 11.b2 d5 Shengelia, D (2551)-Cvek, R (2563)/
Hausrath, D (2507)-Michalczak, T (2340)/ Sibenik CRO 2012. ]
Oberhausen 2008. 0-0 12.d3 ) 11...c8 12.e4
( 11...c7!? ) 12.b2 0-0 13.e4 e8 [ On 12.h3!? Black can consider g5!?
14.xg7 xg7 15.c3+ g8 16.h4 f6 to sideline the knight. A possible
17.fe1 c7 18.d4 Hausrath, D (2537)- continuation is 13.b4 g7 14.b2 0-0
Brunner, N (2462)/Trier GER 2010. ] 15.f4! with an interesting game ahead. ]
8...g4 Forcing the pace. The coming 12...e6 13.xf6+ gxf6 14.xc6 This leads
sequence is best for both sides. to a draw with accurate play from both sides.
[ 8...d7 9.b3 ( 9.e4!? Almasi, I (2420)- [ After 14.xc6+ bxc6 15.xc6+ e7
Lukacs, P (2460)/Zalakaros 200002.) 9...f5 W hite should take a repetition: 16.b7+
10.e4 cxb3 11.axb3 g6 12.d3 e6 e8 17.c6+= . ]
13.c4 xc4 14.bxc4 c5 15.a3 xa3 [ 14.e4!? was played in Lizak, P (2438)-
16.xa3 0-0 17.fa1 a6 18.c5 Higatsberger, M (2152)/Oberwart AUT 2012,
Mikhalevski, V (2525) -Papp, P (2269)/ which proceeded our main game by a few
Moscow RUS 2012. ] weeks. The most effective counter appears
9.xc4! to be d6! , i.e. ( the game went 14...f5
[ I t ' s d i f f i c u l t t o b e l i e v e t h a t 9.f3?! 15.c2 c8 16.b3 e7 17.b2 g8 )
present Black with any sort of problems. 15.h4 fxe5 16.xh5 f6 , planning to
After h5 10.xc4 Black has castle queenside. Black is for choice. ]
demonstrated many routes to a good game, 14...bxc6 15.xc6+ d7 16.f5
e.g. e5!? 11.d3 xc4 12.xc4 e7 [ 16.xa8? xa8 17.d4 f3 ]
13.e4 d5 14.f2 f6 15.h1 b6 16...g6 17.xe6+! Spectacular fireworks,
16.a3 d8 17.h4 g6 18.d1 f5 but only good enough for a half point! e7!
19.g5 xg5 20.xg5 0-0 McShane, L [ Not 17...fxe6?! 18.xg6+ e7 19.b3!
(2657)-Adams, M (2728)/Baden-Baden GER when W hite has a raging initiative for the
2011. ] rook. ]
[ Likewise, 9.e1?! d4 isn't too hot. ] 18.xf6 g8 19.e1
9...xe2 10.e5 h5 11.e1 h6! [ 19.xd7+? is refuted by xd7!-+ . ]
This has been played twice in recent months. 19...f8 20.f4 c8 The final accurate
Black needs to evict the knight before move. 21.xh6+ g7 22.h8+ g8
completing development with ...e7-e6. 23.h6+ g7 24.h8+ Dubov wisely opts for
[ B l a c k M U S T a v o i d 11...e6? 12.f3! a perpetual.
, which is already winning for W hite. Two [ White has plenty of pawns for the piece, but
brutal examples: g6 ( 12...xf3 13.exf7 he's sorely underdeveloped. Playing on is
d5 14.e5 d7 15.xh8+- ) 13.xc6+ risky, i.e. 24.d4 g8 . ]
bxc6 14.xc6+ 24...g8 A short but theoretically important
A) or 14...bd7 15.xg6 c8 ( 15...hxg6 game. It would be unsurprising if one or both
16.xf7!+- . Crunch! ) 16.xe6 e7 players already had this line worked out to
17.xg7# 1-0 Mons, L (2345)-Kramer, J equality. Black looks to be faring well in the
(2052)/ Oberhof GER 2012; complications following 7...Be6 8.Ng5 Bg4 9.
B) 14...fd7 15.exf7 xf7 16.xf7 Nxc4 Bxe2, so White should have a look at 8.
f6 17.xh8 e5 18.e4 g6 19.d4 b3!?.
xh8 20.dxe5 e7 21.h6+- Grandelius, ½-½
N (2541)-Perunovic, M (2578)/ Sarajevo
BIH 2011. ]
[ I n a d d i t i o n t o t h e t e x t , 11...bd7!?
looks acceptable: 12.d4 e6 ( 12...h6!? )

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
377 A11
Dziuba,M 2602
Bartholomew,J 2435
Reykjavik Open 2013 (5.15) 22.02.2013
[John Bartholomew]
In the January update I showed a win I had on
the W hite side of the Anti-Slav, so I was
probably due for some suffering with the other
color:). 1.c4 c6 2.g3 d5 3.f3 f6 4.g2
dxc4 5.0-0 f5!? My opponent caught me by
surprise with his opening choice, so I decided
to try a line I had analyzed in the August 2012
update.
[ 5...bd7 is far more common see the
archives for extensive analysis. ]
6.a4 Logical. Black isn't necessarily thinking
about .. .b7-b5, but a2-a4 is still a useful
thrust, further isolating the c4 pawn.
[ 6.a3 invites e5!? 7.xc4 ( not 7.xe5??
xa3 8.bxa3 d4 ) 7...e4 8.g5!?
( alternatives are 8.e1; and 8.fe5!? )
8...h6 9.xf7 xf7 10.b3
with complications in Pantsulaia, L (2557)-
Gunina, V (2533) Konya 2012/[John
Bartholomew]. ]
6...e6 7.a3 d5?! Forgetting my own
analysis! ...Qd8-d5 is valid in many lines of
the Anti-Slav, but in view of White's next move
it cannot be recommended here.
[ In the notes to Pantsulaia - Gunina I wrote
that the simple 7...xa3 looked better, i.e.
8.xa3 0-0 9.b3 cxb3 10.xb3 c7
11.b2 bd7 12.c1 Vuorisalo, V (2101)-
Sammalvuo, T (2425) Lahti 2005. Looking at
this position again I'd probably take White,
as his side just seems so easy to handle. If
this is the be st Black has af ter 5...Bf 5 ,
perhaps it's best to look elsewhere. ]
8.b3! Oops, forgot about that one. cxb3
[ I thought briefly about 8...c3!? , which in
fact might be the best practical decision.
Following 9.dxc3 xd1 10.xd1 bd7
11.d4 g6 12.c4 White is for choice in
the queenless middlegame, though Black
retains a reasonably solid position. ]
9.d3 Highlighting the error of Black's ways.
Now I lose valuable time in view of the e2-e4
threat. g4? This proved unsuccessful, but
I'm already quite pessimistic about Black's
position.
[ Likewise, 9...a6 led to a smashing victory
for White in Mikhalevski, V (2525)-Arslanov,
S (2424) Moscow 2012: 10.c4 d8?!
( 10...c5!? ) 11.xb3 c5 12.b2 e7
13.e3 fd7? 14.xg7 f6 15.d6+
e7 16.xf5+ exf5 17.h6 xa1
18.xa1+- and Black succumbed on move
25. ]
[ Houdini actually recommends punting the
piece with 9...a5!? 10.e4 ( 10.c4!? d8
11.xb3 b4 12.e1!? with the idea of
Ne1-c2 ) 10...xe4 11.dxe4 xe4 . After
12.xd5 xd5 13.d2 b4 14.xd5 exd5
15.xb3 an unusual position has arisen
where White is surely better. ]
[ An analogous line is 9...b4!? and now:
A) 10.e4?! xe4 11.dxe4 xe4
is more acceptable for Black in view of
12.xd5 ( 12.b2 ) 12...exd5 13.d2?
xg2 14.xg2 b2 15.xb2 xd2;
B) 10.b2!? d8 11.xb3 ( 11.a5!? )]
10.c4 a6 11.fe5 d8 12.xb3
W hite's initiative develops naturally, and
Black's game is perhaps already behind hope.
b4? Allowing a nice tactic, which Dziuba
spotted immediately.
[ My original intention was to play 12...c5
, b u t a f t e r 13.b2 I can nearly resign. In
addition to the threat of d2-d4 (driving the
knight away and winning b7), Black can't
e v e n c o m p l e t e d e v e l o p m e n t w i t h e7
because of 14.xg4 xg4 15.xg7 f6
16.xg4 xa1 17.e3+- . ]
13.xf7! xf7 14.e5+ e8 15.xg4+-
Material is equal, but Black is completely
busted. c8 16.e5 d6 17.c4 e7
18.b1 d8 19.a5 Refusing to allow Black
even a hint of stability with ...a7-a5. fd5
20.d2 c5 21.d4! Dziuba finishes the job
cleanly by way of this temporary pawn
sacrifice. cxd4 22.e4 dxe3 23.fxe3 c6
24.xb7 c8 25.b2 g8 26.c2 g6
27.e4 db4 28.xb4 xb4 29.a4+ d7
30.xb4 xb4 31.xb4 d8 32.e5 d4+
33.h1 Black resigned. Hardly my best day,
but a very professional effort by Marcin Dziuba.
I'm not sure I'd venture 5...Bf5 again, though I
suspect a well-prepared Black player could
find a tenable path in the line with 6.a4 (this
lo o ks m o re p r o m isin g t h a n t h e 6 . Na 3 o f
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Pantsulaia - Gunina). 15...a4 16.h6 g6 17.g5 e7 18.xe7

1-0 xe7 19.g5 ac8 20.b3 c6 Now that the
bishop is back on home ground, Black has no
problems. 21.d2
378 A11 [ 21.g1 f5 amounts to pretty much the
Fernandez Murga,Roberto 2241 same. ]
Ginzburg,Maximiliano 2406 21...f5! 22.gxf6+ xf6 23.xf6 xg2
Najdorf mem Open (9) 30.09.1999 24.hg1 xf6 25.xg2 c5 Black's position
[Tony Kosten] is now preferable. 26.c1 xc1 27.xc1
c8+ 28.d2 c5! 29.g4 e5 Black has a
1.f3 d5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 g4 4.c4 c6 sure advantage, he can play ...g5 and Kg6
5.cxd5 It is a question of taste, I suppose, but and pick-off the h6-pawn. 30.e3 f5 31.e4
[ 5.e5 first, might be more accurate. ] dxe3+ 32.xe3 g5?!
5...cxd5!? A little risky, [ 32...b5 might be more accurate, keeping
[ 5...xf3 6.xf3 cxd5 is a more solid way t h e wh i t e r o o k f r o m c 4 : 33.f4! exf4+
of proceeding. ] 34.xf4+ g5 35.f7 xh6 36.a7 c6
6.e5 f5 7.c3 e6 37.d4 which should be good for Black,
[ 7...bd7! 8.a4 e6 9.g4 transposes, but although White's d-pawn will certainly give
avoids White's option at move 9. ] him some counterplay. ]
8.g4 g6 9.a4+ 33.c4! As Black cannot play the pawn
[ 9.h4! is more accurate here. ] endgame. b5 34.c7 g6 35.g7+?
9...bd7 10.h4 a6! A strong reply, Rather exotic, cutting the black king off with
threatening to break the pin by ...b5. Other the rook, but
moves lead to a clear White advantage: [ 35.e4 xh6 36.f5 is simpler, with
[ 10...d6 11.d4 h6 (Kaidanov, G-Hubner,R/ more than sufficient activity for the pawn. ]
Groningen 1993) and now 12.xg6 fxg6 35...xh6 36.g8 h5 Black is back on
13.g5 with a significant plus. ] track, and should win handily. 37.e4 g4
[ 10...c2 11.xf7! xa4 12.xd8 xd8 38.h8 h5 39.f3+ h4 40.h7 b6 41.h6
13.xa4 xg4 14.h3 likewise, a5 42.h8 g4? Very sloppy,
Romanishin,O-Suba,M/Moscow 1986, and, [ 42...b4+! 43.xe5 f4 44.d4 xf3
finally, ] wins at a canter. ]
[ 10...h6 11.xg6 fxg6 12.g5 hxg5 43.fxg4 xg4 44.g8+ h3 45.g5
13.hxg5 xh1+ 14.xh1 h7 15.g4 R e s t o r i n g m a t e r i a l e q u a l i t y . h4??
xg5 16.xe6+ winning rapidly, Another careless move. What is the point of
Kourkounakis,I-Engqvist,T/Gausdal 1990. ] playing the opening, and middlegame, well, if
11.xd7 xd7 A rather obvious you then mess-up the endgame?
improvement on the previously played [ 45...b4+ w a s n e c e s s a r y , 46.e3
[ 11...xd7? which loses material after ( (and not 46.xe5?? as after the pawn
12.h5 b5 13.d1 Rosen,B-Straeter,T/ race: b5+ 47.f6 xg5 48.xg5 h4
Germany 1997. ] 49.d4 g3 50.d5 h3 51.d6 h2 52.d7
12.xd7+ xd7 13.h5 c2 Black has just h1 53.d8 Black has the move h4+
o n e s q u a r e f o r t h i s p i e c e , b u t i t p r o ve s winning! ) 46...h4 47.xe5 g4 48.d4 h3
s u f f i c i e n t ! 14.d3 Still trying to trap the poor 49.e4+ g3 50.e8 with a likely draw. ]
bishop. 46.d4! This way White manages to capture
[ 14.d4 h6 15.f4 f6 offers White little. ] the pawn whilst maintaining the confinement
14...d4 15.e4?! This is nothing special, of the black king. b4
better [ 46...a4 47.bxa4 a5 48.dxe5 xa4+
[ 15.d2! gaining the pair of bishops: xd3! 49.f5 xa2 50.e6 also seems hopeless. ]
16.exd3 dxc3+ 17.bxc3 0-0-0 18.b1 47.xe5 h2 48.d5 a4 49.d6 axb3
wi t h a r e a l p lu s , d e s p it e t h e d a m a g e d 50.axb3 xb3 51.d7 This pawn costs Black
pawn structure. ] his rook, and meanwhile the black king is

367
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

unable to get out of the way of his h-pawn. and suddenly Black is ahead in
d3 52.e6 h3 53.d5 xd5 54.xd5 development. At some point ... c5 or ...e5
g2 55.d8 h2 56.g5+ are coming and Black is certa inly no t
1-0 worse anymore) 9...dxc4 10.xc4 xc4
11.xc4 fxe5 12.0-0 f6 13.d2
gives White activity for the pawn;
379 A11 B) 8.dxe5 dxc4 9.xc4 xc4 10.xc4
Flores,Diego 2578 is more or less similar to the game e6
Peralta,Fernando 2600 11.0-0 d8 12.c3 h6 13.e4 g4!
ARG-ch 88th playoff rapid (1) 07.09.2013 wi t h q u ic k co u n t e r p l a y. F o r e x a m p l e
[Fier, Alexandr] 14.e2 c5+ 15.h1 h5 16.h3 g5!
with chances for both sides ]
Two of the best Argentinean players go for a 8.c3 dxc4 9.xc4 xc4 10.xc4 e6
thematic duel in a rare and interesting line. 11.0-0 e7
Despite the 3-0 score for Flores in the games, [ 11...c5 is premature 12.b4! b6 13.b1
the position is far from clear 1.c4 c6 2.f3 and Black is already in trouble e7 14.b5
d5 3.e3 g4!? I found really few games with c8 15.f5 a6 16.xf7 xf7 17.d6+
this logical move 4.b3 xd6 18.xe6+ f8 19.xd6+ e8
[ 4.cxd5 cxd5 5.b3 c7 an important 20.bxc5+- ]
resource, attacking the bishop on c1 6.b5+ 12.e4 0-0 13.e3 After a sequence of logical
d7 7.c3 xf3 8.gxf3 e6 is quite moves, both players have finished
playable for Black and was seen in Kramnik, development and now the question is if it's
V (2791)-Eljanov, P (2742)/W ch Blitz 5th possible for Black to liberate some space for
blitz 2010. ] his p ie ce s. I n bo t h ga m es o f t h e p la yo f f
4...c7 5.e5 e6 Peralta went for ...Nxe5 sooner or later. I
[ 5...xe5? is obviously not playable due to believe the position can be a bit harder for
6.xb7 f6 7.d4 ( 7.xa8 c7 Black to play, but with some correct moves
is not enough for Black either) 7...d6 8.c5 everything should be under control. ad8
d7 9.xa8 c7 10.a4 and the queen is This was his first choice
far from being trapped ] [ 13...xe5 after having some problems in
6.d4 d7 7.f4 A new idea played in the the first game Peralta went for this direct
playoff for the Argentinean championship. The approach 14.dxe5 g4 15.d4 fd8
same players went for the same line in ARG- ( 15...c5 I like this move, Black's knight is
ch in 2008! probably going to h6 after h3 or Qe2. With
[ 7.c3 dxc4 ( 7...xe5? 8.cxd5 this move, Black can expand on the
this is the point cxd5 9.dxe5 a6 10.d2 queenside in exchange 16.h1 a6 17.g1
and Black's kingside is locked by the e5- b5 18.e2 h6 19.g4 h8 and the key
pawn. W hite, on the other hand, has free point of the defence is that f5 is still not
play on the other flank) 8.xc4 xc4 possible since the e5-pawn is hanging. The
9.xc4 gf6 is less ambitious, entering into knight goes to g8, rooks to the d-file and a
so m e k in d o f Sla v in Flore s, D (25 4 8 )- queenside advance. Maybe White is still a
Peralta, F (2546)/ARG-ch 82nd Mendoza bit better, but it's necessary to find a
2008. ] concrete plan) 16.h1 a5?! ( 16...c5
7...gf6 was still possible) 17.h3 b4 18.xb4
[ 7...xe5 is another alternative xb4 19.ad1 h6 20.g4 was the same
A) 8.fxe5 f6 ( 8...dxc4 9.xc4 xc4 kind of position as after ...c5 but without
10.xc4 e6 11.0-0 is better for White. t h e q u e e n s i d e c o u n t e r p l a y, F l o r e s , D
Compared to the game, the d-file is closed (2 5 7 8 ) -P e ra l t a , F (2 6 0 0 ) / A R G -c h 8 8 t h
and a good f-line is already open for the playoff rapid 2013. ]
rook ) 9.c3 ( 9.exf6?! xf6 10.c3 14.h3 Avoiding ... Ng4 ideas xe5 15.dxe5
dxc4 11.xc4 xc4 12.xc4 0-0-0 d7 16.b5 White goes with the knight to d6

368
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

and everything will depend on whether it's or on e5

going to stay there or not a5 A) 23...xf6 24.h5! not easy to see! f8
[ 16...b6 w a s a t r i c k y i d e a 17.c3! ( 24...g6 25.e5 a3 26.e8 xd2
kee ping on e e ye on e 5 ( 17.c2 b8 27.xf6+ xf6 28.xe6+ g7
18.d6 c8 19.c4 c7 followed by 20... 29.xd2 ) 25.e8;
Nb6 looks ok for Black) 17...b8 18.d6 B) 23...xf6 24.a4 e7 25.e5+- ]
c8 19.c4 c7 20.a4 b6 21.xb6 23...dd8 24.h2 c8 25.c4?!
axb6 22.f5 exf5 23.exf5 fe8 looks a bit The white queen is much better than Black's
dangerous for Black, but not so clear ] one
17.d6 b6 18.c5 [ 25.c3 fxe5 maybe was what White was
[ 18.c2 d7 19.ad1 fd8 20.c5 c8 afraid of, but after 26.xc8 xc8 27.d7
21.b4 c7 forces the knight to leave the f6 28.fxe5 h4 29.d2 the computer
c r i t i c a l s q u a r e 22.c4 b6 is quite gives +6(!) for White because of Bg5 or Bh6
acceptable ] ideas ]
18...a6?! The queen is not doing much on 25...xc4 26.bxc4 fxe5 27.fxe5 b6
a6. [ 27...b6 with the idea of 28...c5 would be a
[ 18...xc5 19.xc5 d7 and without the better try, but White is still better, 28.a5 c5
queens there is less chances for White to 29.xc8 xc8 30.d7 fd8 31.a6
attack. Now the plan is to concentrate all followed by 32.R1d2 with pressure. ]
the pieces on d6 20.ad1 fd8 21.d4 28.a5 xd6 29.xd6 xd6 30.exd6 xc4
c8 22.fd1 b6 23.a3 f8 and White Probably played in the last seconds, now
has to bring the knight back because of 24... White wins material
c5 ] [ 30...d7 31.xa7 a8 32.b6 f7
19.fd1 d7 and the game goes on, White is winning but
[ 19...f5! is another idea to free the pieces, there are practical chances ]
but is a committal move to play in a rapid 31.g5
game. The main goal of this move is to free [ 31.d7 xe3 32.d8 is also convincing ]
t h e d 5 - s q u a r e f o r t h e k n i g h t 20.exf5 31...e5 32.d7
( 20.exf6 xf6 21.e5 g6 22.d2 d5 ) 1-0
20...xf5 21.c2 ff8 22.f5 ( 22.g3 d5
is comfortable for Black) 22...d5 23.e4!?
( 23.f2 xd6 24.exd6 exf5 380 A11
a n d t h e c o m p e n s a t i o n i s n o t e n o u g h) Frois,Antonio
23...xd6 24.exd6 exf5 25.e6+ h8 Dominguez Perez,Leinier
26.d4 f4 ] Open, 2000 Lisboa 2000
20.b3 fd8 This plan is not really effective, so [Paul Motwani]
Black is in trouble already.
[ 20...f5 now this doesn't work as on the last Quick Tricks and Traps 1) B21: "White plays
move 21.exf5 xf5 22.c2 f8 23.f5 d5 the Reti Black crushes like a yeti!" 1.f3 d5
24.f2 xd6 25.fxe6! and now the rook is 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 g4 5.d3 bd7
in prise. ] 6.c4
21.d2 f6 [ A n o t h e r c o m m o n c h o i c e i s 6.bd2
[ 21...c8 22.ad1 is not going anywhere, followed by e2-e4. ]
White has enough pieces to control d6 ] 6...e6 7.e3 White wants to next play Qb3
22.ad1 f8 without allowing ...Qb6. d6 8.b3 b8
[ 22...c8 23.h2 ] 9.cxd5 I would prefer to maintain the tension
23.a4 in the centre by not exchanging pawns there.
[ 23.exf6! was more precise, but it's hard to exd5 After Black castles shortly, his king's
change plans when you have control of the rook will soon move to e8, from where it will
position. The basic idea is to find a better enjoy operating on the freshly-opened e-file.
place for the queen, either on the last rank 10.c3 0-0 11.fe1 e8 12.ac1 h6

369
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
13.a4? Missing Black's forthcoming stunning
tactical sequence. .. xg3!! 14.hxg3 xe3
15.fxe3 xg3 With the simple yet deadly
threat of . ..Bh3 followed by ...Ng4. 16.f1
[ If 16.h1 h3 17.g1 g4 then White
does not have the required move Nd1 to
defend the squares e3 and f2
simultaneously. ]
16...h3 17.h4
[ 17.f2 g4 18.cf1 xe3 is another
"dead end" for White. ]
17...g4 White resigned in view of 18 Rf3
Qh2+ 19 Kf1 Qh1.
0-1
381 A11
Georgiev,Kiril 2649
Kasimdzhanov,Rustam 2690
World Cup Khanty Mansiysk RUS (2.7)
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 c6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 f5
5.cxd5 cxd5 6.b3 b6 7.c3!?
[ Interesting, White allows Black to give him
doubled b-pawns 7.xb6 axb6 8.c3
is much more common ]
7...xb3 8.axb3 c6
[ B l a c k c a n a l s o c o n s i d e r 8...d7!?
which is quite normal in this type of position
(for inspiration check out the classical game
Janowski-Capablanca, New York 1916)
9.d4 e6 10.db5 xb5 11.xb5 d7
( 11...a6 12.0-0 d7 13.d4 e7 14.f4
hc8 15.fc1 xc1+ 16.xc1 Zhidkov, V-
Glo t o v, M/ S erp u kh o v 2 0 0 2) 12.0-0?!
( White can do better with 12.xa7 xa7
13.xa7 c5 14.b5 c6 15.d3 )
12...c6 13.d3 a6 14.e4 c5 15.c3 d4
16.e2 ac8 17.f4 b6 , and Black has
th e in it ia t ive, Fe le gyh a zi, L -S o m la i, L /
Sarospatak 1994 ]
9.d3
[ 9.b5?! looks tempting, but proves rather
p o i n t l e s s a f t e r c8 10.bd4 xd4 10...a6 11.d4 xd4 12.xd4 d7
11.xd4 d7 12.0-0 e6 13.d3 c5
14.f3 e7 is better for Black on account
of White's doubled pawn and no active play 13.e4!? dxe4 14.dxe4 g6 15.0-0 c5?!
to compensate for it, Tylor, T-W ade, R/
Hastings 1948 ]
9...e6
[ 9...e5 initially looks pleasant for Black, e.g.
10.g5 e6 11.0-0 e7 12.d2 g8
13.xe7 gxe7 14.f4 f6 15.fxe5 fxe5
was Libov, G-Miroshnichenko, E/Polanica
Zd ro j 2 0 0 1 , b u t a f t e r 16.f3 White is
actually doing quite well, for instance d4
17.g5 g4 18.b5 d7 19.f7 hf8
20.xa7! ]
10.e3
[ A main alternative is 10.0-0 e7 11.e3
A) White reaches a better game after
11...0-0 12.d4 xd4 13.xd4 a6
14.e4
A1) 14...dxe4 15.dxe4 g6 16.fd1
( 16.e5!? ) 16...d7 17.xg7 fd8
18.h6 c5 19.b4 d3 20.b5
Velickovic, Z-Wiedermann, F/
Finkenstein 1994;
A2) 14...g6 15.f4 ( 15.exd5 xd5
16.xd5 exd5 17.fe1 b4 18.c3
xc3 19.bxc3 ac8 20.c4
K i r . G e o r g i e v - S u b a , L u g a n o 1 9 8 7)
15...dxe4 16.dxe4 ad8 17.b6 d2
A2a) 18.f5 exf5 19.exf5 h5 20.h3
d7 21.f2 ( 21.e3 d3 22.f2
f3 ) 21...f6 ( 21...e2 22.fe1+- )
22.xb7;
A2b) 18.f2 xf2 19.xf2 d7
20.e3 c5 21.d1 a5 22.g4
Matychenkov, V-Kandyba, L/Smolensk
1991;
B) 11...g4 12.f4 0-0 13.e4 ( 13.h3
f6 14.h4 g6 15.xg6 hxg6 16.fd1
d4 17.e3 xb3 18.xa7 xa7
19.xa7 d7= Van Mechelen, L-Den
Heijer, N/corr 1990) 13...dxe4 14.dxe4
g6 15.e5 d3 16.fd1 c2 17.dc1
xb3 18.h3 g5 with equality in Fischer, R-
Polugaevsky, L/Palma de Mallorca 1970 ]
[ Again 10.b5 fails to provide White with
anything of substance, e.g. d7 11.bd4
xd4 12.xd4 g6 13.f4 c5 14.e3
hc8 15.h3 e8 16.g4 d6 17.f2 f6=
Pigusov, E-Gradalski, P/Swidnica 1997 ]
[ 12...b4!? 13.0-0 d8 14.a4 e7
15.b4 ]
[ This is a strange decision, Black sacrifices
a pawn to develop his bishop, but other
benefits don't seem obvious. Instead the
370
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

s o l i d a n d n o r m a l 15...c5!? is fully 382 A11

ad e qu a te , e . g. 16.xc5 xc5 17.fd1 Goodwin,Ed
e7= ] Fowler,S 2116
16.xg7 g8 17.h6 e5 18.a4 a7 Open Coventry ENG (2) 25.03.2005
[ 18...d4!? 19.fd1 c6 is an alternative ] [John Watson]
19.h3
[ White can claim an advantage in several Black plays an extremely common move order
ways. Also 19.f4!? looks good, e. g. d3 with ..Bg4 versus the Reti and gets a good
20.c7 c8 21.b6 xb6 22.xb6 c2 game versus routine play. But Reti players
23.ad1 f4 ( 23...xb2? 24.d7+- ) should know that he can end up in serious
24.fe1 xg2 25.xg2 xb2 26.e3 ] trouble if White plays aggressively. In fact, the
19...d3 20.ad1 0-0-0 simplicity of White's correct plan may inspire
[ Wanting to connect the rooks and allow the players of W hite who hate meeting ...Bg4
rook on g8 to join the game, Black makes systems. 1.c4 c6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 f6
an inaccuracy. I think 20...d8!? intending ... 4.f3 g4
Ke7 is a better move. ] [ Absolutely normal-looking. Nevertheless, it
21.d2 d7 runs into trouble and gives a clue as to why
[ Black has troubles emerging, White's so many players prefer 4...dxc4 ]
pieces are slowly beginning to work together, 5.cxd5
and while Black's counterparts look quite [ The correct move order is held to be 5.e5!
active, the reality is somewhat different. , when 5...Bf5 6.cxd5 cxd5 is the game, so
21...f5 22.exf5 xf5 23.g4 g6 24.fd1 ] B la ck m a y p re f e r e6! , as in Goodwin-
[ 21...b5 22.c3 b4 23.e2 f6 24.c2+ ] Mansson. Thus the right choice of move
22.h2 orders leaves the variation up for grabs. ]
[ Or 22.fd1!? e5 23.xd7 xd7 5...cxd5?!
24.b4!+- , and White has the pawn and the [ 5...xf3! 6.xf3 cxd5 has led to equality in
compensation to paraphrase many games. Black develops simply by ...e6,
Dzindzichashvili ] ...Be7, and ...0-0. Hence the order with 5.
22...b5 23.c3 c5?! Ne5. ]
[ 23...b4 Black should play 24.a4 e5 6.e5! f5 7.c3 e6 Tony discussed this
25.f3 Now on the other hand, Black gets in va riat io n in Fe rn a nd e z Mu rga-G in zb u rg,
deeper trouble. ] Buenos Aires 1999. It's worth repeating that
24.xd7 xd7 25.f4 f6 26.a1! b8 with some details, since W hite could use a
27.xb5?! simple plan versus this kind of Slav setup. It's
[ Here White misses a chance to blow Black odd that Black's natural alternatives also have
away with 27.f5! exf5 28.exf5 xf5 drawbacks:
29.xb5 axb5 30.xa7+- ] [ (a) 7...d4?? 8.b3 ]
27...b6?! [ (b) 7...bd7 8.g4! ( 8.a4 e6 9.g4 g6
[ 27...f2! is Black's last chance. 28.d6+ 10.g5 h5 11.d4 d6 12.e4 xe5
d7 29.e5 fxe5 30.fxe5 xg3+ 31.xg3 13.dxe5 0-0= ) 8...e6 ( 8...xe5 9.gxf5
e4+ 32.f4 xg2 33.h4 ] d7 10.d4 c6 11.g5 xf5 12.xf6
28.d6++- c7 29.e5 fxe5 30.fxe5 d4 exf6 13.xd5 d6 14.e4 g6 15.0-0 )
31.c1+ d7 32.d1 9.a4 a6 10.g5 b5 11.d4 xe5
1-0 12.xe5 d7 13.f4 b6 14.d3 ]
8.a4+
[ I don't think that Black can equalise after
the theoretical 8.g4! g6 ( 8...xg4??
9.xg4 xg4 10.a4+; 8...e4 9.a4+
bd7 10.xe4 xe4 11.xe4 dxe4
12.xd7 xd7 13.xe4 ) 9.a4+ bd7
10.h4 d6 ( 10...a6 11.xd7 xd7

371
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

12.xd7+ xd7 13.h5 is the Fernandez Alternatives:

Murga-Ginzburg game, when "best" play is [ (a) 6.b3 c7 7.d3 bd7 ( 7...g6 8.f4
probably e4 14.f3 c2 15.g5 e8 16.d3 g5 9.e3 g7 10.c3 ) 8.xd7 xd7
d4 17.d2 dxc3+ 18.xc2 cxb2
9.0-0 e6 10.d4= ]
19.xb2; [ (b) 6.a3 dxc4 7.axc4 d5 8.f3 e6
A well-known line is 10...c2
11.xf7! xa4 12.xd8 xd8 13.xa4 9.d4 xc4 10.xc4 b4+ 11.f2 bd7
xg4 14.h3 df6 15.g1! ) 11.d4 h6 12.b3 b6! 13.d1 e7= ]
( 11...a6?? 12.xd7 xd7 [ (c) 6.cxd5 xd5 ( 6...cxd5 7.c3 bd7
13.xd7+
xd7 14.h5+- ) 12.xg6 fxg6 13.g5 hxg5 8.d4 ) 7.f3 c5 ( 7...e5 8.c3 e4
14.hxg5 xh1+ 15.xh1 h5 16.c2 f8 9.h4!? ) 8.c3 c6 9.0-0 bd7=
17.e4! ] this has been played in some grandmaster-
8...bd7 9.d4?! level games. ]
[ A g a i n , W h i t e h a s 9.g4! , normally
6...dxc4 7.e4 Not bad, but too slow to be
transposing into the last note. After the text,
convincing.
Black may actually stand better. ] [ The more forcing 7.a3!? d5 8.f3 b5
9...e7 10.0-0 0-0 11.xd7 xd7 12.b3 9.e4 e6 10.f4 c8 11.0-0 gives White
f6 13.e3 b6 14.ad1 d7 15.b5 space and some development for the pawn -
e7 16.c1 Floundering. The idea is to get this deserves to be looked at. ]
e4 or e3 in. fd8 17.h3? 7...bd7 8.f4 xe5 9.fxe5 g4 10.d2
[ 17.e3 c4 ] d7 11.g5?!
17...ac8 18.a3 c4 White has little to do [ W h it e sh o u ld f o r ge a h e a d wit h 11.0-0!
and Black goes on to win easily. 19.e3 dc8 Then it's not so clear, e.g., e6 12.f4 h5
20.d2? 13.e3 e7 14.d2 ]
[ 20.g4 g6 21.b3 h6 ] 11...e6! 12.d5!?
20...4c6! 21.dd1 c4 22.c1? [ White could play simply 12.0-0 although f6
[ White is lost in any case: 22.b3? b6 ] 13.exf6 exf6 still favours the second
[ 22.c1 xe3 23.fxe3 g5 24.f2 f6 player. ]
and Black wins. ] 12...f6 13.e3 g8?!
22...c2! White's queen is trapped and ...Rb6 [ 13...g4! 14.e6 e5 15.0-0 g5! 16.d2
t h r e a t e n s . 23.b4 d7 24.a2 b6
g7 is very solid and holds onto the extra
25.e1 xd1 26.xd1 xb2 27.xb2 pawn, whereas ]
xb2 28.b4 b5 29.e4 a5 30.d3 b3 [ 13...cxd5 14.exd5 f5 is also playable. ]
31.c5 xa3 32.exd5 exd5 33.xd5 d8 14.e6 e5 15.0-0 b6 Black reasons that
34.h5 e8 35.e4 e7 36.xf6+ xf6 the wedge created by White's pawn on e6 will
37.c1 g6 mean less with the queens off. 16.xb6 axb6
0-1 17.e3 b5 18.d4!? A fascinating position
because of Black's long-term problem with the
p a wn o n e 6 . P e r h a p s W h i t e s h o u ld ju s t
383 A11 transfer his knight to d4 via d2 and f3. g6
Goodwin,Ed [ 18...d3!? threatens ...c5 and virtually
Mansson,James 2093 forces 19.a3 ]
Open Coventry ENG (4) 26.03.2005 19.d2 g7 20.b3 c5?
[John Watson] [ 20...h6! looks great in view of 21.fd1
g4 ( 21...d8 22.bxc4 xd2 23.xd2
1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.g2 d5 4.f3 g4 xc4 24.dd1 is still not easy. )]
5.e5 The more accurate order according to 21.xe5! fxe5 22.bxc4!?
theory, since 5.cxd5 allows 5...Bxf3! 6.Bxf3 [ L o g i c a l , b u t W h i t e s h o u l d p l a y 22.a4!
cxd5. e6! Quite possibly Black's best here, w i t h t h e i d e a 2 2 . . . c 3 2 3 . a x b 5 ! o r cxb3
as opposed to 5...Bf5 6.cxd5 cxd5,transposing 23.axb5 d8 24.c4 ]
to Goodwin-Fowler, which seems to favour 22...h6!? 23.f3 b4?
White. 6.d4!? An extremely interesting gambit. [ Black should enter the complexities of

372
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
23...bxc4 24.xe5 c3 ( 24...e3+ 25.h1
d4 26.d7! threatening Rf8 mate.)
25.d7 c2 26.a4 b5! 27.ac1 e3+
28.h1 xe6! 29.dxe6 xc1 30.xc1
xa4 31.f1 c4 32.xc2 d8 ]
24.xe5 e3+ 25.h1 d4 26.d7 xe6
27.dxe6 xa1 28.xa1 Compare the last
note: W hite is winning but makes several
errors and then blunders terribly to lose the
game. a5
[ 28...b3 29.e5! b2 30.b1 xa2 31.xb7
a1 32.e4 ]
29.e5 d8 30.d1
[ 30.xb7! b3 31.a3 ]
30...c7 31.e4 d8 32.d2 a3 33.d5?
[ 33.f2! e3 34.xc5 ]
33...da8 34.f2
[ 34.xc5 xa2 35.d1 a1 36.xa1
xa1+ 37.g2 b6 ]
34...xa2 35.xa2 xa2 36.xc5 e2
37.d3?? b3 38.h4 e3
0-1
384
Grandelius,Nils
Kuipers,Stefan
Corus C Wijk aan Zee NED (2)
[Nigel Davies]
1.c4 c6 2.f3 f6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4
5.0-0 bd7 6.c2 b6 7.a3 d5 8.b3
cxb3 9.axb3 e6 Black has tried other
approaches in this position though it seems
that White has compensation in any case. For
example:
[ a) 9...g6 10.c4 d8
11.bxc4 d8 12.e5 g7 13.b2 0-0
14.d4 d7 15.d3 b6 16.c5 d5
17.fd1 f5 18.b3 gave White strong
pressure for the pawn in Trella, T (2234)-
Ionov, S (2522), Cappelle la Grande FRA
2 0 0 7 , t h o u gh h e e ve n t u a l ly l o s t t o h i s
higher rated opponent.) 11.fe5 bd5
12.e4 c7 13.d4 g7 14.b2 0-0 15.f4
e6 16.h3 b5 17.ad1 c7 18.g4
and at this stage W hite had pretty good
compensation for the pawn in Pantsulaia, L
(2596)-Wang Yue (2644), Yerevan 2006. ]
[ b) 9...e6 10.b2 d8 11.e4 e7 12.d4
0-0 13.fd1 e8 14.c4 c7 15.a5
b5 16.e5 d6 17.ec4 and White had
excellent compensation in Tukmakov, V-
Klovans, J, Kishinev 1975. ]
10.b1 g6 11.d3
[ White can also play 11.b2 as the b3 pawn
would be indirectly protected, for example
g7 ( 11...xb3? 12.xb3 xb3 13.xf6
wins on the spot) 12.d4 d7 13.xe6
xe6 14.e4 0-0 15.d4 ad8 16.fe1 e8
17.bd1 c8 18.c4 c7 19.e5
o n c e a g a i n wi t h i m p r e s s i ve p o s i t i o n a l
compensation in Komarov, D (2475)-Sorokin,
M (2500), Kherson 1991. ]
11...d8
[ The immediate 11...g7 might have been
better. Black is trying to escape tricks along
the a-file but there's also a case for
defending the a7 pawn. ]
12.c4 g7 13.fe5 b5 14.a1 xc4
15.xc4 0-0 16.d2
[ 16.a5!? wins Black's queen, though the
position that arises after xc4 17.xb5
xb5 18.b2 might be a difficult one to
win. ]
A11 16...h5 17.fe1 h3?!
2515 [ 17...g4!? was interesting, the idea being
2340 t h a t a f t e r 18.h3 xa1 19.hxg4 xg4
17.01.2010 20.xa1 xe2 Black gets to break up
W hite's pawn structure. He probably
rejected this line because of the danger
three minor pieces might represent to his
king position, but objectively speaking this
might have been the best. ]
18.a5 g4 19.f3 c8 20.xa7
After regaining the pawn it looks like White
should be better, though it proves difficult to
( 10...xc4 break through Black's defences. Eventually
frustration kicks in and he blunders. d5
21.a2 d7 22.b4 e6 23.a5 c7
24.b6 d4 25.a4 b5 26.c5 c8
27.b3 d6 28.a4 e6 29.f4 xb3
30.xb3 e5 31.e3 fe8 32.g2 a8
33.c5 c7 34.ea1 ad8 35.e4 h8
36.c1 a8 37.e3 d7 38.a2??
Just as the game was heading serenely along
towards a likely draw, White blunders.
[ Just 38.g1 would leave the bishop on e4
a retreat path and be about equal. ]
38...xa4 39.xa4 f5 40.f3 e4 41.dxe4
fxe4 42.xe4 xe4 43.d1 c8 44.b3
c3 45.d6 d5 46.g5 f8 47.d7 h6
373
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

48.d3 d4 49.xg6 e3+ win. ]

0-1 13.a3 a5 14.d4 g6 15.d3 exd4
16.xd4 g4 17.f5 f6 18.f3 h5
19.ae1 f8 20.xh5 xh5 21.f4 b6
385 A11 22.g4
Grischuk,Alexander 2773 [ 22.d3 looks like a more promising way of
Kramnik,Vladimir 2784 trying to keep a slight edge because f6
73rd Tata Steel (4) 18.01.2011 may still be the best reply. ]
[Nigel Davies] 22...f6 23.f3 d5 This threat against e3
encourages W hite to exchange off his light
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 f6 4.c3 bd7 square bishop after which he really can't hope
5.c2 e6 6.b3 d6 7.b2 0-0 8.e2 for any kind of advantage. 24.xd5 xd5
[ 8.h3!? is an interesting alternative here. ] 25.f5 f6 26.d1 e4 Kramnik is not one to
8...e8 9.0-0 mind the queens coming off. 27.xe4 xe4
[ It's not too late to play for a king side attack 28.f3 g6 29.h6+ g7 30.g4 f7
with 9.g4!? , for example e5N ( 9...xg4 31.h6+ g7 32.g4 f7 33.h6+ e7
10.g1 gf6 11.0-0-0 gives White 34.g8+ f7
dangerous attacking chances for the pawn) ½-½
10.xe5 xe5 11.g5 d7 ( 11...e4!? )
12.f4 d6 13.h4 e7 14.0-0-0!? a3
15.d4! gave White the more promising 386 A11
prospects because of his space in Gurevich, Gurevich,Mikhail 2634
M (2643)-Savchenko, S (2583)/Vlissingen/ Bareev,Evgeny 2737
1999. ] QF Cap d'Agde FRA (2) 27.10.2002
9...e5 [Tony Kosten]
[ After 9...a6 10.d4 would be a standard
Semi-Slav type position in which Black's ... 1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 f6 4.c2
a7-a6 is a questionable use of time. ] This move was certainly all the fashion at Cap
10.cxd5 xd5 11.e4 c7 12.g3 D ' A g d e , a s I s t a t e d i n t h e e B o o k , t h e
In this quiet reversed Hedgehog type position advantage is that W hite stops ... Bf5, and
some great players have tried other moves deters ...Bg4, as the knight on f3 is no longer
here, for example: pinned, and can hop to e5. a6 A sensible Slav
[ a) 12.a3 a5 13.c4 f8 14.g3 g4 move, stopping a white piece going to b5, and
15.e1 g6 16.h3 e6 17.f3 f6?! possibly preparing a later ...b5. Two other
( 17...e7 was better and equal) 18.xe6 tries at Cap D'Agde:
xe6 19.ad1 e8 20.e4! intending d2-d4 [ 4...g6 5.b3 g7 6.b2 0-0 7.e2 a6!?
was better for White in Tal, M-Bagirov, V/ 8.cxd5 cxd5 9.xa6 bxa6 10.d3 g4
Riga 1981. ] 11.bd2 c8 12.b1 and now Black
[ b) 12.ad1 f8 13.d3 ( 13.d4 was worth started an interesting attack with xf3!?
considering) 13...e7 14.a3 a5 15.fe1 13.xf3 a5+ 14.e2 d4!? 15.xd4 d5
f5 16.g3 g6 17.c4 b6 18.g4 although White won, Karpov,A-Dreev,A/Cap
d7 was equal in Polugaevsky, L (2595)- d'Agde FRA 2002. ]
Piket, J (2605)/Aruba 1994. ] [ 4...bd7 5.c3 e6 6.b3 b6!? 7.cxd5
12...f8 exd5 8.d4 b7 9.e2 d6 with a Slave-
[ The only other game I could find with 12. like p ositio n , G ure vich, M-Dre ev, A/ Ca p
Ng3 went 12...7f6 13.d3 e7 14.a3 c5 d'Agde FRA 2002. ]
15.ac1 b6 16.fe1 b7 17.b1 ad8 5.h3!? I don't really know what to make of this
18.f1 b8 19.a1 d7 20.d2 g5 move, a speciality of Mikhael Gurevich, is it
21.cd1 with a rather fishy looking position really so important to stop ...Bg4 ? Perhaps,
for White in Kipper, J (2307) -Nazarenus, M as
(2124)/Bad Zwesten 2003. Black went on to [ 5.b3 g4 6.e5 h5 7.d4 e6 8.d3

374
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

bd7 seemed to allow Black a quick [ 23.b1 might be best, to dissuade ...a5,
equality in Azmaiparashvili,Z-Burmakin,V/ and with the intention of regaining the a4-
Ohrid MKD 2001. ] pawn later-on. ]
5...g6 Strictly speaking, only this move is a 23...a5! 24.bxa5 xd2 25.xd2
novelty, as in the game Gurevich,M-Volkov,S/ [ 25.a6 b4 26.xa4 c3 27.a3
Batumi GEO 2002, Black continued ( 27.d1? b3 28.a3 c1! ) 27...b4
[ 5...e6 6.b3 d6 7.b2 bd7 8.d4 draws. ]
and again, a sort of Slav position is 25...xa5 So, Black has seemingly emerged
reached. ] well from the previous play, but W hite will
6.b3 g7 7.b2 0-0 8.e2 b5!? recuperate the a-pawn and maintain a slight
Black gains space on the queenside. 9.0-0 spatial plus. 26.d1 b4? Black misses a
b6!? This really encourages White's next tactic,
move. 10.c5 c7 11.a4 a7 12.e5 b7 [ 26...a7 is the way to hold onto the pawn,
13.b4 White has more space, a strong grip on 27.d3 e5 28.c2 exd4 29.exd4 b7
the dark squares, and can open the a-file at 30.f4! to defend the d4-pawn, and play is
his leisure, but the black position is a solid level. ]
one. e8 14.c3 bd7 Black must be 27.c7 Ouch! b5 The only chance,
ready to counter the pressure on the a-file by [ 27...5a7? 28.b6 b7 29.xa4 xa4
doubling his rooks, for if 30.xa4 b2 31.a8+ f8 32.a6
[ 14...f5 then 15.a2 is awkward, wins the exchange even more favourably. ]
threatening to exploit the pin on the a-file 28.xa4!
to win the b5-pawn. ] [ 28.xb5?! cxb5 is far from clear. ]
15.h2 The bishop finds a more important 28...xa4 29.xa4 b1 30.a8+ f8
diagonal. With the white pawns still on d2 and 31.h2 f6
e3 it is u nu s ua l to see t h e da rk-squ are d [ 31...xd1 32.xd1 f6 is a better chance. ]
bishop on the h2-b8 diagonal! e4 16.d4 32.a4! b2 33.f4! After this Black is lost.
df6 17.a3 White's plan is simple, he will xe2
pile-up on the a-file. f5 18.b3 xc3 [ 33...g5 34.a7 xe2 35.xd7
19.xc3 e4 20.b3 ea8 21.fa1 d7 is also hopeless, gxf4 36.xe7 and mate. ]
22.a2?! So the critical point is reached, 34.a5! This is far stronger than
White menaces the capture on b5 when Black [ 34.h6 when the black king escapes: f7
would be obliged to recapture with the c-pawn, 35.xf8+ e6 36.a7 a2 37.c7 xf2
which is positionally undesirable as the a6- which is wild. ]
pawn would then be backward on an open file, 34...f7 35.d8 xf2?!
and the white c5-pawn would be passed. [ 35...e6 is better, 36.xf8 xf2 37.d6!
However, Black has some tactical points that exd6 38.xd6+ f5 39.xd7+ e4
are in his favour, and in a non-rapid game I 40.xc6 White is clearly better, but the
am sure White would have preferred game continues. ]
[ 22.d3 with a plus. ] 36.xd7 As 37 Qe8+ is decisive.
22...bxa4 1-0
[ 22...a5!? is interesting, 23.axb5 c3!
this is the sneaky point, 24.d2 ( 24.xc3?
axb4 ) 24...axb4 25.xa7 xa7 26.xa7 387 A11
xa7 27.b6 a1+ 28.f1 c8 Gurevich,Mikhail 2634
and although W hite has a powerful Dreev,Alexey 2673
p r o t e c t e d p a wn o n b 6 , B l a c k h a s r e a l 6th Masters Bastia FRA (2.2) 02.11.2002
counterplay. ] [Tony Kosten]
23.d2!? Played to eliminate the e4-knight
before recapturing the a-pawn, but this allows Craig Hall writes: "Because of your column, I
Black time to play ...a5. have recently begun playing the Gurevich
[ 23.xa4? c3 forks queen and rook, but ] system with 1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 Nf6 4.Qc2

375
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Could we see some games where Black plays
3...Bg4 or 3.Bf5 ? Also, a game where Black
employs a kingside fianchetto? Who better to
follow then, than the master himself! 1.c4 c6
2.f3 d5 3.e3 f6 This is the normal move
here, or course, but after W hite's 4th move
B la c k wi ll h a ve d i f f icu lt y d e ve lo p i n g h i s
queen's bishop actively, which is why Black
sometimes develops this piece immediately:
[ 3...f5!? 4.b3 (seems the most
appropriate, as the b7-pawn is no longer
defended) c7 5.cxd5 cxd5 6.c3
( 6.xd5?? xc1+ ) 6...e6 7.b5+
this is one way to exploit the absence of the
black bishop, the other is ( 7.a4+!? d7
8.d3 e7 9.e4 (this shows the
disadvantage of playing ...Bf5 when White
defers d4) g6 10.e3 dxe4 11.dxe4 c6
12.c1 b4 13.a3 with an edge to White,
Milov,V-Summerscale,A/FrTCh, Mulhouse
FRA 1998. ) 7...c6 8.d4 g6 9.a4
ge7 10.b3 a6 11.a3 but after c8
12.c1! axb5 13.cxb5 b6 14.c5 d8
15.d6+ d7 Garcia Palermo,C-Meduna,E/
Germany 1990/GER-chT, W hite should
have played 16.xb7 c7 17.d6 b8
18.xf7! xf7 19.xe7 xe7 20.xc6+
with a fantastic attack. ]
[ 3...g4
A) 4.b3 c7 5.e5! e6 6.d4 d7
7.xd7 dxc4 8.c2!? xd7 9.d2 f6
10.xc4 with an edge because of the
central pawns, Jakubiec,A-Zawadzki,S/
Cappelle la Grande FRA 2003, and;
B) 4.cxd5 xf3 ( 4...xd5 5.c3 a5?!
6.b4! c7 7.b2 e6 8.c1 is pleasant
for White, Dizdarevic,E-Kos,T/Pula 1996)
5.gxf3!? ( 5.xf3 ) 5...cxd5 6.b3 d7
7.c3 e6 8.d4 c6 9.d2 d6
10.0-0-0 ge7 11.b1 0-0 and Black's
better structure was equivalent to the
white bishops, Gelfand, B-Hertneck,G/
Munich 1992.;
C) 4.h3 I think that this is the simplest,
W hite simply takes the long-term
advantage of the bishop pair, but there are
two other interesting possibilities: xf3
5.xf3 e6 6.d4 d6 7.c3 d7 8.d3
gf6 9.d2 e7 10.cxd5!?
the introduction to a sharp plan, but White
is a ls o b e t t e r a f t e r t h e sim p l e ( 10.0-0
because of his light-squared bishop e.g.
dxc4 11.xc4 e5 12.b3 ) 10...exd5
11.g4! h6 12.h4 f8 13.0-0-0 0-0-0
14.g5 with more space and the initiative,
Smejkal,J-Bohm,H/Amsterdam 1975. ]
4.c2 g6!? Black will fianchetto his king's
bishop, and can also play ...Bf5 in some lines.
We have mostly considered
[ 4...e6 and also ]
[ 4...a6 ]
5.b3 I once tried
[ 5.b4 with success. ]
5...g7 6.b2 0-0 7.e2 a6 This is the
best development for the knight, as it
threatens to come to c5, or b4, whilst leaving
the h3-c8 diagonal open.
[ 7...f5 8.d3 bd7 is not particularly useful,
as now the bishop becomes the 'attacked'
r a t h e r t h a n t h e ' a t t a c k e r ' : ( 8...a6
transposes) 9.d4 dxc4?! ( 9...g4 10.f3
e5 11.fxg4 exd4 12.xd4 is not so clear)
10.bxc4 e8 11.xf5 ( 11.0-0!?
is also effective, g4 12.f3 e5 13.fxg4
exd4 14.g5 with a big plus) 11...a5+
12.d2 xf5 13.e4 e6 14.d4
and White made his big centre and pair of
bishops count, Gurevich,M-Tischendorf,M/
Ordix Open, Frankfurt GER 2000. ]
8.d3 This seems more effective than
[ 8.cxd5!? cxd5 9.xa6 bxa6 10.d3 g4
11.bd2 when c8 12.b1 xf3! 13.xf3
a5+ 14.e2 was a bit uncomfortable for
White, Karpov,A-Dreev,A/Cap d'Agde FRA
2002. ]
8...f5
[ 8...e8 is similar, 9.bd2 f5 10.a3 c8
11.d1 b5 12.e4 with a plus, Horvath,C-
Acs,P/ Balatonlelle HUN 2002. ]
9.0-0 c8 10.a3 Controlling b4, and
preparing queenside expansion, this is better
than
[ 10.d1 b6!? 11.c3 c5 12.ab1
fd8 13.b4!? Fradkin,B-Kashin,Y/Omsk/
Perm 1998, when Black might have tried
xb4 14.xd5 cxd5 15.xf6 a4 ]
10...dxc4!? Best to play this now, and
pressurise the d-pawn, rather than wait for
White to play Nbd2 when he can recapture
with the knight on c4. 11.bxc4 c5 12.d1
b5 13.e4 White had to reduce the pressure
on d3. g4 14.bd2 a4?! This loses
376
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

control of c5, which has serious 388 A11

consequences. 15.e5 a5 16.b3 a6 Gurevich,Mikhail 2643
17.c5! Now White is clearly on top, he can Savchenko,Stanislav 2583
advance his d-pawn with a powerful centre. HZ Open Vlissingen NED (4) 12.08.1999
fd8 18.h3 xf3 19.xf3 e8 20.xg7 [Tony Kosten]
xg7 21.d4 e6 Black has a fairly solid
position, but can only wait until W hite 1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.e3 f6 4.c3 e6 5.b3
engineers a central breakthrough. 22.d3 Of course, White can play
b7 23.ad1 c7 24.g3 b8 Black's 14th [ 5.d4 here, or later, with a transposition into
move is still causing him problems, as the a main line Slav, but can he do better? ]
knight is stuck 'out on a limb', and so he 5...bd7 6.c2 An important idea, for if the
prepares ...a5 and ...b4, followed by ...Nc3. immediate
25.d2! Stopping ...a5. e5?! Black seizes his [ 6.b2?! then e5! is possible, 7.d4 e4
chance for counterplay, but it rebounds (as it 8.d2 e7 9.a3 0-0 10.b4 e8
should, I suppose). 26.d5! with mutual chances, Kortchnoi,V-Petrosian,
[ 26.dxe5 xd3 27.xd3 xe5 ( 27...b2 T/Velden 1980. ]
28.d6 ) 28.d6 is also promising. ] 6...d6 Now, the move
26...cxd5 27.xd5?! A slip, but bear in mind [ 6...e5?! is countered by 7.cxd5 forcing
that this was a rapid game. xd5 with a good 'Sicilian-style' position for
[ 27.exd5! xc5 28.d6 b6 29.xc5 White, as ( 7...cxd5? allows 8.b5 i.e. c5
xc5 30.c3 was the right way. ] 9.xe5! winning a pawn. )]
27...xd5? This returns the game to its 7.b2 0-0 8.e2 e8 9.g4!? A Gurevich
'rightful' path. invention. Of course, we are used to seeing
[ 27...e6! is equal. ] this move in the Slav these days, although
28.exd5 xc5 29.d6 b6 30.xc5 xc5 normally when the g7-pawn is undefended.
31.c1 b6 [ 9.0-0 is the normal move here, of course,
[ 31...xa3 32.d7 d8 33.c8 f8 34.g4 e5!? 10.cxd5 xd5 11.e4 c7 12.ad1
wins very much as in the game. ] Polugaevsky, L-Piket,J/Aruba (m/7) 1994,
32.d7 This pawn wins the game. d8 33.c6 with a slight edge to White. ]
b8 34.g4 h5 After [ 9.h3 is a similar idea which, although
[ 34...f5 35.d5+ h8 the move 36.c5 slower, doesn't lose a pawn. a6?! 10.g4
wins, as there is no way to stop Rc8. ] dxc4 11.bxc4 f8 12.g5 6d7 13.e4
35.c8 b6 36.g5?! Deflection time! with good chances to W hite, Burnett, R-
[ 36.e3! wins immediately, as now a5 Palsson,H/North Bay CAN 1999. ]
37.g5 and Black can no longer play ...f6. ] 9...e5 Black makes a space for the f6-knight
36...f6 37.e3 a5 38.b3+ White is still on d7.
winning, of course. h7 [ 9...xg4 Must be the critical test of this line,
[ 38...f8 might have given White more Gurevich's previous game in this line
problems, although 39.c6! e7 40.d5 against Pavasovic, at Bern 1995, went:
and Qd6+ wins. ] 10.g1 gf6 11.g5!? with many threats,
39.b4! b6 40.e7 f8! 12.f4 e5 13.fxe5 xe5 14.f3 g6
1-0 15.xe5 xe5 16.0-0-0!? entering into the
complications, but ( 16.cxd5 first, might be
better. ) 16...dxc4! 17.xc4 g4 18.df1
b5!? 19.e4! xe4 20.xf7+ xf7
21.xg4 fg5 when White never quite
managed to get enough for his sacrifice, and
lost. What exactly had Gurevich prepared as
an improvement? ]
10.xe5 xe5 11.g5 d7 12.f4
W hite gains control of the a1-h8 diagonal.

377
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

d6 13.h4 e7 14.0-0-0 a3

that he may keep a hold on the e5-square,
The b2-bishop was too dangerous to be left on and also stops ...Bf5, or ...Bg4 (because of
the board, but now Black's remaining bishop the reply Ne5). e6
is limited by his pawn chain. 15.d4 xb2+
[ 4...g6 is also a reasonable reply. ]
16.xb2 b6 17.d3 f8 18.e4 White gains 5.b3 e7
e ve n m o re s p a ce . b7 19.he1 [ ac8
Not the most aggressive square for this
20.f2 dxc4 21.xc4 b5 22.d3 a6 23.f5! piece, 5...bd7 6.c3 would transpose
W hite is ready to start his attack, f6 is into another Gurevich game, see the
menaced. e5 archives. ]
[ 23...d7 doesn't help, as 24.f6! anyway! 6.b2 0-0 7.g1!?
gxf6 25.gxf6 xf6 26.xf6 xf6 27.g1+ [ In this last game it wasn't clear whether the
f8 28.e5 d5 29.xd5 exd5 30.xh7 g4-pawn could have been taken, so here
with a huge positional advantage. ] W hite simply prepares the move g4 with
24.f6 d6 25.fxg7 e6 26.dxe5 this stunning innovation. 7.e2 is a more
[ 26.f6 c7 27.d5 xg7 mundane try, bd7 8.0-0 c7 9.d3 e8
28.d6
is also strong. ] 10.bd2 a5 11.a3 b6 12.e4 dxe4
26...xe5 27.f6 xg7 28.c2
13.dxe4 b4 e5 with equality, Lauvsnes,A-
29.xe5 xe5 30.a4 The endgame is very Harestad,H/NOR 1994. ]
pleasant for W hite, firstly he threatens to 7...bd7 8.g4 e4 9.c3
b r i n g a r o o k t o t h e s e v e n t h r a n k . ce8
[ 9.d3?! allows b4+ , of course. ]
31.b6 9...xc3 10.xc3 e8 11.d3 g6!?
Now, Nd7-f6 will be unpleasant for
Black. h5 Covering the f6-square, but after [ This creates weaknesses around the black
the exchange of knights, the pawn that arrives king, 11...f8 might be more prudent. ]
on f6 will allow W hite to finish the game. 12.h4! As Black has no real central
32.d7 5e7 33.e5 c8 34.f6+ xf6 counterplay (a result of his fifth move) White
35.gxf6 d7 What else? continues his kingside onslaught. f6 13.h5
[ 35...xe5? allo ws m ate : 36.xe5 xe5 xc3 14.dxc3 f6
37.d8+ ] [ Black brings a piece to the aid of his king,
36.g1+ h8 but 14...e5 was also worth consideration as
[ 36...f8 37.xh7 and Rg8 mate is
15.hxg6 hxg6 16.xg6? is met by the
unstoppable. ] riposte ( 16.e4 ) 16...e4! ]
37.xd7 xd7 38.g7 White wins a pawn, 15.g3 c5
b u t m a i n t a i n s a l l t h e a d va n t a g e s o f h i s
[ Again, 15...e5 is possible, although White
position. e6 Black's position is hopeless, e. has the edge after 16.g5 d6 17.cxd5
g. cxd5 18.e4 ]
[ 38...e6 39.xh7+ g8 40.h5 c5 16.hxg6 hxg6 17.g5 g7 Black must
41.h7+ h8 42.d3+ g8 43.g5+ h8 maintain control over the e5-square, lest he
44.xa6 picking-up a second pawn, for
rema in with a ba d bishop . 18.0-0-0 e5
nothing. ] Finally! 19.e4 dxe4
1-0 [ 19...e6 keeps the central tension, and
may be superior. ]
20.xe4 a5 21.d2 e6 22.h1
389 A11 White prepares to exploit the open h-file. ed8
Gurevich,Mikhail 2667 23.h6 Menacing a deadly demolition sacrifice
Wegerle,Joerg 2296 on g6. f5?
KB Czech Open (1) 21.07.2000 [ The resultant queen versus two rooks
[Tony Kosten] position favours White, because of the open
black king, better 23...f8 as on 24.f3?
1.c4 c6 2.f3 f6 3.e3 d5 4.c2!? Black really can play f5! ]
If White wishes to play this way, then this is 24.gxf6! xh6 25.xg6+ xg6 26.xg6
an interesting move order, he defers Nc3 so f7 27.f3 e4 28.xe4 d6 Thus Black

378
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

attempts to eliminate the dangerous f6-pawn. 10...b8? leaves him in trouble following
29.g5! 11.a3! threatening both rooks, one directly
[ Much simpler than 29.h7+ when f8 and one via Qc6. ( and not 11.c6? c5
30.e5 ad8! 31.xf7 d1+ 32.xd1 12.xa8 b7 )]
xd1+ 33.xd1 xf7 allows Black to [ However, 10...c5! may be best, holding
continue a little. ] both the c-file and a3-f8 diagonals: 11.c1
29...xf6 30.d2 ( 11.d4 b4+ 12.c3 e7 leaves White's
[ Grabbing the a8-rook by 30.d5 cxd5 pieces on the wrong squares) 11...b7
31.h7+ f8 32.h8+ e7 33.xa8 12.0-0 a6 13.bd4 c8 14.b1 e7
seems even more convincing. ] and Black is not worse, Bistric,F-Szuhanek,
30...xe4 31.xe4 e6 32.g5+ g6? R/Rijeka CRO 2001. ]
[ This further aggravates Black's problems, 11.c1 a6!?
32...f8 held on better. ] [ A new move, immediately putting the
33.c5 d6 34.xb7 e6 35.d8 d6 question to the knight, although after
36.xc6 e8 37.e5 g7 38.c5 de6 11...b7 12.c7 a6! 13.bd4 c5
39.f4 Black had equalised in Eliseev,A-Yevseev,
1-0 D/St Petersburg 2001. ]
12.c7 The knight goes into the hole, but how
will it come out? b8?!
390 A11 [ I am doubtful about this pawn sac, better
Gurevich,Mikhail 2641 12...a7 when White had clearly planned
Yagupov,Igor 2474 the following combination: 13.g5 b7
3rd IECC Batumi GEO (5) 16.06.2002 14.gxe6 fxe6 15.xe6 e8 16.xf8
[Tony Kosten] xf8 when White's rook and two pawns are
probably better than Black's two knights. ]
1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.e3 Mikhail Gurevich's 13.xa6
favourite 'anti-Slav' system, he avoids playing [ 13.g5 is still possible, but White prefers
d4 t o k eep th e a 1-h 8 d iagona l o pen . f6 to grab a pawn. ]
4.c2 e6 5.b3 bd7 6.b2 d6 7.c3 13...a8?!
0-0 8.e2 b6 [ Black is hoping that the bishop pair will
[ A perfectly natural move, instead of playing provide comp for the pawn, but 13...xa6
8...e8 aiming for ...e5, see Gurevich,M- 14.xa6 a8 15.xf6 xf6 16.b5 a3
Savchenko,S/Vlissingen NED 1999, Black is a better choice, as Black will gain control
prefers to develop his queenside. ] of the c-file. ]
9.cxd5 14.xf6 This is necessary, otherwise the a-
[ White decides to attack on the c-file. pawn wou ld be en prise when th e knigh t
Actually, Gurevich's kingside attacking plan moves from a7. xf6 15.c7 a5 16.b5
is playable in this position, too: 9.g1!? b7 d7 17.a4 Frankly, White is a pawn up for
10.g4 c5 11.g5 e4 12.cxd5 exd5 nothing. b8 18.c7 Extra material is most
13.xe4 dxe4 14.c3 (well, why not?) f6 easily exploited in an endgame! b4 19.xb8
15.gxf6 xf6 16.g5 with a powerful attack, xb8 20.e5 xb5 21.xb5 e4 22.e2!
e. g. e5 Rotstein,A-Schmitz,A/Lido Estensi [ 22.e2 xd2?! 23.c2 c3 24.hc1
ITA 2002, and now 17.c4+!? h8 18.d4 wins immediately, the bishop cannot move
cxd4 19.exd4 f4 20.e6 wins the because of the back-rank mate, and Nc6
exchange. ] and f3 are both menaced. ]
9...cxd5 1-0
[ 9...exd5!? might be possible, although
10.d4 b7 11.f5 is pleasant for White
whose f5-knight is extremely well-placed. ]
10.b5 e7
[ Black allows an invasion on c7, as

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

391 A11 xd1+ 32.xd1 Where White's extra pawn

Harikrishna,P 2705 is meaningless and the game is dead drawn-
Quesada Perez,Yu 2608 but this would be rather wet. ]
48th Capablanca Mem Elite (6.2) 27.04.2013 27...d7 28.e5 f8 29.d2? A tactical
[Danny Gormally] error, which his eagle-eyed opponent is quick
to seize upon. d6! 30.d4?
1.g3 f6 2.g2 d5 3.f3 c6 Probably a [ 30.b2 c7! followed by ..Be5 is no bed
more flexible choice than the immediate ... of roses either, but the move played in the
Bg4. 4.c4 g4 5.e5 e6! Taking the sting game runs into a neat shot. ]
out of White's previous move. 6.cxd5 xd5 30...f4! 31.xg7 Desperation, but pretty
7.f3 c5 8.0-0 e6 9.c3 c6 10.d3 e7 much forced from a practical point of view, as
11.e4 0-0! The most flexible continuation. the alternatives were unpalatable.
[ 11...bd7 12.e2! e5?! This just gives [ 31.xf4 xd4 Is beyond horrible. ]
White a target- the kingside 13.h4 0-0 31...xd2 32.f6 e5! 33.d1 h6 34.h5
14.f5 e8 15.g5 f8 16.f4! With a very g7 35.xd3! The typically inventive Indian
serious attack on the kingside, and W hite player finds his only remaining chance, but
we n t o n t o win i n I va n is e vic , I (2 6 4 5 ) - Black is happy to depart with the queen, as
Vuckovic, B (2604) Valjevo 2012 ] he gains oceans of material in return. xf6!
12.e2 [ 35...xd3?? 36.g5 ]
[ 12.a4 d7!? 13.e5 d5 14.e4 36.xd7 xd7-+ 37.h3 g7 38.g5 h6
( 14.xd5 exd5 15.d4 may have been 39.d2
p r e f e r a b l e) 14...c6 15.g5?! xg5 [ 39.e7 f8-+ ]
16.exg5 e7 17.e1 fd8 18.c1 e8 39...b8 40.d5 f6 41.c6 d3 42.c5
19.c4 h6 20.h3 db4! Where Black is xb3 43.c7 f8 44.f5 c3 45.xa7
very solid with no weaknesses- by contrast d8 46.b6 d2 47.a5 b3 48.a6 b2 49.a7
all of White's pawns on a4, d3 and e5 are a3 50.g2 xa7 51.c6 c7! 52.xc7
po t e n t ia l t a rge t s. He we n t o n t o win in b1 53.a7 e8 54.a8 b2 55.xe8+
Petrosian, T (2663)-Michalik, P (2535) Dubai f8 56.g6 xf2+ 57.h3 h2+ 58.g4
2013 ] e2+ 59.f5 f2+
12...b5! The position is very Catalan like in 0-1
character. With his next move, White tries to
create long-term weakness on c5, but the
downside is he loses further time with his 392 A11
Knight. 13.a4 b4 14.b1 b7 15.bd2 Jaracz,Pawel 2539
c6 16.c4 d7 17.d1?! A novelty, but Breder,Dennis 2435
probably not a very fortunate one. previously ZMD Open Dresden GER (7) 31.07.2009
17 Be3 had been played. [Jonathan Rowson]
[ 17.e3 c7 ]
17...d4! Black takes the opportunity to 1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 f6 4.c3 e6 5.b3
relieve himself of any lingering problems. d6 6.c2 e5! This very direct approach
18.xd4 cxd4 19.b3 It is not so easy for seems to work well against this particular
White to formulate a useful plan, any advance m o v e o r d e r , wh i c h s u g g e s t s t o m e t h a t
on the kingside seems a bit vague, while Black W h i t e ' s c o m b i n a t i o n o f Q c 2 a n d N c 3 i s
has easy play by contrast, with ..Nc5, ..Ba6 inaccurate when Black begins with ...e6 and ...
etc c5 20.b1 a6 21.f4 c8 22.h4 Bd6. 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.b5 This is the
xc4! Acquiring a very useful passer. 23.dxc4 positional trap that White hoped would deter
d3 24.f3 d7 25.f1 fd8 26.e3 c7 Black from early central expansion, but it
27.f4?! appears that black's control of the centre and
[ Harikrishna should arguably just bail out to gain in development is more important than
a draw here with 27.xc5 xc5 28.xd3 White's increased control of the dark squares.
xd3 29.xd3 d8 30.d1 e5 31.e2 c6 9.xd6+ xd6 10.b5 0-0 11.xc6

380
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

bxc6 12.b2 t a k e s t h e p a w n . 10...fd7

[ 12.a4 feels too weakening to be good. c5 Was an alternative, but this has gradually
13.a3 d7 followed by Ba6 looks better be e n re p lace d b y t he kin g m ove , a s in
for Black. ] some variations the knight may become
12...d7 13.0-0 a6 14.fc1 fc8 15.d4 u s e f u l o n f 6 . 11.b5 ( 11.xa8 xa8
[ 15.f5!? f6 16.a3!? xa3 17.xd7 12.d3! may be preferable, as taking the
b5 18.d4 e4 19.h4 looks like some sort pawn on d3 allows an instant mate, and h3
of initiative, but it is hard to see how the 13.d1 d5 14.f3 looks quite promising for
ro o k s wi ll give b a ck u p b e ca u se B la c k White ) 11...e5 12.d4 cxd3 13.xd3 c8
controls f1. g6 20.e6+ g7 21.c5 f8 14.xa7 xc6 15.xc6 c5 16.d4 c4
and both sides seem to be short of 17.d1 e5 18.f5 g6 19.e3 a6
constructive ideas so some sort of And Black is to be preferred as White has
repetition seems likely. ] no attacking chances, and the two minor
15...e4 16.e5 b8! The knight on e5 will pieces are superior to a rook and pawns in
now be pushed back and will take a long time the middle game, Black later won in
to f ind any meaningf ul work. 17.h3 f6 Pa n tsu la ia, L (25 9 9 )-Mage m B ad a ls , J
18.g4 d7 19.d2 A well-timed draw offer, (2589)/Khanty-Mansiysk 2010 ]
because Black is slightly better and can look 11.xa8
forward to a timely kingside advance. [ White can also try to retain the light-
½-½ squared bishop 11.b5!? c5 12.xa8
xb5 ( 12...xa8!? 13.a4 a6 14.d4 h5
15.c3 is also extremely murky) 13.g2 h5
393 A11 14.h4 f5 15.e4 d7 ( 15...g6!? ) 16.a4!
Kaidanov,G 2593 xa4 17.e5 e8 18.e1 e6 19.f1 c5
Holt,C 2513 20.d3 b3 21.xc4 xc4 22.dxc4 c7
ch-USA 2013 Saint Louis USA (2) 04.05.2013 23.d1! c8 24.xd7 xd7 25.xa4
[Danny Gormally] White was a pawn up and went on to win in
the game Timman, J (2566) -Smeets, J
1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.g3 f6 4.g2 dxc4 (2615)/Wijk aan Zee 2013 ]
5.0-0 bd7 6.a3 b6 7.c2 e6 8.e5 11...xa8 12.d3 cxd3 13.d1
d4 Black is pretty much committed to playing [ 13.exd3? h3 14.e1 d5 Is just bad ]
this way, as if W hite recaptures on c4 then 13...dxc2 14.xd4+ d7 I think this ending is
putting the bishop on e6 and the knight on b6 ve ry close t o equ al. W h ite n e ed s t o f in d
will just look silly. However this provokes improvements earlier if he is to genuinely
some very sharp complications, and this line threaten Black in this variation, perhaps with
has become very topical lately. 9.xc6! bxc6 Timman's Nb5!? although I feel that Black
10.xc6+ d8 should have good chances there as well.
[ You can pretty much guarantee that if your 15.xc2 e5! 16.d1 b6 17.e3 c7
opponent is willing to play either side of this 18.e1 fd5 19.ac1+ b7 20.c5 xc5
variation, then he has spent a minimum of 21.xc5 e6 22.d3 e4 23.e5 e7
10,000 hours analysing this position with 24.d4 f6 25.xe4 d5 26.g4 fxe5?!
Houdini three, or whatever program passes Giving up on any hopes of winning.
as the best in the market these days, thus [ 26...g5 27.d3 c6 28.b4 f5 29.xd5
rendering hopeless any prospect of a social fxg4 30.f6 h6 31.xg4 May well be
life. It's the sort of murky, tactical position drawn as well, but White would have to fight
that computers revel in. To be honest, I for it... ]
would be fearful of playing such a position 27.xg7 e8 28.e4 g8 29.xe5 bc8
with Black, as I do not like having my king 30.b3 c7 31.f4 d6 32.f2 f8 33.e3
safety threatened at such an early stage of c6 34.h5 8e7 35.h4 e6 36.g4 f6
the game, but as I stated earlier, Black is 37.gg5 d8 38.c5 g7 39.c3?! d1
pretty much obliged to play this way once he 40.g5+ f8 41.f5 d6 42.c5 h6 43.e5

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
d5 44.xg8+ xg8 45.xd5 xd5+
46.f3 c3 47.e6 xa2 48.g5 hxg5
49.hxg5 c3 50.e3 f8
[ 50...b5! 51.e4 c7 Forms an effective
barrier to the white king, but is it enough to
win? 52.d3 f8 53.c4 a5+ 54.b4
b7 55.f6 g8 56.g6 a6 57.c4 xe6
58.d5 bd8 And Black retains winning
chances. Incidentally I should point out that
this entire line was prompted by the engine,
I wouldn't have a clue how to win this ending,
and I think most other silicon based life-
forms would struggle to exhibit the sort of
superhuman accuracy needed to do so, so a
draw seems a fair result. ]
51.d3 d5 52.c4 c7 53.c5 b8
54.d6 e8+ 55.d5 c7+ 56.d6 b5+
57.c5 c3 58.d6 b5+ 59.c5 c3
60.d6 b5+
½-½
394 A11
Kempinski,Robert 2590
Sorm,Daniel 2330
1st Pfalz Open (4) 18.02.2008
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.e3 f6 4.c3 g4
5.cxd5 One of two main attempts to give this 7...c6
move order some independent significance.
The other one is to play the immediate Qb3.
White can also try to play some combination
o f b 3 a n d h 3 a n d t h e n t r y t o p la y f o r g 4
without playing d4, but I can't see a
convincing move order to make it work.
[ 5.d4 e6 6.b3 b6 7.h4 is currently
the main try for an advantage in the Slav, 10.b3
but White has to work very hard to get even S l o p p y . W h i t e ' s p r o s p e c t s a r e o n t h e
a tiny edge. ]
5...xf3 This looks compliant, but it would
appear that after
[ 5...cxd5 6.b3 is very awkward and
B l a c k ' s b e s t m o v e i s p r o b a b l y c8
which is not as bad as it looks, because
white's queen is not great on b3 and the
exchange on d5 removes white's spatial
advantage, but even so, White should have
decent chances of being better here. The
line is very similar to 1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 Nc3
Nf6 4 e3 Bf5!? 5 cd cd 6 Qb3 Bc8, indeed if 12...a5 13.b1 b5?! This leaves black's
White plays 6. d4 it is a direct transposition.
I remember Eric Prie suggested that this
position was fine for Black, which might be
true, but that doesn't mean it is not also
somewhat better for White. ]
6.xf3 cxd5 7.g3!? Now I am reminded of
another line, namely 1Nf3 d5 2.g3 Nf6 3.Bg2
Bg4 4.c4 c6 5.cd Bxf 3(otherwise Qb3/a 4
things can be tricky) 6 Bxf3 cd and I believe
this line is considered both ok for Black and
possibly a bit better for W hite- it's one of
those... White has two bishops for not very
much in return, but that is all he really has,
and the position is relatively closed so White
has to be very patient to make any headway at
all. In that line White sometimes aims for d3
and e4, but has to be careful because d4 is
then weak. In this case, playing e4 early looks
unworkable because of the awkward
placement of the queen on f3, so White has to
be more patient, and perhaps exchange a few
pieces before opening the position.
[ While we are at it, 7.g4!? i s a m o v e . e6
8.g5 fd7 9.h4 This is the sort of way
Simon Williams would play, and would no
doubt enjoy it. It does not seem terrifying
for Black, who is very solid, but at least the
kingside expansion gives White something
to work with. ]
[ 7...e5 8.g2 e4 9.e2 c6 10.d3
appears to be a bit better for W hite, for
instance after b4 11.d2 0-0 12.0-0 e7
13.a3 d6 14.fc1 ]
8.g2 e6 9.0-0 e7
[ 9...d6!? would be my choice, and later I
would put the queen on e7. ]
0-0 11.b2 c8 12.ac1?!
queenside, so
[ 12.fc1 is almost certainly better. Then we
have a position where I hesitate to say that
W h i t e h a s t h e a d va n t a g e , b u t I wo u l d
certainly prefer to be W hite, because
somehow the future belongs to the bishops.
That said, as I have written elsewhere, the
advantage of the two bishops is very subtle,
and is all but meaningless below about 2300,
so this modest approach may not be
everybody's cup of tea. ]
382
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

queenside full of light squared weaknesses. Burnett, R-Palsson, H/ North Bay 1999
[ 13...a3 14.a1 c7 15.e2 a6 17.c5 ( 17.h6 g6 18.fg5 xe4
looks comfortable for Black. ] 19.xe4 ) 17...xe4 18.xe4 e7
14.e2 b4 15.a4 d7 16.fc1 b6 19.c4+ e6 20.g1 xc4 21.xc4+ e6
17.f1! xa4 18.bxa4 b6 22.c1 ]
[ 18...xa4 19.a6 xa6 20.xa6 c7 [ C) 9...b6!? of Black's 9th move alternatives,
21.e5 ] this is Black's best 10.g4
19.a6 c5 20.a1 c7 21.a3 b8 A) 10...e5 11.xe5 xe5 12.f4
[ 21...b3 just giving the pawn up, was the ( 12.d4!? ) 12...xc3 13.xc3 e5!
less evil here, when White would still have a Giardelli, S-Morovic Fernandez, I/Buenos
lot of work to do. ] Aires 2003;
22.xb6 xb6 23.b5 e7 24.axb4 B) 10...e5 11.g5 e4 12.cxd5 cxd5
Now it's completely winning. a5 25.e5 13.xe4 ( 13.xd5!? ) 13...dxe4 14.xe4
xc1+ 26.xc1 c8 27.xc8+ xc8 b8 15.d4 b7 16.g4 exd4 17.xd4
28.c3 axb4 29.xb4 a7 30.d7 g5 e5 Prokopchuk, E-Skatchkov, P/
31.d4 c7 32.c5 b8 33.g4 g7 34.h3 Nefteyugansk 2002 ]
f6 35.f1 e5 36.e2 exd4 37.exd4 g6 10.bxc4
38.d3 h5 39.c3 hxg4 40.hxg4 f6 [ 10.xc4 b5 11.e2 b7 12.0-0 a6
1-0 13.g5 c5 14.a4 b4 15.ce4 xe4
16.xe4 e7 Banikas, H-Kharitonov, A/
Ermioni 2006 ]
395 A11 10...e5 11.d3 c5 12.d1 e7 13.0-0 h6
Korotylev,Alexey 2600 [ 13...f5!? ]
Dreev,Alexey 2607 14.fe1?!
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (35) 22.11.2007 [ 14.d4 exd4 15.exd4 e6 16.fe1 g5
[Carsten Hansen] 17.xg5 hxg5 18.f1 c7 19.f3 d7= ]
14...f5 15.c1 e4 16.dxe4 fxe4
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 f6 4.c3 e6 17.xe4 xe4 18.d3 ad8 19.a1 b4
5.c2 bd7 6.e2 d6 7.b3 0-0 8.b2 20.xe4 xe4 21.xd8 xd8 22.d1
e8 9.h3 dxc4!? xd1+ 23.xd1 d6 24.d4 c5 25.g4
[ This is probably Black's best move. Other g6 The endgame of two bishops vs knight
tries have offered White excellent chances and b isho p is clea rly b et te r f or B la ck o n
f o r a n e d g e : A ) 9...e5 10.cxd5 xd5 account of W hite's weak queenside pawns
11.e4 26.b5 xg4 27.hxg4 d3 28.d6 f6
A) 11...c7 12.a3 ( 12.g4 f8 13.a3 a5 29.f3 b6 30.f2 d2 31.g3 a6 32.e4 b5
14.d3 g6 15.g5 f8 16.h4 Banikas, H- 33.cxb5 axb5 34.e5 fxe5 35.xe5 b4
Mastrovasilis, D/Athens 2002 g4 17.h5 36.e4 xe4 37.fxe4 c4 38.e2 c1
e7 ) 12...7f6 13.d3 xe4 14.dxe4 39.d1
f6 15.0-0 e7 16.fd1 e6 17.g5 [ 39.d6!? ]
ad8 18.a4 h6 19.xe6 xe6 20.b4 39...e3 40.d6 b3 41.axb3 cxb3 42.e5
Zvja g in s e v , V - Mo r o vic Fe r n a n d e z, I / f7 43.e2 g5 44.d3 f6 45.f4 e6
Poikovsky 2001; 46.d2 e5 47.d3 g5
B) 11...f8 12.a3 a5 13.0-0 e7 [ 47...xf4!? 48.gxf4 e7! 49.c3 g6
14.fe1 g6 15.f1 g7 16.d3 h6 50.f5 h5 wins for Black ]
17.ed2 h7 18.g3 c7 48.d2 xg3 49.e3 e5 50.d2 b2
1/2 -1/ 2 Rasten is, G -Grablia uskas, V / 51.c2 d6
Vilnius 1999 ] [ 51...d4 followed by ...Ke5 looks like an
[ B) 9...a6 10.g4 dxc4 ( 10...e5!? 11.g5 easier win ]
e4 12.xe4 dxe4 13.xe4 c5 14.h4 52.b4+ e6 53.f8 h5 54.gxh5 g4
f5 ) 11.bxc4 f8 12.g5 6d7 13.e4 55.c5 g3 56.h6 f7 57.e3 g6 58.b1
c7 14.h4 e5 15.h5 f5 16.gxf6 xf6 g2 59.c2 f4 60.g1 c1

383
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ This isn't the best move, though White 19.xf3 xe5 20.xe5 xe5 21.e3
responded by either exceeding the time limit a5 22.c5= ) 12.cxd5 cxd5 13.fc1 b8
or resigning at this point, because the game 14.a4 b4 15.e2 e4 16.c2 b7
concluded in Black's favour at this juncture. 17.ac1 ac8 18.f4 e6= Gurevich, M-
Black should instead have given preference Conquest, S/Clichy 2001 ]
to 60...e5! , and now Black wins after 8...e8
61.e3 c3 62.b1 f6 63.g1 e5 [ Black has tried two other moves: A) 8...c7
64.c2 xe4 65.f2 f3 66.g1 e5 9.c1 f5 10.d3 dxc4 11.bxc4 e5 12.0-0
67.b1 e2 68.c2 f1 69.b6 g1 bd7 13.fd1 ( 13.e4!? ad8 14.fd1
70.xg1 xg1 . Now White should have xe4 15.dxe4 g4 16.h3 xf3 17.xf3
played ] b6 18.a3 c5 19.a4 ) 13...fe8 14.h4
61.e5 xh6 e6 15.d2 h6 16.f3 ad8
[ 61...xh6 62.c5 g5 63.e6 f6 64.e7 Kempinski, R-Schneider, S/Izmir 2004 ]
f7 ] [ B) 8...b5!? 9.d1 ( 9.0-0!? f5 10.d3
62.xb2 f5 63.e6 xe6 64.c2 e5 bxc4 11.bxc4 dxc4 12.e4 cxd3
65.d3 f4 66.e2 g3 67.a7 13.xd3 ) 9...f5 10.d3 a5 11.d2
[ 67.e1 f3 68.h2 e3 69.d1 f2 ] bd7 12.0-0 ab8 13.e4 e6 14.a3 b6
67...h2 68.f3 d2 69.e2 a5 70.f3 15.a1 1/2-1/2 Paterek, M-Bombek, P/
h1 71.c5 c7 72.g4 h2 73.h3 Pardubice 2005 ]
g1 74.d6 e3 75.h2 d4-+ 9.0-0 e5 10.d3 bd7 11.fd1 f8 12.cxd5
0-1 [ White can also consider 12.a4!? c7
( 12...6d7 13.cxd5 cxd5 14.ac1 e6
15.d4 e4 16.e5 b5 17.xd7 xd7
396 A11 18.c5 ) 13.cxd5 xd5 14.ac1 a5 15.a3
Korotylev,Alexey 2600 e6 16.c3!? ]
Ponomariov,Ruslan 2705 12...cxd5 13.a4 b5
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (6) 21.11.2007 [ 13...g4 14.ac1 c8 15.d2 e4
[Carsten Hansen] 16.xc8 xc8 17.c1 f5 18.d4 ]
14.c5 d6 15.b4 h5?!
1.f3 f6 2.c4 c6 3.c3 d5 4.e3 a6 [ 15...g4 16.a4 ( 16.d4!? e4 17.e5 )
5.c2 g6 6.b3 g7 7.b2 0-0 16...6d7 17.axb5 axb5 18.h3 xf3
[ 7...f5 8.d3 dxc4 9.bxc4 0-0 10.e2 b5 19.xf3 xa1 20.xa1 xc5 21.bxc5 c6
11.d4 ( 11.cxb5 cxb5 12.0-0 c6 ) 22.d4 ]
11...g4 12.0-0 xe2 13.xe2 16.a4 b8
( 13.cxe2!? ) 13...e5 14.b3 bd7 [ 16...bxa4 17.xa4 d7 ( 17...g4
15.ac1 b6 ( 15...b4 16.a4 e8 18.a5 ) 18.a5 d4 19.d2 b5 20.f3
17.fd1 ) 16.e4 xe4 17.dxe4 a5 a7 21.c4 b8 22.a3 ]
18.cxb5 cxb5 19.fd1 Glicenstein, A- 17.axb5 axb5 18.h3 8h7
Gregoire, S/Hyeres 2002 ] [ 18...6d7 19.a7 ]
8.e2 19.a7 g5?!+-
[ Two alternatives are: A) 8.c1 g4 9.e2 [ 19...d7 20.c1 hf6 21.b3 ]
xf3 10.xf3 e5 11.d3 e8 12.0-0 d6 20.d4 e4 21.e5 White is completely
13.a4 bd7 14.cxd5 xd5 15.a3 ad8 winning f8 22.da1 g4 23.h4 g3 24.fxg3
16.fd1 Sammalvuo, T-Tuominen, R/Salo h6 25.1a3 g4 26.xg4 xg4 27.f2
1998 ] f6 28.3a6 b6 29.xb6 xb6 30.a6
[ B) 8.d4 f5 9.d3 xd3 (1/2-1/2 Ribli, Z- 1-0
Tukmakov, V/Porec 1998) 10.xd3 bd7
11.0-0 b5 ( 11...e6 12.a3 e8 13.d6
h6 14.h3 h7 15.e4 dxc4 16.bxc4 e5
17.dxe5 g5 Flores, D-Wang Yue/Turin
I T A 2 0 0 6 , a n d n o w 18.ad1 xf3+

384
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

397 A11 g4 14.a2 d8 15.b4 is similar, and

Kosten,Anthony C 2542 fairly level, Dizdar,G-Vera,R/Portoroz 1987. ]
Bunzmann,Dimitrij 2505 13...g4! 14.e4!?
Masters Montpellier (6) 09.07.2001 [ This seemed strong when I played it, but,
[Tony Kosten] in retrospect, 14.h3 might be better, xf3
15.xf3 d8 16.b4 c8 17.g2
1.g3 with the bishop pair, and a small edge. ]
[ Played to avoid the English Defence, 1.c4 14...d4! My opponent only played this, ...
b6 , a favourite of my opponent. ] because he hadn't seen my reply until he had
1...d5 2.f3 f5 3.g2 f6 4.c4 c6 t a k e n h i s h a n d o f f t h e p a w n ! 15.d5!
5.cxd5 I like this line, and recommended it in The point. d8!
my book The Dynamic English. cxd5 6.b3 [ This simple move maintains the equilibrium,
c8 15...exd5?! 16.exd5 f6 17.dxc6 bxc6
[ More accurate than 6...c7 7.c3 e6 18.b4 leaves the black pawn structure in
8.d3 as now Bf4 will gain a tempo. ] tatters, and ]
7.c3 e6 8.0-0 e7 9.d3 c6 10.f4 0-0 [ 15...c5!? 16.c7!? b8 17.b4 xf3
11.ac1 d7!? 18.xf3 ce5 19.xe5 xe5 20.e2
[ A s u r p r i s e . I h a d e x p e c t e d 11...d7 xc7 21.xc5 also favours White. ]
which removes the queen from the c-file pin, 16.c7?!
12.e4 ( Aronian prefers 12.h3 h6 13.fd1 [ 16.xe7+ xe7 17.b3 didn't offer much,
h7 14.e4 a5 15.c2 fc8 16.e5 but was clearly better. ]
d8 17.e2 White has a small edge, 16...e8 17.xe7+
A ro n ia n , L -S ve t u s h k in , D/ Ye r e va n A R M [ 17.fe1 leads nowhere, c8 18.xe7+
2000. ) 12...g6!? ( 12...dxe4 13.dxe4 xe7 19.f4 which is like the game. ]
xe4 14.xe4 xe4 15.e5 xe5 17...xe7 18.b4
16.xe4 favours White, Barcza,G-Smyslov, [ After an enormous think! 18.h3 xf3
V/Moscow 1956) 13.exd5 exd5 14.fd1 19.xf3 c5 is awkward for White, and ]
a5 15.c2 d6? 16.g5 and the d5- [ 18.e5? loses to xf3 19.d6 xg2! ( and
pawn is lost, Forintos,G-Sallay,R/Budapest 19...d8 20.xf3 dxe5 isn't bad either.)
1958. ] 20.xe7 d5 21.b3 xe7 ]
[ 11...g6 was the preference of Karpov, [ However, I spent most of my time analysing
against Korchnoi, 12.e5 d7 13.xg6 the exchange sac 18.xc6!? bxc6 19.e5
hxg6 14.h4! with an edge to White. ] ( 19.xd4?! fc8 20.a5 c5 ) 19...xf3
12.a3 20.xf3 which seems quite dangerous:
[ Played to provide a luft for the white queen A) 20...g5 21.e4! d2 ( 21...a7?!
o n a 2 , a n d p r e p a r e b 4 . 12.e4 22.f4 g4 23.d6 c8 24.f5
l e a d s n o w h e r e : c5 13.c2 g6 favours W hite) 22.c4! fc8 23.xc6
and d3 is a problem. ( 13...b4?! 14.b1 a7 24.xd7 axc7 25.xd4
g6 15.e5 )] with fair compensation.;
[ 12.b5 c5 13.d1 d7 14.bd4 B) 20...fc8! 21.d6 g5 22.e4 d2
xd4 15.xd4 g4 is equal, Petrosian,A- 23.f4 a7 ( the problem is 23...b6!
Meduna,E/ Lvov 1981. ] 24.f5 d5 25.fxe6 fxe6 and White's
12...a6 comp is probably insufficient) 24.f5 b7?
[ A s i n d i c a t e d b y B u n z m a n n , 12...c5 25.fxe6! xb2 26.xb2! xb2 27.exf7+
is c o u n t e r e d b y 13.d1! a5 ( 13...d4 h8 28.e6 and despite his extra queen
14.a4 xa4 15.xa4 d7 16.c4 for piece, Black can resign! I just couldn't
also offers an edge to White) 14.b4! axb4 believe that Black could be OK, and so
15.axb4 xb4 16.d4 ca6 17.xd5 kept searching for a non-existent 'win' for
with advantage. ] White, and left myself too short of time! ]
13.a2!? 18...ac8 19.f4 f6! Ouch! It hadn't
[ Apparently this move is a novelty, 13.fd1 occurred to me that W hite could have any

385
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

problems, but this move carries a very nasty [ 11...d7 12.f4 d6 13.h4 e7 14.0-0-0
threat of winning a piece, and I hadn't much when W hite's space advantage was too
time left! 20.g5?! great, Gurevich,M-Savchenko,S/ Vlissingen
[ Not best, 20.e5! f5 21.g5 NED 1999. ]
looked tempting, Be4 is threatened, but then 12.xe4
I noticed g6 , which leaves d3 and e5 [ 12.d4 xc3 13.xc3 d6 14.f4
weak, and, unfortunately, I hadn't seen the is also possible, but c5! is a bit annoying. ]
follow-up 22.h3! f5 23.f3! when with 12...xb2 13.xb2 dxe4 14.e5!
Nh4 to come, White is fine. ] Keeping control of the dark squares.
[ 20.d2? loses to xf3 21.g5 ( 21.xf3 [ 14.h4?! e5 15.0-0-0 f5 is nice for Black,
e5 22.g4 exf4 23.xd7 e5 wins ) and ]
21...xg2! 22.xf6 xf1 ] [ 14.0-0-0!? xg5 15.hg1 h6 16.e5
20...g6 21.d2?! f5 is not too clear. ]
[ 21.d2 f6 22.f4 e5 23.a2+ h8 14...f5
24.h4 might hang-on for a bit, but the [ 14...d7 15.h4 c5 and ...Bc6 might be a
white pieces are far from ideally-placed! ] better line. ]
21...h5 22.h4 15.h4
[ 22.e1 e2 wins the exchange. ] [ 15.gxf6 xf6 16.xf6 gxf6 17.g1+ h8
22...e2 23.fe1 ce5 The d3-pawn goes, 18.0-0-0 e5 19.d3 is a little better for White,
and with it White's position. I should probably but I wanted more. ]
have resigned in the next few moves, but 15...d7 Black hopes to contest control of the
didn't have enough time left to think about thise5 square by ...Qb8, but White is alert to this.
24.f4?! xd3 25.xc8 xe1! 26.xf8+ 16.f3!?
xf8 27.d6?! xg2 28.xg2 d3! [ 16.0-0-0 was tempting, b8 17.d4 exd3
Threatening mate with ...Qe1+. 29.d2 xe4 18.xb8 axb8 19.xd3 e7 20.hd1
30.e1 d5 31.c5 e5 32.c1 e6 with solid control of the d-file, but the black
33.a7 h6 34.c8+ h7 35.e8 d3 position is devoid of serious weaknesses. ]
Enough is enough! 16...exf3 17.xf3 b8 18.d4! a5
0-1 [ 18...xe5 19.dxe5 doubles the white
pawns, but keeps the black pawns fixed on
light squares, and allows White to establish
398 A11 a rook on d6. ]
Kosten,Anthony C 2514 19.f2 b6 20.hd1 a7 21.h5 Hoping that
Olarasu,Gabriela 2305 the threat of h6 will oblige Black to capture on
Open Montpellier FRA (7) 13.07.2003 e5. c5 22.h6!? Continuing the plan, but
[Tony Kosten] [ 22.xb8 xb8 23.d2 is also possible, as
here White can open the d-file at will. ]
Dark-squared battle! 1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 22...xe5 23.dxe5 a4! Black seizes her
f6 4.c2 I have had several previous goes chance, the threat to capture on b3 stops
at playing Gurevich's sharp line, but each time W hite from playing Rd6. 24.g3 The king
I was unable to play the g4-pawn sac. e6 5.b3 heads f or f4, when e4 will 'undouble' the
d6 6.b2 0-0 7.c3 bd7 8.e2 e8 pawns. f8 25.ac1 e7?!
Black's development is the most forthright, [ 25...gxh6?! 26.gxh6 e7 is weaker,
aiming for ...e5. The immediate 27.f4 axb3 28.axb3 g8 29.g1
[ 8...e5 is met by 9.cxd5 cxd5 10.b5 b8 and W hite gains control of the g-file and
11.c1 and White is better because of his c- wins. ]
file control. ] [ 25...g6 is probably best, and will
9.g4!? e5 transpose. ]
[ 9...xg4 is the critical test. ] 26.f4!? I had seen the game continuation,
10.xe5 xe5 11.g5 e4! An improvement and thinking it was winning headed directly for
on it, but as Mark Hebden pointed-out after the

386
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
game
[ 26.hxg7 is sim p le r, g8 27.f4 axb3
28.axb3 xg7 29.d6 then Rcd1 or Rh1,
and Black is completely tied-up. ]
26...g6 27.d6 The point of White's previous
play, the rook enters the heart of Black's
position. b8 28.cd1 axb3 29.axb3 e8
[ 29...b5 is better, but even then 30.c6!
xc6 31.xc6 bxc4 32.bxc4 b2
( 32...d7 33.a1! with twin threats of R1a6
and Rxc5 ) 33.dd6 f2+ 34.g3 aa2
White wins by 35.xe6+ f7 36.f6+ e8
37.e6 when the king escapes the checks via
f4 and e5. ]
30.c6! The surprising move that exchanges
Black's 'bad' bishop, after which her light
squares disintegrate. xc6
[ 30...f7 31.e4 c7 32.b5 leaves Black
boxed-in. ]
31.xc6 The threat is R1d6 winning the e and
b pawns. d7 32.dd6! Anyway! xd6
33.exd6+ d7 34.c7+ xd6 35.xh7
This is why I didn't want to exchange the h-
pawn. b5 36.g7
[ 36.a7! may be even better, White
threatens Ra6+ and Ke5, so e5+ 37.f3
bxc4 38.bxc4 b4 39.h7 b8 40.g7 h8
41.xg6+ e7 42.g7+ and wins. ]
36...bxc4 37.bxc4 b4 38.xg6
[ 38.h7 xc4+ 39.g3 g4+ 40.h3 g1
41.h2 xg5 42.h8 h5+ 43.xh5 gxh5
44.g3 also wins easily enough. ]
38...xc4+ 39.f3 h4 40.g7
The two passed pawns are unstoppable, so
does Black have time to do something with
her own passed c-pawn? c4 41.h7 c3
42.e2! W ell in time! h2+ 43.d1 c5
44.g6 c4 45.g8 h1+
[ 45...c2+ 46.c1 d3 fails to many moves,
b u t m o s t s i m p l y 47.h8 and h1 is
covered. ]
46.e2 c2 47.c8+
[ 47.h8 is also winning, but why bother to
analyse e1+ ( 47...xh8 48.xh8 c1
49.c8+ ) 48.f2 f1+ 49.g3 g1+
50.f4 etc.? ]
47...b3 48.g7
1-0
399 A11
Kozul,Zdenko 2595
Jakic,Ivan 2399
17th Open A Zadar CRO (6.10) 15.12.2010
[Nigel Davies]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 f6 4.c3 e6
5.c2 bd7 6.b3 d6 7.b2 0-0 8.h3
This de ce ptive ly quie t lo oking m ove ha s
distinctly aggressive intentions. White wants
to play g2-g4 and castle queenside.
[ The 'sensible' move is 8.e2 with the
apparent intention of castling short on the
next move. But White still might still consider
g2-g4 on his next move anyway. ]
8...e5 This can be OK but when White takes
on d5 it's no t go od f o r Black to kee p his
central pawns intact by recapturing with the c-
pawn. Accordingly he should prepare ... e6-e5
if that's the way he wants a central pawn duo,
but this is not an easy plan to realise. For
example:
[ a) 8...e8 9.g4 f8 10.g5 6d7 11.h4
b5 12.cxd5 exd5 13.d4 gave White the
better game in Kozul, Z (2605)-Antunes, A
(2540)/ Yerevan 1996. ]
[ b) 8...e7 9.g4 e5 ( 9...a3 10.xa3
xa3 11.g5 h5 12.e2 g6 13.h2 g7
14.g4 was nice for White in Kozul, Z
(2590) -Zaja, I (2440)/Kastel Stari 1997.;
as was 9...a6 10.g5 e8 11.h4 c7
12.d3 f5 13.gxf6 xf6 14.g5
in Kozul, Z (2604)-Hillarp Persson, T (2517)/
Khanty Mansiysk 2010) 10.xe5 xe5
11.d3 h6 12.g1 d7 13.0-0-0
gave White dangerous attacking chances on
the kingside in Bezold, M (2490)-Gerstner,
W (2370)/Germany 1996/GER-chT2. ]
9.cxd5 cxd5?!
[ Black could and should have taken with the
knight here rather than allow what happens
i n t h e g a m e . A f t e r 9...xd5!? 10.e4
( 10.d3 h6 11.a3 xc3 12.xc3 e8
13.e2 c5 was Ok for Black in Flores, D
(2607)-Dreev, A (2662)/Montcada 2009)
10...e7 ( 10...b4 a l s o s e e m s O K)
11.xd6 xd6 12.a3 e8 was OK for
Bla ck in Ngu ye n , N (2 5 6 7 )-K a rja k in , S
(2730)/Al Ain 2008. ]
10.b5 b8 11.c1 e4
[ Black cannot prevent the incursion on c7 so
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
he needs to think how he'll defend himself
after that. My own preference would have
been to try and avoid any weakening of the
dark squares with 11...a6 12.c7 xc7
13.xc7 xc7 14.xc7 e8 15.c2 f6
, which is still going to be better for White
(two bishops) but gets pawn power on the
opposite colour to Black's remaining
bishop. ]
12.fd4 a6
[ 12...e5 13.c7 is also very good for
White, for example d3+ 14.xd3 exd3
15.c5 xc7 16.xc7 etc. ]
13.c7 xc7 14.xc7 xc7 15.xc7
This is a really horrid endgame for Black and
he does remarkably well to save himself. This,
however, should not be seen as an advert for
Black's prospects. e5 16.e2 b8 17.0-0
d7 18.fc1 fd8 19.g4 g6 20.h2 e8
21.7c5 e6 22.g3 e7 23.xe6 fxe6
24.d3 exd3 25.xd3 bc8 26.f4 xc5
27.xc5 g6 28.e4 f7 29.f3 d7 30.e3
d6 31.e5 dc8 32.c1 a7 33.a3
ac6 34.d6 a7 35.a4 ac8 36.c5
c7 37.a5 e8 38.d2 c6 39.b4 f7
40.b5?! This attempted breakthrough doesn't
quite come off.
[ He should have continued to build with
40.e3 . ]
40...xa5 41.b1?!
[ Here too 41.e3 was better. ]
41...axb5
[ B l a c k c o u l d a l s o p l a y 41...xf4
, for example 42.bxa6 bxa6 43.b8 d7
44.xa6 e7 is OK. ]
42.f5?! White is taking huge risks here.
[ 42.xb5+ d8 43.e3 would have been
equal. ]
42...gxf5 43.gxf5 c4+ 44.xc4 bxc4
45.fxe6
[ 45.f6 was the right move with a likely draw.
After the move chosen Black is better. ]
45...c7 46.b4 c6 47.c3 xe6 48.d4
b6
[ 48...h6! was the right move when White is
struggling to draw. ]
49.d6 c8 50.xd5 h6 51.xb7
xh3?? Presenting White with an unexpected
opportunity.
[ 51...xd6 52.exd6 c3 would be drawn. ]
52.b4??
[ Missing a win with 52.b8 d8 53.c6
( t h r e a t e n i n g 5 4 . B c 7 + ) h6 54.b7
, winning the knight and the game. ]
52...c3 53.c7 b6+ 54.c6 h6+
Black is holding now. 55.d6 c4 56.d5
xd6 57.exd6 h3 58.c4 d7 59.c7+
d8 60.c4 d7 61.c7+ d8 62.c4
d7 63.c7+ d8 64.c4
½-½
400 A11
Kramnik,Vladimir 2793
Li,Chao b 2679
World Teams 2013 (3.4) 28.11.2013
[Fier, Alexandr]
Li Chao tries a pawn sacrifice that looks a bit
like a b lu n d e r. Fo r t h e m o st p a rt I d o n ' t
believe in Black's idea so much, but to my
surprise the position was repeated a few days
later in the same tournament. Again White got
some advantage in my opinion, so I don't
believe people will continue giving the a5-
pawn. 1.f3 f6 2.g3 g6 3.b3 g7 4.b2
0-0 5.g2 d5 6.c4 c6 7.d3 a5 8.bd2
[ 8.0-0 is a more common move order and
also played by Kramnik this year in a blitz
game a6 ( 8...g4 to bring the knight to
d7 instead is another option 9.bd2 bd7
and it was analyzed for Chess Publishing in
Timman, J (2561)-Glek, I (2546)/TCh-FRA
Top 16 GpA 2008.) 9.a3 g4 10.bd2
Kramnik, V (2803)-Mamedyarov, S (2753)/
Moscow Tal Memorial 8th Blitz 2013 (1). ]
8...a6 9.a3 g4 10.0-0 All these 0-0, d3,
Nbd2, a3 moves are played in various orders
and here Black has a lot of options too. Black
chooses a solid one here, exchanging the
bishop and creating a wall with the pawns.
xf3
[ 10...c8 sometimes leads Black to a
passive position 11.c1 c7 12.c2 h3
13.cxd5 fxd5 14.xg7 xg7 15.e4 xg2
16.xg2 f6 17.d4 as seen in Granda
Zuniga, J (2614)-Hertneck, G (2552)/Bahia
Feliz 2011 (6). ]
[ 10...c8 is a more active plan 11.c2 b5
12.h3 xf3 13.xf3 c5
with an interesting position in Novikov, S
(2498)-Bagirov, R (2494)/Moscow 2003 (6). ]
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11.xf3 e6 12.c2 e7
[ 12...d7 this move makes more sense to
me with the queen on d8, and it was tried
before 13.d4 f5 and Black's position is
really solid Panno, O (2465)-Szmetan, J
(2420)/Mar del Plata op 1998 (5). ]
13.c3!? This is a typical multi-purpose move,
a t t a c k i n g a 5 a n d p l a n n i n g 1 4 . Q b 2 . d7
This is kind of pawn sacrifice, even if Black
recovers it afterwards, the resulting position is
not so nice for Black.
[ 13...c5 is not so good, since 14.b4 axb4
15.xb4 is annoying ]
[ 13...c7 14.b2 fe8 15.e4
and the knight would be better on d7 than
e8 ]
14.xg7
[ 14.d4 is also possible, expanding in the
center c7 15.e4 dxe4 16.xe4 fd8
and Black's position remains solid ]
14...xg7 15.c3+ f6 16.xa5
[ 16.d4 now this is not so interesting
anymore c7 17.e4 dxe4 18.d2 e7 ]
16...ac5 Now we enter a more or less forced
sequence.
[ 16...dxc4 this could be a real pawn
sacrifice, in order to activate the pieces
17.bxc4 ac5 18.b4 a4 19.b1 e5
and it's sure that Black has compensation
wit h t h e p ie c e s we ll lo c a t e d , b u t if it ' s
enough for the pawn or not is not so clear ]
17.b4 a6 18.d4 b6 19.c3 xb3
[ 19...xb3 gives not enough for the
exchange 20.c2 xf3 21.xf3 xd4
22.cxd5 exd5 23.fd1 and White is better ]
20.ab1 dxc4 21.xc4 a5 22.c3 xb1
23.xb1 b6 Black has some weak pawns and
a passive position for the moment. It's not
clear if White has something concrete, since
Black will try to exchange some pawns with ...
c5 or ...e5, but I think White has good chances
of an advantage.
[ 23...a8 is not so different than the game
24.d2 e5 25.d5 d6 26.dxc6 bxc6
27.e4 and White is slightly better ]
24.d2 Trying to go to e4. e5 Now White has
a clear path to an advantage.
[ 24...g8 amazingly this move was played
in the same tournament, some days later!
Quickly it went wrong for Black 25.e4 e7
26.h4!? trying to create some tactics on the
kingside, since Black's position is a bit
passive, b8 27.h5 gxh5 28.f3 f5
29.c5 f6 ( 29...bxc5 was necessary, but
W hite is already better 30.xb8+ xb8
31.xa5 cxd4 32.e5 d7 33.c7
and White is going to recover a pawn and
this soldier on the a-file is really dangerous)
30.xa5 1-0 Petrosian, T (2660)-L'Ami, E
(2648) Antalya TUR 2013. ]
[ 24...c5 exchanges one of the weak pawns,
but it's not advisable to give White a strong
p a sse d p a wn 25.e3 cxd4 26.exd4 e5
27.d5 d6 28.a4 and probably Black is
going to suffer in the endgame ]
25.d5 The most solid option, but I would prefer
25.Ne4!?.
[ 25.e4!? was also possible and interesting
exd4 26.b2 e5 27.f4 e7 28.xd4+
f6 29.d1 with an initiative ]
[ 25.dxe5 wins a pawn. Black has some
compensation, but I still think White is better
xe5 26.xe5+ xe5 27.xb6 d8
28.f1 d1 29.a6 ac4 ]
25...cxd5 26.xd5 d6 27.b5 White tries
to keep flexibility.
[ 27.e4 b8 trying to bring the a5-knight into
the game ( 27...f5 doesn't help 28.f3 )
28.b5 b7 29.c4 c7 30.xf7!?
enters into some fireworks ( 30.b4 bc5
31.a4 a7 and Black is defending)
30...d6 31.xe5 xf7 ( 31...xe5
32.xe5+ xf7 33.xd6+ ) 32.xd6+
xd6 33.c4+ f8 34.d5 e7 35.d4
with an unclear position. Probably W hite
has enough compensation for the piece, but
not more than that. ]
27...c5 28.f3 d8 A natural move, but not
the only one.
[ 28...f5!? Avoiding 29.Ne4 and planning to
play ...e4 at some point
A) 29.e3 d8 30.f1 ( 30.c4 xc4
31.xc4 e4= ) 30...h5 31.b4 d3
and W hite has nothing better than
repeating the position;
B) 29.f1 f6 unpinning 30.e3 e4
31.g2 c6 32.b1 a4 and Black is
fine ]
29.f1 Trying to keep the pieces on, but now
Black has a strong resource.
[ 29.e4!? w a s a n o t h e r o p t i o n xe4
30.xe4 d4 ( 30...d1+ 31.g2 xe2
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
32.xe5+ g8 33.d5 with a slight
advantage ) 31.xd4 xd4 32.d5
and with a stronger bishop than the knight,
White has some chances ]
29...d4! Black correctly sacrifices a pawn in
order to improve his piece position. After all,
the a3 pawn is not so dangerous. 30.xd4
xd4 31.xb6 e4 32.g2 d1 Immobilizing
White's pieces. 33.h4 a1 34.b5 ab3
35.g4 Black hasn't any real problems in the
position and Kramnik somehow creates an
amazing theme against Black's king in some
moves, unf ortunately he miss his chance
a f t e r wa r d s . f5? Now strange things start to
happen.
[ 35...xa3 was simple and good 36.g3
a1+ To move the king far from the f2-pawn.
37.h2 a4 and it's a draw ]
36.gxf5 gxf5 37.e3 f6 Black already has
some problems to take the pawn on a3.
[ 37...xa3 doesn't work anymore 38.g3
f6 39.h3 and the f-pawn falls ]
38.h3 e5
[ 38...xa3 39.g3 is the same ]
39.g2 f4
[ 39...xa3 40.b8!? ( 40.d2 wins a pawn,
but it's not enough d5 41.xb3 xb3
42.xb3 xb3 43.xf5 h6 should be
drawn ) 40...d3 41.g3 e1+ 42.f1
f3 43.b5+ d6 44.xf5 c6 45.xb3
d2+ 46.e2 xb3 47.xe4+ d7
48.xh7 with some chances in the
endgame ]
40.exf4+ xf4 41.e3 xa3 And somehow
after all the exchanges Black is almost getting
mated! It's amazing how White's pieces could
coordinate and dominate the position.
42.g4?
[ 42.b8! it was hard to understand when I
first looked at the position, but Black has
some real problems with his king. 42...Ke5 is
not possible because of the poor position of
B l a c k ' s r o o k a7 43.e8 now 44.Nd5
w o u l d b e j u s t m a t e g7+ 44.f1
45.Ng2+ is also coming d7 45.g2+ f3
46.c8 and 47.Rc3! d2+ 47.e1 b1
48.c7 and Black is in trouble ]
42...a5 43.b8 a7 44.f8+? White tries to
push the king far away from the kingside.
[ 44.e8 Is possible again and probably the
last clear chance in the game, now with the
idea of 45.Kh3!. h5 ( 44...d3 45.c8!
o n e m o r e t i m e t h r e a t e n i n g m a t e b4
46.g4 now 47.Rf8 is coming f7 47.e6
winning ) 45.f8+ e5 46.xh5 getting the
pawn, with good winning chances ]
44...e5 45.f5+ d4 46.d5+ c3
47.d1+ b4 48.g3 Now White's
advantage has almost vanished and Black
defends well in order to achieve the draw.
c1 49.d4+ b3 50.e3 g7 51.d5
1d3 52.g5 a7 53.h5 c3 54.h6 a6
55.h5 g6 Black is completely fine, but
Kramnik keeps trying. 56.d5+ d4 57.e7
f6 58.f5+ c3 59.e3 g6 60.d5+
d4 61.e7 f6 62.f5 e5!?
[ 62...f7 there was nothing wrong with this,
d e f e n d i n g t h e p a w n 63.c6+ c3
64.g4= ]
63.xh7 f3+ 64.g2 cd3 65.f5 f4+
66.xf4
[ 66.g1 doesn't lead anywhere ed3
67.d5 e2+ 68.g2 df4+ 69.xf4
xf4+ 70.g1 e2+ with a draw ]
66...xf4 67.f5+ d3 68.g3 f7
69.xe4+ xe4 70.xe4
½-½
401 A11
Larsen,Bent
Kortschnoj,Viktor
Palma de Mallorca 1969
[Nigel Davies]
1.g3 d5 2.g2 c6 3.c4 g6 4.a4!?
A creative and original idea which spices up
an often dull opening system. White wants to
take on d5 without Black being able to
recapture with his c6 pawn.
[ 4.cxd5 cxd5 5.d4 is the usual way to play
it with a dour position al struggle in th e
offing. ]
4...d4 Taking space, but also accepting some
strategic responsibilities. The position soon
resembles a kind of reversed Benoni but one
in which White's pieces are much more active
than Black's would be in a Benoni proper.
5.f3 g7 6.0-0 e5 7.d3 e7 8.bd2 0-0
9.b4 Gaining space on the queenside. This is
never so easy to get in when you're Black.
d7 10.b1 a5 11.b5 c5 12.e3 dxe3
390
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Of course Black would like to be able to keep 49.xc5 h2 50.b6 xa2 51.d4 e6
this pawn where it is but he was evidently 52.xe5+ d7 53.a5 c6 54.c5 h2
concerned about how to do that whilst 55.e4
continuing his development. 1-0
[ For example after 12...a7 (intending 13...
b6) White can play 13.exd4 exd4 14.e1
b6 15.e4 b7 16.f4 followed by 402 A11
doubling rooks on the e-file. ] Loginov,Valery A 2499
13.fxe3 a7 14.c2 b6 15.e4 Intending Grischuk,Alexander 2667
to follow up with Ne4-c3, e3-e4 and Nc3-d5. TCh Tomsk RUS (6) 19.05.2001
f6 16.xf6+ [Tony Kosten]
[ Korchnoi was ready to meet 16.c3 with
h5 followed by ...f7-f5, but maybe White 1.f3 d5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 g4
should play like this anyway. ] 5.c4 e6 6.d3 e7 7.e3 xf3!
16...xf6 17.b2 f5 18.be1 e8 19.e4 [ This certainly seems to be the critical test
g7!? Fighting play from Korchnoi, keeping of this system. Loginov should have been
pieces on the board. prepared for this, as he has quite a bit of
[ 19...d4 20.xd4 exd4 would have been experience in this variation, e.g. 7...bd7
fairly equal. ] 8.b3 c8 9.c3 0-0 10.cxd5 exd5
20.d2 h5! Looking for counterplay on the 11.ac1 e8 12.d4 with an edge, Loginov,
kingside. V-Lukacs,P/Budapest 1993. ]
[ 20...d7?! would not have been good 8.xf3 d4 9.f4?!
b e c a u s e o f 21.b1 intending Nb1-c3-d5, [ I don't really see the point of this, as
and after g5 ( and not 21...xd3? B l a c k ' s . . . e 5 w i l l g a i n a t e m p o , 9.d2
22.xf6! ) 22.c3 xd3 23.d5 was examined in the archives. ]
White would win the exchange. ] 9...bd7 10.e4?! As in the previous game,
21.b1 h4 22.c3 hxg3 23.hxg3 h5 but this closed position f avours Black. e5
24.d5 g5 25.f2 f6 26.c1 xc1 11.c1 h5! Again! 12.d2 h4 13.e2 c5
27.xc1 f5!? Again playing with admirable 14.b4 e6 15.c5?! hxg3 16.fxg3 a5
drive and ambition. 17.c4 White is relying on the tactics, but
[ 27...f7 would have been the solid move. ] they are insufficient. axb4 18.xe5 c7
28.e3 h7 29.ce1 h8 30.exf5!? gxf5 19.xf7?! Doubtful, but other moves are also
31.g4! f6 good for Black. xf7 20.b3 xc5 21.g4
[ 31...g7 was probably better. ] ae8 22.f4 d7 23.g5 g6
32.xf6 Black defends easily. 24.xf6 gxf6 25.e5
[ Korchnoi probably intended to meet 32.gxf5 fxe5 26.c2 d5 27.f3 e4! 28.xe4+
with g4 33.g3 g8 but then Rybka likes xe4 29.ae1
34.f6! xf6 35.xe5 . ] [ 29.dxe4 d3+ recuperates the queen. ]
32...xf6 33.gxf5 xf5?! It could well be 29...d5 White is badly in need of a new idea
that Korchnoi's habitual time trouble was in this c4, and Be3 line!
intervening at this point, especially since 0-1
Larsen had him thinking from the outset!
[ 33...h5 would have been safer. ]
34.f3 f7? And this is losing. 403 A11
[ Black should have played 34...f8 . ] Lputian,Smbat G 2598
35.h5+ g7 36.d5 ff8 37.f2! g6 Ivanchuk,Vassily 2719
38.xf6 xh5 39.xb6 A key pawn, not least GM Montecatini Terme ITA (2) 29.07.2000
because it defends its colleagues on a5 and [Tony Kosten]
c5. f3 40.d6 f4 41.xf3 xf3 42.d5
f6 43.g2 f5 44.e3 c8 45.f3 a4 1.f3 d5 2.g3 g6 A rare, if quite interesting,
46.xf5+ xf5 47.f3 a3 48.e3 h8 line. 3.c4

391
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ White attacks the black centre immediately,
if instead 3.g2 g7 4.0-0 then the point
o f B l a c k ' s o p e n i n g i s r e v e a l e d : e5
with equality. ]
3...c6 4.a4!?
[ Interesting, White both protects c4, and
pins the c6-pawn. 4.cxd5 cxd5 5.g2 g7
6.d4 leads into a variation of the King's
Indian Defence. ]
4...d4!
[ This is the most ambitious reply, otherwise
4...dxc4 5.xc4 g7 6.g2 e5 7.0-0 e7
8.d3 e6 9.c2 leads to a reversed Sicilian
po s it io n , f a vo u ra b le t o W h it e , P ive n , I -
Kuporosov,V/Seefeld 1996, and ]
[ 4...e6 is more passive, 5.g2 d7 6.d3
g7 7.0-0 gf6 8.a3!? e7 9.xe7+
xe7 10.c3 d8 11.f4 again with a
plus, Hickl,J-Keitlinghaus,L/Reykjavik 1997. ]
5.b4
[ White also responds aggressively, and
gains qu een side sp ace , b ut th e sim ple
5.g2 g7 6.0-0 e5 7.e3 dxe3?! 8.dxe3
d7 9.d1 might favour White, Gutman,L-
Boehm,J/ Dortmund 1985. ]
5...d7!?
[ A new idea at move five! 5...g7 6.d3 e5
7.bd2 e7 8.g2 0-0 9.0-0 brings play
to a typical reversed Benoni position, with
chances to both sides, Nikolaidis,I-Kapnisis,
S/Korinthos GRE 1999. ]
6.b2 e5 7.e3 g7! Black is not prepared to
concede the centre. 8.g2
[ 8.exd4 e4 9.h4 h6 is similar to the
game. ]
8...h6! 9.0-0 0-0 10.a3
[ White threatens to play c5, and Nc4-d6.
10.exd4 b6 11.b3 exd4 is level ( or
11...e4!? )]
10...a5! Black targets the white pieces on the
a-file. 11.exd4 e4!? Black initiates a long
combinatory series of moves. 12.e1 b6
13.b3 axb4 14.xb4 a4 Menacing to
win a whole rook, by ...Nxb2, and .. .Bxd4, so
White's next is forced. 15.c3
[ 15.ac2? xb2 16.xb2 f5
is terrible for White. ]
15...e3!!
[ A fantastically imaginative, and surprising
blow! Most players would be happy with the
simple 15...f5 16.ec2 xd4
but Ivanchuk has planned something else. ]
16.fxe3
[ 16.ec2 exd2 17.xd2 f5 might be a
safer course, and seems fairly level. ]
16...c5! The key follow-up. 17.dxc5
[ T h e o n l y o t h e r p o s s i b i l i t y i s 17.b3
but then cxd4 18.b4?! ( 18.exd4 xd4+
19.h1 g4 20.xd4 xd4 will win the
exchange with a knight check on f2, but
W hite will enjoy a certain amount of
compensation) 18...dxe3! 19.xf8 xf8
and White loses material. ]
17...xc3 18.dxc3 d2 The end of Black's
tactical line, White temporarily has three extra
pa wn s, b u t t h e y a re a ll in cre d ib ly we a k .
19.b5?!
[ 19.c6!? is stronger, freeing the c5-square
for the white queen, xc3 20.cxb7!? b8
21.bxc8 fxc8 22.e7 xa1 23.d5
with counterplay. ]
19...g4 20.f3
[ this loses the exchange, but neither
20.f3?! h6 21.h3 xe3+ 22.h1 xa2!
23.xa2 xe1+ nor ]
[ 20.h3?! when xe3+ 21.h1 f2+
22.h2 e5 wins quickly, offer any hope. ]
20...xe3+ 21.h1 f2+ 22.xf2 xf2
23.a4 d7 24.c7?
[ White wants to bring his knight to d5, but
this loses to another brilliant tactic, better
24.bd4 although Black is clearly on top. ]
24...xa4!!
[ An o t h er sh o t o u t o f t h e b lu e ! 24...xa4
25.xa4 h3! 26.xh3 xf3+ 27.g1
xc3 and White must give his queen to
avoid ...Bd4+, and mate. ]
0-1
404 A11
Mac
N,Archana
[Gurev, Watson & Kosten]
Reader Maik Naundorf (alias mickeymouse)
sends a lengthy analysis of " the Gurevich-
Qc2, Bg4-Varation", which he says "gives me
quite a headache getting a advantage after 5
Ne5 Bh5.". Here is some of his analysis,
which I've shortened considerably : 1.f3! d5
2.c4 c6 3.e3!? f6 4.c2!? g4!?
392
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
"This move really scares me while playing this
variation in rapidchess. Why do the elite play ..
a6 before moving the bishop to g4 I really
don't know exactly. Below my analysis which
does not solve the problem." 5.e5!?
[ 5.b3!? xf3 6.gxf3 e5 ( Or 6...g6; or
6...bd7 ) 7.g1 bd7 8.b2 g6 9.c3
"unclear". This analysis looks sound. ]
[ 5.cxd5 cxd5 ( or 5...xf3 6.gxf3 xd5
7.e2 bd7 ) 6.e5 h5 7.b5+ bd7
8.c3 e6 ]
5...h5 (f) 6.cxd5
[ Or: (a) 6.f4!? bd7 7.b3 ]
[ (b) 6.b3 b6 7.xb6 axb6= ]
[ (c) 6.e2 xe2 7.xe2 bd7 8.xd7
xd7 9.f3 with Black clearly better. ]
[ (d) 6.d4 bd7 7.c3 e6 8.f4 g6 9.b3
( 9.xg6 hxg6 10.d3 g4= ) 9...b6
10.xb6 ( 10.c5 xb3 11.axb3 xe5
12.fxe5 e4= ) 10...axb6 11.xg6 hxg6= ]
[ (e) 6.d3 bd7 7.f4 xe5 8.fxe5 d7
9.e6 e5! ]
[ 6.b3! bd7 7.f4!? ( 7.d4?! xe5 8.dxe5
d7; 7.b2?! xe5 8.xe5 d7 ) 7...xe5
8.fxe5 d7 ( 8...g6 9.d3 xd3
10.xd3 e4 11.0-0 e6 12.c2 g5
13.d3 c5= ) 9.e6!? fxe6 10.d3 e5!
11.f5 ( 11.xh7?? e4!-+ 12.f5 e6
13.h3 h4+ 14.f1 b4-+ ) 11...f7 ( or
11...e4 12.e6 c5 ) 12.0-0 e6 13.h3
e4 14.b2 c5 ]
6...cxd5 7.c3
[ A cute line is he gives is 7.g4? xg4
8.xg4 xg4 9.a4+ d7 10.b5 c6
11.xc6 xc6 12.xg4 xc1+ 13.d1
xd1+ 14.xd1 ]
[ 7.b5+! (TonyK) looks obvious, bd7
8.f5 ( 8.xd7 xd7 9.f5 g6 10.xd5
is the same )
A) 8...e6? 9.xd7! ( or 9.xd7+ xd7
10.xh5 g6 11.xg6 fxg6 12.h3
with a solid extra pawn) 9...exf5 10.xf6+
e7 11.xh5 with 3 pieces and a
superior pawn structure for the queen -
White is winning (TonyK).;
B) 8...g6! 9.xd7 xd7 ( 9...xf5??
10.xf6# ) 10.xd5 with a pawn more for
negligible compensation (TonyK). ]
7...e6 8.d4
[ 8.b5 a6 9.a4 c5 10.c7+ e7
11.a5 b6 12.c6+ d7 13.xd8 bxa5
14.xa8 xd8 15.d4 ce4 ]
[ 8.a4+! ha s it s p oint s (To nyK ) fd7
( 8...bd7? 9.g4 g6 10.g5 wins a piece!)
9.g4 g6 10.h4 and Black is in big
trouble. ]
8...d6 9.f4 [jw: I doubt that White will like
the weaknesses on e4 and e3 which this
move creates]
405 A11
Mac 2087
Van Beek,Alexander 2305
MM SVR RL Ruhrgebiet (5) 16.01.2005
[John Watson]
Maik Naundorf sends us the following game.
His questions and comments are in quotes,
the rest is mine. 1.c4 c6 2.g3 d5 3.g2
f6 4.f3 dxc4 5.c2 The other way to
approach this would be
[ 5.0-0 b5 ( 5...e6 is ) 6.a4 Personally I
suspect that this is a more effective order.
With the threat of 7. axb5 White encourages
Black to play ...Bb7, when after b3 and ....
cxb3, White can capture with the queen. I
think that in most positions this gives him
more compensation than the lines in which
he plays Qc2, b3, and axb3. b7 ( 6...a6
7.axb5 cxb5 8.d4! with the idea a7
9.xb5; 6...e6 7.axb5 cxb5 8.e5 d5
9.d3! ) 7.b3 cxb3 8.xb3 a6 9.d4 ( or
9.a3!? d5 10.b2 ) 9...e6 10.a3 xa3
11.xa3 e7 12.xe7+ xe7 13.bd2
followed by Rfc1 and Nb3 with a
tremendous bind for the pawn. ]
5...b5 6.b3
[ 6.a4 Naundorf: "Svidler once played this
move. Is it really better than b3?" Then one
p r o b l e m i s a6 ( 6...b7 7.b3 cxb3
8.xb3 is a tempo down on the note above)
7.axb5 cxb5 8.d4 ]
6...cxb3 7.axb3 b7
[ 7...e6 allows Black to castle after 8.Ba3
Bxa3, so White might continue 8.0-0 b7
9.d4 , f o r e x a m p l e , e7 10.a3
( o r p e rh a p s 10.b2 0-0 11.e5 a5
12.c1 d6 13.d3 ) 10...xa3 11.xa3
0-0 12.d1 with ideas like Ne5-d3 or a well-
timed b4. ]
8.a3 bd7
393
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 8...g6 9.d4 g7 10.bd2 0-0 11.e4 a5 406 A11

12.e5 d5 13.e4 , following the game
Djindjihashvili-Bagirov, USSR Ch 1972. I
like White's game: look at that c5 square! ]
9.d4 a5!? What do you think of this idea and
w h e r e m i g h t i i m p r o v e ? 10.bd2 b4
I don't like this move. To me the idea of ...a5
is t o p r e ve n t t h e m o ve b 4 a n d c o n t i n u e
holding c4. Now W hite's knight has a
wonderful outpost on c4. 11.b2 e6 12.0-0
W hite doesn't have to allow ... c5. A good
move is
[ 12.e5! when Black's awkwardly placed, e.
g., c7 ( 12...d6 13.dc4; 12...e7
13.0-0 0-0 14.xc6 c8 15.xe7+ xe7
16.c4 ) 13.0-0 c5 14.xb7 xb7
15.xd7 xd7 16.c4 , hitting the a-
pawn. ]
12...c5! Now it's not as easy, but Black is still
underdeveloped. 13.c4!?
[ Better 13.fd1! cxd4 14.xd4 xg2
15.xg2 with chances due to the c6 square
and queenside files. ]
13...e7 14.a2 e4! 15.d2 b6
16.fe5 White's play disappears as the
bishops go off, but I don't see what to try
anyway. Allowing ...c5 was only possible if
you had an immediate plan for compensation.
[ 16.xb6 xb6 17.dxc5 xc5 18.c1
d5 ]
16...xc4 17.xc4 xg2 18.xg2 a4!?
19.dxc5 xd2 20.xd2 a3 21.c1 0-0
[ Or 21...c8! 22.d4 0-0 The rest of the
ga m e is o u t sid e o f t h e p ro vin c e o f t h e
question. ]
22.d4 fd8 23.f3 d5 24.c4 f6
25.e5 c7 26.c6 xd4 27.xd4 d5
28.c6 c3 29.xc3 bxc3 30.xd8 c2
31.xc2 a2 32.xa2 xa2 33.b4 f8
34.f3 e8 35.c6 b2 36.e3 f6
37.d3 d7 38.d4 xb4 39.f4 e5
40.fxe5 fxe5 41.c2 b3+ 42.c4 b2
43.c3 b1 44.d3 h1 45.e3 xh2
46.g4 g2 47.xe5+ e6 48.d4 xg3
49.e4 e3+ 50.xe3 xe5 51.c6 d6
52.f4 xc6 53.f5 d6 54.e4 e7
55.e5 h5 56.f5 h4
0-1
Maherramzade,Javad 2476
Vladimirov,Evgeny 2612
ADCF Masters (8) 02.09.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g4 4.c4 dxc4!?
This is an odd time to capture on c4, normally
Black does this with his knight on f6, instead.
5.a3!
[ Curiously, after 5.e5 e6 it seems that
Black has gained by losing a tempo, as with
his knight on f 3 instead W hite can play
Ng5! ]
5...d5
[ Not 5...b5? 6.e5 - the weakness of the
h1-a8 diagonal changes everything. ]
6.c2
[ White can also aim for long-term positional
pressure with 6.0-0 d7 7.c2 b6 8.b3
cxb3 9.axb3 e5 10.b2 Dizdar,G-Videki,S/
Makarska 1993, his open files on the
queenside, and development advantage, are
worth at least one pawn. ]
6...e6
[ Putting an end to White's idea of playing b3.
I don't like 6...b5?! very much, as after 7.b3!
cxb3 8.axb3 the position is similar to the
previous note, except that Black's queenside
is loose. ]
7.0-0
[ Loginov prefers 7.e4 e.g. d3 8.xd3
cxd3 9.e5 a6 10.xd3 d8 11.e2
g6 12.b3 g7 13.b2 xb2 14.xb2
White has an extra central pawn, and a bit
more space, Loginov,V-Videki,S/Kecskemet
1993. ]
7...d7 8.c3!
[ This is a strong, and far from obvious,
innovation, White simply controls the a1-h8
diagonal to play Nd4 (or Ne5). Previously
White had sacrificed the d-pawn by 8.d1!?
gf6 9.d3 cxd3 10.xd3 c5 11.c3 f5
12.d1 e4 13.e3 but White's
compe nsat ion seem s ina dequ ate here ,
Fancsy,I-Videki,S/ HUN-chT2 9394 1994. ]
8...b6
[ Further defending c4. 8...gf6 9.d4 d6
10.xe6 xe6 11.xc4 also clearly
favours White, who enjoys an extra central
pawn, and the bishop pair. ]

394
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
9.e5 d8 10.axc4 White has recaptured
his c-pawn, and Black is far from finishing his
development. xc4 11.xc4 f6 12.b3 e6
13.b2 bd5 14.c2 e7 15.d4 0-0 16.e4
b6 White has won the opening discussion:
Black's position is solid but White has all the
trumps. 17.e3!? c8 18.ac1 d7
19.h3 fd8 20.h1 e8 21.f4
White decides on a kingside attack, but other
players would have handled this differently,
no doubt. fd7 22.f5 g5 23.fxe6 fxe6
24.ce1 xe3 25.xe3 e7 26.c1
[ Being the proud possessor of two massive
bishops, White should be trying to squeeze
Black on both sides of the board, and so the
move 26.a4! certainly seems to the point,
a5 is threatened, driving the b6-knight to
who knows where, and c5 is met by 27.a3
cxd4? 28.xe7 xc2 29.xd8 dxe3
30.xe6+ ]
26...f8 27.ee1 xf1+ 28.xf1 f8
Black does what he can, the fact that he is
much stronger than his opponent obviously
helps his chances! 29.xf8+ xf8 30.a3
f6 31.f4 bd7 32.xf6 gxf6 White may
not have made the most of his position, but
even this ending should certainly be winning.
33.g2 f7 34.f2 b6 35.d6 c5
36.e3!?
[ 36.d5 must be good. ]
36...cxd4+ 37.xd4 g6 Now Black has the
e5-square for one of his knights, but
unfortunately he has two knights for only one
square! 38.c4 a6 39.f1 ge5+ 40.c3
a5 41.c7 e7 42.b5 c5 43.xb6?
[ 43.d4 cd7 44.xd7! xd7 45.c4
a n d K b 5 s e e m s t o win b o t h qu e e n sid e
pawns. ]
43...xe4+ 44.d4 d6 The black knights
p e rf o rm m ir a c l e s t o d e f e n d t h e a -p a wn .
45.e2
[ 45.a4 b7 ]
45...d7 46.e3
[ 46.xa5? c6+ is a nasty fork. ]
46...a4! 47.g4 axb3 48.axb3 f5
Having managed to change his sick a-pawn
f o r W h it e 's h e a lt h y o n e , B la ck t u rn s h i s
attention to liquidating the other pawns. 49.h3
c6 50.d8 d5 51.f6 g6 52.gxf5
xf5+ 53.f2 f4 54.f1 e5 55.b4 e4
56.b5 White has had enough, he has been
completely outplayed in the ending!
½-½
407 A11
Malakhatko,Vadim 2610
Hoffmann,Michael 2474
2nd Pfalz Open (8) 21.02.2009
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.c4 c6 2.f3 f6 3.c3 d5 4.e3 e6
5.c2 bd7 6.b3 b6!?
[ 6...d6 7.b2 ( 7.g4?! This move has not
yet been ventured, but for good reason.
White has b3 instead of d4 in the Shirov/
Shabalov line of the Semi-Slav and it seems
that this favours Black: xg4 8.g1 de5!
The problem, highlighting the lack of a pawn
on d4. 9.xe5 xe5 10.xg7 f3+
And white's creative play begins to look
f o o lha rd y.) 7...0-0 8.e2 is now a fairly
major sub-line, analysed by Tony Kosten
in Dangerous W eapons: The Flank
Openings. Black's main replies are a6, b6
and Re8 and W hite can try g4 with or
without Rg1 against all of them. ( 8.g4?!
xg4 9.g1 de5! 10.xe5 xe5
11.e2 h4 doesn't look too impressive for
White. )]
7.cxd5!? Keeping things distinct.
[ 7.b2 b7 8.cxd5 cxd5! 9.b5 c8 ]
7...exd5
[ 7...cxd5 8.b5 is just good for White. ]
8.b2 b7 9.e2!? It is hard to know how to
describe this move, but its merits include
f re e in g t h e b 2 -h 8 d ia g o n a l a n d h e a d in g
towards the tender f5 square. c5 10.c1
This one is curious and not obviously
necessary, but it is basically a waiting move,
and quite a useful one. Black needs to
develop his f8 bishop, and he is likely to play
g6 to attempt to neutralise the bishop on b2,
so White simply waits to have a target for his
h-pawn. g6 11.h4! d6
[ 11...g7 12.h5 0-0 gives White plenty of
p r o m i si n g wa ys t o c o n t i n u e . ( 12...xh5
13.xh5 ) 13.hxg6 fxg6 14.g5 being the
most direct, and seemingly quite effective.
e7 15.f4 ]
12.h5 e7
[ 12...g8!? 13.hxg6 hxg6 preserving the
395
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

integrity of the pawn structure and aiming to away, and Black didn't want to see it.
play Qe7 and 0-0-0 is another way to play- 1-0
both side s will h ave sub-o ptim al king's
positions, but Black will probably be the one
to eventually get the h-file. ] 408 A11
13.hxg6 fxg6 14.d4!? Trying to take some Marin,Mihail 2583
positional control in the centre. Otherwise Laznicka,Viktor 2617
Black might muddy the waters by playing d4 XXIX Open Benasque ESP (10) 11.07.2009
himself. However, although I admire White's [Nigel Davies]
play, I am not sure how good it really is. Black
probably has his full share of the chances 1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.g2 d5 4.f3 dxc4
here, but at least he has been forced to think 5.0-0 bd7 6.a3 b6 7.c2 d5 8.e1
for himself. e6
[ 14.h4!? this multi-purpose move(not least [ Another way to hit White's e2 pawn is with
taking control of g4) might be objectively 8...h5 , but this is an empty threat because
better. o f t h e l i n e 9.xc4 xe2 ( 9...bd5
A) 14...0-0-0 15.c3 b8 ( 15...d4 is better, but then W hite just plays 10.d4
16.xd4 cxd4 17.d5+ ) 16.b5 with a clear advantage) 10.xb6 axb6
with some initiative for White.; 11.xc6+! d7 12.f3 , winning back the
B) 14...0-0 15.f4 ] pawn with a clear advantage. ]
14...0-0 15.c3? This works out fine, but is 9.d3
probably bad. [ Another possibility is 9.e4!? , for example
[ 15.g5!? ] g6 10.b3 g7 11.b2 cxb3 12.axb3 0-0
[ 15.h4!? ] 13.d4 d7 14.d3 d8 15.fd1 g4
[ 15.g3!? ] 16.h3 h6 17.f4 e6 18.c4 xc4
15...ac8 Generally useful, but relatively 19.bxc4 gave White excellent compensation
useless in the critical lines that follow. for the pawn in Preiss, M (2287) -Pinter, J
[ 15...cxd4 16.xd4 g4! looks good for (2532), Germany 2007. ]
Black e.g. 17.f3 de5 18.e2 xf2! ] 9...cxd3 10.xd3 g6
16.d3 cxd4 17.xd4 g4 [ In Pantsulaia, L (2584)-Panarin, M (2502),
[ 17...e5! is at least ok for Black, and p la ych e ss. co m I NT 2 0 0 6 B la ck p la ye d
indeed, without a clear attacking follow up 10...f5 but this seems to be strongly met
white's play is called into question. ] by 11.e4! because ( Rather than 11.e1
18.xg6! xf2 19.xh7+ f8 20.xf2+ a s i n t h e g a m e) 11...xe4? 12.g4!
xf2 21.xf2 White has only a rook, a piece leaves Black without a good way to protect
and a pawn for the queen, but in such the knight on e4. ]
situations the initiative is all important, and 11.e4! I'm sure this is the best idea for White.
Black's king's lack of pawn shield, and the [ In Serafimov, T (2404)-Chuchelov, V (2534),
queen's lack of targets means that White has F r a n c e 2 0 0 6 W h i t e p l a y e d 11.e3
the upper hand. e5 22.h3 xd4 23.exd4 but piece play alone feels less effective
f6 24.f5 e8 25.f3 f7 26.h1 f8 than using the e-pawn as a battering ram.
27.b1!? intending Ba3 b4 28.h4 e8 The game continued g7 12.c5 fd7
29.c3 d6 30.d2 a6 31.c3 f8 13.b4 0-0 14.e4 c5! 15.d2 c4
32.g5 e8 33.h6 Black is outnumbered. and Black was getting some play whilst
S o m e t i m e s q u a n t i t y b e a t s q u a l i t y . b4 maintaining his extra pawn. ]
34.xf6 xf6 35.xf6 a3 36.xd5 xa2+ 11...g7 12.f4
37.g3 b7 38.e6 c2 39.e3 f8 [ The fact that the players now agreed to a
40.g5 g6 41.f4 The final humiliation. draw raises some fascinating questions.
Not content to attack with four pieces, White A f t e r Ma rin ' s 12.f4 Black's best may be
decides to use his king too. Mate is not far fd7 and now ( 12...0-0? 13.c5 g4
14.h3 h5 15.g4 h4 16.d2!

396
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

p u t s B l a c k ' s qu e e n i n t e r r i b l e t ro u b l e) Marin trundles forward his kingside pawns. g5

13.fd1 0-0 14.d2 keeps improving 30.hxg5 fxg5 31.e4 g4 32.e2 h5 33.e3
W hite's position whilst it's difficult to see e6 34.a6 b8 35.a5 f8 36.f5 xf5
moves for his opponent. At this point I think 37.exf5 g5 38.f4 h3+ 39.e4 g5+
I'll cop out and suggest that 'further tests' 40.d4 f3+ 41.c4 d2+ 42.c3 f3
are required. ] 43.f6! The winning move, distracting Black's
½-½ king from the defence of c6. e6 44.c4
xf6 45.c5 f5 46.xc6 e4 47.c5+
d4 48.e6+ e5 49.f4 h4
409 A11 [ 49...d4+ 50.c5 b3+ 51.b5 d4+
Marin,Mihail 2556 52.a6 is hardly any better. ]
Ris,Robert 2436 50.g6+ e4 51.gxh4 d3 52.h5 e2
Open Reykjavik ISL (4) 27.03.2009 53.h6 xf2 54.h7 g3 55.h8 g2 56.f4
[Nigel Davies] 1-0

1.c4 c6 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.f3 dxc4

5.0-0 bd7 6.a3 b6 7.c2 d5 410 A11
8.e1!? Paradoxically this retreat looks like Markowski,Tomasz 2531
W hite's most promising option. Taken by Aleksandrov,Aleksej 2606
surprise Black does not respond in the most 1st ch-Europe (10) 13.07.2000
cold blooded way. f5?! Trying to gain time [Tony Kosten]
f o r d e v e l o p m e n t b u t Ma ri n j u m p s a t t h e
chance to get the better pawn structure in the 1.g3 d5 2.f3 g4 3.g2 d7 Possibly
endgame. 9.xd5 xc2 10.xc6+ bxc6 threatening ...e5. 4.c4 e6 5.cxd5 exd5
11.exc2 e6 12.b3 Although this c4 pawn is 6.0-0 c6
doubled and isolated it also has a cramping [ Perhaps Black can consider delaying this
effect. So W hite exchanges it off so as to move even further, with 6...d6 , say. ]
t a r g e t i t s c o m r a d e s o n c 6 a n d a 7 . cxb3 7.d3 d6 8.c3 e7
13.axb3 a5 Looking to exchange off his weak [ Although 8...gf6 seems more natural, I
a-pawn at least, though within a few moves prefer the text, as it avoids problems with
this pawn will be lost. Frankly I think that a later White e4-5. ]
Black will suffer whatever he plays because of 9.h3 h5 10.e4 This position is a speciality
his weakened pawn structure. 14.b2 d7 of Markowski, and he has scored very well
15.e3 xa3?! Black was no doubt hoping to here. e5!?
force through ...a5-a4 without suffering any ill [ An interesting innovation offering a pawn
effects. But this doesn't turn out to be the sacrifice for good play previously 10...dxe4
case and in fact he's just helping W hite to 11.dxe4 e5 12.g4 xf3+ 13.xf3 g6
double rooks on the a-file. 14.f4 xf4 15.xf4 0-0 16.fd1
[ 15...b4 would have been a more stubborn h a d p r o ve d ve ry p l e a sa n t f o r W h it e i n
choice, though W hite is still much better Dizdarevic,E-Soln,P/Dresden 1998, and ]
after 16.ac4 xc4 17.xc4 e7 [ 10...0-0 11.c2 c8 12.d4!? b6
18.fc1 . ] 13.e3 a6 14.g4 g6 15.f5
16.xa3 a6 17.d4 ha8 18.fa1 e8?! may also slightly favour White, Seeman, T-
Losing a pawn. Ionov,S/Paide 1999. ]
[ 18...c7 would have been more stubborn, 11.exd5
though this position is far from pleasant for [ 11.g4 g6 12.xe5 ( 12.exd5 allows
Black. ] xd3 ) 12...xe5 13.exd5 0-0 transposes. ]
19.b4 a4 20.xb6 xb6 21.xa4 xa4 11...0-0! 12.g4 g6 13.xe5 xe5 14.d4
22.xa4 f6 23.c4 b5 24.d4 c7 c7 15.dxc6 d6 16.f4 bxc6 17.e3
25.b2 e5 26.dxe5 xe5 27.f1 b5 [ A critical position, Black has sacrificed a
28.d3 d6 29.h4 With a good pawn up pawn for an active position, some open lines,

397
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

and a slightly over-extended White kingside. both g1, and g3. ]

He decides to complete his development, 35...xf6 36.xf3 xf3+ 37.xf3 g7
but giving his kin g a squa re on f 1, an d 38.d3 d4 39.xf5+
thereby threatening to play f5, was also [ 39.f1 is objectively better, although c4!
possible: 17.e1!? f5 18.b3+ f7 40.xf5+ h8 is winning anyway, Black will
19.a3!? trying to swap queens, although play ...Rf7, and then take the f-pawn. ]
t h e e n d g a m e a f t e r xa3 ( 19...xd4+ 39...h8 40.g4 h5 The bishop is pinned.
20.e3 d8 21.c5 b6 22.h2 xc5 41.e2
23.xc5 d5 is also OK) 20.bxa3 d5 0-1
is perfectly reasonable for Black. ]
17...fe8 18.f3 ab8 Black brings his
pieces to aggressive squares, and stops any 411 A11
thought of W hite playing f 5. 19.f2 f5 Markus,Robert 2587
W hite's previous move created an escape Ansell,Simon 2394
square for his king on f1, so that trapping the Open Kavala GRE (2) 01.08.2009
g6-bishop with f5 really was on the cards. [Nigel Davies]
20.d5! Before Black had time to bring his
bishop to f7, and establish a piece on d5. c5 1.c4 f6 2.f3 c6 3.c3 d5 4.e3 g4
21.d1 f7 22.f1 a6 23.c4 g6 24.g5 5.cxd5 xf3
[ 24.a4 seems more to the point, attacking [ Black needs to interpose this move as after
c 5 , b u t t h e n B l a c k h a s t h e in t e r e s t i n g 5...cxd5 6.b3 b6 ( 6...c8
e x c h a n g e s a c , fxg4 25.hxg4 xe3! is n e ce s sa r y) 7.xd5 xb3 8.xf6+
26.xe3 d7 forking a4, and g4, 27.c3 White wins a pawn. ]
xg4+ 28.g2 d7 with serious threats to 6.xf3
f4, and the denuded white king. ] [ Capturing with the pawn achieves nothing
24...h6!? Black opens the g-line, to exploit his after 6.gxf3 cxd5 7.b3 d7 . ]
safer king position. 25.gxh6 gxh6 26.c1 6...cxd5 7.b5+ Quite a few different moves
[ 26.a4!? i s n o w a n s w e r e d b y h7 have been played for W hite here but this
27.xc5 h4 28.e2 g6+ 29.h1 g3! looks like one of the most interesting. The
with a strong attack. ] others that intrigue me are as follows:
26...h7 27.h1 h4 28.d3 h5 29.g1 [ a) 7.g3 c6 8.g2 e6 9.0-0 e7 10.b3
g8 Both sides proceed in a logical fashion, 0-0 11.b2 c8 12.ac1 a5 13.b1 b5
W hite tries to counter Black's kingside 14.e2 b4 15.a4 d7 16.fc1 b6
pressure. 30.g3 g6 31.xg6 xg6 17.f1 started to look a bit better for White
32.d6?! in Kempinski, R (2590)-Sorm, D (2330)/
[ Simply returning his extra pawn, perhaps he Neustadt an den W einstrasse 2008, the
w a s w o r r i e d a b o u t . . . R g 8 , b u t 32.f1 point being that after xa4 18.bxa4 xa4
was better, when Black still has to prove that 19.a6 xa6 20.xa6 c7 21.e5
he has enough compensation for the pawn. ] White wins the exchange. ]
32...xd6 33.h2?! [ b) 7.g4!? is more aggressive, though it's
[ 33.d5 would at least give some point to not clear it makes much headway after e6
his previous move. ] 8.b3 ( 8.g5 fd7 9.h4 c6 10.d4 c8
33...f3 11.d2 a6 12.c1 b6 13.d1
[ 33...xb2!? appears tempting, as after was Bauer, C (2582)-Dautov, R (2611)/
34.xb2 xf4+ 35.h1 f3+ White has to France 88 and now d6 might have been
concede his queen to avoid mate, 36.xf3 the best with a perfectly sound position for
xf3 37.xf3 but he gains sufficient Black ) 8...c6 9.b2 a6! 10.e2 d6
material as compensation. ] 11.g2! 0-0? 12.g5! e4?! ( 12...d7
34.d5?! b7! With a decisive threat of ... was better, but Black is scared of the attack
Rg7. 35.f6+ White might develop after 13.h4 ) 13.xe4
[ Forced, 35.b3? g7 threatens mate on dxe4 14.xe4 xg5 15.h4! g6 16.xg6

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
hxg6 17.f4 fd8 18.h5! was promising for
W h it e in Ha lk ia s, S (2 5 4 6 ) -V e lic ka , P
(2445)/Cappelle la Grande 84. ]
7...c6 8.xc6+
[ 8.0-0 c8 prevents the unbalancing of the
pawn structure and starts to look very equal,
for example 9.b3 e6 10.b2 a6 11.xc6+
xc6 12.ac1 e7 13.a4 xc1 14.xc1
0-0 15.f4 e8 16.c5 xc5 17.xc5 f6
18.g4 d7 was rather equal in Gurevich,
M (2630)-Bagirov, V (2465)/Nabereznye
Chelny 1988. ]
8...bxc6 9.0-0 e6 10.b3 e7
[ Black has also tried 10...b4 but after
11.b2 0-0 12.ac1 e7 13.c2 d7
14.a4 ac8 15.fc1 White had the kind
of pressure that typifies this line in Vavrak,
P (2 4 72 )-Me du n a , E (2 4 31 )/ Ma ria n ske
Lazne 2008. ]
11.b2 0-0 12.fc1
[ White can also play the other rook to c1,
for example 12.ac1 a5 13.c2 fc8
( 13...c5 14.fc1 a6 15.e2 xe2
16.xe2 was also better for White in
Jirovsky, M (2482)-Velicka, P (2506)/
Havlickuv Brod 2008) 14.a4 c5 15.fc1
d7 16.e2 a6 17.d3 b5 18.g3 f5?!
19.e4! gave White a promising game in
Bischoff, K (2545)-Bagirov, V (2460)/
Netherlands 1998. ]
12...a5 13.c2 d7
[ 13...c5 14.d3 ac8 15.a4 was slightly
better for White in Kruppa, Y (2570)-Milov,
L (2490)/Donetsk 1998. ]
14.a4 ac8 15.ac1 a6 16.h4
A prepared novelty? Yes probably, because
Simon Ansell had played all this with Black
before:
[ 16.d1 fe8 17.f1 b7 18.h3 f8
19.d3 g6 20.e2 e5 21.e4 h6
wa s n ' t m u c h f o r W h i t e a t t h i s p o i n t i n
Tomashevsky, E (2646)-Ansell, S (2410)/
Kallithea 2008. ]
16...fe8
[ The h-pawn can't be taken as after
16...xh4? 17.g4 f6 18.c5 xc5
19.xf6 g6 20.xc5 White wins a piece. ]
17.h5 h6 18.e4 f8 19.d3 ed8 20.d4
d6 21.e3 e5 22.b2 b7 23.f3 f6
24.c3 e8 25.d2 a3 26.e1 e7
27.c3 d6 28.g3 e6 29.g2 h7
30.d2 f5? Simon Ansell often runs short of
time and maybe this was the case here.
[ Just 30...f6 looks OK for Black. ]
31.xf5 xf5 32.exf5 f6 33.h1 c5
34.hc1 xh5 35.xc5 f6 36.e6 xc2
37.xc2 b8 38.c6 f7 39.c5 e4 40.d4
g8 41.a6 e7 42.xb8 xb8 43.c7
f6 44.f4
[ After 44.f4 e8 45.g4 it's quite hopeless
for Black. ]
1-0
412 A11
Matamoros Franco,Carlos S 2460
Xu Jun 2626
XXVIII Sevilla ESP (9) 18.01.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 f6 4.g2 dxc4
Black captures the c-pawn. Whilst this is not
as popular as
[ 4...g4 Capablanca's Variation, or ]
[ 4...f5 Lasker's Variation, it is perfectly
viable. ]
5.0-0 Alternatively, White can play the
immediate
[ 5.c2 ]
5...bd7 The knight heads for b6 to defend
t h e e x t r a c - p a w n . 6.c2 b6 7.a4
It is a moot point whether White should play
this or first
[ 7.a3 which is less aggressive, but doesn't
concede the b4-square. ]
7...a5 8.a3 e6
[ 8...d5 is the other attempt at holding on
to t he p awn : 9.e1 e6 10.d3! cxd3
( 10...fd5 11.dxc4 b4 12.b3 f6
13.d3 e5 14.d2 xd3 15.exd3 c5
is fairly level, Kirov,N-Huebner,R/ Solingen
1987 ) 11.xd3 fd5 ( 11...g6 12.f4
e5 13.d2 g7?! 14.xc6+! bxc6
15.xc6+ d7 16.xb6 is good for White,
Hausrath,D-Chuchelov,V/Breda NED 2000)
12.d1 White has sacrificed a pawn, hoping
that his lead in development will
compensate fully, f6?! ( 12...f6! ) 13.f4
xf4 14.xf4 g5 15.c7 d7?! 16.c4
g7 17.e4 g8 18.b6! 1-0 Kirov,N-Ruf,
M/Cannes 1990, as xb6 19.g6+ hxg6
20.xg6+ f7 21.d8# ]
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

9.g5 White must guard the initiative. g4 defend against the white major pieces with
[ 9...d5?! is met by 10.e4 h6 11.exd5 his king uncastled and his rooks unconnected.
hxg5 12.dxc6 ] h5 25.d6 h4 26.d3 hxg3 27.hxg3 g8
10.xc4! xc4!? As far as I can see this [ 27...h3?? is impossible, of course,
natural recapture is a novelty, as previously 28.d8+ ]
capturing the pawn with 28.d7 h6 29.ee7 The white rooks make
[ 10...xe2! had been preferred, play the seventh rank their own. f6 30.b3 f8
c o n t i n u i n g 11.xb6 ( 11.e5!? h5 31.xb7 e8 32.c7 xe7 33.xe7 g6
12.b4!? is incredibly aggressive, and may be 34.e5 White aims to win a second pawn, the
stronger, bd5?! 13.b5 cxb5 14.d3 o n e o n a 5 . a8 35.d7 g7?
b6?! 15.xd5 d8 16.xf7+ xf7 This accelerates matters,
17.xb5+ xb5 18.axb5 d5 19.xa5 [ 35...f8 held on a little longer. ]
White has an extra pawn, Stocek, J-Boric,M/ 36.e8 a6 37.h3 The queen aims for h8,
Pula CRO 2000.) 11...xb6 12.e1 h5 and Black is mated.
13.b4!? White strikes while the black king is [ 37.h3 g5 38.h8+ g6 39.g4
s t i l l i n t h e c e n t r e , g6 ( 13...axb4!? and Rg8. ]
Schirm, F-Lingnau,C/Germany 1991) 14.d3 1-0
axb4 15.e3 a6 16.e4 e6 White's
compensation appears insufficient, Kirov,N-
Luther,T/Leningrad 1989. ] 413 A11
11.xc4 e6 12.e4 White takes the centre, Mikhalevski,Victor 2525
wit h a n as t y t h rea t of e 5, d islo dgin g t h e Matinian,N 2438
b i s h o p ' s d e f e n d e r . h5 13.d4 h6 11th Aeroflot Open B (9) 15.02.2012
Th is m o ve c h ase s t h e kn ight t o a b e t t e r [John Bartholomew]
square, maybe simple development by
[ 13...e7 should be preferred. ] 1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.f3 d5 4.g2 dxc4
14.h3 g6 15.f4! xe4!? Black takes 5.0-0 bd7 6.a3 b6 7.c2 d5 8.b3
the bull by the horns, This is very much the "move of the moment" in
[ 15...h7 was possible, but White is better. ] view of Timman's sparkling victory over Ernst.
16.xe4 xe4 17.xe6! The point. d7 f5?! I judged this response to be
[ 17...fxe6?! 18.xe6+ e7 19.g6+ d7 unconvincing in the notes to Timman-Ernst.
20.e1 e8 21.f3 regains the piece with [ Instead, 8...cxb3 9.axb3 e6 10.b4!
interest. ] posed Black fresh problems in Timman, J
18.c5 xc5? This move is risky, Black (2571)-Ernst, S (2606)/Wijk aan Zee NED
should play 2012/ [John Bartholomew]. ]
[ 18...xc5! 19.dxc5 d5 when 20.xd5 9.b2
cxd5 21.e3 d7! 22.fd1 c6 is fine. ] [ Definitely better than 9.bxc4 xf3 10.xf3
19.dxc5 e7 20.e1 This is the problem. xc2 11.xc2 xc4= Davies, N (2512)-
f8 Haslinger, S (2423)/Swansea 2006/ [Nigel
[ 20...0-0 allows a tactic, although it may be Davies]. ]
the best chance anyway: 21.xh6! gxh6 [ 9.c3!? is possible. ]
( 21...b5!? 22.axb5 cxb5 23.e4 ) 22.ad1 9...cxb3 10.axb3 d8
c7 23.g4+ g5 ( e l s e R d 7 ) 24.h4 [ The only previous game in this line went
regains the material with interest, but f5 10...e6 11.d3 d8 12.c4 e7
25.c4+ f7 and Black enters an endgame , a nd n ow I p ro po se d th e im provem en t
wh e re h e is wo rse , b u t m ay b e a b le t o 13.a5!? ( 13.xb6 axb6 14.xa8 xa8
draw. ] was ok for Black in Mihajlovic, M (2243)-
21.f4 f6? Kuzma novic, R (1996)/Belgrade 2007 .)
[ 21...d5!? ] 13...c8 14.b4! 0-0 15.b5 ]
22.ad1 c8 23.e5 xe5 24.xe5 11.c4 g6 Fianchettoing makes sense
Black is already losing, he can hardly hope to because of the Qb2/Ra1. 12.a5

400
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ This provides adequate compensation, but e6+ ) 30...d5! 31.c7 (31...Bd4 was the
White had a powerful alternative in 12.e4! threat) e5! 32.a7 d4-+ ]
, i.e. 29.e4 d7+ 30.g2 c6
A) White's game has massive potential in [ 30...f8= ]
other lines: 12...g4 13.e5 ( 13.fe5!?; 31.a8 b8? Losing his way.
13.d4!? ) 13...fd5 14.e6 f6 15.g5!; [ 31...xa8 32.xa8+ f8 is equal-ish. ]
B) 12...e6 13.g5 is very dangerous for 32.5a7! All of a sudden Black is in serious
Black, e.g. xc4 14.bxc4 xc4 15.d3! trouble. d8
b5 16.e5 g7 17.exf6 xf6 18.b3 [ 32...xe4 is a better chance, but after
0-0 19.a3; 33.xd7 xe2+ 34.f3 e8 35.b7 e5
C) 12...c8 13.e5 fd5 14.e6 f6 36.d4! d6 37.b4 Black will be hard-
15.g5; pressed to hold the ending. ]
D) 12...xe4 13.e1! g8 ( forced, since 33.c4 f6
13...xf3 14.xf6! is brutal ) 14.g5!? [ The last chance was 33...f8 , but after
xg2 15.xf6 d5 16.xf7! g7 34.b7 e5 35.d4! d6 36.d5
( 16...xf7? 17.d6+ ) 17.f4! ( 17.xg7 I think Black's def enses begin to break
xg7 18.xd8 xd8 19.xa7 xc4 down. ]
20.bxc4 xc4 21.xb7= ) 17...xf7 34.b7 e5 35.xf7+ h8 36.xe8+
18.d6+ d7 19.xf7 f8 20.a5!? 1-0
when Black's position is quite precarious.
The f ac t t hat normal play can lea d t o
such consequences serves to emphasize 414 A11
the problems Black currently faces in the Miroshnichenko,Evgenij 2571
line beginning with 8.b3. ] Burmakin,Vladimir 2590
12...c8 13.e5 g7 14.axc6?! RUS-Cup 300 years (4) 21.10.2003
Difficult to resist, but incorrect. [Nigel Davies]
[ White should aim for positional
compensation with 14.d4 0-0 15.e4 . ] 1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 f6 4.g2 a6
14...bxc6 15.xc6+ d7?! This results in 5.0-0
rough equality. [ 5.cxd5 cxd5 will be harmless for Black at
[ Best was 15...fd7! , when Mikhalevski this point. ]
m a y h a v e h a d t h e qu e e n sa c 16.xd7!? 5...dxc4 6.a4 h6 Interesting. Black is willing
in mind. However, after xb2 17.xb6+ to spend a tempo making sure that after 7...
f8 18.xb2 b8 19.xc8 xc8 Be 6 he won 't get h assled wit h 8. Ng5 . A
Black will emerge with an edge, e.g. 20.b7 couple of other moves have been tried here,
b8 21.xh8 xb7 22.c3 f6 ] the first of which is just downright bad:
16.xd7 bxd7 17.xa8 xa8 18.d4 a6 [ a) 6...b5? 7.axb5 cxb5 8.d4 a7
19.c4 0-0 20.xa6 The game is balanced. 9.xb5 won the pawn back with a clear
b8 advantage in Kirov, N-Pytel, K/Metz 1991. ]
[ Why not 20...b7= ? ] [ b) 6...bd7 should probably be met by 7.
21.a3 e5 22.c5 Na3 followed by just recapturing on c4 as
[ 22.a4!? ] after 7.c2 e5 8.xc4 c5 9.g5 c7
22...e4 23.e3 White's queen was exposed to harassment
[ 23.d5 f6 24.a5 looks superior. ] by Black's minor pieces in Reinderman, D-
23...b5 24.xe7?! e8 25.fa1 xf2! Ernst, S/Eindhoven 2010. ]
Initiating favorable complications. 26.1a5 7.c2 This looks a bit routine to me.
h3+ 27.g2 b7+ 28.xh3 xe7?! [ White has some interesting alternatives
[ Here 28...c6! wins the bishop back with here such as 7.a5 followed by 8.Qa4 or ]
an initiative because 29.xc6? ( 29.a4 [ 7.b3!? cxb3 8.xb3 . I've played these
xe7 30.a8+ f8 ) 29...xc6 sorts of pawn sacrif ices quite a bit and
is out of the question, i. e. 30.a7 ( 30.c5 wo u ld est im a te th a t W h it e h a s e no u gh

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

compensation. But not more than that. ] [ 6.a3 d5 7.c2 c5 8.xc4 c6
7...e6 8.a3 b5 9.e5 d5 10.e4 e6 i n t h e R a d j a b o v, T - S vi d l e r , P g a m e w e
11.d4 examined a while ago. ]
[ 11.d3 i s m e t b y t h e a w k w a r d d4 6...d5 The bishop comes to a strong central
with W hite's compensation disappearing square to avoid Ng5 and e4 tactics, and also
down the drain. ] to be able to play ...e6 to complete
[ His best seems to be 11.d1 d4 12.c3! development. 7.c3 This knight often goes to
xc3 13.dxc3 with some compensating a3 in these lines, to pressure the c4-pawn,
initiative in the endgame. But it's not easy but here W hite prefers to play against the
to play this way when you've sacrificed a black light-squared bishop. a6 This is a new
pawn early on. ] move, and looks to be a good alternative to
11...xd4 12.f4 g5 13.fd1 b6 14.e3 [ 7...e6 when 8.c2 (menacing e4) xf3
b7 15.d2 fd7 I don't really see much 9.xf3 bd7 10.a5 a6 11.a4 d6
c o m p e n s a t i o n f o r W h i t e . 16.f4 g7?! 12.g2 was Romanishin,O-Dorfman, J/Lvov
A bit tentative. 19 7 8 , wh e n c7 is interesting, tying White
[ 16...gxf4! 17.xf4 g7 is a lot stronger. ] to the a5-pawn. ]
17.xd7 xd7 18.e5 0-0?! Maybe it's just 8.b3!? A standard device, the c4-pawn must
me but Black's king doesn't look too safe on be eliminated. cxb3 9.d3 White intends to
the kingside right now. recuperate the pawn by playing e4 and Ng5.
[ It would have been better to delay this, say xf3 The simplest solution, but
with 18...c8 . ] [ 9...c5 is also interesting, hindering e4,
19.fxg5 xe5 20.e4? 10.d4 ce4 11.xd5 xd5 12.a3
[ Was 20.gxh6 too obvious? ] t o t a k e t h e b 3 - p a w n , o r ( 12.d3!?
20...g4 21.e1 d7 22.f2 hxg5 with unclear play. )]
23.xg5 d4 Putting a huge spanner in the 10.xf3 e6 11.xb3 b8?!
works. In order to avoid the exchange of [ 11...c5 12.c2 e7 seems easier. ]
queens White has to put his pieces on very 12.b1 b4 Black hopes to have time to play
awkward squares. 24.e3 c5 25.c2 d7 ...a5 which will establish a piece on b4 and
26.f5 xf5 27.xf5 g7?! stop the white pressure on the b-line.
[ T h e c o l d b l o o d e d 27...xb2 28.xd7 [ White's previous move was played to stop
xg5 was much stronger but White is 12...c5? which loses a pawn to 13.xc6+ ]
probably lost in any case. ] 13.f4 White plays this when ...Bd6 is
28.xc5 xc5 29.xe7 xa4 30.xf8 impossible as the black bishop is required to
xf8 31.xa4 Desperately trying to stop protect the knight on b4. c8
Black setting up a massive flotilla of [ 13...a8 would avoid what follows, but it
qu e e n s id e p a wn s. bxa4 32.e4 xb2 was difficult to see that the a-pawn needed
33.xc4 a3 34.a4 d8 35.f1 d2 defence. ]
36.xa3 d1+ 37.e2 a1 38.xa6 c5 14.a5! Beautifully played! White realises that
39.a8+ g7 40.a5 xa3 41.d3 g6 he must stop Black from defending his knight
0-1 w i t h . . . a 5 . xa5 15.a1 b6 16.e3
White regains one pawn. c7
[ 16...c5 is met by 17.a4+ d7 18.xa7
415 A11 xa7 19.xa7 regaining the pawn, anyway,
Miroshnichenko,Evgenij 2599 b6 20.b5 with a active pieces and a strong
Kuzmin,Alexey 2567 initiative. ]
6th Open Dubai UAE (8) 27.04.2004 17.xa7 e7?! Perhaps Black should prefer
[Tony Kosten] [ 17...b8 to defend the b-pawn. ]
18.a2! Of course, this undermining of the
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 f6 4.g2 dxc4 knight and exposure of the b7-pawn has been
5.a4 e6 6.0-0 White keeps his queenside White's intention from the start. fd5
options open, Black was doing well after [ 18...xa2 19.xb7 ]

402
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

19.xb4 xb4 20.b1 0-0 21.c4 13.hxg5 xh1+ 14.xh1 h7 15.g4!
After this White regains his other pawn and Kourkonakis, I-Engquist, T, Gausdal 1990 ]
remains with a positional plus. c5 [ 10...d6 11.d4 ]
[ 21...d6 22.xb7 d5 is better, but [ 10...a6! might be the best chance, see my
White has all the chances. ] analysis of Fernandez Murga, R-Ginzburg,
22.xb7 d6 23.f4! M/ Buenos Aires ARG 1999. ]
[ 23.xc5?! xc5 24.7xb4 wins a pawn, 11.d4 h5?!
bu t a llo ws B la ck rea l d rawin g ch a n ce s [ 11...h6 12.f4 c o u l d l e a d t o : b6
because of the opposite-colour bishops. ] 13.xg6 fxg6 14.c2 f7 15.g5
23...e5 Black loses control over important light with a clear advantage because of the poor
squares after this. 24.e3 h6 25.g4 c6 black pawn structure. ]
26.d7 f6 27.f3 cc8 28.b7! 12.f4 b6 13.g5! This wins.
The white light-squared bishop is king of the [ 13.xg6 fxg6 14.c2 would be most
l i g h t s q u a r e s ! cd8?! 29.xd8 xd8 player's choice, defending b2 and attacking
30.xc5 xc5 31.xc5 g6 at the same time. ]
[ 31.xc5 a6 32.xa6 xa6 33.xe5 13...xb2 Obviously the knight can't move as
leaves W hite with two extra pawns and a that would allow mate on d7. 14.c1 b4
simple win. ] Black was doubtless relying on this resource,
1-0 but W hite has seen further! 15.0-0! xc3
16.gxf6 Now the knight on d7 is attacked by
queen and knight, so... d8 Objectively Black
416 A11 should prefer
Miroshnichenko,Evgenij 2608 [ 16...0-0 but 17.xg6 fxg6?! 18.xd7
Mammadov,Ayaz 2163 wins a piece for nothing with more to come. ]
President's Cup (1) 04.05.2006 17.xd7 White aims for the brilliancy prize,
[Tony Kosten] although
[ 17.fxg7 g8 18.g5 was also very
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 f6 4.g2 g4 con vin cin g, i.e . b4 19.xd7!! xa4
5.e5 h5 ( 19...xd7? 20.xb4 xb4 21.c8+
[ 5...e6 might be better, see Goodwin, E- mates. ) 20.f6+ e7 21.xg8+ d7
Mansson, J in the archives. ] 22.f6+ d6 23.xc3 with lots of pieces
6.cxd5 cxd5?! This is probably a mistake, for the queen, plus a g-pawn that will cost
[ 6...xd5 is the only move that keeps things Black a further rook! ]
on a level keel. ] 17...xd7 18.xc3! xc3 19.c1 xc1+?!
7.a4+! The queen cannot move because of Rc8 mate,
[ 7.c3 is slightly less accurate, because but this move is not much better. The only
after c6! ( 7...e6 8.g4 g6 9.a4+ chance was
bd7 10.h4 transposes to the main game) [ 19...b5 20.xb5 c2 although this only
8.a4 d6 9.d4 b4 10.xc6 xa4 ho ld s of f th e in evit ab le : 21.fxg7 g8
11.xa4 bxc6 12.d2 and White has only 22.g5 f6 23.xf6 with a crushing attack at
a minimal advantage, Kosten, A-Shirazi, K/ no material cost. ]
Sautron FRA 2005. ] 20.xc1 gxf6 21.a3 This stops the king
7...bd7 8.c3 e6 9.g4 g6 10.h4 c7!? from ever castling. a6 22.a5 g8 23.c5
A novelty, but it doesn't seem to change the e4 24.f3 b1? 25.c8+ d8 26.xb7
assessment of the position. Still it is xa2? Allowing mate on e7.
instructive to see quite how White refutes it. [ 26...d7 27.xb1 ]
W e have examined the other moves in the 1-0
past:
[ 10...c2 11.xf7! Romanishin, O-Suba, M/
Moscow 1986. ]
[ 10...h6 11.xg6 fxg6 12.g5 hxg5

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
417 A11
Mista,A 2558
Hnydiuk,A 2416
6th Gora Sw Anny OpA (3.2) 27.01.2013
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 dxc4 4.g2 f6
5.0-0 e6 Defending the pawn this way
scores very well for Black. 6.g5 d5 7.e4
h6 8.exd5 hxg5 9.dxc6 xc6 10.a3
After the forcing play an interesting position
has arisen, White has the bishop pair, but d4
and d3 are weak and Black may be able to
make use of the open h-file. e6 The most
natural move, trying to complete kingside
development, and the most popular.
[ 10...d3!? is ambitious, 11.a4 0-0-0!?
( 11...c8 12.e1 e6 13.xc4 c5
14.e5 d4 was quickly drawn in Talla, V
(2395)-Langner, L (2366)/Tatranske Zruby
2012. ) 12.xc6 bxc6 13.xc6+ b8
14.b5+ a8 15.c6+ b8 16.b5+
a8 17.c6+ 1/2-1/2 Marin, M (2583)-
Postny, E (2647)/Barbera del Valles 2009. ]
[ 10...d4 11.a4 c8 12.d3 e6 13.b5
with advantage, Kirov, N (2422)-Stojanov, S
(2326)/Pamporovo 2001. ]
[ 10...c8 11.xc4 e6 transposes below. ]
11.xc4 e7
[ 11...c8 12.d3 ( maybe White should try
12.d4!? a n y wa y, e . g . xd4 13.b3 g4
14.b2 with good compensation for the
pawn. ) 12...d5 13.d4 e7 gains a whole
tempo on the main game, 14.e3 0-0
15.xd5 exd5 16.e3 f6 ( 16...d7
17.h5 g6 18.h3 d6 Loew, G (2251)-El
De b s , F (2 4 9 7 )/ C a le t a 2 0 1 2 , 19.d1!? )
17.g4 ( 17.h3 b8 18.d2 is also a bit
better for W hite, Pigusov, E (2520)-
Tukmakov, V (2580)/Sochi 1987.) 17...c7
18.fd1 e8 19.ac1 d7 20.c3 d6
21.a3 with the bishop pair and a long-term
ed ge , Dizd ar, G (24 9 0)-S h am ko vich, L
(2435)/Saint John 1988. ]
[ 11...c5 12.d3 ( 12.d4! xd4 13.xg5
with the bishops in an open position.) 12...g4
13.g5 h5 14.h4 gxh3?! Maletin, P
(2543)-Landa, K (2584)/Tomsk 2006, when
15.xc6+ bxc6 16.xh5 xh5 17.xd8
xd8 18.h2 xd3 19.xh3 leaves White
with an exchange for a pawn. ]
12.d4! d5 T o p r o t e c t g 5 . 13.e3
The key idea in this line, White pressures the
d 5 - s q u a r e . d7 Necessary, to play ...Rd8
and defend d5.
[ 13...0-0?! w o u l d a l l o w 14.xd5 exd5
15.g4 ( 15.e3 d7 would transpose
below. )]
14.xd5 (1/2-1/2 Jansa, V (2485)-Agzamov,
G ( 2 5 4 5 ) / K o l k a t a 1 9 8 6 ) exd5 15.f4!?
A totally new idea here.
[ 15.e3 is normal, but
A) 15...0-0-0 16.b4!? xb4?! ( 16...b8!
a n d p l a y a s i n t h e S h e n g e l i a g a m e .)
17.b1 b8 Vaulin, A (2515)-Fogarasi, T
(2435)/Zalaegerszeg 1992, 18.d2 c6
19.b5 e6 20.fb1 with advantage.;
B) 15...0-0 16.h5 f5 17.ad1 ad8
is Black's most solid, Kochyev, A (2450)-
Comp Mephisto Portorose/Dortmund 1990,
but White has a small plus.;
C) 15...f5!? 16.c1 0-0-0 why not try to
make use of the open h-file? 17.b4 b8
18.a3 f4 Cebalo, M (2495)-Shengelia, D
(2578)/Zadar 2010, when W hite should
probably play 19.d2 ]
15...gxf4 16.xf4 White has further opened
the position for his bishops, and can also
exploit the f-file, but his d4-pawn is a target
and his king is a bit open. 0-0 17.h5 f6
18.e3 fe8 19.xf6! xe3??
[ 19...gxf6 is completely forced. 20.d2!?
( 20.h3 e7 21.e1 b4! ) 20...e7
(to defend d5 and help cover the kingside as
Bh3-f5 was threatened). 21.f1 e6 22.f4
White has a strong initiative, but Black has
plenty of resources and can defend his king
with ...Ng6. ]
20.f4 g6
[ 20...d8 21.h4 f6 22.f1 d6 23.f3
t h re a t e n s Q h 8 + f o l lo we d b y B h 5 + a n d
basically forces xf3 24.xf3 with an easy
win. ]
[ 20...e6 21.xd5 also wins. ]
21.h6 The threat of Rh4 is decisive. e6
[ 21...d8 allows the neat 22.xf7 xf7
23.f1+ e8 24.f8+ d7 25.xd8+
xd8 26.xe3 ]
[ 21...e4 is the only chance, but 22.af1!
will win. ]
22.h4 e1+
[ 22...f6 defends h8 but leaves e3
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

hanging. ] 10.g5 e8 11.h4 This seems to be new in

23.xe1 xe1+ 24.f1 this particular position, though the idea of
1-0 charging down the king's wing isn't exactly
astonishing.
[ Another possibility is 11.d4 but then bxc4
418 A11 12.bxc4 b8 gave Black counterplay on the
Mohr,Georg 2510 b-file in Makarov, M (2480)-Shabanov, Y
Mencinger,Vojko 2390 (2375)/Kuibyshev 1990. ]
SLO-ch Grize 1996 11...b4?! I don't like this much as Black is
[Nigel Davies] reducing his chances of queenside
counterplay by closing it up over there.
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 f6 4.c3 e6 [ 11...b7 ]
5.c2 bd7 6.b3 d6 7.b2 0-0 8.h3 a6 [ and 11...bxc4 look better to me. ]
Preparing ...b7-b5 with the idea of gaining 12.a4 e5 13.c5 b8 14.e4 d4?!
counterplay on the queenside. And this gives White the c4 square.
[ There are various options which aim for [ 14...c7 looks better. ]
c e n t ra l p la y (8 . . . Re 8 , 8 . . . Q e 7 a n d t h e 15.c4 h8 16.0-0-0 e7 17.dg1 a7
arguably premature 8...e5), another move 18.h5 xc5 19.xc5 xc5 20.h4 d6
which does not is 8...b6 , which looks very 21.d3?!
reasonable if a little laid back for many [ Missin g a m u ch st ro n ge r lin e i n 21.g6!
peoples' taste. Still it received the patronage after which a7 22.gxf7 fxf7 23.g6+!
of Vladimir Kramnik and after 9.g4 b7 g8 24.g5! is very strong. ]
10.g5 e8 11.h4 f5 12.d4 e7 13.g2 21...c7?
c8 14.f4 c5 Black had a very satisfactory [ 21...e6 was much better, which good
game in Tomashevsky, E (2564)-Kramnik, V chances to defend. ]
(2739)/Moscow 2005. ] 22.g3 e6 23.f5? A serious mistake
9.g4 which leads to White's attack being stopped in
[ D a n i e l F r i d m a n h a s p l a y e d 9.d4 its tracks.
here a couple of times, for example e7 [ 23.g6! was the right way after which h6
( 9...b5 10.d3 e5 11.cxd5 cxd5 12.dxe5 24.gxf7 xf7 25.g6+ followed by 26.Nxe5
xe5 13.xe5 xe5 14.e2 a5+ is just good for White. ]
15.c3 xc3+ 16.xc3 xc3+ 17.xc3 23...xf5 24.exf5 d5 25.g6
gave W hite a nice endgame edge in [ 25.f6! was the way to keep some kingside
Fridman, D (2572)-Braun, V (2195)/Senden prospects alive Black dare not play gxf6?
2002 ) 10.g4 dxc4 11.bxc4 e5 12.0-0-0 because of 26.g6! . ]
e8 13.g5 h5 14.e2 g6 15.e4 a3 25...h6 26.h4 f6 27.e4 a5 28.c2 a4
16.dxe5 xb2+ 17.xb2 c5 18.d6 f8 29.c1 b6 30.e6 axb3+
19.d2 and White was well on top in [ 30...d5! looks stronger as the knight can
Fridman, D (2515)-Woller, R (2210)/Senden shield h6 by coming to f4. ]
1998. ] 31.xb3 d5
9...b5 [ Another good line was 31...d3+ 32.xd3
[ After 9...e5?! W hite can play 10.g5 d4 xd3+ 33.xd3 xf2 , again with the
( 10...h5 11.cxd5 wins the d5 pawn) better game for Black. ]
11.gxf6 xf6 12.xd4 exd4 13.e4 g6 32.d3 fb8? Allowing the following sacrifice.
14.0-0-0 with dangerous attacking chances [ 32...e7 was much better so as to meet
along the g-file. ] 33.xh6 with xf5! 34.xg7+ xg7 etc. ]
[ Another possibility is 9...e5 but then 33.xh6 a7?! Going out with a whimper
10.xe5 xe5 11.g5 d7 12.d4 d6 rather than a bang.
13.h4 was nice for White in Damljanovic, B [ Black should have tried 33...gxh6 34.g7+
( 2 5 9 0 ) - B o g o s a vl j e vi c , B ( 2 4 7 0 ) / V r s a c g8 35.g6 d7 when White has to find
2007. ] 36.f4! ( 36.xh6? xf5 37.h8+ f7

405
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

is good for Black) 36...exf4 37.xh6 xf5 420 A11

38.g6! with a winning attack. ] Morozevich,Alexander 2755
34.d2? Tkachiev,Vladislav 2661
[ Missing an immediate win with 34.xg7+ ETCC Crete GRE (7) 04.11.2007
xg7 35.h6 a7 36.g7+ g8 37.h7+ [Carsten Hansen]
etc. ]
34...ba8 35.a1 d8 1.f3 d5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 g6 4.c4 c6 5.b3
[ g7 6.b2 0-0 7.0-0 dxc4 This is a rather
Black's best chance here is to head for the
hills with 35...g8 . ] rare cont in uat ion . Much m ore f requen tly
36.h6 played lines are 7... Nbd7, 7...Bg4, 7...a5, 7...
[ 36.h6 gxh6 37.h3 would be rather
Bf5, and 7...Re8 8.bxc4 c5 With move Black
horrific for Black. ] enters a variation with a tempo less than usual.
1-0 There is a previous game by Svidler and a few
by Shamkovich, but otherwise nothing. 9.c3
[ In the earlier games by Shamkovich, White
419 A11 each time chose a different path: A) 9.d3
Mohr,Georg 2485 c6 10.e5 xe5 11.xe5 e8 12.xg7
Orel,Sz 2035 xg7 13.c3 f5 14.b1 b8 15.a4
11th Open Ljubljana 2000 Stein, L-Shamkovich, L/Leningrad 1971 ]
[John Watson] [ B) 9.c2 c6 10.d3 g4 11.bd2 d7
12.b3 b6 13.fd1 ac8 14.c3 e8
1.f3 c6 2.c4 f5 3.d4 e6?? Black wants to 15.xg7 xg7 and Black has equalized
play the Stonewall but he is confused by rather effortlessly, Tal-Shamkovich, USSR
W hite's move order. 4.d5! Of course. Note 1968 ]
however that if White had played g3 rather 9...c6 This position is well-known with an
than Nf3 then Black's move order might have extra tempo for Black, not having lost a tempo
been reasonable: he could have answered 4 through... c7-c6-c5. For example the game
d5 with cxd5 followed the bypassing e5 and Psakhis-Kirov, Sochi 1979:1 Nf3 Nf6 2 g3 d5 3
so avoided serious damage to his centre. Bg2 g6 4 b3 Bg7 5 Bb2 0-0 6 0-0 c5 7 c4 dxc4
cxd5 5.cxd5 a5+? This aggressive play 8 bxc4 Nc6 9 Nc3.The present position has
just makes things worse though even after a only been played in one game I could locate.
sensible move like 5...Nf6 Black was going to 10.d3
be left with a weak pawn on e6 and a hole on [ In the "stem" game of this line, White
e5. 6.c3 b4 7.d2 f6 8.dxe6 dxe6 proceeded with 10.a4 d6 11.a3 d7
9.a3 e7 10.e3 d7 11.c4 b6 12.b4 12.b1 b8 13.e3 b6 ( If 13...e5
c6 13.b3 e5 If to discourage W hite from playing d2-d4,
[ 13...d8 14.e5 is horrible, but the game White has 14.g5 intending Ng5-e4-c3-d5
move leads to a swift collapse. ] as pointed out by Horn in ChessBase
14.g5 d8 15.0-0 h6 16.f3 e4 17.e5 Magazine ) 14.d4 a6 15.dxc5
e6 18.a4+ d7 19.xd7 xd7 20.d5 ( My computer likes 15.e2!? a5 16.d2
d6 21.fd1 c6 22.c3 g6 23.c7+ , a n d a f t e r fd8 17.c3 White is
1-0 threatening Nb5, forcing Black to let go of
his light-squared bishop.) 15...bxc5 16.c2
( For obvious reasons White abstains from
16.xd6? exd6 as White's pawn on c4 now
is considerably weaker than Black's on d6
and furthermore, W hite's set-up with Na4
and Ba3 is entirely pointless.) 16...b4
17.xb4 xb4 18.xb4 cxb4 19.d1
( Unsatisfactory is 19.c5 d3 20.xd3
xd3 , and the extent of White's troubles are

406
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

richly illustrated in the following continuation: 26.a1 xb8 27.c6 e8 28.e2
21.c1 b5 22.c6 c8 23.c5 xc6 , and White's a-pawn, accompanied by the
24.b3 xc1+ 25.xc1 c5 , and Black long-ranging bishop on g2, secures White
should win without too many headaches) a significant advantage, yet this is likely
19...c7 20.d2 b6 21.xb4 xc4 better than the continuation chosen by Black
22.xc4 xc4 23.xb6 axb6 and with this in the game. ]
liqu i d a t i o n , t h e d ra w b e co m e s e vid e n t 24.xb8 xb8 25.b3 With this simple
shortly 24.b1 d8 25.h4 d6 26.a3 a2 move, Black is losing the threat of Nc6 will
27.c1 f6 28.e4 e5 , and a draw was win W hite at least a pawn along with White
agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, Gelfand, B-Svidler, P/ penetrating on the queenside. b5
Biel 2001 ] [ 25...e6 26.c6 b7 27.e5 b8 28.c6
10...b8 11.d2 d4?! threatening Nd7, securing the break-
[ This looks rather peculiar, as it allows White through ]
to push Black backwards and grab some 26.axb5 axb5 27.cxb5 cxb5 28.f2
space in the process. Maybe Black was [ 28.e1 h6 29.h4 e6 30.f1+- ]
hoping to be able to target some of softer 28...b6?
spots left behind with White's advances, but [ Black can prevent White's decisive next
if so, his intentions failed rather move with 28...e6 but White nonetheless
spectacularly. A solid alternative is 11...d7 still wins af ter 29.e1 h6 30.f1 f5
, though W hite also has a pleasant game 31.xb5 xb5 32.xb5 xb5 33.d4 xd4
after 12.b1 ] 34.exd4 cxd4 35.d2+- ]
12.e3 e6 13.e2 b6 29.d5
[ Black's position is already quite 1-0
u n c o m f o r t a b le . A ls o 13...g5 14.d5
( 14.f4?! g4!? 15.f3 xf3 16.xf3
xf3+ 17.xf3 d7= ) 14...f5 ( 14...e8?! 421 A11
15.ab1 xd5 16.cxd5 xb2 17.xb2 ) Movsesian,Sergei 2688
15.e4 g4 16.f3 leaves Black with an Dubov,Daniil 2600
entirely unpleasant position with almost no Tata Steel Chess 2013 (10.11) 23.01.2013
counterplay ] [John Bartholomew]
14.f4!?
[ White has several good continuations at An important test of the Gurevich Anti-Slav.
his disposal also 14.de4!? xe4 15.dxe4 1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.e3 f6 4.c3 e6
intending Rad1 and f2-f4 leaves Black with 5.c2 d6 6.b3 0-0 7.b2 e5! Previously
an uncomfortable game ] this move was accompanied by the '!?' mark,
14...c7 15.f3 g4 16.a4 fe8?! but I feel it's proven enough to warrant a
[ Black plays very passively an alternative is stand-alone exclam.
16...d7!? , e.g. 17.d2 ( 17.fd1!? ) [ That's not to say that Black's alternatives
17...xf3 18.xf3 fd8 19.fd1 g4 like 7...bd7 ]
is playable for Black ] [ and 7...e7 aren't valid, but the text seems
17.a3 d6 18.b5 a6 19.xg7 xg7 like th e m ost clea r-cut ro u te t o a go o d
20.a7 d7?! game. ]
[ 20...e8 21.b2+ f6 looks solid, but 8.d4!?
White has the spectacular 22.e5!! fxe5 [ Unusual, but I suspect Movsesian was
23.c6 (thanks Shredder) with a better aware of White's shortcomings after 8.cxd5
game for White ] cxd5 9.b5 , attempting to capitalize on
21.e5! This is undoubtedly what Tkachiev Black's move order. Following c6 10.xd6
had overlooked. Now White's advantage take xd6 11.d4!? ( 11.b5?! b4 12.c1
on greater proportions. xe2 22.xd7 xf1 Clery, N (2390)-Savchenko, S (2558)
23.xf1 fd8 Cappelle la Grande 2008/[Rowson] here
[ Or 23...b5 24.cxb5 axb5 25.xb8 b4 T o n y l i k e s e4 13.d4 d7 ) 11...b4

407
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
12.d1 e4 13.e5 e8! Black had quite a
reasonable position in Anastasian, A (2602)-
Sakaev, K (2649) Kusadasi 2006/ [TonyK].
Now on 14.a3 Tony mentions the possibility
of f6!? 15.h3 ( 15.axb4? xb4+ 16.d2
xd2+ 17.xd2 fxe5 wins a pawn for
Black because f2 is hanging)
16.dxe5 e7 17.axb4 xb4+ 18.e2
with mutual chances. ]
8...e4! A smart choice, and a novelty, too.
[ Previously Black had played 8...exd4 , e.g.
9.xd4 a6 ( 9...c5 10.db5 d4 11.0-0-0
c6 12.xd6 xd6 13.exd4
Rychagov, A (2542)-Kreisl, R (2406)
M o s c o w 2 0 1 2 14.b5! f4+
xd2+ 16.xd2 ) 10.d1 g4 11.e2
xe2 12.dxe2 ( 12.xe2 ) 12...a5
13.0-0 c7 Radjabov, T (2757)-Ragger, M
(2561) Novi Sad 2009. Here 14.cxd5 xh2+
15.h1 d6 16.e4! is quite promising
for White. ]
9.d2 e6
[ 9...a6!? ]
10.c5?! Releasing the tension central tension
doesn't seem favorable.
[ 10.e2 i s m o r e n o r m a l , i . e . bd7
( 10...h5!? ) 11.0-0 e7= with a level
game. ]
10...c7 11.f3 f5!?
[ Developing with 11...bd7 is also possible
because 12.fxe4 is strongly met by g4!
, i.e. 13.f3 dxe4 14.xe4 ( 14.xe4 d5
15.eg5 f5 ) 14...df6 15.d3 e8
with a huge attack for a modest material
expenditure. ]
12.0-0-0 g6 Forcing White to address the
threat of ...exf3. 13.f4
[ Or 13.fxe4 g4 14.e1 f2 . ]
13...g4! 14.e1 f2 15.g1
The opening has clearly not been favorable to
White. He's fortunate to escape with a draw
hereafter. 16.e2
[ 16.h3? g3! would have bound White up
completely. ]
16...xh2
[ 16...a6!? ]
17.d1 xd1
[ It looks stronger to play 17...d3+ 18.xd3
exd3 19.c3 g3 . ]
18.xd1?! g3 19.c3 f5 20.f1 f2
21.d2 g3 22.f1 f2 23.d2 g3
Draw agreed. Black could play on, but he must
have been satisfied with the results of the
opening. If you have a good novelty prepared
against 7...e5! please stand up! Black is
looking incredibly comfortable at present.
½-½
15...fxe5
422 A11
Nakamura,Hikaru 2774
Friedel,Joshua E 2513
Championship 2006 (1) 02.03.2006
xd4 [John Watson]
15.d2 They say that Hikaru Nakamura plays
everything, and that includes English/ Reti
complexes. His plan in this game works out
well even if he loses his way in the
complications and is victim of a surprising
upset. Once again the bishop pair plays a role.
[notes based upon my own in the bulletin]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 e6 4.c2 d6
Flexible. Friedel plays the Dutch and is still
angling for one. 5.c3 f5 6.h3!? One of the
better anti-Dutch systems. W hite plans to
either open the g-file or loosen Black's grip on
e4. f6 7.g4 0-0
[ 7...fxg4? 8.hxg4 xg4? 9.xh7 ]
8.gxf5 exf5 9.b3! e7 10.b2 a6
11.g1 Whether it is objectively better or not, I
like White's position here. The bishop on the
long diagonal coordinates with the rook on
th e o p en g-f ile , a nd W h ite ha s a ce n tra l
majority.
[ Another approach is 11.cxd5 b4 12.b1
bxd5 13.xd5 ( 13.g1!? ) 13...xd5
( 13...cxd5!? ) 14.g1 g6 15.h4! ]
11...d7
h4 [ 11...f4 is an aggressive option. The play is
very flexible in these positions. ]
12.cxd5 b4 13.b1 cxd5 14.a3 c6
In this position Nakamura uncorked 15.xd5!
, which seems obvious enough but always
leaves the risk that Black might retain too
much material for his queen: xd5 16.c4!?
[ The other route (perhaps clearer) was
16.xg7 xg7 17.xg7+ xg7 18.d3!
, for example, ce7 ( 18...e6 19.d4
c8 20.g2 ) 19.d4+ f7 20.c4 c6
21.h4! e8 22.h6 d8 23.d4
and Black has weaknesses all over. ]
408
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

16...e6 17.xg7+ xg7 18.xg7 xg7 Qxe5) 35.h7! intending Qe7+. Black has a
19.b2+ lot of loose pieces, e.g., f5 ( 35...e8?
[ Again, 19.d3 was worthy of 36.xd7 xd7 37.g7+ ) 36.e7+ f6
consideration. ] 37.xf4! xf4 38.xf6 h2 39.d6!
19...f6 , although it's a tough position to convert. ]
[ Black is too exposed after 19...h6 20.d3 [ (b) It was hard to see over the board, but
( 20.h4!? ae8 21.g5 g8 22.d1 e7 W h i t e c o u l d h a v e g o t t e n a ve r y l a r g e
23.d4 ) 20...ad8 21.d1 ] a d v a n t a g e b y m e a n s o f 34.d5!
20.0-0-0 h6 Because of White's initiative, it's , for example, h2 35.xe5 xf2 36.h5+
easy to forget that Black has the bishop pair. g3 37.a1! and White threatens Qd3+,
In the game they becomes a factor, which so g4 ( 37...c6 38.g6+ g5
helps to explain why W hite wants to 39.xh6 ) 38.d3+ f3 39.g6+ g5
undertake immediate action. 21.d3!? 40.xg5+! hxg5 41.xg5+ h2 42.h6+
[ A safer path was 21.b1 f7 22.d4! g8 g3 43.g7+ h2 44.xf8 ]
23.e5+ ] 34...xd7 35.e7+? This move virtually
21...f7! 22.e4!? Very ambitious, freeing loses, whereas
Black's bishops. It seems to work out because [ 35.e6! forces the return of some material.
of some very concrete reasons. fxe4 23.dxe4 There should follow f6 36.e7 c3
xf3 24.exd5 f4+ 25.b1 f5+ 26.a2 37.xf8 c2+ 38.b1 xe2 39.xf6+
e5! g4 40.g7+ g5 41.xb7 etc., although
[ 26...a5 27.g1 g8 28.e2! it's still not an easy task for W hite due to
with the dual threats Qxf3 and d6+. ] the passed h-pawn. ]
27.d6+ g6 35...g5 36.xd7 f4! Now the king is
[ 27...xc4? 28.bxc4 d7 29.e2 c6 protected and f2 is weak, while Black has a
30.d5!! xd5 31.cxd5 c3 32.e7+ g6 passed h-pawn to boot. White can do nothing
33.d7 wins. ] an d t h e re st t u rn s o ut t o b e surp ris in gly
28.e2 simple: 37.f3 h2 38.d3 g3 39.b4 f2
[ 28.g1+ asks Black where he's going. The 40.b1 g2! 41.d1 h4 42.g6+ g3
most natural line is f6 29.d4 c8 43.c2
with unclear consequences. ] [ 43.xh6 loses to d4 44.c2 ( 44.b3
28...xh3 29.d4 f8! 30.b5!? h4! and ...Rh1 ) 44...dd2 etc. ]
[ B l a c k s e e m s t o h o l d a f t e r 30.d7!? 43...h5 44.xh5 c4 45.e4 d4 46.f4+
. For example, double-edged play follows What else? Mate threatened. xe4 47.d5
xd7 31.g1+ g5 32.b5 f3! 33.xd7 fe2 48.xb7 g1
c2! ( or 33...xf2+ 34.a1 c2 )] [ A sample line is 48...g1 49.f5 e5
30...e6 50.xa7+ f2 and wins. ]
[ Or 30...c2 31.d7! xb3+ 32.b2 xd1 0-1
33.d6+ f6 34.xf6+ xf6 35.d8+
isn't clear but would be tough for Black to
play with limited time. ] 423 A11
31.e4+ Navara,David 2687
[ 31.d7!? xb3+ 32.b2 may be more Sokolov,Ivan 2655
accurate. W hit e has the initiative in all 16th ORDIX Open rapid (7) 02.08.2009
these lines, but nothing leading to a clear [Jonathan Rowson]
advantage. ]
31...h5 32.e2+ h4? 1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 f6 4.c3 a6
[ A finesse is 32...g5! 33.g1+ h4 ] 5.c2 g6 6.b3
33.d7! xd7 34.xd7!? [ 6.d4!? followed by Bd3 might be a better
[ Still following a logical path, but White had bet. ]
b e t t e r : ( a ) 34.d4 was good but not 6...g7 7.b2 0-0 8.e2 b5! 9.0-0 f5
immediately decisive: g5 (the threat was Note that Black plays b5 first so that now

409
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

White cannot easily meet this move with d3 31...xa1 32.xa1 f5 33.xa6? collapse.
but instead feels obliged to waste time with [ 33.c1 ]
his queen. 10.c1 33...c3 34.c6 dd8! 35.bb6 c2 36.a3
[ 10.d3 dxc4 11.bxc4 bxc4 12.e4 xc6 37.xc6 xd4 38.h3 a4 39.b2
is playable and possibly better for W hite, a2 40.e6 xb2
but Black would be quite happy to deal 0-1
with relatively minor problems while being a
pawn up. ]
10...e8 11.d4 d7 12.f4 424 A11
[ 12.cxd5!? cxd5 13.f4 looks more Nikolic,Predrag 2648
attractive, but opening the c-file with the Khenkin,Igor 2596
queen on c1 is less than ideal and Black Bundesliga 2003-4 (15) 25.04.2004
plays b6 followed by a quick Rc8 and [Tony Kosten]
White is struggling to hold equality. ]
12...c5! 13.f3 bxc4 14.bxc4 e6 15.a3?! 1.f3 d5 2.g3 g4 A sort of reversed Tromp,
[ 15.b1!? actually looks quite comfortable but as there is no threat to capture on f3 and
for White, so it is possible that his opening double the white pawns (as White's natural
play was quite good after all. c7 16.d1! ] reply protects this piece) it is only played to
15...a5 16.cxd5 exd5 17.e5 e6 18.f3 reach a flexible Capablanca System position.
a7 19.b1 c7 Until here Navara had In fact Black often plays a later ...Nf6 (as in
played quite sensibly and the position this game) and we have a direct transposition.
remains balanced, but now he seems to get 3.g2 c6 4.0-0 White can also play the
impatient for action and enters unfavourable immediate
complications. 20.e4?! dxe4 21.xe4 xe4 [ 4.c4 to avoid having to prepare this move
22.xe4 xa2! A pawn is a pawn, as they with d3, and I have mostly looked at this
say, though exactly what they mean I don't before. ]
know. 23.b2 e6 4...d7 Black controls e5 to hinder White from
[ 23...xa3 24.xb8 a4 looks stronger. ] p l a y i n g c 4 . 5.d3 gf6 6.c4 xf3!
24.c2 ec8 25.h1 c4?! More mistakes This little tactic equalises immediately. 7.xf3
than normal from players of this level- but that [ 7.exf3?! keeps the bishop pair, but wrecks
is expected in a rapid game. the white pawn structure. e6 8.c3 e7
[ 25...d7 keeps the compensation to a 9.e2 0-0 10.f4 a5 Artigas Isart,M-
minimum. ] Anglada,J/Zaragoza 1993. ]
26.d6 xe5 27.fxe5 d7 28.d4 7...e5!? As far as I can see this a new move,
[ 28.b2! simply attacking the knight. xd6 normally Black prefaces this with
( 28...c6? 29.xc6 xc6 30.b8+ d8 [ 7...dxc4 8.dxc4 and then e5 when
31.a3! wins. ) 29.exd6 e5 30.f3 xd6 9.b3 ( 9.d2 xf3+ 10.xf3 xd1
31.c3 is possibly a fraction better for White 11.xd1 e6 is quite dull, Kotsur,P-Arkhipov,
beca use Black's pawns a re split, bu t it S/Abu Dhabi UAE 2001.) 9...xf3+ 10.xf3
f e e ls d ra wis h , b e cau se th e mo st like ly ( 10.exf3!? b6 11.e3 xb3 12.axb3 a6
scenario is that White will win the a and c is fine for Black, Dizdarevic,E-Psakhis,L/
pawns in return for the d-pawn and then New Delhi IND 2000) 10...e6 11.c3 e7
have slight pressure that is not enough to 12.d1 c7 13.e3 0-0 the black position
win. ] has no weaknesses, Mortazavi,A-McDonald,
28...c6 29.xc6 xc6 30.b2 c8 N/GBR 1999. ]
[ 30...cxd6!? in some ways it is surprising 8.g2! This is the best try, obviously
that Sokolov didn't sacrifice the exchange [ 8.b3?! is worse without the exchange of
while it was relatively simple to do so. ] p a w n s o n c 4 : xf3+ 9.exf3 d7
31.a1? and Black would be very happy, but ]
[ 31.c5 it's important not to let the black c- [ 8.d2 is possible, when dxc4 9.dxc4
pawn have too power power. ] xf3+ 10.xf3 transposes to the Kotsur

410
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
game in the note to the previous move. ]
8...dxc4 9.d4 This is the tactical justification.
ed7 10.c2 b6
[ 10...e5 is an alternative, rather than trying
to hang-on to the c-pawn Black goes for
quick development, 11.d1 ( 11.xc4?!
b6 12.c2 xd4 ) 11...exd4 12.xd4
c5 13.xc4 b6 14.e3 0-0 White has
the bishop pair, but Black has free play for
his pieces. ]
11.d1 e6 12.e4 Typical Catalan-style play,
White has constructed a strong centre which
will give him the advantage should he
successfully regain his c-pawn. b4 13.a3
e7 14.a4 Planning a5, of course, to drive the
knight from its post. a5 15.a3 0-0!?
This is a key moment, Black allows White to
recuperate the c-pawn. He must have been
tempted to play
[ 15...xa3 16.xa3 0-0 when he has
conceded another bishop but keeps a pawn
ahead, 17.b3!? ( 17.f1 e7 18.g5
allows White to get the pawn back, but will
necessitate returning the bishops) 17...cxb3
18.xb3 fd7 19.f4 White has a good
position for a pawn. ]
16.xc4 xc4 17.xc4 b4 Black has a
solid position, and use of the b4-square, but
White's bishop pair and centre leave him on
top. 18.h3 e7 19.e3 ad8 20.d3
Both sides will double their rooks on the d-file.
d7 21.ad1 fd8 22.h2 Strong players
are often happy to play such strengthening
moves before attempting to make progress.
h6 23.c2 e5 Black decides to liquidate the
centre, he could also have kept the tension
and wait for White to commit himself. 24.e2
e6 25.b3!? White resists the temptation to
win a pawn by
[ 25.dxe5 xe5 26.xd7 xd7 27.xd7
xd7 28.xh6 b u t t h e n c o m e s c5!
( 28...gxh6?! 29.g4+ f8 30.xd7 )
29.f4 e6 30.c2 a2 and the a-pawn
is lost. ]
25...e7 Both players are unwilling to change
the contours of the position, but Black could
try
[ 25...exd4 26.xd4 e8 say, to pressure
t h e e - p a w n , a n d a f t e r 27.e5 d5
the knight finds a useful square. ]
26.f3 d6?!
[ 26...b4 is better, keeping the a-pawn well
defended. ]
27.dxe5 White chooses this moment to
capture, feeling that the black pieces are no
longer on their ideal squares. xe5 Forced,
[ 27...xe5? 28.d4 e7 29.xf6 gxf6
( 29...xf6 30.e5 ) 30.g4 winning at least
a piece. ]
28.b6 This is the reason White has chosen
this moment to capture on e5, he can fork d8
and a5. xd3
[ 28...a8?! is a bit too passive, if playable.
29.e1 xd3 30.xd3 h5!? planning ...h4
with some counterplay. ]
29.xd3 xd3 30.xd3 h5?! Black decides
to go active, but I think that
[ 30...d7! is best, 31.e3 ( 31.xd7
xd7 32.xa5 c5 regains the pawn)
31...c7 and the a-pawn is defended,
although White still has an edge, after, say,
32.d4 ]
31.xa5 h4 32.d2 hxg3+ 33.fxg3 d7!?
Aiming for c5 to pressure the white queenside,
this seems at first glance to lose on the spot,
but Black ha s a re source . 34.g4 f6
35.e3 Certainly not
[ 35.xd7?? f2+ 36.h1 xg3
when White has to give his queen to avoid
mate. ]
35...h4 This looks impressive, but is easily
parried. 36.f2 f8 37.b4 f6 38.g2
Now that Black's temporary initiative has
disappeared W hite has a winning position.
d6 39.b5 cxb5 40.xb5 e7 41.e5!?
A simple approach, White swaps the e-pawn
for the black b-pawn to create a passed a-
pawn. xe5 42.f3 g6 43.xb7 g5
Still hoping to generate some play against the
w h i t e k i n g . 44.c8+ h7 45.e4
Pinning the knight puts paid to Black's hopes.
d2 46.c4
1-0
411
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

425 A11 the position closed. ]

Nikolic,Predrag 2671 22.dxe5 c5 By pinning the f-pawn Black
Strating,Sybolt 2307 makes sure the e5-pawn cannot be defended.
ACT Open Amsterdam NED (1) 17.07.2004 23.h2 xe5 24.f4 g6? A mistake,
[Tony Kosten] although the refutation is far from obvious.
[ 24...ed7 is forced, adding support to the
1.f3 d5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 f6 4.0-0 g4 b6-knight. ]
5.d3 bd7 6.c4 xf3! 7.xf3 e5!? 25.b3! Threatening Bf2, winning the hapless
I was surprised to see Khenkin's move played b6-knight. a6?!
again so soon after its first outing. [ 25...ad8 is a be tt e r ch a nce , 26.xd8
[ 7...dxc4 8.dxc4 e5 is more usual. ] ( 26.f2 e7 27.xb6 xd1 28.xd1
8.g2 Nikolic is happy to repeat his previous xf4 is sim ila r) 26...xd8 27.f2 e7
play. dxc4 9.d4 ed7 10.c2 b6 11.d1 28.xb6 xf4 with two pawns and some
e6 12.e4 e7 This is Black's idea, he prefers play for the piece. ]
no t t o pro vok e a3 , alt h ou gh t h is d o esn 't [ 25...c8 26.xb7 avoids losing a piece,
change the contours of the position too much. but Black's structure disintegrates. ]
[ 12...b4 13.a3 e7 14.a4 a5 15.a3 26.f2 cxb3 This is hopeless, but
of Nikolic-Khenkin, reaches an identical [ 26...e7 27.xb6 xb6 28.xb6 xf4
position to the game with both sides having 29.xc4 wins easily enough, and ]
played an extra move. ] [ 26...xf2 27.xf2 cxb3 28.f1
13.a4 a5 14.a3 xa3! As I suggested in is also conclusive - the rook cannot move. ]
my notes to the Nikolic-Khenkin game, this 27.xc5 xa4 28.a3 b5 29.e3
move is critical. Rook and two pawns is completely insufficient
[ 14...0-0!? 15.xc4 xc4 16.xc4 b4 against a queen.
left W hite on top in Nikolic, P-Khenkin,I/ 1-0
Koelln GER 2004. ]
15.xa3 0-0 16.h3!? This is White's plan, he
starts a cramping kingside pawn advance, 426 A11
and leaves the knight stuck on b6 defending Noel Aldebol Question
c4. Instead, in my annotations I had N,Archana
considered [John Watson]
[ 16.f1 to recapture the c-pawn, and ]
[ 16.b3 to open queenside files. ] Noel Aldebol discusses the line 1.c4 c6 2.g3
16...fd7 17.g4 c7 d5 3.g2 f6 4.f3 dxc4 5.c2 d5
[ 17...e7 18.e3 f5!? is an interesting 6.c3 h5 7.d3 cxd3
possibility, fighting for control of the d5- [ 7...f5 8.h3 cxd3 9.a4 bd7 ( 9...d7
square, I am sure that Chigorin (who liked 10.g4 c5 11.e3 d6 12.d1+- )
knights) would play like this. ] 10.g4+- ]
18.e3 fd8 Black develops his pieces, he 8.xd3 a6 Aldebol says: "TonyK, here you
could also play wrote: Black seems to have a pawn more for
[ 18...c5 19.d5 exd5 ( 19...e5!? to keep the very little. I prefer to play such moves as d3
p o s i t i o n c l o s e d) 20.exd5 d6 when Black has weakened his queenside by
which reduces White's dynamic prospects. ] playing ...b5, myself , but it is interesting
19.g5 e8 20.h4 The bishop comes to nonetheless! But please reconsider. Black, in
the h2-b8 diagonal from where it will be more m y o p i n i o n , h a s n o t s o l v e h i s o p e n i n g
effective. d6 21.g3 e5!? I do not like this problems completely yet. For example:" 9.h3
m o v e t o o m u c h , a s i t a l l o w s t h e w h i t e f5
kingside pawns to advance, supported by the [ jw: Another consolidating idea is 9...b4
white bishops. 10.b1 bd5 ]
[ 21...b4 is perfectly reasonable, tying 10.d4 d7
W hite to the defence of a4, and keeping [ Aldebol gives the line 10...c2 11.g5 h6

412
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
12.xf6 gxf6 13.d2 g6 14.c1 f5
15.h4 h7 16.xf5 xf5 17.d1 h5
18.0-0 h6 19.d4 0-0 20.d7 xd7
21.xd7 c5 22.xe7 fd8 23.e4 xe4
24.xe4 ]
11.g5 "Does Black really have a comfortable
game here? I mean, it is not simple to
determine how he completes his development
while White enjoys such a wonderful space
advantage, .piece placement and lead in
d e v e l o p m e n t . " h6 jw: This loses, so the
analysis should be questioned. Best seems
[ 11...e6!? with the idea 12.0-0-0 d7!
13.e4 f6 14.e3 a5 and White has no
targets. 11. .Qg6 is also possible but
riskier. ]
12.g4+-
[ jw: This is correct in view of 12.g4 g6
13.e5 xg5 14.e4 c5 15.xf6+ exf6
16.xd7# ]
427 A11
Nogueiras Santiago,Jesus 2552
Ehlvest,Jaan 2627
FIDE WCh KO New Delhi IND (1.6) 29.11.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.e3 f6 4.c3 a6 5.b3
[ 5.d4 would transpose into the . ..a6 Slav. ]
5...g4 6.b2 bd7 7.h3 xf3
[ The solid approach, 7...h5!? is risky,
8.cxd5 cxd5 ( 8...xd5!? ) 9.g4! g6 10.g5
e4 11.xd5 e6 12.f4 xg5 13.xg5
xg5 14.h4 a5 15.c3 with dynamic play,
Dragomarezkij, E-Maiorov,O/Sochi 1996. ]
8.xf3 e6 9.g4!? Vaganian's aggressive
idea, adding a space advantage to W hite's
bishop pair. h6 10.e2?
[ To keep the d3-square covered, but there is
a s e ri o u s f l a w, 10.cxd5 cxd5 11.g2
was met by e5!? 12.e2 g6 13.0-0 h5
14.g5 d7 15.f4 h4 with good play in
Vaganian,R-Backwinkel,P/Germany 1993. ]
10...dxc4!
[ Showing the drawbacks of White's previous
move, after this new move d3 is exposed.
Previously, 10...b5 11.cxd5 cxd5 12.h4
c8 13.g5 hxg5 14.hxg5 e5 15.g2
xh1+ 16.xh1 fd7 17.f4 c6
was Black's solid choice in Bischoff,K-Stangl,
M/Brno 1994. ]
11.bxc4 e5 12.g3 d3+ 13.xd3 xd3
14.c7 White counterattacks in any case his
c4-pawn was undefendable. d8 15.d1
xc4?!
[ OK, but 15...d7! may be superior, 16.a1
( 16.xb7 b8 wins the bishop) 16...c5
continuing with ...Qxc4, and then ...Nd3+,
bringing the second knight to the d3-square,
with decisive effect. ]
16.xb7 b4 Black plans to castle, when the
uncastled white king, marooned in the centre,
will become a serious problem. 17.e2?!
[ The odd 17.b1! is the best chance,
defending d2, and menacing the capture on
f6. ]
17...0-0 18.d4?!
[ This loses quickly, but even the elimination
of this knight by 18.xf6 doesn't help: gxf6
19.d4 ( trying to mask the d-file, 19.f3
loses to the standard combo xd2! 20.xd2
d8 ) 19...c5 20.b3 a5 and ...a4, leaves
d2 too exposed. ]
18...e4 19.xc6?!
[ The d2-pawn can no longer be defended:
19.b3 allows xd2 20.xd2 xd2+
21.xd2 xd2 22.xd2 d5+
and the h1-rook drops. ]
19...xd2+
0-1
428 A11
Pantsulaia,Levan 2557
Gunina,V 2533
Turkish Bank Chess League 2012 (4) 14.7.12
[John Bartholomew]
We've seen plenty of Anti-Slav games where
Black snatches the c4-pawn and doggedly
defends it with moves like ...b7-b5, ...Nb8-d7-
b6, ...Bc8-e6, and ... Qd8-d5. How about an
example where Black simply off loads the
pawn and focuses on development? 1.f3 d5
2.g3 c6 3.c4 dxc4 4.g2 f6 5.0-0 f5
A new move for this site. Black develops the
bishop to its most natural square.
[ 5...bd7 is the main line. Consult the "Reti
1 c4 c6 with g3" guide in the archives. ]
6.a3 Most common.
[ Sometimes White prefers to discourage ...
413
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
b7-b5 with 6.a4 , i.e. e6 7.a3
A) Fellow ChessPublishing.com author
an d re ce nt A n ti-S la v exp on en t Vict o r
Mikhalevski had a pleasant experience
against 7...d5?! : 8.b3! cxb3 9.d3 a6
10.c4 d8?! ( 10...c5! was more
stubborn. 11.fd2 d7 12.xb3 )
11.xb3 c5 12.b2 e7 13.e3
fd7? 14.xg7 f6 15.d6+ e7
16.xf5+ exf5 17.h6 xa1 18.xa1+-
. Black was already defenseless in
Mikhalevski, V (2525)-Arslanov, S (2424)/
Moscow RUS 2012.;
B) 7...xa3 (this looks best) 8.xa3 0-0
9.b3 cxb3 10.xb3 c7 11.b2 bd7
12.c1 Vuorisalo, V (2101)-Sammalvuo,
T (2425)/Lahti 2005. W hite has definite
compensation with the bishop pair and
op e n f ile s , b u t B lack h a s a so lid a n d
compact position. ]
6...e5!? Refusing to lose any sleep over the
c4-pawn.
[ B l a c k c a n r e t u r n t o 6...b5 , but the
programmed 7.b3 promises White excellent
compensation: cxb3 8.axb3!? ( 8.xb3
also offers good play) 8...e4?! ( 8...e5!? )
9.d3 d5 10.b2 g6 11.e4 e6 12.d4
g7 13.xe6 fxe6 14.e5 d5 15.h4
Lysyj, I (2632)-Dimukhametov, A (2355)/
Izhevsk RUS 2012. ]
7.xc4
[ Definitely not 7.xe5?? xa3 8.bxa3 d4
.]
7...e4 Now White has an important decision to
make. 8.g5!? This amounts to a piece
sacrifice with unclear ramifications, so White
ought to consider the alternatives below.
[ 8.fe5!? offers more clear-cut chances for
a small advantage: bd7 ( 8...c5 9.d3
bd7 10.e3 xe5 11.xc5 xc4
12.dxc4 xd1 13.fxd1 Loginov, V (2500)-
Biriukov, O (2390)/St Petersburg 1998.) 9.d4
exd3 10.xd3 e7 ( 10...e6 11.c2
e7 12.f4 xc4 13.xc4 0-0 14.d1
G e o rgie v, K (2 6 7 2 )-Hu e rga L e a ch e , M
(2435)/Pamplona ESP 2009) 11.b3 b6
12.a5 c8 13.f4 ( 13.g5!? 0-0 14.e4!
e6 15.c2 ) 13...0-0 14.e1 e8 15.e4
f8 16.f3 c5+ Karner, H-Polugaevsky, L/
Tallinn 1973. Here 17.h1 d7 18.d2
is more pleasant for White. ]
[ The retreat 8.e1 is also reasonable, e.g.
a6 ( the simple 8...e7 might be better)
9.e3 e6 10.d3 exd3 11.xd3 c5
12.f4 xd1 13.xd1 d7 14.c4 e7
15.e5 g4 16.xd7 xd7 17.b4!?
Galliamova, A (2492)-Ruan Lufei (2479)/
Rostov-on-Don RUS 2011. ]
8...h6 9.xf7
[ I suppose White could bail out with 9.e3
g6 10.h3= , but this is hardly in the spirit
of 8. Ng5!?. ]
[ 9.h3? is rightly punished after c8!
10.f4 g5 ]
9...xf7 10.b3 This position had been
reached twice before. d5!? Gunina finds an
active response, agreeing to pitch her a8 in
an attempt to seize back the initiative.
[ Instead, two king moves deserve attention,
particularly 10.. .Kg6. The source game,
Salov, V (2675)-Piket, J (2580)/Amsterdam
1 9 9 6 , w e n t 10...e8 11.xb7 bd7
12.xc6 ( 12.d3!? ) 12...c8 13.a4
. Here Black would do best to get his king
closer to safety with f7 , i.e. ( 13...e6
14.b3 xc4 15.bxc4 b6 16.d3
was the game ) 14.b3 e7 15.b2 e8 ]
[ A m o re rece n t e n cou n t e r sa w 10...g6
11.e5+ h7 12.xb7 bd7 ( also very
i n t r i g u i n g i s 12...c5!? 13.xa8 c7
14.d4! xd4 15.f4 xe5 16.xe5 xe5
17.xa7 ) 13.f7 e8 14.xh8 xh8
15.xc6 c8 16.a4 h5! . Black is fully
mobilized with a very safe king, so he gets
the nod here. The game continued 17.d3
exd3 18.exd3 e5 19.d1 , Markos, J
(2565)-Haba, P (2541)/Erfurt GER 2010.
Now g4!? 20.f3 f5 looks best since
21.g4?! fxg4 22.f4 ( there are too many
threats around W hite's king after 22.fxg4?
xg4 23.d2 f3+ 24.xf3 xf3-+ )
22...xh2! 23.xh2 xd3 gives Black a
full-fledged attacking position. ]
11.xb7+ bd7 12.e3 Clarifying the
position somewhat.
[ Murkier is 12.xa8!? xc4 13.d3! exd3
14.exd3 xd3 15.e1 b4 16.xh8 xe1
17.e3 b4 with chances for both sides. ]
12...b8! 13.xb8 xb8 14.xd5 cxd5
An imbalanced yet roughly level position has
arisen. I find Black's position (with her active
minor pieces and strong center) a bit easier to
414
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

play, but logical play ought to result in equality. 429 A11

15.d3?! There was no reason to rush this Pantsulaia,Levan 2581
move. Sundararajan,Kidambi 2487
[ 15.b3= ] 11th Dubai Open (6) 02.05.2009
15...exd3 16.exd3 c5 17.e3 d4 18.b4 [Nigel Davies]
dxe3
[ 18...b6! ] 1.f3 f6 2.c4 c6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4
19.bxc5 xd3 20.fc1 exf2+ 21.xf2 5.0-0 bd7 6.a3 b6 7.c2 d5 8.e1
e8?! f5 At first sight this seems like a solid option
[ M o n i t o r i n g t h e c - p a w n w i t h 21...c8 for Black but after W hite's reply he's losing
is safer. ] valuable time. 9.e4 h5 10.xc4 xc4
22.c6 e2+ 23.f3!? Great fighting spirit! 11.xc4 e5
The game now takes an unexpected turn. [ 11...h3 12.xh3 xh3 13.f3 e5 14.d3
[ White wasn't satisfied with 23.g1 xg2+ ( 14.d4 exd4 15.xd4 d7 16.e3
24.xg2 e4+ 25.g1 xc6 is slightly better for W hite, but drawish.)
. Three minor pieces or two rooks, who ya 14...d6 15.b4 0-0 16.b2 ad8 17.c3
got!?:) ] fe8 18.a4 e6 19.xe6 xe6
23...xc6?! was about even in Ponkratov, P (2469) -
[ Not 23...xg2?? 24.c7+- ] Romanov, E (2501), Chelyabinsk 2007. ]
[ A lovely perpetual could have resulted from 12.d4 exd4? Inadvertently opening the flood
the precise 23...e4!! : 24.c7 d7 25.c8 gates.
e5+ 26.f4 g6+ 27.f3 e5+= . ] [ 12...d6 was the right move though it still
24.xc6 e4 25.d1? Just when White looks promising for White after 13.f3 e6
could have been rewarded for his boldness, 14.a4 exd4 15.xd4 etc. ]
he falters. 13.e5 d5
[ 25.c7+ g6 26.g4! is the way to go. It [ Black rightly took fright at the possibility of
transpires that Black has no good way to 13...xe5 14.xc6+ , though the text is not
utilize her centralized forces. ] much better. ]
[ T h e im m e d ia t e 25.g4? allows g5+ 14.d3 e6 15.xd4 e7 16.xd5 xd5
26.g3 xg2+ 27.xg2 e4+= . ] 17.f4 g4 18.h3 d7 19.xd5 cxd5
25...d2+ 26.xd2 xd2 Now Black is the 20.h6!
only one who can claim an advantage, but the [ 20.d1 was also quite good, but White is
g a m e s o o n p e t e r s o u t t o a d r a w . 27.h3 playing for the attack. Of course taking the
xh2 28.e6+ e7 29.b3 a6 30.e3 bishop would lose on the spot to 21.e6!. ]
b5 31.c7+ f6 32.a4 b2 33.d1 e8 20...xh3 21.xg7 g8 22.e6
34.a7 b6 35.e2 xa4 36.xa6 xa6 [ 22.f6 xg3+ would draw by perpetual
37.xa6 g5 38.f2 d7 39.e2 check. ]
Gunina's active approach with 5...Bf5 and 6... 22...fxe6 23.ac1 d6 24.c3 f5 25.e1
e5!? certainly has merit. After 7.Nxc4 e4 I f7 26.e5
think White should play either 8.Nfe5!? or 8. [ 26.g2! threatening 27.Rf3 was much
Ne1, as the piece sacrifice with 8.Ng5 h6 9. stronger. ]
Nxf7 - while interesting - probably isn't fully 26...g4 27.f4 ag8? This sacrifice just
sound. doesn't work.
½-½ [ 27...e7 was the right move, when Black
doesn't stand at all badly. ]
28.xd6 xg3+ 29.f1? White in turn
misses his way.
[ 29.f2! would have left Black without
adequate compensation. ]
29...h3+ 30.e2 xc3 31.xc3 g2+
32.d1 f5?? Time trouble?

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 32...xc3 33.bxc3 xa2 would have
produced a drawish endgame. ]
33.c1 d4 34.c7+ g6 35.e5 h5
36.h1+ g4 37.g7+ f3 38.xb7+ g3
39.g7+ f3 40.f1+
1-0
430 A11
Payen,Arnaud 2403
Couche,Didier 2122
XXIV Open Cappelle la Grande FRA (5)
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 e6 4.b3 d7
5.e2 gf6 6.b2 d6 7.c3 0-0 8.c2
a6 9.h4!? A variation on a theme. Neither as
weakening(for White) or threatening(for Black)
as g4. The point seems to be to follow up with
Ng5, and then hope for the best. e8
[ 9...e5 10.g5 e4 ( 10...h6 11.cxd5 cxd5
12.xd5 ) 11.0-0-0 ( 11.f4!? ) 11...h6 12.f4
e8 and I don't know exactly what is
happening, but I would rather be White. ]
10.g5 f8
[ 10...e5? 11.cxd5 cxd5 12.xd5! ]
[ 10...b5 looks better to me, because White
is not yet threatening anything. 11.g4 b7
12.xf7 ( 12.h5!?; 12.0-0-0!? ) 12...xf7
13.g5 looks a bit desperate, but as these
sacrifices go, it is a reasonably promising
version- it just feels too crude somehow.
e4 14.xe4 dxe4 15.xe4 g8 16.cxb5
axb5 17.xb5 and White almost gets the
material back but Black is not in any
danger. ]
11.d4!? The good thing about h4 instead of g4
is that it is less positionally committal, so
White can still steer the game back to more
conventional channels. b6
[ 11...e5!? 12.dxe5 xe5 13.0-0-0
looks promising for White. ]
[ 11...b5 12.e4 is not a better version for
Black. ]
12.e4 dxe4 13.cxe4 xe4 14.xe4
b4+ 15.f1 e7 16.h5 f5? And over-
reaction.
[ 16...h6 17.d1 looks somewhat better for
White, perhaps with Rh3-g3 to follow. ]
17.d2 c5 18.f3 b7 19.d1 c7
20.dxc5 bxc5 21.e5 At first blush the
position is not resignable, but next move
White will but his queen on c3 or b2 and there
will be no adequate defence to the g7 pawn.
1-0
431 A11
Pigusov,Evgeny 2613
Zhang Pengxiang 2530
FIDE WCh KO Moscow RUS (2.2) 30.11.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 g4 3.g2 d7 4.c4 e6
5.d3
[ We have already considered 5.cxd5 ]
5...c6 6.0-0 White surely intended to play his
favourite system, with Be3, but Black decides
to 'put a spanner in the works'. xf3!? 7.xf3
d4 Black plays a similar plan to that
successf ully applied by his compatriot in
Pigusov,E-Zhang Zhong, and later in Loginov,
V-Grischuk,A, but without gaining a tempo on
the bishop (see [A11] for both these games).
8.e3! White won't repeat the error of the
aforementioned game, and close the centre!
e5 9.e2 Not natural, but d3 must be
defended. h5!?
[ Black goes 'all in'. 9...c5 10.f4 g6
11.e4 favours White. ]
10.exd4 xd4 11.c3 f6 12.e3
White evicts the queen from her proud post.
d7 13.d4 eg4 This is why Black didn't
play ...h4 earlier, the pawn provides a useful
square for his knights. 14.g5 0-0-0 15.d5!
Thematic! W hite has the bishop pair, and
therefore opens the position. exd5?!
[ I think I would prefer to keep the c-file
c l o s e d , a n d p l a y 15...c5 answering
16.dxc6?! with xc6 ]
16.cxd5 f5
[ 16...cxd5? 17.b5 a6 18.c1+ b8
19.f4+ leads to a painful end for Black. ]
17.xf6 xf6 18.d3 h3?
[ This move looks aggressive, but should
lose, 18...d7 19.f3 b8 keeps Black in
the game. ]
19.f3?
[ This threatens Bf5+, but why doesn't White
p l a y t h e o b vi o u s 19.dxc6 winning? For
instance, bxc6 ( 19...g4? 20.f5+ c7
21.b5+ leads to a catastrophe) 20.a6+
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
c7 21.b5+! cxb5 22.c1+ and the end
is nigh. ]
19...g4 20.h1
[ Ugly, but forced, 20.g2? xg2+ 21.xg2
cxd5 leaves Black a pawn up. ]
20...e5 21.e4 h4!?
[ 21...c5 was a more positional alternative. ]
22.dxc6 c5 The point of Black's play, he is
g o i n g a l l - o u t f o r m a t e . 23.g2?!
W h y n o t c a p t ure o n b7 wit h ch e ck f irst ?
g4!?
[ 23...xg2+ 24.xg2 xc6 is completely
equal. ]
24.h3!?
[ I am not sure if this is a blunder, or
delib erate ! 24.cxb7+ b8 25.ad1 f5!
26.xd8+ xd8 27.d5
is also uncomfortable for White. ]
24...xg3! Oops! 25.cxb7+ b8 26.a4
d4 27.ac1 f4 28.c5 With a mate-in-
o n e t h r e a t . d6 The position is a complete
mess , with bot h kings wid e o pen . 29.d3
xd3 30.xd3 f5 31.c2 xb2?!
I don't like this, Black's attacking chances
depend greatly on the power of the opposite-
colour bishops, as he can attack on the dark
s q u a r e s wh i l e h i s o p p o n e n t ' s b i s h o p i s
powerless to help. 32.xb2 xd3 33.c2
d4? I imagine both players were short of
time now. 34.c8+?
[ 34.c6! bypasses the threat of ...Rg3, and
wins: g3+ (how else can Black stop Qc7,
Qc8+, etc.) 35.h2 xh3+ 36.xh3 g4+
37.h2 f4+ 38.h1 and the checks run-
out. ]
34...xc8 35.bxc8+ xc8 36.c1+ d8
[ 36...b8 37.b1+ c7 38.b7+ d6
39.g6+ f6 is also satisfactory. ]
37.g5+ d7??
[ 37...f6 38.xf6+ gxf6 39.c4 a3
gives Black the better chances in the rook
endgame, but the move played just loses! ]
38.xf5+ d6 39.g6+ e7 40.e1+ d8
41.e8+ c7 42.e7+
[ 42.e7+ b8 43.e8+ d8 44.b5+
b6 45.xd3 ]
1-0
432 A11
Pigusov,Evgeny 2610
Zhang Zhong 2611
Sufe Cup Shanghai CHN (12) 14.03.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 g4 4.c4 c6
5.0-0 e6 6.d3 e7 7.e3 Pigusov's f
favourite, the bishop move controls b6, so
that Black cannot answer Qb3 with ... Qb6.
xf3!?
[ An clever new idea, Black often has to
concede the bishop pair at some point, and
e xch a n gin g im m e d ia t e ly o f f e rs c e rt a i n
benefits. Previously, various moves had
been tried: 7...bd7 8.b3 c8 9.c3
with an edge, Kortschnoi,V-Spassky,B/
Linares 1985, or ]
[ 7...dxc4 8.dxc4 xd1 9.xd1 bd7
10.c3 xf3 11.exf3! e5 12.h3 b6
13.b3 0-0 14.e4 and the advantage is
with W hite, Loginov,V-Nikitin,A/Maikop
1998. ]
8.xf3 d4 Gaining space with tempo. 9.d2
a5 10.e4?! This would work well if White
co u ld p la y a la t e r e 5, a n d f re e h is ligh t -
squared bishop, but he never managed it.
bd7 11.g2 h5! Not played to attack, but
rather to stop the white kingside from
expanding. 12.e2 e5 13.a3 h4 14.c2
c5 A perfect square for the knight in such a
position. 15.ab1 fd7 16.f4 Trying to
unravel the pawn chain.
[ 16.g4? is a positional error, of course,
allowing g5 gaining control of the dark
squares. ]
16...c7 17.f5? White gains space, but this is
a positional error, further weakening his dark
squares. d8! Profiting from White's last
move to bring his bishop to the c1-h6
diagonal. 18.e1 White tries to avoid the
exchange of bishops, as his remaining g2-
b i s h o p c o u l d b e c o m e v e r y b a d . hxg3
19.hxg3 g5 20.d1 a4 21.b1 f6
22.f2 dc5 23.h1 xh1 24.xh1 h6
W hite is positionally lost, his 'good' dark-
squared bishop is bereft of squares, and the
other pieces are even worse. 25.g2 c1
26.b3?
[ A tactical error, but even 26.b4 axb4
27.xb4 c3 28.xc3 dxc3 looks pretty
417
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

hopeless for White. ] example, gf6 ( 6...b4!? ) 7.d4!?

26...b2! Decisively attacking the d3-pawn a ( 7.c2! b4 8.e2 0-0 9.0-0= ) 7...b4
second time. 27.xb2 xb2 28.d2 h7 8.d2 0-0 9.e2 a5!? 10.c2 exd4
29.f3 f6 30.e2 b6 31.g4 c3 11.exd4 ( 11.xd4 g5 12.0-0 c5 )
W hite has eased his position with the 11...e8 and it's easier to play Black, since
exchange sacrifice, but Black's pieces are still 12.0-0?! xc3 13.xc3 xe2!
superior. 32.c1 a6 33.f1 a4 34.bxa4 wins material.;
c5 35.d1 xa4 36.a3 a5 37.f3 C) 6.b2 gf6 7.g3? e4 8.g5 c5
[ 37.b1 allows the black queen in, h5 ] 9.g2 f5 and Black stands clearly
37...h3+ better. ]
[ 37...c3!? seems even better ] 3...f6 4.g2 So White plays what has been
38.g2 c3 a fairly promising gambit. dxc4 5.c2 d5!
[ 38...xg3? is a blunder, 39.h5+ d7 But this move, which I don't see having been
with a draw. 40.f7+ ] played until recently, messes up White's plans.
39.xh3 The c-pawn remains protected and ...Bf5 is
[ 39.f3 h6 is also hopeless. ] threatened (positionally speaking). But oddly
39...xd1 40.c1 c3 41.a3 b2 42.xb2 enough, attacking the queen doesn't help
xb2 43.e2 d7 Preparing to bring the much: 6.c3
rook to the h-file. [ Nothing is gained from 6.0-0 f5 7.d1
0-1 due to e5! 8.h4 d7 9.xf5 xf5 ]
6...h5 7.h3 White really doesn't want to give
up his bishop, e.g.,
433 A11 [ 7.0-0 h3 ( or 7...a6 ) 8.e4 ( 8.xh3
Poldauf,Dirk 2417 xh3 9.g5 h5 10.ge4 bd7 )
Saltaev,Mihail 2500 8...xe4 9.xe4 xg2 10.xg2 d5! ]
Bundesliga 2006-7 (1) 28.10.2006 7...bd7
[John Watson] [ 7...a6! is more flexible. Remarkably,
White can't seem to get his pieces out. ]
Can't White simply play a Reti position versus 8.g4 a5 9.d1 Finally attacking c4. b6
Black's moves 1...c6, 2...d5, and 3...Nf6? It 10.e4
seems harder all the time to do so and get [ 10.e3 e6 11.d4 d5 ]
positions that really match your expectations 10...a4!?
as White. Here we see a recent line for Black [ Black is also better after 10...e5 ]
th at wa s a lre ad y d iscu sse d in a n ea rlie r 11.b1 e6 12.c3 a5 13.0-0 e7 14.b3
column. I found nothing wrong with it then 0-0 15.b2 fd7!? Black is aiming for d3.
and don't now. 1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.g3 This keeps the advantage, but
Okay, this is it. What move should we make? [ 15...d8 ]
g3 leaves c4 hanging, so it must be treated [ or 15...e5 is more natural. ]
carefully. 16.e2!? a6! 17.g3 c5 18.h5 f6
[ 3.b3 would be the traditional way of 19.e5 White's last four moves have a
reaching a double fianchetto situation, but desperate air about them. f5 20.g5 d3
as I have pointed out in this column, the rare 21.c3 d5 Black has a killing position. I'll
order dxc4 4.bxc4 e5! bothers me, with the leave the rest for you to contemplate. 22.a4
idea 5 Nxe5?? Qd4. The problem is Black's cxb3 23.xb3 c5 24.a2 e4 25.h4
central control. Then some ideas are 5.c3 exc3 26.dxc3 xc3 27.d2 d5
d7 28.fc1 b4 29.d4 c5 30.b2 a5
A) 6.d3 gf6 7.b2 d6 8.g3 31.b3 d7 32.f1 c6 33.c4 h8
looks solid, but I still prefer Black after c5 34.e1 d2 35.d1 c3 36.ab1 ab8
9.g2 0-0 10.0-0 f5; 37.xd5 xd5 38.xd5 exd5 39.xd5
B) even 6.e3 forces White into a situation xa4 40.g2 e4 41.a2 xe5 42.e1
that he must play carefully un, for

418
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

d4 43.e2 be8 17.e6!? fxe6 18.xh5 xh5 19.g6+

0-1 d7 20.xh5 with a strong attack for the
sacrificed material. ]
17.f1 Missing what looks like a powerful
434 A11 sacrifice.
Radjabov,Teimour 2761 [ After 17.xe6! fxe6 18.xe6+ f7
Smeets,Jan 2601 19.c4 Black is in deep trouble, for example
Corus A Wijk aan Zee NED (10) 28.01.2009 g6 ( Or 19...d5 20.e5 g6 21.xd5+
[Nigel Davies] cxd5 22.xd5 etc ) 20.g4 xg4 21.xg4+
f7 22.f5 with only a single pawn down
1.f3 d5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 f6 4.c4 dxc4 and powerful pressure. ]
5.0-0 bd7 6.c2 b6 7.a4 a5 8.a3 17...g6 18.b3 d6?!
e6 9.g5 g4 10.xc4 xe2! [ 18...e7 might have been a safer choice.
The critical line. Now the storm clouds break. ]
[ After 10...xc4 11.xc4 e6 12.e4 19.xe6 fxe6 20.xe6+ d7 21.xd6+!
White was better in Matamoros Franco, C xd6 22.xb4+ c5 23.xb7 c6 24.b5
(2460)-Xu Jun (2626), Seville ESP 2003. ] c7 25.b6+ e7 26.e1+?
11.e5!? White in turn plays the critical move, [ Missing a clearer win with 26.e5! c8
sacrificing the exchange to get to f7. 27.b7+ e6 28.e1 when Black has no
[ After 11.xb6 xb6 12.e1 h5 13.b4!? good defence to the threats. ]
g6 ( 13...axb4!? Schirm, F-Lingnau, C/ 26...f8?
Germany 1991) 14.d3 axb4 15.e3 a6 [ 26...f7 was better but then 27.e6+ f8
16.e4 e6 White did not have enough 28.e5 f7 29.a6 is good for White. ]
compensation appears insufficient in Kirov, 27.e5 c8 28.d6+?
N-Luther, T, Leningrad 1989. ] [ 28.b7! threatening 29.Bd6+ looks very
11...h5 But at this point discretion seems to strong. ]
be the better part of valour. 28...g8 29.e7 h6 30.c4+ h7 31.b7
[ After 11...xf1 12.xf1 the f7 pawn is f8 32.d7 b8 33.xf8 xb7 34.xb7
falling and Black's king would be in terrible xf8 35.d3 g4?!
trouble. ] [ 35...d8 is better so as to meet 36.a6?
12.b4!? bd7 This seems to be new. with xd3 37.xd3+ xd3 38.a7 a3 . ]
[ After 12...bd5?! 13.b5 cxb5 14.d3 36.a6 e5 37.d5 a8 38.a7 e8 39.e7
b6?! 15.xd5 d8 16.xf7+ xf7 Really a draw? This seems odd because
17.xb5+ xb5 18.axb5 d5 19.xa5 White is winning.
White won a pawn in, Stocek, J-Boric, M, ½-½
Pula CRO 2000. ]
[ Another possibility is 12...axb4 but after
13.b2 bd7 we would transpose back into 435 A11
the game. ] Radjabov,Teimour 2644
13.b2 axb4 14.a5 a6 Rightly preventing Svidler,Peter 2713
the a-pawn's advance to a6. vs NAO Internet INT (3) 28.05.2003
[ At f irst Fritz 12 seems to like 14...xe5 [Tony Kosten]
15.xe5 d7 but after 16.a6 xe5
17.axb7 b8 18.d4 starts to change its 1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.g2 d5 4.f3 dxc4
mind. In fact it looks like W hite has very 5.a4!? A very committal move, White stops ...
g o o d c o m p e n s a t i o n f o r t h e p i e c e , f o r b5, and isolates the c4-pawn, but creates a
example d7 19.xc6 e6 20.a8 d6 long-term weakness on b4.
21.e4 c7 22.xb8+ xb8 23.a1 [ I loo ked a t 5.0-0 bd7 6.c2 b6
threatening 24.Ra8. ] and only now 7.a4 in Matamoros Franco,C-
15.fe1 xe5 16.xe5 e6 Xu Jun/Seville ESP 2003. ]
[ Another interesting possibility was 16...h6 5...e6 6.a3 The threat is to play Ng5, or

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Ne5, and then recuperate the c-pawn. d5
Black pins the f3-knight. Other moves:
[ 6...d5!? exposes the queen, but bolsters
the c4-pawn, 7.0-0 a6 8.c2 ( 8.d3!?
cxd3 9.g5 ) 8...c5 ( 8...b4?!
is too early 9.c3 c5 10.d4 ) 9.c3 d5
Black seems to have consolidated,
O'Cinneide,M-Stohl,I/Halkidiki GRE 2002. ]
[ 6...a6 allows 7.e5 d4?! 8.xc6!
c5 9.d4 cxd3 10.e3 with a powerful
initiative, Padevsky, N-Sorensen,T/Berlin-
West 1984. ]
7.c2 c5!? A new idea already, Black wants
to finish his development in classical style
with ...Nc6 and get a firm grip on b4 and d4.
[ 7...g6 8.xc4 g7 9.b4!? 0-0 10.0-0
a6 11.a3 White has the sort of position
he is looking for in the Reti, with
unblemished centre, and queenside initiative,
Bosboom,M-Haba, P/Germany 1995. ]
[ 7...a6 8.xc4 b4 9.c3 a5 10.d3
Black has established the knight on b4, but
White has recaptured the c-pawn and will
soon complete development, Haroutjunian,
G-Matveeva,S/Yerevan 1996. ]
8.xc4 c6 9.0-0 e6 10.b3 e7 11.b2
0-0 12.ad1!? White plays this rook here so
tha t he c an d rop h is que en ba ck t o b1 if
necessary, and then play Qa1 with pressure
o n t h e a 1 - h 8 d i a g o n a l . c8 13.c3!?
A really strange idea that smacks of
planlessness, for if W hite wanted to do this
why did he not play his king's rook to d1 and
keep his queen's rook for the queenside? c7
The variation
[ 13...d4!? 14.xd4 cxd4 15.xd4 xc4
16.bxc4 xd4 17.xd4 xc4 18.xa7
xa4 19.e3 b5 is interesting, as the
passed b-pawn is quite a plus for Black. ]
14.fe1 This move is not to ply e4, as d4 will
become too weak, but rather to defend e2
should Black play ...Nd4 as in the previous
note. fd8 15.e3 White decides to gain the
b is h o p p a ir , a s h e h a d n o u s e f u l wa y o f
expanding in the centre.
[ 15.e4 xc4 16.bxc4 d4 is fine for
Black. ]
15...xf3 16.xf3 d4
[ 16...e8!? is a good alternative, to
exchange bishops by ...Bf6: 17.g2 f6
18.c2 xb2 19.xb2 f6 and I prefer
Black because of the weakness of b4 and
d4. ]
17.g2 d7 18.b1 If this move is the best
that W hite can manage, then I suggest his
previous moves were not optimum. f8 19.d3
d8 20.a1 g6 21.c4 g7 Black has
chosen a different route to get his bishop onto
the long diagonal. 22.d2 The queen was
misplaced on c3, and quickly retreats from
the exposed diagonal. d5 23.f1 b6
24.ec1 The white rooks have reached better
squares, but it is very much Black who calls
t h e s h o t s h e re . c6 Black exchanges the
dark-squared bishops, although he could
easily have done this much before - see the
note to move 16. 25.xg7 xg7 26.h4 f6
27.a3 cd8 28.g1 d4 29.c4
Black holds all the aces here - good squares
for his knights and pressure on the d-file, so
W hite can only keep his position solid and
wait-and-see. h5 30.b2 c6 31.d2 d4
32.b2 c6 33.d2 d4 Both sides seen
happy to draw, but I am surprised that Black
didn't want to play on, he has nothing to lose.
½-½
436 A11
Reti
4...Nbd7
[Tony Kosten]
I received the following question from
Theodor Seiz: "Hello, I am just starting to play
the repertoire suggested in you book 'The
Dynamic English'. One line is played a lot
against me in blitz and I don't find anything
against it that I like: 1.c4 Nf6 2.g3 c6 3.Bg2
d5 4.Nf3 Nbd7!? Black will try to play - ...e5
and get the center with easy development.
ECO does not mention the line either. Playing
a Catalan style position with d4 appears
normal, but is out of question for me. Regards,
Theodor" So, I've decided to have an in-depth
look at this almost unknown variation. 1.f3
[ 1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.g2 d5 4.f3 bd7
will tran spo se , bu t I t hink t hat t he Ret i
move-order is more likely. ]
1...d5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 bd7 4.c4 c6
The black set-up, whilst rare, is quite sensible-
he wants to play ..e5 which would reach a
420
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
reversed 'Geller line vs the Pirc/Modern'. The
question is: how should White react? 5.cxd5!
Played to weaken the h1-a8 diagonal, this
capture is no longer a concession when the
black knight can no longer spring directly to
its best square on c6. A real advantage of this
move, though, is that White no longer needs
to worry about defending hisc-pawn!
[ 5.d4 leads to Slav-style lines, but allows
dxc4! ( 5...e6 6.0-0 d6 7.c2
leads to a Catalan, with a white advantage,
Velickovic,Z-Tomazin,M/Grize 1996. )
A) 6.c2 e5!? ( Black can also try to
hang-on to the pawn more directly:
6...b6 7.a3 d5 ) 7.0-0 ( 7.dxe5
xe5 8.xe5 a5+ is the point, equal)
7...exd4 8.xd4 e5 9.d1 which is
unclear, Jurek,J-Ramseier,J/Bad Ragaz
1992.;
B) 6.a4!? e5!? 7.dxe5 g4 8.e6 fxe6
9.0-0 again unclear, Larsen,B-Simon,R/
Lugano 1989. ]
[ 5.b3 e5!? ( 5...e5 6.b2 e4 7.d4 c5
8.c2 d4 9.d3 exd3 10.xd3 d6 11.0-0
e5 12.d2 g4 13.f4 c6 14.e4 dxe3
15.xe3 Novik,M-Petelin,A/St Petersburg
1992 )]
[ 5.0-0 accepts transposition into a reversed
Pirc,
A) 5...dxc4 is also feasible, as above
6.a3 b6 7.c2 g6!? ( Black can also
consider being greedy: 7...d5!? or;
7...e6!? 8.g5 d7 ) 8.xc4 xc4
9.xc4 g7 Pavlovic,M-Thorhallsson,T/
Copenhagen 1990.;
B) 5...e5 6.cxd5 cxd5 7.b3 d6
Black has nothing to complain about, Kiss,
A-Acs,P/Balatonbereny 1992. ]
5...cxd5
[ 5...xd5 allows White a central edge, 6.d4
7f6 7.e5!? f5 getting a firm grip of e4,
Rabeler,G-Storm,R/Germany 1990. ]
6.c3!? Loginov's preference.
[ 6.d4! is a good alternative, but this QG/
Slav type of position might not appeal to
players of Flank Openings! e6 ( 6...g6 7.0-0
g7 8.c3 0-0 9.e5 gives White a
superior version of a KI Fianchetto line
(the black queen's knight normally goes to
c6), Trauth,M-Frischknecht,H/ Zurich 1997.)
7.0-0 d6 8.c3 a6 9.f4 ( 9.e4!?
is interesting: xe4 10.xe4 dxe4 11.g5
f6 12.xe4 xe4 13.xe4 0-0
White enjoys a little more space, Filipowicz,
A-Tassi,O/ Rome 1981.) 9...xf4 10.gxf4
0-0 11.e3 Black's position is solid, but
White's superior bishop gives him a plus,
Pavlovic,M-Nikolic,B/JUG-ch/1991. ]
6...e6 This solid choice is almost universally
played.
[ However, there is nothing wrong with the
ambitious 6...e5!? 7.a4!? ( 7.d4 e4
8.e5 should be best, White can continue
Qb3, Bg5, and possibly f3, to pressurise the
black centre.) 7...c7?! ( why not 7...d6
as 8.b5 b8 9.a3 b6
leads nowhere) 8.d4 e4 9.e5 e7
10.f4 White has some pressure, Hoshino, I-
Hoyt,W/Siegen 1970. ]
7.0-0 a6!? This move plans a quick
expansion on the queenside, but many other
tries are possible:
[ 7...d6 8.d3 b6 9.b5!? b8 10.d2 a6
11.bd4 is fairly equal, Kirov,N-Ziatdinov,R/
Belgrade 1990. ]
[ 7...e7 8.d4 0-0 9.f4 a6 White has
more space, Sanz-W esterinen/Alicante/
1975. ]
[ 7...b4 8.d3 0-0 9.f4 e8 is similar,
Sale,S-Milunovic,V/ Portoroz 1994. ]
[ 7...b6 as with the main move, this will allow
Black to develop his 'problem piece', the c8-
bishop, 8.d3 b7 9.f4 a6 10.c1 c8
11.e1 e7 12.e4 this idea i s one reason
why White would want to keep his d-pawn
on d3, rather than d4, dxe4 13.dxe4 b5
14.d6 b4 15.xe7 xe7 16.d5! xc1
( 16...exd5? 17.exd5 e4 18.xc8+ xc8
19.d6 e6 20.d4 wins ) 17.xf6+ xf6
18.xc1 0-0 19.e5 d5 20.g5
and after all the excitement, play is level,
although White went on to win, Loginov,V-
Yemelin,V/ St Petersburg 1995. ]
8.d3
[ 8.d4 is, once again, a good move. ]
8...b5 9.e4 White wants to weaken the
sensitive h1-a8 diagonal. dxe4 10.dxe4 b7
11.e5 d5 12.e4 Aiming for d6. h6 13.e1
b6 14.e3 xe3 15.xe3 d8!
Black skilf ully saf e gua rds his qu een sid e
before completing his kingside development.
16.e2 e7 17.d1 0-0 18.ed3 d5
421
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Having closed the d-file, Black can turn his
attention to the e5-pawn, and the exploitation
o f h i s b i s h o p p a i r . 19.xd5!?
This is interesting, but may not quite work.
exd5 20.c3 e6 21.xd5
This is the only move, as Nd4 was threatened.
22.b4
[ 22.b3?! b6 23.f4 xd1+ 24.xd1
e7 25.e6 fxe6 26.h3 ( 26.g6 fails to
d8 27.c2 f6 28.xc5
26...xf4!? 27.gxf4 d5
Black is better, but the opposite-colour
b i s h o p s o f f e r s o m e h o p e , L o g i n o v, V -
Shovunov,B/Elista 1996. ]
22...a7 23.f4?!
[ 23.c7! f5 24.e6 fxe6 25.xe6+ f7
26.h3 is approximately level, White will get
two pawns for the exchange. ]
23...c4! Black offers the exchange of
queens, and has a real plus, Loginov, V-
Yemelin,V/St Petersburg 1996. Therefore it
seems that White should capture on d5, and
then play d4 on either move six or eight, to
have some advantage.
437
Roiz,M
Postny,E
40 Yrs Beer Sheva CC (1) 26.05.2013
[Daniel Gormally]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g4 4.c4 e6
5.0-0 d7 6.cxd5 cxd5 7.d3 gf6 8.h3
xf3 In my previous update I stated how it
was a mistake in such positions to give up the
bishop for the knight, however a lot depends
on the make-up of the position. W hite has
already exchanged on d5 so doesn't have
such a wide range of plans as he did in that
game. 9.xf3 c5 Played to provoke d4,
which takes a lot of the flexibility out of the
white position.
[ In a previous game Black elected to re-
route the knight to c6 9...e5!? 10.g2
e7 11.b3 0-0 12.b2 c6 13.c3 c8
14.a3 d7 15.e4 d4 16.e2 b6!
W here Black had more than enough
counterplay in the game Stryjecki, M (2424)
-Chuchelov, V (2591) Kallithea 2002 ]
10.d4 White takes the bait, but the bishop on
c5 wasn't really creating any danger for White,
so I think he could have delayed any central
action.
[ 10.c3 e5 11.g2 c6 12.d2 0-0
c5 13.c1 and White can lay claim to a tiny
edge. ]
10...d6 11.c3 0-0 12.d3 The problem
now is that White's only central break is with
e4, which creates a hole on d5, but what else
xg6 ) can he do? He must open the position at
28.c1 some point, for better or for worse, otherwise
his bishops will lack the mobility to be able to
exercise their potential. h6 13.d2 a6
14.ac1 b6 15.e4
[ Restricting the mobility of the knight on b6
with 15.b3 Was an alternative. White could
then adopt a slow, build-up strategy with
moves like Kh1, Rg1, g4 etc. ]
15...dxe4 16.xe4 bd5! 17.b3 b8
18.xd6?! After this the knights start to take
over. Isolated pawn positions can be quite
deceptive an aren't always as bad as they look,
but in this case W hite finds it very difficult
generating any meaningful play after this
exchange. Granted, he should be able to
maintain the balance as his position remains
A11 very solid, but I struggle to see a way he can
2617 realistically improve his position.
2637 [ 18.c3! Not giving up the fight for d5 so
easily, would surely have made more sense.
e7 19.fd1 f5 20.e1 ]
18...xd6 19.c4 fc8 20.fc1 d7
21.c5 b6 22.5c4 a5 23.d3 xc4
24.xc4 c8 25.b3 e7 26.g2 f5
27.xc8+ xc8 28.f4 d7 29.e3 d5
30.d2 de7 31.c3 d5 32.a1?
White has been drifting for the last few moves,
but this blunder simply gives the game away.
[ 32.d2 would still have been more or less
equal. ]
32...h4+! 33.h2 b4 34.e4 xf3+
35.xf3 xa2 36.a8+ h7 37.e4+ f5
38.e2 b4 39.c3 d5 A beautiful
strategic situation for Black, the knight sits
proudly on d5, surveying the battlefield from
it's powerful central position. 40.d2 f6
41.a6 d5 42.e2 c6 43.g1 f6
44.d3 e4 45.c4 d5 46.h4 f3
47.c1 c3! 48.e3 d5
[ 48...e2+ 49.h2 xg3 50.fxg3 xe3
is immediately decisive ]
422
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

49.c1 d1+ 50.g2 b5 51.c6 e2 might be fine.) 18.xg5 f3+ ( 18...f5
52.h5 f6 53.e3? g4 19.d4 c6 20.g4 g6 21.a4
0-1 but Black's solid central structure gives
him reason to face the future with
confidence.) 19.xf3 xc3 20.c1 d4
438 A11 21.c7 ]
Rowson,Jonathan 16...d4 17.b1 e5? A fatal weakening of the
Thomson,Craig SM light squares. Instead Black should fight for
Scottish Open, Edinburgh (2) 2009 the dark squares in the centre.
[Jonathan Rowson] [ 17...g6! 18.xd4 g7 19.xg7 xg7
20.d4 xe4 ( 20...gxh5 21.c3 h4
1.f3 f6 2.c4 c6 3.c3 d5 4.e3 a6 and the position is highly unclear.) 21.f3
[ 4...f5 5.cxd5 cxd5 6.b3 ] d6 22.hxg6 xg6 23.c3 g4 24.g2
[ 4...g4 5.cxd5 xf3!? 6.xf3 cxd5 0-0-0 ]
7.g4!? is completely unchartered territory. ] 18.g2 e7 19.d2 0-0 20.g4 f6
5.b3!? f5 21.c1 Black's position is worse that it looks.
[ 5...b5 6.cxd5 ( 6.h3!? ) 6...cxd5 7.a4 b4 The queen on h6 is misplaced and W hite
8.e2 The weaknesses on Black's c o n t r o l s t h e c - f i l e . de8 22.h1?!
queenside are more accessible when White A bit too fancy.
hasn't played d4 so this position might be [ 22.c4 xg4 23.xg4 f6 Here I felt f4
promising for White. ( 8.a2 c6 9.b2 would be right, but I didn't really want to
e6 10.c1 d6 11.d3 e7 12.c1 d7 p l a y i t , s o I a vo i d e d t h e l i n e e n t i r e l y .
and Black starts having fun ) 8...g4 ] However, in this position I can simply play
[ 5...g4 looks more solid, as does the game 24.d7! and after b5 25.a5 I seem to be
continuation, ideally with h6 thrown in to invading decisively. ]
keep the light squared bishop. ] 22...b5 23.c6 d6 24.a3 fd8 25.c5
6.e2 e6 f8 26.b6
[ 6...h6! I would also be inclined to give my [ 26.b4!? ]
opponent as little encouragement as 26...e8 27.c7 xg4 28.xg4 e6!
possible. The two bishops may be no big 29.xe6
deal in such structures, but it is still [ 29.xg5? e7 ]
s o m e t h in g, a n d p ro b a b ly a n a vo id a b le [ 29.h3 xe4 30.xe6 xe6 31.xe6
concession from Black. ] xf2+ 32.g2 xh1 33.b6 c8 ]
7.h4! g6 8.b2 bd7 9.0-0 [ 29.f3 f5 ]
[ 9.g4?! I managed to control myself just in 29...xe6 30.f3 f6 31.hc1 f7 32.xd6
time. ] [ 32.a5!? ]
9...e4?! 32...xd6 33.h3! f8 34.c7+ e7
[ 9...d6 10.g3 0-0 11.xg6 hxg6 35.7c6 e6 36.g4 a5 37.f5 xc6
and White has a slight edge on a very good 38.xc6 e7 39.c7 a4
day. ] [ 39...b4 40.d2 a4 41.c4 axb3 42.axb3
10.xg6 hxg6 11.g3 d6 With the white a6 ]
pawn on d4, Shirov showed that this 40.b4 a3 41.e1! h8 42.g4
manoeuvre is a coherent and combative way [ 42.g4 also probably wins, but I saw no
to play. It is less clear whether it make sense reason to create a mating net for my own
when White can play e4 supported by his d- king. ]
pawn. 12.d3 g5 13.cxd5 cxd5 14.e4 42...e6 43.c2 b8 44.c6+ d6 45.a6
h6 15.h4 g5 16.h5?! b7 46.xa3 d7 47.a5 c6 48.c2
[ 16.c1 f6 17.e5! I saw this idea during b6 49.a4
the game, but felt the game continuation [ 49.f5 xb4 ]
was better. xe5 ( 17...xe5 18.d4 f5 49...bxa4 50.xa4 c7 51.a3 e7 52.f5
19.g4 g6 20.xg5 e7 and Black 1-0

423
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
439 A11
Salman,Joel 2236
Fridman,Daniel 2572
Open Southampton BER (2) 08.02.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.g2 d5 4.b3
[ 4.f3 may be the best move, returning to a
mainline, and controlling e5, but perhaps
White didn't want to sac his c-pawn? ]
4...e5 Well, why not? 5.d3? In the Reti group
of openings White can often play his first 10
to 15 moves almost without thinking, and this
sometimes makes us lazy. In fact there are
only a few tactics to be aware of, and this is
one of them.
[ 5.b2 d6 6.f3 e7 is more normal,
but Black has already equalised, of course. ]
5...dxc4! Black is on the ball.
[ 5...d6 6.e3 g4 7.e2 0-0 8.h3 e6
is nothing special, Sudar, B-Kuljasevic,D/
Pula CRO 2001. ]
6.bxc4?!
[ 6.dxc4 is ugly, but a better try, xd1+
( 6...b4+!? 7.d2 d4 8.xb4 xa1
9.c2 d4 10.f3 gains some
compensation for the exchange) 7.xd1
c5 8.e3 f5 and although the white king
position is a concern, White is still playing. ]
6...d4 The unpleasant point, winning the
poor a1-rook, but this is not a new position, as
I have 0-1 Kaissi,Y-Imbert,G/Paris 1994 in my
database! 7.c2 Perhaps White relied on this,
wh ic h will t ra p t h e qu e e n . xa1 8.e3
White had to control the d4-square, otherwise
t h e q u e e n w o u l d e s c a p e . a6 9.a3
W hite tries his best, ...Nb4 was a serious
problem. c5 10.e2 f5 11.e4 g4
12.ec3 Now, if only White could play Bb2,
he would have a serious threat, but even this
is not possible because of the tactic with
Nxd3+, forking e1 and c1.
[ 12.f3 is no improvement: d8! 13.0-0
xd3 14.fxg4 c5+ 15.h1 xg4
wh en B lac k h as e xt ra ma t eria l a nd t h e
attack. ]
12...0-0-0 13.f1 White defends d3, and
finally there is a real threat to play Bb2, and
win the black queen, but the positional cost
has been too great. f3!? Black decides to
allow White to trap the queen, seeing that the
white position is now full of holes, but
[ 13...e6! was also strong: 14.b2 d4
15.c1 f3+ 16.d1 xh2+ 17.c2
xa3! 18.xa3 f3 and the black queen
can escape along the a-line if need be. ]
14.g1 e7?! Fun, but
[ 14...e6!? 15.b2 d4 16.d2 xe4!
seems convincing, as ...Nf3+ is a threat. ]
15.b2 xb2 16.xb2 xd3+ 17.xd3
xd3 So, White has managed to gain the
black queen for a further piece, but his king is
stuck in the centre, and his rook out-of-play.
18.d2 c5 19.xf3 xf3 20.d1 d4
21.e2 xa3 Another stock-take shows that
Black has a nominal material advantage: rook,
bishop and 2 pawns for a queen, but more
importantly, the black pieces are well-placed,
and the white ones completely passive. 22.g4
h6 23.g3 a1 24.d3 d8 25.f1 d7
26.g2?! Just when White almost had reason
to play on, he makes an error!
[ 26.f3 c5 27.d2 is better. ]
26...c5 27.d2 e6 Ouch! The menace of
forking the queen and king by ...Nf4+ brings
the game to a swift conclusion. 28.f3 f4+
29.h1?! xf2! 30.xd8+ xd8 31.h3
[ 31.xf2 xd1+ doesn't bear
consideration. ]
31...c5 32.h2 a2+ 33.h1 a3
As if the queen moves ...Rxh3+ is decisive.
0-1
440 A11
Sambuev,Bator 2496
Keosidi,Konstantin 2219
1st Russian Cup (1) 04.07.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 c6 3.e3 d5 4.c2 e6 5.b3
e7 This is not quite as aggressive as
[ 5...d6 , but it is solid enough. ]
6.b2 0-0 7.g4!? We have seen this move
many times before, for instance with the white
knight on c3 and bishop still on c1 in
Tukmakov - W asnetsky, but in this exact
position it seems to be a novelty.
[ First 7.g1!? bd7 8.g4 was examined in
Gurevich - Wegerle. ]
7...c5?!
[ 7...xg4 is clearly the critical try, 8.g1 f5
424
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
9.h3 f6 10.c3 followed by long castles,
when White will have some fun down the g-
file, but Black's resources should be
sufficient. ]
8.g5 e4 9.h4 c6 10.c3 b4 11.b1
b6!?
[ 11...f5!? is possible, to gain some space on
the kingside, 12.d3 xc3 13.xc3 f4!? ]
12.a3 Naturally White is not at all interested in
[ 12.xe4 dxe4 13.xe4
( 13...b8?? 14.e5 ) 14.xa8 b7 ]
12...xc3 13.xc3 c6?! After this natural
reply Black may already be completely lost!
[ 13...b7! is interesting, 14.g2 ( 14.axb4?!
d4 favours Black) 14...c6 and White has
less possibilities for developing his attack. ]
14.d3 g6 15.h5! Obvious but effective,
W h i t e w i l l l e v e r t h e k i n g s i d e o p e n . d4
B la c k t ri e s t o sh u t o n e o f t h e d ia go n a l s
p o i n t i n g a t h i s k i n g . 16.hxg6!
Other moves are worse:
[ 16...hxg6?! 17.xg6 dxc3
a n d W h i t e w i n s , a s b7?
and Qh7 mate. ]
[ 16...fxg6?! 17.xg6 dxc3 18.xh7+ g7
19.g6+ h8 20.g8# ]
17.gxf7+
[ 17.g7 xg7 18.e4 is also strong, cxd2+
19.xd2 h8 20.xc6 b8 21.b2+
with a continuing attack. ]
17...xf7?! This loses simply,
[ 17...xf7 is stronger, but even here 18.e4
b7 19.xh7+ e8 20.xc6+ xc6
21.g6+ d7 22.e5+ c7 23.dxc3
is fairly convincing. ]
18.xh7+ f8 19.e4 cxd2+ 20.xd2 g7
[ 20...d7 21.xc6 xc6 22.h8+ g7
23.h7# ]
21.xc6
[ 21.xc6 b8 22.h8+ g8 23.h7
forces mate. ]
1-0
441 A11
Shchekachev,Andrei 2520
Romanov,Evgeny 2547
ChInt Open Paris FRA (7) 04.07.2008
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.c4 c6 2.f3 f6 3.c3 d5 4.e3 g4
5.b3!? b6 6.e5 e6 7.d4 bd7
8.xd7 xd7
d7! [ 8...xd7
A) 9.xb6!? axb6 ( 9...xb6 10.c5 d7
11.b4 also looks a bit better for White.)
10.cxd5 cxd5 11.d2 and White has a
small pull.;
B) 9.cxd5
B1) 9...cxd5 10.d2 ( 10.xd5 xb3
11.c7+ d8 12.xe6+ xe6!
is an important detail that I confess I
missed in my first round of calculation. );
dxc3 B2) 9...xb3 ]
9.a4! xb3
18.e4 [ 9...c7 10.c5 c8 11.cxd5 xd5
19.xc6 ( 11...cxd5 12.b5+ ) 12.e4 gives White an
edge. f6 13.e5 d5 14.d2
with a position that looks more like a queen's
gambit accepted with 3e4 or an advance
Caro-Kann, but one where W hite seems
somewhat better. ]
10.axb3 0-0-0 When I first saw this position I
was looking for a tactical kill based around
the idea of e4, Bf4 and Nb6+ followed by mate
on a8. I didn't expect it to work, but thought it
might highlight a more productive path to an
advantage. For what it's worth, I feel White
should have a way to be at least somewhat
better in this ending, and perhaps more than
one way, as the following indicates. That said,
I also believe in Black's resources. 11.d3
[ 11.e4 xe4 12.b6+ axb6 13.a8+ c7
14.f4+ e5 15.xe5+ d6 ]
[ 11.c3 b8 12.e4 dxe4 ( 12...xe4
13.f4+ a8 14.cxd5 xc3 15.bxc3 cxd5
16.d3 followed by Kd2 keeps the a-file
initiative going.) 13.f4+ a8 14.a4 a6
15.c7 e8 16.e2 This ploy is perhaps
enough to scare Black a little, but not more. ]
[ 11.c5 feels like it should give White a
slight pull, but probably nothing to really
s c a r e a s e a s o n e d S l a v p l a y e r . b8
12.xd7+ xd7 13.d3 and again we have
a position where W hite is slightly for
425
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

preference, but Black has nothing in play d4, after his eighth move. 9.h3 xf3
particular to fear. ] The simplest move,
[ 11.c5!? f5 12.f3 e6 13.b4 a6 14.g4 [ 9...h5!? is possible, but leads to sharp
g6 15.d2 and if the bishop on d2 play after 10.g4 g6 11.e4 ]
reaches the h2-b8 diagonal, W hite will be 10.xf3 0-0 11.e4 White advances his extra
in business, but I suspect Black can stop central pawn, other, quieter, methods don't
that from happening, for instance with Nd7, offer too much, either:
f6 and e5. ] [ 11.b1 Intending a minority attack with b4-
11...g4 12.f3 h5 13.d2 g6 14.xg6 5. e7 12.g2 ad8 13.d4 Transposing
[ 14.c5! b8 15.xg6 hxg6 16.d3 d7 into a Queen 's Gambit E xchange pawn
17.f2 Still looks somewhat better for structure, but one that is very pleasant for
White. ] Black. d6 14.g5 h6 15.xf6 xf6
14...hxg6 15.cxd5 xd5 16.c5 a6 16.e3 h5 Black's position is preferable,
17.d3 f6 White's play is a bit tentative inLopushnoy,D-Dreev, A/Russian Club Cup,
what follows and Black gradually gets a slight Maikop RUS 1998. ]
pull, but at this stage W hite is at least not 11...dxe4 12.dxe4 e5 Black is slightly
worse. 18.e2 e6 19.h3 d6 20.hc1 ahe ad in develo pme nt, an d starts act ive
c7 21.a5 h5 22.c5 e5 23.xc7 operations against the white centre. 13.e2
xc7 24.e6 d6 25.xc7 xc7 26.dxe5 If instead
xe5 27.d1 xd1 28.xd1 b5 29.d3 [ 13.g2?! then d3 is awkward. ]
a5 30.d2 a4 31.c2 xb3 32.xb3 13...e8 Eyeing the e-pawn. 14.g2 g6
axb3+ 33.xb3 b5 34.b4 b6 35.e4 15.c2 e7 By putting more pressure on e4,
c5+ 36.c3 g5 37.g3 c6 38.h4 gxh4 B l a c k f o r c e s t h e f o l l o wi n g m o ve , wh i c h
39.gxh4 d6 40.f4 e6 weakens the white light squares. 16.f3 ad8
½-½ Black has a very harmonious development,
but W hite has the bishop pair, and a
potentially mobile kingside mass. 17.d2 d6
442 A11 18.ad1 h5 Black starts a concerted attack
Shirov,Alexei 2726 o n W h i t e ' s k i n g s i d e d a r k s q u a r e s . 19.f4
Short,Nigel D 2697 Forced, not only is
SuperGM It Sarajevo BIH (4) 20.05.1999 [ 19.g4?? positional capitulation, but also
[Tony Kosten] tactical, as White gets mated after h4 ]
19...xg3! 20.xg3 g5+ 21.h2 xf4
1.f3 d5 2.g3 g4 A reversed Trompovsky! 22.xf4 xf4+ 23.h1 So far, this has been
Actually, this may be the most flexible line of forced since the 19th move, Black only has
all, as played like this Black may even be able two pawns for his piece, but the white king is
to do without the move ...c6. This line is a wide open . g3 24.g4 h5 No let-up for
speciality of Shirov himself, but with black! White. 25.f2!? An interesting decision,
3.g2 d7 Controlling e5, and putting paid to giving-up a pawn to stop the attack, but
any possibility of White playing Ne5. 4.c4 e6 [ 25.g1 wa s a l s o a p o s s i b i l i t y , h4
5.cxd5 Delaying this capture is worse, 26.d7! as xd7? loses to 27.g2 ]
[ 5.0-0 for instance, allowing the standard 25...hxg4 26.xf4 xh3+ 27.h2 e3
trick: xf3 6.xf3 e5 7.b3 xf3+ Black prefers to keep the queens on the board,
8.xf3 f6 and Black has solved all of his which is normal, considering the exposed
opening problems, Schulze, U-Campora,D/ w h i t e k i n g . 28.h5 g6 29.xg4
Bern 1992. ] W hite recaptures one pawn, but allows an
5...exd5 6.0-0 gf6 7.c3 c6 Black finally i m m e d i a t e d r a w . xd1 30.xd1
plays ...c6, but only once White has shown his And certainly not
hand. 8.d3 c5 Other developments of this [ 30.xd1?? e5 and the menace of ...Rh5+,
bishop are also possible, but this is the most and ...Rg5 wins for Black. ]
active, especially since White is unlikely to 30...h3+ 31.g1 g3+ 32.h1

426
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 32.h1 now e5?? loses to 33.d8+ [ or simply 15...e4 16.h2 e5 ]

g7 34.f6+ ] 16.dg1?!
½-½ [ 16.h5! ]
16...dc5
[ 16...e4 17.h2 e5 is unclear. ]
443 A11 17.d1!?
Socko,Bartosz 2621 [ 17.h5! ]
Ejsmont,Krzysztof 2348 17...e4 18.e1!? b5!? 19.b4
TCh-POL Extraliga (9) 10.09.2006 [ 19.f4! looks correct, threatening f5 and h4-
[John Watson] h5, when exf3 20.xf3 releases Black's
grip on d3. ]
A Reti with some excitement on the king's 19...d7? A turning point.
wing! It's remarkable how often White plays [ 19...a4! looks risky in view of 20.c5 c7
g4 these days. 1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 f6 21.f6!? , but White has trouble adding fuel
4.c3 e6 5.b3 bd7 6.b2 d6 7.c2 to the fire after ( 21.a1 a5! ) 21...d7
This is the same popular anti-Slav system that , when the a-file will prove a real problem for
we see in Kveinys-Ejmont. Black is able to him. ]
develop smoothly b ut has no targets. 0-0 20.c5 e5 21.f4 xb2
8.e2 b6 Perhaps a bit slow, although it can't [ 21...exf3 22.xf3 xb2 23.xb2
be too bad. I like the looks of has the idea h5/g6, and Black's bishop on
[ 8...a6 , because apart from ...b5, it has the b7 is a liability. ]
idea of stopping Nb5 once Black plays ...e5 22.xb2 f5? This loses!
and White trades on d5. ] [ 22...a5!? 23.f5 c7 is the best chance. ]
[ 8...e5 9.cxd5 cxd5 10.b5 b8 11.a3 23.gxf6 xf6 24.g4! f7
e8 12.c1 is awkward. ] [ 24...xb2+ 25.xb2 g6 26.f5 g7
9.g1!? Typical of modern chess! White 27.fxg6 and things are falling apart. ]
doesn't merely want to attack, but also to gain 25.f5! ef8 26.h5 xb2+ 27.xb2 ee7
space after g4-g5. [ 27...g6 28.fxg6 hxg6 29.xg6 xg6
[ 9.d4 is the normal idea. ] 30.xg6+ h7 31.6g5 f6 32.g2!
9...b7 10.g4 e5 11.g5 Centre versus , a n d Nf 4 wi ll c e m e n t W h it e ' s wi n n i n g
Flank! Objectively it's unclear but I like Flank's advantage. ]
chances on a practical level. e8 12.0-0-0 28.xf7+ xf7 29.c2 e5 30.d4
c7 1-0
[ 12...e4 13.d4 c5 14.f5 c7 15.d3!
keeps an initiative. ]
13.h4!? At this point Kb1 seems prudent. This 444 A11
works out, but perhaps h4 should be delayed Stefanova,Antoaneta 2491
until W hite doesn't need the move Nh4 in Sebag,M 2521
response to ...e4. e6 With the good idea of FIDE WCh Women World Cup (4.3) 22.11.12
covering d4 after ...e4, but Black never uses it. [John Bartholomew]
[ 13...b5!? opens either the c- or b-file. ]
14.b1 e7 15.g2!? A surprising move Antoaneta Stefanova is essentially winning out
that is not only slow but exposes the rook on of the opening in this 7.a4 Anti-Slav, blunders
the long diagonal. The point will become clear. badly, then most certainly should have lost.
Nevertheless As Tartakower once said, though: "The winner
[ I like 15.h5! intending e4 16.h4 ] is the player who makes the second to last
15...ae8? Extremely passive. Better moves mistake"! 1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 f6
were 4.g2 dxc4 5.0-0 bd7 6.c2 b6 7.a4
[ 15...b5 w i t h t h e i d e a 16.cxd5 cxd5 [ 7.a3 is the hot move, but the text is no
17.xb5 d4! , ] less popular. ]
[ 15...ac8 with the same idea. ] 7...a5 8.a3 e6 9.g5 This knight lunge is

427
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

usually the most direct counter to ...Bc8-e6. demands a precise reply. I think Black
[ One drawback of 7.a4 is that the pawn should counter with
sacrifice 9.b3 is no longer feasible. See A1) 14...xg4?! 15.exf7 xf7
Bartholomew-Kojima for an example of this A1a) and now 16.xe6! would have
in the 7.Na3 line, though. ] been hazardous for Black, i.e.
[ However, 9.e5!? still makes sense, just A1a1) 16...h4?! 17.f4 xe6
as it does without the inclusion of a2-a4 and 18.xe6+ d8 19.g3! h5
a7-a5. For example: ( a cool line that illustrates the
A) 9...d4 is most common here it leads dangers Black faces here is
to complications after 10.xc6 bxc6 19...g5? 20.ae1 b4 and now
11.xc6+ , e.g. 21.xh7!!+- is a brutal surprise, e.g.
A1) 11...d7 12.xa8 xa8 13.xc4 f8 22.h4 ) 20.f3;
d5 ( 13...b6 14.xa5 e5 15.d3 A1a2) 16...xe6 17.xe6+ e7
d6 16.d2 Heffalump (2464)- ( 17...f7 fails spectacularly to
Rock doc (2 386 ) p layche ss. com INT 18.g5!! (luring the Black queen out
2006 ) 14.b3!? h3 15.b5+! xb5 o f h e r d e n ) xg5 19.b3+-
16.axb5 d5 17.xa5 ab6 18.xb6 when the various discoveries are
xb6 19.d1 Valdes, L (2366)- immediately decisive) 18.g5 df6
Beinoras, M (2346) Istanbul 2012; 19.ae1 0-0 20.xe7;
A2) 11...fd7 (I think this is best) A1b) 16.xf7? xf7 17.e4 b4!
12.xa8 xa8 13.d3 h3 14.d1 e5?! 18.xe6+ f8 19.f4 df6 20.h3
( 14...d5!? 15.e4 h5 16.xc4; xd4 21.hxg4 xf4-+ Carlstedt, J
14...ab6!? ) 15.xc4 ab6 16.xd4 (2379)-Alonso Rosell, A (2521)
exd4 17.d2 xa4 18.b5 ab6 Figueres 2010;
19.xa5 Tikkanen, H (2591)-Hultin, J A2) 14...xe5!N , e.g. 15.dxe5
(2307) Malmo 2012; ( B l a c k i s d o i n g we l l a f t e r 15.gxh5?!
B) 9...g6 (simply developing) 10.axc4 ed7 ) 15...g6! ( 15...xg4??
xc4 11.xc4 g7 12.d3 d5 13.d2 16.xc6+ bxc6 17.xc6+ e7
0-0 14.fc1 b6 15.e3 c5 16.xd5 18.xe6!+- ) 16.b3 d5 17.xb7
xd5 17.xd5 xd5= Zaragatski, I c8;
(2474)-Michiels, B (2502) Netherlands B) 14.f3 has been played a couple times,
2012 ] thou gh Bla ck is quit e solid a f te r xe5
9...g4 10.xc4 xe2! 15.xh5 g6 16.xe6+ e7! ( 16...fxe6?
[ 10...xc4 11.xc4 e6 is less resolute. 17.xg6+ hxg6 18.xg6+ d7 19.f7
Following 12.e4 h5 13.d4 h6 14.h3 e8 20.xh8 ) 17.xg6 hxg6 e.g.
g6 15.f4! xe4 16.xe4 xe4 18.e1 ( 18.e2 0-0 19.d2 d5
17.xe6! White unleashed a promising 20.f3 f6 21.ae1 Maletin, P (2575)-
attack in Matamoros Franco, C (2460)-Xu Panarin, M (2503) Samara 2011 d7= )
Jun (2626) Seville 2003/[TonyK]. ] 18...0-0 19.d2 d5 20.e4 e8
11.e5 h5 12.b4!? Introduced by the 21.c5 c7 22.b3 b6= Valdes, L
Czech GM Jiri Stocek in 2000. Computers are (2366)-Michiels, B (2509) Istanbul 2012. ]
initially skeptical of this pawn offering, but 12...e6 No funny business - just development.
they often change their tune when left to stew [ Instead, 12...bd7 led to major
in their own juices for a bit. The text has been complications in Radjabov, T (2761)-Smeets,
p l a y e d b y s e v e r a l o t h e r s t r o n g p la ye r s , J (2601) Wijk aan Zee 2009/[Nigel Davies]:
including Teimour Radjabov. 13.b2 axb4 14.a5 a6 15.fe1 xe5
[ The alternative is 12.e1 bd7 ( not 16.xe5 e6? and here White passed on the
12...h6?! 13.e4 e6?! 14.xc6!; cr u s h i n g c o n t i n u a t i o n 17.xe6! fxe6
12...bd5!? deserves attention) 13.d4 e6 18.xe6+ f7 ( 18...e7 19.ae1+- )
and now: 19.c4+- ]
A) 14.g4!? would be my choice, as it [ Nobody has dared to accept the pawn with

428
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

12...axb4 . After 13.b2 the game could 20.e4! ( 20.xf6 d7 ) 20...xe4
transpose to Radjabov-Smeets. ( 13.e1!? )] 21.xe4 f5 22.g2 , but there's still
13.b5 everything to play for. ]
[ This is better than 13.bxa5 xa5 14.d4 17.cxb7?! Thus initiating a slew of mutual
d6 15.d2 a7 16.a5 bd5 17.a6 0-0 errors that persists until the end of the game.
18.axb7 which was immediately agreed [ White had an easy win with 17.xe5 g6
drawn in Matamoros Franco, C (2542)-Stella, ( 17...bxc6? 18.xf6+- ) 18.c7!+- . ]
A ( 2 3 9 8 ) F o r n i d i S o p r a 2 0 1 1 . xb7 17...c5 18.d4! g6? 19.e4?? A colossal
19.xc6 d7= ] mistake. The pendulum begins to swing...
13...d6 14.b2 [ Black would be hard-pressed to survive
[ 14.d4 0-0!? (this is far more acceptable after 19.dxc5! xb1 20.xe5+- . ]
than in the game) 15.bxc6 bxc6 16.d2 19...c4! 20.d1?!
bd5 17.xc6 c8 18.b5 b4 [ 20.dxe5 xe4 21.xe4 xe4
Rodriguez Guerrero, E (2464)-Dunis, A was the lesser evil. ]
(2534) La Roche sur Yon 2006 ] 20...c7 21.a3 e8? Gulp.
14...0-0? Clearly bad. One wonders whether [ 21...xe4 w i n s , i . e . 22.xe4 xe4
Sebag was on her own at this point or whether 23.xe4 ( 23.xf8 c3-+ ) 23...d6-+ ]
she simply confused her lines. Black has at 22.xf6+ gxf6 23.b5 c2 24.e1 xa4
least two valid approaches here: 25.h5 c6?! 26.g4+?
[ 14...xe5 15.xe5 g6 is the most [ 26.xc6! xc6 27.e4 ]
straightforward. After 16.a2 ( 16.b3 26...h8 27.xc6 xc6 28.ab1 d5
looks preferable for instance bd5 17.fc1 29.e2 c4 30.c5 d6??
c8 18.bxc6 bxc6 19.xd5!? xd5 [ Black is up a clean piece after 30...d2!
20.xd5 exd5 21.f3 c5 22.a3 31.xd2 xc5 ]
with compensation, but no more) 16...bd5 [ , or even just 30...d6 . ]
17.bxc6 bxc6 18.ac1 0-0 Black was on 31.ec1 xc5? 32.b8? The evaluation is
top in Cebalo, M (2478)-Chatalbashev, B changing move-to-move at this point.
(2 5 6 6 ) T rie s t e 2 0 1 1 b e ca u s e 19.xc6?? [ 32.xc4+- ]
runs into b4-+ . ] 32...xb8 33.xb8+ g7?? Oh no! This is
[ 14...c7 i s a l s o f i n e , e . g . 15.c4 the final straw.
( 15.fe1!? ) 15...xc4 16.xc4 0-0 [ 33...f8! was absolutely mandatory.
17.h4 g6 18.bxc6 bxc6 19.ac1 e7 Amazingly, it seems to lead to equality! For
( 19...d8! ) 20.xc6 Maletin, P (2541)- example: 34.xf8+ g7 35.b8 and now
Pilavov, G (2550) Nizhnij Tagil 2006 ab8 e5! 36.xc6 f3+ 37.f1 xh2+
.] 38.g1 f3+ 39.f1= ( 39.g2??
15.bxc6 xd4+-+ )]
[ E v e n s t r o n g e r w a s 15.xc6! d7 34.xc4 Now White is (take a deep breath!)
( 15...bxc6?? 16.xf6 is the point. Black has winning. xd4
to play g6 to avoid mate on h7, but [ Black should try 34...b6 35.xd5 exd5
17.xd8 xc2 18.xb6+- leaves White a 36.xb6 xb6 , though White's win should
piece to the good.) 16.xf6 g6 17.e4 only be a matter of technique. ]
bxc6 18.d4! d5 19.bxc6 c7 20.c4 35.xc6 a2 36.f3 f5 37.bc8 a4
.] 38.8c2 b3 39.xb3 Black resigns. One of
15...c8 16.b1 the most blunder-filled contests I've seen
[ Or simply 16.b3! . ] from players of this caliber for quite some time,
16...xe5? Black is sinking fast, though this is though we must remember that it was played
only the beginning! in the ultra-nervy quarterfinal stage of the
[ P r e s u m a b l y s h e r e j e c t e d 16...bxc6 Women's World Championship. Black looks to
b e c a u s e o f 17.xc6 c7 18.xf6 be in good theoretical shape in this line, so
, but the zwischenzug g6! keeps her alive. long as he/she chooses a better continuation
Things are still difficult after 19.b2 gxf6

429
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

on move 14 like 14...Be5 or 14... Qc7. Black's structure is weak, Nguyen Ngoc
1-0 Truongson-Megaranto,S/Ho Chi Minh City
VIE 2003. ]
15.e3 This new move seems very sensible,
445 A11 White defends her knight on d4 rather than
Stefanova,Antoaneta 2503 retreat by
Zhukova,Natalia 2439 [ 15.c2 although after ha8 16.a3 d7
North Ural Cup (6) 14.08.2003 17.b4! (stopping the knight from coming to
[Tony Kosten] c5, and leaving the rooks looking silly on the
a-file) f6?! 18.hc1 f8 19.g4 White had
Th e e n d in g t h a t a rise s h e re se e m s ve ry a nice advantage in Kirov,N-Van der Sterren,
pleasant for White, and this is the first time P/ Baku 1983, the game continuing d8
that Black actually manages to win a game. 20.f5! exf5 21.gxf5 xf5 22.c3 a7
However, she needed a lot of help from her 23.xd5+ f7 24.xb6 winning easily. ]
opponent! 1.c4 c6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 f6 15...h6 16.a3 h7 The bishop withdraws
4.f3 f5 5.cxd5 cxd5 6.b3 from g6 so that tricks with f5 have less effect,
I recommended this in my book as a simple b u t i t s e e m s t i m e - c o n s u m i n g . 17.hf1!?
method of playing against Lasker's System. White decides on a kingside demonstration,
b6 Black accepts doubled pawns to remove but
the pressure on b7, and will have the half- [ 17.ac1 c8 18.h3 seems very pleasant
open a-file in exchange. for W hite, she can continue with moves
[ 6...c8 is the main alternative, see my such as b4, g4, Rc3, etc. with good
game against Bunzmann from Montpellier perspectives. ]
2001. ] 17...aa8 18.h3 hc8 19.g4 d7 20.f5
7.xb6 axb6 8.c3 c6 9.d3 e6 10.b5 This is the point of White's play, she attempts
This is the normal move here, b5 is a strong to undermine d5, but
square for the knight, as there are no black [ 20.b4 was a sensible alternative,
pawns to chase it away, but no doubt other controlling c5. ]
moves are possible. b4+ 11.d2 e7 20...g8 21.h4!?
12.fd4 xd2+ 13.xd2 Both kings stay in [ 21.fxe6! fxe6 22.e4 is interesting, with the
the centre as for the moment they are entirely idea of opening the e-file and embarrassing
safe in this endgame on dark squares whilst the black king. ]
the centre is closed. g6 14.f4! An important 21...ce5 22.g5
move, restraining ...e5. a4 This active move [ 22.e4! dxe4 23.xe4 c5 24.ae1
appears to be the mo st logical, as Black gives White a strong attack on the king. ]
attacks the d4-knight, and prepares to double 22...c5 Black counterattacks the d3-square,
rooks, or play ...Rb4. w h i c h s e e m s t o b e d e f e n c e l e s s . 23.b4!
[ But there are others: 14...h6 15.a3 hc8 cxd3 24.ab1?! Apparently trapping the
16.ac1 h7 17.h3 d7 18.c3 knight by controlling its only escape square,
with a pleasant edge which White managed but
to transform, Portisch,L-Smyslov,V/Wijk aan [ 24.e4!? seems very strong, blowing open
Zee 1972. ] the centre and long diagonal, hxg5 25.hxg5
[ 14...a5 15.e3 e8 16.a3 xd4 d8! the best chance ( 25...b2 26.exd5
17.xd4 d7 18.ac1 c5 bc4+ 27.e2 exd5 28.xd5 tears Black
Fra n c o O c a m p o s, Z-B ra vo B a rra n co , N/ apart ) 26.exd5 exd5 27.f6+! ( 27.c7
B a r c e l o n a E S P 2 0 0 0 , a n d n o w 19.b4 ac8 28.xd5+ xd5! 29.xd5 d8 )
looks very unpleasant, i.e. cc8 20.f5! xf5 27...gxf6 28.xf6 with powerful threats. ]
21.xf5+ exf5 22.xd5 and the b7-pawn is 24...b2! Anyway! 25.xb2 c4+ 26.c3
in trouble. ] xe3+ 27.d3 xf1 28.xf1 hxg5
[ 14...hc8 15.h3 h5 16.hg1 g4 29.hxg5 e5 Rook and two pawn are generally
17.g2 h5?! 18.h3 f5 19.xf5+ exf5 worth two piece s, especia lly h ere a s th e

430
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

pawns are central pawns controlling important agree that W hite's best chances for an
squares, but White has plenty of resources. advantage are connected with this knight
30.f6+?! White panics, and gives a further jump.
pawn. [ Marin indicates that 5.cxd5 xf3! 6.xf3
[ 30.e2 is s i m p le a n d g o o d , e . g . f6 cxd5 is less challenging to Black. The first
31.d2! (saf er on a dark square) d7 player can try to squeeze something (and
32.e6! xe6 33.fxe6+ e7 ( 33...xe6? Marin presents a decent case for doing so in
34.h3+ f5 35.d4+! turns the tables) a later chapter), but W hite's bishops are
34.h3 and the strong e6-pawn keeps White d e va lu e d in t h is se m i- cl o se d p o s it i o n .
alive. ] S t a t ist ics co n f irm t h e ro b u st n a t u re o f
30...gxf6 31.gxf6+ xf6 32.f2+ e7 Black's game. ]
33.f5+ f8 34.e3 h7+ 35.d2 c6! 5...e6 This is the most solid retreat. Black
[ 35...e4? 36.d3! xd3 37.xd3 d4 intends to recapture on d5 with his bishop
38.g4 e8 39.e2 wins the central while avoiding any unpleasantries associated
pawns. ] with a tempo-gaining g3-g4.
36.d3?! Drawing the pawns forward. [ 5...h5?! is known to be risky for Black:
[ 36.g4 e4 37.e3 gives chances of 6.cxd5 cxd5 7.c3 e6 8.a4+ bd7 9.g4
blocking the pawns on light squares. ] g6 10.h4 ]
36...e4 37.b1 d4! 38.xd4 What else? [ Likewise 5...f5?! is begging for
d8 39.ec2 xc2+! 40.xc2 xd4+ punishment: 6.cxd5 cxd5 7.c3 e6 8.g4!?
41.e3 c4 Now Black is completely winning ( 8.a4+ bd7 9.g4 g6 transposes to
with two good pawns more. 42.b5?! c3+ the line above. ) 8...g6 9.h4 ]
43.d4 xa3 44.e2 a2 45.e3 b2 6.cxd5 xd5 7.f3 White must not permit
46.h2 g6 47.h8+ g7 48.c8 xb5 B l a c k t o e x c h a n g e b i s h o p s f o r f r e e . c5
49.e8 f5 50.e7+ f6 51.xb7 Securing the c6 square for the bishop is most
Regaining one pawn, but she could have popular.
resigned and saved herself the trouble. g5 [ 7...e5 8.c3 e4 9.g5!? ( Marin's
52.d4 c5 53.a4 a5 54.c6 a3 9.h4 is safer ) 9...e3!
55.xb6 d3+ 56.e5 e3 57.b1 h5 A) 10.xd5 exf2+ 11.xf2 c5+??
58.g1+ g4 59.f3 e2 60.xg4 ( 11...cxd5= ) 12.d4+- Reinderman, D
[ 60.xe2 e3+ ] (2617)-Kleijn, C (2429)/PlayChess.com
60...fxg4 61.e1 e3+ 62.d4 f4 INT 2011.;
0-1 B) 10.f3 exd2+ ( 10...h6!? ) 11.xd2
bd7 12.0-0 c5+ 13.h1 0-0 14.b3
h6?! 15.e4! xb3 16.axb3 hxg5
446 A11 17.xg5 d4 18.d2 c5 19.c2 b6
Sundararajan,Kidambi 2474 20.b1 e6= Hickl, J (2572) -
Sriram,Jha 2410 Charnushevich, A (2501)/ Switzerland SUI
49th ch-NatA (7) 15.10.2011 2010.;
[John Bartholomew] C) 10.dxe3 xg2 11.xd8+ xd8
12.g1 d5 13.xd5 cxd5 14.xf7+
1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.g3 f6 4.g2 g4 e7 15.xh8 e6 An interesting
The Capablanca Variation. endgame is reached where W hite's h8
[ T h e p r i n c i p l e d p a w n g r a b 4...dxc4 knight will soon perish, but Black will have
has been examined many times on this site. to cope with White's mass of pawns on the
For an overview of this and other options kingside. ]
(such as the common 4...Bf5), see Nigel [ 7...g6 is stodgy. 8.c3 ( 8.0-0 g7 9.c3
Davies's "Reti - 1. c4 c6 with g3" guide in 0-0 10.d4 t r a n s p o s e s) 8...g7 9.0-0
the archives. ] ( 9.xd5 cxd5 10.0-0 c6= Mogranzini, R
5.e5 Marin gives this move a "!" in "GM (2387)-Epishin, V (2598)/Porto San Giorgio
Repertoire 4 - The English Opening vol. 2". I ITA 2010. ) 9...0-0 10.d3 xf3!? 11.xf3

431
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

a6 ( 11...bd7 ) 12.d2 d7 13.b1 Balogh, C (2595)/Arinsal AND 2009. ]

d5 14.c2 ac8 15.fc1 fd8 16.a4 13.d4?! White shouldn't be worse after this,
1/2-1/2 Kreisl, R (2394)-Postny, E (2585)/ but an effective d3-d4 break (if it comes at all)
Aix-les-Bains FRA 2011 (43) ] requires further preparation.
8.c3 c6 9.0-0 e6 10.d3 Seeking to [ Better is 13.e5 i.e.
reduce the influence of Black's bishop with a A) 13...fd7 14.xc6 xc6 15.e5!
subsequent e2-e4. ( 15.xb5?! de5 );
[ White can take the game into Catalan B) 13...e8 14.a4 b4 15.e2 c6
territory with 10.d4 ] 16.c4 d7= Moor, R (2362)-Sermier, G
[ A few GMs have also experimented with (2381)/Switzerland 200809. Black has
10.e1!? i.e. e7 ( 10...bd7 11.e4 e5?! organized effectively and enjoys excellent
12.a4 e7 13.d3 0-0 14.d2 e8 control over the critical d4 and e5
15.c4 f8 16.f4 b6 17.g4!? Wang Hao squares. ]
(2722)-Ma Qun (2366)/ Hefei CHN 2010.) 13...b4 14.a4 cxd4
11.e4 b6? ( 11...0-0 ) 12.d4 cxd4 13.xd4 [ 14...c4!? 15.e5 d5 ]
b7 14.e5 d5 15.f5 exf5 16.xd5 15.e5 fd7 16.xd4 xg2 17.xg2
c6 17.b3 c8 18.xe7 xe7 19.g5+ xe5!?
e8 20.ad1 1-0 Pantsulaia, L (2588)- [ Black is totally fine after 17...b6 ]
Coleman, J (2136)/Dubai UAE 2010. ] [ or 17...c7 but he prefers a tactical
10...e7 11.e4 0-0 12.e1 Probably an solution. ]
inaccuracy. 18.xe5 c6 19.e4 e5 20.xc6??
[ 12.e2 is Marin's recommendation, Flat-out collapsing.
keeping d1 as an option for White's rook. A [ White failed to notice 20.g5 , when the
r e c e n t g a m e c o n t i n u e d b5!? 13.a4 tactical flurry d5! 21.xc6 xe4+ 22.f3
" ! " M a r i n . ( 13.a3 b4 14.axb4 cxb4 xc6 23.xe7 fc8!? results in rough
15.a4 b5 16.d1 c6 17.b3 dynamic equality, e.g. ( or 23...fe8 24.c1!
Zygouris, H (2215)-Al Sayed, M (2490)/ b7 25.g5 e4 26.c5 exf3+ 27.f2 )]
Ca le t a E NG 2 0 1 1 . c8; 13.d1 b4 20...xd1 21.xe7+ h8 Three pieces for
14.b1 Johannesson, I (2338)-Halldorsson, the queen, but none of them coordinated!
J (2195)/Egilsstadir ISL 2011. a4!? 15.b3 22.b3 d7 23.xe5 fe8 24.g5 f6
b5 and Black has successfully impeded 0-1
White's intended Nb1-d2-c4 maneuver due
to the pressure on d3.) 13...b4 14.b1 b7
15.e5?! ( 15.bd2 c6 16.c4 c8 447 A11
17.f4 White has achieved his strategic Tikkanen,Hans 2573
goal of establishing his knight on c4. Black Hector,Jonny 2530
has a couple of weaknesses to cope with, ch-SWE 2012 Falun SWE (6.2) 12.07.2012
though nothing is decided yet.) 15...fd7! [John Bartholomew]
16.c4 c6 17.f4 b6 ( 17...g5!?
18.e3 de5 19.d1 a6 ) 18.bd2 Jonny Hector is known for his aggressive
d4 19.g4 f5 Astrup, K (2274)-Straeter, brand of chess. In this game he chances a
T (2325)/ Stockholm SWE 2011. ] little-known idea in the Anti-Slav only to see it
12...b5!? If 12...b5 is playable against 12. Qe2, backfire from Hans Tikkanen's energetic play.
I see no reason why it shouldn't be here. 1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.g3 dxc4 4.g2 f6?!
W hit e ha s t o f ine-t une his pla ns if B lack Defending the c4-pawn with ...Bc8-e6 is a
insists upon maximum queenside space. normal occurrence in this line, but in turn
[ Marin dismisses 12.Re1 due to a game of Black often encounters the bothersome Nf3-
his with 12...b6 : 13.e5 d8 14.a4 g5 thrust. W ith 4...f6 Hector takes the g5-
( 14.e2!? ) 14...bd7 15.a5 ( Perhaps square under control and prepares the
15.c4 maintains a small edge.) 15...c7 maneuver ... Bc8-e6-f7. Highly original, but
16.xc6 bxc6 1/2-1/2 Marin, M (2583)- can Black afford such extravagance?

432
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ The main line is 4...f6 . We have recently [ 17...gxh4 18.e6+ e7 19.xf6+ f8
exam ined the gam bit cont inua tio n 5.0-0 20.xh5+- is the point. ]
bd7 6.a3 b6 7.c2 d5 8.b3 cxb3 18.e6+ e7 19.d4!+- A final blow that
( 8...f5?! Mikhalevski, V (2525) -Matinian, su c c e e d s i n b r e a ki n g B l a c k ' s b a c k . g4
N (2438)/Moscow RUS 2012/[John 20.d6+ f8 21.hf5 xf5 22.xf5 xf5
Bartholomew]) 9.axb3 e6 , when 10.b4! 23.xf5 Black cannot deal with the dual
l e d t o a s p a r k l i n g vi c t o r y f o r W h i t e i n threats on c6 and g5. The bishops have a field
Timman, J (2571)-Ernst, S (2606)/Wijk aan day. c7 24.xg5 exd4 25.h6+ e8
Zee NED 2012/[John Bartholomew]. ] 26.g7 f7 27.xh8 xh8 28.fc1 e5
5.a3 29.xa3 g7 30.f4 g6 31.ca1
[ 5.c2 e6 6.a3 would transpose. ] This game had all the makings of an early rout.
5...e6 Black tempted fate with the time-consuming
[ 5...e5!?N is inconsistent with Black's main 4...f6?!, and White had plenty of bullets in the
idea, but in light of the game continuation it chamber to mete out the punishment (7.b3!,
may be best. 6.xc4 e4 7.g1 ] 10.a3!, and 19.d4!). Tikkanen went on to win
6.c2 b5 7.b3! The familiar Anti-Slav lever. the Swedish Championship in a f our-way
Black is further behind in development than playoff, so congratulations are in order to him!
normal, thus W hite has the go-ahead to rip 1-0
open the queenside. f7
[ Black accepted the pawn in the only two
previous games with 4...f6: 7...cxb3 8.axb3 448 A11
a6 ( 8...d7 9.0-0 h3? 10.xh3 xh3 Timman,Jan 2571
11.xb5! d7 12.a3 a6 13.c4 a7 Ernst,Sipke 2606
14.d4 g5 15.d1 g4 16.h4 h6 17.e4 74th Tata Steel GMB (5) 19.01.2012
xc1 18.axc1+- Poettinger, H (2200)- [John Bartholomew]
Kondrak, C (2176)/Salzburg AUT 2012.
Black's scattered forces, numerous pawn 1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.g3 f6 4.g2 dxc4
weaknesses, and open king make this an 5.0-0 bd7 6.c2 b6 7.a3 d5 8.b3
e a s y c a l l .) 9.0-0 a7 10.d4 d7 "Let's make it a true gambit, Alex." I believe
Xiu, D (2521)-Deshmukh, A (2326)/Kuala this is the most promising option White has
Lumpur MAS 2010. Here 11.e4 is the most available, and Timman's sure handling makes
natural way to continue, i.e. e6 12.e3 8.b3 all the more appealing.
when White's compensation is abundantly [ Mihail Marin gives 8.e1 an exclam in
clear. ] "Grandmaster Repertoire 4 - The English
8.bxc4 b4 Desperately trying to contain O p e n i n g vo l. 2 " . Ne ve rt h e le s s, li m it e d
White's growing initiative. 9.b1 e5 10.a3! practical results have favored Back in the
Tikkanen is persistent! h6?! Black's position l i n e s w i t h d4 , For example, Marin's line
is highly unenviable, so it's tough to query any ( 8...f5 Pantsulaia, L (2581)- Sundararajan,
attempt at development. K (2487)/Dubai UAE 2009/[Nigel Davies],;
[ Still, 10...d7 offered better chances for and 8...e6 Marin, M (2583)-Laznicka, V
survival. ] (2617)/Benasque ESP 2009/[Nigel Davies],;
11.0-0 g6 12.a4 but not 8...f5?! Marin, M (2556)-Ris, R
[ 12.b2!? ] (2436)/Reykjavik ISL 2009/[Nigel Davies].)
12...bxa3 13.h4! h5 14.c3 f7 15.c5 9.e3 g4 10.e4 has been improved upon a
g5 16.b3+ e8? f e w t i m e s , i . e . e5 ( Other new moves
[ For better or worse Black had to try include 10...g6 , Eichhorn, A (2294)-Roiz, M
16...g7 17.b7+ d7 18.xc6 when (2645) /Biel SUI 2010.; and 10...h5!?
xc5! keeps some hope alive. 19.xa3 ] , Janssen, R (2512)-Spoelman, W (2564)/
17.e4!? A difficult move to resist. Boxtel NED 2011.) 11.xc4 xc4 12.xc4
[ Also strong is 17.b7 d7 18.xc6+- ] and now e6 ( See the archives for
17...d7 12...d6 Zueger, B (2448)-Gagunashvili, M

433
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
(2580)/Istanbul 2003/ . This is the only
move Marin considers.) 13.c2 e2!?
( 13...h5!? ) 14.b3 0-0-0 15.c3 b5
16.b2 c5! with interesting play. Tkachiev,
V (2636) -Fressinet, L (2707)/Wijk aan Zee
NED 2011. ]
[ An alternative is 8.h4 , Davies, N (2475)-
Adams, M (2555)/Blackpool 1990/[Nigel
Davies]. ]
8...cxb3
[ I'm not convinced by 8...f5?! , e.g. 9.b2
( 9.bxc4 xf3 10.xf3 xc2 11.xc2
xc4= Davies, N (2512)-Haslinger, S (2423)/
Swansea 2006/[Nigel Davies].; 9.c3!? )
9...cxb3 10.axb3 e6 11.c4 d8 12.d3
e7 13.a5!? ( Better than 13.xb6 axb6
14.xa8 xa8 , Mihajlovic, M (2243)-
Kuzmanovic, R (1996)/ Belgrade 2007.)
13...c8 14.b4! 0-0 15.b5 with excellent
play. ]
9.axb3 e6 The main continuation.
[ Black has also tried 9...g6 ]
[ and 9...h5 see the notes to Grandelius-
Kuipers (below). ]
10.b4!? Surprisingly a novelty.
[ 10.b1 was examined in Grandelius, N
(2515)-Kuipers, S (2340)/ Wijk aan Zee NED
2010/[Nigel Davies]. ]
[ White can also stoke the fire with 10.d3!?
, i.e. xb3 11.d2 ( 11.e3 xc2
12.xc2 bd5 13.xa7 c3 14.e4 b3
15.c5?! xa1 16.xa1 a4! 17.e3
xc2 18.d4 xd3 19.xa4 xe4
Thorfinnsson, B (2419)-Friedel, J (2529)/
Reykjavik ISL 2011.) 11...d5 12.g5 d7
13.xe6 xe6 14.c4 ( 14.b2!? )
14...xc4 15.dxc4 c8 16.e3 e6
17.xa7 e7 18.d2 0-0 19.b1
wit h c o m p e n sa t io n t h a t wa s o n ly go o d
enough for a draw. Valdes, L (2391)-
Gonzalez, B (2416)/San Jose CRC 2011. ]
10...b3 This is definitely critical.
[ White isn't opposed to a slower pace, e.g.
10...g6 , e.g. 11.b2 g7 12.e5 ]
11.xb3
[ W hite has full compensation after 11.b5
xc2 12.xc2 cxb5 (White has sacrificed
his entire queenside structure!) 13.cd4
d7 14.e5 , but again - not much more.
fd5 15.xd7 xd7 16.xb5 a6 17.d4
e6= ]
11...xb3 12.b5 c5? Understandable, but
Black quickly runs into problems on the long
diagonal.
[ 12...a4! looks best. Now 13.e5!? ( or
13.bxc6 xc6 14.c2 ) 13...fd5 14.bxc6
bxc6 15.d3 e6 16.b2 f6 17.fc1
gives White certain compensation, though
Black maintains a sound position. ]
13.d3 fd7
[ or 13...g6 14.d2 d5 15.e4 e6 16.e5
fd5 17.ac4 ]
14.d2 d5 15.e4 e6 16.f4 f6?!
[ 16...g6!? ]
17.e5! Timman confidently develops his
initiative. d5
[ 17...b8 was more resilient, although it's
already tough. 18.ac4 ]
18.e6! xe6 19.xb7 b8 20.c6 g6
21.ac4 White completely dominated the
opening discussion. The pawn deficit is really
a moot point when Black cannot complete
development, coordinate his pieces, or secure
his king. Black's position is probably already
be yo nd sa lvat io n . c8 22.e4 f7?!
23.e5+! An elegant blow. It's nice to see the
Dutchman in his element! xe5
[ Steve Giddins provides the following line
on ChessBase. com: 23...fxe5 24.g5+
f6 25.fxe5+ xe5 26.e1+ ( or 26.f4+
f6 27.xe6+- ) 26...f6 27.xe6+ g7
and now 28.xd7 continues the massacre. ]
24.fxe5 f5 25.xc5 Material equality has
been restored, yet White's attack hasn't fizzled
a bit. g7 26.d4
[ T h e i m m e d i a t e 26.xf5! was more
efficient. ]
26...d8 27.xf5! gxf5 28.e6+ g6
29.d7 Black is helpless. d6
[ or 29...b6 30.xb6 axb6 31.a8 when
xd4 32.xc8 d1+ 33.g2 xc1 loses to
34.e8++- ]
30.xb8 xb8 31.xa7 xb5 32.xe7
h6 33.e8+ Jan Timman made it look easy
in this game. 8.b4!? is a natural decision that
gives Black real problems.
1-0
434
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
449 A11
Timman,Jan 2566
Smeets,Jan 2615
Tata Steel Chess 2013 (6.10) 18.01.2013 9...bxc6 10.xc6+ d8 Black has three
[John Bartholomew]
Jan Timman turned in a 2653 performance in
the "B" group this year, ahead of many very
talented teenage Grandmasters. He is 61
years old and plays at least as well as any
ambitious young gun! 1.f3 d5 2.g3 f6
3.g2 c6 4.c4 dxc4 5.0-0 bd7 6.c2
b6 7.a3 e6 This line remains critical.
[ Timman won a brilliant game with his novel
7...d5 8.b3 cxb3 9.axb3 e6 10.b4!
almost exactly a year prior to the present
ga m e . S e e T im m a n , J (2 5 7 1 )- E rn st , S 13.d1 d5 14.f3 ( 14.e4!? ) 14...e5
(2606) Wijk aan Zee 2012/[John
Bartholomew]. ]
8.e5!? Enterprising! White is willing to
sacrifice the knight on c6. The Dutch legend
is always spoiling for a fight in Wijk aan Zee.
[ The usual continuation is 8.g5 g4
9.xc4 , b u t a f t e r xe2 10.e5 h5
11.e1 h6! Black drew with ease in Dubov,
D (2594)-Potkin, V (2651) Moscow 2012/
[John Bartholomew]. ]
[ I ventured the thematic pawn sacrifice
8.b3!? in Bartholomew, J (2427)-Kojima, S
(2340) London 2012/[John Bartholomew]. I 11.b5
obtained good compensation for the pawn inconveniencing Black's queen.
after cxb3 9.axb3 g6 10.c4 g7 11.a5
c8 12.b2 0-0 13.e4 d8 14.fe1!?
e8 15.xg7 xg7 16.d4 . See last
month's update. ]
8...d4 Smeets takes up the gauntlet.
[ 8...g6 is a calm alternative, i.e. 9.axc4
xc4 10.xc4 g7 11.b3 d5 ( 11...0-0
12.b2 d7 13.e4 h3 14.d4 xg2
15.xg2 ac8 16.ad1 fd8 17.fe1
Fridman, D (2661)-Buhmann, R (2579) Bonn
2011 ) 12.b2 xg2 13.xg2 0-0 ( 13...c5
14.fd1 0-0 15.d4 cxd4 16.xd4 c7
17.ac1 Pantsulaia, L (2599)-Sargissian, G
(2677) Khanty-Mansiysk 2010) 14.d3
( perhaps 14.ad1!? intending d2-d4
prom is es m ore) 14...c5 15.ac1 c8
16.fd1 d5+ 17.g1 fd8= Pantsulaia, L 11...c5 12.xa8 xb5
(2510)-Palo, D (2519) Gothenburg 2005. ]
9.xc6
[ Nothing is to be gained from the cowardly
9.c3?! xc3 10.dxc3 fd7 11.xd7
xd7 , Christiansen, J (2062)-Bai, J (2288)
Maribor SLO 2012. ]
ways to escape the check, but it's not clear
which one is best.
[ For example, 10...fd7 appears equally
playable, i.e. 11.xa8 xa8 12.d3 h3
( 12...g6 13.d1 g7 14.xc4 0-0 15.e3
d5 16.ac1 ab6 17.b3 was roughly
level in De Ramos, J (2362)-Yeoh, L (2264)
Penang MAS 2012; 12...ab6 13.dxc4 h3
14.d1 c5?! 15.e4! e6 16.e3 c8
17.c5! f5 18.f4 xc5 19.ac1 0-0
20.xc5 xc5 21.e3 1-0 Prusikin, M
(2541)-Pacher, M (2403) Merlimont 2011)
( 14...d4+!? 15.e3 f6 16.xc4 ab6
17.f4 ) 15.dxc4 c5+ 16.h1 e6
with a messy, roughly balanced game in
Vojinovic, J (2346) -Houska, J (2415) Porto
Carras 2011. ]
[ Black can also consider 10...d7 . 11.xa8
xa8 12.xc4 ( 12.xc4!? Trella, T (2395)-
Russo, J (2097) Belgium 2010) 12...b6
13.xb6 xb6 14.d3 d5 15.e4 b4
16.c3 e6 17.e3 b7 18.a3 c6
B r u n e ll o , S ( 2 5 3 7 )- K o r n e e v, O ( 2 5 7 3 )
Otranto 2011 19.b4 ]
An important zwischenzug,
[ I think less is promised by the immediate
11.xa8 , as played twice by an expert in
t h is l in e , L e vo n P a n t s u la ia . A f t e r xa8
12.d3 ( 12.b5!? was played in Pantsulaia,
L ( 2 5 5 7 ) - K e l e r , F ( 2 2 3 8 ) K o n ya 2 0 1 2 .
Perhaps Black should react with d7 , i.e.
13.a4 a6 14.a3 d5 15.d1 h3 16.f3
d4+! 17.e3 d5 ) 12...cxd3 13.d1
dxc2 14.xd4+ d7 Black has proven to be
q u i t e s a f e , i . e . 15.xc2 ( 15.c4
Pan tsu laia, L (261 7)-Co lovic, A (24 77 )
H e r a k l i o 2 0 0 7 e8!? 16.g5 c7 )
15...b6 16.f4 e6 17.d6?! xd6
18.xd6 e7 19.dd1 b8 Shimanov, A
(2600)-Potkin, V (2642) Tyumen 2012. ]
[ 11.d3 ]
[ Nobody has tried 12...xa8!?N . A possible
continuation is 13.a4 a6 ( Black certainly
has other moves, i.e. 13...d5!? ) 14.d4!
435
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
b6 15.c3 ( 15.a3!? ) 15...c7 16.e4
with complex play where I'd most definitely
choose White. ]
13.g2 h5!? 14.h4!? Timman comes armed
with a small novelty.
[ Smeets already has this position at the
Olympiad against the aforementioned GM
Pantsulaia. That game went 14.d3 cxd3
15.d1 f5 16.e4 xe4 17.xd3+ xd3
18.xd3+ d6 and Black was not worse in
the queenless middlegame. Pantsulaia, L
(2575)-Smeets, J (2608) Istanbul 2012. ]
14...f5
[ 14...g6!? deserves attention. ]
15.e4 d7 16.a4!? xa4
[ 16...b3 17.xb3 cxb3 18.a5 c4
19.d1!? ]
17.e5! The point of White's last move. e8
[ On 17...g4 18.e4! is a dangerous
response. ]
18.e1 e6 19.f1 c5? An error from which
Black never recovers. 20.d3! b3
[ Black's pieces suffer from a serious lack of
coordination after 20...cxd3 21.xd3 , i.e.
b6 22.d1 c7 23.e4+- with decisive
t h r e a t s ( R a 1 xa 4 , R d 1 xd 7 , b 2 - b 3 ) . c8
24.xd7 ]
21.xc4 xc4 22.dxc4 c7 23.d1 c8
24.xd7! xd7 25.xa4 White is a pawn to
the good and possesses the bishop pair to
boot. b8 26.e2 g6 27.d1 d4 28.b3
a6 29.f4 c3 30.a2 c6 31.f1 a5
32.d2! b4 33.xb4 axb4 34.f3+ b6
35.c5+!? Nearly forcing the game into a rook
ending where Black will be hard pressed to
hold. b5
[ Of course 35...xc5? 36.c2+ b6
37.c6+ b7 38.xe6+ c8 39.e7+-
is a disaster. ]
36.d2 d5 37.xd5 exd5 38.xd5 b7
39.e2 c6 40.d3 e7 41.f4 a7
[ 41...f6? 42.d6++- ]
42.f5! gxf5 43.f3 a1 44.f4 f1+?!
[ More tenacious is 44...xc5 45.xf5 ( not
45.g5? c1! 46.xh5 c3 ) 45...e1
, with some chances to hold. ]
45.g5 xc5 46.xh5 c1 47.f3! c3
48.xf5 d5
[ 48...xg3 49.e6++- ]
49.g4 e6 50.f6+ e7 51.g5 xb3
52.e6! fxe6 53.g6+- Power of the
connected passed pawns! h3 54.h5 b3
55.h6 Black resigned. 8.Ne5!? can lead to
rather obscure play where both should know
what's going on. Black is fine in theory, but he
does have a smaller margin for error. A well-
prepared White player can most certainly try
to catch him unawares.
1-0
450 A11
Timman,Jan H 2561
Glek,Igor V 2546
TCh-FRA Top 16 Gp A (6) 12.04.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.g3 g6 3.b3 g7 4.b2 0-0
5.g2 d5 6.c4 c6 7.0-0 a5 8.d3 g4
[ 8...a4 9.a3!? was discussed in Bruzon-
Nielsen, Esbjerg 2003 which can be found in
the PGN archives ]
9.bd2 bd7 10.c1
[ White has tried a couple of other things in
this position: A) 10.a3 e8 ( 10...e8
11.xg7 xg7 12.c2 , and a draw was
prematurely agreed upon, 1/2-1/2,
Damjanovic, M-Padevsky, N/ Bari 1972;
10...b8 11.c2 e6 12.h3 xf3 13.xf3
e8 14.e4 dxe4 15.dxe4 e5 16.fe1 f8
17.c3 c7 18.b4 with a small but clear
advantage, Dobrovolsky, L-Konopka, M/
K u n za k 2 0 0 1; 10...xf3 11.xf3 e6
12.c2 e7 13.e3 e8 14.fc1 xb2
15.xb2 ef6 16.b4 a4 17.d2
Lehmitz, G-Okrushnoy, I/corr 1990) 11.h3
( 11.c2 e5 12.e4 dxe4 13.dxe4 c7
14.c5 f8 15.b4 xf3 16.xf3 axb4
17.axb4 xa1 18.xa1 b6 19.cxb6 xb6
20.c1 , and a draw was agreed upon, 1/2-1/
2, in Smejkal, J-Kholmov, R/Sochi 1973
there is very little to be played for in the
final position.) 11...xf3 12.xf3 ( 12.xf3
e6 13.c2 h5 14.d4 hf6 15.d2 a4
16.b4 b5 , 1/2-1/2, Znamenacek, K-
Damjanovic, M/Prague 1987, but White can
obviously play on with 17.c5 , and if e5
18.dxe5 xe5 , then 19.e4!? promises
White the better chances) 12...e5 13.g2
b6 14.c1 ( In a later game, White tried to
improve with 14.c2 d4 15.ab1 f8
16.h2 h5 17.c1 g7 18.b2 c5
436
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
19.e4 xe4 20.xe4 e6
, and although Black has a fully satisfactory
game, the point at stake was halved at this
point, 1/2-1/2, Prokopchuk, E-Galkin, A/
Krasnoiarsk 1998) 14...d4 15.c2 f8
16.ce1 h5 17.h2 f5 18.e3 dxe3
19.xe3 ad8 20.e2 c5 21.d4 exd4
22.xe8 xe8 23.xd4 d8 24.f3 e4
, and although I prefer White with his safer
king and pair of bishops, the position is more
or even at this point, Prokopchuk, E-Galkin,
A/Kolontaevo 1997 ]
[ B) 10.c2
A) 10...a4 11.b4 e8 12.h3 xf3
13.xf3 a3 14.c3 e5 15.e4 d4 16.d2
h5 17.c5 Volkmann, F-Neubauer, M/
Aschach 1992;
B) 10...c8 11.fc1 e8 12.h3 xf3
13.xf3 e6 14.a3 c5 15.e3 b6 16.ab1
e7 17.cxd5 exd5 18.b4 axb4 19.axb4
c4 20.b5 , and White's position deserves
preference, Gyorkos, L-Balazs, T/Hungary
1994;
C) 10...e5!? deserves serious attention,
f o r e x a m p l e 11.h3 ( 11.xe5 xe5
12.xe5 e8 13.d4 xe2 14.fe1 g4
is fairly harmless for Black) 11...xf3
12.xf3 e8 13.cxd5 cxd5 14.fc1 h6
15.e3 d4 16.exd4 xc1 17.xc1 c8
18.h6 c2 19.b1 b6 , and here for
some reason Black offered a draw against
his stronger opponent, which
unsurprisingly was accepted, 1/2-1/2, in
Ernst, S-Willemze, J/Dieren 1999 Black of
course has the better chances.;
D) 10...b6 11.a3
D1) 11...ac8 12.e4 dxe4 13.dxe4
c5 ( 13...cd8 14.b4! axb4
15.axb4 ) 14.e5?! ( 14.d4!? xf3
15.xf3 fxe4 16.xg7 xd2
17.xd2 xg7 18.c3+ f6 19.b4
, and White has excellent compensation
f o r t h e p a w n; However, White's best
move is the simple 14.e5! , e.g. e6
15.c3 cd7 16.xd7 xd7 17.b4 10...e8 11.cxd5 xd5
, and White is clearly better) 14...f5
15.d1 fe4! 16.d4 xd2??
( 16...cd8! 17.e1 xd2 18.xd2
xb3 , and Black is better) 17.xd2
fd8 18.e3 xd4 19.xd4 d7
20.e2+- , and while White is 14.dxe4 xe4 15.xg7 xg7 16.d5
completely winning at this stage, Black
rather miraculously managed to get a
draw in this game, Psakhis, L-Paehtz, E/
playchess.com INT 2004;
D2) 11...fc8 12.fe1 xf3 13.xf3 e6
14.e3 d8 15.b4 axb4 16.axb4 f8
17.c5 e8 18.b3 c7 19.xg7
xg7 20.d4 Bistric, F-Vucic, M/Rijeka
2001;
E) 10...xf3 11.xf3 b6 12.ac1 a4
13.d4 a6 14.b4 a3 15.c3 fc8
16.h3 e6 17.e5 h6 18.xd7 xd7
19.f4 dxc4 20.dxc4 McNab, C-Morris, P/
London 1990 ]
[ C) 10.b1 b8 11.cxd5 cxd5 12.d4 e5
13.b5 a6 14.h3 e6 15.e4 b6
( 15...c8!? ) 16.c3 dxe4 17.dxe4 c8
( 17...c5 18.d5 xd5 19.exd5 f5
20.a3! c8 21.c1 ) 18.d5 xd5
19.exd5 f5 20.c1 d3 21.e1
Blatny, P-Mirumian, V/Pardubice 1996 ]
[ D) 10.h3 xf3 11.xf3
A) 11...e6 12.c2 ( 12.e5 b6
13.xd7 xd7 14.xg7 xg7 15.d4 a4
16.d3 axb3 17.axb3= Plenkovic, Z-
Navinsek, T/Zadar CRO 2004) 12...e8
13.e4 dxe4 ( 13...e5 ) 14.dxe4 e5
15.ad1 c7 16.a3 ( 16.a3 ) 16...f8
17.c5 b8?! ( 17...c8!? is probably
better to play ... b7-b5, although White is
still better after 18.e1 b5 19.d3 )
18.g4!? d8 19.d2 e7 20.fd1
Radjabov, T-Ivanchuk, V/Dubai 2002;
B) 11...b6 12.b1 fe8 13.cxd5 cxd5
14.e5 ( 14.d2 e5 15.fc1
is a suggestion by Horn, though it's
doubtful if White accomplishes much in
this variation either) 14...e6 ( 14...xe5
15.xe5 e6 16.d4 b5 ) 15.xd7
xd7 16.xg7 xg7 17.d2 ec8
18.fc1 g8 19.h4 b4 20.g5 g7
( 20...a3= - Horn ) 21.f3 h6 22.e3=
Gonzalez de la Torre, S-Paunovic, D/
Elgoibar 2002 ]
[ This move is new, but hardly a particularly
impressive novelty. I think W hite is just
comfortably better in the game continuation.
Previously Black had only tried 11...xf3
12.xf3 ( 12.xf3!? cxd5 13.e4!? dxe4
437
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
df6 17.xb7 ) 12...xd5 13.xg7 xg7
14.c2 7f6 15.b2 e5 16.a3 e7
17.c2 g8 18.fc1 c7 19.c4 b5
20.e3 with a comfortable little edge for White,
Votruba, P-Schlueter, W/Germany 1991 ]
[ Finally, Black can also consider 11...cxd5
, but after 12.h3 xf3 13.xf3 e5 14.e3
White's chances are preferable ]
12.xg7 xg7 13.c4 e5 14.d2!?
[ 14.d4 promises less after e4 15.fe5
xe5 16.xe5 f5 17.e3 f6 18.c4 d7
with chances to both sides ]
14...xf3 15.xf3 7f6 16.fd1 c5?!
This is a bizarre move, somehow hoping to set-
up a sort of Maroczy Bind structure. However,
White is far better developed and coordinated
than Black, leaving Black with a rather weak
pawn structure. 17.a3 e6?!
[ 17...a6!? ]
18.g2 b5?
[ This move is an invitation to trouble. In
situations such as this I always remember
Razuvaev's comment regarding the
Hedgehog: If W hite places four or more
pawns on the fourth row, he will lose one of
them. Indeed after the text move, he will
have a very difficult time holding on to all
four of his pawns, most of which are
i n s u f f i c i e n t l y p r o t e c t e d . H o we ve r , t h e
alternatives are pretty either, for instance
18...c7 runs into 19.e3! d8 20.b4
axb4 21.axb4 , and again Black is in trouble,
e.g. b6 22.xd5 xd5 23.bxc5 ( 23.c4
c6 24.dc1 ) 23...bxc5
, and White will likely end up winning the c-
pawn, though that by no means is a certain
win. ]
19.e3! d6 20.c2! xe3
[ Now 20...c8 runs into 21.h3 ]
21.fxe3 a6 22.xc5 g4 This looks clever,
but again W hite is on top on the situation.
23.h3! xc5 24.xc5 xe3 25.dc1
Black has won the pawn back, but this is only
very temporary, because getting the knight
back will cost at least a pawn. f5 26.xf5
gxf5 27.xb5 This endgame is of course
hopelessly lost for Black, having to defend it
against Timman who loves endgames doesn't
make the task any more joyful. a4
ad6 29.f2 g6 30.c4 h5 31.bc5 e4
32.d4 g5 33.h3!? Played to answer ...h5-
h4 with g3-g4 e3+ 34.f3 e4 This allows
W hite to finish Black off with a little flurry.
35.xf5+! xf5 36.c5+ , and it's game over.
W hat attracted me to this game is how
seamlessly W hite's game went from being
slightly better, to clearly better to won. A
beautif ul, yet very simple game f rom the
Dutch veteran.
1-0
451 A11
Topalov,Veselin 2785
Anand,Viswanathan 2770
FIDE Candidates 2014 (2.2) 14.03.2014
[Fier, Alexandr]
We can always expect good opening ideas in
the Candidates and this was no exception.
Anand played an unusual idea against
Topalov and he easily neutralized W hite's
efforts to get an advantage with a correct
pawn sacrifice. I think this is a good antidote
a g a i n s t t h e l i n e s w i t h o u t d 4 . 1.f3
The game in itself was not that interesting,
but it's Black's merit to use a new setup and
equalize without any problems. d5 2.c4 c6
3.e3 f6 4.c3 bd7 5.c2
[ 5.d4 e6 would transpose to the normal
Meran ]
[ 5.cxd5 can be a possible idea to 'punish'
4...Nbd7, but I think it can't be the refutation
cxd5 ( 5...xd5 is a bit strange in this
24.c2 position and af ter 6.d4 g6 White can
change the character of the position with
7.e4!? xc3 8.bxc3 and Black has a tempo
more, but the pawn on c6 usually should
goes to c5 anyway. Also the knight is often
m o re a ct ive o n c 6 g7 9.c4 ) 6.d4
and the knight would be theoretically better
o n c 6 , co m p a r e d t o d 7 . S t i ll, t h e i d e a l
position for White would be with the bishop
o n f 4 i n s t e a d o f c 1 e6 was seen in
Tomashevsky, E (2641)-Romanov, E (2520)/
RUS-chT Sochi 2007 (1). ]
5...e5!? Black just takes the center
[ 5...e6 would again transpose to the normal
lines with 6.b3 ( or 6.d4 )]
28.b4 6.cxd5 Now this makes a lot of sense, since
Black cannot play 6...cxd5. xd5 Forced.
[ 6...cxd5? 7.b5 and there is no good way
438
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
to defend the check on c7 c5 8.b4 b6
9.d6+ and White is almost winning ]
7.d4 The critical answer, but some other
options are also playable.
[ 7.e2 is a solid option and was played in a
blitz game between two famous seconds
d6 8.0-0 0-0 9.b3 7f6 with a level
ga m e in s o m e k i n d o f r e ve rs e d co l o r s
Sicilian Fressinet, L (2693)-Kasimdzhanov,
R (2687)/FRA-ch op blitz 2011 (5). ]
[ 7.c4 also interesting, bringing the bishop
to an active diagonal 5b6 8.b3 d6
( 8...e7 9.0-0 0-0 10.e4 and White can
also fight for an advantage here) 9.e4
e7 10.h4 with some attacking chances in
Bauer, C (2550)-Kosteniuk, A (2459)/Biel
MTO op 2002 (6). ( 10.0-0 0-0 11.d3 )]
7...d6! I like this move. Black now sacrifices
a pawn in a position that requires some deep
understanding. The main point of the sacrifice
is that Black can freely develop his pieces
and create strong pressure against the
queenside pawns.
[ 7...exd4 8.xd5
A) 8...a5+ doesn't isolate the d-pawn,
but I believe W hite can have some
advantage here 9.d2 xd5 10.c4
h5 ( 10...d3 11.c3 d6 12.xd3
is also pleasant f or W hite) 11.xd4
and W hite's position has potential,
No g u e ir a s S a n t i a go , J (2 4 8 2 )- A b r e u
Delgado, A (2459)/CUB-ch op Havana
2004 (3).;
B) 8...cxd5 9.xd4 with a typical isolated
pawn position ]
[ 7...xc3 8.bxc3 d6 9.d3 h6 10.0-0
was slightly better for W hite, despite the
ea rly d raw in T a l, M (2 6 25 )-Ba giro v, V
(2470)/Jurmala 1987. ]
8.dxe5 Accepting the challenge, now the next
moves are more or less forced.
[ 8.e2 is still possible, and probably we can
have another typical isolani position 0-0
9.0-0 exd4 10.xd5 ( 10.xd4 7f6
brings few problems for Black) 10...cxd5
11.xd4 f6 12.d2 with a balanced
game ]
8...xe5 9.xe5 xe5 10.e4 e7
11.xd5 cxd5 12.b5+ With this move it
looks like White's position should be better,
but even with the king on f8, Black can bring
all his pieces to the game quicker than White.
[ 12.xd5 is also insufficient for any
advantage 0-0 13.e2 d8 14.b3 f5
15.0-0 ac8 and White has problems
moving the bishop from c1 ]
12...f8 13.xd5 g6 14.d2!? The best
chance. W hite returns the pawn to create
some quick counterplay.
[ 14.0-0 would be another try for advantage,
but Black is doing well here g7
A) 15.f3 d8 16.e2 will transpose to
15.Qd2 ( 16.e4 e6 and the pressure on
the queenside pawns fully compensates
the pawn );
B) 15.d2 d8 16.e2 f5 ( 16...a6
17.c4 f5 is also possible) 17.e4!?
xe4 ( 17...h4 is also possible 18.f4
d4+ 19.h1 g4 20.d3 g1!?
21.c3+ d4 22.b3 e6 and White is
still fighting to finish his development)
18.e1 c5 19.a4 a6 20.xa6 bxa6
21.xe4 ab8 22.b1 d4 and Black is
certainly not worse ]
14...g7 The most precise move.
[ 14...xb2 is probably playable, but there is
no reason to enter the complications 15.b1
( 15.b3 e5 16.b4 d6 17.xd6 xd6
18.d1 f6 is probably ok for Black)
15...e6 16.e4 a3 and the bishop can
be missing from the long diagonal ]
15.xe5+ Going into an endgame with an
isolated pawn up, but Black's pieces are too
active and there is no time to consolidate the
position.
[ 15.c3 is already worse for White xc3+
16.bxc3 d8 17.b3 g5 and White
would not like to make any of the possible
moves ]
15...xe5 16.c3 xc3+ 17.bxc3 e6
18.e2
[ 18.0-0-0 won't bring anything and White
needs to take care not to be worse xa2
19.d7 hc8 20.c2 ( 20.b2 e6
and the rook needs to go from the seventh
rank, since 21.xb7 ab8 22.xb8 xb8
loses a piece for White) 20...c5 21.d3
( 21.xb7? d5-+ ) 21...d5 and Black can
already fight for an advantage ]
18...ac8 19.hc1 c5 20.a4
[ 20.d3 could be another try hc8 21.d2
d8 22.c2 dc8 23.b2 8c6
439
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
and it's still not possible to consolidate ]
20...hc8 21.a3 a6 Now Black forces a
theoretically drawn endgame. 22.d3 b5
23.axb5 axb5 24.b1 xc3 25.xc3 xc3
26.xb5 c4 27.xc4 xc4 28.f3 h5
29.h3 c2 30.b1 f6 31.e1 g5 32.a1
g6 33.a6+ f6 34.a4 h4 35.g3 hxg3
36.xg3 b2 37.e4 b1 38.f3 g1+
39.f2 h1 40.g2 b1 41.a6 f7
42.a5 g6 43.a6 f7 44.a2 e6
45.g3 g1+ 46.g2 xg2+ 47.xg2 e5
48.f2 f4 49.g2 e5 50.g3 f5
51.exf5 xf5 52.h4 gxh4+ 53.xh4 f4
54.h3 xf3 A good opening idea and I
believe this line can become one of Black's
main answers to this Anti-Meran.
½-½
452 A11
Tukmakov,Vladimir B 2595
Wasnetsky,Ursula 2059
3rd Hilton Open (1) 01.01.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 c6 3.c3 d5 4.e3 e6
5.c2 bd7 6.b3 e7
[ More passive than the normal 6...d6 ]
7.g4?!
[ A sharp new move, although the g4-thrust is
common in these type of positions, as we
know. 7.b2 i s n o r m a l , 0-0 8.d4
with a typical Slav position, Fridman,D-
Hidding,M/Kleve 1999, and ]
[ 7.d4 b6 8.g4 0-0 9.g5 h5 10.g1
is a m ix b e t we e n t h e t wo , G u re vich , D-
Waitzkin, J/Chicago 1997. ]
7...h6?!
[ 7...xg4! is critical. What had White
intended, as 8.g1 ge5 9.xe5 xe5
10.xg7?! loses an exchange after g6 ]
8.g1 c5?!
[ Black's play is not very strong, 8...e5 ]
9.b2 The advantage of playing g4, without
d4, is that this bishop's diagonal is open, and
it can participate in the attack on g7. g8?!
10.g5 hxg5 11.xg5 e5?! 12.cxd5 cxd5
13.b5! a6 14.b4 axb5 15.bxc5 d7?
[ Black can't hold both e5, and b5, but he
should have preferred to keep the former, by
15...e4 ]
16.xe5 c8 17.d4 b6 18.c6 xc6
19.b2 c8 20.xb5 c2 21.b3 xb5
22.xb5+ d7?
[ Following 22...c6 23.a4 White is a pawn
ahead, but this is disastrous. ]
23.xd5
1-0
453 A11
Vaganian,Rafael A 2623
Jussupow,Artur 2610
34th Olympiad (10) 07.11.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 d5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g4 4.c4 e6
5.cxd5 exd5 6.b3 b6 7.c2
White withdraws his queen, he has no wish to
play an equal endgame, and hopes to gain a
tempo on the black queen later-on. f6 8.0-0
e7 9.d3 bd7 10.c3 xf3
[ Not actually a novelty, as it was already
played in Filippov, V-Ibragimov,I/Sochi 1997,
although they immediately agreed a draw.
The idea is to hinder White's expansion in
the centre, as otherwise, 10...0-0 11.e4
h5 12.h4 dxe4 13.dxe4 e5 14.f5
d8 15.h3 f3 16.e3 and White has a
plus, Filippov,V-Barsov,A/Corsica 1997. ]
11.xf3 So, a new position! d4 12.b1!?
[ 12.e4 xe4 13.xe4 0-0 is level. ]
12...h5! Very aggressive, White is behind in
development so Black plays for the attack.
13.d2 e5 14.g2 h4 15.c4 xc4
16.xc4 g4! Putting further pressure on the
white kingside. 17.b4!?
[ 17.h3 is answered by e5 gaining a move
on the white queen. ]
17...d8 18.d2 c7 19.b5 White is
counterattacking strongly on the queenside.
c5 20.b6?
[ Logical, I suppose, but White finds himself
quickly mated, perhaps 20.f4 is a better
bet, d6 21.h3!? xf4 22.gxf4 f6
23.fe1 and White is still in the game. ]
20...axb6 21.b5+ f8 22.ab1?!
[ 22.h3 is necessary. ]
22...hxg3 23.hxg3 e5 The queen comes to
the h-file and W hite's days are numbered.
24.fe1 h2! 25.e4 h5 Mate is threatened
with ...Rh1+!. 26.f1 xg2! 27.xg2 h2+
440
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
28.f3 e5+
[ 28...e5+ 29.e2 h5+ 30.f1 h1+
31.e2 f3+ 32.f1 g4 gives mate. ]
0-1
454 A11
Van Wely,Loek 2680
Sveshnikov,Evgeny 2508
Liepajas Rokade (2) 30.07.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.e3 f6 4.c3 e6 5.b3
d6 6.b2 I played a similar game last year:
[ 6.c2 bd7 7.b2 0-0 8.g4 xg4
9.g1 f5 10.h3 and now Black preferred
ge5 11.g5 f6 12.f4 g6 13.0-0-0
White had long-term attacking chances, and
won easily, Kosten,A-Nguyen Van,S/ Cap
d'Agde FRA 2003. ]
6...0-0 7.c2 e7 A slight change from the
more common
[ 7...bd7 which we have considered many
times. ]
8.g4!? This looks like a good choice for a
rapid game! However, White can also play
[ 8.h3 bd7 and now 9.g4 b6 10.g5 e8
11.g1 as in Kozul,Z-Tukmakov,V/Portoroz
1996, although the h3-move looks useless
now. ]
[ 8.e2 bd7 and now 9.g4!?
is also possible, as is ]
[ 8.g1!? because e5 9.cxd5 e4 10.d4
cxd5 11.cb5 looks good for White. ]
8...xg4 This is obviously the critical reply,
although opening the g-file against your king
is not everyone's cup of tea! 9.g1 f5
This is played to allow a defence of g7 along
the rank, and gain some kingside space.
10.h3 f6 11.cxd5!? One problem with this
particular setup is that after
[ 11.0-0-0 Black can play a3 to exchange
the important dark-squared bishop,
although ( 11...e5 might be even better. )]
11...cxd5
[ 11...exd5!? 12.d3 f4 looks very risky,
13.e2 fxe3 14.fxe3 with open files for the
kingside attack. ]
12.b5 White exchanges Black's important
dark-squared bishop. c6 13.xd6 xd6
14.b5 White's plan is to exchange the c6-
knight to gain complete control of e5 and the
a1-h8 diagonal. d7 15.xc6 xc6 16.c3
W hite is lining-up on g7, a more positional
method is
[ 16.d4! (m e n acin g B c5 ) c7 17.c1
ac8 18.b2 and White's dark-squared
control offers excellent comp for the pawn. ]
16...d4!? A drastic method to open the c6-
bishop's diagonal. 17.xd4
[ 17.xd4 allows h2 18.e2 xh3 ]
17...xd4 18.xd4 d5 19.f4 I prefer White
in this endgame because of his strength on
the dark squares, but the opposite-colour
bishops make a draw likely. ac8 20.d3 a6
21.d2
[ 21.e4!? looks tempting, but probably only
le a d s t o a d ra w: fxe4 22.dxe4 xe4
( 22...xe4 23.xe6 f7 24.xf6 xf6
25.xg7+ h8 26.e7 ) 23.xe6 xe6
24.xg7+ h8 25.e7+ g8 26.g7+
etc. ( 26.xe6 xf4 )]
21...f7 22.ac1 fd8 23.a4 g6 24.b4
d7 25.e2 To stop ...e5. b6 26.a5 d7
27.d4 b8 28.b6 xc1 29.xc1 d7
30.c8 White is making good progress, he
gets his rook into the black position. c6
31.c3
[ 31.c5! looks more accurate. ]
31...g7
[ 31...g2! 32.h4 e7 threatens the rook
and ...Nd5+. ]
32.c5 f3 33.g3 Not the best square for
the knight but W hite wishes to avoid
exchanges. f7 34.h4
[ 34.e4!? ]
34...e5 35.f8+ g7 36.c8 exf4 37.exf4
I guess Whi te lost on time, as he is still ever-
so-slightly better in the final position.
0-1
455 A11
Wang Yue 2749
Zhou Jianchao 2650
TCh-CHN Beijing CHN (17) 03.11.2010
[Nigel Davies]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 f6 4.c3 g4
5.b3 b6 6.e5 e6 Black has also tried
other moves, for example:
[ a) 6...xb3 7.axb3 e6 ( 7...e6 8.d4
441
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
bd7 9.xd7 xd7 10.d3 e6 11.c5 a6
12.b4 d8 13.h3 g6 14.d2 g7
15.0-0-0 g8 16.c2 e7 17.g4 f5 18.f3
was also a bit better for White because of
his bishops in Kohlweyer, B (2405)-Sielecki,
C (2366)/Germany 2008) 8.d4 bd7
9.xg4 xg4 10.f3 gf6 11.g4 h6 12.h4
a6 13.f2 g6 14.d2 g7 15.cxd5 exd5
16.h5 gxh5 17.gxh5 f8 18.e2 e6
19.g3 aiming at f5 was better for White in
Goldin, A (2608)-Labollita, M (2454)/Buenos
Aires 2003 ]
[ b) 6...e6 looks like an attempt to be rock
solid but it gives up the two bishops. After
7.xg4 xg4 8.e2 f6 9.d4 bd7
10.0-0 e7 11.d2 0-0 12.c2 dxc4
13.xc4 d8 14.fd1 White had a slight
edge in Flores, D (2553) -Alonso, S (2437)/
La Plata 2008. ]
[ c) 6...f5 7.xb6 ( 7.cxd5 xb3 8.axb3
xd5 9.c4 e6 10.e4 xc3 11.exf5 d5
12.fxe6 fxe6 13.0-0 d7 was about equal
at this stage in Malakhatko, V (2543)-Drabke,
L (2439)/W erther 2004) 7...axb6 8.cxd5
xd5 9.xd5 cxd5 10.b5+ d7
( 10...d7 11.xd7 xd7 12.d4 e6
13.d2 d6 14.e2 was better for White
in Brener, I (2382)-Bruchmann, S (2265)/
Berlin 2007) 11.f4 g6 12.d3 f6 13.f3
f7 14.e4 dxe4 15.dxe4 a5 16.a4 xb5
17.axb5 xe4 left Black with inadequate
compensation for the exchange in
Chatalbashev, B (2543)-Drabke, L (2453)/
Antalya 2004. ]
7.d4 This looks like White's most promising
choice here.
[ 7.c2 bd7 8.d4 g6 9.f4 f5 10.d3
e6 11.0-0 e7 12.c5 c7 13.b4 0-0
wa s a b o u t e q u a l i n S o ko l o v, I ( 2 5 7 0 ) -
Bagirov, V (2465)/Belgrade 1988. ]
7...bd7
[ White seems to keep a little something after
o t h e r m o v e s t o o , f o r e x a m p l e 7...dxc4
8.xc4 xc4 9.xc4 e6 10.e4 a6
was Hort, V (2610)-Keres, P (2605)/
P e t r o p o l i s 1 9 7 3 / I Z T , a n d n o w 11.f4
looks like a small edge. ]
[ Another possibility is 7...g6 after which
8.f4!? g7 9.e2 dxc4 10.xc4 xc4
11.xc4 0-0 12.0-0 bd7 13.b3
was more comfortable for White in Zlotnikov,
M (2355)-W essman, R (2440)/New York
1992. ]
8.xd7 xd7
[ Black has also tried 8...xd7 , for example
9.cxd5 xb3 10.axb3 xd5 11.xd5 cxd5
12.d2 e6 13.d3 d6 14.e2 e7
15.hc1 was marginally better for White
because of his bishop pair in Cossin, S
(2466)-Prie, E (2526)/Pau 2008. ]
9.cxd5
[ Another attempt to squeeze an edge out of
th e po sition is 9.a4!? but after xb3
( 9...c7 10.c5 c8 11.cxd5 xd5
12.e4 looked like an edge for White in
Gurevich, M (2610)- Hauchard, A (2500)/
Belfort 1998) 10.axb3 0-0-0 11.d3 g4
12.f3 h5 13.d2 g6 14.xg6 hxg6
15.cxd5 xd5 16.c5 a6 17.d3 f6
and it was starting to look very equal in
Shchekachev, A (2520)-Romanov, E (2547)/
Paris 2008. ]
9...xd5 10.c4 e6 11.e4 xb3 12.xb3
xc3 13.bxc3 c5 14.0-0 c8 15.d1
This doesn't look like much for White because
his space advantage doesn't mean much with
so many pieces exchanged. b6 16.d5
[ There's a case for waiting with this and
playing, say, 16.f4 . White's position looks
slightly the more comfortable. ]
16...c4 17.dxe6 fxe6
[ 17...xe6 18.a4+ e7 19.f4 ]
18.c2 c5 19.f1 h6 20.e2 e7 21.a4
hd8 22.e3 e5 23.f3 xe3 24.xe3 c5
[ 24...e8 looks dead equal to me but when
both players want to fight that's what they'll
probably get. ]
25.h4
[ 25.a5 seems more logical, stopping the a-
pawn becoming a fixed target. ]
25...e8 26.db1 a5 27.b4 c8
[ 27...b5 looks like a more active way to play
it. ]
28.g3 c6 29.g1 g5 30.hxg5 hxg5
31.h1 White is a bit better now thanks to
Black's misplaced rooks. g6 32.h8 ac5
33.a8 c7 34.b1 f7 35.d1 f6
36.h8 g7 37.dh1 g6 38.d8 5c6
39.hd1 e7 40.1d2 e8 41.f4 gxf4+
42.gxf4 exf4+ 43.xf4 f6+ 44.e3 b5?!
[ 44...g6 was better. ]
45.g2+ f7 46.axb5 xb5 47.d1 e5
442
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
48.dg8 c6?! 49.2g7+ e6 50.f3
Suddenly Black's king position gives great
cause for concern. The rescue operations
l e a v e h i m a c o u p l e o f p a w n s d o w n . a5
51.c8 d6 52.d4 xf3 53.g6+ e6?
54.xe6+ xe6 55.xc6+ d7 56.a6
d3+ 57.xc4 d1 58.xa5 e6 59.h5
e1 60.d4 White intends e5 d1+ 61.c5
e1 62.e5! d1 63.c4 d8 64.b6 c8
65.c5 d5 66.b7
1-0
456 A11
Zilberman,Yaacov 2481
Postny,Evgeny 2604
Channukah Closed (4.1) 05.12.2010
[Nigel Davies]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 f6 4.c3 a6
5.e2 b5
[ Black has also tried 5...g4 but then 6.b3
is quite unpleasant. After a7 ( 6...bd7
7.cxd5 c5 8.c4 cxd5 9.xc5 e5
10.b5+ untraps White's queen and wins a
pawn ) 7.h3 xf3 8.xf3 e6 9.d4 b5
10.cxb5 axb5 11.0-0 e7 12.d2 0-0
13.fc1 White had a plus in Tomashevsky,
E (2689)-Ni Hua (2701)/Sochi 2009. ]
6.cxd5 cxd5 7.b4 I like this move, trying to
stake out dark squares but without losing
access to the d4 square by occupying it with a
pawn. e6
[ Black has also tried 7...c6 but then 8.a4
xb4 9.axb5 a5 10.a3 e6 11.0-0
was a bit better for W hite in Nikcevic, N
(2540)-Marin, I (2261)/Sitges 1997. ]
8.a3 Quiet, sensible and apparently 'new',
though this position hasn't been explored too
much. The other possibilities are as follows:
[ a) 8.b3 bd7 9.a4 bxa4 10.xa4 b8
11.a3 was Delchev, A (2548)-Voiska, M
( 2 3 6 4 ) / T e r a m o 1 9 9 9 , a n d n o w b7
was best with only a slight advantage for
White. ]
[ b) 8.a4 xb4 9.axb5 0-0 10.b3 e7
11.0-0 b7 12.a3 axb5 13.xe7 xe7
14.xa8 xa8 15.xb5 became very
drawish in Kempinski, R (2608)-Movsesian,
S (2629)/ Izmir 2004. ]
8...d6 9.b2 0-0 10.0-0 bd7 11.d4
b6 12.d3 c7 13.f4 White is a bit better
here because of his nicely placed knight on
d4 plus potential outpost on c5. d7 14.c1
a7 15.h1 e5 This meets with a strong and
possibly unexpected reply.
[ 15...ac8 was more sensible though White
is still for choice after 16.e4! , trundling his
central pawns forward. ]
16.f5! xf5 17.fxe5 d4
[ After 17...xe5 18.xf5 b8 White has a
powerf ul con tinuat ion in 19.d4! xh2
20.xf6! gxf6 21.d3 followed by 22.Qh5. ]
18.exd4 fd5 19.xd5 xd5 20.d2
After this simple move everything becomes
clear White is going to win his piece back and
come out ahead on pawns. e6 21.exd6
ad8 22.c6 d7 23.c5 e6 24.f3
xd6 25.e1 White's extra doubled d-pawn
may not look like much but it lends him great
central control plus squares such as c5. d7
26.g5 d8 27.g3 f6 28.ec1 f7
29.c6 e7 30.h3 f8 31.1c5 f7
32.c1 xc6 33.xc6 c8 34.c5 d8
35.d2 e8 36.h6 f8 37.d2 e8
38.e4 h8 39.h4 g8 40.f3 d7
41.g3 e8 42.h2 f7 43.e4 g8
44.h1 There's no hurry, and White's patient
play will wear down Black's psychological
resistance. f7 45.f3 d7 46.e1 g8
47.g3 e6 48.f5 e8 49.e4 f8
50.c6 e7 Giving up the a-pawn in an
attempt to maintain coordination.
[ A f t e r e i t h e r 50...a8 51.e6 xe6
52.xe6 c3 53.c6 ]
[ or 50...a5 51.bxa5 xa3 52.c7 xc7
53.xc7 d6 54.c6 White is making
steady progress. ]
51.xa6 d5 52.g4 xf5 53.xf5 h6
54.c7 a8 55.b6 f7 56.g3 d8
57.xb5 g6 58.f4 g7 59.c5 e8
60.b5 g5 61.f5 f7 62.b6 e7 63.c7
e3
[ 63...e8 64.b7 is equally forlorn. ]
64.e5!
1-0
443
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

457 A11 Even so it isn't easy. 35.bxc5 xc5 36.d8+

Zueger,Beat 2448 f8 37.d3 b4! Creating a passed a-pawn.
Gagunashvili,Merab 2580 'Opening the way to the a-pawn. ' 38.axb4
4th IECC Istanbul TUR (1) 30.05.2003 xb4 39.e5 fxe5 40.d5 d4 41.xf7+
[Nigel Davies] xf7 42.f5+ e7 43.g5+ e6 44.g6+
d5 45.f7+ c5 46.a2 e4 47.a3+
1.g3 d5 2.f3 c6 3.g2 f6 4.c4 dxc4 b5 48.g2 d2 49.e7 e3! 50.b7+
5.0-0 bd7 6.a3 b6 7.c2 d5 8.e1 c5 51.a7+ b4 52.b6+ c3 53.c6+
d4 9.e3 b3 54.b5+ a3 55.c5+ b2 56.b5+
[ Another possibility was to make a gambit of c1 57.f1+ d1 58.c4+ c2 59.f1+
it with 9.d3 , for example cxd3 10.xd3 d2 60.fxe3 xe3+ 61.h3 g6 62.f4+
f5 11.d1 e6 12.e3 a4 13.xa4 e2 63.e5+ f1 64.f4+ g1 65.d4+
xa4 14.c4 e7 15.ac1 d5 16.d4 f2 66.e3
leaves Black having to deal with awkward [ 66.d1+ is bad because of f1+ ]
possibilities such as b2-b3 or e2-e4. ] 66...a3 67.xa3
9...g4 10.e4 e5 11.xc4 xc4 12.xc4 [ Or 67.c1+ f1+ etc. ]
So White recovers his pawn and has a central 67...h2#
pawn majority but is behind in development. 0-1
My estimate is one of approximate equality.
d6 13.b3 h5!? Declaring an intention to
complicate and unbalance the game. 458 A12
[ 13...e6 followed by 14... 0-0-0 would have Kortschnoj,Viktor 2619
been another way to play it. ] Sutovsky,Emil 2665
14.h4 e6 15.c2 d7 16.f3 f6 III Marx Gyorgy (4) 15.06.2005
After White's reply I don't like Black's position [John Watson]
b u t m a y b e s o m e t h i n g h a s a l re a d y go n e
wrong. Two very high-level grandmasters duke it out
[ After 16...0-0-0 17.g5 his queen would in the Reti Opening. The elder prevails. 1.c4
be in danger, for example c5 18.d4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.f3 d5 4.b3
( 18.h2 e2 ) 18...xd4 19.h2 xa1 [ Korchnoi chooses the Reti. Over his career
20.f3 xg5 21.xg5 f6 22.xf6 gxf6 he must have filled 95% of the ECO codes!
23.xa1 wins it for inadequate But if you believe the next note, White might
compensation. ] want to do without this move and play 4.g2
17.d4 0-0 18.b2 f7 19.ad1 e6 dxc4 . Then Tony has discussed several
20.d2 c7 21.dxe5 xe5 22.xe5 examples after 5.a4!? e6 , e.g.,
[ Against a lower rated opponent White might A) 6.a3 c a n b e a n s w e r e d b y d5
have played the sharper 22.d4!? when ( 6...d5!? ) 7.c2 c5 8.xc4 c6 9.0-0
g4 23.f4 ad8 24.c1 g6 25.h2 e6 10.b3 e7 11.b2 0-0 with an easy
threatens 26.Bh3. ] game for Black, Radjabov-Svidler, Internet
22...xe5 23.xe5 xe5 24.b4 INT 2003.;
Here too it looks like White is playing it safe B) 6.0-0 d5 7.c3 a6 8.b3!? cxb3
and he starts drifting into trouble. 9.d3 xf3 10.xf3 e6 11.xb3
[ 24.f4 was more dynamic. ] Miroshnichenko-Kuzmin, Dubai 2004. See
24...c7 25.d2 a5 26.c5 fd8 27.fd1 ChessPub. ]
xd2 28.xd2 a4 29.a3 4...g4
[ After 29.b4 White's a2 pawn can become [ As discussed previously in the April Update,
weak. ] most players still forego the chance for
29...b5 30.h2 b6 31.b4 d8 32.e3 4...dxc4 5.bxc4 e5! , when Black has
c7 33.a3 xd2 34.xd2 c5! Now Black is scored very well and seems to have easy
c le a r ly b e t t e r b e ca u se o f h is qu e e n sid e equality. It would have been fun to see
majority and W hite's coming weak a-pawn. Korchnoi on the White side of this position. ]

444
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
5.e5
[ 5.g2 xf3 6.xf3 e5 is already
considered equal. ]
5...f5 6.g2 bd7 7.d4 The position now
takes on a Catalan flavour, It doesn't make
sense to delay this, since
[ 7.b2 e6 8.0-0 xe5 ( 8...d6 ) 9.xe5
d6 is very comfortable for Black. ]
7...e6 8.0-0 d6 An important decision, since
n o w B la c k wo n 't b e a b le t o p la y . . . Nxe 5
because of an ensuing fork. The main options
are:
[ 8...e7 , e.g., 9.a3 ( 9.b2 0-0
10.d2 ) 9...xa3 10.xa3 0-0 11.c2
xe5 12.dxe5 g4 13.cxd5 exd5 14.d4
c8 15.e4 dxe4 16.xe4 xe5 17.xh7+
xh7 18.h5+ g8 19.xe5 e8
wit h a B lac k in itia tive, K ut yne c-K incyl,
Moravian Ch 1995. ]
[ and 8...xe5 9.dxe5 g4 10.cxd5 cxd5
11.d4 f6 12.exf6 xf6 13.f4 e7
14.d2 0-0 15.b4 ( 15.ac1 ) 15...d7
16.e4 f6 17.e5 e7 18.b3 b6
1/2-1/2 Eade-C Nakamura, Hawaii 1994. ]
9.b2 c7 10.d3
[ Mo re a m b it io u s t h a n 10.xd7 xd7
11.c3 0-0 12.e3 fe8 13.e2 ad8
14.ad1 e7 15.e4 dxe4 16.xe4 xe4
17.xe4 g5= Najer-Chuprov, St
Petersburg 1994. White keeps the pieces on
and launches a queenside attack, but he
risks trouble on the kingside: ]
10...h5! 11.c5 e7 12.b4 h4 13.d2 g4
A bit sophisticated.
[ Black could play for direct attack via
13...hxg3 14.hxg3 0-0-0 ]
14.h3 hxg3?! Sacrificing a piece for attack.
There was no need for this. Black should
simply retreat and keep his attack going by
[ 14...gf6 , e.g., 15.g4 xg4! 16.hxg4
xg4 17.e5 dxe5 18.dxe5 h3 19.f3
xe5 ]
15.hxg4 gxf2+ 16.xf2 h2+!?
[ 16...xg4 17.f3 g3 looks more
ac cu ra te b ec au se W hite 's kin g is well-
protected on f1. ]
17.f1 xg4 18.f3 xf3?
[ 18...g3 is necessary so as to keep the
initiative, but White has enough defenders, e.
g., 19.b5 ( 19.d2 g5! (stopping Qf4))
19...cxb5 20.b3 a6 21.de5 ]
19.xf3 Black doesn't have enough pieces in
t h e a t t a c k a n d s o s t a ys m a t e r i a l d o wn .
Perhaps Sutovsky miscalculated something
wh en h e m ad e t he piece sacrif ice. It 's a
tribute to his tenacity that from now on he
lasts so long in what looks like a mopping up
operation. h3+ 20.g2 g3 21.f3 h2
22.f2 h5 23.c1 g5 24.h3 xh3
25.xh3 xc1 26.xc1 e5 27.g5 exd4
28.xg7 e5 29.xe5+ xe5 30.d1 a5
31.b5 d7 32.f4 xc5 33.bxc6 bxc6
34.c1 e6 35.xe6 fxe6 36.xc6 d7
37.b6 c8 38.h3 c1+ 39.f2 c2
40.xe6 c7 41.f5 xa2 42.d3 a1
43.f3 f1+ 44.g4 a4 45.a6 a3
46.xa3 d6 47.a8 e6 48.f5+ d6
49.a6+ e7 50.e6+ d7 51.g5 f2
52.g4 g2 53.e4+ d6 54.xd4 e5
55.d3 d4 56.h4 g1 57.h3 e4
58.f3+ e5 59.h2 g7 60.g2 g8
61.g1 f8 62.f3 f6 63.f2 a6
64.b3 a1 65.b5+ f4 66.b8 d1
67.e8 g5 68.e4
1-0
459 A12
Kosten,Anthony C 2524
Doettling,Fabian 2473
Bundesliga 2000-1 (5) 07.01.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.e3 f6 4.b3 g4
5.b2 e6 6.h3 h5 7.e2 bd7
[ More flexible than the 7...d6 seen in the
archives. ]
8.d3
[ 8.a3 avoids Black's next move, h6 9.d3
d6 10.bd2 e7 11.b4 a5 12.c5 c7
13.c2 g6 14.0-0 0-0 the black position
is fine, Speelman,J-Conquest,S/Hastings
ENG 2000/1 ]
8...b4+!
[ 8...xf3 is a solid alternative, 9.xf3 d6
10.0-0 0-0 11.g3 e7 12.g2 fe8 13.a3
a5 14.c3 , Malaniuk,V-Ulak,S/Polanica
Zdroj 1999, although White made his slight
edge count. ]
[ 8...d6?! is the move White is hoping for,
though, 9.g4 g6 10.g5 h5 11.h4
leaving the knight offside, and exposed,
445
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Prze wozn ik,J-Lukasiewicz,G/ Augu sto w when W hite has the two bishops, and a
1996. ] queenside majority in this endgame. ]
9.c3!? 16.g3 Almost forced, Black threatened ...Nf3+,
[ Apparently, this is a novelty (although I and ...Qh2 mate> f3+ 17.xf3
wasn't aware of this when I played it), but I [ 17.g2? d4 ]
wa s n ' t t o o s u r e a b o u t 9.bd2 xf3! 17...xf3 18.e4 xe4
10.gxf3 ( 10.xf3? dxc4 11.bxc4 c5 [ 18...e7 19.fe1 0-0 is slightly simpler. ]
w i n s a p a w n) 10...e5 11.a3 d6 19.dxe4 0-0 20.c3 xc3 21.xc3 c7
as Black seems to have a fine position, 22.g2 xd1 23.xd1 d8 Forcing the
Zilberman,Y-Zifroni,D/Herzliya 1998. ] exchange of rooks, and a draw. In f act, I
9...xf3 would have agreed one immediately, if this
[ 9...dxc4 10.bxc4 c5!? ( 10...xf3 were not a team match. 24.xd8+ xd8
11.xf3 transposes to a later note) 11.a3 25.g4 g6 26.e5 h5 27.b4 hxg4 28.hxg4
a5 12.g4!? g6 13.e5 is another f5 29.exf6 xf6 30.c5 a6 31.f3 f7
possibility, which offers chances to both 32.e4 g7 33.a4 f6 34.f4 g7 35.d6
sides. ] e8 36.e5 f8 37.f6 d6 38.d4 d7
10.xf3 e5 39.e5
[ I was expecting 10...dxc4 11.bxc4 c5 ½-½
12.e2! a move I felt he might miss, when
White has a central majority and the bishop
pair, e.g. ( 12.e2?! a5 13.c2 a4 460 A12
looks to favour Black) 12...0-0 13.c2 e5 Larsen,Bent
14.g4 e8 15.ad1 e7 16.g5 fd7 Kortschnoj,Viktor
17.h4 and White controls e4, as well. ] 1987 Brussels 1987
11.e2 d4! 12.exd4 xd4 13.c2 [Paul Motwani]
At this moment I felt I was better, f or the
queen will have to leave d4, and I would then B1: "Scorching victory by Viktor Korchnoi!" B.
be able to play d4, and take the centre. f4! L a rse n -V . K o rc h n o i, B ru sse ls 1 9 8 7 . Re t i
[ I had n't expe cted this, rathe r 13...0-0-0 Opening. The opening of the following swift
14.0-0! d6 ( 14...xd3?? 15.ad1 ) clash (which occurred in a tournament
15.fd1 g6 16.d4 etc., although Black is sponsored by a company called SWIFT!) is
not without chances. ] named after GM Richard Reti, who contributed
14.d1 a huge amount to chess during his short life
[ Unfortunately, the queen cannot be driven from Tuesday 28 May 1889 to Thursday 6
away, 14.g3? f3+ 15.f1 d4 June 1929. His brilliant battles were rich in
gaining complete control of d4. ] deep ideas, and the Reti Opening troubled
14...d8 numerous opponents, but in the following
[ I was hoping for 14...c5!? which threatens game the black pieces are being moved by
mate, and seems to further reinforce the an exceptionally strong player... 1.c4 f6
weakness of d4, but I had prepared: 15.d4! 2.g3 c6
xd4 16.xd4 xd4 17.d5 c5 [ White's second move indicated a likely
18.c7+ e7 19.xa8 xa8 20.0-0 intention to fianchetto his king's bishop.
when W hite's two bishops provide more Korchnoi's response to that is one of the
than enough compensation for the pawn. ] most logical possible replies, designed to
15.0-0 d6 re d u c e t h e f u t u r e s c o p e o f t h e e n e m y
[ Once again I had prepared a trick after the bishop on the h1-a8 diagonal. He wants to
logical 15...c5 : 16.d4! xd4 be able to maintain a pawn on the d5 square,
( 16...xd4?! 17.d5 cxd5 18.xd4 g5 so he makes the preparatory move ...c6. Of
19.cxd5 xd5 20.b5+ is very unpleasant course 2...e6 is a common and perfectly
for Black ) 17.a4 xd1 18.xd1 e7 good move too, but one point in favour of
19.d4! xd4 20.xd4 d6 21.xa7 Korchnoi's choice is that his queen's bishop

446
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
will h a ve lo t s o f f re e d o m o n t h e c 8 -h 3
diagonal once ...d5 has been played. ]
3.f3
[ Reader's Challenge B1P1 Changes in move
order can sometimes make critical tactical
differences. For instance, can you see why
3.g2 d5 4.b3?! is unsatisfactory for
White? A solution appears after the game
B1. ]
3...d5 4.b3 b6!? One key aspect of this
interesting idea is that after 5 Bb2 dxc4, then
6 bxc4?? would leave the bishop on b2 en
prise. Black is about to reveal another more
disguised detail. 5.g2
[ 5.d4 merits consideration. Although it
leaves White rather exposed on the e1-a5
and b1-h7 diagonals, the move does gain
some space. ]
5...e5! 6.0-0
[ Suddenly Black has a spatial advantage,
made possible by the tactical point 6.xe5?
d4 Going back briefly to move four,
another related and equally noteworthy
possibility was 4...dxc4 5 bxc4 e5!. ]
6...e4 7.e1
[ A sad, but almost forced retreat, in view of
7.e5? d4 or ]
[ 7.h4? g5 ]
7...h5! Grandmaster Dr Colin McNab faced
this seven years later at the 1994 Moscow
Olympiad. Like Larsen, Colin also found that
White's position is already both cramped and
insecure. Black's very direct assault on the h-
file is not subtle, but is nevertheless highly
effective! 8.c3
[ 8.h4 might have slowed down Black's
attack, but it would relinquish almost all
control of the g4 square, since the move h3
c o u l d n o l o n g e r b e p l a y e d . A l s o , d6
m e n a c in g 9 . . . B xg 3 , s h o ws u p a n o t h e r
drawback of the advance h2-h4. ]
8...h4 9.d4 hxg3 10.fxg3
[ Purely from a structural point of view,
capturing towards the centre with 10.hxg3
is preferable, since it keeps White's pawns
more compact. However, Larsen was
pro bab ly, a nd qu ite n atu ra lly, a f raid o f
Korchnoi's queen quickly finding her way to
h2 and announcing 'Checkmate'. ]
10...a5! 11.c2
[ 11.d2? e3! or ]
[ 11.b2 g4 pouncing on the weaknesses
at e3 and h2. ]
11...b4 12.b2 e6!
[ 12...g4 would be badly timed in this
position because of 13.cxd5 cxd5 14.xd5!
exploiting the unprotected situation of the
bishop on c8. ]
13.cxd5 xd5 14.xd5
[ 14.xe4? e3 ]
14...cxd5 15.a3 d2! 16.d1?
[ 16.b4 e3+ 17.h1 d8! 18.c3 g5
threatens ...Qxg3 or 19...Rxh2+! 20 Kxh2
Qh5+ 21 Bh3 Qxh3. Perhaps ]
[ 16.h1 is relatively best. For example,
A) A big improvement is 16...e3 17.c3
( 17.b4? d8! transposes to a line
already given) 17...xc3 18.xc3 d7!
19.c2 c8! 20.xe3 xc3 when White
is vi r t u a l ly lo s t b e ca u se o f h is lo o s e
structure and congested army.;
B) 16...c6? 17.b4 c7 18.xd2 xg3
19.f4! xh2+ 20.g1 even puts Black
in trouble ]
16...e3+ 17.h1 c7! The final position
underlines how helpless W hite's king is to
defend against the threat of 18... Qxg3. His
other pieces, even those very nearby, cannot
come to his aid, because they are so lacking
in scope and space in which to move. Solution
to B1P1 Black simply wins a pawn after 4...
dxc4 5 bxc4 Qd4! because of the double
attack against White's c4-pawn and a1-rook.
0-1
461 A12
Larsen,Bent
Petrosian,Tigran V
(Clarin) Buenos Aires 1979
[Nigel Davies]
1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.f3 d5 4.b3 g4
5.g2 e6 6.0-0 bd7 7.b2 e7 8.d3 0-0
9.bd2 e8 10.a3 a5 11.e1!? A rare semi-
waiting move of the kind that was quite typical
of Larsen.
[ T h e m o s t c o m m o n c h o i c e i s 11.c2
when a recent example went f8 12.h3
h5 13.fc1 h6 14.f1 g6 15.e5
xe5 16.xe5 d7 17.c3 a4 18.b4
axb3 19.xb3 b6 with a comfortable
447
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
game for Black at this stage in Sunye Neto,
J (2488)-Arias, L (2372)/ Dresden 2008. ]
11...f8
[ After 11...d6 Larsen intended 12.e4!
dxe4 13.xe4 xe4 14.xe4 , claiming a
slight edge for W hite. I'm not sure this is
really true after Rybka's suggestion of f5
15.e3 e5 but it does give an insight into
Larsen's natural optimism. ]
12.e5
[ And not 12.e4? because of c5! . ]
12...xe5 13.xe5 d6?! Attempting to
simplify and perhaps secure a draw, but now
White is left with the better bishop. 14.xd6
xd6 15.d4 ed8 16.c5 c7 17.b4 e5
18.b3 axb4 19.axb4 e4 20.d2
W hite is slightly better here though can it
really be enough to grind down Petrosian?
For Larsen the game is just beginning he
plays on and on and attempts to exploit the
slightest inaccuracy. h6 21.xa8 xa8
22.a1 xa1+ 23.xa1 g5 Trying to set his
king side pawn majority in motion but the
downside is that it creates some new
weak nes ses . 24.c2 g7 25.e3 e6
26.f3 b8 27.b2 g8
[ Having the king on same diagonal as
W hite's queen can be dangerous, for
example 27...a7 is bad because of
28.fxe4 dxe4 29.xe4! . ]
28.a1 d8 29.a5!? Taking the fight into
the endgame. Black has little choice but to
allow this exchange as otherwise W hite's
queen could take up a dominating position.
xa5 30.bxa5 f8 31.f2 e7
[ After 31...exf3 32.exf3 White could bring
his bishop to d3 from where it bears down
on the weakness on f5. This is one of the
down sides of 23...g5. ]
32.fxe4 Aiming to target Black's e4 pawn.
[ Another possibility was 32.c2 intending
33.Nb4 and a5-a6. ]
32...dxe4 33.h3 d8 34.f1 c7 35.e3
[ The immediate 35.g4 is answered by h5!
.]
35...b8 36.d2 a7 37.f1 d5 38.e2
e6 39.g4 d5 40.f1 The knight is coming
to g3 to prevent Black from liquidating some
kingside pawns with ... h6-h5. e6 41.g3
d7 42.c4 e6 43.f1 d7 44.e1 e6
45.f2 b8
[ Rather than take the king back Larsen felt
that 45...d7 was a better try intending
46.g2 a6 47.xe4 xa5 . But Black
could still counterattack on his next move,
so maybe this wasn't so bad. ]
46.g2 d5
[ Rather than going passive like this a better
chance would have been 46...a7 47.xe4
a6 . Now White's knight comes in with very
unpleasant consequences. ]
47.f5 g8 48.d6 f6 49.g3 a7
50.f1 Preventing Black's king from coming to
a6. e6 51.f2 d5 52.e2 e6 53.e1
d5 54.d2 f6 55.c4! b8 56.xe6
fxe6 57.f7 g8 58.d8 a7 59.xe6
a6 60.d8 f6 61.f7 g8 62.c3
xa5 63.d6 f6 64.xb7+ a4 65.d8
[ After 65.d8 d5+ 66.d2 e7
White has 67.f7 g8 68.d5! etc. ]
1-0
462 A12
Leko,Peter 2745
Kasparov,Garry 2849
Corus Wijk aan Zee NED (8) 22.01.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.b3 d5 4.b2 g4
5.g2 e6 6.f3 bd7 Play has transposed
into a main line Reti, Capablanca System.
7.0-0 d6 8.d3 0-0 9.bd2 a5 10.a3
h5!?
[ A n u n u s u a l p ro p h yl a ct ic m o ve . 10...e5
11.c2 e8 , Stummer,A-Luther,T/
Budapest 1992, is quite reasonable, and ]
[ 10...e7 is very common. ]
11.c2
[ White plays for e4, 11.d4 b8 12.e1 b5
13.c5 e7 14.b4 gives White extra space,
Pigusov,E-Wu Wenjin/Shenyang 1999, but
Black is solid. ]
11...e5
[ Only this position is actually new, 11...e8
12.ae1?! e5 13.cxd5 cxd5 14.e4 c8
favours Black, Lamb,H-Meister,P/York ENG
1999. ]
12.e4 dxe4
[ 12...d4 occurred in the game Kosten,A-
Farago,I/Hyeres 1992, except that the white
h-pawn was on h3 ]
448
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

13.dxe4 e8 14.h4 c5 15.df3 b6 7...c5 8.e3 White keeps the pressure on e4,
Ideally Black would like to play ...Nf8-e6-d4, [ 8.cxe4?! loses the exchange to xe4
but the white pressure on e5 ties the knight to 9.xe4 d4 10.xc5 xa1 ]
d 7 , a n d s t o p s t h i s . 16.ad1 f8!
8...f5 9.g2 d3? This natural move loses
Black changes plan, and menaces ...Nc5, a pawn for nothing. Black should have tried
hitting e4, and b3. 17.b1 [ 9...e7! 10.c2 b4 11.cxe4!
[ Unpinning the f3-knight, and stopping the ( 11.gxe4? xc3 wins a piece.) 11...h6
leading to a long forcing line: 12.d6+ xd6
a f o r e m e n t i o n e d m a n o e u v r e , b u t 17.h3
is an alternative, so that if c5!? 18.g4 g6 13.xf5 hxg5 14.c8+ d8 15.xb7
19.xg6 hxg6 20.xe5 , but then xb3 bd7 16.xc6 e5 White has three pawns
21.xb3 xb3 22.g5 h5 and White's for the piece, and now 17.d4!? c8 18.a6
advantage is minimal. ] seems to favour White as his three central
17...c5! Black dives into the complications.pawns, supported by two bishops, are very
18.xe5 cxe4 19.d4 c5 20.xc5 powerful. Nevertheless, Black should
xc5 21.b4 axb4 22.axb4 f8 certainly prefer this to the game
[ 22...a7 is tempting, Black will play down
continuation. ]
the a-file. ] 10.b3 bd7 11.cxe4! The point, Black
23.fe1 ad8 24.h3 g5! 25.g4 loses his e-pawn for nothing. xb3
[ Safest, the exchange sac 25.f5!? xf3 [ 11...xe4?! 12.xe4 is worse. ]
26.xf3 d2 27.c3 is very risky. ] 12.axb3 h6 13.xf6+ xf6 14.f3 c2
25...gxh4 26.gxh5 g7 27.bd1 g5 15.a3 xa3 16.xa3 Easily defending the b-
28.f5 pawn, White remains a pawn to the good, with
½-½ the superior structure. c5 17.e2 0-0-0!?
18.e1 e4 19.xa7 b8 20.a2 g6
21.b4! cxb4 22.b2 e4 23.xe4
463 A12 The simplest - every exchange brings White
Malakhov,Vladimir 2647 closer to the full point. xe4 24.f3 g6
Sutovsky,Emil 2656 25.e4 f5 26.d3 fxe4 27.fxe4 hf8 28.xb4
10th Open Valls d'Aosta ITA (8) 16.02.2002 f6 29.e3 df8 30.b2 h5 31.h3
[Tony Kosten] Black's temporary initiative is easily repulsed.
f1 32.bh2 8f2 33.xf1 xh2 34.h4
1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.f3 d5 4.b3 dxc4!? e2+ 35.f4 d2 36.g4 e8 37.e3 d1
Anti-positional, but there is a tactical follow-up 38.e2 a4 39.f3
- this is the sort of line a computer plays if you 1-0
switch off its openings book! 5.bxc4 e5
The point, Black obtains free development
like this, but what about the positional cost of 464 A12
exchanging a d5-pawn for a b3-pawn? 6.c3 Miles,Anthony J 2609
[ And not 6.xe5?? d4 ] Ledger,Andrew 2459
6...e4!? The most aggressive, as is to be 4NCL Birmingham ENG (8) 21.03.1999
expected from Sutovsky, although others are [Tony Kosten]
possible:
[ 6...b4 7.b3 a5?! 8.xe5! winning a 1.f3 f6 2.c4 c6 I am sure that one of the
pawn, Kavalek,L-Lombard,A/Biel 1977, or ] reasons the Slav Defence is currently so
[ 6...d6 7.g2 0-0 8.0-0 e7 9.d3 bd7 popular, is that it can be played not only
10.a4 with an edge, because of the centre, against 1 d4, but also against 1 c4, and 1 Nf3.
Spraggett,K-Hector,J/Palma de Mallorca 3.b3 d5 4.b2 g4 5.e3 This anti-Slav
1989. ] system is a speciality of Tony Miles, and
7.g5! New, and better than contains quite a lot more venom than you
[ 7.g1?! c5 8.e3 0-0 with advantage, m i g h t e x p e c t . e6 6.e2 d6 7.h3
Letreguilly,O-Haik,A/ FRA-chT 1992. ] The position resembles a main line Reti,

449
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
except that the white king's bishop is on e2,
not g2. xf3 Conceding the bishop pair, after
which, although Black has a solid position,
White will retain a 'nibble'. That is, a slight,
but enduring, advantage.
[ However, there is a problem with the
a l t e r n a t i v e , 7...h5 e.g. 8.d3
Kwatschewsky, L-Kargl,K/Wolfsberg AUT ch
1985, and now W hite should have played
9.g4! g6 10.g5 and Black is in trouble, his
only reasonable move is h5 but this piece
is badly misplaced, all the more so since
the white bishop is on e2, instead of g2,
and there will be constant threats of
capturing the h5-knight. ]
8.xf3 0-0 9.d3 bd7 10.d2 e7 11.0-0
ad8 Black's development is very sound, but I
think that he should prefer ...Ba3 on one of
h i s n e x t f e w m o ve s , e xc h a n g i n g h a l f o f
White's bishop pair. 12.c2 fe8
[ 12...a3! ]
13.fe1 e5 14.e2 Posing Black the problem
o f wh a t t o d o n e xt wi t h h is ce n t re . f8?!
15.a3 Black won't get another chance to play
...Ba3. b8 16.ac1 h6 17.b4 6h7?!
Black is running out of ideas, he decides to
advance on the kingside, but his has a down
s i d e , t o o . 18.f1 d6 19.g3 Black was
threatening ...e4, with a discovered mate
threat on h2. h5?! Hoping to open the h2-b8
diagonal with ...h4. 20.cxd5 cxd5 21.f3
g6 22.h4 f5 Unjustified aggression. 23.e4!
W hite counters on the light squares, these
turn out to be chronically weak in the black
camp. f4 24.h3 f6 25.g2 e7
The black knights are awkwardly placed, and
have difficulty finding useful squares. 26.d4!
This move often seems to be stronger when it
has been delayed a long time. exd4 27.xd4
f7 28.e5 This is strong, but
[ 28.exd5! is possibly even more effective,
xd5? 29.f5 f8 30.g5 and Black can
throw in the towel. ]
28...fxg3 29.fxg3 c6 30.f1 With a heavily
disguised threat of 31 Qxh7+! and 32 Ng5+.
xf3+!? This queen sac fails to a tactical trick,
but what else?
[ If 30...c7 then 31.g6 is crushing. ]
31.xf3 xd4 32.g6 xf3 33.e6+!
The tactic White had carefully prepared,
[ 33.xf3 xe5 is not nearly so clear. ]
33...h8 34.f5 f8 35.xh5+ g8
36.xf3 xe5 37.c8 Simplest. xc8
38.xc8 h7 Black has to concede further
pawns, if
[ 38...b6 39.b7 and d5 goes, with check. ]
39.xb7 f6 40.g4 White doesn't let-up, he
bd7 wants the d-pawn, too. d4 41.g5 e3
If the knight moves, 42 Bd5+ wins the house.
42.f5
1-0
465 A12
Morozevich,Alexander 2741
Vallejo Pons,Francisco 2686
Amber Blindfold rapid (11) 31.03.2005
[John Watson]
Two superstars test out a main-line Reti. The
move order is key for our purposes, with the
note on move four being the important one.
1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.b3
[ Tony's Dynamic English avoids the
problems inherent in b3 by suggesting 3.g2
d5 4.f3 instead. Nigel Davies' recent Reti
book does the same. That order sacrifices
the c-pawn, but the next note shows why
that's preferable. This is worth knowing. ]
3...d5 4.f3 What could be wrong here?
White avoids the problems associated with ...
dxc4. g4
[ But the most effective counter to White's
order is 4...dxc4 5.bxc4 ( 5.b2 e6 )
5...e5! Dunnington's Easy Guide to the Reti
features the position after 4.Nf3 but doesn't
mention 4...dxc4 at all! Statistically Black
has scored tremendously well here (200
point performance rating edge) and White
hasn't found a reliable solution, e.g.,
A) 6.b2 e4 hasn't worked out well for
W hite. His best move is probably 7.d4
, when Black has good options:
A1) 7...a6! has won a couple of
g a m e s a f t e r 8.g2 c5 ( 8...d6
9.c2 c5 10.e3 e7 11.c3 h5
12.h3 a5 13.c2 0-0 with a nice
advantage, McNab-S Collins, Blackpool
2003 ) 9.h3 d6 10.0-0 0-0 11.b3
e7 12.xc5 xc5 13.c1 h5!?
14.c3 f5 15.e3 b4 16.b3 e6
and Black stands well, Nickoloff-Kirton,
450
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Toronto 1978;
A2) 7...d6 8.b3 ( 8.g2 e5 9.e3
c5 10.e6 d6! was already winning in
Djosic-Laketic, Novi Sad 1989) 8...f5
( 8...bd7 9.g2 0-0 10.c3 e7
11.0-0 e8 with advantage, Preiss-
Dobosz, Karlsruhe 2003) 9.g2 h5
10.c2 bd7 11.c3 e7 12.h3?
g6! 13.e3? e5 14.xe4 xe4
15.xe5 xe5 0-1 Vujic Katanic-
Stefanova, Becici 1994.;
B) 6.c3!? e4! ( 6...a5 7.c2 e6
8.b1 a6!? came out well for Black in
Strikovic-Piket, Lisbon 2001 White has to
try 9.xb7 b4 10.a4 xa4 11.xa4
c8! 12.xb4 xb4 13.xe5 ) 7.g5
g4! (Practically everyone has missed this
wonderful move) ( 7...c5 has also done
well ) 8.gxe4 f5 this forces 9.f3 e5
10.f4 ( 10.f2 xc4 11.e3 b6 12.d4
b4!? 13.d2 e7 ) 10...xc4 11.e3
xe3 12.dxe3 xd1+ 13.xd1 fxe4
14.xe4= a6! 15.xa6 bxa6
and Black's bishops and rooks are
extremely active. ]
5.g2 bd7 6.b2 e6 7.0-0 e7
[ 7...d6 is common, to support ...e5. Then
White often plays the plan with d3 and Na3-
c2, aiming at e3 or d4. ]
8.d3 0-0 9.bd2 b8! An excellent move
that is known from other positions. Black
might want to expand by means of ... b5, but
also challenges White's control of e5 without
standing awkwardly on the c-file.
[ 9...e8 and ...Bf8 is normal. ]
10.h3 h5 11.e1 a5 12.f1 e8 13.g4
g6 14.h4 a4 15.xg6 hxg6 16.c2 b5
17.d2 b6 White has the bishops, but
Black stands well: his pieces are well-placed
and he controls more space on the queenside.
18.e3 eb8?!
[ 18...a3 19.c3 b4 ( or 19...e5 ) 20.d4
b8 with ...e5 next. ]
19.d4! c5!?
[ 19...c5 20.c3 b4 21.b2 a3?! 22.xf6
xf6 23.cxd5! ]
20.xc5 xc5 21.ec1 a7
[ 21...e7 22.d4 ]
22.cxd5 xc2 23.xc2 axb3 24.xb3
cxd5 25.d4 e5 26.g5 e8 27.f4 xd3
28.d1 a3 29.c6 b6 30.f1
Black continues
[ 30.f1 b2 31.e7+ f8 32.xg6+!
fxg6 33.xb2 xe3= ]
½-½
466 A12
Reti,Richard
Capablanca,Jose Raul
Moscow 1925
[Nigel Davies]
This game was played a year after
Capablanca's stunning defeat by Reti in the
New York 1924 tournament. This time he
plays a set-up that would become recognised
as one of the most solid and reliable defences
to the Reti. 1.f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.b3
[ Of course 3.d4 would bring about a Slav
Defence which Black must also be prepared
for. ]
[ If, on the other hand, White wants to
fianchetto his king's bishop then he should
d o t h i s n o w wi t h 3.g3 . But in this case
White has to reckon with dxc4 . ]
3...g4 4.b2 f6 5.e5
[ One of the advantages of Capablanca's
e a r l y . . . B c 8 - g 4 i s t h a t a f t e r 5.g3
he can mangle White's pawn structure with
xf3 . ]
5...h5 6.g3 e6 7.g2 e7 8.0-0 bd7
Exchanging off White's advanced knight. It
co u ld go b a ck o f co u rse , b u t t h a t wo u l d
represent a loss of two tempi. 9.xd7 xd7
10.d3 0-0 11.d2 c7 12.c1 fd8
13.f3 e8 Preparing to exchange more
pieces with ...Be7-f6. This time round it's
e vi d e n t t h a t C a p a b l a n c a i s t r e a t i n g h i s
opponent with far more caution. 14.c2 f6
15.a1!? Reti really loved putting his queen
on this square! xb2 16.xb2 xf3 17.xf3
e7 18.d1 a6 There's not much in it now.
19.g2 g6 20.e3 h5 21.cxd5 exd5 22.b4
h4 23.a4 d6 24.e4 dxe4 25.dxe4 e8
[ 25...xe4 26.e1 f5 27.f3 would win the
knight. ]
26.cd2 hxg3 27.hxg3 xd2 28.xd2 f6
29.d4 e8 30.b6 g7 31.e5 xe5
32.xb7 g4 33.b6
[ And not 33.xc6 b e c a u s e o f xf2
34.xf2 e2+ 35.g1 xd1+ etc. ]
451
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ whilst 33.xc6? is bad because of h5 space. ]

34.g2 ( Or 34.a7 e2 ) 34...e2 etc. ] 13...e5 This is positionally correct: when your
33...h5 opponent has the bishop pair you should try
[ 33...h5 34.d4+ g8 35.d2 e5 to exchange one of them. 14.c2
gives Black adequate counterplay. ] [ 14.c3 is more ambitious. ]
½-½ 14...xb2 15.xb2 e5 16.g2 d8?!
Black seems to have forgotten the castling
rule!
467 A12 [ 16...0-0 is level. ]
Rotstein,Arkadij 2525 17.a3! xa3 18.xa3 e7
Dogantug,Ismail 2175 W ithout queens the king might become a
20th ECC Izmir TUR (6) 08.10.2004 usef ul piece in the endgame, but with so
[Tony Kosten] many pieces still on the board this is a double-
edged decision.
1.f3 f6 2.c4 c6 3.b3 This avoids all the [ 18...0-0 19.ad1 still favours White, as f4
lines where Black captures on c4, but will drive the knight from the centre and give
commits White to a queenside fianchetto, of him some space advantage. ]
course. d5 4.b2 f5 Lasker's set-up still 19.f4 d3 20.c4 d7?! Playing on the
remains popular at all levels. 5.g3 e6 6.g2 next board I was amazed to see how quickly
d6 7.0-0 bd7 8.d3 e7!? Black tries to Black's solid position disintegrated after this
deter W hite f rom developing his queen's move.
knight, but this does put the king and queen [ 20...c5 is safer. ]
on the same file, which allows the following 21.e5 e8?!
tactical possibility. [ 21...d5 22.d6 is unpleasant, but
[ 8...0-0 is more usual, of course. ] better. ]
9.cxd5 exd5 22.ad1 g6
[ 9...cxd5?! is we l l m e t b y 10.d4 0-0 [ 22...c5 23.b4 a4 24.xd7+ xd7
( 10...g6 11.b5 e5 12.a3 25.c1 c7 26.a5 leads to a strong white
is u n p le a s a n t) 11.xf5 exf5 12.c3 attack (b5 is coming) while the black pieces
wit h p re s s u r e o n t h e we a k b la ck p a wn are bystanders. ]
structure and the bishop pair, Dake,A-Feigin, 23.a5! W inning material. g7 24.xb7!
M/Folkestone 1933. ] xe5?!
10.e4! The point! Reti players should always [ 24...xb7 25.xd3 and White will win the
b e o n t h e l o o k - o u t f o r t h i s t a c t i c . dxe4 c6-pawn as well. ]
11.dxe4 g4 Almost forced. The other moves 25.c5
lose: [ 25.c5 xd1 26.xd1 traps the knight on
[ 11...xe4? 12.e1 and the pin along the e- e5 and wins a piece. ]
file costs Black a piece, 0-0-0 Kennedy,M- 1-0
Hurley,J/ Dublin 1992, 13.fd2 etc. ]
[ 11...xe4? 12.h4 g6 13.xg6 hxg6
14.xe4 xe4? 15.e1 ] 468 A12
[ 11...g6? i s a l s o we a k : 12.e5! xe5 Savchenko,Boris 2583
13.xe5 xe5 14.e1 and the e-file pin is Dreev,Alexey 2607
again decisive. ] World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (7) 21.11.2007
12.h3! A new move, and better than [Carsten Hansen]
[ 12.bd2 when e5 13.c2 xb2
14.xb2 0-0 is fine for Black, Euwe,M-Van 1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.b3 g4 4.b2 d7
den Bosch,J/Amsterdam 1934. ] 5.g3 xf3 6.exf3 gf6 7.f4
12...xf3 13.xf3 I think I would prefer [ 7.g2 is the move covered in ECO, leading
[ 13.xf3! when e5 14.xe5 xe5 to a slight edge for White, but the text move
15.e3 0-0 16.f4 gives White some extra is also perfectly good for a slight edge. ]

452
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

7...e6 [ 16.xg7 xg7 17.d2 ac3 18.c4

[ This is just one of several options for Black b4 19.d3 ]
the others are: A) 7...g6 16...exd5 17.d2 c3
A) 8.g2 b6 9.f5?! ( 9.e2!? g7 [ 17...f6 18.d6 fe8 19.b3 c3
10.d3 ) 9...dxc4 10.fxg6 hxg6 11.e2 20.ac1= ]
d3 12.xd3 cxd3 Nosenko, A- 18.b3
Khmelnitsky, I/Kharkov 1988; [ 18.g2 b5 19.xg7 xg7 20.a4 c3
B) 8.d3 g7 9.g2 0-0 10.0-0 c7 21.xc3 xc3 22.a3 e4 23.xe4 dxe4
11.c2 dxc4 12.dxc4 ad8 13.d2 e5 24.b1 ab8 25.ab3 fd8 26.a5 xd4
14.fxe5 xe5 15.f3 Rodriguez 27.xb7 xb7 28.xb7 d5 29.xa7
Guerrero, E-Epishin, V/Seville 2002 ] xc5= ]
[ B) 7...b6 8.c2 e6 9.g2 g6 10.0-0 18...b4 19.g2
g7 11.d4 0-0 12.d2 fc8 13.c5 d8 [ 19.xg7 xg7 20.fc1 e4= ]
14.b4 a5 15.a3 axb4 16.axb4 xa1 19...e4
17.xa1 Bezold, M-Fridman, D/Senden [ 19...b5!? 20.xg7 xg7 21.d3 fe8
1998 ] 22.fc1 e4 ]
8.g2 20.f3 f6 21.d2 a5 22.fb1 a6
[ W hite can also consider 8.e2 e7 23.f1 fe8 24.h4 d7
( 8...d6 9.0-0 0-0 10.d4 c8 11.c5 b8 [ 24...b6 25.cxb6 axb6 26.e1 ac8
12.c2 e8 13.d2 f8 14.fe1 g6 27.e3 c5 28.dxc5 bxc5 ]
15.d3 c7 16.f3 f8 17.b4 25.e1 c4
Sarno, S-Valenti, G/ Italy 1994) 9.0-0 0-0 [ 25...f6 26.d6 b6 27.cxb6 xb6 ]
10.d4 a5 ( 10...e4!? 11.d2 xd2 26.xc4 dxc4 27.e3 b5 28.cxb6 xb6
12.xd2 f6 , and a draw was [ 28...axb6 29.xc4 f6 30.c7 xe1
prematurely agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, in Sarno, 31.xe1 xa2+ 32.h3 b5 33.a5 f8= ]
S-Belotti, B/Asti 1995) 11.c3 b4 12.c5 29.ac1?!
xc3 13.xc3 b6 14.cxb6 e4 15.b2 [ 29.xg7 xg7 30.ac1 ac8 31.f2
xb6 16.c2 fc8 17.fc1 g6 18.f3 d6 ed8 32.ed1 c5 33.d5 d7 34.d6 cd8
19.d1 ab8 20.ab1 Malis, J-Sosna, J/ 35.xc4 xc4 36.xc4 xd6 37.xd6
CZE 1995 ] xd6 38.e3 a6 39.a4 f6= ]
8...g6 29...ad8?!
[ A couple of alternatives are: A) 8...d6 [ 29...f6 30.d6 ad8 31.c5 f5 32.c2
9.0-0 0-0 10.c2 e5 11.fxe5 xe5 12.d4 xe1 33.xe1 d5 ]
d6 13.c3 dxc4 14.bxc4 e8 15.fd1 30.g4?
Tammert, G-Von Buhrmeister, P/Germany [ 30.xg7 xg7 31.f1 d5 32.xc4
1994 ] xe1+ 33.xe1 c3 34.e5 xd4
[ B) 8...dxc4 9.bxc4 c5 10.d4 b6 35.xc6 a4 36.e7 xa2 37.xa7 xa7
11.c3 ce4 12.0-0 ( 12.d3!? xc3 38.xa7 ]
13.xc3 0-0-0 14.d1 a5 15.0-0 b4 30...e6 31.h5
16.e2 ) 12...0-0-0 13.c5 a6 14.b3 [ 31.a4 xa4 32.xc4 b6 33.c2
xc3 15.xc3 xd4 16.f5 exf5 17.fc1 ( 33.b4 d5 34.a4 f6 35.xf6 xf6
Anic, D-Dunis, A/Gonfreville FRA 2006, and 36.xf6+ xf6 37.e6 d7 38.xc6
now c4 18.b1 d3 ] f7 ) 33...d5 34.a2 f6 35.xf6 xf6
9.e2 dxc4 10.bxc4 c5 11.0-0 a4 36.xf6+ xf6 ]
[ 11...g7 12.c3 d3 13.a3 xe2 31...gxh5!? 32.f5 ee8 33.f6+ xf6
14.xe2 d3 15.ab1 0-0-0 16.b3 c7 34.xf6 xe1 35.xe1 c8 36.g4?
17.fb1 b6 18.c5 b5 19.c3 ] [ 36.g5!? d5
12.e5! g7 13.d4 0-0 14.c5 A) 37.b1 c3 ( 37...f6 38.h6 e7
[ 14.d2 e8 15.xg7 xg7 16.f3 f5 39.g4 f7 ) 38.f6 h6 39.xh6 h7
17.d3 ] 40.c1 g6 41.b7 a6-+;
14...d5 15.c2 a5 16.xd5 B) 37.h6 f6 38.b1 e7 39.g4 f7

453
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

40.b7 d8 41.c1 hxg4 42.fxg4 e8 pieces are very actively placed. 14.dxc5 d4
43.xa7 xd4 , and Black has decent [ 14...xc5 is also perfectly reasonable. ]
winning chances ] 15.b2 xc5 16.e1 Else Black may be
36...hxg4 37.fxg4 d5 Now it is a rather tempted to advance his d-pawn even further.
simple win for Black. The strong knight on d5 e8 17.d3 b6 18.c1 c8 19.b4!?
kicks away the bishop on f6, allowing Black to axb4 20.axb4 d5
follow up with ...f7-f6 and then support the [ Aiming for c3, and e3, but the materialistic
dangerous passed pawn on c4-pawn. 38.e5 20...xd3!? 21.exd3 xb4 was also worthy
f6 39.d6 c3 40.f3 d8 41.c5 a5 of consideration. ]
42.a3 b8 43.g5 fxg5 44.g4 h6 45.h5 21.b5 xd3 22.exd3 e3! The knight
g7 46.g4 e8 47.xe8 f6+ 48.f3 sacrifices itself to free the b6-bishop's
xe8 49.d5 c2 diagonal. 23.fxe3 dxe3 24.h1
0-1 [ Not forced, 24.h5!? exd2+ 25.h1 e7
26.cd1 was also feasible, although Black is
certainly fine after d4 ]
469 A12 24...exd2 25.xd2 d4?!
Slobodjan,Roman 2539 [ 25...e3 26.c3 d4 27.b3
Dautov,Rustem 2606 is not worse. ]
10th It Lippstadt GER (7) 12.07.2000 [ 25...d4?! and although the players
[Tony Kosten] a g r e e d a d r a w , 26.f4! d7 27.c4
is worth trying ]
1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 f5 4.d3 e6 ½-½
5.c4 c6 6.b3 e7 7.b2 h6 8.0-0 0-0 9.a3
h7 Typical, the bishop retreats to a less
exposed square, and Black maintains the 470 A13
most flexibility with his queenside Agrest,E 2599
development. 10.bd2 a5 11.c3 Grandelius,Nils 2536
[ A move that has scored well for White, he TCh-SWE 2011-12 (9) 11.03.2012
wishes to force the b4 advance, and then [John Bartholomew]
weaken the solid wedge of Black central
pawns. 11.c2 is perhaps more common 1.f3 d5 2.c4 e6 3.g3 f6 4.g2 dxc4
first, a6 12.c3 b5 13.cxb5 cxb5 5.a4+ c6 6.xc4 b5 7.b3!? b7 8.0-0
14.b2 b4 15.axb4 xb4 16.fc1 bd7 9.d4 a6 10.e5! xe5 11.dxe5
is fairly equal, Smejkal,J-Hubner,R/W ijk d7
1975. ] [ The alternative 11...d5 is analyzed in
11...c5!? Fre ssi n e t , L (2 6 9 6 )-G o rd o n , S ( 2 5 3 5 ) /
[ A new move, clamping-down on b4, and Bremen GER 2012. ]
intending to gain a tempo with ... d4 12.c3!? Clearly the most flexible, and (by
previously 11...a6 had been preferred, to consequence) the most ambitious.
stop b4, 12.a2 revealing White's plan, he [ 12.f4 ]
will line his queen up on both the a1-h8 [ and 12.d1 have been played, but you'll
diagonal, and the a1-a8 file, b5 13.a1 b4 find that White has these options on almost
14.axb4 xb4 15.a4 with pressure on a5, every move going forward. ]
and some advantage, Kasimdzhanov,R-Mari 12...c7 Black is up against a number of
Arul,S/Genting Highlands 1998. ] tempting ideas: Nc3-e4, Rf1-d1, Bc1-f4, a2-a4,
12.cxd5 etc. He has tried various ways to complete
[ White is obliged to change plans, for after, development, but the practical results have
say 12.e5?! d4 13.b2 c7 Black gains thus far been heavily in White's favor (+6 =4
a space advantage. ] -0). Overall, I get the impression that this
12...exd5 13.d4 c6 Black happily allows position is much easier for W hite to handle
transposition into an IQP position, as his absent some very targeted preparation from

454
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

the opponent. advancing the c-pawn, so I'd be interested

[ Let's briefly consider the alternatives. First in seeing a practical test of 13.a4!?N . ]
off, accepting the pawn is extremely risky: 13...c5 14.e4 xe5? This is very
12...xe5 13.d1!? ( 13.e4 c5 optimistic.
was less clear in Ehlvest, J (2595)-Vitiugov, [ W h i t e w a s d i a l e d i n a f t e r 14...d5
N (2687)/Moscow RUS 2009.) 13...d7 15.d6+! in Zysk, R (2436)-Simeonidis, I
( 13...c7 14.f4 e7 15.ac1 ) 14.e4 (2 2 8 3 ) / K a l l i t h e a C h a l k i d i ki 2 0 0 3 : xd6
b6? 15.f4 e7 16.d6+ xd6 17.xd6 16.xd5 exd5 17.exd6 c6 18.e3+ f8
(clearly things have gone wrong for Black) 19.e7+ g8 20.fd1 h6 21.ac1 c8
0-0-0 Bernard, C (2348)-Mirzoev, A (2563)/ 22.c3 f6 23.e4!? e8? ( 23...d4
Cappelle la Grande FRA 2011. Here simply was the only try) 24.c7 xc7 25.dxc7
18.c1+- leaves Black without an adequate xe4 26.xd5! xc3 27.d8 e2+
defense. ] 28.f1 h7 29.c8+- ]
[ 12...e7 13.e4!? ( 13.d1 c8 14.e4 [ The best defense looks to be 14...xe4!
0-0 Markowski, T (2564)-Sargissian, G 15.xe4 c4 . This dampens White's
( 2 6 1 1 ) / M e r i d a 2 0 0 5 . 15.g5!? xg5 immediate attacking potential, though he
16.xg5 xe5 17.ac1 ) 13...c5 remains a bit better with the bishop pair:
( 13...0-0 14.f4 ) 14.c3 16.c2!? d8 17.a4 ]
( a n o t h e r a p p r o a c h i s 14.xc5 xc5 15.a4!?
15.c2 b6 16.d2 with 17.Rac1 to [ Agrest didn't want to pull the trigger with
come ) 14...xe4 15.xe4 c7 16.e3 b4 15.xe5 xe5 16.f6+ gxf6 17.xb7
17.c2 c8 18.fd1 xe5 19.d4 g5 , though this is dangerous for Black too. ]
20.h4 h6 21.c5 f6 22.d2 xc5 15...b4 16.fc1
23.xc5 e7 24.d6 0-0 25.ad1 a8 [ 16.a5!? ]
26.b3 b7 27.d3 h6 28.d7 b8 16...c4 17.xe5 xe5 18.xc4!
29.xa6 cd8 30.e7 xd7 31.xd7 b6 [ 18.xc4 d5 can be met by 19.d2! , but
32.d3 c5 33.g6 c6 34.xf7+ h7 e7 20.xd5 exd5 21.f4 0-0 22.f3
35.f3 b6 36.xf8 c4+ 37.f1 e6 isn't much for White. ]
1-0 Glud, J (2496) -Collins, S (2436)/ 18...d8 Grandelius faced an unenviable
Rogaska Slatina SLO 2011 ] choice.
[ 12...c8 13.a4!? (a familiar strategy: [ 18...c8 is obvious, but Black probably
White inhibits ...c6-c5) ( 13.e4 c5 14.d1 assessed his position after 19.xc8+ xc8
e7 15.f4 0-0 16.d6 xd6 17.xd6 c4 20.xc8+ d7 21.ac1
18.e3 xg2 19.xg2 c5 20.ad1 very pessimistically. Indeed, White is well
Rotstein, A (2528) -Gustafsson, J (2615)/ coordinated and a knockout punch seems
Austria 200506.) 13...e7 14.e4 0-0 likely to land. Still, this might have been a
15.g5!? xg5 16.xg5 c5 17.d3 g6 decent way to interrupt the trend of the
18.xb7 xb7 19.e3 Khalifman, A game and complicate things. ]
(2616) -Sargissian, G (2680)/Moscow RUS [ 18...d5 is also depressing. 19.c7 xc7
2010. ] 20.xc7 ]
[ 12...b6 13.a4! b8?! (Black can ill afford 19.f6+ gxf6
t h i s d e l a y ) 14.e3 c5 15.xb7 xb7 [ or 19...xf6 20.xb7 e7 21.xa6 0-0
16.axb5 axb5 17.a5! b4 18.b5 e7 22.c2 ]
19.g5! (energetic play!) b6? ( 19...c6 20.xb7 h6?! This last error terminates the
20.xe7 xe7 21.d6 ) 20.a4 xg5 game rather quickly.
21.d6+ e7 22.a7 hd8 23.d1+- h6 [ 20...e7 21.xa6 0-0 22.c2
24.a6 c7 25.c6 a8 26.xa8 wasn't fun either, though. ]
1-0 Baumegger, S (2433)-Diermair, A (2388)/ 21.xb4! Black can't castle to safety. d6
Leoben 2008. ] [ 21...xc1 22.c6+ d7 23.xc1+- ]
13.f4 22.xd6 xd6 23.c8+ d8 24.xd8+
[ Black's last move is well-suited to xd8 25.xa6 e7 It was better to head

455
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

towards the queenside, but realistically Black 13.b3! White defends c3, and is ready to
has almost no chances to hold. 26.b7 b8 double rooks on the open file. a7
27.f3 f5 [ Black makes room for his bishop,
[ 27...xb2 28.a5+- ] 13...bd7?! whilst natural, leaves Black in
28.a5 e5 29.d5 d6 30.xf7 t r o u b l e a f t e r 14.d4 ab8 ( 14...cxd4
Black resigned. These two games with 7. may be superior, but 15.xd4 gains the
Qb3!? suggest that it may be in no way inferior important light-squared bishop) 15.a3!
to the traditional 7.Qc2. Theory is developing ( 15.d5?! xb3 16.axb3 xc3 is the point)
EXTREMELY rapidly in these sharp lines, so 15...c7 16.d5 exd5 17.exd5 b7
keep your eyes peeled! and although White cannot capture the e7-
1-0 bishop (because ...Re8 traps the queen) his
space advantage is significant. ]
14.d4! This move wil l leave White with an
471 A13 iso lat e d c-p a wn o n a n o p e n f ile, b ut t h e
Akopian,Vladimir 2660 dyn a m ic p o ssib ilit ie s ou t we igh st ra t e gic
Svidler,Peter 2686 considerations. Note that had Black played ...
World Teams Yerevan ARM (4) 15.10.2001 b4 earlier, instead of ...bxc4, then W hite
[Tony Kosten] would be able to play this move more freely,
as the c4-pawn would be defended by his
It is not very often that you can see such a partner on b3. cxd4 15.xd4 a8 16.e3
long line of captures and forcing moves, as The bishop eyes the a7-rook. b7?
was instigated by White's seventeenth move. [ This allows an incredibly long, forcing
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 a6!? tactical sequence, and is far from ideal, but
Black prepares to expand on the queenside. the natural 16...c7? , intending ...Nbd7-c5,
4.g2 b5 5.b3 Naturally, White has to allows the decisive tactic 17.xe6! fxe6
defend his c-pawn. c5 6.0-0 18.b6 ]
[ There is nothing to be gained along the [ Perhaps Black's only chance was 16...d7
h1-a8 diagonal: 6.e5 a7 and ...d6. ] but after 17.fb1 c6 18.xc6 xc6
6...b7 7.c3 White would like to force Black 19.b6 White's queenside pressure is
to clarify the situation on the queenside, and considerable. ]
so pressures the b-pawn. a5!? 17.e5!! Th is m ove win s b y f orc e . xb3
[ 7...b6 is more common, deterring White 18.exf6 The first point, White is
f r o m p la yi n g h i s c1 -b is h o p t o b 2 , p l a y simultaneously threatening e7, a8, and b3.
should continue along similar lines, i. e. 8.e3 xg2
e7 9.e2 preparing Rd1 and d4. ] [ 18...xc3 is a little better: 19.fxe7 e8
8.e3 e7 9.e2 bxc4 20.xa8 and if a3 ( 20...a4 21.e4!?
[ White was threatening to capture the b5- xc4 22.h5 g6 23.h6 f5 hangs on for
pawn, and 9...b4 allows White a freer hand a bit ) 21.b1 White's two bishops are
in the centre, and the pawn lever a3. ] clearly more than a match for the black
10.bxc4 0-0 rook. ]
[ This is new here, and a possible 19.xb3 xf1
impro veme nt o n 10...c6 11.b1 b8 [ 19...xc3?! 20.fxe7 wins a piece. ]
12.e5 xe5 ( 12...d8 ) 13.xb7 20.g4! The critical second point, White
with an edge, Zarnicki,P-Rosito,J/Buenos menaces both the black king and queen. xf6
Aires 1998. ] 21.xa5 xc3 22.xf1
11.b1 This position shows two advantages of [ 22.d4 xd4 23.xd4 e2 24.xd6
having the black queen on a5, as opposed to is also more than sufficient. ]
b6: firstly, this last move doesn't gain a tempo, 22...xa5 23.d4 d8 24.a7! The final
and secondly, the attack on the c3-knight point, the black pieces are uncoordinated,
means White will have to defend this piece and unable to resist the powerful white queen.
before he can play d4. c6 12.e4 d6 h6 25.b6 xb6 26.xb6 c8 27.xd6

456
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

h7 28.c5 g6 29.c6! 33...c4! 34.bxc4!

[ 29.c6! xc6 30.d7 wins the knight. ] [ 34.xc4 xc4 35.xc4 xc4 36.bxc4
1-0 c6 leaving Black a dangerous b-pawn. ]
34...xa4 35.c5! f6 36.xf6 xf6
37.b3 xe4 38.d1? Probably time
472 A13 trouble.
Al Hadarani,Hatim 2320 [ 38.a1! was an effective counterattack,
Adly,Ahmed 2503 and perhaps equal because of the additional
ch-Arab Dubai UAE (5) 16.09.2005 threat of Bg2, e.g., d5 39.g2 xb3
[John Watson] 40.xe4 xc2 41.xc2 xc5 42.xa5 ]
38...c3 winning. 39.a1 e2+
Black is utterly outplayed by his lower-rated [ 39...e2+ 40.f1 xg3+ 41.g1 e2+
opponent. This is a classic example of how to 42.f1 f4 43.d7 a6+ etc. ]
play a "Catalan without d4", but after some 0-1
bad mistakes, probably in time pressure, Al
Hadarani loses his way. 1.f3 d5 2.c4 e6
3.g3 f6 4.g2 dxc4 5.0-0 bd7 473 A13
The most popular move of late. 6.a4 Aronian,Levon 2812
[ 6.a3!? is suggested in Tony Kosten's Anand,Viswanathan 2773
"The Dynamic English", with the possible Zurich Chess Challenge (1) 30.01.2014
continuation xa3 7.bxa3 0-0 8.c2 b6 [Fier, Alexandr]
9.e5 ]
6...a6 7.xc4 b5 8.c2 b7 9.a4!? b4?! This was a more positional game compared to
[ 9...c5! --see the next game. ] the other ones I analyzed for Chess
10.b3 e7 11.b2 0-0 12.d3 c5 13.e4 Publishing this month. Aronian has an
c7 14.bd2 ad8 15.c4 e8 16.fe1 impressive score of +7 =18 -2 against Anand
f6 17.e5 e7 18.e2 b6 19.ad1 g6 and this game was a victory move by move.
20.cd2 d5 21.h4 f5 22.exf6 xf6 1.c4 e6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 f6 4.f3 dxc4
23.xf6 xf6 24.g5 de8 25.ge4 a5 5.a4+ bd7 6.xc4 a6 7.b3
26.c1 [ 7.c2 is more popular, but both of the
[ A better route was to be had by 26.xf6+ queen retreats have their differences c5
xf6 27.xd5 xd5 28.e4 ff8 8.0-0 b5 ( 8...b6 9.c3 b7 10.d1
( 28...f5 29.c1 b6 30.g4 ) 29.c1 was also seen here, in the game Bu
etc. ] Xiangzhi (2602)-Li W enliang (2506)/Tan
26...xe4 Chin Nam Cup 2002.) 9.b3 b7 10.b2
[ 26...bd7! ] is a slow and solid way to play for W hite,
27.dxe4 b7 28.h5! e5 29.hxg6 hxg6 analyzed in Kozhuharov, S (2391)-Mateuta,
30.h3!? This covers c8, but since it can be G (2465)/14th Open Kavala GRE 2005. ]
challenged there isn't much point. Much better 7...b8
was [ 7...c5 8.a4 b8 ( 8...d6 9.0-0 0-0
[ 30.e3 , winn ing ma terial af te r d7 10.a3 c7 11.c4 b6 12.d3 b7
31.h3 d8 32.f3! b6 33.xd7 xd7 13.d2 e7 14.fc1 Bruzon Batista, L
34.xe5 , winning for White. ] (2673) -Vallejo Pons, F (2724)/FIDE World
30...d8 31.c2 d4 32.g4? Cup 2011 (2.4.) 9.a5 and Black is kind of
[ 32.b5! d6 33.e2 soon wins the c- tied. This position was analyzed for Chess
pawn. ] Publishing in Naiditsch, A (2702)-Papin, V
32...d6 33.g5 (2575)/13th EICC Plovdiv BUL 2012 (2.9). ]
[ 33.e6+ xe6 34.xe6+ h8 35.f3 8.0-0 b5 Black has no hurry to play ...c5.
is about equal. White goes downhill rapidly. Instead he expands with ...b5 and opens the
He should have simply targeted and won the long diagonal for the bishop.
c-pawn. ] [ 8...c5 9.d4 cxd4 10.f4 c5 11.c4

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
d6 12.xd4 Sorokin, M (2550)-
Sveshnikov, E (2580)/RUS-ch Elista 1995
(10). ]
9.a4 b7 10.axb5 axb5 11.d3 I like this
way of playing and it's typical in this variation.
Usually when White goes for a quick d4, there
are good chances that Black can equalize
after a well timed ...c5. With the pawn on d3,
W hite can often try a setup with e4,
restraining the bishop on b7 and the knight on
d6. Meanwhile Black's counterplay is not so
clear. Af ter all, it's not that W hite will be
better after this move, but nowadays it's hard
to find an advantage in any variation. e7
[ 11...d6 was the choice of Ivanchuk in the
World Cup 12.e3 c5 13.c3 0-0 14.d2
( 14.xb5?? c6-+ ) 14...xg2 15.xg2
g4 and Black managed to draw without big
problems in Bu, X (2675)-Ivanchuk, V (2768)/
FIDE World Cup 2011 (4.1). ]
12.f4 d5 This move will be necessary here
or after 13.Rfc1.
[ 12...0-0 would probably transpose after
13.c1 d5 14.d2 ]
13.d2 Black's knight is not well placed on d5.
White can play e4 with tempo if it stays there.
On the other hand sometimes it can go to b6
and the bishop has a good square on f6. 0-0
14.c1 c5 After all the pieces are developed
Black finally goes for ...c5.
[ 14...b4 would be an interesting alternative.
At first sight it looks strange to give the c4-
square for free, but it avoids the bishop
going to a5 and there is a hidden issue with
leaving the pawn on b5, as we are going to
see in a few moves 15.e1 c5 ( 15...c5
is not so good 16.c2 and the knight will
need to go back at some point) 16.bd2
5b6 and the knight comes back, opening
the diagonal for a bishop exchange and
ready to exchange on c4 if anything goes
there. The position is level ]
15.a5 Opening space for the b1-knight. e8
I have a f ee ling t hat th e pieces are a bit
packed on the kingside. To put the queen on
the c-file is also not ideal, but still can be ok,
if combined with ...b4 afterwards.
[ 15...c8 16.bd2 b4 17.c4 a8
18.fd2 and White can have a small edge ]
16.bd2 5f6 17.ab1! A beautiful move to
make. W hite realizes that one of the best
plans in this position is to play with b2-b4. If
he can exchange the b-pawn for the c-pawn
all the pieces have more space and most
likely the pawn on b5 is going to be weak at
s o m e p o i n t . d5 18.d1 a8 19.b4
Just in time! I think White has already some
advantage a6?! The beginning of a faulty
plan.
[ 19...b8 was also possible and the
position can become chaotic in a few moves
20.e4 b7 21.b3 c4! ( 21...cxb4 22.d2
is what White is dreaming of) 22.bd4 cxd3
23.c7 a7 24.xb5 a2 and Black
creates nice counterplay in exchange for the
queen, 25.c3 c4 26.d5 exd5
27.xc4 dxc4 28.c1 and White has some
advantage ]
20.e4 c6
[ 20...a8 21.b3 c4 22.bd4 and White
has a pleasant position ]
21.b3 cxb4
[ 21...a8 is another idea, looking forward to
a nice exchange sacrifice 22.bxc5! xa5
23.xa5 xa5 24.d4 e5 25.f4
( 25.xc6 xc6 26.d4 maybe this is better,
with a strong center) 25...xc5! 26.xc5
b6 27.xe5 xd4+ 28.h1 d7 29.h5
g6 30.h4 and the rook is in a really strange
place. Probably Black has compensation
coming with 30...Rc8 and ...Nc5 ]
22.d2 xe4 Finally Black shows his plan -
he will fight with some pawns for a piece.
Since White only has pawns on the kingside,
there are still some chances. But Aronian
plays well, and proves that the pawns are not
enough for the piece.
[ Here the alternatives are not so interesting
anymore 22...a8 23.xb4 a2 24.c3
xb4 25.xb4 a7 26.fd4 a8 27.a1
is much better for White ]
[ 22...c5 23.xb4 xb3 24.xb3 xb4
25.xb4 also with advantage ]
23.dxe4 xe4 24.c2 c3 25.a1 f6
This was more or less the position Black was
looking for with the piece sacrifice. He has
some nice posts for the knight and if they can
stay on c3 and d5 it would be ok. White needs
to find something to do against this. 26.e5
fd5 27.d3 First relocating the knight to the
best square on d3, where it can attack b4. c6
28.xd5! And then exchanging one of the
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

strong knights for the fianchettoed bishop. No And now the target is the f-pawn. 61.b8+
easy decision to make, but W hite's idea is g7 62.b7 f1+ 63.e3 f8 64.d6 f6
concrete. exd5 29.e1 65.b8+ e7 66.e4 f1 67.e2 f5
[ 29.xb4!? was already possible, but White 68.c8 e5 69.f3 f5+ 70.g2 e5
needs to be sure of the complications and 71.g5 e2+
t h e r e s u l t i n g p o s i t i o n xb4 30.d4 [ 71...f6 would not be enough 72.h3 g5
( 30.xb4 e2+ 31.xe2 xe2 32.xc6 73.h8 and Black is forced to take on h4,
and it's not clear the endgame is winning) giving the vital f4 square to the knight ]
30...c4 31.xb4 e7! 32.bc6 f6 72.h3 f2
and now White needs to sacrifice the queen [ 72...f6 73.f3 f2 74.d4 g5 75.c7+
again 33.xc3 xc3 34.xc3 White has d6 76.hxg5 fxg5 77.g7 ]
good chances in this position, but it might 73.c4 With 74.Rf4 winning.
also be drawn. In the game W hite keeps 1-0
more pieces on ]
29...c4 30.f3 d7 31.f2 d6 32.b6
f5 474 A13
[ 32...a4 strangely putting the knight in the Arvind,Shastry 2330
corner, bringing the bishop to d4 is the Ramesh,Ramachandran B 2472
computer's suggestion 33.d4 fc8 34.f4 ch Mumbai IND (16) 28.01.2003
and White keeps the advantage ] [Tony Kosten]
33.e3 White has optimized the position of all
his pieces and now the plan is to exchange White seems to be doing nothing in particular
Black's pieces one by one, making the pawns in the opening, and then produces a mating
harder to defend. It's a long task, but Aronian attack out of clear, blue sky! 1.f3 f6 2.b3
was able to do it without any major problems. d5 3.b2 e6 4.c4 Taking play from Larsen's
[ 33.c5 xc5 ( 33...xd3 doesn't make Opening to an English structure. e7 5.e3
m u c h s e n s e 34.xd6 fc8 35.a5 I would play
and the rook has no squares) 34.bxc5 [ 5.g3 myself, and put the bishop on the long
a4 and there is still a lot of play in the diagonal, but W hite's move has its
game. ] advantages. ]
33...h5 34.d4 c7 35.a7 First the rook. 5...0-0 6.c3 b6 7.c2!?
xa7 36.xa7 a8 37.c5 Followed by the [ 7.e2 b7 8.0-0 c5 9.cxd5
bishop. d4!? An interesting resource. Black is the mainline here, White's move seems
tries to exchange everything and create a innocuous, but... ]
fortress in the endgame. It looks a bit 7...b7 8.e2 I am reminded of Gurevich's
desperate, but if Black just waits the pawns set-up against the Slav here, where he follows-
are going to fall one by one. 38.xd4 xc5 up with g4, but as Black has dispensed with ...
39.xf5 xe3+ 40.xe3 b3 Now the b3- c6, he can react more aggressively. c5
pawn is dangerous and it's going to be [ 8...dxc4 i s a s o u n d i d e a , 9.bxc4
exchanged for the f3-pawn 41.d1 c8 ( 9.xc4!? ) 9...c5 10.0-0 c6 11.fd1
42.xc3 xc3 43.d1 b2 The last chance which seems fairly equal, Mesropov, K-
to do t his , o t h erwise W hit e 's kin g wo u ld Kroencke,M/ Bad Wiessee 1997, it is very
defend the f3-pawn 44.xb2 xf3 45.d8+ si m il a r t o a R e t i m a i n li n e , e xc e p t t h a t
h7 46.d5 b3 47.d3 g6 and I'm not White's bishop is on e2 instead of the more
sure if the endgame is really winning, but active g2. ]
looking at the game White won easily. 48.d7 9.cxd5! Better than
g7 49.f2 a3 50.e3 a2 51.h4 f6 [ 9.0-0 c6 ( 9...dxc4!? ) 10.a3 d4
52.b7 a5 The b-pawn is going to fall at with a good Benoni for Black, Majzik, L-
s o m e p o i n t . 53.c5 a3+ 54.f4 a1 Hudecz,V/Budapest 1998. ]
55.e4+ g7 56.d6 f1+ 57.e3 f8 9...xd5
58.xb5 e7 59.e4 e1+ 60.f4 f8 [ 9...exd5 10.d4 c6 is also possible, but

459
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

the subsequent hanging pawn structure 475 A13

would not appeal to everyone. ] Bartel,Mat 2629
10.xd5 It seems that White is happy to Dolzhikova,O 2239
exchange pieces, and head for a draw 11th Gibraltar Masters (8.18) 29.01.2013
perhaps? xd5 11.h4!? Suddenly, 'out-of- [Tony Kosten]
the-blue', White plays for a kingside attack! h6
Maybe 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 a6 4.g2 b5
[ 11...d7 12.g5 f5 is safer, although 5.a3!? Very rare, but logical, defending c4
after 13.0-0-0 h6 anything could happen. ] while attacking b5. Bartel had already
12.g5! If this is possible, then Black's last successfully tried this move last year.
move is pointless. hxg5? Opening the h-file is [ 5.b3 First is normal, but then Black can
disastrous, develop easily with b7 ]
[ and 12...f5? is no better: 13.c4 xg2 5...c6 Solidly defending the b-pawn, but this
14.0-0-0! hxg5 15.xe6+ h7 16.hxg5+ seems a bit passive to me.
g6 17.c3 wins. ] [ Black can capture on a3, of course:
[ however, 12...f5! 13.d3 g4 5...xa3 6.bxa3 White's pawns are
is possible, e.g. 14.a6 ( 14.c4? hxg5 damaged, but he has the bishop pair and
15.hxg5 e4 ) 14...e4! and no win is the open b-file. bxc4 ( 6...b7 7.b1 c6
visible. ] 8.c2 bxc4 9.xc4 d5 10.c2 d6
13.f3 The point of White's combination. xf3 11.0-0 c5 12.d3 0-0 13.e4 c6
It is all 'much of a muchness', White has a slight edge, but Black is solid,
[ 13...d7 also loses, 14.hxg5 (threatening Novik, M (2405)-Aseev, K (2525) /Moscow
m a t e o n h 7 ) f5 15.gxf6 xf6 16.xf6! 1991. ) 7.a4 ( 7.e5 d5 8.xc4
( 16.h7+ f7 17.h5+ e7 18.xf6+ "and I think that pair of bishops and
xf6 19.g6+ e5 20.g3+ d5 especially the weak black squares should
21.f3+ xf3 22.xf3+ d6 and the king provide W hite something of an edge." -
escapes ) 16...xf6 17.h7+ f8 18.h8+ Bartel. ) 7...0-0 8.xc4 d5 9.c2 bd7
f7 19.h7 g6 20.h5 f6 21.f8+ and ...c5, Ernst, S (2556) -Ipatov, A (2587)/
f7 22.d8+ e7 23.xe7+ xe7 Wijk aan Zee 2013. ]
24.xg6 with a winning material [ 5...b4 6.c2 b7 7.0-0 c5
advantage. ] was Blomqvist, E (2469)-Ivanov, S (2537)/
14.gxf3 xf3 15.g1 g4 Black hopes that Malmo 2012, when I would want to play 8.d4
his light-squared control will give him enough cxd4 9.cxd4 ]
compensation, but two pieces are rarely a [ 5...d5 "Looks the most logical." - Bartel.
m a t c h f o r t h e q u e e n . 16.xg4!? xg4 6.cxd5 ( 6.cxb5 axb5 7.xb5 c5
17.e4 Forking a8 and g4. d7 18.xg4 "but I wasn't sure it this "Blumenfeld-like"
f6 19.g2 ad8 20.0-0-0 Black has had position is so good for W hite." - Bartel.)
enough. 6...xd5 7.c2 b7 8.b3 e7 9.b2 0-0
[ 20.0-0-0 g6 21.xf6 xf6 22.h5 g7 10.0-0 Bartel, M (2658)-Popov, I (2599)/
23.hxg6 fxg6 24.g1 is convincing Mo sc o w 2 0 1 2 , wh e n c5 is normal, with
enough. ] chances for both sides. ]
1-0 6.b3 Now White returns to a normal position
h a v i n g p r o v o k e d . . . c 6 . d5 7.b2
This is actually a novelty. Bartel appears to
pref er playing this move bef ore castling,
although I can't see any real advantage.
[ 7.0-0 seems more flexible to me, d6
( 7...b7 8.b2 bd7 9.d3 e7 10.e4
Serov, M (2340)-Turov, M (2582)/Dagomys
2009.; 7...bd7 8.c2 b7 9.d4 d6
10.b2 with a position reminiscent of the

460
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Catalan, although the knight looks and ...Nb4, to exchange the b5 outpost. ]
misplaced on c2, Badea, B (2495)-Turova, I 18.d3 d8 19.e4! The move Black was trying
(2394)/Eforie Nord 2010.) 8.d4 ( 8.b2 to stop! However, White goes on the offensive
would transpose to the main game.) 8...0-0 at the moment his pieces are the most active
9.c2 bd7 again like a Catalan, 10.a4!? and Black's are slightly discoordinated. dxe4?
bxc4 11.bxc4 a5 Maletin, P (2567)- Opening the h1-a8 diagonal is a mistake.
Zablotsky, S (2498)/Krasnoyarsk 2007. ] [ Houdini suggests 19...a6 but White is
7...d6 8.0-0 e7 Attacking the loose knight, clearly on top after, say, 20.e2 ]
but this piece will have to move soon anyway. 20.xf6! gxf6
[ 8...bd7 is m o re u se f u l , 9.c2 b7 [ 20...xf6 21.xe4 and the pin on the
10.e3 ( 10.a4! ) 10...0-0 11.cxd5 cxd5 knight wins material, e.g. a6 22.c5 b6
12.c1 e7 13.c2 fc8 14.xc8+ 23.xb7 xb7 24.f3 ]
1/2-1/2 Hickl, J (2485)-Gruenfeld, Y (2550)/ 21.g4+ h8 22.xe4 Simply threatening
Tel Aviv 1988. ] to capture on c6. d5
9.c2 0-0 [ 22...f5 23.e3! d7 24.c5 xc5
[ 9...b7 10.d3 ( I would prefer 10.a4!? 25.xc5 ac8 26.fc1 and Black can't
a n d p l a y a s i n t h e m a i n g a m e , bxc4 move and can only wait for White to play d4
11.bxc4 ) 10...bd7 11.d2 ( 11.e4!? dxe4 and Qc3. ]
12.dxe4 ) 11...0-0 12.g5!? e8 13.xe7 23.c4 Winning the exchange and the game.
xe7 14.cxd5 cxd5 15.fc1 fairly level, d7 24.xd5 exd5 25.f4 e5?
Loginov, V (2540) -Hellmayr, A (2300)/ Desperation. 26.c7 h3 27.xe7 g4
Aschach 1994. ] 28.c1! d4
10.a4!? Putting pressure on Black's [ 28...xh2+ 29.f1 h3+ 30.e2
undeveloped queenside. leads nowhere. ]
[ 10.d4 is possible, with a Catalan type of 29.xb7 e8 Threatening mate in two!
position, but the knight on c2 is not very [ 29...xh2+ 30.f1 h1+ 31.e2 xb7
useful as we saw in some of the previous 32.xg4 is clearly hopeless. ]
notes. ] 30.xg4! A human decision.
10...bxc4 11.bxc4 a5!? Black stops White [ A computer might prefer 30.f3 xh2+
f r o m a d v a n c i n g h is a -p a wn f u rt h e r, a n d 31.f1 h3+ 32.g2 ]
prepares to develop his light-squared bishop 30...xg4 31.d6 f3 32.xd4 d5
to a6, but this weakens b5. 33.xe8 xb7 34.d6 The rook and two
[ In retrospect 11...bd7 might be better, knights crush the black queen, especially as
Black may be able to play ...e5 later. ] the black king is soon caught in a mating net.
12.cxd5! I really like the way White plays this d5 35.c8+ g7 36.4f5+ xf5
from now on, and it is worth trying to copy this [ 36...xf5 37.xf5+ g6 38.e7+ g5
strategy in similar Réti-style positions. cxd5 39.g8+ h5 40.f5 and g4 mate. ]
13.fd4 White heads straight for the b5- 1-0
square. d7 Making room for the d6-bishop
to retreat.
[ 13...a6 14.b5 c5 15.e5!? ] 476 A13
14.b5 e7 15.cd4 b7 16.c1 c6 Botvinnik,Mikhail
17.b3 The knight aims for c5. It's odd how Chekhover,Vitaly
Black is developed and has a solid centre, but Moscow (16) 08.03.1935
is worse anyway. c8? This move looks ugly, [Nigel Davies]
the queen retreats to the open c-file, opposite
the white rook. 1.f3 d5 2.c4 e6 3.b3 f6 4.b2 e7
[ 17...fc8 18.c5 ( 18.xf6 gxf6 19.e4 ) 5.e3 0-0 6.e2 c6 7.0-0 bd7 8.c3 a6
18...xc5 19.xc5 would give White some 9.d4!? I find this move of Botvinnik's quite
advantage, but the black structure is solid, intriguing given his fondness for broad pawn
a n d h e c a n t r y e4 20.c1 d6 centres. The knight hangs in the centre like a

461
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
lure, provoking Black to move his pawn s
forward.
[ The se d ays W h it e pref ers to p la y 9.d4
with a Semi-Slav type position in which
Black's ...a6 is of questionable value. For
example b5 10.c2 b4 11.a4 e4
12.e5 xe5 13.dxe5 f5?! 14.cxd5 cxd5
15.f3 g5 16.d4 d7?! 17.b6 b8
18.xd7 xd7 19.xa6 won a pawn in
Turikov, V (2353)-Znamensky, V (2353)/St
Petersburg 2005. ]
9...dxc4
[ After 9...c5 10.f3 . On the other hand he
could have followed 9...c5 up with 10...dxc4
when 11.bxc4 produces a structure in which
Black can aim for counterplay with a later ...
b6-b5. b6 White can inflict some
weaknes ses wit h 11.cxd5 exd5 12.d4
, threatening to give Black either hanging
pawns or an isolated d-pawn with dxc5. ]
10.bxc4 c5 11.f4 Securing the position of
the knight on d4 and commencing the process
o f a d v a n c i n g W h i t e c e n t r e p a w n s . c7
12.f3 d8 13.c2 cd7 14.d4 c5
15.e5 b6 16.d3 From his quiet opening
Botvinnik has built up a dangerous attacking
position. In these 'hanging pawn' positions
with a White pawn duo on c4 and d4, Black
would prefer to have his queen's knight on a
more active square than d7. cxd4 17.exd4
b7 18.e2 f8 19.d1! Covering the d4
pawn with the bishop on b2 whilst routing the
knight towards the Black king. a7 20.f2
b8 21.h3 h6 Trying to stop White's knight
from landing on g5, but appearances prove to
b e d e c e p t i v e . 22.g5! A brilliant knight
sacrifice that would have led to a rapid victory
if followed up correctly. hxg5 23.fxg5 8d7
24.xf7?! Missing his way.
[ 24.xd7! would have won for White, for
example xd7 ( 24...xd7 25.gxf6 xf6
26.xf6 gxf6 27.g4+ f8 28.a3+
is also hopeless for Black) 25.xf7! xf7
(W hat else?) 26.h5+ g8 ( Or 26...f8
27.h8+ f7 28.g6+ f6 29.h4# )
27.h7+ f8 28.h8+ f7 29.g6+ f6
30.h4# mate. ]
24...xf7 25.g6+ g8
[ 25...e8 would also be winning for White
after 26.xe6 f8 27.f7+ d7 28.f5+
c7 29.xe7+ 8d7 30.d5 c8 31.e5
a8 32.xg7 etc. ]
[ On the other hand 25...f8 would have
been a tough nut to crack, f or example
26.xe6 e5! 27.xf6+ gxf6 28.h3 b4
29.g7+ xg7 30.dxe5 xd3 31.exf6+ f7
32.h7+ e6 33.xd3 g8 hangs on for
Black. This is the reason that Botvinnik's
24th move was dubious. ]
26.xe6+ h8 27.h3+ g8 28.f5!
W ith the bishop joining the attack it swiftly
becomes overwhelming. f8 29.e6+ xe6
30.xe6+ h8 31.h3+ g8 32.xf6!
xf6
[ 32...gxf6 33.h7+ f8 34.f7#
is an immediate mate. ]
33.h7+ f8 34.e1! e5 35.h8+ e7
36.xg7+ d6 37.xe5+ d7 38.f5+
c6 39.d5+ c5 40.a3+ xc4 41.e4+
c3 42.b4+ b2 43.b1# A brilliant game
by Botvinnik, though not a perfect one.
1-0
477 A13
Bruzon Batista,Lazaro 2694
Leitao,Rafael 2623
IV ch-IberoAmerican Final GpA (5.1) 22.04.12
[John Bartholomew]
1.c4 f6 2.g3 e6 3.g2 d5 4.f3 dxc4
5.a4+ c6 6.xc4 b5 7.b3 b7 8.0-0
bd7 9.d4 a6 10.e5! xe5 11.dxe5
d5 12.c3 e7
[ W e examine d 12...b8!? in Fressinet, L
(2696)-Gordon, S (2535)/Bremen GER 2012/
[John Bartholomew]. It didn't work out too
well for Black, so the text move looks best at
the moment. ]
13.e4 c7
[ 13...c5 14.g5! , as in Meier, G (2659) -
Blagojevic, D (2514)/Porto Carras GRE
2011, was discussed last month in the notes
to the above game. ]
14.g5!? Correctly sacrificing e5. White has
to be ready to pitch this pawn at a moment's
notice if he hopes to profit f rom the dark
square weaknesses in Black's position.
[ 14.f4 xf4 15.gxf4 0-0 16.a4 ad8
17.fc1 d4 18.e3 xa4 19.xa4 bxa4
20.c5 xc5 21.xc5 d8 22.f3=
Ni Hua (2641)-Frolyanov, D (2555)/Moscow
462
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
RUS 2012. ]
[ Last month I suggested a slightly different
versio n of th is pa wn sa c wit h 14.d6+!?
, i. e. xd6 15.exd6 xd6 16.e4 b6
17.d1 e7 18.c3 0-0 19.b3!?
. W ith the text Bruzon demonstrates that
White doesn't even need the advantage of
t h e b i s h o p p a i r t o c la i m f u l l p o si t io n a l
compensation. ]
14...xg5 15.xg5 xe5
[ 15...d8!? is worthy of attention because
16.f4 ( White should prefer 16.e4 xe5
17.c5 c8 18.fe1 ) 16...c5! provides
counterplay. ]
16.e4 0-0 17.c5 c7 18.fc1!?
White can arrange his rooks in various ways.
Another decision he faces is whether or not to
play e2-e4. Bruzon clearly prefers to keep the
pawn on e2 for now one benefit of its
presence there is that d3 is a conveniently
defended retreat square for the knight. ad8
[ I'd be tempted to play 18...a5 rather than
await the fixing of the structure with a2-a4. ]
19.c2 c8 20.d3 b7 21.a4!
The aforementioned "fixing" of the queenside
structure. These positions are tricky to play
for Black. Objectively he is OK, but he lacks
improving moves that don't simultaneously
create further weaknesses. Thus, there is no
real hope to make use of the extra pawn on
the queenside so long as White maintains a
grip on the position. e7
[ W recking the queenside with 21...bxa4!?
actually makes a good deal of sense here
and might be the best way to resist. ]
22.c5! Positional compensation, folks! White
will f ind it even easier to press when the
queens are exchanged. fe8 23.xe7 xe7
24.c5 g6?! Leitao is running short on
ideas. It's hard to blame him, as his position is
becoming increasingly uncomfortable.
[ 24...c8!? ]
25.e4
[ 25.d1 also made sense. ]
25...f6 26.d1 c8 Surrendering the only
open file, but it wasn't an easy choice.
[ 26...xd1+ 27.xd1 c7 28.d8+ g7
29.a5!? leaves Black quite bound up. ]
27.b4
[ 27.a5!? is tempting, but White sees no
reason to release the tension. ]
27...bxa4 28.xa4 e5 29.f1 b8 30.f3!
Bruzon slowly increases his advantage. g7
31.d6! e8 32.d7 xd7 33.xd7 d8
34.xe5 Restoring material equality.
Unfortunately for Black, his own weaknesses
persist. d4 35.d3!?
[ Interestingly, White declines to enter a
pawn-up en dgame, i.e . 35.xa6 xa6
36.xa6 xb4 37.a7 d6 38.xc6
. Probably he didn't like his winning chances
in this endgame and saw no reason to halt
the torture. ]
35...c7 36.f2 c5?!
[ Black should sit tight, i.e. 36...c4 37.c5
c2+ 38.e3 c8 39.h4 h5 . ]
37.e3 e6 38.h3! c6?
[ 38...c4! w a s c a l l e d f o r : 39.e5
( 39.xe6?? xd3+-+ ) 39...c3! 40.a3
( 40.xe6?? c2 41.a1 d1 ) 40...xb4
41.xe6! fxe6 42.xc3 a5 and the a-pawn
gives Black hope of saving the game. ]
39.a5 b5 40.xc5 xb4 41.xe6 fxe6
42.xe6+ f6 43.c5 c4? Losing, but
B l a c k wi l l f i n d h i m s e l f t wo p a wn s d o w n
regardless. 44.xa6 c3+ 45.d2 d3+
46.c2 c4 47.a4 xf3
[ or 47...b5 48.c7! xa4+ 49.xd3+- ]
48.xc4 f2+ 49.d3 xh2 50.e3 g5
51.b4 g4 52.e5+ Black has yet to
demonstrate a clear route to equality against 7.
Qb3.
1-0
478 A13
Bruzon Batista,Lazaro 2699
Moreno Ruiz,Javier 2469
Azuqueca de Henares op (6) 19.09.2013
[Fier, Alexandr]
Bruzon basically plays the same idea as in a
Ivanchuk - Alekseev game that impressed me
so m e ye a rs a go . I n st e a d o f t h e 1 4 . Nb 4
played by Ivanchuk or 14. Bb4 played recently,
he goes for 14.Nh4. Black answered with the
ambitious 14.. .g5, but soon this move proved
to be too committal and Bruzon won in an
instructive way. 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5
4.g2 d4 An ambitious idea, trying to take the
center and enter into some kind of Benoni
with reversed colors. The main question is if
463
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
the tempo up for White is sufficient to bring
any advantage. 5.0-0 c5
[ 5...c6 is the main alternative, and was
analyzed in the game Istratescu-
Papadopoulos - see the PGN Archive. ]
6.e3 c6 7.exd4 cxd4 8.d3 e7 9.e1
0-0 10.a3 This plan is by far the most
popular in this variation and also playe d
sometimes in the Benoni. Compared with the
reversed color position White is a tempo up
because of the first move. Also, sometimes
Black uses one more tempo to play ...e6-e5.
The main difference with this position is that
Black usually tries to equalize, and with White
that's not enough. The Classical setup against
the Benoni was always a solid option and here
it's the same. e8 Black brings the knight to
the queenside, looking for c7-a6 where it can
control White's expansion on the queenside.
Black also has the idea of playing ...f6 and
afterwards ...e5. Other moves are possible:
[ 10...e8 was tried once by Zhang Zhong,
opening the f8-square for the bishop 11.c2
a5 12.b3 f8 13.g5 ( 13.e5!?
would be my personal preference, holding
e5 f or some time a nd ope ning t he lon g
diagonal ) 13...h6 14.xf6 xf6
with a typical position in Pavlovic, M (2498)-
Zhang Zhong (2603)/Monarch Assurance
13th 2004 ]
[ 10...d7 is quite logical, with the idea of ...
e5 and ...f6 11.c2 e5 12.b4! the break
comes just in time! With 12...f6 played this
would be not possible f6 13.b5 ( 13.b1
is not really necessary a5 Ni Hua (2662)-
Ra d u ls k i, J (25 5 6 )/ P o lit iken Cu p 3 3 rd
2011 ) 13...b4 this was probably the
reason for Ni Hua's 13.Rb1, but it is
p u n i s h e d i n a n i c e w a y ( 13...cb8
14.e2 ) 14.fxd4! exd4 15.a3!
and suddenly Black can't hold all his pieces
together ( 15.xe7 is clearly worse, but still
playable xc2 16.xd7 xd7 17.xc2
with compensation) 15...a5 ( 15...xc2
doesn't brings enough pieces for the queen
16.xe7 xe1 17.d5+ h8 18.xd8
xd8 19.xe1+- ) 16.bxa6 xa6 17.xb4
xb4 18.xb4 and White would be close to
winning even without an extra pawn. ]
11.c2 f6 12.d2
[ 12.b4 was never played but it's not so bad,
trying to play a Benko-style position xb4
13.xb4 xb4 14.a3 c6 15.d2 ]
[ 12.a3 a5 13.d2 a4 transposes to the
game. ]
12...a5 13.a3 a4 14.h4 A new move, but
not exactly a new idea.
[ 14.b4 is typical, since exchanging pieces
is good for W hite. It was played by
Batsiashvili in August, the game continued:
e5 15.e2 d6 ( 15...h8? 16.xe7
xe7 17.fxd4 this is the idea, winning an
important pawn) 16.d2 c7 17.ab1
with a double-edged position in Batsiashvili,
N (2412)-Tsolakidou, S (1986)/ 22nd Kavala
op 2013. ]
[ 14.b4 was Ivanchuk's way to play, and
after c7 15.b1 d7 ( 15...a5
would be thematic, but the pawn is hanging
16.xa4 xc4 17.c2 xd2 18.xd2
and W hite should be fine. This shows a
small difference compared to the game,
since with the knight on h4 the capture
needs to be made by the queen) 16.h4
a5 17.f4 g6 18.f5 with quite entertaining
complications in Ivanchuk, V (2703)-
Alekseev, E (2714)/Jermuk FIDE GP 2009. ]
14...g5?! I don't believe this can be good. A
similar idea exists in the King's Indian with 7...
exd4 where Black plays ...Nh5 provoking g4,
but in that position W hite actually has an
attack because of this g4. Here it just
weakens the kingside without having any
initiative on that flank.
[ 14...c7 is more natural
A) 15.h5 a6 16.e2!? tries to apply
pressure since the knight on a6 is far from
t h e k i n g ' s d e f e n c e c5 17.b4
t h e p a w n i s p o i s o n e d f5!?
with complications ( 17...xd3 18.e4+- );
B) 15.b4 is normal but now Black can
play an improved version of the analysis
of Ivanchuk - Alekseev. a5 16.xa4
( 16.e2 b3 17.ad1 and White's
position is not so harmonious) 16...xc4
17.c2 xd2 18.xd2 here is the point
of the knight being on h4 e5 and Black is
fine.;
C) 15.b4 a6 ( 15...e5 16.xe7 xe7
17.e4 and I prefer White )
C1) 16.xe7 xe7 ( 16...xe7 17.h5
g6 18.e2 ) 17.f5! c5 ( 17...d8
464
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

18.xc6 bxc6 19.fxd4 ) 18.xc6 [ 28...xa5 29.xa5 xa5 30.d7 wins ]

xf5 19.e4 is also possible ( 19.xa4 29.g1 g4 30.c6 e5 31.d5 xa5
highly ambitious, but the bishop will 32.xa5 xa5 33.b4 a3 34.d7 d8
neve r c ome back e5 20.b4 c5 35.bxc5 a5 36.f1
21.c2 and if White doesn't get mated 1-0
his position is better );
C2) 16.xc6!? taking the pawn by force
bxc6 17.xe7 xe7 18.xd4 d6 479 A13
19.c2 b8 20.b1 c5 21.d4 cxd4 Bu Xiangzhi 2602
22.xd4 c7 and it's not clear that the Li Wenliang 2506
pa wn o n t h e qu e e n sid e will m a ke a Tan Nam Cup Qingdao CHN (3) 05.07.2002
difference, while the bishop's absence [Tony Kosten]
will be important.;
D) 15.f4 is another logical move a6 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4
16.e2 preparing to play 17.f5 with one 5.a4+ bd7 The most popular reply, we
more double-edged position. ] have considered
15.f3 g7 Now White should continue the [ 5...c6 6.xc4 b5 in Van der Sterren,P-
plan of pressure on the queenside as the Dautov,R. ]
knight on g7 is not doing much. 16.b4 f7 6.xc4 a6 7.c2 White retreats so that ...b5
17.xe7 xe7 18.d2 Without the bishop can be met by a4. c5 8.0-0 b6 9.c3 b7
the knight is ready to go to d2-e4-c5, the Black develops his queenside first, much as in
other knight can go to b4, and Rb1 followed by the QGA, experience shows that if he castles
b3 is the other plan. White already has some first he has difficulties finding a satisfactory
advantage. h8 19.b4 c7 square for his queen's bishop. 10.d1 c8
[ 19...xb4 20.axb4 d7 21.b5 wins the 11.a4!? A thoughtful innovation, White wants
a4-pawn ] to expand in the centre, but doesn't want to
20.e4 a7 allow ...b5-b4, dislodging his knight, e.g.
[ 20...f8 to keep one eye on c5 is better, [ 11.e4 b5 and now White must play 12.d3
b u t B l a c k ' s s t i l l u n d e r p r e s s u r e 21.c5 , Huebner,R-Donner, J/Wijk aan Zee 1975,
( 21.f3 f5!? sacrificing a pawn to take wh ich is t h e p o in t , t h e re is n o t im e f o r
the bishop on g2 22.xc6 bxc6 23.g4 h4 ( 12.d4? because of b4 )]
24.xf6+ xf6 25.xf6 b8 with some [ 11.d4 just allows too many exchanges,
compensation) 21...f5 22.xc6 bxc6 cxd4 12.xd4 ( 12.xd4 c5 ) 12...xg2
23.c1 e5 and the queenside pawns are 13.xg2 c7 Sofrevski,J-Karaklajic,N/
weak but Black is still in the game. ] Sarajevo 1958. ]
21.c5 11...e7 12.d4 cxd4 13.xd4! d5
[ 21.xc6!? w a s s l i g h t l y b e t t e r xc6 [ 13...c5 is also possible, but loses time
( 21...bxc6 22.c5 f8 23.xa4 when compared with the previous note - the
would transpose to the game) 22.c5 c7 black dark-squared bishop has already
23.c1 e5 24.d6 with a clear advantage ] moved once. ]
21...f8 14.e4 xc3 15.bxc3 c7 Black pinpoints
[ 21...e5! was the last chance to stay in the the weakness on c3, but is it too greedy?
game, and it looks like things are not so [ 15...f6?! appears tempting, but after
clear, 22.xa4 ( 22.e4 is the computer 16.e5! xf3?! 17.exf6 xg2? ( 17...xf6
m o ve , b u t h u m a n s a re u s u a l ly p r o u d !) 18.f4 xc3 19.b2 loses a piece, but is
22...d7 23.b6 e8 threatening 24...Rc5 Black's best try) 18.fxg7 g8 19.xh7
winning the knight, 24.b3 d6 ] White wins. ]
22.xc6 bxc6 23.xa4 c5 24.b6 b7 16.f4! xc3
25.a4 Necessary, to support the knight xg2 [ 16...e5? 17.h3 ]
26.xg2 a6 27.a5 Now White is already 17.d1 c5 18.b1! The trap closes around
winning ca7 28.f3 h5 t h e q u e e n . 0-0!? This leads to a difficult

465
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
endgame,
[ 18...xe4!? 19.c1 xf3 20.xf3 a3
21.b7 0-0 22.xc8 xc8 23.b1
is unpleasant for Black, who is an exchange
down, but playable. ]
19.d2 a3 20.b4 a2 21.d2 xa4
22.xa4 xa4 23.xe7 This is all forced,
White wins a bishop and Black's three pawns
p r o v e i n a d e q u a t e c o m p e n s a t i o n . fe8
24.a3 xe4 25.b4 c6 26.d6 b5
27.d4 xg2 28.xg2 c3? Black misses
a tactic,
[ 28...a8 kept the pawns defended, 29.c6
b6 30.e7+ xe7 31.xb6 d7 32.b3
with advantage to White - the black pawns
cannot advance and must be defended - but
Black is still playing. ]
29.xa6!
[ 29.xa6 xa3 30.xb5 and Rxa4 win the
two queenside pawns whilst regaining the
piece. ]
1-0
480 A13
Cornette,Matthieu 2592
Sokolov,Andrei 2558
FRA-ch 88th Nancy (1) 11.08.2013
[Fier, Alexandr]
8.e4 is a rare approach in a known position
and 8...a5 was played before by Morozevich,
attempting to punish White for the opening of
the a6-f1 diagonal. Still, it's a committal move
and after W hite's pawn sacrifice Black was
under pressure for the rest of the game. 1.f3
f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4 5.a4+
bd7 6.xc4 c5 7.0-0
[ 7.d4 was analyzed in Zhou Jianchao
(2607)-Zhou W eiqi (2590)/Danzhou 4th
2013 ]
7...b6 8.e4!? trying to get a center without
losing time, this idea was played by Korchnoi
in 2000 and in a blitz game in 2009, but in this
game White makes a logical improvement
[ 8.d1!? was seen in Mareco, S (2586)-
Tristan, L (2449)/86th ch-ARG 2012 ]
[ 8.d4 is not dangerous for Black and after
e5 9.c6 xc4 10.xd8 d5 11.c3
xd8 12.xd5 b7 the position is equal ]
[ 8.d4 b7 9.c3 is the main line ]
8...a5 A forcing move, but probably not the
best one.
[ 8...b7!? is an interesting alternative,
avoiding 9.e5 and looking for Rc8 9.c3
( 9.e5?! xf3 10.xf3 xe5 11.a4+
fd7 and to take the rook is not advisable;
9.d3 d6 ) 9...c8 10.e2 c4 ]
[ 8...e7 is also possible 9.e5 d5 10.c3
b7 11.g4 0-0 ( 11...g6 12.xd5 xd5
13.d4 h5 14.f4 was double edged in
Kortschnoj, V (2659)-Jussupow, A (2628)/
S U I - c h T S w i t z e r l a n d 2 0 0 0) 12.d4
went by transposition to Romanishin, O
(2560)-Sveshnikov, E (2510)/URS-ch44
Moscow 1976 ]
9.c3 Sacrificing a pawn to enter a promising
position
[ 9.e1?! a6 10.c2 ( 10.a4
is another try, but Black keeps the initiative
after c4 11.c3 b5! opening space for the
queen 12.xb5 b6 13.c3 g4 14.d1
b5 15.c2 c5 followed by 16...Nge5
with huge compensation) 10...c4 11.e5
d5 12.c3 b4 went clearly wrong for
W hite in Svidler, P (2754)-Morozevich, A
(2750)/Wch Blitz 5th blitz 2009 ]
9...a6 10.b5 xe4 11.e1 Black already
needs to be careful. xb5
[ 11...d6? is brutally punished by 12.xe6+
fxe6 13.xe6+ e7 14.xd6+ d8
15.f7+ ]
[ 11...ef6 12.fd4! is forcing and good
xb5 13.xb5 c8 ( 13...b8 14.d4 e7
15.d5 xd5 16.xd5 exd5 17.xd5 0-0
18.f4 and somehow Black is already
c o m p l e t e l y l o s t c8 19.ad1 f6
20.b7+- ) 14.a7 c7 15.c6 xc6
( 15...c8 16.xe6+ fxe6 17.xe6+ e7
18.xe7# ) 16.xc6 ]
12.xb5 d6 13.e2 For one pawn White
has a big initiative, d4 is coming and both
bishops are much stronger than the knights,
but White still needs to be quick, otherwise
Black can consolidate his position. e7 14.d4
0-0 15.f4 f5 16.ad1
[ 16.d5!? I like this move, recovering the
pawn immediately
A) 16...exd5 17.h3 wins a piece for two
pawns ( 17.g4 d6 18.g5 d4;
17.ad1 ) 17...d6 18.xf5 xf4 19.gxf4
g6 20.h3 f6 21.e5;
466
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

B) 16...e5 is the best option for Black [ 26...e2!? activating the queen is a nice
17.xe5 d4 ( 17...xe5 18.xe5 f6 idea 27.f5! White should be brave
19.d6 b8 20.f4 ) 18.d3 xe5 ( 27.xa5 xb2 28.c4 e8 is dangerous
19.xe5 c8 ( 19...f6 20.f4 is also not for White ) 27...c1+ 28.g2 f1+ 29.g3
funny ) 20.xd4 cxd4 21.xd4 g1+ 30.h3 f1+ 31.h4 c4! 32.xc4
is solid for Black, but the pawns on the xc4+ 33.g3 c6 ]
queenside are not well placed, so in the 27.e5
long run White can put a bishop on b5, for [ 27.xa5 c1+ was probably the idea, but
example, and Black has to just wait. ] with the pieces centralized and the back
16...f6 The position is still delicate but I'm not rank mate in the air, Black has little.
sure if Black is worse anymore. 17.dxc5 bxc5 ( 27...c4 28.d5 ) 28.g2 c4
18.g4 29.d5+- ]
[ 18.b5 a7 19.e5 b8 20.xb8 27...c6 28.e7 h6 Giving the king some
( 20.xd7 xd7 21.xd7 ) 20...xb8 ] important air 29.gxh6 g6+
18...e7 This is provocative. [ 29...xh6 there is nothing wrong with this
[ 18...d4 was more solid 19.xd4 xd4 30.g5 h3 31.xa5 c6 with ...Rg6
20.xa8 xa8 21.h3 ( 21.e3? ideas in the air ]
would be good if possible but e5 wins ) 30.g5 c1+ 31.g2 c6+ 32.f3
21...b7 and Black has enough resources [ 32.h3 f3+ 33.g3 h5+ 34.g2+- ]
to hold the balance ] 32...c2+ 33.g3 xh6 34.xh6 gxh6
19.d6 35.f6 Now the smoke has cleared and it
[ 19.g5!? this is a hard move to evaluate, looks like White is close to winning. But near
since the resulting position is dangerous for move 40 I think both players were in big time
White too, but this concrete approach can trouble. h7 36.g4? This looks almost
bring some advantage d5 20.c1 d4 winning but Black has one last and sufficient
( 20...e7 21.xd5 exd5 22.xe7 e8 resource
23.d6 e5 24.xd8 xf3+ 25.xf3 [ 36.d6 a4 37.h4 h5 38.d5
axd8 26.d1; 20...c3 21.bxc3 xc3 would be better ]
22.c2 xd1 23.xd1 ) 21.xd4 cxd4 36...d5! 37.d4 f6 And now things are far
22.xd4 ( 22.xd5 is the computer choice, from clear. 38.e4 g6 39.a3 h5 40.h4
but I wouldn't give my bishop like this exd5 f5 41.b4 a2 42.bxa5
23.xd4 c5 ) 22...b6 ( 22...7b6 ½-½
23.h5! this is the idea, and 24.Rh4 will
follow ) 23.g4 and White is better, but the
position is still full of life. With the pawn on 481 A13
g3 things would be easier, with the pawn on Damljanovic,Branko 2585
g5 the knights become more dangerous ] Georgiev,Kiril 2660
19...c8 20.b5 e8 Black position is really Gorenje GM Valjevo SRB (9) 21.06.2007
compact, but after giving the pawn back he [Carsten Hansen]
will have some space to move. 21.g5 d4
22.xd4 cxd4 23.xd4 d5 This is an 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 a6 (This line is
interesting practical decision, giving another gradually becoming more and more popular
pawn Black will get some counterplay due to and represents a problem for those W hite
the weakened white squares. players who prefer a classical 1 Nf3, 2 c4, 3
[ 23...b6 le ad s t o excha nge s 24.xb6 g3, 4 Bg2, 5 0-0 and only then start playing,
xb6 25.xe7 otherwise 25...Ned5 xe7 because Black's unorthodox set-up prevents
26.b4 axb4 27.xb4 d7 and White has White from using many of this standard plans.
some chances in the endgame ] ) 4.g2
24.xd5 exd5 25.xe8+ xe8 26.xd5 [ Other options for White include 4.d3 ]
b6?! But I'm not sure about giving a second [ and 4.c3 We will return to this line in the
pawn. near future ]

467
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

4...b5 5.b3 c5 6.c3 b6 perpetual check. ]

[ 6...a5 is another possibility for Black. ] [ B) 7...c6 8.e5 g4 9.0-0 ( After the text
7.e4 (This move is played infrequently, but move, Black has a perfectly good game.
appears to ma ke perf ect se nse: B lack is Instead White should consider 9.h3!? h6
making an advance on the queenside before 10.d3 b7 11.e4 f5 12.0-0 ) 9...b7
f ight ing f or t he ce ntre , W hite in rea ctio n 10.e2 h5= 11.h3?! ( 11.a3!?
claims his stake of the centre before Black leads to messy complications, e.g. d4
gets his pieces ready to respond to it. That 12.xd4 xg2 13.xg2 cxd4 14.xf8
being said, White hasn't been overwhelmingly xf8 15.f3 xh2 16.xh2 dxc3
successful in his results in this line yet, but 17.dxc3 ) 11...h6 ( Here 11...d4!?
theoretically White is doing very well) d6 leads to a good game for Black, e.g.
[ This isn't Black's only option. Two other 12.xd4 cxd4 13.e4 xe5 14.d3
tries have been tried at this juncture: A) g6 ) 12.cxb5 axb5 13.xb5 c7
7...b7 8.e2 c6 9.0-0 d4 10.xd4 14.e2 f5 15.b5 b6 16.b2 a6
( 10.d3 g4 11.cxb5 xf3+ 12.xf3 17.a4 e7 18.fe1 ( 18.d4!? is likely
e5 13.h5 d3 , R.Pogorelov-A. better: cxd4 19.fc1 b8 20.f1 )
Stefanova, Salou 2000, and now 14.e2 18...b8 19.f1 0-0 20.e4 , and a draw
b4 15.b1 ) 10...cxd4 11.d1 d6 was agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, I.Stohl-P.Wells,
( This position is called slightly better for Austrian Oberliga 2001 ]
Black by Mikhalchishin in a survey in vol 5 of 8.d4!?
the 'Secrets of Opening Surprises' from New [ This is a new move in this particular position.
In Chess, but is a bit of a misrepresentation. E a r l i e r t r i e s i n c l u d e : A ) 8.0-0 b7
An ot h er mo ve is 11...e5 12.b2 e7 ( 8...c6!? to prevent the idea suggested as
13.d3 d6 14.a4 bxc4 15.bxc4 c7 an alternative to White's 9th move may be
16.a3 0-0 17.fc1 with a slight pull for prudent )
White, R.Vaganian-V.Chuchelov, A) 9.d4 is one again an important idea to
Bundesliga 2004 ) consider:
A) or 12.d3 d7 13.f4 e7 14.f2 a5 A1) 9...cxd4 is better and also quite
15.d2 ( 15.cxb5 xb5 16.a3 ) 15...b4 interesting, though not quite as much fun
16.f5 c5 17.h5 M.Tratar-R.Zelcic, for W hite as the main line... 10.xd4
Pula 2001; c7 11.b2!? ( 11.d3 bxc4 12.xc4
B) 12.b2 e7 13.d3 ( 13.b4!? c8 xc4 13.bxc4 bd7 14.b1 c5
14.d3 h5 15.d2 h4 16.a4 ) 13...0-0 15.e1 ) 11...bxc4 12.e2!? ( 12.c1
14.a3 bxc4?! ( 14...ac8!? 15.fc1 bd7 13.e2 b6 14.b1 e7
d7 is comfortable for Black) 15.bxc4 15.d2 ) 12...bd7 13.fc1 b6
c7 16.ab1 d7 ( 16...ab8!? ) 14.a4 with an excellent game for White;
17.xb7! xb7 18.e5 c7 19.xa8 A2) 9...xe4?! 10.xe4 xe4 11.e1
xa8 20.exd6 xd6 21.c5 ( White can b7 12.d5 e5 13.xe5 dxe5
also c o ns id e r 21.xd6 xd6 22.c1 14.xe5+ d8 15.g5+ c7 16.a4!
c5 23.xc5 xc5 24.b1 a5 ( 16.f4 also looks attractive and
25.d3 ) 21...f8 22.e4 d8 23.b1?! promises White excellent compensation,
( 23.c1!? b8 24.f4 ) 23...a5 e.g. d6 17.e7+ d7 18.h3 xf4
, and here the score ends with 0-1, O. 19.g4 h6 20.xd7+ b8 21.ae1
Foisor-S.Ionov, Oviedo 1993, but I suspect and White, despite having only a pawn
the game must have continued a bit longer, for the piece, has excellent
because isn't in a particularly bad shape, e. co m p e n sa t io n a s we ll a s t h e b e t t e r
g. 24.b4 xa2 25.c1 a5 26.c6 axb4 chances thanks for Black's pieces
27.c7 c8 28.b7 , and now one having a total lack of coordination )
possible continuation leads to a draw: A2a) 16...d6 17.a5 a7 18.f4!
xc7 29.xc7 xd2 30.xd7 xd3 is even worse: xe5 19.xe5+ d8
31.c8 b1+ 32.g2 , with a draw by 20.g4 e8 21.xg7 d7 22.g5+

468
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
c8 23.h3 xd5 ( 23...bxc4 24.d1
cxb3 25.xd7+ xd7 26.f5+ d8
27.f6+ c7 28.d6+ c6 29.d7+- )
24.cxd5 c4 25.bxc4 bxc4 26.b1+-;
A2b) 16...d7 17.e1 d6 18.a5
a7 19.e7 with excellent attacking
chances to compensate for the piece;
B) 9.d3 bd7 10.h4 e7 11.f4 0-0
12.g4!? b4 ( 12...xe4?! 13.dxe4 xh4
14.g5 is very problematic for Black, the
bishop will likely not return alive.) 13.a4
c7 14.g5 g6!?
B1) 15.gxf6? xf6 16.xg6
( 16...xa1? 17.xf8 d4+ 18.h1
xf8 19.f5 ) 17.b2 c6;
B2) 15.f5 exf5 16.exf5 xg2?!
( 16...h5 17.f3 xf3 18.xf3 ae8
19.d5 ) 17.xg2 h5 18.f6 d8
19.e3 e8 20.d5 J.Arnason-M.
Angelis, Komotini 1993 ]
[ B) 8.e2 c6
A) 9.cxb5 axb5 10.xb5 xb5 11.xb5
b8 12.a4 b4;
B) 9.b2 d4 ( 9...b7 10.cxb5 d4
11.xd4 cxd4 12.a4 xb5 13.xd4
e5 14.b2 xe4 15.xb5+
16.c3; 9...b4 10.a4 c7 11.d4 e5
12.d5 d4 13.xd4 cxd4; 9...b8
10.d3 e7 11.0-0 0-0= ) 10.xd4 cxd4
11.e5 b7 12.d5!? xd5 13.cxd5
dxe5 14.xe5 f6 15.xd4 fxe5 16.xb6
exd5 17.c1;
C) 9.e5?! dxe5 10.cxb5 axb5 11.xb5
xb5 12.xb5 d5 13.b2 a6 14.a4
f6
C1) 15.g5?! is a fantasy move
deramed up by my computer, but it turns
out not to be particularly good:
C1a) 15...e7?! 16.e4
17.ec3 ( 17.ed6+ xd6 18.xd6+
e7 19.e4 cb4 ) 17...db4;
C1b) 15...fxg5! 16.xd5
17.c7+ d7 18.xa8 b4 19.d1
d3 20.c2 d6 21.b6+ c6
22.a5 f8;
C2) 15.0-0 d7 16.fb1
M.Wahls-P.Wells, Germany 2000 ]
8...b7 9.d5
[ 9.0-0 transposes to 8 0-0 Bb7 9 d4 above ]
9...e5 10.0-0
[ 10.h4!? g6 11.0-0 g7 12.d2
, preparing f2-f4 in the near future. White
should hold a safe edge at this point. ]
10...g6 11.e2 g7 12.d2 b4 13.a4
d8 14.f4 bd7 15.b2 e7 16.ae1
(This position is already very good for White)
h5 17.f3 h6 18.fxe5 dxe5 19.c1 xc1
20.xc1 0-0 21.e1
[ 21.cd1!? is possibly even better ]
21...ac8 22.d3 c7 23.h3
[ 23.h3!? a5 24.cd1 d6 25.e3
also looks very good for White ]
23...a5 24.e3 g7 25.c2 c8 26.f3
fxg6 h7 27.h4 hf6 28.cf2 d6
[ 28...b7!? ]
29.d1 g8 30.g4 hxg4 31.xg4 df6
32.d1
[ 32.e2!? d7 ( 32...g4 33.axc5 xe2
34.xe2+- ) 33.h5+- ]
32...g4 33.g2 xd1 34.xd1 h6
35.f3 h7 36.f1 h5 37.e3 fc8
38.g5 e8 39.h1 ee7 40.ff2 e8
41.axc5 xc5 42.xc5 f4 43.a4
[ 43.e6!? xg2 44.c5 d7 45.xg2+- ]
43...f6 44.g3 f5 45.c5 f6 46.g5 f7
47.d6 fxe4
axb5 [ 47...h3 48.d2 xf2+ 49.xf2+- ]
48.c6
[ 48.d7! xd7 49.xf4+- ]
48...e3 49.f1??
[ 49.xf4! exf4 50.h5 gxh5 51.d7 g8
52.xg8+ xg8 53.d8+- ]
49...e2 50.e1
[ 50.xe2 d5+ 51.h2 xe2 52.d7 g8
53.g2 e4 54.xe2 xc6 55.d1
c7+= ]
50...d5
[ 50...e6 51.d7 g8 ( 51...h3+ 52.g1
e3+ 53.h1 h3+= ) 52.h5 f7 53.d8
f7 xd8 54.c7 h3+ 55.g1 e3+ 56.h1
h3+ 57.g1 e3+= ]
51.d7 g8 52.exe2
exd5 [ W h i t e ' s b e s t i s p r o b a b l y 52.h5!?
, although this is hardly an idea most
players would consider without the aid of a
computer, a possible continuation runs gxh5
e7 53.d8 xd8 54.xd8 xd8 55.b6
xg2 56.xg2 g8+ 57.f2 f5 58.c7
e7 59.xe2 c8 60.xc8 xc8 61.xe5
g6 62.c5 ]
52...xe2 53.e7+?
[ This turns out to be the decisive error,
469
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

which is hard to predict because the position [ 15.fd1 with the idea of e3 and d4 is also
is still very complicated and the players promising. ]
were likely short on time. A better choice is 15...cxd4
53.d8 g3+ 54.xg3 xd8 55.b2 [ 15...f6 16.a3! cxd4 17.d6!
d5 56.c7 c6 57.c4 with more or less wins material. ]
equal chances ] 16.xd4 xd4 17.xd4 a7 18.fd1
53...f7 54.b6 A pretty picture, and the type of position that
[ 54.h2 f3 55.c5 ( 55.c7 f4 56.c2 readers should become familiar with. White's
e2 57.xe2 xe2+ 58.g1 e1+ sp a ce a n d p o we rf u l b ish o p su f f i c e f o r a
59.g2 e2+ 60.h3 d3+ 61.g2 significant advantage. b8 What else? Rc6-
c2+ 62.f1 xc7-+ ) 55...f4 56.xf7+ d6 was threatened. 19.h4 h6 20.a4
g7 57.xf4 xf4+ 58.h1 d4-+ ] [ or 20.d6 ]
54...f3 55.h2 f4 56.xf7+ g7 20...a5 21.e4 b5 22.c5 f5 23.f3 bxa4
57.d5 (Desperation) xd5 58.d8 f4 24.bxa4 e8 25.dc1 Black has saved his
(And the threat is reinforced with just as much queenside but at the cost of a weak pawn on
strength as before) 59.c2 h3+ 60.g1 e6. b6 26.e5? A very strange move,
f7 61.d1 g3+ 62.h1 d3 giving away his a-pawn for Black's weak e-
0-1 pawn. After this the play is level. Better was
[ 26.e3 or ]
[ 26.c4 d7 27.c6 h7 28.e3 e8
482 A13 29.b5 , with a clear advantage in both
Djuric,Stefan 2466 cases, arguably a winning one. . ]
Drazic,Sinisa 2514 26...xa4 27.c6 xc6 28.xe6+ h8
TCh-Serbia Zlatibor SCG (3) 28.08.2006 29.xc6 b4!? Black banks upon the power
[John Watson] of his a-pawn, which is sufficient for equality.
Otherwise
How even a strong grandmaster can get into [ 29...b2 avoids the loss of a pawn after
trouble trying to coast to a draw in the Reti. 30.c8 a8 ]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 e6 3.g3 a6 Black tries to mix [ , as does 29...b5= ]
it up right away. His first idea is ...dxc4 and ... 30.c8 a8 31.xa8 xa8 32.xf5 a4
b5. 4.c2 f6 5.g2 e7 6.0-0 0-0 7.b3 33.f3 a5 34.c5 d8 35.d5 e8
c5 Now we're in a normal Reti Opening with 36.d3 d8 37.c3 e7 38.g2 f8
the trade-off Qc2 for ...a6. One could argue 39.e3 c5 40.e4 a3 41.a4 d5+
that White's queen is better-placed on e2, so 42.f3 a8 43.e8+ xe8 44.xe8+ h7
Black shouldn't have real worries here. 8.cxd5 45.h5 a2 46.g6+ h8 47.e8+ h7
[ 8.b2 d4 or ...8...Nc6 with the idea ...d4. ] 48.g6+ h8
8...xd5 9.c3 c6 If Black wants a more ½-½
dynamic encounter,
[ 9...b4!? 10.b1 4c6 11.b2 f5!?
intending ...e5 might be tried. ] 483 A13
10.b2 xc3?! Filippov,Valerij 2617
[ Again, he has 10...db4 11.b1 d4 Kortschnoj,Viktor 2617
. After the simplification that follows he has ECC Panormo GRE (5) 27.09.2001
no positive prospects. ] [Tony Kosten]
11.xc3 f6 12.c2 xb2 13.xb2
W h it e n o w h a s a n a d va n t a ge d u e t o h i s Up to a point a very good game from Filippov,
b e t t e r b i s h o p a n d c e n t r a l c o n t r o l . d7 including an instructive plan against an IQP,
14.ac1 b6 15.d4! Now White has the b u t t h e n , a r o u n d m o ve f o r t y, i t a l l we n t
classic Reti/English Opening advantage in the haywire! 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 a6 4.g2
centre, which shows how careful Black need b5 The real idea behind ...a6, Black
be to stay active. challenges the white c-pawn, and prepares to

470
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
bring his light-squared bishop to the h1-a8
diagonal. 5.b3 d5 6.cxd5!? There is no real
need to c larif y t he centre qu ite so e arly,
although this perfectly viable, of course. exd5
7.d4
[ Surprisingly, this seems to be a new move
here, although 7.0-0 e7 8.d4 0-0 9.c3
is very similar, Huzman,A-Nikolic,P/Wijk aan
Zee 1993. ]
7...c5 8.0-0 e6 There is little point putting
this piece on b7 now, as the d5-pawn blocks
the diagonal. 9.c3 bd7 10.e3 c8
[ Black avoids playing 10...c4 as by blocking
the centre this way, he allows 11.bxc4 bxc4
12.e5 and both f4-5, and e4 are on the
cards. ]
11.e2 f 4 b e c k o n s . d6 12.dxc5
Now was definitely the time to force the IQP
position- White has good squares on d4 and
f4. xc5 13.b2 ce4 14.fd4
A typical position, both sides can be happy
w i t h t h e i r p r o s p e c t s . d7!? 15.f3!?
A difficult decision to make. On the one hand
White wanted to shift the strong black knight
from e4, but on the other he won't want to
weaken his e3-pawn, especially as Black has
a semi-open e-file for his rook. c5 16.g4!?
Very aggressive, White wants to secure the
f 5 - s qu a re f o r a kn igh t a n d p re p a r e s t h e
m a n o e u vr e N g3 -f 5 . e7 17.d2 0-0
18.g3 g6!? Another difficult decision, Black
stops the knight from coming to f5, but
loosens his kingside dark squares. 19.g5 e8
20.f4 The white set-up is looking very
menacing. e4?! 21.xe4! dxe4 22.g2
c5!?
[ Black jettisons the e-pawn hoping for
sufficient counterplay on the e-file.
Defending the pawn by 22...f5?! 23.gxf6
xf6 leaves Black facing the nasty
continuation 24.gf5 xf5 25.xf5 e6
26.h6+ h8 27.f5! when the attack along
the a1-h8 diagonal appears to be decisive. ]
23.xe4 g7 24.ac1 fe8 25.xe7 xe7
26.e4 Black's weak dark squares are still
causing him discomfort. h5 27.f2 f6
28.h4 h6 29.f3 fxg5 30.hxg5 hxg5
31.fxg5 c6 32.g1 b4 33.e5 e7
Black's bishop pair provide no compensation
for the pawn here. 34.gd1 b7 35.xc8
xc8 36.d6 d8
[ 36...xd6? 37.xd6 wins the g-pawn. ]
37.gf7 f8 38.c1 e6 39.g5??
[ Either the moves to this game are wrong, or
both players were in terrible zeitnot, as
39.h6+ h7 40.c7 xh6 41.xe7
seems pretty crushing. ]
39...d5??
[ If this is really the right position, 39...xg5
wins a piece for nothing. ]
40.c7?? f6??
[ 40...xg5 ]
41.e2??
[ The final blunder, 41.xe7 wins a piece.
Now the game resumes its previous route,
White's extra pawn winning comfortably. ]
41...xd6 42.xd6 e8 43.c5 xd6
44.xd5 f6 45.c5 f5 46.c8+ g7
47.c7+ g8 48.c8+ g7 49.e4 g3+
50.e3 d6 51.c7+ f8 52.e5 f5+
53.e2 b6 54.d3 e8 55.e4 b4
56.a7 c6 57.d5 b6 58.e4 e3+
59.c5 b5+ 60.c6 f5 61.d6+
1-0
484 A13
Fressinet,Laurent 2696
Gordon,Stephen J 2535
Schachbundesliga 2011-12 (13) 18.03.2012
[John Bartholomew]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4
5.a4+ c6
[ 5...d7!? Lunev, A (2509)-Korchnoi, V
(2632)/Togliatti 2003/[TonyK]. ]
[ 5...bd7 was examined long ago in Bu
Xiangzhi (2602)-Li Wenliang (2506)/Qingdao
2002/[TonyK], so I've taken a fresh look at it
in Naiditsch, A (2702)-Papin, V (2575)/
Plovdiv BUL 2012. ]
6.xc4 b5 7.b3!? Lately White has been
opting for this retreat square with increasing
frequency.
[ I e x a m i n e t h e m o r e s t a n d a r d 7.c2
in Sadorra, J (2525)-Lenderman, A (2581)/
Richardson USA 2012. The major benefit of
the text is that W hite avoids the x-ray his
queen so often finds herself in on c2 (facing
an eventual ...Ra8-c8 and ...c6-c5) thus,
White has more of a license to play an early
d2-d4, not fearing an exchange of pawns. ]
471
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
7...b7 8.0-0 bd7 9.d4 a6 The most
resolute. Black immediately prepares .. .c6-c5,
so White has to hurry.
[ W e ' v e s e e n 9...e7 before. With no c5
break to worry about for now, White has a
wider choice. Two recent games ended in
victories for the first player:
A) Instead 10.d1 0-0 11.c3 a6?!
( 11...b4! 12.a4 a5 is better, when
White won't be able to stop ...c6-c5, with
probable equality) 12.e5 xe5 13.dxe5
d7 14.f4 c7 15.e4! was promising
for White in Brynell, S (2486) -Rombaldoni,
A (2459)/Porto Carras GRE 2011.
Following c5 ( 15...xe5?? 16.xe5
xe5 17.d7 is a typical tactic.; 15...c5?!
meets wit h 16.f6+! xf6 17.exf6 e5
18.fxg7 ) 16.xc5 xc5 17.e4 e7
it may be strongest for White to play
A1) 18.f3 ab8 ( this position was
also reached in Naiditsch, A (2702)-
Riazant sev, A (2 710)/Kishinev UK R
2 0 1 2 , w h e r e B l a c k c h o s e 18...fd8
and went on to lose after 19.dc1 ac8 10.e5!
20.a4 ) 19.g4 fd8?! ( 19...c5!= )
20.g5 xd1+ 21.xd1 d8 22.xd8+
xd8 23.xe7 xe7 24.f3
was the game;
A2) 18.d3!? , hitting h7 and looking to
invade on d7.;
B) 10.c3 a6 11.g5?! ( White should
try to transpose to our game with
11.e5! ) 11...c5 12.xf6 xf6 13.dxc5
xc5 14.b4 e7 was even a little better
for Black in Van der Sterren, P (2569) -
Dautov, R (2606)/Germany 2001/
[TonyK].;
C) 10.e5!? (White plays by analogy with
our main game) xe5 11.dxe5
C1) to give you an idea of the explosion
o f p o p u l a r i t y i n 7 . Q b 3 , 11...d5
was seen just days ago in the European
Championship...in two different games!
12.c3
C1a) 12...b4?! 13.e4 0-0 14.d1
a6 15.f3 c7 16.f4 ( 16.d6!? )
16...xf4 17.gxf4 ad8 18.dc1!
c5?! 19.a3 c4 20.axb4 b5 21.e3
a6 22.b3 xb4 23.bxc4 c6
24.xa6 xe4 25.xe4 Grandelius,
N (2545) -Kanmazalp, O (2389)/
Plovdiv BUL 2012.;
C1b) 12...0-0! as I submit this update,
t h i s l o o k s c r i t i c a l . 13.e4
( th e co mp ut er sugge st s 13.xd5!?
exd5 14.e3 ) 13...c7 14.f4 a6
15.a4 c5 16.axb5 b6 17.d6 xd6
18.exd6 xf4 19.gxf4 xg2 20.xg2
xd6 21.f3 b6 22.bxa6 xa6
23.xa6 xa6 was completely equal
in Andreikin, D (2689)-Matlakov, M
(2632)/Plovdiv BUL 2012.;
C2) 11...d7 12.c3 c7 13.f4 g5?!
(this is dodgy White will happily part with
t h e e 5 p a w n t o o p e n l i n e s ) 14.e3
xe5 15.ac1 a6 16.e4 (White's
pieces occupy great squares and Black's
position is full of holes) h6 17.c5 0-0
18.c3 f6 19.f4! gxf4 20.gxf4 g6
21.h3 h7 Khalifman, A (2632)-
Kulaots, K (2581)/Tallinn EST 2012.
Here 22.e3! f5 23.g5+ xg5
24.fxg5 leaves White very much on
top. ]
[ Holding up the c-pawn advance with 10.a4
t u r n s o u t t o b e i n e f f e c t i v e a f t e r c5!
(yup, this comes anyway!) 11.axb5 d5
, when Black is at least equal. This has
been known for quite some time, but White
players continue to push the a-pawn. A
recent example: 12.c2 axb5 13.xa8
xa8 14.c3 c6 15.h4 xg2 16.xg2
b4 17.b5 c6 18.a4 e7 19.dxc5 0-0
20.c3 xc5 21.e3 h5 22.f4 f5
23.d1 c8 Matthiesen, A (2316) -Hector,
J (2575)/Denmark DEN 2012. ]
10...xe5 Again, critical.
[ 10...b6 gives White a free hand: 11.xd7
xd7 12.e3 ( 12.c3!? is a very
interesting gambit offer that Black may want
to decline, e.g. xd4 13.e3 e5 14.f4
f5 15.ad1 ) 12...c5 13.d5 exd5
14.xd5 xd5 15.xd5 d8 16.a4 e7
17.axb5 axb5 18.c3 0-0 19.b4
( 19.f5 ) 19...f6 20.xb5 cxb4 21.a7
c5 22.f3 xf3 23.exf3= Meier, G
(2656)-Ponomariov, R (2764)/ Dortmund
GER 2011. ]
[ 10...c8 also looks unimpressive, i.e.
11.xd7 ( 11.f3!?; and 11.a4 also makes
sense ) 11...xd7 12.c3 ( 12.e3 c5
472
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

13.xb7 xb7 14.dxc5 xc5 15.c2 14...xe5 15.e3 a5?!

Maletin, P (2545)-Grachev, B (2640)/ [ A small misstep. Developing with 15...e7!
Novokuznetsk 2008. c8= ) 12...c5 13.d5 appears better, i.e. 16.c5 ( 16.ad1 xe3
c4 14.c2 with good prospects. ] 17.xe3 c5 ) 16...c7! ( avoiding 16...0-0
11.dxe5 d5 17.xe7 xe7 18.xb4 c7 19.c5 )
[ Black is at a crossroads here. I examine 17.xe7 xe7 18.ac1 a5 19.c5 0-0
11...d7 in Agrest, E (2599)-Grandelius, N with objective equality (though I suspect
(2536)/Sweden SWE 2012 ] most players would prefer White's activity). ]
12.c3 b8!? Trying to sideline White by [ Also possible is 15...xe3 16.xe3 c5
pressuring e5, though we know White doesn't , i.e. 17.f4!? d4! ( 17...xb2?!
mind pitching this pawn. is too dangerous 18.f6+ xf6 19.xb7
[ Previously Black had only played 12...e7 b8 20.c6+ d8 21.ad1+ c7
, e.g. 13.e4 22.e4 ) 18.xd4 cxd4 19.ac1 d5
A) on 13...c7 , 14.d6+!? 20.fd1 d8 21.xd4 e7 though White
is an intriguing pawn sac , i.e. ( 14.f4 looks marginally better here, i.e. 22.f2!? ]
xf4 15.gxf4 0-0 16.a4 ad8 17.fc1 16.fd1 c7 17.d4! e5 18.c5
d4 18.e3 xa4 19.xa4 bxa4 [ I'd prefer 18.ac1!? : exd4 19.xd5 d8
20.c5 xc5 21.xc5 d8 22.f3= 20.c4 e7 21.c5 ]
N i H u a ( 2 6 4 1 ) - F r o l y a n o v, D ( 2 5 5 5 ) / 18...xc5
Moscow RUS 2012.) 14...xd6 15.exd6 [ 18...e7!? ]
xd6 16.e4 b6 17.d1 e7 18.c3 19.xc5 d8?!
0-0 19.b3!? . White's compensation is of [ 19...0-0 20.xb7 ( or 20.ac1 )
the positional variety, so more tests are 20...xb7 21.xd5 cxd5 22.xd5 ]
needed.; 20.c2!? Mysterious.
B) 13...c5 14.g5! c4 15.xe7 xe7 [ Surely White looked at 20.e4! , but I guess
16.d1 0-0 17.d6 c6 18.b3 t h e t r i c k i e r t e x t a p p e a l e d t o h i m . f6
( 18.d4!? ) 18...c3 19.d2 xg2 21.xd8+ xd8 22.d1+ c8 23.h3+
20.xg2 b4 21.xc4 ( White is shooting b8 24.c4!? ]
for a slightly better ending he can consider 20...c8?? Playing right into White's hands!
going for more with 21.bxc4 ) 21...c5 [ 20...0-0! 21.b3 f6! ]
22.d3 d5+ 23.xd5 exd5 24.e3 21.b3! Those pesky backwards knight
fe8 25.c2 xe2?! 26.xb4 xe5 moves! In one stroke, Black's position
27.f4 ee8 28.xd5 and Black managed unravels due to the trio of weaknesses on a5,
to save a long rook ending in Meier, G c6, and d5. b6 22.xa5 xa5 23.xc6+
(2659) -Blagojevic, D (2514)/Porto Carras e7 24.xd5 xd5 25.xd5 a6 26.b3
GRE 2011. ] d8 27.f3 Black threw in the towel.
[ 12...c7!? is currently untried. White could 1-0
c o n t i n u e a s i n o u r p r e s e n t g a m e wi t h
13.a4!? ]
13.a4 485 A13
[ 13.f4 ] Gashimov,Vugar 2665
[ and 13.d1!? also come in to Luther,Thomas 2526
consideration. ] XXIV Open Cappelle la Grande FRA (4)
13...b4 14.e4!? A nice, low-risk pawn [Carsten Hansen]
sacrifice. If White doesn't regain the material,
he'll surely have decent positional 1.c4 e6 2.f3 d5 3.g3 dxc4 4.a4+ d7
compensation to show. 5.xc4 a6 6.g2 b5 7.c2 b7 8.a4 c5
[ Fressinet probably decided that 14.xd5 [ Black's other options include: A) 8...b4
cxd5 doesn't promise much. Black will just 9.0-0 gf6 10.d3 d6 11.bd2 0-0 12.b3
complete development with ...Bf8-e7 and ... e5 13.b2 Murey, J-Kuijf, M/Amsterdam
0-0. ] 1987 ]

473
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ B) 8...c5 9.c3 b4 10.e4 a7 11.0-0
gf6 12.d3 c8 13.fd2 d5 14.c4
Murey, J-Guigonis, D/FRA 1991 ]
[ C) 8...gf6
A) 9.c3 b4 10.d1 e7 ( 10...d6
11.0-0 0-0 12.e3 e5 13.b3 ) 11.0-0
0-0 12.b3 c5 13.b2 c8 14.e3 h6
15.c4 Lukov, V-Preissmann, E/Geneve
1993;
B) 9.axb5 axb5 10.xa8 xa8 11.0-0
c5 12.a3 b6 13.b3 c6 14.h4
( 14.e1 d5 15.d3 e7 16.e4 5f6
with chances to both chances, Thompson,
I-Porat, I/Port Erin IOM 2003) 14...d5
( My computer likes 14...g5!? 15.xc6
xc6 16.g2 b4 17.c4 g7
with approximately even chances
according to the silicon beast, but I still
prefer White's chances) 15.d3 b4 16.c4
a6 17.e3 ( White can claim an edge
with 17.g5!? e7 18.xe7 xe7
19.d6+ f8 20.c4 xc4 21.xc4 )
17...xe3 18.xe3 xg2 19.xg2 e7
20.f3 0-0 with approximately even
chances, Panchenko, A-Moroz, A/
Pardubice 1992 ]
9.0-0
[ White unsuccessfully tried to obtain an
advantage with 9.c3 b6 10.axb5 axb5
11.xa8+ xa8 12.0-0 gf6 13.d3 e7
14.b3 , and a draw was agreed upon, 1/
2-1/2, Sunye Neto, J-Slipak, S/Pinamar
2002 ]
9...gf6 10.c3
[ White has tried a few other lines at this [ C) 10.d4 c8 11.axb5 axb5 12.b3 b4
juncture: A) 10.d3 e7 11.fd2 xg2
12.xg2 0-0 13.c3?! b6 14.b3?! d5
15.b2 b4 16.b1 c6 17.g1 de5
, and Black has taken control over the game,
Fishbein, A-Kharitonov, A/Moscow 1989 ]
[ B) White's strongest continuation is possibly
10.axb5 axb5 11.xa8 xa8 12.a3 ( Or
12.h4 e7 13.a3 b4 14.xb7 xb7
15.c4 0-0 16.f3 b3 17.d1 b5
18.d3 , Godes, A-Lugovoi, A/Smolensk 1992,
and now a8= )
A) 12...c6
A1) An inferior continuation is 13.d4?!
c4 ( 13...cxd4 14.d1 c5
looks promising for Black) 14.d5?! xd5
15.d4 xa3 16.bxa3 0-0 17.xc6 10...b6 11.d3 e7 12.b3
xc6 , and Black is a pawn up and has
the better position, Nureev, G-
Karpeshov, O/Omsk/Perm 1998;
A2) 13.d3 e7 14.h4 d5 15.xd5
exd5 16.f5 b4 17.b1 f6 18.d6+
f8 19.e4 g6 20.h6+ e7
A2a) 21.f4!? g5 ( 21...f8?!
22.e1! g5 23.exd5 a4 24.c4
gxf4 25.e8+ xe8 26.xe8 xe8
27.b3 , and White is winning) 22.f5+
d8 23.e3 d4 24.d2 a6
wit h a co m p lica t e d , in d e e d ra t h e r
messy, struggle ahead;
A2b) 21.exd5 a4 22.b3 xd6
23.bxa4 xd5 24.d2 , and White
has the initiative and the better
chances, Dyachkov, S-Sorokin, M/
Sochi RUS 2006;
B) 12...a6 13.d3 e7 14.b3 c6
15.h4 ( 15.g5 0-0 16.d2 xg2
17.xg2 b8 18.a1 h6 19.f4 e5
20.e3 c6+ with an initiative for Black,
Tolstikh, N-Zinchenko, Y/Alushta UKR
2005 ) 15...d5 16.f5 f8 17.xd5
exd5
B1) 18.d4!? f6 ( 18...g6?! 19.e3+
d8 20.h6 xh6 21.xh6 b4
22.g5+ f6 23.xf6+ xf6 24.g7
e8 25.xf6+ c7 26.b1 xe2
27.f4+ b7 28.f7+ ) 19.dxc5
xc5 20.f3 e4 21.d4;
B2) 18.e4 a4 19.xa4 bxa4 20.exd5
xd5 21.b5 d8 22.f4 Djachkov,
S-Yakovich, Y/Sochi RUS 2005 ]
( 12...cxd4 13.xd4 xg2 14.xg2 b4
15.d2 e5 16.4f3 c5 17.c4= )
13.bd2 d5 14.d3 c4 15.c2
A) Here Black should instead have
c o n s i d e r e d 15...c3!? which is a bit
p r o b l e m a t i c f o r W h i t e , e . g . 16.bxc3
( 16.b1? b3 17.d3 c4 18.xc3
xe2 19.e1 xf1 20.xf1 e7
, and Black is obviously better) 16...bxc3
17.b1 c7 18.e1 xg2 19.xg2
d5 20.a3 b6 21.e3 xa3 22.xa3
, and White has slightly better game;
B) 15...b3 16.b1 a8 17.e5 xe5
18.dxe5 xg2 19.xg2 , Kazantsev, V-
Salakhova, G/Togliatty 2001 ]
474
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ Another try is 12.e4 0-0 13.h3 c4 14.dxc4 but solid initiative by having the a-file under
bxc4 ( 14...b4!? 15.e5 bxc3 16.exf6 xf6 control 19.c1 h6 20.e4 a2 21.e3 a7
17.bxc3 c7 is perfectly acceptable for 22.b3 b4?!
Black ) 15.a5 c7 16.d1 ( 16.a4!? c5 [ This leads to a quick and painless draw, but
17.d1 ac8 18.h2 a7 19.f1 ) Black could have tried for more with the
16...b4 17.d4 ( 17.a4!? xa5 18.f1 somewhat challenging 22...a3 , and now
xc3 19.xc4 c5 20.g5 e7 W h i t e h a s t o b e c a r e f u l . . . 23.c2
21.bxc3= ) 17...xa5 18.g5 b6 ( 23.xc5?? l o s e s i m m e d i a t e l y b4!-+ )
( 18...e5!? 19.xf6 gxf6 20.f3 xf3+ 23...a1+ 24.g2 b1 25.xc5 ( 25.d2
21.xf3 b6 , and Black has a very d1 26.f3 e5 will leave White suffering
c o m f o r t a b l e g a m e) 19.ac1 ac8 passively for a while to come) 25...xc5
( 19...e5!? is worthy of serious 26.xc5 xb3 27.c3 xc3 28.xc3
consideration, . e.g. 20.a4 a7 21.xf6 , and while this should probably be a draw, it
gxf6 22.e2 fd8 23.f4 c6 24.c3 is White who will be defending. ]
b6 , and White is a complete bind) 20.a4 23.c4 a1 24.xa1 xa1+ 25.g2
a7 21.b3 a5 22.d2 h5 23.e3 cxb3 ½-½
24.xb3 xc1 25.xc1 xd4 26.xd4
xe4 , and although Black somehow
managed to avoid winning this position 486 A13
despite being two pawns up and this stage, Georgiev,Kiril 2654
Onischuk, A-Novikov, I/W ashington Adla,Diego Gustavo 2485
DC2002 ] ch-FRA Top 16 GpA (4) 31.03.2005
12...d5 13.axb5!? [John Watson]
[ 13.g5 doesn't produce anything for White,
if Black reacts properly 1.c4 e6 2.c3 b4 Tony dubbed this the
A) Here 13...f6!? deserves consideration ' A c c e l e r a t e d N i m z o ' ! 3.b3! c5?!
despite apparently weakening Black's This is loosening.
pawn chain, e.g. 14.d2 0-0 [ Black might want to develop quickly by
A1) 15.axb5?! axb5 16.xa8 xa8 3...c6 , e.g. , 4.f3 f6 5.e3 0-0 ]
17.e4 ( Here White shouldn't get 4.a3
tempted by 17.xb5?? xc3 18.xd7 [ We have previously seen 4.b5 f6 5.a3
xe2+ 19.h1 f8 , and White's a5 6.d6+ of C Hansen-Lobron,
q u e e n w i l l n o t e s c a p e u n s c a t h e d) Bundesliga 2000, when e7 gives Black a
17...xc3 18.bxc3 b4 19.h3 f7 lead in development to make up for his
, and Black is doing rather well; king position and loss of the two bishops.
A2) 15.e4 f5 16.a5 c6 17.eg5 But most players would still prefer to be
h6 18.h3 g5 , and Black is indeed White in such a position. ]
doing very well; 4...a5
B) 13...xc3 14.xc3 f6 15.axb5 [ 4...xc3 5.xc3 cedes White the bishops
axb5 16.xa8+ xa8 17.a1 c6 in a flexible position. Nevertheless Black is
18.a5! xa5 19.xa5 d7 20.a7 probably best off capturing. ]
xf3 21.xf3 xg5 22.c6 0-0 23.xd7 5.e4!
with a small, but clear advantage for White, [ Also promising looks 5.b5 d5 6.g3
Wells, P-Haslinger, S/Torquay 2002 ] f8 ]
13...axb5 14.xa8+ 5...c7
[ White doesn't achieve anything after [ 5...f6!? 6.xc5 c6 7.e3 e7
14.xd5 either, e.g. xd5 15.xa8+ xa8 gives some compensation for the pawn,
16.e4 0-0 17.e3 b7 18.a1 a8 since Black is way ahead in development. ]
19.xa8+ xa8= ] 6.g3!?
14...xa8 15.g5 xc3 16.xc3 xg5 [ 6.d3!? keeps the queens on with some
17.xg5 0-0 18.xa8 xa8 Black has light advantage. It's a matter of taste. ]

475
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

6...xg3 Pretty much forced. 7.hxg3 a6 o f t h e h igh le ve l, i s t h e ir a b il it y t o t h in k

8.b3 White concentrates upon the dark without prejudice, and change the character of
squares. He is aided by the open h-file. c7 the position at any moment. W ith perf ect
9.b2 f6 10.e3 b6 11.d4 b7 12.c3 timing Giri exchanges the bishop for the knight,
[ 12.d3! looks more pointed, maintaining so he can then lay siege to the black d-pawn.
the knight and eyeing h7: f5 ( 12...e7 xf6 11.d4! b8
13.f3 ) 13.g5 with the idea xg2 14.h2 [ 11...e7 12.c3 c6 13.e4! ]
b7 15.d5! ] 12.c3 dxc4 13.d2 a5 14.a4 b4
12...e7 13.d5 e5 15.a3! xc3 16.e4 f5 17.xc3 b3
[ 13...0-0 14.0-0-0 ] 18.ad1 c2 19.xc4 d2 20.xc7 xf1
[ 13...exd5 14.cxd5 ] 21.e4! A move that needed to be seen in
14.0-0-0 xc3?! advance. For today's computer generation,
[ 14...exd5 15.cxd5 d6 16.f3 c7 making difficult calculations is a piece of cake.
17.xe5 fxe5 18.e4 ] [ 21.xb8? xe3 22.fxe3 xc3
15.xc3 exd5 16.cxd5 d6 17.b5+ f7 would only be better for Black. ]
18.e4 with a nice edge. Black doesn't have 21...b7 22.c5! b2 23.b1 d2 24.xf1
good squares available for his pieces. c7 b2 It looks as if Black has survived the worst,
19.d3 a5 20.a4!? b u t t h e r e is a s t i n g in t h e t a i l . 25.xh7+!
[ 20.f3 a4 21.b4! allows less counterplay ] xh7 26.e4 c2 27.xf8 xe4 28.xc8
20...a6 21.c2 The smoke has cleared and White is left with
[ 21.c4 b5 ] a technically winning ending. Giri very rarely
21...c8 22.e2 h6 p u t s a f o o t wr o n g in s u c h s i t u a t i o n s . a5
[ 22...d7 23.b2 a6! ] 29.c5 a4 30.a7 f5 31.xa4 h6
23.d2 f5 24.f3 f8 25.f4 g8 26.c1 32.e8 a2 33.h4 xa3 34.h5
[ 26.de1 fxe4 27.xe4 ] 1-0
26...fxe4! 27.fxe4! Now Black can't control
e5. g4 28.d2 ad8 29.e5 e8 30.e1
d7 31.e6 c7 32.g6 xg6 33.xg6 488 A13
White's bishops dominate the board. f5? Gomez Feria,Jose Maria 1989
[ Black needs to give up an exchange to Pogorelov,Ruslan 2451
survive, but the position is ultimately XXIX Open Sevilla ESP (2) 10.01.2004
hopeless af ter 33...e7 34.f7+ exf7 [Tony Kosten]
( 34...h8 35.h1! h7 36.f1! h8
37.df2 ) 35.exf7+ xf7 36.f2+ f6 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 a6 4.g2 b5
37.f4 ] This is an ambitious line, a bit like a Hedgehog,
34.f7+ h8 35.f2 g6 36.xg6 xf2 but Black aims for more queenside space.
37.xe8 e7 38.d7 xg2 39.e5 5.d4!? The critical reply, but perhaps
1-0 [ 5.b3 should be preferred, simply defending
the attacked c4-pawn. ]
5...c6!
487 A13 [ 5...d5 6.cxb5 e5 is an interesting gambit. ]
Giri,Anish 2730 6.cxb5
Bartel,Mateusz 2635 [ 6.d3 d5 7.0-0 is safer, Sunye Neto,J-
Bundesliga 1213 (11.1) 16.03.2013 Stean,M/Lone Pine 1978. ]
[Danny Gormally] 6...axb5 7.xb5?! At first sight this seems to
win a pawn, but in fact falls for a trap.
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 a6!? 4.e3 d5 [ 7.0-0 d5 8.d3 c5 9.b3 b6
5.b3 d6 6.b2 0-0 7.g2 b5 Good luck and Black has the centre, Schinzel, W -
trying to find this line in your databases, as I Robatsch,K/Lublin 1976. ]
couldn't find any! 8.0-0 bxc4 9.bxc4 c6 7...cxb5! Black can also play the gambit
10.xf6! One of the characteristics of a player [ 7...d5 8.5c3 e5 with the centre and

476
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
some open lines, Heine,R-Hajek,J/Dortmund
1990, but in view of the strength of the main
move this seems unnecessary. ]
8.xa8 d5 The point, the hapless white
bishop is trapped on a8! 9.c2 The idea is to
stop Black from playing ...Qb6-a7, picking-up
the a8-bishop immediately.
[ 9.a4 attempts to bring direct aid to the
bishop: a5 10.c2 d7 11.b7 b4
the bishop has no escape, 12.0-0 d6
13.d3 a7 (before White plays Be3) 14.c8
c6 15.e3 ( 15.e1?! 0-0 16.e4 c5
17.f4 xc8 is crushing for Black, Houdart,
D-Bunzmann,D/Bethune FRA 2003) 15...d4
16.g5 Reis,L-Damaso,R/Lisbon 1999,
when d5 17.d2 0-0 favours Black, who
gains 2 bishops for a rook and 2 pawns. ]
[ 9.b3!? d7 10.c3 is possible, b4?!
( 10...a6! ) 11.xd5 exd5 12.xd5 xd5
13.xd5 is unclear, Ilic,S-Carnic, D/Nis
1995. ]
9...d7 10.b4!? A pawn sac, trying to gain a
te mp o o ve r 1 0 b3 , which is on e o f ma n y
alternatives:
[ 10.b3 a5 11.b7 e7 12.b2 0-0
13.d4 b4 14.0-0 b5 15.c7 xe2
16.a7 a6 17.xa6 xa6 18.b6 e2
19.e3 h5 and Black moved over to an
attack on the light squares, Ehrenfeucht,
W-Adamski,J/Warsaw 1990. ]
[ 10.b7 e4 11.d4 d6 12.xd5 exd5
13.c3 a5 is clearly good for Black,
Kohnert,A-Davidovic,A/Dortmund 1989. ]
[ 10.0-0 e7!? ( 10...b6 -a6 is a simple
solution ) 11.d3 0-0 12.e3 g4
Mukhtarov, L-Panchenko,A/Katowice 1993,
and now 13.d4 looks critical. ]
[ 10.xd5? makes it too easy for Black:
xd5 11.c3 c6 12.f3 b4 13.b3
8a6 14.a3 c5 15.d1 bd3+!?
with a crunching attack, Du,D-Van Meter,L/
Framingham USA 2001. ]
10...xb4 11.b2 0-0 12.a4?!
[ 12.d4! is better, stopping ... Qb6-a7, d6
13.f4!? and Black has no obvious way to
recover the bishop, although this piece is still
a long way from escaping! ]
12...bxa4 13.xa4?! White panics, and
returns his extra material, but without solving
the bishop problem. xa4 14.xa4 b6
15.c3?! xc3
[ 15...a6 is also convincing: 16.c6 a7
17.b7 c5 wins a piece and the game. ]
16.xc3 a6 17.c6 c8 18.b5 c5
19.b4 b8 20.d4 ce4 White loses a
piece.
0-1
489 A13
Gourlay,Iain 2349
Motwani,Paul 2503
ch Edinburgh SCO (7) 17.07.2009
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 e6 3.g3 dxc4 4.a3 xa3
5.bxa3 b5 6.b2 f6 7.a4 b4!?
an unusual approach. Black willingly gives
back the c-pawn but hopes to win an a-pawn
at a later stage.
[ 7...a6 ]
[ 7...c6 ]
8.c2 bd7 9.xc4 c5 10.g2 b7
[ 10...a5!? looks more critical to me. 11.d4
a6 12.b5 0-0 13.xa8 xa8 14.0-0
Here it felt to me like Black should have
adequate compensation, but Rybka is not
convinced and moreover Black doesn't even
have a pawn for the exchange. ]
11.d3 0-0 12.0-0 c8
[ 12...a5!? to retain the option of ... Ba6 (can
be useful to get off the h1-a8 diagonal and
to le ave d5 f or t he kn ight ) migh t be a n
improvement, but in general the position
feels balanced. 13.fc1 makes it difficult for
Black to find a constructive move. ]
13.c2 a5 This is potentially a good square
for the queen, so I wonder if Black can do
better here. ...a5 made more sense when ...
Ba6 was still a possibility, but now it is not
clear what it achieves.
[ 13...h6!? Generally useful, and pre-empting
any Ng5 surprises. ]
14.d2 xg2 15.xg2 d5
[ 15...b6!? seems to cause more problems
and pe rh aps le aves Bla ck with a sligh t
initiative. ]
16.c4 7b6 17.e4 xc4 18.xc4 b6
19.b5 d6 20.a3! c6?!
[ 20...d7 somehow white's queen, though
active, is more awkwardly placed so there
is something to be said for keeping queens
477
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

on. ] [ 9...bd7 10.d4 transposes to Bruzon

21.axb4 axb4 22.fc1 fd8 23.xc6 xc6 Batista - Leitao in this update ]
24.a5 d7 25.c4 [ 9...e7 10.d1 d4!? 11.c3 b6
[ 25.d4! gives White chances to be better. 12.d4 0-0 13.e3!? Wojtaszek, R (2705)-
For instance c4 26.a4! ] Adams, M (2734)/Porto Carras GRE 2011.
25...e5 26.d4 exd4 27.xd4 f6 Paul's draw ( 13.g5 looks even better )]
offer is curiously timed, and may have been 10.d4! xd4 11.d3
time-trouble related, because his position now [ Generally a good square for the knight, but
looks quite comfortable to me, with a clear 11.f4! looks more promising. White can
plan of centralising the king. follow with Rf1-d1 and Nb1-c3, among other
[ 27...f6 28.f4!? ( 28.e3 f7 29.a6 a8 ideas. ]
30.a7 c7 and Black is clearly better.) 11...bd7
28...f7 29.f3 e6 30.e3 b8 [ Black can equalize cleanly by preparing ...
and it will not be easy for White to hold the c6-c5 without delay: 11...b6! 12.e3 c5
position. ] and now I can't find anything but equality, i.
½-½ e. 13.xb7 ( 13.xc5? xg2!; 13.xc5?
xc5 14.xb7 xf2+ 15.xf2 xb7 )
13...xb7 14.xc5 ( or 14.xc5 xc5
490 A13 15.xc5 b6 16.d2 0-0 17.ac1
Grachev,Boris 2705 c6= ) 14...xc5 15.xc5 bd7 16.d6
Aleksandrov,Aleksej 2604 e4 17.d1 ( 17.a3?? a5! is actually
13th EICC Plovdiv BUL (10.28) 30.03.2012 terrible for White) 17...a7 18.f3 xd6
[John Bartholomew] 19.xd6 0-0= ]
12.e3 d6 13.c1
1.c4 e6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 f6 4.f3 dxc4 [ 13.d2!? ]
5.a4+ c6 6.xc4 b5 7.b3 b7 8.0-0 13...e7 14.c3 b8 15.e4 d5!?
a6 Keeping the tension.
[ This is less common than 8...bd7 . ] [ Black need only exercise a bit of care to
9.e5!? An important test of 8...a6. If Black reach a draw after 15...xe4 16.xe4 c5!
isn't going to cover the e5 square, why not 17.xb7 xb7 18.xc5 xc5 19.xc5
occupy it? xc5 20.xc5 0-0 21.ac1 . ]
[ The point of Black's move order is that on 16.ec5?!
9.d4 (trying to reach positions we're familiar [ Jumping to c5 with the other knight is
with after 9...Nbd7 10.Ne5), c5! is a fully better: 16.dc5! so as to answer xe3?!
satisfactory equalizer. White recently ground with 17.xe3 ]
out a win in this line in Fridman, D (2653) - 16...xe3 17.xd7 c7! Possibly White
Pridorozhni, A (2524)/Plovdiv BUL 2012, but underestimated this in-between move. 18.fxe3
in the game continuation 10.dxc5 bd7 xd7 19.c3 f6? This is over-ambitious in
11.e3 xc5 12.xc5 xc5 13.b4 c8 turn.
14.c1 Black's position was more than [ 19...0-0 was far better, i.e. 20.xc6 xc6
adequate . In fact, he could have ignored 21.xc6 a7!? ]
the attacked knight on c5 with 0-0! since 20.d1 d8 21.b3! c8 22.f4 d5!?
( 14...d3 15.xc8 xb4 16.xd8+ xd8 Black is under considerable pressure, so he
17.c3 e7 18.e5 xg2 19.xg2 ma ke s a p ra ct ica l e xch a n ge sa crif ic e t o
was t he ga me , whe re W hit e re taine d a reverse the trend.
microscopic edge.) 15.xc5? d6! 16.xb5 [ The alternative is 22...xd1+ 23.xd1 e5
d1+ 17.e1 ( 17.e1 xg2-+ ) 24.e6 g6 , which looks unpleasant but
17...xe1+ 18.xe1 axb5 19.xb7 c1 defensible. ]
20.f1 d8-+ is essentially winning for 23.xd5 cxd5 24.ac1 d8 25.e4 b6+
Black. ] 26.f1
9...d6 Actually a novelty. [ 26.e3! dxe4 27.xe4 f7 ( 27...xe4?

478
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

28.c8++- ) 28.xb7 xb7 29.c2 ] and at any rate has a clear advantage. e4?
26...dxe4?! 14.d3 g5 15.h4 e6 16.d4 d7 17.f3
[ 26...d4! ] The opening is over, so I'll leave it up to you
27.c3? whether you want to see W hite stretch his
[ Missing 27.xe4!+- ] lead and win. ad8 18.c5 b8 19.xd7
27...d8! Now Black gains sufficient xd7 20.0-0 f6 21.d3 g6 22.fe1 g7
counterplay. 28.d4 0-0 29.xe4 f5 23.g3 b6 24.f1 d6 25.ad1 bc8
[ 29...xe4 30.xe4 f5 31.e5 f4!? ] 26.b3 c7 27.e2 ce8 28.c2 e7
30.xb7 f6 31.c6 xd4 32.xe6+ h8 29.g2 e6 30.cc1 d8 31.c3 h6
33.c8 xc8 34.xc8+ d8 35.xf5 xb2 32.b1 f8 33.e1 g5 34.hxg5 hxg5
36.xa6 b4 White tries for a bit, but Black 35.f5 g6 36.d3 f7 37.c5 f8
easily hold s t he e ndgame . 37.g2 g6 38.e4 e7 39.g4 b8 40.e5 g6
38.e4 c3 39.c4 g7 40.h4 h5 41.c6 41.exf6 xf6 42.d2 xc5 43.xg5+ f7
h6 42.f7 f6 43.e8 d6 44.e4 f6 44.dxc5 e6 45.h5+ g6 46.c3 d4
45.e8 d4 46.e3 c3 47.f4+ xf4 47.e4 f6 48.xg6 xg6 49.b2 e5
48.gxf4 e1 49.e4 xh4 50.e5 g7 50.f4 c6 51.e1 g7 52.g5+ f7
51.f3 e1 52.d7 d2 53.e4 c1 53.e4 d7 54.g2 b6 55.f5 b7 56.f6
Grachev's 9.Ne5!? is likely the way to go e6 57.h5+ f8 58.xe6
against 8...a6. Should this line be repeated I 1-0
believe White ought to go for 11.Bf4! instead.
½-½
492 A13
Hansen,Curt 2615
491 A13 Lobron,Eric 2550
Gurevich,Mikhail 2643 Bundesliga 2000
Kurajica,Bojan 2548 [Tony Kosten]
37th Olympiad (11) 02.06.2006
[John Watson] 1.c4 e6 2.c3 b4 3.b3 c5!?
[ A positionally desirable move, in many ways,
W atch out for this trick! For some reason but the weakening of d6 does have
players periodically fall for it, and have done consequences. 3...c6 4.f3 f6 5.a3
so for at least 30 years since it was widely xc3 6.xc3 d6 7.d4 is more usual,
published. And who knows how many times transposing into a Qc2 Nimzo, Gurevich,
before? 1.c4 e6 2.c3 b4 3.b3 c5 M-Rozentalis,E/Groningen 1992. ]
4.a3 4.b5!
[ 4.b5!? c6 5.g3 ( 5.d6+ f8 ) [ Sharper than 4.a3 a5 5.e4 when Black
5...f8= ] seems OK: c7 6.g3 xg3 7.hxg3 a6
4...a5?! 8.f3 d5 Bodo,N-Laihonen,P/ Nagykanizsa
[ Better is 4...xc3 5.xc3 f6 1993, 1/2-1/2 (14). ]
, and Blacks best plan to counteract the 4...f6
bishops may be ...0-0, . ..b6, and ...d5. ] [ Black continues his development, 4...a6
5.e4! f6? is similar, 5.d6+ e7 6.xc8+ ( 6.g3 )
[ 5...d6 6.g3 simply loses a pawn ] 6...xc8 7.g3 f6 8.g2 b8 9.h3 b5
[ But 5...c7! 6.g3 xg3 7.hxg3 a6 10.0-0 bxc4 11.a4! b6 12.a3 b8
8.b3 d5 9.b2 f6 10.d6+ e7 13.c2 a5 14.xc4 with the more
11.xc8+ xc8 12.e3 hangs in there. pleasant position, Ragozin,E-Hartereau,P/
White is better due to his two bishops, but Paris 1993, 1-0 (24). ]
it's a normal advantage. ] [ However, Black must permit the intrusion
6.xc5 c6 7.e3 e7 8.a4 0-0 9.c2 into d6, 4...d6? allows the fork 5.g3 ]
d5 10.b4 c7 11.b2 a6 12.cxd5 exd5 5.a3!?
13.e2 White has pretty much consolidated [ A n e w i d e a . 5.d6+ e7 6.g3

479
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
is also dangerous for Black, c6 7.e4!?
f8 8.f3 e8 9.xe8 xe8 10.d3
a5 11.e5 c7 12.b3 with more space,
and easier development for White, Agrest,E-
Sjoberg,M/ Stockholm 1998, 1-0 (34). ]
5...a5 6.d6+ e7 7.xc8+
[ The simplest choice, White will bank on his
bishop pair, and the temporary discomfort of
the black king, outweighing his temporary
development deficit. 7.g3 is the sharp
alternative. ]
7...xc8 8.g3 c6 9.f3 b8 10.g2 a6
11.0-0 b5 12.d3 d6 13.d1 d8 14.c2
h6?!
[ Black is worried about ...Kf8 being
a n s w e r e d b y B g 5 , b u t 14...b7
may be superior, so as to meet 15.b3 with
bxc4 16.bxc4 b3 ]
15.b3 d7 16.b2 Now Black has problems,
White is ready to play d4, and the black king
cannot flee to the kingside without allowing
Bxf6, wrecking the black pawn structure. d8
So as to play ...Kf8. 17.d4 cxd4?
[ Black should prefer 17...bxc4 18.bxc4
( 18.dxc5 is interesting, cxb3 19.cxd6+
xd6 20.c5 c7 21.a4 e4 with fair
chances. ) 18...cxd4 19.xd4 xd4
20.xd4 and White has only a small edge. ]
18.c5 dxc5?!
[ 18...f8 19.ac1 d5 20.xd4 is clearly
better for W hite, with his passed c-pawn,
and two bishops, but playable. ]
19.xc5+ d6?
[ This loses, the only chance lay with
19...e8 although 20.ac1 e7 21.b4
is very awkward for Black. ]
20.xd4 xd4 21.xd4 d7? This leads to
disaster, but Black was losing an exchange,
anyway. 22.xd6+
[ 22.xd6+ xd6 23.xf6+ c7 24.ac1+
wins two pieces for nothing. ]
1-0
493 A13
Hansen,Curt
Lobron,Eric
Bundesliga 2000 2000
[Paul Motwani]
Quick Tricks and Traps 1) W3: The game Cu.
Ha n s e n - E . L o b r o n , p l a ye d i n G e r m a n y ' s
'Bundesliga' on 29 January 2000, was an
English Opening that began with the moves
1.c4 e6 2.c3 b4 3.b3 c5?!
(even strong GMs can make errors at move
three!) 4.b5! and Black was already in
serious difficulties at the d6-square because
4...d6? loses to 5 Qg3. In the actual game,
Denmark's super-GM Curt Hansen won easily
in only 22 moves.
494 A13
Hillarp Persson,Tiger 2596
Dreev,Alexey 2660
Politiken Cup (6) 22.07.2009
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.c4 c6 2.f3 d5 3.g3 dxc4 4.g2 e6
5.0-0 f6 6.a4 This appears to be one of
those positions, fairly typical of flank openings
in general, which comes under what you might
call 'theory lite'- there are some games, and a
few authors have give some tentative thoughts
on the best lines, but there haven't been
enough top level games to be completely sure
which way the theoretical wind is blowing.
a6!?
[ 6...a5!? is a major alternative. 7.a3 xa3
8.bxa3! 0-0 9.c2 b5 10.b1 a6
11.axb5 cxb5 12.d4 xd4 13.xa8
left Black with inadequate compensation in
Tomashevsky, E -Korneev, O Dresden 2007,
main ly because th e o pen nat ure of th e
position means that his queenside pawns
are as much a weakness as a strength. ]
7.a3 xa3 8.bxa3!? This has been done
before. Having one of the a-pawns already on
a4 helps a lot because it makes it almost
impossible for Black to hold on to his extra
material. Your site manager, Tony Kosten,
previously opted for what looks like the saner
alternative.
[ 8.xa3 b4 9.a5! 0-0 10.b3 cxb3
480
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11.xb3 With compensation that looks at
least adequate- I think I would rather be
W hite here. I have retained the following
moves just to show that Tony is really a
hacker at heart. bd5 12.e5 ( 12.d4;
12.b1!? ) 12...d7 13.d4 xe5 14.dxe5
c5 15.f4 c7 16.e4 e7 17.c2 c4
18.g4 c5+ 19.h1 d8 20.h3 g6
21.g5 b5 22.e2 b7 23.e3 c7 24.a6
xa6 25.f5 f8 26.f6 xe5 27.f4 d4
28.e3 e5 29.f4 d4 30.e3 e5
1/2-1/2 Kosten, A -Goldin, A /Paris 1994. ]
8...c5 9.b1 a5?! I suspect this may be a
mistake.
[ 9...a6 10.e5! is no improvement but ]
[ 9...0-0 10.c2 d5 11.xc4 b6 12.d4
a6 13.c2 d7 14.d1 with e4 to follow
also looks better for W hite, so I begin to
wonder if this whole doubled a-pawns with
a4 included idea might be a very good one. ]
10.b4! c3 11.dxc3! Beauty is in the eye of
the beholder. The pawns themselves may not
look pretty, but Black's kingside has only one
defender, the knight on f6, while W hite has
several potential attackers and this eventually
decides the game. 0-0 12.c2 d5
[ 12...d7 At first I though Black should
probably just complete development and
hope for the best, but the more I look at the
position the more I like W hite- the weak
queenside pawns don't matter, while the
active rook on d4 and black's weakened
d a r k s qu a re s a n d vu ln e ra b l e k in g, d o .
13.e3 ad8 14.g5 ]
13.e4! e7 14.e5 c7 15.h4! d5
A pseudo-threat, especially against Tiger,
who wouldn't think twice about sacrificing the
exchange.
[ 15...b6 is slightly more tenacious, but
White is certainly much better. ]
16.e1 b6 17.d4!? An interesting decision,
perhaps based on the judgment that Black
now had to play f5.
[ The direct 17.g4 also looked strong. ]
17...f5 18.exf6 gxf6 19.h6 f7 20.c4 e7
21.d1! Now we see one point of the rook
being on d4. g6 22.d8+ f8 23.e5!
decisive b7 24.xa8 xa8 25.xf7 xf7
26.h5+ e7
[ 26...g6 27.f4 ]
27.g4 cd7 28.xf8+ A crushing victory,
and an impressive demonstration of why the
doubled-a pawns are rarely the most
important positional feature in these lines.
1-0
495 A13
Illescas Cordoba,Miguel 2595
Shirov,Alexei 2723
XII It I Dos Hermanas ESP (2) 29.03.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e6 2.f3 d5 3.g3 dxc4 4.g2
[ 4.a4+ first, is more common, White
delays recapturing the pawn so that Black
has to commit himself. ]
4...f6 5.0-0 e7 6.a4+ bd7
Mickey Adams preferred
[ 6...c6 against me at Drancy in the French
Team Championship, a couple of months
ago (by transposition), and this game
continued 7.xc4 b5 8.c2 b7 9.b3
bd7 10.b2 0-0 11.d3 c5 12.bd2
w h e n B l a c k f o u n d a s t r o n g p l a n : d5!
13.ac1 ( 13.a3 a5 14.e4 5b6 15.a4
may be better, keeping the knight out of b4,
although a4 is a constant problem,) 13...a5!
14.a4 ( 14.a3 a4 favours Black as the a3-
pawn will be exposed on the a-file) 14...b4
15.b1 bxa4 16.bxa4 ( 16.a1!? axb3
17.xg7 a4! 18.c4 f5 19.xf8 xf8
and it will be difficult to stop the rampant a-
a n d b - p a w n s) 16...b6 17.a1 f6
18.c4?! ( 18.b3! ) 18...xc4 19.xc4
d5 with advantage to Black. ]
7.xc4 c5 8.d4 This move brings us into
Ca ta la n te rrito ry, bu t is im po rt a nt f or a ll
English Opening players. b6!? As far as I
can see this is a novelty, if instead
[ 8...cxd4 then 9.xd4 b6 10.d3 0-0
11.c3 is about level, Padevsky, N-Oney,F/
Albena 1977, but by far the most common
move here is ]
[ 8...0-0 when 9.dxc5 xc5 10.c3 a6
11.e4 e7 12.xf6+ xf6 13.d1 a5
14.d2 b6?? was a blunder, allowing
15.xc8 1-0 Telljohann,S-Kelecevic,N/Biel
1994. ]
9.c2 cxd4 10.d1 d7 11.xd4 c8
12.d3 fd5 Black has developed all his
minor pieces, and has equalised. 13.a3 f6
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

14.b3 White refrains form the 'obvious' defended,

[ 14.e4 perhaps because of a4!? 15.b3 [ 42.h4? h5 and the rook is lost to a knight
xd4 16.xd4 xb3 but following 17.exd5! fork. ]
xd1 18.xg7 xc1 19.xh8+ e7 42...xh3+ 43.g2 f4+ 44.f2 h5
20.b2 he may be better, but who would 45.g3 h4 46.g4 h3 47.h4 c2+ 48.f3
risk this against Shirov? ] g7 49.g3 c3+ 50.g4 f6 White has
14...0-0 15.e4 e7 16.e3 c6 17.xc6!? managed to sort his pieces out to some extent,
[ 17.c3 seems more natural. ] but the h-pawn will prove a thorn in his side.
17...xc6 18.a2 d7! 19.e2 a5 51.h1 b3 52.f2 Can he capture the h-
This puts pressure on the white queenside, pawn? e3! 53.xh3 e2 No, the cost will
whilst allowing the black rooks to come to d8. prove too great. 54.h5 g3+ 55.g4
20.c2 White plays timidly, xe4 56.h5 g3+ 57.g4 e2 58.h5?
[ 20.ad2 fd8 21.f4 offers more. ] [ 58.h5 had to be played again, although
20...fd8 The problem for White is how can White is lost. ]
he chase the queen away from his queenside, 58...g3+
and then develophisb1-knight? 21.h3 a6 [ 58...g3+ 59.h4 g2 leaves the three
22.d2? Not like this! white pieces without a single move!!
[ 22.cd2 still looks strongest. ] ( 59...xh3+ 60.xh3 f4+ is much too
22...b5! 23.b4 This leaves an ugly mundane. )]
doubled pawn that needs defending, but the 0-1
only other way of parrying the menace to the
b3-pawn was by
[ 23.b4 when c5 24.e1 a4 496 A13
was awkward 25.xd8+ xd8 26.d2 xd2 Istratescu,Andrei 2628
27.xd2 xe4 winning a pawn. ] Papadopoulos,Ioannis 2471
23...xb4 24.axb4 e7 25.c4 e5 IX EICC Plovdiv BUL (2) 22.04.2008
26.cd4 xd4 27.xd4 b5 28.f4 c6 [Carsten Hansen]
29.d7 xb4 30.xb7 a5?!
[ 30...d8! is even stronger, the immediate 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 d4
threat is the fork of king and knight, 31.f3 This move is in my opinion very provocative,
d3 32.f2 xb3 and White can resign, as due to Black having played ...e7-e6 previously
33.d2 (what else?) xe3! 34.xe3 c5# ] and by following up with ...e6-e5 later, he is
31.b6 xb3 32.f1 If White can eliminate losing a tempo on purpose. However, this is
the a-pawn he should be able to draw. c5 far from the first time this move has been
33.xc5 xc5 34.xb5 axb5 35.d2 played, but nevertheless White should have
Now White is back in the game. e xce l le n t c h a n ce s o f o b t a in i n g a n e d g e
[ 35.xb5? xe4 ] compared with other lines in the Reti where
35...g5!? Played to free the rook from Black plays an early ...d5-d4. 5.0-0
defending the back rank. 36.xb5? [ 5.b4!? is also worth a thought, but likely
[ 36.fxg5 d3 37.xb5 c2 38.b3 insufficient for an advantage, e.g.
looks OK. ] A) 5...c5 6.b2
36...gxf4 37.gxf4 d3 38.g5+? A1) 6...a5 transposes to our main line
Time trouble, I suspect, as this just puts the after 5...a5;
rook out of play, the immediate A2) 6...c6 7.b5
[ 38.f5 was best. ] A2a) 7...e7 8.e3 dxe3?! ( 8...f5
38...f8 39.f5 White desperately tries to 9.exd4 cxd4 10.0-0 ) 9.dxe3 xd1+
exchange the remaining pawns. c1+ 40.f1 10.xd1 g6 11.h4 h5 12.e2 g4
f4 The black pieces combine well together. 13.d1 Ilivitzki, G-Spassky, B/
41.g4 Moscow 1955/ URS-ch;
[ 41.g3? e2+ ] A2b) 7...a5 8.d3 d6 9.0-0 0-0
41...e5! 42.f2 The h-pawn cannot be 10.e4 e5 11.bd2 d7 12.c2

482
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
c7= Mikhalchishin, A-Fernandez, A/
Lisbon 1986;
A3) 6...b6 7.b3 c6 8.b5 ( 8.bxc5
xc5 9.0-0 0-0 10.a3 e5 11.xb6
xb6 12.b5 d8 1/2-1/2 Vaulin, A-
Serper, G/St Petersburg 1993) 8...a5
9.c2 d6 10.e3 ( 10.0-0 0-0 11.e3
e5 12.exd4 cxd4 13.d3 f5 14.h4
d7 15.d2 ac8 with chances for
both sides, Raizman, M-Taimanov, M/
P a r i s 1 9 5 4) 10...e5 11.exd4 exd4 6...e7
12.0-0 0-0 13.d3 d7 14.bd2 h6
15.ae1 ae8 , and the game is more
or less balanced, Kotov, A-Taimanov, M/
Zuerich 1953/ Candidates;
B) 5...xb4!? is likely the critical test
6.a4+ c6 7.e5 b8
B1) 8.xc6 bxc6 9.xa7 ( 9.0-0 8
can transpose to 0-0) 9...b6 10.a4
b7 11.0-0 0-0 12.c2 c5 13.xb7
xb7 , Cuellar Gacharna, M-Albert, E/
M a r d e l P l a t a 1 9 5 7 , 14.d3 a8
with a pleasant game for Black;
B2) 8.0-0 0-0 9.xc6 bxc6 10.a3 c5
11.d3 d7 12.d2 , and White has
obvious compensation for the pawn, De
Fotis, G-Karklins, A/ Illinois 1987;
C) 5...a5 6.b2!? ( 6.b5!?
would probably be my preference) 6...c5
7.bxc5 xc5 8.e3 ( 8.0-0 c6 9.d3 a4
10.a3 d7 11.fd2 0-0 12.xc5 xc5
13.a3 e5 14.b1 e7 , and the
chances are about even in this reversed
Benko Gambit, Donner, J-Bouwmeester, H/
Beverwijk 1 95 2) 8...c6 9.0-0 0-0
10.a3 e5 11.b5 with a pleasant game
for White in Ehlvest, J-Pomes Marcet, J/
Terrassa 1991 ]
5...c6
[ 5...c5 is the main alternative. ]
6.d3
[ W h i t e h a s a l s o t r i e d 6.e3 e5 17.e1 h3 18.h1 h5 19.b5 d8
( My computer likes 6...d3 , but to me it
looks like Black wants to lose a pawn for
i n s u f f i c i e n t c o m p e n s a t i o n a f t e r 7.e1 21.xe3 with a complicated position, where
f ollowe d by Qb 3) 7.a3 ( In my opinion,
W hite can obtain a better game with the
simple and straight-forward 7.exd4!? exd4 7.e3 e5
8.e1+ e7 9.d3 0-0 10.a3 followed by
Nc2 and Bf4, and the downsides to the lost
tempo with ...e7-e6-e5 are beginning to
show ) 7...a5 8.exd4 exd4 9.d3 e7
10.g5 0-0 11.bd2 h6 12.xf6 xf6
13.e1 ( 13.e1!? ) 13...a4 14.e4 e7
15.f4 a5!? 16.f3 e6 17.d2 b6
18.ae1 d7 19.e2= f5?! 20.f2 f6
21.c2 , and here, just as White is
beginning to have the more comfortable
position again, White offered a draw, which
was duly accepted by Black, 1/2-1/2 Nielsen,
P-Fyllingen, R/Aars 1999 ]
[ Black has tried a couple of other moves in
this position, but I don't think either of the
alternatives are particularly good: A) 6...a5?!
(this looks a little careless, Black shouldn't
play this move unless White has played a2-
a3, placed his knight on c2 or threatens to
play b2-b4. In this position Black just hands
White the b5-square at no charge
whatsoever.)
A) White must be a King's Indian fanatic,
because this really isn't even close to
being critical why on earth does W hite
want to play this when he has much better
moves ava ilable such a s 7.e3! c5
( 7...dxe3 8.xe3 g4 9.e2 xe3
10.xe3 b4 11.a3 e7 12.fd1
followed by d4 is very good for W hite;
7...e5 8.exd4 exd4 9.f4 e7 10.a3
threatening Nb5 is even worse for Black)
8.exd4 xd4 9.c3 0-0 10.e3
with a pleasant game for White;
B) 7.e4?! d7 8.e1 e5 9.f4 e7
10.d2 0-0 11.f5 g5 with a better
game for Black, Andonov, B-Razuvaev, Y/
Sochi 1987 ]
[ B) 6...c5 7.a3 ( 7.e3!? dxe3 8.xe3
xe3 9.fxe3 with a more comfortable game
for White ) 7...0-0 8.c2 a5 9.b3 e5 10.a3
e8 11.g5 h6 12.xf6 xf6 13.b1 f5
14.b4 axb4 15.axb4 f8 16.d2 e6
, Pajkovic, V-Guyot, P/Podgorica 1991, and
here White's best is probably 20.e3 dxe3
I prefer White, but objectively the chances
are about even ]
[ Black can also consider 7...0-0 , though I'm
of the opinion that W hite can obtain the
better chances, e.g. 8.xd4 xd4 9.exd4
483
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
xd4 10.c3
A) 10...e5!? 11.e3 d8 12.h3?!
, and a draw was agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, in
Sher, M-Korneev, O/Elista 1995. Despite
the few moves played, the position is more
or less completely equal, my computer's
main line goes ( The immediate 12.d4!?
, however, is of more interest, e.g. g4
13.d2 exd4 14.xd4 c6 15.f4 d6
16.xd6 xd6 17.fe1 , and White has
the initiative in the queenless
m i d d l e g a m e .) 12...c6 13.d4 exd4
14.xd4 a5 , and Black should have
nothing to fear;
B) 10...d8 11.b5 d7 12.f4 e8
13.a4 f6 14.ad1 xb2 15.d4 c6
16.a3 c5 17.b5 xd4 1-0 Akesson, R-
Marusenko, P/Port Erin 2000/CBM 78 ext
(35) 18.a3 f6 19.e3
B1) 19...e5?! 20.xd4 exd4
( 20...cxd4?? 21.d5+ ends the fun on
account of h8 22.f8# ) 21.xc5 b6
22.a3 , and White has a winning
advantage;
B2) 19...f7 20.xd4 cxd4 21.xd4
and White has the clearly better chances
thanks to his lead in development and
Black's difficulties getting his pieces
developed. ]
8.exd4 exd4 9.a3
[ W h i t e h a s a n a l t e r n a t i v e i n 9.e1
, but this is less convincing: 0-0 10.f4
A) or 10...d7 11.a3 c5 12.c2
e6 13.d2 a5
A1) 14.e5!? xe5 15.xe5 c6
( 15...c5 16.h5 f6 17.d5 d7 9...b4?!
18.e1 ) 16.f3 f6 17.ee1 g5=;
A2) 14.e2! f6 15.a3 ( 15.b4 axb4
16.xb4 xb4 17.xb4 c5 18.d2= )
15...c5 ( 15...a4 16.b4 a5 11.f4 h5= ) 11.b3 c5 12.a3 f5
17.d5 b3 18.ad1 ) 16.b4 b3
17.ab1 xd2 18.xd2;
A3) 14.b3 f6 15.b1 c5 16.c1
f5 17.f1 e8 18.xe8+ xe8 19.a3
d7 , and Black has gained excellent
control over the position, Jimenez, J-
Sagalchik, G/ Alajuela CRC 2006;
B) 10...f5
B1) In his annotations to Groenn- 2007 ]
Carlsen in CBM, Ribli suggests a few 10.b5 0-0
ideas for White instead of the text move.
11.bd2!?
B1a) 11...xd3? '?!' by Ribli, but the
move is a very bad move that leads
Black to a lost position 12.b3 b4
'?' by Ribli, but there isn't anything
better - the mistake was on the
p r e v i o u s m o v e 13.xe7! xe7
14.e1 c5 ( 14...e2 15.xd4+- )
15.a3 c2 16.e5+- (Ribli);
B1b) 11...e8 12.e5 xe5
13.xe5 (Ribli);
B1c) 11...d6 12.g5 h6 13.xf6
xf6 14.e4 xe4 15.xe4 ae8
16.d2;
B2) 11.a3 (Ribli) b4 12.e2 d6
13.xd6 xd6 14.d2 ae8=;
B3) 11.a3 d6 ( 11...a5?! 12.e5
is the only variation discussed by Ribli.)
12.xd6 xd6 13.b4?! ( 13.c2= )
13...ae8 with a comfortable game for
Black;
B4) 11.e5 This a typical move in this
type of position, exchanging a pair of
knights to get a little more breathing
ro om f o r th e p ie ce s a nd a dd a litt le
pre ssu re a lon g t h e h 1 -a8 d ia go n a l.
xe5 12.xe5 d7! ( Rather than
co n t i n u i n g wi t h t h e p a s si ve 12...c8
13.e1 d6 14.xd6 xd6 15.d2
, Black sacrifices a pawn for the
initiative) 13.xb7 ab8 , and with his
lead in development and well-
coordinated pieces, Black has ample
compensation for the pawn, Groenn, A-
Carlsen, M/Gausdal 2004 ]
[ This is a peculiar and not very good novelty.
Previously Black has obtained an adequate
game with 9...0-0 10.c2 a5 ( 10...g4
( 12...e8!? ) 13.b1 d7 ( 13...e8 14.b4
axb4 15.axb4 ) 14.b4 axb4 15.axb4 a7
16.f4 ( White can grab the initiative with
16.b5!? d8 17.e5 d6 18.e1 e8
19.a3 with an uncomfortable position for
Black ) 16...g6 ( 16...fe8!? ) 17.b5 d8
18.e5 c8 19.xg6 hxg6 20.e5
Hardicsay, P-Horvath, P/Balatonlelle HUN
[ Or 10...c5 11.f4 0-0 12.c7 d7
484
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
13.e1 c6 14.e5 xe5 15.xe5
with a very pleasant game for White ]
11.bxd4 c5 And with this move, Black wins
back the pawn, but the resulting position is,
as we will see, clearly favouring White 12.a3
cxd4 13.axb4 xb4 14.d2 xd2 15.xd2
The material is once again balanced, but the
white position is more or less strategically won.
The d4-pawn is terribly weak and so is the
black queenside, with W hite being able to
apply pressure along the a-file and the h1-a8
diagonal. In addition, White has a slight lead
in development and the initiative. Black's
prospects are indeed bleak. f5 16.h4 c8
17.fe1 c7 18.a5 d6 19.b4 a6
I'm uncertain about what Black is trying to
accomplish with this move, but it could be
so me th in g like . .. b7 -b 6 an d .. .Ra8 -a 7 t o
remove some of the pressure W hite is
applying against Black's queenside. Obviously,
White isn't going to let Black off the hook that
easily. 20.f5!?
[ White forces Black to get exchange on f5
and with that remove one of Black's guard
pieces that is currently protecting the weak
queenside. However, W hite has an
interesting alternative in 20.c5!? , e.g. b8
( 20...d7 l o o k s w o r s e : 21.b5! d5
22.ab1 d8 23.c6 d6 24.b6!
, and the back rank problem prevents Black
from doing anything about White's advanced
pawns without losing material.) 21.f3 e6
22.xd4 d5 23.xd5 xd5 24.f5
, and W hite is a pawn up and his pieces
dominate the board. ]
20...xf5 21.xf5 ab8
[ Or 21...fe8 22.xe8+ xe8 23.xb7
xb4 24.xa6 b2 25.f1+- , White's
e xt ra p a wn in a d d it io n t o a f a vo u ra b l e
bishop vs knight imbalance should make the
win fairly trivial ]
22.c5 d8
[ 22...c7 is met in similar fashion: 23.e5
be8 24.ae1 xe5 25.xe5 d7
26.d6 xd6 27.cxd6 d8 28.xb7 xd6
29.a1+- ]
23.e5 e8 24.ae1 xe5 25.xe5 d7??
[ This of course loses on the spot, but even
t h e s t r o n g e r 25...f8 offers no hope of
salvation after 26.c1 intending Rc4, and
the d-pawn will fall. ]
26.xb8+
1-0
497 A13
Jurkovic,Hrvoje 2401
Pandurevic,Miro 2280
Riviera IM Opatija CRO (4) 04.05.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e6 2.f3 d5 3.e3 The advantage of
playing this move is that White keeps the c-
pawn well defended,
[ 3.g3 f6 4.g2 dxc4 5.a4+
is the mainline, but I think it offers W hite
little as his queen makes too many moves. ]
3...f6 4.b3 e7 5.b2 0-0 6.e2 dxc4
This capture is very common in such Reti lines,
Black wants to avoid the IQP positions which
could arise after
[ 6...c5 7.0-0 c6 8.cxd5 exd5 9.d4
say, although this is very much a question of
taste. ]
7.bxc4 c5 8.0-0 c6 9.d4!? White expands
in the centre, although many Flank Openings
players would prefer to reserve this advance
for a more opportune moment, e.g.
[ 9.c2 b6 10.c3 b7 11.ad1 c8
12.a3 White keeps his options open, Ribli,Z-
Barczay,L/HUN-ch 1975. ]
9...b6 10.c3 The most aggressive,
[ 10.dxc5?! xc5 11.xd8 xd8 12.bd2
a6 13.b3 e7 14.fd1 offers White
less than nothing, Petersen,N-Bezold,M/
Copenhagen 1997. ]
10...a6!? A novelty, and a very logical one at
that, Black aims at the c-pawn.
[ 10...cxd4 11.exd4 b7 had been played
previously, setting up a hanging pawns
position, 12.c1 ( 12.d2 c8 13.ad1
B a r n a , A - W i e d e r s i c h , J / G e r m a n y 1 9 9 7;
12.e1?! c8 13.c1 a5 14.b5 a6
15.a3 b4 favours Black, Rossello,C-
Gonzalez,G/Las Palmas 1996) 12...a5
13.d3 c8 14.d2 d7 also looks
promising f o r Black who has go od pla y
against the white centre, Hickl,T-Siegel,G/
Germany 1981. ]
11.a4 a5 12.fd1 cxd4 Now Black goes
f o r t h e h a n gin g p a wn st r u ct u re . 13.xd4!
Anti-positional, as W hite concedes the c5-
485
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

square, but best, Dautov,R. ]

[ 13.exd4 e8 is a bit awkward, as Black 7...b7 8.0-0 bd7 9.b3 c8 To add force
will exchange queens which diminishes to the ...c5 move, but Black can try to make-
White's dynamic possibilities. ] do without this move, Mickey Adams preferred
13...e8 14.b5 b7 Black is ready to evict [ 9...e7 10.b2 0-0 11.d3 c5 12.bd2
the knight with ...a6, and remove queens from d5! against me last year, and his queen's
the boa rd, pe rha ps, but W h ite ha s o the r rook proved useful on the a-file. ]
ideas... 15.c5?! Is this correct? I don't think 10.b2 This set-up appeals to me because
so, but it certainly gives W hite a couple of White's piece set-up is simple to follow, and it
tempi, and permits him to swing his queen almost doesn't matter what Black does. e7
over to the kingside, with reasonable practical 11.d3 0-0 12.bd2 c5 13.a3!? Probably a
chances. xc5 16.h4 e7 Best, Black had useful move, if my experience against Adams
to defend against the threat of Bxf6, and after is a n yt h in g t o go b y, b u t d e ve lo p in g t h e
...gxf6, Qg4+ and Qh5, forcing mate. 17.d3 queen's rook is very popular, and may
A n o t h e r p i e c e j o i n s t h e a t t a c k . h6?!
transpose:
Moving pawns in front of the king is always a [ 13.ac1 b6 14.b1 fd8
risky business when the opponent's pieces (agreed drawn in Ehlvest,J-Grischuk,A/ New
are nearby, Delhi IND 2000!) 15.a1 and now Black
[ 17...fd8! is best, as there is no real threat has a wide choice: f8 ( 15...a6 16.c2
to h7 once the f8-square is vacated: a7 Jansson,B-Langeweg,K/telex 1975;
18.xf6? ( 18.c2!? ) 18...xf6 19.xh7+ 15...b8!? (aiming f or d4) 16.c2 e8
f8 and White's position is a mess. ] 17.fc1 f8 18.a3 d6 but Black's play
18.f4 Now Black is in trouble, as Rxh6 is seems a bit too original, Minnebo,A-Luther,T/
menaced. h7? This loses, the best move Asti 1996 ) 16.a3 d5 17.d4!? Bertok,M-
might be the strange Pavasovic,D/Pula CRO 2001. ]
[ 18...h5 but then that implies the previous
13...b6 14.ac1 White continues his simple
move is clearly wrong! ] plan of development, the queen will go to a1
19.xg7! Devastating! to increase the pressure on the a1-h8
[ 19.xh7+ xh7 20.xg7 is also good, of diagonal, and then he will double rooks on the
course. ] c-file when all of his pieces will be working at
19...g5? This is not the best, although, to be full power. fd8 15.b1 a6 Curiously this
fair, Black could resign here, position is sometimes also reached with Black
[ 19...xg7? is also hopeless, 20.xh6+ to move - when he plays ...Nbd7 instead of ...
g8 21.xh7# ] c6 in the opening so that ...c7-c5 comes in
20.f6 one move instead of two!
1-0 [ 15...h6 has also been seen here, but
16.fd1?! looks wrong, b8 17.c2 c6
18.dc1 White has lost a tempo with his
498 A13 ro o k m a n o e u vre , V e liko v, P -V a s ile v, M /
Kharlov,Andrei 2591 Pamporovo BUL 2001, obviously 16 Qa1 is
Izoria,Zviad 2541 more logical, as in the other games. ]
ECC Rethymnon GRE (3) 30.09.2003 [ 15...f8 16.a1 transposes to the Bertok
[Tony Kosten] game in the last note. ]
16.a1 f8 17.c2 a7 18.fc1
One of the nice things about the Flank So, W hite has managed to get to move
Openings is that you can sometimes follow a eighteen without even having to think, and he
pre-arranged plan and get a good position. has a good position! a8 Black also likes the
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4 queen here, but W hite is able to blunt the
5.a4+ c6 6.xc4 b5 7.c2 Better than pressure, immediately, unlike Black. 19.e4!?
the So that the b7-bishop is 'biting on granite'.
[ 7.b3 I looked at in Van der Sterren,P- The loss of pawn control of the d4-square is

486
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
not too important yet, as the black pieces are
n o t w e l l - p l a c e d t o e x p l o i t i t . e7
Black changes plan, and returns his bishop to
e7, but he could also consider
[ 19...e8!? hoping for ...f6 and ...e5,
perhaps, or ...Nd6 and a later ...c4. ]
20.a4!? Personally I am not too sure about
this move, a black piece may arrive on b4 later-
on. c4? A typical tactical theme in this line
(see the Korchnoi game from a few months
ago, say), but it is not correct here. There was
no need to play this, as there were lots of
reasonable alternatives, like
[ 20...c6 for instance. ]
21.bxc4 c5 The point, hitting both d3 and
a4, but White can ignore these and continue
capturing. 22.cxb5 xd3 23.xc8 xc8?!
[ 23...xc8 24.xc8+ xc8 25.a3
also leaves White a pawn up, but at least
the black pieces are more active. ]
24.c7! Rather than defend, White counters,
attacking the e7-bishop. d7?! A bit too
compliant,
[ 24...xb2 is best met by 25.xe7 d3
26.c3 White has an extra pawn, and the
better position - Qc7 is a threat. ]
[ 24...d6!? may be the best bet, 25.xf6
gxf6 26.c2 g7 although 27.d4
looks strong. ]
25.xd7 xd7 26.a3
[ 26.xf6! is also good, gxf6 ( 26...xf6?
27.e5 e7 28.b1 c5? 29.g5
attacks the queen and threatens mate on
h7 ) 27.d4 c5 28.e5 opening the long
diagonal with a big plus. ]
26...c5 27.b6! This pawn will win the game.
c6 Black is unable to stop White from
protecting his passed pawn, as
[ 27...a5?! 28.c3 c8 29.b7! xb7
30.xc5 wins a piece. ]
28.a5 a4 29.b2
[ 29.c1 is also good, xa5 30.b7 c7
31.xc5 xc5 32.xc5 xc5 33.b8+
with an extra piece. ]
29...c2 30.d4 c6 31.e3 White knows
that he only has to avoid a blunder and the
game will win itself. b7 32.d4 a4
33.xa4 xa4 34.4b3 f8 35.d4 e8
36.f3 d7 37.c4 Black's position is quite
hopeless.
1-0
499 A13
Korotylev,Alexey 2596
Timofeev,Artyom 2611
57th ch Moscow RUS (8) 24.11.2004
[John Watson]
In this game Black plays a simple yet irritating
f l a n k p a wn a t t a c k f r o m a S l a v D e f e n c e
structure. It has had good success over the
years an White still needs to find an answer.
1.c4 e6 2.f3 d5 3.g3 c6 4.b3 f6 5.g2
a5 A typical advance, played with or without ...
c6 in. Black wants to play ...a4 and ...a3 or ...
axb3 as appropriate. My database has over
50 examples! 6.b2 White hasn't cracked this
line, e.g.,
[ 6.0-0 a4
A) Black achieves his aim after 7.b2 a3
8.c3 b5! ( or 8...e4 );
B) 7.a3 xa3 8.xa3 e7 9.c1 0-0
10.d4!? bd7 11.b2 e8 12.e3 b6=
Ionescu,C-Soppe,G Istanbul 2000 ]
6...a4 That's 5 pawn moves out of 6 (with . ..
a3 and ...b5 next if White allows it). In spite of
the fact that Black's bishop on c8 and knight
on b8 are problem pieces he stands well.
Against the Double Fianchetto Reti the
combination of ...a5-a4 and ...b5 has been a
common plan over many years now. 7.a3
e7
[ 7...d6 might prepare ...Qe7 later. ]
8.0-0 0-0 9.d3
[ 9.d4 intending Ne5 has also been tried. ]
9...b6
[ 9...bd7 10.c2 e8 11.fb1 d6
was comfortably equal in Reichert,L-
Rohrmueller,U Bayern 2002. ]
10.d4 A sign that Black's irritating pressure on
t h e qu e e n si d e is h a vi n g it s e f f e c t . bd7
11.c5 c7 12.b4 b6! 13.c2 bxc5
14.bxc5 a6 Black already has some
advantage. A great system to know! 15.b4
b5 16.a3 e4 17.c2 f5!? Or simply
[ 17...c4 18.d3 fb8 ]
18.d3 f6 19.ab1 c4 20.a1
Now Black has the advantage on the
queenside, but he plays ambitiously to attack:
g5!? 21.d2 xd2 22.xd2 ab8 23.e3
f7 24.xb8 xb8 25.b4 Since it's difficult
for Black to advance on the kingside without
exposing his king he maneuvers for a break in
487
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

the centre. It's not clear what W hite can do 8...b5! 9.b3
about this. g8 26.c1 b5 27.d2 g6 [ Now 9.e5 d5! and there's no knight on
28.e3 c3 to capture on d5. ]
[ 28.d3 looks better. ] [ 9.a4 achieves nothing now after b7 ]
28...e5! 29.dxe5 xe5 30.d1 g4 9...b7 10.b2 e7 11.d3 0-0 12.bd2
Preventing ...f4. 31.h4 e8 32.b1 b8 b6 13.ac1 ac8 14.b1!? fd8 15.a1
33.c2 h5 34.d4 c4? b8! 16.c2 c6 17.a3 d7 18.fc1
[ 34...e7 should precede this move. ] cd8 Black has superior central control but no
35.c1!? break. White has to sit a wait for his opponent.
[ 35.xf6 xf6 36.c3+ is very dangerous 19.e5?!
although Black may hang on due to the [ 19.a2! d5 20.a1 ]
tactic e5! ( 36...e6 37.d3; 36...e5 19...xe5 20.xe5 xg2 21.xg2 g4!
37.xd5! ) 37.xe5+ xe5 ( 37...xe5 22.e4?
38.xd5 ) 38.xd5! d3! 39.b2 xb4 [ (a) 22.xg7? loses to c4! (hitting f2)
40.xb4 cxd5 41.xa4 f3+ with at least a 23.e4 ( 23.f1 b7+ 24.g1 f6 25.h3
perpetual check. ] cxd3 26.exd3 e5! ) 23...f5 24.h3 fxe4
35...xd4? Too ambitious. The knight should 25.hxg4 exd3 26.exd3 b7+ 27.h2 cxd3
return to e5. 36.exd4 f4 37.d3! f8 28.d2 f3 ]
[ 37...f3? 38.g5+ h7 39.e1 wins. ] [ (b) Best is 22.h3! xe5 23.xe5 c4
38.xf4+ xf4 39.gxf4 f7 Black has no 24.bxc4 xa3 25.b1 c5 , when Black
compensation and his king is still exposed. has little if any advantage because of the
An unfair finish after a well-played game. pesky a-pawn after 26.cxb5 d5 27.c4!
40.f1 f5 41.a1 e4 42.c3! xf4 xe5 28.xb6 xb6 29.bxa6 d4 30.b7
43.d3+ f6 44.xc4 xc4 45.e1 f3 a5 31.e3 c5 32.d4 d6 33.a7 ]
46.xf3+ gxf3 47.e5 22...f5? This throws away Black's advantage.
1-0 [ 22...c4! 23.xg7 f5 transposes to the last
line. ]
23.xc5 d5?!
500 A13 [ 23...c6+ 24.e4! ]
Kozhuharov,Spas 2391 24.c7! xc7 25.xe6 e5 26.xe5
Mateuta,Gabriel 2465 xe5 27.xd8 xd8 28.c8 The rooks
14th Open Kavala GRE (8) 18.08.2005 come into their own against minor pieces in
[John Watson] an endgame and they will cost Black another
pawn. f7 29.xd8 xd8 30.c5 f6
This game features another Catalan-without- 31.c7+ e7 32.d4 g4 33.a7 f6
d4 setup, but White misses his opportunity to 34.xa6 e4 35.a4 b4 36.a5 c3 37.b6
tie Black down and achieve a central break. 1-0
He also fails to create weaknesses in Black's
position, thus suffering from a lack of space.
B u t h i s p i e c e s a r e w e l l - p o s t e d a n d i n 501 A13
Hedgehog style he defends until his opponent Kuzubov,Yuriy 2642
tries for too much. 1.c4 e6 2.f3 d5 3.g3 Neverov,Valeriy 2508
f6 4.g2 dxc4 5.a4+ bd7 6.xc4 a6 15th ch-EUR Indiv 2014 (2.27) 04.03.2014
7.c2 c5 Different than the 7...b5 plan of the [Fier, Alexandr]
last game because a4 will be somewhat less
effective. White nevertheless has alternatives. Black goes for 5...a6 which is provocative and
8.0-0 Kuzubov proved that he was ready for it. Black
[ White could try for the advantage by 8.c3! had an interesting alternative on move 11,
(this covers d5 and thus prevents b5) e7 which would lead to unclear consequences.
( 8...b5? 9.e5; 8...b8 9.0-0 b5 10.d4 ) 1.c4 e6 2.g3 d5 3.f3 dxc4 4.g2 f6
9.0-0 0-0 10.d4! ( or 10.d1 e5 11.b3 )] 5.0-0 a6 6.c2 The best. White wants Black

488
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
to open the long diagonal and play a real
gambit instead of trying to recover the pawn.
[ 6.a4 is the most played move, but
a p p a r e n t l y i t ' s b a d f o r W h i t e c6
which looks a bit like a Catalan, but the
pawn would be better on d4 here 7.a5 d7
8.c2 b4! and Black is already better
9.xc4 b5 wins the e2-pawn ]
6...b5 7.e5 d5
[ 7...c6 is a thematic sacrifice in this kind of
position and is also possible here
A) 8.d1 b7 9.d4 ( 9.d3 c7! ) 9...c8
would enter into the Catalan world;
B) 8.xc6 b6 9.xb8
was double-edged in Sjugirov, S (2610)-
Frolyanov, D (2556)/RUS-chT 19th 2012
(4). ]
8.d3! White immediately opens the position
a n d B l a c k ' s c e n t e r is n o t s t a b l e , s o t h e
position is already dangerous. cxd3
[ 8...f6 can't really work, and White punishes
it in a nice way 9.dxc4 fxe5 10.cxd5 exd5
11.g5! and Black needs to be careful to not
lose on the spot xg5 ( 11...d6 12.c3
c6 13.xd5!+-; 11...e7 12.xe7 xe7
13.c3 c6 14.ad1 e6 15.e4
with a strong initiative) 12.xc7
( 12...e6 13.b7 ) 13.xe5+
14.xd5 a7 15.c1 c7 16.d2
a n d it ' s h a rd t o b e lie ve t h a t B l a c k ca n
survive ]
9.xd3 b7 10.c3 d6 11.xd5 exd5?!
It's not easy to realize this, but Black already
has some problems after this move.
[ 11...xd5 was probably better, with some
complications
A) 12.xd5 exd5 13.a4! breaking Black's
pawn structure bxa4 ( 13...b4 14.f4
with quite good compensation) 14.xa4+
c6 15.e4 0-0 16.d1 dxe4 17.c5
again with compensation for the pawn, but
maybe no more than that;
B) 12.e4 is also interesting c4 13.e5
e7 14.d1 c6 15.a4 d5 16.xd5
xd5 17.e3 0-0 18.ac1
with a big positional fight ahead ]
12.f4 0-0 13.fd1
[ 13.ac1 this idea was also tempting c6
14.xd6 xd6 15.e4 dxe4 ( 15...d7
16.exd5 cxd5 17.c7 with a clear
advantage for White, since Black is forced to
come back with the bishop to c8) 16.xe4
and 17.Nc5 is coming, so d7 17.xh7+
and White is better ]
13...c6 14.e4 xf4 15.xf4 d6
[ 15...d7 leaves Black under heavy
p r e s su re a f t e r 16.exd5 cxd5 ( 16...c5
17.h3 wi n s a p a wn c4 18.e6! fxe6
19.dxe6 ) 17.xd5 c8 18.f5
but maybe it was better than the game ]
16.exd5 Natural, but not the best.
[ 16.ac1! avoids ...c5 d7 17.exd5 c5
18.e6 fc8 19.c3 with an almost
winning position ]
xb8 16...c5 17.ac1 c8 18.c3?!
White improves the queen and prepares to
launch an attack with 19.Nh5. However, there
was a more direct idea.
[ 18.e6! is best and Black has nothing
better than to take the piece
A) 18...d7 19.c3 and Black is clearly
worse f6 ( 19...f6 can't be good for
Black, but is the only move ) 20.xc5+-;
B) 18...fxe6 19.dxe6 b6 20.xb7
xb7 21.xc5! this is th e ide a c6
( 21...e8 22.g5! h6 23.h5 xe6
24.d8+ h7 25.f5+ g6 26.cc8
d8 with mate; 21...f8 22.e7 e8 23.d6
e7 and Black can't move any piece) 22.d7
a5! this is Black's best resource 23.g5
xc1+ 24.xc1 e4 25.c3 g6
26.xa5 b1+ 27.g2 e4+ 28.f1
with a healthy pawn up for White ]
18...b4 19.e3 d7 20.e1 f8
This move makes some sense to avoid 21.
Qe7, but later Black had some problems with
his king.
[ 20...f6!? was another possibility, letting
the queen enter the seventh rank 21.e7
b6 22.d6 xg2 23.xg2 ( 23.xg2 b5
and the passed pawn on d6 is under control
for the moment) 23...c6+ 24.f3 d8
and it looks like Black's position is ok, but
some hidden dangers exists in the position,
f o r e x a m p l e : 25.cd1 ac8 loses to a
c8 beautiful idea ( 25...h6 is better and Black
should be fine) 26.h5! xh5 27.d7 b8
28.d6 a4 29.b6! a8 30.xa6! c2+
31.e2 and White is winning ]
21.cd1 f6 Black is coming with 22...Re8
and White doesn't have a nice square for the
quee n a t t he mom ent . 22.g4!? I like this
489
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

move because it creates some problems for 38.xa5 e4 and Black has good chances
Black to solve. Now the queen has a good to hold ) 34...xa2 35.d4 h6 36.b3
place to go. e8 and White is dominating ]
[ 22...xg4 loses because of 23.g3 d7 33.xb7 xb7 34.e3 c5 35.b5 d6
24.e6+! fxe6 25.dxe6 e7 26.d7 36.d4 With the king going to the queenside,
and Black's position collapses ] there is not much to do. Black tried his best to
23.g3 g8? There was no need for this hold the position, but it wasn't sufficient. b7
move and the king going to f8 and coming 37.h4 f6 38.gxf6 gxf6 39.d3 h6 40.c4
back to g8 cannot be good. After this move c5 41.c2 d7 42.b5 xd5 43.xa5
White has a tangible advantage. c5 44.b3 b6 45.a6 c8
[ 23...xe1+ was necessary and after [ 45...c6 holds the king, but not the game
24.xe1 d8 defends any trick with the 46.a3 bxa3 47.bxa3 will decide the game ]
q u e e n o n d 6 25.g5 e8 and Black's 46.b7 e7 47.h5 f5 48.c7 d4
position is a bit passive, but still quite solid 49.f7 f5 50.d7 e2 51.e6 xf4+
( 25...xd5 doesn't work because of 52.xf5 d3 53.g6 e5+ 54.g7 d6
26.xd5 xd5 27.d1 c6 28.d3 55.b3
winning a piece )] 1-0
24.g5 xe1+
[ 24...d7 will be similar to the next note
25.d3 xg3 26.hxg3 xe1+ 27.xe1 502 A13
f8 28.b3 transposes to the position Larsen,Bent 2620
analyzed in the next move ] Timman,Jan H 2625
25.xe1 e8?! Now White wins a pawn. Tilburg (4) 1979
[ 25...d7 26.d3 xg3 27.hxg3 f8 [Nigel Davies]
28.b3 reaches a funny position. Black has
the knight defending the pawn on c5 and he 1.c4 b6 2.b3 b7 3.b2 f6 4.f3 e6
is not allowed to play 28...Rc8 because of [ Larsen mentioned the possibility of 4...g6!?
29.Bh3, winning. Also the bishop has no 5.xf6 exf6 6.c3 , obtaining the superior
squares, the king can't go to the center. pawn structure at the cost of the two
Still W hite is not winning, probably Black bishops. ]
can sacrifice the pawn on c5 to bring the 5.e3 This looks quite innocuous but it puts
king into the game. ] great demands on Black's positional skills.
26.xe8+ xe8 27.d3 There is no way to T h e ce n t ra l p a wn s t ru ct u re ca n b e c o m e
defend the pawn on c5 without losing the defined in a number of different ways which
pawn on b4, so W hite is much better. Still both players will have to judge very accurately.
with the pawn on g5 Black has some hopes to d5 6.cxd5 exd5 7.b5+ c6 8.e2 d6
h o ld t h e p o s it io n . a5 28.xd6 xd6 9.c3 0-0 10.c1 bd7 11.0-0 c8?!
29.xc5 f8 30.f4 e7 31.f2 c8 [ 11...e7 followed by the centralisation of
32.f1 b7 Black wants to exchange the Black's rooks was better. ]
bishop and create a block with the king and 12.e1 e7 13.f1 c5 14.d4!
knight. With the pawns on a5 and b4 this is Finally clarifying the position of the central
not possible. White's king now goes for a long pawns in a way the favours W hite. Black's
march and finally enters Black's position from hanging pawns on d5 and c5 are a problem
the 8th rank. here. fd8 15.g3 a6 16.h4 e6 17.e2
[ 32...f5!? was an interesting practical e8 18.g2 c7 19.c2 a5
chance 33.e3 b1 34.d3! is the best, [ After 19...c4 White can play 20.bxc4 dxc4
returning the pawn to centralize all th e 21.d5! xd5 22.d4! f6 ( 22...h6
pieces ( 34.a3 bxa3 35.bxa3 f5+ 23.df5 is even worse) 23.b5 , winning
the bishop and knight are creating a wall, so material. ]
White's king can't help the defence of the d5- 20.c3! Getting ready to take on c5 without
pawn 36.d2 d6 37.b7+ xd5 allowing Black to recapture with the b-pawn.

490
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
This forces his hand. c4 21.f4 e7
[ 21...xf4 22.exf4 c6 23.f5 is just very
good for White. ]
22.f5 f8 23.xd6 xd6 24.b1 e4
25.ec1 a6
[ After 25...xc3? 26.xc3 b5
Larsen intended 27.bxc4 bxc4 28.b5
b4 29.xb4 axb4 30.3c2 when the
weaknesses on b4 and d5 will spell
Black's downfall. But Rybka pointed out an
alternative for Black in 28...Bc6!. ]
26.e1 df6 27.h4 I suspect this move was
played by Larsen with greater frequency than
any other Grandmaster. Here the idea is to
trap Black's knigh t on e4 with 28.f 3 . d8
28.bxc4 xc4 29.xc4 xc4 30.d3 d7
31.b2 a6 32.c2 a8 33.c6 xc6
34.xc6 c8 35.xc8+ xc8 36.f1
Th e e nd ga m e is cle a rly b e t t er f o r W h it e
because of the bishop pair and the fact that
the pawn duo on b6 and a6 can be blockaded
just by White's a-pawn. So White's plan is to
gradually advance on the kingside. f8 37.f3
d6 38.d3 b7 39.f2 c6 40.g4 h6?!
41.e2 e7 42.d1 e6 43.f2 b5
44.xb5 xb5 45.h3 The game was
adjourned at this point so the players could
go and eat dinner. This was one of the joys of
p l a y i n g c h e s s b e f o r e t h e a d ve n t o f t h e
personal computer. d6 46.d3 f8
47.f4 e6 48.e2! c6 49.e4 f6 50.d2
d6 51.a4 bc7 52.c3 c6 53.h5!
Creating a permanent weakness on g7. d6
[ After 53...g5 54.exd5+ xd5 55.xd5
xd5 56.xg5 hxg5 57.c3 the pawn
endgame is winning for White. ]
54.e3 c6 55.f4 dxe4+
[ Or 55...d6 56.e5+ c6 57.f5 etc. ]
56.xe4 d6 57.c1 d7 58.a3 e8
59.d5 d8
[ After 59...c5+ 60.xc5 bxc5 61.d3
f o llo we d b y 6 2 . K c4 , W h it e win s t h e c5
pawn. ]
60.d4 d7 61.c4 e8 62.e4 f7
63.f8 d8
[ 63...fd6+ 64.xd6 xd6+ 65.xd6
xd6 66.b5 ]
[ 63...c7 64.b5 /\65.d6 ]
64.g3
1-0
503 A13
Lautier,Joel 2675
Sokolov,Andrei 2604
ch-Gp A Marsailles FRA (7) 19.08.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e6 2.c3 b4 3.f3 White invites
transposition to the Nimzo-Indian. c5!?
[ 3...e7!? 4.d4 c5 was tried in Beim,V-
Bronstein,D/Rishon Le Ziyyon 1991, and ]
[ 3...f5!? 4.g3 b6 5.g2 b7 reached a
Dutch-style position in Horvath,G-Meszaros,
A/Zalakaros 1992. ]
[ 3...f6 4.d4 would be normal, of course. ]
4.g3 c6!?
[ In this key battle (Lautier had to win to
qualify for the top group, Sokolov to draw)
Bla ck f in d s a n e w m o ve o n m o ve f o u r!
Ob viou sly h e d e cid e d t o avo id W h it e 's
e x t e n s i v e o p e n i n g k n o w l e d g e . 4...f6
5.c2 c6 6.g2 0-0 leads to more
normal lines, Uhlmann,W-Taimanov,M/Brno
1975. ]
5.g2 ge7!? 6.0-0 0-0 7.d4 cxd4
8.xd4 d6
[ Tempting Black to play 8...xc3 9.bxc3
a5 with a more double-edged position, but
Black prefers to stay solid. ]
9.e4!? This looks artificial, although the
threats to d6, and the b4-bishop, seem real
enough. d5! Black changes tack: the IQP
position will prove very playable thanks to the
time lost by the white queen's knight. 10.cxd5
exd5 11.g5 h6 12.gf3 'Knights are at
their worst when defending each other'- 101
Tips to Improve Your Chess. g4 13.h3 h5
14.f4 c5 15.c1 b6 Black has an active
position with pressure on d4. One of White's
standard plans in such positions, the capture
on c6 to produce a backward c-pawn, is no
longer a problem as the knight is defended by
its brother on e7. 16.d2
[ This cuts-off the f4-bishop's return, but if
16.g4!? g6 and the bishop will come to the
outpost on e4. ]
16...xf3! Breaking White's hold on d4.
17.xf3
[ 17.xc6? is impossible: xc6 18.xf3 g5!
19.e3?! d4 and a piece drops. ]
17...g6 The bishop has nowhere to go, so
opposite-colour bishops will arise. 18.e3?!
491
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

xf4 19.gxf4 d4 20.e4 White is still hoping chipping away at the queenside with b6
to win, but now it is Black who is in the driving . The dark squares remain an issue for him,
seat. a5 21.d3 f6 22.f5 ad8 23.a3 however. ]
c7 White's kingside pawn structure is very 6.g3! Ouch! Only six moves in and Black is
weak on the dark squares. 24.b4 f4 25.c5 under serious pressure. f6
fe8 26.d1 Naturally, Black is better, but a [ The point is that 6...f5? is met by 7.b4 b6
draw suited him well, otherwise he would 8.c5+- , trapping the hapless cleric. ]
surely continue such a position. 7.e4! c5 8.e5 g6 9.d6+ e7 10.d3
½-½ [ 10.f3!? ]
10...xg3 11.hxg3 c7
[ Black has to give a pawn since 11...h6?
504 A13 12.e4+- is awful. ]
Le Quang,Liem 2693 12.xh7 xh7 13.xh7 h6 14.xc8+
Kurajica,Bojan 2551 xc8 15.e4 b8 16.f4 White is up a solid
40th Olympiad Open (2.28) 29.08.2012 pawn. f5 17.e2 d6 18.b4!? cxb4
[John Bartholomew] 19.axb4 dxe5 20.a3 f6? Trying to
escape the bishop's crosshairs, but Black is
Le Quang Liem scores big in an unassuming soon forced back in to the line of fire.
line. 1.c4 e6 2.c3 b4 The Accelerated [ Threatening a back-rank check with
Nimzo. 3.b3 e7?! Exceedingly rare, and 20...h8! offered chances of resistance. ]
very likely dubious. 21.g4! h8 22.0-0-0 d6 23.g5+ e7
[ On 3...c5?! White has an idea related to 24.b5+- Winning a piece. The rest is simple
our present game: 4.b5! f6 5.a3 a5 mop-up work for Vietnam's number one. exf4
6.d6+ e7 7.xc8+ xc8 8.g3 [ Or 24...b8 25.fxe5+- . ]
with an advantage in Hansen, C (2618)- 25.bxa6 bxa6 26.c2 h5 27.b1 xg5
Lobron, E (2550)/Germany 2000/[TonyK]. ] 28.b7 d7 29.xd6 xd6 30.d4 a5
[ 3...c6 is the most reliable continuation. 31.xf4 g5 32.h5 f5 33.c5+ d7
Many games have been played in the line 34.f6+ d8 35.c6 a2+ 36.b3 d2
4.f3 f6 5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 37.c4 c2+ 38.d3 c1 39.xa7 d1+
, where W hite has chances for a modest 40.c4 c1+ 41.b3 d1 42.d5 c1
edge but Black remains very solid. ] 43.d6 xd6 44.d7+ c8 45.b7+
4.b5! Highlighting the weakness of Black's Black resigned. If Black wants to enter the
last move. The knight jump also prepares a A c c e l e ra t e d N im zo , I s u gg e st h e p re f e r
sneaky queen transfer to which Black often quieter channels with 3...Nc6. Alternatives like
falls victim. a6 5.a3!? 3.. . c5 ?! an d the gam e's 3 .. .Q e7? ! brin g
[ In Kovacevic, B (2490)-Fucak, E (2311)/ misery after Nc3-b5 and Qb3-b3.
Sibenik 2006 White played the immediate 1-0
5.g3 , and after f8?! ( 5...f5! ) 6.a3 c6
7.c3 ( 7.xa7! i s s t r o n g e r , a s d6
is met by 8.xc8 xc8 9.b3 . ) 7...d6 505 A13
8.d3 c5 9.c2 e5 Kovacevic should Lunev,Andrey 2509
have played 10.b4 ( 10.f3?? e4 11.d4 Kortschnoj,Viktor 2632
d3+ 12.d1 xf2+ 13.e1 xh1-+ TCh Togliatti RUS (5) 20.05.2003
was the game continuation.) 10...e6 [Tony Kosten]
11.e3 with a more pleasant game. ]
5...a5? Striving to overprotect the c-pawn, 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4
but the bishop is very poorly placed here. 5.a4+
[ Better was 5...c5 6.g3 f5! , i.e. 7.d4 [ 5.a3!? is rarely played these days, and
( Black has compensation after 7.xc7+?! doesn't core very well for W hite, still he
xc7 8.xc7 f6 ) 7...c6! 8.c7+ xc7 obtains the bishop pair, and there are some
9.dxc5 a6 10.b4 and Black better start tricks that Black should avoid, like xa3

492
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
6.bxa3 0-0 7.c2 b5?! 8.g5 c6 9.b2
(threatening Bxf6 and mate!) e8 10.0-0 h6
11.xf6 xf6 12.h7+ f8 13.e4 g6
14.xg6 fxg6 15.d6 d8 16.xb5 a6
17.c3 xd2 18.e4 xe2 19.d6 d7
20.xc4 c2 21.e5 ( 21.b6 a7
22.fb1 e8 23.c8 drew in Varga,Z-
Gyimesi,Z/Heviz HUN 2003) 21...e8
22.fd1 c5 23.f4 and Black had problems
moving his pieces, Smyslov,V-Kholmov,R/
Baku 1961/URS-ch. ]
5...d7!? Very rare, and possibly played to
take his opponent out of his book knowledge,
the main move is
[ 5...bd7 as in Illescas Cordoba,M-Shirov,A,
for instance, although, ]
[ 5...c6 is fairly trendy at the moment. ]
6.xc4 c6 This method of developing the
bishop to the long diagonal is borrowed from
the Catalan, and indeed this would transpose
if White played d4 on either of his next couple
of moves. 7.c3 The one problem with this
natural move is that it cuts-off the queen's
retreat to c2.
[ 7.0-0 is probably better, bd7
( t h e p o i n t ) d6?! ( 8...e5 9.c3 c5
Karpov,A-Sunye,N Amsterdam 1985) 9.c3
0-0 10.a3 c5? 11.b4! ce4 12.d1
trapping the knight in mid-board, although
Black is not without compensation, and drew
after a5!? 13.d3 axb4 14.dxe4 xe4
15.b3 d5 16.d3 e7 17.e3 bxa3
Gelfand,B-Polgar,Z/Munich 1991. ]
7...a6!? Aiming for ...b5 to embarrass the
queen. 8.0-0
[ 8.a3 is a bit passive, b5 9.a2 bd7
10.0-0 b7 11.d4 c5 and Black has no
problems, Ru kavina, J-Sa ntos,J/Budva
1981. ]
8...b5 9.b3 bd7 10.d3 This is fairly
normal for these positions, although actually a
novelty here, but it may be better to play
Catalan-style with
[ 10.d4 e.g. b4?! 11.a4 d5 12.c2 e4
13.d1 c5 Stangl,M-Smagin,S/
Gelsenkirchen 1994, and now Stangl
suggests 14.g5 ]
10...e7 11.d2 0-0 12.fc1
13.d1?! A really very strange move, perhaps
White is hoping to play a4, and then Ne3 to c4,
b u t i t i s a b i t s l o w . c5 14.a4
A nice tactical trick, that effectively allows
Black to plant his knight on b3. 15.dxc4 c5
16.e3 Effectively forced, as
[ 16.a3 allows xf3! 17.xf3 xd2
18.xa8 xa8 with a clear advantage. ]
16...bxa4 This is the point of Black's 'petite
combinaison', the knight is strongly-placed on
c5, and there is a threat of ...Nb3, forking the
two rooks. 17.e5?! White decides to jettison
an exchange, but
[ 17.d4 wa s t h e b e s t c h a n c e , xg2
18.xg2 d7 and White is hanging on,
just. ]
17...xg2 18.xg2 b3 19.c6 d7
20.xe7+ xe7 21.xa4 b7+ 22.f3 xc1
23.xc1 fc8 The smoke clears and White
has a pawn for the exchange, but this is not
sufficient. 24.a3 d7 25.e3 h6 26.f2
ab8
[ 26...e5!? ]
27.d3 The white pieces have found
reasonable squares. b3 28.c5? A serious
error, the endgame was quite playable:
[ 28.xb3 xb3 29.f4 followed by
8.c2 advancing the white king, and Black has a
lo t o f wo rk a h e a d o f h im t o e xp lo it h i s
advantage. ]
28...c2! Attacking e2. 29.f1 White is in
real trouble,
[ 29.f2? b3 30.a2 xd3 and a piece is
lost. ]
29...b3 30.a1 xd3! Anyway! 31.exd3
xd3+ 32.f2 xc5 Black has exchanged
his exchange for a piece, a couple of pawns
and a strong attack. 33.d4 c2+ 34.d2
b3! The killer.
[ 34...b3 35.xc2 xc2+ 36.f1 xa1
leaves Black a rook up. ]
0-1
506 A13
Malakhov,Vladimir 2717
Oparin,Grigoriy 2526
Latvian Railway op rapid (2) 28.03.2014
[Fier, Alexandr]
b7 This rapid game went quickly out of theory.
B l a c k p l a ye d w i t h o u t a n y p l a n a n d wa s
qu ickly wo rse . I t wa s b e t t e r t o b rin g t h e
c4! bishop to c5 in one move and play ...a5 at
493
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

some point, since the main plan for White is
to play with b4. 1.c4 e6 2.f3 d5 3.b3 d4
[ 3...f6 4.b2 e7 5.e3 0-0 6.e2
was analyzed for Chess Publishing in a
game from 1935! Botvinnik, M-Chekhover, V/
Moscow 1935. ]
4.e3 c6
[ 4...c5 would lead to a Benoni-kind of
position 5.exd4 cxd4 6.g3 Damljanovic, B
(2569)-Palac, M (2571)/EU-chT (Men) 19th
2013 (5.8) ]
5.b2 This move can be controversial, the
bishop hits the rock on d4 and stays passive
in some variations. W hite's idea is to force
Black to have a pawn on d4 instead of a piece
and later to put pressure on it. e5 6.exd4
exd4 7.d3 f6 8.e2 Later the bishop can
be relocated, right now the safety of the king
is more important.
[ 8.g3 i s t o o s l o w b4+! 9.bd2
10.g2 e8+ and White will need to resign
soon ]
8...e7
[ 8...c5 I would prefer this move. Sooner or
later Black will need to defend this pawn
9.0-0 ( 9.a3 a5 ) 9...0-0 and there are good
chances for W hite to enter the same
position of the game with a tempo less ]
9.0-0 0-0 10.a3 e8
[ 10...a5 is not the right move order 11.b5!
and the knight is much better here than on
c2 c5 12.a3 with a pleasant position for
White ]
[ 10...c5 is good, but chess players are
proud 11.c2 a5 12.a3 e8 13.b4 axb4
14.axb4 xa1 15.xa1 xb4 16.xb4
xb4 17.xd4 with a better version of the
game ]
11.c2 c5 12.e1
[ 12.b4 w a s a l r e a d y p l a y a b l e xb4
13.cxd4 g4 14.a3 xd4 15.xd4 c6
16.e3 with chances for both players ]
12...g4 Slightly superficial.
[ 12...a5 is a good idea, exchanging one of
the rooks 13.a3 f5 14.b4 axb4 15.axb4
xa1 16.xa1 xb4 17.cxd4 ( 17.fxd4
g6 18.xb4 xb4 19.f1 d6 )
17...xd3! now this is possible 18.xf5
( 18.xd3 xe1+ 19.xe1 xd4
and Black is more than ok) 18...xf2+
19.f1 xe1 20.xd3 b4 21.xd8 xd8
22.xf6 gxf6 and with two pawns to
comp ensa te t he knights the pos itio n is
level ]
13.h3 h5 14.b4! White has developed all
his pieces so it's time to open the position.
xb4 15.cxd4 g6 16.d2
[ 16.b3 w a s a l s o p o s s i b l e xd3!
a n d b y m a g i c e ve r yt h i n g i s d e f e n d e d !
( 16...f8 17.e5 with a good position)
17.xc5 xe2 18.b3 c6 19.e5 xe5
20.xe2 g6 21.xe8+ xe8 22.xf6 b6!
and the position is unclear ]
16...f8
[ 16...d6 is more active, but it can make the
next move trick impossible 17.a3 xe2!?
18.xe2 xd3 19.c3 is interesting, but
hard to evaluate ]
17.a3 a6?! Black wants to bring the knight
to c5, but it's not really helping there.
0-0 [ 17...xe2 is the same idea as in the last
move's variation 18.xe2 xd3 19.h4
e4 and it looks like Black's pieces are not
so stable ]
[ 17...xd3! was a good shot, Black can use
the pin on the d-file 18.xd3 xd3 19.xd3
c5 20.xe8 xe8 and the position is
equal ]
18.f1 xe1 19.xe1 c5 The main
problem for Black is that he hasn't any useful
plan for the moment. White, on the other hand,
can improve the knights and push the d-pawn.
[ 19...c5 is an ugly move, but at least it stops
any central expansion 20.b5 ( 20.c2
d7 21.e3 ) 20...c7 21.xc7 xc7
22.h4 ( 22.xf6 gxf6 is not so good,
White's bishop is more important than the
doubled pawns) 22...d7 23.xg6 hxg6
and White has some advantage ]
20.e5 a4?! The beginning of a bad plan.
[ 20...c6 21.df3 e6 22.xg6 hxg6
23.d4 and White is much better with the
bishop pair and mobile center, but still this
position is better than what happened in the
game ]
21.a1 xa3? An ambitious idea, but White
just wins a piece. 22.a5 b2 23.xb2
xb2 24.df3 And the knight on b2 has no
squares. d6
[ 24...xd3 does not help 25.xd3 xd3
26.d1+- ]
25.b1

494
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 25.d4 was also possible, the knight is not
going anywhere ]
25...b6 26.a1 xd3 27.xd3 xd3
28.d1 a5 29.xd3 The rest is easy. e7
30.a4 h6 31.e3 d6 32.a2 c5 33.a4
h5 34.d7 f6 35.d3 f4 36.d6 e6
37.b7 e8 38.xb6 a4 39.c6 b8
40.d1 a3 41.a4 d4 42.xa3
1-0
507 A13
Mareco,S 2586
Tristan,Leonardo 2449
86th ch-ARG 2012 (3.1) 06.07.2012
[John Bartholomew]
W e've examined some of the more volatile
lines in the Neo-Catalan over the past few
months. This game proceeds down calmer
channels but suddenly gets interesting. 1.f3
f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4 5.0-0
[ Our April and May updates focused on the
h y p e r - p o p u l a r 5.a4+ c6 ( 5...bd7
6.xc4 a6 Naiditsch, A (2702)-Papin, V
(2575)/Plovdiv BUL 2012/[John
Bartholomew].) 6.xc4 b5 and now either
7.b3!? ( or 7.c2 )]
5...bd7 6.a4 c5 7.xc4 b6 This line has
an extremely solid reputation. Black strives to
develop as harmoniously as possible. 8.d1!?
Exceedingly rare in this exact position, yet
very standard in the Neo-Catalan. The x-ray
is uncomfortable for Black, so White is fully
justified in postponing d2-d4.
[ Most usual is 8.d4 , but b7 9.c3 a6!
has proven to be very reliable for Black.
Take a quick look at the statistics to
conf irm: Black is +10, =28, -4 f rom this
position! ]
[ The forcing line 8.d4 e5! 9.c6 xc4
10.xd8 d5 11.c3 xd8 12.xd5 b7
isn't anything to write home about either. ]
8...b7 9.c3 c8
[ I believe now is the ideal time for 9...a6!
- before White can retreat the queen to e2.
Two high -level e xa mp le s: 10.a4 c8
( 10...e7 11.d4 c8 12.g5 cxd4
13.xd4 h6 14.e3 c5 15.d2 e7
16.xc5 xc5 17.f4 0-0 18.d6 c7
19.xc7 xc7 20.d6 c6 21.e5 xg2
22.xg2 b8 23.ad1 Karpov, A (2690)-
Miles, A (2555)/England 1977.) 11.d4
( 11.e4 ) 11...cxd4 12.xd4 c5 13.f4
e7 14.e3 xe3 15.xe3 0-0=
Ribli, Z (2590)-Korchnoi, V (2695)/ Baden-
Baden 1981. ]
10.e4 a6 11.e2 e5? This meets with a
spectacular blow.
[ 11...c7 is most accurate, side-stepping
problems down the d-file. After 12.d4 cxd4
13.xd4 c4! Black can hope to complete
development and castle. ]
12.d4!! Bombs away! This line-opening
sacrifice is entirely correct given Black's
vulnerability down the d and e-files. cxd4
[ 12...exd4 13.e5 is even worse, e.g. d5
14.e6 fxe6 15.xe6+ e7 16.h3! d8
(17. Re1 was a big threat) 17.xd5 xd5
18.e1 d6 19.g5+- ]
13.xd4 exd4?!
[ 13...c7 14.f5 is surely unpleasant for
Black, though it might have promised a
better fate than the game. ]
14.e5 xg2 15.exf6+ e7 16.xd4! c6
17.f4? White has conducted the attack
beautifully, but here he misses a knockout.
[ 17.fxg7! g8 18.h6+- leaves Black with
little hope of escape. For example, c7
19.e1 e5 ( 19...e5 20.d1! f6
21.e4 xe4 22.dxe4+- ) 20.d5! xd5
21.xd5 g6 ( 21...f6 22.h5+ g6
23.f5+- ) 22.h4!! and Black is utterly
helpless. ]
17...gxf6 18.e1 0-0 19.xe7 xe7
20.xe7 fd8 21.f1 Black has kept
W h i t e ' s a d v a n t a g e t o a m i n i m u m . c5
22.xd8+ xd8 23.c7 d2 24.e2 xe2
25.xe2 b5 26.e3 b4 27.e2 b3
28.axb3 xb3 29.f4 c5 30.h5 d7
31.f4 f8?! Why? 32.xf6+ g7 33.e5
g6 34.h4 e6+ 35.g4? An unfortunate
misstep.
[ 35.e3 ]
35...h5+! 36.h3
[ Not 36.xh5?? f5+ . ]
36...f3 37.g4 Draw agreed.
[ A likely continuation is 37.g4 hxg4+
38.xg4 f5 39.h2 d5 40.d6 f4+
41.xf4 xf4= . Mareco posed Black some
interesting problems in this line, so it's a
shame he couldn't finish the job. Probably
495
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

9...a6! is the way to deal with 8.Rd1!? ] 10...0-0 11.xf6 gxf6 12.e4 f5
½-½ 13.h4 e5 14.xd6 xd6 15.f3 f5
16.e4 fxe4 17.g4+ h8 18.xe4 ]
6...c6 7.a3
508 A13 [ 7.c3!? looks counter-intuitive, but may
Matamoros Franco,Carlos S 2529 well be White's best move, e.g. c5 8.b3
Ibarra Chami,Luis Fernando 2364 cxb3 9.xb3 a5 10.c2 d6 11.d4
II ch-Ibero-Americano Gp C (2) 16.02.2008 c4
[Carsten Hansen] A) 12.d1!? d5 13.b2 d7 14.d2
( 14.e5 xe5 15.dxe5 c6 16.ac1
1.c4 e6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 f6 4.f3 dxc4 xc3 17.xc3 xc3 18.xc3 xg2
5.c2 d5 This is the move that has been 19.xa5 c6 20.xc7= ) 14...a6
the topic of discussion in the Forum for a while. 15.e5 xe5 16.dxe5 c4 17.c2
Some claim it to be good for Black, but it xc3 18.xc3 c6 19.xc6+ xc6
appears W hite can claim an edge, but it is 20.ac1 b5 21.a4 a6 22.b4;
nevertheless an interesting option for Black. B) 12.e3 d5 13.b2 xc3 14.xc3
6.0-0 d7 15.d2 a6 16.xa5 ( 16.fb1! )
[ White has two other options that can be 16...xa5 17.xb7 b8 18.c6
considered at this juncture: A) 6.b3 cxb3 ( 18.c4 a4 19.xa4 xa4 20.xd6+
7.xc7 a6 8.f4 d6 9.a4+ d7 cxd6 21.fc1 ) 18...xc6 19.xc6+ e7
10.xb3 xb3 11.axb3 c5 12.a3 d5 20.c2 h5 ( 20...d5 21.e4 hd8
( 12...0-0 13.0-0 c6 14.d3 a5 15.bd2 22.ab1 ) 21.c4 d5 22.fd1
b5 16.d4 xg2 17.xg2 cd7 18.a2 Ragot, N-Komljenovic, D/Plancoet 2003 ]
fb8 19.a3 xa3 20.xa3= ) 13.b2 0-0 7...xa3 8.bxa3 e5
14.e5 b5 15.c4 e7 16.d3 b4 [ 8...e4 9.d1 0-0 10.b2 f5 11.c1
17.0-0 c6 18.bd2 ( 18.d4!? xg2 c5 12.a4 d8 13.d4 b4 14.c2
19.xg2 e4 20.c1 b5 21.cd2 ) A) 14...d5 15.ab1 b6
18...fd8 ( 18...xg2 19.xg2 b5!? ) A1) 16.g5 f5 17.xc6 bxc6 18.e4
19.aa1 xg2 20.xg2 f6 ( 20...b5 c5 19.exf5 exf5 20.dxc5 xc5 21.c3
21.e5 a5= ) 21.fc1 ( 21.d4!? ca6 ( 21.fe1 b7! 22.a5 h6 23.a6 c6! )
22.f3 ) 21...c6 ( 21...e5! 22.a3 21...e7 22.a5 d5 23.xc4 xg5
e6= ) 22.a3 d4 23.xc5 xc5 24.c6 b7 25.xb7 f4;
1/2-1/2 Hulak, K-Sargissian, G/Antalya 2004, A2) 16.fc1 xa4 17.xa4 xa4
and now I think W hite can claim an edge 18.xc4 xb2 19.xb2 e5 20.e3 d6
with 24.e3 b5 25.d4 b4 26.e4 ] 21.h4 exd4 22.xd4 xd4 23.xd4
[ B) 6.c3 c5 xd4 24.exd4 b8 25.c2 c6 26.d5
A) 7.d4 cxd3 8.xd3 c6 9.0-0 b4 cxd5 27.xd5 e6 28.xe6 fxe6
10.b1 e7 11.f4 bd5 29.c7;
A1) 12.xd5 xd5 13.e5 f6 14.d4 B) 14...d7 15.c3 e7 16.ab1 ab8
b5 15.e4 b4 16.d1 ( 16.a4 h5 17.e4 e8 ( 17...a5!? 18.fe1 ) 18.fe1
17.e5 d7 18.exf6 gxf6 19.e4 e5 a5 19.e2 d7 20.xc4 b6 21.b3
20.c3 c6 ) 16...0-0 17.e3 h5 a8 22.ec1 b8 ( 22...f6 23.e1 f7
18.a3 c6 19.a2 d6 20.ac1 24.bc1 ) 23.a1 a6 ( 23...c6
f7; 24.b2 ) 24.c3 xa4 25.xa5
A2) 12.e5 xc3 13.xc3 c6 14.d3 Vaulin, A-Mackic, Z/Nis 1993 ]
0-0 15.fd1 h5 16.ac1 d5 9.b2
17.d4 f6 18.e4 c7 19.b3 [ 9.g5!? leads to interesting complications:
Snape, I-Barlow, J/corr 2002; d4 10.a4+ b5 11.xb5+ xb5 12.a4
B) 7.0-0 d6 8.d4 cxd3 9.xd3 c6 d6 ( 12...d4 13.b2 0-0 14.e3 e2+
10.g5 ( 10.e3 h5 11.b5 0-0 15.h1 d8 16.xe5 xd2 17.xf6 gxf6
12.xd6 d8 is insufficient for White) 18.e4 b2 19.xf6+= ) 13.b2 h6

496
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
14.h3 fe4 15.xe5 0-0 16.f4 e8
A) 17.d4 c6 18.fe1 ( 18.f3 f6 19.xd6
xd6 20.e4 f7 21.ac1 g5 ) 18...g5
19.h5 g4 20.f3 ( 20.xd6 xh5
21.a3 c3 22.e3 xa4 ) 20...xh5
21.xh5 e7 22.ac1 d8;
B) 17.b2 f5 ( 17...xd2?! 18.fd1
2e4 19.d5 c3 20.a3 c2 21.dc1
c4 22.b4 c5 23.xc2 cxb4 24.xc4
d6 25.d4 ) 18.fd1 ad8 19.d4
( 19.d3 c5!; 19.f3 c5 20.a5 a4 )
19...b6 20.f3 g5 21.a5 b5 22.f2
c2 23.dc1 xd2 24.e1 exe2
25.xe2 xe2 26.f2 e6 27.f1
bd4;
C) 17.d4 c6 18.d3 cxd3 19.exd3 f5
C1) 20.xg7 exg3 21.fxg3 xg7
22.a5 e3 23.h5+
C1a) 23...g6 24.f4+ g7
25.h5+= ( 25.fc1 xg2 26.xg2
e5 27.a6 bxa6 28.ab1 a5 );
C1b) 23...f8 24.f6 g4 25.f4;
C2) 20.b2 c5 21.a5 a4
, and here White forfeited and thus 0-1
in Vidal, L-Cipressi, N/ICCF 2005, but
W hite is better after 22.c1!? , e.g.
( also 22.a3!? looks good for White)
22...a6 23.b1 g5 24.h5 ]
9...e4 10.xf6 gxf6 11.h4 d4
[ 11...f5!? 12.f3 f4 13.xe4+ xe4
14.fxe4 fxg3 15.hxg3 g4 ]
12.xe4+ xe4 13.xe4 xe2+ 14.g2
0-0 15.fe1 d4 16.ac1 e6 17.xb7
ab8 18.a6 b5 19.a4?!
[ 19.xb5 xb5 20.c2 d8 21.e3
g7= ]
19...d6 20.d3 b4! 21.xc4
[ 21.a5 a4 22.xc4 xc4 23.dxc4 xa2
24.a1 b2 25.ed1 fb8 ]
21...xc4 22.dxc4 xa4 23.g1!?
The idea behind this move only becomes
a p p a r e n t a f t e r W h i t e ' s n e x t m o v e xa2
24.g2 White wants to remove Black's bishop
on e6, as it helps Black secure a clear
advantage by preventing W hite from
penetrating on the seventh rank, while
simultaneously applying pressure on White's
queenside. a6?!
[ 24...d8! 25.a1 ( 25.f4?! dd2-+ )
25...dd2 26.xa2 xa2 27.c5 ( 27.e3?!
a5-+ ) 27...a5 28.f4 g4 29.g2 d7
30.f3 ( 30.e7? d2-+ ) 30...c6+
31.e3 c2 with excellent winning chances
for Black ]
25.f4
[ 25.e3 c6 26.f4 c5 27.g4 f5 28.gxf5
xf5 29.f2 e6 ]
25...c6 26.xe6!?
[ 26.h5 d8 ( 26...f5 27.a1 a8 )
27.xf6+ g7 28.d5 a5 ( 28...xd5?
29.cxd5 xc1 30.xc1 xd5 31.xc7= )
29.e3 a6 ]
26...fxe6 27.ed1 d6?!
[ With the win within reach, Black starts
hesitating he should keep the pressure on
W hite with 27...a5! 28.a1 c5 29.db1
f7 30.a4 e7 31.g2 d8 , and Black
should win, though there is still a lot of
work left to be done. ]
28.c5?!
[ 28.xd6 cxd6 29.a1 f7 30.f4 c7
31.a6 d7 32.f2 f7 33.e3 h5
34.d4 with decent drawing chances for
White thanks to his active pieces ]
28...xd1+ 29.xd1 a5 30.a1 a8 31.a4
W ith a passive rook and a pawn less, this
endgame is lost f or W hite. But it is quite
instructive how White blocks the black a-pawn
as far back as possible and then creates
counterplay with his king on the kingside. e5
32.g2 f7 33.f3 e6 34.g4 c6 35.h4
a7 36.h5 h6 37.f3 a8 38.e4 f5+
39.f3 d5 40.g4 f4?!
[ 40...e4+! 41.f4 fxg4 42.xg4 e5
43.h3 a7 44.g4 ( 44.f3 exf3 45.g3
d5 46.xf3 xc5-+ ) 44...g7+ 45.h3
f4 46.xa5 g5 47.a3 ( 47.h4 g1
48.h3 f3-+ ) 47...xc5 48.g2 xh5-+ ]
41.g5! hxg5 42.g4 e4 43.h6 f3
[ Black wins with 43...e3! 44.fxe3 fxe3
45.f3 h8 46.xa5 g4+ 47.xe3 xh6
48.f4 g6 49.g3 c4 ]
44.xg5 xc5??=
[ With this obvious looking move, Black
throws the win away. Like on the previous
move, Black should have played 44...e3!
, although the win is more complicated in
this variation, e.g. 45.fxe3 g8+ 46.h5
f8 47.e4+ e5 48.h7 f2 49.a1 xe4
50.g6 f3 51.g7 d8 52.h8 xh8
53.xh8 g2-+ ]
45.h7 b5 46.xe4! a4 47.e7
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 47.h4 h8 48.f6 a3 49.g7 a2 moment Black's bishop on b7 is a miserable

50.h1 xh7+ 51.xh7 c4 52.g6 b3 piece and it's very hard to achieve a
53.f5 b2 54.e4 a1 55.xa1 xa1 successful ...c5. One analytical sample: 0-0
56.xf3 b2 57.e3 c5 58.d3 b3 12.bd2 e7 13.aa1 a6 14.fc1 fc8
59.d2= ] 15.e5 b4 16.c5 xc5 17.xc5 fd5
47...a3 48.a7 h8 49.g6 b4 50.b7+ 18.e4 f6 19.f3 d8 20.cc1 a5
c4 51.a7 b3 52.b7+ c4 53.a7 21.c5 with pressure. ]
½-½ 6...bd7!? The right idea, but I think that
[ 6...a6! discourages White's best plan, i.e.
, 7.a3 xa3 8.xa3 b4! and White
509 A13 can't play Qc2. ]
Matamoros Franco,Carlos S 2522 7.c2?!
Suba,Mihai 2529 [ T h i s i s t h e l a s t c h a n c e f o r 7.a3!
VIII Malaga Open (7) 24.02.2005 , when the dark squares will provide at least
[John Watson] some compensation: xa3 8.xa3 e5!
( 8...e7 9.c2 e5 10.xc4 e4 ) 9.c2
T h e f o llo win g ga m e b e t we e n t wo st ro n g e7 10.xc4 e4 11.d4 0-0 with ...Ne5
Grandmasters who understand the English or ...Nb6-d5 to come. ]
tests one of White's disruptive ideas versus 7...c5 8.a3
the solid Slav. 1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.g2 d5 [ 8.xc4 e5! ( or 8...d5 , also threatening
4.f3 e6 ...Nb3. )]
[ In the Dynamic English Tony gives the 8...b6!? Suba is typically clever and indirect.
variation 4...dxc4 5.c2 ( 5.a4 The obvious
is also reasonable, as the game see [ 8...b3! is somewhat better for Black since
Radjabov-Svidler, Internet INT 2003 he wins the two bishops after 9.a2 d5
shows. ) 5...b5 6.b3! cxb3 7.axb3 b7 ( 9...xc1 10.xc1 d5! 11.xc4 d6
( 7...e6 8.e5 ) 8.a3 . A major difference 12.aa1 0-0 13.d4 is also favourable)
between this and the game is that in the 10.xc4 xc1 11.xc1 e7 12.d4 0-0 ]
c a s e o f . . . e 6 W h i t e g e t s t o e xc h a n g e 9.xc4 b3 10.c3!
Black's good bishop and prevent him from [ 10.d4 xc2 11.xc2 b3
castling at the same time. ] is unattractive. ]
5.0-0!? In this particular order, I'm not sure 10...d5 11.d4 b4! Threatening ...Nb3
that this standard sacrifice fully holds up. It again. Tempting but weaker was
does cause a lot of problems, however, and is [ 11...f6 12.a3 b4 13.e4 e5?
in line with an aggressive approach to the 14.fxe5! ]
English. [ or 11...c2 12.e3 xe3 13.xe3 b3
[ The conventional move is 5.b3 ] 14.d4 xd4 15.xd4 with the slightest
5...dxc4 6.a4 of edges due to White's extra centre pawn. ]
[ White could try the gambit here as well but 12.a3 b5?
the move 0-0 costs him a key tempo on the [ It was time to cash in Black's small
queenside, e.g., 6.c2 b5 7.b3 cxb3 a d va n t a g e b y 12...b3 . Suba may have
8.axb3 b7 ( 8...d6 9.e4! intending e5 feared 13.d6+ xd6 ( 13...xd6
10.d4 ) 9.d4 I don't trust this, but at least 14.xb4 xb4 15.xb3= ) 14.xb3
W h i t e h a s a p o s i t i v e p l a n , e . g . , e7 , b u t t h e n c5 is awkward, for example,
( 9...bd7!? 10.e5 xe5 11.dxe5 d5 15.e4 b6 16.d3 b7 ]
12.c3 b4 13.e4 0-0 14.a3 a5 13.axb5 b3 14.xb3! xb3 15.bxc6
15.fc1 ) 10.a3 xa3 11.xa3 with material equality and a large advantage.
and White will try to bring a knight to e4 and Th e ga me con tinu e d a6 16.d3 b4
rook to c1 to control c5. The idea Ne5-d3 17.d2
will sometimes serve the same purpose. [ Or 17.g5! c5 18.xc5 xc5 19.e5 ]
This may seem a bit far-fetched but for the 17...c5 18.a1! b5 19.e4 f6 20.b6

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
d8 21.xc5 xc5 22.c7 Effectively
winning. xb6 23.cxd8+ xd8 24.e5
e8 25.c4 c7 26.f4+ c6 27.xb6
axb6 28.c1+ b5 29.c8 g8
Black needn't play on. 30.e5 d7 31.c3
e5 32.d4! exd4 33.f1+ a4 34.xd4
c5 35.xc5 bxc5 36.b8 h5 37.c4
a5 38.f1 f8 39.e1 f6 40.d2 h4
41.b5 hxg3 42.hxg3 f5 43.xe8 f7
44.c4 d7+ 45.c3 fxe4 46.e6 a7
47.c6 a8 48.xc5+
1-0
510 A13
Miroshnichenko,Evgenij 2599
Kruppa,Yuri 2533
6th Open Dubai UAE (4) 22.04.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 e6 3.g3 dxc4 4.g2
This is quite playable, although W hite
normally prefers to recapture the c-pawn
immediately by
[ 4.a4+ ]
4...c6 This aims to protect the c-pawn, and
forces White to look for positional
c o m p e n s a t i o n . 5.c2 This forces Black to
commit himself to the weakening ... b5 should
he desire keeping his extra pawn. White can
also continue developing:
[ 5.0-0 f6 6.a4 a6 7.a3 xa3 8.xa3
b4 9.a5! 0-0 10.b3! cxb3 11.xb3
and I had real comp for the pawn: more
space, open queenside lines, and the bishop
pair, Kosten,A-Goldin,A/Paris 1994. ]
[ 5.a3 Gurevich,D-Fridman, D/Europe vs
Americas, Mermaid Beach BER 1998 can
also be met by xa3 ]
5...b5 Black hangs-on to the pawn. 6.0-0 b7
7.a4 a6!? Aiming straight for the weakness
on b4.
[ 7...f6 reaches a more common position,
8.d1 ( 8.b3 cxb3 9.xb3 a6 10.d4
with typical compensation for the pawn,
Fioramonti, H-W irthensohn,H/SW Z 1999)
8...a6! as in the main game, 9.b3 cxb3
Szczepaniec,S-Popov,V/Koszalin POL 1999,
and now I have no idea why W hite didn't
play 10.xb3 ]
8.b3 A typical device to open queenside files
against the weakish black structure. cxb3
9.xb3 c5
[ 9...b4!? is also possible, but leaves a nice
square on c4 for a white knight. ]
10.b2 Forced, or the a4-pawn drops. b6
Now Black is really putting the question to the
a4-pawn.
[ 10...xa4? 11.xa4 bxa4 12.xb7 ]
11.a5 there is an alternative in
[ 11.c3 which keeps more tension,
although af ter b4 White has to retreat by,
say 12.d1 ]
11...a6 12.d4? This is too casual, I prefer
[ 12.c3 to cover a4, when f6 13.d4
forces cd7 when White has typical
compensation. ]
12...a4 This is the problem, now that the b7-
bishop is protected the knight assumes an
advanced post (albeit slightly offside) that
hinders White's natural development . In the
meantime the a5-pawn is vulnerable. 13.c2
f6 Time to complete the kingside
development. 14.e5 White aims for c6, but
this is easily defended for the moment. There
is something to be said for
[ 14.a3 which both develops a piece, and
stops ...c5 (which would be answered by
Nxb5 when the a4-knight would lose it's
pawn defender), e.g. xa5 15.d2 d8
16.e5 c8 ]
14...c8
[ 14...c5?! is pre ma t ure , 15.xb7 xb7
16.xa4! bxa4 17.xa4+ d7 18.d1
with a very strong initiative, Black will have
serious difficulties getting castled. ]
15.d2
[ 15.a3!? ]
15...e7 Once Black castles he will actually be
ahead in development, when with his extra
pawn and useful queenside development he
will be well on top. 16.e4?! White wants to
control c5 before Black can play the liberating
...c5 move, but this loses a further pawn.
[ 16.b1!? might be th e best try, xa5
( 16...c5? would now lose to 17.xb7 xb7
18.xa4 as the b-pawn is pinned) 17.b3
a6 18.c5 xc5 19.dxc5 and White has
at least got some real compensation for his
2-pawn deficit. ]
16...c5! This is the move Black wants to play,
advancing his backward c-pawn and freeing
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

his light-squared bishop, and it must be even 10.g2 exd5 11.xd5 xg4 One extra
more gratifying when it actually wins material! pawn will not give Black much relief for his
17.dxc5 forthcoming pain on the open files on the
[ 17.xf6+ is met by gxf6 ( 17...xf6 kingside. 12.e3
is also good) 18.xb7 xb7 19.f3 cxd4 [ 12.c2 creates numerous threats,
both winning another pawn and providing a including 13 Nxc7 and 13 Nf6+ gxf6 (13...
nice square for the black knight on c3. ] Bxf6 14 Qxh7) 14 Rxh4. ]
17...xe4 18.c6? 12...c8 Black could do little else to meet the
[ 18.xe4 is better, as after xc5 19.xb7 threats towards b7 and g4. 13.c2 h6
xb7 White has the resource 20.b3 xe5 [ Black loses a piece in the case of 13...g6?
21.xa4 as the b-pawn is pinned, although 14.c3 f6 15.xh4 ]
Black should still win easily after xe2 ] [ or 13...f5? 14.c4+ h8 15.xh4 ]
18...xc6 19.xc6 f5 The pinned c6-knight 14.f5 xf5
is lost immediately. [ 14...f6 15.xh6+! gxh6 16.xh6 xb2
0-1 17.h7# is a quick way for Black to exit. ]
15.xf5 d7 16.e4! This direct move is
even stronger for White than 16 Bxb7 or 16
511 A13 Rxh4 Qxh4 17 Qxd7. g6 17.f4 g5
Motwani,Paul [ 17...g5 18.f5 leads to another dead-end
Motwani,Paul for Black. ]
'Dream Game', January 1999 1999 18.xh6! xh6
[Paul Motwani] [ 18...xf4 19.h8# ]
19.xh6 f6 20.xg6 This final destructive
W59: "A Dream Game" The funny thing about sa crif ice le a ve s B la ck' s kin g h o p e le s s l y
the following game is that it happened to me... exposed.
in a dream! It's a battle of me against myself, [ 20.0-0-0 followed by Rh1 is equally
where everything looks bright for White and deadly. ]
really black for Black! 1.f3 d5 2.c4 e6 20...fxg6 21.xg6+ h8 22.0-0-0 d5
[ If 2...dxc4 , then White can choose 23.f3
between 3 Na3, 3 Qa4+, and 3 e3 to quickly [ B l a c k c o u l d o n l y h o p e f o r 23.h1+??
win back a pawn on c4, and personally I xh1+ but of course White can find a win
would favour the third option. ] even with closed eyes! ]
3.b3 e7 4.b2 f6!? Black spends a 23...c6+ 24.b1 Black resigned.
precious tempo to move a bishop f or the 1-0
second time already, because he hopes to
nullify the effect of White's counterpart on the
long a1 to h8 diagonal, but in this particular 512 A13
dream game the b2-bishop later turns Black's Naiditsch,Arkadij 2702
life into a nightmare. 5.c3 e7 Papin,V 2575
[ 5...d4 allows 6.e4 ] 13th EICC Plovdiv BUL (2.9) 21.03.2012
6.g4!? g for "go for it" is a favourite attacking [John Bartholomew]
motto of mine. g6 7.h4 A very active move
for a sleeping player! xh4 8.xh4 xh4 1.c4 e6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 f6 4.f3 dxc4
9.cxd5 0-0? White has pieces pointing 5.a4+ bd7 Historically the most common
menacingly towards the "hot" region where choice.
Black has unwisely castled. [ The knight's development has lately been
[ However, 9...f6 10.h2 ] superseded by 5...c6 , but it remains a solid
[ or 9...exd5 10.xd5 xf2+ ( 10...xd5 choice for Black. ]
11.xh4 ) 11.xf2 xd5 12.h5 6.xc4 a6 7.b3!? It's important to retreat
looks rosy for White, especially after 12... now so Black can't play 7...b5 with tempo.
e6?? 13.e5 ] [ White has the same choice here as he does

500
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
in the line 6...c6 6.Qxc4 b5. Thus, for 7.c2
see Bu Xiangzhi (2602)-Li Wenliang (2506)/
Qingdao 2002. ]
7...c5 Staking some space and preventing a
true Catalan setup with d2-d4.
[ 7...b5?! is met by 8.e5 , e.g.
( 8...xe5 9.xa8 c5 10.g2 h5!?
Milchev, N (2373)-Rusev, K (2521)/Plovdiv
2 0 0 8 . B l a c k h a s s o m e a c t i vi t y f o r t h e
exchange, but it ought to be inadequate for
t h e e x c h a n g e : 11.f4!? eg4
with the idea of h4 13.h3 h6 14.g4 )
9.c2 d5 10.d4 ( I like
to prevent ...Nd5-b4. )
A) 10...b7! 11.0-0 ( 11.dxc5?! b4 )
11...b4 12.d1 xg2 13.xg2 d7
14.f3;
B) 10...b4 11.c3 d5 12.f3 f6
13.c3 b7 14.xd5 xd5 15.xf6
gxf6 16.xd5 exd5 17.g4
18.f4 Poluljahov, A (2554)-Fomichenko,
E (2409)/Krasnodar 1999. ]
[ Black often chooses the flexible 7...b8
. For instance,
A) 8.d4 led to Catalan-style play in
Ivanchuk, V (2739)-Naiditsch, A (2626)/
W arsaw 2005. Black equalized after b5
9.0-0 b7 10.f4 d6
( Naiditsch has accumulated a great deal
of experience on both sides of the 5...
Nbd7 line. 11.xd6 cxd6 12.bd2 0-0
13.fc1 b6 14.c2 fc8 15.ac1
xc2 16.xc2 h6 17.b3?!
18.d2 c4! 19.e1 xg2 20.xg2
e4 21.e3 d5 Grunberg, M (2442)-
N a i d i t s c h , A ( 2 6 5 4 ) / D r e s d e n 2 0 0 7 .)
11...xf4 12.gxf4 d5 13.e3 c5 14.dxc5
c8 15.c6 xc6 16.a3 b7 17.bd2
b4 18.d3 0-0=;
B) Another Ivanchuk game went 8.0-0 b5
9.a4 b7! 10.axb5 axb5 11.d3 d6
12.e3 c5 13.c3 0-0 14.d2 xg2
15.xg2 g4!? Bu Xiangzhi (2675)-
Ivanchuk, V (2768)/ Khanty-Mansiysk RUS
201.;
C) 8.a4!? b6 ( 8...c5 transposes to our
main game.) 9.0-0 b7 10.c3 e7
11.d3 0-0 12.d1 c5 13.f4 a8
14.ac1 d5 15.xd5 xd5 16.c2
f6 Podkriznik, G (2332)-Sjugirov, S
(2627)/Rogaska Slatina SLO 2011. Here
17.e4 b7 18.e5 looks a bit better for
White. ]
8.a4 This is the principle downside of 5...
Nbd7 compared to the 5...c6 6.Qxc4 b5 line.
Black will often find it difficult to break with
c5 ...b7-b5.
[ I also think Nigel Short's treatment of this
position as worth studying: 8.d3 d6 9.0-0
b8 10.a4 b5 ( 10...b6!? ) 11.axb5 axb5
12.c3 0-0 13.g5 h6 ( 13...b6
12.e3 is better ) 14.e4! hxg5 15.xd6 g4
16.g5 c4 17.dxc4 c5 18.d1 bxc4
10.a3!? 19.a7 Short, N (2698)-Sveshnikov, E
(2514)/Porto Carras GRE 2011. ]
8...b8 9.a5!? Consistent with White's
restriction concept.
[ White can also revert to 9.d3 , as in the
game from the last note. ]
9...d6 The maneuver ...Bd6-c7 will be useful
d7 in harassing the a-pawn.
[ After 9...b5 10.axb6 White can claim a
long-term positional edge thanks to Black's
extra iso lat ed pa wn. A n e xa m ple : xb6
11.c2 b3?! (I don't think Black should
necessarily push for a queen trade) 12.xb3
xb3 13.d3 d6 14.bd2 b5 15.c4
c7 16.d2 d5 17.0-0 e7 18.fc1
11.c1 b7 19.e1 b8 20.fd2 c8 21.f4
Korotylev, A (2607)-Gutov, A (2467)/Sochi
2008. ]
10.d3 d5
[ If unopposed, White's typical plan involves
c8 0-0, Bc1-d2, and Nb1-a3-c4, controlling
many key squares and keeping Black very
tied down. Two responses are likely: 1)
Black plays ...e6-e5 to try and develop the
bishop along the c8-h3 diagonal, and/or 2)
Black plays ...b7-b5, accepting the
aforementioned "c" and "a" pawn
weaknesses. In either case I believe White
should have a nice, workable advantage.
Let's see these scenarios in practice:
10...0-0 11.0-0 h6 12.d2 e8 13.a3
e5 14.c4 c7 15.fd1 e7 16.h4!?
( 16.a3!? ) 16...b5 17.axb6 xb6
18.a5! bd5 19.c2 d7 20.b3 d6
21.xc5 xc5 22.xc5 xb2 23.e4 b5
24.a3 e7 25.c3 b7 26.dc1 b8
27.d4! exd4 28.xd4 Lputian, S (2610)-
Piket, J (2575)/Sarajevo 1998. ]
[ 10...c7 11.d2 0-0 12.0-0 d5
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

13.c1!? (a useful move since Nb1-a3 isn't 27.c4 h6 28.c7 d8 29.g3 b8
possible right this second ) b5 14.axb6 30.c5 b1 31.g2 b2 32.c6 f8
7xb6 15.c2 d6 16.c3 (16.Na3 isn't 33.e4 a2 34.e5 a8+ 35.h2 b8?!
as attractive now with Black's knight on b6) 36.f5! exf5?
( 16.a5! l o o k s s t r o n g t o o) 16...b4 [ 36...e8! was correct. ]
17.d1 b7 18.e4 xe4 19.dxe4 e7?! 37.xf5 Now the f7 weakness forces Black's
20.e1 ( 20.xb4 cxb4 21.xa6 ) rook into submission. f8 38.d7 b8+
20...d7 21.f4 b5 22.d2 g5 39.g2 a8+ 40.e4 c6 41.d4! g6
23.xg5 xg5 24.c4 e7 25.c3 42.d5 c1
Romanov, E (2594) -Yevseev, D (2520)/St [ 42...xd5 43.xd5 a8 Albeit depressing,
Petersburg RUS 2010. ] the rook ending held more drawing
11.c3! A good adjustment to Black's last chances. ]
move. c7?! 43.d8 xd8?!
[ 11...xc3 isn't too appealing in view of [ Black may be technically lost at this point,
12.bxc3!? when a pawn exchange on b6 but 43...d2! was a more tenacious
after ...b7-b5 will leave White with a healthy defense, i.e. 44.xf8+ xf8 45.e5 b2!
and compact structure. Still, this may have (at least making it d if f icult f or W hite t o
been best for Black, i.e. 0-0 13.d2!? a d v a n c e t h e d - p a w n ) 46.d6+ e8
(the other knight heads for c4) b5 14.axb6 when White still has some work to do. ]
xb6 15.0-0 ] 44.xd8+ g7 45.e7!+- A fantastic square
12.0-0 xc3 13.xc3 0-0 14.f4?! for the queen: here she prepares the advance
This exchange lets Black off the hook too of the d-pawn, covers g5 from checks, and
easily. prevents Black's king from assisting in
[ White already has an attractive position, defense. g5 46.e5+ f6 47.e7+ g6
a n d I t h i n k 14.g5!? f6 15.e3 48.e8+ g7 49.d7+ g6 50.d5 h5
was a more focused continuation. White is 51.f5+ g7 52.d6 c6 53.d7
hounding the c5 pawn and emphasizing that [ Black resigned because of 53.d7 c7
his dark square bishop is more useful than 54.e6 . 5...Nbd7 is less concrete than 5...
its Black counterpart. If Black doesn't play ... c6 6.Qxc4 b5, so maybe it's not surprising
b7-b5, then W hite will create unbearable that it isn't as popular in the Houdini era.
pressure by playing Nf3-d2-b3 and Rf1-c1. ] Several model continuations for White were
14...xf4 15.gxf4 b6 16.e5 xe5?! shown in this game, and you can probably
[ 16...b7! is more accurate. Black will tell that I support the first player's cause. If
liquidate and fully equalize, i. e. 17.xb7 you're thinking about giving 5...Nbd7 a try,
xb7 18.axb6 xe5 19.xe5 xb6= ] you might want to also investigate another
17.xe5 b7 18.fc1! White retains a bit of popular sixth move - 6...c5. ]
pressure. d5 19.h3 1-0
[ 19.axb6! led to the immediate win of a
p a w n , e . g . xb6 20.e4 c6 21.xc5
xc5 22.xc5 b5 23.d4 fd8 24.d5 513 A13
exd5 25.exd5 ] Ni,Hua 2653
19...e8?! Tischbierek,Raj 2414
[ 19...c8! was better, overprotecting c5. For Porto Mannu op 6th (9) 14.06.2014
example, 20.xd5 exd5 21.axb6 xb6 [Kosten, Tony]
22.xd5 xb2= ]
20.axb6 xg2 21.xg2 xb6 22.xc5 1.c4 f6 2.f3 e6 3.g3 a6 4.g2 b5
xb2 23.xa6 b7+ 24.ac6 bc8 The Romanishin Gambit. I had to prepare for
25.e4 xc6 26.xc6 Should this be this a few weeks ago (although the actual
drawn with good defense? Most probably. In game took a different route), but didn't find
practice, Black is bound to suffer indefinitely anything convincing, and so I was curious and
(especially with the FIDE time control!). d7 wanted to examine this quick win in more

502
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
detail. 5.b3 By far the number one move,
simply defending c4 and preparing to develop
the bishop to b2 if appropriate.
[ 5.e5!? a7 6.d4
A) I analysed Wojtkiewicz, A (2551)-
Kamsky, G ten years ago, which continued
instead 6...b7 7.d5 b4+ 8.c3 c5
and White was a bit better.;
B) 6...d6 is answered by the neat trick
7.e3 as in the game, c5! ( 7...dxe5?!
is m o re c om m o n , b u t 8.dxe5 xd1+
9.xd1 c5 10.exf6 gxf6 favours White,
Greenfeld, A (2530)-Loginov, V (2500)
Beersheba 1998, 1-0 (55).) 8.c6 xc6
9.xc6+ d7 10.f3 c8 is a little plus
for White, but no more, Neckar, L (2380)-
Panchenko, A Prague 1982, 1-0 (32).;
C) 6...b4+!? new, 7.c3 d6 8.e3!
Greenf eld would be well aware of this
t h e m e ( s e e a b o v e ) , 0-0 ( 8...dxe5?
is inad visa ble : 9.dxe5 c5 10.xd8+
xd8 11.exf6 gxf6 12.0-0-0+ ) 9.0-0
b7? ( 9...c5 ) 10.d5! dxe5 ( 10...a8
11.xf7! xf7 12.dxe6 wins material.)
11.xa7 bd7 12.cxb5 axb5 13.dxe6
xg2 14.xg2 fxe6 15.f3 Black has no
c o m p e n s a t io n f o r t h e l o st e xch a n ge ,
Greenfeld, A (2545) -Smirnov, A (2463)
Golden Sands 2014, 1-0 (35). ]
5...b7
[ 5...c5 is the equally popular alternative,
when 6.0-0 ( 6.c3 is Damljanovic, B-
Georgiev, K in the PGN Archive.) 6...b7
transposes below. ]
[ I considered 5...d5 in Filippov, V-Korchnoi,
V. ]
6.0-0 c5 7.c3 a5 This move, defending
b5, was a favourite of Romanishin, but
[ 7...b6 is the most common, when 8 e3 is
s t a n d a r d , b u t 8.e1 intending e4 is
interesting. ]
8.e3 e7 9.e2 Putting pressure on b5,
White would like to force Black's hand. 0-0
[ 9...bxc4 10.bxc4 0-0 11.b1 led to a
quick win for White in Akopian, V-Svidler, P,
see my annotations. ]
[ 9...b4 displaces the knight but allows White
to open the a-file, 10.a4 0-0 11.a3 bxa3
12.xa3 c7 13.d4 with pressure, although
Black's position is fairly solid, Kabanov, N
(2509)-Turov, M (2561) Krasnoyarsk 2007, 1/
2-1/2 (64). ]
10.d1!? A novelty. This rook has a big future,
and will soon be capturing the pawn on d7!
[ 10.b2 is usual, but after bxc4 11.bxc4
White would prefer to have a rook on the
open b-file. ]
[ 10.cxb5 axb5 11.xb5 is greedy, yet
playable, a7 12.e2 a6 13.d3 c6
with compensation for the pawn. ]
10...bxc4 11.bxc4 c6 12.e5!? c7
[ Houdini likes the cool 12...ab8 allowing
13.xc6 xc6 14.xc6 dxc6
when he considers that Black is slightly
better. At first this seems absurd, as doesn't
he have doubled c-pawns? Yet, on closer
examination we see that it is not easy for
W hite to finish his development, the
c1-bishop can't move and neither can the d-
pawn. ]
[ 12...xe5 would probably be my choice,
13.xb7 ab8 about equal, despite White's
bishop pair. ]
13.d4 xe5?! I think that Black simply miss-
assesses the tactics here.
[ 13...a5 is more than satisfactory,
14.xb7 xb7 and ...d6, driving the knight
a wa y wh e n B l a c k c a n c o n c e n t r a t e h i s
attention on the c4-pawn. ]
14.xb7 a7? The rook stays here for the
rest of the game!
[ 14...xb7 15.dxe5 e8 16.b1
is also awkward, c7 17.b2 and on xe5
18.d5 d6 19.e7+ h8 20.xe5 xe5
21.xd7 still, Black is still on the board after
f6 ]
15.dxe5 xe5 The point, both b7 and c3 are
attacked so Black regains his piece. 16.b1
xc3 17.b2 a5 18.xf6 xf6 19.xd7
At the end of the tactics material is equal and
there are opposite colour bishops on the
board, but the a7-rook is terribly misplaced. g6
20.bd1 g7
[ 20...b4 21.f3 a5 would force White to
show some way of improving, 22.a4 b2
23.e4 Planning Rb1, Qc6. ]
21.g4 Eyeing e6. White is obviously better,
still, it seems strange that Black would lose so
quickly from this position. e8 22.f4 b6
23.e4 e7
[ 23...d8 24.xd8 xd8 25.d7 f6
26.a4 is similar to the game continuation. ]
503
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
24.1d6! b2 25.xe7 xe7 26.d7 9.d1
Black can never move his rook. f8?!
[ 26...a1+ 27.g2 f6 28.c6 e5
29.c8 e4! keeps the game going, although
30.xe4 xd7 31.xd7 would be a long
and difficult defence for Black, W hite will
play Bd5 and tie his queen to the defence of
f7 before advancing his kingside pawns, f4,
e4-5. ]
27.c6! Qc8+/c7-b8 wins the rook.
1-0
514 A13
Pantsulaia,Levan 2607
Meier,Georg 2556
Lake Martuni ARM (4) 14.07.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
9...d7!
1.c4 e6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 f6 4.f3 dxc4
5.0-0
[ I think that if White is to play for an
advantage in this line, he should opt for
either 5.c2 ]
[ or 5.a4+ though in both cases Black has
excellent chances of equalizing. ]
5...a6 6.a4?!
[ According to the ECO, there is nothing
wrong with this move. However, I think this
may well be the time for White to bail out,
because in our main game and in the
supporting material, things don't look too
dandy for White. The alternatives are 6.c2
b5 7.e5 d5 8.d3 ]
[ and 6.c3 bd7 ( 6...b5 7.d3! ) 7.a4
with about even chances. ]
6...c6 7.c2 a5!
[ 7...e5 is the ECO's main line, quoting the
game Gurgenidze, B-Ubilava, E/ Ckhaltubo
1981, but for some reason the combination
of Black's 7th and 8th move isn't mentioned
there. ]
8.a3 d5!
[ 8...xa3?! is completely unnecessary,
solving several of White's problems for him
without being able to hang on the c4-pawn
as he perhaps had hoped for with his last
move. 9.xa3 0-0 10.d3 e7 11.c3 b6
12.dxc4 b7 13.g5 c5 , and the chances
are more or less even, Ivacic, V-Gostisa, L/ 10.d3 b3 11.b1
SLO 1993 ]
[ Due to the outcome of the opening, White
being essentially lost, you have to examine
every single move to see where
improvements can be found. Here W hite
tried 9.e1 , but again Black has a safe
e d g e a f t e r c5 ( 9...f5!? can also be
co n sid e re d) 10.d3?! ( 10.b1 is better,
d5 11.d3 cxd3 12.xc5 xc5 13.xd3
e7 14.e4 b4 15.xb4 xb4 16.c2
d6 , and although White has a little
compensation for the pawn when looking at
sp a ce a n d d e ve lo p m e n t , it isn 't n e a rly
enough. ) 10...b3 11.b1 cxd3! 12.xc5
( 12.xb3 dxe2-+ ) 12...xc5 13.xd3
xa4 , and Black is up a couple of pawns
for insufficient compensation, Karlsson, A-
Thorhallsson, T/Hafnarfirdi 1992 ]
[ This is Black's best move, targeting the a4-
pawn which is also becoming soft. Black has
also tried 9...d6 on a couple of occasions:
10.d3 cxd3 11.xd3 c5 ( 11...h5!?
12.d2 0-0 13.h3 c6 14.g4 c5 15.c3
a7 16.e3 b4 17.b1 b8 18.c1
d7 19.c4 c6 with some but not quite
adequate compensation for the pawn for
White, Butnorius, A-Grabliauskas, V/Vilnius
1994 )
A) 12.xc5!? xc5 13.e5 d6
( 13...d7 14.d2 c6 15.ac4 e7
16.b3 is simply better for White) 14.ac4
xc4 15.xc4 e7 16.g5 ( 16.a5
d5! ) 16...h6 17.d2 , and White's
activity an d be tt e r de ve lo p me nt f or a
change fully compensates for the missing
pawn, which he is likely to win back as
the pressure on Black's queenside
continues to mount.;
B) 12.d1 0-0 13.b4 xb4 14.d2 c5
15.c1 h5 16.h3 e5! 17.g4 xg4
18.hxg4 xg4 19.xa5 e4 20.d5 f5
, and here W hite blundered with
21.xc7?? ( 21.xd6 cxd6 22.e1 f4
, and Black has excellent compensation
for the sacrificed material) 21...xc7
22.xc7 exf3 23.exf3 h2+ 24.f1
xc7 , and Black is winning, Adamski, J-
Beliavsky, A/ Copenhagen DEN 2003 ]
[ W h i t e h a s a l s o t r i e d 11.a2
504
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
without success, e.g. xc1 12.xc1 xa4
13.xc4 xd1 14.fe5 b5 15.xd1
b4 , and Black essentially already has a
winning position, Quinn, M-Onischuk, A/
Yerevan 1996 ]
11...xa4 12.xc4 b5 13.f1
[ Or 13.e3 d5 14.f1 b4 15.a3
xe3 16.fxe3 c5 17.xc5 xc5
, and also in this line, W hite has lost a
pawn without compensation, Chuprikov, D-
Zinchenko, Y/Alushta UKR 2005 ]
13...d5 14.cd2?
[ The fact that White's best is 14.e3 d6
15.c4 xc4 16.xc4 e7 , leaving him a
pawn down without compensation illustrate
the magnitude of problems he is already
facing. After the text move, W hite loses
another pawn without compensation and
with that, any hope of saving the game. ]
14...d4 15.c4 xe2+ 16.h1 xc4
17.dxc4 b4 18.e5
[ White tries to stir up a little complications,
but as a result Black wins even faster. The
relatively best move is 18.b3 , though this
hardly inspires confidence, leaving W hite
two pawns down without any compensation
c6 ]
18...c2! 19.a1 f6!?
[ 19...d8 20.df3 f6 21.g4 e4-+ ]
20.ef3
[ 20.xb7 almost works, but nevertheless
still loses for W hite: b8 21.f3 d4
22.h5+ g6 23.ef3 e2 24.g4 f5
25.h3 g7 26.e1 xc1 27.axc1 e7
, and W hite's house of cards finally
tumbles. ]
20...0-0-0 21.h3 c5!?
[ 21...f5!? 22.e1 xc1 23.exc1 g6
threatens ...Bg7 and ...Bh6, needless to say
White is completely lost already. ]
22.e1
[ 22.xe6+ b8 leaves White only a pawn
down, but that aside, he can barely move.
23.g2 he8 24.g4 g6 , threatening ...f6-
f5 ]
22...d3 23.xe6+ b8 24.f5?
A mistake in a lost position. xc1
0-1
515 A13
Pogorelov,Ruslan 2442
Baron Rodriguez,Jesus 2445
XV Open La Pobla de Lillet ESP (6) 07.08.05
[John Watson]
Pogorelov plays a beautiful game in which he
steadily and harmoniously builds up a better
and better position. Then almost certainly in
time trouble, he misses a number of direct
wins (each requiring immediate resignation by
Black). 1.f3 d5 2.c4 e6 3.g3 f6 4.g2
dxc4 The Reti Opening isn't understood very
well by computer engines (at least ones that
aren't simply reading out of their book). Here
as usual HiArcs 9 gives Black a clear plus,
and even after the mighty
[ 4...c6 and ]
[ 4...c6 it gives Black a significant
advantage. I think that this is less a
p re j u d i ce a ga i n st t h e f i a n c h e t t o a s a n
overrating of space. ]
5.a4+ bd7 6.xc4 c5
[ Here the computer suggests 6...b6 7.c2
b4 (!) and ]
[ 6...d5 7.d4 7b6 , both very awkward. ]
7.c2 b6 8.0-0 b7 9.d3 d6 10.a4 0-0
11.a3 These are standard moves in this
variation. White wants to establish control by
means of Nc4, some developing moves, and a
central ad vance such as d4 or e4. Blac k
counts upon his active pieces and shared
central control to give him good play. I'd call it
equal. d5 12.d2 a6 Probably preparing ...
b5 once the knight settles on c4, but the
structure changes dramatically after White's
14th. 13.c4 c7 14.e4 5f6
[ C r i t i c a l w o u l d b e 14...b4 15.xb4
( 15.b3!? ) 15...cxb4 16.d4 pitting two
bishops versus centre. ]
15.b4 e8 16.b5! e5!?
[ 16...axb5 17.axb5 e7 is similar to the
next note. ]
17.c3 b8
[ 17...e7 looks preferab le. Perhaps Black
was worried (justifiably) about eventual Nf5s
and Nd5s. ]
18.b2 axb5?! 19.axb5 xa1 20.xa1
I like White, and don't see why Black gave him
the a-file. Now let's sit back and enjoy a great
e x e c u t i o n o f a t t a c k o n b o t h w i n g s : e7
505
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

21.h4 f8 22.f5 e6 23.h4! 6d7 [ 64.f4 ]

24.h3 e8 25.fe3 e6 26.d5 ef8
27.g2 f6 28.h3! e6 29.xe6+! xe6
30.b3 f7 31.ce3 f8 32.a4! g6
33.a2 h6 34.e2! e8?
[ But other moves are also unattractive, e.g.,
34...h7 35.h5 ( 35.h5 ) 35...g6 36.f3
g7 37.h5 ]
35.g4+
[ Or 35.f5! ]
35...f7 36.f5 e6 37.h5
effectively over. There's just too much
pressure. d8
[ 37...g5 38.f4 ]
38.g6+ f8 39.xh6! gxh6 40.xh6+
g8
[ Also losing was 40...g7 41.xf6 xf6
42.xf6+ g8 43.h6 ]
41.g6+ f8 42.xf6 xf6 43.xf6+ g8
44.xe5 d8 45.h8+ f7 46.h7+ f8
47.xb7 Good enough but
[ winning immediately in a forced manner
was 47.h6+ (or 47.Qf5+ Kg8 48.h6!) g8
48.a7 e7 49.xb7 xb7 50.xe6+ f7
( 50...f8 51.d6+ g7 52.g6+ h8
53.e5+ ) 51.g6+ ( or 51.h6 ) 51...f8
52.d6+ e8 53.e6+ e7 54.xe7+
xe7 55.xe7 ]
47...xd3
[ A slightly tougher defence was 47...g5
48.a7 xh5 still losing to 49.d5! ]
48.a7?!
[ 48.h6 is much easier d1+ 49.g2 h5
50.h7 , and 48.Qh7 is also curtains. ]
48...d1+ 49.g2 xh5 50.d6+?
[ 50.d5! t h r e a t e n s B d 6 + , a n d g6
51.d6+ g8 52.g7+ xg7 53.xg7
xg7 54.xb6 is easy. ]
50...g8 51.d5!? xd5 52.exd5 d4
Now at least Black isn't getting mated and has
a few chances if White goes wrong. It's hard
for White to adjust to missing all those simple
wins and he collapses: 53.f4?!
[ 53.b7 ]
53...xb5
[ 53...d8 ]
54.b7 d8 55.xb6 c3 56.e5 xd5
57.c6 f7 58.xc5 e6 59.b2!? b8
60.c1 b4 61.f3 b3 62.g4 c3 63.d2
[ 63.f4! ]
63...e2 64.f2
64...d4 65.c3 b5 66.g7 This still
cle arly winn in g, bu t wh a t is W h it e do in g
messing about? d6 67.f8 f7 68.g3??
Disaster. e5 69.xe5+
[ 69.g7 xf3+ 70.g2 ( 70.h4 xg4! )
70...e3 ( 70...f2+ 71.xf2 d3+
72.g3 xc5 may also do the trick) 71.g5
f3 72.f2 b3 73.g6 h4= ]
69...xe5 70.g7+ e6 71.f4 f7
Now it's 72.d4 g6 73.e4 g5 74.e3+ h4
75.f2+
[ 75.g5 b4+ 76.f5 b5+! 77.g6
( 77.f6 b3 ) 77...b3= ]
75...g5 76.e3+ h4 77.c5!? g3
[ 77...b7 also looks good to me. ]
78.d6+ h4 79.f4 b7 80.e5 f7+
81.e4 g5 82.d6 d7 83.c5 f7
84.e3+ h4 85.f2+ g5 86.e3+ h4
87.f2+ What a sad draw to take.
½-½
516 A13
Reti,Richard
Bogoljubow,Efim
Bad Homburg (2.3) 1927
[Nigel Davies]
This game was a bit of a tragedy from Reti's
point of view. After obtaining an excellent
position from the opening and even winning a
pawn, he lets slip what should have been a
really excellent endgame. 1.f3 d5 2.c4 e6
3.g3 dxc4 4.a4+ d7 5.g2 gf6 6.0-0
d6
[ 6...c5 is the modern preference and frankly
I doubt that W hite can hope for too much
there. ]
7.a3 xa3
[ After 7...0-0 8.xc4 White has to be better
because of his harmonious development
and central pawn majority. So Bogoljubow's
plan is critical. ]
8.bxa3
[ 8.xa3 b6 would make it difficult for
White to recover the c4 pawn. ]
8...0-0 9.xc4 b6 10.c2 d7 11.b2
a4 12.b1 c6?!
[ P r e s u m a b l y B l a c k d i d n ' t l i k e 12...h6
b e c a u s e o f 13.e5 but then xd2

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
isn't clear. ]
13.g5! This is very strong now, the threat
being to take the knight on f6 when h7 hangs.
bd7 14.xc6 bxc6 15.c1 c5?!
[ And here 15...b8 was better. ]
16.xc5! b8
[ Of course 16...xc5 would lose on the spot
to 17.xf6 . ]
17.c4 h6 18.e4 d5 19.c2 7b6
20.c6 c8 21.d3 b7 22.e5 a6
23.xc7
[ 23.c1 might have been better, simply
protecting the a3 pawn. In any case White
is better but this might have clamped down
better on any counterplay. ]
23...bc8 24.xb6 xc6 25.xc6 c8
26.c5 xc6 27.xa6 xb6 28.b4 c3
[ 28...xb4 29.axb4 would give White all
the chances in a simple endgame, so
B o go lju b o w ke e p s m o re p i e ce s o n t h e
board. ]
29.e3 a5 30.c2 b2 31.d4 xa2
32.e1? After Black's reply White has to go
b a c k wh e n h e m i g h t e ve n b e s o m e wh a t
worse.
[ 32.g2 was a better chance. ]
32...d2 33.a1 a4 34.b5 g5 35.g2 g4
36.d6 c3 37.e4?! It looks as if Reti was
blind to the dangers inherent in this position.
[ 37.c4 was a better chance though after
xd3 38.e5 d2 39.xg4 e4
he's still struggling to draw. ]
37...xd3 38.f6+ g7 39.xg4
[ Or 39.h5+ f8 40.f6 h5 41.xh5
e4 , tying White up. ]
39...f6 40.h4 h5 41.h2 b5 42.f3 xa3
43.xa3? Black's outside passed pawn is
especially dangerous in the knight endgame.
W h i t e s h o u l d h a v e k e p t r o o k s o n . xa3
44.d4 f7 45.f3 e5 46.e2 b1
47.e4
[ Or 47.e4 a3 48.c1 c3 etc. ]
47...a3 48.c1 c3+ 49.d3 a2 50.b3
a4 51.a1
[ Or 51.e2 c5! 52.a1 e4 , leaving
White completely tied up. ]
51...c5+ 52.e2 e4 53.f3 f5 54.g2
d2 55.f3 e4 56.fxe4 xe4 57.f3 f6
58.f4 c5 59.c2 d3+
0-1
517 A13
Reti,Richard
Lasker,Edward
New York (7) 24.03.1924
[Nigel Davies]
Black's 5...Ne4 makes little sense before
W hite has played d2-d4 as the knight gets
driven away with d2-d3. But this is typical of
the way people played against Flank
Openings when they first started being played
in strong tournaments. Players were used to
'doing something' so just did it anyway. 1.f3
d5 2.c4 e6 3.g3 c6 4.b3 f6 5.g2
e4?! 6.c2 e7 7.b2 0-0 8.0-0 d7
9.d3 g5 10.bd2 xf3+ 11.xf3 f6
Attempting to ease his game via simplification,
but White can avoid this easily enough. 12.d4
Now Black would like his knight on f6 so as to
fight against White's central expansion with e2-
e4. e8 13.e4 b6 'Fast development' was
still highly prized at this time in chess history,
but now we have a greater focus on quality
rather than just speed.
[ Black's knight does nothing on b6 so it
would have better to play 13...b6 instead. ]
14.e5 d7 15.g4 c8 16.xf6+ xf6
17.a4 ed8
[ 17...a5 18.c5 a8 19.e5 f5 20.d2
would win the a5 pawn. ]
18.a5 a8 19.e5 g6 20.e2 c7 21.a3
a6 22.fe1 e8 23.d6 f5 24.f4 h6
25.f3 Preventing 25...Bh5 and getting ready
for eventual kingside action with g3-g4. Black
'strikes' first in order to effect some
exchanges but the problem with his position
continue into the endgame. g5 26.a2
[ 26.fxg5 xg5 27.h1 looks very strong
here. ]
26...gxf4 27.gxf4 d7
[ After 27...xf4 White would obviously have
compensation for the pawn along the open
files on the kingside but with nothing clear
th is might ha ve be e n a goo d swin d lin g
chance for Black. ]
28.e3 g7+ 29.g2 xg2+ 30.xg2
Reti has a certain endgame in mind in which
Black's knight on a6 will spell his doom. But
the exchanges also weaken his king position
so he needs to be careful. h5 31.xh5
xh5 32.g1 f7 33.h1 g8 34.xg8
507
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

xg8 35.cxd5 cxd5 36.b4 The point behind whereupon 20.xf5 gxf5 21.d6
White's recent moves. What does the knight must be better for W hite though Black's
do? f7 37.d3 h4 38.f1 d8 39.h3 weak pawns may not be as weak as they
g8 seem. ]
[ Or 39...g6 40.g3+ f7 41.g5 etc. ] 20.d6 e7 21.ad1 e8 22.ce4 xd6
40.g3+ f7 41.g5 c8 23.xd6 e5 24.f6+ g7 25.f1 e6
[ 41...xg5 42.fxg5 g6 43.b5 also wins 26.xe6 xe6 27.e4 e8 28.c3+ e5
Black's knight. ] 29.d6 e6?
42.b5 c1+ [ 29...e7 was better when 30.xe5+ xe5
[ Or 42...b8 43.xb8 xb8 44.f6+ etc. ] 31.xb7 b5 gets the pawn back with a
43.g2 d2+ 44.h3 e3+ 45.h4 e1+ good game. ]
46.h5 e2+ 47.h6 xh2+ 48.h5+ 30.xb7 xc3 31.bxc3 e5 32.d4 e6
xh5+ 49.xh5 g7 50.bxa6 bxa6 33.a4 d5 34.a5
51.c5 f7 52.h6 g8 53.xa7 h8 [ 34.xa7 d7 puts White in a nasty pin. ]
54.b6 g8 55.d8 h8 56.h4 34...d6 35.b3 d7 36.d4 xd4
Not a great game but interesting nonetheless. 37.cxd4 b7 38.a6 c7 39.e3 f8
1-0 40.e2 e7 41.d3 d7 42.a3 f6
43.c4 f5 44.c5 Black is doomed though
there hasn't been a particularly good reason
518 A13 for him to resign as yet. e7 45.b3 g5
Reti,Richard 46.a4 f4 47.gxf4 gxf4 48.e4 f6 49.b8
Vidmar,Milan Sr g5 50.f3 h5 51.f8 b7 52.f5+ g6
British Empire Club Masters (4) 1927 53.xf4 b2 54.h4 a2 55.e5 xa4 56.e6
[Nigel Davies] 1-0

5 . . . N b d 7 i s ge n e r a l l y vi e we d a s a m o r e
reliable line these days. Vidmar's 5... Bd7 519 A13
aims to put the bishop on c6 from where it will Richardson,Keith B 2220
neutralise the one on g2. But the problem is Pokorna,Regina 2370
that it blocks Black's c-pawn. This makes it 4NCL West Bromwich ENG (4) 21.11.2004
difficult for Black to challenge White's centre. [John Watson]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4
5.a4+ d7 6.xc4 c6 7.0-0 e7 8.c2 1.c4 e6 2.f3 f6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4
[ White can also leave the queen on c4, for 5.a3 d5!? I'm amazed that I can't find this
example 8.c3 a6 9.d4 0-0 10.g5 move in my database! There are of course
bd7 11.fe1 b8 12.a4 d5 13.xe7 thousands of games after 5.Na3, and I keep
xe7 14.e4 was better for White in thinking my search method must be wrong -
Va ga nian , R (26 15 )-Sm agin, S (25 20 ), it's only move 5! But I see nothing wrong with
Germany 1993. ] the move, which of course entail some risk,
8...0-0 9.c3 bd7 10.d1 Still keeping all but so do many such lines.
the options open with his pawns. [ I also fail to find this position via 5...xa3
[ 10.d4 l o o k s n a t u r a l b u t a f t e r b4 6.bxa3 d5 ]
Black gets some kind of hold on the d5 and 6.a4+ What's the problem here? Can't White
e4 squares. ] achieve anything?
10...e5 11.d4 exd4 12.xd4 xg2 [ 6.c2 c6 ( or even 6...xa3 7.bxa3
13.xg2 c6 14.f5 Already this looks very c6 8.0-0 e5 ) 7.xc4 might run into
good for White. Perhaps Black should have b4!? ( 7...d4 8.c3 c5 9.e3 d6
played 13...g6 last move. e8 15.g5 c7 10.xd4 xd4 looks about equal) 8.b3
16.f4 a5 17.d6 f8 18.d2 g6 ( 8.c3 e4 ) 8...b5!? 9.e3 xb3
19.xf8 xf8 10.axb3 b7 ]
[ It might have been better to play 19...xf5 [ 6.0-0 e5!? ( 6...xa3 7.a4+ c6

508
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

8.xa3 e5 ) 7.g5 e4 ( 7...d4!? )

[ White adopted a more universal setup in
8.xe4! xe4 9.d3 is interesting, although Kharlov, A (2591)-Izoria, Z (2541)/
Rethymnon 2003/[TonyK]: 8.0-0 bd7 9.b3
n o t n e c e s s a r i l y a d v a n t a g e o u s : cxd3
( 9...xa3 10.xe4 d7 11.bxa3 cxd3 c8 10.b2 e7 11.d3 0-0 12.bd2 c5
12.xd3 c6 ) 10.exd3 xa3 11.bxa3 13.a3!? b6 14.ac1 fd8 15.b1 a6
d4 12.e3 with two strong bishops. ] 16.a1 f8 17.c2 a7 18.fc1 a8
[ 6.b3 should provide White somewith a typical Reti game. Sadorra's approach
compensation but nothing too frightening for with Nc3, 0-0, a4, d3 and e4 is considered
Blac k , e .g. , cxb3 7.axb3 e5 ( 7...e7 more theoretically challenging. ]
8.c4 0-0 9.0-0 b5!? ) 8.b2 e4 9.d4 8...bd7 9.0-0 a6 10.a4 An important move.
c6 unclear ] Otherwise Black will get an easy game with ...
6...c6 7.xc4 a6 c6-c5. c8 In view of 11.Rd1, this might be a
[ Also reasonable looks 7...xa3 8.xd5
slight move-order inaccuracy.
exd5 9.bxa3 f5!? ( 9...0-0 10.b2 e4 [ 10...e7 limits White's options. If he
11.d3 c5 with a sound game White's
p e r s i s t s w i t h 11.d1 ( 11.d3
bishops aren't doing much. ) 10.b2 bd7 ] could transpose to the game) 11...0-0 12.d4
[ 7...a6 is solid ] , then Delchev points out the feasibility of c5!
8.0-0 c5 9.xd5 13.axb5 axb5 14.xa8 xa8 15.xb5
[ 9.h4!? ] e4 16.d2 cxd4 17.bxd4 b8
9...exd5 10.c2 0-0 11.a3 e8 12.e1 f5 when W hite faces a near impossible task
13.cd4 d7 in r e a li zi n g t h e e xt r a p a wn . S vid le r, P
[ 13...g6 is also logical. The result of the
(2755)-Gelfand, B (2744)/Moscow RUS
opening is equality. I'll leave you to play 2011. ]
through the rest of the game. ] 11.d3
14.b4 b6 15.b2 c7 16.b3 e4 17.e3 [ D e l c h e v c l a i m s t h a t 11.d1!
d6 18.d3 f5 19.ed1 f6 20.h3 a5 is even stronger alternative, preparing d2-d4.
21.bxa5 xa5 22.fd4 g6 23.a4 b4 O n e o f h i s l i n e s b e g i n s w i t h b4
24.c2 a5 25.a3 c4 26.xa5 xa3 , which indeed looks critical . After
27.xa3 xa5 28.b1 a7 29.ab3 xa4 ( he also analyzes 11...b6; and 11...e7 )
30.xb7 e6 31.b4 c5 32.b6 xd3 12.e4 xe4 13.xe4 , I tried to improve
33.xd3 xd3 34.c1 e4 35.bxc6 Black's position with f6 ( Delchev gives
xg2 36.xg2 d4 37.exd4 xd4 38.c8 13...c7 14.e1! f6 15.c4 c5 16.b3
xc8 39.xc8+ f7 40.c7+ g6 xg2 17.xg2 b7+ 18.f3 e7 19.b2
½-½ 0-0 20.d3 ) 14.c2 ( if White plays by
analogy with the above line with 14.c4 c5
15.e1 , then xg2 16.xg2 d5+
520 A13 17.xd5 exd5= is totally fine for Black)
Sadorra,J 2525 14...c5 15.b3 e7 16.b2 c7
Lenderman,Alex 2581 , but the resulting position is extremely
UTD GM Invitational (6) 14.03.2012 sim ila r. W h it e ke e p s a n ice e d ge , e . g .
[John Bartholomew] 17.ac1 0-0 18.e5 xg2 19.xg2 ]
[ Delchev notes that the immediate 11.d4
1.c4 e6 2.f3 f6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4 is met by b4 12.e4 c5 ]
5.a4+ c6 6.xc4 b5 7.c2 White prefers 11...e7 12.e4 0-0 This position is important
this retreat to 7.Qb3 by a more than 4-to-1 to the assessment of the entire line with 7.
ratio. The text is also the recommendation of Qc2. 13.d1 Too routine. Black will now get a
GM Alexander Delchev in "The Modern Reti: fine position with natural moves.
An Anti-Slav Repertoire". Our present game [ Delchev proposes 13.h3!? , trying to cut
loosely follows Delchev's analysis and out ...Nf6-g4. It's a good recommendation
includes a very recent cameo by Delchev and definitely more challenging than the text.
himself, so let's get to it. b7 8.c3 Now after

509
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

A) I w o n d e r i f 13...b4 isn't a better try. [ Another sub-optimal approach was

After 14.b1 (planning Nb1-d2-c4) 13.e3?! g4 14.f4 , Ivanchuk, V (2768)-
( instead, 14.e2 c5 15.b3 c7 Grischuk, A (2746)/Khanty-Mansiysk RUS
looks fine for Black ) 2011. Here Delchev gives b4 15.e2 g5
A1) Black can also consider the 16.d2 c5 ]
a d v e n t u r o u s 14...c5!? 15.d1 b3 13...b6 14.e3 c5 15.axb5 axb5 16.e2
16.e2 ( 16.c3? fxe4 ) 16...a5! [ H e r e ' s t h e d i f f e r e n c e : n o w 16.b4?!
in t en d ing .. . B b7 -a6 wit h in t ere st in g is met by g4! when White's opening is a
play.; failure. ]
A2) 14...c5 15.bd2 e8! 16...fd8 17.db1? White is still fixated on
(a good idea to remember Black b2-b4, but it's a pipe dream at this point.
counters with ...Ne8-d6) 16.c4 d6 [ 17.h3= ]
Black gets an acceptable game, e.g. 17...g4! Now Black will take over the central
17.f4 xc4 18.dxc4!? ( 18.xc4 b6 dark squares. 18.f4 f6 19.g5?! ge5
w i t h t h e i d e a o f 19.c2?! c4 ) 20.d1 h6 21.h3?!
18...b6 19.ad1 fd8=; [ I'm not sure why White preferred this to the
B) 13...b6 14.e3 c5 natural 21.f3 . Black has a great position
B1) 15.fc1!? was tried this month by in a ny case, i.e . xf3+ 22.xf3 e5
G M L a s zlo G o n d a . He ga in e d in a n 23.g2 b4 24.a4 b5 ]
advantage similar fashion: fd8 ( I think 21...c6 22.h5 de5 23.xe5 xe5
15...b4! was called for, once again with 24.f4 d7 25.e2 cd8 A quick glance at
t h e i d e a o f 16.b1 e8! ) 16.axb5 the position is enough to confirm that Black's
axb5 17.b4! c6 18.b2 Gonda, L positional advantage ought to be decisive.
(2536)-Oparin, G (2487)/Budapest HUN 26.f1 g6
2012.; [ Black is understandably unhurried, but
B2) 15.axb5 axb5 White gets in the 26...b4 27.a4 c6 with the idea of 28.b3
ideal 16.b4! when c6 ( Delchev also (else Black rips open the center with ...c5-
gives 16...e5 17.b1 c6 18.c1; c4) g5! 29.h5 h8 would already be
but what about 16...d8!? avoiding any de cisive , e . g. 30.b2 xd3! 31.xd3
unpleasantness on the b and c files?) ( 31.xd3 xd3 32.xd3 xa1-+ )
17.b1! actually occurred in the game 31...xa1 32.xa1 xd3-+ ]
Delc hev, A (2622 ) -Mast rova silis, A 27.e3 g7 28.ac1 d6 29.h3 c4
(2510)/Plovdiv BUL 2012, right as we go 30.dxc4?!
to press! This is straight from the man's [ 30.xb6 xb6 31.dxc4 xd1 32.xd1
book, and what do you know - he won a bxc4 33.xc4 xe4 offered more
f i n e g a m e ! e5 ( 17...cxb4 18.d4 defensive chances. ]
xc3 19.c1 is a nice line of 30...xe3 31.fxe3 bxc4 32.xd6 xd6
Delchev's.) 18.c1 cxb4 19.d5 d6 33.c2 f3+ 34.f2 d2 35.g2 xc3
20.xe7+ xe7 21.b2 xc1+ 36.e5?
22.xc1 c8 23.xc8+ xc8 24.d2 [ B e t t e r w a s 36.xc3 xe4 37.e1!
d6 25.f1 e8 26.xb4 and White with some possibility of holding. ]
eventually converted. Kudos to 36...xe5 37.xb7 b6 38.g2 xb2
Alexander Delchev for practicing what he 39.xb2 xb2 Lenderman is two clear pawns
preaches! I believe Black should be fine to the good, and his technique proves more
after 13.h3!? (keep an eye on the than sufficient. 40.e2 b1 41.d1 a3
possible improvements I mentioned with 42.e2 e5 43.d2 b5 44.g4 d6
13...b4!? or in 13...Qb6, as well as the 45.c6 f5 46.g1 f7 47.e2 f6 48.f3
timely . ..Nf6-e8-d6 idea), but these b2 49.e2 e5 50.gxf5 gxf5 51.g3 e4+
lines warrant independent investigation if 52.f2 e5 53.e2 g5 54.a4 c3
you plan to play them as W hite or 55.b3 b5 56.e1 h4 57.e6 d6
Black. ] 58.g1 g3 59.f1 c2 60.e2+ f3

510
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
61.b3 xe3 62.xc2 f4 White can
realistically aim for a small Catalan-type edge
with 7.Qc2. Black's counterplay with ...c6-c5
(ideally combined with ...Nf6-g4!) ought to be
easy to anticipate now, so learn from White's
mistakes in this game! The critical line is
definitely Delchev's 13.h3!?. I mentioned a
couple potential improvements, but overall I
h i g h l y r e c o m m e n d t h a t yo u p i c k u p h i s
interesting work on these previously
unexplored lines.
0-1
521 A13
Salgado Lopez,Ivan 2598
Pelletier,Yannick 2599
Top 12 Haguenau (5) 03.06.2013
[Fier, Alexandr]
Salgado goes for an interesting gambit instead
of the normal paths and gave Pelletier a lot of
problems to solve. For Black, I would play
something other than 9...Nxe5. 1.c4 f6
2.g3 e6 3.g2 d5 4.f3 dxc4 5.0-0
This is less common than the usual 5. Qa4+,
but is an interesting way to play for a gambit,
now Black has chances to def end the c4
pawn. a6 6.c2 c5
[ 6...b5 would be another logical continuation,
and after 7.e1 d5 8.d3 cxd3 9.xd3
b7 10.c3 d7 ( 10...d6 11.xd5
exd5 12.f4 0-0 13.ac1 ) 11.xd5 exd5
12.f4 White had the initiative in Grigoryan,
A (2579)-Rozum, I (2500)/St Petersburg
Botvinnik Memorial op 2012 ]
[ 6...bd7 tries to transpose to normal
variations
A) 7.a4!? is a way to try to take advantage
of this move order c5 8.a5!? ( 8.xc4
b5! 9.b3 c4 10.c2 b7 and Black
solved all his opening problems) 8...e7
9.xc4 b5 sooner or later this move is
forced, otherwise Black will be paralyzed
10.axb6 xb6 11.c2 b7 with a slightly
better version of this kind of position for
White, since the pawns on the queenside
are weaker, but the position is still quite
playable for Black;
B) 7.xc4 b5 transposes to 5.Qa4+
Nbd7 6.Qxc4 a6, and here 7.0-0 is not
c o n s i d e r e d t o b e d a n g e r o u s 8.c2
( 8.c6 b8 9.d4 b7= ) 8...c5 9.b3
b7 10.b2 e7 11.d3 is about equal ]
7.e5
[ 7.a4?! is not precise now, since it allows
Black to develop the knight in a more active
way c6! 8.xc4 e7 and the Black
knight controls e5, while White's queenside
is not healthy ]
7...a7 8.d1 White is more or less forced to
play a gambit since if 8.Qxc4 b5 will liberate
all the black pieces. Still, the pawn sacrifice
brings some initiative. bd7
[ 8...b5 would be interesting too, trying to
bring the rook into the game 9.a4 fd7
10.xd7 xd7 now Black's rook neutralizes
the d1 opponent, but the a1-rook enters the
game 11.axb5 axb5 12.a8 d6 13.d3
cxd3 14.xd3 with typical pressure for the
pawn. Now one possible continuation would
be 0-0 15.c3 a6 16.d1 b6 17.e4
b7 18.xb8 xb8 19.xd6 xd6
20.xd6 xd6 21.xd6 xg2 22.xg2= ]
9.d4 xe5?! I don't like this move, as after it
White can recover the pawn with a positional
advantage because of the open file.
[ 9...cxd3
A) 10.xd3 e7 11.c2 ( 11.c3 0-0
12.e3 c7 13.f4 xe5 14.xe5 b6
15.a3 d5 again this important move
16.d2 f6 17.c4 b5 with some
complications) 11...0-0 12.c3 e8
13.c4 b5 14.a5 again with sufficient
compensation for the pawn, but nothing
more;
B) 10.xd3 d5!? ( 10...e7 11.f4 0-0
12.c3 e8 13.c4 gives White too
m u c h c o n t r o l) 11.xd5 ( 11.xd7?
b4 ) 11...xe5 12.c6+ d7
13.xd7+ xd7 14.c3 b5 with two
minor pieces out Black should be fine ]
[ 9...cxd4 is more risky 10.xc4 ( 10.xd4
allows Black to sacrifice an exchange and
finish his development with a good initiative.
It's nice to see Black attacking at least once!
b5 11.c6 b6 12.xa7 xa7 13.d1
c5 14.e3 b7 and the bishop exchange
f o ll o we d b y . . . N e 5 gi ve s B la ck a go o d
game ) 10...e5 11.e3
A) 11...b5!? can enter into some funny
l i n e s l i k e 12.a5 c7 13.c6 b8
511
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

14.exd4 g4 15.e1 c8 16.xe5+ his position. White should be better, but it
( 16.d5 d6 is fine for Black) 16...e6 is not an easy evaluation to make ]
17.d5 d6 18.e1 ( 18.f4 exchanges 17...xf4 18.gxf4 0-0 19.ac1 d7 20.b3
too much xd5 19.xd5 xe5 20.xe5 e5 Returning the material.
xd5 21.xc7 xc7 22.d4 xc2 [ 20...c8 was logical, and after 21.d3 g6
23.xc2= ) 18...xd5 19.d1 ( 19.xd5 22.cd1 c6 23.xc6 xc6 24.d6 b7
is also possible) 19...xc6 20.c3!? 25.e4 Black shouldn't be worse ]
xc3 21.xd6 d4!? 22.xd4 e2+ 21.fxe5 xe5 22.xc5 xc5 23.xc5
23.xe2 xc1+ 24.e1 xe1+ 25.xe1 Now Black's position is a little unpleasant to
0-0 and finally entering an equal position; play since the queenside pawns are weak
B) 11...c7 Black needs to make some and White's rooks are more active. Salgado
precise moves here 12.exd4 b5 13.e3 was successful in creating problems. e6
exd4 14.xc7 xc7 15.f5 e5 24.d3 g6 25.a5 b8 26.d5 xd5
16.xd4 g4 not afraid of the pin 17.e1 [ 26...b5 is a risky decision 27.xb5 axb5
d7! 18.c3 d3 19.e3 xc1 28.xe6 fxe6 29.d6 xa5 30.xe6 a1+
20.xc1 b4 21.ce2 xc1+ 22.xc1 31.g2 b1 32.e3 b2 33.f3 f7
c7 and Black holds ] and in my opinion W hite has some
10.dxe5 d7 11.d2 chances ]
[ 11.a4 was a positional way to play, 27.dxd5 f8 28.c6 e7 29.e3 b5
avoiding 11...b5 It's hard to suggest an alternative plan here,
A) 11...c7 doesn't work because of but now W hite gets a strong passed pawn.
12.a3 xe5 13.xc4 c7 14.f4 e5 30.xb5 axb5 31.a6 d7 32.b6
15.e4 f6 16.e3 and Black's white [ 32.f6!? e7 33.b6 wins a tempo ]
squ a re s a re go in g t o b e d e cisive e7 32...c7 33.f6 b8 34.g2 c7 35.b6+
17.g4 0-0 ( 17...f8 18.h5 b5 a7 36.xb5 xa6 37.xb4 And Black's
19.axb5 axb5 20.d5 g6 21.h6++- ) king is too far away to help. The computer
18.e6+ f7 19.d5+-; says that it's still not a clear advantage, but I
B) 11...e7 12.d2 b6 13.xc4 0-0 think that White is almost winning in the long
14.e4 h6 15.e3 is clearly better for term. c5 38.h4 h6 39.g3 h5 40.f3
White ] a5 41.b7 f5+ 42.g3 f6 43.e4 e5
11...b5 12.a4 c7 13.e4 xe5 14.f4 44.f4 g5+ 45.hxg5 xg5 46.f3 g1
b4 47.h7
[ 14...f6 doesn't really help 15.xe5 fxe5 1-0
( 15...xe5 16.axb5 c7 17.xc4+- )
16.g5 e7 17.xh7 f7 18.a3!
and Black is in trouble ] 522 A13
15.d2 Stripunsky,Alexander 2530
[ 15.d2 is maybe a small improvement, just Shabalov,Alexander 2597
looking at the d6 square e7 16.ad1 0-0 87th Marshall CCC (9) 07.12.2003
17.d6 c3 18.bxc3 f6 19.xc8 xc8 [Tony Kosten]
20.cxb4 cxb4 21.h3! h8 22.xc8 xc8
23.xe6 and White's pieces are much better 1.c4 b6 2.b3 b7 3.b2 e6 4.e3 f6
placed than Black's ones ] A double queenside fianchetto, but W hite
15...d6 16.xc4 xc4 17.xc4 soon make sure that this is not a symmetric
[ 17.xd6 was interesting, but hard to play in position. 5.f4!? e7 Perfectly natural, but
a game xd6 18.d1 f6 ( 18...0-0 new.
19.xd6 d8 20.xc5 d7 21.c6 b7 [ 5...c5 6.c3 e7 7.f3 0-0 is like the
22.xd7 xd7 23.xb4 ) 19.xd6 a5 main game, Mangei,K-Fehrenbacher,U/
20.c6+ f7 21.xc5 c7 22.d6 Eppingen 1988. ]
With good control over Black's pieces, but is [ 5...d5 is sensible, but weakens the dark
not so sure White is able to keep improving squares a little, in particular e5, 6.f3 bd7

512
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

7.c3 b4 8.d3?! Burris,D-Miller,J/ is fair value, but some problems on the a-file.
Gaylord 199 4, a mista ke allowin g ( 8.a3 25.d3 fa8 26.a4 bxa3 27.xa3 b4
is better ) 8...c5 9.c2 dxc4 10.bxc4 28.e2 f8 29.xa6 xa6 The exchange of
when d3 is weak. ] a pair of rooks is go od f or Black, but his
6.f3 0-0 7.d3 This odd development of pawns are not very good, so his chances of
the bishop is quite normal in such positions - winning slight. 30.a3 g6 31.g3 h6
remember the famous double-bishop sacrifice 32.h4 g6 A common tactic to force an
of Lasker! d5 8.0-0 dxc4 exploitable weakness in two adjacent pawns.
[ 8...bd7 is possible, as in one of the notes, 33.d4!? White wants to create connected
intending to play ...Nc5. ] passed pawns.
9.xc4 c5 Black is unaware of what is about [ 33.xb4 cxb4 34.f3 c6 35.d2
to hit him. 10.f5!? exf5 11.h4 g6 12.xf5! is also possible, White should hold easily. ]
The point of White's conception, opening the 33...xg3 34.dxc5 d5 35.d3
black king position to exploit his two powerful A necessary evil,
bishops. gxf5 13.xf5 The sacrifice may not [ 35.c6+ e8 36.c5 g6 loses the c-
be objectively sound, but in practical chess it pawn. ]
i s v e r y u n p l e a s a n t t o d e f e n d . e4! 35...xe3 36.b4 e7 37.b5 The pawns are
The bishop heads for g6 to closed the g-file. coming! d7 38.c6+ c7 39.e4 c4
[ 13...bd7 is worse, 14.c3 covers e4 and 40.b4 g4+
d5 and W hite will bring his queen to the [ 40...b3 fails to win a piece after 41.c3
queenside with a massive attack. ] xb4?? 42.d5+ with a nasty fork. ]
14.f1!? More fuel on the fire! White doesn't 41.d3 The only move. b6 Black seems to
want the bishop to come to g6, obviously. be getting on top, he has the pawns
[ 14.g5+ g6 ] b lo ck a d e d a n d t h e wh it e ki n g is c u t -o f f .
14...b5!? Black wants to deflect the c4-bishop 42.c3 e5+ 43.c2? Perhaps the king
off the a2-g8 diagonal. should head towards the kingside:
[ 14...xf5 15.xf5 bd7 is met by 16.e4! [ 43.e2! ]
when the further advance of the e-pawn will 43...f5?
regain a piece. ] [ 43...xb4! seems strong now, as 44.d5+
15.xb5 xb5 45.xb4 xc6! ( and not
[ 15.g5+!? g6 16.f3 bd7 17.xb5 45...xb4?? 46.c7 ) 46.d3 b4+
is a reasonable alternative, White has two and wins the king and pawn! This is why c2
pawns for the piece. ] was the wrong square for the king on move
15...xf5 16.xf5 d5 This is the point of 43. ]
Black's little tactic, the queen is able to help 44.e7! g2+ 45.b3 xc6 Black has to
the defence laterally. 17.f4 e4 18.g5+ concede his knight, and a draw is assured.
g6 The queen has managed to replace the [ 45...g8 46.g5 threatens Be3+, and then
light-squared bishop's task of bolstering the g- Nd5+ when the pawns advance all the way! ]
file. 19.e5 White cannot afford to exchange ½-½
queens, as he has a rook less. a6 What else?
[ 19...e4 repeats, and ]
[ 19...d8!? looks very unnatural: 20.a3 523 A13
and Black can hardly develop his pieces. ] Swiercz,Dariusz 2456
20.xe7 axb5 21.xf6 White has to accept Malakhatko,Vadim 2612
the exchange of queens, as 44th Rubinstein Mem GM (3) 22.08.2008
[ 21.xf6?! c6 22.d6 a6 leaves the [Carsten Hansen]
black pieces misplaced, e.g. 23.f4? b4
24.c3 d3 with a clear advantage. ] 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4
21...xf6 22.xf6 b4 Fixing the a2-pawn on 5.a4+ bd7 6.xc4 c5 7.0-0 a6 8.c2
the open file. 23.f2 a6 24.b2 c6 a7
White has two pawns for the exchange, which [ 8...b5 was the topic of Gashimov-Luther,

513
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Capelle 2007, whereas ]
[ 8...b6 was discussed in connection with Bu
Xiangzhi-Li Wenliang, Qingdao 2002 - both
games can be found in the PGN archives.
The text move seems a bit odd, because it
prepares to play one of these moves that
are already available to Black. Note that
9.e5 is met by d5 which took me a bit to
notice. ]
9.d4
[ White has several alternatives here: A) 9.d3
e7 10.a4 ( or 10.c3 b6 11.b3 b7
12.b2 0-0 13.ac1 g4 14.h3 ge5
15.xe5 xe5 with a comfortable game for
Black, W egerle, J-Aagaard, J/Pardubice
2000 ) 10...b6 11.d2 0-0 12.a3 b7
13.c4 d5 ( 13...a8!? 14.a5 b5
15.b6 d8 16.xd7 xd7 is at least
okay for Black, Grebionkin, V-Konnov, O/Ufa
1999 ) 14.fc1 h6 15.d1 a8 16.f1
Haag, E-Eisinger, M/Oberhausen (EU-chT)
1961, and the chances are about even after
moves like 16...a5, 16...Nb4, and 16...N7f6 ]
[ B) 9.a4 b6 10.d4 ( 10.d3 b7 11.bd2
e7 12.c4 , and a draw was agreed upon,
1/2-1/2, in Oblitas Guerrero, C-Urday
Caceres, H/Peru 1996, though for obvious
reasons both sides could have played on in 11...cxd4 12.xd4 a8
this position.) 10...b7 11.dxc5 xc5
12.c3 a8 13.g5 0-0 14.ad1
was another quick draw, 1/2-1/2, Bany, J -
Skalkotas, N/Athens 1989, though Black
already has the more comfortable position ]
[ C) 9.b3 b6 10.b2 b7 ( 10...c7 11.d3
b7 12.bd2 e7 13.ac1 0-0 14.b1
a8 15.c4 fc8= Csom, I-Hartman, C/
Wrexham 1995) 11.d3 e7 12.bd2 0-0
13.c4 b5 14.ce5 xe5 15.xe5 xg2
16.xg2 d7 17.f3 b6= Saric, I-Atalik,
S/Zenica BIH 2005 ]
9...b6
[ 9...b5 has also been tried, is possible but
also more committing, though in its only
outing Black equalised: 10.d1 b6 11.a4
b7 12.axb5 axb5 13.xa7 xa7 14.g5
e7 15.a3 b4 16.c4 1/2-1/2 Freisler, P-
Kucera, P/CZE 1996 ]
10.c3 b7 11.e4
[ Again at this juncture, White has several
moves available for consideration: A)
11.dxc5 xc5 12.f4 0-0 13.a3 13.e1 c5 14.b3 e7
1/2-1/2 Ristic, N-Inkiov, V/Porto San Giorgio
2001 ]
[ B) 11.d1!? a8 ( 11...cxd4 12.xd4
xg2 13.xg2 a8+ 14.f3 c7= ) 12.dxc5
( 12.e3 is interesting and transposes to the
note after W hite's 12th move in variation
'c'. ) 12...xc5?! ( 12...xc5!? ) 13.f4
c6?! ( 13...e7!? ) 14.ac1 d7 15.xd7
cxd7 16.a4 b7 17.c7 a7 18.e5
xg2 19.xg2 Nikolic, N-Kekki, J/Espoo
1987 ]
[ C) 11.e3 a8
A) 12.ad1 proves less effective
compared to the below alternative,
centralising the other rook: e7 13.dxc5
xc5! 14.c1 ( 14.b4 cd7= ) 14...0-0
15.a4 fd7 16.xc5 xc5=;
B) 12.fd1!? e7 13.dxc5 xc5
14.xc5 xc5 15.d6 c6 16.e4 d7
17.xd7 cxd7 ( 17...fxd7? 18.b4!+- )
18.d4 b7 19.f4;
C) 12.dxc5?! leaves Black with an easy
road to equality. White has two
alternatives available: xc5 13.xc5
xc5 14.fd1 0-0 15.b4 cd7 16.ac1
h6 17.b2= 1/2-1/2 Wells, P-Pinter, J/
Austrian League 1999 ]
[ Black's remaining alternatives are less
c o n v i n c i n g : A ) 12...e7 13.d1 c8
14.e2 e5?! ( 14...0-0 ) 15.f4 c6
16.b3 0-0 17.e3 d7 18.ac1 a8
19.a4 b8 20.f2 Schoeneberg, M-
Augustin, J/Leipzig 1981 ]
[ B) 12...c5 13.d1 a8 14.b3 b4
( 14...e7 15.e3 0-0 16.ac1 Ribli )
15.a3 xc3 16.xc3
A) 16...xe4? 17.xe4 xe4 18.xg7
f8 , and now 19.xh7+- is the most
c o n v i n c i n g ( 19.h6+- Ribli ef6
20.xd7 xd7 21.d1 e4 22.xd7
e1+ 23.g2 e4+ 24.h3 xd7
25.xf8 should also win without too many
difficulties );
B) 16...0-0 17.f3 c8 18.d4 c6
( 18...e5 19.f2 c6 20.a4 ac7
21.h3 ) 19.f4 c5 20.xc5 bxc5
21.c3 ( 21.xc5? a4 ) 21...d7
Vaganian, R-Jussupow, A /Riga 1995
22.d6 ]
514
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 14...b4 15.a4 d8 ( trying to prevent the
pawn advance to a5 by playing it himself will
only cause Black further suffering: 15...a5
16.d2 0-0 17.b5 ) 16.d1 c7 17.e3
0-0 18.ac1 , and White has the better
chances ]
15.a4 c8 16.e2 c5
[ Or 16...0-0 17.e3 a8 18.ac1 b8
19.f4 with a somewhat better game for
White. ]
17.xc5 xc5 18.e3 xe3
[ 18...0-0 This along with Black's following
moves seem a bit eager to simplif y the
position, but Black can also play the normal
19.ac1 c6 20.xc5 bxc5 21.e5 d7
22.xc6 xc6 23.ed1 with a comfortable
edge for White. ]
19.xe3 c5 20.xc5 bxc5 21.a5! d7
22.a4
[ White can also consider a couple of other
options at this juncture, though it isn't clear
whether they exactly are any better than the
game continuation, but they do have the
advantage of keeping pieces on the board,
maintaining White's position advantage. The
first is 22.ad1 e7 23.f4 b8 24.e2
with a decent plus for White, and the second
is ]
[ 22.f4 e7 which can likely transpose into
the just mentioned line. ]
22...c6 23.ec1 xa4 24.xa4 e7 25.b4
cxb4
[ Black aims at the ensuing simplifications to
steer him to a drawable position. However,
he also has a decent alternative in 25...c8
26.f1 cc7 27.b5 axb5 28.xb5 c4
29.a6 b6 30.b4 d6 , and Black should
be able to defend. ]
26.xb4 b8 27.xb8 xb8 28.e5! d8
29.b1 d7 30.f4 c7 31.d1 c8 32.f1
b8
[ Here Black should have given 32...c6!?
a try. W hite has the better chances in the
endgame, but Black's position is solid and
will be difficult to breach. The game
continuation is what originally brought my
attention to this game aside from a 2450
player beating a 2600+ player. Black is
systematically pushed off the board in what
seems to be a very smooth effort. I will not
add any further comments, but recommend
that the reader play the game through to the
end it is quite instructive. ]
33.d6 b7 34.d8 c8 35.g2+ c7
36.d6 d8 37.b6 d7 38.f2 d2+
39.f1 c8 40.b7+ d8 41.h3 h6
42.xa6 xa6 43.xa6 a2 44.a7 e8
45.a6 h5 46.a8+ e7 47.e1 a4 48.a7
a1+ 49.d2 a2+ 50.c3 g6 51.g4 hxg4
52.hxg4 a3+ 53.b2 a6 54.f5!
1-0
524 A13
Van der Sterren,Paul 2569
Dautov,Rustem 2606
Bundesliga 2000-1 (8) 17.02.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.f3 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4
5.a4+ c6 This move is quite popular, and
prepares queenside expansion, whilst keeping
the h1-a8 diagonal firmly closed until Black is
ready to open it himself. 6.xc4 b5 7.b3
[ Probably the queen is better-off avoiding
the c-file: 7.c2 b7 8.a4 e7 9.e5
d5 10.0-0 0-0 11.d4 a6 12.c3
( 12.xc6 xc6 13.xc6 ab4 14.xb5
c2 is unpleasant for W hite) 12...b4
13.e4 and now Black freed himself with
the standard c5 14.dxc5?! c8 15.c6 b8
16.c5 xc6 and Black is even better,
Ivanchuk,V-Kramnik,V/Monte Carlo 1999. ]
7...b7 8.0-0 bd7
[ 8...e7 is similar, 9.a4 a6 10.d4 bd7
11.c3 0-0 12.g5 b4 13.d1 c5
Black has equalised, Kortschnoj,V-Rabiega,
R/AUT-chT9596 1996. ]
9.d4 e7 10.c3 a6 11.g5
1/2-1/2 Nielsen,P-Luther,T/Gausdal 1994 c5
Black has to play this sooner or later. 12.xf6
xf6 13.dxc5 xc5 14.b4 e7 15.ac1
d7 16.f4 0-0 Black's opening has been a
great success, and he even has the bishop
pair. 17.c7 c5!?
[ Good, but 17...ab8 18.fd1 fd8
is more ambitious. ]
18.xb5 White decides to play for a draw.
axb5 19.xc5 xc7 20.xc7 xf3
[ Black too! 20...d5 might preserve some
slight chances. ]

515
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

21.xf3 xa2 22.b1 xb2 exchanges a couple of pieces to leave Black

½-½ with a bad bishop, and of f side queen.
25.a3!?
[ The re was n ot hing wro ng wit h 25.xc5
525 A13 of course, but White has bigger fish to fry. ]
Vaulin,Alexander 2492 25...a7 26.b3 hd8 27.b7 xb7
Blatny,Pavel 2476 28.xb7+ d7 29.e4 e7 30.a1 d5
FSGM October (11) 12.10.1999 31.a4 b7 32.h4 Threatening Nf5+, and
[Tony Kosten] thereby forcing the exchange of Black's good
bishop.
1.c4 e6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 dxc4 A common [ 32.h4 g6 33.xb7 xb7 34.c6 d7
theme in similar positions, Black prefers to 35.f3 is quite hopeless. ]
concede temporary control of the centre but 1-0
wil l s p e e d h i s d e ve lo p m e n t wh il e W h it e
wastes time recapturing the pawn. 4.a4+
d7 5.xc4 a6 526 A13
[ A typical idea, preparing to drive the queen Wells,Peter K 2517
away by ...b5, but 5...c5 is normal in this Barsov,Alexei 2525
position, or ] Premier Hastings ENG (7) 04.01.2002
[ 5...gf6 transposing into main variations. ] [Tony Kosten]
6.a4 Another standard move, restraining
Black's queenside. b6!? 1.c4 e6 2.c3 b4 3.e4
[ This novelty is the start of a long knight [ Probably the critical reply. We considered
manoeuvre, aiming to embarrass the white 3.f3 where White is happy to transpose to
queen, and establish the knight on the b4- the Nimzo-Indian, in Lautier,J - Sokolov, A/
outpost, 6...gf6 is more usual 7.d3 d6 ch-FRA Gp A Marsailles FRA (7), 19.08.
8.c2 d5 9.d2 with balanced chances, 2001. ]
Krasenkow,M-Brodsky,M/ Koszalin 1997. ] 3...e7
7.c2 d5 8.f3 b4 The knight has [ I like this more than 3...c5 when 4.b5
landed on a strong square. 9.b3 d5 ( 4.g4 f8 ) 4...d6 5.a3 a5 6.b4
10.d1 is unpleasant for Black, for if cxb4 7.g4
[ Awkward, but the endgame after 10.xd5 f8 8.g3 with threats. ]
exd5 is more than satisfactory for Black. ] 4.f3
10...d7!? 11.c3 h5 12.0-0 c5 13.h3 [ 4.d4 d5 5.e5 c5 6.a3 led to a quick win
With the threat of g4. f6 14.b3 e5? f o r W h it e in Ho d g so n , J -R o ze n t a li s , E /
[ Hoping to gain time by attacking the h3- Rakvere 1993. ]
pawn, but the weakening of the central light 4...c5!? A novelty at move four! Black plays
squares allows W hite to take command. this now, noticing that, his kingside is better
14...e7 was better. ] developed, and with the white knight on f3,
15.d5! xd5?! White no longer has the dangerous possibility
[ This loses material, but if 15...d8 16.c7+ of playing Qg4.
e7 17.d5+ and the black king has lost its [ 4...0-0 is normal, but 5.d4 d5 6.cxd5 exd5
right to castle. ] 7.d3 dxe4 8.xe4 led to another crushing
16.xb7 d8 17.xd5 xh3 18.c6+ f7 de f ea t f o r Ro sen t a lis in Kra se n k ow, M-
19.xa6 And White has won a good pawn, Rozentalis,E/Krynica 1997, although the
and retains the better position, as well. e6 current position is reasonable for Black. ]
20.d3 d6 21.e3 h6 22.xh6 xh6 5.e5!? White intends Ne4-d6, but it seems
23.a5 The simplest plan, by pushing his extra slow.
passed a-pawn, W hite wins speedily. d7 [ 5.b5?! d5 leads nowhere. ]
24.c6 b8 So, Black has managed to [ 5.a3 a5 6.d4 is more sensible. ]
b l o c k a d e t h e a 7 - sq u a r e , b u t n o w W h i t e 5...bc6!?

516
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ Interesting, Black continues his
development and relies on a tactic to save
h i s c - p a w n . 5...d6 is a straightforward
alternative. ]
6.e4 0-0! 7.a3 a5 8.xc5 This is the
point of White's play, it seems that he has won
a pawn, but Black has seen further. xe5!
9.xe5 d6 10.xf7?! Opening the f-file is
not such a good idea.
[ 10.ed7! looks right, e8!? ( 10...xd7
11.xb7 c7 12.xa5 xa5 doesn't give
Black enough for the pawn.) 11.b4 c7
12.f6+!? gxf6 13.e4 which is unclear. ]
10...xf7 11.b3 b5! Offering another pawn
for an advantage in development. 12.xa5
xa5 13.b4
[ This does not work-out too well, but
grabbing the pawn by 13.cxb5 also brings
its problems: d7 14.a4 af8 all of Black's
pieces are developed, and none of
White's!! ]
13...b6 Threatening mate-in-one! 14.d4
bxc4 15.e3
[ 15.xc4 c6 16.f1 c3+ 17.d2 xd4
clearly favours Black. ]
15...f5 16.xc4 c6 This is the problem,
hitting c4 and g2. 17.b3 xg2 18.0-0-0
White manages to bring his king to 'safety' on
the queenside, but Black's initiative continues
unabated. a5 19.b5 a4 20.b4 c7
21.b1 The king has to leave the open c-file.
b8 22.d3 d7 23.a1 d5
The b5-pawn is not long for this world. 24.c1
[ 24.b1 does not help cb7 ]
24...cb7 25.c4 e4 The black position is
very easy to play. 26.he1 xb5?!
[ I imagine both players were short of time,
as 26...d5 is far better, avoiding the
following tactic (in the notes). ]
27.d2??
[ A clear blunder, White could have kept the
game alive by 27.f3! xf3 28.xe6+ h8
29.c8 ]
27...xd4+
0-1
527 A13
Wells,Peter K 2520
Short,Nigel D 2675
2nd IECC Ohrid (10) 2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 e6 3.g3 a6
Not an uncommon move, Black often plays a
later .. .b5, and expands on the queenside.
4.b3 f6 5.g2 e7 6.0-0 0-0 7.b2
dxc4!?
[ A common idea in main-line Retis, but a
novelty here, Black sidesteps the possibility
of W hite playing cxd5 at some point, and
p l a n s p l a y a l o n g t h e d - f i l e . 7...b5
is more consistent, 8.e5 b7 9.d4
for instance, Espig, L-Dvorietzky,M/Vilnius
1978. ]
8.bxc4 c5 9.c3 c6 10.e3
[ Standard play in such positions, White
wishes to bring his queen to e2, Rfd1, then
play d3 or d4, as appropriate, but 10.d3
is also reasonable. ]
10...d3!? Black won't be able to maintain his
queen here for long, he simply wants to force
the white pieces onto less-than-optimum
squares. 11.a4 The threat to infiltrate on b6
allows W h ite time to d ef en d th e c-pawn ,
b e f o r e e x p e l l i n g t h e b l a c k q u e e n . d7
12.c1 b8 Black prepares the positionally
desirable thrust ...b5. 13.e1 g6 14.d4!
Creating a hanging pawn formation, judging
that Black is poorly-placed to counter this.
cxd4 15.exd4 d8 16.d5 exd5 17.cxd5
a7!?
[ This reply appears passive, but Black
intends blockading the d5-pawn by bringing
his knight to d6 via b5. He may have been
worried about the line 17...ce5 18.f4 g4
19.h3!? ( 19.e2 is possibly stronger, f6 )
19...e3 20.e2 but Black has the
interesting tactic e8! ( as 20...xf1?
loses two pieces for a rook after 21.xe7 )
21.xe3 c5 winning the queen for three
pieces, 22.xc5 xc5 23.xc5 xg3
which is not too clear. ]
18.d3 b5 19.e1
[ The white pieces find active posts, but
19.f4! is more aggressive, f6 20.e5
and White retains the dark-squared bishop,
and some advantage. ]
517
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

19...f6 20.e2 xb2 21.axb2 f8 a5 16.e3 b7 17.ab1 d7!?
22.e5 f6 23.bc4 f5 24.e3! [ 17...d7 looks more natural, but Black
Taking aim at b6. h5?! wants to play ...Bb5. ]
[ If White didn't have 150 ELO points less 18.b4 cxb4 19.axb4 b6 20.e2 d4
than Black he would surely have continued, 21.d2 xe3 22.xe3 b6 Black decides
24...h5 25.f3 g6 26.a4 keeps the to go for an ending where he has counterplay
initiative firmly in White's hands. ] against the b4-pawn. 23.xb6 xb6 24.fc1
½-½ c8 25.f1 f8 We must always remember
to bring the king to the centre in the endgame!
26.a2 This is a bit negative, why not the
528 A13 obvious
Wojtkiewicz,Aleksander 2551 [ 26.d3 planning f4, or Kf1-e2. ]
Kamsky,Gata 2717 26...e7 27.xc8 xc8 28.c1 d8
117th NY Masters (4) 14.09.2004 The king arrives just in time! 29.f3 d7
[Tony Kosten] 30.c2 b7 31.f2 c7 32.xc7 xc7
33.e3 b6 34.d2 White plays openly for
Gata's back! 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 a6 the draw, but this is perhaps understandable
4.g2 b5 5.e5!? An unusual, if very direct, with 160 rating points less!
line. Normally White defends his c-pawn by [ 34.f4 f6 35.c3 offers some chances. ]
[ 5.b3 ] 34...a5 35.bxa5+ xa5 36.c3 a4
5...a7 6.d4 37.c1 d7 38.h3 c5 The knight has
[ 6.cxb5 axb5 7.b3 also has its followers, done nothing all game, then springs to a
although b7! 8.0-0 xg2 9.xg2 a6 strong square. 39.d3 xd3 And is then
10.xb5 b4 is very satisfactory for Black, e x c h a n g e d . 40.xd3 b4 41.f4 f6
Vaganian,R-Seirawan, Y/Biel 1985. ] The white king is closer to the pawns, but this
6...b7 7.d5!? Somewhat surprising, as the d- doesn't count for too much as the king will
pawn's defender is under attack, but this is have difficulties invading. 42.fxe5 fxe5
more ambitious than accepting the exchange 43.f5 h6 44.h4 b5+ 45.e3 c3
of bishops by 46.g4 c2 47.h5 c1 48.g4 a4
[ 7.xb7 xb7 8.c5?! d6 Black is at least 49.h5 d1 50.e8 g4 51.a4 b2
equal, Voscilla,A-Zaja,I/Pula 1995. ] 52.d3 a3 53.e8 b4 54.c6
7...b4+ An obvious improvement on ½-½
[ 7...d6 8.d4 a8 9.c3 e7 10.g4
wit h an e d ge , Necka r,L -A lle gro ,V / S io n
1990. ] 529 A13
8.c3 c5 Zhou Jianchao 2607
[ 8...bxc4 9.e4 exd5 10.e3 a8 11.exd5 Zhou Weiqi 2590
le a ve s W h it e wi t h m o re s p a ce , h e wil l Danzhou 4th (9) 29.05.2013
soon recapture the c4-pawn. ] [Fier, Alexandr]
9.0-0 0-0 This is only a rapid game, and
K a m s k y i s p r o b a b l y a b i t r u s t y , b u t t h e Both players enter into a known position by a
immediate different move order. Zhou Weiqi plays in an
[ 9...d6 might be more accurate, as g4 is not interesting and provocative way by 11...Be7
protected by the white queen, 10.c6 xc6 and 12...Qa8, and after 13.d5!? the game
11.dxc6 bxc4 12.a4 c7 13.f4 e n t e r e d i n t o b i g c o m p l i c a t i o n s . S t i l l ,
with unclear play. ] everything is under control for Black. 1.c4
10.e4 d6 11.g4 xg4 12.xg4 c8 f6 2.f3 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 dxc4 5.a4+
The e6-pawn was under attack. 13.e2 bxc4 bd7 6.xc4 c5 7.d4 Not so popular, but
14.xc4 e5 An important decision, Black an active option.
closes the centre but leaves W hite with a [ 7.0-0 and ]
small edge because of his extra space. 15.a3 [ 7.b3 are the main lines ]

518
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
7...a6 8.c2 a7 Trying to keep the rook
away from the bishop's diagonal. This order is
almost never played, but since all the moves
are more or less normal, there is still a lot of
transpositional chances.
[ Usually Black doesn't worry about the
diagonal and answers with 8...b6 9.e5
d5
A) 10.xd7 is not so critical, but playable
too xd7 11.dxc5 xc5 12.0-0 b7
13.d1 e7 14.e4 b4 15.e2 0-0
16.a3 c6 17.e3 and it looks like Black
is absolutely fine;
B) 10.c3 is the most played move at the
high level, and after b7 11.xd5 xd5
12.xd5 exd5 13.0-0 ( 13.xd7 xd7 )
13...xe5 14.dxe5 c8 15.d1 e6
16.d3 e7 17.xd5 d8 18.b3
xd1+ 19.xd1 0-0! ( 19...xe5?
20.a4+ is just bad) 20.b3 was seen in
Kramnik, V (2750)- Deep Fritz 10/Bonn
Man-Machine 2006. ( 20.f4 f6 21.exf6
xf6 22.e3 d8 gives big compensation)
20...xe5 21.xb6 xe2 22.e3 d8
Black is out of danger;
C) 10.c6!? taking advantage of the early
8...b6, the big question is whether White
can st abilize th e knight on c6 o r gain
some activity after ...Bb7xc6 c7 11.e4
C1) 11...e7?! is not convincing
12.xe7 xe7 13.f4 a7 14.d5 e5
15.e3 Tkachiev, V (2639)-Sokolov, A
(2596)/FRA-chA 85th 2010, and Black
would be fine if ...Nd7-d6 was possible,
but otherwise White has an edge;
C2) 11...xc6 is playable, accepting the
c h a l l e n g e . 12.exd5 exd5 13.c3
( 13.0-0 f6 14.g5 e7 15.c3 e6
16.dxc5 xc5 17.e3 ) 13...f6
14.g5 cxd4 15.xf6 dxc3 16.xc3
Zaichik, G-Ivanov, A (2400)/URS-ch45
otbor 1977;
C3) 11...5f6 was Meier's choice and
looks possible 12.d5 b7 13.0-0 d6
14.d2 with a double-edged position in
Landa, K (2598)- Meier, G (2648)/
Politiken Cup 32nd 2010. ]
9.0-0 b6 10.c3 This position can arise if
White plays first 7.0-0 8.Qc2 9.Nc3 and only
then 10.d4, or if Black plays ...b6 or ...Ra7 at
dif ferent moments, putting all the games
together we have some material to take a look
at again. b7 11.e4
[ 11.e3 is the main alternative but with
pieces instead of pawns in the center the
chances for an advantage are less. a8
12.dxc5 ( 12.fd1 waiting for 12... Be7 to
take on c5 can be possible improvement)
12...xc5 13.xc5 xc5 14.fd1 0-0
15.d6 b5 was drawn in Huebner, R (2608)-
Prusikin, M (2545)/SUI-chT Switzerland
2012. ]
11...e7 Playing in a provocative way! Usually
Black tries to take on d4 to avoid any d5 ideas
[ 11...cxd4 12.xd4 a8 13.e1 c5
is analyzed in Swiercz - Malakhatko/
Rubinstein memorial 2008 - see the
Archives. ]
12.d1 a8 Now White needs to make a
serious decision.
[ 12...0-0 13.d5 exd5 14.e5 g4
( 14...e8? 15.xd5 xd5 16.xd5 c7
17.d3 Lautier, J (2645)-Pinter, J (2580)/
FRA France 1993.) 15.xd5 ( 15.f5 xf2
16.xf2 d4 is not so clear) 15...dxe5
16.xe5 xe5 17.f4 d6 18.b3 b5
19.a4 leaves Black with some problems to
solve. ]
13.d5!? Accepting the challenge!
[ 13.dxc5 maybe this is better but it's hard to
understand what is going on after 13. d5
over the board, xc5 14.b4!?
A) 14...cxe4 to take the pawn is too
dangerous 15.a4
A1) 15...d8 does not help 16.e3;
A2) 15...0-0 16.xb6 e8 17.e3
xb4 ( 17...g4 18.d4 f6 19.d7
and the rooks are in trouble) 18.c4
a8 19.ab1 e7 20.a3 c5 21.xc5
xc5 22.d6 e4 23.xe4 ( 23.xc5
xb1 24.xb1 ad8 25.b6 e8
26.e4 xc5 27.xc5 a5 )
23...cxe4 24.e5 ac8 25.c6 c7
26.bc1 d6 27.d3 with advantage
to White because of the strong knight on
c6. Probably the a6 pawn will fall and
Black will have to fight hard for a draw.;
A3) 15...c8 16.xc8+ xc8 17.xb6
0-0 18.a3 c3 19.e1 fd5 20.xd5
xd5;
B) 14...cd7! 15.a3 0-0 16.f4 c8
a n d m a yb e W h i t e h a s a r e a l l y s l i g h t
519
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
advantage, which is enough f or some
players. ]
13...exd5 14.exd5 xd5 15.h4
[ 15.xd5 it's hard to believe this sacrifice,
but White's pieces have a lot of potential.
xd5 16.xd5 xd5 17.f4 f6
( 17...0-0? 18.g5 ) 18.b8 d7
( 18...a8 looks enough for equality
19.xa7 xa7 20.e5 0-0 21.c6 c7
22.e2 e8 23.xa6 f8= ) 19.e5 d2
20.b3 0-0 21.xd7 xd7 22.f4 b4
( 22...c4 23.xd2 cxb3 24.axb3 a5 )
23.d1 f6 24.c7 xb3 25.axb3 c8
26.xb6 b8 27.a5 xb3 28.c3
and the bishops compensate the pawn, but
nothing more. ]
15...xc3
[ 15...b4! is interesting, leading to a
p o s s ib le d ra w 16.xb7 ( 16.f5 xg2
17.xg2 f6 18.g5 0-0 ) 16...xc2
17.xa8 xa8 ( 17...xa1 is not so clear if
the knight can escape from a1 at some point
18.e4 xh4 19.gxh4 0-0 20.f4 f6
21.xa1 xe4 22.xe4 e7 23.c3 d8
but I would still prefer to be Black here)
18.f5! White needs to keep the initiative at
any cost. ( 18.b1 xh4 19.gxh4 a7 )
18...xa1 19.d5 d8 ( 19...f6
20.c7+ ) 20.xg7+ f8 21.h6 f6
( 21...g8? 22.f5 and White's attack is
unstoppable f6 23.c7! xc7 24.xd7
e5 25.g7+ f8 26.a7++- ) 22.f5+
f7 ( 22...g8 23.c7! ) 23.d6+ e6
24.f4+ e7 25.f5+ e8 26.g7+ e7
27.f5+= with a beautiful draw. ]
16.xc3 f6 17.f5 Going into a forced
draw variation. xg2 18.xg7+ f8 19.h6
[ 19.h5 doesn't change the evaluation h1
20.f3! xf3 21.h6+ e8 ( 21...g8
22.xf6+ xf6 23.xf6 xf6 24.d6 e7
25.e1! f5 26.xb6 d8 27.b8 f7
28.xh1 ) 22.g7+ f8 23.f5+ e8=
( 23...g8 24.d2! )]
19...h1 20.f5+ e8 21.g7+ f8
22.f5+ e8 23.h4? Suddenly White
collapses! Now the position is just winning for
Black.
[ 23.g7+= ]
23...g8 24.f3 g4! 25.d3
[ 25.f4 xh4 26.e1+ e7-+ ]
[ 25.fxg4 xh4 and Black can defend any
check on the e-file easily ]
25...xh4 26.xh7 xh6 27.xh6 xf3
A rich game with a disastrous end!
0-1
530 A14
Bareev,Evgeny 2714
Kramnik,Vladimir 2777
Amber Blindfold (9) 30.03.2004
[Tony Kosten]
Craig Hall asked about a line in the notes,
which seems to have escaped the attention of
the various Reti writers. 1.f3 f6 2.c4 b6
3.g3 b7 4.g2 e6 5.0-0 e7 6.c3 0-0
7.b3 d5 8.e3 dxc4 The point of playing this
move is that it takes away the possibility of
advantageously capturing on d5 from White
once and for good.
[ 8...c5 9.b2 c6 has occurred a few
times in my games, 10.cxd5 this is why
B l a c k l i k e s t o t a k e o n c 4 ! ( 10.d3
ke e p s m o re t e n sio n , b u t I n o t ic e d t h a t
Dunnington reckoned the capture on d5
wa s d a n ge r o u s f o r B l a c k) 10...xd5
11.xd5 xd5 12.d4 a5!? unusual, but
not bad, 13.h4!? ( 13.a3 fd8 14.c1
ac8 doesn't seem to offer White much,
Poluljahov,A-Maiorov,O/Krasnodar 1998;
13.dxc5! is best, xc5 14.xd5 xd5
15.fd1 fd8 16.ac1 c6 17.d4 xg2
18.xg2 xd4 19.xd4 xd4 20.xd4
xd4 21.exd4 with an edge in Miles,A-Short,
N/ch-GBR, Torquay ENG 1998) 13...d8!
14.xb7 xb7 15.f3 b8 ( 15...xh4!
is best ) 16.fd1 e8 ( 16...xh4 17.dxc5
g5 18.c6 c5 19.h1 regains the piece
on h4 ) 17.g2 f6 ( 17...cxd4 18.xd4
f6?? l o s e s n e a t l y t o 19.xf6! gxf6
20.g4+ h8 21.xf6# ) 18.f4 e7
19.h5 cxd4 20.xf6+ xf6 21.xf6 gxf6
22.xd4 with a clear advantage, Kosten-
Dubois, Naujac 2004. ]
9.bxc4 c5 10.b2 c6 11.e2 b4!?
Black aims for the weakened d3 square. Craig
says: "In my database this has been met by
12.d4, 12.Ne1 and 12.Ne5 - d4 seems
strongest to me, do you agree? None of my
bo o ks h a ve a n y co ve ra ge o f t h is lin e . . "
12.e1 Solid, but I agree with Craig that
520
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 12.d4 is best, cxd4 13.exd4 White has
hanging pawns, but an active position with
well-placed pieces, c8 14.fd1 e8
prophylaxis, and better than aiming directly
for the c-pawn by ( 14...c7 when 15.a3
a6 Ravikumar,V-Theulings,P/Dieren 1991,
when 16.d5!? exd5 17.b5 looks really
dangerous for Black) 15.a3 c6 16.e5
( 16.d5?! is wrong with the rook facing the
white queen, Petrosian,A-Kuzmin,G/Baku
1977 ) 16...c7?! offering White a free
tempo, ( 16...d6 17.f4 a5 18.xb7
xb7 19.b5 b8 20.a4 gives White
more spa ce, but the exchange o f light -
squared bishops helps Black, Plachetka,J-
Gizynski,T/Bardejov 1991) 17.b5 b8
18.d5! exd5 19.cxd5 xe5 20.xe5 a6
21.xb8 xb8 22.a7 aiming for c6, d6
23.a4 a8 ( 23...e4! to block the
diagonal ) 24.c6 ac8 25.ac1 ( 25.xf6
gxf6 26.ab1 c5 raises the spectre of
opposite-colour bishops) 25...b5?! 26.b1?!
( 26.xf6 gxf6 27.axb5 axb5 28.b1
wins the pawn immediately) 26...a8?!
Panno,O-Mecking,H/Buenos Aires 1970, but
instead ( 26...e4 was best. )]
12...xg2 13.xg2 d7 14.d1 First,
[ 14.a3 c6 then 15.d1 is an alternative,
( 15.f3 fd8 16.fd1 b7 17.g1 d7
is very pleasant for Black, Ivkov,B-Platonov,
I/Wijk aan Zee 1970) 15...b7 16.g1 a6
17.a4 e8 18.f4 d6 19.b1 f6 20.f3
fd8 with fair chances, Bagirov,V-Psakhis,L/
Amsterdam 1989. ]
14...fd8 Black's main plan is simple: pile-up
on the d-file! 15.d3 a6 16.a3 c6 17.a4
White often plays this to dissuade Black from
playing ...b5. b7 18.g1 d7 Actually an
innovation, although the
[ 18...b4 19.f4 d7 20.f3 of Schmidt,W-
Kostro,J/Polanica Zdroj 1970, is similar. ]
19.f4 This is the key to White's play, he
controls e5 (and keeps the a1-h8 diagonal
o p e n ) wh i ls t p r e p a ri n g a k i n g s i d e p a wn
advance. ad8 20.f3 g4!? Black wants
to blunt the b2-bishop's diagonal by playing ...
f6. 21.h3 h6 22.h2?! Slow,
[ 22.g4!? f6 23.g5 f7 24.e4 f5 25.f2
covers d3, and keeps e5 under control. ]
22...f6 23.d2 White must stay ready to cover
d3, as now
[ 23.g4 is met by f7 ]
23...b4 24.d4
[ 24.e1 is possible, if a little passive, but ]
[ 24.fd1? loses a pawn to xd3! 25.xd3
xd3 26.xd3 xd3 27.xd3 xf3 ]
24...f7 25.fd1 f8 Black plays a lot of
useful prophylactic moves, which is often a
good idea. 26.a1 c6 Black takes aim at
c4. 27.f5? This is a bit desperate.
[ 27.b2 kept the tension. ]
27...exf5 28.d5 c7 29.h4 d6 30.f1
e7 31.e1 d7 32.f2 de8 Black doesn't
even need to weaken his kingside with . ..g6.
33.xf5? xf5 34.xf5 c2 Forking e1
and e3.
0-1
531 A14
Borovikov,Vladislav 2595
Moro,Alfonso 2487
74th ch-UKR KO (2.1) 26.08.2005
[John Watson]
1.f3 d5 2.c4 e6 3.b3 f6 4.b2 e7
5.g3 0-0 6.g2 c5 7.0-0 c6 8.e3
This is a traditional main line of the Reti,
c o n t e s t e d o v e r a c e n t u r y o r m o r e . d4
A real test of White's setup with a long history
behind it. 9.exd4 cxd4 10.e1 To prevent ...
e5 and play for Ne5.
[ 10.d3?! e5! is a reversed Benoni in which
White's Bb2 is a disadvantage. So although
Black lost a tempo by ...e6-e5. White lost
one by Bb2 and may lose another by Bc1,
back to the best square for the bishop! ]
10...e8! A strange remedy but a good one,
intending ..f6 and ...e5. Oddly enough, this
has been the only move that has worked well
for Black, for example:
[ (a) 10...e8 11.e5! xe5 12.xe5 d7
13.b5 and White was much better in Tal-
Zhuravlev, USSR Ch 1967. ]
[ (b) 10...d3?! 11.a3 ( 11.e5!? xe5
12.xe5 ) 11...a5 12.c3 is excellent for
White. Nb5 is in the air, as is Re3 in many
lines. ]
11.a3!?
[ The best order to mix it up is 11.d3! f6
( 11...c7 12.bd2 f6 13.a3 a5 14.h4!?
e5 15.h5 e8 16.xe8 xe8 17.f4
521
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
- I l i k e W h i t e) 12.bd2 ( 12.a3
is still playable) 12...e5! ( 12...c7 13.a3
a5 14.h4 b8 15.f4 with a small edge)
13.a3 a5 14.h4!?
A) (or 14...g5 15.d5+ g7 16.g2
(intending f4 or h4) c7 17.e4 d7
( 17...f5 18.xc6 bxc6 19.xe5 ) 18.f4
Black will acce de to some weakness,
again with a dynamic position in which I
favour White, for example, gxf4 ( 18...exf4
19.gxf4 f5 20.xc6 bxc6 21.f3 )
19.gxf4 h8 20.h5 h3 21.xh3
xh3 22.fxe5 fxe5 23.xc6 bxc6
24.xe5;
B) or 14...c7 15.h5 e8 16.xe8
xe8 17.f4 exf4 18.gxf4;
C) 14...e6 15.f4 d7 16.h5
( a more ambitious move would be 16.f5!?
xf5 17.xf5 xf5 18.e4 h3 19.f3
c7 20.f5 h6 , but it's hard to see a
go od f ollo w-u p) 16...f7 ( 16...g4?!
17.d5+ xd5 18.xg4 f7 19.f5
h8 20.f1 ) 17.e2 with a complex
game, probably equal but easier for White
to play. ]
11...f6 12.c2 e5 13.d3 c7 14.b1?!
[ 14.d2! a5 15.a3 Tal-Grigorian, Gori
1968. This is the last way to fight for the
advantage that I see, although it's doubtless
okay for Black who has active pieces and
even a practical advantage. ]
14...a5 15.c1 Proof that the setup has failed
to achieve anything. Black has a mild
advan ta ge . b8 16.a3 b5 17.d2 d7
18.e2 e8 19.h4! g6
[ 19...g5? 20.f5! f8 21.e4 ]
20.xc6 xc6 21.xa5 d7 22.xc7
xc7 23.b4 xb4?
[ 23...b7! w i t h t h e i d e a 24.cxb5?
( 24.g4!? c8! 25.xc8 bxc8 26.c2
c7 and the bishops ensure some
a d v a n t a g e .) 24...xb4 25.axb4 d7
exploiting the light squares an retaining the
better game. ]
24.axb4 d6 25.g4
[ 25.c5 d5 26.f3 is also hard to crack. ]
25...d7 26.f3 c6 27.g4 d7 28.f3
c6
½-½
532 A14
Chuchelov,Vladimir 2603
Rogozenco,D 2517
Bundesliga 2003-4 (3) 22.11.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.b3 e7
5.g2 0-0 6.0-0 b6 7.b2 b7 8.e3 bd7
A solid line, Black develops his bits foremost.
9.e2 a5!? Black plays to embarrass the b2-
bishop,
[ 9...c5 is the main move. ]
10.c3 a4 This is the tactical point.
[ 10...e4 11.cxd5 exd5 12.d3 xc3
13.xc3 c5 was fairly level in Tal,M-
Cifuentes Parada,R/Buenos Aires 1991. ]
11.xa4!? This obvious capture is actually a
novelty!
[ 11.d4 ha d b e e n p ref e rre d , wh e n a3
12.c1 b4 13.d2 gives Black good play,
e7 14.ac1 fd8 ( 14...ac8 15.fd1
fd8 is similar, Plaskett,J-Parker,J/
Birmingham 1999) 15.e1 xc3 16.xc3
e4 17.a1 c5 18.d3 dxc4 19.bxc4
ac8 and White's bishops don't amount to
much, Pigusov,E-Kosashvili,Y/Biel 1989. ]
11...dxc4 This is the point, the c4-pawn is
invulnerable. 12.fc1
[ 12.xc4?! a6 wins the exchange ]
12...cxb3
[ 12...b5 13.c3 b4 14.a4 d5
is more testing. ]
13.axb3 c5 This seems a bit too simplistic,
Black exchanges pieces, but is the knight on
a4 doing anything? Perhaps
[ 13...d5 is more to the point. ]
14.xc5 xc5 15.d3 e7 16.e5 xg2
17.xg2 White's play is also simple, but there
is a p l a n : e xc h a n g i n g t h e l i g h t - s q u a r e d
bishops exposes the squares on c6 and b5 to
infiltration. a3? Black continues the logic of
exchanging pieces, hoping for a quick draw,
but gets into surprising difficulties after this.
[ 17...xa1 18.xa1 d7! would have
achieved his objective. ]
18.c6 d6 19.e5 d7 The queen is
short of squares, and the only other possibility
was
[ 19...d5+ when 20.e4 b5 21.xa3
xa3 22.e7+ h8 23.xf6 wins material,
as gxf6? 24.b2 is decisive as it menaces
522
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

the rook and (more importantly) Qxf6 mate. ] White's attacking potential.
20.xa3! xa3 21.xf6 gxf6 22.b2 [ 15.b1 is sometimes played, defending c4
This is the point, the queen forks the rook and a n d g o i n g w i t h t h e k n i g h t t o d 2 ac8
t h e f 6 - p a w n . fa8 There is nothing better. 16.bd2 e4 17.b3 xb3 18.axb3
23.xf6 d5+? The only move was was recently seen in Wiedenkeller, M (2479)-
[ 23...e8 when 24.c4 (threatening Rg4+ Kreisl, R (2408)/EU-Cup 29th Rhodes 2013
and mate) e5 (to cover g4 with the queen) (1.2). ]
25.xe5 d5+ checks and attacks the 15...exd5 16.cxd5 xd5 17.e4
knight at the same time, which gives Black The computer doesn't like this move, but the
time to defend, 26.f3 e6 and Black is position is not easy to understand. Changing
clearly worse, but still fighting. ] the knights instead of 17.Ne4 could hold the
24.e4 xd3 balance, but with good practical chances.
[ 24...d6 looks better, but still loses, 25.e5 [ 17.xd5!? xd5 18.xd5 it looks like
d5+ 26.h3 e8 27.c4 and Black has White is exchanging too many pieces, but it
to give his queen to avoid mate. ] won't be a dead draw so early xd5 19.e5
25.e7+ f8 26.xc7 Mate follows after A) 19...xe5 loses an exchange 20.xe5
[ 26.xc7 xe4+ 27.h3 ] xe5 21.xa8 with a clear advantage;
1-0 B) 19...dd8 is already losing to 20.xf7!
this theme will be seen in other variations
xf7 21.h5+ f8 ( 21...g8 22.d5+
533 A14 h8 23.e4 is j u s t m a t e) 22.xh7
Durarbayli,Vasif 2559 and Black is not able to deal with the
Yu,Yangyi 2668 attack, for example: d6 23.d5 e8
World Teams 2013 (7.5) 03.12.2013 to run away to e7-d8 with the king 24.d1
[Fier, Alexandr] and Black's position is completely
hopeless;
W hite's pawn sac was quite an interesting C) 19...ad8 this is basically the only
idea, much more active than the normal 15. move 20.xf7!? a dangerous idea, and
Nb1 and it brought a lot of life to the game, it's easy for Black to make a step in the
but 16.Nxd5 was better and would be my wrong direction ( 20.xd5 is a solid option,
recommendation in the position. Soon things but d oesn 't b ring any adva ntage xd5
went wrong and Black easily won the game. 21.xa6 f8 and Black is fine )
1.c4 e6 2.f3 f6 3.g3 e7 4.g2 0-0 C1) 20...xf7 is not possible, and
5.0-0 d5 6.b3 b6 7.b2 b7 8.e3 c5 reminds me of the old Figatello
9.e2 c6 10.d1 dxc4 11.bxc4 c7 21.xd5+ xd5 22.f3+ e6
12.c3 a6 23.g4+! precise d6 24.e4
[ 12...fd8 can also be tried here, and after and the king is too exposed to survive
13.ac1 a5 14.d3 a6 with the same idea g5 25.d1+ c6 26.e6+ b5
as in this game, and it was seen last year in 27.a4+! White needs to open the a-file
Kvon, A (2492)-Sargissian, G (2693)/ ( 27.b1 a4 and suddenly the attack
Istanbul ol (Men) 40th 2012 (8.4). ] is over ) 27...xa4 28.a1+ b5
13.ac1 fd8 14.d4 An ambitious approach. 29.b1 winning;
[ 14.d3 is also natural, trying to expand C2) 20...d2
a f t e r w a r d s w i t h f 4 a7 ( 14...a5 C2a) 21.h5 is also interesting xb2
wou ld tra ns pose t o Sargissian's gam e) 22.e4
15.d2 xg2 16.xg2 c6 was Lahno, K C2a1) 22...g6 23.xg6 f6
(2548)-Kosintseva, T (2517)/Geneve FIDE ( 23...hxg6 24.xg6+ f8 25.h6
GP (Women) 2013 (9). ] with a brutal attack) 24.xh7+ f8
14...a5 15.d5!? An new idea in the position. 25.h6+ g7 26.xd8! xd8
W hite give s a p awn in order t o ope n th e ( 26...xh6 27.e6++- ) 27.f4+
position - Black should not underestimate g8 28.f7+ h8 29.f5 d2

523
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

30.h3+ g8 31.e6+ complications. 20.f3?

with a perpetual; [ 20.c2 is the computer suggestion but
C2a2) 22...f8 23.xd8 xd8 without any concrete plan, b6 ]
24.d1 f6 25.xh7 20...dxe3 Now it's over 21.xd8+ xd8
with dangerous compensation, 22.f6+ xf6 23.xf6 xg2 24.xd8
probably Black can defend, but the xd8 25.d1
position is easy for White to play; [ 25.xg2 maybe White was counting on
C2b) 21.g4 leads to an entertaining this move, but White is paralyzed after f6
draw xf7 22.xg7+ e8 23.f3 26.e1 c6 if the queen leaves the e-file
xb2 24.h5+ d7 25.g4+ 27...Ne5 is decisive, so there is nothing to
( 25.d1+ c8 is em barra ssin g) do ]
25...c6 26.f3+= ] 25...f6 26.e8+ g7 27.d8 xf3
17...b5 28.f8+ f6 29.d7 d5 30.h8+ f5
[ 17...c6! was the best move, trying to 31.g4+ xg4 32.h3+ xh3
bring the queen to e6 and also threatening 0-1
18...Qb5 18.a1 ( 18.e5 e6
and it's not clear how W hite is going to
continue the attack) 18...h6 19.e1 e6 534 A14
and there is not enough compensation for Filippov,Valerij 2639
the pawn ] Grischuk,Alexander 2719
18.h4? Trying to go to f5 and force Black to FIDE WCh KO Tripoli LBA (3.6) 24.06.2004
open the long diagonal for White's bishop, but [Tony Kosten]
there are no real threats on the diagonal, so
this move is not so effective. 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 e7
[ 18.fg5 was more to the point 5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 c5 7.e3 c6 8.cxd5
A) 18...xg5 19.xg5 h6 20.xd5! [ 8.b2 is more common, b6 9.c3 b7
again this idea, but now connected with 10.e2 and now we looked at dxc4 11.bxc4
the h7 square instead of f7 xd5 21.d3 b4 in Bareev-Kramnik last month. ]
hxg5 22.xd5 and the bishops are really 8...xd5 9.b2 b6 10.d4
dangerous. Black needs to give the [ 10.c3 f6 ( 10...b7 11.xd5
e x c h a n g e b a c k f8 23.f5 xd5 was considered in a note to the
( 23...ac8? 24.xc5 wins ) 24.xd5 b7 aforementioned game.) 11.d4 xc3
25.xg5 f6 26.f5 and White is slightly 12.xc3 b7 13.c1 1/2-1/2 Hartung
better; Ni e ls e n , J -M a k si m o vi c, B / C o p e n h a g e n
B) 18...c4 19.xg7 more or less forced, 1989. ]
but good xg7 20.g4 xg5 21.xg5 10...a6! More active than
I p r e f e r t h i s o n e ( 21.xg5+ [ 10...b7 which would transpose to more
is also possible, but Black can have some normal lines. ]
a d v a n t a g e a f t e r h8 22.f6 e5 11.e1 cxd4
23.xd5 one more time this move xd5 [ 11...db4 has never been played, but has
24.h6 f5 25.xd5 xd5 26.e4 its points, ...Nd3 is an annoying threat. ]
t h i s i s t h e i d e a b e h i n d 2 3 . R x d 5 g6 12.xd4 xd4 13.xd4 With the symmetric
27.xg6 hxg6 28.xd5 and in the structure it seems at first glance that a draw is
endgame these pa ssed pawns on th e not far off. c8 The rook leaves the exposed
q u e e n s i d e c a n b e e n o u g h f o r s o m e h1-a8 diagonal. 14.d2 White can also try to
advantage ) 21...h5 22.e6+ f6 bring his rook to d2 by
23.xc7 hxg4 24.xa8 xa8 25.e4 [ 14.a3 when f6! ( 14...d7 15.a2 fd8
b2 26.d2 c4= ] 16.d2 is only slightly better for Black,
18...g6 19.a1 c4 And with two simple Zivkovic,V-Vuksanovic,S/ Vrnjacka Banja
moves White's attack is completely neutralized. 1996 ) 15.a2 xd4 16.xd4 c3!
W ithout a clear path W hite got lost in the 17.xd8 fxd8 18.xc3 xc3

524
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

wit h p re s s u r e o n t h e wh i t e qu e e n sid e , soon lost. ]

Maninang,R-Fernandez Garcia,J/Luzern
1982. ]
14...f6 Once again Black aims to control the
c 3 - s q u a r e . 15.e4 xd4 16.xd4 f5!
A powerful novelty, Black weakens e5 and e6,
but wins control of c3 for his knight.
[ 16...e7 17.ac1?! ( 17.ec1 is right,
keeping the a-pawn defended) 17...a3
( 17...f5! ) 18.cd1?! ( 18.d2 ) 18...c2
with a useful initiative, Pham Toan Thanh-
Saevareid,O/Bergen NOR 2002. ]
17.d2 c3 18.f1
[ 18.xd8 fxd8 19.f3 keeps White's
position solid, but Black is clearly on top. ]
18...xf1 19.xf1 xd4 Black gives White
an IQP, but also opens the e-file and exposes
the e6-pawn. Perhaps
[ 19...e5 20.xd8 fxd8 offers more,
21.c4 e4 with a small space advantage. ]
20.exd4 b5 21.f3 c3
Astounding, White misses a simple tactic,
[ 22.a4! is fine, xf3 ( 22...d6 23.g5
xb3 24.xe6 can only be good for White)
23.axb5 f4! 24.g4 xb3 25.xe6 xb5
26.xa7 f3 with a likely draw. ]
22...xf3! Winning a pawn. 23.xf3 xd4+
24.f4 c2 The sting that regains the
exchange. 25.ac1 xe1 26.xe1 f7
Black has a solid extra pawn, the backward e6-
p a wn is h i s o n e p ro b le m . 27.c1
The king covers e5, and prepares ...e5 or ...
g5. 28.e3 What else? If
[ 28.c7 Black simply plays f7 29.c6 g5+
30.e3 g4 ]
28...g5 29.b4 f7 30.c8 d7 31.a4?!
White doesn't defend the position too well,
[ 31.f4 should be played, for better or worse,
as at least ...e5 is inhibited. ]
31...g4! This move leaves the white kingside
pawns completely crippled. 32.b5
33.c4 d6 34.h3!? It is always a good idea
to exchange some pawns. gxh3 35.h4
[ 35.d4+ e7 36.h4 seems more
accurate, keeping the black king further from
the queenside. ]
35...c7 36.d3 c1 Black searches for
activity. 37.xh3 a1 The beginning of the
e n d f o r W h i t e , h e i s t ie d t o t h e a -p a wn .
38.h4
[ 38.xh7 xa4 is no help, the b5-pawn is
38...a3+ 39.e2 d5 40.f1 e5 41.g2
e4 Cutting the rook from the a4-pawn forces
the exchange of h-pawn for a-pawn. 42.xh7
xa4 43.h3? White should at least try
[ 43.h5 e6 44.h6+ e5 45.h5 f6
46.h6+ g5 47.h7 when the black king
i s f o r c e d t o s t a y o n t h e k i n g s i d e , a5
and Black will probably have to exchange
the a7-pawn for the b5-pawn, although this
should win. ]
43...a2 44.h4
[ 44.g2? e3 ]
44...xf2
[ 44...e3! wins on the spot. ]
45.xa7 c5 46.f7 f3 Black will capture
on b5 with a trivial win.
0-1
22.g2? 535 A14
Galyas,Miklos 2444
Paridar,Shadi 2263
FSIM June Budapest HUN (13) 16.06.2005
[John Watson]
1.c4 e6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 f6 4.f3 e7
5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 c5 7.b2 c6 8.e3 b6
9.c3 a6 10.e2 c8 11.d3
[ 11.b5!? was played in the instructive
f6 game Botvinnik-Bakulin, USSR 1967: b7
12.d3 a6 13.c3 c7 14.fd1 d7
15.cxd5! xd5 16.xd5 exd5 17.d4 e8
18.d2 cxd4 19.xd4 e5 20.ad1 c5
21.a3 a5 22.b5 c6 23.a4 a8
24.d4! ]
11...e5?! This is a tactically-based attempt to
free Black's game at once, but it doesn't quite
work. Instead, the modest
[ 11...d7 has been played several times
e5 a n d s e e m s s o l i d e n o u g h , e . g . , 12.fd1
( 12.ad1 fd8 13.fe1 d4?! 14.exd4
xd4 15.xd4 cxd4 16.e4 xe4
17.xe4 Hjartarrson-Belyavsky, Linares
1 9 8 8 , b u t 1 3 . . . Q e 8 w a s e q u a l - E C O)
12...fd8 13.ac1 e8 14.h3 b7
15.cxd5 xd5 16.xd5 xd5 17.e5
dd8 18.g4 with a slight initiative,
Panchenko-Kharlamov, Smolensk 1986. ]
12.xd5! xd5 13.cxd5 e4
[ 13...b4 14.xe5 f6 15.c4 ]

525
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

14.d2! b4 18.c2 b7 19.a1 xa1 1/2-1/2 Roeder-

[ 14...xd3 15.g4 is White's point, Baklan, Saint Vincent 2003. ]
although d4! 16.exd4 f5 17.h5 xf1 9.d3
18.xf1 g6 19.e2 f6 is only somewhat [ 9.c2 bd7 10.fb1 b4 11.d1 e7
better for White after 20.f3 cxd4 21.fxe4! 12.c2 d6 13.d3 axb3 14.axb3 xa1
d3 22.xd3 xb2 23.exf5 gxf5 24.c4 15.xa1 e5 16.e3 g6 17.d4 e4 18.d2
g7 25.xf5 ] Pribyl-Weglarz, Decin 1998. ]
15.g4 g6 16.dxe4 xf1 17.xf1 9...bd7
Now White has a huge centre and two bishops [ 9...a6 10.c2 b6 11.b1 axb3 12.axb3
along with two pawns for the exchange. The b4 13.c3 xc2 14.xc2 b7 15.a1
rest is easily understandable: d3 18.a1 d7 16.xa8 xa8 17.a1 Bofill Mas-
f6 19.xf6 xf6 20.e2 b4 21.c4 b5 Hoensch, Banyoles 2004 ]
22.e5 a6 23.d6 b8 24.a1 a5 10.c2 b4!?
25.d2 c7 26.f4 a5 27.a3 a6 28.e4 [ 10...axb3 11.axb3 b4 12.d1
c4 29.d6 a7 30.b4 fd8 31.c3 axb4 and Nc2 follows perhaps W hite is a tad
32.axb4 b6 33.f6+ f8 34.d5 better. ]
[ 34.d5 a7 35.xa6 xa6 36.e6 11.fc1 h6
and checkmate follows. ] [ Le ss casu al is 11...e7 12.b1 e5
1-0 ( 12...axb3 ) 13.cxd5 a3 14.c3 xd5 ]
12.d1 e8 13.c2 f8 14.b4!
Black's play has been generally passive,
536 A14 although his position is solid enough. After 14.
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2739 b4 we have the classic Reti tension between
Asrian,Karen 2611 flank and centre. e5 15.a3 b5! Generally this
6th EICC Playoff (1.1) 02.07.2005 move is a bit awkward for White because c5
[John Watson] allows Black free rein in the centre. 16.c5
c7 17.d2 g6 18.e4 d4?!
The ...a5-a4 system of the traditional main [ 18...g7 ]
line of the Reti has always done well, so it's 19.e2 g7 20.f1 f8 21.ae1 h5?
interesting to see how Ivanchuk handles it. Weakening. Black is losing the thread. 22.f4
1.c4 e6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 f6 4.f3 e7 exf4 23.xd4!?
5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 a5 [ 23.gxf4! d5 24.e5 ]
[ 6...c5 7.b2 c6 8.e3 reverts to the main 23...e6
line. ] [ 23...g4! ]
7.b2 a4 8.a3 Directly blocking the 24.xf6 xf6 25.e5 g5 26.d4
advance of the pawn. White has gained time [ 26.e4! intending xe5? 27.xg5 xg5
but at the cost of putting the awkward knight 28.xc6 ]
on a3. 26...fxg3 27.hxg3 xd2 28.xd2 g7
[ 8.d3 ] 29.d5! cxd5 30.xd5 e6 31.xa8 xa8
[ 8.bxa4 and ] 32.d6 Black has nothing for the pawn and
[ 8.c1 have all been played with indifferent goes on to lose.
success. ] 1-0
8...c6 In some games Black has achieved ...
b5 so White has to be on the lookout for that
idea.
[ Black puts his knight on d7 in this game, so
it's worth seeing another example: 8...bd7
9.d3 ( 9.d4 e4 10.c2 ) 9...b6 10.c1!?
( 10.e3 b7 11.c2 ) 10...b7 11.c2 c5
12.b1 axb3 13.axb3 c7 14.e3 c6
15.cxd5 xd5 16.e4 5f6 17.e3 fd8

526
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
537
Kosten,Anthony C
Grimberg
French League 24.03.2012
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e6 2.f3 d5 3.g3 f6
[ 3...c5 4.g2 c6 5.0-0
was an interesting idea to dissuade White
from playing b3, 6.e3!? ( my opponent was
doubtless hoping for 6.cxd5 exd5 7.d4 f6
transposing to the Tarrasch - but as I'd seen
that he likes to play this I naturally wanted
to take him out of his 'comfort zone'.) 6...f6
7.b3 e4!? continuing with the plan of
stopping White from playing his queenside
f i a n c h e t t o , ( 7...0-0 is normal, of course,
8.b2 transposing to the main game.) 8.b2
f6 9.xf6!? a novelty, and played after
considerable reflection the move before.
( 9.d4 is the obvious reply, but then 0-0
10.cxd5 exd5 11.c3 returns play to a
QGD Tarrasch once more, and would be
much more to my opponent's liking!; 9.c1
was a reasonable alternative, Makarov, M
(2505)-Vekshenkov, N (2295)/ Novosibirsk
1989. ) 9...xf6 ( 9...xf6 is worse, 10.c3
xc3 11.dxc3 dxc4 12.d2 as cxb3?!
13.e4 e7 14.d6+ ) 10.cxd5 xd5
11.d4 cxd4 12.xd4 f6 ( I had been
expecting 12...d7 which is close to equal.)
13.d2! a n i c e t r i c k , xd4 14.e4
the point, f3+ 15.xf3 e5 16.c1 d7
to play ...Bc6. ( 16...0-0 is safer, 17.c5 b6
18.d3 with a small advantage.) 17.d2!
heading for c4, 0-0 18.c4 f6 19.e4!
A) 19...b4 was pretty much forced,
20.e5 ( 20.xd7? xf3 ) 20...e7
21.xb7 ab8 22.d6! winning a pawn.;
B) 19...c3?? p l a y e d q u i c k l y , 20.e5!
simply winning, xd1 21.exf6 the knight
is trapped, Kosten, A (2498)-Wheeler, D
(2272)/England 2011. ]
4.g2 e7 5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 c5 7.b2 c6
8.e3 b6 9.c3 a6!? An ambitious move,
pinning the c4-pawn.
[ 9...b7 is the mainline and is 3 times more
popular. ]
10.d3
[ 10.e2 c8 11.d3 transposes, and I don't
know if W hite can gain any advantage by
A14 delaying this by, say ( 11.fd1 as Black can
play d4 12.exd4 cxd4 13.b5 d3
and White soon had a quite a bad position
in Botvinnik, M-Van Scheltinga, T/
Amsterdam 1966. )]
10...c8 11.e2 c7!? This move is very
rare, but seems very logical - the rook is
e7!? coming to d7 to press on the d-file.
[ 11...e5?! was Galyas, M-Paridar, S,
analysed by John W atson - see the PGN
Archive. ]
[ 11...c7 is by far the most popular at this
juncture. ]
12.ad1 Normally the other rook would come
here, but I realised I would need it on the f-file
later on.
[ 12.fd1 d7 13.b5 b8 14.a4 b7
15.d4 led to a quick draw in Makarichev, S
(2 5 05 ) -Marjan o vic, S (2 51 5 )/ S ara je vo
1982. ]
12...d7 13.h4!? This seems to be new
here, but I like this idea which gives Black
something to worry about on the kingside -
White might play cxd5 and then Nf5.
[ 13.e1 b7 14.d2 dxc4 15.bxc4 a8
16.f4 fd8 17.f3 with interesting play in
Sulava, N (2430) -Zelcic, R (2450)/Cattolica
1993. ]
13...e8 Freeing a retreat square for the
bishop, and also placing the rook opposite the
white queen.
[ I had expected 13...b7 as the bishop has
done its job on a6 and was now 'biting on
granite', 14.cxd5 xd5 ( 14...exd5 15.f5
but d4 is fine. ) 15.xd5 xh4 ( 15...exd5
16.f5 f6 17.d4 ) 16.f4 f6 but this
looks f airly equal, W hite might try 17.d4
cxd4 18.h5!? ]
14.f4 This was why I left the rook on f1, the
threat is f5. g6!? This is like waving a red flag
at a bull!
[ 14...b7 has to be best, otherwise Black
can never move his d-pawn as the c6-knight
would be left hanging. 15.f3 with a tense
position, but where Black is certainly not
worse. ( 15.f5 can now be answered by d4 )]
15.f5!! With the c6-knight still loose and the d-
pawn pinned this is definitely the right time to
start the attack, White can't afford a moment's
hesitation. exf5 16.xf5!
[ 16.xd5 is n o t th e id e a a t a ll, xd5
527
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

17.xd5 xd5! 18.cxd5 xd5 with a pawn 25.h3+ c7 26.xd8+ wins the queen. ]
and excellent play for the exchange. ] 23.xh6+ e7 24.gf5 The bishop on f6 is
16...gxf5 pinned and lost.
[ 16...f8 was the only other sensible [ 24.gf5 I had actually expected my
alternative, 17.xd5 xd5 18.xd5 xd5! opponent to try the trick d4 when I'd
19.cxd5 xd5 20.g4!? ( 20.h4 ) planned
20...xd3 21.g5 with the exchange and an A) 25.xd4 cxd4 26.d5
attack. ] is also decisive,;
17.xf5 The key position, White has a pawn B) even the blunder 25.exd4? isn't that
for his piece, and will soon get a second as bad: xd4+ 26.xd4 xh6 27.xf7+
the d5-pawn is still pinned, but most important e6 ( 27...e8 28.f8+ d7 29.xd8+
he has opened the black king position - the xd8 30.e3 ) 28.g7 with some nasty
bishop on b2 points menacingly at g7. d6 t h r e a t s, a n d m a yb e so m e a d v a n t a g e
A good move, the rook can block on g6 if despite only having a piece for the
necessary. Black had to be very careful: queen!;
[ 17...b7? would lose to 18.xd5 xd5? C) 25.5f2 g8 26.exd4 xd4 27.h4+
19.g4+ ] f6 28.xd4 ]
[ 17...f8? 18.xd5 xd5 19.xf6 ] 1-0
18.xd5 During the game I played this
because it 'felt' right, although both I and my
opponent thought that perhaps 538 A14
[ 18.cxd5 was objectively stronger, b4 Kosten,Anthony C 2519
( 18...b8 19.e4 ) 19.a3 xd3 20.xd3 Horvath,Csaba 2565
xd3 21.xd3 and this does indeed look 20th ECC Izmir TUR (2) 04.10.2004
unpleasant for Black. ] [Tony Kosten]
18...c8 Absolutely the only move, anything
else and White would play Rdf1 and then take 1.c4 e6 2.f3 f6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 e7
on f6. 19.g5+!! I played this after a great 5.0-0 0-0 6.e5 bd7 last month I
deal of t hought, a s th e ro ok will b ecom e described this as 'a sensible alternative' 7.d4
t ra p p e d . N o n e o f t h e a lt e rn a t i ve s r e a ll y c6 8.d2 xe5 9.dxe5 d7 10.f3 b6
appealed to me, though: 11.cxd5 exd5
[ 19.f4 xd5 20.xd5 xd5! 21.cxd5 [ 11...exd5 Dorfman thought I may have
xd5 ] some advantage after 12.c2 g4 13.h3
[ 19.df1!? xf5 20.xf5 h6 21.f3 xd5 h5 14.d4 g6 15.f5 but I was
22.cxd5 g5! ] d o u b t f u l a b o u t t h is , e8 16.e4 f6
19...f8 20.f1 h6 This was the basis of my and W hite's pieces seem a bit loose, so I
opponent's defence, the rook is attacked and was happy to take the draw. ]
has no safe escape. 21.xf6! The first point. ½-½
xf6? Obvious but losing.
[ 21...hxg5? is also bad, as 22.h7+ g8
23.h5 forces mate. ] 539 A14
[ but 21...xf6 wa s e s s e n t i a l , 22.d5! Kosten,Anthony C 2511
( in the post mortem we spent a long time Landa,Konstantin 2641
looking at 22.d5 xf1+! and were unable FRA-chT Top 16 GpA (5) 11.04.2008
t o d e c i d e w h i c h r e c a p t u r e w a s b e s t !) [Tony Kosten]
22...e6! ( 22...hxg5? 23.h5 ) 23.xf6
xf6 24.h5 e5! 25.xh6 g4 1.c4 e6 2.f3 f6 3.b3 b6 4.g3 b7
and Black is still in the game. ] 5.g2 e7 6.0-0 0-0 7.b2 d5 8.e3 c5
22.h5! The second point, now Black is quite 9.c3 I've had this position many times. c6
lost. ee6 The f6-bishop is pinned, and This and
[ 22...hxg5 23.h6+ e7 24.xf6+ d7 [ 9...dxc4 10.bxc4 c6 are the most

528
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

ambitious, ] should have ignored this and played

[ 9...bd7 is the most solid, and is well [ 19.e4!? dxe4 20.xe4 which opens the
covered in the PGN Archive. ] position for the bishops. ]
10.cxd5 The normal move here. 19...b4 20.a1 b5
[ 10.e2 leaves Black too many options, [ 20...f5!? ]
such as d4 ( or 10...dxc4 )] 21.e4 Attacking the pinned d5-pawn, and
10...xd5 undermining c4.
[ 10...exd5 11.d4 is also very common, but [ 21.e2 a3 22.bc1 was also worthy of
scores well for White. ] consideration. ]
11.xd5 exd5 21...a3 22.e2 dxe4?!
[ I've actually had the position after 11...xd5 [ 22...xb1 23.xb5 c3 looks equal, after
12.d4 mu c h mo re o f t e n myse lf , ad8 24.xc3 bxc3 there are opposite colour
( I also discussed 12...a5!? in the game bishops. ]
Socko, B-Klovans, J - see the PGN 23.xe4 f6 24.bc1 b6 25.c6! xd4
Archive. ) 13.e5 leads play down a long Agreed drawn,
forcing line, d6 ( 13...xg2+?! 14.xg2 [ , but perhaps I should have played on as
xe5+ can't possibly be correct, can it? 25...xd4 26.ed1 c7 27.e4 c3
15.f3 cxd4 16.exd4 c6 17.e2 d5 28.xh7+ xh7 29.xc3 bxc3 30.d3+
18.ac1 fd8 but Black actually managed g6 31.xc3 wins a pawn. ]
to draw in Ehlvest, J (2606)-Nakamura, H ½-½
(2701)/Saint Louis 2009 - perhaps W hite
had a few drinks beforehand?!) 14.dxc5
xc5 15.d7 critical, ( 15.e2 xe5 540 A14
16.xb7 is nothing for White, although Kosten,Anthony C 2514
Kaspa rov once pla yed it .. . in a s imul!) Luther,Thomas 2536
15...f5 16.e4 g5 (Black doesn't want to Aut chT0809 Graz (5.4) 23.01.2009
allow White to unpin with Qg4.) 17.h4 h6 [Jonathan Rowson]
18.c1 g5 19.hxg5 g7 20.f6+
( 20.e5!? h8 21.f4 a3 22.b4 xb4 Most of the major notes in what follow are
Rath, U (2395)-Flear, G (2390)/Esbjerg taken from a theoretical article by Tony Kosten
1982, 23.c1!? c5 24.c3 to d3. ) in Everyman's book "Dangerous W eapons:
20...xf6 21.gxf6 g6 22.e2 d4 Flank Openings." 1.c4 e6 2.f3 d5 3.b3
23.d3 xf6 24.a3 1/2-1/2 Makarichev, S f6 4.b2 e7 5.g3 0-0 6.g2 c5
(2510)-Servat, R (2455)/Valencia 1990. ] The main move here.
12.d4 a6!? 13.e1 c4 This whole idea was [ 6...b6 and ]
knew to me, although my opponent told me [ 6...a5 are the main alternatives. ]
that he had prepared it and thought it was fine 7.0-0 c6
f o r B l a c k . 14.bxc4 xc4 15.d2 a5 [ 7...d4 8.b4!? ( 8.e3 c6 9.exd4 cxd4
16.c3 b5 17.xc4 xc4 Black has 10.e1 transposes. )]
conceded the bishop pair, but his knight is 8.e3 Preparing Qe2, Rd1 and d4. Once the
strong and he has a useful 2-1 queenside queen lands on e2, d4 becomes difficult due
majority. 18.b1! After much thought I played to exchanging on d4 f ollowed by Ne5. d4
a new move. Previous tries: 9.exd4 cxd4 I have never played this line with
[ 18.h5 c8! 19.ac1 Rodriguez either colour, but I have always found it a bit
Cespedes, A (2470)-Borm, F (2260)/ surprising that Black, already trying to 'catch
Amsterdam 1978, b4 20.a1 f5 equal. ] up' can take time to grab space with d4. The
[ 18.b3 d7 19.ec1 fc8 20.e1 ab8 idea is to snuff out the bishop on b2, which
Bla ck h as no p ro b le m s, Maka rich ev, S might therefore have to move again. However,
(2540)-Pushkov, N (2485)/Moscow 1994. ] if White can find a way to show that the bishop
18...b8 19.h5 I couldn't resist having a is well placed on b2, as he does here, then
prod at the weak d5-pawn, but perhaps I this line begins to look ever so slightly

529
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
suspect. 10.e1 e8 The main line. In DW-
Flank Tony also covers the alternatives:
[ 10...e8 11.a3 a5 12.d3
A) 12...f8 13.e5 xe5 14.xe5 d7
15.b5! Elegant, and keeping some
initiative.
A1) 15...e5!? 16.d2 ( 16.xb7 xb7
17.xb7 c5 18.b5 b8 19.a4
is probably even better.) 16...b8 17.b4
b6 18.bxa5
A1a) 18...a6 19.axb6 xb5 20.cxb5
xb6 21.b3 looks good for White.
( 21.a4 b4! );
A1b) 18...bxa5 and now White has
various ways to play, but Tony Kosten
suggests Rb1 is best, with some
advantage.;
A2) 15...c5 16.b4 axb4 17.axb4
xa1 18.xa1 a6 19.b3 c7
20.a5! another TK suggestion ( 20.e5
was worse, Vikulov, A-Pirozhkov, A/
Moscow 1995) 20...a6 21.a3! xb4
22.a8! c6 23.b5 with excellent
compensation.;
B) 12...c5 13.e5 xe5 14.xe5 c7
15.f4 d6 16.xd4! Tony's idea ( 16.e1
was Espig, L-Zaichik, G/Berlin East 1988)
16...xe5 17.xe5 with fully adequate
compensation because of the centre and
two bishops, but also due to the creative
satisfaction of casually sacrificing the
exchange. ]
[ 10...d6 11.xd4 xd4 12.xd4 xg3
13.hxg3 xd4 14.c3 I prefer White here,
though I think Black's play (normally ...a6 or
...Rd8) might be improved with h5!? ]
[ 10...d3 11.c3 is now simplest. There is
not much theory here, but I prefer White- all
his pieces are happy and the d-pawn, which
W hite can play around, should be a
weakness in the long term. ( 11.a3 b6
Rybka- looks awkward, even if it may not
be particularly good. )]
11.e5!?
[ 11.d3 f6 12.a3 e5 13.c2 c7 14.a3
a5 15.d2 a6 ( 15...b8 16.b4 axb4
17.axb4 b5= ) 16.b4 and Tony remarks,
somewhat cryptically, that he knows 'for a
fact' that Black is fine in the ensuing
complications. ]
11...xe5 12.xe5 f6 13.e1 e5
[ 13...c7!? 14.f4!? preventing e5, seems
to be better for White. ( 14.d3 e5 )]
14.f4! exf4
[ 14...d6!? is not mentioned by Tony, but
looks plausible to me. 15.fxe5 ( 15.f3!?
is a more complex approach, though not
obviously bad for Black after c7 ) 15...fxe5
( 15...xe5 16.d3 followed by Nd2-f3 leaves
the d-pawn looking weak.) 16.d3 f6
17.d2 and White seems to have a small
but stable advantage. ]
[ 14...c7 15.fxe5 fxe5 16.xe5 f6
17.e1 doesn't seem to give enough for the
pawn. ]
15.f3! fxg3 16.d5+! h8 17.hxg3 xd5
[ In light of White's weakened king, I would
try hard to avoid the exchange of queens.
However, the queen on d5 is a strong piece,
Black loses further time, and White's king is
in no great danger. 17...c7 18.xd4 d6
19.c3 f5 20.f2 I guess White is still
better here- all his pieces are more active. ]
18.xd5 d6
[ 18...c5 19.a3! xa3 20.xa3 d6
( 20...c7 21.f3 and Re7 is coming.)
21.c2 f5 22.f2 is still better for White-
the d-pawn will fall and White dominates the
centre. ]
19.xd4 c7 20.f3 xg3 21.f2 xf2+
22.xf2 d8
[ 22...e6 23.c3 b8 24.b5 a6
25.d6 d4 26.e7 with domination. ]
23.e7 e6 24.c3! Still following Tony's
analysis. g8
[ 24...xd2+ 25.e3 d8 26.d1 f8
27.e4 ( 27.xb7!? ) 27...g5 28.xg5
fxg5 29.c5 seems to be no better for Black-
he has the familiar problem of being almost
unable to move. ]
25.d5 f8 26.h5 g5 27.ae1 d7
28.d4 e8
[ 28...b5!? might be an improvement, and is
at least more challenging for W hite e.g.
29.c5 e6! 30.1xe6 xe6 31.xe6 xd5
32.f3 f5 And Black is at least not worse. ]
29.xe8 xe8 30.xb7 xe1 31.xe1
f3+ 32.f2 xd4 33.e3
[ 33.c7 d8 34.xa7 h5 35.b4
when White is favourite in the race, but it's
all a bit random. ]
33...f5+?!
530
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 33...c6! looks better. Partly to support a7, s u p e r i o r " ) 16.b4 axb4 17.axb4 xa1
but mainly because the knight will be secure 18.xa1 a6 19.b3 c7 20.a5
and relevant on e5, where it supports the (my suggested improvement on the
kingside pawns, covers f7 and guards the p r e v i o u s l y p l a y e d 2 0 R e 5 . ) ( 20.b6
queenside. W ith the rook on the seventh offers to repeat: d5 21.b5 c7 22.b6
White is still somewhat better, but Black has 1/2-1/2 Horton, J (2147)-Hinojar Basa, A
more chances to resist. ] (2210)/Aragon 2008.) 20...a6 21.a3!
34.f4 d6 35.d7 e8 36.c5 c8 37.b4 xb4 22.a8 (so far this all my analysis
a5 from the DW-Flank book) a6 heading for
[ 37...a6!? looks more tenacious, but Black c5 again. ( I'd only mentioned 22...c6 )
remains very short of moves. ] 23.b5 when White has some
38.a3 axb4 39.axb4 h5 40.f5! a8 compensation for the pawn, but possibly not
41.g6 And Black can only choose how soon enough. ]
he wishes to be mated. 12...xa3
1-0 [ 12...e5 is possible, but 13.xf8 xf8
Moehring, G (2395)-Przewoznik, J (2370)/
Rzeszow 1988, 14.bd2! and the knight is
541 A14 better placed here, controlling e4, than on
Kosten,Anthony C 2492 a3, or c2. ]
Townsend,M Paul 2255 13.xa3 e5 14.c2 I played this
BCF-chTc 1112 (4NCL) (9.46) 07.05.2012 immediately, after all it was in the new book
[Tony Kosten] I'd just bought (!), but if I write another DW
book I would prefer
1.c4 e6 2.f3 d5 3.g3 f6 4.g2 e7 [ 14.c5!? intending Nc4, as the knight is
5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 c5 7.e3 c6 8.b2 d4 much better placed here than on c2. ]
This is an ambitious and strong move, but 14...a5 (To stop b4.) 15.a3 b8!? A logical
Black has to be happy playing a Benoni setup. move, defending b7 and possibly preparing ...
9.exd4 cxd4 10.e1 e8 11.d3 b5.
[ 11.a3 a5 12.d3 will transpose to the [ 15...h6! preparing ...Bf5, 16.d2 ( 16.b4
analysis below. ] e4 17.dxe4 d3 is equal. ) 16...g4
11...f8 is also good, and might be best, 17.f3 f5
[ In fact, in Delchev's book he only considers 18.e4 xe4 19.xe4 xe4 Peyrat, O
11...c5 ("this is the best place for the (2345)-Brochet, P (2365)/Bagneux 2001,
bishop" - Delchev) when I analysed 12.a3 20.xe4 f5 21.e1 e4 with advantage. ]
( Delchev's 12.a3 to which he gives an [ Delchev briefly analyses the game
exclamation mark, will transpose to the Sherbakov, R (2541)-Grigoriants, S (2413)/
game. ) 12...a5 13.e5 xe5 14.xe5 Mo sco w 1 9 9 9 , wh ich co n t in u e d 15...f5
c7 ( , b u t De lch e v p ref e rs 14...d6 16.h4 g4 17.d2 h6 "A critical position"
(by transposition) 15.f4 b8 he now says - Delchev, and here he suggests 18.h3! d7
this achieves "comfortable equality", giving 19.b4 axb4 20.axb4 xa1 21.xa1
the continuation 16.b4 axb4 17.axb4 xb4 However, he doesn't consider any of Black's
18.a3 d7 19.b5 xb5 20.xb5 b6 ) 15th move alternatives. ]
15.f4 d6 16.xd4! in DW-Flank. ] [ 15...d6 16.b4 axb4 17.axb4 xa1
12.a3!? Well, why not, after just having 18.xa1 f5 19.a3 is slightly better for
bought Delchev's book I thought I might as W hite, Schwartzman, G (2455)-Flear, C
well give this a try! (2195)/Parthenay 1993. ]
[ In 'Dangerous Weapons: Flank Openings' I 16.b4 axb4 Actually a new move.
gave 12.a3 a5 13.e5 as my preferred [ 16...b5?! is obviously weaker, though:
line, xe5 14.xe5 d7 15.b5 17.cxb5 xb5 18.a4 d5 19.b5
but here my opponent had prepared c5! with a big advantage, Hutters, T (2390)-
(W hich I said was "rare, but possibly Holst, P/Denmark 2001. ]

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

17.xb4 Maybe an inaccuracy, but I was 15.d4 ) 13.d1 ( 13.d4 c2 );

wondering what I was supposed to do with the B) 10...d8 11.d1 Webb-Lambert,
c2-knight otherwise, and I kept remembering London 1977. The play might continue f5
something that I saw in the Delchev book: "In 12.d4 d7 13.bd2 ( or 13.d5 exd5
my opinion, it is principally wrong to play with 14.cxd5 a5 15.c3 b6 16.e4 h5
bad pieces in one's camp." 17.bd2 )]
[ Also 17.axb4 e4 ( 17...b5!? ) 18.dxe4 d3 10...h6
looked uncomfortable to me, but maybe [ 10...a5 11.e5 ]
19.e3 xb4 ( 19...g4!? 20.xg4 [ 10...d8 is the most natural move. One
xg4 ) 20.b1 c6 21.d1 favours White example: 11.d1 e8 12.e1 g6 13.d4
slightly. ] f6 14.d5! xb2 15.xb2 exd5 16.cxd5
17...d6! 18.b1 d7 19.g5 xb4 b8 17.c3 a5 18.d3 b6 19.e4 a6
20.axb4 c6 At this point I was wondering 20.e5 h6 21.f4 c4 22.f2 f6
how I was supposed to play for a win. 21.b3 23.xc4 xc4 24.e5 with a monstrous
xg2 22.xg2 h6 23.e4 xe4 24.xe4 centre, Svensson-Korhonen, Jyvaskyla
e6 Solidly doubling rooks on the e-file. 1996. ]
25.be1 be8 26.c5 c6 27.c4 11.d1 d8 12.e1 h7 13.d4 The point.
Planning b5. b5! 9...Qd3 was meant to tie down the d-pawn but
[ 27...f5?? loses to 28.b5 ] there it goes. cxd4 14.exd4 d7 15.d5!
28.cxb6 xb6 exd5 16.cxd5 a5 17.c3 b6 18.d6
[ 28...xc4 29.dxc4 xb6 is probably also dc8 19.xa8!? Cute, but
equal, 30.b5 c8 31.xe5 xc4 ] [ 19.d4 was a better way to advantage: f8
29.b5 b7! 30.g1 c8 31.b4 c3 20.xa8 xa8 21.d2 etc. ]
32.xe5 xe5 33.xe5 c1+ 19...xc3 20.xc3 f8 21.d5 xd5
[ I w a s h o p i n g f o r 33...f3?! 34.b6 22.xd5 g6!?
when the b-pawn is running. ] [ 22...xd6 23.xf7+ xf7 24.xd6 b5
34.e1 xe1+ 35.xe1 xb5 36.e4 d7 must still favour White's two rooks over the
37.g2 f6 38.h4 queen, but the game is obviously a long
½-½ ways from the end. ]
23.f3!?
[ An ambitious move, as opposed to 23.a3
542 A14 saving the d-pawn? ]
Kostic,Vladimir 2439 23...xd6! 24.ac1! e6 Now Black's queen
Brkljaca,Ante 2392 gets in trouble.
Zepter Valjevo SCG (8) 18.06.2005 [ But 24...g4 25.h4 h5 26.e4!
[John Watson] works out for White following xd1 27.c8+
f8 28.f5! f6 29.e7+ f7 30.g6+ ]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 e7 4.g2 0-0 25.h4 g4 26.d4?
5.0-0 d5 6.b3 c5 7.b2 c6 8.e3 dxc4 [ 26.xe6! xe6 27.xg7! is a nice trick
9.bxc4 d3 This position (after 9...Qd3) has base upon xg7 ( 27...xg3 28.hxg3
scored about 70% for W hite, regardless of xg7 29.d6! ) 28.xd6 xd6?? 29.f5+ ]
the response. Ultimately the problem is that 26...xd4?? A complete hallucination! Black
Black has no advantages that to make up for would have been well on top after
W h i t e ' s m o b i l e c e n t r a l m a j o r i t y . 10.c1 [ 26...e2! 27.xe6 ( 27.c3 c5 )
This has been seen about half of the time in 27...xe6 ]
master play. W hite protects his c-pawn and 27.xd4 xd5
prepares Rd1 and Ne1 so as to expand in the [ 27...xd5 28.f5 ( 28.c8+ h7 29.f5
centre. a3 30.xg7 also wins ) 28...a3 29.c7
[ My book gave 10.b3! is not worth playing out. ]
A) 10...b4 11.e5 xb3 12.axb3 d8 1-0
( 12...c2 13.a5 d8 14.c1 b4

532
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

543 A14 should be careful to avoid getting into

Kramnik,Vladimir 2793 trouble
Ezat,Mohamed 2454 B1a) 16...c5 17.b4!? and White
World Teams 2013 (9.1) 05.12.2013 wins an exchange in an ingenious way
[Fier, Alexandr] xb4 18.xb7 e5 19.c8! xc8
20.xf8 xf8 21.c4 and White
Ezat tried a brave idea, sacrificing the queen should be slightly better;
for two pieces against Kramnik. Nakamura B1b) 16...b8 this is the most solid
tried this move back in 2009 and he also drew. option 17.xb7 xd7 18.f3 d2
It's hard to believe that the sacrifice is enough 19.d4 xf3 20.xf3 f6 ( 20...xa2
for equality, but it is also not so clear how 21.a1 and White is going to recover
White should proceed to gain an advantage. t h e a -p a wn wit h so m e a d va n t a ge)
In this game Kramnik actually blundered and 21.xf6 gxf6 22.c7 looks slightly
got into trouble. 1.f3 f6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 better for White;
e6 4.0-0 e7 5.c4 0-0 6.b3 An alternative B1c) 16...e5 this is the most forcing,
to 6. d4, t ran sp osing in to th e Cat alan . c5 and White needs to make a decision
7.b2 c6 8.e3 b6 9.c3 b7 10.cxd5 B1c1) 17.xf8 the most ambitious
xd5 11.xd5 xd5 idea, entering into a queen against
[ 11...exd5 is also possible and after 12.d4 two rooks endgame xd1 18.fxd1
a6 13.e1 c4 14.bxc4 xc4 White is d4 basically necessary, to keep at
doing well - this was analyzed for l e a s t o n e f i l e c l o s e d ( 18...xf8
ChessPublishing in Kosten, A (2511)-Landa, 19.xc6 xc6 20.xc6 and with
K (2641)/FRA-chT Top 16 GpA 2008 (5) ] both files dominated White is clearly
12.d4 ad8 better )
[ 12...a5 was also analyzed on B1c11) 19.exd4 xg2 20.xg2
C h e s s P u b l i s h i n g 13.c1 ( 13.dxc5 e4 and the knight can't get out
this is supposed to be critical xc5 14.xd5 21.g1!? ( 21.xh7 f3+
xd5 15.fd1 Miles, A (2595)-Short, N 22.g1 e3 23.fxe3 xe3+
(2660)/BCF-ch 85th Torquay 1998 (11).) is drawn ) 21...xf8 22.d5 h5
13...fd8 14.a3 f5 with an interesting 23.d6 e3 and the counterplay
pos it io n in S ocko , B (2 55 4)-K lo va ns, J arrives just in time 24.fxe3 f3
(2456)/ Skanska Open 2004 (7). ] Black will have a perpetual;
13.e5 xg2+ B1c12) 19.xb7 e2+ 20.g2
[ 13...d6 is the normal move and can lead B1c121) 20...xc1 21.e4!
to some interesting complications 14.dxc5 an important move g4 22.xc1
xc5 15.d7!? critical, but a hard move to xf8
make over the board. Still there are a lot of B1c1211) 23.c8 d7!
games in this position ( 15.e2 doesn't give 24.a3 ( 24.a6 e7
much for White xe5 16.xb7 f6= ) and everything is under
A) 15...g5 is less precise and Black is in control ) 24...xc8 25.xc8
t r o u b l e a f t e r 16.h4 h6 17.c1 xa3 with a draw;
the rook is coming to c7 and Black has B1c1212) 23.c7! h5
problems with the pin, Dizdar, G (2531)- 24.xe5 and White's pieces
Carlsson, P (2430)/ Dos Hermanas op 5th a re t o o h a r m o n i o u s , B d 5 i s
2006 (7). e5 18.g4 fe8 ( 18...f5 coming at some point with
19.c4+ f7 20.d5 wins ) 19.fd1 advantage for White;
with a big advantage for White; B1c122) 20...e4! 21.d7
B) 15...f5 trying to make White play 16. ( 21.b1 doesn't bring anything
e4 and close the bishop for White f3+ 22.f1 xg3+
B1) 16.c1 there is just one game in 23.hxg3 h1+ 24.e2 f3+
this position, from 1980, but I think Black w i t h p e r p e t u a l , s i n c e 25.d2

533
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
loses to xf2+ 26.c1 xe3+
27.c2 c5+ 28.c3 f6-+ )
21...xc1 22.xc1 xd7
23.c8+ f8 24.a3 xc8
25.xc8 xa3 26.f5
and still with a pawn down this
position should be drawn;
B1c2) 17.xc6 this is a simpler way
to play and here W hite also has a
small initiative xc6 18.xc6 xd7
19.g4 xd1 20.gxf5 d2 21.xe5
xa2 22.d1 but with some good
moves Black probably equalizes;
B2) 16.e4 this is the main move and it
looks like Black is holding on in this
ext re m e ly co m p lica t e d p o sit io n g5
17.h4 h6
B2a) 18.c1 again this can be played,
but now it's not so problematic b8
( 18...e5 ) 19.xf8 ( 19.c7
gives nothing for White xd7 20.xd7
c6 21.xd8 xd8= ) 19...xd1
20.fxd1 xf8 21.d8 it looks funny,
but in the end we are going to see an
equal endgame c6 22.xc6 xc6
23.a3 g6 and the position should be
drawn;
B2b) 18.c1 this, on the other hand,
is one of the advantages of the pawn
being on e4 instead of e3 g5 forced
( 18...g6 19.h5 and the queen has
no squares) 19.hxg5 g7 20.e5 h8
21.f4 and the chaos will continue for
a long time. The position looks strange
for Black, but there was a
correspondence game that finished in
a draw, so nothing is clear, Tienhoven,
R (2410)-Endsley, B (2148)/RCCA 20,
pr10 (RUS) 2013. ]
14.xg2 xe5+ 15.f3 cxd4 16.exd4 c6
17.c1
[ 17.e2 Ehlvest tries to activate the rooks
wit h o u t lo s in g t i m e wi t h a 3 a n d b 4 d5
18.ac1 fd8 19.c4 sacrificing the
e x c h a n g e t o c o n n e c t t h e p a w n s a6
o t h e r w i s e 2 0 . R f c 1 wo u l d b e a n n o yi n g
20.e4 xc4 21.bxc4 5d6 22.d1 f6
23.a3 xd4 24.xd4 xd4 and Black
could somehow hold the endgame without
too many problems in Ehlvest, J (2606) -
Nakamura, H (2701)/USA-ch Saint Louis
2009 (2). ]
17...d7 18.a3 This plan looks a bit slow.
[ 18.c4!? could be another idea, in the style
of Ehlvest's gam e fd8 19.c1 b4
20.c7 xa2 21.xd7 xd7 22.a1 b4
and with one roo k le ss t he e ndga me is
supposed to be better for White ]
18...fd8 19.e2 f6
[ 19...xd4 gives White the chance to
exchange one of the rooks 20.xd4 xd4
21.fd1 xd1 22.xd1 d5 ( 22...xd1
23.xd1 d5 24.b4 and Black cannot
defend the pawns on the queenside
properly ) 23.c2 and it will be hard for
Black to defend the c-file, so White should
be close to winning ]
20.b4
[ 20.fd1 would avoid Black's next move, but
i t ' s n o t c l e a r i f i t ' s g o o d o r n o t xd4
21.xd4 xd4 22.c4 e5 and Black's
position is hard to break, but probably White
can change one pair of rooks ]
20...e5!?
[ 20...xd4 could be a solid alternative.
Black has no passed pawn, but both bishops
are on excellent posts. And there is an
interesting idea, if White tries to exchange
th e roo ks o n th e c-f ile 21.xd4 xd4
22.fd1 e5 23.d2 trying to exchange a
pair of rooks h6 24.dc2 e4!? this is the
point 25.fxe4 e5 and it's not so clear what
White's plan would be ]
21.d5 Now White can enter the seventh rank.
xd5 22.fd1 d4 23.xd4 exd4 24.c7
c8 25.xa7 White can now create a passed
pawn, but the d-pawn also becomes more
d a n g e r o u s . d3 26.e4? Centralizing the
queen looks natural, but the queen is also too
exposed in the center.
[ 26.f2 was more prudent h6 ( 26...e5
27.a8 with Rxc8 on the pocket) 27.a4 e8
28.e1 e6 29.c7 and White is
controlling the advance of the d-pawn. Still
the position is not so easy ]
26...e6
[ 26...e5! and here Black is already ok
A) 27.xd3 de8! an important detail and
W hite can't move the queen, since
( 27...xe4? 28.xd8+ xd8 29.fxe4
and Black has no way to deal with 30.
Ra8 ) 28.c4 e2+ 29.h1 e1+
534
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
30.g2 8e2# is mate;
B) 27.c4 e6 28.c7 ( 28.a6
probably this is White's best choice c8
29.c4 e6 with draw ) 28...e2+
29.g1 c2 30.f4 d2 and the d2-pawn
is too dangerous. White already needs to
be careful ]
27.a4?! Now it looks like White loses material,
more or less by force.
[ 27.d2 could be an interesting idea but
B l a c k i s f i g h t i n g h6 ( 27...c3
is not possible, because d8 is not defended
anymore 28.xd3 xd3 29.xd3
a n d W h i t e wi n s) 28.c7 and White is
ho ld in g th e prom ot io n at te mp ts f or t h e
moment, for example e5!? trying to use
the e-f ile 29.f4 e8 30.c1 ( 30.xd3
White still needs to be careful e2+ 31.g1
g5 32.d4 h3 with a mate attack)
30...f5 31.f2 g5 32.xe5 xe5 33.f4
e4+ 34.g1 xf4 35.gxf4 e6
and White has slightly better chances ]
27...d2 28.e2
[ 28.c2 d4 29.b7 c4 30.xd2
( 30.b1 g5 followed by 31...Rc1 wins)
30...xd2+ 31.xd2 g6 32.xb6 e7
and apparently White's passed pawns are
only enough to bring a draw ]
28...d4 Threatening 29...Bb3 29.e3 h6
30.a5 bxa5 31.bxa5 d3 32.e2 b3
33.a8 White's only resource, since now
W hite can get rid of the d2-pawn at least.
xd1 34.xd3 xa8 35.xd2 d8 36.e3
I think Black has good chances in this
endgame, even if the game showed
something different. The a-pawn ties Black's
pieces, but the bishop is still ok on the long
diagonal and with a kingside expansion Black
can create an attack. a4 37.a6 c6 38.a7
a8 39.f4 With the queen on b8 it's harder
f o r B l a c k t o m o v e . g5 40.b8 g6
I don't like this move, now Black has no safe
square for the dark squared bishop.
[ 40...f8 41.b4+ e7 42.b8 h5
could be another idea ]
41.e5 f8 42.h4 d8 43.h5 Forcing Black
to expose the king. gxh5
[ 43...g5 44.hxg6!? fxg6 45.h3 xf3
46.e6+ g7 47.d7+ g8 48.d3
threatening 49. Qxf3 is enough for a draw ]
44.xh5 g5 45.h3 g7 46.f4 f6
47.g4+ h8 48.f5 g7 49.g4
Now the position is already hard for Black to
make any progress. They still kept fighting for
a lot of moves, but with no big changes. d8
50.g3 e8 51.c5 d8 52.b5 c8
53.g5 hxg5 54.fxg5 a1 55.g6 Changing
the last pawn. f6
[ 55...xg6?? 56.a6++- ]
[ 55...fxg6?? 56.d7++- ]
56.gxf7 c3+ 57.g4 xf7 58.d7+ f8
59.h5 c6 60.d2 e7 61.b4+ d7
62.b5 e7 63.d5+ d6 64.g8 c8
65.f7+ c6 66.c4+ b7 67.b5+ c7
68.a5+ c6 69.a6+ d7 70.g5 c6
71.b6 f8 72.g6 a8 73.f6 f8+
74.g7 c8 75.f6 e8 76.f7 d5+
77.g6 e6+ 78.f5 e5+ 79.f6 e6+
80.f5 e4+ 81.g4 g6+ 82.h5 g8
83.b5+ e6 84.e2 f5 85.f2+ e6
86.e3 f5 87.h3+ f6 88.h4+ f5
89.h3+ f6 90.h4+ e5
½-½
544 A14
Krasenkow,Michal 2668
Nakamura,Hikaru 2648
Casino Barcelona ESP (2) 19.10.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 e7
5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 a5 7.c3
[ We haven't discussed this line before on
Chesspublishing.com. Previously, in the July
2005 update, John discussed 7.b2 a4
8.a3 on the basis of the game Ivanchuk-
Asrian, which of course can be found in the
PGN archives. As John points out, W hite
has also tried a number of other
continuations on move 8, but "with
indifferent success" ]
7...c6
[ With this move and White's next, the game
is taking on the outlines of a Closed Catalan,
which is very solid f o r Black, but in m y
opinion leaves White with excellent chances
of obtaining the upper hand. In addition,
Black has played the somewhat odd-looking
... a7-a5. I can hear the crowd yelling, what
about 7...d4 for Black, which looks both
obvious and pretty good. It sends White's
535
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
knight to b5, with no real target to play
against or...? In actuality with the knight on
b5 and if Black plays ...Nb8-c6, the position
somewhat resembles those that can arise
from the Schmid Benoni with the colours
reversed, whereas if Black plays ... c7-c5,
the knight is quite decently placed on b5.
I n t e re s t in gly, in h is n o t e s t o t h e ga m e
Nakamura doesn't even mention this option.
Nevertheless, this line has of course been
played numerous times, so let's have a look
at it: 8.b5
A) 8...c5 9.e3 c6 10.exd4
11.e1!? ( 11.d3 e5 12.e1 d7 13.a3
h8 14.b1 f6 15.d2 c5 16.e4
f5 Cs o m , I - Hu ss , A / S u h r 1 9 9 2)
11...d3?! ( 11...e8 12.b2 is also quite
comfy for White, but pushing the d-pawn
to d3 doesn't look like a particularly
sensible thing to do.) 12.b2 c5 13.e5
b4 (This appears to be a good idea, but
really isn't the knight quickly becomes
vulnerable and doesn't have a good retreat
square. 14.f1 a4 15.f3 b8 16.c3
b6 17.a3 b7? ( Or 17...c2 18.ab1
b7 19.xd3 xd3 20.xd3 xa3
21.xa3 xa3 22.a1 d6 23.xb7
xb7 24.xa4 , and White is a pawn up
for nothing) 18.axb4! xf3 19.xf3 e7
20.c6 d7 21.xa4 (Did I hear anybody
s a y d o m in a t io n ? B la ck is co m p le t e l y
routed note that White at the moment only
has two minor pieces for the queen, yet
more is ready to be banked with W hite
threatening Nxb8 and Ra7, to mention
some of the most obvious issues a
beautiful display by the Finnish
International Master) b7 22.e5 c8
23.xb7 xb7 24.a7 e4 25.xe7
e2 26.f3 h5 27.c6 e4 28.cd4
1-0 Valkesalmi, K-Pulkkinen, K/Helsinki
1994;
B) 8...c5 9.e3
B1) 9...e5!? is interesting if for no other
re a so n t h a n 10.xe5 ( White's best is
10.exd4 exd4 11.b2 c6 12.e1
, and I prefer White, but the chances are
probably about equal.) 10...c6 11.xd4
xd4 12.exd4 xd4 13.a3 xe5
14.d4 c7 15.xf8 xf8 is obviously
fine for Black.;
B2) 9...c6 10.exd4 xd4 11.fxd4
xd4 12.xd4 xd4 13.b1 d8
14.e2 d3 15.xd3 xd3 16.e1
, and with the bishop pair, particularly
the beast on g2, and more space, and
has a clear advantage, Hauchard, A-
Vidarsson, J/Istanbul 2000;
C) 8...c6
C1) 9.b2 e5 10.e3
C1a) 10...c5
C1a1) 11.a3 b8 ( 11...g4
12.exd4 exd4 13.h3 f5 14.d3
cxd4 e8 15.g4 g6 16.d2 ) 12.b4
axb4 13.axb4 xb4 14.exd4 exd4
15.bxd4 xd4 16.xd4 g4
17.b3 c5 18.c3 e8 19.fe1
f8 was played in Reizniece, D-
Za t o n skih , A / W a rsa w 2 0 0 1 , a n d
here 20.xe8 xe8 21.e3 d7
22.f3;
C1a2) 11.exd4 exd4 ( 11...xd4
12.fxd4 xd4 13.xd4 exd4
14.f3 d6 15.fe1 b8 16.c5
xc5 17.f4 d6 18.xd6 cxd6
19.xd4 Paunovic, D-Lanzani, M/
Seville ESP 2007) 12.a3 ( 12.d3
g4 13.d2 e8 14.a3 xf3
15.xf3 e5 16.xb7 b8
, Manouck, T-Flear, G/St Chely
d'Aubrac 2001, and now 17.g2 c6
18.f4 xd3 19.xd3 cxb5 20.cxb5
e3 21.c4 b6 ) 12...g4 13.h3
h5 14.d3 e8 15.d2 ( 15.g4!?
g6 16.d2 ) 15...xf3 16.xf3
e5 17.xb7 b8 18.g2 c6 19.f4
xd3 20.xd3 cxb5 21.ad1 e3
22.f5 xb3 , and a draw was
agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, in Malaniuk, V-
Nikitin, A/Smolensk 2000;
C1b) 10...g4 11.h3 xf3 ( 11...h5
12.g4 g6 13.exd4 exd4 14.fxd4
xd4 15.xd4 c5 16.f5 xf5
17.d4! ) 12.xf3 d7? ( 12...d3
13.c3 d7 14.g4! ) 13.exd4 exd4
14.f4 fd8 15.xc7 xc7
16.xc7+- Gabriel, J-Welker, M/
Germany 1993;
C2) 9.e3
C2a) 9...e5 10.exd4 exd4 11.d3 g4
12.h3 h5 ( 12...e6!? ) 13.f4 c8
14.g4 g6 15.h4 d7 , Berezin, O-
536
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Nik it in , A / K h a rko v 2 0 0 0 , a n d n o w 12.cxd5 xd5 13.xd5 xd5 14.fd1

16.f3 looks very pleasant for White; f6 15.g5 cxd4 16.xd4 xg2
C2b) 9...dxe3 10.dxe3 ( 10.fxe3?! 17.xg2 d5+= Pineda, B-Escobedo
isn't as good, e.g. e5! 11.d4 g4 Tinajero, A/Linares 1997;
12.d2 e4 13.b2 ) 10...d7 D) 9.e5
11.b2 c8 12.a3 d8 13.c2 b8 D1) 9...fd7!? 10.f4 ( 10.f4!? xe5
14.e5 c6 15.c3 a6 16.e4 11.xe5 d7 12.f4 ) 10...a6
( 16.ad1!? e8 17.a4 c7 11.cxd5 cxd5= Hentunen, A-Pihlajasalo,
18.c5 ) 16...xe4 17.xe4 f5 A/FIN 2001;
18.g2 c7 19.ad1 Gross, S- D2) 9...a6 10.cxd5 ( 10.b2 fd7
Meister, Y/ Pardubice 1998; 11.xd7 xd7 12.d3 b5 13.cxb5
C3) 9.d3 e5 10.e3 g4 11.h3 h5 cxb5 14.xb5 b6 15.a4 fb8
12.g4 g6 13.exd4 exd4 14.f4 e8 16.fc1 f8 17.e4 xb5 18.axb5
is usually given as unclear on account of xb5 19.xb5 xb5 Godes, D-Soffer,
t h e ga m e K o rt sch n o j, V -G e l f a n d , B R/Ramat Aviv 1998 20.c3 b6; 10.f4
Tilburg 1992, which Black won rapidly. fd7 11.xd7 xd7 12.a4 b7
However, White has a pleasant position 13.c1 Matjushin, G-Nasobin, A/St
a t t h i s j u n c t u r e , e . g . 15.e2 a4 P e t e r s b u r g R U S 2 0 0 3) 10...cxd5
16.ae1!? axb3 17.axb3 b4 18.c1 11.b2 a7 ( 11...fd7 12.xd7 xd7
, and I prefer White ] 13.d2 b5 14.fc1 f6 15.c2 b8
8.d4 bd7 16.ac1 h6 17.e3 Serafimov, T-Le
[ Black has tried several other things: A) Roux, J/ Clichy FRA 2003) 12.d2 b4
8...b6 13.fc1 c7 14.a3 xc3 15.xc3 e4
A) 9.b2 a6 ( 9...b7 10.c2 bd7 16.xe4 dxe4 17.b2 f6= Zueger, B-
11.fd1 b8 12.d2 c5 13.dxc5 xc5 Kurajica, B/Biel 1981 ]
14.cxd5 exd5 15.f3 e8 16.e3 [ B) 8...e4 9.xe4 dxe4 10.e1 c5
1-0 Badea, B-Ciampi, V/Porto San Giorgio 11.xe4 xd4 12.xd4 cxd4 13.b2 f6
1998 ) 10.d2 a7!? ( 10...bd7 11.e4 14.d1 d8 ( 14...e5 15.f4 ) 15.c2 a4?
dxc4 12.e5 d5 13.bxc4 xc3 14.xc3 16.xd4 Be717. b4 c6 17.b6+-
b8 15.e1 Keres-BÃ|^ÂPÃ|^ÂPk Ovetchkin, R-Glushenkov, F/Salekhard RUS
Kemeri 1937 ) 11.c2 d7 2006 ]
A1) Ribli gives the folllowing analysis in [ C) 8...a4?! 9.xa4 dxc4 10.bxc4 a5
ChessBase Magazine 12.fd1!? dxc4 11.b2 d8 12.c2 c5 13.dxc5 c6
13.xc4 xc4 14.bxc4 xd4 15.xd4 14.d3 1-0 Rozhkov, V-Fedukin, A/ corr
xd4 16.e4 ( 16.d5!? c5 1990 ]
17.xe7+ xe7 18.b1 ) 16...d8 9.c2
17.d1; [ 9.b2 b6 ( 9...b8 10.e5 xe5
A2) 12.e3 c5 13.fd1 cxd4 14.exd4 11.dxe5 e8 12.d2 c7 13.fd1 b5
c6 15.b5 b4 16.b1 b7 17.a3 14.cxd5 cxd5 15.f4 d7 16.e4 b4
a6 18.d3 a8! Lautier, J-Kramnik, 17.e2 c6 18.h4 Van Wely, L-
V/Cannes 1993; Cladouras, P/Munich 1992) 10.c2 a6
B) 9.c2 a6 10.d1 b5 11.c5 11.d2 b5 12.fe1 bxc4 13.bxc4 c5
( 11.e5 fd7 12.xd7 xd7 13.e4 14.dxc5 xc5 15.ad1 c8 16.cxd5
bxc4 14.e3 b6 15.f4 f5 16.exf5 exf5 exd5 Sorokin, M-Magomedov, M/
17.f2 d7 18.b1 fe8 19.d2 d6 Cheliabinsk 1990 ]
20.f3 cxb3 21.axb3 1-0 Ernst, S- 9...b6
Jonkman, H/Utrecht 1999) 11...b4 12.a4 [ Black has to play actively for instance
bd7 13.a3 b5 14.axb4 axb4 15.b2 9...e8?! i s t o o s l o w , e . g . 10.b2!?
b8 16.e1 d8 17.d3 c7= ( 10.d1 b6 11.e4 dxe4 12.e5 b7
Csom, I-Murugan, K/Wrexham 1996; 13.xe4 c7 14.b2 ad8 was played in
C) 9.f4 b7 10.c1 bd7 11.d3 c5 Hernandez, T-Pazos, P/Varadero 2000, but

537
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
after 15.g5! Black is in serious trouble:
f8 16.h3 c8 17.exf7 xf7
18.xe6+- )
A) or 10...b6 11.d2 a6 12.e4 dxc4
13.xc4 b5 14.e3 b7 15.e5 d5
was Berkes, F-Sedlak, N/Balatonlelle 2000,
and now 16.e4 h6 17.exd5 exd5
( 17...cxd5 18.h7+ h8 19.d3 c6
20.a4+- ) 18.d3 b6 19.h7+ h8
20.f5 f8 21.e2;
B) 10...b4 11.d2 b5 12.e4 bxc4
13.bxc4 a6 14.e5 g4 15.a3 xc3
16.xc3 c5 17.fe1 c8 18.d1 cxd4
19.xd4 h6 20.cxd5 Abramovic, B-
Kosanovic, G/Belgrade 1991 ]
10.e4
[ 10.d1 is insufficient: a6 ( 10...b7?!
11.e4 a4 12.b1 axb3 13.axb3 dxe4
14.g5 a7 15.gxe4 xe4 16.xe4
a8 17.c5 Kosic, D-Gavric, M/Herceg
Novi 1999 ) 11.e4 dxc4 12.bxc4 xc4
13.e5 ( 13.e5?! xe5 14.dxe5 d7
15.a4 b5 16.b2 c7 17.xc4 bxc4
18.f4 c5+ 19.h1 b6 20.b2 fd8
21.f5 xd1+ 22.xd1 d8 23.fxe6 fxe6
24.h3 xd1+ 25.xd1 e7 Nalbandian,
T -A s ria n , K / Ye re va n 2 0 0 0) 13...d5
14.e4 b5 15.eg5 g6 16.h4 b6 17.h5
fc8 , and although White doesn't quite
have enough compensation for the pawn, he
still managed to swindle to win the game,
Perez, R-Leyva, H/Holguin 1991 ]
10...a6 11.d2?!
[ This has been played by some decent
players before, but best seems 11.e5 e8
, and now 12.e2 ( 12.d1 dxc4 13.e4
cxb3 14.axb3 h6 15.g4 c7 16.g5 d5
17.gxh6 g6 18.eg5 e8 19.h4 xg5
20.xg5 f6 21.xe6 b4 22.b1 fxe5
23.xf8 xf8 24.a3 1-0 Nikcevic, N-
Mazet, J/Paris 200001) 12...b5 ( 12...c7
13.d1 c8 14.f1 dxc4 15.bxc4 b5
Ager, J-Wolfsteiner, H/Bayern 2002 16.c5;
12...c8!? ( N a k a m u r a ) 13.d1 c7
is given as approximately equal by
Nakamura, with him intending to play ...c6-
c5 on his next move. However, I quite like
White's chances, e.g. 14.f4 c5 15.dxc5
xc5 16.e3 b7 17.a3 7a6 18.cxd5
exd5 19.h3 c7 20.b1 , and White is
clearly better) 13.c5 b4 14.a4 ( 14.e1!?
xe2 15.xe2 c7 16.d2 b5 17.d3
c7 18.h4 Udovcic, M-Teschner, R/
Dortmund 1961) 14...bxa3 ( 14...f6 15.exf6
xf6 16.b2 e7 17.fe1 ) 15.xa3 c7
16.e3 ( 16.xa5 d3 17.xa8 xc2
18.xd8 xd8 19.e3 ) 16...f6 17.exf6
xf6 18.xa5 d3 ( 18...e5!? 19.dxe5
xe5 20.xe5 xe5 21.e1 e6 )
19.xa8 xc2 20.xd8 xd8 21.h3
Timman, J-Karner, H/Tallinn 1973 ]
11...c5!?
[ This novelty by Nakamura is an intended
improvement over the established, which,
however, seems fine for Black to me
11...c8 12.e1 c5 ( 12...dxe4?!
invites trouble: 13.dxe4 xe4 14.xe4
f6 15.b2 b7 16.d1 c7 17.g4 h5
18.e4 g6 19.c1 d8 20.h3
, and White is clearly better at this juncture,
Sinanovic, M-Janjic, J/Neum 2002 )
A) 13.exd5 cxd4 14.e2 exd5 15.xd4
b5 16.f5 bxc4 17.bxc4 xc4 18.xc4
xc4 19.b2 b4 20.ed1 e8 21.xd5
, thus far, Truskavetsky, A-Grabinsky, V/
Alushta 2002, and now g6 seems best, e.
g. 22.f3 ( 22.g5? e5 ) 22...e5
23.xc4 xf3+ 24.xf3 e7 25.e5
c8 26.b3 , and White has sufficient
compensation for the queen, but no more
than that;
B) 13.dxc5?! d4 14.a4 xc5 15.xc5
xc5 16.d3 e5 17.h3 b8 18.f3
e8 19.g5 b5 20.d2 b4 21.ed1
h6 22.xf6 xf6 23.ac1 c3 24.d7
bxc4 25.bxc4 ed8 26.b5 1-0 Renet, O-
Bronstein, D/Oviedo 1992. Nakamura
writes that Black resigned in the f inal
position, but I don't think Nakamura even
had this position on the board or for that
matter his computer, because then he
would have known that this is likely a
forfeit on time (this was a rapid game after
all), not a resignation. In the final position,
Black is clearly better after b7 27.f3
e6 . Nakamura quoting a game in this
fashion is a bit peculiar, but I guess we
can all be lazy on occasion. ]
12.exd5 cxd4 The analysis to the remainder
of the game is largely by Nakamura, unless
where indicated [CH] 13.b5
[ 13.d6?! xd6 14.xa8 dxc3 15.e4
538
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

xa8 16.xd6 e5 leaves Black with
massive compensation the light squares
around White's king are terribly weak ]
13...exd5
[ This is stronger than 13...xb5 14.dxe6
( 14.cxb5 e5 is given as better for Black by
Nakamura, but White is probably fine after
15.c4 c8 16.e2 ) 14...fxe6 15.cxb5
c8 16.c4 , and this is given as better for
Black by Nakamura on account of White's
strong bishop on g2, but this is a rather
unclear position, and I'm not entirely sure,
Black's position should be so easily
dismissed, e.g. c5 17.b2 d3 18.c3
e8 with a complicated struggle ]
14.xd4 c8 15.e1 b5 Thanks to his
pressure on the c4-pawn, Black has taken
control over the game 16.b2
[ Or 16.f5 c5 17.b2
is also pleasant for Black ]
16...e8 17.d1 bxc4 18.bxc4 b6
19.b1 dxc4 20.c6?!
[ Nakamura gives preference to 20.c3 c5
21.c2 ]
20...xc6 21.xf6?!
[ Nakamura says White's last hope was
21.xe7 xe7 22.a3 e5 23.xb6 xb6
, although White's chances of survival are
quite small against two rooks and a strong
advanced passed pawn. ]
21...xf2+! 22.xf2 c5+ The king hunt is
on. After this there is no letting go: Black
eit h e r m a t e s o r win s m a t e ria l d e cisive ly
23.f3
[ 23.f1 c3+ 24.e2 c2 wins a bucket load
of material ]
[ 23.e3 xe3+ 24.e1 xd2+ 25.xd2
d6+ 26.c2 xd1 27.xd1 xf6
leaves Black with an extra piece ]
23...xf6+ 24.g4 e5+ 25.g5
[ Or 25.xe5 c8+ 26.h4 xe5 27.g4
f2+ 28.h3 h5# ]
25...g6+ 26.h5
[ Or 26.f4 d3+ 27.f3 f6+ 28.g4
c8+ 29.h4 xe1 30.h5 f4+ 31.gxf4
f2+ 32.g5 f6# ]
26...f6 27.xe5
[ 27.d5+ h8 28.h4 h6+ 29.h5 g5+
30.h3 xh5+ , and Black will be two piece
up. ]
27...xe5+ 28.h4 c8 Nakamura calls this
his best game ever it's hard to fault him for
thinking that way.
0-1
545 A14
Kurajica,Bojan 2540
Horvath,Peter 2503
TCh-CRO Rabat CRO (6) 10.09.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e6 2.f3 d5 3.g3 f6 4.g2 e7
5.0-0 0-0 6.e5!? Well, this move may not
be a novelty, but it is certainly new to me! Is it
any good (how can it be, White moves a piece
twice in the opening?!), or is White just trying
to take Black out of his book knowledge? c5
So, a completely new position at move 6, who
e8 would believe it was possible in this solid
variation?
[ 6...bd7 is a sensible alternative, but then
W h i t e p l a y s 7.d4 leading to Catalan-style
lines, Aijala,J-Haara,P/Helsinki 1994. ]
7.cxd5 exd5 8.b3 Now White develops this
queenside, he is counting on the fact that
Black cannot play ...Nc6 (because he will get
doubled pawns) to hinder his natural
development. e6
[ 8...e8 might be a more active choice,
9.b2 ( 9.d4!? ) 9...d6 and White has to
decide what to do with the knight. ]
9.b2 c8 Planning ...Nc6, and possibly ...
Bh3, but
[ 9...bd7 seems simpler. ]
10.d4 Now White chooses to switch to more
n o r m a l p o s it i o n s . cxd4 11.d2 c6
12.df3 The e5-knight is defended in time.
h3 13.c1 xg2 14.xg2 e8
The queen was not very well placed on c8, but
now W hite has completed his development
and can try to exploit the ensuing hanging
pawns. 15.xc6 bxc6 16.xd4 c8
17.c2 c5 18.f5 The black hanging pawns
are not so dynamic here because the black
pieces are passively placed, and on top of
that W hite is pressing along the a1-h8
diagonal. d7 19.fd1 d8? Black wants to
conserve his bishop but this leads him into a
terrible tangle,
[ 19...fd8 was natural, and pretty much
f o r c e d , w h e n 20.xe7+ xe7 21.a3

539
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

gives White pressure against the c-pawn, and f2-f4/ g3-g4).

but Black is not doing too badly. ] [ 13.ab1 a6 14.a1 ab8 15.e1 a7
20.e4! Of course! The d-pawn is pinned. e6 16.xb7 xb7 17.f4 db8 18.g4 b5
There is really nothing better, Sunye Neto, J (2500)-Ribli, Z (2580)/Las
[ 20...xe4?? 21.xe4 ] Palmas 1982/IZT. Despite White's efforts,
21.exd5 xd5 Black has succeeded in organizing b6-b5. A
[ 21...d7 leaves Black a pawn down with a balance struggle ensued. ]
rotten position. ] [ 13.d3 a6 14.ab1 ab8 15.a1 a7
22.xg7 e8 23.b2 16.a4!? ( On 16.e1 Black obtains
[ 23.e1 is ve ry st r o n g, t o o , a s xe1 counterplay with xg2 17.xg2 b5 )
24.xe1 xe1 25.d2 forks e1 and d5. ] 16...c6 (the b4 square is weak) 17.e1
23...c6?! b4 18.f4 xg2 19.xg2 e8 20.f3
[ 23...g5 24.b1 ( 24.f4?! xf4 25.gxf4 d6 21.a2 c6 22.e4 f6 and again we
xf5 26.xf5 e3+ is the point, although have a complex fight. Drasko, M (2478)-
W h it e is eve n be t t e r h e re) 24...cd8 Svetushkin, D (2621)/Porto Carras GRE
k e e p s t h e ga m e g o in g , a lt h o u g h t h e r e 2011. ]
should only be one result. ] 13...a5! 14.d3 White resolves to play solidly,
24.g1 a5?! Instead relinquishing any aspirations for an advantage.
[ 24...g5 is now met by 25.f4 ] [ 14.b5 c8 ( 14...b8!? ) 15.d4
25.c4 White attacks d5, and threatens to would be a critical test, but after a6 16.a3
swing his queen to g4. ( 16.c3?! cxd4 and the c4-pawn is
1-0 hanging ) 16...c6!? 17.b1
Black's position was fully acceptable in
Sarno, S (2391)-Saccona, S (2113)/Turin
546 A14 2000. Simplest now was ac8 ( or even
Kvon,A 2492 17...cxd4 18.exd4 e4 . )]
Sargissian,G 2693 14...a6 15.g5
40th Olympiad Open (8.3) 05.09.2012 [ Or 15.e1 xg2 16.xg2 ab8
[John Bartholomew] with ...b6-b5 on tap. ]
15...xg2 16.xg2 b7+ 17.f3
A continuation of our discussion from [ 17.g1 gives Black many ways of
Pantsulaia - Fridman. Here Sargissian proceeding, including the direct b5 . ]
e q u a l i z e s wi t h e n via b l e e a s e , a s W h i t e 17...xf3+ 18.xf3= Sargissian has won the
hesitates to execute d2-d4 or the "kingside theoretical duel without much effort. Now he
crawl". 1.c4 e6 2.f3 f6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 begins to outplay his lower-rated opponent.
e7 5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 b6 7.b2 b7 8.e3 c6 19.f1 d7 20.a4 White is clearly
dxc4 9.bxc4 c5 10.e2 c6 11.d1 concerned about the prospect of ...b6-b5. g5!
[ Not a mistake, but I think White should Staking space on the kingside. 21.e2?!
follow the script with 11.c3 . This would [ White should put an immediate stop to
keep open the option of a quick 12.Nb5 (as Black's kingside expansion with 21.g4! . ]
we see in Pantsulaia - Fridman). ] 21...g4 22.e1 f5 The position is already a
11...c7 12.c3 fd8 bit easier to play for Black. 23.b1 f7
[ Black has a very wide choice: 12...a6 ] 24.g2 f6 25.xf6 xf6 26.c3 a5!?
[ 12...ac8 ] 27.h4?! The knight does nothing on the rim.
[ and 12...ad8 all have their points. ] [ 27.f4 was more practical. ]
13.ac1 Undeniably natural, but Black's next 27...d7 28.b1 b4 29.b3 ad8 30.b5
move discourages W hite from pulling the h5 White is completely tied to the defense of
trigger on d2-d4. Consequently, the rook may d3. 31.a3 g8! Planning ... Ng8-e7-c6-e5.
not be ideally placed on c1. Let's instead see 32.h3 e7 33.hxg4 hxg4 34.d4?!
a couple examples using Delchev's preferred [ 34.g2 offered a better defnse, but it's
plan (Rab1, Ba1 to prevent b6-b5, then Ne1 hard to blame White for lashing out. ]

540
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

34...f6?! Sargissian plays a bit inaccurately This is the other main setup: Black keeps the
in this phase of the game. long diagonal open. 9.c3 c5 10.e2 c8
[ The straightforward 34...ec6! was best. [ 10...e4!? --see Noviko-Turov ]
White is losing the d-pawn after 35.d5 f6 11.d3 Played in many games, but it's rather
36.d6 e5! followed by 37...Nf7. ] slow with the knight on d7.There are 2 better
35.f3 g8 36.f2 ec6 37.fxg4 fxg4 moves:
38.g1! e7 39.b3 e5 40.c1 ec6 [ (a) 11.cxd5 xd5 12.xd5 exd5 13.d4
41.d1 g5 looks thematic although W hite has to
[ 41...gd8 42.f1! ] co n t e n d wi t h c4!? . Then 14.fc1 b5
42.d2 e5 43.c3 f7 44.c1 e5 15.d2! threaten bxc4 and in some cases
45.g2 d8 46.dd1 f7 47.d2 d6 a 4 . B l a c k ' s b e s t i d e a i s p r o b a b l y b6
48.xd6 xd6 49.f1 d8 50.df2? , perhaps leading to 16.ab1 a6! 17.a4!
Kvon has def ended well, but now - likely unclear ]
emboldened by Sargissian's marking of time - [ (b ) T h e m o s t f l e xi b l e m o ve i s 11.fd1!
he commits a mistake. , preparing d4 with pressure down the d-file.
[ White's defensive configuration is nearly a6 12.cxd5 exd5 13.d4 ( 13.h4!?
optimal, so he should continue waiting, i.e. eyes f5 and is attractive) 13...d6 ( 13...c4!
50.g1 . ] would be totally unclear after 14.bxc4 dxc4
50...cxd4 51.f7+ d6 52.exd4 c2! 15.e4 b5 16.e5 d5 17.e6 ) 14.dxc5 bxc5
It's probable that W hite missed this move. 15.h4 with some advantage ( or 15.g5
53.c5+?! h6 16.ge4 )]
[ 53.b1 was more tenacious. ] 11...a6 12.e1!? A standard manoeuvre
53...bxc5 54.dxc5+ c6 begins. The other normal move is
[ Or 54...xc5 . ] [ 12.fd1 ]
55.b1 xc5 56.g6 d2+ 57.g1 12...c7 13.f4 fd8 14.e4!?
[ 57.f2! was the last chance to resist. ] [ 14.f3 would complete the normal setup.
57...d4!-+ 58.e7+ That can be called dynamically equal. ]
[ The text loses quickly, but 58.f2 f3+ 14...dxe4
59.g2 cc2-+ 60.xd2 xd2+ 61.f1 [ 14...d4! 15.b1 e5 makes it hard for
a2-+ would be fairly simple for Black as W hite to progress because the f-pawn is
well. ] e xp o se d if h e p l a ys a k n i gh t t o f 3 , f o r
58...d6 59.b6+ e5 60.g6+ e4 example, 16.d2 b8 17.df3 ( 17.f5 b5
61.f4+ e3 White resigned. Black's opening 18.g4 h6 19.h4 h7 ) 17...exf4 18.gxf4
play was natural and strong. If W hite isn't h5! ]
going to venture d2-d4, then I'm unconvinced 15.dxe4 b8! Targeting the weakness on d4.
that the queenside rook belongs on c1. Still, 16.e5! xg2 17.xg2 e8 18.f3 c6
Black's counterplay in other lines (13.Rab1, 19.e4 b7 20.fd1 White has a little more
13.d3) seems fully satisfactory. The standard space and flexibility. b5 21.ac1 bxc4?
procedure is ...a7-a6, ...Ra8-b8, and ...Nc6-a7, 22.xd8 xd8 23.xc4 The c-pawn is
preparing ...b6-b5. isolated and weak nevertheless, White's king
0-1 is exposed and Black can exploit the weak
point at d3. d5!?
[ 23...b4 24.c1 d5 25.e3 d3
547 A14 26.e1! ]
Marin,Mihail 2537 24.a3 b4 25.xb4?! I don't like
Gonzalez Garcia,Jose 2478 straightening out Black's pawns, although it
VII Sants Open (10) 04.09.2005 gains d4. cxb4 26.d4 h6 27.f3!?
[John Watson] [ 27.c6! ]
27...d7 28.c6 a5 29.e3 f8 30.a7
1.c4 e6 2.f3 d5 3.b3 f6 4.g3 e7 [ 30.b6! ]
5.g2 0-0 6.0-0 b6 7.b2 b7 8.e3 bd7 30...xa7 31.xa7 f5 32.exf6 gxf6

541
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
33.c6?!
[ 33.c8 f7 34.c6 ( 34.xe8 f5
35.xf8+ xf8 36.f2 d2 Once again it's
rook-versus-minor pieces in the endgame.
W h i t e w i l l h a v e t o s t r u g g l e t o d r a w .)
34...d6 35.d8+ e7 36.xd6 xd6
37.c6+ f7 and Black will pick up White's
a-pawn after losing his own. ]
33...f5! 34.f2 d2 35.d4 xa2 36.d8
White has to scrounge around to dig up play
for the pawn. f6 37.f3 a4! 38.bxa4 xa4
39.d3 a3!?
[ 39...g7 protects the b-pawn, and ]
[ 39...b3!? 40.d4 ( 40.b8 a3
41.ce5= ) 40...b2 41.xb2 a3+ 42.e2
a2 wins. ]
40.cxb4 d5
[ 40...c3! 41.e3 c4 and Black is safe. ]
41.e2 xb4 42.xb4 f7 43.c6 a2+
44.d2 xd2+ 45.xd2 d6 46.e3 c5+
47.f3 f6 48.e5 d6 49.d3 c7
½-½
548 A14
Miles,Anthony J 2579
Godena,Michele 2487
5th HIT Open (5) 05.02.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 e7
5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 b6 7.b2 b7 8.e3 bd7
9.d3 c5 10.e2 c7 11.c3 ad8
The most common, and most logical, move
played in this position. 12.e4!?
[ Very committal, normally White prefers to
keep his pawns flexible, and plays either
12.fd1 or ]
[ 12.ad1 ]
12...d4
[ This should be strongest, Black claims extra
space, and play resembles a King's Indian
reversed, where the white pieces are not
optimally placed. 12...dxe4 13.dxe4 g4
14.fd1 a6 is less ambitious, but quite good,
Mista,L-Slezka,V/CZE-chT2 1995, 1/2-1/2
(22) , as 15.h3 ge5 16.xe5 xe5 17.f4
c6 and the knight comes to d4. ]
13.d1 e8
[ A new move, but a perfectly good one,
Black p lays h is knight to d6 in o rder t o
support the ...f 5, or ...b5 breaks. 13...g6
14.e1 e5 is similar, though, Bischoff, K-
Andersson,U/Dortmund 1987, 0-1 (37). ]
14.c1 There was no future for the bishop on
b2, hitting on the strong black pawn chain. e5
15.b1 d6 16.b2 White finds a strange
route f or the rook, which is now ready to
s w i t c h t o t h e c e n t r e o r k i n g s i d e . de8
Black is better, he has more space, and his
p i e c e s a r e w e l l - p l a c e d . 17.d2
White prepares for Black's ...f5, which would
now concede the e4-square. g6!?
[ Possibly Black should avoid this move,
which weakens the kingside. Instead, he
ca n p re p a r e . . . b 5 b y 17...a6 and then
answer 18.f4 with f5! 19.exf5 exf4
with advantage. ]
18.f4 f5 19.exf5 xg2
[ The problem with 17...g6 is revealed after
19...exf4? as White can now play 20.fxg6 . ]
20.xg2 Removing the queen from the
exposed e-line. xf5 21.e4 f6 22.e2
exf4 23.xf4 After this play is equal. All but
one of White's pieces are in play and Black's
extra space counts for little. d7 24.fe1
xe4 25.xe4 d6?
[ A mistake, allowing a long tactical sequence,
better 25...f6 which keeps the d5-square
covered, 26.f2 xe4 27.xe4 g7
and Black has no problems. ]
26.xe8 xe8 27.d5+ With the black
bishop on f6 this move would not be possible.
g7 28.e5+ As the d6-bishop is pinned.
h6?!
[ ' O u t o f t h e f r y i n g p a n . . . ' 28...f8
is forced, with 29.xd6+ xd6 and the e8-
ro o k i s p r o t e c t e d b y t h e k i n g , 30.xe8+
xe8 31.a8+ f7 32.xa7+ e7
forcing an endgame where Black has some
drawing chances. ]
29.e4
[ This is strong, and wins the exchange.
29.f2 threatens a mating attack beginning
Ng4+, and also obliges Black to concede
t h e e x c h a n g e : xe5 30.g4+ g7
31.xe5 winning. ]
29...d8 30.f6! xf6 31.xe8 g5
32.f3 d2 33.e2 c1 34.g2 e7
35.f2 Bringing the last piece into the game.
e3+ 36.f3 g5 37.g4+ xg4
[ 37...g7 38.xe3 dxe3 is rather more
542
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
awkward. ]
38.xg4 e3 39.f3
1-0
549
Neverov,Valeriy
Efimenko,Zahar
74th ch-UKR KO (4.2) 31.08.2005
[John Watson]
Black tries a radical solution, but the game is
a tribute to the latent dynamism in W hite's
position, even after a trade of queens. 1.c4
e6 2.f3 f6 3.g3 d5 4.b3 e7 5.g2
0-0 6.0-0 c5 7.b2 c6 8.e3 dxc4
Now for a sh ameless plug: There are actually
9 different plausible moves here, all discussed
in my ancient book "English: Franco, Slav,
and Flank Defences"! You can get a reprint
f rom Hardinge Simpole (o n Am azon ) bu t
there's a real drawback: it's in the old English
D e s c r i p t i v e n o t a t i o n . 9.bxc4
If this works, W hite's whole move order is
inaccurate, But since it's easily the most
frequently-arising one over the past 50 years
it's good that White has the
appropriateanswers! 10.b3! d8 11.d1
a6
[ 11...xb3 12.axb3 gives White control of
e5, a potentially mobile centre and the a-
file ]
12.xd3
[ 12.e1 f5 13.d3 ]
12...xd3 13.c3
[ 13.e1 d8 14.c3 ( 14.d3 b8 15.d2
is also slightly more comfortable for White )]
13...d8 14.ab1!? Quite effective. White
could also play the immediate
[ 14.d4 and stand better: cxd4 15.exd4
A) 15...b8 16.ab1 d7
17.e5! xe5 18.dxe5 xd1+ 19.xd1
d7 20.cxb5 axb5 21.e4 with the
better game );
B) 15...a5 16.c5! c4 17.ab1 xb2
18.xb2 makes it very hard for Black to
develop and is a solid plus. ]
14...b8 15.a4
[ 15.d4! ]
15...d7?! Uninspiring. Better
[ 15...b5 16.cxb5 xb5!?
17.xc5! xc5 18.xf6 gxf6 19.dc1
f a v o u r s W h i t e) 17.c3 b6 18.d3
, when Black's pawns are a little weak but so
are White's - slight edge to the first player. ]
16.b6 d6 17.d4! cxd4 18.exd4 e8
A14 19.d5! exd5 20.cxd5
2572 [ Even better is 20.xf6! gxf6 21.xd5
2643 with a very large advantage. Black has to
play g7 22.h4! ( 22.d2 b5 23.e3 )
22...d7 23.e3! e5 24.hf5+ f8
25.f4 c7 26.c5! and Black is in trouble. ]
20...e7 21.e5
[ Also strong is 21.xf6! gxf6 22.d2 ]
21...c8 22.bc4 b5 23.xd6 xd6
24.a3!?
[ 24.d4 ]
24...bc8 25.dc1 fe8 26.h3 xc1+
27.xc1 e4 28.g2 xd5! 29.xf7?
[ 29.xe4 xe5 30.xb7 ]
29...8f6! 30.f3 xg3 31.h6+ gxh6
32.hxg3 c6
[ 32...d2! Things have gone wrong for
d3!? White and Black has some edge. ]
33.b2 f7?!
[ 33...h5! 34.f1 g5 ]
34.c2 d3 35.f2 h5 36.c1 d7 37.f4
f8 38.e3 e6 39.f1 d6 40.c4
The bishops are very strong. Black had a few
opportunities in what follows, but only when
White played inaccurately. The whole position
was terribly difficult for the second player: f6
41.c1 g5 42.a3 d7 43.e2 g6
44.c1 f7 45.xg5 xg5 46.f4+ g6
47.c5 d7 48.g5+ f6 49.xh5 e4
50.g4 d2 51.a4 d3 52.e3 xe2+
53.xd3 e7 54.h6+ g7 55.b6 g8
56.d4 f7 57.a5 g8 58.d5 f8 59.f5
f7 60.g5 d7+ 61.e5 f8 62.f6+ g8
63.d6 c7 64.e6 c1 65.d8+ g7
66.f6+ g6 67.g8+ h5 68.f7
( 16...b5 1-0
550 A14
Novik,Steffen 2534
Turov,Maxim 2527
Open Dutch Championship (8) 03.08.2005
[John Watson]
This game makes the Reti look like a dull line
( 16...axb5 used for equality, but the notes show how
543
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
interesting the play can become in these lines.
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 b6 4.g2 b7
5.0-0 c5 6.b3 e7 7.b2 0-0 8.c3 d5
9.e3 bd7 10.e2 With the knight on d7
instead of c6 it makes also makes sense to
prevent ...Ne4 by
[ 10.d3 . But that's not really necessary. ]
10...e4!? A typical freeing move, but White
can still try for advantage.
[ Tony annotate d the game Sorokin-
Sambuev, St Petersburg 1999, again
illustrating the fact that these lines are more
unbalanced than they sometimes appear:
10...a6 11.fd1 c7 12.ac1 dxc4
( (Tony: "A normal plan in these positions,
Black closes the c-file and aims for
counterplay with ...b5. Further keeping the
t e n s i o n r u n s i n t o p r o b l e m s : 12...ac8!?
13.cxd5 xd5 14.xd5 xd5 15.e4 b7
16.d4 with a mobile centre.) 13.bxc4 c6!?
14.d4! b7? ( 14...cxd4 ) 15.d5! exd5
16.cxd5 xd5 17.xd5 xd5 18.e5!
f6 ( 18...xg2? 19.xd7 e4 20.c4 )
19.xd5! xd5 20.d1 ad8 21.d2!
xe3!? 22.xb7 xd1 23.c2 and White
won easily. ]
11.cxd5 xc3
[ Or 11...exd5 12.d4 ( 12.fd1!? ) 12...xc3
13.xc3 c7 14.dxc5 ( 14.h4!?
see the next note.) 14...bxc5 15.ac1 a5
(stopping b4 and threatening ...Ba6) 16.fd1
b6 ( 16...a4 17.b4! wins the d4 square)
17.b2 ( 17.e1!? ) 17...f6 18.h4! d7
( 18...a4 19.f5 fd8 20.b4! c4
21.b1 ) 19.d2! a4 ( 19...g5 20.xa5 )
20.b4! , transforming the pawn structure to
White's advantage. ]
12.dxc3?! A nothing move.
[ M o r e a m b i t i o u s w a s 12.xc3 exd5
( 12...xd5 13.d4 c8 14.e4 b7
15.fd1 ) 13.d4 c7 , and besides 14.dxc5
of the last note, W hite might try 14.h4!?
xh4 ( 14...ac8 15.f5 f6 16.ac1
, for example, fe8 17.fd1 g6 18.h6+
g7 19.g4 ) 15.gxh4 with the ideas of
d x c 5 a n d Q g 4 ac8 16.h1 ( 16.dxc5
bxc5 17.fd1 )]
12...xd5 13.c4 c6 14.e4
[ More natural seems 14.ad1 , but after
c7 White has nothing better than 15.e5
( 15.d2 xg2 16.xg2 f6 ) 15...xe5
16.xe5 xe5 17.xc6 ad8= ]
[ Or 14.e5 xg2 15.xg2 xe5 16.xe5
f6 17.ad1 c8 18.c3 c6+ 19.e4
leaves at best a nominal edge which can't
possibly lead to anything. ]
14...c7 15.d2!? fd8 16.f4 White's basic
idea is that Black has nothing going on so
maybe he can grab some space in the
meantime. f6!? A slight weakness but it
doesn't matter.
[ 16...e5 is also fine. ]
17.ad1 f8 18.f5!? d6 19.f3 exf5
20.exf5 e8 21.f2 ad8 22.fe1 xe1+
23.xe1 e8 24.xe8 xe8 , about equal. A
true grandmaster yawner, but it needn't have
been.
½-½
551 A14
Pantsulaia,Levan 2575
Fridman,Daniel 2653
40th Olympiad Open (2.11) 29.08.2012
[John Bartholomew]
The following line in the Réti has been given
extensive coverage in recent works on the
English, so it's high time we tackled it. 1.f3
d5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 e6 4.0-0 e7 5.c4 0-0
6.b3 c5 7.e3 c6 8.b2 b6 9.c3 dxc4
10.bxc4 b7 11.e2 c7 In "Grandmaster
Repertoire 4: The English Opening Vol 2"
Mihail Marin characterizes this move as a loss
of time in view of White's next. Meanwhile, in
"The Modern Reti: An Anti-Slav Repertoire"
Alexander Delchev calls 11...Qc7 "a flexible
move" and actually labels 12.Nb5 as a "loss
of tempo"! W ho is right? Of course it's
impossible to say, but 11...Qc7 has been
seen plenty of times in Grandmaster practice
with reasonable results for Black (it's the
second most popular move at this juncture).
This line is quite subtle, and I personally
doubt there are many bright-line rules.
[ Most popular is 11...c8 ]
[ 11...a6 ]
[ 11...d7 ]
[ and 11...b4!? are also played. ]
12.b5 Following Marin's recommendation.
[ Instead, Delchev endorses the prophylactic
approach 12.fd1 a6 ( 12...fd8
544
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
is examined this month in Kvon, A (2492)-
Sargissian, G (2693)/Istanbul TUR 2012)
13.ab1 ab8 14.a1 , keeping open
options of either d2-d4 or the "kingside
crawl" with Nf 3-e2, f 2-f3, g3-g4, etc. In
general Marin favors the former plan, while
Delchev usually opts for the latter. ]
12...b8!? Neither text mentions this retreat.
[ Delchev writes that after 12...c8 13.fd1
a6 14.c3 a5 "the queen is not worse on
c8 than on c7". This is probably due to the
fact that d2-d4 has been held up, and if
White reverts to the slower plan with Nf3-e1,
then the queen's placement o n c8 isn't
particularly significant. Often an exchange
o f l i g h t - s q u a r e b i sh o p s wi l l o c c u r a n d
Black's queen ends of on b7 anyways. ]
13.d4 Certainly the most direct.
[ White could also play ala Delchev with
13.fd1 a6 14.c3 c7 15.ab1
(compare to the note to White's 12th). ]
13...e8!? Very mysterious! This appears to
be directed against a future d4-d5.
[ 13...a6 14.c3 a5 15.dxc5 xc5
( 15...bxc5!? ) 16.ab1 ( 16.a4!
l o o k s m o r e c h a l l e n g i n g) 16...c7
1/2-1/2 Solleveld, M (2502)-Levin, F
(2482)/Netherlands NED 2011 ]
14.fd1
[ White can also consider 14.e5 , though
a5! 15.xb7 xb7 is a good reaction. ]
14...a6 15.c3 cxd4 16.exd4 a5 17.d5!?
Pantsulaia does not hesitate. Probably this is
the correct decision, otherwise Black intends
quick coordination with . .. Qb8-c7 and Ra8-
d8. f8! Now the significance of Black's 13th
move is apparent. 18.dxe6 xe6 19.f1
c8
[ 19...c7!? ]
20.g5 xg2?!
[ The awkward-looking 20...e5! is best. ]
21.xg2 c6 22.d5! xc4 23.xf6 gxf6
24.e4 f5?
[ 24...g7! ]
25.ef6+ h8 26.h3
[ Here and on the next move White misses
the murderous 26.e1 , looking to penetrate
down the e-file. After, say, e6 the engine
qu i c k l y p o in t s o u t ( 26...g7 27.e7! )
27.ac1!+- , threatening 28.Rxe6 followed
by 29.Nxb6 or 29.Nc7. ]
26...h6 27.e7? Letting Black off the hook.
[ 27.e1! was again powerful, this time with
t h e r e m a r k a b l e a t t a c k i n g i d e a o f e6
28.e7 c5 29.xe6 fxe6 30.eg8!!
. Did I mention I'm analyzing this with the
assistance of an engine?:) ]
27...e6 28.xc6 xf6 29.d4 b2!
Securing the draw. 30.d2 c4 31.dd1
b2 32.d2
[ White decides to call it a day. He could play
on with 32.xf5 xd1 33.xd1 , but Black
no lo nge r h as an y p ro b le m s. Su m min g
things up, I don't see much wrong with 11...
Qc7, and Fridman's unique take with 12...
Qb8!? and 13...Re8!? is definite food for
thought. ]
½-½
552 A14
Reti,Richard
Gruenfeld,Ernst
Trencianske Teplice (2) 1928
[Nigel Davies]
Starting out as an English Opening this game
soon transposes into a main line of the Reti.
Black seemed to be doing OK up to move 22
when he finally succumbed to W hite's
ongoing pressure. 1.c4 e6 2.g3 d5 3.g2
f6 4.f3 e7 5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 c5 7.cxd5
[ These days we tend to keep the central
tension, say with 7.e3 ]
[ or 7.b2 . ]
7...xd5 8.b2 c6 9.c3 f6 10.c1
xc3 11.xc3 e5 12.d3 b8 It makes
sense to take the rook off the h1-a8 diagonal
but more recent encounters have featured
other moves:
[ a) 12...e6 13.b2 d4 14.e3 xf3+
15.xf3 d5 16.e4 e8 17.e2 d6
was dead equal in Speelman, J (2583) -
Ganguly, S (2531), Bled 2002. ]
[ b) 12...g4 13.h3 e6 14.b2 e8
15.d2 c8 16.e4 e7 17.f4?! f5
18.d2 exf4 19.xg7? fxg3 20.xc6 xc6
21.h8 f8 was good for Black in
Dizdarevic, E (2520)-Zelcic, R (2554), Solin/
Spilt 2002. ]
13.b2 d4 14.e3 xf3+ 15.xf3 xd3
16.g2
545
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ And not 16.xe5? because of f5 17.xf6
xf3 threatening 18...Bh3. ]
16...b6 17.xe5 xe5 18.xe5 b7
[ 18...g4 might have been better to try and
keep W hite's rooks off the d-file, at least
temporarily. ]
19.fd1 b5 20.c7 xg2 21.xg2 a5
22.d7 White has kept an edge right into the
endgame. Maybe Black could have held the
game with super accurate defence but then
this is never easy. bc8
[ 22...a4 is an interesting bid for counterplay
as if White carries out his 'threat' of 23.xf7
there follows xf7 24.xb8+ f8 25.b7
e2 26.d5+ h8 27.f1 a3 threatening
to take on a2. ]
23.d6 c6?!
[ And here 23...c4 is a better chance, trying
to hoover some pawns off the board. ]
24.d5 a4 25.a7 cc8
[ Perhaps it was only here that Black saw
25...axb3 26.a4 , winning the rook on c6. As
a result he loses a pawn. ]
26.xa4 cd8 27.f3 d3 28.c4 d6
29.e4 e2 30.c2 b5 31.f3 fd8
32.e1 d7 33.e4 d3 34.e3 d1
35.ce2 e6 36.e5 h6 37.e4 1d4
38.xd4 xd4 39.e4 d2 40.a4 xe5
41.a8+ h7 42.xf7 e4+ 43.f3 e6
44.b8 d4 45.h4 d2
[ Or 45...c4 46.bxc4 xc4 47.xb6 xb6
48.d3+ h8 49.xc4 etc. ]
46.h5 e5 47.a8 d5+ 48.xd5 xd5
49.xb6 xh5 50.b5 d5 51.a4 d3
52.a5
1-0
553
Rusev,Krasimir
Brynell,Stellan
Copenhagen Whitsun GM (1) 03.06.2014 19.a7
[Kosten, Tony]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 b6 4.g2 b7 square. Black is passive and his rooks are
5.0-0 e7 6.b3 0-0 7.b2 d5 8.e3 bd7 doing nothing, White is better. e5 21.cb5
9.e2 a5 Black's 2nd most popular move White controls the queenside light squares.
plans the annoying ...a4 when Black can g6 22.h4!?
either open the a-f ile o r play ...a3 unde r
favourable circumstances.
[ W e ' v e c o v e r e d t h e c l a s s i c a l 9...c5
many times. ]
10.c3 a4 11.xa4! Now I think this is best,
otherwise the black a-pawn is too annoying.
[ 11.d4 a3 12.c1 b4 13.d2 e7
"gives Black good play", according to me a
decade ago! ]
[ 11.ab1 axb3 12.axb3 c5 13.d4 d7
14.fd1 e5 15.c2 dxc4 16.bxc4 xg2
17.xg2 e4 18.f3 exf3+ 19.xf3 d3
was already quite promising for Black in
Mge la d ze, T (2 19 8 )-A kop ian , V (26 6 7 )
Albena 2014, although 1/2-1/2 (49). ]
11...dxc4 12.xc4!? A surprising novelty.
Eleven years ago I considered this dubious,
but to be fair I hadn't looked too much further.
[ 12.fc1 wa s t h e f o r m e r c h o i c e , b5!
( 12...cxb3 13.axb3 c5 was Chuchelov, V
(2 6 0 3 ) -R o go ze n c o , D (2 5 1 7 ) - s e e m y
annotations in the PGN Archive.) 13.c3
c5 ( 13...b8 ) 14.xb5?! ( 14.e5 )
14...d3 15.cb1 cxb3 16.a4 forced
( 16.axb3? xb2 17.xa8 xa8
wins a piece.) 16...c5 17.c3?! ( 17.e1 )
17...c4 with an obvious black advantage,
Mgeladze, T (2295)-Dzagnidze, N (2390)
Tbilisi 2002, 0-1 (33). ]
[ 12.c3 is worth a thought, cxb3 13.axb3
c5 14.d4 but White has no advantage. ]
12...a6 13.c2 xf1 14.xf1 So, what
exactly has White obtained for his exchange
sac? W ell, apart from the pawn he has
excellent light square control. c5
[ 14...b5 15.c3 c5 is better, Ne5 is no
longer a problem and Black is fine. ]
15.e5 c8
[ 15...xe5! returns the exchange, 16.xa8
xa8 17.xe5 d7 18.a1 b5 19.c3
( 19.d3 c6 20.c3 c4 ) 19...e5
A14 20.e4 xe4 21.xe4 d3
2540 with compensation for the pawn. ]
2463 16.c6 e8 17.a7 b8 18.c6 c8
b8 Black is happy to repeat, but
W h it e is o n ly g a in in g t im e o n t h e c lo c k .
20.c3! The knight heads for the weak b5-
[ I rather like the look of 22.f4! and f5. ]
22...h5 Best, if
[ 22...h6 instead, then 23.c6 d8 24.f3
546
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
threatens both Nc6 and h5. ]
23.a4 A slow, strengthening move, but White's
positional advantages are not going to
disappear.
[ 23.c6 d8 24.d4 is also strong. ]
23...g4
[ 23...d5! blocks the h1-a8 diagonal, when
24.d4 d7 25.d1 fd8 limits White's
edge, at least Black has got his pieces into
play. ]
24.d4 f5?! Further weakening Black's light
squares. He obviously had ideas of some sort
of kingside demonstration, but it is too
optimistic. 25.c4 f7?!
[ 25...xh4 at least justifies his previous play,
but 26.dxc5 ( 26.gxh4? e7 menacing ...
Q x h 4 a n d s u d d e n l y B l a c k i s wi n n i n g !)
26...bxc5 27.c6 c8 28.d6 d7
29.xc8 xc8 30.xc5 just ignores the
sacrifice on h4. ]
26.c6 cxd4 27.bxd4! Hitting e6, while
keeping e7 and b8 attacked.
[ 27.xb8? dxe3! would be very unclear. ]
27...6e5 28.xe6 Taking a 2nd pawn and
exchanging queens, Black is totally lost. xc6
[ 28...xe6 29.xe6 xc6 30.xf8 xf8
31.xc6 with the bishop pair and two extra
pawns. ]
29.xf7+ xf7 30.xc6 bc8 31.d5+
e8 32.xg7 Grabbing a 3rd pawn for the
exchange, and leaving the f8-rook short of
squares. f7 33.d4!? White prefers not to
swap his light square bishop for the rook.
However,
[ 33.xf7+ xf7 34.xe7 xe7 35.d4
would surely force resignation. ]
33...h7 34.xb6 h6 35.xe7 xe7
36.a5 The two bishops will help shepherd the
white passers home. c2 37.b4 f6 38.f3
e4 39.xe4 fxe4 40.d4 a2 41.a1
xa1+ 42.xa1 c6 43.d4 d7 44.g2
c7?!
[ 44...c8 45.b5 d6 46.a6 d5 47.b6
b8 stops the queenside pawns, but then
48.g4 hxg4 49.g3 followed by Kxg4 and
h 5 wi l l q u e e n o n t h e o t h e r s i d e o f t h e
board. ]
45.b5 c2 46.a6 Black can't stop b6-b7 and
Be5 followed by b8(Q).
1-0
554 A14
Sherbakov,Ruslan 2549
Aleksandrov,Aleksej 2654
9th chT Ekaterinburg RUS (4) 20.05.2002
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 f6 4.f3 e7
5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 c5 7.e3 b6 8.b2 b7
9.c3 bd7
[ The solid choice, 9...c6 is possibly more
active. ]
10.d3
[ I prefer 10.e2 which keeps the possibility
of playing d4 in one move (instead of d3 first,
then d4) a6 11.fd1 which we examined in
Sorokin, M-Sambuev,B/St Petersburg RUS
1999. ]
10...c7 11.e2 c6!?
[ Interesting, Black aims to nullify White's
pressure on the h1-a8 diagonal. We looked
at 11...ad8 in Miles,A-Godena,M/Nova
Gorica SLO 2000. ]
12.fd1
[ 12.fe1 b7 13.e4 is an alternative plan,
closing the diagonal. ]
12...b7 13.d4 Black was men acing to play
...d4 himself, because of the pin on the f3-
knight, so White strikes first. dxc4!?
[ A perfectly logical novelty, Black opens the
long diagonal, although at the cost of giving
W hite a central preponderance. 13...fd8
is a sound alternative, Bobotsov,M-Najdorf,
M/ Siegen 1970. ]
14.bxc4 e4 15.d5!? This is the sort of
ce nt ra l brea kth ro ugh th at W h it e is o f t e n
hoping to play in this variation, and here he
takes advantage of the lack of black kingside
de f e nd ers. xc3 16.xc3 exd5 17.e5
xe5 18.cxd5! This zwischenzug is the point
of White's combo. a4 19.xe5
[ 19.d6!? c6 ( 19...xd1 20.xd1 d7
21.xe5 transposes to the game) 20.dxe7
xe7 21.xe5 xg2 22.xg7
is also interesting, and not too clear. ]
19...xd1 20.xd1 d7 The critical position,
that White needed to assess before playing
his fifteenth move. White has sacrificed the
exchange, but in return he has two powerful
bishops and a dangerously mobile centre.
21.d6 ad8!? 22.h5
[ 22.dxe7!? is a difficult move to judge:
547
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

xd1+ 23.f1 xe2 24.exf8+ xf8 something like this: c4 28.e4 c1+
25.xe2 d2 26.c4 c2 27.d5 b5 ( 28...xa2 29.g4 g5 30.h4 g6
White has two great bishops, but the active 31.hxg5 gxf5 32.exf5+- ) 29.g2
rook and passed queenside pawns make A) 29...g5 30.d1+- h5 31.h4 h6
the situation quite unclear. ] 32.f4 h8 (here I stopped calculation -
[ The other alternative is the 'unpinning' somehow White can win against such ugly
22.d5 g5 ( White has at least a draw major pieces) 33.d6 (probably the most
after 22...f6 23.xf6 gxf6 24.e4 fe8 precise way) xd6 34.xd6 g6 ( 34...c4
25.f5 c6 26.g4+ f8 27.f4 35.d5 c3 36.e5 ) 35.xg6+-;
b u t m a y b e n o m o r e) 23.xg7 xg7 B) 29...g6 30.xg6 g5 31.xg5 hxg5
24.xg5+ h8 25.d5 with good 32.f5 /\\ Bc7+- with technically winning
compensation. ] endgame also Black can still fight
22...fe8 23.h3 a4 24.d7 f8 25.d2 somehow. ]
b4 26.f5 27...a4 28.d2 b4 Taking a look at the
[ 26.g4 xg4 27.xg4 c4 28.c7 scoresheet I noticed that the move h7-h6 was
would regain the exchange, but the opposite- played just a few moves ago so I decided to
c o lo u r b is h o p s wo u ld m a ke a win ve r y repeat one more time having not realised that
problematic. ] the position after 26. Bf5 h6 is just that the
26...h6 27.d1 a4 The queen stays on the same.
fourth rank to stop White from playing Qg4, [ 28...c6 was already insufficient as White
and also keeps the rook under attack. 28.d2 could have simply continued his K-side
b4 29.d1 a4 30.d2 White can make a c t i o n s b y 29.h4 with idea Qh5-g4 with
no progress. strong attack. ]
½-½ 29.d1 a4 30.d2??
[ 30.d5! ]
30...b4 And here my opponent wisely
555 A14 claimed a draw by three times repetition. It
Sherbakov,Ruslan was very disappointing - we have eventually
Alexandrov,Alexei lost a very important match with the score 2,
chT Yekaterinburg 2002 5:3,5!
[R. Scherbakov] ½-½

1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 e7

5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 c5 7.e3 b6 8.b2 b7 556 A14
9.c3 bd7 10.d3 c7 11.e2 c6 Socko,Bartosz 2554
12.fd1 b7 13.d4 dxc4 14.bxc4 e4 Klovans,Janis 2456
15.d5 xc3 16.xc3 exd5 17.e5 xe5 Skanska Open (7) 29.07.2004
18.cxd5 a4 19.xe5 xd1 20.xd1 d7 [Tony Kosten]
21.d6 ad8 22.h5
[ 22.dxe7 really gave nothing as the rook 1.f3 d5 2.c4 e6 3.e3 f6 4.b3 e7 5.g3
was very active and Black's Q-side pawn c5 6.g2 c6 7.0-0 0-0 8.b2 b6 9.c3
were dangerous. ] b7 10.cxd5 xd5 11.xd5 xd5 12.d4
22...fe8 23.h3 a4 24.d7 f8 25.d2 a5 By a very strange move order we
b4? This terrible mistake was played after reached the position I discussed in the notes
40 minute's thought! to Bareev,E-Kramnik,V from Monte Carlo, a
[ Black should have clarified the situation short while ago. 13.c1 A further possibility. I
i m m e d i a t e l y b y 25...g6!? 26.h6 f6 played
27.e6+ h8 28.c7 c6 29.xd8 [ 13.h4!? in my game, but thought that ]
xd8 ] [ 13.dxc5! was best, as in Miles,A-Short,N/
26.f5 h6 27.d1 ch-GBR, Torquay ENG 1998. ]
[ I was going to play 27.d5! and calculated 13...fd8 A natural move, as is

548
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 13...ac8 14.a3 f5 15.dxc5 bxc5 wins material. ]

16.d7!? xf3 17.xf3 xf3 18.xe7
c6! 19.xc5 fd8 when Black has a little
compensation for the pawn, because of the
weakened kingside light squares, Bistric,F-
Hulak,K/Makarska 1996. ]
[ 13...cxd4 is worse, as after 14.xd4 xd4
15.xd4 White has a slight edge in the
endgame. ]
14.a3 f5 Black removes his queen from
the diagonal.
[ 14...ac8 is also fine, 15.dxc5 ( 15.e2
h5 16.fd1 is fairly level, Poluljahov,A-
Maiorov,O/Krasnodar 1998) 15...xc5
16.xc5 bxc5 soon petered out to a draw in
Toran Albero,R-Filip,M/Skopje 1972. ]
15.e2 e4 Threatening ...Bd3. 16.fd1
g5?! A bizarre novelty, which weakens the
kingside and certainly is no improvement on
[ 16...c6! when 17.dxc5 bxc5 18.xc5
xd1+ 19.xd1 d8 ( 19...xc5 20.h4
e5 21.xe4 xe4 22.xc5 is the point)
20.e2 d3 21.e1 ( 21.b2 xc5
22.h4 g5 23.xc6 xe3! 24.fxe3
xe3+ 25.g2 g5 1/2-1/2 Arkhipov,S-
Szekely,P/Moscow 1985) 21...xc5 22.h4
b4!? ( 22...e5 23.xc6 d6 24.g2
b5 is even simpler, ...Bb4 is coming with
adequate play) 23.xf5 xe1 24.xe1
xf5 25.xc6 d2 with chances to draw
the endgame, Toran Albero,R-Darga,K/
Skopje 1972. ]
17.dxc5 Obvious and good! bxc5?!
[ 17...xc5 would avoid what follows,
18.xc5 ( 18.b4 f8 ) 18...bxc5 19.d2
xg2 20.xg2 b7 21.c4
with a positional plus. ]
18.xd8+ xd8 19.d4! The c-pawn is
pinned. cxd4? Not a nice move to play, but
after the superior
[ 19...e5 20.xe4 xe4 21.xc5
wins a pawn for nothing. ]
20.xe4 xe4 21.xe7 White is already
winning. d5 Black attempts to defend g5
and a5, but now his king gets into trouble.
[ 21...d3 22.h5 e8 23.xg5+ g6
24.xa5 wins the knight whereas the bishop
on e7 is untouchable: xe7? 25.d8+ g7
26.xe7 ]
[ 21...d7 22.b5! xe7 23.xg5+ f8
24.c8+ e8 25.c5+ g7 26.xe8
22.f6 There is no way to stop Rc8+. h6
23.c8+ h7 24.h5 Black has no sensible
way to avert Rh8 mate!
1-0
557 A14
Sorokin,Maxim 2574
Sambuev,Bator 2390
Chigorin mem (2) 03.11.1999
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 A common method of
reaching an English, the advantage is that
B l a c k c a n n o t p l a y l i n e s wi t h 1 . . . e 5 , t h e
disadvantage is that W hite is committed to
playing his knight to f3. Still, if White is going
to do this anyway, he might as well start with
1 Nf3. e6 3.g3 b6 4.g2 b7 5.0-0 c5
6.c3 e7 Black has indicated his
willingness to play a Hedgehog, but W hite
prefers to keep his centre in reserve, and
heads for a Reti instead. 7.b3 0-0 8.e3 d5
9.b2 bd7 10.e2 a6
[ A perfectly logical move, but either the
immediate 10...c7 or the simplifying ]
[ 10...e4 are normally preferred. ]
11.fd1
[ I like White's method of playing this position,
many players give away their intentions by
the move 11.d3 but instead, in this game,
W h it e d e ve lo p s h is ro o ks t o t h e ir b e s t
squares, c1 and d1, first, before deciding
how to move his d-pawn. ]
11...c7 12.ac1 dxc4
[ A normal plan in these positions, Black
closes the c-file and aims for counterplay
with ...b5. Further keeping the tension runs
into problems: 12...ac8!? 13.cxd5 xd5
14.xd5 xd5 15.e4 b7 16.d4
with a mobile centre. ]
13.bxc4 c6!?
[ A new move, and a very sensible one,
preparing ...b5. 13...ac8 has also bee n
tried, and in Tosic,M-Petronic,J/Novi Sad
1995, White continued with the committal
14.e4?! weakening his central dark squares,
e 5 a n d d 4 . ( 14.d3 is m ore sens ible .)
14...g4! and Black had an edge. ]
14.d4! Illustrating the advantage of White's

549
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

flexible strategy to perfection, instead of d3 29.xe3 xe3 30.d3 The writing is on the
he can exploit the slight awkwardness of wall for Black, White has fought-off the attack,
Black's piece placement to expand in the and can now concentrate his pieces against
centre. b7? the f7-square. g6 31.c7 Menacing Bc4,
[ A natural reply, taking control of the h1-a8 tying Black to the f7-pawn. d4
diagonal, but it loses! 14...cxd4 15.exd4 [ Hopeless, but 31...d5 also fails, 32.c4
fe8 was better, with a typical hanging pawn f5 33.g4! f6 34.e5 f8 35.xf7!
structure. ] winning, as 6xf7 36.xf7+ xf7 37.c8+
15.d5! White's d-pawn may have been slow to picks-up the bishop, g7 38.c3+ ]
get going, but once started, it seems that 32.c4 f8 33.xf7+ h8 34.f4
nothing will stop it! exd5 16.cxd5 xd5 [ Sufficient, but 34.e5 is also decisive, c5
17.xd5 xd5 All forced so far. 18.e5! 35.xg6+! hxg6 36.xg6 and Black can
The point of White's combination. f6 only fend off the mate by giving a rook. ]
[ T h e a l t e r n a t i v e 18...xe5 is little 34...c8 35.e7
improvement, 19.xd5 g6 and White ha s 1-0
various rook moves discovering an attack on
the black queen, and winning material. ]
[ M e a n w h i l e , 18...xg2? simply drops a 558 A14
piece after 19.xd7 e4 20.c4 ] Zvjaginsev,Vadim 2664
19.xd5! Lining-up a killing pin along the g2- Skatchkov,Pavel 2475
bishop's diagonal. xd5 20.d1 ad8 TCh Togliatti RUS (1) 16.05.2003
21.d2! [Tony Kosten]
[ The simplest, after 21.xd5?! xd5 22.f3
B l a c k c a n h e a d f o r a n e n d i n g b y f6 This game struck me as interesting as White
23.xd5 xd5 24.xd5 b5 delayed playing the 'automatic' e3, seemingly
with reasonable chances, so it is better for provoking Black to play ...d4. 1.c4 e6 2.f3
White to keep the queens on the board. ] f6 3.g3 d5 4.g2 e7 5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 c6
21...xe3!? A solid choice, although there is nothing
[ Aiming to obtain some play in return for a wrong with playing
queen sacrifice, but it fails. The alternatives [ 6...b6 7.b2 b7 immediately, 8.e3 c5
were no h elp, i.e . 21...f6 22.c4 b5 and Black avoids playing ...c6 altogether. ]
23.a5 c7 24.xd5+ h8 25.e4 7.b2 b6 8.c3!? Very provocative!
and the white minor pieces will dominate the Normally White plays
black rook. W hite will win by judiciously [ 8.d3 b7 9.e3 a5 and only now 10.c3
advancing his kingside pawns, and exposing as in Damljanovic, B-Piskov,Y/Belgrade
the black king. ] 1998/, amongst many others. ]
22.xb7 xd1 8...b7 Black continues his development, he
[ 22...xd2 is quite hopeless, 23.xd2 f5 was not tempted into
24.xa6 with a solid piece more. ] [ 8...d4?! as after 9.a4 d3 ( 9...c5??
23.c2 c4!? 10.xd4 and the a8-rook is lost) 10.e5
[ 23...xb2 24.xb2 f6 25.xa6 dxe2 11.xe2 White has a substantial lead
does not hold out too much hope either, in development. ]
White can easily defend the knight by a later 9.c2 White again forgoes playing e3 (to
f4. ] control d4) as now bd7
24.xc4 c5 25.xa6 xf2+ [ 9...d4?! is met by 10.e4! xe4 11.xe4
[ Unfortunately, 25...xf2 achieves nothing: and the d-pawn is lost. ]
26.a3! d3+ 27.xc5 ] 10.e3 Finally, but perhaps White could have
26.g2 fe8 27.c1 Careful play, White delayed this even further? The position is
defends against any nasty 'accidents' on the fairly standard now, except that the white
e 3 - s q u a r e . c5 28.b2 Forcing the queen is on c2, whereas she normally goes to
e x c h a n g e o f t h e a n n o y i n g k n i g h t . e3+ e2. h6 11.ad1 c8 12.d3 b5!?

550
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
This move is perhaps the justification behind
Black playing ...c6, but even so I would prefer
[ 12...c5 myself, to keep the b7-bishop's
diagonal open. ]
13.e4 White is eager to provoke the opening
o f t h e d - f i le t o e xp l o it h is ro o k wh i ch i s
p o i n t i n g a t t h e b l a c k q u e e n . b6!?
Black tries to bring maximum pressure to bear
on c4, but the knight is not well-placed here.
[ 13...b4 14.e2 c5 was interesting. ]
14.b1 The queen moves off the c-file to
avoid a nasty skirmish with the black rook on
c8, and threatens the b-pawn in passing. a6
[ 14...dxc4?! is not very good, because after
15.dxc4 the queen is attacked. ]
15.e2 a5?! Black misses White's positional
threat, he should have played
[ 15...c5! when there is absolutely nothing
wrong with his position. ]
16.exd5! exd5 17.cxb5 cxb5 18.ed4
This is the point, the knight finds a lovely post
on d4 eyeing the f5-square, and meanwhile
the b7-bishop is stymied by its pawn on d5. b4
19.de1 c5 20.h4 The knight aims for f5,
or does he have another square in mind?
bd7 21.h3 All the white pieces are finding
aggressive posts, and tactics are 'in the air'.
b6?! Black misses the far-from-evident
threat, better to play the prophylactic
[ 21...h8 ]
22.e6!! This must have come as a shock! d4
This simply concedes the exchange, but if
[ 22...fxe6 23.xe6+ h7 ( 23...f7
loses to 24.d4! f8?! and now the queen
s p r i n g s i n t o t h e f r a y f r o m a f a r : 25.g6
and the rook cannot be defended.) 24.xf6
xf6 25.xc8 xc8 26.d4+ and again the
white queen checks from as far away as
possible, and the bishop is lost. ]
[ 22...fe8 do e sn 't h elp : 23.xc5 xc5
24.xf6 xf6 25.xc8 ]
23.xf8 xf8 24.d1 d5?? Black drops
the d7 -kn igh t a nd brings th e game to a n
abrupt halt, but he was losing anyway, of
course.
1-0
559 A15
Agrest,Evgenij 2605
Ponomariov,Ruslan 2718
EuTCh Plovdiv BUL (1) 11.10.2003
[Tony Kosten]
The famous 'portable phone' game! 1.f3
f6 2.c4 b6 3.c3 b7 4.d3!? White aims
for e4 to stymie the b7-bishop.
[ 4.g3 is likely to transpose to a standard
Hedgehog. ]
4...xf3!? Black shatters the white structure.
[ 4...g6 5.e4 g7 6.g3 0-0 7.g2 c5
is a f ianchetto Hedgehog, Kortchnoi,V-
Kuzmin, G/Leningrad 1973. ]
[ 4...c5 5.e4 e6 6.g3 was examined in
Morozevich,A-Lutz, C. ]
5.exf3!? A novelty, White captures away from
the centre.
[ 5.gxf3 g6 6.g2 c5 7.g5 g7 8.d2
c6 was fine for Black in Kluger,G-Barczay,
L/ Budapest 1963. ]
5...c5 Controlling d4 as White's lack of an e-
pawn weakens his hold on the dark squares.
6.d4 cxd4 7.xd4 c6 8.d1 g6 9.e2
g7 10.f4 0-0 11.e3 Black's position is
solid, but White has the bishop pair, and the
two open central files to pressurize the black
centre. e6 12.0-0 e7! Both aiming for the
f5-square, and preparing ...d5, as now Black
can recapture on d5 with a knight two times.
13.a4 f5 Revealing another problem
related to White's lack of an e-pawn: the f5-
square provides a nice spot for a black knight.
[ 13...d5 is an alternative, 14.fd1 e8 ]
14.ad1 xe3!? Introducing opposite-colour
bishops, and depriving W hite of the bishop
pair, but also evening-out the white structure.
15.fxe3 c7 16.h1 a6 17.f3 a7
18.d2 A useful move, defending the second
rank and preparing to double rooks on the d or
f-files. c8 19.e2 Necessary to defend the
c-pawn. b8 20.b3 White keeps pressure
o n d 5 so t h a t t h e b la c k d -p a wn r e m a in s
backward. f8!? Black aims to defend the d-
pawn on d6 with a typical Hedgehog structure.
21.e4 d6 22.f5!? White aims at the e6-pawn,
which cannot be so easily defended without a
light-squared bishop, still White also weakens
h i s d a r k s q u a r e s , i n p a r t i c u l a r e 5 . d7
The e5 and c5 squares lure the black knight.
551
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
23.fxe6 fxe6 24.g4 The point, hitting Black
at his weakest point before he can bring his
p i e c e s t o t h e k i n g s i d e . e8 25.e2
The knight heads for f4 or d4 to bring the
p r e s s u r e o n e 6 t o b o i l i n g p o i n t . e5?
Black is too keen on getting to the e5-square,
[ 25...g7 is better, 26.d4 ( 26.h3 c5
27.b4?! xe4 28.xe6+ h8 is good for
Black ) 26...c5 27.e3 a8 28.e2
ae7 and e6 is well defended, and the black
pieces well-placed. ]
26.xe6+! Ouch! xe6 27.c5 Opening the
a2-g8 diagonal, and pinning the rook against
the black king. d5 The only chance,
[ 27...e8 28.d4 ae7 29.xe6 xe6
30.f6 wins immediately. ]
28.xd5 ae7 And Black was disqualified!
Actually, his portable phone rang, and under
new rules this equates to the immediate loss
of the game!
[ 28...ae7 of course he can still play on
after 29.d4 g4! (with a threat to h2!) but
he is quite lost: 30.g3 e3 ( 30...e5
31.xe6 xe6 32.c6 d6 33.c1
and the c-pawn is too strong) 31.xe6!
xf1 ( 31...xd5 32.xf8+ ) 32.f2 e3
33.d6! with a massive attack. ]
1-0
560 A15
David,Alberto 2579
Vachier Lagrave,Maxime 2758
ITA-chT 46th (1.1) 30.04.2014
[Fier, Alexandr]
This was an interesting game in a line which
is not so popular. W hite tries a quick
expansion on the queenside but Black shows
that there are also dangers on the other side
of the board. The game finishes with some
amazing fireworks. 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.b4
White plans to bring the bishop to b2, and so
why not push the b-pawn one more square?
g7 4.b2 0-0 5.g3 c6 I like this move, as
it's always useful against the b4-pawn. Black
can play ...a5 at some point to create some
pressure against the queenside pawns. It's
funny that even against 1.b4, 1...c6 is possible,
with the idea of 2.Bb2 Qb6 3.a3 a5!?.
[ 5...b6 6.g2 b7 was analyzed for
ChessPublishing in Reti, R-Capablanca, J/
New York 1924. ]
6.a3 This move looks unnatural, but the
knight will be better on c2 than on c3. b6
Black attacks the b4-pawn and at the same
time creates threats against the f2-pawn.
[ 6...d5 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.g2 b6 9.b3
a6 10.c2 is another possible
continuation and was played in Kosten, A
(2516)-Jerez Perez, A (2416)/Fincas
Mediterranea 1st 2004. ]
7.c2
[ 7.b3 is also possible, but Black had a
comfortable position after e4 8.d4 a5
9.b5 a4 10.e3 d5 in Gofshtein, L (2560)-
Har Zvi, R (2485)/Zagreb zt 1993. ]
7...d6 8.b1 White defends the bishop and
avoid any problems with the f2-pawn.
However, it was also possible to just continue
his development.
[ 8.g2 is a playable option. White can
sa crif ice a p a wn t o im m o b ilize B la c k ' s
pieces. a5 9.a3 g4 ( 9...e4 is worse,
since the knight will come under attack on
e4 10.d4 xd4 11.fxd4 ) 10.d4 axb4
11.axb4 xa1 12.xa1 a6 in theory this
can be a problem, but 13.0-0! ( 13.b1 f5
would be annoying) 13...xb4 14.b1 c5
15.d2 with the idea of 16.e4 and Black
can't escape from the pin without losing the
pawn a5 just gets into another pin after
16.c3 ]
8...e5 9.g2 White tries to just play normal
ideas, but this poses no problems for Black.
Instead,
[ 9.c5!? is critical, going for a complicated
middlegame dxc5 10.bxc5 xc5 11.a3
( 11.xe5 is also possible, but Black will
have good centralized pieces in exchange
for the central pawns e8 12.d4 e7
13.e3 c5 14.c3 b6 15.g2 b7 16.0-0
c6 17.c2 ad8 with good play for
Black ) 11...a5 12.xf8 xf8 13.g2
( 13.a3 looks a bit slow, but maybe it's not a
bad idea ) 13...bd7 14.0-0 xa2 15.d4
e6 and Black has two pawns for the
exchange, but the position remains unclear ]
9...e4 10.fd4
[ 10.g5 tries to bring the knight to h3 d5
11.cxd5 cxd5 12.0-0 d8 13.d3 h6
14.h3 c6 but I prefer Black's center
552
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
domination and the squares for the
respective knights ]
10...a5 11.a3 axb4 12.axb4 bd7 13.0-0
e8 14.c3 This move is not so necessary in
order to exchange the rooks.
[ 14.a1 was more direct xa1 15.xa1
e5 probably White didn't like to allow this
option. ( 15...h5 is not so different )
A) Now 16.e3 leaves the pawn on b4
hanging, xb4 ( 16...fg4 is probably
better 17.dc2 xe3 18.xe3= ) 17.a3
xd2 18.xd6 and White has good
compensation for the pawn. The queen on
d2 has no good squares;
B) 16.b3 pinning the e5-knight c7
17.c5 d5 18.d4 fg4 with a complex
position ]
14...e5 15.e3 h5 16.a1
[ 16.b5 doesn't help much c5 ( 16...c5
is not possible because of 17.b3 ) 17.b3
d8 18.c2 h4 19.a1 xa1 20.xa1
and with the queenside more or less closed
Black can continue the attack ]
16...xa1 17.xa1 h4 18.b5 hxg3
[ 18...c5 was also possible, but Black has a
more interesting idea in mind 19.dc2 d8
and it's similar to the position analyzed in
the 16.b5 variation ]
19.hxg3
[ 19.fxg3 is ugly, but avoids the idea of the
game fg4 20.xg4 xg4 21.bxc6 bxc6
22.e3 c5 23.b1 c7 24.b5 d7
25.xe5 xe5 26.a7 and Black is slightly
better ]
19...eg4 Opening a path for the queen.
20.dc2 This is already slow, White is still not
feeling the danger of the position.
[ 20.bxc6!? bxc6 21.b1 ( 21.dc2 c5 )
21...c5 22.a4 was a much more direct
approach and one possible continuation
could be h5 23.xg4 xg4 24.xc6
h2+ 25.f1 f6 26.e3 h3 27.xh3
h1+ ( 27...xh3+ 28.e2 h5+
is also draw) 28.e2 xb1 29.b5 d3+
30.e1 b1+ with a perpetual ]
20...c5! And this was probably unexpected!
Black just gives the bishop on g7 to create
mate threats. Now the game becomes wild!
21.xg4 Accepting the challenge, but it's a
bad decision.
[ 21.f3 was possible, trying to keep the
tension exf3 22.xf3 h5 23.xg7 xg7
24.bxc6 bxc6 and Black still has some
pressure ]
21...xg4! 22.xg7? Following the plan, but
now White is officially lost.
[ 22.e3 was the last chance to survive
A) 22...xe3 this is the wrong move order
23.fxe3 xc3 24.xc3 cxb5 25.f6!
just giving one more pawn xc4 26.xe4!
th is is t he po int , Bla ck ca n 't ta k e t h e
bishop in a good way e6 ( 26...xe4
27.d3 b3 28.dxe4 xe3+ 29.f2 c5
30.g2 and the endgame has good
chances to finish as a draw; 26...xe4
27.xf7+ h8 28.f4 b1+ 29.f2
and Black is helpless) 27.xe6 xe6
28.c1 xe4 29.xc8+ g7 30.c7
and White holds;
B) 22...xc3! 23.xc3 cxb5 24.cxb5
xc3 25.dxc3 xe3 26.fxe3 g4
27.f2 e5 28.d1 and Black is better,
but White has chances to defend ]
22...h5 23.b1 Trying to give an escape
route to the king.
[ 23.e1 was tricky, avoiding the idea of the
game. But now the king can't run too far
h2+ 24.f1 f6!! the other square, now
the knight will join the attack again via h5
( 24...e5 25.g4! f3 26.exf3 and the rook
on e8 is hanging now) 25.f3 h5 26.c3
xg3+ 27.f2 h3 28.e3 f5 29.g1
( 29.h1 g3+ 30.g1 xe3 and White's
position is just sad 31.f1 xf1 32.xh3
f5 winning ) 29...g3+ 30.f1 exf3
31.xh3 xh3+ 32.e1 xe3 33.dxe3
f2+ 34.xf2 xe3+ 35.g2 xe2+
36.h3 h5+ with mate ]
23...h2+ 24.f1 e5
[ 24...f6 is not so good now, because the
king miraculously runs away 25.e3 h3
26.e1 g1+ 27.f1 xf1 28.d1! xg7
29.c2 and the position is far from clear ]
25.g4 Last trick.
[ 25.e3 h3 26.e1 xg2 27.d1 xg7
and Black is just a piece up ]
25...f3!
[ 25...xg4 26.xe5 attacking the queen ]
26.exf3 exf3 27.xf3 xg4 A nice end!
0-1
553
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

561 A15 27.d3 g5!? Black plans kingside aggression

Ehlvest,Jaan 2588 wi t h . . . f 4 , m a k i n g u s e o f h i s c 7 - b i s h o p .
Kasparov,Garry 2838 28.hxg5 hxg5 29.a5 de8
FIDE GP Moscow RUS (1.2) 01.06.2002 [ 29...bxa5 30.c5 f4 is unclear. ]
[Tony Kosten] 30.axb6 axb6 31.a4 e7 32.e1?
Anything but this! White simply forgets about
1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.b3!? An unusual the threat, and removes his knight from the
a m a l ga m o f t h e E n g l is h a n d t h e L a rs e n control of f4. f4! O f co u rse ! 33.exf4 gxf4
Opening, White decides to take Kasparov far 34.g4 g7 The black pieces spring to the
from his renowned opening preparation, but to attack! 35.f3 e8 36.c2 ge7 37.d3
no avail. e5 4.b2 e4!? Black has an a6 38.f1 h7 39.e2 d8?! 40.h2?
e n o r m o u s c h o i c e i n t h i s e xt r e m e l y r a r e [ 40.d4 would exchange queens when
position, but the World no. 1 goes for the gain White would have real fighting chances in
of space, in line with his aggressive style. the endgame. ]
5.xf6!? 40...xh2 41.xh2 d5 42.b3 dxc4
[ A fifth-move novelty! White concedes the 43.xd8+ xd8 44.xc4?! Otherwise White
bishop pair to weaken the defence of e4, has lost material for nothing, but now the dark
5.c2 d5 6.f3 f5 7.h3 g6 squares come back to haunt W hite. h4+
allowed Black to bolster his strong centre in 45.g2 g3+ 46.f1 xc4+ 47.xc4
Smyslov, V-Kortschnoi,V/Moscow 1971. ] xf3+ 48.e1 f6
5...xf6 6.c3 e5 7.g2 f5 Black is 0-1
s l ig h t ly b e h i n d i n d e ve l o p m e n t , b u t h a s
managed to maintain his strong centre. 8.e3
a6! Thoughtful development! The knight 562 A15
aims for the weak d3-square. 9.ge2 c5 Frois,A 2320
10.0-0 e7 Maiorov,N1 2542
[ There is little point to occupying the d3- 29th Open Cappelle la Grande FRA (1.41)
square immediately, 10...d3 11.c1 ] [John Bartholomew]
11.b1 0-0 12.d4!? White plans a tactical
operation to free his position. exd3 13.d4 Nothing earth-shattering happens in this one,
f6 14.a4!? but I wanted to include it to show how easily
[ this leads to the recapture of the d-pawn, B l a c k m a y o b t a i n a g o o d g a m e a g a i n s t
but at the cost of a weakened structure. mechanical play from White. 1.f3 f6 2.c4
14.b4?! is worse, e6 15.xe6 dxe6 b6 3.g3 b7 4.g2 g6 5.0-0 g7 6.c3
and the attack on c3 allows Black time to 0-0 7.d4 e4 8.d2 Another continuation
defend his d-pawn. ] rooted in Queen's Indian play.
14...xa4 15.bxa4 b6 16.xd3 a6 [ The double-edged 8.c2 xc3 9.bxc3!?
17.fd1 g6 18.bc1 is examined in Putka, V (2321)-Wojtaszek,
[ Missing a nice opportunity to justify his play, R (2710) Jurmala 2013. ]
18.b5! is strong, the knight will land on the 8...d6 Normal, but certainly not the only move!
f i n e d 6 o u t p o s t a s cxb5? 19.axb5 [ Black has tried several other approaches
wins back the material with interest. ] here - a true testament to his flexibility. For
18...ad8 19.b3 h8 20.h4 c5 example: 8...c5 (the most attractive, in my
21.e2?! opinion) 9.xe4 ( 9.c2 xd2 10.xd2
[ Again missing 21.b5! as cxb5? 22.cxb5 cxd4 11.xd4 xg2 12.xg2 c8 13.b3
hits queen and bishop, and otherwise the b7+ 14.g1 c6 15.xc6 dxc6
knight goes to d6. ] was at least equal for Black in Jakovljevic,
21...e5 22.c2 e7 23.c1 h6 24.d3 V ( 2 3 9 0 ) - S a r i c , I ( 2 5 4 9 ) N e u m 2 0 1 1)
c7 25.b4 c8 26.cd2 White has a 9...xe4 10.c3 c6! 11.e3 d6 12.c1
h a r m o n i o u s p o s i t i o n , b u t h i s we a k e n e d e6 13.e1 c7 14.b3 ad8 Jankovic, A
queenside pawns will always be a liability. f6 (2543)-Edouard, R (2646) Aix les Bains

554
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
2012 ]
[ 8...a6!? 9.xe4 xe4 10.c3 c6
11.h4 xg2 12.xg2 b5!? 13.a3?!
( it looks better to play 13.cxb5 cxb5
14.a3 ) 13...bxc4 14.a4 b6 15.xc4 d5
16.d3 e5!? 17.dxe5 c5 18.d4 e4
19.f4 xd4 20.xd4 d2 21.fd1 b3
22.ab1 c5 23.e3 d4 Grunberg, M
(2414)-Horvath, J (2560) Hungary 2011 ]
[ 8...e6 9.e1 ( 9.c1 d6 10.c2 xd2
11.xd2 d7 12.b3 e7 13.e4 c5
14.fd1 ad8 15.e3 a6 16.c2 b8
17.cd2 led to a protracted maneuvering
struggle in Vigh, B (2370) -Csom, I (2455)
Hungary 1995. Black cannot be worse here
with his influential dark square bishop, and
indeed c6 18.d5 d4 looks quite good
for him. ) 9...xc3 10.xc3 xg2 11.xg2
d5 12.b3 c6 13.fe1 a5 14.a4 a6
15.ad1 d7 16.e3 was agreed drawn in
W erle, J (2556)-Speelman, J (2518)
Sunningdale 2007, ]
9.xe4
[ 9.d5 xc3 10.xc3 xc3 11.bxc3 e5
12.e4 d7 13.h3 c5 was already a bit
better for Black in Linqvist, G (2037)-Li, Y
Seinajoki 2008. ]
[ 9.c1 is reasonable, i.e. d7 10.d5 xd2
( 10...dc5!? ) 11.xd2 c5 12.e4 a6 13.a4
Radulov, I (2359)-Bratanov, J Mizia 2002.
Here Black can play e5 14.xe5 xe5
15.f4 d4+ 16.h1 c7 with fully
adequate play. ]
9...xe4 10.c1 d7
[ 10...c5!? ]
11.c3 e6 12.d2 f6 13.fd1 b7
Both sides have been content to play quietly
thus far. Black experiences absolutely no
problems, so his opening can be thought of as
a s u c c e s s . 14.c2 e4 15.e1
16.c3 e4 17.d2 a5 18.b3 e7 19.f4
a4 20.d2 xg2 21.xg2 d7
[ Interesting is 21...d5!? . ]
22.f3 f5
[ This doesn't lead to much, so maybe Black
sh ou ld go f o r an ot h er p a wn b re a k wit h
22...e5 , i.e. 23.e3 axb3 24.axb3 a2
25.a1 c2 26.ac1 a2= . ]
23.c6 a7 24.e3 e5 25.dxe5 xe5
26.xe5 xe5 27.f3
[ 27.b4! offered chances for a small edge. ]
27...b2 28.d5+ h8 29.d4 a5
30.c2 xd5 31.xb2 e5 32.c2 axb3
33.axb3 a8 34.b5 e7 35.dd2! e5
36.a2 xa2 37.xa2 White is definitely for
choice now, but the players soon arrive at a
peaceful result. c6 38.a7 e8 39.c7 e7
40.f4
[ 40.b5 e8 41.a3 followed by Na3-c2-
b4 was a possible winning attempt. ]
40...b2 41.a8+ g7 42.e8+ h6
43.xd6 Drawn by agreement.
[ After 43.xd6 xe3 44.c8 xb3
45.xc6 a draw would indeed by the correct
result. ]
½-½
563 A15
Hentunen,Asko 2354
Fressinet,Laurent 2637
20th ECC Izmir TUR (1) 03.10.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.g3 c6 3.a4!? White deters
Black from an immediate ...d5, but this move
i s v e r y a r t i f i c i a l . e5 The most natural,
although
[ 3...g6 4.g2 g7 5.e4 0-0 6.e2 e5
7.bc3 d6 leads to a Botvinnik type of
position where the white queen is oddly
placed, Kortchnoi,V-Bareev,E/Brussels
1992. ]
[ 3...d5!? ignores White's previous move!
4.g2 ( 4.cxd5 b5 5.c2 cxd5 ) 4...e6
5.f3 bd7 6.d3 d6 and Black has a
very reasonable Slav set-up, Csom,I-Guindy,
E/Aarhus 1991. ]
4.g2 a6! Probably the most accurate, the
knight will come to c5 with gain of tempo.
f6 [ 4...c5 is also logical, 5.c3 0-0 6.b3
a6 7.d3 d5! and Black is doing well,
Csom,I-Farago,I/HUN 1993, as 8.cxd5 cxd5
9.xd5 xd5 10.xd5 b6 with a strong
attack. ]
5.c3? This seems to be new, but for tactical
reasons is worse than
[ 5.d3 b4+ ( 5...c5 6.c3 0-0 7.f3
e8 8.0-0 Gyurkovics,M-Kiss,P/Cseppko
1997; now 5...c5 6.c2 d5 is met by
7.cxd5 cxd5 8.f3 and Black has problems
defending e5) 6.d2 0-0 7.gf3 e8
555
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
8.0-0 d5 Black has successfully constructed
a good centre, Abolianin,A-Van der Stricht,
G/Westerlo BEL 2004. ]
5...c5 6.c2 d5 Natural and strong. 7.cxd5
cxd5 8.d3 d4 9.b1 e6 Black has a
space advantage, a lead in development, plus
strong play on the c-file. It is fair to say that
W hite's opening has not been a success!
10.b4 cd7 11.d2 d5 12.a3 e7
13.f3 0-0 14.0-0 c8 15.b2 f5!?
Black plays ambitiously on the kingside, but
[ 15...b6 was a good alternative: 16.c1
a5 17.b5 xc1+ 18.xc1 c8 and Black's
pressure on the queenside will soon bear
fruit. ]
16.e4?! If White wants to play this, then why
not
[ 16.e3 dxe3 17.fxe3 as Black can capture
on e3 en passant if he wants anyway? ]
16...fxe4 But this is even stronger. 17.dxe4
5b6 The knight aims for both c4 and a4.
18.c1 a4 19.d2 b5 20.e1 c7
21.d3 c2 White's pieces form a sad
picture. 22.f4 f6 23.fxe5 xe5 24.f4
f7 25.xc2 xc2 26.d2 d3 27.d1
c4?! This wins material, although
[ 27...g4 is also strong, winning a whole
rook. ]
28.b3 xa1 29.xa1 a2 30.b3 cb2
31.xb2 xb2 Both rook on d1 and knight on
b3 are attacked.
0-1
564 A15
Hodgson,Julian M 2640
Efimov,Igor 2520
zt 1.1 Mondariz ESP (4) 06.09.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6
[ If Black wants to play a King's Indian
Defence, 1...g6 might be more accurate, as
W h it e co u ld n o lo n ge r play th e ga me 's
system. ]
2.f3 g6 3.b4 Quite a popular method of
countering the KID, which has the merit of
avoiding too much theory, and a similar line
was recommended by Dunnington in his 'Easy
Guide to the Reti Opening'. g7 4.b2 0-0
5.g3 d6 6.g2 e5 A natural reaction, Black
closes the b2-bishop's diagonal. 7.c3 c6
[ This is more active than 7...bd7 when
8.0-0 e8 9.d3 e4 10.xe4 xe4
11.xg7 xf2?! 12.xf2 xg7 13.d2
favoured White, with his better centre, and
open f-file, Plachetka,J-Adamski,J/Stary
Smokovec 1974. ]
8.b5 e7
[ Perhaps 8...d4 is more active. ]
9.0-0 e6 10.d3 h6 The position resembles
a main line King's English, with the exception
that the white rook had not had to move to b1,
to prepare b4. 11.d2 c6!?
[ A new move, Black prepares ... d5, and this
seems better than 11...b8 12.a4 c8
13.c2 d7 14.fc1 with a plus, Wittke,M-
Grigore,G/Berlin 1996. ]
12.a4 d7 13.a3 The a3-f8 diagonal is the
best place for this piece. fd8 14.b1 c5
Played to control White's queenside play, but
n o w t h e d 5 - s q u a r e i s w e a k e n e d . 15.e4!
The touch of a strong player! White closes the
g2-bishop's diagonal, but only to better open
it later. h7 16.d5 f5?!
[ Black mechanically 'attacks' on the
kingside. 16...xd5 17.cxd5 h3
leaves Black with the lesser bishop, and
hands the d2-knight the c4-square. ]
17.b6 a6?!
[ 17...xd5 18.cxd5 axb6 19.b5 a5!?
might be a better try. ]
18.exf5 See the note to move fifteen. gxf5
[ 18...xf5 allows White control of both d5,
and e4. ]
19.c7 ab8 20.f4! Thematic, the f5-pawn is
fixed, and will be a target. f7 21.fxe5 xe5
[ 21...dxe5 22.xc5 g6 is hardly an
improvement. ]
22.f3 Seemingly out of nothing White's
position has grown, and grown. g7 23.d4!
White is in no mood to concede the initiative,
and piles-on the pressure. xc4 24.e1
cxd4
[ 24...g5 25.dxc5 dxc5 26.xd7 xf3+
27.xf3 xd7 28.xc5 g6 is unpleasant
for Black, because of the b7-pawn, but might
offer some defensive possibilities. ]
25.c1 f7 26.e6! Another blow, freeing
the c7-square for the rook. c6?!
[ It is probably better to sacrifice the queen
imme dia tely b y 26...xe6 27.c7 c6
556
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

28.xd7 xd7 29.xd6 bc8 although xa1 10.xa1 c6?! 11.b5 e7 12.c3
White is clearly on top. ] with a plus, Black has yet to use c5,
27.xg7 xg7 28.xd4 f6 29.xc6 Smyslov,V-Jimenez Zerquera,E/Havana
bxc6 30.e7! 1964. ]
[ 30.e7 xe7 31.xf5+ wins the queen. ] 8...bd7 9.c3
1-0 [ 9.d4 is considered in Sulskis,S-Afek,Y
[A15]. ]
9...c5 10.d4 This is to the point now that
565 A15 Black cannot contest the knight on d4, even
Hoffmann,Michael 2450 though it temporarily cedes control of c5.
Wemmers,Xander 2350 [ 10.d3 e8 11.d2 h5!? led to interesting
chT, NED Hengelo (4) 2000 play in Fuller,M-Plachetka,J/Copenhagen
[Tony Kosten] 1980. ]
10...exd4 11.xd4 g4!? The knight heads
1.f3 f6 2.g3 for the other dark square weakened by
[ 2.c4 g6 3.b4 is a different move-order that White's tenth move, e5, where it will attack
is preferred by many good players, as White the backward c4-pawn. 12.d5 e5 13.c2
keeps his kingside options open (he can c6!? Black elects to play actively, but it is also
play e3 and d4, instead of g3, say) and has loosening. 14.bxc6
an even greater queenside presence. See [ 14.e3 e8 15.ad1 May be more
the Sulskis - Afek game for this. ] precise - White can capture on c6 when he
2...g6 3.b4 g7 4.b2 d6 likes. ]
[ 4...c6!? is interesting: 5.g2 a5 6.bxa5!? 14...bxc6 15.e3 e8 16.ad1 f5?
( 6.a3 is possibly better, with a likely [ Ugh! 16...b8 is safer. ]
t ra n s p o s it io n t o t h e Na rs isco Du b la n - 17.b5! Winning material. b8?
Pedersen game) 6...xa5 7.0-0 0-0 8.d3 [ Black should try the exchange sac 17...cxb5
d6 9.c4 a6 10.a4 h5 11.bd2 h3 18.xa8 e6 19.d5 b4 although 20.f4
12.c2 c5 and this is fine for Black, his clearly favours White. ]
pressure on the a-pawn is more important 18.xd6 e6 19.a3 To add insult to injury,
than White's potential play along the b-file, B l a c k h a s a l s o l o s t t h e u s e o f c 5 ! cd7
and the c5-knight is strong, Campora,D- 20.d5! Its non-stop fun for W hite! h8
Moreno,J/Malaga ESP 1999. ] 21.f4 f6 22.xc8?!
5.g2 0-0 6.0-0 e5 Black gains a foothold in [ 22.e4! is crushing. ]
the centre, and erects a dark-squared pawn 22...fxc8 23.e4 fxe4 24.xe4 f7
chain to stymie the white b2-bishop. 7.c4 Black is almost back in the game! 25.c1 e8
T h i s m o v e i s t h e m o s t n a t u r a l , w i t h a 26.fd1 h6?! Probably Black should only try
t r a n s p o s i t i o n t o t h e E n g l i s h , a l t h o u g h this after having removed his king from the
Dunnington prefers the line a1-h8 diagonal. 27.d6 b7 28.c3 g8
[ 7.d3 keeping W hite's options open, c6 [ 28...xf4? loses to 29.gxf4 xf4
8.bd2 e8 9.e4!? a5 ( 9...bd7 10.c4 30.xc6 ]
c5 11.a3 and White can prepare f4, 29.b1? A terrible move! Why not something
Hickman, J-Lappage,J/Jersey Open, St like
Helier JCI 2000.) 10.a3 axb4 11.axb4 [ 29.e1 with a masked pin on the e-file,
xa1 12.xa1 a6 13.a3 but this xf4? wi l l a g a i n l o s e : 30.gxf4 xf4
doesn't look like too much for White, Marin, 31.xc6 ]
M-Georgiev,V/Andorra 1997. ] 29...xb1 30.xb1 xf4 31.gxf4 xc4
7...a5 8.b5 Gaining space at the expense of Attacking both of White's once-proud bishops.
the c5-square. Otherwise: 32.xc6
[ 8.a3 axb4 ( 8...h5 9.c3 f5 10.d3 [ 32.e5 cxe5 33.fxe5 xe5 34.xc6 ]
with typical Closed English play, Taimanov, 32...xd6 33.d1 e4?!
M-Jansa,V/Marianske Lazne 1962) 9.axb4 [ Better 33...e6 34.d5 f8 ]

557
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

34.b3 xb3 35.axb3 White wins a knight dxe5 14.e4! I didn't want Black to play ...e4,
back. ec5 36.xd7 d8 37.d5?? with some space. f4 15.c5 Nc4xe5 is on the
[ How to explain White missing the obvious, cards, White cannot allow Black to play ...g5-
and forced, move 37.g4 , drawing? It can g 4 u n o p p o s e d . g5 16.h3 h8?!
only be very severe time pressure. ] Bla ck a vo ids a p in , but run s int o trou ble
37...xd7 38.f5 g5 Presumably White lost elsewhere.
on time, as he can still capture the a-pawn [ 16...h5 is no particular problem,
and continue. 17.xe6+!? ( or 17.f5 g4 18.h4 )
0-1 17...xe6 18.b3 e7 ( 18...f7? 19.h4!
gxh4 20.gxf4 e7 21.g5 leaves Black in
all sorts of trouble) 19.c6!? bxc6 20.xg5
566 A15 c5 (forced) 21.bxc5 xg5 22.f3 g6
Kosten,Anthony C 2545 23.xe5 and White should win this. ]
Jones 2063 17.c6! I felt that this move was a bit greedy
4NCL Telford ENG (5) 08.03.2003 and 'computer-like', but strong all the same.
[Tony Kosten] bxc6 18.xc6 Forking a8 and e6. b8
[ 18...b6 19.xe5 xe5 20.xe5
A banal queen sacrifice? Yes, it does exist as is also hopeless. ]
in the following game I obtained more than 19.xe6 b6 20.xd7 Of course, White gets
enough pieces for the lady. 1.c4 f6 2.f3 t o o m a n y p i e c e s f o r t h e q u e e n . xc6
g6 3.b4!? An 'anti-KID' system that I have 21.xc6 e6 I was originally worried about
looked at a couple of times. g7 4.b2 0-0 [ 21...g4 but then I saw a simple win with
5.g3 d6 6.g2 e5 7.0-0 e8 A standard 22.xe8 gxf3 23.h5 as xd2 loses to
move, but we had only really considered 24.ad1 xb2 25.d8+ f8 26.xf8+
[ 7...a5 8.b5 before, where Black can plant g7 27.xc8 when White has a material
a knight on c5. ] plus, and there is no problem on g2 as the
8.d3 bd7 f3-pawn can always be captured. ]
[ 8...a5 is still possible, and might be best: 22.d5 g4 After
9.b5 bd7 10.fd2!? c5 11.c3 [ 22...e8 23.c4 e6 24.ad1 xd5
leading to a quick draw in Speelman,J-Nataf, 25.xd5 e7 26.a3 White has complete
I/Mondariz ESP 2000. ] control and can capture e5 when he wants. ]
9.bd2!? An unusual square for this knight in 23.xe6! Simplest. xe6 24.fd1!
the English, as White normally likes to gain The point, returning a piece to keep Black's
further control of d5, but I wanted to keep the counterplay to a minimum. gxf3 25.xf3
b2-bishop's diagonal unencumbered. e8 26.xe5 fxg3 27.hxg3
[ 9.c3 c6 10.c1 f8 11.b5 led to typical [ After 27.hxg3 Black resigned, as he saw
Closed English play in Chistiakova,T-Huang that White menaces to play Rac1xc7, and
Qian/Heraklio GRE 2002. ] Black's only attempt at counterplay, h3?!
9...f8!? I was more concerned about l o s e s o n t h e s p o t t o 28.d8 xd8
[ 9...c6 to play ...d5, 10.a3 Lupu,M-Sykora, 29.f7+ ]
R/Prague 1989, d5!? ] 1-0
10.c2 A new move, previously White
preferred
[ 10.b3 to control d5, h5!? 11.h4!? 8h7 567 A15
12.ac1 b8 13.c5! dxc5?! 14.xe5 Putka,V 2321
wi t h a d v a n t a g e , K r e u za h l e r , M - L a u , M / Wojtaszek,R 2710
Jedesheim 1991. ] Vladimir Petrov Memorial (1.5) 15.02.2013
10...e6 11.e3 d7!? Black plans to get his [John Bartholomew]
kingside pawns rolling, but this neglects the
centre. 12.d4 f5 13.dxe5 Black's kingside This game and Frois-Maiorov might more
demonstration is countered in the centre. properly be classified in the "Daring

558
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Defences" section, but the play is so
decidedly flank-oriented that I couldn't resist
including them here (also, there seems to be
no existing information on this line over in the
"Daring" archives). 1.f3 f6 2.c4 b6 3.g3
b7 4.g2 g6 I have to admit that I knew
nothing of the existence of this system until a
month or two ago. Thus, I was surprised to
learn that many Grandmasters have been
giving it a try of late! Essentially, Black is
aiming for a super-flexible Double Fianchetto
by holding off on any pawn advance in the
center. It's an unabashedly hypermodern
approach, and it's been seen since at least
the early 1920s. As you can imagine, theory
is chaotic at best in this line (and
co m pa riso n s t o va rio u s I n dia n d e f en se s
abound), so I'll use these games primarily to
acquaint you with the themes.
[ 4...e6 ]
[ or 4...c5 would lead us to well-trodden
territory, of course. ]
5.d4 g7 6.0-0 0-0 7.c3
[ White faces a Queen's Indian-like dilemma:
should he play Nb1-c3 and allow Black's
next, or delay it in favor of 7.e1 ]
[ or 7.c2 ? ]
[ Challenging is 7.d5!? , shutting the light-
square bishop out of play. This has been
t h e c h o i c e o f t o p p la ye rs l ik e G i ri a n d
Grischuk:
A) 7...e4 8.c2 f5 9.f4!? c6 10.fd2
f6 ( 10...cxd5! 11.cxd5 xd5 12.xe4
fxe4 13.xe4 xe4 14.xe4 d5
15.e6+ f7 16.c3 xc3! 17.bxc3
d7 ) 11.c3 h5 12.g5 h6 13.e3
e5 14.dxe6 dxe6 15.c5 d7 16.c4
xc5 17.xc5 bxc5 18.a4
Grischuk, A (2746)-Feller, S (2666)
Khanty-Mansiysk 2011;
B) 7...e6 8.c3 exd5 9.cxd5 e8
10.e1 c6 11.e4 ( 11.d6!? ) 11...d6
12.f4 cxd5 13.exd5 xe1+ 14.xe1
a6 15.d4 d7 16.d1 c7=
Giri, A (2730)-Rodshtein, M (2616) Eilat
2012. ]
7...e4 In accordance with hypermodern
principles, of course! 8.c2
[ More popular is 8.xe4 xe4 , i.e. 9.e3
( 9.d2?! d5! 10.cxd5 xd5 11.b3 c5
12.b2 Malakhov, V (2682)-Taboas
Rodriguez, D (2296) Benidorm 2006 here
d8 puts White under pressure; 9.d5!? a6
10.h3 (a common idea, White wants to
move the knight and play e2-e4 without
a l lo wi n g a n e xch a n g e o f b i sh o p s ) xf3
11.exf3 e6 12.b1 c6 13.f4 cxd5
14.cxd5 c8 15.e1 e8 16.d6 c7
17.dxe6 dxe6 18.f4 d5= Feller, S (2666)-
Vachier Lagrave, M (2722) Caen 201 1)
9...c5 ( 9...d6; and 9...d5 have also been
played, while; 9...c6!? deserves attention)
10.d2 d6 11.h6 d7 12.fd1 f6
13.ac1 c7 14.b3 cxd4 15.xd4 xg2
16.xg2 b7+ 17.f3 fc8 18.e4 a6 19.a4
c5 20.xg7 xg7 21.c2 d7 22.dc1
g8 23.h4 ac8 24.b4 e5 25.b1 a8
26.b5 ec5 27.c6 8xc6 28.bxc6 xc6
29.b4 h5 30.b3 g7 31.f2 f6
32.g2 e5 33.bc1 h7 34.c3 h8
35.3c2 g7 36.c3 a5 37.a1 c5
1/2-1/2 (37) Radjabov, T (2788)-Kramnik, V
(2797) Istanbul 2012 ]
[ I examine 8.d2 in Frois, A (2320)-Maiorov,
N (2542) Cappelle la Grande 2013. ]
8...xc3 9.bxc3!? A double-edged but
possibly wrong decision.
[ 9.xc3 c5 has held up well for Black,
though: 10.e3 d6 ( 10...xf3!? 11.xf3
c6 ) 11.fd1 d7 12.d2 cxd4 13.xd4
f6 14.e1 c7 (Black has a more than
acceptable Double Fianchetto) 15.b3 fd8
16.ac1 d7 17.d3 ac8= Trella, T
(2 4 0 4 ) - Ma i o r o v, N ( 2 5 4 1 ) M i l a n 2 0 1 2 .
Maiorov is a proponent of this line for Black,
so interested readers may want to have a
look at his games. ]
9...c6! I like this simple move a lot.
W ojtaszek is showing his tremendous
versatility.
[ It's entirely possible for Black to proceed in
standard fashion with 9...d6 10.e4 d7
, but the Polish Grandmaster sees no
reason to define the central structure just
yet. ]
10.b1 This doesn't look too useful.
[ On 10.e4 Black would likely have continued
with a5 11.d3 a6 12.d2 c5!
re a c h in g a p o sit io n re m in isc e n t o f t h e
Samisch variation of the Nimzo-Indian. ]
[ Bu Xiangzhi recently tried to improve
White's play, but Black was hanging tough:
559
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

10.d2 c8 ( or 10...a5 ) 11.e4 a5 against Black's King's Indian style set-up and
12.e1 d6 13.f1 c5 14.d5 e5?!
have often played something similar in my
( perhaps Black shouldn't rush this move, i.
own games (1.Nf3 Nf6 2.g3 g6 3.b4). White
e. 14...a6!? 15.f4 d7 16.d3 ae8 takes space on the queenside and this often
with play similar to our main game) 15.b3 leads to an undermining of any centre Black
xb3 16.axb3 a5 17.f4 exf4 18.xf4 c7 tries to set up. 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.b4
19.d2 ae8 20.d3 c8= Bu Xiangzhi g7 4.b2 0-0 5.g3 b6 6.g2 b7 7.0-0
(2675)-Kjartansson, G (2430) Reykjavik d6 8.d3 bd7 9.bd2 e5
2013. ] [ Black can also consider 9...c5 but after
10...a5 11.d2 xg2 12.xg2 d6 13.e4 10.a3 White's space gives him slightly the
c5 14.d5 d7 15.f4 ae8 Black is fully better chances. ]
10.c2 e8 11.fd1
co o rd in a t ed a n d e xtre m e ly com f o rt a b le .
W hite doesn't have much to show f or his [ A n o t h e r p l a n w o u l d b e t o p l a y 11.e4
structural deficiency. 16.f3?! e6 Now watch with the aim of preparing f2-f4. This would
W o j t a s z e k g o t o wo r k ! 17.dxe6 xe6
probably have been my preference in fact. ]
18.d3 f5! The game is opening in Black's 11...a5 12.a3 h6 13.f1 c5
favor. 19.exf5 xf5 20.f2 d5! Continuing [ 13...e4 14.dxe4 xe4 would have been
to hammer White in the center. 21.g4 f7
fine for Black, though perhaps Capablanca
22.f5 dxc4 23.f3 e3?! A small misstep wa s co n ce rn e d t h a t t h e p o sit io n m igh t
that White fails to notice. become drawish. ]
[ Easier was 23...gxf5 24.gxf5 e5 25.b2 14.b5?! White should not close the queenside
ef8 . ] like this.
24.xe3 xe3 25.xc4?? Equivalent to [ 14.e3 looks like a much better idea,
resignation. keeping open possibilities of play along the
[ 25.b3! would have given Black some
b-file. ]
problems, i.e. xc3 26.xa5 bxa5 27.f6! 14...f8 15.e3 c7 16.d4 e4 17.c3
f8 exd4 18.exd4 6d7
( the pawn is immune in view of
27...xf6 28.b8+ g7 29.b2 ) 28.b2 [ 18...e6 looks like a superior alternative.
d3 29.c1 . ] After 19.d2 cxd4 20.xd4 xg2
25...xc4 26.xe3 xe3+ 27.f3 c4 21.xg2 b7+ 22.f3 Black can play
28.e4 gxf5+ 29.gxf5 d6+ 30.d5 ( 22.c6 d8 ) 22...e4! 23.fxe4 xd4
xf5+- It's over. 31.e2 xc3 32.e8+ g7 24.xd4 xe4 etc. ]
33.g1+ h6 34.e6 f6+ 35.d5 d4 19.d2 cxd4 20.xd4 xc4 21.xg7
36.b1 e3+ 37.e4 c4 38.d3 d6 xg7 22.b2+ g8 23.xd6 c5?!
39.e7 f3+ 40.e2 f2+ 41.d3 c4+ Leaving the queen exposed.
W hit e resigne d. The re was quite a large [ 23...c7 would have been better. ]
rating mismatch in this game, but Wojtaszek's24.ad1 a7
handling of this unexplored line was nearly [ And here 24...e7 was better. ]
textbook. Réti and Nimzowitsch would be 25.e3 h5? This could have lost on the
proud! spot.
0-1 [ 25...c7 was better. ]
26.d4?!
[ Missing an even stronger move in 26.1d5!
568 A15 xd5 27.g4 xf3 28.gxh5 xh5 29.c6
Reti,Richard etc. ]
Capablanca,Jose Raul 26...xg2 27.xg2 e5?!
New York (5) 22.03.1924 [ 27...xe3 28.fxe3 xd1?? loses to
[Nigel Davies] 29.f5! , threatening both mate on g7 and
Black's queen. But 27...Rxe3 might have
A famous game in which Reti put his opening been a better chance in conjunction with 28...
on the map. I quite like this method of play Ne5. ]

560
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

28.c4 c5 29.c6 c7 30.e3 e5? Hoffmann - Wemmers. ]

[ 30...xe3 was the last chance to keep 9...exd4 10.xd4!? A novelty, keeping an
fighting. ] eye on c5.
31.1d5 [ 10.xd4 was also successful in Barcza, G-
[ 31.1d5 c4 32.xc5 xb2 33.c2 Hecht,H/Hamburg 1965 and may be
threatening both the knight on b2 and 34. stronger, e8 11.c2 c5 12.c3 e6?!
Nd5 is deadly. It rather looked as if both Black lacks space for his minor pieces, but
players were affected by nerves in this game, this loses control of c5, with serious
and certainly Capablanca looked far from at consequences, 13.xe6 fxe6 ( 13...xe6?
ease when facing Reti's indirect opening. ] 14.xb7 ) 14.c5! with advantage, as dxc5?!
1-0 would be countered by 15.a4 ]
10...e8 11.bd2 Another piece in the puzzle,
as by playing the knight here, instead of to c3,
569 A15 White can play a later Nb3 to further contest
Sulskis,Sarunas 2573 a black knight on c5. c5 12.c1 f5
Afek,Yochanan 2381 13.e1 A key position, Black has developed
Open Lisboa POR (6) 26.08.2001 his minor pieces and has control of e4, how to
[Tony Kosten] proceed? fe4
[ 13...a4!? ]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.b4 g7 4.b2 0-0 14.xg7 xg7 15.d4 d7 16.e3 f5!?
This is by far the most common line here, [ Black wants to keep a hold on e4,
Black simply completes development. 16...xd2 17.xd2 a4 would maintain the
[ The quick attack on the queenside is less knight on c5, and exchange a pair of pieces,
effective here than when W hite has but 18.e4 and f4 enhances White's space
preferred g3 to c4: 4...c6!? 5.e3 d5 6.h3 advantage. ]
0-0 7.a3!? b6 8.c3 e4 9.xg7 17.2b3 The time has come to discuss the c5-
xg7 10.b1 White has the more square. xb3 18.xb3 b6!? A very double-
comfortable position, Speelman, J-Gormally, edged move, defending a5, but weakening the
D/Birmingham ENG 2000. ] h1-a8 diagonal. 19.f3 f6 20.d4 e7
5.g3 21.f4 ad8 22.d2 White menaces the
[ T h i s i s a g o o d a p p r o a c h , b u t 5.e3 move e4, and Black must unpin his knight,
is preferred by many, continuing with d4. ] but whe re sho uld he put th e king? h6?!
5...d6 6.g2 e5 7.0-0 Very doubtful,
[ 7.d3 or ] [ 22...g8 m u s t b e r i g h t , 23.e4 fxe4
[ 7.c3 are more common, when play 24.xe4 xe4 25.xe4 (threatening a
resembles a Closed King's English line, a killer check on d5) g7 26.d5+ h8
fine example is the Hodgson - Efimov game, is quite playable. ]
also in [A15], but with the text White keeps 23.e4 fxe4 24.h3! With the simple idea of
the possibility of playing d4 on the cards. ] playing g4-5 when the black king proves to be
7...a5 This is very common in such positions, b a d l y m i s p l a c e d . e3 25.g4 xg4!
when although Black allows White even more The only try, as
space on the queenside, he weakens White's [ 25...g5 is met by 26.c3! gxf4 27.xf4+
hold on the dark squares, in particular c5, g7 28.cxe3 f7 29.g5 h5 30.d4+ ]
which provides a useful resting place for a 26.hxg4 xg4 27.f3 f8?!
black knight. 8.b5 [ I think I would prefer 27...e4 and try my
[ For 8.a3 see the notes to Hoffmann - chances in the endgame. ]
Wemmers. ] 28.g5?!
8...bd7 9.d4!? An interesting idea, White [ 28.h2! xh2 29.xe3 f6 30.xf6
permanently concedes pawn control of c5, but xf6 31.xh2 xf4 32.e7 is strong. ]
gains space. 28...f6?
[ 9.c3 with similar play, is seen in [ Again, 28...f6! forcing the exchange of

561
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
queens, when the black king is safer. ]
29.c3
[ 29.e2! ]
29...df8?
[ B l a c k m i s s e s t h e t h r e a t , 29...e8
was the best chance. ]
30.cxe3! xe3 31.xe3 Attacking the
q u e e n , a n d t h r e a t e n i n g R h 3 + x h 7 . xf4
Forced. 32.xf4 xf4 33.xe7 xg5
34.xc7 The rest is trivial. h5 35.c6 h4
36.xb6 xc4 37.xd6 c1+ 38.h2 g5
39.b6 g4 40.d3 There was a threat of mate-
in-one to deal with! b1 41.b7 a4 42.b3!
Interference!
1-0
570 A16
Agopov,Mikael 2450
Elsness,Frode 2506
18th European Teams (6.16) 08.11.2011
[John Bartholomew]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
xd5 5.c2!? It's remarkable, but this
unpretentious queen move was a novelty
when Topalov played it in May. Since then I
count 38 total games with 5.Qc2 with White
scoring a robust 68% (+14, =15, -5). It's too
early to say whether this move is any better
than the more established lines (5.Qa4+, 5.
Qb3, 5.e4, 5.g3, even 5.h4!?), as much of its
su c c e s s c a n be co rrela t e d wit h th e h igh
caliber of its handlers (>2500 FIDE average
for White). Still, it's clear that 5.Qc2 is useful
(mainly because White reveals little about his
intentions!), and sets Black some unique
problems that deserve our investigation. c6
This move has been gaining steam since the
source game.
[ Check the archives for 5...g7 6.e4
A) 6...b4 7.a4+ 4c6 This retreat
looks a little extravagant to me. ( 7...8c6
8.d4 d7 transposes to the game.) 8.d4
d7 9.b5 0-0
A1) 10.e3 a6 11.d5 e5 12.xe5
xe5?! ( 12...xb5 13.xb5 xe5! )
13.xd7 xd7 14.b3 b6 15.0-0 a5
16.f4 g7 17.ac1 a4 18.c4 a5
19.fd1 a6 20.e5 Mareco, S (2597)-
Hunt, A (2437)/Livigno ITA 2011.;
A2) 10.d5!? e5 11.xe5 xe5
12.0-0 c6 13.dxc6 xc6 14.d1 a6
15.xc6 bxc6 16.e3 c7 17.h3
ab8 Rozum, I (2464)-Smikovski, I
(2541)/St Petersburg RUS 2011. Now
18.ac1! seems good because xb2?!
19.a3! works out well for White, e.g.
b7 ( 19...xc3 20.xc3 ) 20.d5;
B) 6...xc3 7.dxc3 should favor White.
B1) 7...d7 8.h4!? ( 8.g5!? ) 8...h6?!
9.e3 c6 10.h5 g5 11.0-0-0 c7
12.d4 e5 13.f3 d7 looked a little
su s p e c t f o r B l a c k i n L e n d e r m a n , A
(2525)-Sedlak, N (2580)/Amsterdam
NED 2011. 14.f5!?;
B2) 7...0-0
B2a) 8.e3 b6?! 9.h4!? ( 9.d1 )
9...g4 10.h2 e6 11.h5 c5
12.hxg6 hxg6 13.f4 Bitalzadeh, A
(2409)-Cigan, S (2343)/Rogaska
Slatina SLO 2011. ( 13.f3 );
B2b) 8.f4 c6 ( 8...c5 9.e2 c6
10.h3 a5 11.0-0 b5 12.a3 d8
13.e3 c4 14.a4! Plischki, S (2332) -
Seidl, S (2090)/ Teplice CZE 2011.)
9.h3 d7 10.e2 e5 11.e3 e7
12.0-0 Malakhatko, V (2543)-Kanter,
E (2406)/St Petersburg RUS 2011.;
C) 6...b6 , Topalov, V (2775)-Kamsky, G
(2732)/Kazan RUS 2011/[Nigel Davies].
Other recent developments: ]
6.d4
[ A couple of players have experimented with
6.e4 db4 7.b1 , but g4! appears to be
a convincing answer. ( 7...d4?! 8.xd4
xd4 9.a3 c6 10.d5 e5 11.d4!
Nisipeanu, L (2659)-Atakisi, U (2370)/Konya
TUR 2011. ) 8.a3 xf3 9.gxf3 ( 9.axb4
g4 is no problem for Black.) 9...a6
10.b5 g7 11.d3 ab8!?
( T h e r e ' s n o t h i n g w r o n g w i t h 11...c5
12.e3 d6 ) 12.e3 a6 13.c4 e6
14.f4 d4 15.d1 h4! Emphasizing
Black's dark-squared control. 16.xd4 xd4
17.f3 c6 18.c1?! g5! Cabrera, A
(2530) -Asis Gargatagli, H (2431)/Sitges
ESP 2011. ]
6...g7 This is risky.
[ Alarmingly, the creative resources in the
line 6...db4 7.a4 d7 8.d1 e5!
may h ave alrea dy b een exhau sted in a
562
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
matter of months! The current conclusion is
that Black is doing quite well - thus, I would
definitely recommend 6...Nbd4 over the text.
Observe: ( Too routine is 8...g4?! 9.a3
d5 10.e4 xc3 11.bxc3 g7 12.b1
b8 13.e2 0-0 14.0-0 Kamberi, S
(2283)-Bagi, M (2309)/Budapest HUN
2011. )
A) 9.a3 exd4 appears entirely acceptable
f o r B l a c k : 10.b5 ( 10.axb4
11.bxc3 g7 12.d2 0-0 Alekseev, E
(2673)-Kurnosov, I (2633) /Taganrog RUS
2011. ) 10...a6 11.bxd4?! ( 11.g5! )
11...xd4 12.xd4 c6 13.f3 e6
14.xd8+ xd8 15.g5 e7 16.xe7
xe7 with even slightly slightly better
chances. Dorfman, I (2578)-Vachier
Lagrave, M (2722)/Caen FRA 2011.;
B) 9.dxe5 f5 10.g5 e7 11.e4 g4
12.xe7 xe7 13.a3 xf3 14.gxf3 d8
15.a4 d3+ 16.xd3 xd3 17.b5
xf3 18.xb7 d8 19.b4
20.d1 c6 21.0-0 e6 22.d6 xd6
23.xd6 0-0 Up till here both players had
f o l l o w e d H o u d i n i ' s m a i n l i n e ! 24.g2
( H o u d i n i s l i g h t l y p r e f e r s 24.fd1
, though probably Sutovsky had things
figured out even here.) 24...d3 25.xd3
f4+ 26.f3 xd3= Vorobiov, E (2574)-
Sutovsky, E (2700)/Khanty-Mansiysk RUS
2011. Kind of depressing, but it's a dog-
eat-dog chess world we live in today. If
yo u d o n 't wo rk o u t t h e se s h a rp li n e s
conclusively, your next opponent just
might! ]
7.e4 db4
[ 7...xc3 is rather accommodating. 8.bxc3
0-0 9.h4!? Sambuev, B (2513) -Kleinman,
M ( 2 1 9 5 ) / G u e l p h C A N 2 0 1 1 . ( 9.e2
Loncar, R (2385)-Debevec, B (2084)/Sentjur
SLO 2011. )]
8.a4
[ The text has already been played three
t i m e s , b u t 8.b3N merits investigation.
xd4 ( Maybe White players are scared of
8...g4 , but 9.d5! xf3 10.dxc6
is st ron g.) 9.c4 0-0 and now 10.h6
makes much more sense because a5??
11.xb4 c5 12.a4 is just winning for
White. ]
8...d7 9.b3 xd4 Principled.
[ 9...e5 10.d5 d4 11.xd4 exd4
12.xb4 dxc3 13.bxc3 Khusnutdinov, R
(2508) -Kozganbayev, E (2271)/Astana KAZ
2011. ]
10.c4?!
[ 10.d5! is stronger, as Le Quang Liem
demonstrated against Navara.
A) 10...e6 11.c4
A1) 11...a5! is the only move. This might
dxc3 n o t b e s o b a d a f t e r 12.xb4 axb4
13.xe6 fxe6 b e c a u s e o f 14.xe6
( 14.h6; or 14.0-0 ) 14...d6;
A2) 11...b5?? 12.xb4 ( or 12.xb5
0-0 13.xc6 xc6 14.c4+- ) 12...a5
13.xb5+ 1-0 De Verdier, M (2359)-
Massoni, M (2294)/Krakow POL 2011.;
B) 10...xd5 11.exd5 a5 12.a3
b6? ( 12...c5 ) 13.b4+- Gu, C (2209)-
Matlin, A (1989)/ICC INT 2011.;
C) 10...a5 A couple disasters have been
witnessed at lower levels in this very sharp
xe5 line: 11.a3 a6 12.xd4 ( 12.xb7!? )
12...xd4 13.c3 e5 ( 13...c5 14.e3
isn't pleasant either.) 14.xa6 c6
15.xb7 b8 16.e3 xb7 17.xd4
cxd5 18.xe5 0-0 19.0-0 dxe4 20.fd1
c8 21.e3 a4 22.d6 Le Quang
Liem (2687)-Navara, D (2702)/Havana
CUB 2011. Black has to show an
improvement against 10.Nd5 (the closest
thing I can see is 10...Be6 11.Bc4 a5),
otherwise 6...Nbd4 should be preferred. ]
10...0-0 11.h6? White's game goes downhill
fast after this error.
[ 11.0-0 is best, but Black certainly isn't
worse in the play after a5!? 12.xf7+ ( or
12.xb4 c5 13.xf7+ xf7 , transposing.)
12...xf7 13.xb4 c5 14.a3 b5! ]
11...a5! Powerful and unexpected. 12.xb4
c5 13.xf7+
[ 13.a3 xc4 14.b3 a5 15.c2
e8 ]
13...xf7 14.a3 b5! Black doesn't let up.
15.e2? Already teetering on the brink, White
falters.
[ 15.d1 is t h e o n ly m o ve . A f t e r c4
16.d3 a5+ 17.d2 xd2 18.xd2
xd2+ 19.xd2 af8 Black enjoys a
pretty sizable advantage with the pair of
bishops. ]
15...c4 16.b3
563
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 16.d3 a5+ 17.f1 xb2-+ ]
16...a5+ 17.c3 xb2-+ Winning further
m a t e ria l. W h it e f la i ls h o p e le s sly f o r t h e
r e m a i n d e r o f t h e g a m e . 18.0-0 xc3
19.ac1 b4 20.d5 d8 21.g5 e6
0-1
571 A16
Anti Grunfeld
Overview
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
[ 4.a4+ d7 ( 4...c6 5.d4! Appears to
be somewhat better for White, for instance
after d7 6.cxd5 xd5 7.xd5 xd5
8.xc6 xc6 9.xc6+ bxc6 And although
Black managed to draw in Kramnik, V
(2759)-Kamsky, G (2725)/Nice FRA 2009.
White must be somewhat better. Here I like
10.b1!? intending a quick b3 and Bb2.)
5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4
A) 6...c6 Is a major alternative and does
quite well for Black. However, personally I
do not have full confidence in the mainline
in which White gets three pieces for the
queen. 7.d4 ( 7.e4 e5! is th e id e a)
7...g7 8.e4 0-0 9.e5 ( 9.h3!?; 9.e2;
9.e3 ) 9...e6 10.exf6 xc4 11.fxg7
xg7 12.xc4 xd4 13.xd4 xd4
14.e2 Black is probably ok here, but I
would much prefer to be W hite, if only
because I have more pieces to move. b4
15.0-0 fd8 16.b1!? Many previous
games went ( 16.a3 b3 17.d1 c4
18.e2 with a repetition.) 16...d7 17.b3
g8 18.a4 ad8 19.a3 e4 20.e3
b6 21.c3 e5 22.bc1 d2 23.fe1
c5 24.c4 2d3 25.h6 h5 26.xd3
xh6 27.c4 e6 28.a4 d2 29.e4
d4 30.c3 f4 31.f3 b8 32.g5 f5
33.xe6 xc4 34.bxc4 d6 35.h4 d2
36.fe3 c2 37.g5 xc4 38.e8+
g7 39.1e7+ f6 40.xh7#
1-0 Nakamura, H (2648)-Mikhalevski, V
(2584)/Bastia FRA 2007;
B) 6...a6
B1) 7.e4 b5 8.e2 c5 appears to be
fine for Black. ( 8...c8!? I am still fond
of my extravagant novelty, but nobody
seems to have taken it seriously. );
B2) 7.d4 b5 ( 7...e6 8.d3
appears to be better for White.) 8.b3
c5! 9.dxc5 And now there are lots of
move-order wrinkles that I haven't fully
got my head around, but Black either
plays Bc6 to attack e4 or goes for quick
development with a combination of Nc6
and Be6 and possibly b4 or Nb4. The
highest level example is the following,
where Black was at least ok at the end.
g7 10.e4 0-0 11.e2 c6 12.e5
fd7 13.e3 xe5 14.xe5 xe5
15.d1 a5 16.0-0 e6 17.f4 g7
18.a3 c7 19.c2 b4 20.axb4 b7
21.d6 xb4 22.fd1 a7 23.1d2
d7 24.xd7 xd7 25.d6 b7
26.d2 f6 27.f1 b8 28.d8+ f8
29.xb8 1/2-1/2 Topalov, V (2783)-
Svidler, P (2728)/ Morelia/Linares MEX/
ESP 2007 ]
4...xd5 5.a4+
[ 5.h4 Not a bad move, but not as good as
those who play it feel it is when they release
their h-pawn with a flick of the wrist. g7
( 5...h6!? intending to keep the kingside
closed with g5 after h5, is also very
playable. ) 6.h5 xc3 7.bxc3 c5 8.a4+
d7 9.h4 f6 10.f4 f5 11.g3 g5
12.e3 c6 13.g2 d7 14.h6 c8
15.0-0 g8 16.e1 b6 17.d3 g6
18.a4 a5 19.e5 xe5 20.xe5 xh6
21.d3 c6 22.f5 d8 23.xc6+ xc6
24.a5 xa5 25.xa5 bxa5 26.e3 c6
27.b1 g6 28.c4 h6 29.f3 e6
30.xc5 h3 31.b5+ f8 32.f2 e6
33.g1 f6 34.b1 f5 35.c1 a4 36.h1
g8 37.d4 c6 38.c5 a6 39.g4 d5
40.c2 f7 41.xh7 xh7 42.c4+ f7
43.xa6 b3 44.c6 e6 45.c7 xa6
46.cxd8+ f7 47.d5 b5 48.d6 exd6
49.xd6 1-0 Aronian, L (2750)-Kamsky, G
(2725)/Nice FRA 2009 ]
[ 5.b3 is likely to transpose to the Qa4+
and Qb3 lines, but gives Black extra
options because the bishop is not on d7
blocking the d-file, which sometimes makes
it easier to attack the d-pawn. ]
[ 5.e4 xc3 6.dxc3 was, for a brief time,
t h o u gh t t o b e a p la u sib l e t r y f o r a t in y
endgame advantage, but it seems Black can
564
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
retain equality(at least) in lots of ways, the
following being the game I remember most
vividly. xd1+ 7.xd1 d7 8.f4 c6
9.c2 f6 10.d2 e5 11.e3 c5 12.xc5
xc5 13.b4 a4 14.c4 d8 15.d6
e7 16.d1 a5 17.b5 d8 18.xc8+
axc8 19.xd8 xd8 20.b6 xb6 21.h4
h6 22.g3 c7 23.e2 c8 24.h5 g5
25.g4 d6 26.d3 b5 27.d1 e7
28.e3 b4 29.c1 b5 30.cxb4 axb4
31.f4 gxf4+ 32.gxf4 d4 33.d3 a7
34.fxe5 fxe5 35.b1 d6 36.xb4 a3+
37.d2 xa2+ 38.d3 a3+ 39.d2 g3
40.d1 b5 41.e2 g2 42.d3 h2 6.b3
43.d1 h3+ 44.d2 c5 45.a4 c3
46.g4 g3 0-1 Gelfand, B (2713) -
Ivanchuk, V (2702)/Batumi 19994 ]
[ 5.g3 is played quite often, and gives White
comfortable play but is not unduly
threatening for Black, e.g. g7 6.g2 0-0
7.0-0 c5 8.a4 b6 9.h4 e6! 10.xd8
xd8 11.d3 d5 12.g5 f6 13.d2 c6
14.a3 f8 15.fb1 a5 16.a4 b8
17.c1 b6 18.c3 de7 19.e4 g7
20.ab1 f5 21.c3 h6 22.b5 d7
23.c3 e5 24.e1 e6 25.d2 d4
26.b3 d5 27.xd5 xd5 28.f1 e6
29.f3 h5 30.c4 e4 31.dxe4 xb3
32.xb3 xc4 33.bb1 b5 34.exf5 gxf5
35.d1 a4 36.a5 e8 37.c2 d4
38.c3 b3 39.cb2 xc3 40.xc3 e3
41.c1 b4 42.b1 b5 43.f2 e5 44.h3
f7 45.g4 hxg4 46.hxg4 fxg4 47.fxg4
b6 48.h1 f6+ 49.e1 d5 50.d2
fd6 51.axb4 a3 52.xd5 a2 53.f1+ f6
0-1 Grischuk, A (2748)-Svidler, P (2726)/
Dagomys RUS 2009/ ]
5...d7
[ 5...c6 is solid, and playable, but there is no
doubt that White is somewhat better after
6.xd5 xd5 7.e4 and d4. ]
[ 5...c6!? 6.e5 d6 ( 6...db4 7.a3
c2+ 8.xc2 xe5 9.d4! keeps some
advantage.) 7.xc6 xc6 8.xc6+ bxc6
White presumably has some way to prove
an edge here, but it's not easy. Moreover, it
will not be easy for Black to play to win from
such a position against a decent player. 9.b3
xc3 10.dxc3 ( 10.b2 d5 11.xh8 f6 )
10...g7 11.b2 a5 12.g3 a4 13.g2 a6
14.0-0-0 e6 15.c4 0-0 16.xg7 xg7
17.b2 b8 18.c3 c5 19.e4 axb3
20.axb3 a3 21.c2 b4 22.d2 b6
23.a1 ba6 24.xa3 xa3 25.c3 d7
26.d1 c6 27.d8 a8 28.xa8 xa8
29.b4 cxb4+ 30.xb4 e5 31.c5 f5
32.a4 b7 33.c6 c8 34.f4 exf4
35.gxf4 h6 36.d5 d7 37.c6 c8
38.e8 b7 39.h4 f6 40.b5 g5
41.hxg5+ hxg5 42.fxg5+ xg5 43.c6
xc6+ 44.xc6 f4 45.xc7 e3
46.d6 xe2 47.e5 e3 48.xf5
1/2-1/2 Gelfand, B (2733)-Svidler, P
(2726)/Dagomys RUS 2009 ]
[ 6.h4
A) 6...c6 keeps more tension in the
position and is worth a try if you want to
a v o i d d r a wi s h p o s i t i o n s . H o w e v e r , I
suspect it also gives White more chances
t o a c h i e v e a n a d v a n t a g e e . g . 7.d4
( 7.e5 g7 8.xc6 xc6 9.e3 0-0
10.e2 e6 11.a4 ce7 12.d4 c5
13.xd5 xd5 14.dxc5 c3 15.b4
xe2 16.xe2 g5 17.g3 ac8 18.d2
xc5 19.xb7 g4+ 20.f3 c4+
21.e1 xb2 22.d1 d8 23.e2
xe2+ 24.xe2 c2 0-1 Schandorff, L
(2520)-Howell, D (2593)/Dresden GER
2008 ) 7...g8 8.e5 e6 9.xc6 xc6
10.a4 d7 11.e3 0-0-0 12.e2
( 12.b5!?; 12.a3!? ) 12...db4 13.0-0
d3 14.b4 b8 15.b5 ce5 16.f4
xc1 17.axc1 d3 18.xd3 xd3
19.e4 f5 20.g5 ( 20.f2! d5 21.d4
g5 ) 20...xd2 21.f7 d5 22.b6 axb6
23.e8+ a7 24.h6 a3 25.xg8
xe3+ 26.h1 xc1 27.e7 xf4
28.g1 a3 29.xd5 exd5 30.d7 d6
31.xh7 d4 32.g3 e4+ 33.g2 d3
0-1 Johannessen, L (2545)-Howell, D
(2593)/ Dresden GER 2008;
B) 6...xc3
B1) 7.dxc3 c6 Here White has
various ideas, but Black faces no
theoretical problems
B1a) 8.g3!? f6 ( 8...g7 9.f4 c8
10.e4 0-0 11.0-0-0 e8 When Black
h a s a so lid a n d f l e xi b l e p o s it i o n .)
9.h4!? probably gives White some
initiative, so best might be the simple;
B1b) 8.e4 e5 9.g5 e7 10.c4 h5
565
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

11.xe7 xe7 12.0-0-0 xh4 8.d4 c6 ( 8...g7!? ) 9.f4! ]

13.xh4 f8 and 0-0-0 is equal but 7...g7 8.f4 Currently the move of choice.
not sterile.; [ 8.g5!? is also dangerous for Black. h6
B1c) 8.f4 f6 9.h6; 9.h4 e6 10.c2 c6
B2) 7.d4 f6 8.xc3 c6 9.a3 ( 9.d4 A) 11.d1!? Is more critical and leads to a
e5! 10.dxe5 b4 ) 9...e5 10.d3 d6 highly curious and largely forced sequence
11.e3 e7 fine for Black.; that Black is probably well-advised to
B3) 7.bxc3!? The latest wrinkle, that follow: The following notes are based on
appears to give White a pleasant pull. c5 those of Ftatchnik's in Chessbase
8.b1 c7 9.g3 xg3 10.hxg3 b6 magazine. I would advise anybody
11.e4 g7 12.d4 0-0 13.h6 cxd4 choosing to play this line with either colour
14.xg7 xg7 15.cxd4 d8 16.d2 to check the details closely. My job for now
c6 17.e3 a5 18.c1 h5 19.d3 is merely to state that I understand why all
ac8 20.a6 c6 21.e5 these fireworks are necessary- if Black
1/2-1/2 Rustemov, A (2520)-Svidler, P doesn't do something relatively forcing, he
(2727)/Baden Baden GER 2009 ] will be sligh tly worse, a nd co uld f ac e
[ 6.d4 f6 followed by Bg7 and 0-0 is unpleasant positional pressure. Before
fine. ] plunging in, the point of Rd1 is not only to
[ 6.c2 is a very tricky move, and still support d4 but also to be able to meet Nb4
relatively underexplored. b4 is now critical, with Qb1 when the rook is already out of
because ( 6...b6 7.d4 g7 8.e4 t h e c o r n e r . b4 12.b1 0-0 13.e3
and Be3 looks like a good Russian system ( 13.h3 f5!? JR ) 13...f5 14.e4 g4
for White. ) 7.b3 15.d5 ( 15.e2!? xf3 16.xf3 c6!
A) 7...c5 is the main recommendation JR ) 15...f5 16.a3 g5 17.g3 f4 18.axb4
here, but it requires a huge amount of fxg3 19.hxg3 xf3
work to navigate the tactics that can follow A1) 20.gxf3 xf3 21.h2 xd1
from this move. 8.e4 f5 ( 8...a5 22.xd1 d6 ( 22...a5!? ) 23.h3 f8
is where the really sharp stuff kicks in, but 24.e6+ h8 25.h5 e5 26.g6
my suspicion is that White is better.) 9.d3 f6 27.xf6 xf6 28.e5 f8 29.e4
xe4 10.dxe4 looks a bit better for c4 30.xg5 xe5 1/2-1/2 Herraiz
White.; Hidalgo, H-Fernandez Garcia, J/Burgos
B) 7...8c6 8.a3 e6 9.a4 d5 2003/ (43);
10.e5 A2) 20.e2!?N xc3 21.xg4
B1) 10...xc3 11.dxc3 ( 11.bxc3!? ) ( 21.bxc3 xe2 22.xe2 a4-+ )
11...d7 12.xd7 xd7 13.e4 21...b3 ( 21...c4 22.e6+ h8
might be quite playable for Black, but 23.e5 e8 24.f5 g4 ) 22.e6+ h8
certainly more pleasant for White due to ( 22...f8? 23.e5 xe5 24.g6+- )
the bishop pair.; 23.e5 e8 24.f5 c4! ( 24...xb2?
B2) 10...d6!? 11.xc6 xc6 25.xg5 f8 26.f5! e6 27.dxe6
12.xc6+ bxc6 and although Black's xb4+ 28.f1 b5+ 29.g1+- )
structure looks bad, we have seen in 25.xg5 f8 26.d6 ( 26.f5 xe5-+ )
related lines that the lead in 26...xb2 ( 26...exd6!? 27.xc4 xb2
development and open lines often fully 28.d2 b1+ 29.d1 xb4 ) 27.f5
compensate, which also seems to be the e6 ( 27...xe5? 28.dxe7 d3+
case here, but it depends on the next 29.xd3 e8 30.e3+- ) 28.dxc7!
few moves. ] A2a) 28...xb4+ 29.f1 d2+
6...b6 7.d4 30.g1 exf5 31.xh6+ xh6
[ 7.g5!? was played by no less than Victor ( 31...g8 32.d6+- ) 32.xh6+ g8
Ko rtc h n oi a ga in st you r scribe , bu t it is 33.g6+ f8 34.f6+ g8=;
designed to knock the opponent off balance A2b) 28...exf5 29.d8 b1+ 30.e2
rather than achieve a theoretical edge. e6 b2+ ( 30...xh1 31.xa8 xa8

566
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

32.d8+ xd8 33.cxd8+ h7 test. This brings us to the relevance of the
34.e6+- ) games selected for this update.
A2b1) 31.f3? xe5+ 32.e3
( 32.f4 g4-+ ) 32...g4+ 33.d3
xf2+ 34.e3 g4+ 35.d3 572 A16
xb4-+; Aronian,Levon 2724
A2b2) 31.d1 b1+ 32.c2 xh1 Areshchenko,Alexander 2653
33.xa8 xa8 34.d8+ xd8 WCC Khanty Mansiysk RUS (3.1) 03.12.2005
35.cxd8+ h7 36.e6 f1=; [John Watson]
A2b3) 31.e1 b1+ 32.e2 b2+
1/2-1/2 Bauer, C (2602)-Svidler, P Aronian has chosen to use the English
(2723)/Germany 20040/ [Ftacnik]; opening at the highest level. As I've been
B) 11.e3 These 'little centres' should not telling you, it's a good way to avoid endless
be un deres tim at ed. I f B la ck do es no t theory and still get a game. He doesn't extract
manage to achieve c5 or e5 he can easily much from the opening (do players get much
b e s q u a s h e d . b4 12.d1 0-0 against the Najdorf or Berlin W all?). The
and now c5 is a threat that is not so easy game remains complicated, however, and in
for White to prevent. 13.a3 4d5 14.e4 the end we get to see the normal advantages
d7 15.c1 Now Black can play solidly of bishop-vs-knight in a simplified position
with c6, but given the lead in development with pawns on both sides of the board. White
he could also consider more aggressive shows masterly technique. 1.f3 f6 2.c4
play with f5 and g5 f5!? ] g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 d5 5.cxd5 xd5
8...0-0 9.e3 6.c3 b6 7.d3 c6 8.e3 0-0 9.d2 e5
[ 9.d1 c8!? By no means forced, but an 10.h4 A probing move. Needless to say, White
interesting reaction to white's move order. has several choices, for example,
( A more conventional interpretation is [ 10.c1 and upon g4 with the idea ...Bxf3
9...c6 10.e3 a5 11.e2 a4 12.c2 f5 and .. Nd4, 11.g5!? Preventing ...Nd4 due
13.e4 g4 14.d5 b4 15.c1 xf3 t o t h e a t t a c k o n t h e b 7 p a w n . h6?
16.xf3 a3 17.bxa3 xa3 18.e5 a5 ( 11...d7 12.ce4! ) 12.ge4 h7
19.0-0 4xd5 20.xd5 xd5 21.xd5 13.c5 ]
xd5 22.xd5 xd5 23.xc7 10...h5
1/2-1/2 Reshevsky, S (2515)-Timman, J [ 10...g4 11.h2 ]
(2550)/Skopje 1976/MCD ) 11.g5!? Probing White wants to reduce the
A) 10.a3 c4 ( 10...c5 11.dxc5 influence of the bishop on g7.
is not obviously working for Black. c4 [ 11.0-0-0!? ]
12.b4 xb2 13.xb2 xc5 14.e4! ) 11...f6 12.e3 e6 13.e4 d5 14.0-0
11.b4 ( 11.b3 b6 but Nd6 avoiding A key decision. W hite doesn't fear the
the repetition is also ok. ) 11...d6; following exchange because it gives him 2
B) 10.e3 c5 11.e2 ( 11.d5 e6 bishops. Nevertheless, Black is smart to do so,
looks ok. ) 11...cxd4 12.exd4 g4 13.0-0 since his knights have good prospects and
c6 14.b5?! ( 14.e3 and holding on, the bishop on g2 needs time to get to the
looks necessary.) 14...a5 15.b4 d5 weakened light squares. The play is roughly
16.d2 c4 17.xc4 xc4 18.c3 equal. xe4!? 15.dxe4 xd2 16.xd2!?
xf3 19.gxf3 xf4 20.xf4 e5 21.d2 [ 16.xd2! is more natural. These are very
exd4 22.e2 xa2 23.xd4 ad8 complicated decisions in spite of the
24.b4 d5 25.b5 xf3 somewhat reduced material, play is double-
0-1 Saravanan, V (2379) -Mirumian, V edged. ]
(2525)/Urmia IRI 2008 ] 16...c4! 17.fc1
9...e6 10.a3 And now we have some idea [ T h e o b v i o u s 17.c3 is met by d6!
of why this, along with 4.Qa4+ and Qb3 is 18.d2 b5! and there goes the bishop
currently considered the critical anti-Grunfeld anyway. ]

567
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

17...xd2 18.xd2 fd8 19.b3 f8! theme. ]

Areschenko controls the d-file temporarily. 38.a3!?
Now W hite finally activates his bishop and [ 38.e4! d4 39.f3 is winning, because
draws the king to the second rank. The next Rb6 or Rb5 will follow. d6 , e.g., 40.b5
moves depend upon each player's b6 41.xe5 ]
assessment of a basic position: 20.h3! f7 38...d3 39.e4 xa3
21.e3 Positionally forced but it denies Black [ 39...d6 40.b5 ]
d4. a5 22.f1 a4 23.c5 xc5 24.xc5 40.b6 We've seen this position before: White
d2 25.b5! d8 26.d5! will win a n e xt ra p a wn an d re t ain a ll t h e
[ 26.c1 c6 27.b6 e7! marching to c7. ] adva ntages o f bisho p-ve rsus-knight . a4
26...xd5?! A dangerous move because it 41.xg6+ f7 42.f5 b5 43.b6 a1+
straightens out W hite's pawns. The natural 44.g2 c4 45.xb5 a2 46.d3
move was The e- and h-pawn will f all. Incredible
[ 26...xb2 27.d7+ e8 28.xc7 t e ch n i q u e ve rs u s a 2 6 5 0 p l a ye r i n wh a t
( 28.g7 e6 29.xg6 f7 ) 28...e6 seemed an innocent position.
29.h7 c8 preventing Bc4. ] 1-0
27.exd5 a3 28.bxa3!?
[ Not awful because White wins the b-file.
Still, 28.b3 is obvious and apparently good - 573 A16
what was Aronian afraid of? Perhaps e7 Aronian,Levon 2757
29.c1 c6 30.c4 c8 , but 31.d3 Kamsky,Gata 2729
continues to limit the knight's movements. In 24th ECC Kallithea GRE (4) 20.10.2008
what follows White is only nominally better [Carsten Hansen]
but strengthens his position. Likely both
players are in some time trouble. ] 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
28...xa3 xd5 5.a4+ d7 6.h4 xc3 7.bxc3
[ The pawn isn't going anywhere. Perhaps g7 8.b1 b6
28...e7 29.c1 d6 looks equal. ] [ 8...c6 is the topic of Carlsen-Svidler,
29.c1 c6 30.dxc6 xc6!? Kallithea 2008, which is also to be found in
[ 30...bxc6 is anti-positional but covers the this update. ]
entrance squares. The king would quickly 9.d4 h6
move in for defence. ] [ 9...c5 10.e4 c7 11.e3 ]
31.b1 a5 The knight is cut off from c4, so 10.e4
unless Black wins the a-pawn this looks very [ 10.g3 was played in Roggeveen, P-Polak,
passive I /Maastricht NED 2007, doesn't offer White
[ 31...d8 32.c4+ e7 33.b6! any real chances of an advantage after f5
has Bd5 in mind. Now we begin to see the 11.b2 c5 ]
normal advantages of bishop-vs-knight in 10...c5 11.e3
a position with pawns om both sides of the [ The first new move. Previously White had
board when there aren't many pieces left: ] tried 11.d2 cxd4 12.cxd4 c6 13.d5
32.g2! g7 d4?! ( 13...e5 14.d4 e6 15.xd8+
[ 32...e7 33.d5 d6 34.f7 ] xd8 is quite playable for Black, and if White
33.d5 f5 34.e4! fxe4 35.xe4 a4 now go es f o r 16.b5 0-0 17.f4 , then
[ 35...xa2 36.b6! and the kingside pawns xb5 18.xb5 d7 19.dxe6 fxe6
are falling ] leaves White with only a minor advantage.)
36.d5!? d4 37.g2 14.xd4 xd4 15.d3 e6 16.g3 exd5
[ Or 37.b5! Black is completely tied down 17.0-0 with a strong initiative for White to
and White hasn't even used his king! ] compensate for the pawn, Roeder, M-Lopez
37...d2 Gonzalez, D/Campillos ESP 2006 ]
[ 37...a4! is the best try but 38.b6 ( or 11...c7 12.c1 c6 13.e2 c8
38.b2 ) 38...xa2? 39.e4 repeats the [ Black can also consider regrouping his

568
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

pieces with 13...d8 14.0-0 e6 15.e5 e7 30.f4 h8 31.d6 b7 32.g3 f8
c6 ] 33.xh6+
14.0-0 f6 While forcing the issue on 1-0
exchanging the queens may not appear to be
what Black should concern himself with the
most, he has to do something about his king 574 A16
that is currently stuck in the centre. Despite Bacrot,Etienne 2613
the fact that the queens come off the board, Svidler,Peter 2689
Black's position is still very passive and fairly FIDE WCh KO New Delhi IND (2.1) 30.11.2000
u n p le a s a n t . 15.g3 xg3 16.hxg3 g5 [Tony Kosten]
17.d5
[ Maintaining a broad, strong centre in this 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
fashion has a natural appeal. However, you xd5 5.a4+ d7 6.h4 The key move,
have to qu es tio n wha t wo uld h app en if W hite will follow with e4, and d4, bringing
White were to take the offered pawn on c5? about a Grünfeld-style position where his
I don't see a refutation or even a line that queen is aggressively-placed on the kingside.
doesn't result in a solid plus for White, e.g. xc3 7.dxc3
17.dxc5 bxc5 18.xc5 0-0 19.fd1 e6 [ 7.d4 f6 8.xc3 is the alternative. ]
20.a3 fd8 21.xd8+ xd8 22.b5 7...c6 8.e4 e5 9.g5 e7 10.c4 h5!
, but I suspect that Aronian decided that the Greenfeld's strong novelty, threatening ...f6,
ga m e c o n t in u a t io n o f f e re d W h it e e ve n and ...g5, which seems to equalise for Black.
better chances, even if Black can improve [ P r e v i o u s l y , 10...h6 11.xe7 xe7
on move 20. ] was played, when 12.g3! gives White an
17...a5!? edge, e.g. 0-0-0 13.d5 h5 14.h4 de8
[ The a lt erna tive is 17...e5 , but after 15.0-0-0 Vera,R-Gonzalez Diaz,D/Aceimar
18.xe5 xe5 19.f4 g7 20.h5 ( 20.e5 1995. ]
h5 ) 20...gxf4 21.gxf4 White has a very [ T h e t a c t i c a l 10...xg5? 11.xg5 h6
pleasant game. ] loses to 12.xf7+ f8 13.0-0-0
18.d2 e6 19.c4 e5 20.h5 0-0?! when the g5-knight is twice attacked, but
[ Now things start getting ugly for Black. I can't be captured! ]
think Black's only reasonable option is to 11.xe7
t r a n s f e r t h e k n i g h t t o d 6 wi t h 20...b7! [ What else? 11.0-0-0?! achieves nothing: f6
21.f4 d6! after which Black can decide 12.xd7 ( forced, for the retreat 12.e3?
whether castling or placing the king on e7 is allows g5 13.g3 h4 of course, leaving
the better choice. ] the white queen short of squares) 12...xd7
21.f4 g7?! 13.xf6 f8! 14.xe7 xe7 and White's
[ Black is trying to hold the position by letting compensation is insufficient. ]
White prove why he is better. However, the 11...xe7 12.0-0-0
only way to stay in the game at this juncture [ The point of Black's tenth move is that
is to exchange some pieces and open up 12.g3 no lo n ge r h a s a n y ef f e c t , h4
the position, no matter how ugly it looks, obliging 13.g5 ]
such as for example 21...exf4 22.gxf4 b2 12...xh4 13.xh4 f8 14.d2
23.c2 d4 24.xd4 cxd4 25.fxg5 hxg5 [ Mikhalevski's suggested improvement over
26.e5 , and Black is still fighting. ] 14.d5 , when the stem-game, Piket,J-
22.f3 exf4 23.gxf4 g4? Black's position Mikhalevski, V/Belgrade 1999, continued:
goes from being decidedly awful to plainly lost. 0-0-0 15.d3 e7 16.b3 f6 17.hd1
24.e5 If Black wants to avoid losing the g- g4 with equality. ]
pawn, he has to add another centre pawn for 14...0-0-0 15.hd1 An unfortunate finish,
White. xe5 25.fxe5 ce8 26.f4 c8 many games were drawn quickly in New Delhi,
27.c3 With a series of precise cuts, White wit h t he pla yers p re f errin g t o d ecide th e
finishes Black off. h7 28.h2 g7 29.f6 matches in the rapid chess because that way

569
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
they were guaranteed a bigger prize should
they lose.
[ After 15.hd1 a5 16.e2 g4
is possible, when they position looks quite
level. ]
½-½
575 A16
Batchuluun,Tsegmed 2415
Li Chao 2529
6th ch-Asia Cebu City PHI (7) 25.09.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
xd5 5.e4 xc3 6.dxc3
[ Here 6.bxc3 will usually transpose to a
standard Grünfeld. The text invites Black
to exchange queens and a somewhat
boring middlegame without queens, which,
however, can be exceedingly difficult for
Black if playing for a win. ]
6...xd1+ 7.xd1 g7?! Interestingly, this
move is considered dubious, by some sources,
and even a straight-out error. Black has a
number of other moves available:
[ 7...c6 8.e3 e5 9.c4 f6 10.c2 d8
11.a4 f7 12.d2 d6 13.d5 c6
14.b3 e7 15.f4! Timman, J-Kozul, Z
Belgrade 1989 ]
[ 7...f6! was first played by Korchnoi in 1960,
and is Black's most popular move. The idea
is to play ...e7-e5 to thwart White's hopes on
a n in i t ia t i ve b a se d o n p re s su re o n t h e
queenside. A recent example is 8.e3 e5
9.c4 d7 10.d2 c5 11.xc5 xc5
12.b4 d7 13.c2 b6 14.b3 a5 15.a3
e7 16.hd1 d8 17.c4 xd1 18.xd1
xc4 19.xc4 axb4 20.axb4 e6
, a nd Black ha s obviou sly successf u lly
solved his opening problems, 1/2-1/2
Nalbandian, T-Petrosian, T/ Yerevan ARM
2007 ]
[ 7...g4 was introduced by Botvinnik and
has since been emp loyed by Ivanchuk.
8.e2 d7 9.h3 xf3 10.xf3 h5 11.c2
h6 12.xh6 xh6 13.ad1 e6 14.h4
e7= 15.d4 hh8 16.hd1 hd8 17.e2
e5 18.4d2 f6 19.f3 1/2-1/2 Kortschnoj,
V-Ivanchuk, V/Luzern 1997 ]
[ 7...c5?! transposes to a dubious variation
of the Symmetrical English ]
[ 7...d7 was covered in Gelfand-Ivanchuk,
Batumi 1999 - see the PGN archives ]
8.f4 c6 9.c2 d7 10.c4
[ White achieved little after 10.e1 c5
11.d2 1/2-1/2 Morozevich, A-Svidler, P/
T o g li a t t i R US 2 0 0 3 . N o t a p a r t i c u la r l y
inspired effort by the two world class
players. ]
[ 10.a4 c5 11.d2 f5 12.f3 fxe4
( 12...e6 13.e3 d7 14.exf5 xf5+
15.d3 xd3+ 16.xd3 with a solid edge
for W hite, 1-0 Halkias, S-Mouroutis, K/
Agios Nikolaos 2000) 13.fxe4 e6 14.e3
d7 15.a5!? f8 16.e2 e5 17.d4
f6 18.h3 d7 19.e3 g7 20.hf1
with a plus for W hite thanks to his more
space and better coordinated pieces,
Polovodin, I-Menzel, R/St Petersburg 1992 ]
10...b5
[ Black has played three other moves at this
point: A) 10...0-0
A) 11.he1 c5!? ( 11...b6?! 12.b3
h6 13.a4 a5 14.h3 d7 15.e3 e8
16.ad1 1/2-1/2 Bjelobrk, I-Wastney, S/
Auckland 2000) 12.b4 ( 12.e5 e6
13.xg7 xg7 14.xe6 xe6 15.ad1
w i t h a t b e s t a s l i g h t p u l l f o r W h i t e)
12...e6! 13.xe6 xe6 14.e5 a5
15.xg7 xg7 16.a3 f4 , and Black
has solved his opening problems, 1/2-1/2
Li Wenliang-Yin Hao/Beijing 1996;
B) 11.a4 e5 ( 11...c5 12.d2 b6
13.e3 e6 14.f4 c7 15.b4 e5
16.hf1 with some initiative for White, 1/
2-1/2 Ernst, S-Rosmuller, A/Utrecht 1998)
12.e3 h6 13.h4 e8 14.h5 g5
15.ad1 f8? ( 15...f6 16.d2!? g4
17.f3 xh5 18.b3 and White has
suf ficient compensation f or the pawn)
16.xg5 b6 17.b3 hxg5 18.a5 g4
19.g5 d5 20.h6 e7 21.h7+ g7
, Aumann, W -Karius, T/GER 1996, and
now 22.xf7 f5 23.exf5 xf7
24.xd5+ cxd5 25.xd5+- ]
[ B) Probably Black's best is 10...c5!?
A) 11.he1 a5 12.d2 ( 12.ad1 b5
13.f1 0-0= ) 12...b5 13.f1 0-0 14.e3
a4= 1/2-1/2 Treppner, G-Keller, M/
Krumbach 1981;
B) 11.d2 e6 12.e2 0-0 ( 12...f5!?
570
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
13.f3 fxe4 14.fxe4 f8 15.hf1= )
13.e3 d7 14.f4 f5 15.e5 d5
16.hg1 c5 17.b5 1-0 Mussoni, M-
Bruns, M/Feffernitz 2000 ]
[ C) 10...e5?! 11.e3 h6 12.ad1 a5
13.a4 f8 14.d2 f5 15.exf5 gxf5
A) 16.e2!? e4 ( 16...e7 17.e6 f4
18.c1+- ) 17.h4 e5 18.d4 xc4
19.xh8 f7 20.d4;
B) 16.e1 e7 17.de2 e4 18.d2
g5 19.d4!+- 1-0 Libeau, R-Gauglitz, G/
Muenster 1992 ]
11.e2 c5
[ Black has tried a few other things here: A)
11...0-0 12.ad1 ( 12.hd1!? e8 13.e3
f6 14.d4 xe4 15.xc6 ) 12...c5
13.d2 f5 14.e3 xe4 15.f3 f4
16.xe4 fxe3 17.fxe3 g4 18.f3 ac8=
Jansen, P-De Greef, H/Dieren 1990 ]
[ B) 11...b7 12.d2 0-0 ( 12...a6 13.b3
c5 14.f3 c8 15.a4 c4 16.d2 0-0
17.axb5 axb5 18.a7 c6 19.ha1 f5
, Vaingorten, Y-Glinert, S/Toronto 2000,
20.exf5 xf5 21.g3 ) 13.f3 e5 14.e3
fd8 15.a4 a6 16.b3 ab8 17.hd1 f8
18.d2 e7 19.ad1 1-0 Richter, M-Voigt,
U/Schoeneck 1996/ Juniors (30) ]
[ C) 11...a5 12.a4 b4 13.e3 0-0 14.d2
e5 15.c5 , and here White chickened out
and agreed to a draw despite his obvious
advantage, 1/2-1/2 Logothetis, S-Caruana,
F/Hamburg GER 2005 ( White can probably
do even better with 15.cxb4 axb4 16.f4
d7 17.e5 ) 15...bxc3 16.bxc3 f6 17.f4
d7 18.a3 ]
12.d2 a5
[ Black has a couple of alternatives at this
juncture: A) 12...f5 13.f3 fxe4 14.fxe4 f8
( 14...e5 15.e3 f8 16.hf1 e7 17.b4
a4 18.a3 f8 19.c4 1/2-1/2 Berry, D-
Martinovsky, E/Lone Pine 1976) 15.e3
a4 16.b3 e6 17.c5?! ( 17.d4!?
d7 18.af1 0-0-0 19.xf8 xf8 20.d1
a6 21.f3 is better for White) 17...xc5
18.xc5 f4 19.f3 g4 is perfectly fine
for Black, Schippel, G-Keller, M/Finkenstein
2000 ]
[ B) 12...0-0 13.e3 a4 14.b3 f5 15.f3
a5 16.d4 d7 17.ad1 fb8 Kwiecien, J-
Kaczorowska, B/Lubniewice 1998, and now:
18.xf5 xf5 19.exf5 gxf5 20.d3 e6
21.g4 ]
13.e3 a4 14.b3 b4 15.c5 xc5
16.xc5 bxc3 17.bxc3 e6?!
[ This allows White to penetrate via the b-file
and the 7th rank. Instead Black should
probably have tried 17...f5!? 18.d3 fxe4
19.xe4 f7 20.he1 e6 21.a4 f6
22.f4 ]
18.hb1 0-0 19.b7 fb8
[ Or 19...fe8 20.xe7 xe7 21.xe7 f5
22.d3 fxe4 23.xe4 a4 24.c5 ]
20.xb8+ xb8 21.xe7 f5? This move
looks logical in the sense that Black wants to
open the diagonals pointing down towards
White's king. However, through very simple
means, White closes Black's bishops off and
generates a passed pawn, thus creating a
winning position for White. 22.d6 e8 23.e5
d5 24.f3 xf3 25.gxf3 This position is
winning for W hite, but in the game
continuation, Black manages to make it look
even easier than it is. f7 26.f4 g5 27.g1
g4?!
[ 27...gxf4 28.g5 xe5 29.xf5+ f6
30.xf4+- ]
28.d3 e6
[ 28...d8 29.e3 f8 30.xf8 xf8 31.f3
gxf3 32.g5+- ]
29.f3 Now it's completely game over h5
30.fxg4 hxg4 31.h3 d8
[ 31...h6 32.hxg4 xf4 33.f1 xe5
34.xe5 d8+ 35.d4 c5 36.gxf5+ f7
37.f6 cxd4 38.cxd4+- ]
32.hxg4 h6 33.e3 h8 34.f3 d8
35.h1 fxg4+ 36.xg4 g8+ 37.f3 f8
38.xf8 xf8 39.e4 g8 40.h7
1-0
576 A16
Bu Xiangzhi 2714
Lahno,Kateryna 2488
Trophee CCAS GpA rapid (2) 26.10.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.f3
g6 5.a4+ d7 6.b3 We looked at this
line several times last year, but this year too,
this variation has been explored quite a bit. In
the notes to this game, I have only included
games from 2008. b6 7.d4 e6
571
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ The major alternative and the subject of 0-0 ( 11...c6 12.c5 e6 13.0-0-0
much attention, including in most of the top is quite pleasant for White) 12.e2
games with this line, throughout this year is c6 ( 12...d5 13.xd5 xd5
7...g7 14.fd1 ) 13.fd1 8d7 14.b3
A) 8.g5 e6 ( 8...0-0 was discussed in e8 15.a4 e5 16.dxe5 xe5
Ionov-Klimov, St.Petersburg 2005, which 17.xe5 xe5 18.h6 g7
can be found in the PGN archives) 9.c2 19.xg7 xg7 20.a5
h6 10.f4 c6 11.e3 0-0 12.e2 c8 Roiz, M-Kurnosov, I/Dagomys RUS
13.d1 b4 14.b1 4d5 15.g3 2008;
xc3 16.bxc3 d5?! ( 16...c5!? C2b2) 9...c6 10.e3
is perfectly acceptable for Black) 17.d3 was scrutinized in t he games B u
c5 18.e4 cxd4 19.exd5 f5 20.b5 Xiangzhi-Vachier Lagrave, Wijk aan
dxc3 21.0-0 c2 22.c1 , and Black Zee 2007 and Jakovenko-Vachier
doesn't have sufficient compensation for Lagrave, Crete 2007, both games
the piece, Shimanov, A-Nechepurenko, R/ leading to advantages for White and
St Petersburg RUS 2008; both games are available in the PGN
B) 8.e4 g4 is a regular line in the archives.;
Grünfeld.; C2b3) 9...0-0
C) 8.f4 C2b31) 10.e4
C1) 8...0-0 has also been tried: C2b311) 10...g4 11.e5
C1a) or 9.e3 a5 ( 9...e6 10.c2 c8?! ( This is an decision
c6 11.a3 d5 12.xd5 xd5 instead Black should play
13.d3 Sfarlog, T-Voiteanu, G/ 11...e6 12.d5 d6 13.xd6
Timisoara ROM 2008) 10.e2 c6 cxd6 14.dxe6 xe5 15.xe5
11.0-0 b4 12.a3 e6 13.d1 dxe5 16.exf7+ xf7 ) 12.d1
4d5 14.g3 c6 15.e4 c8 8d7 13.f3 f6 14.h3 c6
16.d2 a4 17.h3 f6 18.xf6+ exf6 15.e2 e6 16.b3 h5 17.g5
19.ac1 is comfortably better for White, h6? ( 17...f6 18.e3 c7
Saric, A-Bykhovsky, A/ Plovdiv BUL 19.c1 ) 18.xe7 c7 19.d6
2008; d7 20.xf8 xf8 21.c1
C1b) 9.d1 c8 ( 9...a5 10.e3 a4 , and White is winning, Svidler, P-
11.c2 c6 12.e2 b4 13.d2 Kazhgaleyev, M/Almaty KAZ
e6 14.a3 4d5 15.e5 xc3 2008;
16.xc3 d5 17.c1 Wojtaszek, R- C2b312) 10...c6 11.d1 8d7
Khmelniker, I/Plovdiv BUL 2008) 10.e3 ( Black varies over the encounter
c5 11.e2 cxd4 12.exd4 g4 13.0-0 be t we e n t h e sa m e p la ye rs a t
c6 14.b5?! ( 14.e3 a5 Mexico 2007, which can be
15.b4!? ) 14...a5 15.b4 d5 found in the PGN archives.
, and Black is clearly better, 11...c4 ) 12.g5 g4 13.f3 h6
Saravanan, V-Mirumian, V/Urmia IRI 14.fxg4 ( 14.e3!? hxg5
2008; 15.fxg4 is quite possibly better)
C2) 8...e6 14...e5 15.f3 ( 15.dxe5 hxg5
C2a) 9.d1 is h a rm less, e. g. c4 16.e3 xe5 is unclear and
( 9...d5!? ) 10.e5 xe5 11.xe5 okay for Black) 15...exf4 16.e5
0-0 12.g3 c6 13.g2 f6 14.f4 e8 17.e2 e7 18.xe7
xd4 15.xb7 b8 16.g2 e5 xe7 19.0-0 c5 20.dxc5 xc5
17.h6 f7 is fine for Black, Nguyen 21.d5 xd5 22.xd5 d7
Ngoc Truong Son-Tomczak, J/Vung , and Black wins a pawn, but due
Tau City VIE 2008; to the opposite coloured bishops,
C2b) 9.a3 W hite h as d ecent cha nc es o f
C2b1) 9...c4 10.e3 xf1 11.xf1 keeping the balance, Gelfand, B-

572
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Svidler, P/Sochi RUS 2008; 18.f3 bc4 ( 18...xf3+!?

C2b32) 10.e3 19.gxf3 g5 is quite pleasant
C2b321) 10...c6 11.e2 a5 for Black ) 19.xc4 xc4
12.c5 d5 13.xd5 xd5 20.b3 d2 21.xb7 f7
14.xd5 xd5 15.0-0 ( 15.xc7 22.b4 b8 23.d4 xe4
fc8 16.b6 b4 provides 24.xd2 xf3+ 25.f1 xh5
B l a c k a m b l e c o m p e n s a t i o n) with chances to both sides,
15...xf3 16.xf3 e5 17.dxe5 Eljanov, P-Svidler, P/Foros
xe5 18.xb7 ab8 19.d5 UKR 2008;
xb2 20.ab1 fb8 21.b3 C2b32222) 11...d5
, and the bishop pair and 12.xd5 xd5 13.e2 e8
superior pawn structure provides 14.0-0 c6 15.g3 b6
W hite with a clear advantage, 16.b3
Gustafsson, J-Areshchenko, A/ C2b322221) 16...a5
Plovdiv BUL 2008; 17.c4 b4 18.c1 e6
C2b322) 10...8d7 19.a3 ( 19.d2!?
C2b3221) 11.e2 c5 i s w o r t h c o n s i d e r i n g)
C2b32211) In a brand-new 19...e7 provides Black
game, played just days ago adequate counterplay
in the Olympiad in Dresden, according to Eljanov in
W h i t e t r i e d 12.0-0 c4 CBM;
13.a4 ( White should C2b322222) 16...e5
consider 13.xc4!? xc4 17.xe5 xe5 18.dxe5
14.fe1 , e.g. b6 15.ac1 xe5 19.c4 Eljanov, P-
fc8 16.b3 e6 17.e4 Shirov, A/ Foros UKR
, a n d I p r e f e r W h i t e) 2008 ]
13...db6 14.c2 f5 8.c2 g7
( 14...cxd4 15.xd4 d7 [ 8...c6 looks normal, but has only
16.g5 ) 15.c1 cxd4 amounted to an awful lot of headaches for
16.xd4 d7 17.xc4 Black in the games it has been tested: 9.e4
( 17.g3!? c8 18.d1 A) 9...g4?! 10.d5 b4 11.b3 a5?
c a n a l s o b e c o n s i d e r e d) ( 11...xf3 12.gxf3 is also very good for
17...xc4 18.d5 e5 White, but better than the game
19.g5 f6 20.f4 c8 continuation for Black) 12.a3 a6
21.d1 c6 , and Black has 13.e5+- Obregon, A-Barrionuevo, P/
solved his opening problems, Villa Martelli ARG 2008;
Bu Xiangzhi-Vachier Lagrave, B) 9...b4 10.d1 g4 11.a3 xf3
M/Dresden GER 2008; 12.gxf3 c6 ( 12...a6 13.e3 g7
C2b32212) 12.dxc5 c4 14.d2 c6 15.0-0-0 h6 16.h4 e5 17.d5
13.b4 a5 14.b5 c8 c7 18.b1 Saravanan, V-Antonio, V/
15.0-0 , and a draw was New Delhi IND 2008 ) 13.d5
agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, in B1) 13...b8 14.d4 f6 15.e3 c6
Radjabov, T-Vachier Lagrave, 16.h4 8d7 17.h5 g5 18.f4 h6
M/Kallithea GRE 2008; ( 18...gxf4 19.xf4 e5 20.dxe6 c5 )
C2b3222) 11.d1 19.e5 fxe5 20.e4 , and White is
C2b32221) 11...c6 12.g5 winning, Ghaem Maghami, E-Antonio, V/
d5 13.e4 e5 14.dxe5 Dubai UAE 2008;
xe5 15.xe5 xe5 16.h4 B2) 13...e5 14.f4 ed7 15.d4
( 16.f4!? - Eljanov - appears g8 16.h3 f6 17.e3 c6 18.d1
to offer W hite the better g7 19.b4 c7 20.a4 , and it seems
chances ) 16...e8 17.h5 f6 like White is in control of the entire board,

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Khmelniker, I-Tseitlin, M/Beer Sheva
ISR 2008 ]
9.e4 c6
[ 9...g4 10.e5 leads to a better game for
White: xe5 11.dxe5 c6 12.b5 d7
13.xc6 xc6 14.e3 d7 ( 14...c4?!
is more aggressive, but also clearly better
f o r W h i t e : 15.d1 c8 16.f4 g4
17.g3 h5 18.h3 g5 19.e2 h4 20.f4
xg2 21.g1 xe4 22.xe4 xe4
23.d4 xb2 24.xe4 d3+ 25.f1 c5
26.c4 e6 27.e3 gives Black three
pawns for a bishop, but White is much due
to his active pieces, Huzman, A-Livshits, G/
Israel ISR 2008) 15.d1 e6 16.0-0 0-0
17.f4 ad8 18.d4 f5 19.exf6 exf6 20.f5
gxf5 21.xf5 with a large advantage for
White, Gelfand, B-Shirov, A/Dagomys RUS
2008 ]
10.f4
[ 10.e3 was played in Feller, S-Maze, S/
Pau FRA 2008, but reaches a position that
has been seen several times in the Grünfeld
the ECO reference is D96. ]
10...0-0 This position was first reached in a
game from the 1945 Moscow Ch, Alatortsev-
Flohr, although using a decidedly
unfashionable, both then and now, move order
in the Grünfeld. 11.d2 Alatortsev played 11
Rd1, but didn't really get anything out of the
opening. c4
[ This appears to be a reasonable choice for
Black, at least at first glance. However, in
the game continuation, White demonstrates
that Black is more or less without any viable
counterplay. Therefore Black should
consider a move that was played in another
v e r y r e c e n t g a m e : 11...8d7 12.h6
( 12.e2!? ) 12...g4 13.xg7 xg7
A) 14.0-0-0!?;
B) 14.g5 h6 ( 14...f6 15.e2 ) 15.h3
hxg5 16.hxg4;
C) 14.f4 xf3 15.xf3 e5 16.0-0-0
exd4 17.xd4 g5+ 18.d2 ad8
, and with Black having fully equalized,
the players settled on a draw, 1/2-1/2,
Rodshtein, M-Nechepurenko, R/Gaziantep
TUR 2008. ]
12.xc4 xc4 13.e2 b6 14.d1 a6
15.0-0 c7 16.g3! a6 This move is ugly,
but she wants to play ... Nb5 to gain some
counterplay. Obviously, White is not going to
l e t h e r g e t a w a y w i t h t h a t . . . 17.a4!
This position is pretty depressing for Black
who is essentially left without any counterplay.
The next several moves are, like the previous
ones, very accurately played by White, gaining
a clear advantage. a5 18.d2 c8 19.fd1
d7
[ Or 19...e6 20.e5 e8 21.b3
with a solid plus for White ]
20.e5 e8 21.b3! White has plenty of time
and continues to improve on his position until
he is ready to break through in the centre.
e6 22.d5! White gives up on his pure space
advantage in order to gain other plusses,
primarily a dominating piece position. cxd5
23.xd5 xd5 24.xd5 c5 25.d7!
xd7 26.xd7 c1 27.d2
[ 27.xb7 c6 28.bd7 is also very good
for White, but White prefers to keep Black
restrained ]
27...xd1+ 28.xd1 c8 29.c7 e6
30.d5! xd5 31.exd5 Thanks to his activity,
White is clearly better in the endgame. d8
32.xe7 xd5 33.h4 b6 34.e8+ f8
35.c7 g7
[ 35...f6 36.d8 xd8 37.xd8 ]
36.xb6 b4 37.g3
[ If White wants to play 37.d8!? , he should
do it here and not on the next move, when
Black's king is already in the centre. The
p o i n t i s t h a t a f t e r xd8 38.xd8
, the bishop covers the f6-square, and the
kings will enter the centre at the same time
unlike in the game where Black has a head
start. ]
37...f6 38.d8?
[ This is a decidedly bad move, but of course
White is likely in serious time trouble at this
stage of the game. A much better choice is
38.g2 , hanging on to the pawn and
decent winning chances. ]
38...xd8 39.xd8+ e5 Despite Black's
king being far more active, W hite can still
hang on to a draw with accurate play. 40.g2
d4 41.f3 c3
[ Or 41...h5 42.g4 c3 43.gxh5 gxh5
44.f4 xb3 45.f5 , and White will pick
up both of Black's kingside pawns. ]
42.f4 xb3 43.g5 xa4
[ 43...e1 44.b6 xa4 45.h6 b5
574
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

46.xa5 is similar to the game continuation ] comp as d3 and b2 are chronically weak. ]
44.h6 b3 45.xa5! Forcing the draw 17.d4 a4 18.c6! White cannot realistically
xa5 46.xh7 e1 47.g7 xf2 hold-on to the d-pawn, so decides to aim for
½-½ positional compensation based on his bishop
pair and the backward c7-pawn.
[ 18.c2 seems more natural, but then after
577 A16 xd4 19.b3 c5 20.b2 Black can play
Bu Xiangzhi 2606 the surprising e6! as if 21.xd4 xd4
Neverov,Valeriy 2527 22.e4 xe5 23.ad1 c5 offers excellent
Aeroflot Open (8) 24.02.2004 co m p e n s a t io n f o r t h e e xch a n g e wit h a
[Tony Kosten] strong knight and bishop (secure on dark
squares) plus extra queenside pawn. ]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7 18...xd4 19.e3 d3!? Black prepares
5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 g7 7.e4 c6 8.d3 another positional sacrifice, he was wary of
0-0 9.e2 a6!? Very much in the 'Hungarian playing the obvious
System of the Russian Grünfeld' style (that's [ 19...c4 b e c a u s e o f 20.xa6 xb2
a mouthful!), preparing queenside counterplay 21.xb5 xe5 22.xe5 xe5
with ... b5. Before we had looked at the main which appears OK, but Black may have
move problems dealing with the passed a-pawn
[ 9...bd7 for example as in Piket, J-Bacrot, supported by the two bishops, to be frank it
E/Escaldes 1998. ] is a difficult one to call. ]
[ 9...fd7!? has also been played, and this 20.b3 xe3! This is the idea. 21.fxe3 b6
is more in Smyslov's style: 10.e3 e5 22.ad1 xe5 Black has won a pawn, and
11.b4 b6 12.b3 d7 with fair chances, the e 3-pawn is weak, plu s he has u sef u l
Pelletier,Y-Moor,R/Lugano 1999. ] control of the dark squares, but his knight is a
10.0-0 Strictly speaking, an innovation, lot less impressive than in the note to move 18,
although it is so natural, it hardly counts as and an exchange is an exchange! 23.g3 d6
one! 24.g2!? White decides not to bother
[ 10.h3 prepares Be3, to control d4 and c5: defending the ailing e-pawn. If
b5 11.b3 bd7 12.e3 e6 13.a4!? [ 24.fe1 b4 and once he has secured his
bxa4 14.xa4 b5 15.c3 c5 16.0-0 queenside pawns Black can think about
b8 17.a3 and White's superior structure returning the knight to the centre by ...Nd7-
g a v e h i m a n e d g e a g a i n s t o u r n e we s t e5. ]
contributor: Smirin,I-Mikhalevski,V/Saint 24...xe3 25.fe1 c5 This is forced,
Vincent ITA 2000. ] [ 25...g5?? 26.xd6 cxd6 27.xb6
10...b5 11.b3 bd7 12.e5 Now White wins. ]
doesn't want to stop ...Nc5 with 26.xc5 xc5 27.b7 White pesters the
[ 12.e3 b e c a u s e o f g4 , but the move black queenside. b8? This brings problems,
played seems strong as the knight cannot the a-pawn cannot move as
go to its natural square on d5, or can it? ] [ 27...a5? is met by 28.e5 winning pawns
12...d5! A neat tactic, Black sacs a pawn for on the fifth rank, but ]
good play. 13.xd5 c5 The point, although [ 27...b4! seems fine, as 28.xa6? a8
the surprising gives a significantly improved version of the
[ 13...xe5!? might also be possible: game. ]
14.c3 xf3+ 15.gxf3 d7 planning ... 28.xa6 a8 29.xb5 xa2+ 30.e2
Qh3 with some attack. ] xe2+ 31.xe2 White has made significant
14.xe7+ White has to grab the material, as progress, as he has not only won a pawn but
otherwise Black has equalised at no cost. also managed to exchange a pair of rooks.
xe7 15.c3 xf3! The simplest solution, S t i l l , b r e a k i n g B l a c k ' s g r i p o n t h e d a r k
Black develops quickly. 16.xf3 ad8 squares will be no piece of cake as the e2-
[ 16...xe5!? 17.xa8 xa8 also provides bishop can hardly provide assistance. d6

575
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
32.g4 g7 33.b5 c8 34.h3 c5 35.d7
b6 36.f3 d6 Black has decided that this
is the safest set-up with both minor pieces
defended and well-placed. In particular the f7-
pawn is covered by the knight so that the
white pieces cannot successfully gang-up on
it. 37.c6 f6 38.h4 h6 39.d5 g7?!
Probably Black didn't want to commit himself
too much bef ore the time control, but he
should certainly have played
[ 39...g5 immediately. ]
40.f4 f6 41.b4?! This gives Black a
second chance,
[ 41.g5+! must be the correct move
positionally: hxg5+ 42.hxg5+ g7 43.b4
and now Black can only move his king! g8
44.e5 f8 and maybe White can engineer
a route for his king to c6, via d5, and then
capture on c7 or d6. ]
41...g5+ 42.g3 g7 43.h5 f6 44.f3
g7 Now Black has a secure blockade, as
with f4 controlled White cannot advance his
king past the third rank except on the a-file
but then it can't get beyond a4! 45.e2 f8
46.d3 e8 47.c6 f8 48.c3 g7
49.b3 f8
[ 49...f6 is more active, Black can only
move his king but this is sufficient. ]
50.a4 g7 51.d5 f8 52.d8+ g7
53.b3 e3 Black allows the king to a5, as
this is met by a knight fork on b7! 54.c2 f2
W hite has skilfully stopped the black king
from moving, as now
[ 54...f6? loses the h-pawn to 55.h8 ]
55.a8 White would like to bring his king to a6,
so Black stops this. b6
[ 55...c4! is possibly even better,
threa te ning a kn ight f o rk o n e 3, a s th e
white pieces have become a bit scattered. ]
56.d3 Controlling the knight and putting
Black into zugzwang, any move f rom the
minor pieces a allows the white king into a6 or
c6, so Black has little choice. f6
[ 56...d4?! is t o o r i s k y: 57.a5 b6+
58.a6 d4 59.d8 and b5-6 is on the
cards. ]
57.h8 d4 58.xh6+?!
[ 58.a5! was a better chance, as now the
rook becomes trapped. ]
58...e7 59.a5 g7 60.h7 f8 61.a6
[ 61.h6 d4 62.b5 g8 63.a6 e8
and Black draws easily as he can play the
position like an opposite-coloured bishop
ending - the rook is going nowhere. ]
61...g8 62.g6? A doubtful decision, but it
is possible that both players were short of
time.
[ 62.a7 f5 63.xg7+ xg7 64.gxf5 g4
65.b8 g3 66.f1 xf5 67.g2 e3
68.e4 is a complete draw - Black can win
the bishop but W hite will capture his
remaining pawn on c7. ]
[ 62.g6? can only give winning chances to
Black af ter fxg6 63.hxg6 e4! 64.b7
f6 65.h1 ( 65.xc7? xh7 66.gxh7+
xh7 67.b5 g6 68.b6 e5+ 69.c8
f6 wins ) 65...f8 66.xc7 xb4 67.g1
g7 68.c6 xg6 69.b5 d6 70.c4
f7 and White has a lot of work ahead of
him to draw this. ]
½-½
578 A16
Bu Xiangzhi 2644
Vachier Lagrave,Maxime 2573
Corus B Wijk aan Zee NED (3) 21.02.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
xd5 5.a4+ This move is not that
problematic for Black, but there are a number
of different ideas for White that Black needs
to know how to handle. In the notes to this
game, I have included all relevant recent
games that have been played since the start
of 2007 d7 6.b3
[ 6.h4 xc3
A) 7.dxc3 c6
A1) 8.g3 g7 ( 8...f6 9.e4 e5
is the main line in the ECO. Baramidze's
choice looks more natural, but allows
White to develop an initiative. However,
Black may well be okay in this line too.)
9.f4 c8 10.e4 0-0 11.0-0-0 e8
12.e5 f5 13.d3 xd3 14.xd3 d8
15.xd8 xd8 16.h4?! ( 16.d1 c8
f o llo we d b y . . .Rd 8 is f in e f o r B la c k)
16...d5 and Black has already claimed
the initiative, R.Buhmann-D. Baramidze,
Koenigshofen (GER-CH) 2007;
A2) 8.e4 e5 9.xd8+ xd8 10.c4 f6
576
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11.e3 a5 ( 11...a5! 12.e2 e6
13.d2 b6 is fine for Black as in
Kramnik-Yudashin, Wijk aan Zee (m/2)
1994 ) 12.d2 b6 13.a4 d6 14.e2
b8 15.f3 e7 16.hb1 h5 17.d1
e6 18.f2 , Peng Zhaoqin-P.Negi,
Wijk aan Zee 2007, leaves White with a
slight initiative;
B) 7.d4 f6 8.xc3
B1) 8...e5 9.xe5! fxe5 10.xe5+
e7 11.xh8 c6 12.b3 e5?
( 12...b4 13.d1 0-0-0 14.a3 a5
is given in ECO, claiming compensation
for the exchange for Black) 13.e3 0-0-0
14.a3 c5 15.c1+- G.Todorovic-I.
Sarenac, Belgrade 2007;
B2) 8...c6!? is a new idea: 9.e4 e5
10.a3 d6 11.c4 e7 12.d3 c5
13.e3 b6 14.0-0-0 0-0-0 15.d5
b8 with a good game for Black, G.
Savchenko-W.Schmidt, Legnica 2006 ]
6...b6 7.d4
[ a) 7.h4?! e6 8.d1 h6 9.d3 g7
10.f4 c6 11.g3 g4 12.g2 e5 13.e3
d4 ( 13...d7!? also looks appealing)
14.xd4? ( 14.h2 c8 15.d2 c6
16.0-0-0 e6 is better than the game
continuation, but nonetheless quite
comfortable for Black.) 14...exd4 15.a4
0-0 16.0-0 e8 , and Black is completely in
control of the game, M.Muse-A.
Areshchenko, Berlin 2007 ]
[ b) 7.g3 is a decent alternative, e.g. g7
8.g2 c6 9.d3 0-0 10.0-0
A) 10...e6 11.a3 ( 11.c2!? )
11...d6 12.xd6 cxd6 is of course fine
for Black;
B) 10...e5 11.g5 Osuna Vega,E-
Solaroli,R, Catalan Bay 2007 ]
7...g7
[ 7...e6 is the main move in the ECO ]
8.f4!?
[ 8.e4 g4 is a Grünfeld Defence, and
therefore not to be discussed here ]
8...e6 9.a3 c6 10.e3 0-0 11.e2 a5
12.c5 a4 13.b5 a5 14.c1 d5
15.g3 Black is slightly ahead in development,
but lacks in possible pawn breaks to take
advantage of it. In fact W hite has a slight
advantage at this point. g4 16.c4 e6
17.g5 f5 18.0-0 e5 19.f3 e6 20.c2
exd4 21.bxd4 xd4 22.xd4
White's advantage doesn't look like much, but
it's nonetheless nagging Black, who has a
hard time releasing himself from the pressure.
d7 23.ad1 c6 24.b5
[ 24.e4!? f6 25.c4 looks very pleasant
for White ]
24...f6 25.d6 xb2 26.xb2 xb2
27.xb7 a7 28.c5 c3 29.d2 a3?!
[ 29...xe2+!? is possibly better, e.g.
30.xe2 a3 31.c2 f5 32.e4 xc5
33.exf5 a5 34.c4 with a slightly better
game for White ]
30.c4 f5 31.f3 a5 32.d6 e8 33.e4
The material is even, but White is far better
coordin ate d c8 34.d3 b5 35.xb5
xb5 36.xb2 axb2 37.b1 d8 38.a4
a5 39.bxb2 e6
[ 39...xa4 can also be considered, but the
defensive task can well be long and
unpleasant after 40.b8 e8 41.c7 ]
40.c7 xd2 41.b8+ g7 42.xa5 a2?
[ The text move looks perfectly logical, but
Black exposes his king to a direct attack.
T h e ri gh t m o ve i s 42...c2 which still is
rather difficult for Black ]
43.c3+ h6 44.f6 xa4 45.g4 xg4
This looks a bit desperate, but doesn't
otherwise have an answer for 46 g5+ followed
by 47 Rh8, and Black's king is trapped in a
m a t i n g n e t . 46.fxg4 xe4 47.h3 e6
48.g5+ h5 49.h8 h4 50.g2 h5
51.gxh6+ h5 52.h7
1-0
579 A16
Bu Xiangzhi 2630
Wang Yaoyao 2456
Torch Real Estate Cup (1) 20.04.2005
[John Watson]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 g6 3.g3 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
5.g2 b6 6.d3 g7 7.e3 c6 This move
a n d t h e n e xt t ry t o a vo i d t h e d if f i c u l t ie s
associated with 7...0-0 8. Qd2 (or 8.Qc1) and
at some point Bh6. The problem is that
Black's knight will no longer come to c6 to
contest the centre. The immediate
[ 7...c6 8.xc6+ bxc6 9.c1
has generally favoured White. ]
577
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

8.d2 h6 9.f3 8d7 10.0-0 a5 11.ac1 resign. ]

f6 12.h3 To prevent ...Ng4. But White was 27.dxc6 bxc6 28.xc6 d7 29.b4 axb4
already far enough ahead in development to 30.axb4 e6 Black has no constructive moves.
play 31.e7!?
[ 12.c5 0-0 13.e4 intending d4. ] [ 31.f4! b8 32.xe6 xb4 33.ed1
12...fd5 13.d4 0-0 14.xg7 xg7 would be decisive. ]
15.e4! xc3 31...f7 32.c7 xc7 33.xc7 e5 34.f4
[ 15...f6 16.d4 demonstrates White's d3 35.b1 h5 36.c6
greater control of the centre. ] [ or 36.b5 ]
16.xc3+!? [ or 36.f1! and Rb3. White's technique may
[ 16.bxc3 is easier to play, with Rb1 and d4 not have been perfect but he remains in
to follow. ] control until the end of the game: ]
16...f6 36...c8 37.xc8 xc8 38.e5 g6 39.d1
[ 16...h7 is less weakening. This move fxe5 40.fxe5 c7 41.b5 b7 42.f1
comes back to haunt Black. ] [ 42.b4! ]
17.d4 e6 18.a3!? f7 42...c5 43.d6 e4 44.c4 g7 45.h2
[ It's interesting that Bu Xiangzhi allows ...a4, b7 46.d8 c7 47.b6 c8 48.h3 g6
with 2 pawns holding up one. This is the 49.xe6 f5 50.h4 xe5 51.xc5
same decision, traditionally considered xd6 52.xe4+ e5 53.a6 b8 54.c5
positionally bad, that Timman took in his d6 55.a4 g8 56.e2 a8 57.b5 g8
games versus Hermanson and Hector! Here 58.c3 c5 59.b7 b8 60.a6 b6
18...a4 19.b4 ties Black down a bit, 61.e2 xb7 62.xh5 c5 63.e4+ d4
although a6 with the idea ...Qd6 doesn't 64.d6 d7 65.f7 d5 66.g5 a7
look so bad. ] 67.f6 a6+ 68.g7 e6 69.g4 e7
19.fe1 d6 20.h4! White takes aim at the 70.h6 a5 71.f7 b5 72.g6 b6
weakness on g6, which for the time being 73.f5 b5 74.h6 b2 75.g5 g2
seems trivial and not worth pursuing. e6 76.g4 g3 77.g6 f3 78.h6 g3
[ 20...h5!? ] 79.g4 a3 80.e2 a7 81.c4 c7
21.h5! This looks easy, but remember that the 82.d5 c5 83.f5+
pawn on h5 could prove weak if White hasn't 1-0
calculated correctly. a4?! Wasting time.
[ The problem with 21...g5 is that it cedes
the key f5 square after 22.d5! cxd5 23.d4 580 A16
, e.g., c8 24.f5+ h8 ( 24...h7? Buhmann,Rainer 2587
25.d3 ) 25.d4 e6 26.xh6 ] Nedilko,Vasily 2400
22.c2 b6 23.h4! Suddenly the 11th EICC Men (11) 17.03.2010
weakness on g6 is extremely serious and [Nigel Davies]
W hite probably already has a won game!
ad8?! 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
[ But 23...g5 24.f5+ h7 25.e5 xd5 5.a4+ c6 This natural move has
is very bad for Black and ] the drawback that Black gets doubled c-pawns,
[ 23...fc8 24.hxg6 xg6 25.xg6 xg6 though he does get some activity too. 6.e5
26.e5+ f5 27.g4 leaves White with an d6 7.xc6 xc6 8.xc6+ bxc6 9.g3
overwhelming advantage. ] [ Another possibility is 9.b3 when xc3
24.d5! e5 10.dxc3 g7 11.b2 a5 12.g3 a4 13.g2
[ 24...cxd5 25.exd5 g4 26.hxg6 xg6 a6 14.0-0-0 e6 15.c4 0-0 16.xg7
27.xe7+ is crushing. ] xg7 17.b2 b8 18.c3 c5
25.hxg6 xg6 26.f5+ h7 wasn't much for White in Gelfand, B (2733)-
[ 26...xf5 27.exf5 d6 28.dxc6 bxc6 Svidler, P (2726)/Dagomys 2009. Of
29.e6 d7 30.e4! f7 31.f3 h7 course defending a position without much in
32.h5 g7 33.exc6 and Black can the way of winning prospects may not be

578
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

everyone's cup of tea. Nor is it suitable for 6...xc3 Nevertheless, Black is facing a
every tournament situation. ] completely different kind of game in the
9...b8 This seems to be 'new', though I don't game continuation without the active
see it revolutionising the assessment of this counterplay that characterizes the Grünfeld.
line. Other moves are as follows: While White will definitely not see a large
[ a) 9...g7 10.g2 e6 11.b3 0-0 12.b2 advantage in the game continuation, he will
fd8 13.0-0-0 b4 14.a3 d5 15.a4 f6 have that annoying plus-over-equals
16.c5 f7 17.a6 d6 18.d4 pressure which can be difficult to face. ]
was better for W hite in Kraai, J (2526)- 7.d3 c6 8.e3 0-0 9.d2
Bezemer, A (2364)/Hoogeveen 2009. ] [ In a survey in New In Chess Yearbook 79,
[ b) 9...xc3 10.dxc3 e6 11.g2 d5 Marin claims 9.c1 to be the slightly more
12.e4 c4 13.f1 xf1 14.xf1 0-0-0 accurate move, somewhat limiting Black's
15.e3 was looking very pleasant for White options. ]
in Mastrovasilis, A (2518)-Oreopoulos, K 9...e5 10.h6 e7
(2284)/ Kalamaria 2008. ] [ This move is what Marin recommends
10.g2 e6 11.b3 g7 12.b2 0-0 against 9 Qc1, but in this line it doesn't
13.xd5 xd5 appear particularly effective. The ECO main
[ There must surely be a case for undoubling line is 10...d4 11.xg7 xf3+
Black's pawns with 13...cxd5 , though it's ( 11...xg7 12.h4 xf3+ 13.xf3
still White for choice after 14.xg7 xg7 Marin/Stoica ) 12.xf3 xg7
15.c1 fc8 16.c5 c6 17.0-0 intending A) 13.h4 h6 14.c1 ( 14.b4 c6 15.b2
18.Rfc1. ] d4 16.0-0 a5 , and Black has solved his
14.xg7 xg7 15.0-0 fd8 16.d3 xg2 opening problems successfully, Ribli, Z-
17.xg2 b6 This is a nightmare endgame Pribyl, J/Germany 1989; 14.0-0-0 c6
f o r B la c k wh o f a ce s le n g t h y t o rt u re . I t ' s 15.b1 Marin/Stoica) 14...e7 15.e4
difficult to see what attracts Black players to c6 16.c3 d8 17.c5 e6 18.a3
this line unless they actually enjoy this kind of ( 18.g4!? d5 19.g5 h5 20.a3
thing. 18.fc1 f8 19.c4 e8 20.ac1 l o o k s l i k e a n i n t e r e s t i n g a l t e r n a t i v e)
d6 21.a4 a6 22.f4 d8 23.f3 c8 18...d5 19.g2 f5 20.d2 f6
24.c5 d5 25.ac4 d7 26.d4 xc5 Gil Reguera, J-Fernandez Cazorla, A/
27.xc5 b5 28.c4 d6 29.e4 f5+ Madrid 1992 21.0-0;
30.d3 d5 31.b4 d6 32.c3 d7 B) 13.0-0
33.b3 d5 34.e3 b5 35.a4 d5 B1) 13...a5 14.e4 c6 15.fd1 e7
[ 35...b8 might have been better. ] 16.ac1 d8 17.c5 d5
36.c3 b5 37.b3 d5 38.c4 c8 B1a) 18.d4
39.a3 b7 40.a5 d6 41.e5 e6 42.h3 B1a1) 18...b6!? isn't mentioned by
h5 43.d3 White's impending 44. e4 Marin/Stoica, but it may represent a
persuades Black to halt his suffering. better option for Black, e.g. 19.e4
1-0 ( or 19.dxe5 bxc5 20.e4 e6
21.exd5 xd5 22.e3 xf3
23.xf3 xe5= ) 19...f5 ( 19...f5
581 A16 20.dxe5 xe5 21.d4 xd4
Butnorius,Algimantas 2442 22.xd4 ac8 with no more than a
Iordachescu,Viorel 2584 tiny edge for W hite) 20.c3 e4
IX EICC Plovdiv BUL (3) 23.04.2008 21.xd5 cxd5 22.g2 a6 23.c3
[Carsten Hansen] dc8=;
B1a2) 18...b4 19.e3 xa2
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 20.xe5+ xe5 21.dxe5 e8
xd5 5.g3 g7 6.g2 b6 22.a1 b4 23.e6 fxe6 24.xb7
[ It is arguably a question of taste whether xb7 25.d7+ f6 26.xb7 h5
Black should prefer the text move or 27.h3 ( 27.h4!? to fix Black's

579
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
k i n gs i d e p a wn s o n b l a ck se e m s
m o r e l o g i c a l) 27...ed8 28.b6
( 28.a4!? ) 28...c2 29.a4
ab8= Marin/Stoica;
B1b) 18.a4 e6 19.a3 c7
Solleveld-l'Ami, Utrecht 2005, 20.c5
b5 21.e3 f6= Marin/Stoica;
B2) 13...c6 14.b4 e6 ( This position is
given as equal in ECO, but that is hardly
t h e wh o l e t r u t h , s i n c e B l a ck is st i l l
working to equalize well beyond this
move. Alternatively in a more recent
ga m e , B l a ck t rie d 14...c4 15.c2
d6 16.fd1 a5 17.ab1 axb4
18.xb4 e7 Teske, H-Joachim, S/
Panormo 2001, and now 19.db1 e6
20.a4 leaves White with a somewhat
more comfortable game) 15.fc1 c4!?
( 15...f6?! 16.a4 f7 17.g2 f5 18.a5
d5 19.b5 cxb5 20.xb5 a6 21.a3
c8? 22.xc8 xc8 23.b2 e7
24.c4 f6 25.xe5 1-0 Komljenovic,
D-Dragojlovic, A/Nice 2001) 16.c2
( 16.d1!? d6 17.d4 c4 18.d5
cxd5 19.xd5 c8 is given as 'unclear'
by Marin/ Stoica, but White has a clear
initiative after 20.d3 b5 21.a4 a6
22.axb5 axb5 23.a7 ) 16...d6
17.b2 f6 18.e4 xe4 19.xe4 f7
20.a4 d6 21.c5 e8 22.ac1
R o b a t s c h , K - P o l u g a e vs k y, L / S o c h i
1974 ]
11.xg7
[ In an earlier game with this variation, White
went for the more aggressive-looking 11.h4
xh6 12.xh6 f6 13.c1 g4
A) 14.h2 is a peculiar-looking alternative,
e.g. d7 ( 14...e6 15.xc6 bxc6
16.0-0 is slightly more comfortable for
White ) 15.a3 ad8 16.d5 ( 16.g4 d4
with sharp complications, though Black
shouldn't have any problems) 16...xd5
17.xd5+ h8 18.f3 d6 19.e4;
B) 14.0-0 ad8 15.e3 fe8 16.e4
d5 17.c5 f5 , Nedela, V-Konopka, M/
CZE 1997 , and now W hite should have
played 18.xe7 xe7 19.c5 xf3
20.xf3 d4 21.xb7 xf3+ 22.exf3
b8 23.a5 xb2 24.c6 , and he is
clearly not worse in the endgame. ]
11...xg7 12.0-0 d7 13.fc1
[ 13.ac1!? ]
13...ad8 14.b3
[ 14.e4!? f5 ( 14...c8 15.c5 f6
16.b4 ) 15.c5 c8 16.b4 e4 17.b2+
g8 18.e1 is very pleasant for White ]
14...f6 15.b2 f7 16.e4 c8 17.a3 d4
This is the move Black has been preparing
wit h his la st co up le o f m o ves, b u t a s a n
equalizer it doesn't fully do the job. 18.c5
[ White can even consider the not entirely
obvious 18.xd4 exd4 19.a4 ]
18...c6 19.b4 e6 20.a4 d5 21.xe6+
xe6 22.cb1 a6 23.d2 b6 24.b5
, and in this position a draw was agreed upon,
although only W hite can be better in this
position, having all his pieces excellently
coordinated to apply pressure against Black's
queenside.
½-½
582 A16
Carlsen,Magnus 2786
Svidler,Peter 2727
24th ECC Kallithea GRE (5) 21.10.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
xd5 5.a4+ d7 6.h4 xc3 7.bxc3
[ Somewhat surprisingly, we haven't covered
this move before on ChessPublishing. com.
The main move is 7.dxc3 about which you
can find a couple of references to other
Svidler games in the PDF e-books. ]
[ The other alternative is 7.d4 f6 8.xc3
which leads to a complicated game and
chances to both sides. ]
7...g7
[ Black has two other options to consider at
this juncture: A) 7...c5
A) White doesn't achieve anything with
8.g3 , e.g. c6 ( Black has several other
moves to consider as well: 8...g7 9.g2
c6 10.0-0 d7 11.d4 h6 12.dxc5?!
xc3 13.b1 a5 14.e3 xa2
15.d4 g5 16.h3 xd4 17.xd4 xg2
18.xg2 xc5 , and White doesn't have
enough for the pawns, Rajkovic, D-
Krasenkow, M/Ptuj 1989; 8...a5 9.e5
g7 10.xd7 xd7 11.h3 d8 12.0-0
0-0 13.b1 b6 14.a4 e5 15.b5 a6
580
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
16.e4 f5 17.c2 Urday Caceres, H-
Sion Castro, M/Palma de Mallorca 1991;
8...c6!? 9.g2 d7 10.0-0 e6
11.xd8+ xd8 12.c4 g7 , and with
Black having solved all his opening
problems, a draw was prematurely agreed
upon, 1/2-1/2, in W inkeler, U-Loehr, M/
Germany 1996.) 9.g2 e5 ( 9...g7
10.0-0 e6 11.f4 0-0 12.b1 b6=
H u l t i n , J - M o b e r g , K / M a n h e m s 1 9 9 8)
10.c4 e7 11.0-0 0-0 12.d3 c8
13.h6 e8 14.h4 e6 15.b5 d7= 8.b1 c6
Spassov, L-Webb, S/ Concordia 1977;
B) 8.b1 b6 ( 8...c7 9.g3 xg3
10.hxg3 b6 11.e4 c6 12.e5 a4
13.c4 e6 14.b3 xb3 15.xb3 d7 9.e4
16.c4 b8 17.a4 a6 18.e2 b5
, and Black has sufficient counterplay,
Milos, G-Fernandez Garcia, J/Buenos
Aires 1990) 9.d4!? ( 9.e4 c6 10.c4
e6 11.g3 g7 12.h4 b8 is quite
comfortable for Black, Peng Xiaomin-
S v i d l e r , P / N e w D e l h i / T h e r a n 2 0 0 0) followed by ... f7-f5 is probably okay for
9...cxd4 10.cxd4 g7 11.h6!
W ith this move, making use of the
otherwise oddly placed queen on h4, most
of Black's potential counterplay is
prevented.
B1) This gets Black into trouble a rather
s i m p l e i m p r o v e m e n t i s 11...xh6
12.xh6 , and now c6
B1a) 13.g7 f8 14.e4!? ( 14.xh7
xf3 15.exf3 xd4 is complete okay
for Black ) 14...xe4 15.b5+ c6
16.g5 d5 17.xh7 e4+ 18.d2
d7 is complicated;
B1b) 13.c1 d5 14.d2 d7
15.e3 b5! is at best marginally better
for White;
B2) 11...0-0?! 12.e3 f6 13.c4+ h8
14.0-0 c6 15.bc1 a5 16.d3 c8
17.e4 , and White has a clear advantage,
Macieja, B-Areshchenko, A/
Wattenscheid GER 2008 ]
[ B) Black's second alternative is 7...c6
8.e4 ( 8.d4!? can also be considered, but
has yet to be tested.) 8...e5 9.xd8+ xd8
10.b1 b6 11.d4 ( 11.b5!?
is less committal and probably also better,
yet Black should be fine after g7 12.0-0
0-0 13.a3 fe8 )
A) Black can also play 11...exd4 12.cxd4
f5!? ( this is better than 12...b4+ 13.d2
xd2+ 14.xd2 0-0 15.c1
leaves W hite wit h th e be tter cha nce s
according to Mikhalevski in CBM) 13.e5
b4+ 14.d2 xd2+ 15.xd2 a5
, and Black is doing pretty good.;
B) 11...g7 12.g5! b8 13.d1 exd4
14.cxd4 0-0 15.e2 be8!
with a pleasant game for Black, Tunik, G-
Tseitlin, M/Beersheba 1996. ]
[ 8...b6 is the subject of Aronian-Kamsky,
Kallithea 2008, which is the next game of
this update. ]
[ This appear to be White's best, whereas
9.d4?! is simply mistaken, leaving Black with
the better chances after d5 ]
[ Of more interest is somewhat provocative
9.d4!? d5 ( 9...xd4 10.xd4 xd4
11.cxd4 d7 12.f3 0-0-0 13.e4 e6
Black even if I would rather play W hite)
10.e4 xa2 ( 10...e5? was played in a
recent game, but should be avoided as
evidenced by this game. 11.xd8+ xd8
12.exd5 exd4 13.xb7 dxc3 14.d6! e8+
15.d1 cxd6 16.b5 c2+ 17.xc2 c6??
18.xc6 1-0 Shimanov, A-Kilpatrick, C/Vung
Tau City VIE 2008) 11.xb7 ( 11.b2 e5!?
has been given without further evaluation by
Mikhaelvski, but White seems to hold the
better chances in this line, e.g. 12.xd8+
xd8 13.f3 e6 14.xb7 , and White
has the better pawn structure along with
the possibility of scooping up the advantage
of the bishop pair with Ng5 in some lines.)
11...0-0 is given as unclear by Mikhalevski,
which is quite possibly an accurate
assessment, although I somewhat prefer
White after
A) 12.a3 f6 13.h6 c5! ( 13...c8
14.b2 c5 15.f3 ) 14.b3 xb3
15.xb3 a5 gives Black excellent
counterplay;
B) 12.f3 c5 ( 12...f6 13.e2 d6
14.b2 f7 15.0-0 ) 13.b2 a5
14.xe7 c6 15.b7 fc8 16.a6
, and W hite seems to be doing rather
well. ]
581
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
9...e6!?
[ This is a new move. Previously Black tried
9...0-0 10.d4 e6 11.g5! f6
A) 12.c4!? e8!? ( 12...fxg5??
13.xe6+ h8 14.xg5 h6 15.f7+
xf7 16.xd8++- ) 13.e3
is a suggestion of Mikhalevski's White is
doing very well in this line too;
B) 12.e3 This is a rather unpleasant
version of the Exchange Variation of the
Grunfeld, Black has hardly any
counterplay and both his pieces and pawn
structure leave him in an awkward
position. e8! 13.d3 ( 13.c4!?
M i k h a l e v s k i) 13...d7 14.0-0 d8
15.fd1 b6 16.d2!? a4 17.b3
Sakaev, K-Mikhalevski, V/ Beersheba
1998 ]
[ Another option is 9...e5 10.xd8+ xd8
11.g5 '!' is given by Mikhaelvski without an
eva lu a t io n , th o u gh h in t ing t h ro u gh t h e
punctuation that is supposed to be better
for White. However, Black seems to be only
slightly worse after e8 This line, however,
is n 't a s f le xi b l e f o r B la ck a s t h e g a m e
continuation due to the limitations imposed
by the e5-pawn on the bishop on g7. ]
10.xd8+ xd8 11.g5!?
[ Strictly speaking, this is the novelty of the
game, because Svidler premiered 9...e6
against Sakaev in the Russian
Championship two weeks prior to this game.
In t hat game W hite gave pref eren ce t o
11.d3 d7 12.c2 c5
A) 13.g5 was played in a brand-new
game less than two weeks ago, but it is
definitely not any threat to this line for
Black: e8 14.d4 ( on 14.a3 b6!?
looks satisfactory for Black) 14...h6!
Black is already doing rather well. 15.xf7
xf7 16.dxc5 xc3+ 17.e2 b5
( 17...ad8!? ) 18.b2 f6 19.f4
( 19.xf6 xf6 20.hd1 e5 ) 19...hd8
20.xf6 xf6 21.hd1 g5 ( 21...e5!?
22.g3 xd1 23.xd1 b4 24.e3 a5
may even be better for Black) 22.g3 xd1
23.xd1 gxf4 24.gxf4 g8 25.f3 a5
26.a3 h5 27.e3 g2 28.d2 g1
29.d1 g2 30.d2 g1 31.d1
1/2-1/2 Khismatullin, D-Timofeev, A (2670/
Serpuhov RUS 2008;
B) 13.e5!? f5!? 14.exf6 xf6 15.a3
d7! 16.0-0 b6 17.fe1 e8 18.c5
xf3 19.gxf3 c6 20.e4 ( 20.b3 d7
21.f4!? gives W hite a little pressure)
20...c7 21.eb4 ( 21.be1 ad8!= )
21...e7! 22.xb6+ axb6 23.xb6 eb8
24.e4 xa2 25.d4 a6 26.xa6 bxa6
27.xb8 xb8 28.xc6 , and a draw was
agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, Sakaev, K-Svidler,
P/Moscow (Russian Ch) 2008 ]
11...e8 12.f3 White's position seems easier
to play. W hile largely undeveloped at this
juncture, White should be able to establish a
solid centre and thereby gain a pleasant
space advantage. Black, on the other hand,
doesn't have access to the typical Grunfeld
counterplay and is therefore at a
disadvantage from the outset, though this
disadvantage is fairly small. h6 13.h3 b6
14.d4 a4 15.f4
[ 15.d2!? ]
15...c5 16.d2 e7 17.d5
[ 17.d3 d8 18.d5 is also worth a
thought. ]
17...g5 18.h5!? e5 19.g3?!
[ This is a very dynamic move, but
unfortunately for White, not a very good one.
Instead W hite should have opted for
19.c4!? d7 20.0-0 after which White has
perhaps a slight pull. Now Black takes over
the control of the game. ]
19...exd5 20.exd5 c2! The target is the
awkwardly-placed knight on h5. 21.c1 g6
22.f4
[ White tries to shake things up a bit, well-
knowing that the pawns are very loose and
w i l l f a l l . 22.g4 xh5 23.gxh5 d7
is obviously far from ideal for White ]
22...xh5 23.fxe5 The pawns look
impressive and if White now only had time to
p la y c3 -c4 , h e wo u ld b e n e a rly win n in g .
However, in the game the pawns are just
easy targets for Black, and as you will see,
both are quickly picked up. d7 24.d6+
[ 24.g2 xe5 25.0-0 ae8 is inadequate
for White ]
24...e6 25.h3+ g4 26.g2 ad8 27.0-0
xe5 28.c4 xd6 Black has won both of
White's central pawns, but White has some
compensation in his bishop pair, open files
and Black's lacking piece coordination. This
582
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

allows White to stay in the game. 29.c3 f6 583 A16

30.d5+ d7 31.xf6!? This wins back one Chernyshov,Konstantin 2518
of the two pawns. Carlsen may already have Malykin,Vitaly 2410
had the conclusion of the game in mind at this KB Czech Open (5) 23.07.2002
juncture. xf6 32.xe5 hf8 33.d1 c8 [Nigel Davies]
34.xf6 xf6 35.f1!? My computer objects
to this move, but Carlsen may have judged 1.c4 f6 2.c3 c6 3.e4 d5 4.cxd5 cxd5
this endgame to be an easy draw, which may 5.e5 fd7 A solid but rather passive move
or may not be right, depending on how you which leads to positions reminiscent of a
evaluate Black's chances in the lines given as French Defence.
alternatives after Black's 36th move. xf1+ [ 5...e4 is more enterprising. ]
36.xf1 d7 6.d4 b6
[ Black can consider 36...a6!? 37.e2 b5 [ T h i s c o u l d w e l l b e b e t t e r t h a n 6...c6
with reasonable winning chances. In the wh i c h b l o c k s t h e c - f i l e a n d t h e e 8 - a 4
game continuation, White doesn't seem to diagonal. After 7.ge2 b6 8.g3 g6
have too many problems. ] 9.h4 h5 10.e2 d7 11.g5 Black came
[ Another idea to place the bishop on a under strong pressure in Lautier, J (2645)-
better square, ideally d7, and then advance Van Wely, L (2585)/Groningen 1995. ]
t h e p a w n s o n t h e q u e e n s i d e 36...e8 7.d3
37.e2 c7 38.e3 c6 39.e6 [ After 7.ge2 Black gets a reasonable
( 39.xc6? xc6 40.f4 h5 is of course position with g4 8.f3 d7 9.g3 e6
an easy win for Black) 39...d7 40.d5 a6 and now ( 9...h5!? 10.h4 e6
41.f4 b5 with excellent winning chances is also possible) 10.h5 would be strong
for Black ] we r e i t n o t f o r h4+ , driving the knight
37.e2 d6 38.b7 b5!? back where it came from. ]
[ While this certainly is an interesting attempt 7...c6 8.ge2 e6
at winning, Black may be able to do better [ In some games between some not notably
with 38...f7 39.a6 e6 40.e3 e5 stron g p la yers Bla ck ha s pla ye d 8...g4
41.a3 d7 42.b7 b5 43.cxb5 xb5 , but without notable success. For example
44.c8 h5 with some chances. However, as 9.f3 d7 10.0-0 e6 11.a3 a5 12.b3 e7
with all lines in this endgame, Black has to 13.c2 g6 14.h6 c8 15.d2
be wary of the possibility of W hite left Black very passively placed in Klauser,
exchanging all the pawns on the kingside M (2260)-Silva, C/Zuerich 1986. ]
and then sacrifice the bishop on the c-pawn, 9.a3 a5 10.b3 d7 11.a4
leaving Black with a-pawn and the wrong- [ This way of doing things looks quite creative,
coloured bishop. ] though I'm not convinced it's better than
39.cxb5 f7 40.a3 c4+ 41.d2 xb5 keeping it simple with 11.0-0 after which
42.c3 Black has won the pawn back, but as e7 12.c2 h6 13.e3 c8 14.d2
long as White is able to maintain his king on makes it difficult for Black to castle kingside
c3 and the bishop on the a8-h1 diagonal (or due the possibility of a sacrifice on h6.
at least prevent Black from using it for his White probably avoided this line because of
king to penetrate the white kingside), White a4 15.b4 a7 when Black gets at least
will be able to hold the endgame. The rest of some squares for his pieces on the
the endgame sees Black trying to make it work, queenside. ]
but Carlsen easily wards off all black attempts. 11...e7 12.e3 xa4 13.bxa4 a7
c6 43.c8 d7 44.b7 e6 45.e4 e5 14.b3 b8 15.c3 The exchange of
46.c6 c4 47.b7 h5 48.c6 f7 49.g2 White's knight on a4 gives him the b5 square
d5 50.f1 e4 51.g2+ e5 52.f1 a6 and some pressure on the b-file. But I can't
53.a4 a5 54.xc4 c6 55.f7 xa4 help thinking this distracts him from playing
½-½ on the kingside where his space advantage
lies. 0-0 16.0-0 f5 17.f4 h6 18.fc1 h8

583
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
19.c2 g5 20.ac1 g8 21.b5 c6
22.f1 f8 Black has counterplay on the
kingside now. 23.d2 d8 24.h3 g7
25.h1 g4 26.e3 b6 27.b1 d8
28.b3 c8 29.cb2 a8 30.e1 h5
31.c3 h8 32.d3 f7 33.g1 g7
34.f1 f7 35.e2 g7 36.d1 f7
37.c2 h4 38.b1 g7 39.a2 f7
40.d2 g7 41.e3 f7 42.c3 f8
43.e2 d8 44.b5 d7 45.d2 c7
46.c1 hc8 47.e3 d8 48.e1 c7
49.f2? A serious mistake.
[ 49.c3 is about equal. ]
49...b4+! A real bolt from the blue. 50.b1
[ After 50.axb4 xb5 51.bxa5 ( 51.axb5
axb4+ 52.b1 a5 ) 51...c4 Black just
wins. ]
50...c2 51.xd7
[ 51.c3 xb5 52.xc2 xc3 53.xc3
d3 is also winning for Black. ]
51...xe1 52.xc8 xc8 This result seems
very strange because Black is winning here.
½-½
584
Damljanovic,Branko
Areshchenko,Alexander
IX EICC Plovdiv BUL (8)
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7
5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 a6
[ T h e i m m e d i a t e 6...g7
passive for Black, and White's score in this
variation in enormously in his favour, e.g.
7.e4! 0-0 8.e5! g4 9.d4
A) or 9...e6 10.d5 f5 11.f4 d7
12.e2 f6 13.e6 de5 14.d1! c6?
( Mikhalevski has suggested two ideas, but
n e i t h e r l o o k s c o n v i n c i n g : 14...xf3+!?
15.xf3 e5 16.xe5 fxe5 17.e2 h5
(necessary, White threatens g2-g4) 18.h3
h4 19.c4; 14...d6!? 15.d4! d3+
16.xd3 xf4 17.g3 e5+ 18.e2 )
15.d4 d3 16.xd3 xd3+ 17.xd3
, and it was soon over: cxd5 18.e2 e5
19.b5 g5 20.e3 f5 21.xg5 f4 22.0-0 8.g2 c6
g6 23.d1 1-0 Rustemov, A-Zezulkin, J/
Swidnica POL 1999;
B) 9...c6 10.f4 a5 11.e2! c5
12.h3 cxd4 13.xd4 h6 14.d1
, and White is in control, Ivanchuk-Shirov,
Polanica Zdroj 1998 ]
7.g3 This move isn't particularly popular and
hasn't been discussed on this page before. It
has seen a few outings in top level chess.
The normal moves are of course 7 e4 and 7
d4 leading to lines we have discussed several
times before. g7
[ The main alternative is 7...b5
A) Or 8.h4 c5 9.d3 c6 10.g2
A1) Black ca n a lso conside r 10...g7
11.h6 0-0 12.0-0 bd7 13.ac1
( 13.xg7 xg7 14.b4!? c8 )
13...c8 14.d1?! ( 14.xg7 xg7
15.fd1 e5 16.e3 h6 ) 14...e5=
15.e3 h5 16.xg7 xh4 17.xh4
, and here the players settled on a draw,
1/2-1/2, Nisipeanu, L-Timofeev, A/Dubai
2002, despite the fact that Black is doing
rather well at this point.;
A2) 10...h6!? 11.0-0 bd7 12.d2?!
xg2 13.xg2 g5! 14.h3 g4 15.h4
g8 ( 15...e6!? 16.f3 e7!
is very unpleasant for W hite, e.g.
A16 17.d1 h5 18.fxg4 xg4 19.h3
2595 de5 , and Black is completely in
2650 command of the game.) 16.f3 e6
29.04.2008 17.de4 xe4 18.xd8+ xd8
19.fxe4 h5 20.f4 g7 21.ac1=
Davies, N-Rowson, J/Southend 2002;
B) 8.b3 c5 9.d3 c6 10.g2 c8
B1) 11.e3 e6 ( 11...c4!? ) 12.d1
is actually too d4 13.g5 d7 14.0-0 g7= 15.a4
b4 16.xd4?! cxd4 17.d5??
( 17.ce4 0-0 ) 17...xd5 18.xd5 e6
, oops and therefore: 0-1, Kongevold, H-
Giemsa, S/Dresden GER 2007;
B2) 11.d1 g7 12.e3 ( 12.0-0 0-0
13.e3 b4 14.h3 fd5 15.d2 b6
16.c1 c4 17.dxc4 xc4
with a pleasant game for Black, Psakhis,
L-Mikha levski, V / Ra mat Aviv 199 8)
12...a5 13.c1 0-0 14.b3 c6 15.0-0
b7 16.h3 d7 17.xd7 xd7
with more or less even chances, Wang
Yue-Predojevic, B/Lausanne SUI 2006 ]
[ 8...0-0
A) 9.0-0 c6 10.d3
A1) 10...e5 11.h4 f5 12.h6 g4
584
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
13.xg7 xg7 14.xd8 axd8 15.fc1
c8 16.e4 f6?! ( 16...f5!? 17.c5
d6 makes more sense the chances are
fairly level) 17.xf6 xf6 18.f1 d7
19.d2 , and White has the clearly
better chances in the endgame, Jaracz,
P-Brkic, A/Nova Gorica SLO 2005;
A2) 10...g4 11.f4 d7 12.e5
( 12.g5!? ) 12...xe5 13.xe5 c6
14.fc1 ac8 15.b4 h3 16.f3 e6
17.c5 g4 18.g2 e6 , and Black
has solved his opening problems,
Ionescu, C-Konopka, M/ Budapest
2000;
B) 9.e5!? c6 10.xd7 bxd7 11.0-0
c8 12.d3 a5 13.d2 h5 14.a4 a5
15.h3 , and White has the somewhat
better chances, Miroshnichenko, E-
Timoshenko, I/Alushta 2000 ]
9.d4
[ 9.0-0 e5 10.d3 h6 Similar position with
White's queen on d1 can be reached by 1.c4
Nf62.Nc3 d5 3.cd N:d5 4.g3g6 5. Bg2 Nb6 6.
Nf3 Bg7 and so on. The position of queen
on c4 is in the Black's favour as he can win
few tempos by the means of Be6 and then
Nd5 and Nb6.
A) In an earlier game in this line, two of
today's top players tested the merits of
11.d1 e6 12.a4 0-0 13.e3 d5
14.c5
A1) Mikhalevski in CBM gives the
following line: 14...e8!? 15.d4
A1a) 15...exd4 16.xd4 xd4
17.xd4 xc3 ( 17...xd4
18.xd5!+- ) 18.xc3 is quite
uncomfortable for Black;
A1b) 15...xc3 16.bxc3
A1b1) 16...exd4 17.xd4 xd4
18.xd4 ( 18.cxd4?! d5 );
A1b2) 16...e4
A1b21) 17.e1?! b5
( a l s o M i k h a l e v s k i ' s 17...f5
is excellent for Black e.g. 18.d5?
xd5 19.c4 b5! , and Black is
winning ) 18.c2 d5;
A1b22) 17.e5 d5
( 17...xe5!? 18.dxe5 g5 ) 18.c4 12.d1 b6
( 18.c2!? - Mikh a le vski - e3!?
19.f3 b6 20.a3 a5 21.c4
xe5 22.cxd5 d6 23.b2 b5
, and Black has a pleasant game)
18...b5 ("and Black is OK" -
Mikhalevski) ( 18...xe5 19.dxe5
b5 20.a3 bxc4 21.f4 ) 19.c2
xe5 20.cxd5 d7 21.b4 a5
22.d2 f6 23.e3 xd5 24.xc7
f8 25.dc1;
A2) 14...b6 15.a3 e8 16.ac1
d4! 17.d2 b5 18.b4 c6 19.a5
d7 20.xd8 axd8= , and Black has
a t le a st e ve n ch a n ce s , T o p a lo v, V -
Svidler, P/Dos Hermanas 1999;
B) 11.d2
B1) Bla ck sh o u ld co n sid e r 11...e6!?
, e.g. 12.a4 ( If White plays 12.h4
as in the game, Black has the clever
d7!? , and if White plays the natural-
looking, but careless 13.fc1? , then
g4! creates serious problems for the
w h i t e q u e e n) 12...0-0 , and here it
seems as if White's dark-squared bishop
is somewhat misplaced on d2 Black
certainly shouldn't have any problems
here.;
B2) 11...0-0 12.h4 e8 13.xd8
xd8 14.ab1 f5 15.fc1 e6 16.e1
d6 17.b3 This looks utterly harmless
for Black, despite the fact that I would
much rather play W hite in this type of
position (the old Dragon itch is a difficult
thing to shake off...) nevertheless Black
soon ends up in a problematic position
on account of non-committal play.
B2a) 17...e4!? 18.f4 ( 18.dxe4?!
xe4 19.xe4 fxe4 20.e3 f5 )
18...fe8;
B2b) 17...e7?! 18.a4 c6 19.a5
de8 20.c2 ( 20.b4!? b5
21.e3 ) 20...f4 21.b4 df5?!
( 21...d8! ) 22.c5!? ( 22.e4!? d4
23.xd4 exd4 24.f3 ) 22...c8
23.e4 h5?! , Rahman, Z-Gupta, A/
New Delhi IND 2007, and now 24.c5
leaves W hite with a small, but clear
advantage. ]
9...e6 10.a4 0-0 11.0-0 d5!
[ 11...b5 12.c2 b8 13.d1 ]
[ 12...b5!? isn't entirely hopeless, e.g. 13.e4
xc3 14.bxc3 a5 with an interesting
position ]
585
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
13.f4 d5 14.g5!? h6 15.d2 b6
16.e3 a5 17.b3 f5 18.c1
[ In an old New In Chess Magazine from the
1980s, Timman wrote that it can be difficult
to tear yourself away from thinking about
what has just been played, rather than what
is actually the best move in the position. I
recalled this, because W hite's best move
may actually be yet another move with the
dark-squared bishop: 18.c1!? , and now
d7 19.b2 ( 19.a3!? ) 19...h3 20.e4
leaves White with a comfortable edge. ]
18...g5?!
[ 18...d7!? 19.e1 ad8 ]
19.e1 g6 20.d5!?
[ White has an noteworthy alternative in
20.e4!? , e.g. d5 21.c5 b6 22.a4
( 22.e6 fxe6 23.xc6 e8 is less clear)
22...a7 23.e2 e6 24.d3 with a clearly
more comfortable game for White. ]
20...b4 21.e4 c6?!
[ 21...e6 22.a3 a6 23.e3 exd5
24.exd5 ]
22.a3 a6 23.dxc6 bxc6 24.e3! b8
25.f4! d8 26.c2 gxf4
[ 26...d5!? 27.xd5 cxd5 28.f5 h5
29.exd5 c8 30.d2 d6 31.d3 ]
27.gxf4 h8
[ This is terribly passive and soon leads
Black into an even worse position. Instead
Black should have opted for something more
active, e.g. 27...d5 28.xd5 cxd5 29.f5
h5 30.d3 d4 , and though White is also
much better in this line, at least Black isn't
passively awaiting the execution... The same
can be said about the rest of the game,
which is quite a lacklustre performance by
Black. ]
28.f5 h7 29.f3 d7 30.a4 f6
[ Black needs to play more actively, such as
30...c5!? ]
[ or 30...d6!? though White in either case
is still much better ]
31.h1
[ 31.b6!? c8 32.h1+- ]
31...g4
[ 31...c5!? ]
32.g1 d6 33.b6! ab8 34.c4
Now things start coming undone for Black for
real d3 35.xa5 e3 36.xd3 xd3
37.xe3 xe3 38.xc6 Black is not only two
pawns down, his minor pieces on h7 and a6
can't get into play. This is of course
completely lost for Black, but White makes it
looks eve n worse.. . a8 39.d2 e2
40.dc4 d4 41.f3 a2 42.b4 e6
43.b3 f2 44.b5 b8 45.c8+ g7
46.f6+
1-0
585 A16
David,Alb 2598
Salem,AR 2505
Gibraltar Open (10.18) 02.02.2012
[John Bartholomew]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.g3
b6 5.g2 g6 6.d3 g7 7.e3 c6
[ Subscribers may want to peruse the game
Ivanchuk, V (2709)-Mamedyarov, S (2580) /
Bled 2002/[TonyK] in order to get a feel for
the positions resulting from Bg2xc6 in this
line. That contest went 7...0-0 8.d2 c6
9.xc6! bxc6 10.h6 (in our main game
Black put a stop to this) c5 11.d1 b7
12.f3 with characteristically unbalanced
play. ]
8.xc6+ Flank openings are replete with
scenarios where one side (usually W hite)
exchanges a fianchettoed bishop for a knight
in hopes of exploiting the resulting structural
deficiencies. Here I believe Black's dynamic
potential outweighs such considerations, but I
wo u l d n o t b e o f f e n d e d i f yo u d i s a g r e e !
Evidence to the contrary is 8.Bxc6's status as
the main line, a healthy 60% score in White's
favor, and the patronage of World Champions
Vasily Smyslov and Tigran Petrosian.
Nevertheless, you can find plenty of strong
players taking up Black's cause, and the "eye
in the sky" (current ly named Houdini!) is
particularly good at unearthing the concrete
resources at Black's disposal.
[ L a s t m o n t h I i n v e s t i g a t e d 8.d2
. Black has adequate play in the line d4
9.c1 f5 , preventing the exchange of
dark-square bishops. See Reinderman, D
(2581)-Harika, D (2516)/ Wijk aan Zee NED
2012/[John Bartholomew]. ]
[ White may want to look in the direction of
8.f3 ]
586
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ or the newly fashionable 8.c1 . See the
archives. ]
8...bxc6 9.d2
[ S m y s l o v a n d P e t r o s i a n p l a y e d 9.c1
, which look admittedly less natural than 9.
Qd2. Black faces the same choice he had in
the game, e.g.
A) or 9...h6 10.f3 h3! 11.g1
( 11.d2 0-0 12.de4 h7 13.f3 d5
14.c5 e6 15.f2 h3 16.d1
Malakhatko, V (2548) -Petrosian, T (2612)/
Dubai UAE 2010. f5! 17.c5 d6 )
11...g4 12.d2 d5 13.xd5 cxd5
( taking the opportunity to repair his pawn
s t ru c t u r e , b u t 13...xd5 i s f i n e t o o .)
14.b3 d6 15.f3 d7 16.d4
Petrosian, T (2645) -Schmidt, W (2450)/
Skopje 1972. Here I like a5!? , i.e. 17.f2
a4 18.c5 b5 19.d2 h5! with active
counterplay for Black.;
B) 9...h5 10.f3 g4 ( 10...h3!? )
11.g5 d5 12.xd5 xd5 13.f3 b8
( 13...h4!? makes sense; there's nothing
wrong with 13...0-0 either. ) 14.b1 d7
15.b3 Smyslov, V (2600) -Robatsch, K
(2440)/Sochi 1974. Here Robatsch could
have nabbed a pawn with a5+ 16.f2
xa2 . ]
[ N a k a m u r a r e c e n t l y p l a y e d 9.c1
, which should probably be met by the old
d5!? , e.g. ( 9...g4 10.d2 h5 11.h3
f5 12.f3 d7 13.h4 Nakamura, H
(2710)-Mamedyarov, S (2717)/Mainz GER
2009. ) 10.d2 h5 ( 10...xc3!? 11.bxc3
d5 12.f3 g4 13.c4 h5 ) 11.xd5
xd5 12.f3 g4 ( 12...h3 ) 13.c5?!
xa2 14.b4 xd2+ 15.xd2 d7
Ree, H (2470)-Van Dop, A (2340)/
Leeuwarden 1975. ]
[ 9.f3 h3 could be similar to the game. ]
9...h5!? Black can treat this position a few
different ways. The text makes sense: Black
toys with the idea of ...h5-h4 and
simultaneously prevents Be3-h6.
[ 9...h6 is completely playable, and it's
probably the move I would chose here.
Castling is now more difficult to achieve, but
in return Black guards against Ng1-f3-g5. A
couple examples:
A) 10.f3 h3! An important idea to
remember - Black wants to force a small
concession ( 10...g4 has been played a
couple times, but Vavrak's move is
stronger. ) 11.g1 g4 (The optimal
square now that White can't castle) 12.c1
d7 13.h4 d5 14.xd5 cxd5 15.d4
Dizdar, G (2548)-Vavrak, P (2466)/Plovdiv
200 8. At th is po in t I like t he en gin e's
suggestion of c8!? with the idea of ...c7-
c5 and ...d5-d4 if W hite captures. After
16.c5 c6 White is somewhat lacking in
ideas due to the poor arrangement of his
kingside pieces, i.e. 17.f3 ( 17.g2 g5!? )
17...h3 18.f2 ( Trying to trap the
bishop with 18.g4?! backfires after h5! )
18...g5 19.g2 0-0 planning ...Rf8-e8
and ... e7-e5 with excellent play.;
B) 10.c1 a5! (exemplary flank play!)
B1) Better is 11.h4 , i.e. d5 12.f3
xe3!? Black has an interesting
dilemma: what minor piece scenario to
go for? ( It's also very interesting to fight
with two bisho p versu s t wo k nights :
12...xc3!? 13.bxc3 g4; 12...g4 )
13.xe3 d6;
B2) 11.f3 w o u l d b e m e t b y h3!
as in Dizdar-Vavrak above. Notice that
Black generally does well in waiting to
commit his bishop until White has played
h2-h4, Ng1-f3, or both.;
B3) 11.f3?! a4 ( 11...d5; or 11...h5!?
are also attractive.) 12.h4?! d5
13.xd5 xd5 14.a3 b8 15.d4 a2
Von Bahr, O (2284)-Tikkanen, H (2586)/
Stockholm SWE 2011. (23) ]
[ 9...0-0 10.h6 would transpose to the
af oremen tio ned Ivan chu k-Ma medyaro v
game. ]
[ Finally, I want to mention the slightly
suspicious pawn sacrifice 9...c5?! , i.e.
A) 10.h4?! c4 11.d4 b7 12.h2?!
( 12.f3 d7 ) 12...h5 13.h3 d7
14.0-0-0 a4 and White was clearly
going off the rails in Cajbel, M (2104)-Kos,
P (2220)/ Laczna 2002.;
B) 10.h6!?N i s i n t e r e s t i n g : xh6
11.xh6 b7 12.f3! xf3 13.exf3
xd3 14.d1 xf3 15.0-0;
C) 10.xc5 b7 11.f3 d7 Lerner, K
(2494) -Khmelniker, I (2444)/Ramat Aviv
2 0 0 4 . H e r e 12.h4! looks good when
Black's compensation is pretty nebulous. ]
587
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

10.f3 h3!? New, but entirely logical. [ or 30.g3 . ]

[ 10...g4 had been played previously, when 30...c4! The proverbial "cold shower"!
11.0-0!?N is a critical response. After xf3 Suddenly White has too many loose pieces.
12.exf3 0-0 13.ac1 Black's pawn 31.bxc4 There is no defense.
weaknesses are slightly more appreciable. ] [ 31.e3 xc1+ 32.xc1 b4+ 33.d2
11.g5 g2 12.g1 d5 13.c1 0-0 ( or 33.d1 d4+ ) 33...xc5 34.xf4
14.ge4 This position is really difficult to xg1+-+ ]
assess. Houdini actually prefers White a bit, 31...xc5 32.g5
but (and I'm conjecturing here) I think it tends [ or 32.g3 g4! ]
to overvalue static pawn weaknesses (c6+c7) 32...f2+! The last accurate move. White
when concrete counterplay has outwardly resigned in view of 33.Kd2(d1) Rd4+ 34.Kc2
stalled. A human will probably wonder where Rxc4.
White will put his king and how he intends to [ But not 32...xc4?? 33.e6! when White
deal with the advance of Black's e and f - survives. ]
pa wn s . Be s id es, m ost o f t he " p la ns" t h e 0-1
computer suggests here for White don't make
an ounce of sense (try it - you'll see!) f5!?
15.c5 h7 16.b3 g8 17.d4 586 A16
This advance presents Black with a Filippov,Valerij 2632
convenient opportunity for counterplay. e8! Glek,Igor V 2566
18.d3 d8 Aiming to push the e-pawn. Open Dubai UAE (3) 17.04.2001
[ 18...a5!? is another good option. ] [Tony Kosten]
19.b2 Trying to pitch the d-pawn.
[ 19.f4!? was probably a smarter way to offer 1.c4 f6 2.c3 g6 3.g3 c6 An unusual
it, e.g. xd4 ( 19...d7!?; 19...c4!? ) m o ve , B l a c k wa n t s t o p l a y a s ym m e t r i c
20.xd4 xd4 21.e3 d6 22.f2 ] Fianchetto King's Indian. 4.e4!?
19...d7! Declined! [ W h it e t ries t o d et er .. .d 5 , 4.d4 d5
[ 19...xd4 20.xd4 xd4 21.a4 e5 transposes to the KI, but with this move
22.ac5 ] order (the knight on c3) it is impossible to
20.f4?! play a Reti, ]
[ White had better clamp down on c5 with [ 4.f3 d5 and ...d4 is a threat. ]
20.a4 when e5 produces complications. ] [ However, 4.g2 d5 5.cxd5 cxd5 6.b3
20...c5! This is very well-timed. 21.a4 e6 7.f3 is quite possible, with a small
Damage control - White tries his best to close plus. ]
the floodgates. 4...d5
[ 21.dxc5?! e5! ] [ 4...d6 could transpose to a KI, but Black is
[ and 21.xc5 xc5 22.dxc5 e5! more ambitious. ]
are not fun for White. ] 5.cxd5 cxd5 6.e5 d4!?
21...f6 [ No co ncessio ns, b u t 6...e4 is quite
[ 21...c4!? 22.bxc4?! f6 is also possible, r e a s o n a b l e , 7.g2 g7 8.f4 xc3?!
hitting the knight on a4. ] 9.dxc3 e6 10.e3 and White has a
22.e5 favourable French-style position, Spraggett,
[ Safer was 22.h3 . ] G-Girard,R/Quebec 1989. ]
22...g4! 23.xg4 cxd4 7.exf6 dxc3 8.bxc3 exf6!?
A key zwischenzug. 24.e5 xe5 25.fxe5 [ A perfectly logical innovation, although
dxe3 26.c3 f4!? Refusing to lose 8...e5 , the previously preferred try, also has
momentum. 27.gxf4 xf4 28.xe3 dd4! its merits: 9.e2 ( if 9.f3 d6 10.c4
29.c5 b5 We've reached the climax of the 0-0 and . ..Nd7xf6, is also reasonable for
game. 30.c3?? A very unfortunate square! Black ) 9...d6 10.d3 xf6 11.g2 0-0
[ White had several acceptable moves, i.e. Black is doing fine, Williams,S-Herraiz,H/
30.d3 ] Menorca 1996. ]

588
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

9.d4 h5!? A typically eccentric Glek move, [ 11...xf1? 12.gxf8+ queening with check
Black wants to play his bishop to d6, and so and gaining rook and two pieces for the
stops White from playing Bh6. 10.g2 d6 black queen and pawn. ]
11.e2 c6 12.c4 White expands in the 12.xc4 xd4 13.xd4 xd4 14.e2
centre. b4+ 13.d2 xd2+ 14.xd2 After the fireworks an unusual position is
White certainly seems to have a plus, Black's reached, three pieces is generally considered
doubled kingside pawns are not particularly to be more than a match for a queen, but
useful. 0-0 15.d5?! The pawns start rolling, h e r e B l a c k h a s t w o p a w n s a s w e l l . c6
but this is too loosening. e5 16.c5 h3 A new move, but it seems to change little,
17.0-0 W hite should avoid the exchange of rooks
[ 17.xh3?? f3+ wins the queen. ] and attempt to advance his queenside
17...c8 18.ac1 xg2 19.xg2 d7! minority.
Before W hite can properly support the [ 14...ad8 15.0-0 e5 ( 15...b4 16.b1
advanced pawns. 20.c6 bxc6 21.xc6 b6 d7 17.e3 fd8 18.g3 c6 19.a3 b3
22.d1 e7 23.c2 b7 24.xc8 xc8 20.d1 xd1!? 21.fxd1 xd1+ 22.xd1
25.b3 g7 26.f4 c4 27.f3 d7 seems unclear but White went on to win in
28.h4 d6 Strategically correct, the passed V l a d i m i r o v, E - S u t o vs k y, E / B a t u m i G E O
pawn is f irmly b lo ckad ed . 29.d2 c5 2001 ) 16.e3 d7 17.fe1 a5 18.a3
30.d4 b5 31.d3 a5 32.d2 a3 fd8 19.g4 f5 20.f3 e5 Kramnik,V-
33.g1 White can make no progress. Ivanchuk, V/Belgrade 1997, when 21.xb7!
½-½ c5 22.c6 seems to favour White. ]
[ 14...fd8 15.0-0 c6 16.e3 b4
17.ab1 d7 18.fc1 ad8 19.h3 d2!?
587 A16 offers an exchange to gain some activity,
Friberg,H 2243 which is a common theme in these positions,
Winge,Stefan 2262 Janssen,R-Golod,V/Vlissingen NED 2000. ]
Tch-2002-3 Sweden SWE (3) 13.10.2002 15.0-0 e5 16.e3 b4 17.ab1 ad8
[Tony Kosten] The position is similar to that seen in the
previous note: the black rooks can control the
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7 d - f i l e b u t t h e y c a n o n l y e n t e r t h e w h i t e
5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 c6 7.d4 position at the cost of an exchange as the
A more traditional Grünfeld-style approach, white pieces are covering all the important
previously I had analysed squares, so Black has to consider advancing
[ 7.e4 when e5 might be best, see Gerzhoy, his e and f-pawns to disrupt the white co-
L-Sutovsky,E/Tel Aviv ISR 2001. ] o r d i n a t i o n . 18.h1!? fe8 19.f4?!
7...g7 8.e4 0-0 9.e5!? The sharpest An unusual and interesting way of proceeding,
attempt, other moves are certainly possible, White tries to lever open the f-file to attack
for instance the black kingside before Black plays ...f5-f4.
[ 9.e2 which blurs the line between the e4!? I am not sure that Black should close this
English and the Grünfeld, and is considered column like this, as his rooks need files, why
under [D90]. ] [ 19...exf4 when 20.xf4 d6 21.d4+
9...e6 This is the critical reply, as allowing xd4!? 22.xd4 xd4 should favour
the knight to be displaced concedes control of Black. ]
the centre, e.g. 20.f5 f6 21.a3 a5 22.c4!? Offering
[ 9...g4?! 10.f4 a5 11.e2 h8?! another pawn to weaken the black kingside.
12.h3 h6 13.xh6! xh6 14.e6 c6 gxf5 23.e2 e5?
15.e5+ winning a piece, Vaulin,A-Vokarev, [ 23...e5!? ]
S/Novgorod 1999. ] 24.g3 This regains the pawn with advantage
10.exf6! Once again the only testing reply, for as the white pieces have found good squares.
if the queen moves Black can play .. .Nd5. b5 25.xf5 bxc4 Returning the queen to
xc4 11.fxg7 xg7 And not reach an endgame where Black has rook and

589
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
two pawns for the two white pieces, but where
his pawn structure is significantly devalued.
[ 25...d6 is met by the stunning 26.xf6!!
xf6 27.f1+ g7 ( 27...g6? 28.f7+
g7 29.f5+ is even worse.) 28.f5+
regaining the queen. ]
26.xe5 xe5 27.g1 b5 28.e2 d3
29.d4 d5 30.c3
[ 30.xa7! ]
30...e3 31.g3 d1+? It is normally correct to
exchange the opponent's one rook in such
endgames, but here this move swaps a n
active piece for a passive one, and allows the
white king to win the e-pawn. 32.xd1 xd1+
33.g2 g6 34.f3 f5 35.d4+ g5
36.xe3 Now White is winning. h1 37.f3+
g6 38.h4 c5 39.f2 b1 40.d2 d1
41.xc4 The weak pawns drop like ripe
plums. d8 42.f3 f5 43.e3+ e6
44.f4 d7 45.h5 d8 46.g4 f5 47.e3
g8 48.h6 d8 49.xf5 d1 50.e3 h1
51.g7 h2 52.g4 h1 53.g5
White's technique is really very good and he
leaves his opponent without a glimmer of a
hope. f7 54.g4 f1+ 55.e4 d1
56.e5+ g8 57.g4 f7 58.e5+ g8
59.f6 d2 60.d3 c4 61.f4 f7 62.c3
h2 63.d5 h4 64.e5 g4 65.g6+! g8
[ 65...hxg6 66.h7 queens the h-pawn. ]
66.gxh7+ xh7 67.xc4 xh6 68.d5
g5 69.e6+ g6 70.d4 f7 71.b4
e8 72.c6 a6 73.a4 a5 74.b5 xa4
75.b6 a3 76.b7 b3 77.b8+ xb8
78.xb8 a4 79.d6 d7 80.a3 c8
81.c5 b7 82.b5 c7 83.d4 b7
84.xa4
1-0
588 A16
Gelfand,Boris 2713 15.d6
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2702
Eu Team Ch Batumi GEO (6) 05.12.1999
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 which is revealed several moves later. 16.d1
xd5 5.e4 xc3
[ By comparison with the similar line in the
S y m m e t r i c a l V a r i a t i o n , 5...b4?!
w o u l d b e p o i n t l e s s a s a f t e r 6.d4 17...d8! Winning a pawn. 18.xc8+ axc8
White controls the centre without losing his 19.xd8 xd8 The rook needs to stay on the
castling rights. ]
6.dxc3
[ 6.bxc3 would lead to a Grünfeld Defence,
of course. ]
6...xd1+ 7.xd1 d7 Black wishes to play
...e5, and then bring his f8-bishop out onto
the a3-f8 diagonal (to c5 if possible)- the
bishop has little future on g7 in this line. 8.f4
[ White tries to keep a grip on e5, but will
have to lose a tempo later-on. Otherwise, he
can try 8.c4 e5 9.e3 f6 10.d2 d6!
11.f3 e7 12.e2 a5 which seems fairly
level, Gurevich,D-Gurevich,I/Chicago 1992. ]
8...c6 The reason that this line is less
promising for White than the corresponding
one in the Symmetric, is that the black c-pawn
is not on c5, and therefore he can play this
move and maintain control over the light
squares. 9.c2 f6 Black persists with his
plan. 10.d2 e5 11.e3 c5
[ The most straightforward move, exchanging
White's best minor piece. 11...a5 12.h4 h5
13.h3 c5 14.d1 xe3 15.xe3 c5
allowed White to maintain a pull in Larsen,
B-Cseshkovsky,V/Riga 1979. ]
12.xc5 xc5 13.b4 a4!
[ Knights are normally badly placed when
they wander offside like this, but Black has
to find concrete answers to W hite's
positional threats. 13...e6 would allow
W hite to take hold of the initiative on the
queenside by 14.c4 e7 15.a4 ]
14.c4 d8!?
[ A new twist, the black king heads for the c7-
s q u a r e , r a t h e r t h a n t h e 14...e7
of Novkovic,M-Yandemirov,V/Eupen BEL
1999, which led to a quick draw after 15.e2
e6 16.hd1 xc4 17.xc4 a5 18.a3
b6 19.e2 axb4 20.axb4 xa1 21.xa1
a8 ]
[ White decides to exchange the black
bishop. 15.e2 e6 16.a5 can be met,
simply, by c7 ]
15...e7! A clever change of plan, the point of
a5 17.b5?
[ A m is t a k e , 17.a3 axb4 18.axb4 b5
would be equal. ]
590
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

c-file. 20.b6 a minor role this year so far. xd5 5.a4+

[ Now we see why the black king went to e7 [ Other moves include 5.e4 (played in our
instead of c7, as now 20.bxc6 meets xc6 other main game in this section) ]
which wouldn't be possible with the king in [ 5.b3 ]
the way, and after 21.c4 b6 the black rook [ 5.h4!? . Examples of these lines can be
comes to b2, with a winning advantage. ] found in the PDF e-books and the PGN
20...xb6 And having won a solid pawn for archive. ]
nothing, the rest is, as they say, 'a question of
5...d7 6.b3
technique' (or, at least it is at this level!) 21.h4
[ White's two main alternatives are 6.c2!?
h6 22.g3 c7 23.e2 c8 24.h5 g5 , which Tony Kosten gives as his preferred
25.g4 d6 Black doesn't want to allow amove in the PDF e-book, but unfortunately
rook and pawn ending here, and anyway, his hasn't been covered in any of the updates
knight will prove stronger than the bishop on Chesspublishing.com thus f ar. I will
because of the pawn structure. 26.d3 b5 return to this move soon, because W hite
27.d1 e7 28.e3 b4! Both creating a scores incredibly well with it and its
passed c-pawn, and exposing the isolated a- treatment in the ECO is by and large very
pawn on an open file, whilst at the same time superficial ]
establishing a powerful square for the knight [ and 6.h4 which clearly is the theoretical
on d4. 29.c1 b5 30.cxb4 axb4 31.f4 m a i n l i n e a n d i s p la ye d 8 - 1 0 t i m e s a s
gxf4+ 32.gxf4 d4 33.d3 a7
frequently as our main game move and
Now the a2-pawn is a target. 34.fxe5 fxe5
6Qc2 ]
35.b1 d6 6...b6 7.d4
[ 35...a3+! 36.c4 c2 seems more to [ As mentioned in the notes to Bu Xiangzhi-
the point, threatening mate in one. ] Vachier Lagrave in the February update,
36.xb4 a3+ 37.d2 White has a decent alternative in 7.g3!? ]
[ If 37.c4 then xa2 wins easily enough, 7...g7 8.f4
the white bishop is fairly useless here. ] [ 8.g5 was seen in Ionov-Klimov, St
37...xa2+ 38.d3 a3+ 39.d2 g3 Petersburg 2005, which can be found in the
40.d1 b5 Black intends to bring his king to PGN archives. ]
c5, thence d4, when the e4-pawn will drop. [ 8.e4 g4 is a regular Grünfeld ]
41.e2 8...e6 9.a3 0-0
[ 41.c4 Would have held up Black more. ] [ An alt ernat ive is 9...c6 Bu Xiangzhi-
41...g2 42.d3 h2 43.d1?! h3+ Vachier Lagrave, Wijk aan Zee 2007, which
44.d2 c5 45.a4 was discussed in my February 2007 update
[ 45.b2 h2+ 46.c1 xb2 47.xb2 and th us ca n b e f ou nd in th e a rc hives .
d4 is equally hopeless. ] W hite obtained in my opinion the better
45...c3 Winning the e-pawn with check. chances in that game ]
46.g4 g3 10.e4
0-1 [ A new move in this position. Previous
encounters featured the more reserved, and
in my opinion probably better 10.e3 8d7
589 A16 ( 10...d5 11.xd5 xd5 12.e2 d7
Gelfand,Boris 2733 13.0-0 c6 14.g3 f6 15.e5 e4
Svidler,Peter 2735 16.xg7 xg7 17.fd1 h5 18.e5 d6
WCh Mexico City MEX (11) 25.09.2007 19.d3 f6 20.c4 xc4 21.xc4
[Carsten Hansen] 1/2-1/2 W ang Yue-Areshchenko, A/
Lausanne SUI 2006; 10...a5 11.e2 c6
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 12.0-0 8d7 13.fd1 c4 14.xc4 xc4
Gelfand started dabbling with 4 Qa4+ which 15.b3 d5 16.xd5 cxd5 17.ac1 b8
has been quite popular all year. The text move 18.b4 c6 19.b5 a7 20.b6 xb6
is the main line move, which has played only 21.xe7 1-0 Granda Zuniga, J-Mikhalevski,

591
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
V / L a L a g u n a E S P 2 0 0 7) 11.g5?!
( 11.e2!? ) 11...c4!? ( 11...f5!? 12.e4
e5 13.dxe5 xe5 14.e3 d6 15.a5
e5 16.exf5 ec4 17.xf7 e7 18.h6+
g7 19.xc4 xc4 20.f6+ xf6 21.d5
xa5 22.xe7 b4+ 23.e2 xe7= )
12.xc4?! ( 12.0-0-0!? xf1 13.hxf1 c4
14.b3 db6 15.h4 , and I prefer White,
but both sides have chances) 12...xc4
13.b3?! ( 13.b4 e5! 14.dxe5 dxe5
15.0-0 a5! 16.xb7 b8 17.a7 xb2 )
13...e5 14.xc4 b6 ( 14...exf4!? 15.f3
fxe3 16.fxe3 e8 ) 15.b3 ( 15.d3 exf4
16.f3 fxe3 17.fxe3 d7 ) 15...exf4
16.f3 fxe3 17.fxe3 e7 0-1 Kottnauer,
C-Richter, E/Chocen 1942 ]
10...c6 11.d1
[ 11.h4 xd4 ( 11...g4 12.e5 e6
13.0-0-0 ) 12.xd4 xd4 13.xe7 8d7
14.d1 f6 15.xf6 xf6 ]
11...c4 12.xc4 xc4 13.e5 a6
14.e3
[ 14.d5 ]
14...d6! 15.f4
[ This looks a bit odd, why does White allow
Black to mess up his pawn structure. The
answer lies in the fact that 15.xd6 exd6
16.d3 d7 while innocent-looking is quite
u n c o m f o r t a b l e f o r W h it e t h a n ks t o t h e
pressure Black can apply down the e-file
and along the a6-f1 and h8-a1 diagonals,
and White essentially is without any targets
to focus his counterplay on. ]
15...xa3 16.bxa3 f6
[ 16...d8!? (intending ...Nd7) 17.h4?! d7
18.h5 ac8 looks very nice for Black ]
17.f3?!
[ I don't agree with move, even if looks
perfectly normal, overprotecting the d4-pawn
which often becomes a target in the
Grünfeld. Instead I tend to give preference
t o t h e s o m e wh a t p ro vo ca t ive , ye t a ls o
perfectly logical 17.d3 and now preventing
Nc5 with
A) Or 17...e6 18.c5 f7 19.d5 cxd5
20.xa6 xa6 21.exd5 exd5 22.xd5
fd8!? and the chances are about even;
B) 17...d7 18.d5 c4 ( 18...f5 19.e5 )
19.b2 f5 20.e5 xd5 21.xd5 cxd5
22.xd5 , and White should be okay;
C) 17...c4!? also looks good, anticipating
White's Nc5, which now can be met with ...
b6 18.f5 gxf5 19.exf5 d7 20.f4 b6
, and Black has at least a slight pull;
D) 17...b6!? may be given preference e.g.
18.f5!? f7 ( 18...e6?! 19.fxe6 e8
20.f4 is better for White) 19.g4 d7
20.f4 c4 21.f2 fd8 , and despite
W hite space advantage, Black has the
slightly better chances thanks his better
pawn structure ]
17...d7!?
[ Black has another attractive option in
17...e6!? e.g. 18.h4 h5 19.f2 d7
20.he1 b6 21.d5 f5!? 22.d4 fxe4
23.xg7 xg7 24.xe4 exd5 and Black
has the better chances ]
18.d5 b6
[ 18...fc8!? 19.dxc6 ( 19.f2 f7 20.d6
e8 21.dxe7 xe7 ) 19...xc6 20.d5 f7
21.b4 c3 22.f2 b5 looks very
comfortable for Black ]
19.dxc6 bxc6 20.d4 fc8
[ Black has several good continuations at
this juncture. The game continuation is one,
but another one is 20...f7!? 21.f2 c4
22.c1 fc8 , and Black must be better with
his well-placed knight on c4, bishop pair,
and better pawn structure ]
21.e6 h6! 22.f2 And here a draw was
agreed upon.
[ 22.f2 rather prematurely I will say,
because Black's position looks rather
c o m f o r t a b l e a f t e r c4 23.c5 f7
followed by a knight to c4, and Black has
every reason to be satisfied ]
½-½
590 A16
Gelfand,Boris 2755
Vachier Lagrave,Maxime 2703
GM Biel SUI (5) 24.07.2009
[Nigel Davies]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
xd5 5.g3 g7 6.g2 0-0 7.0-0 b6
[ This keeps more options with his pawns
than 7...c6 as Black can still move his c-
pawn. On the other hand it moves a piece
away from the centre. ]
8.d3
592
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 8.d4 c6 would be a regular Neo
Gruenfeld, as would 8...Nc6 9.d4 Nb6. ]
8...a6!? This looks odd at first as Black is
voluntarily putting his knight on the rim. On
the other hand he is able to close the h1-a8
diagonal with ... c7-c6 which leaves Black's
position very solid.
[ Gelfand has also played against the more
classical 8...c6 , for example 9.e3 e5
10.b4 e8 11.b5 d4 12.a4 e6 13.g5
b3 14.b1 d5 15.ge4 c6 16.b2
and he now had a clear edge in Gelfand, B
(2758)-Obodchuk, A (2404)/Khanty
Mansiysk 2009. ]
9.f4 Temporarily preventing ...e7-e5, which
makes Black consume half a tempo (with ...
Re8) if he still wants to get it in.
[ White has played other moves here, for
example 9.e3 h6 ( 9...e5 is certainly
possible ) 10.c1 h7 11.d1 c6 12.d4
e6 13.f4 c8 14.e5 f6 15.f4 h3
was Khalifman, A (2662) -Bologan, V (2683)/
Moscow 2005, with a somewhat worse but
still playable position for Black. ]
9...c6 The consistent follow up to 8...Na6.
[ Another possibility is 9...e8 , for example
10.d2 c6 11.ac1 e6 12.fd1 d7
13.b3 ad8 14.h4 h3 15.h1 e5 16.h6
g4 17.h2 f5 didn't get anywhere for
White in San Segundo Carrillo, P (2405)-
Balinov, I (2265)/Odessa 1990. White must
surely be for preference in these positions,
but converting his 'central pawn majority'
into something more concrete is far from
easy. ]
10.d2 g4 11.fd1 c7 12.e5 e6
13.d4 cd5 14.xd5 xd5 15.h6 xh6
16.xh6 b6 17.f3 f6
[ 17...xb2? 18.e4 f6 19.g5
is good for White, as even the clever doesn't
help after xf2+ 20.h1 intending 21.e5. ]
18.d2 ad8 19.e3 c7 20.c2 f5
21.c4+ e6 22.e2 d5 23.e1 e5
24.dxe5 fxe5 25.f3 c5 26.g5
White is now better because of his possession
of e4 in front of Black's isolated e5 pawn. But
it's not much... e7 27.e4 g7 28.c2
e6 29.c3 g5 30.xg5 xg5 31.xd5
cxd5 32.f4 f6 33.xe5 xe5 34.fxe5
fe8 Things are petering out to a draw now.
35.ac1 d7 36.e4 xe5 37.xd5 exd5
38.exd5 xd5 39.c7+ f6 40.xb7
d1+ 41.g2 d2+
[ 41...d2+ 42.h3 h5 43.xa7 xb2
is never going to be anything but a draw. ]
½-½
591 A16
Georgiev,Kiril 2637
Neverov,Valeriy 2566
1st League TCh-SCG (9) 07.09.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7
5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 g7 7.e5!?
An ambitious attempt to gain the bishop pair,
we had previously examined the move
[ 7.e4 which aims to drive the knight from f6,
or set-up a strong centre. ]
7...e6! A novelty, Black preserves his bishop
at the cost of a pawn.
[ 7...0-0 had been the automatic choice up
till now, 8.xd7 bxd7 9.g3 e8!?
10.g2 d6 11.b3 c5 12.d3 White has
the bishop pair, but Black enjoys a solid set-
up, Andonov,B-Zahariev,Z/Sofia 1992. ]
8.b5+ White has to grab the pawn,
o t h e rwi se h i s se ve n t h m o ve wo u l d b e a
complete waste of time. bd7 9.xd7 xd7
10.xb7 0-0 So, Black completes his
development and is ready for action, while
White is hardly developed at all. On the other
hand, W hite has an extra pawn, and has
made a hole in the black queenside structure.
11.e3 d5!?
[ 11...fb8 12.a6 c5 is also possible,
keeping the queens on the board. ]
12.b5 d6 13.c6 Naturally White looks
for an exchange of queens. ab8 Black has
to acquiesce, as
[ 13...d8?! 14.0-0 leaves him with little to
show for the pawn. ]
14.xd6 exd6 15.a4 White has to guard
the c2-square. b4 16.0-0 c5 Black has
excellent compensation for the pawn due to
his strong queenside initiative. Two other
possibilities worth consideration:
[ 16...xc3!? 17.bxc3 xa2 would regain
t h e p a w n , a l t h o u g h a f t e r 18.a3
Black m igh t ha ve pro blem s m oving h is
knight from a2. ]
593
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 16...d3 must have been tempting, 17.b3 new and very reasonable move. In earlier
c5 with a strong bind. ] games Black has played either 7...b5 or 7...
17.b3 d5 18.a3 d4!? A good move, Nc6 here, for example:
although Black could also keep the tension by [ a) 7...b5 8.b3 ( 8.h4!? is much more
[ 18...fc8 , say. ] interesting) 8...c5 9.d3 c6 10.g2 g7
19.exd4 xd4 The bishop comes to a 11.0-0 0-0 12.f4 c8 was fine for Black in
commanding central post. 20.ac1 fd8 Greenfeld, A (2560) -Baron, T (2299)/Haifa
21.xb4 Conceding the two bishops, but the 2008. ]
b la c k k n i gh t wa s ju s t t o o p o we rf u l . cxb4 [ b) 7...c6 8.g2 g7 9.0-0 ( 9.d4 e6
22.e2 f5! Black seeks to show that the a4- 10.a4 0-0 11.0-0 d5 12.d1 b6
bishop is misplaced, and thus there is no need 13.f4 d5 was fine for Black in
to move the d4-bishop. 23.fd1 Damljanovic, B (2595)-Areshchenko, A
[ 23.xd4?! xd4 24.fd1 bd8 25.c4 (2650)/Plovdiv 2008 - see the Archives.)
a5 26.xd4 xd4 is better for Black, as he 9...e5 10.d3 h6 11.d1 e6 12.a4 0-0
will play ... Bc2 and recuperate the d-pawn, 13.e3 d5 14.c5 b6 15.a3 e8
when he will have the superior minor piece 16.ac1 d4 and the game was about
(as the white queenside pawns are fixed on equal in Topalov, V (2700)-Svidler, P (2713)/
light squares). ] Dos Hermanas 1999. ]
23...b2 24.c7 d3 25.c1 f5 26.h3!? 8.h4
White decides to play on, although this is a [ 8.b4 is well met by c8 with ideas of ...
very risky decision, Nb8-c6 and ... Be6-h3. ]
[ 26.e2 would repeat, while ] 8...g7 9.d3 h6 Preventing Bc1-h6 and
[ 26.xa7?! g4 27.f1 ( 27.f3?? d4+ ) making the kingside less habitable for White's
27...xd2 is excellent for Black, whose queen. 10.a4+ b5 11.d1
bishops dominate. ] [ 11.xb5? loses to d7 . ]
26...bc8 27.xc8 xc8 28.e2 c2 11...c5 12.g2 bd7 13.0-0 0-0 14.e3
Black's initiative seems to be never-ending! c8 Black has no problems here whatsoever.
29.b5 Time to bring this piece back into play. 15.h3 b4 16.a4 d5 17.d2 7b6
f6 30.g3 xa2?! White is happy with a 18.xb6 xb6 19.b3
draw, but after ½-½
[ 30...e6 31.d4 d5 he is clearly better as
he will take the a-pawn and have two
bishops and an active rook. ] 593 A16
31.xf5 gxf5 32.d4 f8 33.d5 f4 34.d3 Gerzhoy,Leonid 2245
White tries to keep rooks on, as Sutovsky,Emil 2604
[ 34.d6 a1 is an immediate draw. ] Open Ch Tel Aviv ISR (1) 09.04.2001
34...c3! 35.d6 d2 36.xd2 xd2 [Tony Kosten]
There is no chance of making any progress in
this opposite-colour bishop endgame. 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7
½-½ 5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 c6
[ W e h a v e s e e n 6...g7 several times
before. ]
592 A16 7.e4 e5!
Georgiev,Kiril 2675 [ N e w , a n d e x t r e m e l y l o g i c a l , 7...a6
Safarli,Eltaj 2603 was examined in the archives, but the text
30th Open Benasque ESP (6) 13.07.2010 stops White from further advancing his e-
[Nigel Davies] pawn. ]
8.d4 exd4 9.xd4 e5!?
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7 [ Black keeps control of the e5-square,
5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 a6 7.g3 e6 although 9...g7 10.xc6 xc6 11.f4
Here too Safarli seems well prepared with a is only marginally better for White. ]

594
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

10.e2?! xg7 11.xc4 is also feasible) 9...d5

[ Not a very useful square for the queen, 10.g5 h6 11.xe6 fxe6 12.e4
10.b3 c5 11.c2 c6 12.g5 is very awkward for Black, Adamski,J-Vujic,
is more testing, as f4 is threatened, and the B/Valjevo 1984. ]
c2-knight can head for d5 via e3. ] 9.d4 e6
10...g7 11.f3 e7 12.g5 [ The 9...c6 of Ivanchuk-Shirov, was
[ 12.xe5 xe5 13.f4 a5 14.e5 d5 mentioned in the archives. ]
15.d2 0-0-0 is also fine for Black, who can 10.d5 f5 11.f4 d7 12.e2
break with ...f6. ] W hite threatens to win a piece with h3. f6
12...0-0-0 13.d5 d6 14.xe5 xe5 13.e6 de5
15.f4 d6 Although Black is getting kicked [ 13...c5?! 14.c4 b6?! 15.d4 e5
around, he has completed his development 16.xe5 fxe5 17.c6 e8 18.b4
and is ready to apply pressure on the central is horrible for Black, Drogoon,A-Vorobiov,E/
files. 16.c3? RUS-Cup02/1998. ]
[ 16.xf6 xf6 17.d1 g7 18.e314.d1!?
would allow White to castle, but Black will [ Considered stronger than the original
be happy with his bishop pair. ] 14.xe5 fxe5 15.h3 f6 of Goldin, A-
16...g4 Mikhalevski,V/Rishon Le Zion 1997,
[ Good, but 16...xe4! 17.xe4 b4+ although here 16.g4 e4 17.d2 xd5
18.f2 de8 is a killer. ] 18.gxf5 seems to win a piece for next-to-
17.c2 he8 18.e5 Otherwise the pressure nothing. ]
on e4 is too great, but now Black hits out: 14...d6!
xe5+! 19.fxe5 xe5+ 20.e2 xg5 [ An improvement, suggested by Mikhalevski
Black has gained two pawns, and control of in h is n o te s to t h e ga me Ru st em ov, A -
the dark squares, for the exchange. 21.0-0? Zezulkin,J/Swidnica 1999, which continued:
[ This loses by force, but better alternatives14...c6? 15.d4! d3 16.xd3 xd3+
a r e f e w , e . g . 21.c1 e5 and White 17.xd3 cxd5 18.e2 e5 19.b5
cannot castle. ] winning. ]
21...d2 22.xg4+ xg4 23.e4 h4 15.h3
24.h3 d4+ 25.h1 xh3+! [ This time 15.d4 can be answered by
[ 25...xh3+ 26.gxh3 h2# ] d3! 16.xd3? ( 16.xg4 xf1 17.xf1
0-1 xg4 18.xd6 cxd6 is not too bad for
Black ) 16...xd3+ 17.xd3 xf4 ]
15...xf3+ 16.xf3 e5 17.e3 g5
594 A16 18.xe5 xe5 19.xe5 fxe5 20.b5
Golod,Vitali 2590 Reaching an endgame where White has the
Tseitlin,Mark D 2445 better pawn formation, but Black has two
ch-ISR Ramat Aviv Modiin ISR (3) 19.12.2000 bishops, and he hastens to free the dark-
[Tony Kosten] squared one. e4 21.0-0 xc3!? 22.bxc3
g7 23.fe1 ad8 24.d7 f6 The black
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ king is well-placed on the dark squares. 25.c4
Once again this idea of playing a favourable 5 b6 26.e3 g6 27.d2 e5 28.a3 d6!?
Qb3 Grünfeld where the d7-bishop is [ Offering a pawn for activity, 28...a5 29.c5
misplaced. d7 5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 g7 is more awkward. ]
7.e4 0-0 8.e5! 29.c5+!
[ This reveals the point of luring the bishop to [ 29.xa7 a8 30.xa8 xa8 31.a4 c5
d7, as now black's knight can't retreat to its forces W hite to passively defend his
n a t u r a l s q u a r e o n d 7 . 8.d4 g4 queenside pawns, his king is currently far
would transpose to a normal Grünfeld. ] a w a y f r o m t h e a c t i o n . 32.b5 e8
8...g4 will lead to a drawn rook endgame. ]
[ 8...e6?! 9.h4 ( 9.exf6!? xc4 10.fxg7 29...bxc5 30.a6+ e5 31.xa7 e8!

595
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

32.xc7 xd7 33.exd7 d6 34.c6+ 17.b3 f6 18.d4 White seems a bit
xd7 35.xc5 White has managed to bett er here be cau se h is kin g is sa f er. h5
achieve a rook and pawn ending with a solid 19.d2 g4
extra pawn, but the respective activity of the [ 19...b8 was better, trying to safeguard his
kings allows Black to draw. c8 36.b5 b8 monarch. ]
37.xb8 xb8 38.d4 b1+ 39.h2 b2 20.e1
40.g3 e2 41.a4 h5 42.b4 d6 43.a5 [ White was probably scared of playing 20.h3
h4+ 44.h2 because of e5 21.hxg4 hxg4 22.g3 e4
[ 44.g4 xf2 45.xg5 xg2+ 46.xh4 , but he can also play 22.Ba6!? which seems
xd5 might even favour Black, as the white very strong. ]
king is cut-off. ] 20...e5
44...xf2 45.xe4 a2 46.e6+ [ 20...d6 seems better, helping cover the
[ 46.a6 xd5 47.xe7 xa6 48.g7 a4 queenside. ]
49.xg5+ e6 is a simple draw. ] 21.g3 h4 22.xc6!?
46...xd5 47.g6 xa5 48.xg5+ e5 [ Interesting, but 22.a6! bxa6 23.xc6
49.g4 a1 50.xh4 e4 51.g3 f1 wi t h f o l lo w- u p s s u c h a s 2 4 . R a c 1 wa s
52.h8 e3 53.e8 d4 54.h4 probably very strong. ]
[ 54.h4 following d3 Black will queen the e- 22...bxc6 23.a6+ d7 24.c3 b8?
pawn, but the white king and h-pawn will be This is just bad.
far up the board. ] [ Black should play 24...e4! when 25.b7+
½-½ e6 26.xc6+ e7 27.c5+ e6
gives him a draw but nothing more, the point
being that 28.xg7? hxg3 would give Black
595 A16 a winning attack. ]
Gonda,Laszlo 2482 25.xb8 xb8 26.xg7 White is just a pawn
Rajlich,Vasik G 2459 up now with a powerful pair of bishops. hxg3
FSGM April Budapest HUN (4) 06.04.2010 27.hxg3 h3 28.e2 h7 29.d4 e6
[Nigel Davies] 30.ac1 c8 31.e4! b6 32.a4! e5
[ 32...xa4 33.c4+ Double attack ]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 33.f4 ed7 34.a5 a8 35.xa7 c5
xd5 5.a4+ d7 6.h4 c6 7.d4 36.c4+ e7 37.b5 e6 38.exf5+ gxf5
This series of queen moves looks very odd, 39.xd7 xd7 40.e1+ f6 41.xd7 c7
but Black's defensive moves don't gain much 42.e6+ g7 43.a6 xd7 44.b8
time and he has to play some moves that are 1-0
not very thematic in Gruenfeld like structures.
f6 8.e3 g7 9.e2 e5 10.c4 d6 11.d4
d7 12.0-0 f5 13.b5 596 A16
[ Vladimir Kramnik's choice in this position Grinev,Valeriy
was 13.b3 when e4 14.d2 a5 15.a4 Schukin,Igor
h5 16.b5 e7 17.c4 was a bit better ch Kiev UKR (3) 18.01.2004
for him in Kramnik, V (2710)-Gurevich, I [Tony Kosten]
(2575)/Biel 1993. ]
13...xb5 This seems to be new it avoids a 1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.g3 g6
loss of time by moving the queen back. 5.g2 xc3 6.bxc3 g7 7.b1 0-0?!
[ Previous games have featured 13...e7 A surprisingly common mistake.
when 14.dxe5 xe5 15.xe5 xe5 [ 7...d7 i s b e s t , t h e n 8.f3 ( and not
16.d4 xd4 17.xd4 f6 18.xf6 xf6 8.xb7? xb7 9.xb7 b6 trapping the
19.d1 was slightly better for White in rook ) 8...0-0 9.0-0 is slightly better for
Do nc he v, D (2 4 55 ) -G h in da , M (24 80 )/ White, with his big centre. ]
Bratislava 1983. ] 8.xb7 The unexpected point,
14.xb5 0-0-0 15.dxe5 xe5 16.d1 c6 [ 8.xb7?? xb7 9.xb7 d5 10.xb8

596
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

xh1 is a quick way to lose! ] 597 A16

8...xb7 9.xb7 d7 10.xa8 xa8 Grivas,Efstratios 2498
11.f3 Liakos,Dimitris 2065
[ 11.f3 is also possible, avoiding any GRE-CupT Athens (1) 15.06.2008
problems along the diagonal, but it is [Nigel Davies]
u n n a t u r a l : c5 12.h3 b8 13.f2
( 13.a4!? ) 13...c6 14.c2 a6 1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.f3
with counterplay, Bischoff,K-Henni,M/Tunis g6 5.a4+!? c6!? 6.d4
1997. ] [ 6.xd5 seems to be a simpler and more
11...e5 Black gets to damage the white economical choice, my preference being for
pawn structure like this, and enjoys a lead in W hite because of his central pawn
development although this doesn't count for majority. ]
t o o m u c h . . 12.0-0 xf3+ 13.exf3 d5 6...f6 7.e4 e5!
14.a4!? A new move that works well, but it is [ 7...xc3? 8.xc3! e5 is difficult for Black
far from clear that is an improvement on the after 9.c4 because he'll have trouble
older moves: getting his king to safety and meanwhile
[ 14.a4 xf3 ( 14...e5 15.e4 e6 White can open it up with d2-d4. ]
16.d4 d6 17.h6 b8 Scheuer,J- 8.xe5!? xc3! The only good reply.
Thuesen,M/Hillerod 1980, and now 18.b1! [ Both 8...e7 9.xd5 cxd5 ( 9...fxe5
looks good; 14...a5 15.g2 b8 16.d4 10.xe7 exd4 11.xc8 d7 12.xa7
and although W hite's extra pawn is xa7 13.a3 ) 10.b5+ d7 11.xd7 xd7
devalued, it is still a pawn! Vaulin,A-Honos, 12.xd5 ]
A/Budapest 1990) 15.d7 f6 16.xc7 h5 [ and 8...b4 9.xd8+ xd8 10.f7+ e8
17.h4 g4 with some counterplay, Cekro,E- 11.xh8 c2+ 12.d1 xa1 13.b3 g7
Lytchak,B/ GER 1999. ] ( 13...e6 14.c4 ) 14.xg6 hxg6 15.b2
[ 14.e2 f6 ( 14...xa2 15.xe7 ) 15.d4 xb3 16.axb3 are good for White. ]
c5 16.dxc5 xc5 17.c4 c8 18.h6 xc4 9.xc3 e7 10.f3! xe4+ 11.e2
19.xc4 ( 19.c1!? e6 20.xe6 xc1+ [ Rybka's novelty is 11.d1!? but is it really
21.xc1 fxe6 should be drawn) 19...xc4 that great? I think Black can defend himself
20.b1 c8 21.b7 a8 22.f1 with d7 12.c4 d8! when 13.e1 g4
with active pieces, Smejkal,J-Grimm,S/Porz 14.e6?! ( 14.g3 c7 is fine for Black)
1992. ] 14...xg2 15.d4 d6 is unconvincing. ]
14...d8 15.e2 e5 16.g2 h6!? 11...g7?
The start of Black's downfall, the bishop is [ Black should play 11...d7! when 12.0-0
b e t t e r d e f e n d i n g e 5 . 17.e1 f6? b4 13.e3 ( 13.b3 can be answered by
This weakness proves fatal, a good player c5 14.d1 d3 ) 13...xe3 14.dxe3
would admit his mistake and return the bishop b6 15.d1 e6 16.a3 e7 17.d4 c4
by 18.xc4 xc4 19.b3 b6 20.e4 f7
[ 17...g7 he can't capture on d2 anyway. ] 21.e3 was just a tiny bit better for White in
18.a6 Franco Ocampos, Z-Krupkova, P/
[ 18.d4! has its points: xc1 19.xc1 exd4 Montecatini Terme 1998. ]
20.cxd4 attacks c7 with advantage. ] [ On the other hand 11...e7? is strongly
18...a8?! This is based on a tactic that met by 12.0-0! when xe2 13.e1 b5
doesn't work. 14.xf6 would win on the spot. ]
[ 18...d6! 19.xa7 c6 regains a pawn 12.0-0! 0-0 13.e1
with some chances. ] [ After 13.c4+ h8 14.e1 Black can
19.xf6 f8?! The white queen can't move hang on with f4! 15.d4 d6 . ]
because of f3, but he has seen a powerful 13...h8 14.d4 d7 15.c4 f5?!
retort. 20.xe5! [ 15...g4 was another try, though White
1-0 c a n t h e n p l a y 16.b3 followed by 17.Ba3
which seems to win the exchange. ]

597
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

16.e6 b5 17.a4! b6 18.f4?! 15...e7 16.c2 ( 16.g5 is worth

[ 18.h4! threatening 19.Nxg6+ would have considering here too) 16...e5 17.g5 e7
been very strong, for example e5 19.xe5 18.b3 g7 19.d2 d5 20.c5 h6
fxe5 20.xg6+ hxg6 21.h3+ leads to 21.a3 h7 22.b4 d7 and Black was
mate. ] starting to get control of the position in
18...d8 19.a5 Fressinet, L-Howell, D/Germany 2010. ]
[ Once again missing the deadly 19.h4! 15.g5 This seems to be new, though
threatening 20. Nxg6+. ] whether or not it was a 'prepared novelty' or
19...e5 just over the board improvisation is not clear.
[ 19...e8 might have been a bit tougher but [ An earlier game featured 15.g5 f6
even so White's lead in development gives 16.h6 c6 17.e3 f5 18.g5 dxe3 19.fxe3
him a winning advantage. A sample line is c7 20.c5 d6 21.h1 f6 22.e4
20.a2 xe1+ 21.xe1 f8 22.b4 b6 xg5 23.xg5 e7! with approximate
23.c4+- threatening mate on g8. ] equality - Arkhipov, S-Leko, P/Nettetal 1992.
20.xe5 xe6 To me the position after 14.Ne4 just looks
[ Or 20...fxe5 21.xe5 xe5 ( 21...xe6 like a tough middlegame in which both sides
22.xg7+ xg7 23.xe6 ) 22.xe5 f6 have their chances and there are many
23.e3+- with a good pawn up. ] possibilities. ]
21.xg6+ hxg6 22.xe6 e8 15...c6 16.fe1 a5 17.c5 e7 18.e4 f6
[ 22...d7 23.d6 would not have helped 19.h4 f5 20.f4 g7 21.a3 e6 22.b4
Black much. ] axb4 23.axb4 d5 24.b5 h8 25.bxc6
23.a6! xe6 24.h3+ bxc6 26.b1 f8 27.c2 e7 28.cb2
1-0 a5?! White is better in the endgame, though
admittedly it proves difficult to win.
[ Black should probably have kept queens on
598 A16 with 28...d7 when 29.b7 e6
Huebner,Robert 2598 would leave Black with an OK position. ]
Kulaots,Kaido 2592 29.xa5 xa5 30.h3 a7 After contracting
TCh-FIN 2010-11 (7.1) 13.02.2011 doubled f-pawns the position starts to look
[Nigel Davies] really nightmarish for Black.
[ As Black I'd try to avoid any further
1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.f3 weakening by playing 30...e6 . ]
g6 5.g3 g7 6.g2 0-0 7.0-0 b6 8.d3 31.xf5 gxf5 32.d6 xd6 33.xd6 a2
c6 9.e3 e5 34.xa2 xa2 35.b2 a8 36.f3 d5
[ Black can also try 9...h6 10.c1 h7 37.b4 h5 38.xd4 g7 39.b4 a7
followed by ... e7-e5, but does he really 40.b6 a2 41.e4
need to prevent an incursion on g5? [ I'm rather loathe to criticize the endgame
Probably not. ] play of someone as strong as Huebner, but
10.d2 e8 On the other hand it seems quite surely it must be better to improve the king
important for Black to avoid the exchange of with 41.f2 rather than have his king
dark square bishops. confined to the first rank. ]
[ After 10...d4 11.h6 e8 12.xg7 41...fxe4 42.fxe4 e6 43.xc6 h3 44.e5
xg7 13.b4! c6 14.xd4 exd4 15.e4 fxe5 45.xe5+ f7 46.d4 g2+ 47.h1
d5 16.b2 White was better in d2 48.h6 g4 49.g1 e7 50.f1 d7
Romanishin, O-Whiteley, A/Hastings 1976/ 51.g6 f3 52.f6 g4 53.b6 f3
77. ] 54.b4 g4 55.f4 d3 56.f2 f3+
11.h6 h8 12.ac1 d4 13.xd4 exd4 57.e1 d3 58.e5 e6 59.f2 f3+
14.e4 d5 Not the only move. 60.g2 d3 61.b2 d5 62.f2
[ 14...c6 also makes sense here, for ½-½
example 15.fe1 ( 15.g5 f6 16.h6 d5
wo u ld tra ns p ose in t o 1 4. . .Nd 5 1 5. B g5)

598
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

599 A16 600 A16

Ibraev,Nurlan 2405 Ibragimov,Ildar 2611
Gupta,Abhijeet 2560 Odeev,Handszar 2425
12th Dubai Open (9) 13.04.2010 Open Dubai UAE (3) 30.04.2000
[Nigel Davies] [Tony Kosten]

1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 g7 4.e4
xd5 5.a4+ d7 6.c2 This move order is used to allow the King's
[ T h i s s h o w s a t l e a s t t h a t 6.d4 Indian Defence, whilst avoiding the Grünfeld.
is not W hite's only move, though I'm not e5!? Black clearly doesn't want to allow a
sure he should avoid it. ] main line KI, and prefers this interesting side-
6...b4 7.b3 c5 8.a3 e6 9.a4+ d7 line. 5.xe5
10.d1 [ Critical, 5.d4 exd4 6.xd4 0-0
[ 10.b3 e6 could already be a way for allows Black to play a K.I. position with a
the players to take an early bath. ] tempo more, he will continue with ...Re8, ...
10...4c6 11.e3 g7 12.d4? White hasn't c6, and ...d5 in one go, without having to
played this way before but it seems quite play ...d6, first. ]
dubious after Black's reply. 5...xe4 6.xe4 xe5 7.d4
[ When Karpov got this position as White he [ 7.g3 brought White a quick success after
played 12.e2 after which 0-0 13.0-0 e5 e7!? 8.d4 g7 9.g2 f5!? 10.g5 e6
14.b1 f5 15.d3 c4 16.e4 cxd3 17.xd3 11.0-0! in Epishin,V-David,A/Montpellier -
e6 18.d5 d4 19.xd4 exd4 20.b5 Masters (2) 1998. ]
left him with an edge in Karpov, A (2725)- 7...g7 8.g5 f6 9.e3 0-0 10.c3
Bacrot, E (2555)/Cap d'Agde 1998. ] [ Sensible, the knight moves to a safer spot,
12...e6! I think White must have missed this 10.e2 provoked the advance of the f-pawn,
unpleasant reply. He tries to make the best of f5 11.g5 e8 12.c3 d6 13.0-0 f7
it with a dubious pawn sacrifice. 13.g5 14.e1 c6 15.d5 e5 with chances to
[ 13.d5? just loses a pawn after xc3+ ] both sides, Acebal Muniz, A-De la Villa
[ whilst 13.dxc5 leads to a horrific endgame Garcia,J/Cala Galdana ESP 1999. ]
after xd1+ 14.xd1 d7 followed by 15... 10...f5!?
Nxc5. ] [ An innovation, opening the dark-squared
13...cxd4 14.xe6 fxe6 15.exd4 xd4 diagonal immediately, in Timman,J-Aronian,
16.c4 bc6 17.0-0 0-0 18.e3 h8 L/Las Vegas USA 1999, Black deferred this
19.c1 d6 It's not so much the pawn down by 10...c6 11.d5 e7 12.d3 d6 13.0-0
that's the problem for White here but rather f5 14.f4 h6 15.c1 f5 but White had
Black's superb grip on the d4 square. Of the better position. ]
course it might not be easy to win for Black 11.d2 c6 12.g3
because the extra pawn is crippled. 20.a2 [ 12.d5!? e5 13.d6 seems more critical. ]
ad8 21.h1 e5 22.g4 f5 23.h4 12...d6 13.g2 f4! A fine positional offer of a
f6 24.h6 a5 25.h3 f5 26.h6 g7 pawn. 14.gxf4
27.h4 e5 Black has had enough of [ 14.xf4 e8+ 15.e3 xd4 is equal. ]
repeating moves and he is rewarded with a 14...g4 15.h3 h5 The idea is to stop
mistake. 28.h6? f5 29.xg7+ xg7 White from castling long. 16.e4 h4 17.d5
W ith W hite's bishop pair gone Black gets e7 18.f5!? Before the knight can settle
a c c e s s t o s qu a re s li ke d 2 wit h h is ro o k . here. xf5 19.g5 h6 Forced, but
30.c4 d2 31.ce1? A blunder in a bad adequate. 20.0-0 xg5 21.xg5 ae8
position. xf2! 32.g1 d4 33.xe6 h4 22.f4 h6 23.xh4 xh4 24.ae1
34.e4 fd4 The endgame has been reached, and
0-1 although W hite has more space, he is
somewhat hampered by his weak kingside
pawns. g7 25.c5 f5 26.b4 d8 27.c3

599
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
f7 28.h2 df8 29.e4 a6 30.f2 h4 counterplay and thereby avoid the pressure
31.f1?! A risky idea that pins the f4-pawn, p l a y W h i t e i n t e n d s a g a i n s t t h e b l a c k
and allows Black to win it. g5 32.e2 g6 queenside. 8.f3
33.c4 gxf4
[ 33...xf4 is met by 34.cxf4 xf4 35.xf4
gxf4 36.c6 creating serious counterplay on
the queenside. ]
34.g4 f3
[ After this White regains a pawn, although
remains worse, 34...d3!? is an alternative,
35.d4 h7 36.c4 as now g6 is free for
the knight, g6 coming to e5. ]
35.cxd6 cxd6 36.e6 f4 37.c7+ f6
38.xb7 e5 39.b5 axb5 40.xb5 c4
Black has a healthy initiative. 41.d1 f4
[ 41...c1 is tricky, as after 42.b2 , g2
menaces ...Ne3. ]
42.fb2 a8 43.5b4 a4 44.a3 axb4
45.xb4 xb4 46.axb4 c2 47.f2 a4
The exchange of rooks hasn't helped White's
position much, the advanced f3-pawn and
active king tip the scales heavily in Black's
favour. 48.c8 To get his b-pawn moving.
b5 49.b7 e3 50.c6
[ 50.g1 is slightly better. ]
50...c4??
[ Overlooking the simple 50...xf2 51.xb5
f5 which must win, the knight will come to
e3, and either the f-pawn will queen, or
Black will capture the d5-pawn, and his d-
pawn will queen. Note that the white king
is trapped in the corner. ]
51.g1 d4 52.b5 xd5 53.g4 c5
54.xd5 xd5 55.xh6 c5 56.f2 xb5
57.g4 White will win the f-pawn by force.
½-½
601 A16
Iljin,Artem 2556
Sutovsky,Emil 2630
IX EICC Plovdiv BUL (2) 22.04.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.g3 g6
5.g2 xc3 6.bxc3 g7 7.b1 c6
T h i s i s a f a v o u r i t e o f S u t o vs k y' s i n t h i s
position. The more common moves are 7...
Nd7, 7...c6 and 7...0-0. Black's idea behind
the text move is to play ... Qd7, ...b6, ...Bb7,
...Na5 and ...c5 with Gruenfeld style
[ White has tried several other things in this
p o s i t i o n : A ) 8.c2 can actually lead to a
transposition to our main game it has been
used m>Gurevich on a couple of occasions.
0-0 9.f3 ( 9.d3 is also playable, but less
critical, e.g. d7 10.f3 b6 11.f4 b7
12.0-0 a5 13.e4 c5 14.bc1 ac8
15.e2 a6 16.fd1 fd8 with a pleasant
game for Black, Gurevich, M-Sutovsky, E/
Essen 2001) 9...b6 10.0-0 b7 11.d4!?
a5 12.e4 d7!? ( 12...c5
would transpose to our main game) 13.f4
fd8 14.fe1 c5 15.d5 c4 16.bd1 e5!?
17.g5 f6 18.f1!
A) 18...b5 19.xc4 fxg5!? ( 19...bxc4
20.e3 /\21.Nd2 - Gurevich) 20.f1 h6
is given as unclear by Gurevich, while my
computer likes White in this case I agree
with the computer, Black's bishops are
both quite awful and White can generate a
fair amount of pressure against Black's
queenside after 21.b1 a6 22.a4;
B) 18...d6 19.e3 with a slightly better
game for White, though Black's position is
solid and not without counterplay,
Gurevich, M-Sulypa, A/French Team Ch
1999 ]
[ B) 8.h4!? Tyomkin calls this "Perhaps, the
most annoying move for Black", but I'm not
sure I agree. However, if Black isn't careful,
he will soon get in trouble.
A) 8...d6 9.f3 ( 9.h5!? has been
suggested by Tyomkin and is a natural
follow-up f or W hite) 9...b6 10.a4
( 10.d4!? is tricky to deal with, and Black
will likely have to hand over his dark-
squared bishop due to variations like b7
11.a4 ) 10...d7 11.c2 ( 11.a3 d5
12.b3!? ) 11...d8 12.d3?! ( 12.h5 )
12...c5 13.b2 e6 ( 13...a5!? )
14.0-0 0-0 15.fc1 h6 ( 15...xa2
16.a1 e6 17.a3 f5 18.g5
- Tyomkin ) 16.a4 g4 17.b3 e5??
( Now Black's position falls apart. Instead
o f t h e t e xt m o ve , B l a c k s h o u l d h a v e
c o n s i d e r e d 17...d6!?; or 17...a5!?
in both cases with a fuly satisfactory game
for Black ) 18.a3 , and Black is more or
600
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

less lost, Bischoff, K-Sutovsky, E/Ohrid and White has excellent compensation
2001; for the pawn, Rasmussen, K-Mikhalevski,
B) 8...h5 is called "[A] strategical blunder" V/Saint Vincent 2000;
by Tyomkin in CBM, and indeed it does D3) 9.d4 0-0
create some long-term problems for Black. D3a) 10.f4!? h5 11.f3 d5 12.0-0
B1) or 9.c4 0-0 10.d3 d4 ( 12.a4!? intending Rb5 in some
( 10...e5!? ) 11.e3 f5 12.b2 e5 v a r i a t i o n s i s w o r t h a t h o u g h t)
13.f3 c6 14.0-0 c7 15.c2 12...xa2 13.b3 a4 14.e5 xe5
Agdestein, S-Mikhalevski, V/ Port Erin 15.fxe5 d8 ( 15...c6!? 16.g5 f6
IOM 2003; is s im p ly b e t t e r f o r B l a c k W h i t e ' s
B2) 9.h3 Tyomkin, D: 'A very logical initiative has simply run out) 16.g5
move - White intends to exploit the weak xe5 17.xe7 e8 18.g5 xg3
spots created by h5 ' 19.c4 with chances for both sides,
B2a) 9...0-0 10.a3 e5 11.d3 c6 Cvetkovic, S-Nikolic, Z/ Vrnjacka Banja
12.g5 c7 13.0-0 b6 14.b3! 1989;
a6? ( 14...h6 ) 15.c4 ( 15.e4! D3b) 10.f3 a5 11.e4 c5 12.0-0
more or less wins for White, the main b6 13.e2 cxd4 14.cxd4 g4 15.d5
threat being Bxg6, which is awfully D3b1) or 15...c8 16.b2
difficult to prevent without material loss ( 16.f4!? ) 16...c4 17.e3 xa2
for Black ) 15...ab8 16.b2 18.xg7 xg7 19.e5 e2
Lo b ro n , E -Mikh a le vski, V / I n t e rn e t 20.fe1 c4 21.c3 d2 22.a1
2001; ( 22.xd2 xd2 23.b4 a5
B2b) 9...d7 10.a4! d8 24.xe2 axb4 25.xd2 a1+
11.xd7+?! ( 11.a3! 0-0 12.0-0 26.f1 ) 22...h7 23.xe2 xe2
e5 13.g5 as pointed out by Tyomkin, 24.f1 xe4 25.xc4 Epishin, V-
is very difficult for Black and rather Lujan, C/San Marino SMR 2006;
ea s y t o pla y f o r W h ite , wh o ha s a D3b2) 15...d7 16.b2 xb2
small but clear advantage) 11...xd7 17.xb2 c4 18.d4 Matamoros
12.f4 c6 Franco, C-Seger, R/Predeal ROM
B2b1) 13.a4! 0-0 ( 13...b6 14.a5 2007 ( 18.c1!? xf3 19.xf3 e5
b5 15.d3 - Tyomkin ) 14.a5 20.e2 )]
Tyomkin; [ C) 8.d4 0-0 9.f3 a5 10.d2?!
B2b2) 13.a3 b6 14.0-0 c8 ( 10.0-0 f5 11.b2 c5 ) 10...c5 11.e3
15.d4 e6 16.d3 c7 17.fc1 f5 12.b2 e5 , and Black has already
b5= Huzman, A-Tyomkin, D/ taken over the control of the game, Chernin,
Montreal 2005; O-Mikhalevski, V/Philadelphia USA 2004 ]
C) 8...d7 9.a4 ( 9.h5!? is logical and [ D) 8.b2 0-0 9.d3 e5 ( 9...e5!? ) 10.c4
good ) 9...d8 10.c2 ( 10.xd7+ xd7 c5 11.d2 f5?! ( 11...b8 12.f4 g4
11.h5 b8 12.a3 ) 10...c6 11.h5 b6 13.xg7 xg7 14.f3 f6 ) 12.xe5 xe5
12.f3 b7 13.d3 ( 13.d4!? a5 14.h6 13.f3 g7 14.xb7 b8 15.xb8 xb8
f6 15.e4 ) 13...0-0-0 14.e3 b8 16.0-0 , and Black has inadequate
15.f1 h6 16.hxg6 fxg6 17.d2 df8 co m p e n sa t io n f o r t h e sa crif ice d p a wn ,
, and Black is doing well, Taylor, P-Knott, Kotsur, P-Al Modiahki, M/Aden 2002 ]
S/West Bromwich ENG 2003; [ E) 8.a4 0-0 9.h4 ( 9.xc6?! bxc6
D) 8...h6 10.xc6 e6 11.a4 d5 12.f3 xa2
D1) 9.c4?! 0-0 10.d3 e5 11.h3 d6 13.xa2 xa2 , and Black is in charge of
12.a4 d4 Bykhovsky, A-Khmelniker, the game, Ivanov, I-Sarthou, G/FIDE.com
I/ Givataim ISR 2005; 2001; 9.h3!? e5 10.0-0 followed by f2-f4
D2) 9.f3 0-0 10.0-0 b6 11.h5 is an interesting idea for W hite) 9...h6
( 11.c2!? ) 11...gxh5 12.b5 g4 10.f3 e5 11.0-0 e4 12.e1 ( 12.xe4??
13.h2 d7 14.xg4 hxg4 15.a4 f5-+ ) 12...e8 13.d3 xc3 14.xh6 d4

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

15.dxe4 xe2+ 16.h2 f6 17.d1 e7 Moscow 1990;

with the better chances for Black, Cebalo, C3) 10.d3 a5 ( 10...b7 11.f4 a5
M-Nikolic, Z/ Novi Sad 1985 ] 12.d2 c5 13.h4 c4 with a satisfactory
8...0-0 game for Black, Thompson, I-Knott, S/
[ 8...d7?! at this point is premature, e.g. Nottingham ENG 2005) 11.c4 c5
9.d4 b6 10.f4 b7 11.e5!? xe5 12.d2 c6 13.a4 d7 14.b3 g4
12.xe5 xe5 13.xb7 , and White is 15.a4 d7 16.fe1 , and here a draw
clearly better, Heberla, B-Ris, R/Plovdiv BUL was agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, in Gulko, B-
2008 ] M i k h a l e vs k i , V / C o p e n h a g e n 2 0 0 0 ,
9.c2 though Black has every reason to be
[ A major alternative is the immediate 9.0-0 satisfied with the outcome of the
, and now opening. ]
A) or 9...a5 10.c2 c5 9...b6 10.0-0 b7 11.d4 a5 12.e4 c5!?
A1) 11.d3 c7 12.c4 c6 13.b2 e5 This is an interesting new idea, the
14.d2 f5 15.a3 d7 16.e3 b6 17.f4 background for which is illustrated in this
ae8 18.be1 Mirzoev, A-Lujan, C/ game. Previously Black had played 12...Qd7
Balaguer ESP 2006; as seen in Gurevich-Sulypa in the first note to
A2) 11.g5!? h6 ( 11...g4 12.d3 this game. 13.dxc5 c7!
c7!? ) 12.e4 f5 13.c4 b6 14.d3 [ Black sacrifices a pawn for active piece play
c6 15.f6+ exf6 16.xc6 h3 and pressure against W hite's queenside
17.e1 c8 18.d5 , and White is pawns. 13...bxc5?! 14.e3 ]
slightly better, Milos, G-Lujan, C/Sao 14.cxb6 axb6 15.g5
Paulo BRA 2005; [ 15.d1!? ]
A3) 11.d1 d7 12.d3 e8 13.e1 15...c4 16.b4 a3 17.d4
a4 14.b2 c8 15.e3 d7 16.a3 [ 17.b3= ]
b6 17.c4 c6 18.d2 xf3 19.xf3 17...d6 18.d2?!
xc4 20.dxc4 xd2 21.xa7 f6 [ 18.e2?! fa8 19.a1 b5 ]
22.ed1 c2 23.dc1 1-0 Kotsur, P- [ 18.fb1!? xc3 19.e2 c5= ]
Korniushin, N/Tomsk 2001; 18...e5 19.b3 fa8 20.a1 f8 21.c1
B) 9...e5 10.a3 e4?! , Drasko, M- 3a6 22.d2 b5
Nikolic, Z/JUG 1989, and now [ 22...e8!? 23.bb1 a4! 24.c4 c5
( 10...e8!?= ) 11.d4! e8 12.xc6 leaves Black with excellent compensation for
bxc6 13.d4; the pawn ]
C) 9...b6 23.f3?!
C1) 10.d4 xd4 11.cxd4 b8 12.d5 [ 23.a3 c6 24.f1 is somewhat passive,
b7 ( Black can possibly improve with but also solid the chances are more or less
12...e6!? 13.dxe6 xe6 14.c2 c5 even. ]
, and I prefer Black's position) 13.b3 23...a4 24.xa4 xa4 25.xe5
d7 14.d3 fd8 15.f4 bc8 16.fc1 [ 25.d2!? ]
xd5 17.xd5 xd5 18.xc7 xb3 25...xe4 26.xe4
19.axb3 d7 20.f4 xc1+ [ 26.d3 xg2 27.xg2 c6+ 28.g1
( 20...dd8!? ) 21.xc1 f5 , and the g7 , and Black's active pieces more than
chances are more or less even, compensate for the pawn. ]
Gurevich, M-Konopka, M/ AUT 2002; 26...xe4 27.f4 g7 28.e1!? xc3
C2) 10.c4 b8 11.d3 b7 12.a4 29.xc3 xc3 30.d7?!
d7 13.e3 fd8 14.fc1 d4 [ 30.c6! h5 31.e8+ h7 32.e7 xa2
15.xd7 xd7 16.xd4 xd4 17.xb7 33.e5 xe5 34.xe5 g8 35.xf7
xe3 18.fxe3 xb7 19.c5 b8 , and White has decent chances of saving
, and though White has the initiative in the endgame. ]
the endgame, Black should be able to 30...e4
defend, Berkovich, M-Dragojlovic, A/ [ 30...f5 31.e7 e4 32.e5 xe5

602
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

33.xe5 xa2 34.f4 will be difficult for 602 A16

Black to win on account of W hite's active Ionov,Sergey 2527
pieces and the location of Black's king. ] Klimov,Sergey 2509
31.xe4 xe4 32.b6?! 78th ch-City (3) 19.03.2005
[ 32.f1!? c3 33.a3 f5 34.e3 f7 ] [John Watson]
32...c3 33.a3 d4
[ 33...e2+ 34.f1 xf4 35.gxf4 f8 W hite plays the Anti-Gruenfeld line that is
36.a4 bxa4 37.xa4 d6 will also leave often resorted to by 1.c4 players. I'm not sure
Black a pawn up, but winning the ensuing that Black has found his best path here. 1.f3
endgame will be quite difficult. ] f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
34.e3 xe3 35.fxe3 Thanks to White's [ I like this order better than 4.a4+ d7
weaker pawn structure and Black's somewhat 5.b3 , which has been seen in several
better placed knight, Black has decent ChessPub games. ]
winning chances. However, W hite makes 4...xd5 5.a4+ d7 6.b3
several big mistakes, making Black's job [ It's also not so easy for Black after 6.h4
significantly easier. f5 36.f1? xc3 7.dxc3 c6 8.g3! , as Tony
[ White has to play more aggressively, e.g. analysed in the game Piket-Svidler, Zurich
36.f2 f7 37.e4! fxe4 38.e3 e6 SUI 2001, although I think that he should be
39.d4 b1 40.a4 bxa4 41.xa4 f5 okay there. ( Instead, the blindfold contest of
42.h3 h5 43.c5 d2 , and it is by no a few days ago between stars Vallejo Pons
means certain that Black will convert his and Ivanchuk went 8.e4 e5 9.g5 e7
pawn advantage to a win. ] 10.c4 h5 11.xe7 xe7 12.xe7+
36...f7 37.e1 e6 38.d2 b1+ xe7 with approximate equality. )]
39.c2 xa3+ 40.b3 b1 41.c2 a3+ 6...b6 7.d4 g7 8.g5 0-0 9.e3
42.b3 b4! 43.a4 d5 44.xb4? White isn't supposed to have much here, but
[ This loses a second pawn. White should his centre is difficult to crack open. a5!?
have tried 44.b6+!? after which Black still [ 9...e6 is the most common move, which
wins, but at least it seems a little more is not to say the best one. ]
complicated, e.g. c6 ( 44...e4 45.d7 10.e2 e6 11.c2 c6 12.0-0 a4?
xe3 46.f8 b1 47.xh7 d2+ Logical but time-consuming. He might have
48.xb4 isn't clear) 45.a4 b5 46.b2 tried
b1 47.c4 c5 48.h4 c3 49.e5 [ 12...b4 13.b1 h6 14.h4 c6!?
d5 50.c4 ( 50.g4 xe3 51.gxf5 xf5 , since the knight finds a home after 15.a3
52.d7+ b5 ) 50...h6 51.e5 xe3 4d5 16.e4?! f4 ]
52.xg6 f1 , and Black wins another 13.fd1 f5 14.c1
pawn. ] [ Not bad, but White had a straightforward
44...c2+ 45.c3 xe3 46.d3 f1 ad va n ta ge b y 14.e4! g4 15.d5 b4
and Black picks up a second pawn, which 16.d2 a3 17.b3 ]
caused White to resign, though he could have 14...d5 15.h3!? Or
played on due to the limited material left on [ 15.e5! ]
the board. 15...a3 Also slow.
0-1 [ Probably better was 15...h6 16.h4 xc3
17.xc3 e4 ]
16.xd5! xd5 17.bxa3 a5 18.d5!
A nice sacrificial idea that forces the pace
since Bxe7 will answer a knight move. xa1
19.xa1 b8 20.xe7?!
[ 20.h6 f6 21.d6! is a very strong and
more-or-less standard idea. There is no
good defence, e. g., cxd6 22.c4+ f7
23.g5! ]

603
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
20...e8 21.f6!? Suddenly White's attack is
faltering. He could have played
[ 21.d6! cxd6 22.xd6 with Nd4 to come. ]
21...d7?!
[ 21...xa3! 22.h8 f8 was better. ]
22.h8! There goes his best piece, but White
retains an attack. He would also have good
pressure after
[ 22.b2 with ideas like d6 and in some
cases Nd4. ]
22...f6 23.xf6 xf6 24.xf6 xa3
[ White's centre rolls after 24...f8 25.d4
ad8 26.c4 d6 27.e4 ]
25.d6! xa2 26.g5! h6? But the position
was lost anyway. Now White finds one of the
very few bad moves in the position: 27.d4??
[ Horrible. Among other immediate wins was
27.f3 c6 ( 27...f8 28.e7 ) 28.d5+!
. But he gets one more chance to redeem
himself: ]
27...a1+?
[ T h e r i g h t d e f e n c e w a s 27...b1+
, when W hite doesn't seem to have more
than a draw. Even if the opponents weren't
in time pressure (which they probably were)
these decisions were still difficult ones. ]
28.h2 hxg5 29.c4+ h7 30.dxc7??
Even for a 2500 player it's extremely hard to
forget your blunders and settle down. Still
winning was the subtle
[ 30.d7 ed8 31.e7+! h6
( 32.h4+ gxh4 33.xh4+
34.e7+= ) 32...g4 33.hxg4 xg4 34.g5+
g7 35.f5!! ]
30...a5! That's it. The idea of ...Qe5+
defends in all the critical lines. A tragic loss
for W hite, although his opening came out
beautifully. Black has a lot of repairs to make
in this line. 31.xg5 xc7+ 32.g3 g7
33.f4 f8 34.e4 xc4 35.exf5 c6
36.g4 a1 37.xg6+ xg6 38.xg6+
h7 39.g4 a6 40.g5 b5
0-1
603 A16
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2709
Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar 2580
Olympiad Bled SLO (8) 02.11.2002
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.g3
Somewhat rare than
[ 4.f3 but quite playable, nonetheless. ]
4...g6 5.g2 b6 6.d3 g7 7.e3 0-0
8.d2 This line was my recommendation in
'The Dynamic English'. c6?! This is thought
to be incorrect, and falls-in with White's plan.
[ 8...e8 avoids the exchange of dark-
squared bishops, but brings me good
mem orie s - my e xcit in g vict ory agains t
Ganguly at Calcutta, 1996. ]
9.xc6! Creating 'doubled singleton' pawns on
a n o p e n f ile . bxc6 10.h6 An important
follow-up, having given one bishop W hite
immediately exchanges the other bishop so
that Black cannot enjoy the famous bishop
pair. c5 Played to open the h1-a8 diagonal,
[ 10...e5 11.xg7 xg7 12.f3 f6 13.0-0
was Saidy,A-Byrne,D/New York 1966, where
W h it e m a n a ge d t o e xp l o i t t h e we a k c -
pawns. ]
11.d1!? A novelty from Ivanchuk has to be
taken seriously, although the simple
[ 11.xg7 xg7 12.f3 b7 13.e3
32.f4! was very effective in previous games: c4
g7 14.0-0-0 ( 14.d1 c8? 15.dxc4
wo n a pa wn in S h a m kovich , L -W e b b , S /
Hastings 1977) 14...xf3 15.exf3 cxd3
16.xd3 e8 17.h4 c6!? an attempted
improvement on ( 17...d8 18.xd8 xd8
19.h5 d5 20.e5+ f6 21.h6+ g8
22.d1 which was crushing in Serper,G-
Alterman,B/Manila 1992) 18.h5 c4
19.d4+ f6 20.d7 e5 21.xc6 xc6
22.d7 and the superior pawn structure was
enough for White (who obviously learnt from
the previous game!) in Alterman,B-Roesch,
A/Germany 1997. ]
11...b7 12.f3 A different approach, avoiding
the capture on f3. d6 13.xg7 xg7
14.e4 The point, regaining the light-squared
bishop. xe4
[ 14...e5 15.c1 forces the exchange
anyway. ]
15.fxe4 f5!? Black plays aggressively, relying
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

on his activity to counter-balance the pawn 17.h5 e5 18.0-0 f6? ( 18...c7 19.f4!
s t r u c t u r e . 16.exf5 xf5 17.f3 e6 was also extremely dangerous) 19.h7+
A t t a c k i n g f 3 a n d a 2 . 18.0-0 af8 f8 20.f4! White has a deadly attack
This is stronger than exd4 21.f5 fxg5 22.f6 h8 23.xh8+
[ 18...xa2 19.c3+ g8 20.e4 f6 f7 24.g7+ e6 25.f7 d6 26.xd4
21.a1 e6 22.xc5 ] c7 27.e5+ d6 28.e6+ 1-0 Navara,
19.g2!? White could also try D (2710)-Ris, R (2407)/Reykjavik 2013/
[ 19.b3! d5 20.g5 which seems like a CB08 2013;
p l e a s a n t p l u s b e ca u s e o f h i s s u p e r i o r B) 14...h5! 15.h3? ( the more sedate
pawn formation. ] 15.0-0 was more advisable) 15...c5! 16.g4
19...xa2 20.a1 f7 21.xa7 Regaining cxd4 17.gxh5 d3! 18.hxg6 fxg6 19.g5
the pawn, but allowing Black to generate an f6 20.f4 d6 21.g1? c4 22.d5
initiative on the kingside. g5!? 22.aa1?! b4 23.xf6+ xf6 And Black was well
Probably due to shortage of time, which was on top and went on to win in Fressinet, L
e n d e m i c a t t h i s O l ym p i a d , W h i t e c o u l d (2714)-Sutovsky, E (2687)/Istanbul 2012 ]
maintain the advantage with 14.g1! White is gearing up to an out and out
[ 22.g4! f4 23.xc7 xg4+ 24.h1 kingside attack, but Sutovsky, himself known
although Black has some play. However, for some rather primitive attacking instincts,
White should certainly avoid ] proves up to the challenge. d7!
[ 22.xg5? which loses to a series of [ 14...c5 15.g4 cxd4 16.gxh5
checks: f2+ 23.xf2 xf2+ 24.h3 f5+ is now inviting trouble for Black, with the
25.g4 f1+ 26.g3 f2+ 27.h3 rook already menacingly posted on the g-
and now f6 and ...Rh6+. ] file. ]
22...f6 23.h3 c4 24.g4 b5 Switching to 15.g4 f6 16.g5?! too optimistic.
attack the queenside. 25.d4 [ 16.gxh5! a5+! ( 16...xh5 17.f4
[ 25.dxc4!? xb2 26.d3 lines-up some looks rather dangerous for Black) 17.d2
nasty threats along the f-file, c5 ( 26...e5? xh5 18.xh5 xh5 19.0-0-0 fd8
27.xg5! xg5 28.xf8 xf8 29.a3+ 20.e3 with a slight pull in the endgame for
forks b2 and f8) 27.a7 f7 28.d2 c6+ White. ]
29.e4 and Black still has problems to 16...hxg4 17.xg4 c8 18.f3 d8
solve. ] [ 18...b4! 19.f2 ( 19.e5 h5 20.f4
25...f4! 26.xf4 xf4 27.a2 h6 28.c1 c2+ 21.f2 xa1 22.xh5 gxh5
e4 29.f2 b3 30.d2 f4+ 31.f3 e4 23.xh5 f5 rather puts a dent in White's
½-½ attacking ambitions.) 19...c2 20.b1 d8
21.e5 h5 22.e4 xh3 23.xh3 d7
would have given Black the upper hand in
604 A16 the endgame. ]
Jakovenko,D 2734 19.e5! Now everything is forced and although
Sutovsky,E 2671 it looks dangerous for Black, with best play it's
20th TCh-RUS 2013 (3) 09.04.2013 just a draw. xg4 20.fxg4 f6 21.h7+ f8
[Danny Gormally] 22.xg6 fxg5 23.e6 g8 24.xg5
[ 24.f7+ h7 25.h5+ h6 26.f7+
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 h8 27.g6= ]
xd5 5.b3 b6 6.d4 g7 7.e4 g4 24...d5! 25.f7+ h8 26.h5+ g8
8.b5+ c6 9.g5 0-0 10.e2 xe2 27.f7+ h8 28.h5+ g8 29.f7+
11.xe2 a6 12.h3 h6 13.f3 h5 ½-½
[ 13...d7 14.h4
A) S a f e r t h a n 14...g5?! which allowed
White to launch the kind of long-burning
attack which is very difficult to defend over
the board 15.xg5! hxg5 16.xg5 fd8

605
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

605 A16 other hand, W hite has the opportunity to

Jakovenko,Dmitrij 2710 send Black to a full count. ]
Vachier Lagrave,Maxime 2634 21.g5 f5 22.f4?
ETCC Crete GRE (7) 04.11.2007 [ I don't know what Jakovenko missed the
[Carsten Hansen] text move is obviously less accurate than the
more punishing 22.e4 , and now
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 A) 22...f4 23.g3 f6 24.e5 c6
xd5 5.a4+ d7 6.b3 b6 7.d4 g7 ( 24...xe5? 25.xf7 xf7 26.xb4+
8.f4 e6 9.a3 c6 f8 27.f4++- ) 25.xb4 axb4 26.xf7+
[ 9...0-0 10.e4 was the topic of Gelfand- h8 27.e6+-;
Svidler of the October update. ] B) 22...f6 23.e5 f5 24.g4 d3
10.e3 0-0 11.b5!? 25.xb4 axb4 26.xf7+ h8 27.e6
[ In the February 2007 update, we discussed f8 28.f7+ xf7 29.xf7 xe5
the game Bu Xiangzhi-Vachier Lagrave, 30.xe7 d5 ( 30...d4 31.xb7 )
Wijk aan Zee B 2007. In that game White 31.f6+ xf6 32.xf6+ g8 33.d6
continued with 11.e2 a5 12.c5 a4 , and White should be winning ]
13.b5 a5 14.c1 d5 15.g3 22...d5 23.xf7 xb3
, and W hite obtained a slight edge, but [ 23...f6 24.xf6 exf6 25.e4 xb3
Vachier Lagrave undoubtedly had prepared 26.axb3 d3 27.xf6 xb3 28.c3 ]
a novelty in the event somebody would play 24.axb3 d5
this line against him. ] [ 24...f6 25.xf6 exf6 26.e4 transposes
11...d5 12.g3! to 23...Bf6 above ]
[ Jakovenko apparently didn't like giving up 25.e4?!
t h e b i s h o p p a i r wi t h 12.xd5!? xd5 [ White seems to have a better and simpler
13.xc6 xc6 , although White appear to continuation in 25.xg7+ xg7 26.e6+
have an initiative after 14.0-0 d7 15.ac1 f7 27.c7 ad8 28.xd5 xd5 29.f4
c6 16.g5!? f5 17.e4 g4 18.h3 e2 , and White is a pawn up and clearly better
19.fe1 b5 20.f3 , and White has the in the endgame ]
upper hand. But as we will see, Jakovenko 25...d7 26.f3 a6 27.e5?!
aims for and achieves more with the [ White has a couple of alternatives: A)
chosen continuation ] 27.g3 is possibly better xb2 28.h4
12...cb4 13.c1 c5?! This aggressive ( 28.e5 c6 29.e4 d3 is very good for
approach is quite typical of the Grünfeld, but Black ) 28...c6 29.e5 d5 30.e6
in this case it falls short of achieving its goal (a n a t t e m p t t o m u d d l e t h e wa t e rs ) d4
of obtaining active counterplay. 31.d6!? xc5! 32.xc5 cxc5 33.f7
[ 13...c6 14.e2 a5 15.0-0 b6 16.b3 c6 34.xh7 , and now Black has to show
with a small, but obvious advantage for some extra care if not to throw the
White ] advantage away by one inaccurate move:
14.xd5 xd5 15.0-0 fc8 b5 ( 34...f5?! looks perfectly normal, but
[ 15...xa2 16.xc5 b6 17.cc1 ] allows White back in the game with 35.g5
16.c4 d7 17.dxc5 xc4 18.xc4 a5 c3 36.f4 , and White is doing rather well)
19.b3 d8 20.h4 35.c1!? xb3 36.xc6! b1+ 37.h2
[ 20.e5!? may be even better, e.g. d3 bxc6 38.xe7 f5 39.f3 , and White is
21.c3 ( 21.d4 xb3 22.axb3 c6 probably at least equal. ]
23.xg7 xg7 24.dd1 ) 21...xc3 [ B) 27.e3 c2 28.e2 d4 29.e3
22.xc3 d5 23.a3 d3 24.c2 e5 Now Black can keep repeating the moves if
25.xe5 xe5 26.c6 bxc6 27.xc6 ] he wants the draw, or play for the win with
20...e6? c6 30.f4 xc5 , and Black has the better
[ 20...c6!? 21.cc1 a4 22.c2 e6 chances ]
, and Black has some, but not entirely full, 27...xe5 28.e4 xb2 29.g5 e6
compensation for the pawn. Now on the 30.h6 g7 31.xg7 xg7 32.c3

606
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ The text move invites a pure rook ending, 606 A16

which leaves Black with plenty of winning
chances, but also the draw within reach. My
computer gives preference to 32.e3 c2
33.g5 c6 ( 33...xe3? only serves
White: 34.xe6+ f6 35.f8 xf1
36.xd7+ e6 37.f8+ f7 38.xf1
xf8 ) 34.e2 d4 35.d2 h6 36.e4 b6
37.cxb6 xb6 38.fd1 e5 ]
32...d3 33.a4 e5
[ can lead to a different type of R vs R
e n d ga m e a f t e r 33...d5 34.b6 xc5
35.xd3 xb6 36.e1 e6! 37.f1 xe1+
38.xe1 b5 39.d7 f7 with excellent
winning chances for Black ]
34.h3 xc5 35.b6 d3 36.xd3 xd3
37.d1! Rook endings have a propensity for
providing the defender with a certain level of
drawing chances, almost no matter how dire
the situation appears. Accuracy on the side of
the advantage, however, will of course often
lead to the desired win. b5 38.xd3 xb6
Black has excellent winning chances in this
endgame, but at the same time, W hite also
has decent drawing chances. I will not discuss
the endgame in detail as this is hardly the
forum for this. 39.d5 xb3 40.xa5 b1+
41.h2 b5 42.g3 b3+ 43.f4 f6
44.a6+ e6 45.b6 g5+ 46.e4 b1 47.g3
b4 48.h4! Eliminating another pair of pawns
helps White's defence. gxh4 49.gxh4 b3
[ The tempting 49...h1 50.xb4 xh4+
is unfortunately for Black answered by 51.f4
, and a draw is around the corner. ]
50.b5 b2 With this move Black eliminates
his last real winning chances as the rook on
b1 cannot leave its post without dropping
Black's greatest asset. BY keeping the pawn
on b3, Black would leave room for the king to
run to b2 and thereby release the rook of its
duty. This will likely also lead to a draw, but at
least Black is still playing for a win. 51.f3 e5
52.g2 with the king carefully placed, away
from any harmful checks, the draw becomes
obvious. e4 53.b8 e5 54.b7 d4
55.b8 e5 56.b7 f5 57.b5+ g4
58.b4 f4 59.b8 g4 60.b4 h5
61.b7 h6 62.b4 e1 63.xb2 xh4
64.b8 g5 65.g8+ f6 66.h8 g7
½-½
Jones,G 2653
Areshchenko,A 2720
TCh-ISL 2012-13 (6.1) 02.03.2013
[John Bartholomew]
I was teammates with GM Gawain Jones in
the Icelandic league, so I was able to witness
the following game first-hand. 1.c4 f6
2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.g3 g6 5.g2
b6 6.d3 g7 7.e3 c6 8.xc6+
The main line. White parts with his bishop but
obta ins clea r st ruct ural com pens atio n in
return.
[ Alternatives are 8.d2 ]
[ , 8.f3 , ]
[ a n d t h e n e w l y f a s h i o n a b l e 8.c1
. Refer to the archives for all of these. ]
8...bxc6 9.d2 h6
[ An alternative is 9...h5 , which was seen in
David, A (2598)-Salem, A (2505) Caleta
2 0 1 2 / [ J o h n B a r t h o l o m e w] . T h a t g a m e
continued 10.f3 h3!? 11.g5 g2
12.g1 d5 13.c1 0-0 14.ge4 f5!?
with unusual, complex play. ]
10.c1!? This is undoubtedly a useful move.
White leaves the knight on g1 for a moment,
preventing ...Bc8-h3.
[ G a wa i n h a d p l a ye d 10.f3 a couple
months prior. Af ter h3 11.g1 b8
12.f4 g5 he tried to force the issue with
13.e5!? , when xe5 ( Houdini points out
the unusual resource 13...c8! 14.xc6
d7 ) 14.xe5 f6 15.g4 fxe5 16.g3
d4 17.xh3 xg4 18.g3 f4=
led to rough equality in Jones, G (2644)-
Alsina Leal, D (2511) Hastings 2013. ]
10...d5 The most popular reply. The knight
was fairly useless on b6, so Black deploys it
back to the center.
[ R u n n i n g t h e a - p a w n w i t h 10...a5!?
deserves attention, as I mentioned in the
notes to David - Salem. Black secured great
co u n t e rp la y in t h e o n ly ga m e wit h t h i s
co nt in u at io n : 11.f3?! ( 11.h4!? ) 11...a4
12.h4 d5 13.xd5 xd5 14.a3 b8
15.d4 a2 Von Bahr, O (2284)-Tikkanen,
H (2586) Stockholm 2011. ]
11.f3 White cannot afford to delay this move
much longer.
[ 11.xd5 xd5 12.f3 xa2

607
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
( 12...h3!? ) 13.0-0 was Sega, C (2252)-
Barreto Filho, C (2258) Yerevan 2012. Here
the engine claims compensation for White
after h3 14.fd1 xb2 15.c2 b5
16.c4 (intending Be3-d4), but I doubt Black
would be opposed to such a continuation. ]
11...xe3
[ 11...h3 12.d4! f6 13.xf6!?
( 13.g1!? ) 13...exf6 14.e3+ f8
15.c5+ g8 16.d4 h7 17.xc6 d7
18.f3 he8 19.f2 Ruck, R (2582)-Nedev,
T (2514) Yerevan 2001 ]
[ Nobody has tried 11...xc3!? , possibly
because the exchange sacrifice 12.xc3!
is a very real possibility, e.g. xc3 13.xc3
f6 14.xc6+ d7 15.c4 ]
12.xe3 0-0 Apparently a novelty.
[ The programmed 12...h3 can be met by
13.e5! , i.e. d6 14.f4 g5 15.f2 f5
16.a4 f6 17.c5 0-0 , Milanovic, D
(2507) -Zinchenko, Y (2546) Metz 2010.
Here 18.c4! leaves White firmly in
control. ]
[ P e rh a p s B la ck s h o u ld o p t f o r 12...h5!?
, probing on the kingside and menacing ...
Bg7-h6. ]
13.0-0 d6 14.d4!? With his king secure,
White can proceed in a few different ways.
The text further restrains Black's structure
and lends support to the attractive outposts on
c5 and e5.
[ 14.e4 also suggests itself. ]
14...h3 15.fd1 ad8 16.b3 f5!?
Black's position is of course strategically
suspect, so he must do everything he can do
unbalance the struggle. 17.a4 g5 18.d3
f4 19.c5 d5 20.c4
[ 20.e4 looks preferable, avoiding the
possibility Black has on the next move. ]
20...d6? A significant error, allowing White to
dictate the terms of the queen trade.
[ Correct was 20...xc4! , taking advantage
of a m om ent ary lack of coordin at ion in
White's position. On 21.bxc4 ( the point is
that 21.xc4 is met by e5! , setting Black's
entire structure in motion and opening lines
for the bishops) 21...g4 22.g2 d6!?
Black maintains the dynamic balance, as
lines like 23.b1 f5 24.b7?! could easily
backfire, e.g. g4 25.h4 c2 26.d2
xd4 ]
21.xd5+! xd5
[ Nor is 21...cxd5 22.e5 very appetizing, e.
g. f5 23.g4 h7 24.a4 . ]
22.d3 fxg3 23.hxg3 g4 24.b4 xf3
25.exf3 df5? Areshchenko is striving for
a c t ive co u n t e r p la y, b u t t h is o n l y m a k e s
matters worse.
[ He had to try 25...xd4 26.xd4 xd4
27.xc6 e5 , with chances to hold. The
r o o k a n d p a w n e n d i n g a f t e r 28.xd4
( t h e p a t i e n t 28.g2 might have been
Gawain's choice) 28...exd4 29.xc7 d8!
is not simple at all , e.g. ( not 29...xf3
30.xa7 ) 30.f1 d3 31.e1 e8+
32.d1 a5 33.a7 e2 34.xa5 xf2
35.a4 xf3 . ]
26.xc6 xf3 27.xe7+ h7 28.d2
No w W h i t e h a s e ve ryt h i n g s e c u r e d a n d
remains a pawn to the good. On top of that,
B l a c k ' s p a w n w e a k n e s s e s r e m a i n . 8f7
29.c6 h5 30.e5! Simplest. xe5 31.dxe5
e7 32.c6! g7 33.dc2 ff7
[ Or 33...xe5 34.xc7+ f7 35.xf7+
xf7 36.c7++- . ]
34.2c5+- Black cannot hold. f8 35.e6 g7
36.a5 Black resigned. This game is a vivid
illustration of the problems Black experiences
in the 8.Bxc6+ line. Players who are
uncomfortable operating with a shattered
pawn structure should definitely avoid this one.
If you're keen to take up Black's cause, check
the notes to David - Salem and, in the case of
10.Rc1, consider the reply 10...a5!?.
1-0
607 A16
Kekelidze,M 2494
Robson,Ray 2601
40th Annual World Open (7) 07.07.2012
[John Bartholomew]
Ray Robson is an extremely well-prepared
Grandmaster. In this game he demonstrates
a ll t h e im p o rt a n t id e a s in t h is qu ie t (b u t
venomous) line of the Anti-Grunfeld. 1.f3
f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 xd5 5.e4
Ulf Andersson is the most noted practitioner
of this "endgame" line. He amassed an
impressive score of +5, =5, -0 with it in the
period 1978-2009, and there's no doubting
608
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
that he's still searching for victims! xc3
[ 5...b6 transposes to a line of the Grunfeld
where White can probably expect a slight
edge. Korchnoi tried this against Andersson,
b u t h e t o o c a m e t o g r i e f : 6.h3
( the immediate 6.d4 is more common, but
6.h3 first is fully in keeping with
Andersson's risk-averse style!) 6...g7 7.d4
0-0! 8.e2 c6 9.e3 f5 10.exf5 xf5
11.b3+ h8 12.d5 e5 13.d4 c6?!
14.d1 cxd5 15.xf5 xf5 16.xd5 xd5
17.xd5 c7 18.0-0! c6 19.fd1 xd5
20.xd5 Andersson, U (2635) -Korchnoi, V
(2655)/Clermont Ferrand 1989 (1-0 on move
40). ]
6.dxc3
[ Of course White could seek a main-line
G ru n f e ld wit h 6.bxc3 , but this isn't in the
spirit of 5.e4. ]
6...xd1+
[ Andersson punished another opponent for
getting creative: 6...d6?! 7.b3! g7
8.e3 0-0 9.d1 c6 10.c4 a6?
( 10...e6 11.0-0 ) 11.xf7+!+- xf7
12.d8+ f8 13.e5 f6 14.xf7 xf7
15.h6 e6 16.xa8! xb3 17.axb3 c5
18.xf8+ xf8 19.xf8 xf8 20.e2
xe4 21.e3 d6 22.g4 e5 23.a1 a6
24.a5 f7 25.e4 e7 26.xe5+
1-0 Andersson, U (2585)-Kouatly, B (2350)/
La Valetta 1980. ]
7.xd1 Theoretically speaking, the early
exchange of queens is not considered
dangerous for Black. All the same, he really
ought to be aware of some key ideas to avoid
n e e d l e s s t o r t u r e . f6 Black does best to
immediately establish his pawn on e5.
[ 7...d7 is another way of going about this,
i.e. 8.f4 ( this eventually loses a tempo, so
m a y b e W h i t e s h o u l d p r e f e r 8.e3
, as in our main game,; or 8.c4 ) 8...c6
9.c2 f6 10.d2 e5 11.e3 c5 12.xc5
xc5 13.b4 a4 ( 13...e6!? ) 14.c4
d8!? 15.d6?! ( 15.a5 is st ron ge r)
15...e7! 16.d1 a5 17.b5? d8
18.xc8+ axc8 Gelfand, B (2713)-
Ivanchuk, V (2702)/Batumi 1999/[TonyK]. ]
8.e3 e5 9.c2
[ Andersson most often began with 9.d2
. Here are a couple of his games, 30 years(!)
apart: e6 ( per the strategy outlined in the
m a i n g a m e , I ' d r a t h e r p l a y 9...d7
intending 10...Bf8-c5) 10.c4 xc4
( 10...f7 11.c2 d7 12.ad1 a5 13.a4
c5 14.xc5 xc5 15.f3 c6 16.xe6+
xe6 17.b3 e7= Andersson, U (2571)-
Atakisi, U (2393)/Budva MNE 2009 (1-0 on
move 68). ) 11.xc4 d7 12.b4 b6
13.a5 (compared to Kekelidze - Robson,
this knight is far more pesky on a5) 0-0-0+
14.c2 e7 15.a3 f5?! 16.xb6!? axb6
17.c4 f6?! 18.a4! g7 19.he1 he8
20.b5 f4 21.a5 Andersson, U (2560) -
Franco Ocampos, Z (2360)/Buenos Aires
1979 (1-0 on move 42). ]
9...d7 10.d2 c5 Second order of
business: exchange the dark-square bishops.
The e3 bishop is W hite's best piece, while
Black's own bishop is restricted by his e5/ f6
pawns. Thus, Black is quite eager to trade.
11.xc5 xc5 12.b4
[ 12.c4 ]
12...e6!? 13.c4 e7 14.a5
White's knight very often lands here, but Black
has a convenient reply. d7! Accurately
played. 15.a4
[ 15.xb7?! c6 16.a5 xe4+ 17.b3
ab8 ]
15...b6 16.c4? A positional error which
Robson is quick to exploit.
[ 16.b3 wa s n e e d e d . T h e n a f t e r a5
( Black could also play more slowly i.e.
16...hd8= ) 17.bxa5 bxa5 18.c4=
White maintains control over the crucial c5
square, and the game is balanced. ]
16...a5! Simultaneously fixing the pawn on a4
and ensuring control of c5. 17.b5
[ Neither does 17.bxa5 bxa5 18.f3 c5
19.b2 ab8 impress. Black has a clear
plan of doubling on the b-file, whereupon
White will be very tied down. ]
17...c5 18.e3 e6!? 19.c4?!
[ For better or for worse, White should
p r o b a b l y t r y 19.d5+ xd5 20.exd5
. Now he's just down a clear pawn. ]
19...xe4 20.d5 xf2! Perhaps White
underestimated this reply. 21.xa8
[ The neat point is that 21.hf1 is powerfully
met by g4!-+ . ]
21...xh1 22.f3 f2 23.f1 e4! 24.xf2
[ or 24.e2 d3 ]
24...exf3 25.xf3 d8-+ Black should win
609
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
with decent technique, and Robson is very
m u c h u p t o t h e t a s k . 26.g4 h8!
A nice switchback. White cannot prevent the
kingside from opening up. 27.g3 h5 28.g5
h4 29.g1 fxg5 30.xg5 f6 31.g1 g5
32.d3 d8+ 33.e2 g6 34.c1 g4
35.c4 d4 36.c5 Speeding White's demise,
but there was no longer anything left to do. If
White had chosen to sit tight (Rc1-c2-c1 etc.),
Black could even just walk his king over to the
queenside. xa4 37.cxb6 cxb6 38.c6 f7
39.xb6 a2+ 40.d3 xh2 41.b7+ f6
42.h7 f5+ 43.xf5 xf5 44.b6 g3
45.b7 b2 46.xh4 g2 47.h5+ g6
48.h8 xb7 All in all, an exemplary display
from Black. This is the sort of line you can
play with either color so long as you've done
your homework.
0-1
608 A16
Khalifman,Alexander 2678
McShane,Luke J 2619
ECC Rethymnon GRE (7) 04.10.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7
5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 c6
McShane preferred
[ 6...g7 against Krasenkow recently, but a
similar queen swap occurred anyway, see
the July 2003 update. ]
7.d4 g7 8.e4 0-0 9.e5!? e6 10.exf6!
xc4 11.fxg7 xg7 12.xc4 xd4
13.xd4 xd4 14.e2 fd8 Possibly the
most logical move, we looked at
[ 14...c6 in the Friberg, H-Winge,S game,
and ]
[ 14...ad8 in the notes. ]
15.0-0 c6 16.e3 b4 17.ab1 d7
18.a3!? Actually a novelty,
[ 18.fc1 was seen in Janssen, R-Golod,V/
Vlissingen NED 2000. ]
18...b3 19.e4 W ith a nasty threat. b6
20.d2 Driving the queen away from the b3-
square. e6 21.c4 Once again improving
the white pieces with gain of tempo.
[ An unfortunate decision, robbing us of the
'truth' in this line. 21.c4 a f t e r , s a y f5
22.fe1 ad8 23.e4!? both sides have
chances. ]
½-½
609 A16
Kopinski,Tomasz
Orzech,Dominik
Lasker Mem A 03.06.2006
[Nigel Davies]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 c6 3.e4 d5 4.cxd5 cxd5
5.e5 e4 6.xe4 Attempting to refute the
gambit by taking it, but Black turns out to
have excellent compensation. dxe4 7.a4+
c6 8.b5
[ After 8.xe4 d4 Black gets excellent
compensation, for example 9.xd4 xd4
10.d3 d7 ( 10...e6!? ) 11.f3 ( 11.e2
is also possible here. Black should probably
reply with xe2 12.xe2 c6 13.f3 e6
14.b3 e7 15.b2 0-0 16.ac1 fd8
with compensation for the pawn.) 11...xf3+
12.gxf3 0-0-0 13.b3 e6 14.b2 c6
15.e4 b4 16.c3 xc3 17.dxc3 xe4
18.fxe4 d3 19.g1 g6 20.g3 hd8
21.a4 h5 22.e2 d2+ 23.f1 d7
24.a5 e7 was equal and rather drawish in
Panchenko, A-Sergeev, V/Kiev 1986. ]
8...d5
[ Simple and strong, though Black may also
have a reasonable 8...d7 9.xe4 b6 ]
9.xc6+ xc6
[ 9...bxc6 10.e2 b7 was also pretty
strong. ]
10.xc6+ bxc6 11.f3 f5 12.e2 exf3
13.gxf3 d3 Black is clearly better here
thanks to his bishop pair and massive bishop
on d3. 14.b3 e6 15.b2 e7 16.h4 a5
17.f4 b5 18.a4 a6 19.c1 d7
20.c3 hb8 21.xa5 xb3 22.c3 a3
23.a5 a4 24.g2 c5 25.h5 b8 26.h4
a2 27.g4?!
[ 27.e3 might have been a better chance,
for example xe3 28.dxe3 e2+ 29.d1
xe3 30.d4+ c7 31.b4 b5 32.f4
with counterplay. ]
27...g6?!
[ 27...b3! was stronger. ]
28.hxg6?!
[ 28.e3 gxh5 29.g7 was better. ]
28...hxg6 29.h4 g5 30.h7 e7 31.h5?
610
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

d3 [ 18.xc5? i s h o p e l e s s : xd5 19.xf8

[ 31...a3!? 32.d1 b3 threatening ... xh3 threatens mate on g2, and wins
Rxc3 would have won immediately. White material, ]
also allows this concept over the next few [ and 18.c3? is similarly hopeless, a4! ]
moves whilst Black misses it, presumably 18...xd3 19.d2
the game being affected by time trouble. ] [ 19.a7!? appeared too risky to me at the
32.f4? g4 33.h6? g3 34.h3 f2+ time, b7 20.xb7 xb7 21.c5 d5
35.d1 e4 and I would prefer to be Black. ]
0-1 19...b7! Black has no time to defend the h-
pawn because of Rad1, but he has calculated
everything. 20.ad1 xg2 21.xg2 d5+
610 A16 22.h2 e4 Consolidating the knight's
Kosten,Anthony C 2502 advanced position. 23.xh6!? Going for the
Degraeve,Jean Marc 2536 king,
tm 1st Monaco-Clichy (6) 1999 [ 23.f4 c4 24.xd3 is met by fd8 ]
[Tony Kosten] 23...xh6 24.xh6 xa2 25.e3 c4
26.f4 bd8 Allowing White to escape with a
1.c4 g6 2.g3 g7 3.g2 f6 4.c3 0-0 draw,
The popular 'King's Indian Defence to the [ 26...xf4?! is dangerous for Black: 27.gxf4!
English'. 5.d3 d6 6.g5 Gurevich's line, xb4 28.f5 with attack, but ]
White wants to see how Black plays before [ 26...fd8 would have avoided the
committing his central pawns. h6 7.d2 e5 perpetual. ]
8.e4 A Botvinnik set-up is the appropriate 27.h5!? This is no time for false bravery!
response to this. a6 9.ge2 b5 A pawn offer gxh5 Allowing a perpetual check,
that W hite dare not accept, in fact I didn't [ 27...gxh5 28.g5+ h7 29.xh5+ etc. ]
even bother to think about the possibility! [ but, had the match situation been different,
10.0-0 bd7 11.h3 b8 12.cxb5 axb5 Black might have been tempted by 27...d6
13.b4 This fixes the b5-pawn, and hopes to e.g. 28.g5 renewing the threat of
show Black's queenside play to be pointless. perpetual, by Nf6-h5+. e3 ( 28...c3!? )
c6 14.e3 White is already for action, indeed 29.fxe3 c2+ 30.g1 f2 31.e5
h e t h re a t e n s Q d 2 , a n d t h e n f 4 -5 , wit h a and Black must take a perpetual himself. ]
strong attack. d5!! A stunning riposte, I just ½-½
couldn't believe it was possible!
[ The original game, Gurevich,M-Nijboer,F/
B r e d a 1 9 9 6 , h a d g o n e r a t h e r m o r e t o 611 A16
White's taste: 14...b7 15.a4!? a change of Kosten,Anthony C 2498
plans. bxa4 16.xa4 d5?! weakens c5, Griffiths,Ryan Rhys 2310
17.a7 a8 18.a5! d4?! 19.a4 e8 4NCL 2011-12 (7.34) 31.03.2012
20.d2 d6 21.c5 xc5 22.xc5 [Tony Kosten]
and White had a clear advantage, the b7-
bishop is particularly useless. ] 1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.g3 g6
15.exd5 There is no other choice. cxd5 5.g2 b6 6.d3 g7 7.e3 c6 8.f3
[ 15...xd5!? with a likely transposition to I decided to play this over-the-board, trying to
the game. ] take my opponent out of his preparation.
16.xd5?! Trying to prove black wrong, but in [ My 'Dynamic English' recommendation was
retrospect, 8.d2 when d4 9.c1 f5 10.c5 0-0
[ 16.d4 m a y b e b e t t e r , e4 17.b3 11.f3 is very slightly better for White, but
with play against d5. ] it's not much, see Reinderman, D-Harika, D
16...xd5 17.xd5 c5! The point of in the January 2012 update. ]
Black's tactic. 18.g2 The only move, but I 8...0-0
felt that it must be good. [ 8...e5?! is probably a bit dubious: 9.c5!

611
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
a5 ( 9...e7 10.0-0 0-0 11.d4 exd4
12.xd4 with a nice plus, although the black
position is solid, Sloth, J (2380)-Ogaard, L
(2490)/Aarhus 1976.) 10.c1! d7 11.a3
f8 How else to castle? ( Black had hoped
to play 11...b4?! but then realised that
12.b5 was awkward.) 12.xf8 xf8 13.d4
g7 14.0-0 xd4 15.xd4 exd4
16.xd4+ f6 Kosten, A (2514)-Fontaine,
R ( 2 5 4 6 ) / F r a n c e 2 0 0 9 , w h e n 17.c5
was probably the most accurate move, with
some advantage, Rfd1 is coming and the e-
pawn can advance to e5. ]
9.0-0 It was only at this point that the idea to
play my intended 'Anti-Reversed Dragon' line
came to me, as I reasoned that the black
bishop would be misplaced on the a1-h8
diagonal.
[ 9.d2 is more common, intending to push
the h-pawn: e5 10.h4 ( or 10.h6 ) 10...h5
11.g5 f6 12.e3 e6 13.e4 d5
14.0-0 although I'm not sure White has
anything here, Aronian, L (2724)-
Areshchenko, A (2653)/ Khanty-Mansiysk
2005. ]
9...e5 The most common move here,
preparing an outpost for the knight. 10.a4 a5
11.xb6 cxb6 12.d2
[ 12.b5 e6 13.d2 will likely
transpose. ]
12...e8
[ 12...e6 is the main alternative, 13.c4
A) 13...f5 Blumenfeld, R-Szabo, L/Haifa/
Tel Aviv 1958, 14.c1;
B) 13...e8 14.b5 ( 14.b3 a6
15.e4 e7 16.ac1 d4 17.d1 d7
gave White nothing in Ree, H-Benko, P/
W ijk aan Zee 1970.) 14...f8 15.c1
transposes below.;
C) 13...b8 defending the b7-pawn frees
the c6-knight. 14.c1 e8 ( 14...h6
15.e3 b4 16.xe5 g7 17.d4 xe5
18.dxe5 d3 19.b1 xe5 20.d5
with the better pawn structure, Korobov, A
(2470)-Areshchenko, A (2462)/
Ordzhonikidze 2001.) 15.b5 f8 16.e3
c5 17.e2 e7 18.fd1 bd8 19.h4
h5 20.h2 f6 21.h3 fairly level in
Korobov, A (2511)-Areshchenko, A (2470)/
Alushta 2002. ]
13.c4 f8 14.c1 e6
[ 14...b8 15.b3 ( 15.b5 would be my
choice. ) 15...c5 16.d5?! e6 17.e4
d4 and now Black is better, Djukic, Z
(2370)-Rogers, I (2450)/Nis 1983. ]
15.b3 So far I was playing my moves very fast,
and simply following 'the plan', but I don't
think this is right,
[ 15.b5 first has to be more logical, as it is
far from clear that the pawn is best on b3. ]
15...f6 16.b5 b8 A common move in
t h e s e p o s i t i o n s , d e f e n d i n g b 7 . 17.e3
Having put my minor pieces on their ideal
squares it was time to advance the d-pawn.
f5 Hitting d3, but White was going to move
this anyway!
[ 17...c5 was a sensible option, 18.e2
d7 19.fd1 and White is almost ready to
play d4, he must just take care to remove
his queen from the vis-à-vis with the e8-
rook. ]
18.d4 exd4 19.exd4 b4 20.c3
To control d3, now White is ready to push the
d-pawn to d6 if given half a chance. d7!
An annoying move, Black will capture on b5,
int rod ucing op posit e-colo ur bisho ps an d
weakening the white formation. 21.bd6!?
Probably not a very good move objectively, I
just wanted to avoid ...Bxb5 and a likely draw
against a lower-rated opponent.
[ 21.d5 looks tempting, but xb5 22.axb5
d7 23.d6 xb5 24.d4 can simply be
answered by c5! 25.xc5 bxc5 26.xa5
xd6 27.xb7 f8 28.xc5 ec8
and it will be very dif f icu lt to make an y
progress. ]
[ 21.e3 xe3 ( 21...xb5 22.axb5 d7
23.xe8 xe8 24.f3 f5 25.f4
k e e p s t h e i n i t i a t i v e .) 22.fxe3 f5
is also nothing special. ]
21...xd6
[ 21...e6!? was a worry, trying to trap the
knight. I intended to sac the exchange:
22.xb7!? c8 23.xb6 ( 23.d2 xb7
24.d6 xd6! 25.xc8 xc8 26.xb7
xb7 and I like the minor pieces here.)
23...xc3 24.xd7 be8 25.d5 unclear. ]
22.xd6 g4 Forced, but good. 23.xg4
xd6 24.d1 Probably this position is just
equal, the d4-pawn is passed, but if I play d5
then the bishop is impeded, and meanwhile
the b4-knight is strong. e7 25.c8+ g7
612
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

26.xb8 xb8 27.h4 Trying to open a front [ An ot he r ap proa ch is th e mo de s t 9.b1

on the kingside. h5! Black plays well. 28.f3 d7 10.c2 b6 ( 10...e8 11.d3 e5
c8!? A little bit risky, as this allows the d- 12.g5 ) 11.c4 Eventually White's central
pawn to advance. majority will give him the advantage. ]
[ I had expected 28...d6 ] 9...d7 10.a3 e8!?
29.d5! I only need to be asked once! g4! [ More natural looks 10...b6 with the idea
30.xg4 hxg4 31.d6 of bringing the c8 bishop out and answering
[ 31.f3! first might be best, gxf3 32.xf3 11.h4 by f6 ]
planning g4, maybe d6, and then Kf2, with 11.ab1 e5 12.d3 The d6 square is
some real chances. ] beginning to look inviting, with ideas like Nd2-
31...d7 32.f3 gxf3 33.h3 After a long e4 or even Ng5-e4 if allowed. b6! 13.c2
thought. e6 14.d2 f5 Black's pieces are
[ 33.xf3 c6 34.xc6!? bxc6 35.g4 f7 coordinating pretty well. 15.c4 c7 16.b4!
36.f2 was possible, hoping for e6? ( but A star move. The idea of Ba5 makes Black's
36...e8 is equal, 37.g3 d8 n e xt a lm o st o b liga t o ry. d7 17.a4!?
and the rook is freed.) 37.h5 gxh5 38.gxh5 Back again! This works out well, but
and Black is losing. ] [ 17.f3 h6 18.c3 was a sound alternative
33...f5 34.g4 f6! and probably better. ]
[ 34...fxg4 35.xg4 d8 36.d7 would be 17...ac8! Clearing the long diagonal in
most unpleasant. ] preparation for ...b6 or ...b5.
35.gxf5 gxf5 36.f2 c6 37.xf3 e5! [ 17...c5?! 18.a5 b6 19.b3 ]
Th e m o s t a c c u ra t e , f o rcin g a re p e t it io n . 18.c5!? A good idea but it seems poorly
38.e1+ f6 timed.
[ 38...xd6? 39.d1+ e7 40.xd7+ [ 18.f3 was possible, the exotic ]
xd7 41.xf5+ e7 42.e3 would be [ 18.a3 c5 19.c3 b6 20.b2
difficult to defend. ] , preparing a4-a5. I still would rather be
39.d1 e5 40.e1+ White in these positions. ]
[ I briefly considered 40.e3 but xd6 18...f6?! Finally giving up on the queenside.
41.xd6 xd6 42.xf5 e5 43.g4 d4 Black could try
didn't look very promising, 44.d3 xb3 [ 18...b6 anyway, or ]
45.c4 c5 and Black can draw by taking [ 18...b5!? , in both cases leading to 19.cxb6
on a4 if he wants - W hite has the wrong axb6 20.fc1 c5 ( 20...b5!? ) 21.c3= ]
rook's pawn. ] 19.fc1 d5 20.e4! Now White is clearly
½-½ better. e6 Black can test White's idea by
[ 20...fxe4 21.dxe4 ( 21.xe4 xe4
22.xe4 xe4 23.dxe4 ) 21...e6
612 A16 , but either 22.c4 or 22.Ba5 are quite nice
Kosten,Anthony C 2507 for White. ]
Noordhoek,Henk P 2118 21.a5 f7? A positional blunder. The queen
5th Rohde Open (1) 22.10.2005 might have retreated by
[John Watson] [ 21...d7 , when Black is worse but still in
the game. ]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.g3 c6 22.f3 with the double threats of Nxe5 and
This is passive but f airly solid. The main Ng5. g4!? 23.g5 f6 24.xe6 xe6
theoretical moves are 25.exf5 Working on the light squares.
[ 4...g6 ] [ 25.h3 and ]
[ 4...c5 ] [ 25.xb7 fxe4 26.f1 are other very strong
[ and 4...e5 5.g2 b6 ] moves. ]
5.g2 xc3 6.bxc3 g6 7.f3 g7 8.0-0 25...xf5
0-0 9.a4 To get Ba3 in, or even play with [ 25...gxf5 26.h3 h6 27.xb7 ]
ideas like Qh4. 26.f1! h5 It's pretty resignable whatever

613
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Black does, so why not threaten mate and see
i f T o n y i s d r e a m i n g a b o u t l u n c h ? 27.h4
Bh3 is an unstoppable threat. ce8 28.h3
e4 29.d1
1-0
613 A16
Kosten,Anthony C 2540
Schwarz,Michael 2409
TCh-2003-4 Graz AUT (3) 30.11.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 g6 2.c3 g7 3.g3 f6 4.g2 0-0
5.f3 c6 An unexpected reply. 6.e4!?
I searched for an alternative to
[ 6.0-0 d5 which leads to a fairly boring
symmetric line of the Fianchetto King's
Indian: 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.d4 c6 9.e5 ]
6...d5 The critical reply, although KI players
might prefer
[ 6...d6 7.d4 bd7 which is a mainline
Fia n c h e t t o V a ria t io n , a s in S o ro kin , M -
Chuprov, D/Novgorod RUS 1999. ]
7.cxd5 cxd5 8.e5
[ 8.exd5 xd5 9.d4 c6 10.0-0 e6
is fine for Black, El Ghazali,Y-Neverov,V/
Tanta 1997. ]
8...e4 9.0-0 c6 10.d4 g4 The most
logical move, Black brings this piece out
before playing ... e6 with a solid light-squared
structure.
[ 10...e6 keeps the bishop pair, 11.e2 f6
12.f4 d7 ( 12...g4!? has its points)
13.exf6 exf6 14.e3 fe8 15.d2 f7
looks fairly equal, Vijayalakshimi,S-Lalic,B/
Goodricke Open, Calcutta IND 2000. ]
[ 10...xc3 11.bxc3 g4 12.h3
Transposes. ]
11.h3 xf3 12.xf3 xc3 Creating a
backward pawn on an open file. 13.bxc3 e6
The evident follow-up, although it appears to
be a novelty.
[ 13...a5 14.b1 d7 15.e2 c4?!
shows why ...e6 is wise: 16.e6! xe6
( 16...fxe6 17.g4 wins an exchange)
17.xb7 xe2 18.xe2 e5! Rahimbekov,S-
Burschowsky,M/ Oropesa del Mar ESP 1998,
and now 19.dxe5 xe5 20.b5 is good for
White whose bishops dominate. ]
[ 13...d7 is sim ila r : 14.h4!? very direct,
fc8 15.h5 a5 16.g2!? b6? ( 16...xc3
17.hxg6 hxg6 18.e1 ac8 19.d2 xf3
20.xf3 c4 is not too clear) 17.hxg6 fxg6
18.e6! d8 19.d2 c6 20.g5 xc3
21.h1 led to a winning white attack in Bukal,
V-Duric,S/ Bjelovar 1979. ]
14.h4 As in the above note White cannot hang
around as his queenside position is
compromised - he plays to use his kingside
space to inaugurate an attack. c7 15.g5
a5 16.c1 c4 17.g2 This is not
necessary, I should have avoided this to save
a move for the attack. ac8 18.d3
[ 18.h5 is not so good: h6 19.f4 g5
and the attack is stymied. ]
18...h6 19.f4 e7 Black defends against
possible sacs on g5. 20.c2 Freeing c1 for
the bishop. c6 21.h5 g5 22.c1 fc8
Both sides play on 'their' side of the board.
23.e2 a3 This was accompanied by a
draw offer, but after a little thought decided
that I could play on without great risk. 24.xa3
xa3 25.fc1 a6 This is a little slow, I had
expected
[ 25...f8 26.f4 a5 intending ...Ba3, but
then 27.f5 ( 27.fxg5 is also good) 27...a3
28.b1! ( 28.fxe6!? xc1 29.exf7+ f8
30.h7! is also strong) 28...xc3?! 29.b5!
and wins. ]
26.f4 gxf4 27.gxf4 b5 Black is menacing ...
b4 in certain lines, but White's attack is more
pertinent. 28.f5 exf5
[ 28...b4 29.cxb4 xc1 30.xc1 xc1
gains two rooks for the queen, but 31.fxe6
fxe6 32.xa6 hits e6 and wins easily. ]
29.f3 The point. d8 30.h1 This was my
plan, to use the open g-file for the final attack,
but I considered
[ 30.xd5!? long and hard: xd5 31.f3
r e g a i n s t h e e x c h a n g e , b u t a f t e r cc5!
32.dxc5 xc5 The white position is open. ]
30...b4 Perhaps it was time to consider
helping the kingside defence by, say
[ 30...f6 ]
31.g1 xc3 32.xc3 xc3?! It was very
difficult to see all the following, but
[ 32...bxc3 was the better chance: 33.xf5
c2! ( 33...f8 34.e2! h8 35.xa6 a8
36.d3 g8 37.c1 xa2 38.xc3
is very unpleasant for Black, who can hardly
move ) 34.f6 ( 34.xg7+? xg7 35.f6+
614
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

g8 36.xd8+ h7 loses! ) 34...f8 6.bxc3 g7 7.c2

35.xg7+ xg7 36.xd8+ f8 37.c7 [ Another sensible way to develop is 7.d2
a3! the saving resource! 38.xc2 xf3+ , which also seems to keep the possibility of
39.g2+ xg2+ 40.xg2 f8 draws. ] playing a later Qc1 and Bh6. One game with
33.xf5 White has some nasty threats, Qf6 this went 0-0 8.g3 b6 9.g2 b7 10.h4
and Rxg7+. e3?? h5 11.0-0 c5 12.b1 c6 13.g5 d7
[ 33...c8 14.e4 ad8 15.c4 c7 16.f4 c8
i s t h e o n l y m o v e , 34.xc8
( 34.f6?? 17.d2 d4 18.c3 xg2 19.xg2 fe8
would win if it were not for
h3# ) 34...xc8 35.d1 d8 36.c1 20.fc1 f5 21.e4 c6 22.g1 d7
and despite being a pawn down W hite is 23.d1 ed8 24.a4 and White had some
w e l l o n t o p , f8 37.c6 a5 38.a6
initiative in Sunye Neto, J (2415)-Popovic,
followed by Rxa5xd5. ] P (2490)/Hastings 1980. ]
34.xg7+! The simplest, but my computer
7...0-0 8.g3 After this we're going to
also finds other wins, for instance transpose into a known position, but it doesn't
[ 34.xd5 xd5 35.c8+ h7 36.g4 as normally come about via this 5.d3 move order.
g5 37.e4+ wins everything. ] c5 9.g2 c6 10.h4!? In the style of Bent
34...xg7 35.f6+ h7 Larsen used to like pushing his h-pawn in the
[ 35...g8 36.xd8+ g7 37.f6+ g8 English W hite is spicing things up on the
38.xd5 ] kingside where there aren't too many
36.xf7+ h8 37.f6+ h7 38.e7+ defenders. The other thing about h-pawn
My opponent admitted that he had missed this advances in flank openings is that the rest of
check. your position remains very tough, so W hite
[ 38.e7+ h8 39.xd8+ g7 40.f6+ isn't risking much here.
h7 41.f7+ h8 42.e6 and the e-pawn [ An earlier game featured the quiet 10.0-0
will queen in a few moves. ] after which b8 11.b2 e5 12.d2 c7
1-0 13.c4 b5 14.e3 e6 15.d5 d7
16.e4 f5 was fine for Black in Bachmann, K
(2325) -Zimmermann, F (2255)/Germany
614 A16 1983/GER-chT. ]
Kramnik,Vladimir 2784 10...b4 11.d2 d5 12.b2 a5
L'Ami,Erwin 2628 Black is playing 'actively' but he makes little
73rd Tata Steel (9) 25.01.2011 impression on W hite's rock solid structure.
[Nigel Davies] 13.h5 b6
[ 13...xc3 14.xc3 xc3 15.c1 xd2+
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 16.xd2 will recover the pawn with the
xd5 5.d3 Many different moves have been better endgame. White's bishop on g2 has a
played here but this is rather rare. So it's lot of influence here. ]
interesting to see Kramnik adopting it. xc3 14.hxg6 hxg6 15.a4 d7 16.f1 xa4
[ Black's most popular reply has been the 17.g5 b6 After this White's attack
natural 5...g7 though he hasn't scored becomes very strong.
particularly well with it. For example 6.d2 [ 17...fe8 was worth considering, the idea
0-0 7.g3 c5 8.c1 ( 8.g2 c6 9.0-0 b e i n g t h a t a f t e r 18.e5 Black can gain
c7 10.a4 d7 11.h4 e6 12.xd8 counterplay with ( Or 18.h4 ) 18...c4!
axd8 13.ab1 d5 14.fc1 b6 15.a3 . For example after 19.d4 c7 20.d5 e6
fe8 16.f1 ce7 1/2-1/2 Petrosian, T- 21.g4 xb2 22.f6+ f8 23.h7+
Kortschnoj, V/Tbilisi 1956.) 8...c6 9.g2 White's attack is good enough to draw but
xc3 10.bxc3 b8 11.h6 b6 12.h4!? not more than that. ]
d6 13.h5 f6 14.xg7 xg7 15.hxg6 18.h4 fe8
hxg6 16.g5 was very dangerous for Black [ Another try was 18...f6 but then 19.h7+
in Har Zvi, R (2512)-Zinchenko, Y (2516)/ f7 20.h4 is good. ]
ICC INT 2008. ] 19.c1 e5? Losing immediately.

615
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ Black should try 19...f8 20.h7 f6 compensation for his pawn. ]
, though he's probably losing anyway after 18.xb7 c4 19.f4 d3 20.e7?!
21.d4! threatening 22.Bg5!. ] This inappropriately active move ends up
20.h7+ f8 21.h6 xh6 22.xh6+ e7 hitting the jackpot when Black blunders.
23.xe5 [ 20.b3 was better when a3 21.xd8
[ Black has no good defence, for example xd8 22.d2 would leave things
23.xe5 f5 24.h4+ f6 25.xb7 xh4 'dynamically balanced'. ]
26.xh4 wins material. ] 20...d4? A serious mistake which changes
1-0 the course of the game.
[ 20...d2! 21.xd2 xd2 would force White
to play 22.a5 xa5 23.xa8 . I'd have to
615 A16 favour Black's two minor pieces here. ]
Kramnik,Vladimir 2759 21.xc7 g5 22.e3 xe3 23.fxe3 dd8
Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar 2725 24.xd8 xd8 25.e4 e8? Losing on the
AZE vs World Rapid rapid (4) 08.05.2009 spot.
[Nigel Davies] [ 25...a4 would have been much more
tenacious. ]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 26.d5+ h8 27.b3
xd5 5.g3 g7 6.g2 0-0 7.0-0 c6 1-0
8.a4 b6 9.h4 Larsen and Stein used to
li k e t h i s k i n d o f k i n g s i d e s a b r e r a t t l i n g .
Actually I'm not convinced it's anything for 616 A16
W hite if Black plays accurately, but it can Kramnik,Vladimir 2766
quicken the opponent's pulse. e5 Shirov,Alexei 2715
[ Another sound method for Black is 9...f6 Corus A Wijk aan Zee NED (2) 21.02.2007
10.h6 e5 , f o r e xa m p l e 11.d3 g7 [Carsten Hansen]
12.g5 f6 13.d2 f5 14.b3 h6 15.a3
e8 16.ac1 e6 17.e4 1/2-1/2 was 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7
Ljubojevic, L (2600)-Ivanchuk, V (2735)/ 5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 g7 7.e4 c6?!
Reykjavik 1991. But there seems no Shirov's move has not seen much action
particular reason for Black avoiding the previously, Other ideas are 7...Na6, 7.. .Bc6
exchange of queens. ] and 7...0-0. Recently Black has given
10.xd8 xd8 11.d3 d4 12.g5 preference to
[ White must be careful about reflex captures [ 7...0-0 which is also the main line in ECO
on d4 in such positions as they lead t o 8.e5
positions in which Black has a well defined A) 8...e6 9.exf6!? this is a very gutsy
spa ce ad va nta ge . For exam ple 12.xd4 move, an idea also known from the
exd4 13.e4 h6 14.b4 d5 15.a3 a5 Russian Variation of the Grünfeld Defence
16.bxa5 xa5 gave Black a clear advantage ( 9.b5!? ) 9...xc4 10.fxg7 xg7
in Schlosser, P (2375)-Herbrechtsmeier, C 11.xc4 c6 12.0-0 b4 13.d3 c6
(2305)/ Germany 1987/GER-chT. Kramnik's 14.e4 d5 ( 14...c2!? 15.b1 b5
move is better, though Black still manages 16.b3 xd3 puts a question mark to
to force Nf3xd4. ] White's idea) 15.d2 b6 16.b4 ad8
12...f6 13.d2 g4 14.xd4 What else can 17.a4 h6 18.fe1 c7 19.a5
White do when Black is threatening to capture without any breaks for Black to destabilize
on f3? exd4 15.e4 xe2 16.fe1 White minor piece superiority, Black may
[ 16.fc1 xd3 17.xc7 might be better well be in trouble fe8 20.d4 e6 21.e5
though this is none too exciting for White. ] f6 22.d3 b6 23.g3 f7 24.e2
16...xd3 17.c5 c2 threatening Nef4, hitting the e6-pawn g5
[ 17...c4 18.xb7 ab8 was stronger 25.g3 d7 ( 25...c7!? ) 26.b5! c5
when White is struggling to find 27.dxc5 bxc5 28.e4 b4??

616
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
1-0 A.Shchekachev-R.Swinkels, Bethune
2006;
B) 8...g4 is the ECO main line, e.g. 9.d4
e6 10.d5 f5 11.f4 d7 12.e2 f6
13.e6 de5 14.xe5 fxe5 15.h3 f6
16.d1 e4 17.e5 c6 18.dxc6 c7
19.cxb7 ad8 20.d7 xd7 21.exd7
xb7 22.b5 xd7 23.c4+ h8=
Goldin-Mikhalevski, Rishon Le-Zion 1997;
C) 8...e8 9.d4 c6 10.b3 ( 10.e2
e6 11.d3 f6 12.f4 d7 13.e3
fxe5 14.dxe5 b6 15.d4 c7 16.g3
c4= S. Ovsejevitsch-J.Owczarzak,
Le gnic a 2 0 0 6) 10...c5 11.dxc5 c6
12.e3 c7 13.e2 c8 14.0-0 xe5
15.xe5 xe5 16.c4
, J.Gustafsson-D.Baramidze,
Koenigshofen (GER-CH) 2007 17.f3!? ]
8.d4 b5 9.b3 a5 10.e5 a4 11.d1 d5
12.xd5 cxd5 While the first exchanges
h a ve h a p p e n e d , a n d W h i t e 's qu e e n h a s
retreated to her starting square, White has a
small but clear advantage thanks to Black's
advanced queenside pawns and the
weaknesses around them. The key focus for
W hite now is to complete his development
while preven ting Black f rom ope ning th e
position. 13.e2 c6 14.0-0 0-0 15.e3
a5 16.b3 keeping Black's knight away from
the attractive c4-square axb3 17.axb3 b6
18.e1 heading to the weak c5-square b4
19.d3 b5 20.c5 b7 21.xa8 xa8
22.xb5 xb5 23.d3! c6 24.a4
White is not interested in exchanging knights
as it will make Black's defensive task f ar
easier, an d in order f or Black to pre ven t
White's knight from returning to c5 later on,
Black will have to keep his knight on a rather
awkward square, either on e6 or on b7. d8
25.c1 b7 26.c2 Thank you - that's the c-
f ile f or W h it e. Kra mn ik ma kes po sitio na l
chess look easy. f6 27.f4! h6 28.g3!
W hite is obviously not interested in letting
B l a c k ' s b i s h o p b a c k i n t o t h e g a m e . fxe5
29.dxe5 e6 30.c6! With better piece
coordination, more active pieces - particularly
Black's beauty on h6 is troublesome - White
has a clear advantage xc6 31.xc6 f7
32.f2 b8 33.e2 f8 34.d3 b7??
and Black resigned due to 35 Rxe6 Kxe6 36
Nc5+, nonetheless Black's position is rather
difficult and undoubtedly one Kramnik took
great joy in playing.
1-0
617 A16
Krasenkow,Michal 2609
McShane,Luke J 2592
18th North Sea Cup (4) 07.06.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7
5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 g7 7.e4 c6
By pressurising e4 Black hinders White from
advancing d4. 8.d3 0-0 9.e2 bd7 10.0-0
c6 Logical, we looked at
[ 10.f4 in Piket,J-Bacrot,E/Escaldes 1998. ]
10...a5 The most precise, White might
otherwise play the annoying b4-5, for instance:
[ 10...e5 11.b4 a6 12.a4 b6 13.b3
and b5 would soon be a problem, Khalifman,
A-Jansa,V/Tegernsee GER 2002. ]
11.e5!? A typical, sharp, Krasenkow
innovation.
[ 11.d1 e5 12.e3 ( 12.d4!? xe4
13.dxe5?! xc3 14.bxc3?! xf3! 15.xf3
xe5 won a pawn in Janssen,R-De Vreugt,
D / W i j k a a n Z e e 1 9 9 9) 12...e7
Maksimenko,A-Sulipa,A/Lvov 1999, and now
13.d4 looks interesting, as now xe4?
14.d5 xc3 15.bxc3 wins. ]
11...b6!? Black willingly allows the queen for
3 pieces exchange.
[ 11...e8 12.d4 b6 leaves White with a
useful space plus, but is probably stronger. ]
12.exf6! A well-known idea in such positions.
xc4 13.fxg7 xg7 14.dxc4 xf3!
15.xf3 c6 Compared to the Friberg-Winge
game we examined a few months ago this
must be somewhat better for White as he is
ahead in d evelopmen t, and ha s an extra
pawn. 16.b3! c7 17.b2 g8 18.ae1
W hite inhibits Black's main source of
counterplay, the advance of his extra kingside
pawn, because of the pressure on e5 from
rook and bishop. ad8 19.e2 d7 20.fe1
fd8 21.a3! An annoying move, which gives
B l a c k a n a w k w a r d d e c i s i o n . f4!?
Black ditches the e-pawn.
[ 21...e6?! allows 22.e4 with a nasty threat
to check on f6. ]
617
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ but 21...e8 isn't impossible. ] 618 A16

22.xe7 e8 23.a3? It is not like Krasenkow,Michal 2661
Krasenkow to miss a straightforward tactical Mikhalevski,Victor 2499
win, 1st ch-Europe (2) 04.07.2000
[ 23.e4! leaves the black queen without any [Tony Kosten]
s e n s i b l e s q u a r e s , d2 ( what else?
23...f5 24.g4; 23...c7 24.a3 xe4 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7
25.xe4 and Nf6+ decides) 24.d1 xd1+ 5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 a6!?
25.xd1 and after Black captures on e7 [ A typical 'Grünfeld-type' move, although
W hite will have two pieces for the rook, l e s s c o m m o n t h a n 6...g7 as played
enough to win. ] previously. ]
23...xe2 24.xe2 f5 25.e3 d4 26.g3 7.e4
d2 White is still better, but Black's queen [ The sharpest reply, Black had no particular
has become active, and things are not simple. problems after 7.g3 b5 8.b3 c5 9.d3
27.e2 f7 28.c5?! c6 10.g2 c8 in Psakhis,L-Mikhalevski,
[ 28.c5! seems better, to play Bb6 and V/ Ramat Aviv ISR 1998. ]
threaten the a-pawn. ] [ The other main possibility, 7.d4 brings play
28...e7 29.c4+ e8 30.d3 even closer to a real Grünfeld, and worked
White certainly doesn't want to exchange both well for White after b5 8.b3 c6 9.f4
rooks, as his pieces cooperate better with a g7 10.e3 0-0 11.e2 e6 12.d1 b4
r o o k b y t h e i r s i d e s . c2 31.g2 13.e4 , Lautier,J-Bacrot,E/ Enghien-les-
The one major problem with White's set-up is Bains FRA 1999. ]
that his bishop is looking a bit silly on a3, 7...b5 8.e2!
which is why his 28th move was not best. g5! [ This is possible now that the e-pawn has
32.d1 This allows Black to exchange the last moved, 8.b3 is more 'normal'. ]
pair of rooks, better 8...c6!?
[ 32.h3 although d7 33.f3 f4 is not too [ A novelty, 8...c5 9.e5 h5 10.e4 c6?!
clear. ] 11.xc5 f5 12.d3 ( 12.e6!? ) 12...e6
32...d7! 33.b2 xd3 34.xd3?! 13.e4 b4+ 14.d2 f4 15.e3 d5
I suspect White was in time-trouble here, as 16.h6 f8 17.d6+!? xd6 18.exd6
[ 34.xd3 c1 35.c4 a1 36.d6+ e7 xh6 19.xh6 was slightly favourable for
keeps White well in the game. ] W hite in Gelfand,B-Svidler,P/Haif a ISR
34...xa2 35.c1 a4 The b-pawn is pinned. 2000. ]
36.xg5 e2! 9.e5 b4?
[ 36...axb3?! allows White to force a neat [ These type of combinations always seem
perpetual by 37.e5! c2 38.f7+ f8 very seductive to computers, but the knight
39.h6+ e7 40.g5+ ] r a r e l y e s c a p e s f r o m a 1 , b e t t e r 9...h5
37.f6 axb3 Yet another pawn drops, and although 10.d4 g4 11.e4
this one is close to the queening square. is more pleasant for White. ]
38.b2 e4+ 39.g1 f4! Black plays with 10.exf6! Krasenkow rarely shirks away from
great precision. 40.xb3?! e1+ 41.g2 complications! c2+ 11.d1 xa1 12.b3
e4+ 42.g1 fxg3 As ...Qf3 will fork both f5?!
bishops. [ Hoping to withdraw the knight via c2, but
0-1 12...e6 13.b2 xb3 14.axb3 xb3+
was a better bet, although I prefer the pieces
to the rook and pawns. ]
13.b2! c2 14.g4
[ 14.fxe7 xe7 15.e4 also wins the
piece. ]
14...xg4 15.xc2 e6??
[ An unlikely blunder, but one that brings the

618
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
g a m e t o a s w i f t c o n c l u s i o n ! 15...d7
should have been tried, although 16.g2 e6
17.e5! favours White anyway. ]
16.xb5+!!
[ A stunning move, after 16.xb5+ axb5
17.xb5+ d7 18.xd7+ xd7 19.e5+
picks-up the bishop on g4. ]
1-0
619 A16
Krasenkow,Michal 2702
Zezulkin,Jurij 2529
chT Zakopane chT (7) 09.09.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.f3 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7
5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 c6 7.e4!?
[ Actually, this typical move is actually a
novelty here. Normally W hite prefers 7.d4
g7 8.e4 0-0 9.e5 when the queen for
three pieces combination is possible: e6
10.exf6!? xc4 11.fxg7 xg7 12.xc4
xd4 13.xd4 xd4 14.e2 which is
unclear, Kramnik,V-Ivanchuk,V/Belgrade
1997. ]
7...a6 8.e5!? White keeps his d-pawn in
reserve. e6 9.a4 Of course, without the
bishop on g7, capturing on f6 as in the
Kramnik game is impossible. d7 10.d4
b6 11.d1 d7 12.e3 White has gained
central space, but a hole on d5 has been
created. f6!? Black wishes to attack the white
centre, but many other plans were possible,
too. 13.e2 g7 14.e4! Black cannot stop
the knight from landing on c5, and forking
qu e e n a n d b is h o p . fxe5 15.c5 d5
16.g5! Charge! f5 17.f3 e4!
[ Returning the pawn immediately, as after
17...g8 18.dxe5 xe5 19.xb7 b4
20.0-0 the black queen is oddly-placed. ]
18.gxe4 0-0-0 19.g3 White can ruin the
black structure thus. c4 20.xf5 gxf5
21.xc6 bxc6 22.c1! b4+ 23.d2 xd4
24.e2 Menacing the powerful Qxa6+, and
forcing Black's reply. xd2+ 25.xd2 xd2
26.xd2 h6+ Obviously, without this Black
would lose an exchange. 27.e2 xc1
28.xc1 So, the dust has settled, and Black is
actually a pawn to the good. However, White
recaptures this easily, and can then try to
exploit his better structure. a5 29.d3 d8
30.e5 d5 31.xc6 d7 32.f4
T h is p ro vid e s a n ice o u t p o st o n e 5 . d6
33.e5 c5 34.g3 d4 35.c3 a4 36.a3 c4
Black plays actively to compensate for his
weaker pawns. 37.c2 d5 38.f3 d3
39.d2! White decides that he has better
chances without rooks, as the black rook is
the more active of the two. xd2+ 40.xd2
d7?
[ 40...h6 is stronger, so that if 41.c3 c5
and ...Nd5+ will drive the white king back. ]
41.c3 Threatening Kb4, and winning a
pawn. h5
[ 41...c5 is no longer sufficient, 42.d4 ]
42.b4 c5 43.d2 e5 No doubt the point
of Black's play, he wants to seek counter
chances on the kingside. 44.xc4
[ 44.fxe5 d3+ 45.xa4 xb2+ 46.b4
d3+ 47.c3 xe5 is only slightly better
for White. ]
44...exf4 45.gxf4 d3+ 46.c3 xf4
47.b6+ e4 48.xa4 Will Black's lone
passed pawn be able to match the two white
ones? Perhaps, if it is quick enough. e3
49.b4 e2+ 50.c4 f4 51.b5 f3 52.b2!
Forced, but this resource is very strong. f4
[ 52...f2?? fails to 53.d1+ f3 54.xf2
xf2 55.b6 and the pawn cannot be
stopped. ]
53.d1+
[ Not 53.b6? d2! controlling d1, 54.b7 f2
and Black queens with check! ]
53...d2
[ 53...e2 is also hopeless, 54.c3+ e1
55.e4 and the f-pawn is halted. ]
54.f2 e6 55.b6 d8 56.a4 The white
pawns are unstoppable. e2 57.h3 f1
58.g5 f2 59.h3 b7 60.b4 h4 61.a5
[ 61.a5 g2 62.xf2 xf2 63.a6
soon brings White a queen. ]
1-0
619
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

620 A16 25.d1

Kuznetsov,Vadim 2224 ½-½
Petrov,Yury 2105
60th ch-RUS sf Urals (9) 22.03.2007
[Nigel Davies] 621 A16
Lautier,Joel 2645
1.c4 f6 2.c3 c6 3.e4 d5 4.cxd5 cxd5 Van Wely,Loek 2585
5.e5 d4 6.exf6 dxc3 7.fxg7 Groningen 1995
[ After 7.bxc3 I t h i n k t h a t exf6 [Nigel Davies]
may be Black's best, despite the fact that it
has rarely been played. ] 1.c4 f6 2.c3 c6 3.e4 d5 4.cxd5 cxd5
7...cxd2+ 8.xd2 5.e5 fd7 Solid but rather passive.
[ 8.xd2 is nothing for White, for example [ 5...e4 is the more active knight move ]
xd2+ 9.xd2 xg7 10.b5+ d7 [ and Black can also consider 5...d4 . ]
11.0-0-0 a6 12.d3 c5 13.c2 e6 6.d4 c6
14.e3 c8 with approximate equality in [ 6...b6 may be a more flexible approach,
Johanssen, T (2001)-Strasser, J (1917)/ but I'm still not made about Black's
Seefeld 2006. ] position. ]
8...xg7 9.b3 White has tried other moves 7.ge2!
here but has nothing special, for example: [ Black is fine after both 7.xd5 db8! ]
[ a) 9.c2 c6 10.f3 b6 11.c3 [ and 7.f3 b6 8.h3 (to prevent 8...Bg4)
xc3+ 12.xc3 b4 13.xb4 xb4 f5 . ]
14.b5+ d7 15.xd7+ xd7 was equal 7...b6 8.g3 Making it difficult for Black to
in Eibersberger, M (2155)-Bachofner, C develop his bishop on c8. g6?!
(2085)/Austria 2000. ] [ After 8...e6? White has a strong reply in
[ b) 9.b5+ d7 10.b3 b6 11.xd7+ 9.h5! when the knight is difficult to
xd7 12.xb6 xb6 was pretty good for dislodge (...g6 allows Nh5-f6+) and Black's
Black in Babos, L-Karpati, T/Balaton 1996. ] bishop is tied down to f8. ]
9...c6 10.e2 0-0 11.c3 e5 12.d1?! [ The best was probably to wait with 8...d7
[ 12.g3 was better, but Black would have a but I still don't like Black's position after 9.h4
dangerous initiative after e6 13.xb7 followed by 10.h5. ]
d4 . ] 9.h4 h5 10.e2 d7 11.g5!? Initiating
12...e7 some interesting play on the kingside.
[ 12...d4! looks even stronger after [ 11.e3 was the standard move when
13.xd4 exd4 14.f3 e6 etc. ] Black's position is far from pleasant. ]
13.a3 11...f6 12.d3 f7 13.e3! fxe5 14.f3+
[ Or 13.g3 d4 14.xd4 exd4+ 15.e2 g7 15.xd5 xd5
e6 , with a good game for Black. ] [ 15...g4? 16.e4 hits g6. ]
13...e6 16.xd5 e8 17.e4 With Black's king
[ Black would also stand well after 13...d4 being vulnerable it makes sense to keep
, f o r e xa m p l e 14.b4 xb4+ 15.xb4 queens on. exd4 18.d2 f7?!
c2+ 16.d2 xb4 17.axb4 d8+ [ 18...e6 would have been better. ]
18.e1 xd1+ 19.xd1 f5 etc. ] 19.0-0 g8 20.f4! Preparing to set fire to
14.c2 fd8 15.xd8+ xd8 16.g3 d4 Black's ramshackle king position with f4-f5.
17.xd4 exd4 18.d3 b3+ g7
[ Black should have played 18...c8 when [ 20...e6 21.c4 d7 22.ae1 is also good
19.d2 f5+ 20.d1 xd3 21.xd3 h6 for White. ]
leaves White in all sorts of trouble. ] 21.f5 e5 22.f4 d5 23.e2 xd3
19.e2 xe2+ 20.xe2 a6 21.0-0 b5 24.xd3 c6 25.g5?!
22.c1 c4 23.d1 b3 24.c1 c4 [ 25.ae1 was also very good. ]
25...d5 26.f2 b5?!

620
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ Black should probably have tried 26...b5
but he certainly wouldn't be out of the woods
after 27.d2 e5 28.h2 intending 29.
Re1. ]
27.d2 e5 28.f3! xg3 29.xg3 xf5
30.xd4 h7 31.e1 c6 32.d2 f7?
Cracking under the tremendous pressure.
[ 32...f8 would have stayed in the game. ]
33.e5! f1+ 34.h2 h7 35.e3 g7
36.xe7 f6 37.h6+ g8 38.xg7+
1-0
622
Laxman,Rajaram
Safarli,Eltaj
12th Dubai Open (5) 10.04.2010
[Nigel Davies]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
xd5 5.e4 xc3 6.dxc3 xd1+ 7.xd1
f6 A very solid reply after playing ...e7-e5
Black's opening problems are over. Of course
on e wou ld no t n ecessarily e xp e ct t o win
games like this without a little bit of help from
White. 8.c2 e5 9.e3 d7
[ Another possibility is 9...e6 , for example
10.d2 d7 11.a4 a5 12.c4 xc4
13.xc4 c5 14.hd1 xe3 15.xe3
b6 16.b4 e7 17.c4 c6 18.c5 d7
19.b3 hd8 20.c4 axb4 21.b6
xc5+ 22.xb4 xe4 23.xa8 xa8
24.f3 was a draw in Ribli, Z (2610)-Ftacnik, L
(2535)/Germany 1992/GER-chT. ]
10.d1 White probably thought he could coast
to a draw but he has to be careful.
[ 10.d2 is a much better idea than just
putting the rook on the open file, for example
a5 11.f3 c5 12.c4 e7 was about
equal in Kreizberg, M (2346)-Mikhalevski, V
(2524)/Tel Aviv 2002. ]
10...c5 11.d2 d7 12.f3 h5 13.h4 a5
14.b3 e6 15.g3 c5 16.c4 b5 17.xc5
xc5 18.e3 c6 Black might claim to be
e ve r s o s l igh t ly b e t t e r h e re a f t e r h a vin g
gained space on the queenside. Of course it
should still be a draw with accurate defence
by White, though this is often easier said than
done. 19.h3 xh3 20.xh3 e7 21.a3
hd8 22.xd8 xd8 23.b4 axb4 24.axb4
b7 25.h1 a8 26.b2 d6 27.a1?
If you want to make a draw it's usually better
to keep rooks on. You can learn this from
Eugene Znosko-Borovsky in his 'How to Play
the Chess Endings'. xa1 28.xa1 e6
29.b1 f5 30.exf5+ xf5 31.f1?!
[ Suddenly White sees that the pawn
endgame is lost after 31.xf5 gxf5 32.c2
d5 33.d3 e4+ 34.fxe4+ fxe4+ 35.e3
e5 etc. ]
31...d5 32.c2 e4 33.f4 c5
0-1
A16 623 A16
2485 Laznicka,Viktor 2601
2606 Nechepurenko,Roman V 2476
WCh-Junior Gaziantep TUR (4) 05.08.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
xd5 5.a4+ c6 The main lines is of
course 5...Bd7, which we have examined
several times. 6.e5 db4!?
[ The alternatives are unconvincing: A)
6...b6? 7.xc6 xa4 8.xd8 xc3
9.xf7 xf7 10.dxc3 Krasenkow, M-
Azmaiparashvili, Z/Groningen 1997 ]
[ B) 6...xc3?! 7.bxc3 d7 8.xd7 xd7
9.g3 g7 10.g2 , and White has the
easier game plan, Vekshenkov, N-
Korniushin, N/Tomsk 2001 ]
7.a3 g7 8.axb4
[ 8.d4!? xe5 9.dxe5 d5 10.e4 b6
11.c2 d4 12.d1 e6 13.e3 ]
8...xe5 9.b5 b8
[ 9...d4 is examined by John Watson in the
notes to the game mentioned in the note
after White's 10th move. ]
10.g3
[ The alternative is 10.e3 which also leads to
an advantage to W hite as evidenced in
Steingrimsson-Sakalauskas, 2006 - which
can be found in the PGN archives. ]
10...c6
[ A major alternative for Black and also the
o n l y l i n e g i v e n i n t h e E C O i s 10...0-0
11.g2
A) 11...g7 12.0-0 c6 (here ends the
coverage in the ECO with an '=' based on
the below Timman game, though matters
are, as suspected perhaps, a little more
621
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

complicated than that) 13.d3 a6 14.bxc6 b-file, White is doing rather well out of
xc6 15.xc6 ( 15.g5!? h6 16.e3 the opening b5! 16.a3 b7 17.d4
is an untried and promising alternative for d7
White; 15.f4 d4= ) 15...bxc6 C2a) Here Postny in CBM
A1) The theory's stem game goes along recomm end s 18.e4 fc8 ( 18...b4?
with 16.h4 b8 17.a4 h5 18.d2 i s s t r o n g l y m e t b y 19.b3! bxc3
g4 19.f3 20.e3 Postny ) 19.g5;
A1a) Black can improve with C2b) 18.b2?! This move is not really
19...d4+ 20.g2 f5 21.c3 sound, the B is too passive on b2.
( 21.xd4 xd4 22.c3 c5 ) fc8= Sturua, Z-Goloshchapov, A/
21...e3 22.fe1 b5=; Batumi 2002;
A1b) 19...xb2?! 20.xb2 d4+ C3) 14.d3 b8 15.f4 xf4 16.xf4
21.h1 xb2 22.ad1 xd2 23.xd2 Lopez Martinez, J-Moor, R/ Zug 2001;
e3 24.fxg4 xd2 25.xe7 hxg4 D) 11...d7 Black has several
26.f4 Timman, J-Tseshkovsky, V/ alternatives at this juncture, e.g. 12.0-0
Bled 1979; c5
A2) 16.xc6 b8 17.d1 ( 17.c4 D1) Or 13.c2!? f5 ( 13...e6 14.b4
d7 18.h4 f6 19.g5 xg5 b3 15.a3 xc1 16.xc1 ) 14.d3
20.xg5 xb2= ) 17...b7 18.a4 c8 a6 15.e3 xd3 16.exd3 xd3
19.f4 h3 20.e4 bd8 ( Black can 17.b3 xf1 18.xf1 axb5 19.xb5
i m p r o v e w i t h 20...e5 21.e3 f5 , and White is close to having a winning
, and Black has decent compensation for advantage, Sherbakov, R-Pribyl, M/
the pawn ) 21.e3 h8 22.c2 f5 Belgorod 1991;
23.f3 fxe4 24.dxe4 , and White has D2) 13.c4 d6 ( 13...e6
stabilized the position and consolidated also leads to a clearly better game for
his advantage, Pogorelov, R-Perera White: 14.e3 a6 15.bxa6 xa6
Gonzalez, P/Las Palmas 1999; 16.xa6 bxa6 17.d4 d6 18.b4
B) 11...d7 12.0-0 ( or 12.e3 c6 Benko, P-Rajna, G/Szolnok 1975) 14.b4
13.bxc6 xc6 14.d4 g7 15.0-0 a6 e6 15.e3 a6 16.a5 g7 17.d4 b8
16.d1 Cools, G-Lavrenov, Y/ BEL 18.d5 d8 was Zacurdajev, M-
2001 ) 12...c6 13.d1! ( 13.b6 a6 Khakimov, T /Peterhof RUS 2007, and
14.d3 ) 13...cxb5 14.xb5 c6 15.d4 now White should have tried 19.e4 e5
g7 16.f4 Savon, V-Rudolf, M/Warsaw 20.h6 e8 21.c1 , and Black is
1992; struggling getting his pieces back to life ]
C) 11...c6 12.0-0 ( 12.d3 g7 13.f4 [ F i n a l l y , B l a c k h a s a l s o t r i e d 10...d7
cxb5 14.xb5 a6 15.a5 c6 16.xd8 11.g2 b6 12.c2 f5 13.d3 c8
xd8 17.xc6 bxc6= Doettling, F- 14.h3 d7 15.e4 d5 16.c5 e6
Dunsbach, R/Bad Wiessee 2002) 12...a6 A) White should probably opt for 17.c4!?
( 12...b6 13.e4 f6 14.d3 f5 c6 18.xd7 xd7 19.bxc6 xc6
15.e3 d4 16.d2 a6 17.fc1 cxb5 20.xc6+ ( 20.a5!? ) 20...bxc6 21.e3;
18.xb7 a7 19.f3 Lobron, E-Schirm, B) 17.b3 c6 18.xd7 xd7 19.bxc6
F /Wiesbaden 1993 ) 13.bxc6 xc6 bxc6 20.xd5?! , and a draw was agreed
C1) 14.xc6 doesn't produce anything upon, 1/2-1/2, in Bison, B-Brockbank, H/
for White: bxc6 15.d3 b8 16.e1 c5 corr CAPA 1995, although it is only Black
17.a5 d4 , and a draw was agreed who can be better in this position ]
upon, 1/2-1/2, in Sturua, Z-Turov, M/ 11.g2 0-0
Dubai 2002, though Black has every [ On a few occasions Black has also given
reason to be satisfied with the outcome 11...d7 a try:
of the opening.; A) Or 12.d4 g7 13.d1 0-0 14.0-0
C2) 14.e3 xc3 15.bxc3! with a strong c8 15.g5 ( 15.a4!? d8 16.c5
centre, pair of bishops and a semi-open c8 17.e3 ) 15...e8 16.c1 ( 16.a4

622
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

d8 17.c5 ) 16...h3 , Ligterink, G- 624 A16

Duesterwald, M/Curacao AHO 2002, and
now White should probably opt for 17.d3
a6 18.bxc6 xc6=;
B) 12.b4 0-0 13.0-0 c8 14.d3 a5
15.h4 f6 16.g5 xg5 17.xg5 cxb5
18.xb5 Saric, I-Banas, J/Zagreb CRO
2006;
C) 12.e4 g7 13.d3 0-0 14.0-0 e5
15.e3 a6 16.fc1 e6 17.b4 d7
18.e4 , and Black is in serious trouble,
B is c h o f f , K -Hu e n e rko p f , H/ G e rm a n y
1988 ]
12.0-0
[ 12.d3!? ]
12...d7?!
[ A better try is 12...a6 , for instance 13.bxc6
xc6 14.d3 ( 14.xc6?! bxc6 15.xc6
b8 ) 14...d6 15.g5 , and White has
the somewhat more comfortable game, but
Black is nowhere near suffering like he is in
the game. ]
13.b4 d6
[ Black can also consider playing more
actively with 13...a5 , e.g. 14.bxa6 xa6
15.xb7 d4 16.a3 ( 16.xa6?? b8
17.xb8 xb8 ) 16...a7 17.b3 e6
18.d1 b6 , which looks somewhat
prom ising f or Black, until W hite simply
c o n t i n u e s w i t h 19.e3 g7
, and Black's compensation is rather
limited. ]
14.h4 b6?
[ This invites more trouble and further losses
of time. Black should instead have opted for
14...e5 , though 15.xd8 xd8 16.d3
is clearly better for White. ]
15.d3! cxb5?
[ After this added mistake, Black pretty much
loses by force. The superior, but still not
very good 15...c5 16.e3 f5 17.e4
also leads to a very clear advantage for
White. ]
16.e3 c7 17.d5 d8 18.b6 c6
19.xa8 xa8 20.xa7! xa7 21.d4
c6 22.xc6 And Black resigned a bit early
pe rh a p s , b u t p la ying a n e xch a n ge d o wn
without any counterplay after being routed
straight out of the opening isn't what most
people consider fun.
1-0
Malakhov,Vladimir 2690
Ni Hua 2607
CHN-RUS Chess Summit (7) 17.08.2006
[Nigel Davies]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.g3 g6
5.g2 xc3 6.bxc3 g7 7.f3 0-0 8.0-0
c6 9.c2 Rather than go for immediate
activity White prefers to build up quietly. b6
[ The other plan is 9...e5 but it doesn't look
like complete equality for Black either. For
example 10.d3 d7 11.b1 b6 12.a4
b7 13.a3 fe8 14.fd1 ad8 15.d2
a5 16.xb7 xb7 17.c4 a5 18.e3
was slightly better for White in Rat, D (2316)-
Pg, M (2152)/Szombathely 2003. ]
10.b2 b7 11.c4 xb2 12.xb2
This looks quite nice for White because of his
long term trump of having more centre pawns.
This is an important factor even when Black
neutralises the pressure along the h1-a8
diagonal. a5 New and better for White.
[ T h e r e a g a i n 12...d6 13.ac1 ad8
14.fd1 f6 15.xf6 exf6 16.c5 fe8
17.e3 e7 18.d4 1/2-1/2 was also good for
White in Thorarinsson, P (2149)-Seger, R
(2400)/Pardubice 2001. This also illustrates
the advantage of having a higher rating! ]
20.d4 13.c5 d5
[ 13...bxc5 14.b5 would be extremely
unpleasant. ]
14.ac1 bxc5?! Personally I would have
gone to great lengths to avoid playing this
move. 15.c3 c4 16.b1 ad8 17.b2
a8 18.e4 h5 19.g4! xg4
[ Black is losing a piece because 19...c5
is met by 20.d4! . But the game proves to
be far from over... ]
20.xa5 xe4 21.h3 e6 22.e1 d5
23.b5?!
[ 23.b4 looks stronger, intending just to
take the pawn on c4. ]
23...c6 24.xd5 xd5 25.c3 d8 26.e2
b8 27.e1 xg2 28.xg2?! Another slip
which lets Black right back into it.
[ 28.e5! was better, followed by taking on
g2 with the king. ]
28...e6 29.e5 b1+ 30.e1 b5 31.e3
f3 32.h4 a5 33.a3
[ 33.xc4?! b4 will get the h4 pawn. ]

623
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

33...h5 34.b1 f4 35.g2 d6 36.b7 with an ugly position for Black, Eingorn, V-
b5 37.xb5 cxb5 38.xa5 e5 39.c3 Konopka, M/Graz 2001) 10.h6 xh6
e4 40.b2 c6 41.e3 h5 42.d4 a8 11.xh6 e5 12.f3 xf3+ 13.xf3 e7
43.c5 b7 44.f1 d7 45.e5 h7 14.0-0 c6 15.fd1 f5 16.e3 f6 17.b4
46.f4 g8 47.g3 e5 48.e4 e6 18.c5 Bischoff, K-Chabanon, J/Novi
[ 48.g5! would have been very unpleasant Sad 1990 ]
here. ] 9.d2
48...e7 49.g5 xa3 50.xe5 f3 [ White has a couple of alternatives at this
51.e8+ juncture: A) 9.h4!?
[ This time missing 51.f6+! f8 52.c5+ A) 9...h6 10.f3 e5 ( 10...xf3+
g7 53.e8+ g8 54.d4 after which 11.xf3 c6 is relatively best) 11.e4 0-0
g4+ 55.xg4 hxg4 56.d6 gives White a 12.d2 h7 13.h5 g5 14.fxg5+ hxg5
winning endgame. ] 15.h6 ( Here White should probably have
51...g7 52.e5+ g8 53.c3 tried 15.xg5+!? h8 16.xd4 exd4
[ Aga in m iss in g 53.f6+ with a probable 17.f4 f5 18.xc7 with an on-going
win. ] a t t a c k n o t e t h a t d5? 19.h6 f6
53...g4+ 54.g3?! After the exchange of 20.h7+ g8 21.h4 is unhealthy for
queens Black's troubles are at an end. Black ) 15...f6 16.xf6+ xf6 17.h5
[ 54.f1 was the last chance to play for c6 18.xg5 g8 1/2-1/2 Eingorn, V-Finkel,
something. ] A/Metz 1996;
54...b4 55.xg4 hxg4 56.d5 b3 57.g2 B) 9...h5!? 10.f3 xf3+ 11.xf3 c6=;
b2 58.c3 g7 59.g3 f5 Black is in the C) 9...f5 10.d2 h5 11.f3 c6 12.0-0
driving seat now. 60.f4 h6 61.b1 h5 0-0 13.e1 d5 14.e4 xc3 15.bxc3
62.g3 g5 63.hxg5 xg5 64.f4+ f6 d6 16.f4 Eingorn, V-Bogdanov, V/
65.f2 e6 66.c3 f6 67.g3 g6 Metz 1996 ]
68.h4 f6 69.g3 A lucky escape for [ B) 9.f3 xf3+ 10.xf3 c6 11.h4 h5
Black. 12.d2 e6 13.g5 , Stanec, N-Bogdanov,
½-½ V / A s c h a c h A U T 2 0 0 2 , a n d n o w d5!?
is be st, e .g. 14.e4 b6 15.b3 g4
with a comfortable game for Black ]
625 A16 9...c6?!
Marin,Mihail 2556 [ This passive move lets White gain an
Ris,Robert 2395 advantage without any problems. Instead
IX EICC Plovdiv BUL (4) 24.04.2008 9...f5 has been established as the best
[Carsten Hansen] way for Black to proceed: 10.c5 0-0
A) 11.e3 is slightly premature on account
1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.g3 g6 of
5.g2 b6 6.d3 g7 7.e3 c6 8.c1 A1) 11...e8 12.ge2 ( 12.f3
[ This is a quite rare line in this variation. will transpose to 11 Nf3 and offers White
The normal moves are 8.xc6+ ] better chances of an edge) 12...e5
[ 8.d2 ] 13.0-0 c6 14.b3 a5 15.fd1 d7
[ and 8.f3 which was seen in Butnorius- 16.a3 b6 17.c5 d7 18.a3 b6
Iordachescu - see the next game in this 19.c2 , Gritsak, O-Zezulkin, J/
month's update. ] Z a k o p a n e 2 0 0 0 , a n d n o w h6
[ whereas 8.c1 is seen less frequently, but is approximately equal;
in conjunction with Nf3 can be a handful for A2) 11...d7! 12.a3 e5 13.d1
Black to handle. ] b8 14.f3 xf3+ 15.xf3 b6 16.0-0
8...d4 c5 17.b4 cxb4 18.xb4 a5=
[ 8...0-0 9.d2 d4 ( 9...e8?! 10.h6 Grigorian, K-Gulko, B/URS 1974;
h8 11.h4! d4 12.h5 e5 13.hxg6 hxg6 B) 11.f3!?
14.e4 f6 15.f3 xf3+ 16.xf3 B1) 11...e8 12.e4?! ( 12.0-0 )

624
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
12...h6 13.c2 xc1 14.xc1
, Zolt e k, T -K irov, N/ L od z 19 8 0 , d7
, and Black is already clearly better
despite the absence of the dark-squared
bishop;
B2) 11...d7 12.a3 c5 13.0-0 b8
14.b4 cxb4 15.xb4 a5 16.a3 b5
, Dannevig, O-Bae, T/Bergen 2000, and
now 17.e4 b4 18.b2 e5 19.c2;
B3) 11...c6 12.0-0 e8
B3a) 13.c2 d7 14.a3 e5
15.xe5 xe5 16.e3 g7 ( 16...e6
17.e2 ) 17.d4 e6 18.b3 h5
19.fd1 with a solid plus for White,
Vilela, J-Pribyl, J/Trnava 1979;
B3b) 13.e3 e5 14.a3 ( 14.e4
e6 15.b3 d7 16.a3 d5
17.fd1 ) 14...e6 15.b3 d6
16.fd1 a5 17.c2 , Bischoff, K-
Houhou, O/Bad Zwesten GER 2006,
and now Black could have obtained
app roxim ate ly equal chan ce s wit h
d5 ]
[ Also 9...e5 has been tried, but after 10.h6
0-0 11.xg7 xg7 12.e3 e6 13.f3 f6
14.0-0 c6 , Bischoff, K-Seger, R/
Gladenbach 1997, White can obtain a clear
advantage with 15.e4 ]
10.h6 0-0 11.xg7 xg7 12.e3! f5
[ 12...e6 13.f3 c7 14.0-0 f5 15.d4
cd5 16.fe1 , and White is clearly better,
Schandorff, L-Holmsten, A/ Reykjavik 2000 ]
13.f3 f6 14.d4! This is like a dream version
of a Gruenfeld for W hite: the dark-squared
bishops have been exchanged, the black
f orc es a re u nco ordinate d a nd W hite ca n
expand in the centre more or less at will. h5?!
This ugly move doesn't accomplish much, but
serves to weaken Black's kingside further.
W hite is now already clearly better. 15.h4!
Whatever Black was trying to do with the h-
pawn has now been stopped and the
weakness on g6 is of far greater importance
than that on g4. h6 16.0-0 g4 17.c2
[ 17.e4!? followed by Nc5 is very
unpleasant for Black, who is struggling a
weak pawn structure and inf erior piece
coordination ]
17...f7 18.e2 White wants to play Nf4,
poking at the weak pawn on g6.
[ 18.a4!? e5 19.a5 d5 20.xd5 cxd5
21.dxe5 xf3 22.xf3 xe5 23.g2 xa5
24.b3 ad8 25.fd1 ]
18...e5 19.dxe5!?
[ 19.a4 d6 20.a5 d5 21.e4 b4
22.b3 exd4 23.exd4 ad8 is perfectly
satisfactory for Black ]
19...xf3?? Routine pl ay, but missing an
important detail. Black should have played
19... dxe5 with a small, but clear advantage
for White. 20.xf3??
[ And White returns the favour... After
20.f4! the game would have been over. ]
20...xe5?
[ 20...fxe5! is the lesser evil because it takes
the f4-sqare away from White's knight on e2.
White is of course still better after 21.cd1
f6 22.g2 ]
21.e4! f5 This is an necessity, otherwise
White will play Nf4 with even more threats.
22.f4! f6 23.g2 ad8 24.cd1 h6?!
[ 24...fe8 25.e4 ( 25.a4!? c8 26.b4 )
25...fxe4 26.xe4 d5 27.xd5 cxd5
28.xd5 ]
25.d4! xd4?! This looks normal, but it
actually creates an abundance of new
problems for Black as the king on h6 now
gets under fire. 26.exd4 g4 27.e1 f7
[ A passive defence with 27...g8 28.d2
h7 doesn't work either, e.g. 29.b4 h8
30.e6 f7 31.e7 xe7 32.xe7 g7
33.e8+ h7 34.e6 g8 35.e7+ h6
36.xb7 , and more pawns will fall ]
28.d2! e8
[ 28...c4 29.c1 only makes things worse
for Black ]
[ and 28...h7 29.e6 is also a disaster. ]
29.e6+ f4 Sadly this is the only move, yet it
leads to a completely lost endgame. 30.xf4
xe1+ 31.xe1 d5 32.xd5 cxd5
33.e6! Gam e o ver! xe6 34.xe6 f6
Black is only a pawn down, but unfortunately
for him, getting the king from h6 to f7 takes
four moves because of the knight on e6. 35.f3
h7 36.f2 g8 37.e3 b6 If not the b7-
pawn will fall after 37...Kf7 38 Nd8+ 38.f4
f7 39.d8+
[ Or 39.e5 e7 40.f4 , and White wins
the d5-pawn. ]
39...e8 40.c6
1-0
625
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

626 A16 A) 12.h5 xh5 ( 12...c6 13.hxg6 hxg6

Meier,Georg 2648 14.0-0-0 ) 13.xh7 e8 ( 13...xh7?
Robson,Ray 2583 14.g4 ) 14.f3!? ( 14.xb7 b8 15.g2
5th SPICE Cup GpA (8) 23.10.2011 c6 );
[John Bartholomew] B) 12.xb7 b8 13.g2 f6 14.ge4 f5
15.g5 d7 Black has some practical
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 compensation with White's king in limbo. ]
xd5 5.g3 g7 6.g2 b6 A trendy move. [ 11...f6 12.ge4 d4 13.c5 c6
The problem is that W hite gains some 14.xb7 e7 15.a5 ac8 seems like a
flexibility due to the lessened pressure on c3. less desirable version of 11... Nd4. ]
He may effectively delay castling, while Black 12.h5
can't really do the same. [ White plans to part with the light-square
[ Black players should seriously study the bishop anyway, so he could consider
main line 6...0-0 7.0-0 when many reliable 12.xc6!? bxc6 h e r e , e . g . 13.f3
moves are available, i.e. ( White has also ( 13.ge4!? )
ventured 7.h4!? here. ) 7...c5 Check the A) 13...d7 14.h5 ( 14.ge4!? );
archives. ( or 7...c6; or 7...b6 )] B) 13...c8 14.h5 d8 15.hxg6 hxg6
7.d3 c6 8.e3 0-0 9.d2 e5 10.h4 16.ge4 c4 17.c5! d6 18.g4 ]
Having scrutinized many Anti-Grunfeld games 12...xh5 13.xc6
over the past few months, I can tell you there's [ Here 13.xh7!? is interesting. Black must
a definite trend towards pushing h2-h4 in e s s e n t i a l l y s a c r i f i c e a p a wn , a s xh7?
nearly every line! Actually, I can't even limit ( 13...fd8; or 13...fe8 is necessary.)
that statement to the Anti-Grunfeld: see, for 14.g4+- is already decisive. ]
instance, Radjabov - Ivanchuk in this update. 13...bxc6 14.ge4?!
[ 10.h6 is more common, ] [ Now 14.xh7 should definitely be
[ while 10.0-0 transposes to a well-known preferred. ]
line. For recent coverage of the latter, check 14...f5!? Robson seeks the initiative with an
the archives for Huebner, R (2598)-Kulaots, exchange sacrifice.
K (2592)/Porvoo FIN 2011/[Nigel Davies]. ] [ This looks unnecessary, as after 14...d7!
10...g4 A novelty mentioned by John Watson Black could cover c5 and expect counterplay
in 2005. with ...f7-f5 coming. ]
[ Black has previously played 10...h5 , i.e. 15.c5 d7 16.xf8 xf8 17.c5
11.g5 ( 11.g5 d4! 12.ge4 c6 [ 17.f3!? fxe4 18.xe4 White will regain the
13.d1?! e7 Bukal, V (2400)-Leko, P piece with g3-g4. ]
(2255)/Dortmund 1991.) 11...f6 12.e3 17...e7 18.b3
Aronian, L (2724)-Areshchenko, A (2653)/ [ 18.a6!? ]
Khanty Mansiysk 2005/[John Watson]. ] 18...e4 Opening lines while White is a bit
11.g5! Quite a thematic move. White has disorganized. 19.0-0-0?
various ideas: capturing on c6, playing f2-f3, [ 19.dxe4 fxe4 20.h4! enables White to
targeting the h7-pawn, opening the h-file, fight for the advantage. ( 20.0-0 c4 )]
repositioning the knight to e4, etc. 19...c5? Black misses an excellent chance.
[ Watson gives the tempo-gaining 11.h2!? [ 19...xc3! would have put White in a
, which also makes sense. For instance, e6 predicament. For example,
12.xc6 bxc6 13.h5 . Meier's move is A) 20.bxc3 exd3 21.exd3 ( 21.xd3
more intuitive to me, though W hite's xe2 ) 21...xd1;
position remains promising here as well. ] B) 20.xc3 xe2 21.d2 ( 21.de1
11...e7 Black's position is already difficult, g5+ 22.d2 xd2+ 23.xd2 xd3 )
which makes m e question th e entire lin e 21...xd3 22.xc6? f6! ]
beginning with 7...Nb6. Others: 20.dxe4 fxe4 21.e3 Now White is in
[ 11...d4!? offers a pawn and might be control. c4?!
Black's best bet. After [ 21...xc3 is a better chance, e.g. 22.xc3

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

( 22.bxc3 a4 ) 22...xe2 23.de1 f3 ] looks dubious after 10.0-0-0 ) 10.c2 g4
22.d4 c5 23.db5 b8? A blunder. transposing. ]
[ 23...g4 and Black can still hope. ] 9...b6 10.c2 g4 11.e3 g7
24.g4! Meier is alert. a6 [ 11...f5!? , trying to hunt down light squares
[ 24...xg4 25.f4+- ] in the centre. ]
25.d6 12.0-0
[ 25.gxh5 axb5 26.hxg6+- [ Offering a temporary sacrifice of the d4
is more efficient. ] pawn but it doesn't really achieve much. He
25...xg4 26.dxe4 f5?! 27.xc5 b7 could also play just 12.d1 when f5
28.d6+- Now White only needs to makes sense for Black. ]
consolidate. e7 29.e4 e6 30.f4 xc3 12...xf3 13.xf3
31.bxc3 a4 32.e5 b6 33.xh7! [ There's still time for Whit to keep his d4
A killer - forcing mate! xh7 34.xe6+ h8 pawn with 13.e5 but then e6 14.xf3
35.e8+ g7 36.f5+ d5 seems fine for Black. ]
[ faster is 36.f7+ h8 37.f8+ g8 13...xd4 14.ad1 e5 15.xd4 exd4 16.e5
38.h1# ] e6 17.c5
36...f6 37.e5+ It's mate after 37...Kf7 38. [ 17.xd4 0-0 would be fine for Black. ]
Qe7+ Kg8 40.Qe8. 17...0-0-0 18.xd4 xd4 19.xd4 d8
1-0 20.f4 h5
[ And not 20...xa2? because o f 21.g4+
d7 22.d1 with a horrible pin on the knight
627 A16 on d7. ]
Miton,Kamil 2581 21.e1 e8 22.g4 d7 23.gxh5 xe5
Vachier Lagrave,Maxime 2727 24.h1 c7 It seems slightly bizarre to pin
TOP 16 GpA Evry FRA (3) 28.03.2010 the knight on e5 to the king as well as the rook,
[Nigel Davies] but it doesn't look bad for Black. 25.hxg6
[ 25.h6 f6 is fine for Black. ]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 25...fxg6 26.g2 d6 27.h4 e7 28.g3
xd5 5.a4+ c6 6.xd5 d8 29.f3 e8 30.g2 f8 31.e4 e6
[ A m u c h s i m p l e r t r e a t m e n t t h a n 6.d4 32.e2 f7 33.xd6+ xd6 34.h5 gxh5
. White will gain time on Black's queen and 35.xh5 d5 36.xf7 xf7 37.f3 d2
rely on his central pawn majority. ] ½-½
6...xd5 7.e4 d6 8.d4 d7!?
A new order of moves Black may be able to
play ...e7-e5 or ...f7-f5 quite quickly. 628 A16
[ In previous games Black had played the Navara,David 2719
automatic 8...g7 , for example 9.e3 0-0 Svidler,Peter 2728
( An interesting plan for Black is to play for ... Corus A Wijk aan Zee NED (3) 21.02.2007
f7-f5, for example 9...d7 10.d1 b6 [Carsten Hansen]
11.c2 0-0 12.e2 g4 13.0-0 f5 14.h3
xf3 15.xf3 fxe4 16.xe4 d5 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7
wa s f in e f o r Bla ck in S te in grim sso n , H 5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 a6 7.d4
(2547)-Areshchenko, A (2673)/Reykjavik [ 7.g3 c6 8.g2 e5 9.0-0 g7 10.d3 h6
2009 ) 10.e2 g4 11.d1 d7 12.0-0 e5 11.d2 0-0 12.h4 e8 13.xd8 xd8
13.dxe5 e7 14.g5 e8 15.h3 xf3 with at best a tiny little pull for W hite, Z.
16.xf3 b6 17.d4 xe5 18.b4 Rahman-A.Gupta, New Delhi 2007 ]
and W hite was slightly better in Turov, M [ 7.e4 b5 8.e2 c6 9.e5!? b4 10.exf6
(2595)-Svetlov, D (2399)/St Petersburg c2+ 11.d1 xa1 12.b3 e6 13.g5
2009. ] f5 14.g4 c2+ 15.e1 h6 16.h4
9.e2 with a ridiculously complicated position, S.
[ 9.e3 c a n b e m e t b y b6 ( 9...e5?! Arun Prasad-J.Aswin, Atul 2006 ]

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

7...b5 8.b3 to play it for Black, but things are rather

[ 8.d3 c5 9.dxc5 g7 10.e4 0-0 11.a3 complicated ]
c6 12.d2 b4 13.d5 ( 13.a4!? ) 19...f4 20.exf4 gxf4 21.h4 db4 22.axb5
13...xd5!? 14.exd5 f5 15.c4 xb2 axb5 23.xa8 xa8 24.xb5 d5
16.d1 bxa3!? 17.dxc6 e6 18.c2 b8 Black is fine now 25.e2 b8 26.c5 xd4
19.c4 xc4 20.xc4 b5 21.xb5 axb5 27.xd4 xc5 and despite plenty of play
and Black's nasty passed pawn on a2 more being left in this position, the players agreed
than compensates for the sacrificed piece, upon a draw.
T.Nyback-D. Howell, Stockholm 2007 ] ½-½
8...c6
[ 8...c5 9.dxc5 g7 10.e4 e6 11.c2
A) 11...bd7 12.c6 b6 13.f4 c8 629 A16
14.e2 ( 14.d4 0-0 15.e2!? ) 14...c4 Ni Hua 2667
15.0-0 h5 16.e5 1-0 Sundararajan, Li,Chao 2613
K-Aswin,J/Atul IND 2006/The W eek in 6th TCh-CHN Ningbo CHN (3) 18.04.2010
Chess 634 (34); [Nigel Davies]
B) 11...c6 12.e2 c7 13.0-0 0-0
B1) 14.a3 ad8 15.g3 a7 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
B1a) 16.e3 g4 17.d1 ( 17.d5 xd5 5.a4+ d7 6.h4 c6 7.d4 g8
xd5 18.exd5 xd5 ) 17...xe3 [ An interesting alternative to the preservation
18.xe3 a5 19.d5 xd5 20.exd5 of castling rights with 7...f6 . Black supports
xd5 21.ac1 h6 is fine for Black; the posting of his bishop on g7 so as to win
B1b) 16.b4 xe4 17.b2 xc5 time on White's queen. ]
18.bxc5 xc5 19.ad1 b4 20.axb4 8.e5!? e6
xb4 21.c1 c8 , and White is [ And not 8...g7 now because of 9.xc6
already in trouble, J.W erle-Vachier xd4 10.xd8 . ]
Lagrave, Wijk aan Zee 2007; 9.e4 b4 10.xd8+ xd8 11.d1
B2) 14.h3 b4 15.b1 xc5 16.e3 W eird but best. And now W hite enjoys an
c8 17.c1 c6 18.d4?! ( 18.b4!? edge in the endgame because of his central
b7 19.a4 looks like a better try for pawn majority. e8 12.d4 f6
White ) 18...xd4 19.xd4 b8= [ Maybe 12...d7 is better here, for example
Peng Zhaoqin-I. Nepomniachtchi, Wijk 13.xd7 xd7 14.e3 g7 15.c4 c6
aan Zee 2007 ] 16.e2 a5 17.d3 c5 18.dxc5 xb2
9.g5 19.b1 e5 20.d4 ( 20.f4!? ) 20...c7
[ 9.f4!? ] 21.e2 ad8 which was OK for Black in
9...e6 Sargissian, G (2660) -Vachier Lagrave, M
[ 9...h6 10.xf6 ( 10.f4 e6 11.d1 g5 (2684)/Paris 2009. ]
also appears okay for Black) 10...exf6 13.f3 g5?! This advance of the g-pawn
11.d1 d6 12.g3 0-0 13.g2 e8 14.0-0 breaks with previous precedent, though I
b4 15.a4 xe2 16.c5 xc5 17.dxc5 hesitate to call it a 'prepared novelty' because
e8 1/2-1/2 V.Chuchelov-P.Popovic, it probably wasn't!
Katernberg (GER-CH) 2007 ] [ 13...c5 14.c4 d7 15.e3 cxd4
10.d1 g7 11.e3 0-0 12.e2 16.xd4 e7 was played in Halkias, S
[ 12.d3!? b4 13.b1 c8 is okay for (2566)-Bykhovsky, A (2466)/ Benidorm 2009
Black ] and seems more logical to me. But I don't
12...d5 13.e4 h6 14.h4 f5 15.c5 particularly like Black's game here either. ]
d6 16.0-0 f7 17.b7 d7 18.g3 14.c4 f7 15.h3 c5 16.e5! cxd4 17.e4
So far things look pleasant for Black, who Black's position is falling apart at the seams.
now takes action to create counterplay. g5!? He can thank 13...g5?! for a lot of the
19.a4 damage. d7 18.xf6
[ 19.c5 d8 20.a4 looks like a better way [ 18.exf6 might have been a simpler way to

628
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
play this. ]
18...c8 19.b3
[ Suddenly it's not that easy an more, for
example 19.xg8 xc4 20.xg5+ c7
21.b3 c2 22.a3 xg8 23.axb4 xf2
is looking a bit messy. But White could kill
the counterplay here with 24.c1+ b8
25.c2 , exchanging off Black's active rook. ]
19...xf6 20.exf6 b5
[ 20...d5 was probably better. ]
21.xb5 c5 22.c4 c6 23.b2 xc4
24.bxc4 e5 25.c1 h6 26.e1 g4?!
27.xe5 xe5
1-0
630 A16 10.g2 e6 11.a3!? Covering the b4 square.
Petrosian,Tigran L 2661
Gupta,Abhijeet 2627
21st Kavala Open A (7) 30.07.2012
[John Bartholomew]
The early queen trade Black offers in the 5...
Nc6 Pseudo-Grunfeld used to be regarded
with suspicion, but many recent games have
demonstrated the resiliency of Black's
position. 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5
4.cxd5 xd5 5.a4+ c6 A move that has
been steadily gaining in popularity. It was
recently recommended by Larry Kaufman in
"The Kaufman Repertoire for Black & White".
[ T h e p r i n c i p l e c o n t i n u a t i o n i s 5...d7
. See the "Pseudo-Grunfeld" guide in the
archives. ]
6.e5 d6
[ White has better chances for an advantage 11...b8
in the line 6...db4!? 7.a3 . See Laznicka, occupy dark squares, so he'll have to take
V ( 2 6 0 1 ) - N e c h e p u r e n k o , R ( 2 4 7 6 ) / extra care on the light squares left behind. 0-0
Gaziantep 2008/[Hansen, Carsten]. ]
7.xc6 xc6 8.xc6+ bxc6 The evaluation s w i t c h h i s b i s h o p t o t h e e n t i c i n g a 6 - f 1
of this queenless middlegame determines the diagonal.
theoretical fate of 5...Nc6. Black's fractured
pawns are offset by his excellent piece activity,
e.g. .. Ra8-b8, ...Bf8-g7, and the possibility of
...Nd5-b4. White must proceed cautiously if
he hopes to exploit his structural advantage.
This position first appeared in 2008 according
to my database, and 50 subsequent games 14.0-0?!
have yielded respectable results for Black.
Almost two-thirds of games in this line have
been drawn. 9.g3
[ White usually chooses between the text and
9.b3 . A very recent example of the former:
b4!? ( Kaufman gives 9...xc3 10.dxc3
g7 11.b2 a5 12.g3 a4 , as in Gelfand,
B (2733)-Svidler, P (2726)/ Dagomys RUS
2009. Black has good counterplay.) 10.d1
e6 11.b2 g7 12.c1 0-0 13.a4
h6!? 14.c5 ad8 15.e3 f5 16.a3
c2!? 17.a2 d5 with highly interesting
play. Postny, E (2653)-Shankland, S (2579)/
Biel SUI 2012. ]
[ 9.e4 b4 ]
9...g7
[ 9...b8 was seen in Buhmann, R (2587)-
Nedilko, V (2400) / Rijeka CRO 2010/[Nigel
Davies]. ]
[ 11.b3 is more common, but after 0-0-0
( mo re a dve nt u ro u s is 11...0-0!? , i.e.
12.b2 b4 13.0-0 fd8 14.d3 g4 15.f3
d4+ 16.h1 e6 17.a4 e3
Andreikin, D (2648)-Hammer, J (2583)/
L u b b u c k U S A 2 0 0 9 .) 12.b2 xc3
13.xc3 xc3 14.dxc3 d6 White is trying
to squeeze water from a stone. Black simply
intends ...Rh8-d8 with a fully acceptable
game, e.g. 15.d1 hd8 16.xd6 xd6
17.e4 c5! 18.c2 f5 19.e4 g4!?
( 19...xe4 20.xe4 e6 21.f3 f5= ) 20.f3
xf3 21.f1 xe4 22.xe4 e6 23.xf7
xe4+ 24.d2 h5 and, though still
objectively fine, White went on to lose the
ending in Markos, J (2585)-Li Chao2
(2669)/Shenzhen CHN 2011. Black is +2 =7
-1 from the position after move 14. ]
12.e3 Now all of White's pawns
13.a4 c8!? Black senses an opportunity to
[ A different strategy is 13...b6 14.c5
d5 as in Lalic, B (2503)-Bakalarz, M (2320)/
Plovdiv 2003. Following 15.e4 ( 15.0-0
looks wiser) 15...c4 16.d3 d4! 17.dxc4
xc5 18.h6 fd8 19.c1 d4 20.c2 c5
Black was slightly for choice. ]
[ All of this had occurred before in a high-
level game from last year. That contest went
14.c5 , which looks stronger to me. White
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
doesn't allow the bishop to travel freely to a6.
Nevertheless, after a5 15.0-0 b5 16.d4
e5! 17.a4 b6 18.dxe5 xe5 19.e4 b4
20.f4 ( 20.b1!? ) 20...xf4 21.gxf4 a6
22.fc1 d8 ( 22...xb2 is playable, e.g.
23.xa6 xa6 24.xc6 d3 25.xc7
fb8 ) 23.f1 xc5 24.xc5 xb2
25.xa5 g4 26.c5 e2 27.xe2 xe2
28.c4 dd2 29.f1 a2 a draw was soon
agreed in Vitiugov, N (2720)-Areshchenko, A
(2687) / Olginka RUS 2011. ]
14...b6! A perfectly timed response. Black is
happy to part with a pawn to obtain a bind on
the light squares.
[ After 14...a6 15.e1 White can hope for
a miniscule advantage with Na4-c5
looming. ]
15.xc6?! White accepts the offering, but he'll
very quickly regret doing so.
[ 15.xb6 doesn't bother Black, e.g. xb6
16.d4 e5! ]
[ Gupta would have likely met 15.c5 with
d7! , but perhaps this was best. A draw is
the logical result after 16.xd7 xd7 17.d4
c5 18.dxc5 xb2 19.xb2 xb2 20.fd1=
.]
15...xa4 16.xa4 a6 17.e1 d3
Black has convincingly won the theoretical
discussion. White's extra pawn is of almost
no signif icance, and Petrosian f aces th e
unpleasant task of trying to free his position.
18.a2 b1 19.a1 d3 20.a2 c5!
21.d1
[ 21.b3? b1-+ ]
21...c4 22.e2 b3 23.a4 a5 24.d1
White has seemingly run out of ideas.
[ Exchanging a couple pieces with 24.xd3
cxd3 25.a3 xa3 26.bxa3 c8 27.g2
may offer better chances to resist. ]
24...b4 25.e2 b3 26.d1 b6 27.e2
fb8 28.f4 e5 29.fxe5 xe5 30.xd3 cxd3
31.b3? An ill-timed bid for freedom.
[ 31.a3 c8 ]
31...xb3 32.a3 c8!-+ Now the ever-
present threat of ...Rc8-c2 essentially freezes
White's entire position. In particular, the a2
rook is completely stymied. 33.f2 c7
Ta k in g a wa y t he e 7 squ a re just in ca se .
34.f3 f5! Zugzwang motifs begin to appear!
35.h3 h5 36.g1 f7 37.c1 Surely White
wasn't thrilled about exchanging his only semi-
active piece, but there wasn't much he could
do.
[ 37.g4 fxg4+ 38.hxg4 h4-+ is hardly an
improvement. ]
37...xc1 38.xc1 b1 39.a3 e6!
Yup, the threat is simply ...Ke6-d5-c4-b3!
White has no answer. 40.e4 d4 41.exf5+
xf5 42.g4+ hxg4+ 43.hxg4+ e5 44.e7
d5 45.f4 b7 46.d8 c4! 47.a3
b2 48.a2 b3 49.xb2+ xb2 50.xa5
c2 White resigned. White is going to have to
come up with something big in the 5..Nc6 line,
as the queenless middlegame is holding up
very well for Black.
0-1
631 A16
Piket,Jeroen 2605
Bacrot,Etienne 2555
zt 1.1 Escaldes AND (3) 08.11.1998
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 Clearly Black
wants to play a Gruenfeld Defence, but one of
the advantages of playing an English move-
order is that it permits White to avoid this.
[ If Black had played 3...g7 instead, then
White can play, not 4 d4, but 4.e4 ]
4.a4+ This is less common than
[ 4.cxd5 xd5 5.a4+ but is not without its
points. ]
4...d7 5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 g7
I n f a c t , t h e p o si t i o n re s e m b l e s a 5 Q b 3
Gruenfeld, except that the white d-pawn is
unmoved. 7.e4 Played by Boersma a couple
of times in 1988, and then f orgotten, ten
years later it has suddenly been
' r e d i s c o v e r e d ' . c6 Black attempts to
reorganise his queenside, the normal move is
[ 7...0-0 when 8.e5 g4 9.d4 c6?!
quickly turned to White's advantage: 10.f4
a5 11.e2! c5 12.h3 cxd4 13.xd4
h6 14.d1 b6 15.d2 f5 16.xf5
xf5 17.d5 d8 18.b4 and Black is in
big trouble, Ivanchuk,V-Shirov,A/Polanica
Zdroj 1998. ]
8.d3 The advantage of not playing d4, is that
White can now play this move, which supports
e4, and avoids giving Black a target on d4. 0-0
9.e2 bd7 10.f4 White menaces to take
630
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

the c6-bishop by Nd4, and force Black to 9...d5!?

decentralise his f6-knight. h5 11.e3 e5 [ Black persists with his concept. 9...f6 10.e4
Oddly, we have reached a Boleslavsky Sicilian- d7 11.f3 e5 12.c4 is a more solid
type structure which is very favourable for approach, although White has a plus. ]
W hite as he has a firm hold on d4, and his 10.e4!
q u e e n s i d e i s f r e e t o e x p a n d . 12.g3 [ Best, White sacs a pawn for the initiative,
To keep the knight out of f4. hf6 13.0-0 10.xc7?! d8 11.f4 f6 is too dangerous. ]
e8 14.b4! The advance of the b-pawn is 10...xe4 11.e3 0-0-0 12.e2 e5?!
very embarrassing for Black. a6 15.a4 b6 [ P r o b a b l y B l a c k s h o u l d r i s k 12...xg2!?
16.b3 d7 17.fd1 e6 18.c2 e7 13.d1 ( 13.g1 h6 14.xf7 xf7
19.g5! Keeping-up the pressure. d8?! 15.xg2 is also feasible) 13...xh1 14.xd5
It is understandable that Black wished to avoid xd5 15.c4 e6 16.xe6 fxe6 which is
[ 19...d7 20.a5 c8 21.d5 when he is none too clear following 17.g4 ]
being driven back, but nevertheless, this 13.0-0 There is a threat of Rd1, Black has no
was his best chance. ] time to develop his f8-bishop because of the
20.xe6 xe6 21.b5 axb5 22.xb5 loose position of its e4 counterpart. d3?!
W hite's queenside initiative is very strong. 14.c4! With this further sac White guards the
a8 Ugly, but necessary, unfortunately this initiative. xc4
knight will stay here until the end of the game. [ It transpires that the black pieces are
23.ab1 c6 24.a3 d6 25.c4 xc4 awkwardly placed, 14...xc4?! 15.xd3
26.dxc4 With a powerful bishop pair, and a xd3 16.xf7 forks the two rooks, and
target on the b-f ile, W hite should win. b6 wins. ]
27.c5 At the same time this move frees the e2- [ 14...xc4? 15.xe5 xe2 16.xh8
bishop, and creates an outside passed pawn. is even worse. ]
bxc5 28.xc5 fe8 29.xd8 xd8 30.b7 15.fd1 The point of White's play, d5, c4, e5,
Rook to the seventh, threatening Bc4. h8 and f7 are all menaced, how can Black avoid
31.c4 Black has had enough, his position is material loss? d3
a picture in passivity. [ Giving the queen doesn't solve Black's
1-0 problems: 15...xe2?! 16.xd5 xd5
and now 17.e4! threatening Nc3. ]
16.b3
632 A16 [ Another strong possibility is 16.xd3 xd3
Piket,Jeroen 2628 17.ac1 e5 18.c3 xa2 (so that the d3-
Svidler,Peter 2695 bishop is untouchable because of the back-
Korchnoi Birthday KO (1.1) 29.04.2001 ra n k m a t e ) 19.c1! and the bishop is lost,
[Tony Kosten] all the same. ]
16...a6 17.f3 a5?!
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 [ B l a c k m u st u n d e f e n d f 7 , a s 17...f5??
xd5 5.a4+ d7 6.h4 xc3 7.dxc3 is a blunder, 18.g4 ]
c6 8.g3 [ but 17...d6 is a better try. ]
[ White takes control of e5, 8.e4 gave White 18.b4! xb4 19.xf7 g7 20.ab1
nothing in the archives, after e5 ] Thus White not only wins the exchange, but
8...f5 also retains a strong attack on the queenside.
[ Unusual, Black tries to hinder e4, instead, a5 21.xh8 xh8 22.h3+ b8
he normally prepares ...e5 with 8...f6 ] 23.xh7 f6?! 24.xg6
9.g5! [ Good enough, but missing the opportunity
[ The critical reply. Although White moves to hit Black with 24.xb7! xb7 25.xd3
this piece twice, he regains control over e4. winning further material because of the
9.g5 f6 10.d1 c8 11.c1 e5 weak back-rank. ]
allowed Black easy equality in Krivoshey,S- 24...xa2 25.e4
Jasnikowski,Z/Katowice 1995. ] 1-0

631
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
633
Piket,Jeroen
Svidler,Peter
KasparovChess GP g/60, (3.2) 02.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
xd5 5.h4!? A speciality of Piket, this sharp
move aims to exploit the weakness of the
black kingside. f6
[ A new move! Black stops the further
a d v a n c e o f t h e h - p a wn , b u t l o s e s t h e
possibility of capturing, Gruenfeld-like, on
c3. 5...g7 6.h5 f5 7.b3 c6 8.d4
is a little better for White, Ftacnik,L-Kouatly,
B/Thessaloniki 1984, but ]
[ 5...h6 is the preferred reply, with 6.e4
xc3 7.bxc3 g7 8.d4 c5 reaching a
s t a n d a r d G r u e n f e l d p o s i t i o n , wi t h t h e
exception of the two h-pawns, 9.b1
10.e2 d7 11.0-0 Ribli,Z-Smejkal,J/Novi
Sad 1982, and now cxd4 12.cxd4
13.e3 b6 is fine for Black. ]
6.d4 g7 7.e4 0-0 8.e2 c5 Black takes
his first swipe at the white centre. 9.d5
10.h5! White protects his centre from the side!
xh5
[ Black might as well take the pawn.
10...exd5 is the other possibility, when White
has the interesting line: 11.hxg6
12.e5!? g4 13.g5 f6? 14.xd5+ xd5
15.xd5 fxg5 16.e7+ f7 17.xc8
xc8 18.xg5+ picking-up the loose knight
on g4. ]
11.g4 f6 12.g5 b6 Black has to unpin
t h e k n i g h t . 13.xf6 xf6 14.d2
Threatening both Qh6, and e5. At the cost of
his h-pawn White has opened the h-file and
obtained a slight lead in development. g7
15.0-0-0 d7 16.g5 c4
White prepares to double his rooks on the h-
file. e8 18.d6 d8
With an unpleasant threat. a5?
[ This allows a simple tactic. Perhaps Black
should be prepared to part with his dark-
squared bishop: 19...xc3!? 20.bxc3 a5
21.b2 b6 with reasonable counterplay. ]
20.xh7! f5
[ 20...xh7? allows a quick mate, starting:
21.xf7 , threatening Rh1. ]
21.gxf6 xf6 22.xg7+ xg7 23.e5
A16 [ After 23.e5 Black's king is too exposed,
2630 h5 24.h4 d7?! 25.e7+ g8 26.g5
2670 forces mate. ]
1-0
634 A16
Poldauf,Dirk 2453
Pezerovic,Edin 2447
Bundesliga 9900 (5.5) 11.12.1999
[Nigel Davies]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 c6 3.e4 d5 4.cxd5 cxd5
5.e5 d4 6.exf6 dxc3 7.bxc3 gxf6
Capturing towards the centre as they
recommend in many books though I don't
think this is the best.
[ 7...exf6 would leave White with a passed d-
pawn but it's certainly not out of the question.
0-0 The pawn would be difficult to advance and
Black would get free play for his pieces plus
e6 a super strong kingside. ]
8.d4 f5 Black has tried a number of
alternatives in the smattering of available
e6 games, but none of them look entirely
satisfactory:
[ a) 8...a5 9.d2 c6 10.f3 g4
11.e2 0-0-0 12.c4 a3 13.d5 b4
14.0-0 e5 15.b1 e4 16.d4 was horrible
hxg6 for Black in Ravikumar, V (2305)-Roth, R
(2370)/Copenhagen 1980. ]
[ b) 8...e6 9.d3 d7 10.f3 a5 11.e2
a3 12.d2 b2 13.b1 xa2 14.0-0
a3 15.e3 e7 16.c4 a3 17.c5
gave White a very strong initiative in Lautier,
J (2660)-Bajarany, I (2405)/Berlin 1997. ]
[ c) 8...c6 9.f3 g7 (This at least lends
Black's kingside more protection) 10.e2
g4 11.h3 h5 12.0-0 0-0 13.b1 b6
17.h2 14.a3 c7 15.h4 g6 16.xg6 hxg6
17.f3 fd8 18.xc6 xc6 19.xe7 d7
19.f4 20.e1 xc3 was only a bit better for White
in Lechtynsky, J-Tichy, V/Havirov 1971. ]
9.f3 e6 10.e2 c7 11.c4 White is simply
better here because of his central control and
the potential vulnerability of Black's king. Over
the following moves he shifts gear to 'attack
mode', but would also have been better with
more modest play. d6 12.0-0 0-0 13.d5
d7 14.d4
[ White could have prepared this with 14.h1
632
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

.] with 8.Bb5 in Kopinski - Orzech but didn't

14...xh2+ 15.h1 e5 16.xf5 xa1 achieve much. ]
17.d6 a5 18.d3 h8 [ Bocharov, D (2574)-Ivanov, S (2553)/St
[ 18...exf5? 19.h5 would give White a Petersburg 2004 varied with 6.d4 but after
winning attack. ] c6 7.ge2 f5 8.g3 xg3 9.hxg3 e6
19.h6 exf5 20.xf8 xf8? Presumably 10.e3 b6 11.d2 c8 12.e2 b4
missing the reply. 13.0-0 0-0 14.ac1 a5 Black had an
[ 20...xf8 was better and fine for Black. ] excellent game. ]
21.h5! d2 22.xf5 h6 23.xa1 6...c6 7.c2 g6!?
[ 23.f4 is just winning for White after g7 [ Shamkovich didn't like 7...xc3 8.dxc3
24.xa1 xf4 25.xd7 . ] g4 because of 9.d4! xe5 10.f4 c6
23...e5! 24.c5 g7 25.h4 b6 26.cxb6 11.f5 but he might well be able to improve
axb6 27.d7! d8 with 8...g6. ]
[ 27...xd7 would lose a piece after 8.xe4 dxe4 9.xe4 f5 10.f4 g7
28.g4+ . ] 11.c4
28.g3+ g5 29.xg5+ fxg5 30.b1 f6 [ After 11.d4 S h a m k o vi c h l i k e d d5!
[ And not 30...xd7? 31.d1 etc. ] intending 12...Nb4, 12...Be4 or 12...Rd8.
31.g4 xd7 32.xd7 xd7 33.xb6+ e5 But there could be other good moves such
34.xh6 d2 35.g2 xa2 as the simple 11...0-0. ]
½-½ 11...a5 12.e6
[ After 12.0-0 xe5 Black would simply be
better because of the isolated White d-pawn
635 A16 and a simplified position. ]
Polugaevsky,Lev 12...xe6 13.xe6 fxe6 14.0-0 f5
Shamkovich,Leonid [ After the game Shamkovich preferred
USSR 1971 14...f8! , presumably intending 15.h4
[Nigel Davies] xf3 16.gxf3 d4 with good compensation
for the exchange. ]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 c6 3.e4 d5 4.cxd5 15.c7 d5 16.xb7 b8 17.a6
[ 4.exd5 cxd5 5.d4 would transpose into [ 17.c7? i s s t r o n g l y m e t b y e5
the Panov Attack line against the Caro- when W hite's queen needs urgent rescue
Kann Defence. But with White's knight on because of Black's threatened .. .0-0
c3 already he loses options such as 1.c4 c6 followed by ...Rfc8. ]
2.e4 d5 3.exd5 cxd5 4.cxd5 Nf6 5.Bb5+ or 5. 17...0-0 18.e2 xb2 19.xb2
Qa4+ and Gundaram's 4.d4 Nf6 5.c5. ] [ 19.xb2 xb2 20.e3 e5 21.ac1
4...cxd5 5.e5 is fine for White. ]
[ After 5.exd5 xd5 6.d4 Black has quite a ½-½
good line in xc3 7.bxc3 g6 , for example
8.f3 g7 9.e2 0-0 10.0-0 c6 11.a4
d7 12.a3 c8 13.g5 e8 14.ab1 636 A16
a5 was comfortable for Black in Psakhis,Lev 2534
Charleshouse, G-Arkell, K (2442), W igan Khmelniker,Ilya 2430
2001. ] 22nd Open Cappelle la Grande FRA (6)
5...e4!? Offering a pawn sacrifice that White [John Watson]
probably shouldn't accept.
[ Black has alternatives here in 5...fd7 ] Another win for White against the Gruenfeld
[ and 5...d4 . ] with a Qa4+ system. W hite tries a daring
6.f3 queen sacrifice, with on the one hand activity
[ As Shamkovich pointed out, Black gets a but on the other weaknesses. The former
good game after 6.xe4 dxe4 7.a4+ prevails. 1.c4 f6 2.f3 g6 3.c3 d5
c6 8.xe4 d4! . White varied from this 4.a4+ d7 5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 a6

633
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Black needn't be worried about any tactical
incursions such as Nb5 so this move only
serves to play the standard queenside
expansion with ...b5. In my opinion this is not
so good because it doesn't go well with . ..Bd7.
Maybe just
[ 6...g7 7.e5 0-0 8.xd7
when the bishop pair has come at the cost
of a lot of development, or ]
[ 6...c6 7.d4 e6 ]
7.d4 b5 8.b3
[ 8.d3 may also yield some advantage
because . ..b4 and ...Bf5 weakens Black's
queenside. ]
8...g7 9.e4 0-0 10.e5! e6 11.exf6!
The computer hates this 3-pieces-for-
queen+pawn sacrifice, of course, claiming a
wi n n i n g p o s i t i o n f o r B la c k . B u t P s a k h i s
disagrees. Along with great development, the
weakness of b3 actually helps his game by
giving him the c-file. At least in a practical
game, W hite has plenty of chances. xb3
12.fxg7 xg7 13.axb3 c6 14.e3 b4
Still a kill for Black according to the usually
reliable HiArcs. 15.c1 d7 16.e2 e6?!
17.d5! xd5
[ 17...d6 18.0-0 xd5 19.xd5 xd5
20.xc7 fe8 ( 20...xb3 21.d1!? a2
22.d4+ g8 23.xe7 fe8 24.fe1
xe7 25.xe7 illustrates the kind of
compensation that White can get: bishops
and activity.) 21.c3 ad8 22.a1 d6
( 22...d6 23.c5 c6!? 24.b4 threatens
Rd1. )]
18.d4 d6 19.xd5 xd5 20.f3 d6
21.xa8 xa8 22.0-0 Now the material is
nominally about equal, but the c-file and
backward c-pawn grant W hite a lot of good
squares. g8
[ 22...c5? 23.xc5 e5 24.c6 ]
[ 22...e5 23.c6 g8 24.fd1 e6 25.b4
transposes ]
23.c6 e5 24.b4 e8 25.fd1 e6 26.h3
b3 27.h6? This slip doesn't end up hurting
White, but
[ 27.d7! xb2 28.h6 is decisive: Black
can't move! ]
27...e6 28.c5 f6 29.d8 But why resign,
o r i s t h is a m i s p ri n t ? P l a y m i g h t g o e7
30.cd5
[ White should go back and try something
like 30.c6! e6 31.a7 with pressure.
Maybe the score was truncated. ]
1-0
637 A16
bxd7 Psakhis,Lev 2551
Lujan,C 2378
2nd Open San Marino SMR (2) 06.06.2006
[John Watson]
Here's another 4.Qa4+ Gruenfeld and another
win. Amazingly, Psakhis repeats his stunt from
two months ago, in which we saw him give up
his queen for three pieces and a pawn. This
time it's for three pieces and two pawns!
Furthermore, Black has no weaknesses. On
the other hand, the bishop pair can be a
mighty weapon. 1.c4 f6 2.f3 g6 3.c3
d5 4.a4+ d7 5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 c6
[ The earlier Psakhis game went 6...a6 7.d4
b5 8.b3 g7 9.e4 0-0 10.e5 e6
11.exf6 xb3 12.fxg7 xg7 13.axb3 c6
14.e3 , when the d-pawn didn't fall
(essentially, ...a6 and ...b5 cost time. I
prefer the development with ... Nc6). b4
15.c1 d7 16.e2 e6 17.d5 xd5
18.d4 d6 19.xd5 xd5 20.f3 d6
21.xa8 xa8 22.0-0 g8 23.c6 e5
24.b4 e8 25.fd1 e6 26.h3 b3
27.h6 e6 28.c5 f6 29.d8 e7
30.cd5 1-0 Psakhis, -Khmelniker, Cappelle
la Grande 2006 ]
7.d4 g7 8.e4 0-0 9.e5!? e6 10.exf6
xc4 11.fxg7 xg7 12.xc4 Exactly the
same idea, but by comparison Black's ahead
in development and can't resist the d-pawn.
xd4 13.xd4 xd4 14.e2 b4!?
Maybe Black should play the standard
restrictive move
[ 14...c6 ]
[ or if he feeling frisky, just get that kingside
majority rolling by, e.g., 14...e5 15.e3
h4 16.0-0 f5! ]
15.0-0 ad8 16.a3 b3 17.d1 c4
[ 17...b6 ]
18.f3 b3?! Would Black honestly take a
draw here? That shows a very negative and
pa ssive a t t it u d e, so P sakh is, a bs o lu t e ly
unobjectively but with a good psychological
sense, turns down the draw.
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 18...c6! takes away key squares from

h6 The most common (although from such a
White's pieces. ] small selection of games this is perhaps not
19.e1 fe8 20.e4 b6 21.d2
too relevant), Black stops the g-pawn in its
Psakhis is just messing around hoping that tracks.
something will show up. c2 [ 4...d6 attacks g4, and prepares a square
[ 21...d3! 22.e4 f6! with ...e5 to come. ] on d7 for the king's knight, 5.h3 ( 5.g5
22.e4 c5 23.b4 d4?! It probably fd7 ) 5...e5 6.g2 c6 ( 6...0-0 Claesen, P
doesn't hurt that much but Black seems to be (2260)-Bastida, A Odessa 1990, 1-0 (40),
determined to lose time. 24.a2 e5 25.c2 7.ge2 ) 7.ge2 e6 8.b3 h5 occurred in
Okay, so now the omission of ...c6 at some the stem game, and continued 9.g5 g8
point starts to hurt. c6 and c7 are both 10.h4 f6? too loosening! Vandevoort, P
vulnerable. e7?! (2010)-Grooten, H (2340) Belfort 1989 (but
[ 25...d7 26.b2 f6 ] 0-1 (20)), as now 11.a3! e7 12.e4
26.h4!? is seriously unpleasant, close to winning. ]
[ More psychology. White could start to get
[ 4...0-0!? is provocative, 5.g5!? ( 5.g2 d6
real chances after 26.b2 d7 27.f4 f5!? 6.h3 bd7 7.ge2 is more solid (or
28.c6 d3 29.a4 ] 'sensible', as you prefer), b8 8.0-0 a6
26...f5? 9.d3 c5 10.a4 e8 11.b1 c7 12.b4
He keeps losing tempi with every
move! This one's really a mistake. 27.f3 with an edge, Jadoul, M (2400)-Van der
xe4?? Black must be in time trouble, or
Stricht , G (21 75) G en t 1 99 5, 1-0 (3 3).;
Ps ak h is ' reje ct ion of t h e d ra w m ay ha ve
5.h4!? ) 5...e8 ( 5...h5 6.e2 ) 6.h4 e5
thrown him off. Now White just vacuums up 7.f3 c6 8.h5 d5 ('counter a wing attack'
material: etc.) 9.cxd5 cxd5 unclear, Fries Nielsen, J
[ 27...d7 ] (2369)-Jacobsen, B (2306) Helsingor 2013,
28.xe4 fxe4 29.g5 d1+ 30.h2 f7 1/2-1/2 (23). ]
[ 30...exf3 31.xe7 fxg2 5.g232.xg2c6! A new move, and a good one -
, b u t t h e e x t r a p i e c e wi l l b e a t t h e t w o
Black prepares ...d5.
pawns rather easily. ] [ 5...d6 6.h3
31.xe5 f5 32.xc7+ g8 33.g4
A) 6...c5 7.a3 ( 7.ge2
Maybe next time he'll spot Black queen and and d4 immediately is better.) 7...a6
8.ge2 c7 9.b4 0-0 10.d4 d7
t h r e e p a wn s f o r h i s p i e c e s ! A t r i b u t e t o
courageous play. 11.0-0 b8 12.a2!? a nice idea, b5?!
1-0 13.dxc5 dxc5?! 14.d2! the point, Bc6
will win a p ie ce, A n de rse n, J (2 2 7 6 )-
Matthiesen, M (2304) Aarhus 2010, 1-0
638 A16 (26).;
Rapport,Richard 2704 B) 6...e5 typical KID play, but White's h3
Melkumyan,Hrant 2655 and g4 looks more useful than ...h6
Riga Tech op 4th (7) 22.08.2014 compared to a normal Staunton setup.
[Kosten, Tony] 7.ge2 c6
B1) 8.d4 0-0 9.0-0 e8 10.b3
1.e3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 g7 (This position i s a g o o d p a w n a r r a n g e m e n t , exd4
is also likely to arrive from the move-order 1 11.xd4 ( 11.exd4 ) 11...d5 12.cxd5
c 4 N f 6 2 N c 3 g 6 3 e 3 B g 7 ) . 4.g4!? xd5 13.xd5 cxd5 14.b2 c6
This is actually the 4th most popular move Vandevoort, P (2205)-Penson, T (2280)
here ... and the highest scoring for W hite! Brasschaat 1990, 1-0 (49), when
White intends to fianchetto his light-squared 15.c1! with a clear positional plus
bishop, but grab more kingside space than because of the IQP and likely weaker
normally. It is an invention of Belgian Pascal light-squared bishop.;
Vandevoort from 1989, but he stopped playing B2) 8.b3 a5 9.b1!? ( 9.0-0
it soon after, and went on to become an IM. and then d4 is simple and good.) 9...e6

635
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

10.0-0 0-0 11.f4!? ( 11.d4 ) 11...exf4 f4+

12.exf4 ( 12.xf4! simple and good, ½-½
White will play Bb2 and use the open f-
file. ) 12...h5! 13.f5! gxf5 Andersen, J
(2300)-Borbjerggaard, L (2365) Denmark 639 A16
1998, 1-0 (27), and now 14.gxh5 xh5 Reinderman,Dimitri 2599
15.d4 promises excellent play for the Greenfeld,Alon 2540
pawn. ] Amsterdam Batavia Grolsch 5th (7) 07.03.13
6.h4!? Treating a 2650 player with utter [Danny Gormally]
disdain!
[ The normal 6.h3 d5 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.ge2 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
would lead to a less exciting game, xd5 5.a4+ These anti-Grünfeld lines are
perhaps. ] becoming increasingly popular these days,
6...d6 Taking aim at g4. and as a Grünfeld player myself are always
[ 6...d5 7.g5 hxg5 8.hxg5 xh1 9.xh1 annoying t o f ace- W h ite tends to set th e
h7 10.cxd5 xg5 was also possible. ] tempo. d7 6.c2 b6 7.d4 g7 8.e4 0-0
7.g5 hxg5 8.hxg5 xh1 9.xh1 h7!? 9.e3 g4 10.e5! xe5 Personally
This knight looks pretty dim to me, why not speaking I would be reluctant to make this
[ 9...fd7 or even ] decision- many Kings Indian and Grünfeld
[ 9...g4!? 10.d4 e5 and Black is certainly pla ye rs a re lo a th e t o give u p th e ir d a rk -
not worse. ] squared bishop under any circumstances.
10.f4 e5 11.e2 e7 12.b3 Planning Ba3 [ 10...e6!? Would be more in the spirit of
a n d 0 - 0 - 0 . exf4 Black wants to exchange the opening. 11.d1 c8 12.f4 c6 13.e2
queens. f5! grabbing crucial space 14.0-0 fxe4
[ 12...a6 13.a3 c5 14.0-0-0 f5 15.xe4 d5 16.d2 d7 17.g5 xe5
was a sharper approach. ] 18.xe6 f3+ 19.xf3 xe6 White has
13.exf4 g4 14.xe7+ less than nothing 20.c1 h8 21.c4
[ 14.f3 xe2+ 15.xe2 might offer more. ] ad8 22.b3 d6 23.f2 b6 24.f5 gxf5
14...xe7 15.b2 Maybe threatening Nd5+, 25.xf5 xf5 26.xf5 f8 27.d3 f4
as the g7-bishop is loose. d7 28.xf4 xf4 29.h3? xd4+! 0-1 Szabo,
[ 15...a6 is b e t t e r, a s t h e n 16.d5+?! G (2553)-Petrisor, A (2383)/Plovdiv 20128 ]
is met by f8 ] 11.dxe5 c6 12.h3 e6 13.d1 c8 14.f4
16.f3 f5 17.ge2 a6 18.a4 xb2 It seems to me White has a comfortable edge,
19.xb2 f6 Time to get the h7-knight back as not only does he possess the two bishops,
into the game. 20.f2 f8 21.h1 f7 but Black can undertake little in the way of
Just in time. 22.gxf6 xf6 23.g3 c5 constructive play. He has no pawn breaks to
Black has no problems, and might even be a speak and no dynamism, a direct
bit better. 24.h8?! g4+ consequence of giving up the dark-squared
[ 24...b1 is awkward, hitting the a2-pawn, bishop so easily. d8 15.c5
25.b4 e6 and White might have to play [ Nonetheless a player of the calibre of
26.h1 xa2 27.a1 to avoid losing a Kamsky was quite happy to defend this
pawn. ] position 15.b3 b4 16.xd8+ xd8
25.g2 e6 26.d3!? Tricky. xd3 17.b1 f5 18.exf6 exf6 19.e2 e7
27.xg4 Pinning the knight. e7 20.0-0 f7 21.f2 d8 22.d1 xd1+
[ 27...xf4?? 28.h7+ ] 23.xd1 c5 24.f1 c6 25.g3 g7
[ My computer likes 27...a6 although I'm not 26.g2 h5 27.b5 c8 Topalov, V (2775)-
sure whether this is to play ... b5, or to Kamsky, G (2732)/Kazan 2011. ]
avoid having the a-pawn hanging later on. ] 15...xd1+ 16.xd1 e8 17.c1 d8
28.b8! xf4+ 29.f3! Walking into a 18.b5! a6 19.xc6 xc6 20.xe7 d7
discovered attack! d5+ There is nothing 21.f6 A bishop reaching this square spells
better. 30.g2 f4+ 31.f3 d5+ 32.g2 doom for the Black king. a4 22.0-0 xc3

636
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

23.bxc3 xa2 24.f5 c4 25.f2 c5 with interesting play. ( or 10...c6 11.h6
26.f4 a5 Black's queenside counterplay is xh6 12.xh6 d4!? );
horribly slow, as W hite's next turn C) 9...e5
convincingly demonstrates. 27.e6! fxe6 C1) 10.0-0 0-0 is fine for Black. For
28.fxg6 hxg6 29.e5 g7 30.xg7 xg7 instance, 11.h6 c6 ( 11...e8
31.f6+ h7 32.h2 d6+ 33.e5 d7 12.xg7 xg7 is also fine for Black.
34.f8 White has tried 8(!) different moves here
1-0 without particular success.) 12.xg7
xf3+ 13.xf3 xg7 14.b4!? c4
15.c2 d6 16.fd1 a5! 17.ab1
640 A16 axb4 18.xb4 e7 with an excellent
Reinderman,Dimitri 2581 ga m e . T e s ke , H (2 4 8 6 )-J o a c h im , S
Harika,D 2516 (2443)/Panormo 2001.;
74th Tata Steel GMB (4) 17.01.2012 C2) 10.h4!?
[John Bartholomew] C2a) 10...h6 11.c1 Picana, A-
Calugar, A (2144)/Toronto CAN 2010.
1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.g3 g6 Now it looks best to play c6! , i.e.
5.g2 b6 6.d3 g7 7.e3 c6 12.0-0 ( 12.b4!? ) 12...e7!
Black's chief concern in this line is the covering the c5 square and intending
exchange of dark-square bishops with Qd1-d2 13...Nf5.;
and Be3-h6, very possibly in conjunction with C2b) 10...h5 11.c1 c6 12.0-0 g4
h4-h5. The text aims to prevent this plan. 13.g5 0-0 14.h2 e7=
[ For 7...0-0 8.d2 see Ivanchuk, V (2709)- Conquest, S (2513)-Areshchenko, A
Mamedyarov, S (2580)/Bled 2002/[TonyK]. ] (2570)/Coventry 2005.;
[ S u s p i c i o u s i s 7...c6 8.d2 h6?! C3) 10.c1 (I think this is best) 0-0
, Bu Xiangzhi (2630)-Wang Yaoyao (2456)/ 11.h6 xh6 ( 11...f6 12.xg7 xg7
Jinan 2005/[John Watson]. ] 13.0-0 a5 14.e4 Dimitrov, V (2512) -
8.d2 Pantale ev, P (2226)/ Tsarevo 2001 .;
[ The main alternative is 8.xc6+ bxc6 11...e8 12.h4 xh6 13.xh6 f5
, which leads to double-edged positions 14.d2 h5 Talla, V (2367)-Dvorak, T
where the empirical evidence has favored ( 2 3 3 1 ) / C z e c h i a 2 0 0 4 . 15.e4 )
W hite. In my opinion Black has plenty of 12.xh6 f6 Redpath, J (2131)-Navara,
reasons to be satisfied here, but I will save D (2479)/Balatonlelle 2001. Now just
a thorough investigation for a future 13.0-0 looks a little better for White. ( or
update. ] 13.xd4!? exd4 14.e4 )]
[ White can also play 8.f3 , when 0-0 9...f5
9.0-0 is a tabiya of the Pseudo-Grunfeld. [ P a s s i ve i s 9...c6?! 10.h6 , Marin, M
( In the archives you will also find coverage (2556)-Ris, R (2395)/Plovdiv 2008/ [Hansen,
of other "delayed-castling" alternatives: Carsten]. ]
9.d2; and 9.c1 . )] 10.c5 0-0
[ Finally, 8.c1 d4 9.d2 transposes. [ 10...d7 is also of interest: 11.a3
( For a round-up of the alternatives 9.h4!?; A) The computer is enthusiastic about
and 9.f3 see the notes to Marin-Ris cited 11...e5!? , threatening 12...Bh6 when 13.
below. )] e3 would hang d3. An interesting line is
8...d4 9.c1 White covers the c2 square 12.f4 c6!? 13.fxe5 h6 14.e3
and renews the threat of Be3-h6. ( 14.c2?! e3 ) 14...xe3 15.d1 xc1
[ 9.f3 is also played, i.e. 16.xc1 xd3 17.c5! 0-0
A) 9...f5 10.c5 0-0 is similar to the with a n un ba lan ce d po sit io n in whic h
game.; White retains the better prospects.;
B) I'm surprised that nobody has played B) 11...c6 12.f3 0-0 13.0-0 b6
9...xf3+ 10.xf3 , e.g. h5!? 14.b3?! ( Unnecessary. I'd prefer

637
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

14.cd1; or 14.fd1 ) 14...d6 15.b2 with mutual chances. ]

f5?! ( 15...a5! ) 16.e4 g4 17.d4 13.d4 This allows Black to carry out a key
Roesemann, R (2207)-W ahrenberg, R advance.
(1974)/Dresden 2007. ] [ 13.0-0 ]
11.f3 [ or 13.h4!? are better tries. ]
[ This is better than 11.e3 when the old 13...d7 14.a3 e5! Black should have few
game Grigorian, K-Gulko, B/Soviet Union p ro b l e m s n o w. 15.dxe5 xe5 16.xd8
1974 saw d7! 12.a3 e5 (the same xf3+ 17.xf3 xd8 18.e4 e6
Silic on -ap proved ma ne uve r as ab ove! ) [ 18...a5!? ]
13.d1 b8!? ( 13...c6 also looks good.) 19.c5 xa2?!
14.f3 xf3+ 15.xf3 b6 16.0-0 c5 [ Slightly more accurate is the immediate
with a balanced game. ] 19...d5 e.g. 20.xd5 ( 20.e4 d4 21.g2
11...c6 e8 ) 20...xd5 21.xb7 ( 21.e4 e5
[ 11...d7 12.a3 c5 ( 12...e5 13.xe5 22.0-0 d4 ) 21...b5 22.c5 xb2
xe5 14.0-0 c6 15.fd1 g7 16.b3 23.xb2 xb2 24.a4 d8 25.0-0
McNab, C (2474)-Poobalasingam, P (2224)/ and now Black can force a draw if she wants
Edinburgh SCO 2009.) 13.0-0 b8 14.b4 with xe3 26.fxe3 dd2= . ]
( It looks better to play 14.e4 b6 15.b4 20.xb7 d5 21.xd5 xd5 22.c5
cxb4 16.xb4 with a slight pull.) 14...cxb4 [ Not 22.xc6?! b5 ]
15.xb4 a5! 16.a3 b5 17.d5?! b7 22...d6 23.a6! b5 24.b4 d6
Dannevig, O (2356)-Bae, T (2246)/Bergen 25.xc6 xa3 26.bxa3 b2 27.c2 xa3
2000. ] 28.e2 White has managed to retain a small
[ 11...e8 12.0-0 ( Clearly unfavorable is edge. Now he gets to press in an objectively
12.e4?! h6 Zoltek, T (2345)-Kirov, N drawn endgame. d7 29.a1 f8 30.a6
(2455)/Lodz 1980.; but 12.h4!? deserves b7 31.d3 d7+ 32.e2 b7 33.g4 g7
a t t e n t i o n .) 12...e5 and here 13.e3 34.g5 h6! Liquidation. Harika defends well.
or 13.Rfd1 is comfortable for W hite 35.h4 hxg5 36.hxg5 e7 37.xe7
( but again not 13.e4?! h6 14.c2 xc1 [ Essentially agreeing to a draw, but 37.f4
15.xc1 g7 with little compensation for d8! and ...Bd8-b6 was coming. ]
the exchange. Talla, V (2417)- Toma, K 37...xe7 38.ca2 e5 39.f4 e4 40.2a3
(2224)/Frydek Mistek 2005. )] ae8 41.f2 8e7 42.f3 h7 43.6a4
12.e3 The first new move. White is playing for xa4 44.xa4 g7 45.e4 b7 46.g4 c7
an immediate d3-d4, but Black can meet this 47.f5 gxf5+ 48.exf5 c1= 49.xa7 g1+
wit h eit he r que en side activit y (. ..Nb6 -d 7 50.f4 f1+ 51.e4 e1+ 52.d3 e5
f ollowed by .. .a7 -a5 /. ..b 7-b 5), o r cent ra l 53.g6 xf5 54.xf7+ xf7 55.gxf7 xf7
counterplay (...Rf8-e8, ...Nb6-d7, and ...e7-e5). Black is doing fine in the line 8.Qd2 Nd4 9.
Harika decides on the latter. Rc1 Nf5. Of note is the plan for queenside
[ Cornette, M (2548)-Gislason, G (2318)/ co un te rp lay wit h . .. Nb 6-d 7 an d . .. a7 -a 5 ,
L o n d o n E N G 2 0 1 1 w e n t 12.0-0 d7 threatening ... b7-b5-b4.
( 12...a5!? ) 13.a3 a5 14.e4 e8 ½-½
( 14...f6 looks playable as well.) 15.b3
. Now a4 would give Black good
counterplay. ] 641 A16
12...e8 Rustemov,Alexander 2520
[ Black should seriously consider 12...d7 Svidler,Peter 2727
13.a3 a5 as in the above game. I don't Bundesliga 2008-9 (15) 29.03.2009
really see an edge f or W hite, e.g. 14.b3 [Jonathan Rowson]
( 14.d4?! b5 is suddenly dangerous for
White thus, he needs to take a time-out.) 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
14...a4!? ( 14...b6= ) 15.b4 ( 15.xa4?? xd5 5.a4+ d7 6.h4 xc3 7.bxc3!
b5-+; 15.bxa4?! a5 ) 15...d6 I think this move is probably worthy of the

638
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
exclamation mark, because at the present
time Black has no clear path to equality.
[ 7.dxc3 is the main line. c6 8.g3!?
always seemed to me to be the most
dangerous test for Black here. ]
[ 7.d4 f6 8.xc3 looks promising for
White at first, but after c6 9.d4 is met by
e5 so Black has time to get e5 Bd6 and Qe7
and generally develops comfortably. ]
7...c5 This move is not forced, but I guess the
problem is that after
[ 7...g7 8.b1 Black doesn't even have
Qc7 and has to make do with a half-move.
( 8.d4 c5 9.h6! comes fast, but things are
not so clear af ter a5 10.c1 xh6
11.xh6 cxd4 ) 8...b6 9.d4 and Bh6 is now
threatened so W hite's initiative starts to
build. ]
8.b1! A very annoying little probe. c7
[ 8...b6 9.e4 ( 9.d4!? looks more critical to
my mind. g7 10.h6 f6 11.g5 0-0
12.e3 is at least somewhat better for
White. ) 9...c6 10.c4 e6 11.g3 g7
12.h4 b8 13.g5 e5 14.xe5 xe5
Black's doing well, Peng Xiaomin (2657)-
Svidler, P (2689)/New Delhi/Teheran 2000. ]
[ 8...c6 9.e5 ]
[ 8...c6 9.xb7 b8 10.xb8 xb8
almost looks like promising counterplay, but
White has 11.e4! g7 12.g3 f5 13.c2
e5 14.d3 c4 15.g2 0-0 16.0-0 cxd3
Hera, I (2530)-Roganovic, M (2458)/
S z o m b a t h e l y H U N 2 0 0 8 , 17.exd3
planning Ng5. ]
9.g3!? Safe and effective rather than forced,
but the endgame is very pleasant for White.
xg3 10.hxg3 b6 11.e4 g7 12.d4 0-0
13.h6 cxd4 14.xg7 xg7 15.cxd4 d8
16.d2 c6 17.e3 a5 18.c1 h5
19.d3 ac8 20.a6 c6 21.e5
W hite has quite a big advantage here, but
Black has 200 rating points worth of
compensation.
½-½
642 A16
Shimanov,A 2639
Mchedlishvili,M 2640
Nakhchivan Open A 2013 (7.5) 29.04.2013
[Danny Gormally]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
xd5 5.h4 g7 6.h5 An interesting idea
test ed b y n o le sse r playe r th an Aron ian ,
amongst others. The main idea is to
discourage kingside castling by Black. xc3
To some extent this justifies White's idea.
[ By far the most popular and testing idea is
6...c6! to try and generate piece play in the
center as soon as possible. There are now
many possible ideas for White, but as the
theory of this line is relatively new, the way
forward is not exactly clear.
A) 7.d4 g4 8.h6 f6 9.e4?!
perhaps in the spirit of what has gone
before, but this allows Black to launch
strong counterplay ( 9.e3 seems more
c i r c u m s p e c t) 9...db4 10.d5 d4
11.d3 c6! And Black had obvious
counterplay and went on to win in
Naiditsch, A (2712)-Volokitin, A (2695)/
San Sebastian 2012;
B) 7.e4 b6 ( 7...db4 seems eminently
playable, for example 8.d3 g4 ) 8.b5
g4 9.h6 f6 10.d4 xf3 11.xf3 xd4
12.e3 d6 13.f4 e6 14.0-0 0-0
15.xc6 bxc6 16.fe1 1/2-1/2 Vallejo
Pons, F (2705)-Svidler, P (2755)/Porto
Carras 20116 ]
7.bxc3 c5 8.g3! This may seem a rather
strange switch to positional play, but the fact
that White is opening the h-file just gives him
a n o t h e r a t t a c ki n g o p t i o n , t o g o wit h t h e
normal pressure. c6
[ 8...0-0 9.hxg6 hxg6 10.a4 e5 11.g2 ]
9.g2 e6 10.a4 a5 11.f4?
Still harbouring attacking ambitions, but this
could have backfired horribly.
[ 11.xa5 xa5 12.g5 ]
11...f5? Black prepares the idea of taking on
c3, but there was no need and it should have
been played immediately
[ 11...xc3! 12.b1 xa2 13.xb7 0-0-0!
An easy move to miss in the calculations, it
turns out Black has everything covered!
14.0-0 xb7 15.dxc3 f6 and although
639
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

W hite retains some chances due to the 8.f4 is probably okay for Black if he
murkiness of the play, Black is certainly reacts quickly, but it's not easy, e.g., 0-0
better after 16.e3 xc3 ] 9.d1 c6 10.e3 c8!? 11.e2 b4
12.g4! xc3 now this is just unclear. 13.dxc3 Postny, E-Huzman, Israel 2003 and here
xc3+ 14.d2 xa1 15.gxf5 gxf5 16.0-0 12.b3!? was worth a try in view of a5
g8 17.h1 d8 18.c2 xg2? panic. 13.e4 c5!? 14.c1 c4 15.d1
[ White still had to prove he was better after , although it's only +=) 8...0-0 ( 8...g4
18...e6 ] 9.e5 e6 10.e3 0-0 11.f4 c6 12.e2
19.xg2 g7+ 20.h1 g4 21.g1 8d7 13.d1 Arsovic-Cornette,
xh5+ 22.h2 d4 23.g5 h3 24.xc5 Obrenovac 2004) 9.e3 c6 ( 9...g4?!
d1+ 25.g1 xg1+ 26.xg1 h5 27.b5 10.e5! Piket-Avrukh, Biel 1999) 10.d5
g6+ 28.f1 b6 29.f3 White has These lines requre further practical tests.
consolidated and Black has an uphill struggle ( Volzhin analyses 10.0-0-0!? g4 11.d5
trying to save the game, which did not last e5 12.e2 bc4 13.d4; and
much longer: d8 30.f4 e6? 31.g5 10.d1!? g4 11.d5 e5 12.e2 xf3
f6 32.xf7+! xf7 33.xc6 13.gxf3 ec4 14.c1 d6 15.f4 )
1-0 10...e5 ( 10...a5? 11.d1 g4?
12.b5 f5 13.b4 1-0 Engel-Estrin, corr
1978 ) 11.xe5 xe5 12.d1 e8
643 A16 ( Volzhin prefers 12...c8!? ) 13.e2 c6
Steingrimsson,Hedinn 2439 14.0-0 cxd5 15.xd5 ( 15.exd5!? c8
Sakalauskas,Vaidas 2464 16.d2 ) 15...xd5 Volzhin-Baikov,
Keres Mem A Tallin EST (1) 08.01.2006 Elista 2001, and here Volzhin suggests
[John Watson] 16.xd5 in vi e w o f g7 17.fd1 c6
18.5d2 ]
For English players who need something 6.e5 White has over a 200 point
versus the Gruenfeld (without transposing, performance rating lead after this move. db4
maybe these Qa4+ ideas deserve a closer 7.a3 g7 8.axb4 xe5 9.b5 b8
look. This game with 5... Nc6 follows theory [ 9...d4 hasn't done very well but deserves
straight through and W hite always stands a look: 10.e3
better, even in the side notes. It seems that A) 10...e6!? 11.d4 g7 ( 11...d6
5...Bd7 is still the most important move. 1.c4 12.h4!? g7!? 13.e2 d7 14.f3 c8
f6 2.f3 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5 xd5 15.e4 a5 Fuchs-Schneider, Eppingen
5.a4+ c6 2004 ) 12.c4 0-0 13.0-0 d7 14.a3
[ This is not uncommon but the main move Rohde-Mirabile, Philadelphia 2003;
must be 5...d7 . Here's a mni-overview, B) 10...f5 11.d4 g7 12.g3!?
using some older games that I find still ( 12.e2 ) 12...0-0 13.g2 d6 14.0-0
relevant: d7 15.b4 e8 16.c5 xb5?!
A) 6.h4 is popular nowadays. xc3 17.xb7 xc3? 18.bxc3 h3 19.e1
7.dxc3 c6 8.e4 e5 9.g5 e7 10.c4 and White is winning, M Ivanov-Desinte
h5!? 11.xe7 ( 11.0-0-0 f6! ) 11...xe7 Charleroi 2004. ]
12.xe7+ xe7 13.d5 h4 14.h3 f6 10.e3 Why shouldn't White stand better? He
15.0-0-0 d8! = Vallejo Pons-Ivanchuk, has solid development and more importantly
Monte Carlo 2005.; a central majority. 0-0
B) 6.d4 and; [ 10...d7 11.d4 g7 12.e2 0-0 13.0-0
C) 6.b3 are also played, and in fact the b6 14.c2 ( 14.a2 e6 15.b3
latter has scored rather well. I suspect has also been played) 14...f5?! ( 14...e5
that Black can equalise, however.; is natural, although I still like W hite after
D) 6.c2 I prefer this option, although 15.dxe5 xe5 16.e4 intending f4, for
there are three fully legitimate alternatives: example, h4 17.g3 h3 18.e3 e6
b6 7.d4 g7 8.e4 ( very Gruenfeld-like. ? but f4 follows regardless) 19.f4 g7

640
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
20.f5 ) 15.e4 d7 16.d1 e6 17.e3
wi t h a s o li d a d va n t a g e , K u s t a r - P ri b yl ,
Bayern 2004. ]
11.e2
[ 11.d4 g7 12.e2 c6 13.0-0 a6!
( 13...e6 14.f3 is unpleasant) 14.bxc6
xc6 is essentially a tempo up on our game
for Black, but White seems to be a bit better
regardless: 15.d1 ( 15.b3!? ) 15...d7
16.b3 b5 17.e4 f5 18.g3 d7
19.d2 e6 20.a3 J Rubinetti-Zukerfeld,
Tres de Febrero 2003 ]
11...c6 12.0-0 cxb5
[ 12...a6! 13.bxc6 xc6 14.d4 g7 15.f3
again gains Black a sort of 'tempo' - see the
last note. ]
13.xb5 c6 14.d4 g7 15.f3 a6
16.b3 a7 What else? 17.a4 b8!?
[ 17...e6? 18.d5 a5 19.b4 ]
[ 17...a5 18.a3 ( or 18.xc6 bxc6
19.c5 )]
18.d2 d7 19.fc1 e5?
[ Maybe 19...b5 , but White is clearly better. ]
20.d5? White is clearly better but could have
gained a decisive advantage:
[ 20.b4 e8 21.d5 ]
20...b5 21.c5 xc5 22.xc5 d7 23.e4
Black's position is just bad, and he went on to
lose: b8 24.e3 a8 25.c3 d8 26.a5
f8 27.b4 d6 28.ac1 b7 29.c7 xc7
30.xc7 b8 31.g5 e8 32.g4 h5
33.h3 f5 34.xd8 xd8 35.b6 f7
36.g3 a5 37.exf5 g5 38.f6 xd5 39.d7
c4 40.d8+ h7 41.xa8 c1+ 42.f1
c4 43.a7+
1-0
644
Tkachiev,Vladislav
Sutovsky,Emil
8th Karpov Poikovsky RUS (3) 17.03.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7
5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 a6 7.d4 b5 8.b3 c5
[ 8...c6 was the move Svidler chose
against Navarra - see the February 2007
update ]
9.dxc5 g7 10.e4 0-0
[ 10...c6 11.e2 e6 is an alternative
which was played on a couple of occasions
in W ijk aan Zee this year in the groups B
and C. These games were discussed in the
notes to the aforementioned Navarra-
Svidler. ]
11.e2 c6 12.e5 fd7 13.e3 xe5
14.xe5 xe5 15.0-0
[ 15.d1 is Topalov-Svidler, Morelia/Linares
2007, which is analysed separately. ]
15...c7
[ 15...e6 16.a4 bxa4 17.xa4 c7 18.f4
g7 19.b6 is already very good for White,
and Gelfand drove the victory home: a7
20.fd1 e8 21.c4 h6 22.f1 b7
23.f2 d7 24.xd7 xd7 25.xa6 xa6
26.xa6 g7 27.d2 a7 28.b6 a8
29.b5 xb5 30.xb5 b8 31.c4 a1+
32.f2 xb2 33.c6 xd2+ 34.xd2 a7+
35.e2 c7 36.a5 c8 37.c7 f8
38.c6 f5 39.c3 f7 40.e5 e7
41.d3 g5 42.g3 gxf4 43.gxf4
1-0 Gelf and, B-Svidler, P/Moscow RUS
2006 ]
16.f4 g7 17.ad1
[ In comparison with the Gelfand-Svidler
game, the 17.a4 idea isn't as effective,
since after bxa4 18.xa4 d7 Black will
put a rook on b8 with a decent game ]
[ However, 17.fd1!? may be worth a
thought. A transposition to the Gelfand-
Svidler game is still possible, and if Black
tried to avoid it, with, say, b7 then 18.d5
e6 19.b6 a7 20.f1 is pleasantly better
for White ]
17...e6 18.c2
[ 18.a4 can also be considered, e.g. bxa4
19.xa4 d7 20.b6 xb6 21.cxb6 b7
22.f3 xf3 23.xf3 fd8 24.ff1
A16 and while White's advantage is by no means
2649 winning, he clearly has the upper hand
2629 t h a n k s t o t h e p a s s e d p a wn o n b 6 a n d
Black's queen's obligation to stop it: f6
25.xd8+ xd8 26.d1 xd1+ 27.xd1
with excellent winning chances for White. ]
18...b7 19.f2
[ 19.f3 xf3 20.xf3 c6 21.e4 b4
22.b1 ad8 23.d6 c6 and the knight
on b4 will retreat to d5 with a fine game for
Black. ]
19...a5 20.d6!? d7 21.xc6 xc6
22.f3 a6 23.xa8 xa8 24.e4
641
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 24.d2!? is also worth consideration: f6
25.d6 c8 26.xb5 d5 27.d4 f8
28.f5 ( 28.e4 xd6 29.xd6 d7 30.f5
28 leads ultimately to the same as f5)
28...xd6 29.xd6 d7 30.e4 gxf5
31.h4 f6 32.xf6 xf6 33.xf6 a7
34.g5+ and now the players can agree to a
draw af te r h8 35.f6+ g8 36.g5+
h8 37.f6+ ]
24...f6 25.xf6+ xf6 26.d2
27.e4 c6 28.xc6 xc6 29.b3
[ 29.d7!? c o u l d b e w o r t h a t r y xb2
30.b7 b4 31.a7 c3 32.xa5 h5
A) 33.b5 g7 ( 33...a6?
xa2 35.b8+ g7 36.c6 wins for
White ) 34.b6 c7 35.f1
and Black is okay;
B) 33.a7 g7 34.f2 e5 35.fxe5
xe5 36.f3 f6+ 37.e4 e6 38.d5
and White has definite winning chances, e.
g. xh2 39.d4+ f8 40.c6 ]
29...e7 30.f1 f8 31.e2
and now after 32.a4 White decided to offer a
draw which Black accepted.
[ 32.a3 f6 33.d3 c7
would have left White with an edge ]
½-½
645
Topalov,Veselin
Kamsky,Gata
WCh Candidates (1.4) 08.05.2011
[Nigel Davies]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
xd5 5.c2
[ I'm not sure if the line 5.b3 b6 6.d4
g7 7.f4 e6 is an English or a Gruenfeld,
it can come about via either move order, but
is more commonly arrived at via 1.c4 or 1.
Nf3. So I've relegated it to the notes even
though there was an innovation by Topalov.
After 8.a3 c6 he played the super sharp
A) 9.e3 had been played in a couple of
earlier Kamsky games, for example a5
10.e2 ( 10.b5 0-0 11.xc6 bxc6
12.c5 d5 13.e5 xc3 14.xc3
d5 15.xg7 xg7 16.0-0 xf3 17.gxf3
d5 18.fc1 a6 19.c4 g5+ 20.f1
b6 21.b3 d8 22.c2 1/2-1/2 Eljanov,
P -K a m sky, G / O h rid 2 0 0 9) 10...b4
11.0-0 c6 12.g5 d5 13.fc1 h6
14.ge4 c4 15.xd5 xa3 16.c7+
f8 17.bxa3 d5 18.xd5 cxd5
19.c5 gave White compensation for the
queen in Ivanchuk, V-Kamsky, G/Jermuk
2009;
B) 9.0-0-0 A new move from Topalov.
d5 10.g3 h6+ 11.e3 a5 12.h4
c8 cb4 13.h5 c6 14.hxg6 hxg6 15.d2 f6
16.e4 b6 17.e2 c8 18.h4 f7
was more dangerous for White's king than
it was for Black's in Topalov, V-Kamsky, G/
34.b6 Kazan RUS 2011. ]
5...g7 6.e4 b6 7.d4 0-0 Despite its
f6 Gruenfeldy appearance, this position is only
ever reached via 1.c4 or 1.Nf3. 8.e3 g4
9.e5 xe5 A radical way of playing the
position.
[ In earlier games Black has played mainly
9...e6 , for example 10.0-0-0!? ( 10.d1
e8 c6 11.e2 8d7 12.0-0 xe5 13.dxe5
c8 14.f4 g4 was OK for Black in Malich,
B-Vladimirov, E/Halle 1976; as was 10.f4 c6
34.c2 11.d1 8d7 12.e2 f5 13.d5 cxd5
14.exd5 f7 15.xf7 xf7 16.0-0 c8
17.b3 c5 in Malich, B-Schmidt, W /
Zinno witz 197 3) 10...c6 11.f4 c8
12.b1 xe5 13.dxe5 c6 14.c5 e8
A16 15.f2 g4 16.d2 c7 17.c2 ad8
2775 18.e3 c8 19.e2 b8 20.g4
2732 st a rt e d a m a s sive kin gsid e b u ild u p i n
Koneru, H-Nadig, K/Calicut 2003. ]
10.dxe5 c6 11.h3 e6 12.d1 c8 13.f4
d8 14.b3! This makes sense as taking
control of c4 shuts down both the b6 knight
and e6 bishop. It also happens to be a new
move.
[ 14.e2 b4 15.b1 xd1+ 16.xd1
was played in an earlier game Pogorelov, R-
Fernandez Barrera, V/Albacete 2009, and
now Black should probably have played c4
with annoying counterplay. ]
14...b4
[ 14...xd1+ 15.xd1 e8 followed by 16...
Rd8 is also worth considering here as the
c6 knight keeps the option of going to d4. ]
15.xd8+ xd8 16.b1 f5 17.exf6 exf6
18.e2 e7 19.0-0 White is slightly better
now because of his bishop pair. Not to
mention the fact that Black would probably
642
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
prefer to have his g6 pawn back on g7. f7
20.f2 d8 21.d1 xd1+ 22.xd1 c5
23.f1
[ Another possibility was 23.f3 and after c4
24.bxc4 xc4 25.d4 c6 26.c5
White still has an edge. ]
23...c6 24.g3 g7 25.g2 h5 26.b5
c8 27.d2 c4 28.bxc4 xc4 29.d4
b4 30.c1 The position would also favour
White after a queen exchange thanks to his 7...g7
two bishops. But Topalov still wants to play
against Black's weakened king. 8e7 31.a3
a4 32.b2 b6 33.h2 f7 34.c3 a2
35.f5
[ 35.xc6 xc6 36.d4 was the quiet way
t o p la y it , o n ce a g a in wit h a n e d ge f o r aggressive: 7...b5 8.h4
White. ]
35...c4 36.b2 e5 37.d2 g5 38.e6
7c6? Letting White in.
[ 38...b3 was better. ]
39.d6! e8 40.c7+ f7 41.d5 e2
42.xf6+ e8 43.e6+ f8 44.g1?
After this neither king can find safety.
[ 44.h6+ f7 45.g1 f3+ 46.h1
would have left Black with nothing, though
this isn't easy to accept at first. ]
44...d1+ 45.f1 xd5 46.exd5 d4
47.f6+ g8 48.xg5+ f7 49.d8 c2
50.g2 c1+ 51.h2 c2 52.g1 df3+
53.h1 e1 54.f2 xf2 55.c7+ f6
56.d6+ f7 57.c7+ f6 58.d6+ f7
½-½
646 A16
Topalov,Veselin 2777
Shirov,Alexei 2741
XXIII Rapid Open rapid (9) 03.08.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7
5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 a6 7.d3
[ As far as I know, this move have not been
played in this position before. White aims for
a position where Black doesn't have the
usual Grunfeld counterplay against White's
centre. The main line is 7.d4 which we have
discussed several times previous,
including Topalov-Svidler, Morelia 2007,
which can be found in the PGN archives. ]
[ Also 7.e4 of interest - see the PGN
archives for Krasenkow-Mikhalevski, Saint
Vincent 2000 ]
[ F i n a l l y a l s o 7.g3 has been seen with
frequency, though it is decidedly tamer than
the previous two options. Topalov has also
tried this line some years back and on this
site we examined the game-Damljanovic-
Arashchenko, Plovdiv 2008 not too long
ago. ]
[ In one of the few games I have found, that
pertained to this variation, Black by
transposition reached this position in in
Lechtynsky-Zezulkin, Czech Rep 2003 by
transposition and now played the
A) Black is clearly concerned about White
playing Bh6, which may or may not be
just if ie d . Bla ck can inst ead cons ide r
8...c6!? 9.g3 ( 9.h6?! xh6 10.xh6
e6 is comfortable for Black) 9...g7
10.g2 0-0 11.0-0 with an interesting
game, though I prefer White's chances;
B) 8...h6!? 9.a4 c6!? ( 9...c6!?
can also be considered, e.g. 10.d4 g7
11.e4 a5 12.e2 a6 13.axb5 b4
14.0-0 cxb5 with a complicated position
and chances for both sides) 10.axb5 axb5
11.xa8 xa8 12.xb5 a5+ 13.c3
B1) Black has an interesting alternative
in 13...a1!? which immediately forces
W h i t e t o gi ve u p t h e r igh t t o c a s t l e
14.d1 ( 14.d2 gives Black a nasty
initiative: g7 15.e3 a5 16.e2 0-0
, and Black obviously has more than
enough for the pawn) 14...g7 15.e3
0-0 16.a4 a8 17.xa1 xa1
18.e2 e6 19.d2 g4 20.f1 a5
21.d1 c5 , and Black's activity provides
him with full compensation for the pawn,
but probably not more than that.;
B2) 13...g4 14.g3?! ( Now White
ends up in severe trouble. Instead White
could have reached a reasonably
comfortable position with 14.e3! a1
15.d1 g7 16.d4 , and White will be
able to complete his development and
then start worrying about consolidating
his pawn advantage.) 14...a1 15.f4
e5 16.d2 b4 17.h3 f6 , and Black
is already completely tied up. The rest of
643
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
the game wasn't particularly pleasant for
White: 18.d1 d4 19.xd4 exd4
20.d2 xb2 21.a2 xd2+ 22.xd2
a1+ 23.c1 0-0 24.g4 a8 25.f4?
( 25.f3 d5 doesn't appeal either, but at
l e a s t i t d o e s n ' t l o s e o n t h e s p o t .)
25...c6 26.g1 a2 27.xa2 xc1+
28.f2 xf4+ 29.e1 c1+ 30.f2
e3+ 31.e1 xg1 0-1 Lechtynsky, J-
Zezulkin, J/Czech Rep 2003 ]
8.g3 0-0
[ To claim that the text move is a mistake is
perhaps taking it a bit too far, but I think
Black is playing a little too much with the
auto pilot on. Black has two very reasonable
alte rn a tive s in 8...e6!? 9.b4 ( both
9.c5 d5; and 9.a4+ b5 are also fine
for Black ) 9...c8 10.g2 c6 , and Black
seems to be doing well. ]
[ or 8...c6 9.g2 e6 with chances to
both sides. ]
9.g2 c6
[ In another game, also reached by
transposition, Black tried 9...c6 10.0-0 e5
11.h4 ( 11.d1!? b5 12.c5 e8
is also pleasant for White )
A) Or 11...g4 12.xd8 axd8 13.h3
f6 ( 13...h6 14.d2 f5 15.fc1 )
14.g5 b8 15.ac1 fe8 16.e3;
B) 11...f5 12.h6 g4 13.xg7 xg7
14.xd8 axd8 15.fc1 c8 16.e4
f6 17.xf6 ( White can also consider
the 'Dragon' move 17.xc6 , which also
leads to an advantage for White after bxc6
18.xe5 xe4 19.xe4 , but White
undoubtedly found this to be unnecessary
as the game continuation leaves W hite
with a nagging positional plus and no
much hope for counterplay f or Black.)
17...xf6 18.f1 d7 19.d2 e7
20.b3 b8 21.c5 f6 22.ac1
, and White has a fairly clear advantage,
J a r a c z , P - B rk i c, A / N o va G o r i c a S L O
2005 ]
10.0-0 bd7 11.f4 xf3
[ This move looks decidedly radical, handing
over the bishop pair to White without really
b e i n g f o r c e d t o d o s o . T h e a l t e rn a t ive
11...b6 is of less consequence, but also
promises White the better chances. 12.b3
fd5 13.xd5 xd5 14.c2 e5 15.g5
f6 16.e3 d7 17.ac1 ]
12.xf3 c6 13.b4 b6 14.b3 a5
15.e3
[ 15.ac1!? is also worth a thought ]
15...fd5 16.c5
[ White can win a pawn with 16.xd5 xd5
17.xb7 , but Black gets reasonable
compensation after xe3 18.fxe3 h6
19.f2 b8 20.xc6 xb2 21.fb1 b8
, and the opposite coloured bishops and the
we a k e 3 - p a wn p r o m i s e s B l a c k d e c e n t
counterchances ]
16...d7 17.a3 5b6 18.fd1 e8
19.e4 a4 20.c2 d5 21.ac1
W h i t e h a s o n e o f t h o s e s m a l l, b u t c l e a r
advantages that are so difficult to neutralize
and which will keep you on the defensive
forever. Black's defensive task in rapid play
ga m e su ch a s t h is ga m e is ve ry dif f ic u lt
because any break for activity will likely only
increase White's advantage. b6 22.c3
b4 23.d2
[ White can also claim an edge after 23.xb4
xb4 24.d4 a3 25.b3 ad8 26.e3
, but keeping the bishop pair is a far better
option as Black's task will be more difficult
with more pieces on the board and no active
plans where they can be of any use. ]
23...e6 24.d4 ed8 25.e3 d5 26.c2
b4 27.e2 f6 28.c4 f8 29.g2 a5
30.e2 White is not in any rush, his
advantage is not running anywhere. bd5
31.xf8 xf8 Finally Black managed to
eliminate White's pair of bishops, but Black is
still suffering from a lack of counterplay, thus
preserving an edge for White. 32.a3
[ 32.e4!? ]
32...g7 33.a2
[ 33.e4!? e7 34.c4 ]
33...b6 34.c2 b3 35.c1 b6 36.d3
a5 37.dc1 aa8 38.c4 b5 39.c2
a7 40.c5 White's advantage is slowly but
surely taking on a more definite shape. His
space advantage is significant and Black's
counterplay is still non-existent. da8 41.e4
Finally! b6 42.b4 a5 43.c3 c8
44.g4 fd7 45.h4 Now we have the type of
position we associate with Topalov: full-board
pressure. White's advantage is nearly decisive
at this point. g8 46.e3 e5 47.e2 d8
48.g5 e8 49.e3 f6 50.dxe5 bd5
644
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

51.exd5 xd5 52.d4 this line ]

[ 52.h6! xb4 53.axb4 is even worse for
Black ]
52...xb4 53.axb4 d8 54.d7 b6 55.d1
c5 56.bxc5 bxc5 57.d6 h8 58.c4 e7
59.f6 f8 60.g3 ab7 61.d2 b8
62.xb8+
[ 62.d5! bc7 63.c6 threatens Nd7 and
the pawn on a4, deciding the game
immediately. ]
62...xb8 63.f4 eb7 64.h5 xb2 65.d6
2b7 66.a6 g7 67.g5 gxh5 68.xh5+
f8 69.f6 g7 70.g4 b4 71.d5
d4? 72.a7 bb4 73.xf7+
[ Here White can mate Black with 73.h5!
xd5 74.a8 , and now Black can only
delay mate by giving up his two rooks. ]
73...g6 74.f8??
[ An incredible blunder, undoubtedly caused
by severe time trouble of both players. Here
74.h5! mates, Black can only delay
matters by giving up his two rooks. xf4+
75.xf4+ xf4+ 76.xf4 ]
74...xf4+ 75.g3 fd4?
[ Black can keep White's advantage within
re a c h wi t h 75...f1 76.e6 e1 . In the
game continuation, Black now once again is
losing. ]
76.e6 d3+ 77.f3 bb3? 78.g4 xg5?!
79.e7 xf3+ 80.xf3 b8 81.f6
Up to W hite's 74th move, this game wa s
brilliantly executed by W hite. A beautif ul
game.
1-0
9.dxc5 g7 10.e4 0-0 11.e2 c6 12.e5
fd7 13.e3 xe5 14.xe5 xe5 15.d1
[ 15.0-0 c7 16.f4 as in Tkachiev-Sutovsky
may well be a better try - see the next main
game ]
15...a5
[ Also 15...c7 , preventing White from
castling right away, and 16.d5 xd5
17.xd5 c6 18.f3 ac8 looks okay for
Black ]
16.0-0 e6 17.f4 g7 18.a3 c7 19.c2
[ 19.a4 bxa4 20.xa4 transposes to a line I
have analysed at length in the Tkachiev-
Sutovsky game, here each side has spent
an extra tempo, W hite with a2-a3-a4 and
Black with ...Qd8-a5-c7 ]
19...b4!? played to prevent White from playing
b2-b4 with an uncomfortable bind for Black
20.axb4 b7 21.d6 xb4 22.fd1 a7
23.1d2 d7 24.xd7
[ Here 24.xa6 looks appealing, but after
fd8! 25.xd7 xd7 26.f1 xd2 27.xd2
f8 28.f2 d7 Black wins the c5-pawn
and is by no means worse ]
24...xd7 25.d6 b7 26.d2 f6 27.f1
[ 27.d1!? b8 28.d8+ e8 29.xb8
xb8 leaves White with no more than a
nominal edge ]
27...b8 28.d8+ f8 29.xb8
[ 29.xb8 xb8 30.d4 e7 , and Black
h a s e q u a l i s e d , w h i l e 31.xa6?! a7
32.d3 xc5 33.xc5 xc5+ gives Black
the initiative ]
½-½

647 A16
Topalov,Veselin 2783 648 A16
Svidler,Peter 2728 Turov,Maxim 2586
XXIV SuperGM (4) 21.02.2007 Hansen,Eric 2584
[Carsten Hansen] Oslo op (8) 29.09.2013
[Fier, Alexandr]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+
So Topalov gets in on the f un as well, This line has been the subject of some recent
undoubtedly hoping to get something like the games. Black believes the structural
position Gelfand obtained against Svidler in disadvantage is not enough to bring any real
Moscow 2006 - see the notes to the next main a d va n t a ge f o r W h it e . S t ill it 's a ri s k le s s
game. d7 5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 a6 7.d4 position to play and Black can suffer
b5 8.b3 c5 sometimes. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5
[ 8...c6 was Svidler's choice against xd5 4.f3 g6 5.a4+ c6 The most
Navarra - see the February 2007 update for forcing move here

645
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 5...d7 is the most played and was
recently tried by Giri
A) 6.h4 was Ni Hua's preference and his
game was analyzed for Chess Publishing
c6 ( 6...xc3 is another option 7.bxc3!?
c5 8.b1 Gajewski, G (2653)-Tomczak, J
(2564)/ POL-ch Chorzow 2013.) 7.d4
g8 8.e5 with an exotic position in Ni
Hua (2667)-Li Chao2 (2613)/6th TCh-CHN
Ningbo CHN 2010.;
B) 6.b3 b6 7.d4 g7 8.e4
trying to transpose to the Russian variation
of the Grünf eld with the bishop on d7
instead of c8. The verdict is still not clear,
Wang Hao (2737) -Giri, A (2720)/Beijing
Sportaccord blitz 2012. ]
[ 5...c6 is not so goo d 6.d4 f6 7.e4
and White has a comfortable game, as seen
in Li, C (2686)-Tazbir, M (2561)/Universiad
Men 2013. ]
6.e5 d6
[ 6...db4 was tried on several occasions
but the ball is in Black's court in this position
7.a3 g7 8.axb4 xe5 9.b5 b8
a n d h e r e b o t h 10.e3 ( and 10.g3
are enough for an advantage )]
7.xc6 xc6 8.xc6+ bxc6 9.b3
I think developing the queenside, where White
has some weak points, is more important
than bringing the bishop to g2.
[ 9.g3 Black has decent results after this
move g7 10.g2 e6 and Black's pieces
are active enough to bring counterplay. It
was analyzed in Petrosian, T (2661)-Gupta,
A (2627) - see the Archive. ]
9...xc3 Going to an almost symmetric
endgame but not with many chances for Black.
My preference would be to keep the knights
on:
[ 9...b4 immediately questioning the
queenside looks more interesting 10.d1
e6 11.b2 g7 12.c1 was played in
some games and it's still not clear how
W hite is going to finish his development.
The main plan is to play Na4-c5, so probably
Black can slightly improve from the played
games with
A) 12...0-0 this was played by Shankland,
but after 13.Na4 the position can become
annoying at some point, 13.a4 h6
( 13...xb2+ 14.xb2 with 12...Rd8 this is
not possible ) 14.c5;
B) 12...0-0-0 I'm not sure the king belongs
on the queenside and sometimes the rook
is more useful on the a or b-files, 13.d3 f5
14.a4 was more comfortable for White in
Maksimenko, A (2554)-Le Roux, J (2551)/
POL-chT Warsaw 2012 (3.4).;
C) 12...d8N this is basically aimed
against 13.Na4 since the pawn on d2 is
a t t a ck e d n o w 13.d3 ( 13.a4 xb2+
14.xb2 0-0 15.a4 d5 defending c5
and soon Rdf8 will follow) 13...0-0 14.a4
d5 with a complex position. ]
10.b2
[ 10.dxc3 the bishop on g7 is more active
than the bishop on b2, and after c4 White is
going to exchange it anyway, so better to do
it immediately g7 11.b2 a5 12.0-0-0 a4
13.c4 xb2+ 14.xb2 e6 enters the
same kind of position as in the game, but
with the pawn already committed to c4. ]
10...g7 11.xc3 xc3 12.dxc3
The endgame starts here. I'm always afraid to
enter into early endgames where my opponent
might have studied all the plans and doesn't
have to make a real move with the head.
White's plan is to expand the pawns on the
kingside, and the king will be well centralized
on e3. One of the key squares is c5, so Black
probably needs to advance the c-pawn to
control the position. e6
[ 12...a5 tries to get rid of one weak pawn
and it's a respectable alternative. I thought
about two plans for White
A) 13.e3 to keep open the option of Bd3-
e4 at some point e6 14.d3 a4 15.b4
a3 ( 15...0-0 16.a3 and the a4-pawn can
be an important factor later in the
endgame ) 16.d2 and again White
needs to be careful with ...c5 and
invasions on the b-file since the pawn on
a2 needs to be defended. But if nothing
happens White should be better
( 16.e4?! 0-0-0 is too active for Black );
B) 13.g3 e6 14.g2 d5
B1) 15.0-0!? trying to quickly activate
t h e p i e c e s a4 16.e4 e6 17.f4
with the idea of f5 and bringing the king
to e3 again axb3 ( 17...0-0 18.f5 c8
19.g4 is comfortable) 18.axb3 0-0
19.b4 and White always needs to take
646
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

care of ...c5, but maybe there is some 649 A16

slight advantage.; Vaganian,Rafael A 2650
B2) 15.e4 e6 16.c4 c5 was not much Nedev,Trajce 2514
in Liascovich, L (2409) -Bacallao Alonso, World Teams Yerevan ARM (2) 13.10.2001
Y (2580)/Pinamar Carilo 2012. ] [Tony Kosten]
13.e4 0-0-0
[ 13...a5 is once again possible, and I 1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 d5
believe it's the best plan, 14.d2 a4 15.b4 5.cxd5 xd5 6.0-0 c6!?
a3 with a similar kind of position as that [ 6...c5 is more normal, with a transposition
analyzed in 12...a5. ] to [A38]. ]
14.a6+ b8 15.e2 d6 16.e3 c5 7.c3 b6 8.d3 0-0 9.e3 e5 Bringing
17.e2 The first part of the plan is complete, play into a Reversed Dragon-style position,
t h e k i n g i s we l l p l a c e d , n o w i t ' s t i m e t o except that the black dark-squared bishop is
advance the pawns. f6 18.f4 hd8 19.ad1 on g7 here, not e7. 10.a4
Exchanging one rook is good to avoid any [ White plays a typical Dragon schema, but
counterplay on the d-file. xd1 20.xd1 10.c1 is also not bad, intending Bh6. ]
But two rooks is too much! c4 Black needs to 10...a5 11.xb6!? This is just like the
be active and get rid of the c-pawns. 21.c2 Hodgson-Gormally game, under [A29]. cxb6
c5 22.f5! gxf5 This is committal, weakening 12.b5!?
the pawn structure but giving the bishop the [ An innovation, placing the knight on the fine
d5-square. b5-square. Previously White had preferred
[ 22...f7 would be solid and can lead to a 12.d2 , when e6 13.c4 e8 14.b3
funny variation, 23.fxg6 cxb3 ( 23...hxg6 a6 15.e4 e7 was unclear in Ree,H-
24.h4 and White can create a dangerous Benko,P/Wijk aan Zee 1970. ]
p a s s e d p a wn) 24.axb3 ( 24.gxf7 bxc2 12...e6 13.d2 As in the above game, the
25.c1 f8 26.xc2 xf7 should be ok for knight heads for c4. In return for his dark-
Black ) 24...xg6 ( 24...hxg6 25.h4 ) 25.a1 squared bishop White has devalued the black
and White is better. ] queenside structure, and gained two good
23.exf5 d5 24.d1 d6 25.g4 c7 square f or knights on c4, and b5. Still, a
So far things are under control 26.b4 b6 bishop is a bishop! e7 14.c1 ac8
[ 26...cxb4 changes the position 27.cxb4 15.c4 d4! Black contests the b5-knight's
b6 with ...c3 and ...Bc4 ideas, and maybe position. 16.bd6?!
...a5 to exchange another pawn ] [ I think that this move is verging on the
27.h4 h6 28.e4 xe4?? This is just losing. dubious, but White clearly wasn't happy with
[ 28...f7 was the move, and after 29.b1 16.xd4 exd4 17.xb6 xc1 18.xc1
( 29.xd6+ exd6 30.bxc5+ xc5 31.b7 b4 with more than enough play for the
d5 and it looks like everything is under pawn. ]
control. ) 29...d5 30.c2 White is trying to 16...cd8
go lef t and right and Black needs to be [ Missing the lovely queen sac 16...xd6!
careful. ] 17.xd6 xc1 18.d2 ( 18.xc1 xe2+
29.xd6+ exd6 30.xe4 d5+ is t h e p o in t) 18...c2 19.g5 xe2+
[ 30...c7 31.b5 and the king enters on d5 ] 20.h1 xb2 when Black is clearly on top,
[ 30...cxb4 31.cxb4 ( 31.g5 also works hxg5 his piece s have go od square s, and th e
32.hxg5 b3 33.axb3 cxb3 but the king is in extra queenside pawn (assuming W hite
time 34.d3+- ) 31...d5+ 32.d4 captures on b7) is useful. ]
followed by g5 winning ] 17.e3
31.xd5 cxb4 32.xc4 Maybe this is what [ 17.xb7? d7 traps the knight. ]
Black missed. bxc3 33.xc3 c5 34.b3 17...f5?!
d5 35.b4 e5 36.c5 [ 17...c6 18.b5 f5 is better, targeting
1-0 the d3-pawn.. ]
18.b5 b4 The b6-pawn couldn't be

647
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
defended anyway. 19.xb7 e7 20.g2
xc4 21.xc4 xb2 Black regains his pawn,
b u t s t r u c t u r a l l y h e i s w o r s e . 22.e1
With a nasty threat of Re2. a2 23.f1!
[ Black stops 23.e2?? b e c a u s e o f xc4
as the d-pawn is pinned. ]
23...xc4 24.dxc4 xd1 25.xd1
Despite the opposite-colour bishops W hite
has the advantage because he owns the d-file
and threatens to molest the b6-pawn. c6?
[ I feel that Black should open the a1-h8
diagonal for his bishop, whilst
simultaneously closing the h1-a8 one, by
25...e4! 26.d6 c8 and there is no
obvious way that White can bring his bishop
into the game, as Black will continue with ...
f5. ]
26.d6 c8 27.g2 This is why Black's 25th
move was a mistake, the white bishop will
come to d5 and attack f7. e4?!
[ It is easy to understand why Black prefers
this pawn sac to 27...b4 28.d5 xd5
29.cxd5 , b u t a f t e r c4 30.xb6 xa4
31.d6 a1+ 32.g2 d1 Black has
reasonable drawing chances. ]
28.xe4 e5 29.d5 xc4 30.d7 e5
31.b7 The respective activity of the pieces
says it all. c5 32.e4 c2 33.d6 d2
34.xb6 This is better than capturing the f-
pawn, as he will be able to attack it again later.
f8 35.a6 h5 This hastens the end.
36.xf7! xf7 37.xg6+ g7 38.g5
The pretty point, Rf5 is the immediate threat.
c2 39.xh5 c7 40.f5 The simplest,
White will exchange the rooks and play with
f o u r p a w n s a g a i n s t a l o n e b i s h o p . f8
41.g2 d4 42.h4 g7 43.xf7+ xf7
44.xf7 xf7 45.f4 e6 46.g4 d6
The only chance is to capture the a4-pawn
and run his own, but the white pawns arrive
much too quickly. 47.g5 c5 48.h5 b4
49.h6
[ 49.h6 xa4 50.g6 b4 51.g7
crowns a queen long before Black. ]
1-0
650 A16
Vallejo Pons,Francisco 2706
Safarli,Eltaj 2660
Wch Rapid Khanty-Mansiysk (6) 07.06.2013
[Fier, Alexandr]
h4-h5 lines are tried in many different
positions and are not always working. In the
Anti-Grunfeld it's in fashion now, but I'm still
not sure if it's sound. To spend 2 moves to
open the file is sometimes too expensive. But
if White manages to finish his development
the attack can be dangerous, as seen here.
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
xd5 5.h4 g7 6.h5 c6
[ 6...xc3 7.bxc3 c5 8.g3 is analyzed in
Shimanov, A (2639)-Mchedlishvili, M (2640)/
Nakhchivan Open A 2013 2013 (7.5)/1-0 ]
7.d4 f5
[ 7...g4
A) 8.h6 was played before, and after f6
9.e4?! ( 9.e3 0-0= ) 9...db4! 10.d5
( 10.a3 xd4 11.axb4 xf3+ 12.gxf3
xc3+ 13.bxc3 xd1+ 14.xd1 xf3+ )
10...d4 And White was already in trouble
in Naiditsch, A (2712)-Volokitin, A (2695)/
San Sebastian KO 2011;
B) 8.hxg6 hxg6 9.xh8+ xh8 10.e4
b6 ( 10...db4 without a rook on h1 this
doesn't work 11.a3 ) 11.d5 with a double-
edged position ]
8.b3
[ 8.g5 may be an interesting option d6
9.h6 f6
A) 10.xd5
A1) 10...xg5 11.c3 f6 can't be
good ( 11...f6 12.e4 wins );
A2) 10...xd5 11.xf6 exf6 12.e3
0-0-0 with an unbalanced position;
B) 10.xf6 xf6 11.e3 0-0 12.e2
with a playable position for both sides ]
8...xc3
[ 8...e6!? is a solid option and if White
doesn't want to draw, he needs to enter into
a not so exciting position
A) 9.d1 f5= ( 9...g4 transposes );
B) 9.xb7 i s n o t g o o d db4 10.b5
d7 11.d1 c2 12.xc2 xd4+
13.xd4 xb5 14.dxb5 c6 15.a3
xc3 16.bxc3 a5 is better for Black,
White's pieces are not coordinated at all;
648
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

C) 9.hxg6 hxg6 10.xh8+ xh8 11.d1 15.0-0-0 exd4?! Black underestimates

and I don't see why W hite would be White's attacking chances and gives him too
better ] much liberty. Now the position becomes too
9.bxc3 0-0 10.hxg6 dangerous.
[ 10.xb7 is not in the style of the position, [ 15...h8 it's necessary to exchange the
White has more important issues than taking rooks without letting White's queen get to e3
a pawn 16.dxe5 e7 17.xh8 xh8 18.b5 e6
A) 10...e4 is tempting but it looks like 19.b2 g7 with compensation for the
W hite survives 11.hxg6 hxg6 12.a3 pawn. ]
b8 13.a6 xf3 14.gxf3 xd4! 16.cxd4 e7?
15.cxd4 xd4 16.c1 b1! 17.d3 [ 16...h8 is not a move to make one happy,
( 17.xb1 c3+ 18.d1 d8+-+ ) but at the cost of a pawn Black can finish
17...xc1+ 18.xc1 a1 19.d2 developing his pieces 17.xh8 xh8 18.d5
( 19.d1 b2 20.d2 xc1 21.xc1 d8 19.c3+ g8 20.xc7 g4 21.b1
d8+-+ ) 19...xa2+ 20.d1 a4+ c8 22.a5 but White is still a clear passed
21.d2 a2+=; pawn up. ]
B) 10...d7 11.hxg6 hxg6 12.b5 ab8 17.e3! Suddenly White's attack is decisive!
13.c5 e5 with good compensation ] With all his pieces aimed at the king there is
10...hxg6 11.h6 no reasonable way to defend the position. h8
[ 11.xb7 is the same ] 18.xh8 xh8 19.c4 g8
11...xh6 12.xh6 g7?! It's not easy to [ 19...g7 20.h1 and now 21.Qh6 will be
understand why, and even more so in a rapid check ]
game, but this move already gives White the 20.h6 f6 21.g5 d8 22.h7! g7
initiative. The rook is not doing much on h6, 23.h4 xh7
but now it's going to fulfil an important role. [ 23...c6 is brutally met by 24.h1 xd4
Central measures where necessary 25.f6+ f8 26.h8+ e7 27.e8+
[ 12...e5! 13.e3 ( 13.xb7 f6 14.a6 xf6 28.xf7+ e5 29.f4+ xe4
exd4 15.xd4 e4 and compared to the ( 29...d6 30.d1 ) 30.xg6+ f5 31.e1+
game, Black's pieces are much more active, xf4 32.f1+ e3 33.h6+ f4
his rooks are ready to take the central files 34.xf4# ]
and W hite's king is not safe) 13...f6!? 24.xd8+ g7 25.xc7 g8 26.d8+
14.xb7 ( 14.h1 ab8 15.e2 g7 g7 27.c7?! This is not so bad, but misses
is comfortable for Black) 14...exd4 15.cxd4 a forcing continuation:
ab8! [ 27.e8! and Black has problems defending
A) 16.a6 g7 17.xc6 ( 17.h1 his king with only the queen h6+ 28.c2
b4-+ ) 17...xh6; f4 ( 28...e6 29.xa8 xc4 30.xa7
B) 16.xc7 fc8 17.f4 b4 18.d1 h5 31.f3+- ) 29.h1 and soon the a8-rook
c2+ 19.d2 xf4 20.exf4 f5 will fall xf2+ 30.b1 ]
and even without queens Black's initiative 27...g8 28.d3 g4 29.f4 c8 30.c3
is still dangerous, maybe W hite can e6 31.d5 d7
defend the position, but he is certainly [ 31...xd5 looks more active, but doesn't
going to have to find some good moves. ] really help 32.exd5 b5 33.d6 bxc4 34.d7!
13.h4! e5 d8 35.e4 h6+ 36.e3 g5 37.d4
[ 13...f6 to play 14...g5 is too optimistic and Black is completely paralyzed. ]
14.e4! g5 15.exf5 gxh4 16.xh4 32.b2 b5 33.b3 xc3 34.xc3 h1
and Black's king is going to suffer. ] 35.d6 a1+ 36.c2 e6 37.d7?
14.e4 c8 Spoiling the game, as now White has no good
[ 14...g5 can be possible, but is hardly a way to avoid the perpetual.
move that any human would play 15.h5 [ 37.d2 White should improve the position
xe4 16.xg5+ h8 17.h5+ g7 of the queen before advancing the pawn,
18.0-0-0 with a powerful attack. ] like this the king has a secure path against

649
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
the checks: xb3+ 38.xb3 b1+ 39.c3
a1+ 40.d3 f8 41.e3 f6 42.d4
g5+ 43.d3 e8 44.xa7+- ]
37...xb3+ 38.axb3 a2+ 39.c1 a1+
40.c2 a2+ 41.c3 a1+ 42.d3 b1+
43.e2 c2+ 44.e1 b1+ 45.e2 c2+
46.d2 xe4+ 47.d1 b1+ 48.e2
e4+ 49.f1 b1+ 50.e2 e4+ 51.d1
½-½
651 A16
Vladimirov,Evgeny 2605
Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar 2542
Open Dubai UAE (6) 22.04.2002
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.a4+ d7
5.b3 dxc4 6.xc4 g7 7.e4 c6
8.d3!? This novelty looks like an ugly move,
but is not without its points, the bishop can
drop back to c2 when W hite will be able to
play d4 without worrying about his e-pawn
which is solidly protected by his bishop and
knight. We have examined the normal
[ 8.d3 in the game Piket,J-Bacrot,E/Escaldes
1998. Otherwise, ]
[ 8.e2!? is interesting, menacing to push
the e-pawn, or d-pawn: h5!? 9.d4!? xd4
(if Black doesn't capture on d4 his 8th move
loses any sense) 10.xd4 xd4 11.h6
keeping the king in the centre, d7 12.d1
e5 13.e3 f5!? unclear, Ehlvest,J-Isaev,J/
Elista 1998. ]
8...a6?!
[ Black aims for a queenside advance, but
two days later (!) Black preferred 8...bd7!
9.c2 e5 (to inhibit d4) 10.0-0 0-0 11.d1
e7 12.d4?! ( 12.b4!? ) 12...exd4 13.xd4
xe4 virtua lly f orced , 14.xe4 xe4
15.f4 ( 15.e1?! c5! ) 15...ec5
16.b5 1/2-1/2 Ehlvest,J-Goloshchapov,A/
Dubai UAE 2002, but Black is better here. ]
9.c2 b5 10.b3 bd7 11.d4 White has
the centre, and Black has no obvious way of
undermining it just yet, the white opening has
been a success! e6 12.0-0 0-0 13.f4 b8
14.fe1 Simple chess - White just puts his
p i e c e s o n g o o d , n a t u r a l s q u a r e s . a5?!
W e a k e n i n g t h e qu e e n si d e , wh i ch W h it e
hastens to exploit. 15.d3! b4 16.a4 b7
17.ac1 Both the c4 and c5 squares are weak,
and the c7-pawn is a fat target sitting on the
open c-file. fd8?!
[ 17...fc8 avoids immediate defeat. ]
18.xc6! xc6 19.c1 b7 20.xc7 b8
All forced. 21.g3!
[ The cool point, defending the bishop and
threatening a nasty discovered attack on the
b l a c k q u e e n . N o t e t h a t 21.g3?
l o s e s c o n t r o l o f c 1 a n d a l l o w s c8!
wh e n W h it e c a n n o t ca p t u r e t h e k n i gh t
because of the back-rank mate. ]
21...e5?? Weak play from someone so highly
classed, the only real try was
[ 21...h5 with 22.xd7 xf4 23.xd8+
xd8 24.gxf4 xd4 White is clearly on top
with two knights for a rook, but the game is
not over yet, not by any means. ]
22.xe5! xe5
[ 22...xc7? lo s e s t h e q u e e n : 23.xf7+
h8 24.xg6+ hxg6 25.xc7 ]
23.xe5 d5 Hopeless, but how else to
defend f7? 24.exd5
1-0
652 A16
Wang Yue 2696
Howell,David 2519
UK-CHN Match (6) 09.09.2007
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.c3 d5 4.cxd5
xd5 5.a4+ d7 6.b3 b6 7.d4 g7
8.f4 0-0 9.e3 e6 10.a3 8d7 11.e2
[ 11.d1 Gives Black three possibilities, all
of which look plausible, and all of which
have been endorsed by super-GMs.
A) 11...a5!? 12.d5 ( 12.e2 c4 )
12...xc3+ 13.bxc3 xd5 14.c4 xf3
15.gxf3 White has quite serious
compensation due to the two bishops,
better coordination and kingside attacking
chances, but the position can only be
classified as 'unclear' and Black's play
can probably be improved. e6 16.h4 f6
17.e2 e5 18.g5 c6 19.h5 f6
20.h6 f7 21.g1 Eljanov, P (2720)-
Vachier Lagrave, M (2716)/Emsdetten
GER 2008, g5!? 22.f4 exf4 23.exf4 e8
unclear.;
650
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
B) 11...c6 12.g5 d5 13.e4
Very Grunfeldesque, but is it any good?
14.dxe5 xe5 15.xe5 ( 15.c1!? )
15...xe5 16.h4 ( 16.f4!? ) 16...e8
17.h5 f6 18.f3 bc4 19.xc4
( 19.b4 looks critical.) 19...xc4 20.b3
d2 21.xb7 f7 22.b4 b8 23.d4
xe4 24.xd2 xf3+ 25.f1 xh5
un cle ar, E lja no v, P (2 68 7)-Svidle r, P
(2746)/ Foros UKR 2008.;
C) 11...d5 12.xd5 xd5 13.e2 e8
14.0-0 c6 15.g3 b6 16.b3 e5
Black's play looks exemplary, but in these
lines freeing the position does not always
g u a r a n t e e e q u a l i t y . 17.xe5
18.dxe5 xe5 19.c4 xc4 20.bxc4
xg3 21.hxg3 It is hard to believe that
Black is worse here, but no less tha n
Shirov managed to lose from this position.
e4 22.d7 ae8 23.c5 b5 24.xa7
a4 25.b6 xb6 26.cxb6 b8 27.b1
xa2 28.b4 c5 29.e4 b2 30.ee7
b1+ 31.h2 xb6 32.xf7
33.g7+ f8 34.xh7 e8 35.d5 cc8
36.e5+ f8 37.xc5 xc5 38.h8+
e7 39.xb8 1-0 Eljanov, P (2687)-
Shirov, A (2740)/Foros UKR 2008 ]
11...c6 Perhaps a bit diffident.
[ 11...c5! seems to be playable and therefore
should be played.
A) 12.dxc5 is of course critical. c4
( 12...xc3+ 13.bxc3 d5 14.h6 e8
15.c6 bxc6 16.0-0 looks a bit better for
White. ) 13.xc4 ( 13.b4
Looks like a useful detail. 14.xc4 a5 )
13...xc4 14.b4 a6 with enduring
compensation because White will probably
have to castle queenside.;
B) 12.0-0 c4 13.a4 db6 14.c2
f5 15.c1 cxd4 16.xd4 d7 17.xc4
xc4 18.d5 e5 Bu Xiangzhi (2714)-
Vachier Lagrave, M (2716)/Dresden GER
2008. ]
12.0-0 c4 13.fd1?!
[ 13.xc4 xc4 14.b3 seems to make it
harder for Black to break with e5. ]
13...xe2 14.xe2 e8 and now White
cannot keep his 'little centre'. 15.a5
16.g3 e5 17.c3 e4 18.xd5 cxd5
19.d2 e6 20.ac1 f5 21.c7 g5
22.d6 xd6 23.xd6 fc8 24.c7 f8
e5 25.c2 e6 26.dc1 f7 27.g3 xd4!?
This move must have been difficult to resist,
and is not at all bad, but Black was a little
better even in any case and could also have
tried to play more simply.
[ 27...e8!? ]
28.exd4 xd4 29.b3 xc2 30.xc2 e7
31.c3 d7 32.e5 xc3 33.xc3 c8?!
[ 33...f4 ]
34.d4 f4 35.f3 f8 36.f2 f6 37.gxf4
gxf4 38.e2 f5 39.d4 b6
[ 39...e3+ 40.e1 b6 41.h4 d6
still favours Black. ]
40.h4 h5?
xe5 [ 40...d6 ]
41.f6 h6 42.d4 Trapping the rook. d6
43.g2 e3 44.a3 a6 45.a4 c5 46.h3
e2 47.xe2 f5 48.d4+ c4 49.g4 f7
50.xb6 e7 51.d4 a5 52.b3+ c3
53.xf4 b7 54.c5 b8 55.e5 e8+
56.xd5 d8+ 57.d6
1-0
c6
653 A16
Zvjaginsev,Vadim 2671
Najer,Evgeniy 2585
Aeroflot Open (5) 15.02.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.f3
g6 5.h4!? One of Piket's attempts to blast the
Pseudo-Grünfeld. f6 The knight stops the h-
c8!? pawn's further advance. 6.d4 g7 7.e4 0-0
8.e2 c5 This looks like a perfectly normal
Grünfeld position, except with a white h-pawn
on h4! 9.d5 b5!? A sharp new move,
[ 9...e6 10.h5! led to a fin e white victory in
Piket,J-Svidler,P/ KasparovChess GP g/60,
Internet (3.2) 2000. ]
10.e5 The alternative is
[ 10.xb5 but then comes xe4! 11.xe4
a5+ 12.c3 xc3+ 13.bxc3 xb5
which is unclea r, Black's dark-s qua re d
weaknesses are matched by White's light-
squared frailty. ]
10...g4 11.xb5
d5 [ 11.d6!? is interesting, with the nasty threat
of Qd5, b7 12.g5 f6 13.b3+! h8
14.xb5 and White seems to be well on top.
a6 15.xc5 exd6 16.exf6! winning a
651
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

pawn. ] Black's next. ]

11...d7!? Black plays for speedy
10...d5 11.d3 d4 Both gaining space and
development, but this is risky, closing the a1-h8 diagonal. 12.c2 c7
[ 11...xe5 12.xe5 xe5 13.d2 d7 14.0-0-0 So the reason White
13.h6
is a little awkward, however. ] has been reluctant to advance his b-pawn is
12.e6!? This appears interesting, but clear, he wanted to keep his queenside strong
[ 12.g5 also has its points, hitting the g4-
to serve as a haven for his king. However, in
k n i g h t , a n d a f t e r dxe5 ( 12...gxe5?
this line White is often happy to leave his king
13.f4 ) 13.f4 the knight has nowhere to go, in the centre and attack on the wings. d6
but then comes h6 14.h3 e6 15.0-0 The knight heads for the strong square on f5.
xh4 16.fxe5 xe5 15.f4 fe8 16.e5?! This move allows
and Black has
reasonable compensation for the piece - one multiple exchanges, and ends in a position
o f t h e d ra wb a c ks o f p l a yi n g h 4 is t h a t
advantageous to Black, White should prefer to
kingside castling is no longer a solution to keep more tension in the position by, say,
the king's problems. ] [ 16.g3 e5 17.e4!? ]
12...fxe6 13.dxe6 de5 14.xd8 xd8 16...xg2 17.xd7 Forced,
15.xe5 xe5 16.0-0 a6 17.e2 xe6 [ 17.xg2? f5 18.xd7 xf4+ 19.d2
Black recuperates his pawn with a perfectly d6 and the knight is lost. ]
satisfactory position. 18.e1 f7 19.f4 17...xd7 18.xd6
c6 20.f3 ac8 21.g4 a8 22.f3 [ 18.xg2?! is again doubtful, e5 19.g3
White decides to repeat. ac8 23.g4 b5! 20.cxb5 xb5 and Black has the
½-½ makings of a strong attack on the b and c-
files. ]
18...xd6 19.xg2 ab8 White's potential
654 A17 kingside attack is a long way from achieving
Agrest,Evgenij 2616 anything, yet Black can lever the b-file open
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2716 almost immediately. Black is better. 20.d2
TCh-SWE 2003-4 (8) 28.02.2004 b5 21.e3 Attempting to respond in the centre,
[Tony Kosten] but Black has this well under control. b4!
More effective than
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4 0-0 [ 21...bxc4 which allows White the c4-square
It is always interesting to see how a really after 22.xc4 ]
strong player responds to a critical variation, 22.axb4
and here Ivanchuk is happy to put his king 'in [ 22.a4? is worse, c6 (hitting the rook on
the firing line'. 5.g5 e8 6.g1!? Vaisser's g2) 23.e4 b3 24.b1 xa4 winning a
move. Most attention has been concentrated pawn whilst continuing the attack. ]
on [ 22.a4!? might be the best bet, bxa3
[ 6.c2 as in, for instance, my game against 23.xa3 although Black is still better. ]
Balogh earlier this year. ] 22...xb4 23.exd4 cxd4 24.g4!?
6...b6 Black brings the light-squared bishop to White looks to complicate, by offering the h-
the long h1-a8 diagonal, a logical alternative pawn.
to Sokolov's [ 24.g3 is safer, yet eb8 25.d1 b3
[ 6...d5 see the original game, against with a strong grip on the position, and once
Vaisser. ] Black brings his queen into the attack the
7.c2 b7 8.a3 xc3 Conceding the bishop white position will be at breaking point. ]
pair to help speed-up development. 9.xc3 24...xh2 25.f4
c5 10.g2!? Why put the rook on g1 and [ 25.xd4 g1+ 26.d1 xg5
then play this? I think I would prefer wins a pawn, whilst retaining a big positional
[ 10.b4 myself, bringing the important dark- plus. ]
squared bishop onto the a1-h8 diagonal, 25...h1+ 26.d1 b7 27.h4 b8
and pressurising the c5-pawn to hinder Tripling on the b-file and pinning White down

652
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

t o t h e d e f e n c e o f b 2 . 28.hh2 a6 pawn sac,

Preparing a switch to the a-file. 29.c2 [ 15.0-0-0 xg2 16.xg2 is about level. ]
[ 29.b1? a4 wins on the spot. ] 15...exd5 16.cxd5 e7! A good move,
29...e5! A far-sighted move that prepares the although once again taking the pawn by
e6 -s qu a re f or t h e qu e e n . 30.fxe5 a4 [ 16...xd5!? i s p l a y a b l e : 17.g5
31.d1 The king must flee the danger zone. ( 17.xg6?! fxg6 18.xg6+ f8 19.g5
a1+ 32.e2 e6 This is the point of Black's looks good, but Black has the riposte e8!
29th move, the queen eyes g4. 33.f3 f5+ 20.xe8+ xe8 21.xd5 xd5 22.xd5
34.g3 xg5+ Forcing mate in a few moves. and now xg5 23.xg5 e5 regaining
0-1 material, with advantage) 17...ge7 18.h7
with a useful initiative. ]
17.g4!? White chooses the sharpest
655 A17 continuation at nearly every move.
Bareev,Evgeny 2721 [ 17.xf4 xf4 18.g4 xc3+ 19.bxc3
Naiditsch,Arkadij 2574 f6 20.e4+ and now e6! is unclear. ]
ECC Rethymnon GRE (5) 02.10.2003 17...xc3
[Tony Kosten] [ 17...xd5!? might be playable, as 18.e4
e5 19.xe5 ( 19.g5 d6 20.a4+ d7
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4 defends ) 19...xe5 20.f4 xh2! 21.0-0-0
Still the most topical line in the English, and xf4! 22.xe5 xe5 23.xb7 d8
when 2700+ players use it is fair to say that it with a position that is difficult to evaluate,
h a s b e c o m e t h e m a i n l i n e i n t h e N i m zo - but probably more than OK for Black. ]
English. h6 5.g1 b6 6.c2 This move has 18.xc3 xd5
recently taken over from the sharp [ 18...h5!? is interesting, so that if
[ 6.h4 ] 19.xg7? f5 wins an exchange. ]
6...b7 7.a3 e7 19.xg7 h3 20.g5!? Bareev has a good
[ 7...f8!? didn't do too well in Mamedyarov, eye for tactics. xh1
S-Naiditsch,A/Lausanne SUI 2003, see the [ 20...d3+!? has its points, 21.f1 xf2!
September update. ] 22.g1 ( 22.xf2? xh2+ wins; 22.xd5
8.g5 hxg5 9.xg5 h5 xg4 ) 22...xh1 23.xh3 xh3 24.xh1
[ 9...f8 Zvjaginsev,V-Adams,M/Moscow White has a small material advantage, but
RUS 2001. ] his king is awkwardly placed. ]
10.d4 c6 Back to this logical move. 21.xh3 xh3 22.f5! The tactical point of
[ 10...c5!? 11.d5 may be playable, but took White's play, there is a veiled threat to the h3-
a knock in Najer,E-Pedersen,N. ] knight, which has no escape square. c6
11.f3 f6 12.d5!? Gaining space and The bishop escapes to safety,
shutting-out the b7-bishop, Bareev attempts [ 22...d5? plans to drive the queen from e4,
to improve on but after 23.f3! the bishop is trapped, and
[ 12.d3 a5 1/2-1/2 Guidarelli,L-Sakelsek, c6 24.d2! f2 25.f6 d6 26.xg6!
T/Opatija CRO 2003. ] fxg6 27.xg6+ d7 28.f7+ c8 29.g1
12...e5 13.g2!? g6 For obvious reasons wins. ]
Black avoids 23.f6 e6 24.e4 White is materially behind,
[ 13...xc4!? 14.dxe6 fxe6 15.g5 but his strong bishop cuts through the heart of
( 15.b5!? is also dangerous) 15...xg2 t h e b la c k p o s i t i o n , a n d t h e h 3 - k n ig h t i s
16.g6+ although no win is evident after misplaced. f8! Freeing the e8-square for the
e7 ] b la ck ro o k . 25.xe6 dxe6 26.c1 b5
14.d2 27.xc7 hf4 Rough material equality has
[ 14.dxe6 dxe6 15.h4 xh4 16.xb7 been reached, and the h3-knight has returned
b8 17.c6+ f8 is quite playable for to play. 28.g5?! This just wastes a move, as
Black, who can continue ..g6 and ...Kg7. ] Black will play ...e5 anyway.
14...hf4 15.h1!? White offers another [ 28.d2 e5 29.h4 looks best. ]

653
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

28...e5 29.c3?! A strange move, hoping for 656 A17

Rh3-h8 perhaps, but possibly just the result of Berkes,Ferenc 2597
tim e p re ss u re . d3+ Winning a pawn with Balogh,Csaba 2561
check. 30.e2 The king must keep the f2- TCh-HUN 2005-6 (9) 19.03.2006
pawn defended. xb2+ 31.f3 d3 [John Watson]
[ 31...c4! to defend e5, followed by ..Re8-
e6 looks good for Black. ] A nice opening comb ination nets a large
32.e3 e8? positional advantage and, soon, the game.
[ 32...b2! might be best, to go to c4 again, 1.c4 e6 2.f3 f6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 c5
but having decided not to go there before, 5.g3 c6 6.g2 0-0 7.0-0 d5 8.d3 xc3
Black is hardly going to waste two moves 9.xc3 d4 10.a3 d6?!
getting there! ] [ 10...e7 11.e3 b4 12.b3 dxe3
33.h4? Why not the obvious 13.xe3 e5 ]
[ 33.xd3 xd3 34.xd3 e6 35.f5 11.e3 b4
with a small advantage to W hite, as the [ 11...e5!? 12.exd4 exd4 13.f4 e7
bishop is stronger then the knight. ] 14.ae1 e6 15.g5 ]
33...c5 34.h5 d7!? 12.exd4! A big surprise. Black can't win
[ 34...e6! 35.f5 e7 looks very material: c2
promising for Black. ] [ 12...cxd4? 13.d2! a5 14.xd4 xd4
35.hxg6 xf6 36.c7 d7?! 15.xb4 ]
[ 36...fxg6 37.xg6 e6 (menace: ...Nd5+) 13.f4! The point. xf4
38.gg7 a5 39.cf7+ e8 40.a7 c6 [ 13...e7 14.xc5 xc5 15.dxc5 xa1
seems better. ] 16.xa1 and White's pawn mass will win for
37.xa7 f6?! The g-pawn will prove to be a him. ]
problem now, 14.a4 d6 15.xc2 cxd4 16.c5 d7
[ 37...fxg6 38.xg6 should be a draw. ] 17.c4
38.g1! e7? Black gets his bits into a [ 17.fe1 is also good: Black's quite tied
tangle. down. ]
[ 38...e7 39.g7 g8 should hold this 17...d8 18.b4
position. ] [ Or 18.fe1 ]
39.h1 g8 40.a4 c4? The final nail in the 18...d5 19.fe1!
coffin, the bishop had to continue defending [ 19.ac1 e5! isn't so clear. Now White will
the knight: win something. ]
[ 40...c6 41.d1! (planning Rd6xc6) 19...b8
( 41.c1?! allows the neat tactic xe4! [ 19...xc4 20.dxc4 leaves Black no hope
42.xe4 c5+ 43.xc5 xa7 ) 41...e8 but a5 21.b5 d7 , but it loses to 22.c6
42.dxd7 xd7 43.xd7 a8 44.f7 xa4 c5 23.ad1! d3 24.e5 etc. ]
with some slim chances to draw. ] 20.a3
41.h7! [ Or 20.ac1 threatening Ne5. ]
[ There is no hope af ter 41.h7 xh7 20...e8 Black has nothing to do. Now the
42.gxh7+ xh7 43.xd7+ ] e n d c o m e s . 21.e4 xc4 22.dxc4 d3
1-0 23.d1 b5 24.cxb5 xb5 25.d4 d5
26.1xd3 c7 27.e5 f6 28.c6
1-0

654
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

657 A17 9...a5!?

Bogner,Sebastian 2423 [ A new move, but as mentioned above not a
Wirig,Anthony 2477 new plan. Previously Black had only tried
5th GM Mulhouse FRA (7) 29.06.2008 9...g4 10.e3 bd7 11.h3?! ( 11.e2= )
[Carsten Hansen] 11...xf3 12.gxf3 d5 13.0-0-0?! c5
, and Black is already better, Barbero, G-
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 d6 Timman, J/Novi Sad 1990 ]
5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 e5 7.b4 0-0 8.b2 e8 10.g3 axb4 11.axb4 xa1+ 12.xa1 b5!?
[ 8...a5 has recently proven quite successful T h i s is s im i la r t o t h e . . . b 7 - b 5 p l a y e d b y
for Black in Tratar-Kosten, Graz 2008 and Ivanchuk against Kramnik in Monaco 2007,
Kramnik-Ivanchuk, Monaco 2007. The text but with a white d2-d3 and a black ...Re8
mo ve is o f c ou rse f u lly pla ya b le , b u t if inserted. Nevertheless, it is still very effective,
Black wants to employ the plan laid out by and this game is another advertisement for
Ivanchuk, 8...a5 is more accurate than the th is p a rticu la r an gle o f a t t a ck f o r B la c k .
text move. ] 13.cxb5
9.d3 [ 13.g2 bxc4 14.dxc4 b7 15.0-0 a6
[ White has a couple of alternatives here: A) , intending ...Qb8 with more or less equal
9.g3 chances. ]
A) 9...bd7!? 10.g2 b6 11.0-0 13...d7 Black's position is already quite
( 11.c2!? ) 11...e4 12.d4 c5 comfortable, if not not outright better. 14.g2
, and Black is alre ady f ighting f or th e xb5 15.0-0 a6
initiative, Jelen, I-Kuzmin, G/Bled 1979; [ Personally, I prefer 15...c6!? intending to
B) 9...b6 10.g2 b7 11.0-0 c5 meet 16.h4 with d4 with a pleasant
( 11...bd7 12.d3 c5 13.e4 f8 14.h4 game for Black ]
e6 15.ae1 d4 16.c1 d7 17.f4 16.b1?!
a6 18.xd4 exd4 19.b2 b8 20.b5 [ With this move, White initiates a series of
, a nd th o ugh t h e ch an ces ob ject ive ly moves without much plan or merit,
speaking are probably about even, White's ultimately leading to a bad position. White
position is easier to play, Schmidt, W - should instead consider 16.h4!? , e.g.
Kholmov, R/Legnica 1994) 12.e3 bd7 d7 17.d2 c6 18.h3 ( 18.f4 a7+
13.d3 c8 14.e4 a6 15.h4 b5= 19.h1 g4 20.f3 e3 21.b1 c7
Szabo, L-Larsen, B/Lugano 1970 ] 22.fxe5 dxe5 23.g2 xg2 24.xg2 d5
[ B) 9.e3 bd7 ( 9...g4 10.e2 bd7 is also quite unclear and also not worse for
11.d3 f8 12.h3 , and a draw was Black ) 18...d5!? 19.b1 e6 , and now
prematurely agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, in 20.e4 dxb4 21.xb4 xb4 22.xb4
Krivoshey, S-Epishin, V/La Laguna ESP xd3 results in an interesting distribution of
2007. In the final positional, I prefer White.; material and a rather unclear position. ]
Black can also consider 9...a5 with similar 16...d7 17.d2?! d5!? Black grabs the
ideas as in Tratar-Kosten, Graz 2008 - see initiative and at the same time prevents White
PGN archives.) 10.d3 a5 11.e2 b6 from playing Nd2-c4-a3 to exchange the light-
12.c2 f5 13.0-0 d7 14.b5 e4 squared bishop that is blocking the queenside.
A) 15.xf6! exf3 ( or 15...gxf6 16.d4 18.e3
g6 17.dxe4 xe4 18.d3 ) 16.xf3 [ 18.f3 looks like a reasonable move,
gxf6 17.xb7 has White giving two minor putting pressure on the Black centre and the
pieces for a rook and two pawns, but the a1-h8 diagonal. d4! 19.d2 c6 , and Black
minor pieces are severely restricted by has the better chances. ]
White's pawn chain, and therefore White 18...d6 19.b3?!
is clearly better.; [ N o w i t i s d e f i n i t e l y t i m e f o r 19.f3
B) 15.dxe4?! xe4 16.c1 f5 , i n t e n d i n g d7 20.h4 with some
with a comfortable game for Black, Ortega, counterplay for White. ]
L-Zelcic, R/Bratto 1997 ] 19...c6

655
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 19...d7!? ]
20.h3 d7 21.b1?!
[ 21.f3 f6 22.h4 should again be
considered. I really don't know what White
was hoping to accomplish with his passive
play in the game. ]
21...c7 22.a3 f6?!
[ Already at this juncture, Black can consider
22...d4!? , e.g. 23.d2 e6 , and Black is
in complete control of the game ]
23.d2 h6 24.f3
[ After having missed out on this plan several
times previously, White finally picks up on it.
However, at this point in time, he could also
try 24.c5! , e.g. xc5 25.bxc5 a6
26.d4! , and White can actually play for the
advantage. ]
24...d4 25.exd4
[ 25.c5! is again an excellent option. ]
25...e4! 26.dxe4 xe4 27.b2??
[ This loses on the spot. Instead White
shou ld have playe d 27.c1! , and after
xb4 then 28.d7 e7 29.e5!? ( Or
29.g4 h5 30.f5 g5 31.e5 f6 32.c3
d6 33.g6 e8 with a messy position)
29...f6 30.xc6 xe5 31.dxe5 xc6
32.exf6 d2 33.f7+ xf7 34.c3 e4
35.xc6 f3+ 36.f1 xh2+ 37.g1
f3+ with a perpetual check ]
27...g5! Oops the old back rank problem!
Game over!
0-1
658 A17
Buss,Ralph 2303
Mahesh Chandran,Panjanathan 2441
MTO Biel SUI (7) 26.07.2004
[Tony Kosten]
This is not a game of enormous theoretical
significance, but the attack is amusing. 1.f3
f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 0-0 5.a3
xc3 6.xc3 b6 7.e3 b7 8.e2 e4!?
Played in 'Dutch/Nimzo' style, I had previously
only considered the normal
[ 8...d6 9.0-0 bd7 as in Kramnik-Zhang
Zhong, for instance. ]
9.c2 f5 10.0-0 This might be a case of
'castling into it', although W hite's defensive
resources should be adequate here. In Ree,
H-Kortchnoi,V/Amsterdam 1976 W hite
preferred
[ 10.b3 d6 11.b2 d7 12.d4 e7
13.d3 ef6 and now the knight has been
pushed away he could safely play 14.0-0
when the game continued ae8 15.ae1
c5 16.f3 xf3 17.xf3 e5 with equality. ]
[ 10.d3 is met by g5 putting pressure on
f3. ]
10...a5 This is often a useful move for Black in
such positions, the threat of ... a4, fixing a
weakness on b3, obliges W hite to play b3
instead of the b4 he would normally prefer..
11.b3 d6 The first new move.
[ 11...c5!? 12.b2 d6 13.d3 g5
was played in Soylu,S-Kurajica,B/Kavala
1985, which continued 14.h1?! ( 14.d1 )
14...f4 15.b4?! e5 and Black's kingside
pressure is considerable, 16.bxa5 bxa5
17.xg5 xg5 18.e4 c6 19.ab1 c8
20.f3 f6 21.fc1 h6 and White soon
cracked. ]
12.e1 h4 Typical play in such positions,
Black prepares to use his extra kingside space
to swin g his ro ok int o th e at ta ck. 13.f3?
White might well be lost after this move, if it
was me I would play
[ 13.f3 f6 14.d4 followed by Bb2 and Nd3,
with two bishops and a reasonable
position. ]
13...f6 14.g3?!
[ 14.d3 is better, although h6 15.h3 g5!?
16.dxe4 g4 17.d1 xe4 18.d2 xg2
is incredibly dangerous for W hite, whose
king has lost its defenders, e.g. 19.xg2
xh3 20.f4 g3 forcing 21.h4 although
xh4 22.f3 is unclear. ]
14...h3 15.g2 Forced,
[ 15.d3?? h6 leads to mate in a few
moves. ]
15...g5! A neat tactic, although it has been
seen many times before in similar positions
from the Nimzo-Indian. 16.f4 Neither
[ 16.xh3?? xh3# or ]
[ 16.xb7?? h6 are playable. ]
16...h6! Black continues the 'joke'! 17.fxg5
Once again the only move. xh2+ 18.f2
xg2 19.xg2 h3 20.g1
[ 20.b2?
A) 20...xg3+ 21.g1 h2+ leads to a
draw, but Black can easily play on here
656
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

with ( 21...d7 say, instead. ); B) 8.d3 a5 ( 8...e8 9.e2 c6 10.0-0

B) 20...xg3 21.g1 d7 transposes. ] g4 11.h3 h5 12.c2 e4 13.dxe4
20...d7! Black brings up some xe4 14.b3 g6 15.d3 e6 16.b2
reinforcements, this is stronger than a5 17.ae1 g5 , and a draw was soon
[ 20...xg3+ 21.f1 xg5 when Black has agreed upon, but the moves quoted in
three pawns for the piece, but W hite can Ch e ssBa se Ma ga zine a re h o p ele s s ly
defend. ] wrong, Dorfman, J-Almasi, Z/ Hilversum
21.b2? The bishop needs to be controlling 1993. At this juncture I prefer White.) 9.b3
the f4-square. d7 10.e2 b5!? ( 10...c5 11.0-0 c6
[ 21.d4 xg3 22.d2 keeps the game 12.b2 e7 is solid and probably good
going. ] enough for equality.) 11.d4 b4 12.c2
21...xg3 22.d1?! White is losing anyway, exd4 13.axb4 c6 14.bxa5 dxe3
even after the better 15.xe3 xa5 16.0-0 Dorfman, J-
[ 22.d4 f8 23.c1 t o s t o p . . . f 4 e5 Sokolov, A/Marsailles 2001;
and the attack is soon decisive. ] C) 8.e2 b6 ( 8...a5 9.b4 axb4 10.axb4
22...f8 There is no way to counter the xa1 11.xa1 c6 12.a3 e4 13.d4
opening of the f-file by ...f4. 1/2-1/2 Hartoch, R-Keene, R/ Amsterdam
0-1 1973 )
C1) 9.d3 a5 10.b3 e8 11.b2 c5
12.0-0 c6 13.fe1 g4 14.h3 h5
659 A17 15.ad1 c8 16.c1 h6 17.a1
Cheparinov,Ivan 2670 ( 17.c3 d5 18.cxd5 xd5 19.b2!? )
Drasko,Milan 2557 17...d7 18.d4?! ( 18.c3 cd8
ETCC Crete GRE (3) 30.10.2007 19.b2 ) 18...exd4 19.exd4 xe2
[Carsten Hansen] 20.xe2 xf3 21.gxf3 xh3
0-1 Majorovas, V-Shneider, A/Vilnius
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 0-0 1984/MCD (29);
5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 d6 7.e3 C2) 9.b4 b7 10.b2 bd7 11.0-0
[ In our April 2007 update, we discussed the e8 12.d3 c5 13.d2 f8 14.a4 a5
merits of 7.b4 as played in Kramnik- 15.bxa5 bxa5 16.b3 8d7 17.d2
Ivanchuk. The move chosen by Cheparinov b8 18.f4 exf4 19.xf4 1-0 Ree, H-
is played much less frequently. ] Langeweg, K/ Wijk aan Zee 1972 ]
7...a5 [ B) 7...bd7 8.e2 b6 9.b4 e4 10.c2
[ Black has a number of alternatives at this b7 11.b2
juncture: A) 7...e5 A) 11...g5 invites complications, and in
A) 8.b4!? e8 ( 8...e7 9.b2 e8 the one game it was played, W hite
10.e2 bd7 11.0-0 c6 Ilsley, G- im me diat ely ob lige d : 12.g1 ( 12.h4
J a c k s o n , D/ c o r r 1 9 7 5 , a n d n o w 12.d3 xf3+ 13.gxf3 f5 14.0-0-0!? can also be
leaves White with a pleasant little edge) c o n s i d e r e d) 12...xf3+?! ( 12...f5!? )
9.b2 c6 10.e2 g4 11.d3 a6 ( or 13.gxf3 g6 14.f4 h4 15.f1 xh2
11...d7 12.h3 xf3 13.xf3 f5 16.g3 h1 17.0-0-0 , and White has
14.0-0 g6 15.ad1 Sasikiran, K- excellent compensation f or the pawn,
Satyapragyan, S/Mumbai 2003 ) Villalobos-Funes Castro, J/corr 1985;
A1) 12.h3! h5 ( 12...xf3 13.xf3 d5 B) 11...a5 12.0-0 e7 13.d4 e5
14.cxd5 xd5 15.b3 ) 13.g4 g6 14.b5 df6 15.f3 ( 15.d3 c6 16.dxe4
14.h4 - analysis by Chekhov; cxb5 17.f3 bxc4 18.bxa5 xa5
A2) 12.0-0?! d5 13.cxd5 xd5 14.c4 19.xc4 ) 15...c6 16.c3 g5 17.e2
d7 , thus far, Timman, J-Larsen, B/ e6 18.a4 d7 19.d3 h6
Buenos Aires 1980, and here Chekhov ( 19...h4!? ) 20.f4 axb4 21.axb4 exf4
recommends 15.fd1 followed by Rac1 22.exf4 1-0 Timman, J-Vogel, J/
with White holding the upper hand; Leeuwarden 1974 ]

657
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ C) 7...c5 8.b4 bd7 9.b2 e5 10.e2
e8 11.0-0
A) 11...b6 12.ae1 b7 13.d4 cxd4
( 13...c8 14.dxe5 dxe5 15.b5 e7
16.d2 cd8 17.f3 f8 with chances to
both sides, Roussel Roozmon, T-Hecht, H/
Kitchener CAN 2006) 14.exd4 c8
15.dxe5 dxe5 16.b3 c7 17.d1 f8
18.fe1 g6 19.f1 a5 20.h3 axb4
21.axb4 , and White has a pleasant plus
thanks to his pair of bishops, queenside
majority and in general well-coordinated
pieces, Doettling, F-Balogh, C/Pula CRO
2003;
B) 11...a5 12.d3 b6 13.b3
( 13.bxc5!? a4 14.c2 xc5 15.d4
exd4 16.exd4 looks very pleasant for
White ) 13...bd7 14.c3 b6 15.fe1
f8 16.d4 g6 17.bxc5 bxc5 18.d5?!
( Closing the centre doesn't strike me as
the most sensible way to proceed.
Opening the game for the benefit of the
bishop pair makes f or a better overall
strategy. 18.dxe5 dxe5 19.c2 b7
20.ed1 b6 21.d2 h4 22.f3 )
B1) 18...g4!? 19.h3 f5 20.g4
( 20.d2 e4 is fine for Black) 20...e4
21.d2 h4 22.f3 g6 23.e4
also leaves White with the upper hand
though my computer insists Black is at
least equal here;
B2) 18...e4 19.c2 f5 20.d3 g5
21.xg5 xg5 22.f4 exf4 23.exf4
xe1+ 24.xe1 xf4 ( 24...xf4?
25.c1+- ) 25.a4 ( 25.g3! g5
26.a4 f8 27.e8 b8 28.c3
is obviously very problematic for Black, e.
g. f4 29.e7 , and it is time to throw in
the towel.) 25...h6?! 26.c6?! ( 26.c3!
prevents the counterplay Black is
b a n k i n g o n , e . g . g4 27.f1
and the Black position is ripe to
p e n e t r a t e d) 26...d2! , and Black is
back in the game at full force 27.e8+
h7 28.xa8 xb2 29.e1 d4+
30.h1 xd3 31.xc8 e5 32.e6
f4 33.xd6 f3 34.f8 d2 35.g1
fxg2+ 36.xg2 e1+ 37.g1 e4+
38.g2 e1+ 39.g1 1/2-1/2 Pelletier,
Y-Sokolov, A/Bled 200203 ]
[ D) 7...b6
A) 8.b4
A1) 8...e4!? 9.c2 b7 10.b2 d7
11.e2 ( 11.d3 g5! ) 11...e7
12.0-0=;
A2) 8...b7 9.b2 bd7 10.e2 e7
11.0-0 e5 12.d3 e8 13.d4 e4
14.d2 f5 15.d5 ef6 16.f4 exf3
17.xf3 1-0 Stokke, K-Revil, B/ Oslo
NOR 2004;
B) 8.e2 b7 9.0-0 c5 10.d4 ( 10.d3!?
bd7 11.b4 e7 12.e4 ) 10...a5 11.b3
bd7 12.b2 ( 12.d2 e8 13.b2
g5 14.f3 g6 15.dxc5 xc5
16.ad1 ) 12...e7 13.ad1 fc8
14.dxc5 bxc5 15.d2 e8 16.d3
( 16.e4!? a4 17.bxa4 xa4 18.b3 c6
19.g3 with excellent attacking chances
for White ) 16...a4 17.bxa4 b6 18.c2
h6 19.b1 xa4 20.a1 c6 21.b3
( 21.f4 cb8 22.e4 c7 23.xb8 xb8
24.xc6 xc6 25.e4 ) 21...c7 22.fb1
cb8 23.h7+ , and a draw was
somewhat prematurely agreed upon, 1/2-1/
2, Hansen, Cu-Werle, J/Katernberg GER
2003 ]
8.b3 e8
[ 8...bd7 9.b2 b6 10.e2 b7 11.0-0
e7 12.d4 e5 13.f5 e6 14.g3
e4 ( 14...c5 15.d4 fe4 16.xe4
xe4 17.d3 ) 15.xe4 xe4 16.d4
exd4 ( 16...g6 17.f3 f5 18.e4 h3
19.f2 exd4 20.xd4 c5 21.c3 )
17.xd4 Berezjuk, S-Schmittdiel, E/Passau
1999 ]
[ 8...e5 9.e2 g4 10.b2 c5 11.d3 c6
12.h3 h5 13.0-0 e7= Passerotti, P-
Naumkin, I/Montecatini Terme 2000 ]
9.d4 c6 10.b2 e5 11.d5 e7 12.d2
b5 13.e4 bxc4
[ 13...c6!? 14.dxc6 xc6 15.cxb5 d4
16.c1 d7 17.c4 c8 18.0-0 ( 18.d3
d5! 19.exd5 f5 20.g3 xd5 21.f3
f4! ) 18...d5 19.exd5 e2+ 20.xe2
xc3 21.xc3 xd5 22.e4 b6 23.c4
xc3 24.xc3 ]
14.xc4 d7 15.0-0 c6 16.dxc6 xc6
17.f4
[ 17.ad1!? ]
17...b6+ 18.h1 g6 19.fxe5 dxe5
20.a4 ad8
[ 20...ac8 21.g3 e7 is also perfectly
658
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
fine for Black ]
21.ac1 f4?
[ 21...d7! would have avoided White's next
move and aims to consolidate the position.
However, White's bishops are well-placed
and will hassle Black for some time to come,
but objectively the chances are fairly even. ]
22.xf7+! Black likely had overlooked this
s t r o n g m o v e . xf7 23.c4 d4?
This speeds up the end by quite a bit, indeed
Black just loses material.
[ 23...e2 24.f3 xe4 25.xe2 b7
26.g4+- ]
24.xe5+ xe5 25.xd4 xd4 26.xd4
xe4 27.xf6
1-0
660 A17
Conquest,Stuart 2536
Cox,John J 2404
4NCL 2006-07 (8) 04.03.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 c5 3.c3 e6 4.g3 b6 5.e4
I have always felt that this move was rather
annoying to play against when playing Black in
a Hedgehog formation. Theoretically Black is
doing reasonably well, but the standard plans
that Black aims for, such as the ...b6-b5 and ...
d6-d5 breaks are not that attractive after this
set-up for White. In addition, White will aim at
setting up a kingside attack in a fashion that
is normally not available in the Hedgehog.
b7 6.d3 d6 7.g2 e7 8.0-0 0-0
9.g5!? This move looks rather bizarre and
quite primitive: it is blatantly obvious that
White will want to continue with f2-f4 and start
kingside action. What is somewhat surprising
is that it has not been tried more often. I only
found two prior games on my database, one
between two relatively unknown players from
1999 and then a game f rom 2003, where
Morozevich used the move to beat the
German grandmaster Lutz (this game can be
found in the July 2003 update by Tony
Kosten). The surprising thing isn't so much
that other players haven't tried it in
comparison to the lame continuations they
have used instead. The theoretical main lines:
9 b3, 9 h3, 9 Qe2 and 9 Re1 don't exactly
kick-start the action. The text move is a good
example that even in lines that are
considered rather harmless or boring, simple
and non-standard choices can help alter the
general perception of a particular line.
[ In one of the more recent games in the
normal main lines in this variation, W hite
tried to direct the play towards a standard
Hedgehog: 9.h3 a6 10.a4 c7 11.e2
c6 12.e3 d7 13.d4 cxd4 14.xd4
fe8 15.ac1 f8 16.fd1 ac8
, Beliavsky-Su.B. Hansen, Bundesliga 2004,
and Black has equalised. ]
9...c6!? In the previous games in this line,
Black has tried to interfere with White's play
on t h e kin gside , b ut th is st raight f o rwa rd
developing move makes a lot of sense, taking
control of the weakened d4-square, from
where it can support Black's pawn-breaks in
the centre with ...d6-d5 and on the queenside
with ... b6-b5.
[ In the aforementioned game, Morozevich-
Lutz, Biel 2003, Black continued differently:
9...fd7 10.h4!? h6 11.h3 c6 12.f4
d4 13.e3 b8 14.h2 c6!?
( Tony K gave 14...a6 planning ...b6-b5 as
safer; also 14...f6 looks logical) 15.xd4!
cxd4 16.b5 xb5 17.cxb5 f6 18.g1!
d7 19.a4 (White has the better chances at
this juncture) a6 20.bxa6 a7 21.h3
xa6 22.f3 b5 23.a5 a7 24.g4 h7
25.g5 hxg5 26.hxg5 g6 27.d2 b4 28.f5
b5 29.a6 b6 30.fxg6 fxg6 31.xe6+
g7 32.d5 xa6 33.ac1 d7 34.g2
f4 35.g3 g4 36.e5 dxe5 37.f7+
h8 38.xh7+ xh7 39.h3+
1-0 Morozevich, A-Lutz, C/Biel 2003 ]
10.f4 d7
[ Anyway, but Black has to keep an eye on
how W h ite de velops his kingsid e p awn
storm. My computer likes 10...d7 11.h3
ac8 12.f5 e5 13.e3 d4 for Black,
even if I personally would pick W hite any
day of the week on account of the potential
for a kingside attack. ]
11.f3
[ 11.h4 h6 12.h3 d4 would be a
transposition to Morozevich-Lutz above, but
these moves are hardly forced from either
side. ]
11...d4 12.e3 xf3+
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ Unlike in the note to Black's 9th move, here
12...f6?! do esn't work du e t o 13.xd4
cxd4 14.b5 and Black has a problem with
his two d-pawns. ]
13.xf3 a6 14.g4 b5!? 15.g5
[ After 15.cxb5 axb5 16.xb5 a6 17.a4
a5 Black is doing very well. ]
15...e5!?
[ 15...b4 16.e2 f5 17.h3 e8 18.g3
and White has the initiative ]
[ 15...a5 16.h3 ]
16.g3 exf4! 17.xf4 e5! 18.ad1 a5
19.xe5 A decision such as this one should
only be made with a heavy heart. White does
win a pawn, but Black gets ample
compensation on account of the dark-squared
weaknesses everywhere in White's position,
thanks to the central pawns being semi-fixed
on light squares and the kingside pawns being
s o f a r a d va n c e d . dxe5 20.xe5 ae8
21.g3
[ 21.f5!? ]
21...d8!
[ Immediately attacking the dark squares; in
contrast, Black can win a pawn back with
21...b4 22.d5 xd5 23.cxd5 xa2
24.d2 but White has the better chances
since Black has less control over W hite's
central pawns ]
22.h4 d6 Around this point, Black in my
opinion has an excellent game: the dark-
squared bishop more than compensates for
the sacrificed pawn. 23.g4 e7!?
[ 23...e5!? ]
24.h3
[ 24.cxb5?! e5 25.f2 h2+ 26.f1 c8
27.h5 axb5 looks very attractive for Black,
W hite's pieces are not particularly well
placed and White's king in isn't very happy
at the moment. ]
24...e5?!
[ 24...e5 25.f2 c6 ]
25.cxb5 axb5 26.xb5 xb2 27.b1?!
[ White should concern himself with securing
e q u a l i t y . O n e wa y t o d o s o i s 27.d7!?
xd7 ( 27...e5 looks attractive 28.xb7
g3+ 29.g2 b8 30.d7 xb5 but after
31.f3 d4+ 32.h1 White has the better
chances ) 28.xd7 e7 29.g4 c6 30.a4
xb5 31.axb5 b8 and the chances are
fairly even. ]
27...e5 28.a3 a6
[ 28...a8!? ]
29.f3 a8
[ When analyzing this position, my computer
originally favoured 29...f5 which in many
ways is a real computer move, that not
many players would reason their way to, but
at closer examination, it does look rather
at t ra ct ive . 30.exf5 d4+ 31.h1 e2
32.c4 c2 and Black is taking over the
seventh rank (W hite's second) in
accordance with Nimzowitsch's recipe for
success. ]
[ However, 29...d8!? is possibly best, e.g.
30.d7 a5 and if now 31.xf7 then d4+
32.h1 xd3 looks very good for Black ]
30.d7 xd7 31.xd7 c8
[ Here my computer likes 31...fd8 32.c6
xd3 33.xa8 xb1 34.d5 xd5
35.exd5 e4 36.f2 xd5 and it claims a
slight edge for Black. This, however, is not
a decision most of us would go f or and
Cox's choice is both a simple and
attractive solution ]
32.xc8 xa3 33.b7 c4?! This looks like a
typical time trouble move, that looks good at
first glance, but turns out to be a real stinker.
Black gets a passed pawn on c3, but at the
same time, White has passed pawns on both
a2 and d3. White is now clearly better.
[ Instead 33...xa2 34.d5 d4+ 35.h1
a1 36.xa1 xa1 37.g2 g6
may be defensible for Black, but clearly
White is having all the fun. ]
34.d5 c3
[ 34...xd3 keeps Black in the game,
whereas after the text move it is play to one
goal. ]
35.b3 a7 36.h5 g6 37.f2 gxh5
38.e3 d8 39.bf1 d4+ 40.e2 dd7
41.h3 db7 42.xh5 xa2+ 43.xa2
b2+ 44.f3 xa2 45.e5 d2 46.e4 c5
47.e6 fxe6 48.g6 e2+ 49.f3 e3+
50.g4 d6 51.gxh7+ h8 52.a1 g3+
53.h4 f3 54.a6 e7+ 55.g4 f8
56.xe6 c8 57.xe7 c2 58.e1 c1
59.xc1 xc1 60.f4 c8 61.d4 d8
62.e4
1-0
660
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

661 A17 24.b5 ]

Cornette,Matthieu 2325 21...d5 22.cxd5?! Why open the c-file when
Adams,Michael 2723 the king and queen are on it?
National I Bordeaux FRA (7) 07.04.2003 [ 22.d3 still offers hope. ]
[Tony Kosten] 22...cxd5 23.xf5 xf5 24.b4 c8
Simplest, although other moves are also good.
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4 xc3 25.b2 a5! 26.b5 d4 27.d2 dxc3+
5.dxc3 d6!? Adams returns to this solid move, [ 27...dxc3+ 28.xc3 d4 forks queen and
we have already considered rook. ]
[ 5...d5 in Krasenkow,M-Dydyshko,V. ] 0-1
6.g5 fd7 7.e3 Actually an innovation,
although W hite will continue with a similar
development to 662 A17
[ 7.c2 c6 8.h4 de5 9.xe5 xe5 Dorfman,Josif D 2602
10.g2 c6 11.e3 as the white pieces Chabanon,Jean Luc 2511
have reached the same squares, and now ch-Gp B Marsailles FRA (5) 17.08.2001
d7 12.b4 c8 13.h5 is more pleasant for [Tony Kosten]
White, with two bishops and lots of space,
Razuvaeva, J-Zvereva,M/St Petersburg RUS 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4
1999, but Black could always play a quick ... Here we go again! h6 5.g1 b6 6.h4 b7
e5 as in the main game. ] 7.g5 hxg5 8.hxg5 e4 9.c2 xc3
7...e7 8.g2 e5 So this is Black's new plan, 10.dxc3 d6 11.e3 So far this has all been
he has exchanged his dark-squared bishop seen before. c5!?
and now sets-about putting his pawns on dark [ A new try, Black wants more central control,
squares with a solid pawn structure. Both but this weakens his dark squares. Anyway,
sides will likely castle queenside. 9.c2 c6 as we have seen some time ago, 11...c6
10.h4 b6 Necessary, to develop the rest of fared well in Van Wely,L-Timman,J/Wijk aan
the qu ee nside . 11.b3 g6!? Interesting, I Zee 1999. ]
would be wary of weakening the kingside like 12.0-0-0 e7 13.d2! A good plan, White
th is , b u t if s o m e on e so st ro ng d o e s it is will try to exchange the dark-squared defender
probably good! 12.d2 f5 13.e4 e6!? on d6. c7 14.f4 e5?!
Black attempts to keep the central tension, if [ After a long thought, but this adds d5 to
White captures on f5 Black will recapture with Black's list of problems, and what is so
t h e f -p a wn t o ke e p co n t ro l o f e 4 . 14.a4!? wrong with 14...xf4 15.xf4 c6 ? As
Positionally it is right to cramp knights like 16.c7 can be met by d5 ]
this, but on the other hand, White should be [ Hamdouchi suggests 14...d6?! instead, but
careful not to move the pawns in front of his 15.g2! keeps the threat to d6 alive, without
king, so this makes long castling less secure. p e r m i t t i n g a c a p t u r e o n f 3 . ( instead of
d7 Black must be able to answer White's a5 15.xd6 xd6 16.xd6 xd6 17.xd6
with ...a6. 15.h5 0-0-0 16.0-0-0 b8 17.h4 xf3 18.exf3 e7 when Black is OK. )]
e7 18.hxg6 hxg6 19.dh1 xh4 20.xh4 15.g3 c6 16.g6! 0-0-0
White has gained control of the open h-file, [ Black has to allow the capture on f7, further
but Black will react strongly in the centre. c6 weakening the black position, or go in for
W ith the strong threat of ...d5, W hite's 16...f5?! 17.h4! e6 ( 17...xh4?
position has suddenly become very difficult. is impossible: 18.xh4 xh4? 19.xd7+
21.f1 If one has to play such moves then f8 20.f7# ) 18.g5 e7 19.h7 e6
that is a sure-fire sign that something has 20.h3 with powerful threats. ]
gone drastically wrong! 17.gxf7 xf7 18.b3 h6 19.g2 d6
[ 21.d3!? d5 22.b2 is a better bet, as 20.e3 xd1+ 21.xd1 f5 22.g5
e4?! is e as ily an swered b y ( 22...xd3 Prepared by White's previous play, the knight
23.xd3 f5 keeps a plus) 23.cxd5 cxd5 makes its way to e4. b8?! 23.xb7+ xb7

661
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

24.e4+ xe4 25.xe4 Black has a bad for the queen than after the habitual 10.c2
e.g. c5 11.0-0 c6 12.e3 c8 13.b3 e7
bis h o p , a n d scru f f y p a wn st ru ct u re , a n d
naturally White decides that the easiest way 14.b2 fd8 and Black is fine, Van der
to exploit this in the endgame. h8 26.b4
Sterren,P-Dautov,R/Germany 1998/GER-
cxb4 27.cxb4 h6 28.d3 g5?! A tactical chT. ]
trick, which only hastens the end. 29.xg5 10...c5 11.b3 In order to control e5, before
c6 30.c3 d5 31.b2! xc4 32.xc4 Black gets the opportunity to play e5. c6
dxc4 33.b5 This isolates the c4-pawn. a6 12.b2 e8!?
34.a4 d7 35.e4 axb5 36.axb5 f8 [ More aggressive than 12...e7 13.d3 fd8
37.c3 g6 38.xc4 e7 39.c3 as now Black envisages ...e5, and ...Nd4. ]
1-0 13.d3 e5 14.e3
[ To control d4, for if 14.0-0?! then d4
15.xd4 exd4 when Black has more space,
663 A17 and pressure on e2. ]
Dydyshko,Viacheslav 2521 14...d4!? A speculative piece sacrifice,
Dautov,Rustem 2597 opening the e-line, and setting-up various
Eu Team Ch Batumi GEO (7) 06.12.1999 tactics along the h1-a8 diagonal. 15.exd4!
[Tony Kosten] [ Correct! If 15.xd4? then the white queen
gets into trouble following cxd4 16.e4 c8
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 Although 17.a4 c6 but ]
White hasn't played d4, Black still plays as if [ 15.0-0 was also possible, not fearing b5?!
he had, and indicates his acceptance of a a s t h e e x c h a n g e s a c r i f i c e ( 15...e2+!?
Nimzo-style position. 4.c2 0-0 5.a3 xc3 m i g h t b e b e t t e r , 16.h1 dc3!
6.xc3 White has gained the bishop pair, as t h e o b vio u s 17.xc3 is met by d5
without weakening his pawn formation. b6 18.g4 xc3 with an edge) 16.xc5 xb3
7.g3 17.xb5 xa1 18.xe5 seems promising
[ White avoids 7.d4 , as although this leads for White. ]
directly to a 4 Qc2 Nimzo-Indian, his knight 15...exd4+ 16.f1!
is on f3 which means that he cannot play the [ The alternative 16.d2 leaves White in
most aggressive lines involving f3. ] serious trouble after c3! 17.xc3 d5
7...b7 8.g2 d5 Active central play, aiming 18.a4 ( for once, the queen for three
to make something of Black's slight lead in p ie ce s swa p o f 18.b2 xc4 19.bxc4
development. favours the queen after b5! 20.cxb5 a5+ )
[ More usual is either 8...d6 with 9.0-0 bd7 18...dxc3+ 19.c1 e2 e.g. 20.f1?! xf3
10.b4 e8!? 11.b2 e5 Illescas Cordoba, 21.xf3 xd3 with mate to follow. ]
M-Epishin,V/Dos Hermanas 1994, or ] 16...f6 The point of Black's combination,
[ 8...c5 as in, say, Kramnik,V-Nikolic,P/ menacing discovered attacks against the f3-
Monaco (rapid) 1997, which continued: 9.b4 knight. 17.c1!
d6 10.0-0 bd7 11.b2 c8 and in both [ Skilful defence, for after a sensible
cases Black sets his pawns on dark squares, a l t e r n a t i v e l i k e 17.c2 Black can play
to compliment his remaining bishop, with e3+! ( even 17...e3!? is possible, i.e.
solid play. ] 18.h4 xg3 19.xd5 xd5 20.hxg3
9.cxd5 xd5 xh1 with play for the material) 18.fxe3
[ The fluid choice, 9...exd5 is also possible, xe3 with a strong attack, e.g. 19.c1
intending to play a hanging pawn position: xf3+ 20.g1 e8 ]
10.0-0 ( 10.d3 d4! 11.c2 a5 ) 10...e8 17...e3+ 18.fxe3 xf3
11.e1?! c5 12.d4 e4 13.c2 c6 [ Obligatory, as now 18...xe3?? is met by
14.dxc5 bxc5 with active black play, 19.xe3 winning on the spot. ]
Speelman,J-Seirawan, Y/Saint John 1988. ] 19.g1 xg2 20.xg2 c6+ 21.e4 f5
10.c4!? Black will gain two pawns, and some initiative,
[ A new attempt to find a more active square for his piece, but it shouldn't be quite enough.

662
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

22.c4+ h8 23.he1 fxe4 24.g1! 5.a3!?

[ Actually gaining a tempo over the A) More recently, 5...e7 6.d4 d5 7.g1
immediate 24.dxe4 xe4 25.g1 ae8 A1) 7...dxc4!? 8.e4 ( it's simpler to play
26.f1 ] 8.a4+ c6 9.xc4 with chances for a
24...g6 slight edge) 8...b5 9.e5 d5 10.xb5
[ The pin on the c-file forces this queen move, Karttunen, M (2447)-Maki Uuro, M
if 24...e3? 25.xd4 ] (2332)/Helsinki FIN 2012. Here Black
25.dxe4 xe4 26.f1 ae8 27.ad1 h6 s h o u l d c o n s i d e r b6 with obscure
28.xe4 xe4 29.f2 e6 30.d2? play.;
[ Dropping a further pawn, returning the A2) 7...b6 8.f4 looked like an a3-
bishop to the fray by 30.c1 was stronger. ] Q u e e n ' s I n d i a n o r Q u e e n 's G a m b i t
30...f3 31.e1 Decline permutation. b7 9.a4+ c6
[ 31.e1 after xb3 32.xe6 xe6 10.0-0-0 dxc4 11.xc4 b5 12.b3 a5
Black has nothing to fear, in fact he could 13.g5 hxg5 14.xg5 b4 15.e4
well consider continuing. ] Sitnikov, A (2506)-Polivanov, A (2435)/
½-½ Donetsk UKR 2011.;
B) 5...xc3 6.dxc3 b6 7.a4 , but Boris
Savchenko is 2-0 from this position as
664 A17 White. See Savchenko, B (2630)-Goganov,
Fridman,Daniel 2670 A (2 4 80 )/T a ga nro g RUS 20 11 / [ Nige l
Meins,G 2473 Davies] for the details. ]
16th OIBM 2012 (9.6) 04.11.2012 5...xc3!? Fundamentally sound. Black
[John Bartholomew] makes good on his positional threat before
White can play Qc2.
The Nimzo-English with 4.g4 rose to [ More u sua l is 5...b6 . The position after
prominence 10-15 years ago and still 6.c2 b7 7.a3 e7 8.g5 hxg5 9.xg5
produces unbalanced encounters. Here Black has been discussed some time back on this
chooses a positional continuation that may site for example, see Bareev, E (2721) -
appeal to many Nimzo players. 1.c4 e6 Na i d i t s c h , A ( 2 5 7 4 ) / R e t h ym n o n 2 0 0 3 /
2.c3 b4 3.f3 f6 4.g4 [TonyK]. ]
[ White has a host of viable alternatives. 6.dxc3
4.c2 is the main line, and 4.g3, 4.Qb3, 4. [ Or 6.bxc3 d6 7.d3 ala Nakamura-
e3!?, etc. are also played. See the "Nimzo- Sokolov. ( 7.h4!? )]
English" guide in the archives. ] 6...d6 7.h4
4...h6 This has proven to be Black's preferred [ White can also consider the immediate 7.g5
method in countering the g-pawn spike. , which was seen in David, A (2580)-
[ You can find 4...d5 ] Rozentalis, E (2596)/ Turin 2006. After hxg5
[ and 4...0-0!? in the archives. Both score 8.xg5 e7 9.g2 e5 10.d2!? bd7
reasonably well for Black, especially short ( 10...xh2 11.c2 bd7 12.0-0-0 )
castling. ] 11.f1 (White has his sites set on the e3
[ The radical 4...xc3!? can be compared to square) b6 12.h4 c6 13.e3 e6
the game continuation. For example, 5.dxc3 14.d3 0-0-0 15.0-0-0 White had slightly
( possibly stronger is 5.bxc3 d6 6.g5 fd7 better chances, though Black retained a very
7.g2 c6 8.d3! , Nakamura, H (2710)- solid position. ]
Sokolov, A (2570)/Mainz GER 2009/ 7...c6 Leaving the d7 square open for the
[TonyK] ) 5...d6 6.g5 fd7 7.e3 e7 o t h e r kn ig h t . 8.g5 hxg5 9.hxg5 d7
8.g2 e5 with a similar structure and game 10.g2 e5
flow. Cornette, M (2329)-Adams, M (2734)/ [ Perhaps Black should play more flexibly
France 2003/[TonyK]. ] with 10...e7!? , i.e. 11.e3 b6 12.d3
5.g1 e5 13.d2 e6 . ]
[ I'm not entirely taken by the concept of 11.e3 f8 12.b3 b8 13.0-0-0

663
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
W hite has completed his development and
secured a nice spatial advantage to
accompany his bishop pair. Despite his solidity,
Black still has some problems to solve (his
king, for example). b6 14.h1
[ I li k e t h e lo o k o f 14.d2 intending to
transfer the knight to e4. ]
14...xh1 15.xh1?
[ 15.xh1 is necessary so as to meet a5
16.b4 c5 with 17.xc5!+- . ]
15...a5! Forcing White to make an awkward
decision. 16.a3
[ It's the decisive last round and Fridman
outrates his opponent by 200 points, so he
probably wasn't thrilled about a repetition
after 16.b5+ d7 17.a6 c8 18.b5+
d7 etc. ]
[ 16.b4 c5 is similar. ]
16...xc4 17.xa7 xe3 18.fxe3 b7
Black is fine, though things now get a little
hairy.
[ 18...e6!? ]
19.h8 c6?!
[ 19...e7 ]
20.a6 d7 21.c4 e6 22.h4 e7
23.d2 d7 24.a4+ b5 25.a7 d8
26.g8 b6 27.b7 e7!
Finally swallowing the bait! d7! White's rook
is trapped, and 29...Qh8 is the threat.
29.a8? Time was probably becoming a big
factor.
[ 29.e4 was necessary, controlling h7. ]
29...xa8?
[ Missing 29...xb7! 30.xb7 h8 . ]
30.xa8 a6 31.e4 xa2 32.h7 a1+
33.b1 a4 34.b4 f8
Black forfeits on time!? This is the result given
by TWIC, which I confirmed by cruising over to
the OIBM tournament website.
[ An unfortunate end for Meins, as 35.g6
f6 36.c2 ( 36.g7+ g8 ) 36...xh7
37.gxh7 g7 38.xa4 bxa4 is clearly in
his favor. So long as he's willing to manage
a s li g h t l y c ra m p e d ( b u t f u n d a m e n t a l l y
sound) position, 4...h6 5.Rg1 Bxc3!? is a
reliable enough line for Black. . ]
1-0
665 A17
Ftacnik,Lubomir 2544
Stocek,Jiri 2559
Jirasek mem Rakovnik CZE (4) 11.08.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 0-0
5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 d6 7.b4 a5
[ 7...e5 8.b2 a5 9.e3 c6 10.d3 d7
11.b5 e7 was played in Tratar, M-Kosten,
A/ Graz AUT 2008. For annotations to the
game, see the PGN archives. ]
8.b2 axb4 9.axb4 xa1+ 10.xa1 e5
11.g3 b5 12.cxb5 d7 13.d4!?
[ Here White finally departs from the
amazing Kramnik-Ivanchuk game from last
year's Monte Carlo tournament this game
has dictated several new developments in
this line, all in involving the idea of ...b7-b5
f or Black. I n the abovem ention ed ste m
game Black obtained the better chances
after 13.e3?! c8 14.e2 b7 15.d3
xb5 as you can see for yourself by looking
the game up in the PGN archives. ]
13...e4 14.d2 xb5 Black has already fully
equalised. 15.d5!
28.xg7? [ White has to play actively, if not Black will
co m p l e t e l y t a k e o ve r t h e ga m e a n d i n
particular the queenside will cause White a
l o t o f h e a d a c h e s , e . g . 15.g2 d5
with a better game for Black. ]
15...e3! 16.fxe3 bd7 17.g2 e5
W hite has an extra pawn and t he pa ir o f
bishops, but in this position, both are entirely
irrelevant and Black has at least full
35.g6?! compensation for the pawn. 18.0-0!?
[ White decides to give up on the pawn right
away. The alternative is 18.f3 a8 19.e4
a7 20.d4 a6 with full compensation
for the pawn. ]
18...xe2 19.c1 d3!?
[ Black decides to play it safe. The main
alternative is the more aggressive, e.g.
19...e7!?
A) or 20.xc7 f3+ 21.xf3 xe3+
22.h1 xd5! ( 22...e4 leads to a draw
after 23.d4 f2+ 24.g1 h3+
25.h1 f2+= ) 23.d4 a3 24.c3
xb4 25.c6 xc3 26.xc3 c5
with an interesting endgame, where Black
should not be worse;
664
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

B) 20.e4 c8 21.e3 b5 e7 23.hg1 ]

with approximately even chances ] 20.dxc6 c8 21.h4 xc6?
20.b1 e5 Inviting a draw by repetition, [ Black had to play 21...h5 to prevent White's
White doesn't have much better than to follow next move. Now, however, Black loses a
suit. 21.c1 d3 22.b1 e5 23.c1 piece ]
½-½ 22.h5! d5 23.hxg6 fxg6 24.e5 b5 25.cxb5
d4 26.c4+ h8? 27.xd4
[ 27.exf6!! wins immediately, e.g. xe3?
666 A17 28.xh7+ xh7 29.h1# ]
Gelfand,Boris 2736 27...xb3+ 28.xb3 xd4 29.xd4 xc4+
Adams,Michael 2729 30.b1 xe5 31.c1 xc1+ 32.xc1 h5
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (27) 22.11.2007 33.b6 e7 34.c7
[Carsten Hansen] 1-0

1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 0-0

5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 b6 7.e3 a5 667 A17
[ 7...b7 is the main line, the game Gelfand,Boris 2737
continuation is quite rare ] Eljanov,Pavel 2692
8.b3 Corus A Wijk aan Zee NED (13) 27.01.2008
[ 8.b4 c5 9.b2 axb4 10.axb4 xa1+ [Carsten Hansen]
11.xa1 a6 12.b5 b4 13.e2 b7
14.0-0 e7 15.b2 d5 16.d3 d8 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 0-0
17.a1 dxc4 18.dxc4 xf3 19.xf3 d3 5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 b6
20.a6 d6 21.h3 xb2 22.xb2 h5 [ 6...d6 is an interesting alternative that was
23.c2 h4 24.c3 e5 25.c2 g6 26.d5 tested in Kramnik-Ivanchuk, Monte Carlo
xd5 1/2-1/2 Prusikin, M-Jankovic, A/ 2007 - see the PGN archives. We will return
Zemplinska Sirava 2004 ] to this move in next month's update. ]
8...d6 9.b2 7.e3 b7 8.b4 d6 9.b2 bd7 10.e2 c5
[ The only previous game saw 9.d4 e4 This variation has been played numerous
10.c2 b7 11.d3 f5 being tested and times, but it is my impression that the
proved adequate for Black: 12.0-0 d7 chances are clearly favouring White, even if
13.d2 h4 14.f3 g5 15.f2 f6 16.f4 his edge is minimal, because Black has very
h3+ 17.gxh3 g6+ 18.f1 f6 little hope of grabbing the initiative and will
( 18...xh3+ 19.e1 xe3+ 20.e2 likely be forced to defend a slightly passive
xd4 21.b2 g1+ 22.f1 xf1+ position with White holding the initiative. The
23.xf1 g1 24.c3 e5 ) 19.e1 g1+ score in top encounters is decidedly in
20.f1 g2 21.a2 e4 22.d1 h5+ White's favour, though it should be said, that
23.e1 h4 24.d1 h5+ 1/2-1/2 Eng, H- it is usually the somewhat higher rated player
Meyer, H/Germany 1985 ] who plays White in those games. 11.0-0 c8
9...e5 10.d4 e4 11.d2 e8 12.d5 f5 [ Other tries are: A) 11...e8 has also been
[ 12...bd7 13.e2 e5 14.0-0 ( 14.f4 tested on a couple of occasions, for
exf3 15.gxf3!? ) 14...f5 15.ac1 c8 ] instance Kramnik-Zhang Zhong, W ijk aan
13.e2 e5 14.f4 exf3 15.gxf3 Zee 2004 - the game can be found in the
This position looks quite messy, but Black's PGN archives. ]
position is difficult to play, and Gelfand makes [ B) 11...e7 as for example played in
the process of winning look rather effortless Gustafsson-Khalifman, Cologne 2003 - see
bd7 16.e4 g6 17.0-0-0 c5 the PGN archives. I feel this is likely the
[ 17...h5 18.dg1 h4 19.e3 ee8 continuation Black should give preference
20.g4 e7 21.hg1 ] to. ]
18.e3 e8 19.dg1 c6 12.d4 e4
[ 19...h5 20.h4 d7 21.g2 f5!? 22.g5 [ It's difficult to say what is best for Black in

665
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

th is lin e, b eca u se h e is f a cing a t o u gh d6 20.c2 f8 21.e2 ) 18...f6 19.g4

defensive task in every variation at this f7 20.f4 b8 , Stojanovic, M-Jeremic, V/
ju n c t u re . O t h e r t ri e s i n clu d e : A ) 12...d5 Mataruska Banja SRB 2007, and here White
13.dxc5 ( 13.d2 e7 14.f3 c7 s h o u l d o p t f o r 21.c2 f8 22.a3
15.ac1 fc8 16.bxc5 bxc5 , Claas, M- , and it's obvious that Black is in serious
Schmock, S/Bonn 1996, and now 17.cxd5 trouble. ]
xd5 18.a5 c4 19.e4 f4 20.c3 ) 13.b3
A) 13...bxc5 14.b5 ( 14.cxd5!? xd5 [ White has also obtained good positions with
15.ac1 cxb4 16.xb4 b8 17.d4 ) 13.d3 , for instance
14...c7 15.a4 fe8 16.fd1 e5 17.cxd5 A) Or 13...f6 14.d2 g6 15.f3 xd2
xd5 18.c2 , and here a draw was 16.xd2 d5?! ( 16...fd8 17.ad1;
prem a tu rely a gre e d u po n , 1 /2 -1/ 2 , in 16...cxd4 17.exd4 e5 18.ad1 ) 17.dxc5
Kozak, M-Vyskocil, N/ Brno CZE 2007. A bxc5 18.ac1 fd8? ( 18...g5 )
possible continuation is c4!? 19.a3 c3 19.cxd5 xd5 20.e4 b7 21.fd1!
( 19...7f6 20.d2 c3 21.c4 , and Black is basically lost if he is to
, and White has the upper hand) 20.g5 release himself from White's pressure, he
e4 21.g4 cd8 with chances to both will lose material, Kramnik, V-Kogan, A/
sides; Port Barcares FRA 2005;
B) 13...dxc4 14.fd1 e7 15.a4 bxc5 B) 13...e7
16.b5 b6 17.a5 bd5 18.xc4 B1) 14.d2 f5 ( 14...xd2 15.xd2
, and Black is clearly struggling, Zarkua, g5 16.f3 ) 15.f3 ef6 16.fd1 e5?!
D-Kalashian, D/Istanbul TUR 2006 ] ( 16...fd8 17.b3 ) 17.dxc5 bxc5
[ B) 12...e7 18.xf5 b6 19.g5 h6 20.h4
A) 13.fd1 fd8 14.ac1 ( 14.b3!? , and Black doesn't have enough for the
a8 15.a4 d5 16.bxc5 bxc5 17.a3 pawn, W erle, J-Rozentalis, E/
e8 18.a5 cxd4 19.xd4 , and White Wattenscheid GER 2006;
has pleasant initiative, Savchenko, S- B2) 14.fd1 fd8 15.ac1 h6 16.d2
Brunner, N/Metz FRA 2005) 14...cxd4 xd2 17.xd2 g5 18.f3 f8 19.e4
15.xd4 e5 ( 15...d5!? ) 16.e1 e8 Savchenko, S-Agafii, V/Illichevsk UKR
17.f3 g6 18.f1 g5 19.h1 a6 2006 ]
20.e4 with more space and the pair of 13...c7
bishops, W hite has a clear advantage, [ Black has tried a couple other things here,
Laznicka, V-Petrik, T/Steinbrunn AUT though without much success: A) 13...g5
2005; 14.xg5 xg5 15.f3 cxd4 16.exd4 c7
B) 13.dxc5 bxc5 14.b5 fd8 ( 14...d5 17.f2 fc8 18.d1 a5 19.c1 e7
15.a4 b6 16.d2 fd8 17.a5 xc4 20.f4 e5 21.e3 Llanos, G-Jimenez, J/
18.xc4 dxc4 19.fd1 d5 20.xc4 Buenos Aires 1998 ]
Gurevich, M-Aagaard, J/Torrelavega ESP [ B) 13...c7 14.fd1 fe8 ( 14...d5
2007 ) 15.a4 f8 16.d2 e5 17.f3 15.ac1 b8 16.a2 fd8 17.a1 f6
xf3 18.xf3 g6 19.fd1 e4 20.c2 18.b1 a8 19.e1 d6 20.cxd5 xd5
f5 21.d2 xd2 22.xd2 , and White 21.dxc5 bxc5 22.f3 xf3 23.xf3
has a comfortable advantage, Seirawan, Ostenstad, B-Tallaksen, G/Bergen 2001)
Y-Damljanovic, B/Istanbul 2000 ] 15.ac1 a5 16.d2 xd2 17.xd2 axb4
[ C) 12...cxd4 13.xd4 e7 14.fd1 d5 18.axb4 b8 19.dxc5 dxc5 20.c3 f6
15.cxd5 xd5 16.ac1 b8 17.h4 fd8 21.b5 cd8 22.cd1 e4 23.g4
18.e5 f8 19.c4 , and White is , and Black is suf f ering, Jakovenko, D-
c o m p le t e ly in c o n t ro l, K o m lje n o vic, D - Tiviakov, S/Sochi RUS 2007 ]
Vaillant, S/Metz 2001 ] 14.fd1
[ D) 12...c7 13.dxc5 bxc5 14.b5 fd8 [ Also 14.ad1 is perfectly good and
15.a4 d5 16.a5 e8 17.cxd5 exd5 playable, e.g. a8 15.e1 d5 16.dxc5
18.h4 ( 18.fc1!?; 18.fd1 f6 19.d3 bxc5 17.f3 ef6 18.cxd5 exd5 19.bxc5

666
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
xc5 20.b4 cd7 21.d3 e8 22.f4
Huss, A-Bellin, J/Biel 1987 ]
14...e7 15.a4
[ White tries a new, but perfectly normal
move. In an earlier game, White gained the
better chances after 15.dxc5 bxc5 16.d2
ef6 17.b5 e5 18.f3 h5 19.f1 h4
20.d2 b6 21.a4 h3 22.g3 ( 22.a5!?
hxg2 23.g3 c8 24.e4 h7 25.f5
g5 26.c1 is pretty terrible for Black)
22...d5 23.cxd5 bxd5 24.a5
( 24.ad1!? ) 24...b4 ( 24...e4 25.f4 d8
26.ad1 ) 25.e4 Gelpke, P-Douven, R/
Hilversum 1989 ]
15...d5 16.dxc5 bxc5 17.b5 d6 18.cxd5
exd5 19.ac1 b8
[ 19...e4!? ]
20.c2 cc8 21.a3 h6 22.b2! e6
23.c3! White more or less forces Black to
create an ugly long-term weakness on the
light squares, something Black will suffer
badly from later in the game. f6 24.h3
This gives th e king a brea thing h ole an d
simultaneously prevents Blacks queen from
m e s s i n g w i t h W h i t e k i n g f r o m g 4 . b6
25.c2 bc4
[ 25...d4!? 26.exd4 e4 27.d2 dc4
28.xc4 xc4 29.e2 xb2 30.xb2
xf3 31.gxf3 c4 ]
26.a1 Keeping the bishop, which long-term is
much better than even Black's nice-looking
knight on c4. e8!? 27.g6 bd8?
[ This looks perfectly normal, but because
Black's position is already a positional toilet
with weaknesses everywhere, he should
have thrown the kitchen sink at White with
27...xe3 28.fxe3 xe3+ 29.h1 e4
and some compensation for the piece and at
le a s t s o m e c o m p li c a t io n s t o wo rk a n d
confuse Gelfand with. Gelfand had a
terrible tournament in W ijk aan Zee, so
Black should have tried to rock the balance
a bit. In the game, Black is taken apart
without hesitation. ]
28.d3 e4
[ 28...f8 29.h4 is slightly better for Black
than the game continuation, but Black's
position is pretty terrible in any case ]
29.h4! cd6 Black plays actively, but now
he loses the f irst pawn. 30.xe4 xe4
31.f5 d7 32.xh6+ f8 33.f5 d4?!
[ 33...c8 34.h7 b7 35.h4 f7
36.h5+ g8 37.g6+- ]
34.exd4 a2 35.f1 cxd4 36.xd4 d5
37.f3 d6 38.c5
1-0
668 A17
Gelfand,Boris 2713
Timman,Jan H 2650
It Pamplona ESP (7) 03.01.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 b6 4.g2 b7
5.0-0 e7 6.c3 0-0 Black is clearly happy
to pla y a Qu een 's In dia n Def e nce , m an y
players would have preferred an early ...c5 to
avoid this. 7.e1
[ White decides to avoid the QI, 7.d4 e4
with a slight edge to White, and goes for a
Hedgehog. ]
7...e4
[ 7...d5 8.cxd5 exd5 9.d4 leads to another,
but this time inferior, version of the
Queen's Indian where Black normally plays
...c5, and defends the resulting hanging
pawn position. ]
8.xe4 xe4 9.d3 b7 10.e4 c5 11.d4
d5?!
[ A new move, previously Black had chosen
between 11...cxd4 12.xd4 c6 when
13.f4 c5 14.xc6 xc6 15.d6 xd6
16.xd6 b8 is almost equal, Ibragimov,I-
Tiviakov,S/Elista 1997, 1/2-1/2 (54), and ]
[ 11...d6 allowing White to play a Benoni-
style position: 12.d5 exd5 13.cxd5 d7
14.f4 b5 with a plus to White, Krivoshey,S-
Oral,T/Prievidza 1997, 1/2-1/2 (44). ]
12.exd5 exd5 13.e5 This is a constant
theme in these lines, W hite's g2-bishop is
more powerful than its b7-counterpart, simply
b e c a u s e t h i s l a t t e r i s u n p r o t e c t e d . cxd4
14.xd4 a6 15.g4
[ 15.cxd5 b4 and the threat to fork on c2
regains the pawn. ]
15...b4 16.d1 Pinning the d5-pawn a
second time, but along the column on this
occasion, and avoiding the loss of an
exchange (...Nc2 was threatened).
[ 16.d1 also has its points, a3 is the
menace. ]
667
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

16...c8 16.b2 ) 14.d2 f5 15.f3 g5 16.f1

[ Removing the queen from both pins, if f6 17.d2 g6 18.h1 f6 19.e1
16...d6 then 17.cxd5 c2 18.g5Nguyen Anh Dung-Naiditsch, A/Budapest
is strong. ] 2000;
17.d2 d6 B) 11.b3 g5 ( 11...f5 12.b2 d7
[ 17...c2?! fails to 18.ac1 f6 19.h6! 13.ad1 g5 14.xg5 xg5 15.f3 e5
xg4 20.xg4 ] 16.d4 exd4 17.exd4 ae8 18.f2 e7
18.xb4 xe5 19.xc8 fxc8 20.cxd5 19.bxc5 dxc5 20.d5 Prusikin, M-Markos,
xb2 The point of Black's play, he J/Pulvermuehle GER 2006) 12.xg5
recuperates the pawn, but White's passed d- xg5 13.f3 c6 14.b2 e5 15.f2
pawn, and active pieces leave him on top. ae8 16.bxc5 dxc5 17.a4 e6 18.c3
21.ab1 f6 22.h3 c4?! e7 , and a draw was agreed upon, 1/2-1/
[ 22...c2 23.a3 d8 24.g2 e5 25.e7 2, Nielsen, P.H, -Rozentalis, E/Malmoe/
d7 26.d6 might have been better. ] Copenhagen SWE 2004 ]
23.d6 f3?! 11.bxc5
[ This concedes without a fight. Perhaps [ White can also do without this exchange,
Black had intended 23...e4 but then saw f o r e xa m p l e 11.d4!? e4 ( or 11...e4
that 24.f1! was possible, still, ( 24.dc1 12.d2 bd7 13.bxc5 bxc5 14.b2 e7
xb1 25.xc4 xa2 26.c7 a5 27.d7 15.d5 ) 12.b2 g5 13.xg5 xg5
d8 is not so clear) 24...c2 might hold-out 14.f3 However, the opening of the b-file will
some chances. ] likely benefit White more than it will Black ]
24.dc1 xc1+ 25.xc1 d8 26.d7
11...bxc5 12.d4!? White immediately takes
N o w, t h e p o we r f u l d 7 - p a wn d e c i d e s . h5
countermeasures to Black's plan of keeping
27.c7 a6 28.c3! f8 the centre closed. W ith the opening of the
[ Unfortunately, if 28...xc3 then 29.xc3 centre, White's bishops gain strength. exd4
threatens both Rc8, and the f3-bishop. ] 13.exd4 e8 14.e1 cxd4!?
29.c8 g5 30.d4 e7 31.xd8 [ This may not look entirely obvious, why
1-0 does Black open the position further when
an open position normally clearly favours the
side with the bishop pair? The problem for
669 A17 Bla ck is th a t if W h it e ge t s t o clo s e t h e
Grischuk,Alexander 2716 centre with d4-d5, Black's disadvantage is
Adams,Michael 2729 even greater because the bishop on b7 is
FIDE GP Baku AZE (5) 25.04.2008 entirely out of play, and Black lacks
[Carsten Hansen] counterplay, thus reducing him to a sitting
duck, for instance 14...bd7
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 0-0 A) 15.b2 is also okay, but less to the
5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 b6 7.e3 c5 8.e2 d6 point and less problematic for Black, e.g.
9.0-0 b7 10.b4 e5 e4 ( 15...e4 16.c1 ) 16.g5 b8
[ This is a new move in this position, though 17.dxc5 xc5=;
the idea of playing ...e6-e5 in this variation B) 15.d5 b6 16.d3 xe1+ 17.xe1
is hardly a new one. Nevertheless, W hite a6 18.c3 , and White is completely in
appears to obtain an edge after Black text control. ]
move. Here 10...bd7 11.b2 has been 15.xd4 c6 16.xc6 xc6 17.e3 e4
discussed on this page previously - see the 18.d4 White clearly is in control of the game
eBooks. ] and Black is almost without counterplay.
[ Another try, which we haven't covered Black's can hope to throw a spanner in the
previously is 10...e4 works by playing actively and thus avoid a
A) 11.b2!? c6 ( 11...d7!? 12.d3 situation where he is waiting for W hite to
g5 13.d2 ) 12.d4 d7 13.d1 e7 break through. c5 19.ad1 a4 20.b1
( 13...f6 14.c2 f5 15.dxc5 bxc5 c8 21.h3 Taking time to make a breathing

668
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

hole for the king. It's difficult to fault W hite

disturbing factors. Instructive. 1.c4 f6
2.c3 e6 3.f3 b4 4.c2 0-0 5.a3 xc3
for doing this, the advantage is hardly running
anywhere. c7 22.c3 6.xc3 b6
[ Or 22.b2 ce7 23.eb1 e4 24.d5 [ 6...d5 is also played. ]
4e5 25.d2 e4 26.d4 c5 27.f3 [ and 6...d6 prepares ...e5 freeing his bishop
with a continued plus for W hite Black's on c8. All these are matters of choice but I
pieces are placed as active as they can like this last setup. ]
possibly be, yet Black has no counterplay 7.e3 Establishing a purely English version of
worth talking about. ] the ...Bb4 system.
22...ce7 23.f3 h6 24.d5 [ 7.d4 would be a line from the 4.Qc2 Nimzo-
[ This looks perfectly normal, but achieves
Indian. ]
little why block Black's weak backward pawn.
7...b7 8.e2 c5
To me it seems like Grischuk was either [ I like 8...d5 better, giving Black time for ...
tired of the game and wanted to end the Nbd7 and ..c5. ]
game or, more probable, he was short of 9.b4 d6 10.b2 c6 11.0-0 e8 12.d4
cxd4 13.xd4 xd4 14.xd4 d5 15.cxd5
time, which also explains the lacklustre play
in the continuation. Instead W hite could This isn't y (15. Qe5!?) but Gurevich wants to
consider 24.ec1!? c7 25.a5 d7 torture his opponent. Now we see the two
26.g4 c6 27.xc5 dxc5 28.e1 ] bishops come into their own. xd5 16.xd5
24...c7 25.d4 xd5 17.ac1 ac8 18.fd1 xc1
[ Or 25.ec1!? ] 19.xc1 c8 Black thinks that simplifying will
25...xe1+ 26.xe1 e6 27.xe6 help his cause. In fact, the closer that one
[ White starts a series of exchanges leading
gets to a pure minor piece two bishops ending
to a draw. The only move offering any real the easier it should be for White. Watch the
chanc es to play f or a win is the b isho pbuild-up over the next 20 moves. 20.xc8+
retreat 27.e3 c6 28.d2 ( Winning a xc8 21.e4 e7 22.b5!?
pawn with 28.xc6 xc6 29.xa7
[ Or 22.f3 f6 23.f2 ]
doesn't achieve anything after d5 30.c5 d4 22...f6 23.c3 f7 24.c4 g6 25.b4
31.c1 c8 ) 28...c5 29.d1 offers White e5 26.e2 b7 27.f3 d7 28.d6 g6
the slightly better chances ] 29.f2 f5 30.exf5 gxf5 31.g4!? A slightly
27...xe6 28.xe6 fxe6 29.c5 dxc5
strange solution. Yet opening the position
30.xc5 a6 31.d4 d7 32.xd7
makes Black's king a target. fxg4 32.fxg4
Now it's completely drawn of course. But evend5 33.e3 g6 34.h4 h6 35.h5+ g7
36.g3 f6 37.e5 f7 38.f4 g7
with the queens on the table, neither side has
sufficient weaknesses to offer the opponent 39.d4 e4 40.e5+ f7 41.f4
any kind of chances. xd7 33.d4 f7
[ 41.b8 ]
34.h2 g5 35.g4 g6 36.g3 h5 41...g7 42.e5
37.gxh5+ xh5 38.f6 g6 39.d8 f5 [ White should win fairly easily after 42.b8!
40.h4 gxh4+ 41.xh4 c5 43.xa7 d7 44.a4 f6 45.c3
½-½ ( 45.a5 bxa5 46.c3 ) 45...e7 46.b4
d6 47.a5+- ]
42...c3 43.d3 f3 44.d6 a4
670 A17 [ 44...xg4?? 45.e5+ ]
Gurevich,Mikhail 2629 45.e5+ g8 46.g5! c5 47.g6 e4+
Sandipan,Chanda 2522 48.xe6 xg5+ 49.e7 e2 50.b8 a6
Gibtelecom Masters (7.5) 30.01.2006 51.bxa6 xa6 52.a7 f3
[John Watson] [ 52...b5 53.d3 ]
53.xb6 Now it's a matter of time. e5
Gurevich gives a convincing demonstration of 54.e8 c4 55.d4 d3 56.e3 g7
the power of two bishops in a neutral pawn 57.a4 b4 58.d4+ g8 59.a5 d5+
structure where there are no particularly 60.d6 f4 61.e3 f8 62.c6 xh5

669
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

63.xh6+ f7 64.d5+ xd5 65.xd5 followed by ...Nh4, or ...Nd5-f4, so W hite

1-0 prevents this. 18.d4
[ 18.a3!? ]
18...h4 19.d3 c4 20.c2 e4
671 A17 Black can't allow W hite to play f3 and e4.
Gustafsson,Jan 2566 21.xe4 dxe4 22.d5! White must play this
Khalifman,Alexander 2702 before Black gets the time to blockade the d5
Bundesliga 2002-3 (11) 09.02.2003 square, as this would leave the white dark-
[Tony Kosten] squared bishop with nothing to do. f5 23.f4!?
exf3?! Risky, Black refrains from capturing the
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 0-0 pawn by
5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 b6 7.e3 Probably the [ 23...xd5 b e c a u s e o f 24.d1 d8
most popular move here, White completes his ( 24...e6? 25.d6! is the awkward point -
kingside development before playing b4. b7 the black queen is tied to the g7-pawn, of
8.e2 d6 9.0-0 bd7 10.b4 e7 11.b2 course. ) 25.f2! planning to double on the d-
c5 12.d3 fc8 This is the mainline at present, f il e t o p in t h e b ish o p , f7 ( 25...e6
one of Black's main plans is to open the a-file, 26.fd2 xd2 27.xd2 f7 28.d6 )
then swap both rooks (after playing ...Qf8 so 26.fd2 a7! (covering g7, and preparing to
as to recapture on a8 with a major piece) and d e f e n d d 5 ) 27.b1 (planning Ba2, then
play for a draw. Rxd5 and Bxc4) c7 28.a2 and the black
[ 12...e5 is a good alternative, blocking the position is very uncomfortable, his pieces
a1-h8 diagonal. ] can hardly move, and his knight doesn't
13.b5 Gaining more space on the queenside. seem to helpful, nevertheless, after g6!
f8!? An innovation, normally Black continues 29.h1 dd7 he might be holding-on, as
[ 13...a6 14.a4 axb5 ( or 14...f8 first, 30.g3 f3 31.xd5 h5 a draw seems
15.h3 axb5 16.axb5 xa1 17.xa1 a8 likely: 32.c2 xh2! 33.xh2 xd1+
18.xa8 xa8 etc. Labollita,M-Ahmed,S/ 34.xd1 xd1+ ]
Bled SLO 2002) 15.axb5 f8 16.d2 24.g3
( 16.fd1 is a waste of time, as Black plays [ 24.d1! seems very strong to me: fxg2
xa1 17.xa1 a8 anyway, and the white 25.f4 g6 26.f2! and there is no
r o o k h a s m o v e d t wi c e , 18.e1 b8 defence to Bxf5-e6+. ]
19.xa8 xa8 20.a1 xa1+ 21.xa1 24...g2 25.xf5 xd5? In a complicated
and White's bishop pair advantage is not too position the ex-FIDE champ goes astray,
much here, Shchekachev,A-Bunzmann,D/ [ 25...xe1 26.e6+ h8 27.xe1 f8
Bethune FRA 2001) 16...xa1 17.xa1 28.f2 g5 is far from clear, Black can play
a8 18.c1 xa1 19.xa1 a8 ...Bc8 to exchange the annoying bit on e6. ]
(o nc e a ga in, th is plan is re ally ea sy t o 26.e4! xe1 Forced, the black bishop cannot
remember!) 20.g4 xa1+ 21.xa1 e8 move:
and another quick draw occurred in Vera,R- [ 26...b7? 27.xf3! xe1 28.e6+ h8
Vilela,J/Cienfuegos 1983. ] 29.f7 is curtains. ]
14.a4 a5!? Completely closing the queenside, 27.exd5 d3 28.d6! After this White is
is a bit passive, clearly winning. g5 Forced,
[ 14...a6 is still possible. ] [ 28...f6? loses to the elegant 29.e6+!!
15.ae1 White prepares for the central push. h8 ( 29...f8 30.xf3! ) 30.xf6 gxf6?
g6 16.d2 d5!? The start of an interesting 31.xf6# ]
plan to render the white b2-bishop obsolete. 29.xc8 f2+?! Not very good, but Black is
[ 16...e5 would be positionally desirable, losing anyway
when White will try lever the long diagonal [ 29...xc8 30.d7! d e f l e c t i o n ! c7
open again, 17.f4 e8 and Black is solid. ] 31.xg7+! xg7 32.d8+ f8 33.g5+
17.cxd5 exd5 Black hopes to be able to ( 33.xc7?? f2+ 34.g2 e1+
reopen the h1-a8 diagonal with a timely ...d4, w o u l d b e e m b a r r a s s i n g !) 33...g7

670
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
34.xg7+ xg7 35.xg7 and wins easily. ]
30.xf2! xf2 31.d7 The black queen
cannot guard the queening square, d8, and
g7 simultaneously. h3+ 32.f1 f5+
33.g2 f2+ 34.xh3 f1+ 35.h4
[ 35.h4 f8 36.xg7+ xg7 37.d8+
leads to mate. ]
1-0
672 A17
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2752
Bologan,Viktor 2700
21st ECC Saint Vincent ITA (7) 24.09.2005
[John Watson]
You always wonder why these top GMs (in this
case 2700+) don't play the sort of unbalanced
line that arises here. There's practically no
t h e o r y , a n d t h e b e s t m a n t e n d s t o wi n .
Interestingly, Ivanchuk has played varieties of
the English Opening recently. 1.f3 f6
2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g3 0-0 5.g2 d5
6.a3 xc3
[ 6...e7 7.d4 is the other route, reaching a
Catalan with White having played Nc3 and
having the extra tempo a3. The latter may
not be much, but is useful in more cases
than not: dxc4 ( 7...bd7 8.c5!? e4
9.c2 , using a3 to good effect.) 8.e5
( 8.a4 ) 8...c6 9.xc6 bxc6 10.xc6
e8 11.xe7+ xe7 12.a4
( 12...e5!? Ribli ) 13.g5 a6 14.0-0 c5
15.xf6 gxf6 ( 15...xf6 16.dxc5 )
16.ad1 Kramnik-Salov, Madrid 1993. ]
7.dxc3
[ 7.bxc3 has done badly in practice, several
games going c6 ( or 7...c5 8.0-0 c6 )
8.cxd5 exd5 9.0-0 e8 with excellent piece
activity. ]
7...c5 A logical but unusual move. Normally
Black tries to play ultra-solidly by
[ 7...bd7 8.cxd5 exd5 9.0-0 e8
. In spite of the interesting conflict between
bishop and knight pairs, this line hasn't
seen much action. There seems no
particular reason for this, but play does
seem about equal, e.g., 10.f4 ( 10.c2
e7 11.e3 c5 12.fe1 b6 13.ad1
b7= Schlosser-Lingnau, Werther 2003)
10...c6 11.c2 b6 12.a4 c4! 13.d4!?
( 13.ad1 ) 13...g4 14.b3 d6 15.fe1
h5 16.ad1 g6 17.c1 de4 18.f3
c5 19.e3 Eingorn-Popovic, Bor 1985. ]
[ 7...dxc4 Ribli 8.xd8 xd8 9.e5 d5!?
( 9...bd7 Ribli 10.xc4 b6 11.a5 b8
12.0-0 e8 13.e3 f6 14.fd1 xd1+
15.xd1 f7 16.d8! e7 17.xb7 d6
18.a5! xd8 19.c6++- Kaidanov,G-
Neverov,V URS-OT56 Blagoveshchensk
1988 ) 10.xc4 c6 11.0-0 e5
Ribli,Z-Speelman,J Manila olm 1992 ]
8.0-0 c6 9.g5!? Ivanchuk opts for the
min or position al advant age o f t he bet te r
bishop (on g2). dxc4 10.a4 h6 11.xf6
xf6 12.xc4 The position turns out to be an
irritating one for Black. e7 The problem is
that natural development by
[ 12...b6 can be met by 13.b4 ]
13.e1! A clever move threatening both Bxc6
and Nd3. e5
[ 13...a5!? ]
14.f4 g6 15.e3 c4 This looks awkward
but is a good move, stopping Nd3. 16.f3
c7 17.a4!?
[ 17.h4! will kick out Black's knight and retain
the advantage. ]
17...d7 18.fd1 fd8
[ 18...c6 19.c5 ]
19.a5 e7!? The position is roughly equal,
but now Ivanchuk plays a series of masterly
moves eventually wearing Black down and
a5 forcing a concession:
[ 19...a6 is probably better. ]
20.e5! ac8
[ 20...xe5? 21.xe5 wins a pawn ]
21.d4! e8 Black's bishop can't move due to
Qxc7. 22.ad1 a4 23.1d2 f5 24.g4!?
h5 25.e4 xe5 26.xe5 b3 27.h3!
W hite takes the bishop off its beautiful
diagonal in order to play to the 7th rank and
b e a b le t o u se d 4 a s a swin g squ a re . g6
28.d7 f8?
[ 28...c5! 29.xf7?! ( 29.a6! ) 29...a4
30.xb7 c6 is the computer defence. ]
29.xf5?! Okay, but
[ 29.xg6! fxg6 30.xe6 c6 31.xc6
bxc6 32.e4 h6 33.xa7
is overwhelming. ]
29...exf5 30.ed4 c5 31.f4 xa5
[ 31...b5 32.c7 and Rdd7. Black's bishop
on b3 is out of play. ]
671
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

32.xb7 c2 33.dd7 e4 34.xa7 xa7 also looks promising. ]

35.xa7 d5 36.d7 d8 37.f6+ f8
38.d7! The rest is pretty much a high-level
mop-up. xd7 39.xd7+ e7 40.e5 d6
41.f2 e6 42.e3 c5 43.d2 d6
44.c2 d5 45.f3 f6 46.d2 d6 47.b3
cxb3+ 48.xb3 c4 49.e3 e2 50.d2
c5 51.e4 g4 52.d3 h3 53.c4 d6
54.d4 fxe4 55.xe4+ e6 56.c5 g2
57.c6 e7 58.c7 h3 59.c5 d7 60.d6
e6 61.h4 g5 62.hxg5 fxg5 63.fxg5 e5
64.f7+ e6 65.g6 f6 66.d6 f5
67.e5 c8 68.c6 h3 69.e7 g4
70.g7 xg7 71.e5
1-0
673 A17
Kjartansson,Gudmundur 2356
Panchanathan,Magesh Chandran 2493
ch Edinburgh SCO (4) 14.07.2009
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4 0-0
[ 4...h6 There are several playable moves
here, and although I don't know the lines
well, for what it is worth, ... h6 feels to me
l i k e t h e b e s t m o ve , i f o n l y b e c a u s e i t
generally forces White to compromise his
kingside structure to make any 'progress'. ]
5.g5 e8 6.c2 d5 7.a3
[ 7.b3!? e7 ( 7...c6 might be better.)
8.g1 c5 9.e3 c6 10.d3! f5 11.gxf6
xf6 12.a3 e8 13.b2 h5 14.e2
and White had the initiative in Krasenkow,
M-Romanishin, O/Lvov 2000. ]
7...e7
[ 7...xc3 looks better to me, but many
strong(er) players have opted to retreat. ]
8.d4 b6?!
[ 8...c5! Feels like the most thematic move.
9.dxc5 xc5 10.e3 e7 11.h4 dxc4?!
( 11...c6! ) 12.xc4 left White with a
comfortable edge in Zvjaginsev, V -
Riazantsev, A Moscow 2003 ]
[ 8...dxc4 is also plausible and after 9.e4
c5 ]
9.e4 dxc4 10.xc4 c5 11.d5 d6 12.a2
e5 13.g1
[ 13.xe5 xg5 ]
[ 13.xe5 xg5 14.g1 xc1 15.xc1!
13...f5 14.gxf6 xf6 15.e3 d7 16.0-0-0
b5 17.g5! xg5 18.xg5 b4 In positions
with opposite side castling every tempo is
precious and it is usually a matter of 'who
lands first wins'. Not always, and perhaps not
even here, but when in doubt it makes sense
t o f o l l o w t h i s s p i r i t . 19.dg1! bxc3?!
Perhaps Black underestimated the power of
white's 21st move. He is not playing directly
for mate, but for a more enduring attack.
[ 19...f7?! 20.axb4 cxb4 21.b5! xb5
22.d6 is winning. ]
[ 19...g6 looks too passive, but probably
gives the best practical chances because
even though white is better mobilised the
position remains hugely unbalanced. ]
20.xg7+ h8 21.f4! cxb2+ 22.xb2!
The idea is simply Qg2 with the assumption
that Black cannot possibly stop all the mating
threats. e8 23.g2! df6 24.d6!
The dormant bishop wakes up. c4 25.xc4
g4 26.xg4 xg4 27.xg4 h6 28.fxe5
c8 29.e6! Elegant. xe6 30.xe6 g7
31.d5 Black is the exchange up, but he
faces a hopeless battle against the bishop
pair from hell supporting a pawn trio from
somewhere even worse. ac8+ 32.d2 h7
33.e6 b8 34.d4 A sweet and powerful
victory.
1-0
674 A17
Kosten,Anthony C 2507
Balogh,Csaba 2456
Aut chT Velden (5.1) 23.01.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e6 2.c3 b4 3.f3 f6 4.g4 0-0
5.g5 e8 6.c2
[ 6.b3 c5 7.a3 a5 8.e4 b6
is similar to this game, but the white queen
is in a worse position, Huzman,A-Nikolic,P/
Neum BIH 2000. ]
6...c5!? This seems to be an innovation, I had
expected
[ 6...d5 as in the Zvjaginsev,V-Riazantsev,A
game we examined previously. ]
7.a3 a5 The bishop gets stuck here for the
rest of the game.

672
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 7...xc3 8.xc3 b6 9.b4 with the
advantage because of the bishops. ]
8.e4!? Aiming for f6, but hitting c5 in the
process. b6 9.b4! The point, g7 diagonal is
opened with gain of tempo, and while the
white dark-squared bishop will attack g7, its
black counterpart is of absolutely no help to
the king's defence. cxb4 10.b2
This looks best, giving the option of capturing
one of the dangerous white knights. Th e
immediate threat was Rg1 and Nf6+ so the
only serious alternative was
[ 10...d5!? which is met by 11.f6+ gxf6
( 11...xf6 12.gxf6 g6 might be playable,
but the f6-pawn is a monster) 12.gxf6 xf6
( 12...b3?! 13.d3! (keeps the threat of
Ng5) d6 14.g1+ h8 15.g7 f5
16.g5 and wins ) 13.g1+ h8 14.g5
d4 (the only move to stop mate) 15.g2
wi n n i n g t h e a 8 - r o o k w h i l s t t h e a t t a c k
continues. ]
11.g1 Really threatening Nf6+ now.
[ 11.f6+?! doesn't work any more, gxf6
12.gxf6 xf3 13.g1+ h8 14.g7 xg7
15.fxg7+ g8 16.gxf8+ xf8 17.exf3
and Black is better because of the tatty
white pawn structure. ]
11...b3!? This doesn't achieve a great deal,
but Black didn't want to capture on a3, and
drag the a1-rook into the attack, or allow
W h it e t o t a k e o n b 4 wh e n it s u i t e d h i m .
12.d3 xe4 The knight had to go!
[ 12...d5!? is very risky,
A) 13.f6+!? xf6 ( 13...gxf6? 14.gxf6+
h8 15.g5 wins on the spot) 14.gxf6
g6 might defend, 15.e3 ( or 15.d1!?
to free the queen and knight f rom the
defence of d2) 15...d7 16.cxd5 xd5
17.h6 xf6 18.g5 e5 etc.;
B) 13.g3! possible as the d5-pawn is
pinned, d7 14.cxd5 exd5 15.f6+
exf6 16.gxf6 g6 17.e3 e8 18.h6
xf6 19.d4 planning Nf5 and also Nxb3,
note that the black dark-squared bishop is
a long way from its best post on g7! ]
13.xe4 c6 Clearly best, although there are
alternatives:
[ 13...d5?! 14.cxd5 xd5 15.xd5 exd5
16.d4 and Nxb3 leaves White with the
bishop pair and a better structure. ]
[ 13...a6 14.g3 c5 15.h4
and Rh3 wins. ]
14.g3 The attack continues - the immediate
threat is Rh3 - and meanwhile White can pick
t h e b 3 - p a w n u p w h e n h e w a n t s . f5!?
The most obvious way to counter Rh3 and
Qh4, however
[ 14...d6 aims for f5, and may be better,
b7 15.g4 ( 15.d3 is also possible, to take
t h e b 3 - p a w n) 15...e8 (the king needs
some space) 16.h3 e5 17.h5 xc4
18.xh7+ f8 19.b1 xb2 20.xb2 e4
and although the black king is bare he is
still fighting. ]
15.gxf6 Simplest, opening the g-file, though I
also considered
[ 15.h4 when e7 16.h3 g6 17.d4
is unpleasant for Black who must constantly
be on the lookout for mating attacks along
the a1-h8 diagonal. ]
15...xf6 16.d3 e7 Black hopes to close
t h e d i a g o n a l b y . . . e 5 . 17.g2?!
The immediate
[ 17.g5!? is more accurate: e5 18.g2
with a nasty threat of Bd5+ and Rh3. ]
17...c5
[ 17...h5! looks odd, but may be the best
d e f e n s i v e p o s s i b i l i t y , 18.h3 f7
and Ng5 is impossible because f2 is
hanging. ]
18.g5 e7 The point of Black's play, he
wanted to prohibit Ng5.
[ 18...d5? is met by 19.xg7+! xg7
20.g5 with a double threat of Qxh7 mate
and Nxe6+, forking king and queen. ]
19.0-0-0 d5 20.cxd5 exd5 21.h4
[ 21.g1 is also strong, but I wanted to
attack d5 as well as g7 (by Nf5). ]
21...ae8?! I had expected
[ 21...c5+ 22.b1 c2+ 23.xc2 bxc2+
24.xc2 but this is very good for White. ]
[ 21...h8 22.g1 c7 23.b1 ad8
looks OK, but then 24.xd5! is good. ]
22.xd5+ h8 The knight on f6 is pinned.
23.xb3!
[ 23.xc6?! i s n o t h i n g s p e c i a l : c7
and White has only succeeded in
exchanging his powerful bishop, but ]
[ 23.dg1 was tempting, e5!? ( 23...c5+
24.b1 c2+ 25.xc2 bxc2+ 26.xc2
must win ) 24.xe5 c7+ with some
chances. ]
673
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

23...xe2 24.g6+! The neat point. hxg6 White's attack.

25.xg6 [ 19...gxf5 might be answered by 20.h5 ]
[ after 25.xg6 e7 is forced, , but then 20.d5+ h8 21.h5! gxh5 22.g2!
( 25...e7? 26.h5+ mates ) 26.xf6 xf6 Tony gains a tempo on c6 and diverts a Black
27.h5+ xh5 28.xh5+ h6 is quite defender from the kingside. c8 23.be1!?
hopeless. ] To some extent a matter of taste.
1-0 Alternatively,
[ 23.h3! wins the f5 pawn, after which the
advance of White's own f-pawn will prove
675 A17 decisive even if Black's king survives. ]
Kosten,Anthony C 2527 23...e7 24.xb7 xb7 25.h3 g7
Van der Linden,Lucas 2263 26.xh5 f8 27.d2 d7 Breaking the pin
4NCL Nottingham ENG (6) 23.01.2005 to prepare ...d5, which W hite immediately
[John Watson] prevents. 28.e3! fg6? This ends up being
time-consuming, since the knight will have to
Our fearless Webmaster plays a pretty game defend h7 anyway. Better
which illustrates again the power of the g4-g5 [ 28...d4 , to divert White from an easy
expansion in nearly every opening these days. rook shif t to t he h -f ile , alt hough 29.h2
1.c4 f6 2.c3 c5 3.g3 e6 4.f3 b6 5.e4 e6 30.h3! f8 31.cd5 is hardly fun for
b7 6.d3 In general this system hasn't given Black. Perhaps ]
Black too much trouble. Still, he can't waste [ 28...c6 29.ed5 d4+ 30.h2 xe1
too much time getting a plan going. d6 7.g2 31.xe1 g6 would have stabilised for a
e7 8.0-0 bd7 Black forfeits the idea of ... moment. Of course there remains the
e5, ...Nc6-d4 and aims for a Hedgehog problem that Black can hardly move! ]
formation instead. 9.e1!? Preparing f4. 29.e2! c6 30.h2 f8 31.cd5 d4
[ 9.e1 0-0 10.d4 cxd4 11.xd4 c7 [ 31...xb2 32.h3! d4 33.h1
12.b3 a6 13.b2 would be a typical and the crucial f-pawn falls. ]
f o r m a t i o n f o r b o t h s i d e s . W h i t e m i g h t 32.c3 b7
consider a g4-g5 plan at some point. ] [ 32...g8 33.c2! f7 ( 33...xc2
9...e5!? Now Black switches to a ...Nc6 34.xg7 xg7 35.f6 ) 34.xd4 xh5
formation, which is logical but takes time. 35.xh5 cxd4 36.cb4! grabs every
[ 9...0-0?! allows 10.e5! xg2 11.exf6 xf1 available square. ]
12.fxe7 xe7 13.xf1 when White's pieces 33.h1 e6? 34.xd4 xd4
should outweigh the rook and pawn. ] [ 34...cxd4 35.xf5! ]
[ But 9...c7 10.f4 0-0 11.e3 a6! 35.xf5 d8 36.xd4 cxd4 37.f5
is a standard setup that has served Black 1-0
well. Who knows? Maybe White can close
h i s e y e s a n d p la y 12.g4!? . Amazingly,
Fritz8 pref ers W h it e slight ly inste ad o f 676 A17
b l o wi n g a f e w c i rc u it s o ve r h is la c k o f Kramnik,Vladimir 2785
development. ] Carlsen,Magnus 2714
10.f4 c6 11.e3 0-0 12.c2 a6 13.g4! World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (5) 21.11.2007
Whether this objectively gains the advantage [Carsten Hansen]
or not, it is perfectly sound and difficult to
meet. W hite simply pushes Black's pieces 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g3 0-0
back and gains space. e8 14.g5 d7 5.b3 This combination of g3 and Qb3 is
15.h4 f8 16.d2 b8 17.a4 g6 18.ab1 somewhat of a Kramnik speciality, and one
I have no idea what either side should be which scores well for him. This game is no
doing here but Black's next seems logical, to exception... c5 6.g2 c6 7.0-0 d6
challenge the centre. f5 19.exf5 exf5?! [ Black has tried several other moves in this
Opening the e-file yet underestimating p o s i t i o n : A ) 7...a5? is tempting, but

674
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
doesn't accomplish anything: 8.c2 xc4
9.a4!
A) 9...b5
A1) 10.a3 a5 ( 10...bxa4 11.axb4 )
11.xc5 Ribli;
A2) 10.a3;
B) 9...d5 10.a3 ( 10.d3 b6 11.xc5
bd7= Ribli ) 10...a5 11.d3 b6
( 11...d6 12.xc5 ) 12.xc5 bd7
13.b4
B1) 13...c7! 14.b2 b6 15.xd7
xd7 16.e5 ( 16.xf6 gxf6 17.e4
c8 18.b3 c6 19.d4 a8
20.exd5 e5= Ribli; 16.fc1 c8
17.b3 Ribli ) 16...c8 17.xd7 xd7
which Ribli evaluates as very slightly
better for White thanks to White's bishop
pair;
B2) 13...xc5 14.bxa5
B2a) 14...xa5 15.d2 c7
( 15...b6 16.e3 fd7 17.fc1+- )
16.ac1 ( 16.fc1 Ribli b6 17.d4+- );
B2b) 14...b6 15.e3 Garcia Ilundain,
D-Psakhis, L/Benasque 1995 ]
[ B) 7...d5 8.d3 xc3 ( 8...h6 9.e3 e8
10.a3 dxc4 11.dxc4 xc3 12.xc3 e5
13.b4 Kasparov, G-Anand, V/PCA-Wch/
1995; 8...d4!? 9.a4 d6 10.e3 a5
11.exd4 cxd4 12.g5 e5 13.a3 h6
14.xf6 xf6 15.c2 g4 1/2-1/2 Izoria,
Z - S a d y k o v , R / N a k h c h i v a n A Z E 2 0 0 3)
9.xc3 d4 10.a3 b6 11.f4 e8
12.e5 Ehlvest, J-Kortschnoj, V/Horgen
1995 ]
[ C) 7...e7 8.d3 h6 9.a3 a5 10.e3 d8
11.c2 a6 12.d4 d5 13.dxc5 xc3
14.xc3 xc5 15.b3 b5 16.b2 bxc4
17.bxc4 Kramnik, V-Illescas Cordoba, M/
Yerevan 1996 ]
[ D) 7...a6 8.d3 b8 9.d1 d6 10.g5 h6
11.xf6 xf6 12.e4 e7 13.a3 a5
Ch u ch e lo v, V -B a kla n, V/ B in d la ch G E R
2006 ]
8.d3 h6
[ 8...b8 9.h4 d7 10.d2 a6 11.a3
a5 12.d1 b5 13.b4 c7 14.cxb5 axb5
15.b1 cxb4= Kavalek, L-Ree, H/NED/
1969/ ]
9.e3
[ 9.a3 a5 10.e3 b8 11.d4 d7 12.d1
e7 13.d2 c7 14.b5 b6 15.dxc5
dxc5 16.c3 e5 17.a4 a6 18.a3 c7
1/2-1/2 Pelletier, Y-Mastrovasilis, A/Athens
GRE 2005 ]
9...e5
[ 9...b8!? 10.a3 xc3 11.xc3 b5 12.b3
b6 13.d2 d8 14.b2 bxc4 15.xc4
c7 16.b4 cxb4 17.axb4 xb4 18.a5
Bezold, M-Kortschnoj, V/Muenster 1996 ]
10.d2
[ 10.a3 a5 ( 10...xc3!? 11.xc3 a5 )
11.d2 e7?! 12.d5 xd5 13.cxd5
xd2 ( 13...b8 14.c4 ) 14.xd2
( 14.dxc6? xc1 15.cxb7 xb7 16.xb7
ab8 ) 14...b8 15.d4 d7?! ( 15...cxd4
16.exd4 exd4 17.fe1 f6 Ribli ) 16.dxe5
xe5 17.f4 Kramnik, V-Hracek, Z/Berlin
1996 ]
10...f5
[ 10...xc3 this is natural, because the
bishop on b4 is already out of the game,
whereas the knight on c3 is part of the fight
over control of the centre, in particular the
d5-square. 11.xc3
A) Premature, Ribli gives 11...e6 12.f4
d7 13.fxe5?! ( 13.e4! looks better -
CH ) 13...dxe5 14.xf6? gxf6 15.e4
e7;
B) 11...d5?! 12.cxd5 xd5 13.xc5
db4 14.b3 ( 14.d4 exd4 15.e4 e6
is comfortable for Black - Ribli) 14...xd3
15.c3 xc1 16.axc1 e6 17.e4
( 17.xc6? bxc6 18.e4 a5 19.fd1=
Ribli ) 17...e7 18.c5! Kramnik, V-
Adams, M/Dortmund 1996 ]
[ 10...e6!? 11.de4 xe4= is given by
Dolmatov ]
11.a3 xc3 12.xc3 d7 13.e1 h3
14.h1 ac8
[ 14...a5!? ]
15.b4 b6 16.b2 fe8 17.b3 h5 18.f3
f5 19.h4 d7 20.c3 h7 21.d1
g4 22.f3 h3 23.f4 f6 24.f3 g4
[ 24...g4!? ]
25.b5 d8 26.a4 e4 27.xg4 xg4 28.d4
[ 28.dxe4!? xe4 29.d5 e6 30.f5 ]
28...cxd4
[ 28...d5!? ]
29.xd4 f6 30.ed1 h3 31.xd6 g4
32.d2
[ 32.d2!? ]
32...xc4
675
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 32...e6! ] 15.e3 a4 and Black has equalised

33.d7 f8 34.xg7 xg7 35.f5+ h7 without much effort, Jelen, I-Kuzmin, G/
[ 35...g8 36.d6 c3 37.xe4 xe3 Bled 1979 ) 10.g2 b7 11.0-0 c5
38.g5 xg3+ 39.hxg3 xg3+= ] ( 11...bd7 12.d3 c5 13.e4 f8 14.h4
36.d6 c3??+- e6 15.ae1 d4 16.c1 d7 17.f4
[ 36...b4! ] Schmidt, W -Kholmov, R/Legnica 1994)
37.xe4 e6 38.xc3 xe3 39.d3+ f5 12.e3 bd7 13.d3 c8 14.e4 a6
40.d5 d8 41.e4 h6 42.e5 xg3 15.h4 b5 16.f5 b6 with a double-
43.f6+ h7 44.xf7+ g7 45.hxg3 xd5 e d g e d p o si t i o n , S za b o , L - L a r s e n , B /
46.xd5 xg3+ 47.g2 e3+ 48.h1 f5 Lugano 1970 ]
49.g1 [ 7...bd7 8.g3 b6 9.g2 b7 10.0-0 c5
1-0 11.b2
A) 11...c7 12.d3 fc8 13.fc1 e5
14.h3 e8 15.e4 f8 16.h4
677 A17 ( 16.a4!? ) 16...e6 17.d2 d8
Kramnik,Vladimir 2766 18.xe6 fxe6 19.ab1 ( 19.a4!? )
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2750 19...c6 20.e2 e7 21.g2 f7
Amber Rapid Monte Carlo MNC rapid (5) with a satisf actory position f or Black ,
[Carsten Hansen] Illescas Cordoba, M-Karpov, A/Wijk aan
Zee 1993;
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 0-0 B) 11...e7 12.d3 fc8 13.e4 f8
5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 d6 7.b4 Here also 7 d4 14.fe1 a6 15.d2 ab8 16.d4
and 7 g3 have been played on several , and White has the upper hand, Lobron, E-
occasions. a5 Adams, M Brussels SWIFT 25' 1992;
[ 7...e5 8.b2 ( 8.g3 c6 9.b5 e7 C) 11...c8
10.g2 c5 11.bxc6 xc6 12.0-0 e8 C1) 12.d3 e8 ( 12...c7 13.a4
13.b2 g4 14.h3 d7 15.d3 c8 Georgiev, Ki-Lobron, E Tilburg1.1992)
16.d2 c7 17.e4 e7 with chances to 13.e4 Kasparov, G-Karpov, An New
both sides, Arduman, C-Maksimovic, S/ York/Lyon Wch m(24) 1990;
Katerini 1993 ) C2) 12.c2 c7 13.bxc5 bxc5
A) 8...b6 9.e3 c5 10.e2 b7 11.0-0 14.ab1 c6 15.c3 c8 16.d3 b8
bd7 12.d3 c8 13.a4 e8 14.e4 cxb4 17.e4 xb1 18.xb1 c7 19.d2 b8
15.xb4 a5 16.a3 c5 17.d2 c6 20.xb8+ xb8 21.b3 xb3
with a fully satisfactory position for Black, 22.xb3 and White has a slightly better
Ivkov, B-Langeweg, K/Wijk aan Zee 1971; endgame thanks to his bishop pair, and
B) 8...c6 in fact managed to convert it to a win,
B1) 9.b5 e7 10.e3 b6 ( 10...f5!? Dueball, J-Hecht, H/ Bundesliga 1990 ]
11.d3 a6 looks pretty decent for Black) 8.b2 e5
11.e2 b7 12.0-0 e4 13.c2 g6 [ 8...axb4 9.axb4 xa1+ 10.xa1 b6 11.g3
14.e1 f5 15.f3 c5 16.d4 e6 b7 12.g2 bd7 13.0-0 e7 14.b2
17.d5 c5 18.d3 Portisch, L-Larsen, a8 15.d4 xg2 16.xg2 e8=
B/Palma de Mallorca 1971; Azmaiparashvili, Z-Corral Blanco, J/
B2) 9.e3 e4 10.c2 f5 11.e2 a5 Ponferrada 1992 ]
12.d3 f6 13.b5 e7 14.c5 9.g3
Portisch, L-Larsen, B/Las Palmas 1976; [ 9.e3 bd7 ( 9...g4!? ) 10.e2 b6
C) 8...e8 9.g3 ( 9.d3?! g4 10.e3 11.c2 g4 12.0-0 e8 13.d3 d7
bd7 11.h3 xf3 12.gxf3 d5 13.0-0-0 14.fd1 a4 15.c3 Furman, S-Kholmov,
c5 , and White is already in trouble, R/ USSR Ch (Baku) 1972 ]
Barbero, G-Timman, J/Novi Sad OL 1990) 9...axb4!?
9...b6 ( 9...bd7 10.g2 b6 11.0-0 e4 [ 9...e4 10.c2 g5 11.xg5 xg5
12.d4 c5 13.c2 g4 14.fe1 c8 12.b5 d7 13.g2 c5 14.0-0 h5

676
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
15.d4 exd4 16.xd4 e8 17.fe1
Lengyel, L-Hecht, H/Budapest 1973 ]
10.axb4 xa1+ 11.xa1 b5!? This is a
fascinating concept in this variation. Black
appears to get a position where he plays for a
win without any further ado. 12.cxb5 d7!?
[ Even 12...d7 can be considered, but this
is not part of Ivanchuk's concept. ]
13.e3
[ On 13.c4 Black still plays c8 and if
14.d4 then e4 15.d2 e3! 16.fxe3 b7
17.g1 xb5 with amble compensation for
the pawn ]
13...c8 14.e2 b7 15.d3 xb5
[ 15...g4!? 16.e4 xb5 17.h3 xf3
18.xf3 c6 19.0-0 b8 20.g2 b7
21.b1 h6 ]
16.0-0 c6
[ 16...c6?! ]
17.b1
[ 17.b3 e7 18.c1 c6 19.e4 b5 ]
17...a6!?
[ 17...e4!? 18.d4 xd4 19.xd4 a8
20.f1 exd3 21.xd3 xd3 22.xd3 e4
23.d4 f6 , and Black has the better
chances. However, Ivancuk prefers to keep
the pieces on due to White's lack of overall
activity andcoordination ]
18.b3 a8 19.d2?!
[ 19.e1!? a2 20.xa2 xa2 21.d1
a7 ]
19...a2 Black is already clearly better and on
the verge of something more. 20.c3 xb3
21.xb3 a2 22.f1?
[ 22.f3?! e7
A) 23.e4 fd5 24.b2 ( 24.e1 f5
25.d2 a4 26.b1 c2 27.c1
xb4-+ ) 24...h6 25.h4 a4-+;
B) 23.b1 xd3-+ ]
[ 22.b2 a1+ 23.b1 xb1+ 24.xb1
d5 25.f3 cxb4 26.d4 d3 27.xb4
xb4 28.c3 c5 29.dxc5 dxc5 ]
22...d5! and now Black wins a piece. The
rest of the game is relatively interesting as
Kramnik plays on, but never really has any
chance and Ivanchuk rather methodically
eliminates whatever counterplay Kramnik has
dreamed up. 23.g2 ce7 24.b2 a4
25.a3 xb2 26.xa4 b6 27.a7 xd2
28.xc7 f8 29.b7 d1+ 30.f1 ec8
31.b5 a1 32.c7 g6 33.h4 b1 34.d4
exd4 35.exd4 e7 36.g2 h5 37.b7
bd5 38.b8+ g7 39.d8 b2 40.g1
f5 41.c4 b1+ 42.h2 f6 43.f3 b2+
44.h3 xd4
0-1
678 A17
Kramnik,Vladimir 2777
Zhang Zhong 2639
Wijk aan Zee NED (6) 17.01.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 0-0
5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 b6 7.e3 In some ways
the least ambitious move, but if Kramnik plays
it ...
[ We have also looked at 7.g3 and ]
[ 7.b4 ]
7...b7 8.e2 d6 9.0-0 bd7 10.b4
Kramnik plays this only af ter having f irst
developed his kingside. c5 Black reacts in the
centre, this move gives the possibility of
pressurizing the c4-pawn.
[ 10...e5 blocks the long diagonal, 11.d3
e7 12.b2 with a plus for White Vokac,M-
Lechtynsky,J/Marianske Lazne 1978. In both
ca se s B la c k p la ce s h is p a wn s o n d a r k
squares to impede the white light-squared
bishop. ]
11.b2 e8!? A novelty in a common
position.
[ 11...e7 is the most popular, and has
similar ideas, see the game Gustafsson,J-
Khalifman ,A. ]
[ 11...c8 puts pressure on the c-line,
Portisch,L-Najdorf,M/Wijk aan Zee 1978. ]
12.d4 Gaining space at the (temporary) cost
of the e4-square. e4 13.b3 b8 14.ad1
c7 15.d2 ef6!? Interesting, normally
with less space Black should be happy to
exchange a pair of pieces, and yet here he
ref uses. Perhaps he con sidered that th e
knight was misplaced on d2, or perhaps he
simply wanted a more exciting position with
m o r e p i e c e s . 16.c1 a5 17.fd1 e5
Black follows his plan of putting all his pawns
on dark squares. 18.f1 axb4 19.axb4 h6
20.a1 ec8 Black plays solidly, ready to
c o u n t e r W h i t e ' s p l a n s . 21.b2
A small repetition to gain time on the clock,
677
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
perhaps? e8 22.dxc5 dxc5 23.b1!
The knight heads for the b5 square. cxb4
24.xb4 c5 The black knight finds a good
square on c5, White's advantage (the bishop
pair) seems to amount to very little here.
25.c3 bd8 26.b1 The b6-pawn is the
target. c6 27.a1 xd1 28.xd1 d8?!
Careless, B lack is keen on exchanging the
last pair of rooks, when the draw would be
close, but misses a neat tactic. 29.b5! xb5
Forced,
[ 29...e7?! 30.xd8+ xd8 31.xe5
wins a pawn for nothing. ]
30.xe5! xe5 Black has little choice, the
position of two knight versus rook and two
pawns is unpleasant but otherwise he loses a
pawn for nothing. 31.xd8+ e8 32.xb6
I am not sure that this position is winning for
White, the c-pawn is well blocked, but it takes
a lot of patience to defend it. e7 33.c8
fd7 34.c7 f8 35.g3 e6 36.c6 g6
Th e b la c k p o s it ion is so lid , b u t p a s sive .
37.h3 f5 If White is able to capture on e6
the c-pawn will be free to advance. 38.g2
g7 39.d5 ec5 40.a8 f7 41.a1+
f6 42.a7 White is probing the black
position, hoping that Black will buckle under
the pressure. a6 Black is unable to return to
e7:
[ 42...e7? 43.xc5 xc5 44.xd7
wins immediately. ]
43.xa6 xa6 44.f3 Without queens on the
board W hite can advance his king and
kingside pawns. ac5 45.f2 f6 46.c6+
e6 47.e2 e5 48.f4+ f6 49.d2 e7
B l a c k d e f e n d s w e l l . 50.f3 b3+!?
Black plays a tactical sequence to simplify
matters, but perhaps he should have
preferred something like
[ 50...a4 51.c2 dc5 ]
51.c3 a5 52.a6 Forced, or White loses
t h e c 4 - p a w n . xc4 53.xe6+ xe6
54.xc4 An extra pawn on just one wing with
bishop against knight is not the most
promising scenario, but here the white king is
active, and the black knight short of good
squares. g5 55.d5+ f6 This takes the f6-
square from the knight but
[ 55...d6 56.d4 f6 57.b7
is also difficult, Bc8 is a problem, attacking
the f5-pawn. ]
56.c6 f8 57.d5 g6 58.d6 e7
59.b7 g6 60.f3 f8 Black hopes to
survive by moving his knight from f8-g6, to
break this W hite will have to advance his
kingside pawns. 61.d5 g6 62.c6 f8
63.d7 g6 64.h3 h5 The best chance,
[ 64...f8 65.h4! gxh4 66.gxh4 g6 67.h5
and Black loses use of the g6-square, and
will soon be in zugzwang. ]
65.fxg5+ xg5 66.h4+! g4!? A difficult
decision, if Black can only swap his knight for
the g and e-pawns he would draw by virtue of
the 'bad h-pawn', but it is difficult to achieve
this.
[ 66...f6! l o o k s b a d a f t e r 67.e8
but Black has the resource e5 68.d5
( 68.xh5? c4+ draws ) 68...g4 69.d4
h2! (the knight works wonders!) 70.xh5
f1 and Black seems to have achieved his
g o a l , b u t t h e n t h e r e i s 71.e4! fxe4
( 71...xg3?! 72.e5+ g7 73.f3 ) 72.g4
with connected passed pawns, but Black is
still not dead: g3! 73.g5+ f5 74.d1
f4! 75.g6 f5+ 76.c5 e5 77.h5 f6
and draws as the knight will play Nh4xg6. ]
67.e4 xg3 68.exf5 h8? A terrible
decision, perhaps due to a shortage of time.
[ 68...f8! might just do the trick: 69.f6
( 69.e7 h7 70.f7 xh4 71.g7 g5
72.f6 g3 73.h6 f4 74.xh5?! h7
drawing ) 69...xh4 70.f7 g5 71.e7
g6+ 72.e8 f6 this looks bad but Black
has a fabulous resource, e.g. 73.b5 g7
74.d3 f8 75.f5 h4 76.e7 h3!
77.xh3 g6+ 78.e8 f8 79.f5
(zugzwang?) h8! 80.xf8 stalemate!! ]
69.e7 xh4 70.f6! The knight is
miserably placed on h8. g4 71.g7 g5
72.f6
[ 72.xh8?? f6 ]
72...h4 73.c8 h5 74.f5!
[ 74.xh8?? g6 ]
74...g5 75.e6 g6 Black has to let the
pawn advance, he has no other moves. 76.f7
f4 77.c8 h5+ Obviously hopeless, but
[ 77...g6 is no better, 78.d7 ]
78.h7
1-0
678
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

679 A17 xh6 and Black may defend. ]

Krasenkow,Michal 2702 22...xd2+ 23.xd2 Black is temporarily a
Dydyshko,Viacheslav 2525 p a wn t o t h e g o o d , b u t h a s n o m e a n s o f
chT Zakopane chT (1) 02.09.2000 defending g7. g6 24.hxg6 fxg6 25.xg6+
[Tony Kosten] f7 26.h7
[ 26.h7 h8 27.f1+ e7 28.e1+! f7
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4 29.g2 leads to a quick mate, the black king
xc3!? has no cover, i.e. hd8 30.h8! xh8
[ A newish idea, the idea being that after 31.f2+ g7 32.g1+ h6 33.h2# ]
4...d5 5.g5 it is not possible to bring the 1-0
knight to e4 after xc3 because of the reply
6.bxc3 e4 7.d3 xc3 8.b3 d4 9.xd4
xd4 10.b2 with a large advantage. So by 680 A17
capturing immediately on c3, Black can then Krasenkow,Michal 2661
play ...d5 and then ...Ne4, should W hite Romanishin,Oleg M 2578
recapture with the d-pawn. ] Leonid Stein Mem (1) 12.05.2000
5.dxc3 [Tony Kosten]
[ 5.bxc3 is also possible, when Play might
resemble a Nimzo-Indian after d6 , say. ] 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4 0-0!?
5...d5 Provocative, but undoubtedly playable. 5.g5
[ So this is the point of Dydyshko's idea, e8 6.c2 d5 7.b3
p r e v i o u s l y 5...d6 had been played, 6.g5 [ White allow s the pawn to advance,
fd7 7.c2 c6 with a solid position for natu rally he pre f ers to ke ep the ce ntre
Black, but W hite's extra space, and two closed, 7.a3 e7 8.cxd5 exd5 9.d4
bishops, means that he is on top, allows Black simple development, Roiz,M-
Razuvajeva, J-Zvereva,M/St Petersburg Alienkin,A/Beersheba 1998. ]
1999. ] 7...e7
6.g5 e4 It will prove difficult to force this [ A logical new move, 7...c6 8.b2 e7
knight to move from this strong square, now 9.g1 b4 10.b1 c5 11.h4 led to similar
that White no longer has a d-pawn. 7.f4 0-0 play in Zhukova,N-Lakos,N/Nova Gorica
8.e3 b6 9.c2 b7 10.0-0-0 d7 11.g1 SLO 1999. ]
a6 12.h4 b5 Both sides attack the opposing 8.g1 c5 9.e3 c6 10.d3!? A double-
king position. 13.cxd5 exd5 14.h5 dc5 edged move. f5
15.e5 However, it seems that White's attack [ 10...b4!? is wild: 11.xh7+ h8 12.b1
is quicker, already the thrust g6 is on the dxc4 ( 12...d4? appears strong, but loses
cards. e6 16.d3 e7 17.f3! White does after 13.e4! dxc3 14.h4
manage to play this move, and, at the with a devastating discovered attack next
temporary cost of a pawn, gains an move. ) 13.bxc4!? g6 14.xg6 fxg6
appreciable advantage. 4xg5 18.xg5 15.e5 unclear. ]
xg5 19.f4 h6 11.gxf6 xf6 12.a3 e8 13.b2 h5
[ Surely not Black's original intention, but 14.e2 d4!? This turns-out to be more
after the natural 19...e4? 20.xe4 dxe4 dangerous for Black than for White. 15.xd4
21.g2 is winning, as after f6 there is the xd4 16.exd4 xh2 The idea behind
stunning move ( 21...f6 22.d7 ) 22.d6!! Black's play, winning a pawn, but at the same
( a rook sacrifice to close the sixth rank, the time this opens lines against his king. 17.0-0-0
immediate 22.g4 is easily met by b6 ) cxd4 18.e4 f4 19.d3 xe4
22...cxd6 23.g4 e6 24.f5 [ 19...g6 might be a better defence, 20.xd4
and the queen is lost, if she leaves the sixth xa3+ 21.b1 e7 ]
rank then: c4 25.f6+ h8 26.xg7# ] 20.xe4 h6 21.xd4! Otherwise Black will
20.fxg5 xe5 21.gxh6 xe3+ 22.d2! play ...e5 to close the a1-h8 diagonal. f6?
[ The endgame is crushing, no t 22.b1? [ After this Black doesn't even get a pawn for

679
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

h i s t r o u b l e s , 21...xa3+ 22.b1 e5 13.0-0 e5 14.e3 c8 15.d3 c7 16.fd1

23.e3 and Black has the resource xe4! c8 17.ac1 a5 with chances to both sides,
24.xe4 f5 although White is slightly
Uhlmann,W-Kortchnoi,V/Hastings 1976. ]
better after 25.xf5 xf5 26.xh6 ] 11...c6 12.e3 c8 13.b3 e7 14.b2
22.e3 d6 Menacing mate in two, starting fd8 Black has finished his development with
23...Qxa3+. 23.c5 a6 24.a4 a5? h i s p i e c e s o n i d e a l s q u a r e s . 15.ac1
[ Black continues to play for an attack, but White has yet to fully complete his
W h i t e g e t s i n f i r s t , b e t t e r 24...h8
mobilisation, but enjoys the bishop pair, and
although White is on top now. ] says to Black "how are you going to exploit
25.xh6 Now Black is lost. b4 Can you find your lead in development before my bishops
the forced mate? 26.xg7+!! xg7 27.h7+ get going?" f6
h8 28.xg7+ xg7 29.g6+ h8[ 15...c7 16.fd1 e8 17.b1 h6
30.h5 s e e m s wo r s e , I b r a g i m o v, I - B e l i k o v , V /
[ 30.g1 amounts to the same. ] Moscow 1998, but ]
30...xf2 [ 15...e5 is certainly possible now (or even
[ 30...a3+ 31.c2 a2+ 32.c3 earlier, as in the Korchnoi game). ]
and the checks run out. ] 16.fd1 h6 17.b1! White still bides his time,
31.e4+ and brings the queen to b2 to augment the
[ 31.f5+ is slightly quicker. ] pressure along the a1-h8 diagonal.
31...g7 32.g1+ f8 33.h6+ e7 [ The immediate 17.c3?! allows b4! ]
34.g7+ f7 35.g5+ e8 36.g8+ 17...h7!? A new move here, but maybe not
[ 36.g8+ f8 37.h5+ e7 38.g7+ the best. In Rubinetti,J-Polugaevsky,L/Toluca
d8 39.h4+ is mate in a couple of
1982 Black preferred
moves. ] [ 17...a6!? 18.d3 b7 19.c3
1-0 ( 19.a1!? ) 19...d5 20.a1 e5
with fairly equal play, and ]
[ 17...a5!? is also possible, 18.c3 d5!?
681 A17 pu t t in g p re ssu re o n b 3 , a n d so 19.xa5
Malakhov,Vladimir 2672 bxa5 and although the black queenside
Nikolenko,Oleg 2521 structure is shattered he will have lots of
City-ch Moscow RUS (3.1) 22.04.2003 play down the b-file. ]
[Tony Kosten] 18.c3 Preparing Qb2, and possibly b4. a5
I am not sure this is entirely necessary,
In many ways this game seems to me an [ 18...g5 would justify Black's previous
'ideal' Flank game: W hite allows Black the move, e.g. 19.xg5 xg5 and if 20.b4 c4 ]
centre and simply manoeuvers his pieces into 19.b2 f6 Black has to blunt the bishop's
st ro n g squ ares an d t hrea t en s f ro m a f a r, pressure on the diagonal, but this weakens
before countering in the centre, when the the kingside pawns. 20.h4 Stopping ...Ng5
game explodes into sharp tactics, and White once and for all. a7 21.d4 White finally
wins! 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 pla ys t h is ce n t ral t h ru st . b5 22.e1
4.c2 0-0 5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 b6 7.g3 b7 White needs to preserve both his bishops to
8.g2 d5 9.cxd5 xd5 The most natural count on an advantage, and the knight an
reply, keeping the pawn structure solid, easily be driven b ack f rom b5 later. cxd4
[ 9...exd5 is the alternative. ] 23.xc8 xc8 24.a4 e4?
10.c2 We have already examined the Black miscalculates the sharp tactics, the
unusual simple
[ 10.c4!? in Dydyshko,V-Dautov,R/Batumi [ 24...c3 i s b e s t , f o r a f t e r 25.xd4
GEO 1999. ] B l a c k h a s t h e r e s o u r c e e5 26.d3
10...c5 11.0-0 (where else?) e4 27.d1 and providing
[ 11.b3 c6 12.b2 could transpose, but Black can bring his h7-knight back into the
now Black played more aggressively: e8 game he should be OK. ]

680
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
25.axb5 b7 This is the point of Black's
combo, the knight has no way to retreat and
defend the g2-bishop as both h4 and e1 are
occupied. However, it is now that the
weakening of the black kingside comes into
play. 26.h3!
[ 26.e2 c2 27.d2 d3
is a l s o p o s s i b le , a l t h o u g h s e e m s ve r y
uncomfortable for White. ]
26...xf3 27.xe6+ h8
The simple solution, obviously White avoids
the line
[ 28.xc8 xc8 29.xd4 because of the
retort g5! 30.hxg5 h3 when it seems
that there is no defence to mate, but on
31.d8+ h7 32.c2+ f5 White wins by
the astounding 33.g6+ xg6 34.c6+!
xc6 35.bxc6 and Black has no way to stop
the c-pa wn queen ing! The only try is f4
36.exf4 e6 but then 37.c7
38.g2 e4+ 39.h2 c2 40.c8 xf2+
41.h3 f1+ 42.h4 h1+ 43.h3
and there is no perpetual! ]
28...e8 29.f5 f8 30.c2 White has an
extra pawn and the bishop pair, so has every
chance to win. f7 31.d3 h5 32.f4
e6? A tactical error, first
[ 32...a8 is best, followed by ...Ne6, if
possible. ]
33.xf3! White is on his toes. xf3 34.d7
c7 35.g6 e2 If the rook moves, then
Q x c 7 w i n s . 36.xe8 This is good, but,
objectively,
[ 36.c3! must be even stronger. e.g. f8
37.xc7 d1+ 38.g2 xb3 39.c6 a4
40.d4 winning easily. ]
36...xe1+ 37.g2 xe8 38.xe8+ h7
39.e4+ h8 40.d4 b1 41.xb6 e4+
[ 41...xb3 42.xa5 is hopeless. ]
42.h2 f3 43.b8+ h7 44.f4 d5
45.b6 White's extra two pawns are more than
sufficient to win the game. b5 46.e4+ f5
47.e6
1-0
682 A17
Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar 2585
Naiditsch,Arkadij 2574
4th YM Lausanne SUI (3.1) 21.09.2003
[Tony Kosten]
28.d1 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4 h6
5.g1 b6 6.c2 b7 7.a3 f8!?
A novelty, the bishop returns to defend the g7-
28.xd4 pawn, Black hopes to gain a tempo over
[ 7...e7 8.g5 hxg5 9.xg5 f8
( w e e x a m i n e d 9...h5 in Najer, E-
Pedersen,N) 10.d4 of Zvjaginsev,V-Adams,
M/Moscow RUS 2001. ]
8.d4 In view of Black's last, White decides to
ke ep g5 in re se rve . d6?! A little passive,
Black aims for a solid set-up, but allows White
to gain a lot of space.
[ 8...c5!? ]
xe1+ 9.e4 bd7 10.e3 a6 11.0-0-0 I have to
say that I like White's position here, he has a
big centre, and has almost completed
development. c5 Black strikes in the centre.
12.d5 e5 Black's play is logical in that he
should be keeping the centre closed, but
where is his counterplay? For his part, White
can simply prepare the push of his g-pawn to
open the black kingside. 13.h4 g6
[ 13...h5!? is also worthy of consideration,
14.g5 g4 and Black will exchange a
piece. ]
14.g5 hxg5 15.hxg5 h5 The knight is
temporarily safe, but without the support of
the other black pieces will soon find itself
driven from its post. 16.h3 g7 17.h1
Already threatening Bg4xh5. b5!? Black must
h for some counterplay, as it is clear that he is
in a bad way on the kingside. 18.cxb5 b6
19.bxa6
[ 19.f1! looks like a good move, too,
Black's play for the pawn is significantly
less than in the Benko. ]
19...xa6 20.g4 c4 Black has a couple of
open files, and active pieces, in front of the
white king, and in practical play, who knows?
21.xh5! At first sight White swaps a powerful
bishop for a poor knight, but in fact, following
Tartakower's dictum, it is not important which
pieces have b een exchange d, but rathe r
which pieces have been left - and a white
knight will now come to f5 and dominate the
681
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

g7-bishop. gxh5 22.h4 b6 5...b7 6.d3 d6

[ 22...c8 controls f5, but after 23.dg1 [ 6...d5!? is possible, 7.cxd5 exd5 8.e5
White will continue Nf5, and after ...Bxf5 he fd7 9.d4 cxd4 10.xd4 ( 10.b5!? )
will establish his other knight on e4. ] 10...xe5 11.b5+ bd7 12.e2 e7
[ 22...xe3 23.fxe3 xg5? loses to 24.f5 13.0-0 with a strong initiative for the pawn,
f8 25.a4+ ] Platonov,I-Grigorian,K/Leningrad 1971. ]
23.f5 f8 24.dg1 Making room for the 7.g2 e7 8.0-0 0-0
knight, although [ 8...a6 9.e1!? is another way to force f4,
[ 24.h4!? b8 25.a4 seems strong, ( 9.b3 ) 9...c6 10.f4 0-0 11.g4!? d7
White will proceed with Rdh1 and capture 12.f3 e5 13.g5!? with interesting chance
the h-pawn. ] for White on the kingside, Dzindzichashvili,
24...b8 25.d1 Now b2 is solidly protected, R-Browne,W/Tilburg 1978. ]
and White can try to exploit his advantages on 9.g5!? This looks ridiculous, but reminds me
the other wing. a5 26.g6 f6 Ugly, but what of various openings where the same idea is
else? 27.h3 c4 28.d2 b3+ 29.b1 employed to free the f-pawn.
a6 Black tries to generate some play, but [ 9.h3 is more 'standard', a6 10.b3 c6!?
short of a white blunder it is unlikely he will 11.b2 b5 12.e5!? dxe5 13.xe5 xg2
ge t ve ry f ar wit ho u t h is kin gsid e p iece s.
14.xg2 was nothing special for White in
30.c3 xd2+ 31.xd2 e2 32.h3 Portisch, L-Yudasin,L/Manila 1990. ]
[ 32.de3! immediately, is even simpler, the 9...fd7 Quite surprisingly, this position has
threat is to capture the 'bad' bishop on g7 been seen before, and there Black preferred
and then play Nf5+ (that Tartakower dictum [ 9...h6 which demonstrates the point of
again!) ] W h i t e ' s n i n t h : 10.h3 c6 11.f4
32...f1 33.c3 e2 34.de3! The same and the knight can always drop back to f2
position is reached and White finds the right to suppo rt the kin gsid e pa wn adva nce ,
path. g4 There is nothing better. 35.c2 Staricek,P-Flasik,R/SVK 1999. ]
b5 36.b3 xf5 37.xf5 The culmination 10.h4!? White could also play his knight
of W hite's strategy, the knight totally immediately to h3, but would prefer to provoke
dominates the black bishop and kingside. b6 ...h6, which slightly weakens the black
38.gg3 kingside. Black's idea was that after
[ 38.xb6! xb6 39.a4 is very effective, [ 10.f4?! he can play xg5 11.fxg5 c6
Qd7 is the menace, and after b7 40.xd6 with great squares for his knights on d4 and
Blac k c ann ot parry b oth Qe 8 m ate an d e5. ]
Qd7. ] 10...h6 11.h3 c6 12.f4 d4 13.e3
38...h4 39.xb6 xb6 40.a4 White will b8 With the centre closed Black must look
force mate in a few moves. f o r cou nt e rp la y o n t he qu ee nside , a s h e
1-0 cannot simply allow White to push his kingside
and gain a strong attack. 14.h2 c6!?
This allows a surprising tactic, perhaps
683 A17 [ 14...a6 was safer, planning ...b5. ]
Morozevich,Alexander 2679 15.xd4! cxd4 16.b5 The knight forks a7
Lutz,Christopher 2631 and d4, and so Black's next is obligatory.
It Biel SUI (4) 24.07.2003 xb5 17.cxb5 It takes good judgement to
[Tony Kosten] realise that this position is good for W hite.
The b5-pawn hampers Black on the
1.c4 f6 2.c3 c5 3.g3 e6 4.f3 b6 queenside, and c6 may prove a useful staging
Black aims to transpose into a Hedgehog. post for a white piece later in the game. f6
5.e4!? 18.g1! White wants to force Black to defend
[ 5.g2 b7 would be more normal, but d4 by continuing Nf3. d7 19.a4 a6!?
White prefers to play a Hedgehog with the d- Opening the queenside, as the a-pawn is
pawn on d3, instead of d4. ] easily recuperated. 20.bxa6 a7 21.h3

682
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

This move controls g4, as the immediate 684 A17

[ 21.f3? allows g4+ 22.g1 e3 ] Morozevich,Alexander 2741
21...xa6 22.f3 White obviously aimed for Van Wely,Loek 2679
a position like this when he played his 15th Corus A Wijk aan Zee NED (1) 15.01.2005
move. Not only is he threatening the d4-pawn, [John Watson]
but g4-5 is an annoying threat, which is why
he wanted Black to play ...h6 earlier. b5 23.a5 1.c4 f6 2.c3 c5 3.g3 e6 4.f3 b6 5.e4
a7 24.g4 h7 25.g5 hxg5 26.hxg5 g6 b7 6.d3 It's hard to get anything out of this
Black attempt s to defend his kingside, as his move. Black decides to set up a Hedgehog.
queenside counterplay does not amount to c6
v e r y m u c h . 27.d2 b4 28.f5 [ A more active approach would aim for ...d5,
Further breeching the black defences, it is at as in the line 6...e7 7.g2 0-0 8.0-0 d5 ]
this point that he would like a light-squared 7.g2 d6 8.0-0 a6
bishop to defend the e6-pawn! b5 [ Also possible is 8...e7 9.d4 e5!? ]
[ 28...e5 29.f6 d8 30.h1 will quickly 9.d4 cxd4 10.xd4 c8 11.xc6 xc6
force mate along the h-file, as the black king Black has already organized an ideal piece
is all on its own. ] p l a c e m e n t . 12.e2 e7 13.d1 c7
29.a6! There is no need to give the a-pawn, 14.f4 d7 15.ac1 b7 Versus Nd5. Now
as it might prove useful later-on. White has space but no real targets. 16.a4
[ 29.f6 d8 30.f4 is strong, but after xa5 c6
31.xa5 xa5 32.h4 Black may be able [ 16...c6 doesn't seem to allow anything
to sacrifice a piece for the f and g-pawns to b e t t e r t h a n 17.c3 when White has to
stop the attack. ] switch plans. Now Black's position is typical
29...b6 30.fxg6 of a solid Hedgehog with no real way for
[ 30.f6 is not bad, once again. Psakhis once White to make progress. The play
said to me that such a pawn 'is worth a eventually simplifies. ]
rook!' ] 17.b3 0-0 18.f1 c7 19.b4 e5 20.xe5
30...fxg6 31.xe6+ g7 32.d5!? dxe5 21.c5!? bxc5
Th is ke e ps a lid o n B lack's co un t erp la y, [ 21...b5! 22.b6 cd8 equalizes. ]
although 22.xc5 g5 23.c3 fd8 24.h4 d2
[ 32.c4 d5!? 33.exd5 d6+ is probably 25.c4 b6 26.a3 c6 27.d3 h6
nothing much. for Black ] 28.xe5 b5 29.xc8 xc8 30.e1 a4
32...xa6 33.ac1 d7 34.g2!? 31.b1 c2 32.a1 d4 33.f3 xe4
White goes for gold. 34.g5 xe1+ 35.xe1 g6 36.f1 c3
[ 34.xb4 is obviously quite good. ] 37.xa6 xa3 38.c1 a2 39.c4 b2
34...f4?! 40.b5 a4 41.a1 b4 42.d3 f8 43.b6
[ 34...h8 is t h e o n ly t ry, 35.g1 f8 h6 44.e4 c6 45.b1 xb1+ 46.xb1 f5
but this only defers the end to a later date 47.d2 c5 48.a2 f7 49.c4 e7
after 36.g3 planning Qh4, and Nxd4. ] 50.e5
35.g3 g4 ½-½
[ 35...f8 36.h4 h8 37.xd4
is also crushing. ]
36.e5!! A stunner! dxe5 685 A17
[ 36...xg3 allows a nice mate: 37.f7+ g8 Najer,Evgeniy 2606
38.xe7+ f8 39.xg6# ] Pedersen,Ne 2508
37.f7+ h8 38.xh7+! xh7 39.h3+ 4th IECC Istanbul TUR (4) 02.06.2003
It will be mate on h6. [Tony Kosten]
1-0
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4 h6
5.g1 b6 6.c2!?
[ 6.h4 is probably the main move here, see

683
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Van W ely,L-Timman,J, for example, but
the ]
[ 6.b3 of Zvjaginsev,V-Adams,M/Moscow
RUS 2001, also has its adherents. ]
6...b7 7.a3 e7 8.g5 White opens the g-
file.
[ 8.h4?! seems erroneous now, as Black can
gain a strong grip on d4 by xf3! 9.exf3 c5
10.f4 c6 as White now played the
gr o v e l li n g 11.e2 Wallace,J-Johansen,D/
Melbourne AUS 2002. ]
8...hxg5 9.xg5 h5 Aggressive, but there
is something to be said for Adams' move
[ 9...f8 to keep g7 protected, 10.d4 c6
11.d5 d4 12.d1 c5 13.e3 f5
with chances to both sides, Zvjaginsev,V-
Adams,M/Moscow RUS 2001. ]
10.d4 c5!? Possibly a prepared innovation,
[ 10...c6 11.f3 f6 12.d3 a5
1/2-1/2 Guidarelli,L-Sakelsek,T/Opatija CRO
2003, doesn't tell us too much, but level
seems a fair assessment, as Black is
threatening ...Bxf3 followed by ...Nb3xd4. ]
11.d5 Shutting down the bishop's diagonal,
and gaining space. a6 12.d2 b8 13.h4
White is ready to castle long and then get on
with his attack, and meanwhile Black is far
from solving the problem of his monarch.
e5!? 14.0-0-0 c7? This gets Black into
some trouble, but it was not easy to find a
good alternative,
[ 14...exd5!? 15.f3!? ( 15.cxd5
is a ls o go o d) 15...e6 16.cxd5 xd5
17.xd5 xd5 18.e4 b7 19.c4
with a powerful initiative. ]
15.f4! The most direct, although the simple
[ 15.f3 f5 16.xf5 exf5 17.h3 g6
18.e4 is also fairly convincing. ]
15...xf4 16.f3 f6 17.e4 h6
[ 17...f5 18.g5 also wins the knight. ]
18.g4 The knight is pinned, attacked, and
cannot be defended. exd5 19.xf4 e6
[ 19...h5 i s n o b e t t e r : 20.g5! xg5
21.d6+ e7 22.xg5 is crushing. ]
20.f2 The only move, defending the rook,
but sufficient. 0-0-0 21.xg7 xh4 22.xh4
xh4 23.e3 f6 24.g1 The white pawn
structure is a bit ragged, but his extra piece is
a match-winner. e6 25.g3 h5 26.cxd5
xd5? This makes things even worse.
[ 26...c7 ]
27.xd5 xd5 28.a6+ b7 29.e4
Attacking both the queen and the check on d6.
f3 30.d6+ b8 31.xb7+
1-0
686 A17
Nakamura,Hikaru 2710
Sokolov,Andrei 2570
16th ORDIX Open rapid (6) 02.08.2009
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4!?
xc3 Another move I would hesitate to play,
but many strong players, not least Michael
A d a m s , s e e m t o e n d o r s e i t . 5.bxc3
Probably best. Lunging with the g-pawn feels
less purposeful when there is little tension in
the centre.
[ 5.dxc3 d6 6.g5 fd7 7.e3 e7 8.g2
e5 9.c2 c6 10.h4 b6 11.b3 g6
12.d2 f5 13.e4 e6 14.a4 d7
15.h5 0-0-0 16.0-0-0 b8 17.h4 e7
18.hxg6 hxg6 19.dh1 xh4 20.xh4 c6
21.f1 d5 With a clear advantage to Black
was vintage Mickey in Cornette, M -Adams,
M France 2003 ]
5...d6 6.g5 fd7 7.g2
[ 7.d4 leaves c4 weak, and turns the position
into some sort of strange Nimzo Indian. b6
8.e4 b7 9.d3 c6 10.e3 e7
11.d2 e5 12.b1 0-0 13.h5 f6 14.g6
hxg6 15.xg6 f7 16.g3 f5! was better
for Black in Gurevich, M -Istratescu, A)
Antalya 2004 ]
7...c6 8.d3! Positionally astute. It is better to
leave the d4-h8 and e3-a7 diagonals free for
the bishop, and the d4 square free for the
knight. e5 9.h4 b6 10.e3 e7 11.d2
d7 12.a4
[ 12.h5!? Begs the question of how Black will
connect his rooks, and White can continue
to build with Rg1 and Bf3 if necessary. ]
12...a5 13.b3 c6 14.xa5 xg2
15.g1
[ 15.h2 c6 16.xc6 bxc6 17.a5 d7
18.a4 c5 19.c6 0-0 20.xc7 e4 21.d4
appears to be better for White, but in rapid
games strong players much prefer to keep
the initiative. ]
15...h3 16.c5
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 16.xb7 looks simpler and better. c5
17.a5 0-0 however, does leave White's
extra pawn looking only marginally
relevant. ]
16...d5 17.xb7 xe3 18.fxe3 dxc5
19.b3 0-0 20.a3 ab8 21.xc5
[ 21.xc5! looks better. ]
21...f5 22.b3
[ 22.a2+ f7 23.c4 The knight on c5 is
strong and should probably stay there. ]
22...f7 23.d2 As I mentioned, Nakamura
has a reputation for uncompromising chess
but while looking at his recent wins I noticed
that many of them featured a fairly complex
opening struggle, followed by grabbing a pawn,
and then slowly absorbing the pressure and
winning the ending! That said, Black has a
very active position here, and the assessment
is f ar f rom clea r. h5 24.h1 xh4+
25.d1 g3 26.c5 g4
[ 26...e4!? ]
27.c2 xe2 28.d5+ h8 29.e6
xd3+! 30.xd3 fd8+ 31.c4 xd2?
A forgivable blunder in a rapid game, but in
fact
[ 31...g2! appears to be winning quite
easily. ]
32.xf5 h2 33.af1 h4+ 34.c5 g8
35.xh2 xh2 36.b1 e4?! Unnecessary
[ 36...g3! leaves Black at least ok. ]
37.xe4 d6+ 38.c4 a6+ 39.b3
b6+ 40.a2 c5 41.h1! g6 42.d4+
xd4 43.cxd4 White now has a slightly better
ending, perhaps clearly better, but I imagine
Black lost on time rather than resigned.
1-0
687 A17
Pelletier,Yannick 2604
Skalkotas,Nikolaos 2278
Acropolis GM Open (1) 06.03.2005
[John Watson]
This game between two respected
grandmasters indicates how White can gain
an advantage in the 1c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e6 3.Nf3
Bb4 line, although it's mainly Black's system
that is suspect. 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3
b4 4.b3
[ 4.c2 0-0 5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 b6
has been played in hundreds of games.
White can get only a very small advantage,
if any. ]
[ 4.g4!? is the newer and most entertaining
move, played by top players in order to
a vo id t h e ra t h e r d u ll o ld lin e s (in wh a t
position ISN'T W hite playing g4 ?) Tony
dealt with this in the game Bareev-Naiditsch,
Rethymnon GRE 2003. The standard
a n s w e r h a s b e c o m e h6 with a recent
example being 5.g1 b6 6.c2 b7 7.a3
e7 8.e4 ( 8.g5 hxg5 9.xg5 ) 8...d5
9.cxd5 exd5 10.e5 e4 11.b5+ c6
12.e2 g5 13.d4 xf3+ 14.xf3
Krasenkov-Naiditsch, Antalya 2004. ]
4...c6!? Playing for development first.
[ 4...a5! is a good alternative. A game just
played went 5.g3 d6 6.g2 e5 7.a3 c5!
8.d3 h6 9.0-0 0-0 10.c2 c6
an d B lack wa s a t le a st equ al, Ars ovic -
Fedorchuk, Sozina 2005. ]
5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 d5!? It's a bit anti-
positional to play on the light squares and
cede the long diagonal.
[ 6...d6 intending ...e5 has been played with
fair success. ]
7.e3 0-0 8.b4! The most testing move.
[ 8.d4 is the solid alternative. Then a5! 9.b3
d7 would be a typical treatment, with White
retaining just a formal edge after something
like 10.d3 a4! 11.b4 dxc4 12.xc4 a7
13.0-0 b5 14.b2 c6 15.d2
Black's light square treatment characterises
the plan following from 6...d5. ]
8...e5!? A dynamic sacrificial idea that tries to
justify Black's setup. It is probably too much
to ask of the position. Alternatively, Black has:
[ (a) 8...e4 9.c2 g5!? 10.b2 ( or
10.xg5 -- Bareev ) 10...d7 11.cxd5
xf3+ ( 11...exd5 12.xg5 xg5 13.b5 )
12.gxf3 exd5 13.g1 and White was clearly
better in Bareev-Rozentalis, Pula 1997. ]
[ (b) 8...e8 preparing ...e5, is the other
ma in t ry a n d p ro b a b ly b e st , a lt h o u gh I
prefer White after 9.b5 e7 10.b2 c6
( 10...g6!? ) 11.g4! ]
9.b5!?
[ It's probably more advantageous if
seemingly risky to grab the pawn by 9.xe5!
xe5 10.xe5 e8 11.d4! , for example,
( 11.c3? d4! 12.d3 e4! 13.b2 f6
685
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

a n d W h it e i s in t r o u b le .; 11.b2!? ) [ Black can also post his pieces more actively

11...e4?! ( 11...f5 12.b2 e4 13.c3 by 8...c5 9.e4 c6 , not fearing 10.e5!?
d4 14.b3 ) 12.c3 d4 13.c2 dxe3 e8 11.e1 f6 12.d4 c8 ]
14.dxe3 f5 15.d3 xc4 16.xc4 xd3 9.e4 bd7 10.h4
17.d4 and Black lacks compensation. [ I tend to think that these positions should
P e l l e t i e r p l a ys f o r a c e r t a i n b u t s m a l l be better for White, since his centre is safe
advantage. ] and he has two bishops. Another idea is to
[ On the other hand, 9.cxd5 xd5 10.c2 be able to meet ... d5 by e5 by, say, Qe2.
e8 is quite fun for Black: 11.d3 g4 ( or Then Nh4 and f4 could follow. 10.e2 e7
11...f5!? 12.e4 d4 ) 12.e2 a5!? 13.b5 11.h4 ]
a7 14.b1 d7 and Black will play for a 10...d5?!
properly timed ...c6. ] [ 10...e5 11.f4 g6 12.f3 ]
9...e4 10.bxc6 exf3 11.gxf3 d4 11.exd5 exd5 12.f5! e8 13.g5
[ Or 11...bxc6 12.b2 f5 13.g1! g6 White threatens d5 and has won the opening
14.cxd5 cxd5 15.c6! and White's two struggle. e5!?
b i s h o p s c o m e a l i v e : b8 ( 15...e8 [ 13...h6 14.h4! intends Qd2 with attack
16.d4! ) 16.e5 e8 17.c3 etc. ] (cxd5 is a lso b e th rea t en e d ), e. g. , h7
12.a5!? d6! 15.d2 e5 16.g4 e8 17.f4! g5
[ 12...bxc6 13.b2 dxe3 14.dxe3 18.xg5 ]
has the ideas of Rg1 and Rd1 again the 14.g4 h6 15.h4 c8 (with the idea ...dxc4)
bishops will rule the board. ] 16.e1! With the idea Ne7+
13.b2 e8 14.0-0-0!? Good, although [ The alternative 16.f3!? stops ...dxc4 and
[ 14.g1! was very strong: e5!? ( 14...b6 threatens Nxh6+ still, I prefer the game
15.g5 g6 16.e2 ) 15.b4! xc6 move. ]
16.xd4 ] 16...xe1+ 17.xe1 f8 18.xf6
14...e5!? White is better after several moves, e.g.,
[ 14...h6 15.xd4 b6 16.c3! ( 16.a4 [ 18.e7+ h8 19.xd5 also gains the
f5 ) 16...xc6 17.xf6 xf6 18.xf6 gxf6 advantage, since xd5 20.cxd5 xg4
19.d4 will win in the long run. ] fails to 21.d6 ]
15.b4! xc6 16.xd4 f5 18...xf6 19.e5! With the ideas Nxh6+ and
[ 16...e6 17.e2 ] Qxc7. xg4 20.xc7 b8 21.g3!?
17.g1 xf3 18.g2 xf2 19.df1 h4 This should work out. On the other hand,
20.e7! e6?? [ 21.xb8+ xb8 22.cxd5 wins a (passed)
[ 20...xf1+ 21.xf1 was pretty bad pawn for virtually nothing. ]
anyway. ] 21...xg3 22.hxg3
21.xf5 xf5 22.xb7 b8 23.xf6 xc4+ [ Similar is 22.fxg3! , and it leaves the option
24.c3 g6 25.e5 of h3 open: d8 23.e7+! ( 23.xd5 xd5
1-0 24.e7+ f8 25.xd5 b5! ) 23...f8
24.xd5 b5 25.e1 bxc4 26.dxc4
and the pawn is significant because Black's
688 A17 pieces are stuck (h3 is a threat). ]
Ponomariov,Ruslan 2704 22...d8 23.cxd5? After playing so well and
Motylev,Alexander 2632 securing a won game, Ponomariev slips up.
WCC Khanty Mansiysk RUS (2.2) 01.12.2005 Once again
[John Watson] [ 23.e7+ f8 24.xd5 was strong, one
cute line going e5 25.d4 xc4 26.xb6!
Another effective opening sequence for White, xg2 27.xc4 ]
wh o c o m e s o u t wit h a co n s id e ra b le a n d [ or 23.xd5 xd5 24.e7+ f8 25.xd5
probably winning advantage. 1.f3 f6 2.c4 b5 26.e1 ]
e6 3.c3 b4 4.g3 xc3 5.bxc3 b6 23...g6 24.e7+ f8 25.c6
6.g2 b7 7.0-0 0-0 8.d3 d6 [ 25.e1 was the last chance but Black

686
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

holds after e8 26.d6 xg2 27.xg2 d8 15.xg5 c8 16.f6 is terrific for White. ]
28.d5 xd6 29.c4 ] 11.xe4 xe4 12.f4 a6 13.b5 d6?
25...xc6 26.dxc6 xd3 27.c4 e7 It's quite curious that this serious error should
28.d5 d6 29.e1 g5 30.e8 be the deviation from Savchenko's previous
½-½ game in this line. Was it faulty preparation, no
preparation or forgetfulness? In any case the
position is very good for White now.
689 A17 [ Black is better off playing 13...0-0 but after
Savchenko,Boris 2630 14.xc7 xc7 15.xc7 d5 16.g3 f6
Goganov,Aleksey 2480 17.f3 h7 18.cxd5 exd5 19.f2
64th ch-HL Taganrog RUS (1) 15.06.2011 Black was a pawn down for very little in
[Nigel Davies] Savchenko, B (2638)-Guliev, L (2426)/Baku
2009. ]
1.c4 f6 2.f3 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4!? 14.d4 g6? Another mistake.
An enterprising approach to a line which is [ 14...b7 15.xg7 0-0-0 was the best
often characterised by lengthy middle game chance. ]
manoeuvres. It's interesting how such moves 15.xc7+! xc7 16.xd6 d8
seem to have become more popular as former [ After 16...a6 17.c6+ e7 18.d6+
1.e4 players have switched over to Flank f6 19.d7 White wins on the spot, so
Openings in an attempt to get out of well Black has to go two pawns down. ]
studied lines. h6 17.c6+ d7 18.xc7 c2 19.xb6
[ I s u s p e c t t h a t t h e co ld b l o o d e d 4...0-0 That's pawn number three! 0-0! 20.b5 e7
is Black's best here. ] 21.c1 h7 22.g5 hxg5 23.xg5 f6
5.a3 24.h6 f7 25.d1 d8 26.c5 xd1+
[ Although this has been played before it is 27.xd1 f5 28.c1 h7 29.e3 c7
less popular than 5.g1 , for example b6 Nobody ever won a game by resigning, and I
6.h4 ( 6.c2 b7 7.a3 e7 8.g5 hxg5 guess that White has to be a bit careful here.
9.xg5 f8 10.d4 c6 11.d5 d4 30.d1 e5 31.c4 e4 32.d6 d5
12.d1 c5 13.e3 f5 14.e4 d4 33.d3+ f5 34.f4 f6 35.xd5 exd5
wa s v e r y o r i g i n a l b u t f i n e f o r B l a c k i n 36.xf6 gxf6 37.b4 g8 38.b5 f8 39.b6
Zvjaginsev, V (2640)-Adams, M (2731)/ 1-0
Moscow 2001) 6...b7 7.g5 hxg5 8.hxg5
e4 9.c2 xc3 10.dxc3 d6 11.e3
c6 12.0-0-0 e7 13.g2 0-0-0 14.d4 690 A17
xd4 15.xb7+ xb7 16.cxd4 c6 Shchekachev,Andrei 2530
1/2-1/2 was Stella, A-Naumkin, I/Forni di Prasad,Devaki V 2413
Sopra ITA 2011, again a highly original Metz Open FRA (5) 18.04.2007
g a m e b u t wi t h a s u r p r i s i n g l y p e a c e f u l [Carsten Hansen]
outcome in the end. ]
5...xc3 6.dxc3 b6 7.a4 a5 8.g1 b7 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 b6
9.d4 e4 10.g2 h4?! This doesn't look 5.e4 xc3
very good for Black but Black might have [ 5...b7 6.e5
been following a previous Savchenko game. A) 6...xc3 7.dxc3 g8 8.e2 e7
It's also not easy to find great moves for him 9.h4 d5 10.h5 h6 11.f4 d7
here, for example: 12.0-0-0 V. Gavrikov-L.Couso,
[ a) 10...a6 11.b5 ac5 12.e3 Gothenburg 2001;
looks quite awkward. ] B) 6...g8 7.d4 e7 8.e3 d5 9.a4+
[ b) 10...0-0 is quite dangerous with White's ( 9.c5!? bc6 10.a3 xc3+ 11.xc3 )
g-pawn creating some of the preconditions 9...bc6 10.cxd5 xd5 11.b5 d7
for an attack, for example 11.c2 d5 12.g5 12.c2 a6 13.d3 J.Tisdall-R.Fyllingen,
hxg5 13.cxd5 exd5 14.xe4 dxe4 Oslo 2006;

687
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
C) 6...g4 7.d4! ( 7.h3 h6 8.a3 xc3
9.dxc3 f5 10.g1 xf3 11.gxf3 c6
Comp Chessica-G.Ligterink, The Hague
1996; 7.a3 xc3 8.xc3 f5 9.exf6 xf6
10.xf6 xf6 11.e2 , and White may
h a ve a t in y p u ll t h a n k s t o t h e p a i r o f
b i s h o p s a n d t h e a b i l i t y t o d e ve l o p a
space advantage, A.Moen-K.Mork,
Trondheim 2004) 7...c5 8.a3 xc3+ ( Or
8...a5 9.h3 (Chuchelov) h6 10.g5
xc3+ 11.xc3 cxd4 12.xd4 f5
13.c3 c7 14.e2 ) 9.xc3 c7
10.h3 h6 ( 10...cxd4 11.xd4 xf3
12.hxg4 b7 13.f4 c6 14.e3
according to Chuchelov) 11.xh6 gxh6
12.d5! exd5 13.cxd5 xd5 14.0-0-0
xf3 ( On 14...e6 Chuchelov gives
15.d6 c6 16.a6 ) 15.xf3 c6
V.Chuchelov-G.Dorenberg, Gent 2000,
a n d h e r e C h u c h e l o v g i v e s 16.f6!
with a clear advantage for White, but it is
probably closer to a winning advantage, e.
g. xe5 17.xe5+ xe5 18.e1 f6
19.f4 d6 20.b5+ f7 21.fxe5 fxe5
22.c6 ad8 23.d5+ ]
6.xc3!?
[ 6.bxc3 e5 ( 6...d6 7.d4 b7 8.d3 bd7
9.0-0 e5 10.h4 g6 11.f4 h5 12.f2
xf4 13.xf4 exf4 14.xf4 e7 15.f3
0-0-0 16.ae1 A.Ramirez-V.Jeremic, ICC
2006 ) 7.e2 d6 8.d3 c6 9.d2 e7
10.f1 g6 11.h4 h6 12.h5 e7 13.e3
c6 14.a3 c7 15.d4 0-0 16.0-0 c5=
V.Chekhov-A.Bagheri, Moscow 2000 ]
[ Chuchelov analyses the third option
6.dxc3!? e5! ( 6...d6 7.e5 dxe5 8.xe5
b7 9.g5 ) 7.xe5 ( 7.d3 d6 8.h3
bd7 9.b4 0-0 10.0-0 e8=; 7.g5 d6
8.0-0-0 bd7 ) 7...e7 8.d3
( C h u c h e l o v d o e s n ' t m e n t i o n 8.f4!?
but it may well be worth a try, e.g. 0-0 9.f3
a6 10.g4 xg4 11.fxg4 h4+ 12.g3
xg4 13.d3 e6 14.e5 ) 8...xe4+
9.e2 d6 10.xe4+ xe4 11.f4 b7
12.d5 a6 13.f3 ec5 14.b4 e6
15.d3 0-0 16.0-0 fe8= ]
6...xe4
[ The two tested alternatives favour White:
6...b7 7.e5 g8 8.d4 c5 9.e3
( 9.dxc5!? bxc5 10.e2 ) 9...xf3 10.gxf3
cxd4 11.xd4 c6 12.d1 ge7
13.d3?! ( 13.e3 0-0 14.g1 ) 13...g6
14.e4 c8 R.Kipker-I.Varasdy, Dortmund
1988 ]
[ 6...0-0 7.e5 e4 8.c2 g5 9.xg5
xg5 10.d4 e7? ( 10...h4 11.e3 b7
12.0-0-0 ) 11.d3 ( 11.e4 c6 12.d3
g6 13.0-0 ) 11...f5? ( 11...h4!? ) 12.exf6
xf6 13.xh7+ f7 14.e4+- B.Ciglic-B.
Saxer, Bled 1998 ]
[ However, the untried 6...d6 looks more
solid, and could well be Black's best, e.g.
7.d3 0-0 8.e2 c5 according to
Chuchelov. ]
7.xg7 f6 8.xf6 xf6 9.d4!?
[ This is the first new move, but it appears a
rather strong one. The previous game in this
line saw White try 9.g3 b7 10.g2 c6
11.0-0 b4 12.e1 ( White tries to keep
the dark-squared bishop in the hope that he
can take advantage of the somewhat
weakened dark squares in Black's position.
The alternative allows Black more or less
equalise: 12.d4 d3 13.d1 xc1
14.axc1 g8 15.e5 xg2 16.xg2 d6
, and White's advantage, if you can call it
that, is negligible.) 12...xg2 13.xg2 c5
( Here Black can consider 13...e7 , e. g.
14.b3 d5 15.b2 dxc4 16.bxc4 c5
and Black shouldn't be worse) 14.b3 d5
15.b2 d4 16.d3 e5 17.c1 g8 18.d2
c6 19.f3 0-0-0 20.g5 g7
M. Tyrtania-P.Cladouras, 2.Bundesliga 1996,
and now 21.ae1 leaves White with a better
game, e.g. dg8 22.f3 e8 23.h4 ]
9...b7 10.f4 d6
[ Trying to wreck White's pawn structure with
10...xf3 leaves White with the pair of
bishops and space advantage 11.gxf3 d6
12.0-0-0 c6 13.d5 and White opens the
position, allowing him to take advantage of
his pair of bishops ]
11.0-0-0 bd7 12.g5 My computer engine
doesn't like this move at all, but I must admit
that I find it to be a fine positional idea. Black
now has to decide whether he wants to keep
his king in the centre to protect the f7-pawn or
kick the knight away with ...h7-h6, which
leave Black with the task of protecting it on h6
or pushing it further forward and weakening
the dark squares. I'm not entirely sure which
choice is the better for Black h6
688
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 12...e7 13.f3 ag8 14.b1 d5 ( 14...e5
15.dxe5 dxe5 16.e1 f8 17.d2 )
15.g1 a6 16.b3 ]
13.h3 0-0-0 14.f3 dg8
[ Or 14...e5 15.e3!? ( 15.dxe5 dxe5
16.e3 e8! 17.d3 d6 18.b1 e4!
19.fxe4 e5 is good for Black) 15...c5
16.dxe5 dxe5 17.e2 with a structural
advantage for White ]
15.e3! c5 16.d2!
[ Another possibility is 16.dxc5 dxc5 17.g1
e5 18.b1 g6 ( 18...a6 19.b3 )
19.d3 h4 20.d2 g7 21.f2!? hg8
22.xh6 xg2 23.gxg2 xg2 24.g5
, and White has the better chances. In the
game continuation, W hite prefers to keep
the game fluent and somewhat closed until
White has all of his guns pointing where he
wants them to. This is the modern way of
exploiting the pair of bishops. ]
16...g7 17.f2 c7
[ 17...e5 18.d5! ( White doesn't achieve
anything after 18.dxc5 dxc5 19.d3 h5
20.e1 h4 21.d3 h3 22.g3 e4 23.fxe4
xe4 24.xe4 xe4 25.f1 e5= )
18...b8 19.g4 ( 19.g3 b5 20.b3 h5
21.d3 ) 19...b5 20.b3 and White controls
the game. ]
18.d1 g8?!
[ 18...cxd4 19.xd4 hg8 20.c3 a6
21.b1 ]
19.c3 a6 20.d3 e7 21.hd1 f5
22.f1! c8 23.e2 h5 24.a3 h4 25.b4!?
[ 25.f4!? e8 26.f2 cxd4 27.xd4 e5
28.d5+ xd5 29.xd5 h8 30.b4 h6
31.b2 e7 32.5d2 f4 33.d3 h3 34.g4
fxg3 35.xg3 f6 36.e4 f5 37.f2 g2
38.c3 ]
25...e5?!
[ 25...cxd4 26.xd4 g6 ]
26.dxe5 dxe5 27.f4 e4 28.c3 h6
29.d5+ b8 30.f2 cxb4
[ 30...hh7 31.e3 f7 32.c2 ]
31.axb4 f8?
[ 31...f7 32.c5 bxc5 33.bxc5 ]
32.xb6!+- xb6 33.d8+ c8 34.xf8 a5
35.b5
[ 35.dd8!? c7 36.xf5 axb4 37.b5 b7
38.xb4+- ]
35...c7 36.c5 a4 37.c6 c3 38.dd8
1-0
691 A17
Speelman,Jonathan S 2623
Gormally,Daniel 2499
Premier Hastings ENG (1) 29.12.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.e3!?
[ Something of a speciality of Speelman's, he
hopes to be able to transpose into a
favourable Nimzo, 4.c2 is the standard
riposte here, to play 5 a3 and recapture on
c3 with the queen. ]
4...0-0 5.e2 c5
[ Actually, I have had this position as Black
a g a i n s t J o n s e ve r a l t i m e s , a n d i n t h e
English Championships 1991 (was this the
one and only time this event was held?) one
of our games continued: 5...b6 6.0-0 b7
7.a3 xc3 8.bxc3 d6 9.d3 (one advantage
of delaying the d-pawn is this possibility)
bd7 10.e4 h8 11.e1 e5 12.g3 g8
13.h4 e7 14.g4 f6 15.h3 c8
16.g2 a6 17.a4 b7 which is about
equal. ]
6.a4!?
[ A new move! The knight goes to a 'silly'
square, but White avoids the doubling of his
pawns, and threatens to win the c5-pawn.
6.0-0 xc3 7.dxc3 b6 8.d3 b7 9.e2
e4 10.d1 c6 didn't give White a lot in
Kortschnoi,V-Bronstein,D/ Leningrad 1960/
URSS-ch. ]
6...d6 7.a3 a5 8.0-0 c7 9.b4 b6 10.c3
c6 11.d4!?
[ A positional 'Benko-like' pawn sac to open
t h e q u e e n s i d e , t h e p r e p a r a t o r y 11.b1
would allow Black to play d5 ]
11...cxb4 12.axb4 xb4 13.a4 a5
14.a3 d7 15.b3 c6!?
[ Black decides to return the pawn for some
si m p li f ic a t io n , 15...a6 16.fb1 c6
is quit e viab le, alt hou gh W hit e h as f ull
compensation. ]
16.xb4 axb4 17.xb4 a5 18.b5 xb5
19.cxb5 xa1 20.xa1 d5 Freeing the
bishop. 21.c1 d6 22.c3 b8 23.d3
h6 24.c6 d8 25.g3 f8! 26.g2 e7
27.c3 f8 28.h3 b7 29.c6 b8
There are no weaknesses in the black
position. 30.c3
½-½
689
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

692 A17 [ There was a menace of ...Nd4 and ... bxa4

Topalov,Veselin 2711 t o d e a l wit h , a n d t a k in g t h e b is h o p b y
Kramnik,Vladimir 2802 13.xd7 allows Black a nice position after
Sparkassen Cat XXI (1) 12.07.2001 xd7 14.c3 ad8 ]
[Tony Kosten] 13...g5! The bishop has nowhere to go, so the
following moves are forced: 14.xc6 xc6
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.b3 15.e5 g4 16.c3 xc3 17.xc3 dxc4
[ Putting the question to the bishop. 4.g4!? 18.dxc4 xg2 19.xg2 e7 After the
has been considered in some detail o n e xc h a n g e s , a l e ve l p o s it i o n h a s a r is e n .
these pages, whilst ] 20.e4?!
[ 4.c2 is the main line. ] [ Luring Black's pawns forward, but 20.h3
4...c5 5.g3 c6 6.a3 a5 7.g2 0-0 8.0-0 e5 21.ad1 was safer. ]
d5 Black expands in the centre. 9.d3 h6 20...f5 21.h3 e5 22.c3 d7 23.d2
[ The best move, in my opinion, guarding ad8 24.ad1 f6 25.f3 xd1 26.xd1
against the possibility of Bg5, pressurising e5 White has only succeeded in giving Black a
the d-pawn. 9...d4!? is known to be dodgy: so l i d sp a c e a d va n t a g e o n t h e k in g s i d e .
10.a4 b6? ( 10...d7 is better, but even 27.c2 e4 28.g1 d8 29.e2 xd1!
so, the c-pawn is exposed, and the dark- 30.xd1 d7 Black can do little without
squared bishop not particularly well-placed) control of the d-file, and his advanced pawns
11.e5 xe5 12.xa8 with some give him real winning chances in the ensuing
advantage, Speelman,J-Seirawan,J Saint knight endgame. 31.xd7 xd7 32.b3 e5
John m/1 1988, a s d7 13.g2 e8 33.c3 f7 34.g4! White cannot afford to
c a n b e m e t b y 14.a2 xa4 15.b4 hang around, and had obviously foreseen this
regaining the piece. ] resource beforehand. fxg4
[ 9...xc3!? is a reasonable alternative, [ Black counts on the advantage of an
conceding the bishops but forming a strong outside passed pawn, almost as effective in
centre: 10.xc3 d4 11.c2 e5 12.d2 kn i g h t e n d g a m e s a s i n ki n g a n d p a wn
e8 13.b4 Granda Zuniga, J-Urday,H/Las endgames. 34...e6 35.gxf5+ xf5
Palmas 1989. ] 36.b5 c6 also maintained an edge. ]
10.f4 35.hxg4 xg4 36.xe4 e6 37.c3?!
[ A natural developing move, controlling e5. [ 37.g3 e5 38.f4 gxf4+ 39.exf4 c6
A t t a c k in g t h e c 5 -p a wn is , o n c e a ga i n , 40.g4 appears stronger, with drawing
possible: 10.a4 b6 11.f4 d7 chances. ]
( 11...e8 would transpose) 12.c3 xc3 37...e5 38.f4 gxf4 39.exf4 c6 40.b5
13.xc3 d4 14.c2 e8 planning ... e5, h5 41.g3 a5 42.c7+ f5 43.d5 d4
but... 15.e5 xe5 16.xe5 g4 Black will simply swap his h-pawn for the f-
( White wins the exchange anyway, pawn, when his king will be the first to reach
16...c8!? 17.b7 ) 17.xa8 xa8 18.f4 the queenside. 44.h4
e5 19.c1 f5 20.f3 e3 21.xe3 dxe3 [ 44.xb6 xb3 45.d7 h4+! 46.xh4
22.h1 c6 with some compensation for xf4 is also hopeless. ]
the exchange, Ehlvest,J-Romanishin,O/ 44...xb3 45.xh5 d2 46.xb6 xf4
Terrassa 1991. ] 47.a4 e4
10...e8 11.a4 0-1
[ A new move, although, as we have seen,
this is a standard idea in this line.
P r e v i o u s l y , 11.e5 w a s p l a y e d , xe5
12.xe5 , Filippov,V-Kiriakov,P/Krasnoiarsk
1998, when g4!? 13.f4 d4 14.e4 e5
15.c1 b6 is interesting. ]
11...b6 12.e5 d7! Black fights for control
of e5. 13.e3

690
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
693 A17 694
Topalov,Veselin 2718
Tiviakov,Sergei 2597
Corus Wijk aan Zee NED (6) 20.01.2001 Austrian 1 Bundesliga (11)
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 b6 3.g3 b7 4.g2 e6
5.0-0 e7 6.c3 0-0
[ 6...c5 at some point would bring play to a
Hedgehog, whereas Black seems happy to
allow White to play d4 unchallenged, when
a Queen's Indian would result. ]
7.e1 e4
[ Nowadays this is preferred to the less
flexible 7...d5 which allows White some
advantage. ]
8.xe4 xe4 9.d3 b7 10.d4
[ 10.e4 is the other try, c5 11.d4 cxd4
12.xd4 c6 13.e3 c8 14.c1 a6
Black has sufficient space for his pieces,
Chuchelov,V-Tiviakov,S/Haarlem 1999. ]
10...e4 The bishop returns, but otherwise
White will play e4 with a full centre. 11.h4
[ The current favourite, fighting for the e4-
square, at the expense of exchanging a
further pair of pieces. 11.d5 f6 12.d2
xg2 13.xg2 d6 14.e4
gained little, Portisch,L-Karpov,A/Milan
1975. ]
11...xg2 12.xg2 d5 Again to stop e4.
13.cxd5
[ T o p a l o v ' s n e w m o v e , 13.a4
14.xc4 c5 15.dxc5 xc5 16.e3 d7
dra w, S avch en ko ,S -T ivia ko v, S/ Ja ka rt a
1997. ]
13...xd5
[ 13...exd5 is worse, Black will be obliged to
play ...c5 later, when weak hanging pawns
will result. ]
14.e4 d7 15.f4 d8 16.e3 c6
Black gains counterplay against the d-pawn.
17.e2 f6 18.e5 e7 19.a3 f8 20.c2
e7 21.g5 dc8 22.xe7 The knight
c a n n o t b e a l l o we d t o s e t t l e o n d 5 . xe7
23.ad1 c5 24.b3
[ 24.dxc5 e8 regains the pawn. ]
24...cxd4 25.xd4 c7 26.f4
½-½
A17
Tratar,Marko 2507
Kosten,Anthony C 2511
16.03.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 0-0
5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 d6 7.b4 e5 8.b2 a5
9.e3
[ 9.g3 was played in Kramnik-Ivanchuk,
Monaco 2007 - see the PGN archives for
this imaginative game by Ivanchuk. ]
9...c6!?
[ This already appears to be a new move.
The alternatives have proven to be better
f o r W h i t e : A ) 9...bd7 10.e2 b6
11.c2 g4 12.0-0 e8 13.d3 d7
14.fd1 a4 15.c3 1-0 Furman, S-
Kholmov, R/Baku 1972/URS-ch (39) ]
[ B) 9...axb4 10.axb4 xa1+ 11.xa1 g4
12.d3 ( 12.e2 e4 13.d4 xe2 14.xe2
c6 15.0-0 Chuchelov, V-Taimanov, M/
Fuerth 1999) 12...xf3 13.gxf3 c6 14.b5
e7 15.d4 Ortega, L-Zelcic, R/Montecatini
Terme 1997 ]
[ C) 9...g4 10.h3 h5 11.d3 axb4
d7 12.axb4 xa1+ 13.xa1 bd7 14.e2
e7 15.0-0 a8 16.b2
Ruck, R-Kristjansson, S/Crete GRE 2007 ]
10.d3
[ 10.b5 e7 11.d3 d7 transposes to our
dxc4 main game, but avoids Black's alternative on
his next move. ]
10...d7
[ If Black wanted to stick to the style of the
Kramnik-Ivanchuk game from last year, he
could consider 10...axb4 11.axb4 xa1+
12.xa1 , and now b5!? 13.e2 ( 13.cxb5
a7 is fine for Black) 13...d7 14.0-0 b8
15.b1 b7 with an interesting position and
chances to both sides ]
11.b5 e7 12.g3
[ This is very ambitious and not particularly
obvio us. In st ea d 12.e2 g6 13.0-0
looks solid and good. Black's problem is his
lack of active counterplay such as we saw
in Gelfand-Eljanov in last month's update. ]
12...c8 13.h3 g6
[ Black has to be a little careful. For instance
13...c6 is premature, e.g. 14.c5 ed5
15.c1 e4 16.d2 exd3 17.cxd6 ]
691
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

14.g2 [ 34.f2 a6 35.f1 f6-+ ]

[ 14.g4!? ] 34...xd3 35.c3
14...e8 15.h4 [ 35.f2 b3 36.c2 xd2 37.xd2
[ 15.g4 h6 16.g1 c6 17.a4 h7 ] xa3-+ ]
15...h6 16.d2 c6!? 17.bxc6 bxc6!? 35...xe4+!
[ Black can also take back with the bishop, [ 35...xd2! is also nasty: 36.xd2 b7!
and although his chances after 17...xc6 37.hc1 b2+ 38.1c2 xc2 39.xc2
18.e4 d7 are no worse, his position isn't d4+ 40.e1 b5! , and it is game over
as dynamic as in the game continuation ] for White ]
18.e4 xe4 19.xe4 f5!? 36.fxe4 xg3 37.xg3 b8 38.c3
[ Another option is 19...g4!? , e.g. 20.g2 [ 38.f2 f8+ 39.e1 c2+ 40.d1
a4! 21.f3 d7 22.h5 f8 ] f2-+ ]
20.g2 a4 21.e4 g4 22.c5?! 38...b5! 39.f1 b1+ 40.f2 xe4
[ This looks a decent idea, but it is overly A b e a u t if u l a nd im p re ssive e f f o rt b y o u r
a m b i t io u s . I n st e a d W h it e s h o u ld h a ve webmaster
considered 22.f3 , for instance: d7 23.f4 0-1
b8 24.f5 b3 25.d2 f8 26.f3 b8
27.c1 d5 ]
22...dxc5 695 A17
[ Black has several good choices, for Vaisser,Anatoli 2581
example 22...b8!? also leads to a better Sokolov,Andrei 2587
game for Black: 23.c2 b3 24.b1 dxc5 ch Val d'Isere FRA (2) 20.08.2002
25.f3 d7 26.0-0 a6 ] [Tony Kosten]
23.f3 d7 24.xc5 b8 25.c3 b5!
26.e3 b3! 27.b4 f5!? 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4 0-0
[ Very sharp, yet 27...a6!? intending 28.f1 5.g5 e8 6.g1!? A new move, White
f8! looks very pleasant for Black ] bolsters his g-pawn and will decide on the
28.h5 f4!? exact placement of his pieces depending on
[ 28...f8!? 29.0-0 e6 30.exf5 d4 Black's choice, we considered
31.f6 f5 32.fxg7 xg7 ] [ 6.c2 in Krasenkow,M-Romanishin, O/Lviv
29.d2 UKR 2000. ]
[ 29.a7!? f8 30.gxf4 e6 31.f5 d4 6...d5 7.b3 White attacks b4 and d5 at the
looks quite scary for White ] same time, which shows one of the plus points
29...f8 30.gxf4 exf4 31.xf4 of his sixth move. xc3 If Black wishes to
[ Here White should have opted for 31.d4!? avoid conceding his bishop he has to sac a
, e.g. d8 ( 31...e3+ 32.f2 e6 pawn, for instance:
33.ae1; 31...e6 ) 32.xf4 e6 33.d6 [ 7...c6!? 8.xd5!? d6 ( 8...exd5?!
b2 34.0-0 h4 ] 9.cxd5 e7 10.xb4 is worse ) 9.c3 e5
31...c5! 32.d2?! but it is hard to believe Black has sufficient
[ 32.c1 is relatively best, though a6 comp here. ]
33.c3 e6 34.e3 d4 is very nice for 8.xc3 d6 9.b3 Both defending c4 and
Black ] opening the a1-h8 diagonal. e4 10.c2 c5
32...e6 33.g3 11.b2 c6 Black develops sensibly. 12.a3
[ White's troubles are evident everywhere: W hite has to take some prophylactic
his pieces are totally un coordinated, he is measures, firstly against ...Nb4, and then
way behind in development and his king is later against ...Qa5+ when he eventually plays
stuck in the centre... and Black has only d3 to chase the e4-knight away. b6 13.e3
temporarily sacrificed a pawn to achieve f5?! A decidedly risky decision, Black hopes to
this... 33.d6 b5 34.f1 ( 34.g1 xd3 ) open the f-file, but he also opens the g-file
34...d4-+ ] which certainly justifies W hite's sixth move
33...d4 34.c1 novelty.

692
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 13...b7! 14.d3 d6 is simple and logical, 33.d1 e1# is even worse! )]
although W hite's bishop pair give him the 32.c6 White wants to finish with a queen sac
edge. ] on h6. g5!
14.gxf6 xf6 [ 32...xd2? 33.xh6+ gxh6 34.xh6# ]
[ 14...xf6!? i s n o b e t t e r : 15.d3! 33.h4? Careless, or were both players short of
and the rook cannot capture on f3, time? b5+? Black misses a great chance:
( 15.xf6? xf6 forking a1 and f3, 16.d1 [ 33...d5! is very strong, threatening ...
e5 ) 15...xf3? 16.xg7+ f8 17.xe4 Qf3+, and attacking the g2-rook, and brings
dxe4 18.xe4 winning. ] B l a c k r i g h t b a c k i n t h e g a m e : 34.xg5
15.cxd5! exd5 16.g5! Obvious and strong, ( 34.f2 xf2+ 35.xf2 xd2+ ) 34...hxg5
s u d d e n ly t h e p o sit io n o p e n s f o r W h it e ' s 35.hxg5 d8 and anything could happen
bishops and g-file rook. d4 Black had to stop here. ]
Bxf6 followed by Qxh7+. 17.g2 d7 34.c4! The only move, but strong. xb3
[ 17...e8 18.xc6 xc6 19.xd4 [ 34...d5 is no longer so dangerous,
exploits the c-file pin. ] 35.c6 f7 36.f4 ]
18.xc6!? 35.c2 White forces the queens off, and the
[ 18.c4+! h8 19.xc6 xc6 20.f7+ ending is hopeless for Black.
xf7 21.xf7 is also possible, and must 1-0
have been tempting, although I suppose
W hite must have been worried about his
lack of light-squared control here, i.e. g6 696 A17
and ...Bd5 threatens to win the queen, still, Vallejo Pons,Francisco 2629
White is clearly on top. ] Adams,Michael 2742
18...xc6 19.xd4 The point, White decides SuperGM Linares ESP (11) 07.03.2002
to take a pawn, but remove Black's c6-bishop. [Tony Kosten]
[ 19.e6 d6 20.xf8 xf8 is not so clear,
as White's light squares are very weak. ] 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 c5 4.g3 b6
19...cxd4? This move allows the white queen 5.g2 b7 6.0-0 e7 7.e1 e4
to infiltrate, I have mentioned this possibility in previous
[ 19...e4! 20.xe4 cxd4 is clearly games, Black takes to time to exchange a
superior, 21.c4+ h8 22.g5 dxe3 couple of pieces. He won't be able to stop
23.fxe3 d7 and Black has good play for W hite f ro m f orcing e4 an d d 4, but in th e
the pawn, as the white king is awkwardly ensuing Hedgehog position he will be less
placed. ] cramped. 8.xe4 xe4 9.d3 b7 10.e4
20.xc6 dxe3 21.fxe3 c8? This loses the 0-0 11.d4 cxd4 12.xd4 d6 13.b3 a6
exchange, although 14.e3! Actually this seems to be a new move
[ 21...e7 i s n o w m e t b y 22.e6+ here, but it is, of course, very logical.
exchanging the queens, when the extra Previously White had brought his bishop out
pawn should decide. ] on a different diagonal:
22.e6+ h8 23.f7+ xf7 24.xf7 [ 14.a3 leads nowhere, c7 15.c1 d7
Black has no compensation for his material Janssen,R-W illemze,T/Leiden 1999, the
deficit, and even has to defend against the kn i g h t c a n g o t o c 5 t o b lo c k t h e a 3 - f 8
mate threat on g7. c7 25.e6 h6 26.e2 diagonal. ]
e7 27.f5 e4 28.a2 c7 29.g2 [ 14.b2 d7 15.f4 is better, Son,I-Drilinsh,
B la c k ' s m e n a c e s a re e a sil y p a rr ie d . e8 A/Kherson 1990, although ...Qc7 and ...Bf6
30.g6 e5 31.c2 f8 gives Black reasonable chances. ]
[ 31...xd2!? was worth a punt, although 14...d7 15.f4 e8 16.f2 This careful
White has 32.g3! defending e3 and move gives the e-pawn extra defence. c7
exchanging queens, ( 32.xd2? xe3+ 17.c1 f6 18.d2 ad8 Both players have
33.d1 xb3+ 34.c2 f3+ draws by developed their pieces sensibly: White has
perpetual check, and; 32.xd2!! xe3+ carefully bolstered his space advantage, and

693
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Black is ready to react to any aggression in B la ck h a s s e e n f u rt h e r ! e2! 38.hxg4

t y p i c a l H e d g e h o g f a s h i o n . 19.g4!? White accepts the draw,
This aggressive plan mirrors play in the main [ 38.xe2!? is too risky, xc1+ 39.xc1
line, see Zhu Chen - Bischoff, for example. xe2 40.hxg4 xg4 41.h6 h5+
c5!? Luring White on, stops the mate when the poor placement of
[ 19...xd4 20.xd4 e5 was an interesting the two white bishops, and the two extra
alternative, 21.c3 exf4 22.xf4 e5 pawns, make the black rook favourite to
with goo d play, alth ou gh W hite 's d ark- win. ]
squared b isho p will a lways be a u sef u l 38...f3 39.xf3 There is no choice,
piece. ] [ 39.g1?? xc1 40.xc1 h4# ]
20.b4 White advances on both fronts, but he 39...xf3+ 40.h2
risks becoming over-extended. g6 A little [ 40.g1 g3+ is also a draw. ]
trick. 21.c2 Capturing the knight is a 40...f2+ 41.h1 f3+
mistake: ½-½
[ 21.bxc5? dxc5 ]
21...d7 22.g5 g7 23.e3 The white
kingside advance starts to look very 697 A17
dangerous for Black, Ne3-g4 is the immediate Van Wely,Loek 2646
menace. h5!? Adams,Michael 2715
[ Apart from this, 23...f6 or ] Corus Wijk aan Zee NED (5) 20.01.2000
[ 23...f5 24.exf5 gxf5 were also possible. ] [Tony Kosten]
24.gxh6 xh6 25.g4 f8 The d6-pawn will
n e e d d e f e n d in g . 26.h4 Although the g5- 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 0-0
pawn has disappeared W hite still has an 5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 b6 7.b4 a5
initiative on the kingside dark squares. c8 [ I have always had a penchant for this move
27.g5 a5 Black counterattacks on the in similar positions. The idea is simple: as
queenside - he can't let White have everything White enjoys the advantage of the bishop
his o wn way. 28.a3 axb4 29.axb4 a6 pair, Black 'shortens' the pawn structure, as
30.f5! White ditches the c-pawn, and goes his knights are happier in a restricted space.
straight for the black throat, but it seems that The disadvantage is that W hite can
Black has many resources. xc4 31.f6 sometimes use the open a-file, and that the
e5?! b6-pawn can become a liability after Black
[ Black should leave the knight on d7 to keep plays ...c5. 7...b7 8.b2 d6 9.e3 bd7
an eye on the f6-pawn, 31...b5 ] 10.e2 c5 is the more normal way of
32.h6+ xh6 33.xh6 Black was forced to playing, Ftacnik,L-Rozentalis,E/ Moscow
concede his dark-squared bishop, and must 1994, 0-1 (56). ]
now find a defence against the brutal threat of 8.b2 d6 9.g3 axb4!?
Bg7, and Qh6-h8 mate. b5 34.g7 b6+ [ A new idea, and a good one. Instead of the
35.h1 g4 Absolutely the only move, Black standard 9...b7 10.g2 axb4 11.axb4
stops Qh6, and even has a nasty threat of his xa1+ 12.xa1 bd7 13.0-0 c5
o w n : . . . N f 2 + . 36.h3?! White misses with a solid position for Black, but a slight
something in the coming complications, advantage to White, Budnikov,A-Kholmov,R/
[ 36.c2! is stronger, defending f2 and Voronezh 1988, 0-1 (69), Black defers the
t h r e a t e n i n g h 3 : b3 37.b2 c2 development of his light-squared bishop, it
(what else?) 38.h3 f2 (forced) 39.e2 might be more useful on the h3-c8 diagonal,
h4 40.xc2 xc2 41.xc2 xf6 42.xf6 and tries to make something of the extra
xf6 White has won a piece for two pawns, tempo. ]
and although his structure is not very good 10.axb4 xa1+ 11.xa1 c5 12.g2 e5
he has every chance of winning the b5-pawn A t yp ica l pla n, th e bla ck pa wn ch ain will
and the game. ] restrict the a1-bishop, meanwhile, the
36...f2 37.g5 This seems strong, but weakness created on the light squares can be

694
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
defended by the black pieces. 13.0-0 c6!
W ith t he b la c k bish op o n c8, t he re is n o
reason that this piece shouldn't find a more
active square tha n the hab itual d7 . 14.b5
d4 15.xd4 cxd4 This last move creates a
square on c5 for the black knight, or queen.
16.b4
[ This square may not be the best, but
16.c2 also seems fine for Black: c7
17.e3 dxe3 18.fxe3 e6 19.c6 d7 ]
16...c7 17.e3 c5 18.xc5 dxc5
Shutting-out the white dark-squared bishop.
19.f4 dxe3 20.fxe5?
[ Amazingly, this move loses. White had to
re ca pt ure : 20.dxe3 e6 21.xe5 xc4
which should lead to a draw. ]
20...exd2! 21.h3?!
[ Trying, unsuccessfully, to stop the black
piec es f rom using g4, o therwise 21.exf6
g4 22.fxg7 e8 23.d5 e7 and Black is
better, the d2-pawn queens. ]
[ 21.d1 g4 22.xd2 e3 23.d5 e6
wins the c4-pawn. ]
21...d8 22.d1 g4! Anyway! 23.c3 e3
24.xd2 xd2 25.xd2 xg2! The simplest
solution, the opposite-colour bishop position
is hopeless for White, as he cannot defend
h i s q u e e n s i d e p a w n s . 26.xg2 f8!
The white bishop can't be allowed into d8.
27.e6 xe6 28.f4 xc4 29.c7 e7
30.f3 xb5 31.xb6 d6 White could
only draw if the extra two black pawns were
closer together. 32.h4 d5 33.e3 d7
34.d8 d6 35.a5 h6 36.f4 f6 37.d8
e6 38.e4 c6+ 39.d3 b5+ 40.e4
d7 Black bides his time before finding a
winning plan. 41.d3 d6 42.e4 g4
43.f4 d1 44.e3 c2 45.d2 b1
46.e3 e6 47.b6 c4 48.d4 f5
49.c3 c2 50.f3 d1+ 51.e3 g5
Finally Black transforms his kingside majority
into a passed pawn. 52.b2 h5 53.c3
f7 54.f3 d5+ 55.f2 c6 Black is in no
hurry. 56.e3 a4 57.f3 d1+ 58.e3
g6 59.d4 e2 60.b4 h5 61.f8 f5
62.e5 d3 63.hxg5 hxg5 64.a3 g4
65.c1 e2 66.d2 d1 67.d4 b3
68.e5 a2 69.c1 c3 70.d4 c2 71.e5
b3 72.d2 a4 73.c1 d7 74.d2
xg3 75.xg5 f3 76.c1 e2
0-1
698 A17
Van Wely,Loek 2683
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2750
Monaco (Blindfold) rapid (1) 17.03.2007
[John Emms]
1.c4
[ The Nimzo move order to reach the
relevant position would be 1.d4 f6 2.c4
e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 0-0 5.a3 xc3+
6.xc3 b6 7.f3 b7 8.e3 a5!?
( discouraging b2-b4 we've mainly
c o n c e n t r a t e d o n t h e p o p u l a r 8...d6;
and the fairly new 8...d5 ) 9.b3 ( 9.b4 e4!
is awkward for White, whose queen is forced
to the undesirable b2-square.) 9...d6
followed by ...Nbd7, . ..Qe7, ...Ne4 etc. ]
1...f6 2.c3 e6 3.f3 b4 4.c2 0-0
5.a3 xc3 6.xc3 b6 Over the next few
moves White can play d2-d4 and transpose to
a Classical Nimzo (here he does so on move
12), although in practice those who play the
English move-order often prefer to keep their
d-pawn back and thus restrict Black's options
regarding the e4-square. 7.e3 b7 8.e2 d6
9.0-0 a5 10.b3 bd7 11.b2 e7 12.d4
Now we are definitely back in the Nimzo.
[ 12.d3 keeps an English flavour. Then c5
13.d2 e5 14.f3 xf3 15.xf3 fe8
16.d4 exd4 17.xd4 e5! 18.c2 e4!
was equal in Cvetkovic-Rozentalis,
Schellenberg 1991, but of course there are
many other possibilities for both sides. ]
12...e4 Black begins the usual attacking plan
on the kingside: ... Ne4, ...f7-f5, ...Rf6-h6/g6
etc. 13.c2 f5 14.e1 After this plausible
move, simply trying to kick the knight away
with f2-f3, White lands up in trouble, although
it's not clear that this move is the problem.
[ 14.b4!? is logical, even if Black can claim
some sort of moral victory in that, given he
has played b4 in two goes, White is a tempo
down on the normal line. ]
[ Another possibility is 14.fd1 - angling for
d4-d5 - df6 a n d n o w a f t e r 15.e1
Black no longer has ...Qg5. However, this
also looks risky for W hite on account of
g4! 16.d3 h4 17.xg4 fxg4
when W hite has to endure some worrying
times on the kingside. ]
14...g5! Preventing White's f2-f3 plan, at
695
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
least for the moment. But there is more to
B l a c k ' s m o v e , a s w e s h a l l s e e . 15.c1
W hite defends e3 and thus prepares f2-f3
again, but Black is not about to be dictated to!
[ 15.f3?? not only blunders a pawn but also
t h e k i n g a f t e r xe3+ 16.h1 g3+!
17.hxg3 f6 ]
[ 15.c1!? is another way "forward" for
W hite, as at least now Black has no trick
with ...Qh5 after f2-f3 (see later in the main
game). 15 Bc1 was played in the game
Agrest-Ki.Georgiev, Turin Olympiad 2006,
w h i c h c o n t i n u e d e7 ( 15...f6?
now fails - the attack doesn't work after
16.f3! g3 17.hxg3 xg3 18.f4 h6
19.f3; 15...ae8!? 16.f3 ef6 ) 16.f3
ef6 17.b2 c5 with a typically complex
and roughly level position. ]
15...f6!?
[ 15...e7 16.d3 e5 17.c2
was M.Gurevich-V.Bologan, Sanxenxo 2004,
and now Gershon gives g5!? (threatening
...Nd2) 18.f4 exf4 19.exf4 h6
as unclear. The text move is clearly more
ambitious and it certainly does the business,
but is there a flaw? ]
16.f3?
[ Shredder likes 16.c5! - threatening c5-c6 -
and I'm finding it difficult to come up with a
suitable answer for Black. For example,
bxc5 ( 16...h6? 17.c6 h4 achieves
nothing after 18.f3; 16...dxc5 17.dxc5 e5
18.f3 ) 17.dxc5 dxc5 18.f3! g6
19.xf6 xf6 20.d4 and Black certainly
has some play for the material deficit but it's
not clear how much. Note that e5 21.b5
xb3? loses to 22.c4+! ]
16...h5! Cleverly using the pin on the f3-
pawn - 17 fxe4 Qxe2 looks good for Black -
wh ile a lso lin in g u p t h e t h rea t of . .. Rh 6 .
17.g4? Panic, although I have a lot of
sympathy for Van W ely. These sort of
positions are hard enough to defend as it is
with the board in sight, never mind trying to
do so blindfold!
[ Curiously (or perhaps not so given the
number of games played these days), this
position had been reached before: 17.d1
h6 18.fxe4 ( 18.h3 g5 gives Black a
dangerous attack, and White must be wary
of sacs on h3: 19.f4? xh3+! for example,
when the nicest line is 20.h2 xf4+!
21.xh5 e2!! ) 18...xh2+ 19.f2 f6
20.e2 (Miton-Balogh, Aarhus 2005), and
here Mikhail Golubev in Chess Today
advocates xe4 when it's true that Black
has very good compensation for the piece,
as well as excellent practical chances. ]
17...fxg4 18.fxe4
[ After 18.fxg4 - not that this would ever be
the idea behind 17 g4 - Black has more than
one winning move, but g3!? is the most
e n t i c i n g . F o r e x a m p l e , 19.gxh5
( and I particularly like 19.c2 xg4!! )
19...xe2# ]
18...h6 19.f2 xe4 20.d2 h4!
Threatening ... g4-g3, against which there is
really no good defence. White's only chance is
to try to chase the bishop off the diagonal, but
he is too late and Black's impressive attack
powers through. 21.d3 g3 22.g2 gxh2+
23.h1 f8! 24.c2 hf6! 25.d5 e5
[ 25...f2 26.xe4 f1+ mates ( but not
26...xd2?? 27.xg7+! h8 28.xh7+! )]
26.e1 xg2+ 27.xg2 h1+!
[ B l a ck m a t e s wi t h 27...h1+ 28.xh1
g4+ 29.h2 h6# A very well played
attack by Ivanchuk, an a good illustration of
the practical difficulties White faces in this
line, even if objectively he may have an
edge. ]
0-1
699 A17
Van Wely,Loek 2636
Timman,Jan H 2649
Hoogovens Wijk aan Zee NED (12) 30.01.1999
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4 h6
This might weaken the kingside, but at least it
stops the f6-knight from having to wander
around the board. 5.g1 b6 Black plays the
position as if it were a Queen's Indian,
[ 5...d5 is an important alternative, 6.a3 e7
7.d4 e4!? 8.c2 xc3 9.xc3 d7
10.g2 0-0?! 'Castling into it', and now,
i n s t e a d o f 11.h1 when Black quickly
played g5! and managed to keep the g-file
from opening, Tukmakov, V-Shneider,A/
Donetsk UKR 1998, White could have gone
696
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
f or 1 1 g5! hxg5 12 B h1 f 6 13 h 4 wit h a
venomous attack. ]
6.h4 White is not a player for half-measures.
b7 7.g5 So White manages to play this
anyway, but at a cost in time. hxg5 8.hxg5
e4 Better this, than put the knight offside by
[ 8...h5?! 9.e3 e7 10.b5 d5 11.a3
d6 12.cxd5 exd5 13.g6! c6 14.gxf7+
xf7 15.xd6+ cxd6 16.g5 e7 17.d4
and the black position is a mess, Piket,J-
Nikolic,P/ Monte Carlo MNC 1999. ]
9.c2 xc3 10.dxc3 d6 An unusual
square for the bishop. 11.e3 c6 12.d2?
A careless slip, the obvious
[ 12.0-0-0 maintained a small plus, e.g. e7
13.g2 ]
12...h2! Forcing the g1-rook onto an
e xp o s e d l igh t s qu a re . 13.g2 The only
square. e7 This is stronger than
[ 13...e5?! which allows 14.xh2 xh2
15.f4 forking the two pieces. ]
14.f3 d6 And by returning, Black gains a
useful move. 15.g4 g6 16.0-0-0 e7
17.g2 0-0-0 Black has a small advantage,
he controls the h-f ile, and the g4-rook is
m i s p l a c e d . 18.a4 a6 19.d4?!
Now was the time for
[ 19.d2 -e4. ]
19...xg2 20.xg2 b7 21.g4 e5
22.e4 f5 23.gxf6 gxf6 24.b3 White is
hoping to generate some play against the
black king, but he just puts his pieces on
a w k w a r d s q u a r e s . c5! 25.f4 c7
Black prepares to play ...d5. 26.d2 d5
27.cxd5? Better to keep the fourth rank shut
by
[ 27.e3 so as to answer h4 with 28.g3 ]
27...exd5 28.e3
[ 28.xe5 dxe4 29.xe4+ was the last
chance, although Black has a clear
advantage. ]
28...h4! 29.f3 b5 Black wins a piece.
0-1
700 A17
Werle,Jan 2551
Willemze,Thomas 2384
10th Essent Open (5) 24.10.2006
[John Watson]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3
We have concentrated upon 3 e4. This move
allows Black to enter into the Queen's Gambit
by 3...d5 or keep it within the English Opening,
as he does with his next move. b4 4.b3!?
[ 4.c2 has been more common. ]
4...c5 5.g3 0-0 6.g2 d6 7.0-0 c6 8.d3
b8 9.a3 xc3 10.bxc3 b6
[ 10...e5! is consistent with Black's plan of
giving up his dark-squared bishop in
c o n j u n c t i o n wi t h . . . d 6 . T h e n h i s l i g h t -
squared bishop is good. White can try to use
the fact that his pawn on c3 prevents ... Nd4
to bring a knight to d5, but Black can disrupt
his development, e.g., 11.e1 g4 12.f3
e6 13.c2 ( 13.c2? b5 ) 13...a6 14.a4
d7 15.e4 b5 16.axb5 axb5 17.cxb5
xb5 ]
11.e4 a5
[ 11...e5!? ]
12.c2 e5 This is rather late because White
already has the desired pawn structure set up.
13.a4 e8 14.h4!? f6 15.f5 d5?!
B l a c k is p r o b a b l y n o t e xc it e d a b o u t t h e
prospect of White transferring his knight to d5
vi a e 3 o r s u p p o r t i n g i t w i t h g 4 , b u t t h i s
advance ends up costing material for
insufficient compensation.
[ 15...xf5! 16.exf5 d7 prepares ...Nc6,
although I still like the bishops and White's
k i n g s i d e p a w n m a s s a f t e r 17.f4
, for example, c6 18.d5+ h8 19.g2 ]
16.cxd5 xf5 17.exf5 d6 18.f4! c4!
[ 18...xf5? 19.fxe5 fxe5 20.d4!
establishes a huge centre. ]
19.fxe5 fxe5 20.dxc4!?
[ 20.a3 cxd3 21.xd3 ac4 22.xd6
xd6 23.ae1 f6 24.g4 and White will
try to enforce g5 by Qg3 and h4. ]
20...axc4 21.e2 c8 22.h5
Black's knights and rooks are ideally placed
but White threatens on the kingside. c7
[ 22...e8!? ]
23.g4 cf7 24.f3!? h6 25.a2!? c7!
26.h3 c5+ 27.h1 e4?
697
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 27...f6 ] man who is intent upon tearing you limb from

28.xh6 xd5 29.e3 f6 30.d4 e5 limb.
31.e2?! [ Thus 7...c6 seems better after which
[ 31.h7+ f7 32.f2 ] 8.dxc5 xc5 9.f4 b6 10.0-0-0 e5!?
31...c4 wo u l d g i v e B l a c k h i s f u l l s h a r e o f t h e
[ 31...h6! ] chances in a complex game. ]
32.e1 8.a3 a5 9.dxc5 dxc5 10.e3 d7?!
[ 32.g5! xf5 33.xe4! with the idea xe4 Another passive looking move, the knight
34.h7+ f7 35.xf5+ etc. ] should really want to come to c6.
32...h6 33.g5 df7 34.e3 xg4?? [ 10...e7 11.0-0-0 c6 looks more like it. ]
[ 34...xh3 35.xh3 g5 isn't inspiring but 11.0-0-0 e7 12.e4 c7 13.d2?!
keeps Black in the game. ] I can understand White wanting his bishop on
35.g3 xh3 36.xh3 the a1-h8 diagonal but this seems to lose a bit
1-0 of momentum.
[ 13.g1 b6 14.a4 looks more like it, with
B l a c k p r o b a b l y h a v i n g t o p l a y f5
701 A17 to get some freedom. ]
Williams,Simon Kim 2528 13...b6 14.c3 b7 15.c2 d8
Jones 2153 Sensible but still passive.
98th ch Sheffield ENG (10.13) 04.08.2011 [ Black needs to play 15...f5! when 16.gxf6
[Nigel Davies] dxf6 leaves him with rather a good
position. ]
1.c4 e6 16.g1 e5 17.h4 e6 18.e3 xe4
[ The position after Black's fourth move 19.xe4 f5 For many moves this has been
would normally be reached via a different the key idea but here it is too late. 20.d5!
move order: 1...f6 2.f3 e6 3.c3 b4 xd5 21.xd5 g6 22.e2
4.b3 ( 4.g4!? ) 4...c5 etc. ] [ 22.e4! fxe4 23.h3! was much stronger,
2.c3 b4 3.b3 c5 4.f3 f6 5.g4!? immediately cracking open Black's pawn
This seems to be new in this particular structure to get his light square bishop into
position, though the idea is quite well known. play. ]
Here are a couple of the quieter moves in 22...f7 23.gd1 e7 24.f3 g7 25.g2
action: e6 26.h4 f7 27.h1 df8? Blundering
[ a) 5.a3 a5 ( 5...xc3 would stop the away an important pawn.
bishop getting out of play) 6.e3 0-0 7.e2 [ H a n g i n g t o u g h , s a y w i t h 27...d6
c6 8.0-0 d5 9.a4 d6 10.c2 d4 , would still leave White wondering how he
11.xc5 xc5 12.b4 xb4 13.axb4 xb4 could win the game. ]
14.b3 d3 15.xd3 xd3 16.xd3 c7 28.xe5 xd5?!
17.b2 d8 18.c3 b6 19.d3 b7 [ And here 28...xe5 was a better try. ]
20.e5 e8 21.f4 was good for White 29.f6+ d6 30.cxd5 xd5 31.b5 xf6
because of her strong pawn center and 32.d1+ e5 33.f4+ A good example of the
pressure on the a1-h8 diagonal in Stefanova, power of intimidation! But 5.g4 deserves more
A (2551)-Bojkovic, N (2368)/Plovdiv 2010. ] trials.
[ b) 5.g3 0-0 6.a3 xc3 7.xc3 b6 8.g2 1-0
b7 9.b4 d6 10.0-0 bd7 11.d3 c8
12.e4 c7 13.b5 fe8 14.e1 h6 15.h3
cd8 16.a2 c8 17.a4 e5 18.a5 f8
19.xc8 xc8 20.b2 was better for White
because of his space in Topalov, V (2737)-
Abulhul, T (2076)/Tripoli 2004. ]
5...0-0 6.g5 e8 7.d4 d6 This feels wrong,
it's usually better to stand up tall against a

698
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

702 A17 prem a tu rely a gre e d u po n , 1 /2 -1/ 2 , in

Zhou Jianchao 2572 Benkovic, P-Vojinovic , G/Jahorina 2001,
Bagheri,Amir 2495 but after 13.e4 White has the better
6th ch-Asia Cebu City PHI (3) 21.09.2007 chances ]
[Carsten Hansen] [ B) 6...0-0
A) 7.e3 e5 ( 7...c5 8.b4 bd7 9.b2
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.c2 d6 e5 10.e2 e8 11.0-0 a5 12.d3 b6
5.a3 13.b3 bd7 14.c3 and I slightly
[ if W h it e p la ys 5.d4 we arrive in an odd p re f e r W h it e 's ch a n ce s, P e lle t ie r, Y -
sideline of the Classical Variation of the Sokolov, A/Bled 2002) 8.d3 ( 8.e2?! e4
Nim zo -I nd ia n bd7 ( or 5...0-0 6.g5 9.d4 c5 10.c2 g4 11.xg4 xg4
bd7 7.e3 e8 8.h4 e5 9.0-0-0 c6 12.0-0 c6 13.h3 ge5 14.b3 d5
10.d2 a6 11.dxe5 dxe5 12.de4 15.cxd5 xd5 , and White is facing
with as slight pull for White, Petrosian, T- uncomfortable pressure from Black along
Taimanov, M/Moscow 1964) 6.g5 b6 7.e3 the open d-file, Chuchelov, V-Winants, L/
b7 8.d3 h6 9.h4 xc3+ 10.bxc3 e7 Belgium 2004) 8...a5 9.b3 d7 10.e2
11.e4 e5 12.d2 g5 13.g3 h5 b5 11.d4 b4 12.c2 exd4 13.axb4 c6
14.0-0-0 f4 , and Black is doing fine, 14.bxa5 dxe3 15.xe3 xa5 16.0-0
Christiansen, L-Karpov, A/W ijk aan Zee with a small but clear advantage for White,
1993 ] Dorfman, J-Sokolov, A/Marseilles 2001;
[ Alternative, White can consider 5.g3 0-0 B) 7.d4 b6 ( 7...bd7 8.g3 b6 9.g2
6.g2 c5 7.0-0 c6 8.e3 xc3 9.xc3 b7 10.0-0 a5 11.b3 e7 12.b2 e4
e5 10.b3 g4 11.h3 xf3 12.xf3 e4 13.fe1 fe8 14.f1 Shulman, Y-
13.g2 e5 14.b2 d7 15.c2 h5 Balandin, A/ Sioux Falls 2001) 8.g5 b7
( 15...ae8!? ) 16.h2 e6 , thus far 9.e3 bd7 10.e2 c5 11.0-0?!
Gabriel, C-Sokolov, A/Swiss Team Ch 2001 ( 11.h4!? ) 11...e4 12.xd8 xc3
17.d3 exd3 ( 17...xd3 18.xf6 gxf6 13.bxc3 fxd8 , and Black has at least
19.xe4 xe4 20.ad1 ) 18.c3 ae8 equ alize d, Schu lz, M-S oko lo v, A/ Ba d
19.f4 c6 20.ad1 ] Wiessee 2006;
5...xc3 6.xc3 e5 C) 7.b4 e5 8.b2 g4 9.h3 h5 10.g4
[ Black has a couple of alternatives at this g6 11.g2 c6 12.0-0 e7 13.h4
juncture: A) 6...b6 Quist, V-Podolsky, A/corr ICCF 1984;
A) 7.e3 bd7 8.b4 b7 9.e2 0-0 D) 7.g3 e5 8.g2
10.b2 e5 ( 10...e7 11.0-0 c5 12.fd1 D1) 8...c6 9.b4 ( 9.0-0 a5 10.b3
fc8 13.d4 a5 14.b3 e4 15.d2 e4 11.e3 c5 12.b2 e8
c6 16.dxc5 dxc5 17.b5 b7 13.c3 g4 14.c2 e4 Koenig, B-
, Roussel Roozmon, T-Kunte, A/Montreal Hecht, H/Bayern 1998) 9...a5 10.b2
20 0 7 , a n d n o w 18.c2 ) 11.d3 e7 axb4 11.axb4 xa1+ 12.xa1 g4
12.0-0 fe8 13.d2 a5 14.b3 axb4 13.h3 h5 14.d3 a8 15.g4 g6
15.axb4 eb8 16.e4 xa1 17.xa1 c5 16.0-0 a7 17.b5 e7 18.h4
18.a7 and White has the somewhat Reis, G-Taimanov, M/Fuerth 1999;
better chances, Benko, P-Schmittdiel, E/ D2) 8...a5 9.b3 c5 10.0-0 c6 11.e1
Augsburg 1987; g4 12.h3 f5 13.d3 h6 14.b2 d7
B) 7.g3 b7 8.g2 0-0 ( 8...e5 9.0-0 15.h2 fe8 16.e4 e6 , and Black
bd7 10.b4 0-0 11.b2 h5 12.d3 f5 has nothing to complain about,
13.c5 Fang, J-Jakab, A/Budapest 1998) Hochgraefe, M-Sokolov, A/Germany
9.0-0 bd7 10.b4 ( 10.d3 c5 11.b4 d5 2001(43) ]
12.cxd5 xd5 13.b2 e7 14.d2 7.d4!?
fc8 15.fc1 Jones, C-Kelson, R/Las [ 7.g3 a5 8.b3 c5 9.g2 c6 10.0-0 g4
Vegas 1994 (15)) 10...c5 11.b2 c7 11.d3 d7 12.e1 h3 is comfortable for
12.d3 a5 , and here a draw was Black, Srebrnic, V-Balogh, C/Nova Gorica

699
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
2004 ]
7...e4 8.g1 bd7
[ 8...0-0 9.f4 c6 10.e3 d5 11.g5 e6
12.h3 h6 13.xf6 xf6 14.cxd5 xd5
15.f4 ]
9.g5 h6 10.h4 0-0
[ 10...f8 11.e3 f5 can also be
considered ]
11.e3 e8 12.e2 f8 13.d5 8h7!?
[ A new move in this position. In an earlier
game Black won using 13...e5 14.d4?!
( 14.f4! exf3 15.gxf3 e7 16.f2 b5
17.0-0-0 a5 18.e4 is complicated, but
clearly better for White) 14...g6 15.g3
e8 16.c3 f5 17.0-0-0 d7 , and Black
has a comfortable position, as W hite will
have a hard time getting anything started on
the kingside thanks to his bishop on g3,
wh i l e B l a c k c a n a i m t o b l o w o p e n t h e
queenside, Zhou Jianchao-Sokolov, A/ Paris
2006 ]
14.c2 e7
[ 14...c6!? 15.c3
A) or 15...cxd5 16.xd5 g5 17.f4
c7 ( 17...b5!? 18.cxb5 d7 ) 18.c1
f5 19.e2;
B) 15...g5!? 16.xg5 hxg5 17.h4 g4
18.g3 cxd5 19.cxd5 e5 , and Black is
p ro b a b ly o ka y, a l t h o u gh I st i ll p re f e r
White ]
15.c3 g4 16.h3 h5 17.e2
[ 17.g4!? g6 18.0-0-0 is complicated, e.g.
g5 19.xg5 ( 19.g2 d7 almost looks
comfortable for Black the knight will continue
to c5 and possibly d3.) 19...hxg5 20.g2
d7 21.h2 a5 22.dh1 c5 23.h4
d3+ ( 23...gxh4? 24.xh4 f6 25.f4+- )
24.b1 gxh4 25.xh4 f6 26.f1 e1
, and White appears to be better, but Black
is still playing ]
17...c5?!
[ Black can try 17...g5!? , e.g. 18.f4 c6
and I don't see any reason why Black isn't
okay ]
18.dxc6 bxc6 19.g3 g5? 20.d4 d7
[ is an attempt to complicate that will fall
short: 20...c5 21.f5 e6 22.xh6+!?
( 22.xd6!? ) 22...g7 23.g4 xg4
24.hxg4 xg4 25.f3 f5 26.f4 g4
27.e2 xe2 28.xe2 g4 29.f5 xf5
30.0-0-0+- ]
21.c5! d5 22.a4! After this move, Black is
toast, his queenside is falling apart and he is
lo sin g m a te ria l. B lack n o w sa crif ic e s a n
exchange to create at least some
complications unfortunately for Black, White
is still in complete control over the situation
and wins rather effortlessly. e6 23.xe6
fxe6 24.a6 f8 25.d6 f7 26.b4 d4
27.b5
[ 27.exd4 e3 28.f3 e8 29.e5+- ]
27...cxb5
[ 27...dxe3 28.fxe3 e8 29.bxc6 d8
30.f1 xd6 31.cxd6 xd6 32.xf7 xf7
33.c2+- ]
28.xb5 xb5 29.xb5 dxe3 30.fxe3 d5
1-0
703 A17
Zvjaginsev,Vadim 2640
Adams,Michael 2731
FIDE WCh KO Moscow RUS (3.1) 01.12.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 4.g4 h6
5.g1 b6 6.b3!? A newish idea, and quite
a change from the sharp, and logical,
[ 6.h4 which we have examined previously,
intending to continue the kingside advance.
Later in this same match, in the quick-play
decider, White tried another idea: ]
[ 6.c2 b7 7.a3 e7 8.g5 hxg5 9.xg5
(menacing Nxf7!) f8! 10.d4 which was
qu it e u n cle a r (Zvja gi n se v, V - A d a m s , M /
Moscow RUS 2001). ]
6...c5!?
[ A new move, preparing to relinquish the
bishop pair, but obtain good central play. In
Miroshnichenko,E-Kuzmenko,Y/Kharkov
U K R 2 0 0 0 , B l a c k p r e f e r r e d 6...c6
but then White returned to the 'traditional'
plan: 7.h4 b7 8.g5 hxg5 9.hxg5 g8
10.d4 with some advantage. ]
7.a3 xc3 8.xc3 d5 Black's idea is to gain
a central presence to compensate his loss of
the dark-squared bishop. 9.cxd5!? exd5
10.b4!? White attacks the dark squares with
sharp tactical moves. d4 And Black tries to
block these same squares.
[ 10...xg4?! is risky: 11.bxc5 bxc5
12.e5 ]
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

11.c2 bd7 12.e4 By strengthening his 704 A17

dark-squared pawn chain, Black has also Zvjaginsev,Vadim 2650
weakened his light squares, this is a direct Piket,Jeroen 2605
consequence of course, and so W hite Fontys Tilburg NED (11) 04.11.1998
prepares to bring his f1-bishop to c4 or b5. [Tony Kosten]
dxe3 13.dxe3 b7 A good way of playing in
such positions is to remember to develop the 1.f3 f6 2.c4 e6 3.c3 b4 One of the
pieces to good squares, and hope that the duller lines in the English, W hite normally
tactics take care of themselves! 14.e2 c8 plays 4 Qc2, takes the bishop pair, and tries
A curious position has arisen where the white t o m a k e h e a d wa y a g a i n s t B l a c k ' s s o l i d
king will have to stay in the centre while Black formation. 4 d4 is a bit livelier, transposing
will be obliged to castle, but into an attack on into a Nimzo. 4.g4!? It says something about
t h e g - f i l e . 15.b2!? Offering an interesting this amazing game, that novelties can still be
pawn sac. cxb4 16.a4 a5! found, as early as move four, in an
[ Black is obviously not prepared to risk established main line! White profits from the
having his king stuck on e8 after 16...bxa3?! temporary weakness of g7 to drive the f6-
17.xa3 ] knight from its post. d5 The normal central
17.axb4 0-0 Black has successfully reaction against White's wing attack.
completed his development, but there is still [ 4...xg4?! 5.g1 f6 6.xg7
the problem of his g7-pawn. Can he generate is the tactical point of White's aggressive
enough central counterplay? 18.g5! Naturally. idea. ]
hxg5 19.xg5 c6 20.a3 xf3! 5.g5 e4
This all part of an elaborate defensive plan. [ 5...xc3?! 6.bxc3 e4 is worse: 7.d3!
21.xf3 axb4 22.xb4 c5 xc3 8.b3 The knight is trapped. d4
Black's sixteenth move ensured that he could 9.xd4 xd4 10.b2 f4 11.xc3 xg5
control c5, and so he now proposes to 12.h4 h6 13.xg7 xg7 14.xg7
exc ha n ge W h ite 's d an gero us ro o k. 23.h4 White has a large advantage: two bishops
c7 24.d1 e8 White has two mighty and the better centre, Popov,V-Orlov, V/St
bishops, but the absence of white pawns on Petersburg RUS 1999. ]
the queenside means that the black knights 6.h4! White blithely continues his kingside
can operate effectively in a smaller area- the advance. This is stronger than
kingside and centre. 25.f1 e5 26.f4 [ 6.a4+ c6 7.xe4 dxe4 8.e5 e3
e6 9.fxe3 xg5 unclear, Krasenkow,M-Garcia,
[ Black avoids the transparent trap G/Groningen 1997. ]
26...xf3?? 27.xg7+! xg7 28.xf6+ 6...c6 7.c2 Posing Black an awkward
winning immediately. ] problem , he d oesn't want t o retre at, an d
27.g2 h7 28.g3 b5 29.d4 f6 capturing on c3 only allows White to speed-up
30.g1 So, the white king does make it to the his development. f5 8.gxf6 xf6 9.a3 xc3
kingside eventually. c2 31.c3 b1 10.dxc3 White is more interested in bringing
32.xb1 xb1+ his c1-bishop out, than constructing a large
[ After 32...xb1+ 33.h2 f5 centre with 10 bxc3. e7 11.g5 d7
W h i t e s h o u l d r e p e a t m o v e s , 34.g1 12.0-0-0?!
as there is a nasty threat of ...Ng4+, b1+ [ 12.cxd5 exd5 13.0-0-0 was stronger, with
etc. ] an edge. ]
½-½ 12...dxc4! White doesn't get a second chance
to capture this pawn. 13.h5 0-0-0 14.h6
White is attempting to undermine Black's dark-
squared control, and make his g5-bishop
even stronger. hg8 15.h3 gxh6 16.h4!
W h i t e m a i n t a i n s t h e a n n o yi n g p i n . df8
17.d2 Menacing the gain of material by Ne4.

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

f7 18.xc4 e5! Otherwise the d7-bishop would prefer White. ]

had no future. 19.xd7+ xd7 20.e3 c5 13.d3 f5 Now that ... f5 is impossible (as
[ 20...g6 was best. ] the knight cannot recapture on f6) this move
21.d5 d7 There was the threat of b4-5 to is forced.
deal with, driving the c6-knight from its control [ 13...g6? l o s e s q u i c k l y : 14.h5 xg5
of e7, and allowing Ne7+, winning the 15.hxg6 fxg6 16.xg6! xf3 17.xh7+
f7 ( 17...f8 18.e4 hits f3 and menaces
e x c h a n g e . H o w e ve r , t h i s m a n o e u vr e i s
loosening, and Rh8+ ) 18.g6+ e7 19.xg5+
[ 21...g6!? might still have been the best and Black can resign. ]
choice, e.g. 22.b4 e6 23.b5? ed4! 14.e4 d6 15.f4 Both developing and
24.cxd4 xd5 and Black wins! ] threatening to capture on d6 followed by e5. f5
22.d3!? f5? 23.e4 e6 16.exf5 xf5 17.0-0-0 Whilst Black has
24.b4
P b 5 h a s b e c o m e a s t r o n g t h r e a t . f7? been fiddling with his king's knight (already 6
This loses serious material, moves!) W hite has completed his
[ 24...a6 25.a4 b8 had to be played. ] development and already has some nasty
25.c4 Threatening to win the c6-knight, with threats lined-up. a5?!
b5, and the black queen. a6? 26.b6+ [ 17...b6 would stop the next move. ]
1-0 18.d4! White tries to blast his way past the
f5-barrier. c6
[ 18...xd4 19.xh7+ h8 20.xd4
705 A17 is pretty awful, but was Black's best, e5?!
Zvjaginsev,Vadim 2671 21.d5 ]
Riazantsev,Alexander 2538 19.xf5 exf5 20.c4+ h8 21.d5
Aeroflot Open (1) 11.02.2003 Suddenly the black queen is short of squares!
[Tony Kosten] c5
[ 21...b6? 22.a4 ]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.f3 b4 4.g4 0-0 22.a4 b5 Forced. 23.xc5 d4 24.d1
5.g5 e8 6.c2 White decides not to try the b7 Unfortunately for Black,
[ 6.g1!? which, as we saw, worked so well [ 24...xa4 25.xd4 bxc4 restores material
in Vaisser,A-Sokolov, A/Val d'Isere FRA equality, but allows mate! 26.c7 g8
2002. ] 27.xg7! xg7 28.d8+ g8 29.e5# ]
6...d5 7.a3 25.xd4 The simplest. xh1 26.c3 ad8
[ 7.b3 was considered in Krasenkow, M- 27.d5 xd5
Romanishin,O/Lviv UKR 2000. ] [ 27...xd5 28.xd5 e1+ leads nowhere,
7...e7 8.d4!? A novelty, White avoids the 29.c2 e4+ 30.b3 and the king
capture on d5: escapes to a2. ]
[ 8.cxd5 exd5 9.d4 as this frees Black's 28.c7! Rather than have two pieces for a
light-squared bishop, c6 10.f4 g4 r o o k W h i t e t a k e s a w h o l e p i e c e ! b3
Roiz,M-Alienkin,A/Beersheba 1998. ] 29.xd8
8...c5 1-0
[ 8...dxc4 9.e4 c6 10.e3 d6 11.0-0-0
b5 appears to be critical, Black goes pawn-
grabbing but allows W hite space and the 706 A18
c e n t r e , t h i s m i g h t c o n t i n u e 12.e5 Agrest,Evgenij 2607
( 12.e5?! f5 13.xb5? xe3 14.fxe3 Sturua,Zurab 2536
d5 ) 12...b7 13.f4 with sharp play. ] Olympiad Bled SLO (11) 06.11.2002
9.dxc5 xc5 10.e3 e7 11.h4 dxc4 [Tony Kosten]
12.xc4 d6?! Black has happily liquidated
the centre to allow his pieces to develop, but 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
this is a mistake, 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 e5 8.d3
[ 12...c6 13.d3 f5 is better, although I a6 9.c2?! This seems to be a new move,

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
as previously White had always preferred the
natural
[ 9.0-0 (with a passing threat of Nxe5) but is
c5!? p o s s i b l e h e r e , t o o ? ( 9...d6
has been considered in some detail - see
the [A18] eBook chapter) 10.c2 ( 10.e2?!
e4 11.d4 d6 is more than fine for Black,
Petursson,M-Marciano,D/Andorra 1991)
10...g4 11.d4! ( 11.e1 0-0-0 transposes
to the game) 11...exd4 12.cxd4 and White
is better than in the game, as Black still
hasn't castled 0-0-0?! allowing the standard
13.g5 xf3 14.xf6 xd1 15.f5+
although after e6 16.xd8 e2 17.fe1
xc4 Black has a pawn for the exchange. ]
9...g4!
[ 9...d6 10.0-0 would transpose to normal
l i n e s , b u t B l a c k a s p i r e s t o m o r e ( wi t h
some justification). ]
10.0-0 0-0-0 11.e1 c5 12.h3 h5 13.d4
xf3 14.xf3 xf3 15.gxf3 exd4 16.f5+
White was relying on this move to regain his
pawn. d7!? Why didn't Black play
[ 16...e6 ? I suppose he was worried about
17.g5 d6 18.f4 d7 19.xe6 fxe6
20.xe6 but Black has the resource dxc3!
21.d1 d6 22.xd6 cxd6 23.xd6?? c2!
and the pawn queens! ]
17.cxd4 g6 18.e4 g7 Black has pressure
on the d4-pawn, and has a slight advantage
despite White's two bishops. 19.b1
[ 19.e3?! f5 20.c2 b6 21.c5 d5
is excellent for Black. ]
19...b6 20.c5 This concedes d5, and limits
the effectiveness of the white central pawns,
but White had no other way of defending d4.
d5 21.g5 d7 22.b3 f5! 23.d3
[ 23.xd5? would be positional suicide,
White would have bad bishop versus good. ]
23...c6 24.eb1 b6!? A simple choice, but
[ 24...xd4! was even better, the attack on
the b-file leads nowhere: 25.a6 ( 25.xb7
xb7 26.a6 h6! tran sp ose s) 25...h6!
26.xb7 (if the bishop on g5 moves, then
B l a c k c a n d e f e n d b 7 b y . . . R h h 7 ) xb7
27.xb7 c7 or ( 27...hxg5 28.b4+ c7
29.xd4 xh3 and wins. )]
25.cxb6 axb6 26.e3 c7
[ 26...f4! 27.a6+ d8 28.d2 xd4
seems clear enough. ]
27.c4 b5 28.xd5 xd5 29.a4 White tries
everything to generate some activity, but the
black position is too easy to play. b6 30.c1
e8?! Black, who is a very strong GM, is
showing a bit too much respect to his
opponent, and adopts a 'safety-first' policy, but
[ 30...xd4 was simple. ]
31.bc3?
[ 31.c5 gives some chances, e.g. xc5
32.dxc5+ a5 33.axb5 a4 34.d3 xb5
35.d7 ]
31...e6 32.axb5 cxb5 33.c8 xd4
34.f4 e5 35.e3+ b7 36.f4 b8
White's slight activity counts for little against
Black's extra pawn and positional plusses.
37.8c2 e7 38.a2 g5?! Once again, I
suspect a shortage of time might be involved
here - this was endemic at the 2002 Olympiad.
[ 38...e4! ]
39.fxg5?
[ 39.a5! gxf4 40.c5 is messy. ]
39...f4 40.c5 ee5! 41.ac2 xg5+
42.f1?! f3 Now Black wins by direct attack.
43.e7 h2 Flashy! 44.xg5 xg5 45.e1
g1+
[ 45...g1+ 46.d2 f4+ wins a rook. ]
0-1
707 A18
Aronian,Levon 2802
Hou,Yifan 2603
Tata Steel Chess 2013 (8.3) 20.01.2013
[John Bartholomew]
Levon Aronian loves endgames, and he also
happens to play them very well! Here he
outplays Hou Yifan in a line that had already
appeared in the 'B' group. 1.c4 f6 2.c3
e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3
xf6 7.f3
[ 7.d4 is the old main line. See the "Mikenas
Attack - 3...d5 & Intro". ]
7...e5 8.d3 Presently White's principal try for
an advantage.
[ 8.d4 c6! 9.d5 ("A computer move") was
seen in Naiditsch, A (2698)-Fedorchuk, S
(2634) Belfort 2012/[Kosten, Tony]. ]
8...g4!? Houdini's top choice, as played a
week earlier by Arkadij Naiditsch in group B.
[ Major alternatives are 8...a6 ]
[ and 8...d6 . Check the aforementioned
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
"Mikenas Attack" guide in the archives. ]
9.e4 d7! This leads to an endgame nearly
by force.
[ The only other game in this line saw
9...c6?! 10.0-0 0-0-0 , but after 11.a4
d7?! 12.b1 f5 13.xf5+ xf5
14.b5+- Black was swiftly crushed in
Nakamura, H (2657)-Zarnicki, P (2523)
Minneapolis 2005. ]
10.xb7 The following line appears best for
both sides. b8 11.d5 c6 12.e4 c5
13.e2 xe4 14.xe4 xf3 15.xf3 xf3
16.gxf3 The computer claims that this
endgame is dead equal, but in practice I think
White is for choice. His extra pawn isn't too
useful at the moment, but it could become
significant when the respective structures
eventually do clash. Moreover, it's harder to
envision an effective plan for Black. In the
post-game interview Aronian said that he had
analyzed this ending some time ago an d
found difficulties for the second player. d6
Taking prophylactic measures against f3-f4.
[ Interesting is 16...c5 is best, tying White
down to the f2-pawn for awhile. For
example, 17.d3 0-0 18.e2 f5!? intending
19.f4 e4 20.d4 d6 . ]
[ Instead, the source game Movsesian, S-
Naiditsch, Wijk aan Zee 2013 saw 16...d7
17.e2 ( 17.d1!? ) 17...d6 18.d1 he8
19.d3 f5 20.h3 f4! and Black was even
better for awhile (though the game was
eventually drawn). Both Aronian and Hou
were undoubtedly aware of this game, so
it's intriguing to see them repeat this
endgame line. ]
17.d1! Aronian spots a nice summer home
for his monarch on c2. d7 18.c2 f5?!
This pawn should probably stay on f7.
[ Maybe just 18...b6 , preparing to double
on the b-file (...Rb6-a6 could also be
annoying). ]
19.d3 hf8 20.g1 g6 21.h6 f7
22.ad1 e6 23.c1 Returning home now
that the queenside rook has been freed. b6
Aronian questioned the wisdom of this plan.
[ 23...fb7 looks logical. ]
24.f4!? a6?!
[ Black should play 24...exf4 25.d4 c5 . ]
25.fxe5 xa2+?? It's hard to understand what
Hou was thinking.
[ Necessary was 25...xe5 , i.e. 26.c5 c7
27.b3 f6 28.f4 . ]
26.b1 xf2 27.exd6 b7+ 28.a1 xd6
29.d2 f3 30.e1 d7 31.b1+-
Black is completely lost. It doesn't help that
White is one of the best technical players in
th e wo rld ! g5 32.c2 f4 33.a3+ c7
34.d4 g4 35.d5 cxd5 36.cxd5 h5 37.e7
g3 38.e5 e3 39.d6+ c6 40.xh5
Black resigned. 8...Bg4!? has the engine's
blessing, so I suspect that we haven't seen
the last of the ending that occurs after 16. gxf3.
Initial impressions suggest that Black needs
to have some knowledge of how to proceed
(here Naiditsch coped better than Hou).
1-0
708 A18
Aronian,Levon 2807
Kramnik,Vladimir 2791
Botvinnik Memorial rapid (6) 03.09.2011
[Nigel Davies]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 e5 8.d4
exd4 9.g5
[ 9.cxd4 b4+ shows a plus score for Black
in Megabase 2011, which testifies to its
total lack of poison. After 9.Bg5 the defence
is far more difficult. ]
9...e6+ 10.e2 e7 11.cxd4 xg5
12.xg5 f6 13.d2 0-0 14.0-0 c6
15.d5
[ In an internet game Garry Kasparov played
15.f3 but after g4 16.ad1 ad8 17.d5
xf3 18.xf3 e5 19.e2 b6 20.fe1
fe8 21.f1 d7 Black had an excellent
position due to the nice outpost for his knight
o n c 5 . A n d h e e ve n w e n t o n t o wi n i n
Kasparov, G-Zarnicki, P/ICC INT 1998. ]
15...d4 16.e4 A new move from Aronian,
merrily allowing Black to exchange his knight
for the bishop on e2.
[ In earlier games White had played 16.d3
, for example f5 17.xf5 xf5 18.e4
g6 ( 18...h4 19.fe1 fe8 20.d3
d6 21.g3 e7 22.xd6 xd6
was equal and later drawn in Bukal, V -
Rosandic, D/Zadar 1995) 19.fe1 ad8
20.f4 b6 21.a4 d6 22.xd6 xd6
704
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

23.xd6 xd6 24.a5 1/2-1/2 was Cramling, 4.cxd5 exd5 5.e5 e4
D-Wiedenkeller, M/Stockholm 1993. ] [ 5...d4 was played against me in August,
16...xe2+ 17.xe2 g6 18.fe1 f5 but somehow I was not able to remember
[ In retrospect Black might have wished he'd my analysis and I needed to be caref ul
p l a y e d t h e m o r e c o n s e r v a t i v e 18...b6 6.exf6 dxc3 7.e2+ ( 7.b5+
The following sequence, which leads to the w a s m y r e c o m m e n d a t i o n i n J u l y c6
loss of W hite's c4 pawn, gives W hite a 8.e2+ ) 7...e6 8.dxc3 xf6 9.b5+
dangerous initiative. ] d7 10.xb7 e5+ 11.e2 d5 12.b5
19.g3 d3 Going for it. c5 with good compensation, Fier, A (2595)-
[ But 19...d7 was safer. ] Van Ketel, R (2241)/Vienna Open 2013. ]
20.e5 xc4 21.f5 Threatening a nasty 6.f3
f o rk o n e 7 . h8 22.e3 d3 23.xc7 [ 6.d4 was the subject of Ding, L (2707)-Wei,
The net result of the last few moves is that Y (2530)/Danzhou 4th 2013. ]
White has secured a powerful passed d-pawn. 6...f5 7.e2
This position is far from easy for Black now. [ 7.b3 it looks like this move was popular
e4 24.f4 fe8 25.f3 d3 26.ad1 h5 in correspondence in the 90's with terrible
27.d2 b5 28.ed1 ad8 29.d6 results for White c5 8.xd5 c6
The passed pawn is making its presence felt. A) 9.d4 b4 10.xd8+ xd8 11.g5
c6 30.d7?! As this was a rapidplay game ( 11.b5+!? can bring some funny
we must forgive the players a few complications, but not necessarily good for
inaccuracies. White c6 12.0-0 cxb5 13.dxc5 xc5
[ 30.c4 was better, keeping an iron grip on 14.g5 c8 15.xb5 d3 16.d6+
the position. ] xd6 17.exd6 xf1 18.e1+ d7
30...e6 31.c4 f6? Missing his chance. 19.e5+ e6 and the computer gives the
[ Black should have played 31...xd7 when habitual 0.00 with 20.d7 or 20.Kxf1
32.e5 ( 32.xd7?? xd7 33.xd7 b1+ 20.g6+ ) 11...c2+ 12.d2 e7
would see W hite get mated) 32...xe5 13.xe7 xe7 14.d1 xd4 15.xd4
33.xe5 xd2 34.xd2 xf3 is far from xd4+ 16.e3 xd1 17.xd1 f6
clear. ] a n d B la c k is sl ig h t l y m o re a c t iv e b u t
32.xf6 gxf6 33.a5 g7 34.d4 f5 maybe White can hold the balance;
35.f2 b6 36.xc6 xc6 37.g3 B) 9.xd8+ xd8 10.d4 xd4 11.xd4
The rook endgame is winning for White. c2 xd4 12.e3 d7 13.d1 d3+
38.f4 g6 39.e5 e2+ 40.d6 f6 14.xd3 xd3 is also not so nice to play
41.d5 xg2 42.c7 gg8 43.f4 gf8 with White;
44.g1 e7 45.d6 C) 9.b5 xd5 10.xd5 0-0-0
1-0 and the Black pieces are active enough
to compensate the pawn and even give an
advantage ]
709 A18 [ 7.d4 would be a normal way to develop
Aronian,Levon 2813 A) 7...c5 here is not precise because of
Lysyj,Igor 2648 8.b3! c6 ( 8...xc3 fails here, but not
FIDE World Cup (2.2) 15.08.2013 in the game 9.xb7! )
[Fier, Alexandr] A1) 9.xe4!? sends things out of
control dxe4 10.d5 b4 11.a3 xd5
One more time W hite goes for 4.cxd5 but ( 11...xd5 12.c4 ) 12.c4 c2+
playing 6.Nf3 instead of the 6.d4 analyzed in 13.xc2 exf3 14.xd5 xc2 15.xb7
Ding - Wey in July, probably based on another fxg2 16.xa8 gxh1+ 17.xh1;
game from Lisyj. Soon something went wrong A2) 9.xb7 is better c8 10.b5 d7
for Aronian and Lisyj could have given him big 11.xc6 xc6 12.b3 c4 13.c2
problems. I would take a look at playing 10. and Black hasn't enough for the pawn;
Nxd4 instead. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 B) 7...b4 8.d2 ( 8.a4+ c6 9.b5

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d7 10.d2 xc3 11.xc3 0-0 [ 12...xg5 enters some unnecessary

and both sides has their own plusses) co m p lica t io n s, 13.xg5 ( 13.xf5 0-0
8...xd2 9.xd2 0-0 is given as equal by 14.xg5 xg5 15.xh7+ xh7 16.c2+
Ribli in Rojas, L (2455)-Milos, G (2555)/ g8 17.xc5 xe5 is u n b a la n c e d)
Villa Martelli 1998. ] 13...xg5 14.c7+ d7 15.xa8 d4!
7...c5N This is a natural novelty. covering d5 ( 15...h3 would enter another
[ 7...c6 8.0-0 d7 9.d4 e7 was some typical computer line 16.e4 d4 17.xd5
kind of Petroff, but there is not much reason xa8 18.c1 xc1 19.a4+ b5 20.xc1
to not bring the pawn to c5 and combat the bxa4 21.xc5 e2+ 22.f1 b8 23.gxh3
center, Zvjaginsev, V (2678)-Lysyj, I (2628)/ f4= ) 16.xf5+ xf5 17.c1 xe5
EU-Cup 28th Eilat 2012. ] 18.f3 xa8 19.xf7+ e7 20.xd5+
8.d4 d6 21.f7+ e7= ]
[ 8.b3 now this is not so threatening 13.h4 The position is nothing special for
because xc3 9.dxc3 ( 9.xb7 W hite, but after two moves it will become
is not possible xe2-+ ) 9...d7 10.0-0 worse. I would not imagine White going back
e7= ] to 13.Be3 after just playing 12.Bg5, but it's
8...c6 9.0-0 cxd4 10.b5 hard to suggest anything interesting.
[ 10.xd4 is slightly better compared to the [ 13.d6+ xd6 14.exd6 0-0
game xd4 11.xd4 c5! ( 11...xc3 leads nowhere ]
12.bxc3 only helps White e7?! 13.b5+ ) [ 13.e3 0-0 ( 13...xe3 14.xe4 dxe4
A) 12.a4+!? is an idea to surprise Black 15.d6+ f8 16.fxe3 xe3+ 17.h1
d7 13.b3 0-0! Black needs to be quick, complicates things with no reason) 14.xc5
to compensate the lost pawn with activity xc5= ]
( 13...xc3 14.xc3 b6 15.e6! 13...0-0 14.a3
a n d B l a c k ' s k i n g wi l l n e v e r b e s a f e) [ 14.c3 does not work tactically xb2
14.xd5 ( 14.xd5? e6 15.c4 b5-+; ( 14...xc3 15.bxc3 ) 15.xd5 xe5
14.xb7 f5 15.xd5 b8 16.c6 c8 16.b1 xa2-+ and the d5-knight is also
17.b7 b8= ) 14...c6 15.xd8 axd8 hanging ]
16.xe4 xe4 and the idea of ...Bd4 14...fe8 Now the e5-pawn is going to fall.
makes things even.; 15.c1
B) 12.b5+ d7 13.xd5 xb5 [ 15.b4 e7 ( 15...f8 16.c1 a5 )
14.xb5 ( 14.xd8+ is just drawn xd8 16.xe7 ( 16.c1 xh4 17.xh4 e6
15.xb5 xf2 16.b4 h3+ 17.h1 18.f3 g4 ) 16...xe7 17.d6 c3!
f2+ 18.g1= ) 14...xd5 15.c7+ d7 18.d2 xd3 19.xd3 xe5 20.xe5
16.xd5 ae8 17.f4 c6 18.c3 xe5 21.xc3 xd6 with some play, but a
xc3 19.bxc3 d8 and probably Black is pawn up for Black ]
fine, but still this extra pawn can make a 15...xe5 16.xe5 xe5 17.xe4? xe4?
difference. ] [ 17...dxe4 was really strong, with the idea of
10...d3! The main point of this move is put the 18...e3 18.g3 I imagine this was the
d3-bishop in the way of d4. If White manages reason he avoided this line, but Black has a
to play Nbd4 without any problem, his position trick, ( 18.c3 e3 ) 18...xf2+! 19.xf2
will be better. 11.xd3 c5 12.g5 ( 19.xf2 xb5 ) 19...xb5 20.xa7 e3
[ 12.e2 is a normal setup, going to trade 21.d4 e2 22.fe1 ae8-+ ]
the black squared bishops, but still Black is 18.g3 f5 19.c3 And somehow White is
ok. There will always be counterplay on e5 back in the game! f8
0-0 13.e3 xe3 14.xe3 g6= ] [ 19...xb2? 20.a4 ]
[ 12.e3 tryin g to m ix th in gs u p xe3 20.e2 The rook on f5 is a bit misplaced and
13.xe4 dxe4 14.d6+ f8 15.xf5 exf3 the e4-bishop is good but has no squares.
16.fxe3 fxg2 17.xg2 xe5 18.c1 e8 21.fd1 Threatening 22.Nxd5. e6
with enough compensation for the pawn. ] 22.b5 d4
12...b6 [ 22...xb5 23.xb5 b6 24.d4 h5

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

25.b4 is too discoordinated. ] [ 8...f5!? is also possible, perhaps. ]

23.xb6 axb6 24.xe4 xe4 25.f3 e8 9.e2
26.f2 fe5 27.f1 White might be slightly [ 9.xe4 dxe4 10.xe4 d7 and ...Bc6
better, but nothing serious, Lysyj defended gives Black bags of compensation for the
we l l a n d t h e r e s t o f t h e g a m e i s n o t s o piece, and ]
interesting. g6 28.xd4 5e6 29.f2 g7 [ 9.cxd5 exd5 10.xe4 dxe4 11.xe4 d7
30.c2 a8 31.d3 c6 32.xc6 bxc6 likewise, but ]
33.xb6 xb2 34.c5 g7 35.e2 f8 [ 9.d1!? is worth a try, planning to trap the
36.xf8 xf8 37.d2 e7 38.c2 e6 e4-knight by d3, a5 10.e2!? (to unpin
39.b3 b8+ 40.c3 b1 41.c2 b7 the d-pawn) b5 11.d3 xd3 12.xd3 bxc4
42.c3 b1 43.d2 c5 44.c2 b7 wi t h t w o p a w n s a n d l o t s o f p o s i t i o n a l
45.d1 h5 46.a4 a7 47.b3 b7+ compensation for the piece. ]
48.c3 a7 49.a1 a5 50.h4 d5 9...f5 Black bolsters his powerful knight.
51.b3 c6 52.c4 d6 53.a2 e5 10.0-0 0-0 11.d1!? Again hoping to win the
54.g3 d6 55.a1 e5 56.f4+ d6 e4-knight, White plans for more than
57.b3 c6 58.f1 a7 59.f5 b7+ [ 11.d3 xc3 12.bxc3 c6 13.cxd5 exd5
60.c3 a7 61.fxg6 fxg6 62.f4 d5 which is only equal. ]
63.g4 e5 64.c4 d5 11...dxc4 12.xc4 b5! Black will give White
½-½ no time to play d3. 13.xb5 b6 14.c4
a6 15.e3!? Again the most ambitious,
although
710 A18 [ 15.d3 is also possible, xc4 16.dxc4 fd8
Azmaiparashvili,Zurab 2676 17.f2 xf2 18.xf2 d3+ 19.g1 d7
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2711 and Black's control of the d-file and strong
Saraybahce Blitz Exhib (2) 08.2002 knight provides an excellent return for the
[Tony Kosten] pawn. ]
15...fd8 Carefully controlling d3. 16.b3 h8
T h i s is 'o n l y' a b l it z ga m e , b u t is a ve r y 17.g3 d3 Black's knights form an
impressive crush, even so. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 impressive pair. 18.b2 d7 Black improves
e6 3.e4 c6!? This is a move I hadn't seen his position. 19.c3 ad8 20.c2
before, normally Black plays [ 20.xa6 xa6 21.c4 is another way, but
[ 3...d5 or ] how can White shift those two knights? ]
[ 3...c5 ] 20...b7 Black eyes the weak h1-a8 diagonal.
4.f4!? 21.ad1 c6 The way Ivanchuk's pieces
[ 4.d4 is more natural: b4 5.f3 d5 6.e5 have all gravitated to superb squares is quite
d7 7.cxd5 exd5 8.f4 but this isn't too bad amazing. 22.xd3 xd3 23.e1?
for Black, Adorjan, A-McCambridge,V/New This is a blunder, but it is almost impossible
York 1984. ] to successfully defend such a position in a
4...d5 5.e5 e4 blitz game. xe3?! This is winning, but
[ 5...d4 6.exf6 dxc3 7.bxc3 xf6 8.d4 [ 23...xc3 24.dxc3 h1+ 25.f2 xh2+
is like the 3... d5 mainline, except that with is somewhat simpler. ]
the pawn on f4 Black can no longer free 24.dxe3 xd1 25.xd1 xc3 26.f3 a6
himself with ...e5, Luetzen,M-Premke,S/ 27.h5 g6 28.h3 e2+ 29.f2 xa2
Passau 1999. ] 0-1
6.f3 ...Qh4+ was a threat. e7 7.c2 b4
8.b1 c5! A novelty,
[ 8...xc3?! is too compliant, 9.bxc3 a6
10.d4 White has a strong centre, and the
black knight has been driven offside,
Stef f ensen,S-Fredericia,L/Copenhagen
1998. ]

707
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

711 A18 there is no real defence.

Bareev,Evgeny 2709 1-0
Rozentalis,Eduardas 2630
Bundesliga 2000-1 (13) 01.04.2001
[Tony Kosten] 712 A18
Bratanov,Zsivko 2438
1.c4 e6 2.c3 f6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4 Antonov,Ognjan 2123
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 e5 8.d3 GP Izmir TUR (2) 29.08.2002
d6 9.0-0 0-0 10.e4!? [Tony Kosten]
[ This is less usual, the main line, 10.c2
is examined in the archives, whilst ] 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
[ 10.e1 is also seen there. ] 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.d4 c5!?
10...c6 11.c2 h6 12.b1 White aims to This is the main alternative to
cause Black problems on the queenside. [ 7...e5 ]
a5?! 8.f3 h6 Black stops the threatened Bg5, but
[ A new idea, Gelfand considered. 12...e6 [ 8...cxd4 is also a possibility, 9.g5 f5
to be forced, 13.d3 d8 14.d4!? xc4 10.cxd4 b4+ 11.d2 c6 1-0 Tal,M-
15.d3 e6 16.e1 c6 Gelfand,B- Sosonko,G/Wijk 1976. ]
Yegiazarian,A/Yerevan 1996, when 17.e4 9.d3 c6!? Maybe best, Black retains the
maintained an edge. ] central tension.
13.a4 f5 The tricky point of Black's play. [ 9...cxd4 is the main move, to develop the
14.xf5 xf5 15.b5 f 8 - b i s h o p wi t h c h e c k , 10.cxd4 b4+
[ 15.xa5? xb1 ] 11.f1!? ( 11.d2 xd2+ 12.xd2 0-0
15...b6 16.c5 So far this is forced. The text 13.0-0 offers White extra space, Oratovsky,
seems strong as White wins a pawn. e7 M-Kruppa,Y/Budapest 1999) 11...c6
[ Rathe r tha n 16...xc5? 17.xc5 bxc5 12.b2 c5 13.c2 0-0 14.d3
18.xa5 e4 19.d4! d5 20.b3 favours W hite, Seirawan,Y-Kortschnoj,V/
and the c5-pawn is lost. ] Wijk aan Zee 1980. ]
17.cxb6 axb6 18.xe5 f6 So, White has 10.0-0! White offers the d-pawn as bait!
won the e-pawn, what compensation does [ 10.b2 d6 11.0-0 0-0 12.e2 e5
Black have? Firstly, he has a slight lead in is plea sant f or Bla ck, as the b2 -bisho p
development, and secondly the a2-pawn is does lit tle , Kramn ik,V -Ton g Yuanm ing/
weak, and on an open file. However, a pawn is Singapore 1990. ]
a pawn! 19.e2 d6 20.fe1 f5 21.d4 10...cxd4 White scores very heavily after this
d5 Training his sights on a2. 22.d3 fd8 pawn grab, perhaps
23.c2 f8 24.e5 d7 25.5e3 [ 10...d6 is more prudent, 11.b1 0-0
To cover the d3-pawn. c5 26.f3 c6 12.e2 e7 Black keeps the c-pawns
27.b1 d6 28.d2! White is doing his d o u b l e d , C r a m l i n g , D - S c h u l z, K / S l u p s k
utmost to keep the advantage, the knight aims 1987. ]
for d5. a5 29.e4 c6 30.c4! If Black 11.cxd4 xd4
plays ...c4 first, the c1-bishop will be weak. [ 11...c5!? might be possible, as the d-
d7 31.c3 ad8 32.h3 d6 33.g3 d7 pawn is pinned along he a1-h8 diagonal, but
34.d5 White has carefully prepared this I cannot find any examples of it. ]
possibility, and now envisages developing his 12.xd4 xd4 13.b1 White prepares Bb2,
bishop. b5! 35.f4 e6 36.xe6 xe6 h i s l e a d i n d e v e l o p m e n t i s m o r e t h a n
37.c7 a8 38.e3 g6 39.xb5 sufficient compensation for the pawn
[ Strong, although 39.xa5 xa5 40.e8 sacrificed. d6 Black defends his g-pawn with
mu s t s u re ly b e win n in g t o o , t h e kn igh t a little tactic, but maybe other moves could
dominates the black bishop. ] also be considered:
39...c6 40.g3 e6 41.e3 g6 42.b7! [ 13...c5!? 14.b5 d6 15.f3
xa2 43.e8 White threatens Rxf8+, and 1/2-1/2 Krause,C-Kretschel,K/Bayern 1996,

708
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

although both sides could continue. ] [ 21...d4 22.d7 xe1 23.xe1 c5
[ 13...h4!? 14.g3 h3? Lellis, M- 24.h4! allowed White to keep a useful
Zampronha,W/Sao Caetano do Sul 1999, initiative in Ivanchuk, V-Nielsen,P/
and now 15.e4! is simple and strong. ] Skanderborg DEN 2003. ]
14.b2 h4 22.g3 All part of White's plan, driving the black
[ 14...f4 15.g3 g5 transposes to the queen away, followed by h4-5 to dislodge the
note below. ] black knight.
15.g3 h3?? A most unfortunate novelty! [ 22.d7 i s l e s s e f f e c t i ve n o w , e5!
Clearly Black has hopes of playing . ..h5-h4 or 23.xc7 f4 (with a very nasty threat)
forcing a perpetual should White snatch the g- 24.h1 ac8 and White has to be careful,
pawn, but there is a big flaw. e.g. 25.xa7?? ( 25.b7 is better, and this
[ 15...g5! is correct, reveals the point behind Black's 21st move,
A) 16.h4!? is aggressive, but weakening, with the pawn still on b7 this would win a
e7 ( 16...c5! ) 17.g4 ( 17.c5!? xc5 further pawn! g4 26.g3 xf2 27.e2
18.xg7 g8 19.b5+ is good fun, d7 d e f e n d s , a s t h e e 2 - r o o k i s i m m u n e)
20.xd7+ xd7 21.xd7+ xd7 25...g4 26.g3 xf2 forcing mate. ]
22.xb7+ with some advantage) 17...f6 [ However, 22.ad1 might be an
18.g6+ f8 19.bd1 b5?? ( 19...c5 ) improvement, as Black must find a useful
20.xd6! xd6 21.f3 1-0 Cox,J- move, and if ad8 23.g3 is stronger as the
Richmond,P/ Southport 1983, as W hite black queen cannot go to d4 or d8 (as in the
threatens the rook on a8 and Bxf6.; game). ]
B) 16.e4 c5 17.c1!? e7 18.f3 22...d8
1/2-1/2 Chekhov,V-Cherepkov,A/ Yaroslav [ 22...d4 is also possible. ]
1982. ] 23.h4 Continuing in thematic style, but White
16.e4?! This is good, but misses a chance to gain control over the e-file:
[ 16.e2! threatens to trap the queen with [ 23.e4! xe4 24.xe4 d6 25.e1
Bg4, and to take the bishop on d6, and wins a n d h e re h 4 -5 a n d B h 3 will h a ve m o re
on the spot. ] effect. ]
16...c7 17.d4 e5 18.c5 d7 19.a3 23...d6 24.h5 f8
W hite has a truly virulent initiative, Black's [ 24...e5! is inte resting, 25.g4 xe1
game has already disintegrated. b6 20.c6! 26.xe1 e5 27.e4 e8 28.g2! e7
[ 20.c6 b8 21.bd1 xc6 22.xc6+ 29.f5 d7 and Black seems OK. ]
wins everything. ] 25.h3 e7 Black takes advantage of White's
1-0 inaccuracy to double rooks himself. 26.h6 g6
27.g5 ae8 Black has no problems.
½-½
713 A18
Bruzon Batista,Lazaro 2603
Zarnicki,Pablo 2513 714 A18
Open Santo Domingo DOM (5) 30.11.2003 Bunzmann,Dimitrij 2464
[Tony Kosten] Riazantsev,Alexander 2692
FRA-chT Top 12 (5.3) 28.05.2014
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4 [Kosten, Tony]
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 e5 8.d4
exd4 9.g5 e6+ 10.e2 e7 11.cxd4 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
xg5 12.xg5 e7 13.d2 c6 14.d5 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.d4 e5 8.f3
e5 15.0-0 0-0 16.fe1 f5 17.f4 f6 c6! This move brings back bad memories of
18.f3 fe8 19.h4! Ivanchuk's innovation my loss to Wesley So a couple of years ago!
from last month. g6 20.xf5 xh4 21.f1 Time to have another look at it, and most
b6!? Already a new move, which is based on importantly the games played during the last
a subtle tactical point. t w o y e a r s . 9.xe5 Not the best move, but

709
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Dimitrij plays very little these days (and was
enjoying the Top12 in Saint-Quentin with his
family) and might have been unaware of the
fairly recent theory.
[ 9.g5 still looks best, g6 10.d5
A) 10...e7!? has been played by Crouch
a c o u p le o f t im e s, b u t 11.a4+!
( 11...d7? 12.xd7+! Ouch!
13.xe5+ ) 12.e3 f6
with advantage, Reinderman, D (2597)-
Buscher, M (2334) Germany 2012, 1-0
(38).;
B) 10...b8
B1) 11.h4 h6!? (m a yb e be st ) 12.h5
( 12.e2!? hxg5 13.xe5 h5 14.g4
xg4 15.xg4+ d8
Steingrimsson, H (2556)-Lysyj, I (2656)
Plovdiv 2012, 0-1 (43), d7 when White
doesn't have quite enough for the
piece. ) 12...d6 13.e3 d7 14.d2
f6 15.e2 f5 16.0-0
is nothing for White, Gerzhoy, L (2478)-
Adamson, R (2278) St Louis 2013 1-0
(74).;
B2) 11.e3 d7 12.a4 c6 13.a5?!
l o o k s v e r y o d d , b6 14.a4
15.d3? but White was worse anyway,
Bu, X (2662)-Wei, Y (2530) China 2013,
0-1 (32). Now Black has a choice of wins
(which he didn't play!) For instance,
xd3 16.dxc6 xc3+ 17.e2 c8;
B3) 11.d2 d6 12.d3 h5 13.e3
a6 1/2-1/2 Abasov, N (2465)-Sadorra,
J (2551) Richardson 2013.;
B4) 11.d3 f5
was my recommendation in 'DW -
Flank'. ) 12.a4+ ( always played, but
12.xf5 xf5 13.0-0 d7 14.a4
is also possible. )
B4a) I've previously suggested
12...d7 here, let's see: 13.c2 f5
14.0-0 e4 15.fe1 d6 16.c5 xc5
( or 16...0-0!? ) 17.xe4!
18.xe4+ f8 19.ae1 d6 20.b3
a6! 21.xb7 c8 (the a6-knight is
in d ire ct ly d ef e n de d b y t h e que e n )
22.e7+ g8 pretty unclear.;
B4b) 12...d7?! 13.0-0
h a s n e v e r b e e n p l a y e d , b u t xg5
14.xf5 looks awkward for Black, d8
15.xd7+ xd7 16.f3 e7 17.0-0
m e n a c i n g b o t h N x e 5 a n d Q x a 7 .)
13...d6
B4b1) worse than the previously
played 14.xf5 xf5 15.c5 xc5
16.xe5 f6 17.g4! xe5 18.ae1
0-0-0 19.xe5 xe5 20.e3 xe3
c6 21.fxe3 b8 22.d4! ( 22.b1 b6
xd7 23.c4?! h5! Barnes, M (2335)-
13.d1 Garcia, G (2540) London 1994, 0-1
(50). ) 22...h6 23.c4 he8 24.c5
with advantage, Kortschnoj, V (2645)-
Ashley, M (2460) New York 1996,
1-0 (36).;
B4b2) 14.h4!? xg5 15.xf5
Williams, S (2515)-Faisal, A (2255)
16.g2 A l A i n 2 0 1 2 , 1 - 0 ( 2 6 ) , wh e n d8
is perfectly f ine for Black, he will
castle and play ...Nc5. ]
[ 9.e2 exd4 10.cxd4 b4+ 11.d2
xd2+ 12.xd2 (Wesley So told me he
e7 thought this was 'drawn') 0-0 13.h3?!
( 13.0-0 g4 14.d5 xf3 15.xf3 e5
16.e4 D'Israel, D (2250)-Leitao, R (2545)
Sao Caetano do Sul 1999, 1/2-1/2 (25).)
13...d8 14.d1 xd4! 15.xd4 c5
b7 winning a pawn, Nikologorskiy, K (2400)-
Shomoev, A (2571) St Petersburg 2012, 1/
2-1/2 (64). ]
[ 9.dxe5?! xe5 10.e2 d6
wa s m y ga m e a ga in st S o , W (2 6 5 3 ) a t
Belfort 2012, 0-1 (37). ]
9...xe5 10.e2 e7
[ 10...f5!? looks like a mistake, but 11.f4
0-0-0 12.fxe5 g6 13.e3 e8 14.e2 f6
( 11...f5! 15.0-0 fxe5 16.dxe5 b6 17.h1 c5
18.f3 Ibarra Chami, L (2489)-Adamson, R
(2 2 8 7 ) L a s V e ga s 2 0 1 3 , 1 -0 (3 3 ) , xe5
regains the pawn with advantage, as 19.f4
xe2! 20.xe2 d3 21.f3 xf1 22.a8+
d7 23.d5+ d6 24.xf1 f8
with the better structure. ]
11.dxe5!? The first new move, but it is no
fxe4 i m p r o ve m e n t , a n d i t wo u l d b e b e t t e r t o
exchange queens by
[ 11.xe5 xe5+ 12.dxe5 f5 13.e2
0-0-0 when, as I previously wrote: "Black
has more than enough compensation for the
( 13.h4! pawn in the shape of W hite's poor
queenside formation", Socko, B (2636)-Lysyj,
I (2633) Moscow 2012, 1/2-1/2 (45). ]
11...g6 12.e3
710
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 12.h4!? ] 49.f4 c7 50.f5 gxf5 51.a1 b6

12...f5 13.e2?! 0-1
[ 13.g3 is safer, but then he could have
exchanged queens more easily on move
11. ] 715 A18
13...xg2! Now the white king will have to Delchev,Aleksander 2629
stay in the centre. 14.f3 g6 15.xb7 b8 Pilgaard,Kim 2438
16.d5 c6! XXI Open Cullera ESP (4) 22.07.2001
[ 16...0-0 17.g3 ] [Tony Kosten]
17.xa7?
[ W h i t e h a d t o r e t r e a t , 17.f3 0-0 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
although his position remains unpleasant. ] 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 e5 8.d3
17...d8 18.f3 d6 9.0-0 0-0 10.e4 c6 11.c2 h6
[ 18.a4? 0-0! 19.xc6 xd5! 20.cxd5 12.b1 c5!
( 20.xg6 xe5+ ) 20...g2 21.f1 d3 [ A novelty, Black takes measures to stop
forces mate. ] both d4, and Rb5 followed by c5. However,
18...g4! Black plays very accurately. in a way this will only encourage W hite to
19.a3!? expand with d4, but it seems that Black
[ 19.xg4 e4+ 20.e2 xh1+ h o l d s o n b y a w h i s k e r . 12...a5?!
is also horrible. ] came a cropper in Bareev,E - Rozentalis,E,
[ 19.g1? is impossible here, xf3 20.xg6 wh ic h we h a ve a lre a d y e xa m in e d , la s t
d1# ] April. ]
19...xa3 13.e1 e8 14.b5 b6!
[ T h e c o m p u t e r m o v e 19...g5!! [ This looks suicidal, weakening the h1-a8
w i n s q u i c k l y , 20.xg4 e4+ 21.e2 diagonal, but if Black can get away with it,
xh1+ 22.f1 e4+ 23.e2 d2+ h e w i l l b e d o i n g w e l l . 14...d6?
24.d1 e3+ and the queen drops. ] appears possible, but loses to the beautiful
20.g1 Now this is possible. b2 21.xg4 line: 15.d4! (thematic) exd4 16.cxd4 xd4
d3 22.xc6+ f8 Black is slightly 17.xd4 xd4 ( 17...xd4? 18.d5 )
inconvenienced, but is still winning. 23.f3 18.b2 d6 19.c3! ( much stronger than
Forced, otherwise ...Bxc3 was mate. xc3+ 19.h7+?! w h e n , a f t e r f8 20.xg7+
24.f2 xa1 Now Black has a rook for two xg7 21.xe8 Black has the resource f5!
pawns, but White (who used to be a 2550+ 22.xf5 xe8 ) 19...f6 20.d5+ f8
player) manages to find some resources. ( 20...e6 21.xe6+ xe6 22.xe6 xe6
25.d5! c2+ 26.g1 f5 Defending f7. 23.xc5 wins a piece) 21.xe8+ xe8
27.a3+ g8 28.e7 f8 22.xc5 xc5 23.a3 b6 24.e1+
[ 28...b8! as 29.e6 b1+! forces mate. ] and Black has to play e6 to avoid mate,
29.e6 g6 30.exf7+ g7 but it is hopeless. ]
[ 30...xf7 was legal, 31.xf7+ xf7 32.f4 15.d4 This is certainly critical, and if White
xd5 33.cxd5 g7 but Black might have tries anything else he will just find his rook
problems with his 'wrong rook's pawn'. ] driven back, Black will then finish his
31.h4 f6 32.a7 b1+ 33.g2 c2+ development (by ...Bb7, and ... Rad8, for
34.f1 h2 35.a4 xh4 36.a5 h1+ in st a n ce ), an d m a y e ve n b e b e t t e r. exd4
[ 36...h5! ] 16.h7+
37.g1 h3+ 38.g2 f5 39.e2?! d3! [ 16.cxd4 xd4! will transpose. ]
The threat of ...Qd1+ is very unpleasant. 16...f8 17.xe8+ xe8 18.e4+
40.e3 There is nothing else, but now it's [ Again, 18.cxd4 xd4 19.e4+
trivial. xe3 41.xe3 xf7 42.xf7 xf7 t r a n s p o s e s , a s d o e s ( 19.xd4 xd4
43.a6 a8 44.a3 e6 45.g2 e7 20.e4+ )]
46.a5 d8 47.a1 d6 48.d1+ c6 18...e6 19.cxd4 xd4! 20.xd4?
[ T h i s l e a ve s W h i t e i n t r o u b l e , 20.xc5!

711
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
is t h e b e s t t r y: bxc5 21.xa8 e2+
( 21...xf3+? 22.gxf3 ) 22.h1 xc1
23.xa7 xc4 24.xc7 ( 24.b8 d8
25.f5 a6 ) 24...e6 25.b8+ ]
[ White has to eliminate the c5-bishop, as
th e im me diat e 20.xa8?? allows mate in
four: xf3+ 21.gxf3 e1+ 22.g2 xf2+
23.h1 g1# ]
20...xd4 21.e3
[ The queen cannot capture either of the
black pieces, e.g. 21.xd4?? e1# ]
21...c6!
[ 21...xe4?! 22.xe4 xe3 23.e5+ f8
24.xa8 leaves White an exchange up,
although Black is solid. ]
22.f5?
[ and White, perhaps sensing that he was in
trouble, punted the draw offer, which was
a c c e p t e d . H o w e v e r , a f t e r 22.f5
t h e s i m p l e l i n e xe4 23.xe4 cxb5
24.xd4 ( 24.xa8 xe3 25.fxe3 bxc4
is quite hopeless) 24...b7! 25.xb7 d8
wins for Black!! ]
[ 22.xd4!? cxb5 23.e4 b8 24.cxb5
may offer White's best practical chance. ]
½-½
716 A18
Ding,Liren 2707
Wei,Yi 2530
Danzhou 4th (2) 21.05.2013 9...0-0 10.0-0 xc3
[Fier, Alexandr]
Ding Liren is another one to try the less played
4.cxd5, which avoids the theoretical mainlines
in the Mikenas, and easily got a good position.
I th in k t he po pu la rit y o f th is id ea sh ou ld
increase a lot in the coming months. 1.c4 f6
2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.cxd5 This line is
increasingly popular since sometimes the 11.bxc3
positions with 4.e5 are a bit too simple,
[ 4.e5 d4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6
is much more common by far. ]
4...exd5 5.e5 e4
[ 5...fd7 is comfortable for White 6.d4 c5 position is already more pleasant for White.
7.f3 c6 8.b5 a6 9.g5 a5 10.xc6
bxc6 11.0-0 San Segundo Carrillo, P
(2495)-Mitkov, N (2455)/ESP-chT
Ponferrada 1997. ]
[ 5...d4 is the main alternative and has the
same idea as 4. e5 d4, but the important
difference is that the e-file is now open,
giving White the opportunity to play Qe2+
sooner or later, 6.exf6 dxc3 7.b5+!?
I prefer this move, developing one more
piece bef ore the check ( 7.e2+ e6
8.dxc3 xf6 9.b5+ d7 10.xb7 e5+
11.e2 d5 12.b5 c5 gives Black nice
compensation. It's still not clear how White
is going to finish his development.) 7...c6
( 7...c6 would be natural, but allows White to
wait before taking the pawn on c3 8.e2+
e6 9.c4 ) 8.e2+ e6 9.dxc3 ( 9.c4?
is now answered by d4 ) 9...xf6 10.f3
d6 11.d4 0-0 12.xe6 ae8 13.c4
( 13.xf8 xe2+ 14.xe2 xf8
i s a l s o p o s s i b l e) 13...fxe6 14.0-0
looks promising for White, with the bishop
pair and better structure. ]
6.d4
[ 6.f3 c6 7.b5 is also interesting and
wa s a n a l y ze d b y W a t s o n i n t h e g a m e
Korchnoi-Nielsen, see the archives. ]
6...b4 7.a4+ c6 8.b5 d7 9.ge2
This is the main point of waiting to develop
the knight. Here it protects c3 and d4 and
leaves the f-pawn free to annoy the knight on
e4.
[ 9.xc6 makes little sense, xc3+ 10.bxc3
xc6 11.c2 b5 and Black has nothing to
worry about. ]
[ 10...xc3 tries to keep the bishop but
White can claim an edge after 11.bxc3 e7
12.b3 h i t t i n g d 5 a5 ( 12...e6
13.d3 ) 13.b1 xb5 14.xb5 c6
15.d3 c4 16.g3 White has a clear
pla n o f a tt acking o n t he kin gside wh ile
Black still needs to find something concrete
on the queenside. ]
[ 11.xc3 e8 ( 11...xc3 12.bxc3 e8
13.f4 ) 12.xc6 xc6 13.c2 ]
11...a6 12.xc6 xc6 13.c2 f6
After this move Black is in real danger but the
[ 13...b5 would be an option, to activate the
bishop, 14.a4
A) 14...xe2?! 15.xe2 f5 ( 15...xc3
16.e3 e4 17.f3+- ) 16.f3 g5
17.xg5 xg5 18.a5 with a clear
712
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
positional advantage.;
B) 14...c4 15.f3 g5 16.f2 c5
17.xg5 xg5 18.f4 e7 19.f5 cxd4
20.cxd4 h4 21.f4 looks dangerous for
Black as well. ]
14.f3 g5 15.xg5 fxg5 16.f4 d7?!
I don't think Black can survive with two white
pawns on e5 and f5.
[ 16...b5 17.f5 g4 18.f2 doesn't change
so much ]
[ 16...gxf4 this should be played 17.xf4
g5 18.e6 xf1+ 19.xf1 g4 20.f4
( 20.xc7? is not advisable c8 21.e6!
White can still draw by finding some good
moves xc7 22.f2 h6 23.f8+ h7
24.d8 b5 25.xc7 xf1 26.xf1 f5+
27.g1 xe6= ) 20...f8 21.h3 g5
22.d2 White has a better knight and a
passed pawn, but Black can still fight at
least. ]
17.f5 a4 18.b1 b5 19.e6
[ 19.f2 xe2 20.xe2 xf5 21.xb7
is also good for White ]
19...e7 20.f2 h5 21.g4! h4
[ 21...hxg4 gives a nice place for the knight
22.g3 c5 23.d1 cxd4 24.cxd4 ac8
25.xg4 and Black is in trouble. ]
22.c1 c4 23.d3 xd3 24.xd3 a5
25.b1 b6 26.e2 fd8 27.f1
[ 27.e5! would be enough for the win d6
28.b5 ad8 29.a4 e8 30.f3 c6
31.g2+- ]
27...h8 28.f3 c6 29.e5 d6 30.f6
Opening the position. White is still better, but
now the endgame requires precision and a lot
of effort. gxf6 31.xf6+ xf6 32.xf6 e8
33.g2 g7 34.ff5 dxe6 35.xg5+ h6
36.h5+ g6 37.h3 xe5 38.dxe5 f8
39.xh4 f2 40.g5+ h6 41.h3 c2
42.g8 xc3 43.g5+ h7 44.d8 e3
45.d6 xe5 46.xc6 d4 47.d6 e2
48.a4 d3 49.xd3 e4+ 50.h5 xa4
51.g6+ g7 52.d7+ g8 53.b7 b4
54.h4 a4 55.g5 a3 56.h5 b5+ 57.f6
1-0
717 A18
Ftacnik,Lubomir 2589
Kveinys,Aloyzas 2515
MK Cafe Cup Open A (10) 13.08.1999
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 e5 8.d3
d6 9.0-0 a6 10.c2 After my experience
with 10 Re1 ( see the archives) players have
once again turned to this move, hoping to
extract an edge from the bishop pair in the
ending. g4 11.d4 0-0-0? A logical move,
hoping to delay the capture on f3, but it seems
to lose.
[ 11...xf3 12.xf3 xf3 13.gxf3
is the best line, see the archives. ]
12.g5! Normally this move is impossible
when its defender is pinned, but for tactical
reasons this is an important exception. xf3?
Black captures first, which seems strong, at
first inspection.
[ Objectively, 12...xg5 is better, although
13.xg5 xd1 14.axd1 wins the h-pawn,
when W hite will have a clear advantage
despite the opposite-coloured bishops. ]
13.xf6 xd1 14.f5+! The point, moving
the bishop away from c2 with tempo, for if
[ 14.xd8 instead, White will lose material
after xc2 ]
14...d7? Black should have seen the
problem by now, and played
[ 14...b8 instead, although following
15.xd8 e2 16.fe1 xc4 he will only
have a pawn for the exchange. ]
15.xg7 g8 16.axd1 exd4 Hopeless, but
after the obvious
[ 16...xg7 White wins material by 17.dxe5
as the d6-bishop is pinned against the d7-
rook. Without this White would be losing! ]
17.xd4 g5?! 18.xd7+ xd7 19.c5
[ 19.c5 xc5 20.f4 d5 21.c4
wins a second exchange. ]
1-0
713
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

718 A18 14.e4 c5 15.xc6+ bxc6 16.e4 0-0

Ghaem Maghami,Ehsan 2623 17.xc6 a7! should have been already
Azarov,Sergei 2565 close to winning in Kern-W uenderlich,
Aeroflot Open (6) 20.02.2005 Dortmund 1998) 13.ab1 e7!? 14.xe7
[John Watson] xe7 15.e5 f6 16.b5+ d7
17.fe1 0-0 18.g5?? Kanan Azer-
Two high-rated players test out an older line Kalantari,/Arak 1998 lead to a win f or
in the Mikenas System. I will try to give a W h i t e b u t h e r e a6! 19.a5 b6!
pretty deep survey of theory. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 would have been curtains;
e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 C) 12.e1 (sensible) c6 13.e4 e7?
xf6 7.d4 ( 13...c5 ) 14.xc6+ bxc6 15.xe7
[ Tony and I have both talked about the xe7 16.e5 c7 17.f3 f6?
newer (but now well-established) 7.f3 e5 18.xc6+ e8 19.ad1 (winning) d7
( 7...c5 8.d3!? ) 8.d3 ] 20.e5 a4 21.xa8+
7...c5 1-0 Gschwendtner-Forthauser,
[ What I think is a new idea was just Niederbayern 2000;
presented in Seres - K Szabo, Budapest D) 12.b1!? This may not exert enough
2005: 7...e5 8.f3 e4 9.e2 ( perhaps pressure. There have been a number of
9.g5 e7 10.e2 f5 11.h3 tries here: d7! ( 12...c6 13.c2 e7
is a good answer, with a small but definite 14.b5 d8 15.xc3 with compensation,
advantage ) 9...e7 10.d2 ( 10.g5 Mestel-Marusenko, England 1999) 13.c2
transposes to my last note) 10...f5 11.g3 h6 14.f4 a6 15.fe1 e7 16.d4 c5
( 11.e3 c5 12.e2 ) 11...c5 12.g2 c6 17.f5? ( Enterprising but unsound.
( 12...cxd4 13.cxd4 c6 14.b2 b4 17.b3! xb3 18.xb3 was a better try)
15.0-0 d3 16.c3! ) 13.b3 f6 17...xd3 18.xg7+ f8 19.xd3 xg7
( a good idea is 13...cxd4 14.cxd4 d8 20.e5+ f6 21.e3 and now ( 21.xc3
15.d5 b4+ 16.d2 xd2+ 17.xd2 e5 d8 22.g3+ g5 ) 21...f7
18.0-0 0-0= ) 14.0-0 e7 ( or 14...cxd4 1-0 Bratanov,V-Djakov, K/Shumen 1997
15.cxd4 xd4 16.b2 xb3 17.xf6 (38) 22.Rg3 led to a win for W hite (still
gxf6 18.axb3 c5 19.e3 xe3 undeservedly) in Bratanov-Djakov,
20.fxe3= ) 15.e3 0-0 16.f3 exf3 17.xf3 Shumen 1997. But ( 21...fxe5! 22.g3+
with a small advantage. ] g5 would have ended the attack, e.g.,
8.f3 cxd4 Azarov returns to this old line to 23.h4 d8 24.e2 c2! 25.xc2 d2
sole Black's problems. 26.c1 xa2 27.hxg5 h5! )]
[ 8...h6!? 9.d3 leads to Watson-Millar. ] [ (b) Remarkably, 10.xd4 c6 11.d2
9.g5 f5 10.cxd4 Objectively best since it seems to yield an attack because Bd3 will
gives some advantage, but for those who are gain further tempi: c5!? ( 11...f6 12.e3
bored with fewer pieces on the board there e5 ) 12.d3 g4 13.0-0 f6 ( 13...0-0
are two fascinating alternatives: 14.ae1 h5 15.f4 f6 16.d4! ) 14.h4
[ (a) A much-debated gambit follows e5 15.h3 h5 16.e4! and White even
10.d3!? a5 11.0-0 dxc3 ( 11...h6 haad the advantage in Timon Piote-Vega
12.f4 dxc3 13.e5 d7 is complex, but Gutierrez, Empuriabrava 1997. ]
now 14.g6?! of Drummond-Reeves, 10...b4+
Canberra 1996 surely should have been [ I t ' s p e r h a p s s u r p r i s i n g t h a t 10...c6
a n s w e r e d b y fxg6! 15.xg6+ d8 causes Black more dif f iculties: 11.d2!?
and I find it extremely hard to believe that A bizarre move although logical in it's own
White has real compensation. Instead, 14... right. White has two saner moves which lead
Rg8? 15.Nxf8 led to complications ) to a small advantage: ( (a) 11.d3 b4+
A) 12.c2 c6 13.fb1 h6 14.e3 e7 12.f1 a5 13.e4!?; (b) 11.e2 b4+
looks insufficient; 12.d2 is the note to White's 12th move in
B) 12.e2 c7 ( 12...c6 13.ab1 a6 t h e m a i n g a m e) 11...b4 ( 11...e5!?;

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

11...e7 12.e2 0-0 13.c3 ) 12.c1 (wh at e lse? ) 19.dxe5 g6 20.b3 c5
d3+?! ( 12...e7 13.b3! a5! 14.a3 a4 21.a3 a6 22.xc5 xa2 23.a3 e2
15.b2 e4+ 16.e3 d3+ 17.xd3 24.d4 e4 25.b5 e6 26.d6
xd3 18.c3 and White is still to be and White ws winning in D Cramling-Solin,
preferred ) 13.xd3 xd3 14.c3 e4+ Stockholm 1992. ]
15.e3 c6 16.e5 c7 17.0-0 12...a5
( 17.f3!? f6 18.xf6! gxf6 19.h5+ d8 [ 12...0-0 13.0-0 has been played several
20.f7+ d7 21.xh8 xc4 ) 17...d6 tim es, b ut I th ink t ha t 13.xb4! xb4
18.g4 0-0 19.h3 f6 20.h5 g6 14.0-0 is good because Black's knight on b4
( 20...g5 21.c5 xe5 22.dxe5; 20...h6 will lose another tempo. ]
21.g4 ) 21.xg6 hxg6 22.xg6+ g7 13.b1 xd2+ 14.xd2 e7!?
23.h5 f5 24.f4 d7 25.g3 e8 [ 14...xd2+ 15.xd2 e7! ( 15...0-0
26.xg7+ xg7 27.g5+ f7 28.d5 exd5 16.d3 b6 17.e4 b7 is also not bad)
29.xf5+ e7 30.e1+ d8 31.xd5 16.e3 d8 favours White, but 17.hd1 b6
c7 32.c5 Nachon Menendez-Acebal keeps the damage to a minimum. ]
Muniz, Asturias 1996. ] 15.xa5
11.d2 c6 Azarov picks a traditional [ The placement of the king on e7 close to
solution but see the next note. The other two the action definitely helps Black. White gets
moves are: lit t le f ro m 15.d3 d8 16.xa5 xa5
[ (a) 11...a5 12.b1! ( 12.d3 c6 17.e2 d7 ( 17...b6 18.c5 b7!?
13.b1 xd2+ 14.xd2 xd2+ 15.xd2 19.cxb6 xf3+ 20.xf3 axb6 is another
is a better version for White of the ending course ) 18.e3 ac8 19.c5 c6 20.e5
that follows, for example, 0-0 16.e4 a5 d5 is equal. ]
17.hc1 d8 18.e3 ) 12...xd2+ 15...xa5 16.c5!?
( 12...c6?? 13.xb4! xb4 14.b3 ) [ A plausible continuation was 16.c5 d7
13.xd2 xd2+ 14.xd2 e7 ( 14...0-0 17.0-0 c6 18.e5 d5 19.b5 b6!
15.d3 d8 16.e3 isn't much better) 20.cxb6 axb6 21.xb6 f6 22.f3 xa2
15.d3 d8 16.e4 c6 17.xc6!? . But we can see that Black really shouldn't
( 17.e3 a5 18.hc1 is again very have equalised in this line, whatever the
strong ) 17...bxc6 18.c3 f6 19.h4!? d7 move order he chose. ]
20.he1 b7 21.xb7+ xb7 22.b1 c8 ½-½
Zdenek-Blahacek, Czechia 1997 and here
the idea of taking over d6 is attractive:
23.d2! ( 23.c5!? ) 23...c5 ( 23...f5 719 A18
24.f3; 23...d7 24.e4 ) 24.dxc5 e5 Ghaem Maghami,Ehsan 2581
25.e4 ] Moradi,Behrooz 2299
[ (b) 11...xd2+ 12.xd2 c6 ( 12...0-0 ch-IRI Tehran IRI (1) 22.12.2006
13.d3 gives White a more active game with [John Watson]
more central control) 13.d3! ( 13.e2
is examined below ) 13...f6 14.e4 ] I f i t ' s m y l a st u p d a t e , t h e r e h a s t o b e a
12.e2 Mikenas Variation. Here's the most interesting
[ Maghami might have rendered the game of this month's lot, in which W hite retains
less relevant by 12.xb4! xb4 13.b1 some edge. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5
, which exploits Black's move order: c6 4.e5 d4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3
( 13...a5 14.d2 c6 15.d3 xd2+ e5 8.d4 exd4 9.g5 e6+ 10.e2 e7
16.xd2 b6 17.hc1! Miles-Sosonko, 11.cxd4 xg5 12.xg5 e7 13.d2 0-0
Tilburg 1977; or 13...c2+? 14.d2 a3 [ 13...h6 14.f3 0-0 15.0-0 c5 ( 15...g4
15.b3 a5+ 16.e3! ) 14.d3 f6 16.ab1! c6 17.fe1 with space and
( 14...a5+ 15.d2 0-0 16.e4 advantage, Soffer-Nagetz, Bad Lauterberg
gives the usual advantage) 15.e4 0-0 1991 ) 16.d5 d6 17.b2! d7 18.d3
16.0-0 d8 17.xc6 bxc6 18.a4 e5 f6 19.e2 d8 20.ae1

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wi t h a s u b s t a n t i a l a d va n t a g e , I l le sc a s 28.ce1
Cordoba-Pogorelov, Zaragoza 1996. ] [ 28.f5! Prevents ...Qf6 due to Ne7+ and
[ We have also seen 13...c6 in numerous so prepares Rce1 and Qg3. It also
g a m e s , e . g . , 14.d5 e5 15.0-0 0-0 introduces the idea of Rxd5. ]
16.fe1 f5 17.f4 f6 18.f3 fe8 28...e6
19.h4! g6 20.xf5 xh4 21.f1 [ Black should return by 28...f6! ]
with some advantage, Ivanchuk-Nielsen, 29.g3
S k a n d e rb o r g 2 0 0 3 a n d t h e la t e r g a m e [ 29.f3 ]
Steingrimssom-Kulaots, Tallin 2006 - see 29...a5
earlier columns. ( 21.g4!? )] [ Last chance for 29...f6 ]
14.0-0 d7 30.f4! After f5, White will break through to the
[ A slightly unusual move. There have been seventh rank. b4 31.axb4 axb4 32.f5 d5
many games with 14...h6 ] 33.e7 b3? Now it's over.
[ and 14...c6 , all leading so some [ 33...h7!? would hold on longer. ]
theoretical advantage for White. ] 34.f6 g6 35.f5 e4
15.fe1 f6 [ 35...h7 36.xh6! ]
[ 15...h6 16.f3 c5 17.d5 d6 18.d3 36.xh6+ h7 37.7xe4 xf6 38.f4 d8
f6 19.ab1 again favours White's greater 39.xf7 d5 40.e7 be8 41.e5+
space, e.g., b6 20.e5 e8 21.f4 ] 1-0
16.f3!? White has both space and activity,
although Black is without weaknesses and
hopes to keep things under control. 720 A18
[ P r e v i o u s l y 16.d3 was played in Grischuk,Alexander 2792
Christiansen-Lein, Philadelphia 1990. White Aronian,Levon 2815
stood better after d6 17.c5 d8 18.ab1 Norway Chess 2nd (3) 05.06.2014
b6 19.f4 ( or 19.c2! )] [Kosten, Tony]
16...d6 17.c5 d8 18.ab1 c6
Notice that ...b6, as in the Christiansen-Lein 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
game, is not available. 19.f4!? h6 20.e4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.d4 e5 8.f3
d5 Trading d5 for d6. c6 Just as I was analysing last month's
[ 20...xd4?! 21.xf6+ xf6 22.xf6 gxf6 game between Bunzmann and Riazantsev,
23.e7! ties Black down the other idea is ] this one was being played! 9.g5! g6
[ 20...xe4 21.xe4 , when Black still has 10.d5 b8 11.h4 The mainline, but I did
problems getting unwound, but this was wonder whether
perhaps best. ] [ 11.d3 wasn't a better try, as the standard
21.g3 b6 22.bc1!? c o n t i n u a t i o n f5 12.a4+ d7?!
[ Interesting and probably better was 22.d6 c a n b e m e t b y t h e n o v e l t y 13.h4!
e6 23.xd5!? xd5 24.f5 f6 - see the notes to Bunzmann, D-Riazantsev,
25.e7+ h8 26.xd5 cxd5 27.e5! A in the PGN Archive. ]
xe5 28.xe5 bxc5 29.dxc5 d4 11...d7 Normal, the knight heads for c5, but
and White has excellent winning chances. after this White has some advantage.
30.f1 ] [ I suggested that 11...h6!? 'maybe best' last
22...e6 23.a3 Slow. Still, month - see the analysis to Bunzmann, D-
[ 23.cxb6 axb6 24.xc6 xa2 Riazantsev, A. ]
is not convincing. ] 12.d3
23...b5 24.d6 f6 25.e5 ab8 [ 12.h5 d6 13.d2 c5 14.b3 e7
26.xd5!? xd5 This powerfully posted piece 15.e3 is nothing special for White, Najer, E
roughly evens the chances. 27.c3 d8? (2640)-Ovetchkin, R (2499) Sochi 2012, 1-0
This retreat takes the queen from defence on (42), after a4 ]
the kingside. Better, for example, is 12...e4?! A new move, but not very good - it
[ 27...g6 28.f3 h8 ] seems that Aronian had simply forgotten his

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
home preparation.
[ 12...d6! is so lid e nou gh , 13.0-0 h6
14.e3 e7 15.e1 b6 ( 15...0-0 16.c2 )
16.c5!? ( 16.a4 is an alternative, White has
more space and an advantage in
development, but the question is whether
the h4-pawn helps with a kingside attack,
or whether it is just a weakness.) 16...bxc5
( 16...xc5?! 17.b5+ d7 18.c6 b8
19.xe5 ) 17.b5 0-0 18.c6 b8 19.d2
heading for e4 or c4. W hite had obvious
positional compensation for the pawn in
Zaslavsky, M (2450)-Bulmaga, I (2307)
Plovdiv 2012, 1/2-1/2 (44), although maybe
not quite enough after, say, g6 ]
[ 12...f5 can be met by 13.g4! e4 14.gxf5
xf5 15.d4 g6 16.e2 f6 17.b5
d6 18.d4 with advantage. ]
13.h5! One advantage of having the h-pawn
on h4 is to defend the g5-bishop, but the other
is to be able to drive the black queen to a
w o r s e s q u a r e . f5? The World number 2
overlooks a surprising tactic.
[ 13...a6 was forced, 14.xe4 h6 15.e3
xc4 but 16.d4 e7 17.d2 a6
18.f3 followed by Bd3 with a clear plus. ]
14.h4!! This must have come as an
enormous shock, Black is already lost! exd3
[ 14...c5 15.xe4! xe4?! ( 15...d7 )
16.e2 wins, as Rxe4+ is decisive. ]
15.f4 The vicious point - the queen is
t r a p p e d i n t h e m i d d l e o f t h e b o a r d . c5
16.xf5 xf5 If Black was already castled he
might hope for some compensation for his
material loss, but instead White still has the
initiative and soon wins the d3-pawn. 17.d4
d7 18.f1 Making room for a check on e1.
[ 18.h6! is even more unpleasant, gxh6
19.f6 g8 20.d2 and Qe3+. ]
18...d6 19.b3
[ 19.e1+ f8 20.d2 is also good. ]
19...f6
[ 19...0-0 20.xc5 xc5 21.xd3
is similarly bad. ]
20.e3 b6 21.xc5 bxc5 22.xd3
Rounding up the advanced black pawn, White
now has queen and pawn for rook and bishop,
a significant material advantage. 0-0 23.d2
e8 24.h6 g5 25.b2! The queen will go to
a3 and capture the c5-pawn. d7 26.a3
fe8 27.xc5 h2 28.e1
[ There doesn't seem to be much point
continuing here, perhaps Black was hoping
for 28.g3?? h3# ]
28...f5 29.xe8+ xe8 30.e3 White had
to guard against ...Bd3 mate! f7 31.e2
e5 32.d2 g4 33.xa7 g6 34.a4
xh6 35.a5 c6 36.dxc6 c8 37.f3 f5
38.g4 e6 39.e7 xc4 40.d4
1-0
721 A18
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2710
Nielsen,Peter Heine 2626
1st Samba Cup (5) 14.10.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 e5 8.d4
exd4 9.g5 e6+ 10.e2 e7 As I have
mentioned before,
[ 10...d3?! is a mistake, but that doesn't stop
even quite strong players from falling for it!
11.0-0 c5 12.xd3 0-0 13.e1 a6
14.d4! h6 ( 14...d6 15.h5!? g6
16.h4 f6 17.f4 is also very good for
White, Kaspi,A-Haimovich,T/Tel Aviv 1993)
15.h5 xd4 ( 15...d7 16.f5 f6
17.xh6+ gxh6 18.xh6 xf2+ 19.f1!
is win n in g) 16.cxd4 d7 17.e7 e8
18.h4 f8 19.f3 a5 20.c5 a4
21.e4 f5 22.d5+ h8 23.e7 f6
24.c4! 1-0 Kosten,A-Gregoire,S/Cap
d'Agde FRA 2003 as W hite wins an
exchange whilst converting into a trivial
endgame. ]
11.cxd4 xg5 12.xg5 e7 13.d2 c6
14.d5 e5 15.0-0 0-0 16.fe1 f5 17.f4
Back to this move, we saw the innovation
[ 17.ac1!? in Rasmussen, K-Rozentalis,E/
Linares ESP 2002. ]
17...f6 18.f3 fe8 19.h4! Ivanchuk's
subtle novelty.
[ 19.d4 looks more logical, but after g6!
(Banas,J-Rigo,Z/Prievidza 1998) 20.xf5
xd4 the black queen is well-placed in the
centre of the board, and play is equal. ]
19...g6 20.xf5 xh4 And here is the all-
important difference: the black queen is on a
s l i g h t l y i n f e r i o r s q u a r e ! 21.f1 d4
The queen centralises anyway, but now White
717
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

has an extra move! 22.d7 xe1 23.xe1 threatens c7-8 winning immediately. ]
c5 24.h4! Typical Ivanchuk power play, he 39.e4 xd6 40.c8+
will try to drive the knight to a bad square so 1-0
that he can use the seventh rank, and have
the better minor piece. f8 How should Black
react? Not 722 A18
[ 24...xh4? be ca u se a f t e r 25.e7 f8 Jobava,Baadur 2696
26.xc7 White is winning, but ] Brunello,Sabino 2507
[ 24...f6!? is possible, so that after 25.h5 52nd It Reggio Emilia ITA (9) 06.01.2010
e5 the knight reaches a central square [Nigel Davies]
with gain of tempo, 26.e6+ h8 27.h6
is clearly good for White, but Black is still T h e F l o h r - M i k e n a s a t t a c k , wi t h W h i t e ' s
fighting. ] attempt to throw his opponent on his own
25.f5 g8 Black has to return, else he resources with 8.Bd3 prompted an extreme
loses his h-pawn. 26.h5 f8 This is the reaction in 9...g5!?. It's difficult to believe
problem, the knight becomes very passive. this can really be good, but it certain led to
27.g5! d6! To defend the d7-square. some fun. 1.c4 e6 2.c3 f6 3.e4 d5
28.g3 h6 29.e7 Penetrating to the seventh 4.e5 d4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3
rank, White keeps a solid long-term initiative. c5
d7 So the knight returns to the fray. 30.h3 [ One of my own efforts in this line is worth
c5 A natural move, but it may have been mentioning, if only because it shows I've
better to keep this piece close to the king with played it! 1/2-1/2 Davies, N (2497)-Parker, J
[ 30...f6 although White stays on top after (2532), Birmingham 2000 went 7...e5 8.b1
31.f5! ( 31.xd6 cxd6 32.e7 b8 e4 9.e2 e7 10.d4 h5 11.d3 exd3
is equal ) 31...xh5 32.c5! d8 12.xe7+ xe7 13.xd3 0-0 14.0-0 d8
( 32...xd5?? 33.e8+ ) 33.d6 15.f5 d7 16.e1 d6 17.g5 f6
with a monster passed pawn. ] 18.h4 e5 19.xc8 dxc8 20.xb7
31.f5! Controlling the b1-h7 diagonal sets up cb8 21.b3 xc4 with stone cold
back-rank mating tricks whilst keeping the equality. ]
black knight in check (d3 is no longer 8.d3 Moves like this shouldn't be seen as a
accessible to this piece). b8 fight for the advantage but rather an attempt
[ 31...f8 avoids the coming tactic, although to put the opponent more on his own
White is still better after a simple move such resources. With a rating difference of almost
as 32.g2 ] two hundred points W hite probably figured
32.e8+! f8 33.e7 White has simply that a chess game was more to his advantage
achieved the 'transfer' of the black queen than a theoretical struggle.
from the central d6-square to the passive f8 [ The 'theoretical' move is 8.d4 when h6
square. xe7 34.xe7 f8? This is a 9.d3 has been covered in earlier games. ]
blunder, Black had to defend the c7-pawn: 8...d6
[ 34...a6 e.g. 35.f4 f8 36.d7 e8 [ S o m e p l a y e r s h a v e p r e f e r r e d 8...d7
37.f2 d8 38.xd8+ xd8 39.e3 e7 so as to meet 9.e4 with c6 . Not that 9.
40.d4 d6 with fair chances. ] Be4 is necessarily that dangerous. ]
35.xc7 a6 36.d6! This is what Black 9.0-0
missed, after [ 9.e4 is an argument against 8...Bd6 but
[ 36.d7 c5 37.c7 a6 he would force doesn't seem to be that scary. For example
a repetition of moves. ] 0-0 10.d4 h6 11.0-0 d7 12.b1 b8
36...d8 13.e1 d8 14.e3 e7 15.c1 f8
[ 36...xc7 37.dxc7 e8 38.c8 16.f4 b6 17.g3 xg3 18.hxg3 f6
is hopeless, of course. ] 19.e5 b7 started to look quite equal in
37.c5 b6 38.c6! b8 Kharlov, A (2633)-Jakovenko, D (2557),
[ 38...xd6 39.xa7 hits the knight and Batumi GEO 2002. ]

718
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

9...g5!? Needless to say this amazing move is 723 A18

new! Actually there seems to be a decent Khalifman,Alexander 2667
case for it with White having blocked his d- Leitao,Rafael 2567
pawn. FIDE WCh KO New Delhi IND (4.2) 07.12.2000
[ A much more sensible approach is to play [Tony Kosten]
just 9...0-0 , f or example 10.e4 c6
11.d4 h6 12.e3 b8 13.b1 d8 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
14.e2 c7 15.fd1 a5 16.h3 b6 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 e5 8.d3
was very comfortable for Black in Valensi, [ The older 8.d4 is rarely played nowadays. ]
B (2173)-Matnadze, A (2415), Izmir TUR 8...a6 9.0-0 d6 10.c2
2002. ] [ 10.e1 is covered in the archives. ]
10.c2 g4 11.e1 h5 12.d4 c6 13.e3 10...g4 11.d4 xf3
d7 14.e4 g7 15.b1 [ 11...0-0-0? is also analysed in the
[ This, if anywhere, might have been White's archives. ]
c h a n c e t o g e t a n a d v a n t a g e . 15.d3 12.xf3 xf3 13.gxf3 This endgame is
looks like a good move when cxd4 16.cxd4 considered to be slightly better for White, as,
f5 can be met by 17.xc6 xc6 18.f4 although his structure is compromised, his
intending d4-d5. ] bishop pair is very effective. 0-0-0!?
15...f5 16.xc6 xc6 17.d5 exd5 18.cxd5 [ 13...exd4 is more common, but it allows the
e5 19.g3 xd5 Winning a pawn, but isn't displacement of the black king: 14.e1+
Black's king in trouble? Not as much as it d7!? ( 14...d8 15.e4 b8!? 16.cxd4
might seem at first sight... 20.g5 0-0 c5 17.e3 is fairly level, Milov,V-Dizdar, G/
[ One can understand Black's interest in Dresden 1998) 15.f5+ d8 16.cxd4 c5
d e v e l o p m e n t , b u t m a y b e 20...e4 also seems close to equality, Huebner,R-
was a better move. ] Stohl,I/Baden 1999. ]
21.g2 f4!? 14.c5!
[ At first sight 21...e4 looks very strong, but [ I like this better than 14.b1 c5 15.e4 b6
W hite can answer this with 22.f3 gxf3 16.dxe5 xe5 17.b3 b8 18.e3 c7
23.e3 f2+ 24.xf2 without suffering any 19.fb1 c6 20.d5 d7 21.f4
ill effects. ] draw, Gelfand,B-Jussupow,A/Erevan 1996. ]
22.xf4 xf4 23.xf4 e4 24.f3 gxf3 14...f8 15.c6!
25.f2 [ A novelty, improving on 15.g5 which gave
[ 25.xd6 d8 26.f2 xd6 is also very W hite nothing af te r f6 16.e3 exd4
difficult to assess. ] 17.cxd4 b4 18.f5+ b8 19.fb1 d5
25...xf4 26.gxf4 xa2 27.b2 xf4 in Suba,M-Pogorelov,R/Berga 1994. ]
28.g1+ h8 29.g3 15...exd4
[ White is loathe to play 29.xf3 when the f3 [ O t h e r w i s e , 15...bxc6?! allows White to
pawn helps protect his king. But a couple of capture the e5-pawn after 16.f5+ b7
moves later he doesn't see a good 17.b1+ a8 18.dxe5 ]
alternative. ] 16.cxb7+ b8
29...h4 30.h3 g5 31.xf3 [ 16...xb7!? 17.b1+ c6 18.d1
[ And not 31.xf3?? because of g8 . ] and 19 Be4+ seems awkward for Black, but
31...g8! This leads to a draw by perpetual might be playable. ]
check, an exciting end to an exciting game. 17.cxd4 b4 18.e4 d5 19.b1!?
32.xa2 g1+ 33.e2 e8+ 34.d3 b1+ An interesting exchange sac, very much in
35.c2 c4+ 36.d4 d8+ 37.xc4 c8+ Khalifman's style. c3 20.g5 f6
38.d4 d8+ 39.c4 c8+ 40.d5 d8+ [ 20...xd4!? may be possible, answering
½-½ 21.e3 with b4 ]
21.e3 xb1 22.xb1 White has only
ga in ed a p awn f o r h is e xcha nge, b ut h is
powerful b7-pawn's future is assured. d6!?

719
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ Encouraging some tactics, Black could sit- 724 A18

tight with 22...d6 23.c6 a6 , say. ]
23.f4 b6
[ 23...d8 would admit a mistake, but is
possible. ]
[ However, 23...xd4?? would be positively
disastrous: 24.xc7+ xc7 25.b8+ ]
24.xc7+! xc7 25.c1+ c5!
[ Black could also aim for an opposite-colour
bishop position by 25...d7 26.c8 g6
27.b8 xb8 28.xb8 f5 , but the text is
better. ]
26.xc5+ b8 27.c6 d8 28.d5
White's two pawns provide more than enough
compensation. xb7! This will be necessary,
sooner or later. 29.xb7 xb7 30.g2 a6
31.a4 d7 32.g3 b6 Despite the pawn
less Black has no problems. 33.c6+ a5
34.d6 xa4 35.c7!?
[ 35.xa6+ b5 36.a8 g6 is drawn. ]
35...xd6 36.xg7 h5 37.h7 White's play
appears to be very risky, as he has allowed
Black to create a passed a-pawn. d5 38.h6
g5+?
[ This must be a time-trouble error, 38...f5
39.f4 a5 40.f3 b3 41.e4 b5
42.xf6 a4 is far from clear. ]
[ However, 38...a5 39.xf6 b4
is worth consideration as the a-pawn is hard
to stop. ]
39.f4 g2?
[ This drops the h-pawn, 39...c5 40.xf6
a5 is fine. ]
40.xh5 xf2 41.h4 a5 42.h8 The start of
a clever winning plan. a3 43.h5 h2 44.h6
a4 45.h7 h5 46.g4 h1 47.f4 h2
48.f5 h4 49.e4 h5 50.f5 This leaves
Black in zugzwang. a2
[ There is nothing else, 50...h1 51.d5
and Ke6xf6 is easily winning. ]
51.a8! xh7 52.xa4+ b3 53.a6
The black king is too far from the remaining
pawns. e7+ 54.e6 f7 55.d5 c3
56.e8 a7 57.e6 a6+ 58.f7 d4
59.e6 Once White captures the pawn the
black king remains cut-off.
1-0
Kortschnoj,Viktor 2601
Nielsen,Peter Heine 2663
Smartfish Masters (7) 03.01.2005
[John Watson]
Just when the theory of the Mikenas Variation
was beginning to go in a single direction
(however unclear - see the previous column),
we realise that some of the old lines are still
unresolved. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5
4.cxd5
[ For 4.e5 d4 see the December Update. ]
4...exd5 5.e5 e4 6.f3 It's long be en
known that 6.Nxe4 dxe4 7.Qa4+ Nc6 8.Qxe4
Qd4 or 8...Be6 give Black at least enough for
his pawn c6
[ Moves like 6...c6 ]
[ and 6...f5!? (7. Qb3 Nc5! ?) have only
been played a couple of times but ma y
indicate the direction to look in if you're
Black. ]
7.b5 e7
[ Korchnoi's lengthy experience with this line
includes his game versus Sharif in France
1987: 7...d7 8.xd5 ( 8.0-0 has also
b e e n p l a ye d) 8...xe5 9.e2 xb5?
( 9...xf3+ 10.gxf3 c6 11.c4 cxd5
12.xd5 and White is better) 10.xe4 d6
11.d4!? ( 11.xe5! 0-0 12.e3 ) 11...c6
12.0-0 xd5 13.xd5 xf3+ 14.xf3
with the advantage. ]
[ Another game Korchnoi-Unzicker,
Johannesburg 1979 went 7...xc3 8.dxc3
e7 9.d4 d7 10.xc6 bxc6 11.d3
0-0 12.c2 h6 13.e3 with the
advantage. ]
8.a4 This has been a very common move
over the years, but I'm not clear why W hite
can't play
[ 8.xc6+! bxc6 9.a4 , which wins a pawn
following xc3 10.xc6+ d7 11.xc3
0-0 12.0-0 c5 13.d4 . Black has some
compensation but not much. See the next
note. ]
8...d7
[ 8...xc3 9.xc6+ bxc6 10.xc6+ d7
11.xc3 transposes to the previous note.
Then c5 12.d4 cxd4 13.xd4!? ( 13.xd4
looks strong) 13...c8 14.e3 b6 15.0-0
c5 16.d1 0-0 17.f4 f6 18.e3 ce8

720
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

19.exf6 xf6 20.g5! d6 21.c2 f5 Kasparov's opponents found-out to their
22.g3 b6? 23.b4 xe3 24.xe3 fe5 cost in the early Nineties. ]
25.xd5 d6 26.e3 e7 was Serper- 4.e5 d4 Best, Black refuses to give ground in
Skomorokhin, Kstovo 1994. ] the centre. 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3
9.xe4 a6! 10.f6+ e5 The critical position. 8.d3!? this unusual
[ White stands poorly after 10.e2 xe5 move has caught-on recently since it was
11.d4 xf3+ 12.xf3 dxe4 13.xe4 found that the traditional move
0-0 ] [ 8.d4 gives White little. ]
10...gxf6 11.xc6 xc6 12.f4 g8 8...a6 9.0-0 White continues his
[ 12...d4! opens the long diagonal, and development, he will defer playing d4, until it
13.xd4 xg2 14.g1 d5 15.exf6 d6 offers some concrete advantage. d6 10.e1
favours Black. ] There is an alternative in
13.0-0 [ 10.c2 which really does threaten d4, g4
[ 13.exf6 d6 14.e3+ d7 15.d4 xf6! ] is the problem, an d a f te r 11.d4 xf3
13...d4! 14.exf6 d6! 15.d3 xf6 16.xf6 12.xf3 xf3 13.gxf3 exd4 14.e1+ d8
xf6 17.e1+ d7 18.f1 xg2? ( or 14...d7 15.f5+ d8 16.cxd4 c5
Flashy, but wrong. Black's bishops would have Huebner,R-Stohl,I/Baden SUI 1999.) 15.e4
been dominant after b8 16.cxd4 c5 White's two bishops were
[ 18...g6! 19.f4 ag8 20.g3 xf3 offset by his structural weaknesses, Milov,
21.gxf3 h5! , for example, 22.h4 e7 V-Dizdar,G/Zonal 1998. ]
23.e4 c5 24.ae1 d6 25.xd6 xd6 [ 10.a3 - 51/(18) ]
and Black should win. ] 10...0-0 Now,
19.xg2 g8+ 20.f1 xf3 21.f4 g4!? [ 10...g4 is nothing af ter 11.e4 c5
Black could just consolidate the position by 12.h3 h5 13.d4 ]
[ 21...c5 when he has some chances for 11.xe5? An unfortunate idea of Van Wely's,
advantage. ] [ 11.c2 h8 12.e4 is more sensible, but
22.g3 h5 23.ac1 c6 24.c5 d5 gives White nothing after c5 Miles,A-Oll,L/
25.xd5+! cxd5 26.e5 d8 27.h3 g6 Szeged 1997. ]
28.xd4 e6 29.e2 A lucky save for 11...xe5 In the original game, Black shied
Korchnoi. There is plenty more for both sides away from this, and instead played
to investigate in this old line. [ 11...c5?! but he was quickly worse after
½-½ 12.c2 xe5 13.h5 xh2+ 14.xh2
d6+ 15.e5 Van Wely,L-Oll,L/Beijing
(open) 1997, W hite's bishop pair the
725 A18 dominant factor. ]
Kosten,Anthony C 2515 12.h5 xh2+! In my pre-game preparation I
Dizdar,Goran 2570 had completely overlooked this possibility,
Montpellier 1998 instead I considered
[Tony Kosten] [ 12...e8 when 13.xh7+ f8 14.a3+ c5
15.d4 leads to a powerful white attack. I
1.c4 e6 2.c3 f6 Black wants to play a should be more careful! ]
Q u e e n 's G a m b it D e cli n e d p e rh a p s, o r a 13.xh2 Unfortunately, the move I want to
Ni m zo - I n d ia n . 3.e4 White has other ideas! play,
The sharp Mikenas Attack threatens to swamp [ 13.xh2?? loses a piece to d6+ ]
Black in double-quick time, by e5, and d4. d5 13...f5 This move helps Black's position no
Black's safest move, the only reasonable end. 14.f1 A retreat, but I felt it was in my
alternative is own best interests to keep both my bishops.
[ 3...c5 when 4.e5 g8 5.f3 c6 6.d4! fe8 15.a3 g5! 16.e3!? xe3 17.fxe3
sacrificing a pawn, cxd4 7.xd4 xe5 e4! The white queen is temporarily out-of-
8.db5 gives White enormous positional play, and the white central pawns awkward.
compensation for the pawn- as several of 18.f4 g6 19.d1 d8 20.e5?

721
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

After this things go rapidly downhill, 7...c5 seems less critical. c6 The most
[ I hadn't seen that after 20.d3 f6 21.f2! logical, but there are others:
d7 the move 22.d2 is possible, because [ 8...d8!? is intelligent, removing the queen
xd3? loses to 23.e4! xe4 24.g3 f rom a n exp osed squ are , 9.c2 d7
and so White holds the balance. ] 10.0-0 g6 the point, 11.d4 g7 12.f4
20...h5 21.e7?! d7 22.h4?? The bishop e7 13.e2 0-0 14.ad1 White's space
is not too well placed here. h7? A reprieve! advantage, and better development must
[ 22...g4! wi n s , I h a d in t e n d e d 23.d4 count for something here, Chandler, M-Levitt,
xd1? 24.e8+ h7 25.xe4+ g6 J/London 1999. ]
26.e8 and 27 Bf6, with mate, but hadn't [ 8...d7!? plans exchanging Black's most
noticed that simply 23...Bc6, and White has pa ssive bit , 9.e4 c6 10.e2 xe4
two pieces en prise. ] 11.xe4 c6 12.b1 0-0-0 13.d4 d7
23.d4 f6 24.g3 e8 14.f4 g6?? this was far better on the
[ 24...c5! was more worrying, bringing the p r e v i o u s m o v e , ( 14...d6 ) 15.xc6+!!
knight into the game. ] 1-0 Benjamin,J-Gamboa,N/Philadelphia
25.h3 g5 Black was getting short of time 1995, the capture of the queen allows mate
hereabouts. 26.e1 g6 27.d2 h4 28.c5 on b8. ]
My first positionally useful move for a while! f5 [ 8...d6 prefers developing the kingside
It looks bleak for White with his bishops so first, 9.e4 0-0 10.d4 h6 (Bg5 was
badly placed, and the black e4-bishop so t h r e a t e n e d ) 11.0-0 d7 12.b1 b8
strong, but I had been sneakily preparing 13.e1 ( 13.a4!? ) 13...d8 14.e3 e7
some counterplay. 29.g4! fxg4?! is fairly equal, Kharlov,A-Jakovenko,D/
[ 29...hxg3 30.xg3 h7 31.h2 Batumi GEO 2002. ]
should keep Black slightly ahead. ] 9.e4 This is the idea behind White's last
30.xg4 Suddenly White has some play, move, the bishop makes way for the d-pawn's
B x h 4 i s t h e i m m e d i a t e t h r e a t . f5 advance, and at the same time attacks c6.
Black decides to force a draw, he could still go d7!? A new move, and quite understandable,
wrong, by Black protects the knight, but it may be better
[ 30...h6? for instance, 31.h2 g6 32.c6 to ignore this and get on with kingside
and suddenly it is W hite who will be development by
victorious. ] [ 9...d6 10.d4 h6 11.0-0 0-0 12.b1
31.f3 e4 32.g4 f5 33.f3 e4 ( 12.a3! d8 13.xc6 bxc6 14.a4
34.g4 is more to the point, e. g. cxd4 15.xd6
½-½ xd6 16.c5! d8 17.cxd4 and the c8-
bishop looks silly) 12...e5!? 13.dxc5!?
(I would be very worried about playing such
726 A18 a move and then losing!) xc5 14.e1 b6
Kosten,Anthony C 2514 15.a3 e8 16.a4 c7 White has some
Guedon,Stephane 2232 pressure, but Black seems fine, Kortschnoi,
11th Open St Affrique FRA (1) 19.07.2003 V-Ravia,M/Antwerp 1995. ]
[Tony Kosten] 10.d4 This is the sort of move you play and
then try to look distracted, perhaps the
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4 opponent won't notice that you are threatening
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 The most to win his queen!! h6 Black spotted it!
flexible move, in my opinion, although [ 10...d6?? 11.g5 is a recurrent theme in
t r a n s p o s i t i o n i s l i k e l y . c5!? this line. ]
W e h a v e c o n s i d e r e d t h i s a f t e r 7 d 4 i n 11.0-0 d6 12.b1 b8 13.e3
B r a t a n o v, Z -A n t o n o v, O / I zm ir T UR 2 0 0 2 . White develops with tempo. cxd4 Removing
8.d3!? I wanted to take advantage of the fact White's doubled pawn, but after
that I had delayed d4, and this looks like the [ 13...e7 14.e1 0-0 15.c2 is a little
similar line following 7...e5 8 Bd3, except that annoying, as White will continue with Qd3. ]

722
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

14.cxd4 0-0 15.e1 My original intention had 727 A18

been to play Kosten,Anthony C 2507
[ 15.d5 to win the a-pawn, but then exd5 Horvath,Jozsef 2522
16.cxd5 e5 is fine for Black, as 17.xa7? TCh-AUT 2005-6 (2) 19.11.2005
is met by f4! which attacks e4, and h2. ] [John Watson]
15...fc8? Black is oblivious to the threat,
[ 15...fe8 was far better, as then the e4- Our Webmaster plays a theoretically important
bishop would be 'en prise' if White were to game with an interesting ending as a bonus. I
play d5, but even here White is on top after hope that he wasn't counting upon my
16.c5! c7 17.e5 as xe5? 18.dxe5 p r e vio u s a n a l ysi s i n t h is c o lu m n , wh i c h
xe5 19.xd7 xh2+ 20.f1 proved flawed. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5
leads nowhere. ] 4.e5 d4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3
16.d5! Now that the e4-bishop is defended e5 8.d4 exd4 9.g5 e6+ 10.e2 e7
this move is strong. exd5 17.cxd5 b4 11.cxd4 xg5 12.xg5 e7 13.d2 c6
There is nothing better, as now 14.0-0 Annotating the game Timman-Kulaots,
[ 17...e5 18.xa7 a8 ( 18...f4 Prague 2004, I suggested that
19.xe5 xe5 20.g3 wins, as e4 is [ 14.d5 was probably a bit better. I may have
defended ) 19.xe5 xe5 ( 19...xe5?? b e e n r i g h t b u t n o t wh o l l y f o r t h e r i g h t
20.h7+ ) 20.xb7 grabs two pawns. ] reasons. ]
18.d4!? This is nice, but my first thought was 14...xd4 Otherwise White is clearly better off
[ 18.a3 when a6 is f o r ce d , ( 18...a2 positionally and has a certain initiative. 15.h5
19.b3 c3 20.d4 wins the hapless [ 15.xd4 xg5 16.f4 is worth thinking
knight ) 19.xa7 a8 20.xb7 about. ]
winning easily. ] 15...0-0
18...d8 19.e5 f5 I had been expecting [ 15...e6!
[ 19...xa2 when White wins with the A) 16.xf7+ xf7 17.fe1 e6 18.xe6
sacrificial attack 20.xf7! xf7 21.h5+ xe6 19.xe6 xe6 20.e1 xe1+
g8 ( 21...f8 22.xg7+! xg7 23.g6+ 21.xe1+ f7 22.b1 '!' ', which wins
f8 24.xh6+ forces mate in a few either the b-pawn or h-pawn, for example, '
moves ) 22.g6 and Black can resign. ] ( [new note:] 22.e5 he8 23.xc7+
20.h5! The second tactical point. xe5 e7 24.a5 , about equal. Probably
[ 20...fxe4 21.f7+ h7 22.xd7 Black has what chances there because
is quite hopeless, and ] White has the weaknesses.) 22...he8
[ 20...e8 21.xe8+ xe8 22.xf5 23.h4 ( 23.h3 b6 24.xh7
is hardly any better. ] and the position looks balanced.) 23...b6
21.xe5 fxe4 22.xb4! Of course, there is 24.xh7 ad8 25.h5 'is another
no way I would play approach. I doubt that White will win this
[ 22.xb8? allowing d3! and play is sort of thing however.' d6=;
unclear. ] B) 16.xf7!? was the Timman game. I'll
22...a5?? This shortens matters, co m bin e n ot e s: xf7 17.xd4 xh5
[ 22...f8 is better, 23.bxe4 ( 23.b2 a8 18.fe1 e2 19.b2!? 0-0-0 ( 19...f7
24.xb7 may be even stronger) 23...c2 20.xe2 f6 forces simplification:
24.d4 and White should win quickly by 21.xf6+ gxf6 . This looks drawish.)
a t t a c k i n g g 7 , p r o v i d i n g h e a v o i d s f5 20.ab1 b6 21.xe2 d7!? ( 21...c5!
25.e7?? when ( 25.4e3 ) 25...xe7! lo o ks like a so lid a lt e rna t ive . 22.xg7
turns the tables, as the back rank is weak! ] xc4 23.e7 c2 24.f1 hf8
23.g6 There is no way to defend g7. (intending ...Qxf2+!) 25.h3 h5= ) 22.h3
1-0 he8 23.xe8 xe8 24.c5 e6 25.b3
e7 26.f1 White has a small edge. The
ideas of a4-a5 and Rc1 are available. Still,
this isn't much...' [Timman went on to win] .

723
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
'...White should probably prefer the small
advantage that he gets from 14.d5. ' ]
16.xf7+ h8!?
[ In my analysis to that game I missed that
16...xf7! 17.xf7 c5! 18.g5 h6 19.f3
xf3+ 20.gxf3 e6 was playable. This
looks like just enough for the Exchange.
Fortunately Tony didn't have to deal with
that one! ]
17.ae1 f6 18.d5 c5
[ I also missed that 18...c6! was better, since
19.f7+ ( 19.e4 f5 20.xf5 xf5 )
19...g8 does nothing. ]
19.f4
[ I said that 19.e4 'yields a clear advantage.
' It does seem like the best move. ]
19...f5?!
[ 19...h6 20.e4 with a some advantage
because Black has to defend his b-pawn
bef ore moving the bishop. There migh t
follow b6!? ( 20...e7 ) 21.c3 b8
22.e7 d6 23.fe1 xf4? ( 23...d7 )
24.e4! xe7 25.xf4 a8 26.d6! ]
20.xb7 ab8 21.e4 h6 22.xf5 xf5
23.e6 b2
[ 23...fe8 24.xc5 ]
24.d5 fb8 25.e5?! A little too careful.
[ 25.xc5! turns out to be safe enough. d8
26.d7 g6 27.f2 ]
25...h4 26.f2 b1?
[ The best chance was 26...xe5! 27.fxe5
xf2 28.xf2 b2+ 29.g3 ( 29.f1
xg2 30.xc5 xh2 isn't clear.) 29...g5
30.h3! ( 30.xc5 xg2+ 31.h3 c2 )
30...xa2 ( 30...xg2 31.e4; 30...xg2??
31.xg5! )]
27.xb1?
[ Now it's White's turn. The not-so-obvious
27.ef1! xe5 ( 27...g6 28.d5 ) 28.fxe5
g6 29.e2 does the trick. 27.Rxb1 may
still win but it gets a little difficult. ]
27...xb1+ 28.f1 xe5 29.fxe5 xf1+
30.xf1 g6 31.xc5 xe5 32.e2 g8
33.e3 xc4+ 34.d4 White's king position
should give him enough to bring the point
home. I don't have any idea whether Black
has chances here, but I'll give some
superficial indications about what may be
relevant lines. b6
[ 34...d6 35.d5 ( 35.e5 c4+ )
35...f5 36.c6 f7 37.a4 e7 38.b7
and W hite will be ahead of the game
continuation. ]
35.e5 f7 36.d6 White must be winning
here but it looks as though there are a lot of
subtleties. c4+ 37.c6 e3? Miscounting!
Much tougher was
[ 37...e7! 38.a4 , f o r e xa m p le , e5+
39.b7 d6 ]
38.g3 f1 39.b7 xh2 40.xa7
and wins. f1
[ 40...h5 41.a4 g5 42.e4 ]
41.a4 xg3 42.a5 h5 43.a6 f5
[ 43...h4 44.b8 h3 45.d3! ]
44.e4 e6 45.b8 e5 46.c3 d4
1-0
728 A18
Kuljasevic,Davorin 2564
Grigorov,Grigor 2494
TUR-chT 1st League (6.5) 26.06.2014
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 e5 8.d3
Could we see a return to this line? d6 9.0-0
a6 10.c2 g4 11.d4 xf3 12.xf3
xf3 13.gxf3 The critical endgame, White's
bishops offer him a small plus, but Black is
solid, his defensive plan is well worked out,
and W hite's weakened pawn structure is a
problem. exd4 Standard, I looked at
[ 13...0-0-0 14.c5! in Khalifman, A-Leitao,
R. ]
14.a4+!? A new try, first played by Aronian,
although play will likely transpose later on.
[ 14.e1+ is normal, d8
A) 15.e4 b8 16.cxd4 c5 17.b2 c7
18.d5 he8 ( 18...be8 19.f5 b8
20.e4 d7 21.xd7 xd7 22.ae1
should be level, Akopian, V (2660)-Sorokin,
M (2572)/Dubai 2000.) 19.a3 e5!?
20.xe5+ xe5 21.f4 ee8 22.xh7
d6 the pawn is not worth too much, Van
W ely, L (2675) -Rozentalis, E (2586)/
Istanbul 2003.;
B) 15.cxd4 c5 16.d5 c7 17.b2
( 17.a4 transposes to the main game.)
17...he8 18.a3 ad8 19.e4 ( 19.a4
xe1+ 20.xe1 b8 was quickly drawn
in Morovic Fernandez, I (2573)-Vescovi, G
724
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
(26 48 )/ S ao Pa ulo 20 04 .) 19...xe4
20.fxe4 f6 21.h1 Kuzubov, Y (2639)-
D i z d a r , G ( 2 5 1 3 ) / D u b a i 2 0 1 4 , f8!?
22.f4!? ]
14...d8 15.cxd4 c5 Thematic, Black
shouldn't allow White to play c5 when his light
square bishop would be more powerful. 16.d5
c7 17.f4!? Positionally well-founded, the
pawn restricts Black's remaining bishop.
[ 17.e1 allows b4 18.d2 ( 18.e3?!
b5! 19.cxb5 xd5 was nice for Black in
Shishkov, M (2278)-Grigorov, G (2490)/
Sunny Beach 2013.) 18...d3 19.e3 e5
20.c1 g5 occurred in the stem game, after
21.a5+ b6 22.c3 f6 23.ce1 hg8
24.g2 af8 ( 24...xc4!? 25.e7+ xe7
26.xe7+ b8 27.c6 ) 25.e4 g6
26.h1 e5 Black was fine, but went on to
los e in A ro nia n, L (28 16) -Naidit sch , A
(2712)/Istanbul 2012. ]
17...b8 The knight heads for a more useful
square.
[ 17...b4 would be pointless with no rook
on e1, 18.d1 and a3. ]
18.b1 b6
[ 18...d7? 19.xd7 xd7 20.xb7+ ]
19.g2
[ 19.b3!? is interesting, with a swinging
rook, d7 20.a3 a5 21.g3 g6 22.h3
forcing weaknesses in the black structure. ]
19...d7 20.f3 Another point behind
White's 17th, the knig has a nice safe square
on f3. he8 21.b2 g6 22.fe1 xe1
23.xe1 g8 Black defends passively behind
his wall of pawns. 24.h4 a6 25.c3 b5!?
A well-timed bid for counterplay. 26.cxb5
[ 26.a5+ b6 27.cxb5 axb5 28.xb5
transposes. ]
26...b6 27.a5 axb5 28.xb5
29.xb6+ xb6 30.a4 White has gained a
pawn but the opposite colour bishops restrict
his winning chances somewhat. a5! 31.e4
[ 31.h5 seems natural, but gxh5 32.h1
b4! and ...c4. ]
31...d8 32.e3 f5 33.e6 b4 34.d3
xf4 35.c4 d6 36.f6 d7 37.h5 xa4
38.hxg6 hxg6 39.xg6 Now the game is
soon drawn. a5 40.g5 f4 41.g8 b6
42.c8 c7 43.a8 b7 44.e8 d6
45.b5 e7 46.c6+ b6 47.d8 c7
48.g8 e1 49.g6 d1+ 50.e2
½-½
729 A18
Mastrovasilis,Athanasios 2512
Papaioannou,Ioannis 2642
GRE-chT 42nd (5.2) 01.07.2014
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 e5 4.f3 c6
5.d4 exd4 6.xd4 b4 7.xc6 The most
common, and strongest.
[ I looked at 7.f3 in Navara, D-Istratescu, A,
see the Archive. ]
7...bxc6 We've reached a Scotch Four
Knights position, except that White has gained
the c2-c4 move for free. Is this useful?
[ 7...xc3+ 8.bxc3 bxc6 9.e5 e7 10.e2
g8 11.f4 offers White some space and
the bishops for his weakened structure,
Tichy, V-Lange, D/Prague 1990 ]
8.e5!? One advantage of having the pawn on
c4, as now the knight can't go to d5!
[ 8.d3 i s n a t u r a l , w h e n 0-0 9.0-0
has to be an improvement for White on the
Scotch, as Black can't play ...d5 so easily,
d6 10.g5 h6 11.h4 e8 12.c2
still, W hite has very little here, even so,
Jobava, B (2658)-Melkumyan, H (2534)/ICC
INT 2008. ]
8...e4
[ 8...e7 9.e2 is a bit awkward: g4??
( 9...xc3+ 10.bxc3 and now g8
is forced, Hoelzl, F (2415)-Hasan, Y (2260) /
Novi Sad 1990.) 10.xg4 xe5+ 11.e2
and Black can't capture twice on c3 as his
queen is pinned! Sidon, M (2013)-Kottemer,
a8 J (2070)/Nickenich 2012. ]
9.g4!? The most forcing, and reminiscent of
the 4 d4 King's English Four Knights. Still,
such lines are always risky.
[ 9.c2 xc3 10.bxc3 c5 11.d3 d6
12.exd6 cxd6 13.0-0 it's not easy for Black
to castle, Khatanbaatar, B (2395) -Battulga,
N (2420)/Ulaanbaatar 2011. ]
[ 9.d4 f5 10.exf6 xf6 11.e2 0-0
12.0-0 c5 13.h4 xc3 14.bxc3
looks equal, Lucena, L (2161) -Shumyatsky,
V (2352)/Brazil 2010. ]
9...xc3 Clearly best.
725
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 9...d5? 10.xg7 f8 11.a3! h4 12.g3?! face, still any win is far off. ]
( 12.e3! ) 12...xg3 13.axb4 xh1 45.xh6 e8 46.g4 Now we reach the same
14.g2 h3 15.xh1 xf1 16.xf1 g8 p o s it i o n wi t h a p a wn m o re f o r W h i t e . d5
was a bit wild, Hausner, I (2451)-Pagerka, 47.h4 d4 48.g5 f5!
M (2215)/Brezova 2010, but should favour [ 48...fxg5 49.hxg5 d8 50.d3 c5 51.g6
White after 17.cxd5 ] c4 52.d1 d3 53.f5 d2 54.f6 is winning. ]
10.d2?! The first new move, but not a good 49.g6 g8? Time trouble, no doubt.
one. [ 49...c5 would draw comfortably, 50.b7
[ 10.a3 f8 11.bxc3 e7 12.g3 d6 ( 50.xf5? d8 and ...d3.) 50...d8 51.h5
13.e2 xe5 14.f4 f6 15.g5 e5 d3 and White would have to take a perp. ]
16.f4 f6 17.g5 1/2-1/2 Svane, R 50.h5 d8 51.h6 h8 52.f7 d3 53.g6
(2394)-Rusev, K (2549)/ Copenhagen 2012 ] d7+ 54.f6 Now Black can't stop mate,
10...0-0 11.bxc3 e7! what a turnaround! d8 55.h7 c5 56.g5
[ 11...a5 12.d3 d6 is also satisfactory, 1-0
13.e4 g6 14.xc6 b8 Black has
excellent compensation for the pawn. ]
12.e2!? Of fering a pawn. xe5 13.0-0 730 A18
A n d a s e c o n d o n e . xc3 14.f4 f6 Naiditsch,Arkadij 2698
15.ac1 d6 16.f3 b2 17.b1 f5 Fedorchuk,Sergey 2634
W hite has zero compensation, and is TCh-FRA Top 12 2012 (10.1) 09.06.2012
objectively lost. 18.g5 xg5 19.xb2 ae8 [Tony Kosten]
20.b7 e4 21.g3 a5!
[ 21...xg3 22.hxg3 xg2 23.xg2 xe2 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
m u s t h a v e b e e n t e m p t i n g , b u t 24.xc7 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 e5 8.d4
xa2 25.xc6 will be difficult to win, despite c6! "A computer move" - Wesley So told me
the two extra pawns. ] after our game, and it's true that Houdini
22.d3 h6 23.h3 e6 24.xe4 xe4 seems to like this move a lot. Unfortunately I
25.d3 fe8 26.b8 4e5 27.b1 c5 hadn't noticed this particular game as our
28.b3 e4 29.b1 xb8 30.xb8+ h7 team had a free day (due to the forfeit of one
31.xc7 f4 32.f1 f6 Black has returned a of the teams) and I was sightseeing! The very
pawn, but is still one pawn ahead and enjoys next day it was played against me! 9.d5!?
a dominating position. 33.h2 xc4 34.f4 A novelty, but I don't think it will catch on.
c2 35.f3 Activating the rook. c1 36.d7 [ 9.g5! is critical, g6 10.d5 b8
a1 Not the most efficient. A) 11.d3 f5 ( I gave 11...f5! 12.e2
[ 36...g1+ 37.g3 e1+ 38.h2 h5 e4 13.h4 d7 in 'DW-Flank' "when Black
39.f5+ h6 forces 40.h4 d1 m i g h t e v e n b e b e t t e r " .) 12.a4+
threatens ...Qg1+ and ...Rd2. ] Kortschnoj, V (2645)-Ashley, M (2460)/
37.c3!? g1+ New York 1996, d7!;
[ 37...xc3? 38.f5+ forces a perpetual, B) 11.h4 d7 ( 11...h6 12.e2!? hxg5
g8 39.c8+ f7 40.d7+ ] 13.xe5 h5 14.g4 xg4 15.xg4+
38.g3 b1? Stopping Qf5+, but it d8 was quite unclear in Steingrimsson,
decentralises the queen. H (2556)-Lysyj, I (2656)/Plovdiv 2012.)
[ 38...e1+ 39.g4 e4 keeps control. ] 12.h5 ( 12.d3 d6 13.0-0 h6 14.e3
39.h4! f5 40.g3 b2 Black has to defend e7 15.e1 b6 16.c5!? Zaslavsky, M
g7, but now White is OK. 41.xf5+ h8? (2450)-Bulmaga, I (2307)/ Plovdiv 2012.)
[ 41...g8 ] 12...d6 13.d2 c5 14.b3 e7
42.b3 f6+ 43.xf6 gxf6 44.h5! 15.e3 b6!? 16.xc5 bxc5 17.b1 0-0
Menacing Kg6 and mate. e1!? 18.h6 g6 19.b5 a6 20.e2 d7
[ 44...xa2 45.g4 e2 46.xh6 e8 21.xc5!? offering the exchange for dark-
47.g6 followed by the advance of the squared control, Najer, E (2640)-Ovetchkin,
kingside pawns would be very difficult to R (2499)/ Sochi 2012. ]

726
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 9.e2 exd4 10.cxd4 b4+ 11.d2 ag8 Too routine.

xd2+ 12.xd2 "is a draw" according to [ 22...e4! i s t h e m a t i c , 23.xe4 xe4
Wesley So. ] 24.xe4 f6 menacing ...Qxe4, ...Qe5 and ...
[ 9.dxe5?! is a 'morning move' - I simply Bxc4, and after 25.d3 e5 26.g3 xg3+
couldn't think straight at all! xe5 10.e2 27.xg3 xg3 I prefer Black. ]
d6 23.e2
A) 11.c5? wins a piece, but loses to ½-½
A1) the obvious 11...g4? can be met
by
A1a) 12.cxd6? 0-0-0 is crushing, 731 A18
13.c2 ( 13.xe5 he8 ) 13...xf3+ Navara,David 2602
14.gxf3 xf3 winning quickly, Istratescu,Andrei 2587
Hempson, P (2219)-Crouch, C (2424)/ 5th IECC Playoff Bronze (2) 30.05.2004
Durham 2000.; [Tony Kosten]
A1b) 12.g5! f5 13.cxd6 xf3
14.d7+ xd7 15.0-0-0+ unclear.; 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 e5!?
A2) 11...0-0! the move I'd originally An alternative to the normal moves
underestimated. 12.cxd6 g4 13.d2 [ 3...d5 and ]
xf3+ 14.gxf3 xf3 winning material.; [ 3...c5 ]
B) 11.g5 A c h a n g e o f p l a n s ! e6! 4.f3 c6 We have reached Nimzovitch's
12.d4 d3+ 13.d2 xe2+ 14.xe2 System with an extra tempo for White! 5.d4
c5 with the better pawn structure for The most logical, although
Black in Kosten, A (2493)-So, W (2653)/ [ 5.e2 b4 6.d3 was tried in Ribli,Z-Hoelzl,
Belfort FRA 2012. ] F/Austria 1997. ]
[ I thought a great deal about 9.xe5 when [ 5.a3!? would be my choice, stopping ...
xe5 10.e2 is met by e7! ( 10...d6?! Bb4, d6 ( 5...a6?! 6.e2 c5 7.xe5!
11.f4 ) 11.xe5 xe5+ 12.dxe5 f5 xf2+ 8.xf2 xe5 9.d4 with a clear
13.e2 0-0-0 when Black has more than advantage, fg4+? 10.e1 h4+ 11.g3
enough compensation for the pawn in the h3 12.f1 h5 13.dxe5 winning a piece,
shape of White's poor queenside formation, Damaso,R-Figueiras,J/2nd Open, Faro POR
Socko, B (2636)-Lysyj, I (2633)/Moscow 1998 ) 6.h3 g6 7.g3 g7 8.g2 0-0 9.0-0
2012. ] e6 10.d3 h6 11.d5 and White is a
9...b8 move ahead of a normal Botvinnik-style
[ 9...e4!? is certainly worth consideration, setup, Badea,B-Barbu,I/Miercurea Ciuc
10.g5 xc3+ 11.d2 d4 12.dxc6 c5 ROM 2000. ]
and White is in a bit of trouble. ] 5...exd4 6.xd4 b4 7.f3 Solidly defending
10.d3 d7 the e-pawn,
[ Again 10...e4!? i s p o s s i b l e , 11.xe4 [ 7.xc6 is an alternative, xc3+ ( 7...bxc6
xc3+ 12.d2 xc4 ] 8.d3 0-0 9.0-0 e8 10.e1 d6 11.g5
11.0-0 h6 12.e1 d6 13.c2 White has h6 12.h4 with a plus, Schneider,B-Klings,
more space, but Black has a nice square on P/Schoeneck 1988.) 8.bxc3 bxc6 ( 8...dxc6
c5 and the better pawn structure. b6 14.b1 9.xd8+ xd8 10.d3 led to a quick win
f8!? for White in Spaan, H-Van de Bruinhorst,G/
[ Black was clearly worried that after 14...0-0 Alkmaar 1984, but looks OK for Black here)
White can aim for h7 by 15.d3 however, 9.e5 e7 10.e2 g8 11.f4
g6 16.xg6 fxg6 17.xg6 a6 18.d2 offers White some space and the bishops
c5 gives compensation. ] for his weakened structure, Tichy,V-Lange,D/
15.e3 g6 16.d2 d8 17.f4 g7 18.f5 Prague 1990 ]
f6 19.f1 7...d6
[ 19.fxg6 fxg6 20.h3 with a small plus. ] [ 7...0-0 8.e2 e8 9.g5 d6 10.c2
19...g5 20.h4 e7 21.e1 a6 22.d3?! ( 10.c1!? but not; 10.0-0?? xd4

727
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

11.xd4?? c5 ) 10...xc3+ 11.bxc3 E ve r yt h i n g i s s o l i d l y d e f e n d e d . 29.b1?!

is not very inspiring, Berechet,O-Talla,V/ This all looks rather crude, White lines-up his
CZE-chT 1993. ] queen and bishop battery. h8 30.f4?! e7
8.e2 31.c2 gxf4 32.xf4 ag8 The king can
[ 8.e3 xc3+ 9.bxc3 e5 10.e2 0-0 simply escape to f8. 33.d2 f8 34.xh6+
11.0-0 fd7 12.f4 g6 is similar to xh6 35.xh6 xh6 36.xh6?
positions that arise from the Four Knights [ 36.xh6+ e8 37.h5+ is better,
with 4 d4 (A28), White has more space and although Black is still on top. ]
t wo b i s h o p s , b u t B l a c k h a s t h e b e t t e r 36...g7
structure and a nice square on c5. [ 36...xe4! would be a neat way to finish
Himanshu, K-Satyapragyan,S/Mumbai IND the game, 37.xe4 xe4+ winning. ]
2004. ] 37.f1 g5 Black decides to force play into a
8...0-0 9.e3 White must still take care not to favourable endgame. 38.xg5 fxg5 39.h7
castle! xc3+ 10.bxc3 e7!? Heading for [ 39.b5 stops the loss of the a-pawn, but
g6, as in the above note, but after xb5 40.axb5 Black has a good
[ 10...e5 seems more logical. ] knight against a terrible bishop. ]
11.0-0 g6 12.a4 a5 13.d2 39...g7 40.h8+ e7 41.c2 f7+
[ 13.b5 would be my choice, threatening 42.f5+ f6
Bg5xf6. ] [ 42...xf5? 43.exf5 would actually be fine
13...e8 14.f2 b6 15.fe1 b7 16.f5 for White, who can attack the g-pawn. ]
[ Once again 16.b5 is a different idea, the 43.e2 xa4 The a-pawn was bound to
pressure on c7 will stop Black from disappear, sooner or later! 44.xa4 xa4
becoming too active. ] 45.d3 c5+ 46.d4 e6 47.g8 a4
16...d7! Both sides place their pieces The a-pawn is coming!
c a r e f u l l y . 17.h4!? White decides to use his [ 47...xe4! 48.xe4 xf5 would be
advanced knight to generate a kingside attack. another winning method. ]
[ 17.e3 can now be answered by g5 48.xg5? a3 49.e3 a2 50.d4+ d7
pinning the knight and menacing ...Nf4. ] 51.c2 Stopping the a-pawn for a short while.
17...c5!? Black continues to place his hopes f1 52.g7+ c8 53.g4 c1 54.d4
on his well-placed pieces. 0-1
[ 17...e7 would help defend the kingside. ]
18.h5 e5 19.h6?! White attacks on the
dark squares, Black has exchanged his dark- 732 A18
squared bishop, of course, but this pawn will Nepomniachtchi,Ian 2735
soon be lost. Aleksandrov,Aleksej 2612
[ 19.xc5!? dxc5 20.f4 f6 21.g3 11th Aeroflot Open A (2) 08.02.2012
is another idea. ] [John Bartholomew]
19...g6! Black should certainly not grab the
'poisoned exchange': 1.c4 e6 2.c3 f6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
[ 19...b3? 20.d1 xa1 21.xg7! f8 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.d4
22.f5 and White can capture the knight on The old main line.
a1 when he wants and remain with a [ The flexible 7.f3 is quite popular these
powerf ul attack on the weakened black d a y s . S p e c i f i c a l l y , t h e v a r i a t i o n e5
king. ] ( Transpositional possibilities abound
20.h4 f6 21.d4 The knight returns to between 7.d4 and 7. Nf3, i.e. 7...c5 8.d4
cover b3. f7 22.d1 g5 The point, the h6- reaching the present game.; Black should
pawn is c ut -o f f f ro m it s de f e nd er. 23.g3 a lso give s t ro n g c o n si d e r a t io n t o 7...b6
xh6 24.c2 White still has some chances - see the note to Black's next move.) 8.d4
because of the weakened black kingside. f7 ( There's also 8.d3!? , forgoing d2-d4 in
25.f2 White wants to use the opened h-file. favor of development.) 8...exd4 9.g5
c8 26.h1 h6 27.h5 d7 28.ah1 g7 e6+ 10.e2 is still up for debate. See

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

"Mik en as A tt ack - 3. . .d 5 & In tro" f or a [ and 9...d6 Watson, J-Miller, I/Buena Park
good launching point for the discussion. ] G/ 60 1995/[John Watson]. ]
7...c5 The most frequent reply. Now an 10.cxd4 b4+ 11.d2 xd2+ 12.xd2 0-0
exchange on d4 will result in a classic [ White obtained an enduring positional
"hanging pawn" structure. a d v a n t a g e a f t e r 12...c6 13.e3
[ Black has a couple noteworthy alternatives. in Tomashevsky, E (2586)-Iljin, A (2510)/
7...e5 8.f3 transposes to 7.Nf3 e5 8.d4. Cheboksary 2006/[John Watson].
( 8.e2!? has been tried by some very Aleksandrov prefers to develop the knight to
strong players, but e7! has proven to be a d7. ]
fully satisfactory response. )] 13.0-0 Black experiences minor problems in
[ The positional 7...b6 deserves attention. completing development. This allows White to
Black declines an immediate central clash build pressure over the next few move and
(why allow White to easily rid himself of the secure a nice advantage. d7!? A novelty
double d c-pa wns?) in f avor of Queen's that doesn't change the assessment of the
Indian-style development. After 8.e2 b7 position.
9.f3 xf3 10.xf3 d6 11.0-0 0-0 12.h3 [ The old game Golombek, H-Koenig, I/
h6 13.e1 c6 Black was doing well in Warsaw 1935 went 13...c6
Nikologorskiy, K (1946)-Nikolaev, V (2186)/ A) A more recent contest saw 14.fe1 b6
St Petersburg 2006/[John Watson]. ] , Agrest, E (2574)-Henriksson, J (2161)/
8.f3 h6 Preventing the pesky 9.Bg5 but Dos Hermanas 2003. White should have
falling behind in development. reacted energetically, i.e. 15.d5!? ( or
[ John Watson thoroughly investigated the 15.e4!? b7 16.ae1 ) 15...exd5
complications of 8...cxd4 9.g5 ( Compare 16.cxd5 a5 17.e5;
9.cxd4 b4+ 10.d2 xd2+ 11.xd2 B) 14.e4 d7 15.ab1 ab8 16.fd1
to our main game: here Black has saved a fd8 . Here White rushed things with
tempo (no ...h7-h6) and W hite has yet to 17.d5 (Black is prepared for this advance)
play Bf1-d3. This ensures Black an easy exd5 18.cxd5 and Black was fine after
game after b6! , e.g. 12.e2 b7 13.0-0 e5 ( or 18...e7 ) 19.e3 xf3+
0-0 with a bare-bones hanging pawn 20.xf3 b6 21.a3 a5 22.bc1 bc8
position where W hite has done nothing to . Perhaps he should have tried 17. c5!?
obstruct Black's ideal piece arrangement. with a slight advantage. ]
Though objectively level, I think such a [ White had an interesting idea in Oratovsky,
position is already easier to play as Black, M (2481) -Kruppa, Y (2602)/Budapest 1999:
and this seems to be borne out in the 13...d8 14.ae1!? ( 14.fe1 c6
statistics (Black is +3, =4 from this position). 15.ad1 is more natural and looks good for
A brief example: 14.fd1 d8 15.e3 c6 an edge. ) 14...c6 15.e4! g6!
16.d2 e7! (Black is fully coordinated) A) This peters out to equality. Instead,
17.ad1 f5 18.f4 d6 (insisting on a 16.c2!? b6 17.fe1 b7 18.d5
favorable queen exchange) 19.xf6 gxf6 creates problems for Black. ( or 18.g4!? );
20.c5?! e4 Quinn, M (2391)-Lenic, L B) 16.xh6 xd4 17.xd4 xd4
(2531)/Kemer 2007.) 9...f5 in Ghaem 18.xd4 xd4 19.d1 d7 20.c2 c3
M a g h a m i , E ( 2 6 2 3 ) - A z a r o v, S ( 2 5 6 5 ) / 21.xg6 fxg6 22.xg6+ f8 23.h6+
Moscow 2005. In addition to the game's g8 24.g6+ h8 25.h6+ g8
10.cxd4 , there are 10.Qxd4 and the risky 1/2-1/2 ]
gambit 10.Bd3!? ] 14.e3! Quite a useful move. White prevents
9.d3 cxd4 ...e6-e5 and prepares his next. d8
[ Alternatives can be found in the archives: [ The idealistic 14...b6?? loses instantly to
9...c6!? 10.0-0! cxd4 11.cxd4 xd4 15.e4 . ]
12.xd4 xd4 13.b1 with excellent 15.e4 f8
compensation, Bratanov, Z (2438)-Antonov, [ Passive, but it's hard to fault Black for
O (2123)/Izmir 2002/[TonyK] ] re ject in g th e co mp u t er's sugge st ion o f

729
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
15...g5!? ]
16.ab1 e7 17.c5! Positionally desirable -
W h i t e f i x e s t h e B l a c k p a w n o n b 7 . c7
18.b3!?
[ It was also possible to play in the center
with 18.fe1 . As usual, the side with the
space advantage has the luxury of playing
all over the board! ]
18...b8 19.fb1 b6 20.e5 d7?!
[ Better was 20...b7! , i.e. 21.cxb6 axb6
22.xc7 xc7 23.xb6 d7 . Black has
decent drawing chances despite the pawn
deficit. ]
21.c6?!
[ White has controlled the game excellently
until now. W ith 21.a4! (threatening a4-a5)
he could have gained a big advantage, i.e.
f6 22.xc7 xc7 23.a5 d7 24.axb6
axb6 25.d2! ]
21...f6! Nepo may have missed this resource.
22.g3 xg3 23.hxg3 c7 24.c3 f7
No w W h it e 's e d ge is wit h in m a n a ge a b le
b o u n d a r i e s . 25.cc1 g6 26.d5!?
A reasonable decision. W hite sacrifices a
pawn to support his waning initiative. exd5
27.d4 a6 28.a4 f8 29.f4 g6 30.e1 f5!
31.bc1 e6= Black has consolidated well.
32.xe6?! A tempting exchange sac, but
probably a little optimistic.
[ W h it e s h o u ld h a ve se t t le d f o r 32.xe6
xe6 33.xa6 d8= ]
32...xe6 33.xa6 d7 34.f2 e8
35.b5 a8 36.h1 h5 37.e1 e7
38.e5!? d8 39.a6 a8 40.b5 d8
Black acquiesces to the repetition.
[ H e m u s t h a v e f i g u r e d t h a t 40...xe5
41.fxe5 offered him few chances to win, but
g5!? was interesting since 42.xf5? e6-+
allows Black to decisively active his king. ]
41.a6 a8 42.b5
½-½
733 A18
Ni Hua 2611
Aleksandrov,Aleksej 2659
Open Calcutta IND (9) 15.11.2004
[John Watson]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.d4 e5 8.f3
exd4 9.g5 e6+ 10.e2 f6 Although it's
not been seen as much recently, this has
been considered a relatively solid option. This
game challenges that assessment. 11.xd4
f7 12.h6!
[ A terrific innovation! Here White has played
12.f4 in many games, doing fairly well.
Objectively he shouldn't get much, however,
after c5 and a timely ...c6 and/or ...Na6. ]
12...c5? Confronted with a new idea like the
Bh6 shot even a first-class player can
become disoriented. This move gives away b5
to the knight and horribly weakens d6. Of
course Black can't respond by
[ 12...gxh6?? 13.h5 but he can limit the
damage with ]
[ 12...g6 , after which there are several
o p t i o n s f o r W h i t e i n c l u d i n g 13.d2!?
, for example, xh6 14.xh6 f8 15.f4
f7 16.0-0 0-0 ( 16...a6 17.f3! )
17.c5! ]
[ Notice that 12...d6 13.h5 g6 14.e2
f8 15.d2 transposes to 12...g6. ]
13.b5 f5! This prevents Bh5 in lines like
[ 13...c6? 14.xg7! xg7 ( 14...xg7
15.d6+ ) 15.h5+ e7 16.d6# ]
[ and 13...e6? 14.xg7 etc. ]
14.0-0 d7
[ 14...c6? 15.h5 g6 ( 15...g6
16.e1+ ) 16.e1+ e5 17.xg6 hxg6
18.f4 and White's threats are
overwhelming. ]
[ 14...gxh6? 15.h5 g6 16.e1+ e7
17.d6+ ]
15.f4 a6 16.e1! f7 There's nothing
else to do, for example,
[ 16...xd1 17.h5+ d7 18.axd1+ c6
19.d6! ]
[ or 16...0-0-0? 17.xa7# ]
17.f3 d8 18.xb7
[ Or 18.d5+ g6 19.f3 , but the move
played traps Black's knight on a6. ]
18...g5 19.g3 b8 20.h5+ g7
[ 20...g6 21.f3 ]
21.ad1 xb7 22.xd8 c6 23.d5 g6
24.g4 h5 25.d7+ h6 26.e6 a8
27.xf6 e7
[ 27...e7 28.exe7 xe7 29.h4 ends it. ]
1-0
730
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
734 A18
Nikologorskiy,Konstantin 1946
Nikolaev,V 2186
White Nights Open (1) 23.06.2006
[John Watson]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.d4 b6 8.e2
b7 9.f3 xf3 10.xf3 d6 11.0-0 0-0
12.h3 h6 13.e1 c6 14.a4 a5 15.c5
f4 16.a3
[ 16.xf4 xf4 ]
16...fd8 17.ab1?!
[ 17.e4 seems to give White some
advantage. ]
17...f5! 18.b4?! c4 A great outpost.
B l a c k s t a n d s b e t t e r . 19.c6 d5!
Correctly judging that the resulting ending will
be very difficult for W hite. 20.xd5 xd5
21.g3 g5 22.xg5 xg5 Now White has
no compensation for the huge disparity
between the minor pieces. W orse, ...a5 is
threatened, so Black gets another open file.
23.cxb6 cxb6!?
[ Why not 23...axb6 ? It seems very strong. ]
24.g2?
[ 24.a1 intending a4-a5. ]
24...d5 25.g4 d7 Again ...a5 is threatened
and Black is winning (and won)
0-1
735 A18
Pelletier,Yannick 2579
Bakker,Sven 2308
Gibtelecom Masters (8.19) 31.01.2006
[John Watson]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3
[ White can't possibly have gotten an
advantage in the following game and in fact
probably stood worse, but the final position
is worthincluding! 7.d4 e5 8.f3 exd4
9.xd4 e7 10.e3 c6 11.xf6 xf6
12.d4 0-0 13.0-0-0 a6 14.xc6 bxc6
15.c2 e6 16.d4 ab8 17.d3 fd8
18.f4 a5 19.b1 e7 20.xb8 xb8 21.f5
d7 22.c5 f6 23.b1 xb1 24.xb1 h5
25.xf6 gxf6 26.h4 1-0 Ubilava -Mascaro,
Platja de Muro ESP 2005. ]
7...c5 8.d3 d7 9.0-0 d6 10.c2 c6
11.e4 xe4 12.xe4 c6 13.d4 0-0
14.d1 cxd4? Now White has what he wants:
space and pawn mobility. The doubled pawns
were Black's main advantage, and he should
have played
[ 14...a5! or even ]
[ 14...g6!? ]
15.cxd4 ac8 16.b1 b6 17.b5!
All of White's pieces are gaining scope and
Black properly tries to simplify: g6 18.e2
Now we are treated to a comedy of errors!
fd8?? 19.g5?? Mutual blindness. Winning
was
[ 19.h4 , trapping the queen and forcing
xd4 20.xd4 f6 21.f3 , game over. ]
19...h6?
[ 19...f6 looks bad but retains a playable
game, e.g., 20.g4 ( 20.b2 e7 ) 20...h6
Versus Bg5 21.b2 f5 22.h4!? f6 ]
20.h3?
[ 20.d5! leads to the machine idea a5 ( or
20...e7 21.f5! g6 22.h4! ) 21.f5
g6 22.h4! ]
20...e7?!
[ 20...f6 ]
21.g4?!
[ This time the analytical engine finds the
bizarre 21.c5! xc1 ( 21...g6 22.xc6!
xc6 23.e5 ) 22.xc1 bxc5 23.dxc5
xc5 24.g5! and Black lacks
compensation, although this isn't resignable
by any means. ]
21...h5 22.b2 Now White's advantage is
rather small, especially if Black opposes
bishops by ...Bf6. f8!? 23.g5 h6 24.d5
a5
[ 24...e7 is better, centralising. ]
25.g4! f5? 26.c1! Pelletier doen't miss
this one! fxg4?
[ 26...h5 27.xe6+ f7 had to be tried,
however ultimately hopeless. The rest is
easy. ]
27.xh6 gxf3 28.xe6+ h8 29.g5 e8
30.f5 xc4 31.xf3 c5 32.f4 f8
33.g3 cd8 34.d6 xd6 35.xd6 f6
36.xc5 xd1+ 37.h2 h6 38.g4 d5
39.d4 f7 40.e6 dd7 41.xh6+
1-0
731
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

736 A18 white queen should have retreated the move

Pelletier,Yannick 2624 before. 28.c3 xf4? Returning the
Ribli,Zoltan 2568 compliment,
Bundesliga 2002-3 (8) 11.01.2003 [ 28...b6! 29.h1 g8 is better, te being a
[Tony Kosten] pawn down Black can take advantage of the
open g-file, 30.e6 xe6 ( 30...xg4??
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4 is a b lu n d e r, 31.xf6+ g8 32.f8# )
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.d4 31.xg8+ xg8 32.dxe6 xe6 and Black
The old main line seems to be coming back is OK! ]
into fashion, since 29.xf4 xf4 30.h5 e5 31.xe5?!
[ 7.f3 e5 8.d3 offers little. ] This may have been a Sunday morning round,
7...e5 8.f3 exd4 9.g5 e6+ 10.e2 as I can see no reason why White cannot play
e7 11.cxd4 xg5 12.xg5 f6!? the simple
We have already analysed a couple of games [ 31.xf6 xc3 32.xc3 with an extra
involving the more usual pawn. ]
[ 12...e7 ] 31...fxe5 32.f1 g8 33.f5 d7 34.g4
13.e4!? A novelty, the knight moves again, White is still better, as his pieces are more
but gains a tempo on the black queen. active, but the win is far from obvious. c8?!
[ 13.d2 had been the almost inevitable Black should stop the rook getting onto the
choice here: 0-0 14.0-0 f5 ( 14...c6 seventh rank, perhaps, by
15.d5 d4 16.d3 f5 17.xf5 xf5 [ 34...h6 35.f6+!? ( 35.f2 f8 36.xf8+
is almost equal, Cramling,D-Wiedenkeller, xf8 37.e3 f7 38.e4 offers better
M / S t o c k h o l m 1 9 9 3) 15.ad1 e8 chances ) 35...xf6 36.xf6 f8 ( 36...g7
1/2-1/2 Stohl,I-Zarnicki,P/Moscow 1994. ] 37.e6 ) 37.xh6 f4 38.h3 xc4
13...g6 14.g3 0-0 15.0-0 One immediate when W hite has two connected passed
advantage of having the knight on g3, instead pawns, but the black rook is very active. ]
of g5, is that W hite no longer has to worry 35.g5+ h8 36.g7 f6 This is Black's
about defending it, and so can concentrate on intention, to play the rook and pawn ending,
h i s o t h e r p i e c e s . d8 16.c1 f6 but his rook is very passive. 37.e7 xh5
Black's logical plan is to force the d-pawn to 38.gxh5 h6 39.f2! The e-pawn is not going
advance and then put his queen's knight on to run away, and so White keeps control of
t h e c 5 - s q u a r e . 17.d5 a6 18.h5!? the seventh. b5 40.c5 g8 41.e3 a5
T h i s l o o k s o d d , b u t t h e y o u n g S w i s s 42.e4 b4 43.xe5 a4 44.e6 There is no
Grandmaster is trying to create a weakness in real defence against Kd7xc7 when the two
Black's kingside structure. e5 white pawns march to the queening square.
[ 18...h6!? would keep g7 under 1-0
surveillance. ]
19.f3 c5 20.e1 d6 21.d4
White achieves his desired piece set-up. f6 737 A18
22.e3 White's extra space, and control of the Rasmussen 2397
e-file give him a certain plus. d7 23.g4! Rozentalis,Eduardas 2598
F r e e i n g t h e t h i r d r a n k f o r t h e r o o k . e8 Anibal Open Linares ESP (6) 06.03.2002
24.g3 White's kingside initiative is taking on [Tony Kosten]
a l a r m i n g p r o p o r t i o n s . xg4 25.xg4
Attacking both g7 and f6, this wins a pawn. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5
h8 26.xg7 e5! The knight's retreat will [ 4.exd5 exd5 5.d4 transposes to a lesser
not be so easy. 27.f4?! This move is a useful line of the exchange French, although this
resource, but it should be prepared, can still be dangerous, Miezis, N-
[ 27.d1! d7 28.f4 e7 29.h5 Gunnarsson,A/Reykjavik ISL 2002. ]
and White is a pawn to the good. ] 4...d4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 e5
27...e4 Gaining a tempo, which is why the 8.d4 exd4 9.g5 e6+ 10.e2 e7

732
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 10...d3?! seems like a good idea, but
11.0-0! d6 ( 11...xe2? 12.e1;
11...dxe2?? 12.d8# ) 12.xd3 0-0 13.e1
d7 14.c5!? xc5 15.e5 d6 16.h5
gave White a powerful attack, Cramling,D-
Ornstein,A Gausdal 1980. ]
[ 10...f6 is playable, though: 11.xd4 f7
12.f4 c6 13.0-0 e7 and White's
development advantage is balanced by his
weak queenside. ]
11.cxd4 xg5 12.xg5 e7 13.d2
c6!? An interesting alternative, threatening
to capture on d4. 14.d5 e5
[ 14...d4?! is too flashy, 15.xd4 xg5
16.0-0 0-0 17.f3 a5 18.fe1 a6!?
19.e5 d8 20.ae1 with complete control
of th e e-f ile, Gulko ,B-Plieste r,L/ Arub a
1992. ]
15.0-0 0-0 16.fe1 f5 Black has managed
to develop his minor pieces to active squares,
but will they prove to be targets for W hite?
17.ac1!? White provokes a weakness on c6,
although I am far from sure that this novelty is
much better than
[ 17.f4 w h e n a f t e r f6 18.f3 fe8
White has next-to-nothing, Banas,J-Rigo,Z/
Prievidza 1998. ]
17...b6 To stop c5. 18.f4 f6!? Risky,
[ 18...f6 19.f3 fe8 is similar to the
previous note. ]
19.f3 d7 20.xe5 fxe5 21.e3 c5?!
This leads to unexpected problems. 22.dxc6
xc6 23.c5! b5
[ 23...bxc5 24.xc5 xc5 25.xc5
forks c6 and e5, winning a pawn. ]
24.d3 f7 25.a3 ad8 Black seems to
have reasonable play at the moment, but
sooner or later he must find some real
compensation for his weak pawn on e5. 26.f3
This puts pa id to any tactics along the f-file,
and prepares Be4 to remove the bishop from
its blockade of the c5-pawn. d4 27.c2
h8?! Black ditches the e-pawn, but
[ 27...e8 28.b3 d5 29.xd5 xd5
30.c6 was also unpleasant, as the c-pawn is
very dangerous. ]
28.xe5 g4?! The tricky point, but it leads
nowhere. 29.f5! Exchanging queens is the
simplest. xf5 30.xf5 a4 31.e4 a6
[ 31...xe4? 32.xe4 xa3 re-establishes
material equality, but after 33.c6 Black will
have to give a rook to stop the pawn, i.e. h6
34.c7 c8 35.d4 h7 36.d8 ]
32.ed1 g8 33.d6 f6 34.xf6 gxf6
35.f2 f7 36.xc6 xc6 37.e3 e7
The extra white pawn, and the passive black
rook, are enough to assure W hite the full
point. 38.d4 a6 39.c3 d7 40.d5
a4 41.c6+ c7 42.e3 b6 43.e7 xa3
44.b7+ a6 45.b8 d3+ 46.e6 c3
47.d7 d3+ 48.c8 h5 49.c7 d2
50.b7 Kb8 and c8(Q) follow.
1-0
738 A18
Ronchetti,Niccolo 2421
Brunello,Sabino 2391
XIII Luigi Serra (3) 03.07.2006
[John Watson]
1.c4 e6 2.c3 f6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.d4 e5 8.f3
exd4 9.g5 e6+ 10.e2 f6 11.xd4 f7
12.f4 The old move. Either White doesn't like
or didn't know about Ni Hua)-Aleksandrov,
Calcutta IND 2004, which I analysed in a
previous column. Here is the game and a few
of my notes:
[ 12.h6!
A) 12...gxh6?? 13.h5 but he can limit
the damage with;
B) 12...g6 , after which there are several
o p t i o n s f o r W h i t e i n c l u d i n g 13.d2!?
, for example, xh6 14.xh6 f8 15.f4
f7 16.0-0 0-0 ( 16...a6 17.f3! )
17.c5!;
C) 12...c5? 13.b5
C1) 13...c6? 14.xg7! xg7
( 14...xg7 15.d6+ ) 15.h5+ e7
16.d6#;
C2) 13...f5! This prevents Bh5 in lines
like 14.0-0 d7 ( 14...gxh6? 15.h5
g6 16.e1+ e7 17.d6+ ) 15.f4
a6 16.e1! f7 ( 16...xd1 17.h5+
d7 18.axd1+ c6 19.d6! ) 17.f3
d8 18.xb7 g5 19.g3 b8
20.h5+ g7 ( 20...g6 21.f3 )
21.ad1 xb7 22.xd8 c6 23.d5
g6 24.g4 h5 25.d7+ h6 26.e6
a8 27.xf6 e7 1-0 ( 27...e7
28.exe7 xe7 29.h4 ends it. )]
733
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

12...c5 now, so I was surprised to see this move. ]

[ 12...a6!? ] 8...d6 9.0-0 a6 10.e1 After my game
13.a4+! c6 14.b3 e7?! against Dizdar I thought everyone had gone
[ 14...a6 ] back to
15.0-0 [ 10.c2 although this only seems equal. ]
[ 15.xb8! gives some advantage after xb8 10...0-0 11.xe5?! xe5!
16.xa7 d6 17.d1 ] [ 11...e8 12.f3 g4 was about equal in
15...0-0 16.fe1 d7 17.c5 e5! 18.e3?! Schlosser,P-Wells,P/Herzliya 1998, while ]
e6 19.d4 d5 20.f5 fe8 Black is well- [ 11...c5? 12.c2 xe5 13.h5
centralized. 21.h4 was very good for White in Van Wely,L-Oll,
[ 21.xe7+?! xe7 threatens ... Qg6. ] L/Beijing 1997. ]
21...f8 22.d4? g6 23.g3 d3 12.h5 xh2+ The unpleasant problem.
24.xd3 xd3 Black has 2 bishops, light- 13.xh2 f5 14.f1
square control and play against White's weak [ 14.xf5!? xf5 15.d4 might be the best
pawns. 25.f4 xe1+ 26.xe1 b6!? chance, d3 16.g3 xg3 17.fxg3
[ 26...xa2 with a passed a-pawn. ] might not be too bad for White, despite the
27.g4! g6 28.xg6 hxg6 29.cxb6 c5 pawn structure, as his bishop is good. ]
30.e3 14...fe8 15.a3 g6!? An innovation, but
[ 30.b7! b8 31.e3 splits the pawns, no improvement on the
although the bishops should eventually [ 15...g5! of Kosten,A-Dizdar,G - see the
prevail. After this White is clearly lost and archives. ]
plays until mate. Perhaps the clock was an 16.g3 The square h2 is not a satisfactory
issue. ] post for a queen! c6
30...axb6 31.b1 xa2 32.h4 a6 33.d1 [ 16...c5!? ]
c6 34.h5 gxh5 35.xh5 f7 36.f4 a7 17.g5! White stops the knight from returning
37.f3 b5 38.c1 a3 39.f2 a2+ 40.f1 into play. xe1 18.xe1 a4 19.c1 e8
g5 41.d3 g4 42.xc5 gxf3 43.gxf3 xf3 [ 19...xa2?! i s t o o g r e e d y , 20.b5
44.b3 a3 45.e1 d5 46.d4 c4+ threatens mate on e8 and wins the b-pawn. ]
47.g1 b2 48.b1 d3 49.d1 a1 20.xe8+ xe8 21.d4 Now I would say that
50.xa1 xa1 51.d2 b4 52.cxb4 xd4+ W hite is better as his two bishops should
53.g2 e6 54.f3 d5 55.f4 e5+ prove important. h6 22.d2 e4 23.b2
56.f3 c4 57.g4 d6 58.b5 xb5 e1! 24.d2 Of course,
59.e3 c4 60.f3 d5 61.d2 f5 [ 24.xb7? xc1 25.xa6 d3
62.e3 e4+ 63.e2 f4 64.xf4 xf4 would lose a piece. ]
65.f2 d4 66.e2 c3 67.f2 d2 24...d1 25.c1 a4 26.b2
68.f1 f3 69.f2 g4 70.f1 e3 White decides to repeat moves, but
71.g2 e2 72.g1 f3 73.f1 g3 [ 26.a3 was possible, perhaps, b6 27.f4
74.e1 c1 75.f1 d2 76.g1 e2 and White still has reason to hope with the
77.h1 c3 better minor pieces. ]
0-1 26...d1 27.c1 a4 28.b2
½-½

739 A18
Smirin,Ilia 2671 740 A18
Kulaots,Kaido 2593 Steingrimsson,Hedinn 2439
Monarch Assurance (9) 03.10.2004 Kulaots,Kaido 2558
[Tony Kosten] Keres Mem A Tallin EST (8) 12.01.2006
[John Watson]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 e5 8.d3 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5
[ 8.d4 seems to have recovered its crown [ 3...c5 4.e5 g8 5.f3 c6 6.d4 cxd4

734
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

7.xd4 is seen less and less often. See queen doesn't get back to d4. Potentially
previous ChessPublishing games - W hite White might have to worry about back-rank
seems to win them all! ] tricks but not obviously so. The real question
4.e5 d4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 is whether W hite needs an improvement,
e5 8.d4 since things go so well for him. ]
[ 8.d3 has received a lot of attention in 21...d4
these pages. Frankly, I don't think tha t [ Tony suggested several improvements for
White gets even the tiniest advantage. ] W hite after 21...b6!? from Bruzon-Zarnicki,
8...exd4 9.g5 Santo Domingo 2003. ]
[ 9.xd4 was an original capture played in 22.d7 xe1 23.xe1 c5 24.h4 f8
Ubilava-Mascaro March, Platja de Muro 25.d3!? An innovation on move 25! Whether
2005. I seriously doubt that W hite gets it is ne ce ssa ry is n ot cle a r, bu t W h ite is
anything from this line, but the ending is certainly in charge and the move has several
nice! e7 10.e3 c6 11.xf6 xf6 advantages. The elegant stem game Ivanchuk-
12.d4 0-0 13.0-0-0 a6 14.xc6 bxc6 P Nielsen, Skanderborg 2003 went
15.c2 e6 16.d4 ab8 17.d3 fd8 [ 25.f5 (threatening h5) g8 ( 25...xh4?
18.f4 a5 19.b1 e7 20.xb8 xb8 21.f5 26.xh7 g6 27.d3 ) 26.h5 f8 27.g5!
d7 22.c5 f6 23.b1 xb1 24.xb1 h5 d6! 28.g3 h6 29.e7 with a clear
25.xf6 gxf6 26.h4 ] advantage. ]
9...e6+ 10.e2 e7 25...d6!? Trying to hang on. Although White
[ The line 10...f6 11.xd4 f7 was almost threatened h5 again, that won't be true if the
put to rest by 12.h6!! c5? ( 12...gxh6?? queens come off.
13.h5; 12...g6 ) 13.b5 f5! 14.0-0 d7 [ 25...xh4?! doesn't suffice after 26.h3!
15.f4 a6 16.e1! f7 17.f3 d8 d4 ( 26...g6 27.xg6 fxg6 28.xh7
18.xb7 and wins, Ni Hua-Aleksandrov, f7 29.e4 ) 27.e4 a1+ 28.h2 g6
Calcutta 2004. ] 29.xh7 ]
11.cxd4 xg5 12.xg5 e7 26.f5
[ For 12...f6!? see earlier ChessPublishing [ 26.b5!? hits the b-pawn but Black can
c o l u m n s , f o r e xa m p l e , P e l l e t i e r - R i b l i , defend after b6 27.h5 ( 27.b2!? ) 27...f4
Tegernsee GER 2003 went 13.e4!? g6 28.xh7 xh5 ]
14.g3 ( 14.f3 ) 14...0-0 15.0-0 d8 26...f4
and here instead of 16.Rc1!?, I gave 16.d3 [ 26...g8 27.h5 f8 28.g5 is at least as
d6 17.e1! intending moves like d5, Qc2, good as the Ivanchuk game, and there are
Rad1 etc. ] other good moves. ]
13.d2 c6 27.h5 g8 28.e3!?
[ We've also seen a number of games with [ 28.g3! would ask Black where he's going, e.
13...h6 , generally favouring White. ] g., d6 ( 28...d4 29.f5; 28...f6
14.d5 29.e2 d6 30.h5 f8 31.e7 ) 29.g5
[ 14.0-0!? xd4 15.h5! e6! should have and Black is still tied down. ]
been about equal in Timman-Kulaots, 28...b6
Prague 2004. ] [ 28...d4 29.g3! threatens Qf5 again. ]
14...e5 15.0-0 0-0 16.fe1 f5 17.f4 29.g3! d6 30.xg6?! Incomprehensible.
f6 18.f3 fe8 19.h4 Obviously W hite still keeps the advantage,
[ Ivanchuk's improvement on 19.d4 g6! but consistent with all the previous play was
(Banas, J-Rigo, Z/Prievidza 1998) 20.xf5 [ 30.g5! ]
xd4= ] [ or 30.e2 ]
19...g6 20.xf5 xh4 Since the queen 30...hxg6 31.e2 f8?! It not clear what the
goes to d4 next, White has gained a sort of threat was. Maybe a slower move was called
tempo. 21.f1 for.
[ M y p r e v i o u s s u g g e s t i o n 21.g4!? [ 31...c8 has the idea of ...c6 if White
also de serves co nsideration, since th e strays: 32.h5 ( 32.e5 ) 32...gxh5 33.xh5

735
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

c6 34.e4!? cxd5 35.cxd5 g6 36.h6 by Tony. Let me add a few brief notes. The
c5! ] key game Pelletier-Ribli, Tegernsee GER
32.h5! gxh5 33.xh5 Now Black has lost a 2003 continued 13.e4!? g6 14.g3
critical tempo. h6 ( 14.f3 appears a bit better for White as
[ 33...g8 34.e4! threatens Rh4, but h6 well) ) 14...0-0 15.0-0 d8 and here instead
35.f5 f6 can be answered by 36.d7 of 16.Rc1!?, I t hink tha t 16.d3 d6
( or 36.xf6 gxf6 37.g2 ) 36...d8 ( 16...f6 17.e1 c6 18.d5 d4 19.d2
( 36...d6 37.xd6 cxd6 38.e7 c8 c5 20.e4 g6 21.h1 ) 17.e1!
39.xa7 xc4 40.a8+ h7 41.d8 ) prepares moves like d5, Qc2, Rad1 etc. I
37.h3 ] think this whole line is better for White ]
34.f5 f6 35.d7 13.d2 c6
[ There are several good ideas, e.g., 35.h7 [ Timman had another game versus
h6 36.e4 d6 37.g2 ( or 37.g4 Naiditsch in Dortmund 2002 which went
threatening Rh3 )] 13...h6 14.f3 0-0 15.0-0 c5 ( 15...g4
[ Even 35.xf6 gxf6 36.g2 likely wins, but 16.fe1 c6 Karpov-Yusupov, Linares
it ' s e a s i e r t o ge t t h e k in g t o g2 b e f o r e 1991, and now 17.e5! xe5 18.xg4
entering the ending. ] h4 19.xe5 xg4 20.ae1 keeps the
35...d6 36.h3 h6 37.d7 d6 pressure on Black) 16.d5 d6 17.fe1
Terrible. W hite must have been completely ( 17.b2! d7 18.d3 left Black a little tied
out of time towards the end. His winning down in Illescas Cordoba-Pogorelov,
chances are excellent. Zaragoza 1996.) 17...d7 18.ab1 e8
½-½ 19.d3 xe1+ 20.xe1 f6 and Tony's
idea 21.e5 xe5 22.xe5 looks better
for White after b6 23.a4! ]
741 A18 [ Also promising for White is 13...0-0 14.0-0
Timman,Jan H 2602 d7 15.d3! h6 16.e4! intending c5
Kulaots,Kaido 2597 17.d5 ]
Promopro Matches (1) 03.12.2004 14.0-0!? As far as I can see this is a novelty.
[John Watson] Which is not surprising since it allows Black to
capture on d4.
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 This variation is [ 14.d5 is probably better and yields a small
still critical and unresolved after 60 years of advantage: e5 15.0-0 0-0 16.fe1 f5
regular practice. d5 17.f4! f6 18.f3 fe8 19.h4! g6
[ 3...c5 4.e5 g8 5.f3 c6 6.d4 cxd4 20.xf5 xh4 21.f1 ( 21.g4!? ) 21...b6!?
7.xd4 is seen less and less often. See ( 21...d4 22.d7 and White is much
previous ChessPublishing games - W hite better, Ivanchuk-P Nielsen, Skanderborg
seems to win them all! ] 2003 ) 22.g3 ( Tony's 22.ad1 also give a
4.e5 d4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 small edge to White.) 22...d8 , and here
e5 8.d4 T o n y s u g g e s t s s i m p l y ( 22...d4
[ 8.d3 has received a lot of attention in might be met by 23.ad1! c3 24.xe8+
these pages. Frankly, I don't think tha t xe8 25.d7 e5 26.d6! cxd6 27.xa7 )
White gets even the tiniest advantage. ] 23.e4! xe4 24.xe4 d6 25.e1
8...exd4 9.g5 e6+ 10.e2 e7 intending h4-5 and Bh3. ]
Black's usual choice. 14...xd4
[ White develops too quickly after 10...d3?! [ This looks logical. Safer is 14...0-0 15.fe1
11.0-0! ] f6 16.d3 ( or 16.d5 ) 16...f5 17.xf5
[ For 10...f6 , see Ni Hua-Aleksandrov. ] xf5 18.f3 but White remains with a
11.cxd4 xg5 12.xg5 e7 nagging edge. ]
[ For 12...g6 see the next game Valden- 15.h5! The point.
Stavrianakis. ] [ 15.xd4 xg5 has the idea 16.f4 c5!
[ 12...f6!? has been looked at thoroughly 17.c3 f6 ]

736
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

15...e6! Accurate defence. f3 57.g5 e3 58.g4 d3 59.d7+

[ 15...0-0? 16.xf7+ h8 17.ae1 f6 c3 60.e8 c5 61.f8 g1+ 62.f5
18.d5 c5 19.e4 yields a clear Timman's 14.0-0 created a lot of problems.
advantage. ] Objectively, however, White should probably
16.xf7!? White has trouble getting more prefer the small advantage that he gets from
than a simplified position after this. A few 14.d5.
more chances were given by 1-0
[ 16.xf7+ xf7 17.fe1 e6 18.xe6
xe6 19.xe6 xe6 20.e1 xe1+
21.xe1+ f7 22.b1! , which wins either 742 A18
the b-pawn or h-pawn, for example, he8 Timman,Jan H 2623
23.h3 ( 23.h4 b6 24.xh7 ad8 25.h5 Naiditsch,Arkadij 2581
is another approach. I doubt that White will Sparkassen Match (6) 19.07.2002
win this sort of thing however.) 23...b6 [Tony Kosten]
24.xh7 and the position looks balanced. ]
16...xf7 17.xd4 xh5 18.fe1 e2 Leo Martinez wrote: "I was wondering about a
19.b2!? 0-0-0 line in the English opening. After 1 c4 Nf6 2
[ Or 19...f7 20.xe2 f6 Nc3 e6 3 e4 d5 4 e5 d4 5 ef6 dc3 6 bc3 Qf6 7
f o r c e s s i m p l i f i c a t i o n : 21.xf6+ gxf6 Nf3 (or 7 d4 transposing I would think) e5,
. This looks drawish. ] you say that 8 d4 is rarely played nowadays. I
20.ab1 b6 21.xe2 d7!? play this line on occasion as Black and I was
[ 21...c5! looks like a solid alternative. just wondering what is wrong with this move
22.xg7 xc4 23.e7 c2 24.f1 hf8 and what I can do against it." 1.c4 f6
(intending ...Qxf2+!) 25.h3 h5= ] 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4 5.exf6 dxc3
22.h3 he8 23.xe8 xe8 24.c5 e6 6.bxc3 xf6 7.d4 It is true that I have
25.b3 e7 26.f1 White has a small edge. focussed exclusively on the trendy
The ideas of a4-a5 and Rc1 are available. Still, [ 7.f3 e5 8.d3 here, so it is time to
this isn't much, and Black plays poorly over consider the old alternative. ]
the next few moves. b7 27.d5+ c6!? 7...e5 8.f3 exd4 9.g5!
28.cxb6 axb6 29.d1 f6!? [ 9.cxd4 b4+ is too easy for Black. ]
[ 29...c5! 30.f3 c3 should draw ] 9...e6+ 10.e2 e7
30.g4!? a7 31.d4 b5!? 32.g5 c1+ [ Certainly not 10...dxc3?? 11.d8# ]
33.g2 b6 34.h4 h6 The position is 11.cxd4! Again the most accurate.
roughly equal and remains so for some moves [ 11.xe7?! d3! equalises. ]
u n t il T im m a n we a rs h is o p p o n e n t d o wn . 11...xg5 12.xg5 e7 13.d2 h6
35.d3 b4 [ 13...0-0 14.0-0 d7 15.fe1 h6! 16.f3
[ 35...c6= ] c5 is also OK for Black, Adorjan,A-Petrosian,
36.a3! c3 37.axb4 A/Shenzhen 1992, and ]
[ 37.xc3 bxc3 38.c4 b2! ] [ 13...c6!? is considered in another game
37...xd3 38.xd3 xb4 39.g3 hxg5 this month. ]
40.hxg5 e7 41.f4 b6 42.g4 c5 43.f5 14.f3 0-0 15.0-0 c5
c6 44.a6+ d5 45.a8+ e5 [ 15...g4 16.ab1! ( 16.fe1 c6 17.h3
[ 45...d6 ] xf3 18.xf3 was equal in Karpov,An-
46.c6 d4?! Yusupov, A/Linares 1991) 16...c6 17.fe1
[ 46...d6! After this the game appears to be gave White an edge in Soffer,R-Nagetz,F/
lost for Black. ] Bad Lauterberg 1991. ]
47.f6 e2+ 48.f3 e6+ 49.h5! f7+ 16.d5 White has obtained a protected passed
[ 49...gxf6 50.xf6+ d5 51.xe6+ xe6 d-pawn, but it impedes his bishop and is
52.h6 etc. ] easily blockaded. d6 17.fe1 Actually the
50.g6 f8 51.f7 c4 52.f4+ d3 53.f5+ first new move.
e3 54.e6+ f3 55.c6+ g3 56.c7+ [ 17.b2 d7 18.d3 f6 19.e2 d8

737
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
20.ae1!? gave White a spatial plus in
Illescas Cordoba,M-Pogorelov,R/Zaragoza
1996. ]
17...d7 18.ab1 e8 19.d3 xe1+
20.xe1 f6 21.d2!?
[ 21.e5 is an interesting try, hoping to
break the blockade of the d-pawn. xe5
22.xe5 b6 but Black is very solid here. ]
21...g6! White's previous move was aimed
against
[ 21...b6 when 22.e4 xe4 23.xe4 g6
24.e8+ offers him some initiative. ]
22.h3 b6 23.e3 g7 24.f4 White plans
Qe5, and tries to make something of his extra
space and development advantage, but Black
has a sound pawn structure and will soon
bring his remaining pieces into the game. a6
25.e5 d8 26.b3! White's best chance,
t h e r o o k t h r e a t e n s t o c o m e t o a 3 . b5!?
Black also has his ideas, and decides that it
was time to undermine the d5-pawn,
[ 26...xe5? is faulty: 27.fxe5 d7 28.f3
e8 29.a3 c8 30.xa7 xe5 31.xe5
xe5 32.d6 and the passed d-pawn wins a
p i e c e . W h a t d i d Ni m zo vi t c h s a y a b o u t
keeping this criminal "under lock and key"? ]
[ 26...c8 is a solid alternative.. ]
27.cxb5 b7? A faulty follow-up,
[ 27...xe5! would have justified Black's
idea: 28.fxe5 xd5 29.e4 ( 29.bxa6?!
b4 with equality) 29...f4 30.f1 c8
with counterplay, although W hite is still
better. ]
28.c4! xe5
[ 28...xd5 29.d3 leaves Black in a terrible
pin. ]
29.fxe5 xd5
[ 29...d7 30.a3 xe5 31.xa7 xd5
32.xd5 xd5 33.e4 is a better try
although the two passed white pawns should
prove decisive. ]
30.d3 d7 31.b3 c7? This is hopeless,
although
[ 31...b6 32.xd7 xd7 33.e6 fxe6
34.xe6 is not much better as the c-pawn is
lost. ]
32.xd5 c4 33.xc4 xc4 34.d7 c8
35.xa7
[ 35.e6! is perhaps even more effective as
xd7?? 36.exd7 and a queen is born. ]
35...b4 36.c7 e6 37.c5 xa2 38.e6
xb5 Black tries his hardest to stay on the
board by removing as many white pawns as
possible. 39.e7! But the e-pawn decides the
game. The win is problematic after
[ 39.xf7+?! g8 40.c7 b1+ 41.h2
e1 ]
39...b8
[ 39...b1+ 40.f2 b2+ 41.e3
doesn't change the result. ]
40.e4 b3 41.b7! A nice trick, Black had
only considered
[ 41.d6? a4 ]
41...xb7 42.e8 e6 43.d8 h5 44.d4+
f8 45.h8+ e7 46.f6+ f8 47.c5
1-0
743 A18
Timofeev,Andrei 2344
Airapetian,Gor 2328
14th Chigorin Mem (4) 25.10.2006
[John Watson]
I 'm re lu c t a n t t o sh o w t h i s e m b a rr a s s in g
miniature, but it has such compelling features.
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d6?! Now this is a
Mikenas Variation gone sour! Perhaps Black
was afraid of the theory after 3...c5 or 3...d5.
In a few moves, however, it's looking up a
little. 4.d4 bd7 5.f4 Of course it can't be
bad, but I don't like this move, which justifies
Black's ...d6 and ... Nbd7.
[ Obviously 5.f3 has to be a good move,
and as it turns out, probably better. But
Black can still confuse things by c5 ]
5...c5! Why not? 6.d5
[ The problem is that Black seems to be able
to get a decent Sicilian Defence out of 6.f3
cxd4 7.xd4 ( 7.xd4 e5!? with the idea
8.fxe5?! dxe5 9.xe5?? c5 ) 7...e7
, when 8.f5 allows 0-0! , intending 9.fxe6
c5! 10.exf7+ xf7 and White's position is
a mess in view of ...Ng4, ...Nfxe4, ...Qb6
and other problems. ]
6...exd5 7.cxd5 e7! 8.d3 An interesting
coincidence: Now we have the same position
that arises in the Benoni Defence after 1 d4
Nf6 2 c4 c5 3 d5 e6 4Nc3 exd5 5cxd5 d6 6 e4
g6 7 f4 Qe7 8 Bd3, except that ...Nbd7 has
been substituted for ...g6! This means that
Black can't develop actively by ...Bg4, but it
738
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

also means that Black can play 8...Nxe4, 5.f3 c6 6.d4 cxd4 7.xd4 xd4!?
whereas in the Benoni that would lose to 9 8.xd4 e7!? (this allows White to control
Qa4+! a6? d6) 9.f4 c6 10.e3 a5 11.0-0-0 b6
[ The consistent move was 8...xe4! 12.b1 a6? A waste of time that will be
A) 9.xe4 f5 10.e2 ( 10.f3 fxe4 important soon because Black will need an
11.0-0 f6 12.e1 f5 13.a4+ d7! ) extra tempo to free his queen. 13.e4 b7
10...fxe4 11.xe4 d8!?= or perhaps 14.e2 c5 ( 14...0-0-0!? 15.g5 f6
better for Black.; 16.f7 c5 ) 15.d6+ f8? ( 15...xd6
B) 9.xe4!? f5 10.f3! fxe4 11.0-0 f6 16.xd6 e7 17.d3! c5 18.f3!
12.e1 f5 ( an unclear position arises Again the bishop pair will dominate once
after 12...d7 13.xe4 xe4 14.g5 the queens go off.) 16.f3 b8 17.d2
0-0-0 15.xe4 f7 ) 13.a4+ f7 xe5 18.f4 a4 19.xb7 xb7
14.g5+ g8 15.d2! ( 15.xe4?? 20.xe5 1-0 Narciso Dublan-Spoelman,
xe4 16.xe4 e8 ) 15...b5!? Cappelle la Grande FRA 2006 ]
( 15...e8!? ) 16.xb5 h6 17.f3 g6! 4.e5 d4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.d4
( 17...f7!? ) 18.h4 g7 19.xf5 [ 7.f3 c5 8.d3 isn't my favourite line
gxf5= ] although it succeeded after c6 9.0-0 d6
9.e2?! 10.e4 d7 11.b1 b6 12.d4 h6 13.a3
[ Maybe with luck Black can survive 9.f3 e7 14.c2 0-0 15.d3 g6 16.dxc5 xc5
b5 10.e5 ( but much better is 10.0-0! ) 17.xc5 bxc5 18.b7 in Rusev-Petkov,
10...dxe5 11.fxe5 xe5 12.0-0 xd3 Svilengrad BUL 2006. ]
13.xd3 d6 14.e1+ e7 15.e4! 7...c5 8.f3 h6 9.d3 cxd4 10.cxd4 b4+
xe4 16.xe4 f5 17.h4 a7 ] 11.d2 xd2+ 12.xd2 c6 13.e3
9...b5 Now W hite has the kind of positional
[ 9...c4!? 10.c2 b5 11.f3 b4 12.a4 ] advantage that we've seen before. Only he
10.f3 g6? No sense of danger! Black had to can win, and Black can suffer for a long time.
respond to the threat of e5 by 0-0 14.0-0 d7 15.fe1 fd8 16.e4! e8
[ 10...b7 11.0-0! b4! 12.d1 g6 13.e1 17.ad1 d6 18.d5! exd5 19.cxd5 e7
g7 14.e5 xd5 15.exd6 xe2 16.xe2+ 20.e5 b5 21.c5 b6? Effectively a
f8 and Black is still in the game. ] blunder. 22.d6 g6 23.xg6 fxg6 24.d7
11.e5 Now it's real trouble! g4 d8 25.a4 a6 26.xg6! h7 27.e5
[ A fun line for White is 11...dxe5 12.fxe5 e6 28.d5 e7 29.h3 b6 30.e4+ g8
g4 13.d6 e6 14.e4 a7 15.d5 f5 31.g4!
16.e6 ] 1-0
12.h3 h6 13.e4 dxe5 14.fxe5 xe5
15.xe5 Black must have played the last few
moves in shock. 745 A18
1-0 Topalov,Veselin 2690
Rozentalis,Eduardas 2586
Eu Team Ch Batumi GEO (1) 29.11.1999
744 A18 [Tony Kosten]
Tomashevsky,Evgeny 2586
Iljin,Artem 2510 1.c4 e6 2.c3 f6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 e4
U20ch-RUS Cheboksary RUS (7) 08.03.2006 5.f3 e7 6.h4!
[John Watson] [ A powerful new move in this standard
position, making it dif f icult f or Black t o
M i k e n a s f a n s m i g h t e n j o y t h e f o l l o wi n g castle. 6.c2 had been the preferred move
positional crush. As we have seen before, up till now, attempting to force the knight to
Black needs to play actively in this system. capture on c3, although c6 7.xe4 b4
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 offers Black some play for a pawn. ]
[ Another recent game went 3...c5 4.e5 g8 [ 6.d4 also promises White some

739
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

advantage. ] we're accustomed to this sort of "rule

6...xc3? breaking" these days. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6
[ 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6
This facilitates White's task, I think it is
b e t t e r t o k e e p t h e t e n s i o n , b y 6...c6
7.d4
for instance, e.g. 7.d4 0-0 8.d3 ] [ Last month we analyzed the consequences
7.dxc3 dxc4 Hoping to play the ending, but of the semi-forced endgame variation 7.f3
White has other ideas! 8.a4+ d7 9.xc4 e5 8.d3 g4 9.e4 d7 10.xb7 b8
c6 10.g4 11.d5 c6 12.e4 c5 13.e2 xe4
The white queen has been
drawn to the powerful square g4, from where 14.xe4 xf3 15.xf3 xf3 16.gxf3
it menaces the weakened black kingside. xf3 . See Aronian, L (2802)-Hou, Y (2603) Wijk
Black needs to find some space for his bits. aan Zee 2013/[John Bartholomew]. ]
11.gxf3! Conceding doubled pawn is perhaps 7...e5 8.f3 exd4 This capture remains the
surprising, but this decision is absolutely main line.
correct tactically. f8 12.f4 The former g- [ Instead, 8...c6 (! - Kosten) was examined
pawn is looking at a bright future, acting as a in Naiditsch, A (2698)-Fedorchuk, S (2634)
battering-ram against the black position. d7 Belfort 2012/ [Kosten, Tony]. ]
13.e3 c6 14.0-0-0 a5 Black is ready to 9.g5 e6+ 10.e2 e7 Again the most
bring his king to safety on the queenside. u s u a l c o n t i n u a t i o n . 11.xd4!?
15.f5!! Just in time. xa2 A fresh perspective from Vachier Lagrave.
[ Maybe 15...xe5 is the best bet, although Previously this move had attracted almost
the black king finds itself stuck in the centre
zero attention at Grandmaster level.
on 16.e4 exf5 17.xf5 e.g. g6 18.f6 [ The line 11.cxd4 xg5 12.xg5
g8 19.g5 ] has been analyzed thoroughly. The current
16.fxe6 xe6 17.f4 d8 theoretical verdict favors g6 , for example
[ This loses, but there was no escape for the ( t h e o t h e r q u e e n m o v e s a r e 12...f6
king 17...0-0-0 18.h3 a2 19.d4 a3 , i.e. Aronian, L (2807) -Kramnik, V (2791)
20.bxa3! and after a few checks White will
Moscow 2011/[Nigel Davies]; and 12...e7
win. ] , as in Timman, J (2602)-Kulaots, K (2597)
18.c4 e7 19.he1 Black is already lost, Pra gu e 20 04 /[Joh n W a tson ]) 13.f4!?
he has no real defence against e6, ripping ( 13.f3 Valden, P (2204)-Stavrianakis, I
open the e-file. h5 20.g3 (2045) Athens 2004/[John Watson]) 13...0-0
[ A strong move, threatening Bg5, but 20.e6! 14.0-0 c6 ( 14...h6!? ) 15.d5 e7
fxe6 21.e4 was instantly decisive. ] 16.d2 h6 ( 16...b6+ 17.h1 f5
20...xe5 21.xd8+ xd8 22.f4 xc4 18.d3 h6 19.f3 c6 20.ab1 c5
[ What else? 22...f6 23.xe5 fxe5 24.g5 21.fe1 Grachev, B (2669) -Wojtaszek, R
wins the queen. ] (2721) Lublin 2011) 17.f3 d6 18.ad1
23.xe7 xe7 24.d3 c6 19.dxc6 xd2 20.xd2 xc6 21.e4
[ 24.d3 b6 25.d6+ e8 26.b8+ e8 22.f3 g4 23.xg4 xe4=
wins all of Black's queenside pawns. ] Grachev, B (2669)-Socko, B (2654) Lublin
1-0 2011. ]
11...d6 A novelty that doesn't have much
independent value.
746 A18 [ On a few occasions Black has played
Vachier Lagrave,M 2715 11...e5 , which transposes after 12.xe7
Ris,R 2407 xe7 . ]
Reykjavik Open 2013 (9.7) 26.02.2013 12.xe7
[John Bartholomew] [ 12.d2!? ]
12...xe7 13.0-0 0-0 14.e1
Very few players have pulled the trigger on 11. [ Craftier than 14.f3 d7 15.e1 , i.e. f6
Nxd4!? in the Mikenas Attack. Accepting ( or 15...c5 ) 16.b1 ( 16.b5!? ) 16...c6
double-isolated pawns is a big decision, but 17.e4 g6 18.d2 c5 19.c2 e6

740
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
20.xe6 fxe6 21.e3 b6 and Black was at
least equal in Pfaff, T-Racherbaeumer, M
(2270) Griesheim 1998. ]
14...f6
[ Black has tried 14...a6!? a couple times:
15.d3 ( 15.f3!? ) 15...f6 ( 15...g5
16.e3 c5 17.c2 g6 turned out fine for
Black in Kamp, C (2280)-Ivanov, S (2505)
Cologne 1994 )
A) now 16.c5!? is worth consideration, e.
g. d7 ( 16...xc5 17.xh7+ xh7
18.h5+ g8 19.xc5 ) 17.h5 g6
18.e5 xe5 19.xe5 fe8 20.xe8+
xe8 21.c6 c8 22.xa6 bxa6 23.f3;
B) 16.b1 g6 17.b5 c5
was Labok, B-Grushevsky, A Podolsk
1993. Now xf3 ( or 18...g7 ) 19.xf3
b6 would be totally fine for Black. ]
[ 14...d7N also makes sense. ]
15.f3 c6 16.e2 d7 17.ab1 c5
18.e3 f5?
[ Safer is 18...d7! when White would
probably aim for the position after 19.e5
xe5 20.xe5 d3! 21.e7 c5 22.b3
xb3 23.axb3 c8 . However, after (say)
24.be1 g6 it's difficult to find anything
convincing for White, i.e. 25.c7 a5 26.a1
d8 and Black begins to unravel. ]
19.xf5 xf5 20.h3! A powerful 'quiet'
move! Now W hite threatens 21.Bg4, and
Black doesn't have time to solidify his knight
on c5. b6?!
[ It looks better to retain the c-pawn with
20...h5!? . Then 21.e5 ( 21.d5!? )
21...xe5 22.xe5 d3
snaps a clean pawn, though converting to a
win will take some serious work, i.e. g6
24.a5 b6 25.a3 e5 26.e2 g5 . ]
21.xc6 ac8 22.d5 c7 23.bd1
Black is in for a difficult defense. e6 24.h4
[ White isn't interested in the double rook
ending after 24.xe6 xe6 25.xe6 fxe6
26.xe6 . Why hurry? ]
24...g6 25.g3 g7 26.d3! Signaling a nice
regrouping. e8 27.d2 ce7 28.f3 h3
29.ee3 h5 30.e1 f8 31.b1! g7
32.e4 The heavy artillery is now in place. f6
Black buckles under the strain, but it was hard
to blame him.
[ A g a i n s t p a s s i v e d e f e n s e l i k e 32...h7
White works his way into the position, e.g.
33.e5 g8 34.f6 h7 35.e4 g8
36.g4+- trapping the queen. ]
33.e1! Menacing Rf3-e3. It's practically
zugzwang! g4
[ Lashing out with 33...g5 loses trivially:
34.xe7+ xe7 35.xe7+ f8 36.fe3+- ]
34.xg4 hxg4 35.fe3 f7 36.f3!+- f5
37.fxg4 fxg4 38.f2 f6 39.xe6+ xe6
40.xe6+ xe6 41.xe6 xe6 42.e3
e5 Black resigned, as the pawn endgame is
easily won. I'd like to see 11.Nxd4!? get a few
more outings before passing judgment. It
appears to be a worthwhile departure from the
norm, though.
18.f3 1-0
747 A18
Valden,Petros 2204
Stavrianakis,Ioannis 2045
Acropolis IM Open (3) 18.11.2004
[John Watson]
1.c4 e6 2.c3 f6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4
5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.d4 e5 8.f3
exd4 9.g5 e6+ 10.e2 e7 11.cxd4
xg5 12.xg5 g6 This move has been
see more recently and may be replacing 12...
Qe7 as the way f or Black to maintain the
balance. 13.f3!?
[ The alternatives are: (a) 13.d2 0-0
( 13...h6 14.f3 0-0 15.0-0 h3 16.e1
f5 ) 14.0-0 h6 15.f3 h3 16.e1 f5
17.d3 transposes to the note to White's
23.xh5 16th but with ...h6 in. ]
[ (b) 13.f4!? mixe s it u p : 0-0 ( 13...f6
14.0-0 h6? 15.e4 with space and some
initiative.) 14.0-0 ( 14.h5?! f5 15.0-0
h6 )
A) 14...h6 15.f3 c5 16.d5 d6
17.d2 f5 18.h4 d7 19.b2! e8
( 19...b6? 20.e5 ) 20.f5 b5 21.f6 e5
22.xe5 xe5 23.ae1 a6 ( 23...e4
24.f3 bxc4 25.d2 ) 24.f3 followed by
fxg7 with better prospects;
B) 14...c6 15.d5 ( better was 15.d3
f5 16.xf5 xf5 17.d5 e7 18.b3
b6 19.ae1 g6 20.e3! ) 15...e7
16.h1 #0 Mulyar-A Gorlin, Saint Paul
2000, and f5! would have evened the
play;
741
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
C) 14...f5 15.g4 c2 16.d2 h6
17.ac1 hxg5 ( 17...a4 18.d3 d6
19.f3 c5 20.d5 favours White with his
space advantage.) 18.xc2 gxf4 19.b2
with the initiative after b6 20.f3
21.xf4 Perhaps 13.f4 is best it definitely
should be considered by those seeking
double-edged play. ]
13...0-0 14.0-0
[ 14.d2?! e8 ( 14...xg2 15.g1 h3
16.xg7+ xg7 17.g5+ draws ) 15.0-0
h3 is better for Black than the game. ]
14...h3 15.e1 f5 16.f3?!
[ 16.d3! is the only way to play for a very
slight advantage. At least White retains the
center pawns. Instead, ]
[ 16.f3!? c6 gives Black the more
aggressive pieces and instant equality. ]
16...e4!?
[ The theoretical discussion ends with Black
playing for the advantage. 16...h3 17.e1
f5= ]
17.e1 c6 18.h4 f6 19.f3 xf3
20.xf3 fe8!
[ 20...ad8 21.d5 a5 22.a4
23.ad1 and White stands better. ]
21.d2
[ 21.a4!? ]
21...b6 22.ad1 h6 23.d5 e5 24.xe5
xe5 25.xe5 xe5 26.e1 d6 27.g3
[ White should probably settle upon the
s i m p l i f y i n g 27.e3 c6 28.e7 xe7
29.xe7 cxd5 30.cxd5 d8= ]
27...d8 28.e3 b4?! Too fancy. Simply
[ 28...c6 was at least equal, for example,
29.dxc6 xc6 30.e7 d7 31.e8+
h7 ]
29.e7 xe7 30.xe7 c8 31.e3 f8
32.c5?!
[ 32.g2 e8 33.f3= ]
32...d8
[ 32...bxc5 33.c3 ]
33.cxb6 axb6 34.c3 d7 35.d6?
[ Further compromising his position. Instead,
35.c6 e7 36.d6+ cxd6 37.xb6 d5
38.f1 would have left Black only somewhat
better. ]
35...c5! 36.a3
[ 36.d3 f5 37.g2 f7 38.f3 e6
and Black is winning. ]
36...xd6 37.a7 e8 38.b7 g6
[ 38...c4! 39.c7 b5 40.a4 bxa4 41.xc4
a6 ]
39.f1 e6 Cutting off the king. In the rest of
the game Black's passed pawn is decisive.
c6 40.h4 f5 41.a4 d8 42.a5 bxa5 43.a7
a4 44.xa4 c7 45.h5 gxh5 46.f4 e5
47.h4 d6 48.xh5 c4 49.xh6+ d5
50.h8 c3 51.c8 d4 52.f3 d3
53.d8+ e3 54.c8 d2 55.d8+ c1
56.g4 f4 57.d4 c2 58.xf4 c5 59.e4
d2 60.e2+ d3 61.e1 b5 62.f2
b1 63.e8 c1 64.d8+ c4 65.c8+
d5 66.xc1 xc1 67.g3 e5 68.f4+
e4 69.f5 e5 70.h4 f6
0-1
748 A18
Watson,John L
Miller,Ike S
Park G/60 Baena 1995
[John Watson]
I've managed to sneak in one of my own
b6 efforts for the edification of the readership (or
for my own egotistical reasons). It is quite
relevant for the assessment of Black's most
solid line. In the notes, a very recent game
between two lower-rated players illustrates
so m e o t h e r t h e m e s . B l a c k is f a c e d wit h
co n sid e ra b le d an ge rs an d mu st d e ve lo p
quickly. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5
d4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6 7.f3 c5
8.d4 h6 9.d3
[ P Petrovic-Marinkov, Belgrade 2005 went
9.b1!? c6 10.e2!? ( An unclear but
dangerous gambit would be 10.d3 cxd4
11.cxd4 xd4 12.xd4 xd4 13.0-0 )
10...g6?! ( 10...d6! 11.0-0 0-0
is p ro b a bly e qu a l - co m p a re m y ga m e)
11.e3
A) Horribly slow. 11...Be7 was a bit better.
But the only way to justify 10...Qg6 is to
grab the pawn. Unfortunately, 11...xg2
12.g1 h3 13.a4! looks very
dangerous: ( 13.d5?! d8 14.f4 d7;
13.g3 f5 14.d3 f6 15.e4 d6 )
13...cxd4 ( 13...d7 14.xb7 ) 14.cxd4
f5 15.b5 e4 16.d2! h4 17.f3!
( 17.g4 xh2 18.d5!?; 17.f3 e4
is a draw ) 17...d8 18.d5 e5 19.xb7+
742
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

d7 20.a6 c8! 21.h1! exd5 18...a5 19.dxc5 d7 20.h7!?

22.xd5 d3+ 23.f1 b4 24.a5 [ 20.cd1! a4 21.d4 e5 22.d6 xc4
xd5 25.xd5 and Black still has 23.xb7 was much easier ]
problems to solve; 20...fd8 21.f6+ g7 22.xd7 xd7
B) 11...b6? 12.0-0 f6 13.e1 e7?! 23.b1 c7 24.b5 xc4 25.xb7
14.d5 ( 14.e5! xe5 15.dxe5 xe5 [ 25.fb1 ]
16.f3 b8 17.d4! d6 18.e5 xd1 25...b8 26.c6 d6 27.b3 with a winning
19.bxd1 wins ) 14...b8 15.d2!? advantage. White went on to win a tough rook-
( 15.d6! f8 16.d4! cxd4 17.xd4 and-pawn ending.
and wins ) 15...0-0 16.d6 xd6 17.e4 1-0
xh2+ 18.xh2 h4+ 19.g1 b7
20.d2 d8 21.f3 xf3 22.xf3
and wins. Still, 9. Rb1 Nc6 10.Be2 Bd6 749 A18
makes this move order look a bit slow. ] Zontakh,Andrey 2545
9...d6 Poobesh Anand,S 2413
[ 9...c6 10.0-0 ( 10.e4 is less risky and Open Moscow RUS (9) 06.02.2006
keeps an edge.) 10...cxd4 11.cxd4 xd4 [John Watson]
12.xd4 xd4 13.b1 is the line we saw
above-W hite has a dangerous attack Our customary Mikenas line. In the main
( 13.b3!? d6 14.b2 c5 ) 13...c5 game W hite may have to play a bit more
14.e3 c7 15.d4 ] ambitiously in the opening in order to get
[ 9...cxd4 10.cxd4 b4+ and now 11.Bd2 is anything substantial. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6
good, but 11.f1! introduces a fun attack 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4 5.exf6 dxc3 6.bxc3 xf6
that seems to win every time. ] 7.f3 e5 8.d4 exd4 9.g5 e6+ 10.e2
10.0-0 0-0 11.e2 c6!? 12.g4! h6 11.xd4
I've actually tried this idea in a couple of [ 11.h4! is White's best chance, when g5
positions. Needless to say it's all or nothing. ( 11...e7 12.xe7 xe7 13.cxd4 )
First, White wants to play Qe4. 12.xd4 ( 12.g3 dxc3 ) 12...d7 13.g3
[ The immediate 12.e4 achieves nothing g7 14.0-0 0-0 15.c2 leaves Black with
after f5! ] more weaknesses and W hite with more
12...g5!? activity than in the main game. ]
[ Not 12...f4?? 13.e4 ] 11...d7 12.e3!? Objectively fine.
[ The most important move is 12...e5 13.g5 [ 12.h4 is more active it can lead to the odd
A) 13...e6 14.d5 g4+ ( 14...h3 line c5?! ( 12...e7! ) 13.e6!? fxe6
15.dxc6 g4 16.e4 ) 15.h1 e7 ( 13...xe6 14.d8# ) 14.h5+ f8
16.gxh6 g6 17.g1 h5 18.g5 h3 15.f3+ g8 16.d1 d6 17.c5
19.xe5; with advantage. ]
B) 13...hxg5 14.xg5 e6 15.d5 g4+ 12...c5 13.0-0 Possessing better
16.h1 d8 ( 16...f6 17.g1 h5 development and space, White safely retains
18.dxc6 fxg5 19.e4! ) 17.g1 h5 a small advantage but his pawn structure
18.f6! g4 ( 18...g6 19.g5 h3 makes it difficult to create anything.
20.ag1 ) 19.h4! ( or 19.xg4 xg4 [ 13.b5!? was interesting but not
20.g1 xg1+ 21.xg1 ) 19...xh4 c o n v i n c i n g : xe3 ( 13...e7 14.xc5
20.e4 f3+ 21.xf3 xh2+ 22.xh2 xc5 15.d4! ) 14.xd7+ xd7!
e4+ 23.h1 and mate follows ] ( 14...xd7 15.d1+ c6 16.fxe3
13.h4 f4 with some initiative.) 15.xc7+ d8
[ 13...gxh4 14.g5 g7 15.h1 hxg5 16.xa8 c5 17.0-0 c8 18.f3
16.xg5 with a winning game. ] ( 18.ad1 b6 19.f3 c6 20.d3 b7 )
14.e4 g6 15.hxg5 xe4 16.xe4+- 18...c6 19.g4+ d7 20.f3 c6= ]
xc1 17.axc1 hxg5 18.xg5 13...0-0 14.f3 This is a familiar position from
[ 18.g2!? intending Rh1 was an option. ] similar positions except that Black's queen

743
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
isn't normally on d7. Perhaps W hite could
attack it, e.g.,
[ 14.c2 a6 15.ad1 c6!? ( 15...e7 )
16.fe1 d6 17.b3 e7 18.d4 ]
14...a6 15.e1 c6 16.d2 c7 17.ad1
[ or 17.f4 d6 18.xd6 xd6 19.ab1 ]
17...d6 18.g3 e5 19.h4 h3 20.h2
d7 Black doesn't seem to have a good spot
for this bishop. 21.b5! cxb5 22.xd7
bxc4!?
[ White stills holds a small advantage after
22...bxc4 23.xc7 xc7 24.b1 ]
½-½
750 A19
Bacrot,Etienne 2653
Dorfman,Josif D 2602
ch-Gp B Marsailles FRA (2) 14.08.2001
[Tony Kosten]
A key point in Etienne's third consecutive
French title, was this fine victory against his
former trainer. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 c5
4.e5 g8 5.f3 c6 6.d4 cxd4 7.xd4
xe5 8.db5 a6 9.d6+ xd6 10.xd6
f6 11.e3 e7 12.b6 f5 13.c5 e7
[ We have already looked at the alternative
13...d6 in Hodgson,J - Barsov,A. ]
14.xe7+
[ The endgame is a good choice, but if White
w a n t s t o a v o i d t h i s t h e n 14.a5
is a reasonable alternative. ]
14...xe7 15.f4 g6 16.g3 d6 17.h3!
[ Why did no-one play this move before?
Previously, 17.d3 had been preferred, e.g.
h6 (to avoid the capture on f5) ( 17...d7
18.0-0-0 ac8 19.he1 f7 20.xf5 exf5
21.xd6 c6 22.b4 with some advantage,
Thorsteins,K-Luther,T/Borsodtavho 1991.)
18.0-0 d7 19.fe1 c6 20.b4
Ribli,Z-Luther,T/Altensteig 1992. ]
17...d7 Now, with the bishop on h3, moving
the f5-knight from f5 would expose the e6-
pawn. 18.0-0-0 c6
[ As the white bishop is not on d3 here, and
t h e c 4 - p a w n u n p r o t e c t e d , 18...ac8!?
was worth consideration, but 19.he1 e5
20.c5 and Black's centre is buckling under
the pressure. ]
19.he1 The other advantage of Bacrot's
novelty is that both of the central files are
unencumbered, the white rooks come
immediately to pressure the e- and d- pawns.
f7 20.d5!
[ 20.xf5 exf5 21.xd6 is similar to the
Thorsteins game, and certainly good for
White, but Bacrot wants more. ]
20...exd5
[ Black must capture, Nc7 was the threat,
f o r k i n g a 8 a n d e 6 , a n d e v e n 20...ae8
doesn't stop this: 21.c7 e7 22.xe6
xe6 23.xf5 and after regaining his pawn
t h e t wo wh i t e b i s h o p s wi l l o f f e r W h i t e
every chance of taking a whole point. ]
21.xf5 f8
[ Black must cover the e6-square, if
21...dxc4?! 22.e6+ f8 23.c7
with powerful threats. ]
22.c5!?
[ An interesting idea, the simple 22.cxd5
d7 23.c2 (keeping both bishops)
maintains a sure advantage. ]
22...dxc5?
[ This allows White's rook to the seventh.
22...d7 must be an improvement, 23.c2
dxc5 24.xc5 e6 offers real defensive
possibilities. ]
23.xc5 Menacing Re7+. h5
[ 23...e8 24.xe8 xe8 25.e1+ f7
( 25...d8?? allows a neat mate: 26.b6# )
26.e7+ g8 locks the black pieces in a
box. ]
24.e7+ g8 25.de1 h6 26.c7 g6
Else White doubles his rooks on the seventh.
27.h4! Killing any hopes of counterplay. Black
is bound hand-and-foot, his extra pawn is an
irrelevance. a5 28.c8 a4 29.d2 h8
30.f5 h6 31.a3 d8 32.c3 h8
33.b6 a8 34.c8 g8 35.d4
[ White has prevaricated, but he knows that
t h e r e i s n o t h i n g B l a c k c a n d o . 35.xb7
is convincing enough. ]
35...h8?! 36.e6+ h7 37.xf6 he8
38.xg7+ h6 39.c7
[ Good enough, Bg5 mate is a powerful
t h re a t , t h o u g h 39.f5! forces mate more
quickly. ]
1-0
744
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
751 A19
Bareev,Evgeny 2655
L'Ami,Erwin 2610
3rd NH Amsterdam NED (1) 20.08.2008
[Carsten Hansen]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 c5 4.e5 g8
5.f3 c6 6.d4 cxd4 7.xd4 xe5
8.db5 a6 9.d6+ xd6 10.xd6 f6
11.e3 e7 12.b6 f5 13.xd8
[ 13.c5 is considered the critical move and
the subject of L'Ami-W ells from this
month's update. The game continuation is
almost never played anymore, but as can be
seen in the analysis given below, there is
plenty of fertile ground for discoveries on
both sides. ]
13...xd6 14.c7 e7 15.c5 e8 16.b6
[ 16.a5!? is a suggestion of John Watson's
from his 1979 book. The idea is that after d5
17.cxd6+ xd6 18.b4 the bishop is better
placed on b4 than it is on c5 in the note
after W hite's 18th move. It isn't entirely
clear that it is so, but it is certainly worth a
try. ]
16...d5 17.cxd6+ xd6 18.0-0-0
[ 18.c5!? is likely more critical, even if the
theory claims Black to be at least okay.
A) 18...b5 was tried in one of the most
recent games involving a grandmaster, but
W hite should be able to claim an
advantage after this move:
A1) 19.a4 is less convincing, e.g. bxa4
20.xa4 ( 20.f4 ef7 21.xa4
is a better try) 20...b7 21.b6 ad8
22.f4 d7 23.xd6+ xd6 24.xa6
xa6 25.xa6 c5 26.a3 c6 18...ef7
, and Black has a strong initiative in the
endgame, Schneider, B-Huebner, R/
Solingen 1986;
A2) 19.f4 ef7 20.d3 b7 21.0-0
ac8 22.b4 , and White has established
an unpleasant pressure.;
B) 18...ef7 19.d1
B1) 19...d8 is the line given in ECO,
but is likely not the most critical line:
B1a) 20.h4 d7 21.h3 ac8
22.b4 c6 23.g3 g6 24.e3 e5
( or 24...b5 25.a4 e5 26.axb5 axb5
27.xb5 e6= Salov, V-Siegel, G/
G r o n i n g e n 1 9 8 1) 25.c4 a4
26.d5+ f8 27.b3 xb3 28.xb3
g7 29.a5 e8 30.c7 e7
with a draw, Osnos, V-Salov, V/
Leningrad 1980;
B1b) 20.d3!? f5 21.0-0 f6 22.f4
b5 23.d4+ e7 24.xg7 e8
25.e5 xe5 26.fxe5 b7 27.f4
, and White has the initiative, Hoelzl,
F-Gruenfeld, Y/Biel 1980;
B2) 19...b5!? 20.h4 ( 20.d3!? b7
21.0-0 ac8 22.b4 provides White with
a long-term initiative) 20...b7 21.h3
ac8 22.a3 hd8 23.g3 g6
24.gd3 e5 25.f4 e4?! ( Black could
safely pick-up the pawn, e.g. 25...exf4
26.b4 g5 27.a5 d7 ) 26.d4 e6
27.g4 , and White has some
co m p e n sa t io n f o r t h e p a wn , G a rc ia
Gonzales, G-Browne, W /Banja Luka
1979;
C) 18...b6!? 19.xb6
C1) 19...f5 20.0-0-0 b7 21.c5+
e8 22.f3 is better for White, Kaiszauri,
K-Botterill, G/London 1980;
C2) 19...b7 20.c5 ( 20.d4!?
is quite possibly an improvement White
threatens to exchange on e5 and if Black
retreats the knight to f7, White has time
to complete his development and claim
an edge thanks to the pair of bishops.)
20...ac8 21.a3 hd8 22.0-0-0 ef7
23.e2 e8 24.he1 Uhlmann, W-
Kurajica, B /Sarajevo 1980;
C3) 19...d7 20.e3 b7 21.f3 hc8
22.d1 Garcia Gonzales, G-Morales, H/
Bayamo 1980 ]
[ This is another important juncture. Black
has several moves available: A) 18...d7
is fairly straightforward
A) 19.f4!? is a noteworthy alternative, e.
g. ef7 ( 19...ec4! is the right answer,
forcing the game into an even endgame:
20.xc4 xc4 21.c5+ e8 22.d4
c8 23.xc4 b5 24.xb5 axb5
25.c2= ) 20.d3 c6 21.d2 ac8
22.b1 g6 23.e1 he8 24.c2
Hellbing, B-Albert, V/IECG Email 2001;
B) 19.c5 ef7 20.e4 ac8
( 20...hc8 can of course also be
conside red : 21.b1 c6 22.a3 e5
745
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
23.d3 , Richards, B-Domanski, R/corr
1991, and now e8 24.xd6+ xd6
25.xh7 f5+ 26.xf5 xf5
is comfortable for Black.) 21.b1 c6
22.a3!? ( 22.e2 e5 23.a3 f5
24.d3 d8 is given as equal several
places, quoting the game, Miles, A-Karpov,
A / L o n d o n 1 9 7 7 , b u t t h is m u st p a rt l y
have something to do with the outcome of
the game, which was a draw. At this point
of the game, however, only Black can be
better. ) 22...hc8 23.e2 e5 , Tolhuizen,
L-Kerkmeester, H/Eindhoven 1983, and
now White should continue with 24.f3!?
f5 25.a1 b6 26.xd6 xd6
27.xd6 xd6 28.xb7 c4 29.xa6
cd4 30.e1 d7 31.xd6 xd6 32.b3 19.c5
, and W hite has excellent winning
chances. ]
[ B) 18...ec4!?
A) 19.d4!? is possibly White's best, e.g.
A1) 19...d8!? 20.xc4 ( 20.f4!? b6
21.d3 intending b2-b3 looks better for
White ) 20...xc4 21.b3 e5 22.xe5
xd1+ 23.xd1 fxe5= Melson, G-Mielke,
K/corr 1986;
A2) 19...b6 20.b3 e5 21.xb6 b7
22.c5 Huebner, R-Gruenfeld, Y/
Luzern 1982;
B) 19.xc4 xc4 20.c5+ f7
B1) 21.d4 b5 22.b3 e5 ( 22...a5!?
23.hd1 e5 24.d6 , and here Ftacnik
claims that White has compensation for
t h e p a wn , b u t t h i s i sn 't p a r t i c u la rl y
convincing after b7 25.c6 xc5
26.xc5 g4 27.c7+ g6 28.f3
hc8 with a solid extra pawn for Black.)
23.d5 a5 24.b6 b7 ( 24...c6
25.d6 e7 26.hd1 b7 27.g3
is unc lea r accord in g t o Fta cnik, bu t
again this seems unconvincing on
account of hc8 28.b2 b4 29.a4
c6 30.c5 ab8 31.a7 b5
, and Black has an extra pawn and is
b e t t e r c o o r d i n a t e d .) 25.hd1
Here a draw was agreed upon in Miles,
A - H u e b n e r , R / T i l b u r g 1 9 7 7 e8
26.b2 e6 27.5d2 ac8 28.e4 19...b5 20.a4
c6 29.d6+ xd6 , and in this
position a draw was agreed upon, 1/2-1/
2, Jund, C-De Backer, P/corr 1994;
B2) 21.b3 b6 22.d4 ( 22.d4 e5
23.bxc4 exd4 24.xd4 e6 25.d6
xc4 26.xb6 hc8 leaves Black with
the initiative in the endgame, Hellbing, B-
V a n B o m m e l , T / I E C G E m a i l 2 0 0 1)
22...bxc5 23.xc4 b7 24.f3 ac8
25.d1 c6 26.a4 e7 27.b2 b7
28.a5 h5 29.a4 h4 30.xc5 d5
, a n d B l a c k i s b y n o m e a n s wo r s e ,
Quinteros, M-Abramson, H/Buenos Aires
1978 ]
[ C) 18...d7 19.a5 b6 20.b4 c5
21.a4 xa4 22.xd6 a5 23.a3 d8
24.xd8+ xd8 25.f8 d7 26.xg7 e7
27.h6 c8+= Huebner, R-Wockenfuss, K/
Germany 1981 ]
[ The pin on the d6-knight is a common
theme in this variation. White, however, has
several alternatives available: A) 19.e2
d7 20.d2 hc8 21.hd1 a4 22.e1
e4 23.d4 c6 24.d3 f5 25.xe4
xe4 26.f3 c6 27.d2 , Quinteros, M-
S o f r e v s k i , J / S t i p 1 9 7 7 , a n d n o w e5
would have left Black with the better
chances. ]
[ B) 19.g3 d7 20.h3 hc8 21.he1
A) 21...f5 is a suggestion of John
W a t so n ' s f ro m 1 9 7 9 b o o k, b u t W h it e
ap p e a rs t o b e do in g f in e a f t e r 22.b1
c6 23.f4;
B) 21...g5! on the other hand, is quite
uncomfortable for White, e.g. 22.g4 ( or
22.g2 c6 , and Black is gaining
control ) 22...f5 23.e2 ge4
, White clearly has insufficient
compensation for the pawn.;
C) 21...e5?! 22.g2 c6 23.h3 d7
24.g2 c6 25.h3 , and a draw was
agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, Miles, A-
Polugaevsky, L/Reykjavik 1978. ]
[ C) 19.d3 d7 20.he1 ac8 21.f4 a4
22.d2 c6? ( Black should opt for 22...c4
23.de2 d7 24.f2 fd6 ) 23.b1 b5
24.xb5 xb6 25.c7+- , and White is
close to winning, Melson, G-Kutscheid, H/
corr BdF 1986 ]
[ The text move is the most forcing
continuation. An interesting alternative is
20.d3 in order to activate the h-rook and
746
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
put pressure on Black's entire position, for
instance b7 21.he1 ac8 22.b4 e5
23.f4 g6 24.g4?! ( This looks normal, but
W hite can do better with 24.fxe5 fxe5
25.e4 xe4 26.xe4 xc5+ 27.bxc5
xe4 28.xe4 c8 29.e2 xc5+
30.c2 , and White has the slightly better
chances in the endgame.) 24...hd8 25.g5
e6 26.f1 fxg5 27.fxe5 f5 Uhlmann,
W-Csom, I/Berlin East 1979 ]
20...b7
[ This is more accurate than the alternatives:
A) 20...bxa4 21.c4 d8 22.he1 d7
23.d5+ De Kok, W-Brkusanin, D/Bela
Crkva 1983 ]
[ B) 20...d7 21.axb5?! ( 21.b4!?
is better, e.g. hc8 22.e4 c6 23.e2
ac8 24.axb5 axb5 25.b2 e5 26.f4
gives W hite some initiative) 21...axb5
22.b1 hc8 23.b4 c6 Lehto, V-
Tolonen, L/Finland 1998 ]
21.axb5 axb5 22.xb5
[ The text move invites Black to liquidate into
a complicated endgame with three minor
pieces against two rooks that can be difficult
t o e v a l u a t e . T h e a l t e r n a t i v e 22.b1
, and now hb8 23.f3 c6 24.b4 a7
25.e2 gives White full compensation for
the pawn and should therefore is a
perfectly playable alternative. ]
22...hc8 23.b4 a3
[ B l a c k c a n a l s o o p t f o r 23...xg2
which after 24.hg1 a1+ 25.b2 xd1
26.xd1 g5 gives Black a position, where it
is doubtful that W hite can claim full
compensation for the sacrificed pawn. ]
24.b2 xc3 25.xc3 xc5+ 26.bxc5
xb5+ 27.b4 c7 28.f3 d5 29.a5?!
[ This looks like the logical move, trying to
break through on the queenside with the
king, but the progress is soon halted.
I n s t e a d W h it e sh o u l d lik e l y h a ve t r ie d
29.a1!? , e.g. e5 30.hd1 c6+
31.c3 b5+ 32.d3 , and White can
continue his efforts to breakthrough on the
queenside. However, Black's position is
difficult to crack provided Black keeps his
minor pieces protecting each other and
managing the white c-pawn. ]
29...e5 30.b6
[ 30.b1!? d3 31.b6 a8+ 32.a7
c7 leads to a draw without any further ado
a n d t h e re f o r e is b e t t e r t h a n t h e g a m e
continuation. ]
30...d7 31.d4 a8+
[ Black heads for a draw. He can consider
31...c4+!? 32.xc4 xc4 , but endgames
o f t h i s t yp e a re n o t o ri o u sl y d i f f ic u l t t o
evaluate because the knight and bishop
work quite poorly together. Nevertheless, I
think Black can play for a win in this
position. ]
32.b5 c7+ 33.b6 a8+
½-½
752 A19
Cramling,Dan
Bergstrom,Christer
opJ Hallsberg (7) 1975
[Tony Kosten]
Concerning the Mikenas Attack, Jeffrey Reep
asks: "I do not understand at all why 10 ...f6 is
played." So in this game I decided to have a
look at the alternatives. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6
3.e4 c5 4.e5 g8 5.f3 c6 6.d4 cxd4
7.xd4 xe5 8.db5 a6 9.d6+ xd6
10.xd6 g6!? The knight retreats from its
central square, but its new placement is not
particularly good - where will it go next?
[ 10...c6 is the other possibility: 11.e3
( 11.g3!? f6 12.xg7 g8 13.h6
regains the pawn, but after d4 Black has
go o d co un t e rp la y) 11...ge7 12.d3
(to stop ...Nf5) 0-0 Jahnke,K-Eckhardt,C/
Germany 1996, and now 13.0-0 looks best,
when b6 14.e4 leaves Black in a terrible
bind, while White can play Rad1 to eye the
backward d7-pawn. ]
[ 10...f6! is best, keeping the knight in the
centre, and preparing a later retreat on f7
which will control the d6-square. ]
11.e3
[ 11.c5 also has its points, stopping ...b6 and
...d6, and if Black can't play either of these
he won't be able to develop his queenside,
which may prove to be a handicap! Still,
Black has a resource: 8e7 12.d3 h4!?
planning ...Nf5 to regain some control over
d6. ]
11...e7
747
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 11...8e7!? m a y b e b e t t e r , 12.b6
giving up a pawn as he does after 5...Nc6 6.d4,
( 12.d3 Berg,D-Rosen,W/Germany 1990
but Black develops relatively smoothly.
should also be met by h4! to f5. ) 12...f5 [ T h e m a i n l i n e i s 5...c6 , as seen in
( e l s e t h e q u e e n i s l o s t ! ) 13.b4!?
Machalik-Petrik. ]
( 13.xd8! xd6 14.b6 is rather good for 6.exd6
White, as he will follow-up with c5 and the [ 6.d4!? hasn't been tried, as far as I can see,
b l a c k q u e e n s i d e wi ll b e ' p u t t o s le e p ')
but HiArcs suggests the line.
13...e7 14.c5 0-0?! ( 14...d5 was surely A) 6...dxe5?! 7.dxe5 ( maybe 7.d5!?
forced 15.cxd6 xd6 16.xd6 xd6 There are some interesting ideas here)
17.0-0-0 f5 with reasonable chances) 7...xd1+ 8.xd1 c6 ( 8...d7 9.d3
15.e4?! ( 15.0-0-0!? c6 10.e2 d7 11.e4!? ) 9.d3 ( or
t o c o n t r o l d 6)
15...e5? ( 15...f4! to get to d5,) 16.d1 9.b5 ) 9...b4 10.e4 f5 11.exf6 xf6
c6 17.c3 e5 18.d6 (end of game!) 12.a3 xe4 13.xe4 d3 14.c2
fd4 19.c4 h8 20.0-0 e6 21.fe1 xc1 15.axc1 The two knights look quite
Black can never move his queenside and a bit better than the two bishops with the
might as well resign, Rotzinger, M-Kuepferle, isolated pawn, especially when you factor
E/Germany 1993. ] in development.;
12.b6!? Planning Bc5. B) 6...cxd4 7.xd4 ( 7.g5? f6 8.exf6
[ 12.e4! gxf6 9.xd4 fxg5 10.h5+ d7 11.d1
ke ep s a ho ld o n d6 , e. g. f5
13.xe7+ xe7 14.c5+ d8 15.d6 f6 ) 7...c6 8.e3 , supposedly with a
h6 16.b6+ e7 17.0-0-0 f7 18.c5 small edge, although ge7 9.d3 g6
and on ce again t he black quee nside is 10.exd6 xd6 11.0-0 0-0 isn't much. ]
'dead'. ] 6...xd6
12...d6? A bad, if understandable, move. [ 6...c6 7.d4 cxd4 8.xd4 xd6
[ 12...d8 13.b4?! I don't know why White is another approach, which doesn't seem
players refuse these endgames, ( 13.xd8+ very good:
xd8 14.b6+ e7 15.0-0-0 f6 16.c5 A) 9.e3 has been played f6 10.e2
looks good) 13...8e7 14.d3 0-0 15.d1 d7 11.0-0 b8?! 12.c5! e7
e5 16.e2 ( 16.c5!? ) 16...5c6 17.b3 ( 12...xc5?? 13.xc6+- ) 13.b4! xb4
f5 18.b6 f6 19.a4? d5 and Black ( 13...a6 14.b3 0-0 15.fd1 ) 14.b1
has escaped from the dark-squared bind, a5 ( 14...bd5?! 15.xd5 xd5 16.c6;
Tassi,O-Adianto,U/Dortmund 1980. ] 14...c6 15.a6! b6 16.cxb6 axb6
13.e4 This attack on d6 just wins. d7 17.xc6 xc6 18.xb6 xb6 19.xb6
14.xd6+ f8 15.c5 8e7 16.0-0-0 f6 xa6 20.d4 ) 15.a3 c6 16.f3 c7
[ 16...f5 might last a few extra moves. ] 17.cb5 with a very strong attack, Adorjan-
17.e4 c6 18.xc6 Larsen, Riga (izt) 1979.;
[ 18.xc6 bxc6 19.d8+ f7 20.d6# ] B) 9.xc6 (I think that this is best my
1-0 a n a l y s i s f o l l o w s ) xc6 10.e2!
with the idea xg2 ( 10...f6 11.0-0 )
11.f3 h3 ( 11...g6? 12.b5+- b4+
753 A19 13.d2 xd2+ 14.xd2 ) 12.b5 b4+
Flores,Diego 2514 13.e2 e7 14.c7 b8 15.a4 ]
Garcia 2228 7.d4 cxd4 8.xd4
XXIV Andorra Open (1) 08.07.2006 [ 8.xd4 a6 has worked out well for Black,
[John Watson] but our game Tsarouhas-Vouldis featured a
promising innovation with 9.Nb3!. See that
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 c5 4.e5 g8 contest. Otherwise, play has gone
5.f3 d6!? This move may be A) 9.e2 f6 10.0-0 0-0 11.g5 h6
underestimated. I've merged in the major 12.h4 c7! 13.xf6 gxf6 14.f3
games with it over many years, and White has ( 14.e4 e7! /\\ f5=/+ ) 14...d8=
found nothing special against it. White isn't Ermenkov-Kolev, Bulgaria 1992 (notes in

748
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Informant).; h5 11.f3 f5 should appeal to King's

B) 9.e3 f6 10.f3!? ( 10.e2 0-0= ) Indian players as White is several tempi up
10...0-0 11.0-0-0?! bd7! ( 11...c7 on a typical KI position here, Stjazhkina,O-
12.g4 ) 12.b1 ( 12.xe6 fxe6 13.xd6 Brodsky, M/St Petersburg RUS 2000. ]
e8! with a double attack, although [ 6.exd5 plans capturing on d5 with a piece
14.d1 xd6 15.xd6 f6 16.xd8 instead of a pawn, the Williams,S-Emms,J
xd8 17.f3 is still complex) 12...c7 g a m e f r o m H a s t i n g s 1 9 9 5 w e n t exd5
13.h3 e5 14.e2 d7 15.b3?! 7.xd5 xd5 8.xd5 ( 8.cxd5 transposes
( 15.g5= ) 15...g6 16.f3!? e5 17.f2 t o t h e m a i n ga m e) 8...f5!? instead,
xc3 18.b6 c8! 19.bxc3 e5 ( 8...b4 9.e4 d3+ 10.xd3 xd3
Korchnoi-Vladimi orchnoi-Vladimi 11.e2+ xe2+ 12.xe2 g4
orc h no i-Vla d im irov, Sa la ma n ca 1 9 9 1 again Black has sufficient compensation for
Black went on to win. (notes by the pawn, Rumiancev,G-Cherniak,L/ Odessa
Vladimirov). ] 1991. ) 9.f3 e7+ ( 9...b4!? 10.0-0
8...f6 xd5 11.cxd5 xd5 12.e1+ e7 13.d4
[ 8...e5!? 9.e3 ( 9.d3 c6 10.e3 ) g4 14.e2 0-0 15.xe7 xf3
9...f6!= ( S a l o v ) b u t 10.c5 ( 10.xe5? looks mighty dangerous for White) 10.f1
0-0 ) 10...c7 11.b5+ d7 12.0-0 xb5 h3+ 11.g1 0-0-0 12.d4 which was
13.xb5 should favour White slightly, I unclear ]
think. ] 6...exd5 7.xd5 xd5 8.exd5 b4 9.a3!?
9.g5 c6 10.h4 e7 11.d1 a5 [ 9.d3 e7 10.e2 xd5 is obviously very
12.e2 pleasant for Black, Paehtz,T-Vogt,L/Plauen
[ 12.d2 (Salov) this doesn't look 1980. ]
impressive. ] 9...d3+ 10.f1 e7!? A sensible novelty,
12...0-0 13.0-0 h6 14.d2 f5 15.f4 [ 10...f5?! allows the neat tactic 11.e4!
xf4?! xc1 ( 11...xe4?? 12.a4+ d7
[ 15...e5! improves. ] 13.xe4+ wins! ) 12.xf5 xd5 13.a4+
16.xf4 b6 17.b5 b7 18.d6 xd6 e7
19.xd6 fd8 20.fd1 xd6 21.xd6 f8 A) 14.h4+! f6 15.f4 is almost winning:
22.e5 xe5 23.xe5 White has a big d3 ( 15...xh1?? 16.c7+ e8
advantage due to his bishop pair. But Black 17.d7# ) 16.c7+ e8 17.xd3 xd3+
had improvements and I doubt that W hite 18.g2;
stands more than slightly better. B) 14.f4? b3 15.e1+ d8
1-0 wh i c h i s wi l d , B r o c h e t , P - R o t s t e i n , A /
Montpellier - Masters. ]
11.b3?!
754 A19 [ 11.e4 xc1 12.xc1 f5 13.f3
Hertneck,Gerald 2525 is stronger. ]
Zeller,Frank 2440 11...f5! Black is not afraid of sacrificing
BL2-S9798 Germany 1997 pawns! 12.g4? This allows Black to
[Tony Kosten] demonstrate his tactical ability. c4! 13.xb7
[ 13.xc4? b6 14.h3 c8 wins. ]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 c5 3.g3 e6 4.e4!? 13...b8 14.xa7 Now White has 3 extra
[ 4.f3 is the best move here. ] p a w n s , b u t t h e e n d g a m e i s f a r o f f . c5
4...c6 5.g2 d5! It is difficult to even really 15.a4+ d7 16.xc4 h4 The triple
call this a sacrifice, as Black will get so much at ta ck o n f 2 brings t h e gam e t o a c los e .
play. 6.cxd5 17.e4+ There is nothing better:
[ 6.d3 is the solid choice, d4!? ( 6...dxc4 [ 17.h3 b5 18.e4+ d8 and ]
7.dxc4 xd1+ 8.xd1 led to a quick draw [ 17.e2 b5 18.xb5+ xb5 19.xd3
i n S m y s l o v , V - B a l a s h o v , Y / L v o v 1 9 7 8) xg4 are both hopeless. ]
7.ce2 e5 8.h3 d6 9.f4 exf4 10.gxf4 17...d8 18.f3 e8

749
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ after 18...e8 19.e2 xg4 mate follows compensation. ]

in 3 moves. ] 19.e2 e3 20.d2 3d5 21.xd5 xd5
0-1 22.b1 xf4
[ B l a c k g r a b s a n o t h e r p a w n , 22...dxc5
23.xc5 b6 was another possibility. ]
755 A19 23.f3 d5 24.hd1 Threatening g3, and
Hodgson,Julian M 2640 when the knight moves, Rxd5! . b5 25.e3
Barsov,Alexei 2534 g6 26.xd5!! Now is the time to strike,
2nd Viking York ENG (5) 17.12.2000 before Black can bring his remaining pieces
[Tony Kosten] into play, and organise his defences. exd5
27.xd5+ f8 28.c6 Threatening Bc5+, the
1.c4 e6 2.c3 f6 3.e4 c5 4.e5 g8 black king is terribly exposed. e5! 29.cxb7
5.f3 c6 6.d4 cxd4 7.xd4 xe5 xb7 30.xb7 b8 31.a4!
8.db5 Black has grabbed the e-pawn, but [ This resource had to be envisaged at move
White has strong positional pressure on the 26, the plausible 31.a3+?! e8 32.d6
dark squares, especially when he exchanges allows Bla ck to escape by virtue of th e
the f8-bishop, more space and open lines. f6 s n e a k y t a c t i c xb2+! 33.xb2 c4+
[ The logical 8...d6?! leaves Black with grave 34.c3 xd6 35.xd6 xb7 36.d8+ f7
difficulties after 9.c5! e.g. dxc5? 10.f4 f6 37.xh8 xb6 ]
11.xe5 fxe5 12.h5+ winning. ] 31...xa4 32.c5+ f7 33.d4 b5
[ 8...a6 9.d6+ xd6 10.xd6 f6 11.e3 34.c7+ g6 35.c2+ f7 36.c7+
transposes. ] W hite plays a repetition to gain time. g6
9.e3 a6 10.d6+ xd6 11.xd6 e7 37.c2+ f7 38.d5+! e8 39.c7
12.b6 f5 The point, saving the trapped Threatening to capture, not the rook, but the
queen. 13.c5! d6 knight which guards c6. b6?
[ The ending that follows 13...e7 14.xe7+ [ 39...c8 40.e6 b8 might be a better
xe7 15.f4 5c6 16.0-0-0 also favours chance. ]
W hite, Karpov,An-Ribli,Z Reggio Emilia 40.xe5 fxe5 41.c8+ e7 42.c7+
1989/90. ] [ 42.c7+ d7 43.xe5+ d8 44.f3
14.a5 d7 wins the queen. ]
[ 14...e7 15.0-0-0 0-0 16.f4 c6 17.a3 1-0
e5 18.g4 fd4 19.d5 f7 20.f5 g6
21.g1! gxf5 22.g5 with an edge to White,
Kasparov,G-Sokolov,A Belfort 1988. ] 756 A19
15.f4 c6 16.a3 ce7 L'Ami,Erwin 2610
[ To bring the queen to c6, and free the Wells,Peter K 2526
b l a c k p o s i t i o n t o s o m e e x t e n t , 16...e5 6th Staunton Memorial (9) 16.08.2008
17.d3 0-0 18.0-0 exf4 19.xf4 fe7 [Carsten Hansen]
20.d1 g6 21.ff1 ge5 22.e4
m a i n t a i n e d a s t r o n g p o s i t i o n a l b i n d , 1.c4 e6 2.c3 f6 3.e4 c5 4.e5 g8
Kasparov,G-Beliavsky,A/Linares 1991. ] 5.f3 c6 6.d4 cxd4 7.xd4 xe5
17.0-0-0 c6 18.c5!? 8.db5 a6 9.d6+ xd6 10.xd6 f6
[ A sensible novelty, 18.b3 d7 19.g1! 11.e3 e7 12.b6 f5 13.c5!
d5! 20.g4 d6 21.cxd5 xd5 22.xd5!? [ K a s p a r o v ' s m o v e 13.xd8 is the less
exd5 23.g2 e4 24.e1 led to unclear p o p u la r a l t e rn a t ive a n d t h e su b j e c t o f
complications in Psakhis,L-Greenfeld, A/ Bareev-L'Ami, also from this month's
Israel 1991. ] update. ]
[ 18.a5!? ] 13...d6
18...f7 [ 13...e7 has also been the topic of
[ 18...d5 19.b5 axb5 20.xa8 wins the discussion a couple of times as can be seen
exchange, although Black may have some in the PDF e-books, most recently in

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Ramesa-Ljubicic, Omis 2006. ]
14.a5 d7 15.f4 c6 16.a3 ce7
[ In the 'old' game Kasparov-Beliavsky,
Linares 1991, Black instead tried 16...e5
17.d3 ( 17.0-0-0 exf4 18.d5 0-0
Kasparov ) 17...0-0 18.0-0 , Kasparov, G-
Beliavsky, A/Linares 1991, and now Black
should have played f7 , but 19.d5
( 19.fxe5 fxe5 20.d5 g6 21.e4
also leaves White with amble compensation
f o r t h e p a wn) 19...e6 20.e4 ac8
21.fxe5 fxe5 22.d3 leaves White with
adequate compensation for the pawn
according to Kasparov. ]
17.0-0-0
[ 17.g4 c6 18.a4 d7 19.xc6 xc6
20.g1 h4 21.0-0-0 h5 22.h3 hxg4
23.hxg4 d5 24.g3 c8 25.e3 f7
26.b1 hg6 27.f5 Aleksandrov, A-
Balashov, Y/Kstovo 1998 ]
17...c6 18.b3
[ White has tried several things in this
position, not all of them equally good. A)
T h e m a i n a l t e r n a t i v e i s 18.c5
which immediately threatens Bb5, winning
the exchange, but as we shall see the threat
may be an illusion
A) 18...f7 19.e2 d7 ( 19...e3?!
was played in Hodgson, J-Barsov, A /York
2000, which can be f ound in the PGN
archives ) 20.f3 d5 21.d2 e3
was seen in the interesting Michalik, P
(2330)-Petrik, T (2523)/Banska Stiavnica
SVK 2006, which can also be found in the
PGN archives. This line deserves
s e rio u s c o n s id e ra t io n f o r B la c k, wh o
according to John Watson in his notes to
the game gave Black's chances a thumbs
up.;
B) 18...dxc5 19.d8+ f7 20.xh8
xb6 is given as unclear by Ribli and that
seems just about right, though I prefer
W hite, e.g. 21.e2!? d6 22.g3 c6
23.e1 , and White has the initiative.;
C) 18...0-0 19.d3 ( 19.b5? axb5
20.xa8 dxc5 , and Black is already
winning, Salo, K-Ljungberg, R/corr 1991)
19...e3 20.d2 7d5 21.e4 f7
22.xd5 xd5 23.hd1 dxc5 24.xc5
xc5+ 25.xc5 c7 26.c2 f7
27.xd5 exd5 28.xd5 e6 29.d6
xa2 , and White has drawing chances,
Baermann, J-Heyn , U/Germany email
2002;
D) 18...d5! is probably best, though by no
m e a n s t h e o n l y m o v e t r i e d : 19.d3
( 19.b5 axb5 20.xa8 e3
is also clearly better for Black.) 19...e3
20.d2 0-0 21.e1?! d4 22.d1 7d5
Like Dzindzi, I will say that Black has the
pawn and the compensation. 23.e4 c4
24.d3 cxb6-+ 25.xh7+ h8 26.h3
xf4 27.h4 xc5+ 28.c2+ g8
29.xf4 e5 30.e4 e6 31.f2 ac8
32.h7+ f7 33.e4 b4 34.a3 xc2+
0-1 Speelman, J-W ells, P/ London ENG
2007. A very one-sided game where White
didn't stand a chance. No wonder Wells
was eager to play this variation again. ]
[ B) 18.a5!?
A) 18...g6 19.d3 xf4 20.e4 xc4
21.he1 e5 22.g3 g6 23.b3 f7
24.d5 , and despite being three pawns
down, White is in complete control of the
game and has more than sufficient
compensation for all of the pawns, Van
Deursen, P-Leyen, P/IECC Email 1999;
B) 18...0-0 19.g1 d5 ( 19...d7 20.d3
d5 21.xf5 xf5 22.cxd5 c4 23.g3
ac8 seems to leave Black with the better
prospects ) 20.c5 d6 21.d3 b8
22.b4 1/2-1/2 Maiffret, P-McLeod, F/
IECG Email 2001;
C) 18...d5 is suggested in the ECO, but
this looks less convincing, e.g. 19.b1
0-0 20.cxd5 exd5 21.xd5 xd5
22.xd5+ xd5 23.xd5 e6 24.d2
with an edge for White.;
D) 18...d7 19.g1 0-0 20.d3
Nitti, F-Britten, D/corr 1996 ]
[ C) 18.f2 d5 ( 18...f7 19.g1 h5 20.g3
d7 21.c5 d5 22.b1 ad8 23.d3 g6
24.h3 g7 25.g4 hxg4 26.hxg4
, and W hite has more than adequate
compensation for the pawn, Ramesa, D-
Mazi, L/Trieste ITA 2006) 19.e2 c7
20.g3 0-0 21.b1 e8 22.cxd5 xd5
23.xd5 exd5 Kahlert, T-Meier, G/
Nuernberg GER 2007 24.h5 g6 25.f3
with more or less even chances. ]
[ D) 18.b4
A) 18...d7 19.g1 c8 ( 19...d5 20.g4
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

gives White a good initiative for the pawn, 33.b3 xf5 34.d5 e3 35.xc6 bxc6
Marek, S-Trebula, J/corr 1997) 20.f2 with a fascinating endgame, where my
fe7 21.g3 b8 22.g2 c7 computer prefers to bail out with 36.g3
, Newman, N-Lentes, H/IECC Email 1999, c4+ 37.d3 b2+ 38.c2 c4
and now 23.e4 promises White the 39.d3 b2+ , with a draw by repetition
better chances, e.g. d5 24.b3 0-0 to come shortly. ]
25.b1; 19.g1 d5 20.g4 d6 21.c5 f7 22.g2
B) 18...0-0 19.g1 a5 20.b5 d5 h8!?
21.xc6 bxc6 22.g4 h4 23.c5 e8 [ Only now the game parts from the path laid
, and W hite has compensation for the out previously. In the earlier game, Black
pawn, but certainly no more than that, went for 22...a5 23.h4 f5 24.gxf5 xf5
Kruse, H-Bennborn, J/ ICCF Email 1999 ] 25.f1 a4 in Kleindl, P-Skalicky, F/corr
18...0-0 ICCF 1997, and now 26.b4 d7 27.d3
[ Again here we have a couple of alternatives 7h6 is rather unclear, but White seems to
to look at: A) 18...d7 19.g1! ( 19.b1 have sufficient play for the pawn. ]
c8 20.g1 h5 21.e2 f7 22.b4 h4 23.h4 d7 24.h5
, Kovalyov, A-Goldwaser, C/Buenos Aires [ 24.b1!? a5 25.h5 can also be
ARG 2007 23.g4 hxg3 24.hxg3 h2 considered ]
25.a1 xe2 26.xe2 xc4 27.xc4 24...c8 25.a5
xc4 28.g4 c6 29.a7 h6= ) 19...d5! [ 25.xd5?! looks tempting to restore
( 19...c8 20.f2 h5 21.e2 ) 20.g4 material balance, but Black instead obtains
( 20.cxd5? xd5-+ ) 20...d6 21.cxd5 a n a c t u a l a d v a n t a g e i n r e t u r n : exd5
xd5 22.xd5!? ( 22.g2 xb6 23.xd5 26.xd5 b5 27.xf7 xb6 28.cxb6
e3+ 24.b1 0-0 25.f5 exd5 26.xd5+ c6+ 29.b1 e4+ 30.a1 a4
f7 27.xd6 c6 1/2-1/2 Rak, P-Elburg, J/ , and Black seems to be on the road to
ICCF Email 1999) 22...exd5 23.g2 e4 victory. ]
24.e1 c8! 25.b1 e6 26.xe4 dxe4 25...xc5 26.b4 e3+ 27.b1
27.xe4 xb3 28.xc6+ f7 , and a draw was agreed upon, though I'm not
Ps ak h is -G ree nf e ld , I srae l 1 99 1 , 29.e4 entirely why, if some special circumstances
( 29.d7 cd8 30.xd8 xd8= Psakhis ) dictated Black agreeing to W hite's of f er,
29...c4 30.b3 b5 31.d5+ g6= ] because he appears to have the better
[ B) 18...e5 chances after 27...Re8. intending ...Nb6 and
A) 19.fxe5 fxe5 20.c5 d4! 21.xd4 Black's pieces are finally coming to life.
( 21.a4 xa4 22.xa4 g4 ) ½-½
21...exd4 22.b5 e6 Karason, A-
Edelstein, M/corr 1995;
B) 19.g1!? 757 A19
B1) 19...exf4 20.g4 e3 ( 20...h6 Michalik,Peter 2330
21.c5 ) 21.xe3 fxe3 22.g2 c7 Petrik,Tomas 2523
23.d5 xd5 24.xd5; ch-SVK Banska Stiavnica SVK (9) 16.07.2006
B2) 19...e6 20.g4 h4 21.g5 c8 [John Watson]
22.gxf6 gxf6 23.b4 , and White has
excellent compensation for the pawn, T h is m a in lin e b e ca m e we l l-kn o wn a f t e r
Vujadinovic, M-Heinrich, A/ IECC Email Kasparov (as White) won two fantastic games
2001; against Sokolov and Belyavsky. White's two
C) 19.d3 e6 20.g4 h6 21.f5 f7 bishops provide compensation for the pawn.
22.e4 xc4 23.xc4 xc4 24.b3 d5 The question seems to be: do they offer more
25.g2 d4 26.bxc4 xg4 27.d5 xd5 than enough, or can Black hold the balance?
28.xd5 e3 , Barendswaard, W-Van der 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 c5 4.e5 g8
Muysenberg, F/ corr 1993, 29.dg1 c8 5.f3 c6 6.d4 cxd4 7.xd4 xe5
30.e6 c6 31.c5 g6 32.d2 e7 [ Moves like 7...a6 8.f4 ]

752
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ and 7...c7 have gone by the wayside,
although the latter may deserve a new try. ]
8.db5 a6
[ 8...f6 9.e3!? a6 ( 9...b6 10.f4 c6
11.f5! ) 10.d6+ xd6 11.xd6
transposes to the game. ]
9.d6+ xd6 10.xd6 f6 11.e3 e7
12.b6 f5 13.c5 d6
[ Tony reported on the game Bacrot-Dorfman,
Marsailles FRA 2001, which went 13...e7
14.xe7+ xe7 ( 14...xe7 15.c5! 0-0
16.0-0-0 won two nice games for White in
the Informant. Black is terribly tied down.)
15.f4 g6 16.g3 d6 17.h3! d7
18.0-0-0 c6 19.he1 f7 20.d5! exd5
21.xf5 with a nearly winning position
already. ]
14.a5 d7 15.f4 c6 16.a3 ce7
17.0-0-0 c6 18.c5
[ 18.b3 has been played, and ]
[ 18.a5 recommended. ]
18...f7 19.e2 d7 Finally a new move.
[ 19...e3 20.d2 3d5 21.xd5 xd5
22.b1 xf4 23.f3 d5 24.hd1 b5
25.e3 g6 26.xd5! exd5 27.xd5+
f8 28.c6 led to a victory for White in
Hodgson-Barsov, York ENG 2000. ]
20.f3
[ Or 20.h5+!? g6 21.f3 ]
20...d5 21.d2 e3! Threatening ...Nc4.
22.b3 3f5
[ 22...hc8 also looks good. Black seems to
have found a good answer to this line. ]
23.e1 h4!? 24.h5+ g6 25.d1 c8!
26.a5 b6 27.cxb6 b8?!
[ 27...xb6 . It's hard to see much
compensation for the pawn, and W hite's
king is as exposed or more so than Black's. ]
28.c2 d6?
[ 28...xb6 ]
29.xd6 xd6 30.b2!?
[ 30.g3 hf5 31.a4! ]
30...c8?!
[ Time pressure? 30...hc8! ]
31.g4 h5?! 32.h3!?
[ 32.xd5! hxg4 33.xf6 is strong, but
that's certainly hard to see. ]
32...f5! 33.a4! xa4 34.bxa4 e8
[ 34...xb6 35.c7+ d7+ 36.a3 hd8
37.xf5 gxf5 ]
35.c7+!?
[ 35.xf5 gxf5 36.c6 ]
35...e7 36.xe7+ cxe7 37.xf5 xf5
38.c1 b7 39.c8 d6 40.c7+ xc7
41.bxc7 e8 42.c3 f5 Black wins a pawn
but can't bring a point home. The somewhat
tragic details I'll leave for you: 43.b3 d7
44.b4 xc7 45.d4 c6 46.a5 b7
47.b4 e4 48.a5 c6?
[ 48...g5! 49.fxg5 ( 49.g3 h4 50.fxg5 hxg3
51.hxg3 xg5 ) 49...xg5 50.b2 f7
and ...e5 soon will win. ]
49.b4 b7? 50.a5 Now the notation falls
apart. The game was quickly drawn after
Black refused to play ...g5.
½-½
758 A19
Miezis,Normunds 2525
Tissir,Mohamed 2303
Open Cappelle la Grande FRA (2) 14.02.1999
[Tony Kosten]
Concerning the Mikenas Attack, Jeffrey Reep
says that "I have encountered numerous other
moves on White's fourth. So far, I have not
yet had to defend your mainline. However,
moves like 4. Nf3 and 4.d3 have shown up for
me. (And one 4.g3, in which I forgot about d5!.
)" So here is a look at some alternatives. 1.c4
f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 c5 Black plans ...Nc6, to
control d4, and then ...d5 to grab his share of
the centre so W hite cannot afford to hang
around. 4.e5 Absolutely critical. Others:
[ 4.f3 c6 5.e2 d5 is OK, see this
month's Mohr,G-Haba,P/St Veit AUT 2003. ]
[ 4.g3 c6 5.g2 tries to restrain ...d5, but
after d5! Black is doing well, see Hertneck,
G-Zeller,F/ Germany 1997. ]
[ 4.d3?! is really too limp, d5!? 5.exd5 exd5
6.g5 e7 7.g3?! ( 7.xf6 xf6 8.e2+
e6 9.xd5 c6 favours Black who has a
lead in development) 7...0-0 8.g2 g4
9.f3 e8! 10.xg4 xg4 11.xg4 xg5+
12.f1 dxc4 13.dxc4 f6 with advantage,
Bistric,F-Zelcic,R/Makarska 1996. ]
4...g8 5.d4 I think Tony Miles once wrote
that: "less creative players tend to prefer this
move"! The pawn sac
[ 5.f3 c6 6.d4 cxd4 7.xd4 xe5
8.db5 is strong, see the Mikenas Attack-3...
753
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

c5 eBook. ] 31.xg5 xg6 32.h5 winning material. ]

5...cxd4 6.xd4 c6 7.e4 f5!? 28.exd6 xd6 29.xg6! A nice crush.
This does nothing to counter W hite's [ 29.xg6 xd4 30.xd4 xg6 31.h8+
advanced e-pawn, f7 32.e5+ wins everything. ]
[ 7...d6! is the best move, 8.f3 dxe5 1-0
9.xe5 d7! ( 9...f6 10.xc6 b6
11.f3 bxc6 12.g3 b7 13.g2
gave a pull to W hite in Kortchnoi,V- 759 A19
Andersson,U/ Johannesburg 1981) 10.xd7 Mikhalevski,Victor 2525
xd7 11.g5 (to hinder ...Nf6) b4 12.d1 Vaibhav,S 2448
xc3+ 13.bxc3 c7 14.e2 f6!? 11th Aeroflot Open B (3) 09.02.2012
with an interesting battle of two knights [John Bartholomew]
against two bishops and doubled pawns in
Miezis,N-Aleksandrov,A/Bad Wiessee GER 1.c4 e6 2.c3 f6 3.e4 c5 4.e5 g8
1999, which later turned in Black's favour. ] 5.f3 c6 6.d4 cxd4 7.xd4 xe5
8.e2 ge7 9.f4 b6 10.f3 g6 11.e3 8.db5 a6 9.d6+ xd6 10.xd6 f6
White's space advantage and pressure on the 11.e3 e7 12.b6 f5 13.b4 c6
d-file keeps him on top. b4 12.c1 0-0 14.c5 e7 Suri Vaibhav has played this
13.a3 Putting the question to the bishop. e7 twice in the past six months.
14.d1 b7 15.d3 Attacking d7 and [ I examine 14...d6 in Potkin, V (2671)-
preparing to complete his kingside Grandelius, N (2536)/Emsdetten GER 2012.
d e ve l o p m e n t . f7 16.e2 c8 17.b4! W hite wins the pawn back af ter 15.xd8
Stopping ...Na5. h6 Black is short of ideas, dxc5 16.b6 and seems to keep a small
his position is passive and he has no real advantage in the resulting positions. ]
p a wn b r e a k s , a p a r t f r o m . . . g 5 wh i c h i s 15.xe7+
do u b le -e d ge d . 18.g3!? Miezis continues in [ I would be remiss if I failed to mention that
his inimitable style, many players would prefer 12.Qb4!? was first essayed by Korchnoi
to castle or play against Timman in 1991. Korchnoi played
[ 18.b5 to d6 with a complete bind, but he 15.0-0-0 , but he later evaluated the position
has his eyes on a kingside attack. ] after xc5 16.xc5 d6
18...f8 Ready for ...g5, but White is prepared A) Subsequently 17.a3 has been tried,
for this. 19.h4 g5!? This looks desperate, but but e5! ( 17...e7 18.d3 fd4
if White plays h5 Black can only sit and wait. 19.he1 Neuman, P (2428)-Petrik, T
20.hxg5 hxg5 21.h5! gxf4?! Opening a (2457)/ Czechia 2004.) 18.e4 e6
further file in front of the black king. 19.xd6+ xd6 20.xd6 f7
[ 21...g4 is slightly better. ] was level in Akermann, T (2149)-Rusev, K
22.gxf4 g7 23.f2 g6 24.g1 a5?! (2541)/Zurich SUI 2008.;
Now Black hits out on the queenside as well. B) 17.xd6 xd6 18.xd6 e7
25.b5 b8 26.a4 As well as s space as equal. Indeed, the game continuation
advantage, and kingside attack, White is also 19.c5 d7 20.g3 ac8 21.h3 e5
w i n n i n g t h e b - p a w n ! e4 27.d4!? 22.hd1 hd8 proved absolutely fine for
This is complicated, but quite sufficient. Black. Korchnoi, V (2610) -Timman, J
[ T h e s i m p l e r 27.c3 was curtains for (2630)/ Brussels 1991/Candidates. ]
Black. ] 15...fxe7 A small improvement over his
27...d5?! previous game.
[ 27...c2!? looks attractive, as then [ I n A u gu st V a i b h a v p r e f e rre d 15...xe7
28.xb6 c5 wins the white queen, , but after
although 29.xc8! xd4 30.xd4 xc8 A) t h e s i m p l e 16.0-0-0 might be even
31.xc2 should win easily enough. ] better, i.e.
[ 27...xa3 allows 28.hg5 f7 29.h4 A1) 16...d6 17.d3 gives White easy
e7 30.xg6 ( 30.h5 also kills) 30...xg5 play with full compensation. ( 17.g4!? );

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
A2) 16...f7 17.c5!? h5 Brenke, A
(2357)-Romanov, O (2340)/NRW 2000
here 18.c4 ( or 18.e4 look very
nice to me. );
B) 16.c5 d5 17.cxd6+
( 17...xd6!? ) 18.c5 e5 19.e4 ef7
20.0-0-0 d8 21.xd6 xd6 22.e2
Black was compelled to give the pawn
back with b6 (23.Rxd6 was a big threat).
Then 23.xb6 d7 24.b3 b7 25.he1
c8+ 26.b2 was pleasant for White with
the two bishops and queenside majority.
Turov, M (2630)-Vaibhav, S (2430)/
Haarlem NED 2011. ]
16.0-0-0
[ If 16.c5 then b4! is a clean equalizer, i.e.
17.c1 bd5 18.a5 ( 18.e4!? c6
19.d6+ e7 20.d1 xb6 21.cxb6 e5
with the idea of 22...Nf7.) 18...d6 19.cxd6
b6 20.xb6 xb6 21.dxe7 xe7= ]
16...d5! As in Potkin-Grandelius Black is
willing to give back the pawn to facilitate
development. 17.e2
[ The immediate 17.cxd5?! xd5 18.xd5
exd5 19.xd5 allows e6 with the idea of
20...Bxa2 or 20...Rc8 when Black is
definitely not worse. 20.d3 c8! ]
[ On 17.b3!? t h e e a si e s t m a y b e d4
18.xd4 xd4 19.xd4 d7 when Black is
very close to equality. ]
17...f7 18.f4! Controlling the e5 square.
[ The natural move is 18.he1 , but e5!
s e e m s t o wo r k o u t f i n e f o r B l a c k . F o r
example, ( 18...d7 19.b3 ) 19.cxd5 xd5
20.xd5 exd5 21.f4 g6 22.f3 e6
( 22...xf4?! 23.g3 ) 23.f5!? ( 23.xd5
ac8+ 24.b1 xd5 25.xd5 xf4
26.d7+ g6= ) 23...hc8+!
( 24.b1? xf5+ ) 24...xf5 25.xd5+ f8
26.c1 e5! 27.xb7 xc1 28.xc1 b8
29.c7 c4+ 30.xc4
with a completely drawn opposite colored
bishop ending. ]
18...d7 Black does best to hunker down and
complete development.
[ The computer endorses 18...dxc4 19.xc4
b4 (a familiar idea: bring the knight to d5),
but 20.e4! ( 20.he1 bd5 21.xd5
xd5 22.xd5 exd5 23.xd5
of f ers W hit e no trace of a n advantage)
20...bd5 21.d6+ forces Black to tread
c a r e f u l l y : g8 ( 21...f8? is poor on
account of 22.c5 when xf4? 23.f5!!
is a d e c i si ve l in e -o p e n e r .) 22.d8
with sustained pressure ( not 22.c5?!
xd6 can be safely met by xf4 )]
19.g4?! This proves to be an unnecessary
weakening of the position.
[ 19.f3 ac8 20.b1 he8 21.he1
is a more natural continuation. W hite
shouldn't hurry to capture on d5 since this
will only free Black's position. If Black plays
by analogy with the game with b8?! , then
( 21...d4? 22.e4 is highly unpleasant;
Black should probably play a non-committal
move like 21...g6 when White can win the
pawn back at any moment, but its unclear if
he can achieve any real edge.) 22.cxd5
exd5 23.xd5 is a big improvement for
White he has played Rh1-e1 and refrained
from the weakening g2-g4. ]
19...he8 20.f3 ac8 21.b1 b8!
Fo rcin g W h ite t o ca p tu re o n d 5, t he re b y
easing the pressure. 22.cxd5 exd5
[ 22...xd5 23.xd5 c6!= was a more
ruthless equalizer. ]
23.hf1!? c6 24.c5 cd8 25.f5?!
Still searching for an advantage, but Black has
a convincing counter-argument.
[ 25.b6= ]
25...d4! 26.xd4 xf3 27.xf3 bc6
28.fd3 h5! 29.h3 hxg4 30.hxg4 h8
Now it's clear that only Black can be better.
31.e4?!
[ Safer was 31.a3 when h4 allows 32.xf6!
xf6 33.xd8 xd8 34.xd8 xg4
35.d7= ]
31...h4 32.c3 xd3 33.xd3 b5?!
24.d2 [ 33...xf5! i s s t r o n g e r , e . g . 34.d7+
( 34.gxf5 xe4 ) 34...fe7 35.xb7 xg4
.]
xb7 34.f2 h2 35.e4 g2 36.g3 xg3
37.xg3 d5 38.c2! White is losing a
pawn, but he does his best to active his king.
[ or 38.d2 e5 when g4 falls. ]
38...e3+ 39.d3 xg4 40.e4 e7
41.d5 d7 42.h5 e7+ 43.c5?!
Unnecessarily pushing things, though
(remarkably) this still appears to draw.
e6 [ 43.e4 ho ld s co mf orta bly, i.e . f2+
44.f3 d1 45.e4!= ]
43...xf5 44.b6 ge3 45.xa6 c6
755
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
46.a4 bxa4 47.a5 d5
Mihalevski knows his endgames!
[ Instead, 48.xa4 xc3+ 49.bxc3 d5
wins for Black, i.e. 50.f4+ ( the knight is
trapped after 50.b5 e5! 51.c4 g6-+ )
50...e4 51.g6 e3 52.b5 f5-+ ]
48...xg7 49.xf6 xf6
The famous Troitzky ending! To refresh our
m e m o r i e s , t h e s o - c a l l e d " T r o i t zk y l i n e "
(extending from a5-b3-c4-d5-e5-f4-g3-h5)
establishes that Black can force a win here
only if White's pawn is blockaded on b3 or b2.
Thus - as the Tablebase confirms - W hite
draws since his pawn will reach b4. Knight
pawns are in general the best pawns for the
defending side to have in the Troitzky ending
by contrast, a W hite central or rook pawn
could be blockaded on the fifth rank and still
allow Black to force a win. By the way, don't
take the above as absolute truth: in practice,
the 50-move rule and/or a very poorly placed
defending king will complicate things! d5
51.a5 c7 52.b4 d5 53.c3 f5
54.d3 b5 55.b4 fd6 56.e3 e5
57.f3 f5 58.g3 e4 59.g4 f7
60.g3 e5 61.f2 d3 62.g2 e2
63.g3 e3 64.h4 f4 65.h5 f5
66.h4 g6 67.h3 h5 68.g3 g5
69.f2 f4 70.e2 c4 71.d3 e3
72.d2 e4 73.e2 g4 74.d2 f3
75.c2 e4 76.d2 f3 77.c2 e3
78.b3 d3 79.a4 c4 80.a5 f6
81.b6 d5+ 82.c6 dc7 83.d7 d5
84.e7 e5 85.d7 f6 86.c6 e6
87.c5 d6
½-½
760
Potkin,Vladimir
Grandelius,Nils
Schachbundesliga 2011-12 (8)
[John Bartholomew]
1.c4 e6 2.c3 f6 3.e4
Chess nomenclature is f unny. Gary Lane
writes that 3.e4 was originally referred to as
the "Flohr Attack" in homage to the great
Czech player, while others began calling it the
"Mikenas Attack" when Vladas Mikenas used
it to score several victories in the 1950s and
48.xg7! 60s. The "Flohr-Mikenas System" seems like a
good compromise (is 3.e4 already an
"attack"?), but on ChessPublishing we refer to
it as the "Mikenas Attack" for consistency's
sake. c5
[ The game Flohr, S-Kashdan, I/Folkestone
50.xa4 1933 saw 3...d5 4.e5 ( Mikenas also tried
4.cxd5 exd5 5.e5 ) 4...d4 5.exf6 dxc3
6.bxc3 xf6 . This position remains critical
tod ay: se e t he gam e Nepo mniach tch i -
Aleksandrov from this update as well as
"Mikenas Attack - 3... d5 & Intro". ]
4.e5 g8 5.f3
[ For the immediate 5.d4 check out Miezis, N
(2525)-Tissir, M (2303)/Cappelle la Grande
1999/[TonyK]. ]
5...c6
[ 5...d6 is less principled. See Flores, D
(2514)-Garcia Paolicchi, R (2228)/Andorra
2006/ [John Watson]. ]
6.d4 cxd4 7.xd4 xe5 8.db5 a6
9.d6+ xd6 10.xd6 f6
[ Second-rate alternatives such as 10...g6 ]
[ and 10...c6 are examined in Cramling, D-
Bergstrom, C/Hallsberg 1975/[TonyK]. ]
11.e3 e7 12.b6 f5 13.b4!?
This retreat has proven popular at GM level in
the p ast year. It was also Tony Kos ten's
recommendation in "Dangerous W eapons:
Flank Openings".
[ The main line is 13.c5 . The problem is
that d6 14.a5 d7 15.f4 c6 16.a3
ce7 17.0-0-0 c6 hasn't panned out for
W hite. Search the archives and the
"Mikenas Attack - 3...c5" guide by Nigel
Davies. ]
[ 13.xd8 is no longer considered
dangerous for Black. After xd6 14.c7
A19 e7 15.c5 e8 16.b6 d5 17.cxd6+
2671 xd6 White has full compensation but no
2536 more. Bareev, E (2655) -L'Ami, E (2610)/
04.02.2012 Amsterdam 2008/[Hansen, Carsten]. ]
13...c6 Critical.
[ 13...e7
A) On 14.c5 Black ought to play
A1) 14...c6?! 15.a4!? gives White
excellent compensation , i.e. ( 15.a3
d5 16.cxd6 xd6 17.xd6 xd6
18.0-0-0 f7 19.c4 0-0 20.a4
ce5 21.b3 d7 1/2-1/2 Silseth, S
(2295)-Kohlweyer, B (2420)/Gausdal
756
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
1993/TD ) 15...d5 16.cxd6 xd6
17.d1 f7 ( 17...0-0?? 18.c5 d8
19.a3+- ) 18.e2 d7 19.0-0 0-0
20.f4 and Black will not find it easy to
free himself.;
A2) 14...d5! , i.e. 15.cxd6 xd6
16.xd6 xd6 17.0-0-0 ( or 17.d1
df7 ) 17...df7
A2a) 18.f4 g6 19.g3 looks like a
better try, though Black is OK after
0-0 ( 19...d7; or even 19...e5!? );
A2b) 18.c5?! d7 19.f4 c8!
20.b4 c6 21.c5 ce5 22.f2
g6 23.g3 Zugic, I (2465)-Bluvshtein,
M (2462)/Toronto 2004. Now after b5
24.b1 c6 25.g1 0-0
White's compensation is lacking.;
B) 14.a5!? tries to reach a popular line
of the 12.Qc5 line after d6 ( 14...0-0; and
14...c6 have also been played.) 15.0-0-0
, e.g. Ramesa, D (2253)-Ljubicic, F (2404)/
Omis 2006/ [John Watson].;
C) 14.xe7+ transposes to a favorable
ending more commonly reached via 13.
Qc5 Qe7. See Bacrot, E (2653)-Dorfman,
J (2602)/Marseille 2001/[TonyK]. This is
probably White's best option, though there
are a couple alternatives: ]
14.c5 d6
[ 14...e7 leads to a different type of
queenless middlegame. This was played
in Mikhalevski, V (2525)-Vaibhav, S (2448)/
Moscow RUS 2012, just a few days after our
present game. I have analyzed it eparately
in this update. ]
15.xd8 dxc5 16.b6 So, White will win the
c5 pawn and re-establish material equality.
Black isn't tore up about this, though in return
he gets a good moment to complete
development. Still, W hite seems to keep a
small advantage in the resulting positions.
e5 This is new.
[ 16...fd4 17.0-0-0 e5 18.d3 e6
19.xc5 ( 19.e4! looks more promising. )
A) T h e e n e r g e t i c 19...b5! should be
preferred, for example 20.cxb5 ( 20.e4
c8 21.cxb5 axb5 22.xc6+ xc6 23.b4
f7 intending 24...Ne6 is fine for Black.)
20...axb5 21.e4 a6!?;
B) 19...0-0-0 20.b6 d7 21.b3 f7
22.he1 g6 23.d5 Neuman, P
(2414)-Rusev, K (2409)/ Aschach 2006. ]
[ Vachier Lagrave, M (2715)-L'Ami, E (2628)/
W i j k a a n Z e e N E D 2 0 1 1 s a w 16...d7
17.0-0-0 e5 . Here
A) 18.e2?! resulted in a quick
handshake: c6 19.xc5 xg2 20.he1
f3 ( cooperative Black had full license to
play for more, e.g. 20...c8 ) 21.xf3
xf3 22.d3 c6 23.xe6+ f7 24.e2
1/2-1/2. Structure-wise Black has a slight
pull in the final position, but L'Ami decided
not to test his opponent's defensive
technique.;
B) The immediate 18.xc5?! is met by
c8 19.b4 a5! , undermining White's
shaky queenside construction.;
C) 18.e4! is best, attacking the c-pawn
twice. ]
17.xc5 d7 18.b4!? Ambitiously played
and probably correct.
[ A s e d a t e a l t e r n a t i v e l i k e 18.b6
is not challenging enough, i.e. c6 19.f3
h5! (a useful prod against White's f3-g2-h2
construction) 20.e2 h4 21.0-0 h3 22.g3
g5!? and Black's knights are quite well-
placed in the center. ( 22...d7 23.f2
e5 is also possible )]
[ Likewise, I don't see much of anything after
18.f4 g6 19.g3 c6 20.g1 d8 21.d1
xd1+ 22.xd1 f7 23.d3 h5 . ]
[ 18.0-0-0?! c8 transposes to the variation
with 18.Bxc5?! above. ]
18...a5?! Committal. Black is trying to equalize
by brute force when there isn't a pressing
need to do so.
[ He had more than one normal move at his
disposal, i.e. 18...c8 ]
[ 18...h5 ]
[ or even 18...g5!? , preventing f2-f4 and
solidifying the knight on e5. ]
19.b5 c8 20.e4 b6 Otherwise the
inclusion of ...a6-a5 and b4-b5 is clearly in
White's favor. 21.f4 White decides to sacrifice
a pawn for solid positional compensation.
[ 21.xb6! is the real test. Following xc4
22.c5 xb5 23.c1 Black must choose
between two depressing endings:
A) or 23...cd6 24.xb5+ xb5 25.b1!
c3 ( 25...c7 26.g4 h6 27.d6+
d7 28.xc8 xc8 29.h3
is even worse) 26.xc3 xc5 27.b8+
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

f7 28.xh8 xc3 29.d2 a3 break down. ]

30.a1; 37.e1 db2? Probably the decisive error.
B) 23...c6 24.xc4 xe4 25.xe6 c6 [ After 37...d7! 38.xc5 d5 39.b3
26.b3 the crossfire from White's bishops xb5 40.c1 ( 40.d4 b4 41.d1 g5 )
forces Black to shed material after xg2 40...c2 41.d3 Black finds a moment to
27.g1 , e.g. f3 28.a4 f7 29.xc6 play g5! , looking to exchange as many
xc6 30.e3 . Players with good pawns as possible. ]
technique would surely look forward to 38.xc5 xb5 39.d7+ e7 40.e5 f6
pushing in either of these endgames. ] 41.f1 ba5 42.h5! Freezing Black's
21...xc4 22.xc4 bxc5 23.f2 e7 kingside structure. a1 There's not much
24.a4 White's position is easier to play, but I else. 43.xa1 xa1+ 44.f2 Now it only
don't think he can claim a concrete advantage. remains for White to organize an attack on f5.
d4 a2 45.f3 a3+ 46.d3 b3 47.g3 a3
[ B r e a k i n g o u t i m m e d i a t e l y wi t h 24...e5 48.e3 a2 Immediately losing the pawn, but
deserved serious attention. ] it's too late anyways.
[ R e r o u t i n g t h e b i s h o p w i t h 24...e8!? [ One illustrative variation is 48...a1 49.c4
is also interesting. ] h1 50.f3! xh5 (otherwise Nc4-e3 wins
25.ac1 f5?! Black begins to drift after this. the f 5 pawn ) 51.g2 (the rook is trapped)
[ Once again, Black ought to break free g5 52.e2 g4 53.e3 e7 54.c4 f6
without delay: 25...e5! ] 55.a6 e7 56.c8 f6 57.d7
26.d2 h6 27.h4 f6 28.a2! Preparing (zu gzwa ng) e7 ( 57...g6 58.e8++- )
Nd2-c4. e8 29.c4 h5 58.xf5 f6 59.xg4 and White will win. ]
[ 29...a8?! 30.e5 c8 31.d3 ] 49.d7+ e7
30.he1 hd8?! [ or 49...e6 50.c4+ , winning. ]
[ Black should be looking for counterplay, i.e. 50.xf5 The rest is very straightforward. a3+
30...g5! ] 51.f2 b3 52.e5 a3 53.g4 c3 54.f3
31.xa5 a3 55.g3 c3 56.g5 hxg5 57.fxg5 c4
[ 31.e5!? with the idea of doubling on the c- 58.e5 a4 59.g6+ f7 60.f4 g8
file was also interesting. ] 61.g4 h8 62.d3 a5 63.e4 b5
31...a8 32.b7 xa4 33.xe6! e2 64.d5 a5 65.f5 h7 66.e6 a6+
[ Black is also hurting in the semi-forced 67.f7 a7+ 68.f8 a6 69.h6 a4
variation 33...xe6 34.xe6+ xe6 Allowing a nice mate.
35.xc5+ e7 36.xa4 d4 , though [ 69...gxh6 70.g6+ xg6 71.e4+- ]
37.c3! [ 69...g6 70.f7+- ]
A) 37...xf4+?! 38.e3 xh4 39.b6 70.g8+ h8 71.g6#
pushes the second player to the brink: 1-0
d8 ( 39...b4?? 40.d5++- ) 40.b5
e4+ 41.f2 e7 42.d4 b7 43.e6+
e7 44.xg7 g4 45.c6 h5 46.e6 761 A19
d7 47.d4 with excellent winning Ramesa,Davor 2253
chances despite equal material.; Ljubicic,Filip 2404
B) 37...d2+! 38.g1 d6 39.b1 Goodbye Summer Open (4) 06.10.2006
c7 offers him reasonable chances of [John Watson]
holding. ]
34.c4! d2 A good test of the main line of the 3 e4 c5
[ The b-pawn is a decisive factor after Mikenas System. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4
34...xc1 35.xd8 f7 (forced Black has c5 4.e5 g8 5.f3 c6 6.d4 cxd4
to prevent 36.Re6) 36.xf7 xc4 37.e5 7.xd4 xe5 8.db5 f6 9.e3 a6
xf4+ 38.g3 d4 39.b6+- ] 10.d6+ xd6 11.xd6 e7 12.b6 f5
35.xe2 xe2 36.xe2 aa2?! 13.c5 d6 14.a5 e7 15.0-0-0
[ 36...e4! 37.e1 c2 is much tougher to All seen countless times. As a practical matter,

758
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Black has a difficult time holding off White's resignation in two moves the game may have
initiative. d7!? This seems slow, although it gone
has turned out to be playable in previous [ 32...xb6 33.cxb6 d3 34.d7+ e8
contests. 35.c7 xc7 36.bxc7 d7 ]
[ A more interesting approach is 15...0-0 33.e3 xb6 34.cxb6 g6 Surely not the
16.f4 c6 17.a3 a5!? 18.g4 ( 18.d3 re a l f i n is h . B la c k s t a n d s b e t t e r, b u t t h e
b4! ) 18...h6 19.e2 b4!? ] position is hardly resignable. At any rate,
16.f4 c6 17.a3 c8 18.d3 W hite held the advantage throughout the
[ 18.g4 h6 19.e4 f7 20.b1 opening and early middlegame. The only
is also better for White, and perhaps best. ] question is whether it was enough to win with.
18...0-0 0-1
[ 18...fd4? 19.e4 ]
[ 18...e5? 19.g4 fd4 20.d5 f8 21.f5!
ties Black up beyond salvation. ] 762 A19
19.xf5 exf5 20.he1 f7 21.xd6 Reinderman,Dimitri 2575
[ 21.d5 fe8 22.xe8+ xe8 23.xd6 Werle,Jan 2565
c8 is probably in White's favour, but only Open A Groningen NED (4) 24.12.2009
just so. ] [Nigel Davies]
21...b8! Apparently the best try.
[ 21...fe8 22.xe8+ xe8 23.d5 This game is a real theoretical duel, with the
is very difficult, for example, f8!? 24.e6+ players following known paths for some 22
f7 25.xf5 xd5 26.xd5+ h8 moves before White innovates. This is quite a
27.d7 ] rare thing for a flank opening. 1.c4 f6
22.c5!? c6! 23.e7 e6!? This isn't 2.c3 e6 3.e4 c5 4.e5 g8 5.f3 c6
terrible but leads to difficult decisions. 6.d4 cxd4 7.xd4 xe5 8.db5 f6 9.e3
[ With 23...e6! 24.xf7+ xf7 a6 10.d6+ xd6 11.xd6 e7 12.b6
Black comes close to equality. I don't think f5 13.c5
that W hite has any large improvement on [ The old move is 13.xd8 , but this is less
the last few moves, so 15...Bd7 hasn't come dangerous for Black. ]
out too badly. Probably 18 g4 deserves the 13...d6
most consideration. ] [ Black can also reach an endgame after
24.xf7+ xf7 25.e2! e8 Nd4 will come 13...e7 but then 14.xe7+ ( 14.a5!? )
in any case. 26.d4 cc8 27.b1 14...xe7 ( Or 14...xe7 15.c5! ) 15.f4
[ 27.xe6 xe6 28.xe6 xe6 29.b4 d7 g6 16.g3 d6 17.h3! was better for
30.d6+ e7 31.c2 favours White, W hite in Bacrot, E (2653)-Dorfman, J
whose majority is the better one. (2602)/Marsailles FRA 2001, see the PGN
Nevertheless, Black is very much in the Archive. ]
game. ] 14.a5 d7 15.f4 c6 16.a3 ce7
27...d7 28.g3!? e4! 29.xe4?! 17.0-0-0 c6 18.b3 0-0 19.g1 d5 20.g4
Sec uring B la ck bo th a pa sse d pawn an d d6 21.c5 f7 22.g2 a5
activity! fxe4 30.c2 b5 31.d4!? [ B l a c k h a s a l s o p l a y e d 22...h8
[ White can bail out with 31.d6 d7 32.b4 , f o r e xam p le 23.h4 d7 24.h5 c8
, but then his bishop on b6 is a liability, and 25.a5 xc5 26.b4 e3+ 27.b1
xb6 33.xb6 c6 definitely favours 1/2-1/2 was L'Ami, E (2610)-Wells, P (2526)/
Black. ] London ENG 2008. Black probably agreed
31...d7 32.b4?? to the draw because of his habitual time
[ 32.a4 c6 33.e3 ( 33.a5 xb6 trouble as Carsten Hansen pointed out he's
34.axb6 b5 35.b4 a5! gives Black a pull probably better after e8 . ]
d u e t o W h i t e ' s p a w n w e a k n e s s e s .) 23.a3!? Well this is it, the 'theoretical novelty'.
33...xb6 34.cxb6 g6 ] [ In one correspondence game (Kleindl, P -
32...c6 Perhaps a typo, given White's Skalicky, F, ICCF 1997) White played 23.h4

759
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

after which f5 24.gxf5 xf5 25.f1 a4 in development. This looks like way more
was played and now 26.b4 d7 27.d3 than enough for a pawn. ]
7h6 would have been produced an 11.e4!? Now Nd6+ is unavoidable, but
ongoing lack of clarity. ] White has used a lot of time to get there.
23...d7 24.b1 a4 25.c2 c8 26.e2 [ 11.d2!? with the idea d7 12.f4 ]
c6?! 11...f6 12.d6+ e7 13.c4 c6
[ 26...e8 looks like a better idea when 14.xe5!? xe5+ 15.e2 f5
B l a c k c a n m e e t 27.f5? with exf5 [ 15...xe2+?! 16.xe2 gives White the
. Now White's f4-f5 gives him the edge. ] bishop pair and dark squares, although e5
27.f5 e5 28.fxe6 isn't too bad. ]
[ 28.g5!? is very interesting, for example 16.c4 d8 17.e2 White's taken a long
xf5 29.gxf6 gxf6 30.xd5+ h8 31.e4 time to get castled and he doesn't quite make
leaves Black's king more exposed. ] it. e5 18.h4?
28...xe6 29.a1 h8 30.g5 d4 [ 18.b4 ]
[ As White can just take this pawn, maybe 18...d3+ 19.f1
Black should play 30...ae8 instead. ] [ 19.xd3 xd3 20.d2 e5 is obviously
31.xd4 f5 32.b4 ae8 33.xc6 xc6 better for Black, but so is the text. ]
34.e4 White now has very strong pressure 19...xc1?!
and he isn't even down a pawn any more. f7 [ Why? 19...e5 ]
35.f1+- e6 36.gxf6 gxf6 37.b5 g8 20.xc1 g5?
38.c7 e8 39.a5 ee7?! [ 20...d7 is one good move. ]
[ Losing, but 39...g8 40.c3 is hardly any 21.g3 a5 22.h4!? a4 23.a1 a3 24.b4
better. ] g4 25.g1? This leaves everything
40.c3 h6 41.h5 g8 42.fe1 g7 unprotected and doesn't even develop the
43.d6 d5 44.f5 d3 45.xg7 xh5 knight on a1.
46.xh5 [ 25.b3 and White is practically equal. ]
[ 46.xh5 xe1 47.xf6 xe4 48.xe4+ 25...d2 26.b5??
forces Black to give up a piece with f6 . ] [ Still, 26.e3 xa2 27.d3 d5!
1-0 gives Black a solid advantage. ]
26...e4 0 - 1 , b e c a u s e 27.e3 xf2+
28.xf2 xf2 wins more material.
763 A19 0-1
Tsarouhas,Konstantinos 2282
Vouldis,Angelos 2521
35th TCh-GRE (3) 05.07.2006 764 A20
[John Watson] Aronian,Levon 2773
Shirov,Alexei 2730
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e6 3.e4 c5 4.e5 g8 2nd Grand Slam Masters (5) 11.09.2009
5.f3 d6 6.exd6 xd6 7.d4 cxd4 8.xd4 [Nigel Davies]
a6 9.b3! A promising innovation that very
simply threatens c5 and targets the dark In a slightly unusual line Aronian 'innovates'
squares. It may not achieve a large advantage, with 10.h3, preventing the exchange of his
but other moves haven't done much. light square bishop via ...Qd7 and ...Bh3.
[ For 9.e3 ] Both sides had their chances in the tough
[ and 9.e2 , see the notes to Flores- struggle which ensued, with White coming out
Garcia. ] on top towards the latter stages. 1.c4 e5
9...c7 10.c5!? 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5 5.f3
[ 10.g4 e5 11.d2 is another idea. ] c6 6.0-0 b6 7.b3 d6 8.b2 0-0
10...e5 [ 8...e7 9.d3 0-0 10.fd2 ( After 10.c3
[ 10...xc5 11.xc5 xc5 12.e3 Gurevich suggest that he could have
wins all the dark squares with a large lead e q u a l i se d wi t h a3!? , when 11.xa3

760
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

xa3 12.b5 e7 is assessed by him as 27.xe5 b3 28.xe8 xe8 29.d4 b4
'e q u a l ' . T h is m a y we l l b e t r u e , t h o u g h 30.d5 e7 31.c1 h6 32.f3 d6
personally I would prefer to play White after, 33.b2 h7 34.c4 b5 35.c6 b4?
say, 11.Qc1 Bxb2 12.Qxb2.) 10...g4!? Under persistent pressure Shirov goes wrong.
11.c3 d7!? 12.e1 ae8 and Black [ 35...b8 would have kept his defences
stood quite well in Hertneck, G (2605)- intact. ]
Gurevich, M (2620), Strasbourg 1994 36.c3 e7
because of his potential counterplay with ... [ 36...b1+ 37.g2 leaves Black facing the
f7-f5. ] twin threats of 38.Qxf4 and 38.Rc7. ]
9.d3 37.xf4 f8 38.e3
[ I must admit that I'd prefer this move to [ 38.d4 was even stronger. Black now
either 9.d4 ] could (and should) have bailed out into an
[ or 9.c3 . I play the Kan Sicilian quite a bit endgame. ]
and like to keep the diagonal open for my 38...f7? 39.e5 e8 40.f4 d7 41.c5
queen's bishop there too. So 'naturally' I e7 42.c7 xc5+ 43.xc5
want to put the knight somewhere which 1-0
doesn't block the bishop. ]
9...g4 10.h3
[ It seems that this is a new move, with 765 A20
10.bd2 d7 (planning .. .Bh3) having Azmaiparashvili,Zurab 2676
been more commonly played in the past. Kotronias,Vasilios 2578
White's idea is clear, he wants to prevent 31st TCh Halkidiki GRE (2) 06.07.2002
the exchange of his light square bishop. [Tony Kosten]
Sorokin - Rublevsky, Krasnoyarsk 2003
continued 11.a3!? h3 12.b4 xg2 1.g3 f6 2.g2 e5 3.c4 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
13.xg2 a6 14.b3 ae8 15.e4 h8 5.f3 c6 6.0-0 b6 7.c2!? A new idea
when Black was ready to get some at move seven in one of the most popular
counterplay with 16.. .f5. ] m a i n l i n e s ! e7 8.a3 0-0! 9.d3 g4
10...h5 11.bd2 e7 12.e4 f5 13.xd6 Black's main problem is deciding the most
cxd6 14.b4!? Trying to generate some appropriate manner of responding. The text
initiative on the queenside. The battle threatens to capture on f3, but Black could
between these two great players proves to be also consider
quite closely fought for some time to come. [ 9...a5 or ]
xb4 15.b3+ 4d5 16.xe5 dxe5 [ 9...d4 amongst others. ]
17.xd5+ xd5 18.xd5+ h8 19.fe1 10.e3 d7
ae8 20.ac1 f4 21.g4 f7 22.e4 g6 [ 10...d5 11.c5 xc5 12.xc5 d6
23.g2 This looks a bit passive but Aronian would equalise comfortably, but Black aims
evidently wanted to keep the game going. for more. ]
[ 23.d5 f7 24.e4 would repeat the 11.bd2 f5!? This is always a double-edged
position. ] move in such positions, Black makes
23...f7 24.c5?! xa2?! Perhaps time aggressive noises on the kingside, but also
pressure was starting to rear its ugly head weakens his e-pawn and the a2-g8 diagonal.
hereabouts. 12.b4 d6 13.b5 e7 14.c4 xc4
[ Black seems to have a strong move in [ 14...xb5? loses the e-pawn after
24...e4! when 25.dxe4 b6 26.c3 xe4 15.fb1 ]
27.f3 xa2 seems better for Black. ] 15.xc4+ h8 16.d4 White reacts in the
25.b5?! centre - completely thematic! f4!? Black plays
[ A n d h e r e W h i t e s h o u l d p l a y 25.xe5 the sharpest move,
to rule out the possibility of 25...e4. ] [ 16...e4?! is not very good, 17.e5 xe5
25...b6?! 26.a1 Now White has the initiative 18.dxe5 with a clear edge because of the
be c a u s e o f t h e we akn e ss o f . . . . g7 . f7 dark-squared bishop, but ]

761
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 16...xf3!? is an alternative: 17.xf3 e4 can resign. e6+ 42.g2 g5 43.d1 g7

18.g2 g6 menacing ...f4. ] 44.d6 f7 45.b5 c8 46.b7
17.dxe5 Critical. e6 1-0
[ 17...fxe3 18.exd6 exf2+ 19.xf2 cxd6
20.af1 confers a small plus on White. ]
18.e4 fxe3 As played Black can capture on 766 A20
d6 with his queen. Bourquin,Pascal
[ 18...d5 19.d3 fxe3 20.exd6 exf2+ Vnukov,Denis
21.xf2 cxd6 22.af1 threatens Ng5, and WC-2002-S-00004 05.03.2000
virtually obliges Black to play xf3 23.xf3 [Tony Kosten]
with a plus because of the superior minor
piece. ] 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
19.exd6 exf2+ 20.xf2 xd6 21.af1 5.f3 c6 6.0-0 b6 7.d3 e7 8.bd2
Again we reach this same type of position, [ An interesting alternative to the normal
but W hite has two main threats: Ng5 which 8.c3 ]
would threaten mate on h7, and the rook on f8, 8...0-0 9.a3 a5 10.b3 e6 11.b2 f6
and would win immediately, but also Qxb7. 12.c2 d7 Black completes his
g8?! Black should prefer development in a sensible way. 13.e3!?
[ 21...d5! both defending f8, and blocking [ This move of Chernin's prepares the
the h1-a8 diagonal: 22.g5 g8 so that if th em a tic d 4 -m o ve , lib e ra t in g t h e whit e
23.d4!? xf2 24.xf2 xa3! 25.xd5 pieces. 13.ac1 fd8 14.fd1
c1+ 26.f1 xg5 recuperates the piece. ] is less committal. ]
22.xb7 Of co urse . xa3 23.xc7 d5 13...fd8 14.d4 exd4 15.xd4 xd4
24.c1! The threat to the black queen stops [ 15...d5?! led to a White plus in the stem
B la ck f ro m p la yin g h is kn igh t t o e 3 . b4 g a m e , a f t e r 16.xd5+ xd5 17.xc6
25.b1 This doesn't look best, xc6 18.xc6 bxc6 19.fd1 Chernin, A-
[ 25.d2 is more natural. ] Smejkal,J/Altensteig 1991. ]
25...xb1?! Black acquiesces to an ending a 16.xd4 c5! The critical reply. 17.xc5
pawn down, but perhaps thought that h e [ W hite has little choice, as 17.c3 a4
would win it back. may even favour Black. ]
[ 25...c5 is a better chance, keeping the 17...ac8 18.b4 d5!
pieces on the board. ] [ The strongest move, which I discovered
26.xb1 c3 27.b4 a5 Probably Black when writing The Dynamic English.
thought he could play 18...axb4 19.axb4 d5 20.d3 xb4
[ 27...ab8 28.d4 xf2 29.xf2 a5 21.xd7 xd7 is equal, Matamoros Franco,
when he traps the white rook, but the last C-Volzhin,A/Hamburg 1999. ]
laugh is on him, as White has the resource [ Chernin only considered 18...a4 when
30.bxa6 ( 30.b2?? d1+ ) 30...xb4 19.e4 b6? 20.ad1 e8?? 21.xe7!
31.a7 a4 32.a8 xa8 33.xa8 ] wins material. ]
28.bxa6 xa6 With so few pawns on the 19.b3!?
board Black has some drawing chances, but it [ This was my suggestion, but may not be
is difficult. 29.e4 h6 30.f1 d8 31.e1 the strongest, 19.xd5!? is possible, xd5
Behind the pawn! a2 32.f1 f8 33.e5 ( 19...xd5 20.e4 f5 21.a2 xa2
h7 34.d3 f7 35.e5 e8 36.f4 22.xa2 might just favour White) 20.e4 e6
The knight careefully prepares the e-pawn's 21.fd1 b5 is unclear ]
advance by each time attacking the square in [ 19.b2 allows xc5 20.bxc5 xe3
f ron t o f th e p awn . d5 37.d3+ h8 21.fxe3 xd2 when Black has no
38.c4! Simplest. xf4? difficulties. ]
[ 38...xb4 39.xf7 forks both rooks. ] 19...b6 20.e4 xb4!
39.xa2 h3+ 40.g2 xa2 41.xh3 [ This exchange sacrifice seems better than
Now Black has lost an exchange as well, and my line 20...bxc5 21.exd5 f5 22.a2

762
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
axb4 23.d6 and White wins a pawn. ]
21.axb4 axb4 22.fd1 c7 23.d4
[ Pascal Bourquin also analyses 23.xe7?
but after xc2 24.xd8+ ( 24.xd8 xb3
25.h3 a8 26.xb6 xa1 27.xa1
xe4 28.g2 e5 is no improvement)
24...xd8 25.xd8 xb3 26.xb6 c3
27.a8+ f7 28.a7+ g6
and he correctly indicates that White is lost,
the b-pawn will cost another white piece. ]
23...xd4 24.xd4 bxc5 25.c4!
[ White says: 'The only move I found to stay
in the game. Not a computer move!' indeed,
after the obvious 25.c1 b3 26.d2 e5
27.a4 c4 28.a7 ( B o u r q u i n ) c3
the passed black pawns are unstoppable. ]
[ Pascal Bourquin also examines 25.dd1
when c4 26.a6 ( 26.f1 b3 27.c3 e5
28.d4 b4 wins,; 26.a4 c3 27.b1 d7
28.axb4 xb4 29.xb4 d2 likewise )
26...b3 ( 26...f7!? ) 27.c3 g4 28.f3
b7
A) 29.a5 c3 30.fxg4 c2;
B) 29.a4 b5 ( 29...e6 !? ) 30.aa1
e6 ( 30...b4 !? 31.b2 e6 32.e2
c5+ 33.h1 c3 also wins at a canter)
31.h1 b4 32.xb4 xb4 33.a6 c3;
C) 29.aa1 b4 and the blockade of the
pawns is broken, White can resign. ]
25...xc4?!
[ Allowing White a strong light-squared
b l o c k a d e , B o u r q u i n p r e f e r s 25...b8!?
so that 26.b1 ( White may be able to try
26.f1!? b3 27.b2 e5 28.b1 )
26...xc4 27.xc4+ h8 achieves a
similar situation to that of the game, but
where the white rook is less active. ]
26.xc4+ f8 27.h3 d8 28.e6
Now the black queenside pawns will need a lot
of help to advance past White's light-squared
barrier. g6 29.g8 d6 30.d5 g7
31.a8 xa8 32.xa8 e5 33.d5 a7
34.g2 d4 35.g8
[ White can also play more actively with
35.b5 as, providing White keeps queens
on the board, Black will be unable to activate
his own queen- the black king is too
exposed. ]
35...e7 36.e6 a7 Black has no serious
winning chances.
½-½
767 A20
Buhmann,Rainer 2603
Balogh,Csaba 2613
TCh-AUT 2009-10 (2) 07.11.2009
[Nigel Davies]
W h it e go t n o wh e re in t h is ga m e a n d h is
position even became very dangerous when
he tried to prove something when he had
n o t h in g. 3 . . . h 6 se e m s t o h a ve a c e rt a i n
provocation value. 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2
h6 4.c3 b4 This would probably be my
choice, but it's not the only move.
[ 4...c5 is also possible here, one of the
ideas being that 5.f3 can be met by e4
when W hite's knight can't go to g5. After
6.g1 e7 7.c2 d5! 8.xd5 ( 8.cxd5
f5 ) 8...xd5 9.cxd5 f5 Black has
compensation for his pawn in the form of
rapid development. ]
5.e4 c6 6.ge2 c5 This second move
with the bishop makes sense once White has
committed himself to e2-e4 and weakened the
d4 square. Of course it also costs a tempo.
7.0-0 d6 8.a3 a6 9.h3
[ In an earlier game, Cekro, E (2433)-Jaracz,
P (2542), Belgium 2003, White played 9.b4
af t er wh ich a7 10.h3 Black could have
played in a similar way to Balogh with just
0-0 ( 10...d4 was the move played in the
game ) 11.d3 e8 . ]
9...0-0 10.h2 e8 11.d3 d4 The hole on
d4 will prove a source of great frustration to
W hite in his attempts to attack on the
kingside. 12.f4 c6 13.b4 a7 14.f5 b5
15.a2 bxc4 16.dxc4 a5 17.b5 b7
18.bxc6 xc6 19.g4?! Aggressive but also
loosening, and White's position starts to fray
at the edges.
[ This was probably time for the pedestrian
19.e3 after which xe2 20.xe2 xe3
21.xe3 is solid enough for White. ]
19...b8 20.d2 xe2 21.xe2 b3
With Black's pieces storming into the vacant
holes, White's position is starting to look very
dubious. 22.d3 d4 23.d5 xd3
24.xf6+?! This just helps Black.
[ 24.xd3 was better. ]
24...xf6 25.xd3 h4 26.d2 b8
27.e1 d8 28.f6 b2?! Black in turn goes
wrong.
763
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 28...a4 was better, supporting the rook's A2) 11...xc6! 12.xd5 xd5 13.xd5
advance to b3. After 29.b4 ( 29.fxg7 b3 b8 14.d1 h6 15.xe4 0-0
is good for Black) 29...g6 Black has the , and it is White who's in trouble;
preferable game because of White's many B) 11.c7+ c6 12.0-0-0 f5 13.xd5
strategic responsibilities. ] xd5 14.xd5 g7 15.b5 xf2!?
29.fxg7 a8 30.f3?? This seems ( 15...xc7?! 16.xf5 ) 16.xf5 xf5
aggressive but it should lose. 17.xc6+ e7 with a messy position and
[ 30.d2 was the right move, shutting down chances to both sides ]
the rook's activity along the 7th rank. ] [ B) 5...cxd5 6.cxd5 c5 7.h3 0-0 8.c3
30...b7 e3 9.f3?! ( 9.xe3!? xe3 10.fxe3 d6
[ Missing the powerful 30...f5! after which 11.0-0 ) 9...d6 10.0-0 a6 11.d3 e8
31.gxf5 ( 31.xf5 xg2+ ) 31...xe4 12.d1 bd7 , and Black has the better
leaves White without a saving check on f8. ] ch a n c e s , Ho ld , A -B e h n k e , D/ G e rm a n y
31.f2 xf2 1997 ]
[ 31...xe4 was still better for Black, for [ C) 5...c5 6.c3 e7 7.e3 ( 7.h3!? d6
example 32.xe4 xe4 33.xe4 xf2 8.g5 seems to offer White the slightly
34.d5 xg7 35.g2 e3+ 36.f3 f4 better chances; 7.c2 e3 8.xe3 xe3
with a good extra pawn in an admittedly 9.fxe3 0-0 10.e4 , and Black has some
difficult endgame. Now it fizzles out. ] compensation for the pawn on account of
32.xf2 xf2 33.xf2 xg7 34.d2 xe4 White's weak dark squares) 7...d6 8.b3
35.xe4 xe4 36.xd6 e2+ 37.g3 b4 9.ge2 g4 10.b2 cxd5 11.cxd5
e3+ 38.g2 e2+ 39.g3 e3+ bd7 12.0-0 xc3 13.xc3 e5
½-½ Arsenault, L-Uranga, P/IECC Email 1998 ]
6.d2 e7
[ Black may also consider 6...c5
768 A20 A) 7.c3 e7 8.h3 ( 8.g5!? xf2+
Carlsen,Magnus 2733 9.f1! b6 10.xe4 0-0 11.d6 ) 8...d6
Anand,Viswanathan 2799 9.g5;
Amber Rapid Nice FRA rapid (7) 22.03.2008 B) 7.b3 0-0 8.h3 d6 9.c3 e8
[Carsten Hansen] 10.0-0 e3 ( 10...e7!? is fine for Black)
11.fxe3 xe3+ 12.xe3 xe3 13.f2
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.d4 e4 4.d5!? e7 14.c2 c5 15.fe4 xe4 16.xe4
[ This is a very aggressive continuation, f5 17.xf5 xf5 18.xf5 Brugnoli, P-
aiming to prevent Black from establishing a Siqueira, F/IECG Email 1998 ]
firm centre with pawns on e4 and d5. 4.c3 7.c3 0-0 8.a3
d5 is discussed in Narcisco Dublan-San [ The alternatives are: A) 8.h3 (this is
Segundo Carrillo, Sanxenxo 2004, which possibly White's best option at this juncture)
can be found in the PGN archives. ] e8 ( 8...cxd5 9.cxd5 d6 10.0-0 f5 11.f3
4...f6 5.g2 b4+ a6 12.g4 g6 13.g5 d7 14.xe4
[ Black's alternatives at this juncture have xe4 15.fxe4 Perez Fungueiro, M-De la
only bee n te sted in obscure game s: A ) Villa Garcia, J/Sanxenxo ESP 2007) 9.0-0
5...b5 6.c3 ( 6.d6!? ) 6...bxc4 7.dxc6 d5 c5 10.h1 ( 10.g5!? ) 10...h6 11.a3 a5
8.g5 e6 9.a4 b6 Chavira, W- 12.c2 ( 12.a4!? d6 13.xc5 dxc5
Stefurak, D/USA 1990, and now W hite's 14.c3 cxd5 15.cxd5 d8 16.xf6 xf6
best is 10.xf6 gxf6 17.c2 f5 ) 12...d6 13.ab1 f5 14.b4
A) 11.0-0-0?! axb4 15.axb4 d4 16.e3 b6 ( 16...xc3
A1) 11...xf2? 12.c7+ d7 13.xd5 17.xc3 cxd5 18.xf6 xf6 19.cxd5
h6+ ( 13...xg2 14.xf6+ e7 d7 ) 17.f4 bd7 with a complicated
15.xd7+- ) 14.b1 xd5 ( 14...xg2 game and chances to both sides,
15.xf6+ f8 16.xd7+ g7 Kudriashova, I-Gansvind, V/Moscow 1996 ]
17.b5+- ) 15.h3 0-0 16.xd7+-; [ B) 8.e3 e8 9.ge2 d6 10.dxc6 xc6

764
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11.a3 xc3 12.xc3 g4 13.h3 xe2
14.xe2 ac8 15.0-0 e5 , and Black has
taken over the control of the game, Giardelli,
S-Campora, D/Asuncion PAR 2003 ]
8...c5
[ A novelty. In an earlier game, Black tried
8...xc3 9.xc3 d6 10.e3 ( 10.d2
bd7 ) 10...bd7 11.e2 c5
( 11...cxd5!? ) 12.0-0 e5 13.xe5 xe5
with a pleasant game, Granados Gomez, M-
Campora, D/Lanzarote ESP 2003 ]
9.e3 d6 10.ge2 cxd5
[ 10...g4!? ]
11.xd5 xd5 12.cxd5 d7?!
[ 12...g4!? should have been Black's
choice. Now White grabs the initiative. ]
13.0-0 f6 14.c3 g4 15.xf6 xf6
16.b4 b6 17.xe4 a5?!
[ 17...fe8!? 18.g2 b2 19.e1 xe3
( 19...ac8!? ) 20.fxe3 xe3 21.f1 ae8
22.c1 e5 23.a2 f3 24.b2 g5
25.d4 ]
18.bxa5 xa5
[ 18...c5!? 19.d3 xe2 20.xe2 xa5
21.d3 e5 22.c2 ]
19.xh7+! xh7 20.b1+ g6 21.xb6
Now W hite is up two pawns, and the
counterplay Black may have hoped for on the
light squares around White's king soon prove
to be going nowhere fa8 22.d4
[ 22.d4!? ]
22...f3 23.c3 e8 24.h3! f5 25.f6
g8 26.ab1 xe3 27.xb7 c8 28.d8+
g7 29.xc8?!
[ 29.xf7+! xf7 30.fxe3 wins much faster ]
29...xc3 30.xf7+
[ 30.d8 xd5 31.b8 h5 32.f8+ f6
33.xd6+ g7 34.d1+- ]
30...xf7 31.d7+ f6 32.d8+
[ 32.e1! ]
32...f5 33.xa5
[ 33.e1! wins faster, but after the game
continuation White doesn't risk anything and
wins in convincing fashion ]
33...xa3 34.b4 e5 35.d2 d3
36.g5+ f5 37.e1+ xd5 38.xf5+
gxf5 39.g2 a3 40.h4 d4 41.h5 d5
42.h6 a7 43.f3 h7 44.e6 c3
45.c6+ d3 46.f4 f7 47.g5 e2
48.d6
1-0
769 A20
Chabanon,Jean Luc 2425
Kasparov,Garry 2805
tt France 1993
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 c6 4.d4 exd4
5.xd4 d5 6.g2 e6 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.f3
c6 9.a4 c5 10.0-0 0-0 11.e1?!
[ Planning Nd3-f4, but 11.g5 is more usual,
h6 12.xf6 xf6 13.fd1 ( 13.e4 dxe4
14.xe4 is a quick equaliser, e7 15.xc5
xc5 16.fd1 ad8 17.a3 and a draw was
so o n a gree d , P irc,V -K e re s, P/ B e lgra d e
1956; 13.e1 offers a little edge, ad8
14.d3 d4 15.ac1 fe8 16.f4 e5
17.e3 xc3 18.bxc3 , Seirawan,Y-Sokolov,I/
Wijk 1995 ) 13...b6 14.b5 fd8 15.a4
d4 ( 15...d4!? ) 16.xb6 axb6 17.xb6
xa2 18.xb7 db8 19.d7 a7 20.g4
xb2 equal, Romanishin, O-Agdestein,S/
Taxco 1985. ]
[ 11.b5?! aims for d4, but b6 12.e3 e4
13.bd4 fe8 14.a3 g4 Black is very
act ive, Schwaiger,A-Ivan ov, I/ Dea rb orn
1992. ]
11...d4 Gaining space. 12.d3 b6 13.b5
d5 14.h3!? To avoid the exchange of his
light-squared bishop, but it appears strange.
Af ter the game Kasparov told me that he
couldn't predict any of his opponent's moves!
e8 Again, with the black pawn on d4, e2 is
seriously weak. 15.f4 e4 16.d1 e7
17.a3 d3! Black opens the g1-a7 diagonal
and exposes the white king. 18.exd3
[ If 18.xd3?! d4 19.f4 c6 wins. ]
18...f3 19.f1 g4 20.d2 ce5 21.g2
xf2! 22.xf2 xg2 23.xg2 xf2
24.xf2 g5 The point of Black's combination.
25.e4
[ 25.h5 xd3+ 26.g1 c5+
is crushing. ]
25...gxf4 26.gxf4 h4+ White is an
exchange down for nothing.
0-1
765
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
770 A20
Colin,Vincent 2415
Libiszewski,Fabien 2482
81st ch-FRA Besancon BRA (1) 14.08.2006
[John Watson]
This is a game with extraordinarily clearcut
positional issues having to do with space and
minor pieces. I'll try to provide some opening
notes of use. 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 h6
The mighty 3...h6 has been played by leading
players for a few years now. As with so many
modern moves, it's a useful waiting move that
depends upon White to commit to a particular
formation before reacting. At the same time, it
serves a purpose in most logical
continuations that the players might agree
upon. W hite's task is simply to find a setup
which is normally either not available to him
without the extra tempo that Black hands him,
or h armles s wit ho ut . .. h6 bu t f a vo urab le
because of W hite's extra move. The game
continuation is appropriate in that regard.
4.f3 For example, 1.c4 e5 2.g3 Nf6 3.Nf3 e4
4.Nd4 is slow for several reasons, one being
4...d5 5.cxd5 Qxd5, with the ideas of ...Qxd4
and ...e3 (...Qh5 and . ..Bh3 can f ollow).
c6!?
[ The critical 4...e4 5.d4 is quite a bit more
promising for White than in the above note.
W hether Black equalizes is unclear my
guess is that W hite remains with a slight
advantage in most lines. A few samples out
of many:
A) 5...c6 6.c2!? c5 7.c3 e7
8.0-0 ( 8.e3 0-0 9.ed5 ) 8...d6 9.d3
exd3 10.exd3 0-0 11.d4 b6 12.e1;
B) 5...d5 6.cxd5 xd5
B1) or 7.c2 , f o r e x a m p l e , c6
( 7...h5 8.h3 ) 8.c3 e5 9.0-0 f5
10.d4 exd3 11.exd3 0-0-0 12.xc6
bxc6 13.f4 a5 14.d4 followed by
Re1. There are almost countless
variations for both sides here;
B2) 7.b3 d6 ( 7...f5 8.c3 d7
9.d3 b4 10.0-0 xc3 11.bxc3 0-0
12.f4 with an edge) 8.c3 e5 9.d3
exd3 10.xd3 ]
5.d4 Black can choose among several
versions of the main line 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.
g3 Nc6 4.g3 after
[ 5.c3 .Then he also has the unique move
e4 , which would normally be met by Ng5.
( 'normal' would be 5...b4 6.0-0 e4 7.e1
xc3 8.dxc3 0-0 9.c2 e8 10.e3
and Nd5, with the c1 bishop going to e3 or
f4 ) 6.h4 ( 6.g1 e7 ) 6...e7 ( 6...e7
7.d3 exd3 8.xd3 e5 9.c2!; 6...d6
7.xe4 (e l se . . . g5 ) g5 8.xf6+ xf6
9.f3 ) 7.f5 0-0 8.xe7+ xe7 9.0-0
with advantage. All this is wide open to
improvements by both sides. ]
5...b4+!?
[ 5...exd4 6.xd4 c5 7.b3 b4+ 8.d2
xd2+ 9.xd2 0-0 10.c3 d6 11.0-0 e8
and W hite has space whereas Black can
develop fairly smoothly. The first player has
a small edge. ]
6.d2
[ Perhaps 6.c3 yields something, e.g.,
A) 6...e4 7.d2 ( 7.e5!? ) 7...xc3
8.bxc3 e7 9.c2 e3 10.e4!;
B) 6...d6 7.dxe5 xc3+ 8.bxc3 dxe5
9.xd8+ xd8 10.a3 ]
6...xd2+ 7.xd2 d6 8.d5
[ 8.dxe5 dxe5 9.xd8+ xd8 10.c3
is safe for White, and mildly better for him.
One gets the impression that 4... Nc6 has
conceded some advantage. ]
8...e7
[ 8...b8 9.c3 a5 10.0-0 a6
is an option, but W hite stands better, in
particular because he can expand on the
queenside. ]
9.c3 0-0 10.0-0 a5 11.e1!? d7
aiming for c5. Now we have arrived at a basic
position with White having space and Black
having the better bishop. Compare 1.d4 Nf6 2.
c4 e6 3.Nf3 Bb4+ 4.Bd2 Qe7 5.g3 Bxd2+ 6.
Nbxd2 d6 7.Bg2 e5. Here White gets a knight
on c3 instead of d2 and should stand better.
Developing by
[ 11...g4 is an option, but the bishop can
get stuck on the kingside after 12.h3 f5
13.e4 h7?! ]
12.d3 f5?! This simple and obvious move
condemns Black's bishop to passivity on c8.
A better choice was
[ 12...b6 13.e4 c5 ]
13.f4! e4 This is undesirable, leaving the
bishop in the lurch, but much better than
[ 13...exf4? , when 14.xf4 is awful. ]
766
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 13...g6? 14.e4! exploits White's space
and better development. ]
14.e1 White's strategy until the end of the
game is standard stuff. It is important to get a
knight to the ideal blockading square e3, from
which the break with g4 is supported. b6
15.b3 c6 16.c2 cxd5 17.cxd5 d7?
Black should be preparing for g4 by ...Kh8, ...
Ng8-f6, ...h5 etc. Of course, W hite is also
better on the queenside. 18.ac1 h7
19.e3 g8 A tempo short. 20.g4! g6
21.gxf5!
[ 21.d4 e7 22.g5!? ( 22.h1 bc8
23.g1 ) 22...h5 23.c2 and Rfc1. The
pawn on g5 cramps Black's pieces. ]
21...gxf5 22.d4 e7 23.h1 g6
24.g1!?
[ 24.xe4!? fxe4 25.xe4 is a typical
combination. Rg1 and f5-f6 are among the
threats. But evidently Black can't stop this
anyway. ]
24...f6
[ Or 24...c8 25.xe4 fxe4 26.xe4 ce7
27.xg6! xg6 28.xg6+ xg6 29.g1+
h5 30.e4 g8 31.f3+ h4 32.g3! ]
25.xe4 fxe4 26.xe4 e8 27.c7+!
[ Or 27.g4 ]
27...d7 28.g4 f8 29.xd7+! xd7
[ 29...xd7 30.f6+ xf6 31.xf6 g7
32.e6! f7 33.xg6+ xg6 34.xg6
xe6 35.xe6 ]
30.xg6+ xg6 31.xh6+ h5 32.g7
f6 33.g5+ h4 34.xd7
1-0
771 A20
Damljanovic,Branko 2551
Vasilevich,Tatjana 2420
Open Kavala GRE (8) 07.08.2009
[Nigel Davies]
Here's a rare 4th move alternative for White
which seems designed to sidestep the equally
rare 4.Nc3 Bb4. It doesn't look very dangerous
but may cast some light on what Damljanovic
thinks about this line. 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.d4
e4 4.b3!?
[ Presumably this is designed against the line
4.c3 b4 which seems quite interesting
despite its main proponent having been an
unknown Dutch player called Van Weersel.
For example 5.d2 xc3 6.xc3 ( 6.bxc3
f6 7.g2 d5 8.cxd5 xd5 9.b3 0-0
10.xd5 cxd5 11.b1 b6 12.h3 a6
was quite good for Black in Smokina, K
(2283)-Van W eersel, A (2169), Kusadasi
2006. ) 6...d5 7.b3 f6 8.cxd5 xd5
9.e3 xb3 10.axb3 0-0 11.b4 e8
12.d6 bd7 was Landa, K (2609)-Van
Weersel, A (2173), Vlissingen 2005. White
eventually won this game but it had a lot to
do with him being 400 points higher rated. At
the moment the position looks fine for Black.
So will we now get a transposition back
into normal lines after 4... d5 5.cxd5 cxd5?
This was probably Damljanovic's hope, but
Black has another way to play it. ]
4...d5 5.cxd5 xd5 Exactly. And the
endgame looks fine for Black. 6.xd5 cxd5
7.c3 e6 8.f3 f6 9.fxe4 xe4 10.xe4
dxe4 11.e3 c6 12.d2 b4 13.b5+
d8 14.f2 c8 15.xb4 c2+?!
[ Just 15...xb4 16.e2 e7 would have
been at least equal for Black. The text gets
slightly carried away by the prospect of
having an active rook and Black ends up
suffering a little for his enthusiasm. ]
16.e2 xb4 17.a4 d2
[ And not 17...xb2 18.ab1 xb1 19.xb1
a5 20.a3 xa3 21.xb7 which would be
very dangerous for Black what with
White's rampaging rook on the 7th. ]
18.hd1 xe2+
[ 18...xb2 is dubious here too after 19.ab1
xe2+ 20.xe2 g4+ 21.f2 xd1
22.xd1 a5 23.a3 xa3 24.xb7
, once again with a powerful rook on the
7th. ]
19.xe2 g4+ 20.f2 xd1 21.xd1 f5
22.a3 d6 23.g2 White is slightly better
now. It's still not much but he gets full points
for effort. e7 24.c1 f8 25.b3 d8
26.h3 b6 27.f1 f8 28.d5 g6 29.g4
b8 30.b4 d8 31.c6 f4 32.f2 f8
33.h1 fxe3+ 34.xe3 f3+ 35.xe4 xa3
36.b5 a5 37.bxa6 xa6 38.b5 a5
39.b1 d6 40.c4 c6 41.c1 a7
42.d5+ d7 43.g8 d6 44.b1 e7+
45.d3 c7 46.f1 g7 47.f7 d8
48.c4 e7 49.d5 d6 50.e4 c7+
51.d3 a7 52.f8 e7 53.b8 c7
767
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
54.h8 a3+ 55.e2 xh3 56.xg6 f6
57.f8 xd4 58.f7+ d6 59.xh7 g3
60.f5 b5 61.b7 c5 62.d3 xg4
63.xb5+ d6 64.h5 f6 65.f3 g5
66.e4
½-½
772 A20
Davies,Nigel R 2493
Cherniaev,Alexander 2428
7th Staunton Memorial GM (5) 12.08.2009
[Nigel Davies]
Cherniaev seemed much better prepared than
me for this game but that doesn't always help.
I was blissfully unaware of the fact that my
improvised 5th move sidestepped his
preparation and created a lot of confusion to
boot. 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.d4 e4 4.c3 d5
5.f3
[ My opponent was probably inspired to play
this way by the game Davies, N - Cornette,
M, 4NCL 2008: 5.h3 a6 6.cxd5 cxd5
7.b3 c7 8.f4 d6 9.f3 exf3 10.exf3
e7 11.b5 xf4 12.xf4 0-0 13.f2
f5 14.d3 xb5 15.xb5 xd3 16.xd3
b6 1/2-1/2 which was all very comfortable
f or B lack. Of course I was no t going t o
repeat this as long as I remembered it, and
the move played (5.f3) looked quite good to
me. I found out later that it hasn't been
played much. ]
[ One of the critical lines here is 5.cxd5 cxd5
6.b3 c6 7.xd5 xd5 8.xd5 xd4
which I'll take a closer look at in Gelfand -
Karjakin. Does the inclusion of the moves f3
and .. . f5 make a difference to these lines?
I could have asked this question in th e
game. ]
5...f5
[ There's probably a good case for 5...exf3
6.xf3 f6 , for example 7.g2 e7 8.0-0
0-0 9.e5 e6 with complex play. ]
6.cxd5 cxd5 7.b3 c6 8.xd5 xd5
9.xd5 xd4 10.f2
[ 10.c7+ is similar to Gelfand - Karjakin
and looks critical. But with ...f7-f5 included
Black has an additional possibility in f7!?
, f o r e x a m p l e 11.xa8 c2+ 12.f2
( 12.d1 xa1 also needs checking
carefully ) 12...c5+ 13.e3 xa1 14.c7
f6 15.c4+ e7 looks fine for him. I can't
say tha t I pa rticula rly trust this line f o r
White. ]
10...e6
[ During the game I was more concerned
abo ut t he lin e 10...c2!? 11.b1 e3+!
, w h e n I wa s i n t e n d i n g t o p l a y 12.xe3
( 12.xe3?! c5 looks strong) 12...xe3
13.xe3 without having a huge amount of
confidence in it. Actually I think Black has
plenty for the pawn after d6 14.h3 e6
15.hf4 f7 intending ...g7-g5. ]
11.g2
[ Fritz likes the move 11.h3!? , which is
something I hadn't really considered at the
board. It looks quite strong, for example exf3
12.xf3 e7 13.d1 xd5 14.xd5
seems better than the game because Black
is forced to waste time defending his f5
pawn. ]
[ My opponent on the other hand preferred
11.fxe4 fxe4 12.g2 which I rejected
because of c5+ 13.e3 e7 14.xe4
g5 . I was probably wrong to have done so
a s W h i t e i s a p a w n u p a f t e r 15.d3
. The move I played is not bad and keeps an
easy game for W hite. Though in view of
Black's excellent defence it's tempting to
look for improvements here. ]
11...exf3 12.xf3 e7 13.d1 xd5
14.xd5 c5+ 15.e3 xe3+ 16.xe3 0-0
17.c1 White of course has 'strong pressure'
but can this be converted into something
more tangible? b8 18.e5 f4+ 19.d2
fxg3 20.hxg3 e8 21.d6 f8
[ I spent some time wondering about the rook
endgame that arises after 21...g5 22.d7
xd7 23.xd7 e4+ 24.xe4 xe4
25.cc7 g4 26.xb7 xb7 27.xb7 xg3
28.xa7 . After the game Jon Speelman,
who understands such things, opined that it
looked good for White because the e-pawn
would shield my king from checks. I'll take
his word for it. ]
22.xc8!? I'd seem some spectacular lines
after this and the way Black plays it I keep an
edge. But he could have equalised
immediately by recapturing with the right rook.
bxc8?! Just not this way.
[ After 22...exc8 I don't see anything for me
768
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

apart from perpetual check with 23.d5+ E-Hertneck, G/Muenchen 1994 and now
h8 24.f7+ g8 25.e5+ etc. ] 12.d1 e6 13.c3 0-0 14.e4
23.d5+ h8 24.f7+ g8 25.g5+ h8 would have been slightly better for White)
26.f7+ g8 27.d8! This keeps an edge 11.d1 b6 12.e3 c5 13.xc5 xc5
though it's not enough to win. c5 The only 14.b4 b6 15.c3 0-0 16.a5
move. and White had a slight edge in Lobron, E-
[ After 27...cxd8 28.xd8+ h8 29.f7+ Kharlov, A/ Leeuwarden 1997. ]
g8 30.d6+ e6 31.xb7 White wins a 10.xg7! This is good for White but not
pawn ] everyone has played this way.
[ and on 27...exd8 28.xd8+ h8 [ 10.e4 c6 11.c3 e6 12.e3 0-0
29.f7+ g8 30.d6+ it's a whole rook. ] 13.fd1 c7 14.ac1 fd8 15.a3 xd1+
28.h6+ h8 29.f7+ g8 30.h6+ h8 16.xd1 d5 17.xd5 xd5 18.a4
31.xe8 xd5+ 32.e3 gxh6 33.xf8+ 1/2-1/2 was Ruck, R-Rogic, D/Porec 1998. ]
g7 34.c8 So White has the better pawn 10...f6 11.h6 c2 12.c3
structure but Black's doubled h-pawns come [ Jon Speelman later commented that my
in handy in many lines. After the game opponent's resignation was a very deep
Cherniaev thought that perhaps he should move! He does appear to have a lost game
have retreated his rook to d7 here, but either as a later game amply demonstrated:
way it looks like a draw. b5 35.b3 e5+ 12.c3 xa1 ( 12...xc3 13.bxc3 xa1
36.f3 e7 37.e4 f6 38.f4 e6 39.f8 14.g7 is also winning) 13.d1 d7
d7 40.e8+ f7 41.h8 e6 42.e8+ ( 13...e7? is met by 14.d5; and 13...d4
f7 43.a8 a6 44.f5 d2 45.b8 f2+ by 14.g5 d6 15.xd6 cxd6 16.xd4
46.e5 b5 47.b7+ g8 48.a4 bxa4 etc ) 14.d5 e7 ( Or 14...e5 15.g5
49.bxa4 h5 50.b6 f3 51.xa6 xg3 c8 16.f6+ etc ) 15.g7 f8 16.h6
52.f4 h4 53.a8+ (Threatening 17.Nf6+ Bxf6 18.Qxf8 mate) f6
½-½ 17.f3 f5 18.h5+ g6 19.xg6+ hxg6
20.xg6+ d7 21.xf6+ c6 22.e4+
1-0 Franco Ocampos, Z-Needleman, A/
773 A20 Buenos Aires 2003. ]
Davies,Nigel R 2510 1-0
Thiel,Thomas 2320
Lloyds Bank op 18th (3) 1994
[Nigel Davies] 774 A20
Ding,Liren 2742
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5 Balogh,Csaba 2637
5.f3 c6 6.0-0 e7 7.d4 exd4 Tromsoe ol (Men) 41st (3.2) 04.08.2014
After this I think White has an edge. [Kosten, Tony]
[ A more critical response is 7...e4!? 8.e5
f5 , for example 9.xc6 bxc6 10.c3 0-0 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.f3 e4
11.f3 exf3 12.exf3 ( 12.xf3 might be a 5.d4 d5 6.cxd5 xd5 7.e3 Currently
better way) 12...f6 13.e1 b8 14.f4 f a s h i o n a b l e . e5 Moving off the h1-a8
b4 gave Black excellent counterplay in diagonal is prudent, and is the 2nd most
Carlsen, M-Gelfand, B/Moscow 2007. ] popular move, scoring well for Black.
8.xd4 xd4 9.xd4 b4 This tempting [ The most common, 7...c5 was analysed
move pretty much loses by force. by Alex Fier a few months ago, see
[ Black has to play 9...f6 when 10.a4+ Savchenko, B-Kravtsiv, M. ]
( 10.xd8+ xd8 11.c3 c6 12.b4 0-0 [ 7...c5 8.c3 e5 is also possible, 9.db5
13.a4 e6 14.b2 a6 15.b5 a5 16.bxc6 ( 9.f4 Miroshnichenko, E (2602)-Guner, S
bxc6 17.e4 was marginally better for (2041)/Kocaeli 2014, 1-0 (39), e7 ) 9...a6
W hite in Lalic, B-Mohr, G/Zagreb 1993) 10.a4 c6 11.xe4 xe4 12.xe4
10...c6 ( 10...d7 11.c2 c6 was Lobron, looks greedy, but might be playable, d7

769
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
13.f4 ]
8.f4!? White revives an old idea.
[ 8.c3 c5 ( 8...a6 9.0-0 b4 10.d3!?
is possible, as xd3?! 11.xe4!; 8...c5
9.db5 as above. ) 9.d3! ( 9.b3 b6
is quite pleasant for Black.; Likewise 9.de2
0-0 10.0-0 Bilek, I (2485) -Gheorghiu, F
(2530)/Teeside 1972, 1/2-1/2 (24), d8 )
9...exd3 10.xd3 0-0 11.0-0 a6 12.a3
b6 13.b4 d8 14.c2 c7 ( 14...xd4
15.exd4 xd4 16.f4 gives good play for
the pawn, h5 17.ad1 ) 15.ce2 e6
16.b2 xd4 17.xd4 with an edge to
White, Zhigalko, A (2619)-Balogh, C (2630)/
Warsaw 2013, 1/2-1/2 (60). ]
8...exf3 A fairly human reaction, but not
forced.
[ 8...e7!? is p o s sib le , 9.c3 ( 9.c2 )
9...a6 10.0-0 but White is a little better
here, e4 is a target and it is not easy for
Black to complete his kingside development.
Still, after g4 11.a4 d7 Black may
even consider ...h5-4. ]
9.xf3 h5 10.0-0 e7 11.c3 0-0 12.d4!
W hite will continue e4 next move when his
centre is very dynamic. e6
[ The only previous time this position was
reached Black preferred to exchange the
light-squared bishops: 12...h3
bd7 but then 14.e5! is a wkward , d5
15.xd5 cxd5 16.b3 the d5-pawn is a
problem, b6 17.a4 ab8 ( 17...xg2
18.xg2 f5!? i s b e t t e r , 19.a5 c4
20.b5 menaces b3, b6 21.axb6 xb6 )
18.a5 c4 19.b5 b6 20.xd5!?
( 20.axb6 xb6 21.xd5 wins a pawn.)
20...xa5 21.xh3 xh3 22.g5 bd8
23.e4 d7 24.ad1 with some advantage
b e c a u s e o f t h e m o b i l e c e n t r a l p a wn s ,
Chuprikov, D (2422)-Zakhartsov, V (2526)/
Voronezh 2002, 1-0 (66). ]
13.e4 bd7 14.c2 ad8 Black's pieces
are a little bit congested. 15.e2! Heading for
f4.
[ 15.h4 g6 16.e5 can be answered by
e8!? and the knight can reroute to a useful
square via g7 or c7. ( 16...d5 17.f3 g4
18.xd5 cxd5 19.d1 xf3 20.xf3
and Black has a weakish d-pawn again. )]
15...b5 16.f4 c4! 17.b1! g4 18.b3
b4
[ 18...a6 looks safer, 19.h3 xf3 20.xf3
b6 21.e3 c5 22.e5 e8 23.d5 e6
W hite has the bishops, but his centre is
weakening. ]
19.b2
[ 19.e3 ]
19...fe8 A natural move, but the f7-pawn
lacks a defender later on. 20.c2 b6
[ 20...f8 -g6 is better, if Black can
exchange a piece he will be more
comfortable. ]
21.h1 h5 22.d3! White strives to keep
pieces on the board, and anyway his knight on
d3 is more useful than Black's on h5. hf6
It's a bad sign if Black can only sit and wait.
23.d2 Nc4 is the threat.
[ 23.g5!? is crude, but quite effective: f8
24.h3 ( 24.f2 ) 24...h5 25.f4 g6
26.xg6 hxg6 27.e5 d5 and now
28.xf7! xf7 29.xg6 threatens the rook
o n f 7 a n d B e 4 f o l l o w e d b y Q h 7 , df8
30.e6 e3 31.f3 xg2 32.xf7 xf7
33.f1 regaining the two knight deficit with
interest. ]
23...f8?! Black goes downhill rapidly now.
24.c4 c7 25.e3! A strange but
harmonious position for the white knights. The
g4-bishop is under attack and Black is already
13.e4 in big trouble. c8 26.f2 Now e5 is coming,
when f7 is undefended. h5?! Losing.
[ 26...e6 ]
27.f4 g4 28.xg4 xg4 29.d5?!
[ 29.h3 d7 30.d5 is completely crushing,
B x g 7 i s t h r e a t e n e d , s o : f6 31.e5!
transposing to the game. ]
29...f6?!
[ 29...d6 30.h3 xf4 is the only hope,
31.hxg4 e5 32.xf7+ h8 when Black is
still fighting. ]
30.h3 d7 31.e5! With a decisive attack.
fxe5 32.h5 f6 33.xf6+ gxf6 34.xf6
xh3 35.xe5 Bla ck can re sign . xe5
36.xe5 g6 37.f6 f8 38.g5 xf1+
39.xf1 xg2+ 40.xg2 e8 41.d6 e4+
42.f3
1-0
770
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

775 A20 776 A20

Ehlvest,Jaan 2601 Foisor,Cristina Adela B
Charbonneau,Pascal 2507 Kosten,Anthony C
ch-Marshall CC (4) 09.12.2007 Aubervilliers 1996
[Jonathan Rowson] [Tony Kosten]

1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
5.f3 c6 6.0-0 b6 7.b3 d6!?
Now that the bishop is going to b2, it is not
clear whether the bishop is needed on e7 to
control g5 and the kingside more generally.
Indeed this move looks like the most efficient
form of development, but on the other hand,
wi t h t h e k n i gh t o n b 6 , a n d wh i t e h a vi n g
fianchettoed on the kingside, Black is unlikely
to s ucce ed t hrou gh f orce of arm s on th e
kingside. Play in the centre and the queenside
is more common, and for that purpose it can
be useful to have the d-file unobstructed.
8.b2 0-0 9.c3 e8 10.c1 g4 11.h3
h5 12.e4 The other issue with the bishop
being on d6 is that it is more likely to be
snaffled by a knight. f5 13.xd6 cxd6 14.d3
a5 15.d2 Intending Qg5. h6 16.e3 d7
17.h4 g5 18.f3
[ 18.xf5 xf5 19.g4 was probably plan A,
but xg4 20.hxg4 xg4 leaves White
without any sensible way to regain control
on the kingside. ]
18...f7 19.h2 a4
[ 19...g6 20.f4 ]
20.g4!? axb3 21.a3 g6 22.f4 a4
[ 22...gxf4 23.exf4 a4 is more accurate.
24.gxf5 h5 25.g4 xg4 26.hxg4 xb2
27.xb2 d4 is one of many lines that
leads to a fairly random position. ]
23.gxf5 h5 24.fxg5 hxg5 25.a1 ac8
[ 25...c5 obliges White to find something
better than Bb2, (or Ba1 after Na4) if he
wants to avoid a repetition. ]
26.c4 b6 27.cc1 a4 28.g4! xg4
29.hxg4 d5 30.b1 c5 31.f6
Black's suddenly position looks hopeless. e4
32.f5
[ 32.f2! is even stronger. ]
32...xd3 33.xg5+ f8 34.xb3 ce5
35.c3 e6 36.b1 xf6 37.xe5 f2
38.f5
1-0
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.d4 exd4
5.xd4 d5 6.f3 e6 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.0-0
c6 9.a4 c5 10.a3 0-0 11.b4 b6
12.b2 e4 With the bishop on the g1-a7
diagonal, and the knight on e4, f2 is a target.
13.bd2 c8 14.ad1 e7 15.e3 g4
16.h3 h5 17.g4 White breaks the pin, but it
leaves the kingside weaker. g6 18.b3
fd8 I have always liked this variation as you
often obtain such fine attacking set-ups for
Black, every piece is on a strong square.
19.fe1 h5 20.d4?? White cracks (this was
only a rapid game) xd4! 21.exd4 xd2!
She had clearly overlooked this possibility.
22.a2
[ 22.xe7? xb3 ]
22...e4 23.f3 hxg4 24.hxg4 h4 25.fxe4
xg4 26.e5? White is lost anyway, but this
should hasten matters. xb4
[ 26...xe5! is even stronger. ]
27.b3
[ 27.axb4? c2 forces mate. ]
27...c2 28.f3 xf3 29.xf3 d3
30.xd3 xd3 31.a4 c2 Black has a
winning material advantage. 32.a3 e4
33.d1 d2 34.a5 c8 35.e2 cc2
36.f1 xe2!
0-1
777 A20
Galkin,Alexander 2608
Alsina Leal,Daniel 2544
LIII TCh-ESP CECLUB Gp1 (2) 21.09.2009
[Nigel Davies]
I have some sympathy for White's 2.a3 here -
it's almost always a useful move for Black to
have in the Sicilian Defence. Black's 3...c6 is
a sensible reply as ...a7-a6 is of questionable
merit against the 2.c3 Sicilian. But W hite
could have spiced things up with 3.b4!? or
maybe 5.exd4. 1.c4 e5 2.a3 f6 3.e3
[ 3.b4!? is worth considering here, the point
being tha t c6 4.b2 denies Black time to

771
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

play ...d7-d5 because of the attack on the e5

sides. 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.d4 e4 4.c3 d5
pawn. It's an original position and I won't 5.cxd5 cxd5 6.b3 c6 7.xd5 xd5
8.xd5 xd4 9.c7+ d8 10.xa8 c2+
spare you the cliché that it 'deserves tests'! ]
3...c6 An intelligent choice by Black, using a
11.d1 xa1 This is a quite critical line in
plan that makes White's 2. a3 rather useless. which computer analysis is likely to feature
From a theoretical point of view it's easy heavily. I do have one or two thoughts to add
equality for Black, but there are a few thingsto some earlier analysis on Chesspublishing.
W hite might have tried to spice it up. 4.d4 com and this high level game also deserves
exd4 5.xd4 inclusion. As far as I can see Black is doing
[ One idea worth noting is 5.exd4 d5 6.c3 very nicely here. 12.e3 I'm surprised that a
e7 7.c5 , reaching a position similar to
(normally) well prepared player like Gelfand
some lines of the Tarrasch French with would go into this line without having anything
colours reversed in which Black plays ...c5-sp ecia l in m in d. P erha ps h e avoide d his
c4. I don't think this is any 'advantage' for
normal stuff because of Karjakin's excellent
W hite, but it would create an original preparation only to find himself out of the
position on the board. This is the point of proverbial frying pan and into the fire.
playing moves like 2.a3, one is not [ a) 12.f4 was dealt with by John Watson
attempting to win any 'novelty of the year following a question from Jose Blades. I
awards'. ] don't have anything to add here. ]
5...d5 6.f3 e7 [ b) 12.b3!? is Tony Kosten's idea, but I think
[ Other moves are also not bad, for example B l a c k i s O K a f t e r b6 , for example
6...d6 7.c3 dxc4 8.xc4 0-0 9.e4 c7 ( 12...b5!? 13.b2 xb3 14.axb3 b7
10.xd8 xd8 11.g5 f8 12.f4 h6 15.e3! b4 16.c4 f6 17.h3 xa8
13.xf7 xf7 14.e5 fd7 wasn't really 18.e2 e7 19.a1 c8 20.f4
good enough in Bosboom, M (2423)- with attack was Tony's line) 13.b2 xb3
Tiviakov, S (2663), Hilversum 2007, the 14.axb3 b7 15.xb6 axb6 16.e3 f6
point being that 15.e6 e7 17.c4 b4 with no problems for Black. ]
pins the e-
pawn. ] 12...e6 13.xa7 New but rather good for
7.c3 0-0 8.cxd5 cxd5 9.e2 c6 Black.
10.d3 This position will be familiar to 2.c3
[ Two years earlier the game Solak, D
Sicilian players as we've got one with (2567)-Volokitin, A (2645), Murska Sobota
reversed colours with White having a2-a3 in. 2 0 0 6 h a d g o n e 13.b3 xb3 14.axb3
A nice position for those who like playing xb3+ 15.c1 a3+ 16.d2 b4+
against isolated pawns. g4 11.0-0 d7 17.c1 b6 18.b2 d5 19.xb6 axb6
12.b3 20.xb6+ e7 21.d4 f6 22.e3 b8
[ 12.d1 may be better. ] and Black had a strong attack despite the
12...fd8 13.b2 f5 14.d1 d4 15.exd4 absence of queens. ]
A massive liquidation is in the offing. 13...f6 14.b3
½-½ [ M a y b e W h i t e s h o u l d p l a y 14.h3
, though after xa2 15.b6+ e7 16.c5+
e8 17.c7+ d8 it still looks very
778 A20 dangerous for White. ]
Gelfand,Boris 2737 14...a3 15.d4 e7 16.b6 d8 17.e3
Karjakin,Sergey 2732 c5 18.a4?!
2nd ACP World Rapid Cup rapid (2.4) 6.1.08 [ 18.c1 might have been more tenacious
[Nigel Davies] but xd4 19.exd4 xb6 gives Black two
pieces for a rook and all the chances. The
Alexander Cherniaev told me about this game fact that the d4 pawn is falling means that
after our encounter in the 2009 Staunton. It the knight on a1 is alive. ]
was a rare opening disaster for Gelfand and a 18...xd4 19.exd4 xb3! Everything is clear
few days later he would be seen changing now. Black goes a solid pawn up and gets his

772
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

knight back into the game. 20.c3 xd4 king and white's control of the centre are
21.c1 c8 22.b2 d5 23.ge2 xe2 much more important factors. e6 13.e4 0-0
24.xe2 b4 25.d4 d8 14.e2 a3 15.c2 e7 16.f4 f7
[ I don't see a good reason to avoid 17.ad1 d7 18.d3 ac8 19.c3
25...xa2 though maybe the clock was [ 19.xa7!? is not very practical(unless you
playing a role. ] are really confident and play it quickly) but
26.xe6 fxe6 Another surprising move. Rybka seems to think you can get away with
[ But after 26...xe6 27.c4+ e5 28.c3 it. ]
d5+ 29.xd5 xd5 30.b1 it's not easy 19...c5 20.f4 e6 21.xe6 xe6
for Black. ] 22.e5! fxe5 23.xe5 3 4v has become 3v 2
27.c4 d3+ 28.c3 and Black's king begins to feel slightly drafty.
[ 28.xd3 xd3 would win the f2 pawn. ] cd8 24.e4 h6 25.xd8 xd8 26.e1
28...xf2 29.b1 d1+ 30.b4 e3 b4 27.c3 xc3 28.xc3 Black has
31.b5 d5+ 32.b3 c8 A bad loss for eased the pressure, but even here W hite
Ge lf an d. It wou ld be int e re st in g t o kn o w keeps a niggle due to superior control of
exactly how his opening went so wrong. central squares and long term king safety.
0-1 Moreover, Black has an immediate tactical
issue to deal with on the e-file. f7
[ 28...d6 seems to retain material equality,
779 A20 though it is not straightforward. 29.e3 h3
Georgiev,Vladimir 2538 30.xa7 d2 31.e3 xa2 ]
Krush,Irina 2447 29.e3 d5 30.xd5 xd5 31.xa7 d2
Winter Invitational (8) 12.01.2006 32.h4 h7 33.f1 g8 34.a5 d5
[Jonathan Rowson] 35.xd5+ cxd5 36.a4 d4 37.g2 d3
[ 37...d3! 38.b1 f7 trying to win the
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5 micro-battle for king activity, looks more
5.f3 c6 6.0-0 b6 7.b3 e7 8.b2 f6 tenacious. ]
9.d4 exd4?! 38.c1 c2 39.d1 c3 40.b4 b6 41.f3
[ 9...e4 10.fd2 f5 11.d5 a3 42.b5 f7 43.e3 xa4 44.xd3 b4
A) 11...f6 An interesting if slightly 45.d7+ f8 46.d5 e7 47.f4 b3+
irrelevant line: 12.xf6 xf6 13.c3!? 48.f2 c3 49.h5 c2+ 50.f3 c3+
xc3 14.c1 xd5! 15.xc3 xc3 51.g4 e6 52.e5+ f6 53.h4 c4
16.e1 d4 17.h1! ( 17.e3 c2 54.e3 b4 55.e5 c4 56.h3 b4
is an amusing may for the queen to meet 57.g2 b2+ 58.f3 b3+ 59.f2 b2+
her demise.) 17...0-0 ( 17...cxe2 18.f3 60.e3 b3+ 61.d4 xg3 62.d5 d3+
e3 19.c4 e6 20.xe3 f4 21.gxf4 0-0 This seems to lose a precious tempo.
22.c2 keeps an edge for White. ); [ 62...g4! keeps some practical drawing
B) 11...xd5 12.xg7 g8 ( 12...f7 chances alive. ]
i s m o r e s t y l i s h b u t 13.xh8 xh8 63.c6 d4 64.xb6 xf4 65.c5 g5
14.xe4 e6 15.bd2 fxe4 16.xe4 66.hxg6 xg6 67.a6 f2 68.b6 a2+
d8 17.e3 is hard to assess.) 13.b2 69.b5 h5 70.b7 h4 71.c6 b2 72.b5
e6 14.c3 f6 and again Black looks 1-0
comfortable. ]
10.xd4 xd4 11.xd4 c6 12.c3
Now W hite has an enduring edge. In many
openings this structure arises and the rule of
thumb is that with the queens off Black is
better because he has a potential outside
passed pawn and W hite's queenside pawn
duo can become weak, but with the queens on,
Black's relative lack of pawn shield for his

773
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

780 A20 17...b7 18.e4 b6 19.d6 ab8

Gonzalez Zamora,Juan Carlos 2524 20.xb7 xb7 21.xc6 and so forth...
Estrada Nieto,Julian 2361 1-0
XVII Torre Mem (7) 18.12.2004
[John Watson]
781 A20
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.d4 b4+ 4.d2 xd2+ Gulko,Boris F 2622
5.xd2 d6 6.c3 f6 7.g2 0-0 Harikrishna,Penteala 2514
If Black wants to play the ...Be6 idea, he Corus B Wijk aan Zee NED (4) 20.01.2001
should do so now. 8.e4 e7 This move [Tony Kosten]
appears innocuous but places the queen on a
square that may not be the best one. Black 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
can set up in numerous other ways: 5.f3 c6 6.0-0 e7 7.d4 e4 8.e5 f5
[ (a) 8...e6!? resembles the 8.e3 Be6 lines Probably Black's only good reply. 9.xc6
that have been discussed in this column, but bxc6 10.f3
W hite has clamped down on ...d5. Black [ White hits the important e-pawn head-on.
switched strategies in Gurevich, M-Godena, 10.c3 0-0 11.a4 d6 12.xd5 cxd5
Istanbul2003by 9.b3 ( 9.d5 cxd5 10.cxd5 13.f4 a6 led to near equality in Dorfman,
d7= ) 9...b5!? 10.cxb5 ( 10.d5 cxd5 J-Ivanchuk,V/Debrecen 1988. ]
11.exd5 d7 12.xb5 xb5 13.cxb5 [ 10.a4 was considered previously. ]
--M Gurevich, and now I think Black should 10...exf3 11.xf3 0-0 12.c3 e6
play b6 14.a4 a6!= ) 10...cxb5 11.dxe5 [ 12...f6?! 13.e4! xc3 14.bxc3 fxe4
dxe5 12.xd8 xd8 13.xb5 c6 when 15.xe4 a6 16.e1 favoured White in
14.c7 should have led to some Zita, F-Hromadka,K/Prague 1943. ]
advantage. ] 13.a4!?
[ (b) 8...bd7 is the main line: 9.f3 ( 9.d5 [ A novelty, White hopes to pin Black down
cxd5 10.cxd5 b5! 11.ge2 b4 12.d1 to defence of the c6-pawn, but fails, 13.e3
c5 13.f3 b6 14.e3 a6 was better xc3 14.bxc3 d5 , Spraggett,K-Vehi
for Black in Ekeberg-P Carlsson, Bergen Bach,V/Ampuriabrava 1997, is equal, but ]
2001; 9.ge2 a6 10.0-0 b5 11.cxb5 axb5 [ 13.e4 may be best, fxe4 14.xe4 b8
12.a3 b7 13.fd1 b6 14.b4 fe8= 15.f2 e8 16.g5 d8 17.xe7 xe7
Rotstein-Fontaine, Montpellier 1999) 9...a5 18.c5 f5 , Sher,M-Smirin,I/Moscow
10.0-0 a4! 11.ab1 a5 12.fd1 e8 1990, 19.g4 with advantage, as the e6-
13.b3 axb3 14.axb3 exd4 15.xd4 e5 bishop is loose. ]
16.f3 h5 --analysis by M Gurevich. ] 13...b6! 14.xc6 d7
[ ( c ) F i n a l l y , t h e o d d 8...c5!? 9.d5 [ 14...d7 15.b7 c8 forces a perpetual
pits W hite's centre versus Black's better attack on the queen. ]
bishop. One idea is a6 10.ge2 c7 ½-½
11.0-0 a6 12.a4 b8 13.f4 e7 ]
9.ge2 bd7 10.0-0 a6
[ 10...a5 11.f4 exd4 12.xd4 c5 782 A20
13.ad1 e8 ] Gurevich,Mikhail 2652
11.f4! b5?! Anand,Viswanathan 2788
[ Black's best is 11...b6 12.ad1 b7 ] Corsica Masters KO (2.2) 04.11.2005
12.c5! exd4?? [John Watson]
[ 12...dxc5 13.dxe5 e8 14.ad1
with the advantage. ] A confusing game between leading
13.cxd6 xd6 14.e5 c5 15.xd4 g4 grandmasters. First Anand uncorks the bizarre
16.h3 h6 17.h2 move 3...h6!? and Gurevich, without trying to
[ 17.ac1 . White is in complete control. In exploit it, finds a way to get back to a normal
the game he won convincingly after ] variation. Then W hite does everything that

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

he's supposed to do in this line but somehow 20.xg2 a8+ 21.f3 fg4 with more than
gets in trouble. Finally we get a premature enough attack.) 19...f3+!? ( 19...b8
resignation. 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 h6!? 20.xe5 bxe5 21.c6!; 19...fg4+
What's this? It's amazing what players can is anothe r complicated move , probably
get away with these days. Is ...h6 really useful better f or W hite af ter 20.h1 ) 20.g2
in every variation? Maybe White should play 1. ( 20.h1 h5 ) 20...a8 21.xf6 gxf6
e4 c5 2.Nf3 g6 3.h3!? 4.d3!? I almost gave 22.f4! d2+ 23.g1 g5! unclear,
this a '?!' because Gurevich makes no attempt intending 24.g2 xg3! 25.fxg3?? xe3+ ]
to make Black pay for ...h6. It would be much 17...d7 18.d5 White is flailing around a bit,
more interesting to play some other formation, and this move allows Black to activate his
e.g. , centre. xd5 19.xd5 c6 20.g2 b6
[ 4.c3 b4 ( 4...c5 5.e3 ) 5.e4!? ] [ More aggressive was 20...c5! 21.c2 c8
[ or 4.f3 e4 ( 4...c6 5.d4 ) 5.d4 ] with a clear advantage already! W hat did
4...c6 5.a3!? White do wrong? ]
[ 5.c3 c5 6.f3 d6 7.0-0 is a position 21.f3 c4 A monster knight. Anand has
in which ... h6 is normal and useful. ] gained the advantage without seeming to have
5...c5 It seems that everyone's playing this done anything special. 22.c3 d5!? 23.d4
way. Anand recently played the Moeller versus c7?!
the Spanish Game: 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 [ 23...f5 or ]
b5 6.Bb3 Bc5. 6.e3 [ 23...a8 would have been more effective.
[ 6.b4 d4 7.a2 a6 8.e3 a7 9.e2 Anand is trying to keep pieces on, perhaps
might be tried. ] underestimating Gurevich's next few
6...a6 7.c3 0-0 8.ge2 d6 9.0-0 moves: ]
Back to book! It's instructive to see Anand 24.d3! d6!? 25.fe1
counter White's traditional buildup. e8 10.h3 [ 25.c3 f8 ]
a7 11.h2 b8 12.b4 e7 13.b2 b5!? 25...a8 26.c3 f8 27.e5! a6?!
This is Anand's idea: he wants to chip away at [ 27...xe5! 28.xe5 g5 29.f4 g6= ]
the centre while preventing b5. White needs 28.xd7?
to react quickly on the queenside. 14.cxb5 [ 28.e4! gives White a standard central
axb5 15.d4 advantage: e6 29.exd5 cxd5 30.d3! ]
[ I wonder if the players looked at 15.xb5!? 28...xd7 29.e4 White has lost time, but he
, which I would have skipped by without needs to do something about the queenside
Fritz' oversight. Then xb5 ( 15...xh3 pressure after ...Rea8. ea8 30.exd5 cxd5
16.xa7 xg2 17.xg2 b7 18.d4! ) 31.f3 xa3 32.xa3 xa3 33.f4!
16.a4 b6 17.xa7 a6 could follow: White accedes to loss of a pawn, since
18.b8 c6!? (threatening 19...Nd7! 20.Qxd6 [ 33.xd5 xd5 34.xd5 d3!
c5) ( 18...d7!? also gives a lot of play, wins material after 35.xc4 bxc4 36.c5
since ...Rb6 and ...Bb7 can follow) 19.b5 xc5 37.bxc5 d5 ]
b6 20.a7 xb5 ] 33...a8 34.c3 d8 35.d4 c6 36.h4
15...g6!? b6
[ 15...b7 16.xb7 xb7 17.dxe5 dxe5 [ 36...b6!? ]
is at best slightly better for White ] 37.e3!? Gurevich tries to shore up his
16.dxe5?! Strange to say, this might be a position but puts his rook on a vulnerable
mistake, ceding the c4 square. Unless the square. a4 38.d2 c4! Suddenly
tactics in the next few notes are good for e v e r y t h i n g i s c r i t i c a l f o r W h i t e . 39.d3!
White. Sharp defence.
[ 16.a4! is a good option. ] [ 39.xc4? dxc4 40.e1 d1 is killing. ]
16...xe5 17.d4 39...b2
[ Again, 17.xb5 xb5 18.a4 should be [ The game may have ended due to a time
looked at, when Black's only counterattack forfeit because there was no harm in playing
begins xh3! 19.xh3 ( 19.xb5? xg2 on by 39...b2 40.xc4 xc4 ( 40...bxc4

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
41.xd5 ) 41.c3 White seems to have real
compensation for his pawn because of the
d5 and d4 squares. Black still has the edge
after b6 42.d4 a4 43.b3 , yet the
two bishops shouldn't be underestimated. ]
0-1
783 A20
Gurevich,Mikhail 2652
Malakhov,Vladimir 2670
WCC Khanty Mansiysk RUS (4.3) 08.12.2005
[Nigel Davies]
After having lost famously to Anand in this line,
Gurevich is seen repeating his 4.d3. Black in
turn takes fright at the thought of an
improvement and finds himself on the
receiving end of a technical grind. 1.c4 e5
2.g3 f6 3.g2 h6 4.d3 Despite his lack of
success with this move in an earlier game
against Anand, Gurevich persists with his
choice. Presumably he thinks he can do better
this time. c5
[ Anand played 4...c6 and after 5.a3!?
( 5.c3 looks more 'normal') 5...c5 6.e3
a6 7.c3 0-0 8.ge2 d6 9.0-0 e8
10.h3 a position arose which was similar to
the current game, except that White's a2-a3
meant that the c4 square was not as well
su p p o rt e d . I nd e e d A n a n d th e n t rie d t o
exploit this with a7 11.h2 b8 12.b4
e7 13.b2 b5!? (Gurevich, M (2652)-
Anand, V (2788), Bastia 2005). ]
5.c3 a6 This makes room for the bishop to
retreat to a7, but I can't help thing that Black's
loss of time is what enables White to choose
an effective set-up for his pieces with 6. e3
and Nge2.
[ U s u a l l y B l a c k h a s p l a y e d 5...0-0
a n d o n l y a f t e r 6.f3 ( After 6.e3
Black can play c6 ) 6...d6 7.0-0 should he
play a6 . For example 8.a3 a7 9.b4 c6
10.b2 b8 11.d2 e7 12.d5?! fxd5
13.cxd5 f5 was nice for Black in the game
Perez Fungueiro, M-Hamdouchi, H,
Sanxenxo 2006 which was analysed by
John Watson. ]
6.e3 c6 7.ge2 d6 8.b3 0-0 9.0-0 f5
10.h3 I know there are people who think this
kind of thing is fine for Black what with all his
pieces going to natural squares. But I can't
help thinking that his lack of effective pawn
levers is a serious problem on a 'Philidorian'
level. e8 11.b2 h7 12.d2 d7 13.a3
ab8 14.b4 a7 15.ac1 e4?! This attempt
to gain counterplay just makes things more
difficult.
[ He should probably have tried 15...e7
when 16.e4 xe4 17.dxe4 is better for
White but the position's not as nasty as the
game. ]
16.xe4 xe4 17.dxe4 xe4 18.c5 xg2
19.xg2 e6 20.cxd6 cxd6 21.fd1
I t ' s n o w ve r y c l e a r t h a t W h i t e i s b e t t e r
b e ca u se o f B la c k' s sick d -p a wn a n d t h e
weakness at d5. And this is not the kind of
position one would want against a master
t e c h n i c i a n l i k e M i k h a i l G u r e v i c h . e4+
22.g1 f3 23.d4 xd4 24.xd4 xd4
25.xd4 e6 26.d5 xd5 27.xd5
Black has only pain and more pain to look
forward to here. f8 28.f1 e8 29.d3
d8 30.e2 d7 31.g4 e7 32.dc3 d5
33.c7 d6 34.xd7+ xd7 35.c5 d6
36.c8 h5 Giving up a pawn in order to try
and get so me co un terplay. A nd wh o ca n
blame him from trying to escape the rack?
37.gxh5 h6 38.g8 xh5 39.xg7 e6
40.g8 xh3 41.b8 b5 42.a8 d4
43.xa6+ d5 44.f6 dxe3 45.fxe3 h2+
46.d3 a2 47.e4+ e5 48.f5+ d6
49.xb5 xa3+ 50.d4 b3 51.d5+ c6
52.c4 e3 53.b5+ b6 54.d6+ c7
55.c6+ b7 56.d5 b3 57.f6 xb5+
58.d6 c8 59.xf7 b6+ 60.e7 b7+
61.e8 b6 62.e7
[ 62.f8 c7 63.e7 was the right way to
do it. ]
62...b7+ 63.f8? A rare slip from Gurevich.
[ 63.e8 b6 64.f8 is again the way. ]
63...b5?
[ I don't see a win for W hite after 63...b1
(or for that matter after 63...Rb2, Rb3 or
Rb4!), for example 64.e8 e1 65.e7
h1 66.e5 h8+ 67.f7 d8 etc. ]
64.f5 b4 65.e5 d7 66.f6 e4
67.d6+ c7 68.e6 h4 69.g6?
Another slip.
[ 69.f7 h7+ 70.g6 h8 71.d6
is winning. ]
69...e4?
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ And here I don't see how White wins after without allowing the reply ...e4, but it s very
69...d8! , f o r e xa m p l e 70.d6+ c7 committal for if Black gains control of d4
71.f7 h5 . After the move played it's W hite will be worse. c5 14.c2 fd8
easy. ] 15.fc1 d7 16.h4 a7 17.f5 e8!?
70.e6 f4+ 71.e7 h4 72.g1 h7+ [ 17...e6 seems more natural. ]
73.f6 h6+ 74.f7 h7+ 75.g7 h8 18.b1?! This move allows a tactical
76.g1 h7+ 77.g6 h2 78.d1 sequence, W hite should have taken more
1-0 care, e.g.
[ 18.g4 g6 19.f3 although I still prefer
Black. ]
784 A20 18...c5 19.c3?! Better, first
Gurevich,Mikhail 2656 [ 19.f1 d7 then 20.c3 ]
Rublevsky,Sergei 2655 19...e2 20.f1 xd3
TCh-Nat1 GpA (2) 31.01.2004 [ 20...xd3!? 21.xe2 xf2 22.f3 xe4+
[Tony Kosten] 23.g2 xc3 24.xc3 is not entirely
clear. ]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5 21.xd3 xd3 22.xd3 d7 The point, the
5.f3 c6 6.0-0 b6 7.b3 This move is bishop on d3 is pinned.
being seen quite often in top-flight games [ 22...d8 23.c4 xd2 is also quite good,
these last few years. The immediate attack on maybe even better. ]
e5, and possibility of playing the liberating d4 23.c4 xd2 24.a2! The only move to
thrust, offers extra possibilities. d6 8.b2 protect f2 successfully. xb3? This is a
More natural than blunder, but Black's position was not as good
[ 8.c3!? which we saw in Hertneck,G- as it looks:
Timman,J. ] [ 24...xe4 25.xe5 c3 is met by 26.f1!
8...0-0 9.d3 Simply better than xa2? ( 26...d7 27.h6+ gxh6 28.xc3
[ 9.d4?! exd4 10.xd4 Hramtsov,A- is unclear) 27.xf7+! xf7 28.c4+ e8
V o r o b i o v , E / M o s c o w 1 9 9 6 , w h e n e5!? 29.g8+ d7 30.f7+ d8 31.xc7+
is a wk wa r d , 11.xc6 ( 11.xc6? xd1 c8 32.d6+ wins - an amazing resource. ]
12.xd1 xb2 13.e7+ h8 [ 24...d8 is best, although the position after
wins an exchange) 11...bxc6 12.c3 d5 25.d4! g5 26.e3 f6 27.b4
with good play. ] is messy. ]
9...g4 10.bd2 e7!? 25.a1! xf2+
[ 10...d7 is more common, planning ...Bh3, [ 25...c1+ 26.xc1 xc1 27.c2
and has been played by Rublevsky before: traps the knight. ]
11.c1 ( 11.a3 h3 12.b4 xg2 13.xg2 26.g2 d7 There is nothing better, but now
a6 14.b3 ae8 15.e4 h8 planning ...f5 Black drops a piece. 27.xf2 xa1 28.xa1
with counterplay, Sorokin,M-Rublevsky,S/ f8 29.b2 Black has 3 pawns for the piece,
Krasnoyarsk RUS 2003) 11...ae8 12.e4 but the white pieces are perfectly placed and
h3 13.c5 xc5 14.xc5 xg2 15.xg2 the attack decides. h8 30.d5 d4
f6 16.b4 with a slight edge to White, [ 30...b6 31.xc6 xc6 32.xe5 f6
Korchnoi,V-Rublevsky,S/St Petersburg RUS 33.e7 is crushing. ]
2001. ] 31.xb7
11.a3 White has the set-up I recommended in 1-0
my book whilst Black has been forced into a
d i f f e r e n t p i e c e p l a c e m e n t t o n o r m a l . a5
A new move, although perfectly normal in
such positions,
[ 11...f5 Dizdarevic,E-Zelcic,R/Solin/Split
CRO 2000, could have been met by 12.b4 ]
12.h3 h5 13.e4?! White wants to play d4

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

785 A20 16.xe8 xe8 17.d3 Black's pawn

Hertneck,Gerald 2576 formation is worse, but his pieces are active.
Timman,Jan H 2620 c6!? Very dangerous, but for whom?
Bundesliga 2000-1 (15) 29.04.2001 18.xa7!
[Tony Kosten] [ 18.a3 allowed the tactical line a4!?
19.xd4 d8 20.e3 c5 with equality. ]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5 18...b7 19.xd4!?
5.f3 c6 6.0-0 b6 7.b3!? Rare, White [ Provoking exciting complications, but the
prepares an immediate attack on the e5-pawn. clever 19.e4! xa7 20.xd4 forks knight
d6 The logical reaction, e5 is supported. and bishop- and both pieces are pinned!
8.c3!? e7 21.xb6 xg3 22.g4 d6 23.d4
[ White changes tack, and prepares to pester should favour White. ]
the d6-bishop . 8.b2 0-0 9.d4 exd4 19...c7 The knight is trapped, how best to
10.xd4 xd4?! ( 10...e5 ) 11.xd4 f6 react? 20.xg7! xa7
12.c3 is more normal, and slightly favours [ 20...xg7?! 21.c3+ e5 22.xc6
W hite, Hramtsov,A-Vorobiov,E/Moscow gains a lot of pawns for the piece. ]
1996. ] 21.d4 a5!?
8...0-0 [ Black is worried about his open king, and
[ This natural move seems to be new, d i d n ' t f a n c y 21...xa2 22.f5 e6
8...g4 9.b2 d7 was played in the game 23.g5+ when his king is forced to wander
Reiter,U-Dehm,J/Eppingen 1988, when the the board. ]
move 10.d4 suggests itself. ] 22.f3 e6 23.c1 d5 24.a4 a6?!
9.b2 g4 10.d4!? In the Sicilian, if this A strange move, although Black's position is
freeing move is playable, it is often good, and difficult to play- there is no clear defensive
sometimes bad, but here will W hite's extra plan- the end of the game looks like it was
tempo help? xf3 played in a time scramble. 25.c4 e7
[ Black enters the complications, if 26.b2 a5?! This verges on a blunder, but
10...exd4?! 11.xd4 White is better, he has somehow Black escapes. 27.e4
opened both bishop's diagonals in one fell [ Avoiding the tempting, and false, variation
swoop. ] 27.c3?! e5 28.f4? b6+ and it is the
11.xf3 exd4 white king who is suddenly in trouble. ]
[ 11...xd4?! 12.xb7 b8 13.g2 c4 27...e5
14.c1! leaves the black queenside horribly [ The only move, 27...d6? loses to 28.f6
ragged. ] xf6 29.xf6 g6 30.e8+ f8 31.e7 ]
12.b5 e5 13.c1 e8?! 28.e3 f6 29.f4 It seems that the bishop's
[ Th e c rit ic a l lin e wa s 13...a6 14.a3 days are numbered, but it somehow manages
( 14.xc6?! axb5 15.xb7 xa2 to survive! f5 30.f3
is more than a bit awkward) 14...d5 [ 30.b6!? looks like a killer, but d4+!
15.c4 f6 16.e3 when White will regain 31.xd4 xd4 32.xd4 d5 33.e3 g4
his pawn, by capturing on d4, but will have is annoying, the black queen enters on the
an IQP (balanced by his bishop pair), so light squares and W hite will have to
play is about level. ] calculate lots of checks. ]
14.xc6!? 30...d6 31.e3 f5 32.e4?!
[ Flashy, but the simple 14.xc6 bxc6 [ White accedes to the draw, but with more
15.xd4 d5 16.c2! ad8 17.d2 time he would no doubt have found the line
should confer an edge- Black's queenside 32.g4+! f7 33.h5+ g8 34.h3!
pawns are a mess. ] pinning the knight, f7 35.xh7+ e8
14...bxc6 15.xc6 b8 36.h3 with excellent winning chances. ]
[ 15...d3?! 16.xe8 xe8 17.xd3! 32...d6 33.e3 f5 34.e4?!
( 17.xe5? xb5 hits e5 and e2) 17...xb2 ½-½
18.xc7 clearly favours White. ]

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

786 A20 11.h6! Black had obviously only considered

Hoelzl,Franz 2360 [ 11.xf3 xd2 12.xd2 when f5! 13.c3
Schwarz,Michael 2410 e5 forks f3 and c4. ]
TCh-2002-3 Fuerstenfeld AUT (10) 15.03.2003 11...f5 12.g5 The point of White's play,
[Tony Kosten] t h e t h r e a t t o h 7 i s u n s t o p p a b l e . e8?
This move compounds the problems, stopping
1.c4 e5 2.g3 g6 3.d4 Played before Black the black king's escape,
can gain control of d4 [ 12...d8 is b e st , wh e n 13.xh7+ f8
[ 3.g2 is also possible, of course. ] 14.h8+ g8 15.h7+ e8 ( 15...e7
3...exd4 16.g5+ d7 17.h3! xh3 18.f6+
[ 3...d6 4.dxe5 dxe5 5.xd8+ xd8 wins the queen) 16.xg8+ e7 17.g7
is a little b ett er f or W hite, an d led to a e6 18.g5+ leaves White a pawn up with
famous victory of Seirawan over Karpov. ] a strong attack. ]
4.xd4 f6 13.xh7+ f8 14.h3? This is winning, but
[ 4...f6 is safer. ] White misses a mate in two:
5.d2!? A new move, planning Nc3, b3 and [ 14.e6+! xe6 15.h6# ]
Bb2 to embarrass the black queen on the 14...f6
open a1-h8 diagonal. previously many moves [ 14...xg5 15.xg5 g8 is quite
have been played, e.g. hopeless. ]
[ 5.e3+ e6 6.c3 f6 7.h3 xe3 15.e6+ Now he sees the mate!
8.xe3 with a small edge for White, 1-0
Kortschnoj,V-Karpov,A/Roquebrune 1992. ]
[ 5.xf6 xf6 6.c3 g7 7.g2 0-0
8.f3 e8 9.e3 a6 10.0-0 d6 11.d4 787 A20
again W hite has a plus in the endgame, Horvath,Jozsef 2519
Pigusov,E-Dvoirys,S/Kharkov 1985. ] Rabiega,Robert 2522
5...c6 TCh-2003-4 Graz AUT (3) 30.11.2003
[ 5...c6!? is not the sort of move that a [Tony Kosten]
human would want to consider, but
thre aten s to win a p awn , 6.d4! f6 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.d4 b4+
( 6...xh1?! 7.xh8 xg1 8.xg8 5.d2 xd2+ 6.xd2 d6 7.c3 0-0 8.e4
and White is winning because of the threat The most ambitious move gaining space and
of Bh6! ) 7.f3 c5 8.e5+ e7 setting-up a large centre, if relatively rare. I
with unclear play. ] have always preferred
6.c3 b4 It seemed at the beginning that [ 8.e3 which leaves the bishop's diagonal
this piece was destined for g7, but Black open. Still, it is always useful to have an
changes tack as this stops b3. 7.f3 d6 extra weapon. ]
8.g2 ge7 8...bd7
[ 8...e6! hits the loose c4-pawn, and may [ 8...a6 9.f3 g4!? 10.0-0 xf3 11.xf3
be best, 9.a3 xc3 10.bxc3 xc4 11.b1 bd7 12.fd1 b5 is also playable,
with compensation for the pawn. ] Khalifman,A-Rublevsky,S/Elista 1996. ]
9.0-0 0-0 Now 9.f3 e8 Black solidly defends e5. This
[ 9...e6 is met by the unpinning 10.e4! looks like a King's Indian position where the
bu t t h is is t he la st ch a n ce f o r B la ck t o dark-squared bishops have been exchanged,
capture on c3 and double the white pawns, and this should be to Black's liking as he has
perhaps he underestimated W hite's next less pieces so his lack of space is less of a
move. ] disadvantage. 10.0-0 a6 The .. .b5 thrust will
10.e4! xf3? This loses in surprising p r o v i d e B l a c k w i t h c o u n t e r p l a y o n t h e
fashion, Black should play queenside, plus a square on b7 for his bishop.
[ 10...g7 when 11.f4 f5 12.ed2 11.fd1! An innovation,
is a little better for White, but not too much. ] [ 11.h3 seems unnecessary, b5 12.cxb5

779
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
axb5 13.a3 b6 is equal, Mandl,R-Hecht,H/
Germany 1991. ]
11...b5?! Thematic, but White was well-
prepared for this, perhaps the preparatory
[ 11...e7 is better. ]
12.c5! This is the positional point of White's
play, undermining the e-pawn. b4 This looks
critical.
[ 12...dxc5 is met by 13.dxe5
( a s t h e d 7 - k n i g h t i s p i n n e d ) 14.f4
when the ugly h6 is forced. ]
[ 12...exd4 is possible, though, 13.xd4
(hitting c6) e5 and now 14.xc6!? xc6
15.e5 xe5 16.xa8 g4 17.g2
might offer W hite a plus, because of the
pressure on d6. ]
13.a4 a5 The alternative is
[ 13...xe4 when 14.c2 d5 15.xe5!
xe5 16.xe4 dxe4 17.dxe5 a5 18.b6
b8 19.d6 leaves White with a powerful
dark-squared bind. ]
14.c2 dxc5 15.dxe5 xe5 16.xe5 xe5
17.f4 Structurally White is on top, as he can
recapture the c5-pawn whenever he wants
after which the c6-pawn will be very exposed.
e8 18.b3!? White wants to capture on c5
with his queen without leaving his knight
hanging, but he could have 'cashed in his
chips immediately':
[ 18.e5!? d5 ( 18...g4? 19.xc5!
xa4? 20.xc6 wins material) 19.xd5
cxd5 20.xd5 b7 21.xc5 winning a
pawn, but the weakness of the long diagonal
may prove to be a problem, so he prefers to
keep complete control. ]
18...g4 19.e1 ad8 20.xc5 xc5+?!
Black drags the a4-knight to a strong square,
[ 20...b5 is more tenacious, 21.ac1 d2
with some counterplay to compensate the
pawn structure. ]
21.xc5 c8 22.ac1 d7
[ 22...d2 23.e5 g4 24.a1! wins the c6-
pawn, and there is also a threat of Ne4-d6.. ]
23.d3 a5 24.b2!
[ 24.xc6 b8 25.b6 is also strong, but
there is no need to bother with calculating
this. ]
24...b6
[ 24...b7?! 25.c4 attacks the a-pawn,
and threatens Nd6, forking the rook and
bishop. ]
25.xc6 Now White has a good extra pawn.
d2 Black's only chance is to pin White to the
a-pawn. 26.d1?! A strange move,
[ 26.xb6 xb2 27.a1 is playable, if a bit
passive. ]
26...d7?!
[ 26...e6!? seems to equalise! Note the
logic - Black exchanges a passive piece for
g4 an active one! 27.xe6 xe6 and the a2-
pawn is lost, W hite can try 28.f5 d7
29.e3 xa2 30.d1 e8 31.e5
w h i c h g a i n s s o m e i n i t i a t i v e , b u t f8
should hold. ]
27.e3 b7
[ 27...xa2? loses a piece: 28.ec1 b7
29.c7 ]
28.c2 xc2 29.xc2 c5 30.e5 xg2
31.xg2 White has exchanged the active
rook, and has every prospect of converting
his sound extra pawn. c8 32.d4 e6!
B la ck h o p e s f o r t h e we ll-kn o wn d ra win g
chances in rook endgames. 33.xe6 fxe6
34.f3 f7 35.e3 The king heads for the
queenside to stop infiltration on c2, but this
risks conceding the other wing,
[ 35.e2 looks right, followed by Ke4, and
then g4, f5. ]
35...h5
[ 35...c2 leads nowhere after 36.e2 ]
36.d2 d8+ 37.c2?! g6 38.d1
xd1? A time-trouble mistake, the king and
pawn ending is hopeless, so Black had to play
[ 38...c8+ 39.b2 c3! ( 39...h4 40.g4
c3 is also interesting.) 40.d6 f5
when he has serious counterplay on the
kingside. ]
39.xd1 f5 40.e2 e4 41.h4 g6
42.f2 d4 43.g4 hxg4?!
[ 43...e4 44.g3 d5 45.f3 d4
keeps the suspense for a little while longer. ]
44.g3 c3 White can win immediately by
45 h5 or 45 f5 which both allow a pawn to
queen.
1-0
780
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

788 A20 play xe5? as in the game because of

Hulak,Krunoslav 2557 15.hxg6 and the knight hangs. ]
Fedorov,Alexei 2595 13...xe5 14.b3 f7 15.d4 Black's ...f4
TCh-CRO Rabat CRO (1) 07.09.2003 pawn sac has resulted in W hite gaining a
[Tony Kosten] m a s s i v e c e n t r e ! e7 16.e3 b5!?
Black searches for complications in a
1.c4 g6 2.g3 g7 3.g2 e5 4.e4 desperate situation. 17.cxb5 b8 18.a4 a6
W hite is ready to play a Botvinnik System, 19.b6 White tries to keep the queenside
and puts paid to any ideas of an immediate ... closed, but
f5. h6!? Amazingly I didn't find any game [ 19.h5! i s a g a i n s t r o n g , e . g . cxb5
with this move in this exact position - the ( 19...axb5 20.hxg6 hxg6 21.a5 ) 20.hxg6
English Opening is still a very fruitful area for hxg6 21.f4 f6 22.d5 with extra
originality! Actually the move reminds me of material and a strong attack. ]
the line Gary Lane discussed recently in the 19...a5 Black isolates the b-pawn. 20.h5 d8
Closed Sicilian, but with colours reversed. 21.hxg6 hxg6 22.f4 xb6 23.a2!? f6
5.d3 0-0 6.e2 f5 7.bc3 f4!? 24.0-0-0 b4 25.d2 A useful prophylactic
This aggressive advance appears a little move to defend the b-pawn, which is a bit
premature before W hite has castled. Black exp ose d o n t he ope n f ile . a6 26.c2
could play more simply with W hite reminds his opponent that the black
[ 7...d6 8.0-0 ( 8.h4!? ) 8...c6 transposing pawns are even weaker than the white ones.
t o a c o m m o n l i n e , e . g . 9.d5 e6 d5! The best practical chance,
Larsen,B-Spassky,B/Tilburg 1979. ] [ 26...c8 27.h3 c7 28.g1
8.f3 Stopping the f-pawn's advance, leaves Black on the brink of disaster. ]
[ 8.gxf4 h4 is a little annoying for White, 27.exd5
as the f4-pawn is pinned. ] [ 27.e5? is a mistake: xe5! 28.dxe5 xe5
8...c6 9.h4! I like this idea, White really 29.d2 fxf4 and Black has swapped the
threatens to capture on f4, as h4 is covered exchange f or two p awns, and f reed his
by the rook, and can also consider playing g4. position. ]
The white king is quite safe in the closed 27...xd4! The point, Black clears the long
centre, and will later go to the queenside. d6 diagonal. 28.xc6!? White is also doing well
This is certainly better than after
[ 9...fxg3? when White has the strong move [ 28.e6!? (forking the rooks) d3! 29.d2
10.g5! e7!? ( 10...e8 11.b5 f7 cxd5 30.xf8 xf8 but Black is active. ]
12.xc7 b8 13.d2 is also pretty [ 28.xd4? is a blunder, of course, xf4+
convincing) 11.d5 xd5!? 12.xd8 e3 and ...Qxd4. ]
13.d2 xg2+ but now 14.f1 and Black's 28...e5 29.e1 xf4 30.d2?
c o m p e n s a t i o n f o r t h e q u e e n i s q u i t e White cracks,
insufficient. ] [ 30.xa6 is best, b4 31.e2 ( 31.d2?!
10.d5 Strongest, although xb2! 32.xe5 xa2 33.e7 b8!
[ 10.gxf4 is also possible immediately. ] and White is in trouble) 31...f5 which is a
10...e7 bit of a mess. ]
[ 10...fxg3 11.g5 is still unpleasant: d7 30...c4+?!
12.xg3 f7 13.h3 and Black must part [ 30...e2! is a difficult move to find, but
with his queen. ] surprisingly strong, 31.c3 ( 31.b3 xd5
11.gxf4 c6 12.xe7+ xe7 13.fxe5 32.c2 e5 33.xe2 d3+ 34.d1 b4
[ 13.h5! seems very strong, White levers the wins material) 31...d4 with strong threats
h-file open when the h6-knight will wonder and a piece more! ]
why it didn't go to f6 instead! f6 and now 31.xc4 xd5 pinning the rook against the
( 13...f7 14.hxg6 hxg6 15.e3 queen, but White can defend it. 32.f1 d6
followed by Qd2 and long castles is good for 33.b3 xc4 34.bxc4 f7 35.b3 xf3
White ) 14.fxe5 is awkward, as Black cannot Finally reaching a position with equal material!

781
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

36.d3 13.xb4 xb4+ 14.d2 xd2+ 15.xd2

[ 36.xf3! is awkward for Black, because of a6 16.e4 c5 17.he1 ae8 18.f3 e5
xf3 37.g2! a3 38.d5+ f8 39.f1+ 19.e2 g6 20.g2 f5 21.f4 xe4+
e8 40.f7 with good chances. ] 22.xe4 xe4 The rook endgame is a draw.
36...c8 And in this unclear position, Black ½-½
must have lost on time.
1-0
790 A20
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2731
789 A20 Sutovsky,Emil 2664
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2751 FIDE WCh KO Moscow RUS (3.2) 02.12.2001
Gelfand,Boris 2737 [Tony Kosten]
Corus A Wijk aan Zee NED (3) 14.01.2008
[Nigel Davies] 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.d4 b4+
5.d2 xd2+ 6.xd2 d6 7.c3
It's interesting to see Gelfand playing the [ I still like 7.e3 first. ]
Black side of this line just 8 days after his 7...0-0 8.e3 e6 This move, and the plan it
game with Karjakin - the Karjakin game was entails, is a critical test of White's set-up. 9.b3
on January 6th whilst this one was on the 14th. exd4 10.xd4!
White's failure to get anything with 4.Nc3 has [ In my book, The Dynamic English I suggest
thrust 4.d5!? into the limelight, but Black t h a t t h is m o ve 'is m o re p e rt in e n t ' t h a n
proved to be well prepared. 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 10.exd4 Lobron,E-Huzman,A/Budapest
3.d4 e4 4.d5!? White's failure to get very far 1996. ]
wit h 4 . Nc 3 h a s t h ru st t h is m ove in t o t h e 10...d5
limelight. White cuts off support for Black's e4 [ Black should also investigate the move
pawn in the most radical way, but in doing so 10...a5!? pinning the knight, 11.ge2 d5
he gives Black some squares for his pieces , Jiro vsky,M-St oce k,J/CZE 2 000 , whe n
and uses valuable time. b4+ 5.d2 e7 12.cxd5 xd5 transposes to the game.
6.c3 f6 7.g2 0-0 8.h3 Possibly ( 12...xd5!? 13.b4 )]
White's best. 11.cxd5 xd5
[ 8.a3 featured in Magnus Carlsen's win over [ 11...cxd5!? also requires tests, 12.ge2
Anand but it wasn't because of the c6 13.d2 b6 14.0-0 ad8
opening. ] with a reasonable IQP position, ]
8...cxd5 [ 11...xd5!? also has its points, 12.f3!?
[ After 8...e8 9.0-0 c5 I think it's a6 13.ge2 c5 14.h4 c6 15.0-0
interesting to play 10.g5!? for example level, Chabanon,J-Fontaine,R/Bescanon
( 10.h1 h6 11.a3 a5 12.c2 d6 FRA 1999. ]
13.ab1 f5 14.b4 axb4 15.axb4 d4 12.ge2!?
was quite promising for Black in [ This is Ivanchuk's new idea, eschewing the
Kudriashova, I-Gansvind, V/Moscow 1996) possibility of isolating Black's d-pawn, e. g.
10...e3 11.fxe3 xe3+ 12.h1 d6 12.xd5 xd5 13.xd5 cxd5 14.e2
13.xe3 xe3 14.xf6! gxf6 15.ge4 ( 14.f3 1/2-1/2 Ionescu,C-Marin,M/
with more than enough for the exchange. Bucharest ROM 2001) 14...c6 15.b2
Gelfand's move looks better. ] e7 16.0-0 e4!? 17.ad1 e5 18.d4
9.cxd5 d6 10.xe4 ac8 with fair chances, Kurajica,B-Fressinet,
[ 10.0-0 f5 11.f3 can be met by c5+ L/Solin/Split CRO 2000. ]
12.h1 e3 , causing quite a lot of disruption. 12...a5 13.a4! xa4 14.xa4 a6
So Ivanchuk's decision to remove the pawn Black plans ...c5, and then ...b5. 15.d4!
is understandable, even though the game ad8 Brazenly allowing White to capture on
now peters out. ] e6, but he is not interested. 16.0-0 c8!?
10...xh3 11.xf6+ xf6 12.xh3 xb2 17.fc1 White needs both his rooks on the

782
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
queenside to support his coming queenside
attack. dc7!? Black needs to shift the knight
from d4, to be able to exploit the open d-file,
so this knight heads for e6, but he temporarily
g i v e s h i m s e l f ' l i n k e d k n i g h t s ' . 18.f1!
Putting paid to Black's plan, as the ensuing
capture on a6 would wreck his queenside.
d5 Black has to force-through the advance ...
c5. 19.h4 g6 20.a3 c5 21.f3 b6
Black has finally managed to set-up a solid
queenside structure, but he needs one more
move to separate his knights. 22.b4! e6!?
[ 22...cxb4?! 23.axb4 opens the a-file, and
the b-pawn cannot be captured because of
the hanging knight on c7. This is often the
problem with 'linked knights'- they are fine
defending each other, but are unable to do
anything else at the same time. ]
23.c3
[ White could win a pawn by 23.e4 dd8
24.xa6 xa6 25.bxc5 but has reasoned
that the black counterplay is significant after
d4 ]
23...f5 24.d2 cxb4 25.axb4 xb4
26.xa7 Now we can see how far-sighted
White was when he put his king's rook on c1
as far back as move seventeen, and left his
other rook on a1. After much effort Black has
solved his knight problem, but his isolated b-
pawn is a weakness and the white kingside is
rock-solid. c6
[ 26...d8 27.c4 c6 28.aa1 b5
29.b6 also loses the b-pawn. ]
27.aa1 d8 28.ce4 a5 29.ab1 e7
30.xb6 Inevitably the b-pawn has dropped,
but Black still has some drawing chances, if
he reaches an ending with rook and three
pawns against rook and four, for instance.
g7 31.c4 c5 32.b3 xe4!?
[ Sheer desperation, if 32...xb3 33.xb3
Ng5 is the menace, and we see that Black
suffers from the absence of his e-pawn, f7
is e x p o s e d , h6 34.d6 and Black must
permit a further deterioration of his
structure. ]
33.xa5 d2 This counterattack wins f2, but
it is quite irrelevant. 34.f1! By controlling h3
White avoids ...Nxf2-h3+.
[ 34.b3? xf2 35.c7?! f5 is a bit
messy. ]
[ and not 34.f1? h3 ]
34...xf2 35.c4 a2 36.b2 The point,
the rooks are exchanged and Black's
temporary initiative vanishes. xb2 37.xb2
e4 38.c7 f6 39.h2 e6 40.g2 f2
Black has a solid position, but an exchange is
just too much. 41.g1 g4 42.e4 e5
43.d1 7c6 44.e3 d4 45.f1 ef3+
The knight goes on a 'wild goose chase'. If he
could only swap his d4-knight for the white
knight on e3, and leave himself with a knight
on e5, he might have a chance, but as it
stands he does not have enough squares for
t wo k n i gh t s . 46.f2 g5 47.d5+ e5
48.g2 g4 49.e3 e1 50.h1 f5 51.f4
ec2+ Black has been forced to weaken his
st ru ct u re , a n d h is kn igh t s h a ve n o go o d
squares. 52.d2 fxe4 53.c5+
[ 53.xe6 e3+ 54.d3 is also more than
adequate. ]
53...d6 54.xc2 e3+ 55.c3 xc2
56.xc2 f5+ 57.c3 e5 58.d3+
1-0
791 A20
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2731
Vachier-Lagrave,Maxime 2745
SportAccord Rapid Men 2013 rapid (5.6)
[Fier, Alexandr]
A complicated game with ups and downs, as
is usual in rapid chess. White tries a new idea
with 8.h4, to push the pawn forward if the
queen leaves, and in a few moves it proved to
be quite important. 1.c4 e5 Vachier-Lagrave
tried this move 3 times in China, twice
connected with the idea of ...c6, and nobody
can say it didn't work, since he won against
Ivanchuk and Leko. 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6
4.f3
[ 4.d4 another important option and tried by
L e k o i n C h i n a exd4 5.xd4 a6
personally I like this move, and it brings
positions full of play ( 5...d5 is the main
variation and after 6.f3 e7 7.cxd5 cxd5
8.0-0 c6 9.a4 0-0 10.c3 we are in a
position quite similar to a Tarrasch) 6.c3
c5 7.d1 0-0 8.f3 e8 9.0-0
and the position was level in Leko, P
(2730)-Vachier-Lagrave, M (2745)/
SportAccord Blitz Men 2013 (17.7). ]
783
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
4...e4 5.d4 d5 6.cxd5 xd5 The same
idea as in the Alapin which starts with 1.e4 c5
2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.d4 cxd4 5.Qxd4 7.c2
h5 8.h4!? This move is based on diverse
plans. The first one is to keep the king safe in
case of 0-0 at some point, the second one is
to push the pawn to h5, to divert the black
pieces from the defence of the e4-pawn. If
the pawn is still alive after h5, h6 will be
annoying since White plans to put the bishop
on b2.
[ 8.h3 is the main line and was the choice of
Svidler against Adams in the London Chess
Classic
A) 8...g6 is the most played, waiting one
more move to see where best to put the
pieces 9.c3 c5 ( 9...d6 the bishop
can come here, too 10.e3 0-0 11.c2
e8 12.b3 and Black was ok in
Andriasian, Z (2624)-Petrosian, T (2636)/
ARM-ch 72nd Yerevan 2012 (5).) 10.d4
I don't believe in this plan exd3 11.xd3
xd3 12.exd3 e6 and Black was fine in
Sale, S (2416)-Kotsur, P (2572)/Dubai op
5th 2003 (9).;
B) 8...a6 played by Svidler in 2005! And
surprisingly the choice of Adams against
him in London 9.c3 g6 10.e3 c5
11.a4 trying to create weaknesses on
t h e q u e e n s i d e b5 12.c2
a n i m p r o v e m e n t ( 12.d1 0-0
and W hite is missing some space, the
queen is not well placed on d1, Leko, P
(2749)- Svidler, P (2735)/Amber-blindfold
14th rapid 2005 (1).) 12...b4 13.b1
xe3 ( 13...0-0!? 14.xe4 xe4
15.xe4 f5 is also interesting 16.g2 f4
17.xg6 hxg6 and Black has counterplay
b e c a u s e o f t h e c 2 - s q u a r e p r o b l e m)
14.dxe3 and White had a more
comfortable position in Svidler, P (2758)-
Adams, M (2754)/5th Classic KO 2013 (1.
2). ]
8...c5 9.c3 g6 After this move White
has a dangerous initiative.
[ 9...f5 was also possible and maybe more
precise. It's not clear the queen is doing well
on h5, but at least it blocks the 'dangerous' h-
pawn 10.b4 b6 11.e3 0-0 ( 11...xe3
it's always a committal decision to give the
bishop f or a better structure. Af ter this
White's c1-bishop can become a monster
12.dxe3 0-0 13.b2 and I slightly prefer
White ) 12.0-0 d8 13.xf5 xf5 14.c2
with a double-edged position ]
10.b4 Typical, to bring the bishop to b2 to win
a tempo. b6 11.h5! One of the main ideas
of the 8.h4 move is now realized. Probably
Black needs to change the central pawn for
t h e h - p a w n . f5?! It's not a good idea to
keep this pawn alive.
[ 11...xh5 was better and Black has a trick
to bring the knight back to a better position
12.xe4 f4!? 13.f3 d5 14.b2
but still it's a dangerous position for Black,
even more so in a rapid game ]
12.e3 e5 After 5 queen moves, it's still not
safe. 13.b2 0-0
[ 13...d4 does not help so much but tries to
complicate the position 14.c1 xh5
( 14...0-0 15.h6 d8 16.hxg7 and White
has the powerful idea of Rh4 to increase
the pressure on Black's center) 15.c4
xf2+!? an interesting practical chance, but
st i l l a l l t h e p i e c e s a r e h a n g i n g 16.d1!
( 16.xf2 is also possible, but less precise
xg3+ 17.g1 f4 18.f1 h3 19.e3
and everything is defended) 16...xg3
17.xh5 xg2 18.d6+ e7 19.cxe4
f1+ 20.c2 xc1+ 21.xc1 is hard to
evaluate, but this position is better than the
one after 16.Kxf2. All the pieces are at full
p o we r a n d i t 's i m p o s si b l e f o r B l a c k t o
avoid material losses ]
14.c2 d4 15.c4
[ 15.h6! including this move before Nc4 is
good, since it creates one more tactical
theme in the position g6 16.c4 e7
17.xe4 xb2 18.xb2 this is the point
and Black has nothing to do, since after
xe4 19.g7# is mate ]
15...f5
[ 15...e6 attacking the knight is better.
White still has an extra pawn, but things are
less clear 16.xe4 xb2 17.xb2 xe4
18.xe4 f6 19.c2 a5 and at least Black
has some compensation for the pawn ]
16.e3 xc3
[ 16...e6 was still possible 17.a5 e5
18.h6 g6 19.xe4 xe4 20.xe4
with advantage to White ]
17.xc3 It's hard to imagine that Black can
784
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

survive without the bishop. The computer a5 27.xd8+ xd8 28.c3 c5
a l r e a d y g i ve s a wi n n i n g a d va n t a ge , b u t but still the position remains unclear. Now
Vachier Lagrave keeps finding resources to the bishop on e4 is much more dangerous
survive. d8 18.h4 than the one on c3. ]
[ 18.h6 was still possible, but White prefers 24...f3+ 25.e2 xh4 26.gxh4 xh4
to improve one more piece beforehand a6 Logical, taking the pawn and keeping one eye
19.a3 c7 trying to bring the knight into the on h7.
game 20.h4 cd5 21.d4! and soon [ 26...f4+ was also possible, trying to
some pawns are going to fall ] activate as soon as possible 27.d1 d5
18...g5 Defending g7. 19.h6 f5 20.hxg7 28.c2 xh4 with a clear advantage for
d5 With a white pawn on g7 the battery on Black ]
the diagonal loses a bit of its force. Of course 27.g1 d6 Bringing more pieces to the
the pawn is also dangerous here, and, after all, defence.
White is a pawn up. 21.b3 e7 22.e5 [ 27...h5+!? this was a nice way to improve
[ 22.e2 would be my choice, just trying to the queen's position 28.g4 g6 29.g3
bring one more piece into the game d7 e4 attacking b4 and also with Nf4+ ideas ]
23.ah1 7f6 24.a3 and it's hard for Black 28.d1 Threatening 29.Rh1.
to come with anything useful ] [ 28.c2 ad8 29.xh7+ doesn't really
22...d7 23.xe4? Overlooking some small work because after xh7 30.xh7+ xh7
tactics. Now the position is again far from 31.h1+ h6 wins ( 31...g6 32.g1+= )]
clear. 28...h6 29.a3 e8 It's not easy for White to
[ 23.xd7 was better, and after xd7 24.b5 find any good plan with his king in the center.
White is clearly better ] 30.c2 h5+ 31.f1 e7 32.e4 g6
23...xe5 This move is also good, but allows F i n a l l y e ve r yt h i n g i s d e f e n d e d . 33.h1?!
White an ingenious defence. There is not much reason to exchange the
[ 23...xe4 was the move to play, when rooks, since the black rook on h6 is not active.
W hite is losing a piece 24.xe4 5f6! [ 33.e1 improving the king was a good
and th ere is n o good wa y to def end e 5 idea to stay in the game ]
25.xf7 ( 25.c4 xe4 26.xe4 xe5 33...b5+ 34.g1?
27.xe5 xb4 and Black is already better) [ 34.d3 was still possible, avoiding the
25...xf7 26.h4 e8 and Black can i n v a s i o n o n e 2 xh1+ 35.xh1 h5
already think about an advantage ] 36.e4 e5 and Black is better, but there is
24.xf5 Losing an exchange. still fight ]
[ 24.h5! this nice move could save the 34...xh1+ 35.xh1 e2 Now Black is just
exchange and keep some advantage for winning. 36.e4 g4+
White. A hard move to see in a rapid game, [ 36...g4+ 37.g2 h4 ]
though 0-1
A) 24...xe3 25.xe3 only move
( 25.dxe3? this is already losing by force
d3+ 26.xd3 xd3 27.c4 xe3+-+ ) 792 A20
25...d3 ( 25...d3+ simplifies the Janssen,Ruud 2437
p o s i t i o n a n d a f t e r 26.xd3 xe3+ Van den Doel,Erik 2607
27.dxe3 xd3 28.d4 White is better) Dutch Open Dieren NED (8) 25.07.2001
26.xf5! xe3+ 27.fxe3 g6 28.c3 [Tony Kosten]
and with all the pieces looking at the king,
it's hard to believe Black has chances to 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
survive; 5.f3 c6 6.0-0 e7 7.d4 e4 8.e5 f5
B) 24...xe4 25.xe5 xb4 26.xd5! 9.xc6 bxc6 10.d2
this is easy to overlook when you are [ Another move for White here, the knight
ana lyzing s om e mo ve s be f o re . W h it e heads for b3, to stop Black playing ...c5. We
recovers the piece and stays a pawn up have previously examined 10.a4 and ]

785
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 10.f3 ] xg8 40.xg8+

10...c5? [ 40.xg8+ xg8 41.f7# ]
[ A novelty, immediately liquidating the 1-0
forward c-pawn before it is too late, but I
think it loses, 10...0-0 11.b3 e6 12.d2
f6 13.c1 left Black with queenside 793 A20
problems, Milos,G-Adla,D/Buenos Aires Keres,Paul
1991, and the wild ] N,Archana
[ 10...h5!? 11.b3 h4 12.d2 d6 [Tony Kosten]
13.c1 a6 14.e1 h5 descended into
anarchy after 15.c5 , Foisor,C-Minnebo,A/ 1.c4 e5 2.g3
Liechtenstein 1996, ( but 15.g4!? fxg4 [ 2.c3 f6 3.g3 c6 As White hasn't
16.c5 c8 17.xe4 was interesting )] forced Black to play ... Nc6, thus obstructing
11.dxc5 xc5 12.c2!? the c-pawn, this is a strong move, intending
[ Good, but there is also the sharp tactic to set-up a strong centre with ...d5. The
12.xe4! (softening-up the long diagonal) problem with having the knight on c3 is
fxe4 13.a4+ f7 ( 13...d7? 14.xe4+ ) shown by the line
14.c6 forking c5 and a8, and regaining the A) The alternative line, where White lures
piece with interest. ] the black centre forward in Alekhine's
12...d6 The only move. 13.c4?! Defence fashion, is 4.f3 e4 5.d4 b6
[ Why not 13.xe4! fxe4 14.xe4 as seen previously, and ( This is rarer than
winning a pawn, or two, and destroying the 5...d5 6.cxd5 b6 which also offers
black centre? ] Black fine play.; the surprising sac 5...b5!?
13...e6 14.a3 0-0 15.b4 e7 16.a5 f6 has also been analysed in Silva,F-Efimov,
17.b2 xb2 18.xb2 f4 Black's queenside I. );
is ragged, so he gambles all on the other side B) 4.d4 exd4 5.xd4 d5 6.cxd5 ( 6.g2
of the board. 19.d4! f6?! m a y b e s a f e r , e6 7.cxd5 cxd5
[ T h e t e m p t i n g 19...f3?! 20.exf3 exf3 transposing to a later note ) 6...cxd5
c a n b e m e t b y 21.fe1 f7 22.f1 B1) 7.g5 c6 8.a4 d4 9.d1 ( if
with advantage. ] 9.0-0-0 d7 10.h3 then xh3!?
[ but 19...fxg3 20.hxg3 f6 avoids the loss 11.xh3 c8 is also possible here)
of the f-pawn. ] 9...d7 10.h3 xh3 11.xh3 c8
20.gxf4! Of course. f7 12.xf6 gxf6 13.d5 xh3 14.xf6+
[ 20...a6 21.fe1 g4 22.e3 d8 15.xd4+ c8 16.c4 b8
is no better. ] White's compensation for the piece is
21.ac1 h8 22.c6 The black c6-pawn insufficient, Losoff, A-Alburt,L/Chicago
may no longer be there, but the square is still 1989.;
weak! h5 23.e3 h3 Trying to drum-up B2) 7.g2 c6 8.a4 when the move
some attacking chances. 24.c5 d4! is awkward, i.e . 9.xc6+ bxc6
[ T h i s i s e f f e c t i v e , b u t 24.e5! 10.e4 b4+! ( 10...xe4? 11.xc6+ )
is even stronger, as then h4 25.g5 11.xb4 xe4 12.f3 c5
exchanges the queens. ] with advantage.;
24...h4 25.g5 xg2 26.xg2 ae8 B3) 7.f3 is considered in elsewhere,
27.e5 With his extra pawn, and superior whilst: ]
structure, W hite should certainly win. e6 2...f6 3.g2 c6 4.d4 exd4 The most
28.g3 Rh3 is the nasty threat. g8 29.xe4 aggressive move, whereby Black accepts an
h6 30.h3 d8 31.c1 e7 32.g5 g8 IQP in exchange for active piece play.
33.c6 f6 Black has shed two pawns now, [ 4...b4+ is a more solid choice. 5.d2
but his position has not improved one iota. xd2+ 6.xd2 d6 7.c3 ( I think that 7.e3
34.c4 c8 35.f5 e8 36.e6 a4 first, is more accurate) 7...e7 8.e3
37.e7 d1 38.exg7 xh3 39.g8+! ( 8.e4!? d5!? is analysed somewhere else.)

786
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
8...0-0 9.ge2 has also been seen. ]
5.xd4 d5 6.f3
[ 6.cxd5 allows the f8-bishop to come
directly to c5, without having to play . ..Be6, i.
e. cxd5 7.f3 c6 8.a4 c5
although play is likely to transpose, anyway,
o n e e x c e p t i o n i s 9.0-0 0-0 10.c3
when instead of ...Be6 I tried d4!? 11.c4
b4!? 12.b5 e6 13.d3 c5 14.f4
c8 15.a3 a6 16.b4 axb5 17.bxc5 c4
with good play, Koshy,V-Kosten,A/Calcutta
1996. ]
[ Players wishing to try this as Black should
note 6.c3!? as e6 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.g5
c6 9.a4 will bring quick pressure on d5,
and dissuades Black from playing ...Bc5:
e7 10.d1 0-0 11.f3 b6 12.b5
Usachi,M-Kosten,A/Oberwart 1993, with
equality. ]
6...e6!?
[ This rare move is becoming popular
through the efforts of Krashenkov. Black
wan ts t o f orce W h it e to ca pt ure o n d5 ,
which allows Black to bring his f8-bishop to
a m o re a c t ive squ a re . T h e m o re u su a l
6...e7 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.0-0 c6 9.a4 0-0
10.e3 g4 11.d4 allows White a firm
control of d4. ]
[ 6...dxc4!? is an interesting alternative, if
Black wishes to avoid the IQP. ]
7.cxd5
[ 7.g5 might be better, dxc4 8.xe6 b4+
9.d2 xd2+ 10.xd2 fxe6 11.xc4
with a small edge, Jaderberg,B-Adler,B/
Sweden 1998. ]
7...cxd5 8.0-0
[ 8.a4+!? is an interesting finesse, seen in
Urban,K-Krasenkow,M, White decides to 'fall
before he is pushed'. c6 9.d4 ( 9.0-0
c5 would transpose into the main line, see
t h e a r c h i v e s .) 9...d7 10.0-0 c5
play is similar to normal lines. ]
8...c6 9.a4 c5 10.c3 This is the most
important move, although most games with
this come from a 2 Nc3 move-order.
[ 10.bd2 0-0 11.b3 b6 is a little
passive ]
[ The new idea 10.e5!? , attacking c6, is
considered in Markowski,T-Krasenkow,M. ]
[ 10.g5 is a critical line, exploiting the
absence of the bishop from e7, 0-0 ( 10...h6
11.xf6 xf6 12.c3 also transposing)
11.c3 transposing to 10 Nc3, h6 12.xf6
xf6 13.fd1 ( I prefer 13.e1! planning
Nd3-f4; 13.ad1?! fd8 14.e1 d4
already favours Black, Ekeberg,C-Myhrvold,
R/Bergen NOR 2000.) 13...b6 14.b5
fd8 seems fairly level, Romanishin,O-
Agdestein, S/Taxco 1985. See the archives
for more details. ]
[ 10.a3 plans b4, but, again allows Black
active play, see in Foisor,C-Kosten,A. ]
10...0-0 and now this position is examined in
[A25].
794 A20
Kortschnoj,Viktor 2610
Bacrot,Etienne 2545
(m/4) Albert 1997
[Nigel Davies]
With 6...Nc6 being all the rage in this line it's
easy to forget that there is an alternative. 6...
Ne7 looks playable in conjunction with 11...
Qd7. 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.d4 e4 4.c3 d5
5.cxd5 cxd5 6.b3 e7
[ This looks like a playable(ish) alternative to
6...c6 (Gelfand - Karjakin), but with the
latter doing so well then should Black be
bothered? ]
[ On the other hand 6...f6 seems strongly
met by 7.g5! , f o r e x a m p l e c6
( 7...bd7 8.h3 intending 9.Nf4 is strong)
8.xf6 xf6 9.xd5 xd4 10.xd4 xd4
11.0-0-0 winning the e4 pawn. ]
7.f4 Threatening Nc3-b5. a6 8.f3!?
[ Exchanging off White's 'bad' bishop with
8.xb8 xb8 9.e3 is sound enough but
i n n o c u o u s . A f t e r e6 10.c1 c6
Black is certainly no worse. On the other
hand this would be quite a good idea if Black
now played 8...f5 because of the inviting
home for W hite's g1 Knight on the f4
square. ]
8...exf3 9.xf3
[ In his notes to the game Korchnoi analysed
9.e4!? bc6 when White's best is probably
( 9...dxe4? 10.c4! is good for W hite)
10.xf3 , transposing back into the game. ]
9...bc6 10.e4 e6
[ After 10...g4 Korchnoi gave the line
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

11.xd5 xd5 ( 11...xf3 12.c7+ xc7 Bf3-d5 was the correct way to regroup. ]
13.xc7 xh1 14.d5 is strong ) 12.exd5 27...a5 28.a7?!
xf3 13.xf3 xd4 14.e4+ e7 [ And here 28.c6 may have been better. ]
15.xe7+ xe7 16.0-0-0 with the better 28...d6 29.g4 b5 30.b4 h5 31.gxh5
endgame for White because of his bishops. ] gxh5 32.b7 bb6 33.c8 f6?
11.d1 The losing move.
[ 11.0-0-0!? looks very interesting, all the [ 33...bc6 would have held the draw. ]
more so because Korchnoi didn't mention 34.c5! g6 35.xa6 f5 36.h4 f4+ 37.f3
it. ] f6 38.xb6 xb6 39.d3 c6 40.b7
11...dxe4 Black has several alternatives here: c3 41.xf4 f6 42.e4 b3 43.e3 b1
[ a) 11...a5?! 12.a4+ ac6 ( And not 44.d4 g1 45.b5 e6 46.b6
12...b5 b e c a u s e o f 13.xb5+ axb5 1-0
14.xb5 ac6 15.xa8 etc. )]
[ b) On 11...d7 Ko rchn o i ga ve 12.g5
as being good for White, but this isn't simple 795 A20
after g4 ( 12...a5 13.xe6 xb3 Kortschnoj,Viktor 2639
14.c7+ d8 15.xa8 seems to give Rublevsky,Sergei 2657
W hite more than enough for the queen) Korchnoi 70 St . Petersburg RUS (3) 20.03.01
13.e2 ( Both 13.exd5!? a5; and 13.xd5 [Tony Kosten]
xd5 14.exd5 b4+ 15.f2 xd1
seem to rebound on W hite) 13...xe2 1.c4 f6 2.g3 e5 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
14.xe2 a5 15.c2 f6 and Black repels 5.f3 c6 6.0-0 b6 7.d3 d6!?
borders with a very reasonable position. [ A novelty! The bishop goes directly to a
This looks like the way Black should play it more active square than normal. 7...e7
because now he runs into trouble. ] is almost invariably played here, leading to
12.d5 xd5 normal main lines. ]
[ 12...a5? is bad because of 13.a4+ b5 8.b3
14.xe4 f5 15.e2 threatening 16.d6. ] [ O n e o f m a n y p o s s i b i l i t i e s , 8.c3
13.xd5 xd5 14.xd5 d6 This looks like being the most obvious, intending to take
Black's only move. th e bish o p pa ir at som e p oint , b y Ne 4 /
[ After 14...c8 there follows 15.g5 c5 b5xd6. ]
16.xf7! xf7 17.c7+ g6 18.e6+ 8...0-0 9.b2 g4 10.bd2 d7
f6 19.g4+ f7 20.c4+ winning ] Black co nt inu es h is de ve lo pm e nt , wh ils t
[ whilst 14...exf3 15.c7+ e7 16.e3+ keeping his e5-pawn well-guarded. 11.c1
f6 17.g5+ wins Black's queen. ] ae8 12.e4 h3 As Black is going to lose
15.xb7 0-0 his dark-squared bishop, he quickly
[ And not 15...a5? b e c a u se o f 16.c7+ exchanges W hite's other bishop so that he
xc7 17.xe4+ f8 18.xc7 etc. ] won't have the bishop pair. 13.c5 xc5
16.xd6 xd6 14.xc5 xg2 15.xg2 f6 Black's opening
[ 16...e8 17.xc6 exf3+ 18.f2 c8 seems reasonably successful, he has
19.c7 would defuse Black's play and leave completed his development, and bolstered his
him ruinously behind in material. ] centre. 16.b4! White needs to obtain some
17.xc6 xc6 18.e7+ h8 19.xc6 counterplay on the queenside. f7
exf3 The complications have fizzled out into [ 16...xb4? 17.b3+ 4d5 18.e4
an endgame but one in which White is clearly wins a piece for insufficient compensation. ]
better. It still needs accurate handling of 17.a3 d4! A standard positional ploy, Black
course. 20.f2 ac8 21.b4! c1 22.d3 opens the e-file against the backward e2-
[ And not 22.g2?? because of c4! . ] pawn. 18.xd4 exd4 19.c2 fe7 20.e1
22...a1 23.g2 xa2 24.xf3 d8 25.c1 h8
g6 26.e3 g7 27.c7?! [ 20...a6 stops White's further queenside
[ Korchnoi later felt that 27.c5! intending expansion. ]

788
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

21.b5 d6 22.a4! Swapping the a-pawn for endgame is quite pleasant for Black who can
the d-pawn. xa4 23.c4 b6 24.xd4 play ...d5 and free his position. Previously,
a3 25.h4!? [ 7...e7 was played, to keep the queens on,
[ Very ambitious, White wants to win by 8.0-0 0-0 9.c3 e8 10.d4 ( 10.d1!?
direct attack, but some simple move such as b4 11.d4 ) 10...c5 (again!) 11.d1 d6
25.e3 could be considered, removing the 12.b3 f5 13.b2 e7 14.d4
need to defend the e-pawn. ] Black hasn't managed to play ...d5, and
25...a6 26.d4 h6 27.h5!? White has an edge, Cekro,E-Van Mechelen,
[ W hite wants more than 27.bxa6 xa6 J/Antwerp 1997. ]
28.e4 but starts going down the wrong 8.xe7+ xe7 9.0-0 White cannot stop
path. ] Black from playing ...d5, and recapturing with
27...a5! Pinning the b-pawn. 28.g4 axb5 a piece, i.e.
29.g5 d5! Ouch! This puts a spanner in the [ 9.c3 b4 ( 9...d5 might be worse,
works. 30.f5 10.cxd5 b4 11.dxc6!? c2+ 12.f1
[ 30.gxh6?? f4+ ] xa1 13.d4 and, surprisingly, White will
30...c6 31.e4! regain a piece while the a1-knight remains
[ Not 31.gxh6?? g6 32.xg6?? f4+ ] awkwardly-placed on a1.) 10.0-0 d5
31...d8 32.gxh6?? 11.cxd5 ( 11.a3!? c2 12.a2 dxc4
[ W hite f a lls f or th e sam e trick, 32.exd5! 13.d1 f5 14.e5 is unclear) 11...bxd5
xe1 33.xe1 xe1 34.gxh6 g5 35.h4 Black has no worries. ]
is roughly equal. ] 9...d5 10.cxd5
32...g6 33.g4 gxh5 34.h4 g8+ 35.f1 [ 10.bd2 e6 11.b3 0-0 12.b2
[ Presumably both players were in time retained more tension, but Black is fine. ]
trouble, and Black lost on time, as otherwise 10...xd5 11.e4!? I wanted to 'prove' that I
he is simply a rook up after 35.f1 g4 had some advantage, but this simply weakens
I expect we may see a lot more finishes like t h e d 3 - s q u a r e ( a n d l a t e r d 4 , t o o ) . db4
this with the new FIDE time controls! ] 12.e1?! This was my idea, menacing the win
1-0 of a piece by a3, but it is too ambitious it was
time to develop some bits:
[ 12.c3 d3 13.d1 xc1 14.axc1
796 A20 Black has snatched the bishop pair, but
Kosten,Anthony C 2551 W h i t e h a s a h e a lt h y p o si t io n , a n d c a n
Collins,A consider e5, and Ne4-d6, for instance. ]
4NCL 24.11.2002 12...c5 13.d2 a5 14.c3 e6 15.b3?
[Tony Kosten] [ 15.xg7? is also a mistake, g8 16.d4
c4 winning the exchange, but I should
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.d4 exd4 have played ]
5.xd4 a6 6.f3 c5!? A move first [ 15.d2 so that if xa2 ( 15...0-0 16.a3
p la ye d b y L a r ry Ch r is t ia n s e n , I b e lie ve , bd3 17.xd3 xd3 18.f3
gaining a tempo on the white queen. appears fairly level) 16.xg7 g8 17.d4
[ 6...e7 was played in my game against 0-0-0 18.ef3 play is completely obscure. ]
Miltner (see the second-move note to Miezis- 15...0-0 16.d2 fd8 17.ef3
Zapata) ] I had originally intended
7.e5+ [ 17.c4? b u t t h e n n o t i c e d a4!
[ 7.d1 allows Black to equalise easily: 0-0 and White is in trouble. ]
8.c3 e8!? ( 8...d5 9.cxd5 b4 10.0-0 17...g4!? An interesting idea, to exploit the
bxd5 is completely equal, Kelly, B-Motwani, weakness on d3. 18.a3 xf3! The simplest, I
P/Lichfield ENG 2000) 9.0-0 d6 10.a4 had been busily analysing
f5 11.a3 d5 with chances to both sides, [ 18...c2 19.a2 xa3 20.xa3 xf3
Zueger,B-Christiansen,L/Bern 1996. ] ( 20...xe4?! looks good, but then there is
7...e7!? A novelty, and why not? The 21.a4! xc3 22.xg4 and White wins a

789
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

piece ) 21.xf3 xe4 22.xe4 xa3 797 A20

23.c4 b4 which isn't very clear. ] Kosten,Anthony C
19.xf3? I miss assessed the resulting Jones,Gawain C
position, as my opponent pointed-out after the Masters Bunratty 27.02.2011
game, I should play [Nigel Davies]
[ 19.axb4 axb4 20.xb4 with fair chances
to draw. ] 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.d4 b4+ 4.d2 xd2+
19...c2 20.a2 d4! Again I thought my 5.xd2 d6 6.c3 f6 7.g2 0-0 8.e3
opponent intended e6 9.d1 a6 10.b3
[ 20...xa3!? 21.xa3 xe4 as above, but [ This has been played almost as a matter of
this is much stronger. ] course though it's worth mentioning that
21.d1 Played after a long reflection, I had 10.f3!? is legal here. After e4 11.g5
t h o u gh t t h a t t h e o p p o sit e -c o lo u r b is h o p xc4 12.gxe4 xe4 13.xe4 f5 14.d3
position was possible, but the position looks about equal, but with
[ 21.xd4 xd4 22.b1 g5 23.c4 a4! more imbalance than after 10.b3. ]
( 23...xe4 is not bad either) 24.b4 b3 10...exd4 11.xd4 b4!? A new idea which
and White is lost, the knight is hanging, and appears to equalise.
if it moves ...Nd2 forks rook and bishop. ] [ P r e v i o u s l y B l a c k h a s p l a y e d 11...a5
21...b5 22.a1 xa3 Winning a pawn. which a lso se em s very re ason ab le , f o r
23.xa3?! This hasten s matters, I could still example 12.d2 ( 12.ge2 d5 13.cxd5
have tried to do something with my bishop pair xd5 14.0-0 xc3 15.xc3 xc3
after 16.xc3 fd8 17.h3 f8 wasn't really
[ 23.e5 ] anything for W hite either in Glud, J-
23...xd2 24.b4 Mortensen, E/Denmark 2009.) 12...c7
[ 24.c3 xe4 25.xa5 xa5 26.xa5 13.ge2 ( 13.f3 might have been a better
b2 27.b6 c5 is also hopeless. ] choice ) 13...d5 14.cxd5 cxd5 15.xd5
24...d3! A killer, I had hoped to generate xd2+ 16.xd2 xd5 17.0-0 xg2
some tactical chances on the kingside after 18.xg2 fd8 19.fd1 xd2 20.xd2 f8
[ 24...xe4 25.e3 f5 26.g4!? (although 21.c3 e7 22.f4 d7 1/2-1/2 was
White is still lost, of course). ] Reinderman, D-Giri, A/Groningen 2009. ]
25.xa5 12.d2 f5 13.e4 e8 14.ge2
[ 25.c3 also fails to xb4 ] [ 14.ce2!? appears to be very
25...xa5 26.bxa5 c5 With a triple attack embarrassing as he's attacking two pieces.
on f2. 27.b3 xf2 28.g2 h5!? But Black gets a strong attack after xe4
(Threatening mate!) 29.g4? Time trouble, 15.xe4 xe4 16.xb4 f6 17.f3 c3
[ 29.c3 e2 ( 29...d3? 30.xf7+! xf7 18.xd6 e5! , f o r e x a m p l e ( 18...a5
31.e1 ) 30.e1 xe1 31.xe1 xe4 19.xf6 axb4 20.d6 xe2 21.xe2
was a big improvement. ] xa2 22.d2 a1+ 23.d1 a2
29...xg4+ 30.g3 d3+ 31.f3 xf3+ is only a draw) 19.d2?! ( 19.f2 xe2
32.xf3 xh2+ 33.g2 g4 34.c3 f8 20.d2 c3 21.d3 seems to hang on,
I would normally resign, but as the match but I don't like it) 19...xe2 20.xe2 a1+
situation was still unclear ... 35.e5 e7 21.f2 xe2+ 22.xe2 ( 22.xe2 xh1 )
36.f3 g6 37.f4 e3 38.d2 d5+ 22...xa2+ 23.f1 d8 etc. ]
39.f3 d4 40.e4 c3 41.g5+ e6 14...xe4 15.xe4 xe4 16.xe4 xe4
42.c4 xe5 43.a6 bxa6 44.xa6 f5+ 17.xb4 e7 18.d2 e8 19.0-0 c5
45.f3 f6 46.c1 c5 [ 19...c5 20.a5 xe2 21.xe2 xe2
0-1 22.xa7 leaves it equal. ]
½-½

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

798 A20 22.a1 d5 23.b1 b6 24.xe5!

Kotsur,Pavel 2587 Tactical opportunism of the best variety.
Naiditsch,Arkadij 2641 White takes the chance to change the nature
WCC Khanty Mansiysk RUS (1.1) 27.11.2005 of the position before Black strengthens his
[Jonathan Rowson] grip. fxe3
[ 24...fxe5 25.g5 e7 26.xe6 xe6
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5 27.e4 is comfortable for White- Black's
5.f3 c6 6.0-0 b6 7.b3!? e6 8.b2 remaining light squares will be very weak. ]
f6 9.c2 A curious move that only makes 25.fxe3 fxe5 26.c4 h5 27.b2 f6
sense when you realise that White is trying to 28.f2 d7 29.g2 h6 30.e4 b5
play d2-d4 in one move without allowing ...e5- 31.cd2 b6 32.f2 Now White appears to
e4 in return. be better, but Black manages to complicate
[ 9.d3 is absolutely fine, but White then enough to hold the balance. e8 33.f3
loses whatever he sting the idea of a quick d5 34.e2 b4 35.xe5 c3 36.b2
d2-d4 has in this move order. ] [ 36.g4!? is more fun. ]
[ 9.d4 is the most straightforward approach, 36...xb3 37.d4 g8 38.dxc5 xc5
but is unlikely to give any advantage- if 39.axb4 a4 40.a3 xe3 41.xc8 xf2+
anything the opposite. e4! As a rule of 42.xf2 xc8 43.g1 b6+ 44.e3 xb4
thumb, these French-like pawn structures 45.c6 b6 46.xa7 xe3+
tend to be favourable in almost all openings ½-½
other than the French! For instance in the
open Sicilians, W hite usually meets ...d5
with e5, and here, in some sort of reversed 799 A20
dragon, the same issue applies- if W hite Kramnik,Vladimir 2785
goes for d2/d3-d4, Black usually tries to Bacrot,Etienne 2695
respond with ...e4 when possible. Perhaps World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (36) 22.11.2007
the point is that in the French Black's pieces [Carsten Hansen]
tend to be on squares to help a quick source
of counterplay, for instance the knights on 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f5 After 2 g3 this move much
d7 and c6 hit the e5 point, contribute to p l a y a b l e t h a n a f t e r 2 N c 3 , t h o u g h
control of d4 and make ...f6 and g5 plausible. nevertheless still considered dubious by some
In this case, the bishop on g2 might be a u t h o rit ie s, su ch a s R ib li in C h e s s B a s e
slightly misplaced, as is the bishop on b2, Magazine. 3.d4 exd4
while Black's knight on b6, which is [ 3...e4 4.h3 ]
otherwise a bit unsure of itself, now looks at 4.xd4 c6 5.e3+!? This is considered
the juicy d5 square with glee. the critical line e7
A) 10.e1 f5 11.f3 exf3 12.xf3 [ The alternatives are: A) 5...e7 6.c3
( 12.exf3!? d7 and 0-0-0 looks good for ( 6.f3 is h armless: f6 7.d4 xe3
Black ) 12...e7 looks very comfortable for 8.xe3 b4+ 9.d2 xd4 10.xd4 e4
Black; 11.e3 b6 12.a3 xd2+ 13.xd2 xd2
B) 10.fd2 f5 and again Black has some 14.xd2 b7= Spanton, T-Rosen, D/4NCL
sort of good reversed French. ] (Birmingham) 2002) 6...f6 ( 6...b4?!
[ 9.a3 d7 ( 9...a5 10.c2 a4 )] 7.d2 ) 7.g2 xe3 8.xe3 b4
9...b4! Equally strange, and effective. Noroozi, O-Barzigar, B/Tehran IRI 2004, and
10.c1 c5! 11.d3 e7 12.bd2 0-0 now 9.d2! leaves White with a small plus. ]
13.e4 c8 14.a3 c6 Black is very [ B) 5...f7 is unnecessarily artistic and
comfortable. 15.d1 d4 16.fd2 d7 p r o v o c a t i v e 6.f3 ( 6.h3!? ) 6...f6
17.e1 fd8 18.c1 f8 19.e3 f5 20.f1 7.g2 b4+ 8.d2 ( 8.c3 e8 9.d3
The position is roughly equal, but I would take Ribli ) 8...e8 9.b3 c5 ( 9...xd2+
Black. In any case it feels like Black slightly 10.bxd2 e7 11.0-0 Ribli )
loses his way around here. h8 21.c2 f7 A) 10.0-0 e4!? ( 10...xe2 11.c3

791
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
e8 12.g5 Ribli ) 11.c3;
B) 10.c3 h6 ( 10...g8 11.g5 )
11.0-0 d6 12.ad1 a6 13.a4! e4
( 13...a7 14.c5+ Ribli ) 14.xc5 xc5
15.a3 xe2 ( 15...a5? 16.b4 ) 16.e3
e4 ( 16...e6 17.c5 ) 17.d4! xd4
18.xd4
B1) 18...g5 19.c3 g6 ( 19...e6
20.d5 ) 20.c5 Ribli;
B2) 18...e7 19.f3 g5 ( 19...d2
20.xe4+- ) 20.h5+! g6 ( 20...f8
21.h4 e6 22.xe2 xd4 23.xd4
xe2 24.c5 Ribli ) 21.xe2 xe2
22.e3! xe3 23.xe3 Delchev, A-
Nikcevic, N/France 2003 ]
6.g2 f6 7.c3 0-0 8.h3
[ 8.d5 e8 9.xe7+ xe7 10.xe7
xe7 11.g5 f7 12.xf6 xf6 13.h3
e7 14.0-0-0 d6 15.he1 b8 16.f4
Rivas Pastor, M-Castro Valero, J/Mallorca
2000 ]
8...e8 Others:
[ 8...d6 9.0-0 e5
A) 10.b3 c6 11.d1 e8 12.d4 a5
13.a4 ( 13.d2!? ) 13...fd7 14.d2 c5
15.b1 c7 16.a5 f8 17.f3 e6
18.f2 ad8 Romero Holmes, A-De la
Villa Garcia, J/Leon 1996;
B) 10.d5 c6 ( 10...xd5 11.cxd5 c5
12.f4 ) 11.xe7+ xe7 12.b3 d7
13.a3 fg4 14.d2 f6 15.ad1 f7
16.fe1 Just, J-Kuehn, P/Berlin 1978 ]
[ 8...b4 The idea behind this move isn't just
...Nc2+, but also to play ...c7-c6 and ... d7-
d5. 9.d2 a5 10.f4 c6 11.0-0
A) 11...d6 12.b3 ( 12.a3?! a6 13.b3
c5 is fully adequate for Black. );
B) 11...a6 12.d3 ( 12.b3
13.b2 ) 12...d6 13.b3 e8 14.b2
d8 15.ae1 e4 16.c2 ( 16.xe4?!
fxe4 ) 16...ec5?! ( 16...ac5 17.xc5
xc5 18.e3 Ribli ) 17.d1 Miezis, N-
Damljanovic, B/Istanbul 2000 ]
[ 8...b4 9.0-0 ( 9.d2 d6 10.d5 xd2+
11.xd2 e4 12.c2 d4 13.d3 e6
14.0-0 c6 15.df4 6c5 Wiener, R-
Krivda, M/corr 2001) 9...e7 10.a3 xc3
11.xc3 d5 12.d1 c6 13.b4 a5 14.b1
axb4 15.axb4 e8 16.b2 Kern, G-Todts,
B/Vlissingen 2005 ]
9.0-0 f8
[ 9...b4 10.d3 e5 11.c2 c6 12.a3
f8 13.b3 d6 14.b2 e6 15.g5 e7
16.ad1 ad8 17.xe6 xe6 18.e3
Chernin, A-Bologan, V/ Geneve 1996 ]
10.d2 e5 11.b3 d6 12.f4 c6 13.d1
c7 14.a3 f7 15.ac1 d7 16.e3 ad8
17.b4
[ 17.b4!? ]
17...e5 18.e2
[ 18.b2!? ]
18...g5 19.h5 xh5 20.xh5 e6
21.xg5+ g7 22.xg7+ xg7 23.b5
[ 23.b2 xc4 24.c2 d3 ]
23...xc4 24.bxc6 xa3?
[ 24...bxc6 25.xc6 xa3 26.xe8 xe8 ]
25.cxb7 xc3 26.xc3 c4 27.d5?
[ 27.d5! e7 28.xc4 xb7 29.c1 b2
30.a5+- ]
27...xd5 28.xd5 b6 29.a5 b8
30.c7 f8 31.xa7 f7 32.xf7
[ 32.c6 fxb7 33.xb7 xb7 34.xd6
c4 with decent drawing chances for
White. ]
32...xf7 33.a4 e6 34.a5 d7??
[ 34...d5! 35.g2 d7 36.f3 c6
37.e4 fxe4+ 38.xe4 b4 39.f4 d5+
40.d4 b5 41.c3 c6-+ ]
35.g2 d5 36.f3??
[ 36.a6 c5 37.f3 e5 38.h4 xa6
39.xa6 xb7 40.a5+ leaves White with
excellent winning chances ]
36...c6??
[ 36...e5+ 37.f4 c6 38.a8 xb7
, and now it is Black who can play for a win ]
37.a6 c5 38.a8 c7 39.a7! xb7
40.c8+!
1-0
c5
800 A20
Kramnik,Vladimir 2800
Carlsen,Magnus 2826
6th Tal Memorial (3) 18.11.2011
[John Bartholomew]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 h6 Possibly a
slight nod to Kramnik's tremendous
theoretical prowess. 3...h6 is not new to the
top level, though GMs have been more likely
to ve n tu re it a t b lit z/ rap id t im e co nt ro ls .
Regarding the merits of 3...h6, I agree with
792
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
what John Watson wrote in his notes to Colin -
Libiszewski (below): "The mighty 3...h6 has
been played by leading players for a few years
now. As with so many modern moves, it's a
useful waiting move that depends upon White
to commit to a particular formation before
reacting. At the same time, it serves a purpose
in most logical continuations that the players
might agree upon. W hite's task is simply to
f ind a set up which is normally eit her no t
available to him without the extra tempo that
Black hands him, or harmless without ...h6
but favourable because of White's extra move.
" With that in mind, let's see how the game
unfolds. 4.c3
[ Quite interesting is 4.f3 c6 ( 4...e4!?
5.d4 ) 5.d4 , see Colin, V (2415)-
Libiszewski, F (2482)/Besancon 2006/[John
Watson]. ]
[ G M G u r e v i c h t w i c e p l a y e d 4.d3
, which doesn't make a serious attempt to
profit from 3...h6. See the archives for c6
, Gurevich, M (2652)-Anand, V (2788)/Bastia
20 05 06 / [J oh n W at so n] , ( and 4...c5
Gurevich, M (2652)-Malakhov, V (2670)/
Khanty Mansiysk 2005/ [Nigel Davies]. )]
[ In the only previous game where Carlsen
vent ure d 3. ..h 6, h is oppo nen t tried th e
unc onvinc in g 4.d4 exd4 5.xd4 c6
6.d1 . T h e g a m e c o n t i n u e d b4+
( 6...c5 ) 7.d2 xd2+ 8.xd2 0-0
, with level chances, though Magnus went
on to lose. Ostenstad, B (2480)-Carlsen, M
(2673)/Moss 2006. ]
4...b4 5.e4 Ambitious - Kramnik is trying to
put the 'extra' move to good use with
unabashed central play. We see 5.e4 in more
common form (with .. .0-0 instead of ...h6 for
Black) in Naidtisch - Topalov.
[ The text is most popular, though 5.f3
also makes a great deal of sense. Now
Black has three main possibilities:
A) 5...e4 6.d4 is a bit better for White, i.
e. xc3 7.dxc3 0-0 8.0-0 e8 9.b3 d6
10.c2 b6 11.e3 b7 12.d5
, completing a typical maneuver.
Markowski, T (2610)-Pavlovic, M (2593)/
Plovdiv 2003.;
B) 5...xc3 6.dxc3 ( or 6.bxc3
- this recapture may be more promising, e.
g. e4 7.d4 0-0 8.0-0 with a typical
stru ctu re in which W h ite sho uld have
better chances. Ribli, Z (2585)-Rustemov,
A (2564)/ Germany 2005.) 6...d6 7.0-0
c6 8.e1 e6 9.b3 d7 10.e4
0-0-0!? Hulak, K (2564)-Bologan, V
(2676)/Ohrid 2001.;
C) 5...c6 Logical development. 6.0-0 d6
( or 6...0-0 ) 7.d3 ( 7.d4!? would be the
most ambitious, when xc3 8.bxc3 0-0
prod uces a com plex p osit io na l f igh t .)
7...0-0 8.d2 e6 9.h3 d7 10.h2
fe8 11.a3 c5 12.b4 b6 13.c1 a6=
wi t h a p o s i t i o n c h a r a c t e r i s t i c o f t h e
Karpov Variation. Rukavina, J (2418)-
Balogh, C (2567)/Zuerich 2005. ]
5...c6
[ More common is 5...xc3 6.bxc3 0-0
7.e2 , when the Naidtisch - Topalov game
indicates to us that Black would love to get
in ...c7-c6 and ...d7-d5. Here White can beat
him to the punch: c6 ( The solid 7...d6
is normal; while 7...e8!? 8.0-0 c6
is a real attempt to achieve ...d7-d5 White
can try to parry with 9.b3 , i.e. a6
10.a3 b6 11.d3 d6 12.ad1 c7 13.f4
c5 14.c2= Cekro, E (2410)-Glek, I
(2575)/Vlaardingen 2005.) 8.d4 , although
this seems acceptable for Black: d6 9.0-0
e8 10.e1 bd7 11.a3?! c5!
Tkachiev, V (2642)-Fressinet, L (2625)/
Cannes 200607. ]
6.ge2 c5 Carlsen doesn't mind losing
further time in order to enhance his control of
the dark squares. 7.d3
[ We've actually seen this line before. Check
the archives for 7.0-0 Buhmann, R (2603)-
Balogh, C (2613)/Jenbach AUT 2009/ [Nigel
Davies]. ]
7...d6 8.h3 Prophylaxis against ...Bc8-g4.
h7!? I really like this idea - the knight is
headed to d4 via g5-e6. We're very familiar
with White's occupation of d5 in the Botvinnik
English via Ne1-c2-e3-d5 (or Nd2-f1-e3-d5)
and the underlying positional logic behind
such a maneuver. As he does so frequently,
Ca rlse n de cide s to p ut a lit tle twis t on a
standard concept. Great imagination from the
world 1!
[ 8...0-0 9.0-0 e6 would be very standard.
Theoretically speaking, Black stands well at
this point, so W hite needs to rethink his
793
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
strategy against 3...h6. ( or 9...a6; or 9...a5 )]
9.a3 a6
[ T h i s i s a c a s e w h e r e 9...a5
seems preferable to prevent W hite's
queenside expansion. ]
10.0-0 g5 Gaining a tempo to accomplish
the intended maneuver. 11.h2 e6 12.f4
d7 13.b4 Kramnik is correctly playing on
both wings. a7 14.d5 ed4
[ Trying to further soften White's kingside
with 14...h5!? is intriguing. ]
15.ec3 The knight seems a little superfluous
on c3, but evidently Kramnik didn't want to
allow an exchange on e2 followed by ...Nc6-d4
and ...c6-c7, kicking White's knight from d5.
[ T h e i m m e d i a t e 15.fxe5 dxe5
was possible, shutting out the bishop. ]
15...e6?! I don't see the point of this move.
[ 15...h5!? ]
16.f5 d7 17.b1 White is beginning to
g e n e r a t e s o m e c o n c r e t e t h r e a t s . b8!?
18.c5!?
[ 18.g4 f8 and now Houdini's top move
is 19.d1 , so it's safe to say things are
unclear:) ]
18...dxc5 19.bxc5 c8 Carlsen is really
playing matador to Kramnik's bull in this game!
[ Black's position looks shaky after 19...xc5
20.xb7 d6 21.e3 bc6 , but I don't
see anything clear-cut. ]
20.h5 The game is reaching a critical stage.
[ On ChessBase. com, GM Ramirez
examines 20.g4 f8 ( Ramirez claims
that 20...g5! is stronger, with the nice
supporting line 21.h5 c6 22.xg5 xg5
23.xg5 hxg5 24.c7+ d8 25.xa8
xc5 26.b6 xb6 27.xb6
wh e n t h e r o o k i s t r a p p e d .) 21.h5!
, with the idea that d7 is now met by 22.f6
g6 23.xh6+ e8 24.xg6!!+- when Black
can't take the queen. ]
20...d7! 21.a4 c6!? Carlsen doesn't back
down.
[ 21...f6 22.xf6+ xf6 was safer. ]
22.db6 xc5! 23.f6
[ 23.xa8 xa4 24.f6 g5 25.xg5
transposes to the game. ( 25.h4!? )]
23...g5 24.xg5
[ 24.xc8!? ]
24...xa4 25.xa8
[ 25.xa4?! b5 26.c3 e6 (Ramirez) ]
25...b5 26.e3 A very messy position has
arisen that revolves around the future of the
a8 knight. Should Carlsen be able to win, he
will have an overwhelming material advantage
he n ce, K ram n ik will b e th ro win g vario u s
ro a d b lo ck s in h is wa y. b8 White was
threatening 27.Qxe5+ 27.g4 Now g4-g5 is on
th e ca rd s. g8!? 28.xh6 e6 29.bc1
d7! 30.xd4 Again, White has to play with
a sense of urgency. exd4+ 31.e5 c3
32.xc3!
[ Carlsen was probably hoping for 32.f4
a7 , and with the d4 pawn solidly defended
Black will pick up the knight. ]
32...xe5+ 33.h1 dxc3 34.e3
16.c5 Kramnik is scrambling well. b8 35.c5
d6 36.a7+ d8 37.xa6 d4! 38.a5+
c8 39.a6+ d8 40.a5+ c8 41.a6+
Draw! If you've been following the coverage of
the Tal Memorial, you'll now what computers
(and thus commentators!) were quick to point
out: b8 is likely winning for Black. After the
forced 42.b6 , both Kramnik and Carlsen
missed the excellent move c8! , when Black
wins - for example, 43.xc8 xc8 44.a4 b4
45.c4 c5 etc. The majority of this game
was clear as mud, but Carlsen's 3...h6 gave
him a fine position out of the opening. His 7...
Nh7!? conception as well as the possibility for
completely normal play with 7...0-0 means
W hite will have to go back to the drawing
board.
½-½
801 A20
b5! Kuzmicz,Krystian 2400
Socko,Bartosz 2627
DMP Ekstraliga (5) 10.09.2008
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.g3 e5 2.g2 d5 3.c4 f6 4.cxd5 xd5
5.f3 c6 6.0-0 b6 7.b3!? An attempt to
be distinctive.
[ 7.d3 e7 8.a3 a5 9.b3 0-0 10.b2 f6
11.bd2
A) 11...g4!? Given White intends e3 and
d4, it makes some sense to place the
bishop out of the range of a prospective
knight on d4. 12.c2 d7 13.fd1 ad8
14.ac1 h3 15.h1 d5 ( 15...g4 )
794
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
16.e4 g4 17.c5 xc5 18.xc5
h8 19.b5 b6 20.e1 h5 21.d4
f7 22.dxe5 fxe5 23.c5 h6 24.e3
de8?! ( 24...d5 ) 25.xc6!
26.xe5 f6 27.f4 and White was clearly
better in Mchedlishvili, M -Kasimdzhanov,
R Emsdetten GER 2008;
B) 11...e6 12.c2 Now if White is given
the opportunity, he will play e3, Rfd1 and
d4, possibly with Ne4 included. However,
Bla c k ra re ly h a s t o a llo w t h is id e a t o
proceed smoothly, and has various ways
to compete e8 ( 12...f7!?; 12...d7!? )
13.e3 d5 14.d4 exd4 15.xd4 xg2
16.xg2 xd4 17.xd4 c5 18.b2
c6+ 19.g1 a4 and Black has a slight
initiative. ]
7...g6!?
[ 7...d6 is probably best here, but many
Black players stubbornly associate this line
with the presence of bishops on e7 and e6.
8.b2 0-0 9.d3 I would prefer White but I
am a life-long Sicilian player. Objectively
Black should be fine. ]
8.b2
[ 8.c3!? g7 9.a3 looks more testing,
b u t B l a c k m i g h t b e f u l l y o k a f t e r a5
intending Nb4 and 0-0 ]
[ 8.a3!? a l so l o o k s i n t e r e st in g . g7
( 8...xa3 9.xa3 0-0 is probably fine, but
other things being equal these structures
should slightly favour White.) 9.e1!? a5
10.xc6+ bxc6 11.c3 with highly unclear
play. ]
8...g7 9.d3 0-0 10.c2 This feels a bit
p r e m a t u r e . e8 11.bd2 f5 12.c4?!
This looks compliant, but I am not sure White
had anything better.
[ 12.a3 e4! ]
[ 12.fd1 e7 doesn't seem to help. ]
12...xc4 13.dxc4 e7 14.ad1 e6
15.c3 ad8
[ 15...e4 16.d4 xd4 17.xd4 ad8
l o o k s m o r e p r e c i s e . 18.b2?
19.xd4 c5 ]
16.b2 e4 17.xd8 xd8 18.e5 xe5
19.xe5 xe5 20.xe5 d6 Black is clearly
better. 21.c3 d4 22.a5 b6 23.c3
f7 24.e3 c5 25.a1 b6 26.f1 d6
27.c5?! An unforced error, doing Black's work
for him. xc5 28.xc5 bxc5 29.c1 d5
Temporarily awkward, but Black now has extra
sp a c e a n d h a lf a p a wn - e n o u gh t o h a v e
se rio u s win n in g ch a n ce s. 30.c4 e5
bxc6 31.f1 xc4+ 32.xc4 a6 33.e2 d5
34.a4 d6 35.c4 d5 36.a4 d6
37.c4 c6 38.h4
[ 38.f3 exf3+ 39.xf3 e6 40.e4 fxe4+
41.xe4 looks drawish. ]
38...e6 39.d2 d5 40.c3 a5 41.a4
a6 42.c4 c6 43.a4 b5 44.c2 d6
45.c4 d8 46.c1 h6 47.c2 d5
48.c1 d6 49.c2 a6 50.a4 f6
51.c3 d6 52.c2 e6 53.d2 e8
54.c3 f8 55.c4 b6 56.a4 f6
57.c4 e6 58.a4 g5 59.hxg5 hxg5
60.g4 f4 61.d2 f3 62.c3 b5 63.c4
e8 64.a4 b6 65.c4 c6 66.a4 d6
67.xa5 h8 68.a6+ c6 69.a4 d5
70.a7 h4 71.d7+ e6 72.d2 xg4
73.a4 g1 74.b2 e1 75.a3 e2
76.d8 xf2 77.a5 f1 78.b2 f2 79.f8
e7 80.f5 d7 81.f7+ c8 82.a6 b8
0-1
802 A20
Kuzmicz,Krystian 2418
Vovk,Yuri 2557
Najdorf Mem GpA (9) 28.07.2007
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.g3 e5 2.g2 f6 3.c4 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
5.f3 c6 6.0-0 b6 7.b3 e4!?
I suspect this is a bit dubious, though
gambiteers who are at ease with being a pawn
down for nebulous compensation might like it.
I wrote this line before looking at the position
very closely, but after a little analysis it seems
the compensation is actually quite enduring,
so I am no longer sure about ...e4. 8.e1 f5
[ 8...f5 9.b2 followed by d3, will leave
Black's position rather loose. ]
9.c3
xd4 [ 9.b2!? ]
9...f6! 10.c2 0-0-0
[ 10...g6 11.e3 ]
11.xe4
[ 11.xe4!? xe4 12.xe4 f5 13.f3
intending Nf2, is also worth considering, but
even here Black has quite easy play for the
pawn. ]
795
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

11...e6 for Black, Gutsu,S-Dobrin,C/Eforie Nord

[ 11...g6 12.d3 b8 followed by h5 looks 1998. ]
plausible. Again, I don't think it is a pawn's 6.d2 b4
worth, but there is no denying that Black's [ 6...xe5 7.xc4 is slightly to White's
position is quite easy to play (Kb8 is not advantage. ]
forced but it is useful to have c8 available 7.gf3 c3?!
for the bishop after Ne3). ( 12...h5 13.e3 [ Tempting, but in the light of what follows,
e6 14.f4!? )] 7...e6 is safer. ]
12.d3 e7 13.g5 xg5 14.xg5 f6 8.bxc3 xc3 9.0-0!! Blithely leaving a rook
15.e3 h3 en prise! e7?!
[ 15...d5 keeps more tension in the [ I suppose Black had to capture, but
position but the way Black plays almost 9...xa1 10.c4 c7 ( 10...xa2?
seems to keep the balance so I am not sure 11.d6+ f8 12.xc8 g6 13.d8+ g7
it is an improvement. ] 14.d6 wins ) 11.d6+ f8 12.a3
16.xb6 Perhaps a bit simplistic. regains a piece with enormous
[ 16.e1!? ] compensation. ]
[ 16.h1!? h5 17.g1 ] 10.c4 d5 11.d6+ Now White obtains
16...axb6 17.d2 h5 18.e3! d7 19.f4 the attack without sacrifices. f8 12.xc8
xg2 xc8 13.a3+ g8 14.xd5
[ 19...h4! and seems to be fully adequate for [ 14.xd5 cxd5 15.ac1 wins a bit. ]
Black. ] 1-0
20.xg2 h4 21.g4 he8 22.e3 d4
Now Black is winning material and is clearly
better. 23.f5 g5 24.xd4 c6+ 25.e4 804 A20
xd4 26.xd4 d7 27.f5 h3+ 28.xh3 Lenic,Luka 2637
xd3+ 29.f3 h8+ 30.g3 d2 31.h3 d8 Gajewski,Grzegorz 2634
32.f2 f4+ 33.g2 c6 34.e1 b5 35.e5 ETCC (Open) Warsaw POL (4.42) 11.11.2013
fxe5 36.e7+ b8 37.g6 b4 38.ee2 [Fier, Alexandr]
d1 39.xe5 f4 40.f1 xf1 41.xf1
g3 42.d3 xf3+ 43.f2 c5 44.c2 b6 One more game quickly following unknown
45.e1 c7 46.e2 c4 47.c2 c3 48.b4 paths. Lenic tries an idea of just going for the
d6 49.e2 d5 50.e4 c2 51.d2 pawn on e4 and actua lly he takes it. Bu t
xe2+ Gajewski proves that the activity of Black's
0-1 pieces a re e no ugh co mp en sa tion . 16 .b 6
would be more prudent in my view. 1.g3 e5
2.c4 c6 3.d4 e4 4.d5 Basically aimed to
803 A20 avoid 4...d5. It resembles the Sicilian with 1.
Lauvsnes,Arild 2274 e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.c3 d5 4.e5 d4!?. This move
Grotnes,Nils Ragnar 2291 was played by some strong players including
TCh-Final Langesund NOR (2) 24.05.2001 Carlsen against Anand! b4+
[Tony Kosten] [ 4...f6 was Anand's choice and trying to
keep the bishop later with 6...Qe7 5.g2
1.c4 c6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 e5 Transposing into b4+ 6.d2 e7 7.c3 0-0
a type of Keres system. 4.d4!? with a complex game in Carlsen, M (2733)-
[ Interesting, first 4.cxd5 would be more Anand, V (2799)/Amber Rapid Nice FRA
usual. ] 2008. ]
4...dxc4 5.dxe5 a5+!? 5.d2 xd2+ Actually a novelty! But a quite
[ A novelty! 5...xd1+ 6.xd1 is the normal normal move.
way of playing this, c5 7.e3?! ( 7.d2!? [ 5...e3 is a t h e m a t ic s a cr i f i c e 6.fxe3
xf2 8.xc4 is fun ) 7...g4+ 8.e2 d7 ( 6.xb4 b6! 7.fxe3 xb4+ 8.d2 xb2
9.f4 0-0-0 10.e1 seems very promising and Black should be ok) 6...e7 7.b3

796
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

c5 8.d3 with typical compensation due to counterplay. ]

W hite's strange structure in Carlstedt, J 16.h3
(2386)-Goh Wei Ming, K (2382)/Budapest [ 16.b6 makes sense, and it's a typical
FS03 GM 2011. ] B e n k o m o v e , d7 17.f3!? ( 17.h3
[ 5...e7 allows transposition to Carlsen - xb6 18.c2 b4 19.f3 e5 20.g5
Anand: 6.c3 f6 7.g2 transposing. ] f5 and Black is fine.) 17...f5 18.xf5 gxf5
6.xd2 f6 7.c3 0-0 8.g2 e8 9.d4 19.xf5 xb6 20.g5 e7 21.e6 f7
An ambitious idea, but Black has enough 22.g4+ h8 23.g5 f8 but with only
resources to hold the balance. two white pieces attacking Black should be
[ 9.d6 tries to block Black's position, but fine again. ]
allows another break: b5! 10.cxb5 ( 10.h3 16...axb5 With this structure Black will always
i s a l s o p o s s i b l e bxc4 11.0-0 a6 ha ve so m e b re a ks a n d e xp a n sio n s . T h e
followed by 12...Rb8) 10...cxb5 11.xb5 position is about equal, but still easier to play
a6 12.h3 b8 13.c3 b6 for Black. 17.a3 d7 18.hd1 I'm not sure if
with compensation. ] this move is really useful.
[ 9.h3 h6 ( 9...d6 10.dxc6 e3 11.fxe3 [ 18.f4 was possible f6 19.f3 f5
xh3 12.xh3 xc6 gives insufficient 20.d1 a7 with the idea of bringing the
compensation because of the d5-square for q u e e n t o e 7 - e 5 21.h4 e7 22.e3
t h e k n i g h t .) 10.0-0 e7 11.ad1 with a complex position. ]
could be a possible follow up with a small 18...c4
advantage for White. ] [ 18...d8!? the computer prefers using the
9...d6! Not losing time, suddenly all Black queen on the other side, where it can better
pieces are going to enter the game. 10.xe4 control the dark squares and White needs to
xe4 11.xe4 c5 12.d3 a5+ 13.f1 t a k e s o m e c a r e s i n c e 19.f4 fails to
g6 A difficult position to evaluate, if White can ( 19.f3 e5 20.c3 f6
coordinate his pieces the extra e-pawn will is also interesting for Black) 19...e7
make the difference, so Black needs to be 20.f3 g5! 21.h5 g4!-+ winning a piece. ]
quick. 14.g2 19.f3 e5 20.f6 xh3+ 21.xh3 b6
[ 14.h4!? trying a brutal attack d7 15.h5 22.f4 c3!? Activating all the pieces
f6 16.hxg6 ( 16.xg6 hxg6 17.hxg6 c7 [ 22...b4 was another possible break, and
18.f3 e7 19.gxf7+ xf7 after 23.axb4 xa1 24.xa1 xb4 25.b1
is also possible, but now Black's queen is c5 with the idea of playing 26...f5 in case
h e l p i n g m o r e t h a n i n t h e m a i n l i n e .) of 26.Kg2. ]
16...xe4 ( 16...xe4 17.gxh7+ h8 23.bxc3 a4 24.d4 It's necessary to give
18.h6 g4 19.xe4 xh6 20.f4 xh7 the pawn back, but it's hard to evaluate if it
21.f3 looks good for White with the rook was better to have the pawns on b2 and c4 or
coming to the h-f ile.) 17.gxf7+ xf7 a3 and b5 xd4 25.cxd4 xd4 26.b1
18.xh7+ g6 19.h4 f5 with chances c4 27.b2 c5 28.g2 c4 29.b3
for both sides in a chaotic position. ] xa3 Finally recovering the pawn, but now
14...b5! Creating counterplay on the other White has time to organize his pieces. 30.f3
wing. 15.cxb5 f8 31.h4 c4 32.h5 And the counterplay is
[ 15.b3 maintains the pawn chain, bxc4 enough to hold the balance. d4 33.d3
16.bxc4 f5 17.f3 d7 and ...Rb8, ...Ne5 xd5? This is a blunder, probably caused by
are sufficient to keep the position alive ] time trouble.
15...a6!? [ 33...xf4 was necessary and the position
[ 15...d7 16.c2 ( 16.f3 this sacrifice is ok for both players after 34.xf4 c8
can be played in this position and in the 35.hxg6 hxg6 36.d4= ]
next variation, f5 17.xf5 gxf5 18.xf5 34.xc4? Returning the favour.
xb5 19.g5 e7 20.e6 xb2 [ 34.hxg6! hxg6 35.xg6 and Black's king is
21.g5+ f7 22.h6 g8= ) 16...xb5 now too open to resist, for example, e6
17.f3 b8 again with enough 36.d3 e5 37.h4 h8 38.g5+ g7

797
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

39.xb5 e5 40.f5 and Black is just 20.g2 f8 21.f5 d8 22.xd6?!
lost. ] [ Strong enough, although the elementary
34...bxc4 35.h6 e6 36.d4 e5 37.xc4 22.h8+ g8 23.xg8+! xg8 24.h3
g5 38.d4 xh6 39.xd6 Now it's just force mate. ]
drawn. g5 40.f4 xf4 22...e7 23.h8+ g8 24.h3
½-½ 1-0

805 A20 806 A20

Markowski,Tomasz 2595 Markowski,Tomasz 2632
Gajewski,Grzegorz 2344 Krasenkow,Michal 2651
58th ch Warsaw POL (12) 30.03.2001 TCh-POL Lublin POL (2) 13.09.2009
[Tony Kosten] [Nigel Davies]

1.g3 e5 2.c4 f6 3.g2 c6 4.d4 b4+
5.d2 xd2+ 6.xd2 d6 7.c3 e7 8.e3
[ 8.e4!? d5! 9.cxd5 exd4! was examined in
previously. ]
8...0-0 9.ge2 e4!?
[ Unusual, and provocative, 9...bd7 and ]
[ 9...e8 were evaluated in previous
games. ]
10.d5!
[ White 'isolates' the e4-pawn. Previously,
10.0-0 e8 11.h3 h5! (else White plays g4)
12.f3 exf3 13.xf3 h7! yielded nothing in
Franco Ocampos,Z-Conquest,S/Saint
Vincent ITA 2000. ]
10...c5 11.h3 h5 Again, Black has to stop
White from playing g4, and Ng3, winning the
e4-pawn. 12.0-0-0
[ 12.g4!? hxg4 13.hxg4 xg4 14.g3
is also possible, but White prefers to bring
his king to safety first. ]
12...a6 13.c2 e8 14.g4! Thematic, and
s t r o n g. W h it e u n d e r m in e s t h e e -p a wn ' s
defence, and opens files on the kingside.
hxg4 15.g3!
[ 15.hxg4 xg4 16.h2 and 17 Rdh1 also
has its points. ]
15...gxh3 16.xh3 xh3 17.xh3 g6
18.dh1 The attack down the h-file is already
decisive. bd7 19.f4!
[ This move, freeing the second rank, is
e v e n s t r o n g e r t h a n 19.gxe4 xe4
20.xe4 xe4 21.xe4 xe4 22.h8+
which picks-up an exchange. ]
19...g7
[ 19...exf3 loses to the pretty variation:
20.f5! gxf5 21.g3+ g4 22.xg4+!
fxg4 23.h7+ and mate next move. ]
Markowski's 3.Bg2 is probably designed to
avoid the line 3.d4 exd4 4.Qxd4 Nf6 5.Bg2
Na 6 . B u t h e lo se s so m e o p tio n s a gain s t
Krasenkow's choice because his bishop is
already committed to g2. Black equalises with
some ease but finds himself outplayed in the
middle and endgame. 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6
3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 cxd5 5.d4 e4 6.c3
c6 7.h3 b4
[ Black can also play 7...e7 , for example
8.a3 (this looks passive) h6 ( Presumably
delaying 8...f6 because of 9.g5 but then
b6 seems quite playable) 9.f4 f6
10.b4 ( 10.b3 can be answered by a5 )
10...g5 11.h3 f5 gave Black a good
ga m e in Ja n o sch ka , A (2 3 0 4 )-S o rm , D
(2371), Bad Homburg 2008. ]
8.0-0 ge7 9.f4 0-0 10.b3 xc3
11.xc3
[ 11.bxc3 a5 would immediately exploit
the weakness of the c4 square. ]
11...d6
[ Varying from a previous Markowski game,
Markowski, T (2549)-Jenni, F (2483), Bled
200 2. In t hat o ne Black p la ye d 11...g6
a f t e r wh i c h 12.xg6 hxg6 13.b3 f5
14.a3 was a bit better for White. ]
12.f3 f5 Keeping White's g2 bishop out of the
game by supporting the granite barrier on e4.
13.fxe4 fxe4 14.d2 f5 15.e3 Passive.
[ White should have given 15.b4 a try, ]
[ or maybe even 15.c5 . ]
15...g5 16.h3 h6 Black has obtained an
easy game from the opening, so his early play
can be considered and unqualified success.
Of course after the opening the gods placed
t h e m i d d le a n d e n d ga m e . 17.f2 h5

798
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

18.b3 h7 19.ac1 d7 20.b4 h4 807 A20

21.g4 e6 22.h3 g7 Markowski,Tomasz 2568
[ 22...xb4 would have been at least equal Krasenkow,Michal 2702
for Black and was probably better than the chT Zakopane chT (9) 11.09.2000
move played. Could it be that Black wanted [Tony Kosten]
to keep pieces on because he thought it was
the best way to aim for the full point? ] 1.g3 e5 2.c4 c6 3.d4 exd4 4.xd4 d5
23.a3 f7 24.c3 g8 25.c5 af8 5.g2 e6 6.cxd5 cxd5 7.f3 c6 8.a4
26.d6 c5 9.0-0 f6 10.e5!? An innovation,
[ 26.xe4 is tempting, but Black can meet it att ackin g c6 . c8 11.c3 0-0 12.d3
with b6 ( And not 26...dxe4? 27.xg5+ ) Revealing the real idea, the knight drops back
27.b5 a6 28.xa6 dxe4 when White will to d3, when it can be used to attack the d5-
struggle to find adequate compensation. ] pawn from f4. d4!
26...xd6 27.xd6 d8 28.a3 c8 [ Black has to be prepared to capture the c3-
29.d1 d6 30.b3 b5 31.c5 c8 knight, 12...b6? allows 13.g5 e8
32.xf7 xf7 33.f1 c7 34.c3 e8 14.f4 with unbearable pressure on d5. ]
35.a3 b8 36.f2 a6 37.e1 g6 13.g5 xc3 14.bxc3 h6 15.e3
38.d2 c7? This should lose a pawn. The bishop will be able to defend the c3-pawn
[ 38...f6 was better. ] from d4. g4 16.f4
39.e2? [ 16.fe1 would avoid the coming
[ Just before the time control White misses combination, but after e8 17.f4 e4
a n im m e d i a t e wi n vi a 39.xd5! xd5 Black enjoys reasonable chances. ]
40.xc7 xc7 41.d6 , winning back the 16...g5! 17.xd5 xd5 18.xg4
piece and keeping the extra pawn. ] [ 18.xd5?! xe2 19.xc6 xc6 20.fe1
39...d7 40.f1 c6 41.a4 ef6 42.e7 f3 is much too risky- the white king is liable
g8 43.b4 gf6 44.a3 c8 45.b2 to mated on g2 later. ]
c6? After White's strong reply Black feels 18...xe3 19.fxe3 e7 White's extra pawn is
obliged to present his opponent with a useless. 20.d5 xe3+ 21.h1 e5
quee nside p awn majority a f te r wh ich his 22.f5 xc3 23.e4 g6 24.d5
chances of holding the game diminish sharply. White decides to force a draw by threatening
[ 45...e8 w a s b e t t e r w h e n 46.c1 f7 and h7, alternatively. e5
( 46.c5?! is simply met by xc5 47.dxc5 [ 24...e7!? 25.xf7+ g7 26.e6 c6!?
xc5 ) 46...xc1 47.xc1 is better for White 27.xe7 c7 is possible, but can hardly
but by no means as good in the game. ] offer any winning chances. ]
46.c5! xc5 47.dxc5 d7 48.b4 e6 25.e4 g6 26.d5
49.d4 e8 50.f8 e7 51.c3 f7 ½-½
52.xf7 xf7 53.e5 e6 54.d4 a4
55.h2 f6 56.c7 d7 57.d8 e5
58.xg5 b5 59.xb5 f3+ 60.c3 axb5 808 A20
61.d8 f7 Markowski,Tomasz 2568
[ A l s o a f t e r 61...d7 White's queenside Krasenkow,Michal 2702
pawns will march sooner or later, for Rubinstein Mem (6) 23.08.2000
example after 62.f6 e6 63.g5 h2 [Tony Kosten]
64.a4 . ]
62.g5 e5 63.f6 c6 64.b3 e6 1.g3 e5 2.c4 f6 3.g2 c6 4.d4 exd4
65.c3 f5 66.a4 The beginning of the end. [ The most aggressive move, whereby Black
bxa4+ 67.xa4 d4 68.exd4 e7 69.b5 accepts an IQP in exchange for active piece
d5 70.e1 xg5 71.b6 f4 72.b5 e3 play. 4...b4+ is a more solid choice. ]
73.c4 5.xd4 d5 6.f3 e6!?
1-0 [ Black wants to force White to capture on d5,
which allows Black to bring his f8-bishop to

799
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

a m o re a c t ive squ a re . T h e m o re u su a l [ White gives-up his knight, but there is little

6...e7 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.0-0 c6 9.a4 0-0 choice, 26.g2 h3 27.h4 xh4
10.e3 g4 11.d4 allows White a firm 28.gxh4 g4+ 29.h2 f3 leads to a quick
control of d4. ] mate. ]
[ 6...dxc4!? is an interesting alternative, if 26...xh4 27.xe5+ xe5 28.xe5+ g8
Black wishes to avoid the IQP. ] 29.d5 xe3
7.cxd5 cxd5 8.0-0 c6 9.a4 c5 0-1
The point of Black's move-order, the bishop
points at f2. 10.bd2
[ A solid idea, White will bring a piece to d4, 809 A20
but 10.g5 may be a better method Markowski,Tomasz 2530
exploiting the absence of the bishop from Savchenko,Stanislav 2570
e7, 0-0 11.c3 h6 12.xf6 xf6 13.fd1 Masters KO, (3.2) 2000
( I prefer 13.e1! planning Nd3-f4) 13...b6 [Tony Kosten]
14.b5 fd8 seems fairly level, Romanishin,
O-Agdestein,S/Taxco 1985. ] 1.g3 e5 2.c4 f6 3.g2 c6 4.d4 b4+
10...0-0 11.b3 b6 12.bd4 d7! 5.d2 xd2+ 6.xd2 d6 7.c3 e7
[ A new move, menacing to win a piece by This tricky move again, and in this game the
capturing on d4, and putting pressure on exact point of Black's move-order is revealed.
W h it e . P r e vio u sly B la ck h a d p re f e rre d 8.e4!?
12...c8 which also defends c6, 13.e3 [ This natural move may be inappropriate
d7 14.d1!? e8 15.xc6 bxc6 16.d4 here, 8.e3 0-0 9.ge2 has been analysed
c5! 17.xf6 xf6 18.xd5 b5 previously. ]
with advantage to Black, Karlsson,L- 8...d5!? Black exploits the opposition of his
Backelin,R/ Gausdal 1990. ] queen against the opponent's king. 9.cxd5
13.xe6?! [ 9.dxe5 xe4 10.xe4 dxe4 11.0-0-0
[ The problem with this capture is that it d7 12.xe4 xe5 is level. ]
strengthens the black centre, and opens the 9...exd4!
f - f i l e , b u t t h e a l t e r n a t i v e 13.xc6 [ Now, 9...cxd5?! 10.dxe5 xe4
is little better: bxc6! 14.e5 e8 15.xc6 loses a pawn to 11.xd5! xd2 12.xe7
f5 16.f4 d4 and Black regains his xe7 13.xd2 ]
pawn, with advantage. ] 10.xd4 cxd5 11.xd5 xd5 12.xd5
13...fxe6 14.d1?! The rook should stay on 0-0 What compensation does Black have for
f1, to defend f2. e5 15.e3 Blocking the g1-a7 the pawn? W ell, the white king is still two
diagonal to the b6-bishop, but weakening f3. moves from castling, and Black will gain time
f5 kicking the exposed white queen around.
[ Lining-up the pieces on the f-file, but 15...e4 13.e2 e6
16.d4 g4 is also strong. ] [ Another possibility is 13...d8 , but after
16.f1 ad8 All Black's pieces are 14.b5 a6 15.b6 c6 16.0-0 d2
aggressively placed. 17.d2 e4 18.ad1 17.c3 menacing Nd5, White's problems
h5 19.h4 are behind him, Kelly,B-Ryan,J/IRL 1995,
[ Forced, if 19.e1? then e2 attacks d2, 1-0 (25). ]
and f2, and wins. ] 14.d2
19...g5! Obliging White to part with his light- [ Perhaps 14.b5 is a better choice here,
squared bishop. 20.xe4 dxe4 21.g2 d6 too. ]
Threatening both ...Rfd8, winning the d2- 14...d8 15.e3 b4+ 16.c3 c6 17.f4
b i s h o p , a n d . . . R h 6 . 22.c3 h6 [ A new try, but one that fails. The natural
This is simply winning. 23.h4 gxh4 24.c4+ 17.0-0 allowed d2 18.xb4 xb4 19.c3
[ 24.xh4 g4 25.g2 h3 26.h4 xh4 xb2 20.ab1 xb1 21.xb1 xa2
27.gxh4 h8 with mate to follow. ] 22.xa2 xa2 23.xb7 a5 when the
24...h8 25.xh4 g4 26.d5 passed a-pawn granted Black the advantage,

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Davies,N-Khenkin,I/Tel Aviv 1992, 0-1 (36) ]
17...c4! Confining the king to the centre.
18.f1? Overlooking a tactic that regains the
pawn. xa2! 19.e2?!
[ If 19.xa2 xe4+ wins. ]
19...xe4 20.f3 White seeks to justify his
eighteenth move, but the tactics favour Black,
which is only to be expected considering his
better mobilisation. f5 21.d3
[ Once again, 21.xa2? loses, but this time
to b1+ ]
21...e5+ 22.xe5 xe5 23.e4 c4
Black has emerged from the complications
with a pawn more, and the better position.
24.f2
[ White cannot capture the pawn: 24.xb7?
ab8 25.xa7?! d7 26.a5 dxb7
27.xe5 xb2 and White can resign, it is
almost impossible to stop ...Ra8-a1. ]
24...d2+ 25.e3 ad8 26.xa7 g5
27.xb7 The f4-knight cannot move without
allowing ...Re2 mate. gxf4+ 28.xf4 d3+
0-1
810 A20
Markowski,Tomasz 2590
Wells,Peter K 2520
2nd IECC Ohrid (11) 2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.g3 e5 2.c4 f6 3.g2 c6 4.d4 b4+
A popular line for Black, when he wants a
solid position with good drawing possibilities.
How will White react? 5.d2 xd2+ 6.xd2
d6 7.c3 0-0 8.dxe5!?
[ To beginners it might seem odd that White
captures on e5 now, after Black has castled,
rather than the move before when he could
have displaced the black king to d8 with
check. The reason is simple, in such an
endgame the black king would be well-
placed on c7 (particularly as White has no
dark-squared bishop), much more active
than o n g8, as n ow. P revio usly we ha d
co n s id e re d 8.e3 let us see if the endgame
offers White more. ]
8...dxe5 9.xd8 xd8 10.f3 e8
[ 10...bd7 is worse, 11.0-0-0 threatens the
e - p a w n a g a i n a n d f o r c e s e8
anyway, when the c8-bishop is temporarily
blocked-in. ]
11.0-0 So what advantage does White enjoy
in this endgame? Firstly, not much, the black
position is solid, but d6 is weak, and W hite
will be able to claim the d-file. f5
[ A new move. In the original game in this line,
Akopian,V-Gelfand,B/Cap d`Agde 1996 (a
r a p i d g a m e ) B l a c k p r e f e r r e d 11...a6
12.fd1 f5 13.h3 h6 14.g4 h7 15.e1
c5 16.b4 with a tiny plus for White. ]
12.d2!
[ 12.fd1 a6 would transpose to the
above game. ]
12...a6 13.b3 So the point of White's play
is revealed, he will bring this knight to a5 to
pressurise the black queenside. ac8!?
[ Possibly Black should have preferred
13...ad8 14.a5 c8!? as now White
gains complete control of the d-file. ]
14.fd1 f8 15.a5 c7 16.d2
White prepares to double rooks on the only
o p e n f ile , a n d B la ck ca n n o t o p p o s e t h is
without losing his b7-pawn. e4! Black shuts
the h1-a8 diagonal to free his queenside.
17.ad1!?
[ 17.e3 b6 18.b3 d7 allows Black to
contest the d-file. ]
17...b6 18.b3 e6 It seems that Black's
plan to attack c4 will regain the equilibrium,
but White profits from the tactical possibilities
of his position. 19.d4!? c5
[ 19...e3!? first, is interesting. ]
20.d6 xc4?!
[ This allows the b3-knight back into play with
gain of time. As the c4-pawn is not going to
run away, 20...e3! is good, when not
21.c6? because of xc6! 22.xc6 exf2+
23.xf2 g4+ 24.g1 e3 and Black will
capture the c4-pawn, and then the c6-rook,
which is trapped. ]
21.d2 e6 22.dxe4 xe4 23.xe4
xa2!? Black was clearly depending on this
shot, winning the a2-pawn. 24.c6 e6?
[ Black should have tried 24...ec8! 25.d7
d8 26.xa2 e7 27.b5 xd6 28.xd6
xd6 29.xa6 c4 with really good chances
as the a6-bishop is marooned, and Black
has a useful queenside majority. ]
25.d8+ e7 26.b5 b4 Everything is
defended, but W hite has seen further:
27.xa2 xa2 28.c4 Forking a2 and e6,
801
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

and winning the exchange. b4 29.xe6 12...a5 13.a4 xa4 14.xa4 a6
xe6 30.e8+ f5 31.d6 f6 32.ed8 [ 14...d7 looks like a fine alternative and
e7 33.d2 Care is required, as Black's 3 to easier to play. ]
1 majority on the queenside can soon 15.0-0
become decisive. e6 34.2d6+ A little [ Ivanchuk,V-Sutovsky,E/Moscow 2001 was
re p e t it i o n t o ga in t im e o n t h e c lo ck (t h e annotated by Tony. There followed 15.d4
tournament featured the new fast FIDE time- ad8 16.0-0 c8 17.fc1 with approximate
c o n t ro l) . f5 35.f1 e4? Black starts equality. ]
going to pieces. 36.8d7 c2 37.d2 c4 15...ad8 16.fe1 b6!?
38.xa7 g5 39.b7 d4 40.xb6 c1+ [ 16...c5!? 17.ed1 b6 is suggested by
41.g2 g4 42.h3 h5 43.hxg4+ hxg4 44.b4 HiArcs 9. ]
1-0 17.ac3 d5 18.a4 b6 19.ac3 d5
The whole system with 4...Bb4+ is looking like
an equaliser. White needs new ideas.
811 A20 ½-½
Matamoros Franco,Carlos S 2513
Belkhodja,Slim 2478
36th Olympiad (11) 26.10.2004 812 A20
[John Watson] Matamoros Franco,Carlos S 2462
Volzhin,Alexander 2569
A c rit ic al lin e of t he 2 .g3 Ke re s line h a s 5th Wichern op (8) 21.10.1999
received some tests. Can Black equalise? [Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6
[ 2...c6 3.d4 b4+ 4.d2 xd2+ 5.xd2 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
d6 6.g2 usually transposes by f6 ] 5.f3 c6 6.0-0 b6
3.g2 c6 4.d4 b4+ 5.d2 xd2+ 6.xd2 [ To keep control of d4, if 6...e7 then
d6 We have seen this system more than once 7.d4!? e4 8.e5 is interesting. ]
in Tony's surveys. It is not easy to make 7.d3 e7 8.bd2
progress against. 7.c3 [ An attempt to avoid the heavily analysed
[ 7.e3 e6 8.b3 (I'm not sure that Tony's lines after 8.c3 ]
p r e f e r e n c e f o r 7 . e 3 o ve r 7 . N c 3 r e a l l y 8...0-0 9.a3 a5 Probably the most accurate
improves W hite's lot here) ( 8.c3 exd4 move, keeping a lid on W hite's queenside
and ...d5 doesn't inspire) 8...exd4 9.exd4!? expansion. 10.b3 e6 11.b2 f6 12.c2
( 9.xd4 ) 9...d5 10.c5 0-0 11.c3 d7 13.e3! Chernin's move, planning the
was a new but unimpressive plan in Rotstein, positionally advantageous d4-thrust. fd8
A-Rabiega,R Graz 2004. At this point the [ T h e m o s t n a t u r a l m o v e , 13...f5!?
simplest answer was b6! in view of 12.b4? c a n b e m e t b y 14.e4 fd8 15.fd1
a5 13.a4 bd7 with a clear advantage. with an edge. ]
White's play was too slow. ] 14.d4 exd4 15.xd4 xd4!?
7...0-0 8.e3 e6 9.b3 [ I have suggested that this might be Black's
[ 9.d5 was again proven harmless after cxd5 b e s t m o v e . 15...d5?! was played in
10.cxd5 d7 11.b4!? a6 12.b1 c8 Chernin,A-Smejkal,J/Altensteig 1991, and
13.ge2 c4! in Granda Zuniga,J-Rohl,J after 16.xd5+ xd5 17.xc6 xc6
Calvia 2004. ] 18.xc6 bxc6 19.fd1 White enjoyed the
9...exd4 10.xd4 d5 11.cxd5 xd5 superior structure. ]
Tony has also indicated that 16.xd4 c5!? 17.xc5 White has little
[ 11...cxd5!? and ] choice, as otherwise Black will continue with ...
[ 11...xd5!? are reasonable moves. ] a4, with a strong queenside set-up. ac8!
12.ge2 [ Chernin also gave 17...dc8?! 18.b4 a4
[ A string of equal positions have resulted but then 19.e4 b6 20.fd1 b5 is hit by
from 12.xd5 xd5 13.xd5 cxd5 ] 21.d6! and Black is in trouble. ]

802
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
18.b4 axb4!?
[ C h e r n i n m e n t i o n s t h e l i n e 18...a4?!
19.e4 b6? when White wins by 20.ad1 4.c3 By far the most common response.
e8?! 21.xe7! ]
19.axb4 d5! 20.d3
[ The safest response. If White wants to
hang-on to the pawn he can try 20.xd5!?
xd5 21.e4 but it is quite risky, ]
[ 20.b2?! is nothing, xc5 21.bxc5 xe3!
22.fxe3 xd2 23.xd2 xd2
with equality. ]
20...xb4
[ One of several reasonable choices, 20...b6 4...d5
seems fairly equal after 21.xe7 xe7 something of a parting of the ways:
22.f3 xb4 23.e4 with the intention of
playing Nd4, ]
[ 20...xc5 21.bxc5 xc5 is also level. ]
21.xd7 xd7 22.xb4?!
[ An odd decision, 22.xe7 xe7 23.fb1
is better, although Black should be able to
maintain equality on d5 24.a7 cc7 ]
22...xb4
½-½
813 A20
Movsesian,Sergei 2688
Grandelius,Nils 2572
Tata Steel Chess 2013 (12.11) 26.01.2013
[John Bartholomew]
5...b4!?
An early space-gaining line against Marin's move in December to draw rather effortlessly
favored English move order (2.g3) leads to with Normunds Miezis. 6.b3
fine positional play for Black. 1.c4 e5 2.g3
c6 In "Grandmaster Repertoire 3 - The English
Opening vol. 1" Mihail Marin refers to this as
the "Accelerated Keres". Black wastes no time
in preparing his central play.
[ Transpositional possibilities to the Keres
" p r o p e r " w i t h 2...f6 3.g2 c6
are plentiful. ]
3.d4 e4 Staking a claim to as much space as
possible.
[ There are some unanswered questions in
the line, for instance 3...b4+ 4.d2 xd2+
5.xd2 d6 6.c3 f6 7.g2 0-0 8.e3
e6 9.d1 a6 10.b3 exd4 11.xd4
b4!? and White hasn't been able to prove
anything more than a draw. See Kosten, A
(2498)-Jones, G (2593) Bunratty 2011/[Nigel 6...a5
Davies]. ]
[ 3...exd4 4.xd4 d5 is the most popular.
Refer to the "Keres" guide in the archives. ]
[ However, 4.d5!? deserves attention,
preven ting B la ck f ro m co nstructing h is
desired pawn chain with ... d7-d5. Carlsen,
M (2733)-Anand, V (2799) Nice 2008/
[Hansen, Carsten]. ]
[ 4.b3!? was tried in Damljanovic, B (2551)-
Vasilevich, T (2420) Kavala 2009/[John
Bartholomew], presumably to avoid ...Bf8-
b4. ]
5.g2 '!'' according to Marin. This is
[ A critical (and bloody!) line runs 5.cxd5
cxd5 6.b3 c6 ( ! ) - M a r i n ( 6...e7
is probably playable too, as in Kortschnoj,
V (2610)-Bacrot, E (2545) Albert 1997/
[Nigel Davies].) 7.xd5 xd5 8.xd5
xd4 9.c7+ d8 10.xa8 c2+
11.d1 xa1 . Black appears to be doing
fine here see Gelfand, B (2737)-Karjakin, S
(2732) Odessa 2008/[Nigel Davies]. ]
[ 5.h3 angles for Nh3-f4 and there also
makes sense. Narciso Dublan, M (2487)-
San Segundo Carrillo, P (2516) Sanxenxo
2004/[John Watson]. ]
[ W hite tried the totally unexplored 5.f3!?
in Davies, N (2493)-Cherniaev, A (2428)
London 2009. ]
Grandelius had already used this
[ M a r i n ' s r e c o m m e n d a t i o n i s 6.d2
, b u t t h i s h a s n 't ca u gh t o n m u c h . O n e
r e c e n t e x a m p l e : xc3 (White was
threatening Nc3xe4) 7.xc3 ( Marin advises
7.bxc3 , but after, say, f6 8.cxd5 cxd5
9.h3 0-0 10.0-0 h6 11.f4 g5!
Black's position looks entirely reasonable)
7...e7 8.f3 f5 ( 8...f5!? looks more
promising ) 9.cxd5 ( 9.fxe4! xe4 10.xe4
dxe4 11.c2 f5 12.h3 ) 9...cxd5
10.fxe4 xe4 11.f3 0-0 12.0-0=
Barbier, S (2088)-Dusthageer, I (2212)
Chennai 2011. ]
[ 6.cxd5 cxd5 7.h3 c6 8.0-0 ge7
9.f3 exf3 10.exf3 0-0 was equal in Miezis,
N (2596)-Grandelius, N (2583) Al Ain 2012. ]
[ Since Black ends up exchanging his dark-
803
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
squared bishop anyways, it deserves
attention to develop with 6...a6!? , i.e.
7.cxd5 xd5 8.xd5 cxd5 9.h3 e7
10.0-0 0-0 11.f4 c7 12.d2 d6!
13.f3 f5 and Black was fine in Zenzera, A
(2170)-Bezgodov, A (2494) Kazan 2010. ]
7.h3 h6 A useful move in many lines. 8.0-0
f6 9.cxd5 cxd5 10.f4 xc3! 11.bxc3
0-0
[ It's also possible to play actively with
11...g5!? , though 12.h3 0-0 13.f3 exf3
14.exf3 c6 15.f2 definitely looks more
favorable for White when compared to the
game. Black risks overextension in the entire
line with 3...e4, so he ought to exercise
some discretion. ]
12.f3 c6! 13.fxe4 dxe4 14.e3 b6 15.a3
[ Perhaps W hite should consider 15.b5!?
, i.e. a5 16.h5 xh5 17.xh5 . ]
15...a5 16.b5 e8 17.b4?! d7
18.a6 c8 19.b5 a6! 20.e2 g4
21.e1 c4 Cementing the knight on a
beautiful square. 22.a4 a5 23.a3 g5!
24.h3 f3!?
[ Or simply 24...d5 . White's bishop pair
has been totally neutralized. ]
25.f2 xg2
[ It looks better to play 25...d5 ]
[ or 25...g4!? . ]
26.xg2 d7 27.c1 d5 28.d1 ac8
Black is clearly on top. Unfortunately he plays
somewhat hesitantly from here on out, and
Movsesian escapes with a half point. 29.a2
d6 30.a3 c4 31.c1 g7 32.e2 f6
33.g1 c7 34.h5 f7 35.e2 e6
36.h5 ec8 37.h4!? d6 38.h2 f7
39.g4 d7
[ 39...f5! suggests itself, e.g. 40.e2 gxh4
41.gxh4 h7 and White is still very much in
trouble with his numerous weaknesses and
poor minor pieces. ]
40.h5 e8 41.g4 d7
[ 41...f5! ]
42.h5 e6 43.a3 c4 44.c1 c6
45.hf2 e8 46.g4 8c7 47.h2 e6
48.h5 d6 49.hf2 h3 50.h2 e6
51.hf2 f7 52.d2 d6 Draw agreed. 2...
c6 3.d4 e4 isn't the most popular line, but it's
eminently playable and forces White to solve
some unique problems. Grandelius's concept
with 5... Bb4!? is highly attractive.
½-½
814 A20
Narciso Dublan,Marc 2487
San Segundo Carrillo,Pablo 2516
XLVIII TCh-ESP (8) 25.11.2004
[John Watson]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.d4 e4 This move seems
viable. W hite should attack Black's center
q u i c k l y, b u t i t ' s n o t e a s y . 4.c3 d5
A critical position 5.h3!? A logical try but it
has drawbacks.
[ In his book, Tony suggests simply 5.cxd5
cxd5 6.b3 ( 6.h3!? c6 7.f4 f6;
6.f3!? ) 6...c6 7.xd5 xd5 8.xd5
xd4 9.c7+ d8 10.xa8 c2+
11.d1 xa1 12.f4 , but f6 13.c7
( 13.c1 d5 14.b1 xf4 15.gxf4 b6
16.xa1 b7 ) 13...e3! (preparing ...Bf5 or
. . . N e 4 b u t a l s o c r a m p i n g W h i t e ) 14.f3
( 14.f3 e4 15.c1 exf2 16.b1 b3
17.axb3 g5! ) 14...h5 ( or 14...f5! )
15.d5 e6 and White is in trouble. White
can also try the rather passive-looking ]
[ 5.g2 , when an interesting move is h6!?
, for example, ( 5...a6!? ) 6.cxd5 ( 6.b3
f6 7.h3? dxc4 8.xc4 b5 ) 6...cxd5
7.b3 f6 8.f4 ( 8.h3 c6 ) 8...e7 ]
[ Finally, 5.b3 m i gh t b e m e t b y dxc4
6.xc4 b5!? ( or 6...f6 7.g5?! b5
8.b3 xd4 ) 7.b3 e6 ( 7...xd4
gives W hite attacking chances but it's not
clear how effective they are.) 8.d1 f6
9.g2 b4 10.g5 d5 ( 10...xc3+
11.bxc3 d5 ) 11.f3 exf3 12.xf3 xc3+
13.bxc3 h6 14.f4 0-0 15.0-0 e8
with double-edged play. ]
5...e7
[ A problem with 5.Nh3 is 5...dxc4!? , when
6.xe4 b4+ 7.c3 f6 isn't pleasant.
S o m e t h i n g l i k e 8.e3 ( 8.g5? xh3
9.xh3 d5! ) 8...0-0 ( 8...e4 ) 9.f4
d5 doesn't look promising. ]
6.g2
[ Also not attractive is 6.cxd5 cxd5 7.f4
( 7.b3 c6! 8.xd5 e6 9.hf4 b4+
10.d1 xd4! ) 7...f6 8.b3 c6 ]
6...f6
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 6...dxc4!? ]
7.cxd5 cxd5 8.g5 g8!? 9.e3!?
[ The critical line must be 9.xe7
10.f4 . This may yield some advantage, e.
g., b6!? 11.b3 b7 12.cxd5! xd5
13.xd5 xd5 14.xe4 c7 15.f3 d7
16.xa8 xa8 17.xa8+ xa8 18.e4
and W h ite's big centre will make Black
suffer. ]
9...c6 10.0-0 f6 11.f3 exf3 12.exf3 0-0
13.f4 e8 14.f2 h5!? A strange move,
preparing ...Bf5 without getting hit by g4..
Simply
[ 14...a6 15.e1 d6 ( or
also keeps the balance. )]
15.e1 f5 16.a3 c8 17.f1 a6
[ 17...d7 ]
18.c1 b5?! 19.b4! Now Nd3 aiming at c5 is
a p r o b l e m . d7 20.b3 ed8 21.d3
xd3 22.xd3 g6 23.b1
[ 23.xb5!? axb5 24.xb5 hits c6 and e7,
so f8 25.c3 xb4! 26.xd7 xc3
27.xc3 xd7 28.b1 ( 28.axb4 xb4
29.cc1 xe1= ) 28...a6
with an unclear situation. ]
23...f8 24.d1 g7 25.d3
[ 25.a2 e8 ]
25...e8!?
[ 25...e8 ]
26.a2 c7 27.e2 e7 28.ec2 h7
29.e2 e6 30.xc8 xc8 31.c3 c7
32.xc7 xc7 33.f4 g8 Simplification
h a s r e s u l t e d i n a n e ve n g a m e , wi t h t h e
bishops of opposite colours endgame lurking
in the background. 34.b3 c6
[ 34...h4 ]
35.g2 c1 36.e3 a1 37.c2?
[ 37.b1 xb1 38.xb1 is equal. ]
37...f5 38.f2 e6?
[ T h e o b v i o u s 38...xd4 is strong due to
39.xd5 xd5 40.xd5 xf2 41.xf2
( 41.xf2 d4+ ) 41...e5
( 42.c5 xd5 ) 42...e3+ 43.h1 a1+
44.g1 xa3 ]
39.xd5?? time pressure.
[ 39.xd5 was correct. ]
39...xf4+?
[ 39...h4+! wi n s o n t h e s p o t : 40.gxh4
( 40.h3 f1+ 41.xh4
40...xf4+ ]
40.gxf4 xd4 41.c7? h6??
[ 41...h4+! wins: 42.g3 ( 42.xh4 g1+
43.h3 f1+ 44.g3 f2# ) 42...xf2+
xe7 43.xf2 d4+ ]
42.d6 h7 43.xf7 xf7 44.d5
[ 44.xd4= ]
44...g7 45.xf7 f6 46.b7 h6 47.g3
h4+ 48.g4 f5+ 49.xh4 xf4+ 50.h3
e5 51.g3 f5+ Quite a struggle, marred
by the end. But 3... e4 is very alive.
½-½
815 A20
15...b5 Paunovic,Dragan 2539
Topalov,Veselin 2777
XXIII Rapid Open rapid (8) 03.08.2008
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
5.f3 c6 6.0-0 e7 7.d4 The move that
Nb6 is designed to avoid, but is it really a
problem? e4
[ 7...exd4?! 8.xd4 xd4 9.xd4 f6
29.b5 10.a4+ c6 11.d1 d7 12.c3 0-0
13.e4 was somewhat better for White in
Reinderman, D-Hou Yifan W ijk aan Zee
NED 2009 ]
8.e5 f5 9.xc6 bxc6 A curious position.
The c-pawns are obviously an issue, but they
are not the only issue. Black has a strong
central knight, a space advantage and the
chance to quickly open the position with ...c5,
while white's bishop on g2 is a bit snuffed out,
and it's not easy to f ind a role f or the c1
bishop. 10.d2
[ 10.a4 d7 intending ...c5 tends to be at
least ok for Black. ]
[ 10.f3 exf3 11.xf3 0-0 12.c3 e6
also looks fine for Black. ]
[ 10.c2!? looks like the critical test.
A) 10...d6 11.c3 e6 ( 11...0-0
42.f4 12.xd5 xd5 13.e3 looks better for
White. ) 12.xd5 xd5 13.f4 d7
14.f3 exf3 15.xf3 0-0 Black seems to
be holding on, but somehow it feels like
White should be better here.;
B) 10...c5 11.dxc5 e6 12.d1 b8
gives White too many tactical ideas, not
f6# ) least taking on e4.;
C) 10...d7 is probably best. The bishop
on c8 can emerge on a6. 11.c3 0-0
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

12.xd5?! ( 12.f3 exf3 13.xf3 f6 worse. ]

14.d1 feels a little bit promising for 20...f7 21.d1 xa2 22.xa2 xa2
White. ) 12...cxd5 13.f4 c6 14.fc1 b7 23.c3 f7 Now Black is simply better- more
At first blush W hite may look better, but sp a ce a n d b e t t e r p i e c e s . T o p a lo v lo s e s
Black will play Rf c8, a5 and Ba6, and control slightly, but gets there in the end.
sooner or later c5, so in fact if anybody 24.f4 xf4 25.gxf4 h6 26.e3 e6 27.b5
is better here it is Black.; c4 28.d4 c5 29.c6 d7 30.c3 d3
D) 10...b4 11.a4 d7 ( 11...d7 31.a1 e6 32.e5 xe5 33.fxe5 c4
looks best. 12.c3 c5! 13.xd7+ xd7 34.d4 e8 35.a5 h7 36.h3 e2
14.dxc5 xc5 And now there are lots of 37.d5 e7 38.h2 h4 39.f4 f3
lines, but I imagine White has reasonable 40.d2 a8 41.d7 a6 42.d6 a2
chances of creating a small edge here.) 43.d8? xg2 44.xg2 c3! Ouch. An
12.a3 c5 13.d1 c6 ( 13...d5 unusual overloading motif.
lo o ks t oo sp e cula tive . 14.dxc5 e6 0-1
15.c2 0-0 16.d1 ) 14.dxc5 xc5
15.f4 g5 16.d2 e7 17.c3 d4
18.c1 0-0 19.b5 b6 20.xg5! xg5 816 A20
21.xd7 and White soon won in Sandipan- Reader Q From Jose Blades
Krush, Gibraltar 2007. ] N,Archana
[ 10.c3 0-0 11.f3 exf3 12.exf3 ( 12.xf3 [John Watson]
e6 looks fine for Black.) 12...f6 13.e1
b8 14.f4 b4 15.xd5 cxd5 16.e3 Reader Jose Blades writes: "I really have
xb2 17.a4 Subtle preparation from been feeling for a while that one of the best
Carlsen. Black has to be careful to retain counter to the move order 1.c4 2.g3 is ... e5 ...
e q u a l i t y d e s p i t e b e i n g a p a wn u p , b u t c6" He presents the following variation: [jw: all
manages to do so. a6 18.ab1 xb1 the move analysis in the notes is mine] 1.c4
19.xb1 d6 20.c1 d7 21.a5 b5 e5 2.g3 c6 3.d4 e4 4.c3 d5 5.cxd5
22.xc7 xc7 23.xc7 c4 24.c5 xa2 cxd5 6.b3 c6 7.xd5 xd5 8.xd5
25.xd5+ xd5 26.xd5 a8 27.xf5 a5 xd4 9.c7+ d8 10.xa8 c2+ 11.d1
28.c5 a4 29.c2 a3 30.a2 f7 31.f5 xa1 12.f4 And here GM Tony Kosten
g6 32.fxg6+ hxg6 33.g2 e6 34.c1 writes in his book (page 61): "Preparing to
e7 35.h4 d5 36.g4 c4 37.g5 xd4 retrieve the a8 Knight". But I think this is just
1/2-1/2 Carlsen, M -Gelfand, B/ Moscow bad for White." He's probably right, so White
RUS 2007 ] should consider
10...0-0 11.b3 a5! 12.d2 a4 13.a5 [ 12.b3! (Tony Kosten's new suggestion)
[ 13.c5 xc5 14.dxc5 f6 appears to b5!? 13.b2 xb3 14.axb3 b7 15.e3!
favour Black. ] b4 16.c4 , slightly favouring White's more
13...d7 14.xa4 active bishops, e.g., f6 17.h3 xa8
[ 14.c1! e8 15.e3!? a3 16.b3 18.e2 e7 19.a1 c8 20.f4
keeps the position very tense. ] with attack. ]
14...e8 15.b3 [ On the other hand, Blades' challenge also
[ 15.c2 might save time. ] applies to slow moves like 12.e3? e6
15...h8 16.c4 You might think White is ok 13.b3 xb3 14.axb3 xb3+ 15.c1 a3+
here, but Black has the initiative on both sides 16.b1 f6-+ ]
of the board, so his compensation seems 12...e6 13.b3 xb3
adequate. c5 17.e3 b6 18.dxc5 xc5 [ jw: Also not bad is 13...f6 14.c7 d7
19.c2 d6 20.fe1? 15.h3 ( 15.e3 a3 16.b5 xb5
[ 20.fd1!? White has to become more 17.xb5 e7 ) 15...a3 ( 15...h5
creative and transform his extra pawn into 16.e5 f6 17.xa1 xc7 ) 16.e5 c8
something else. f7 21.b3 f4 22.xe4 17.xa1 xc7 18.xf6 gxf6 19.f4 d6
fxe3 23.xe3 and White is at least not an d Bla ck's b ish o p s a re ve ry st ron g in

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
conjunction with his rook. ]
14.axb3 xb3+ 15.c1 a3+ 16.b1 e7
[ jw: Curiously, a recent game saw 16...f6
17.c7 a6 18.e3 g4 19.h3 h6?!
( 19...g5! 20.xg5 xf2 21.g1 h6
22.h3 d3 ) 20.e2 g5? 21.xg4 gxf4
22.d5! fxe3 23.fxe3 e8 24.c3 e5
25.d1 c4 26.c2 f5 27.d1+ c7
28.f4 b5 29.ce2! a5 30.d4 a4
31.h3? ( 31.g6! c5 32.h4 ) 31...b4
Now it's about equal. 32.fe2 ( 32.xa4!?
bxa4 33.c1 c5 34.fe6+ xe6
35.xe6+ d6 36.xc5 xc5 ) 32...b6
33.a1 c5 34.c1 c3+ 35.b1 a5
36.ce2 b4 ( 36...xd4 37.xd4 b4 )
37.g4! fxg4 38.hxg4 c7? ( 38...xe2!
39.xe2 g5 ) 39.xe4 a3 40.xc3
1-0 Kovalyov-Monier, Buenos Aires 2005.
xc3 41.xb5+ xb5 42.c1+ ]
17.c7 a6 Jose: "The Nc7 is trapped and
Black's chances of winning are at least as
much as Whites." This is an understatement.
[ jw: 17...c4! HiArcs! But same verdict can
be applied to 17...a6 ]
18.h4 d7
[ j w : B e t t e r i s 18...g6!-+ 19.g2 f5
( 19...xf4 20.gxf4 e3 ) 20.a8 xf4
21.gxf4 c5-+ ]
19.g2 f5
[ 19...d6 20.xd6 xd6 21.b2 a4
22.xa6 bxa6 23.xe4 b5 -HiArcs. But
this isn't finished yet - at least there are
opposite-coloured Bishops. ]
20.h3 d6 21.xd6 xd6 22.g4 a4
23.gxf5 xc7 24.xe4 f8 25.g3 xf5
26.xf5 xf5 27.xg7+ b6 28.xh7 xf2
Blades seems to think that White is lost and
that looks true: 29.g7
[ 29.b2 g2 ]
29...h2 30.g4 d7 31.d4 c6
Now Black has the ideas of ...Rg2 and
advance on the queenside. In the meantime
White's pieces and pawns are immobilised:
32.g4 c5 33.c2 b5 34.d3 a5 35.f3
xf3 36.exf3 a4 etc.
817 A20
Rotstein,Arkadij 2553
Bacrot,Etienne 2653
N1 France 2002
[Tony Kosten]
The IQP endgame that follows is very
instructive , an d sh ould be stu died b y all
English Opening players, as the same schema
can occur from many different variations. 1.c4
e5 2.g3 c6 3.d4 b4+ 4.d2 xd2+
5.xd2 d6 6.c3 f6 7.g2 0-0 8.e3
e6 9.b3 exd4 10.xd4 d5 11.cxd5 xd5
12.xd5
[ The standard move, we considered the
i n t e r e s t i n g 12.ge2!? in Ivanchuk,V-
Sutovsky,E/ Moscow RUS 2001. ]
12...xd5 Black prefers to exchange his
bishop, rather than recapture with the pawn
when this piece would be passively placed.
13.xd5 a5+?!
[ An unfortunate idea, Black wishes to force
a weakness on c4 before exchanging
quee ns, bu t t he endgame prove s t o b e
u n p l e a s a n t f o r h i m . 13...cxd5
is more normal, 14.e2 ( 14.f3 c6
15.c3 e7 16.0-0 e4 draw, Sher,M-
Popovic,P/Bad Ragaz 1994) 14...c6
15.b2 e8 16.0-0 e5 17.d4 f6
White has a firm grip on d4, but Black has
some activity on White's weakened kingside
light squares. 18.e2 a6 19.ac1 ac8
and W hite failed to make anything of his
tiny advantage, Psakhis,L-Avrukh,B/ ISR
2002. ]
14.b4 xd5 15.xd5 cxd5 16.f3 a5
17.b5 Black weakens the c5-square as well,
but the advanced b5-pawn proves to be a
match-winner. d7 18.e2! Of course, the
king is well-placed in the centre. Alex Baburin
points-out that this endgame would be level
wi t h o u t r o o k s, b u t wit h r o o ks B l a c k h a s
severe diff iculties. fc8 19.ac1 f8
20.d4 b6 21.g4! A move worth noting,
White gains space on the kingside which may
prove important later. g6 22.h4 e7 23.h5
a4 24.d2 c5 25.f3 Keeping the knight
from e4. e6 26.xe6 xe6 27.d3 d6
28.hxg6 hxg6 29.d4 The d4-square is not
just a useful post for a knight, but also
provides a safe, yet advanced, spot for the
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
king. a4 30.a3 b6!? With the simple idea of
pla yin g . . .Rc 5 , B la ck d id n 't wan t t o st a y
passive and allow White to play g5, but the
w e a k e n i n g o f c 6 i s i m p o r t a n t . 31.e4!
A really difficult move to find if White is just
concerned with exploiting his structural plus,
as White goes from two pawn islands to three
in his favour, to the other way around.
However, after Black's previous move,
concrete tactical factors are paramount here.
dxe4 32.fxe4 e6 33.e5! The point -
White's plan becomes clear: Rf1-f6xb6. d8+
34.e4 ac8?
[ The critical position, and Black misses a
g o o d o p p o r t u n i t y t o g o a c t i v e : 34...f5+!
35.exf6 xf6 36.c6+ g5 37.xb6 d2
The black king has found a safe square, and
the black rooks should be able to force a
perpetual check. ]
35.hf1 Now Black can't stop White
penetrating on either f6 or c6. c5 36.xc5
bxc5 37.f6+ e7 38.b6 d4+ 39.e3
c4 So that Black can get behind the b-pawn
by ...Rc3(+)-b3. 40.g5 c3+ 41.e4 xa3
42.d5 The king comes to ensure the further
advance of the b-pawn, and can use the black
c-pawn as cover against checks. b3 43.e6!?
Simplest.
[ 43.c6 c4 44.f4 must also win, although
White has to be certain of his analysis: b4
45.b7 e6 46.c7 a3 47.f6+ d5 ( not
47...xe5? when 48.b6 xb6 49.xb6
a2 50.b8+ is check! ) 48.f3 a2 49.a3
c3 50.xa2 c4+ 51.d7 b4 52.a5+
e4 53.a4! and wins. ]
43...fxe6+
[ B l a c k s h o u l d a l s o l o s e a f t e r 43...xb6
44.xf7+ e8 45.a7 for instance: b1
( 45...c4 46.xa4 c3 47.c4 ) 46.xa4
d1+ 47.e5 e1+ 48.f6 f1+ 49.xg6
e7 50.c4 and the g-pawn will win the
game. ]
44.xe6+ f7 45.f6+ Driving the king far
f ro m t he que enside . g7 46.c6 c4
The c-pawn is more of a hindrance than a help,
stopping Black from checking the white king
from behind.
[ 46...a3 47.f4 b4 48.f3 a2 49.a3
wins easily, W hite will queen his b-pawn
and easily win the a and c pawns. ]
47.b7 a3
[ 47...c3 48.c7 a3 49.f2
changes nothing. ]
48.c7 a2 49.a6 c3 50.xa2
1-0
818 A20
Savchenko,Boris 2556
Kravtsiv,Martyn 2618
Minsk Bronstein Memorial op-A (8) 18.02.14
[Fier, Alexandr]
White tries 7.e3 which is not so ambitious, but
also no worse than the other moves. After a
series of small inaccuracies, White was able
to improve all his pieces and increase the
pressure. I think Black could play something
other than 14...a5 or 17...Ba7. 1.c4 e5 2.g3
f6 3.g2 c6 4.f3 e4 5.d4 d5 6.cxd5
xd5 7.e3 One of the many options in this
position. White just wants to keep the knight
in th e cen te r. Th e ligh t squ ares are no w
weakened, but if W hite has time to play d3
there are good chances for an advantage.
[ 7.c2 h5 8.h4!? was a new idea which I
analyzed for Chess Publishing in December,
see Ivanchuk, V (2731)-Vachier-Lagrave, M
(2745)/SportAccord Rapid Men 2013 (5.6).
( 8.h3 g6 9.c3 d6 is the most played
variation, Andriasian, Z (2624)-Petrosian,
T (2636)/ARM-ch 72nd Yerevan 2012 (5). )]
7...c5
[ 7...c5 is a respectable alternative, forcing
W hite to retreat the knight, 8.c3 e5
9.de2 c6 10.a4 d7 was seen in
Anastasian, A (2606)-Stocek, J (2496)/
Ubeda op 5th 2000 (9). and it's dangerous
to take the pawn 11.xe4 b4 12.xf6+
xf6 13.b3 a6 and White can have
some problems to solve ]
[ 7...a6 also makes sense and was tried by
Timman 8.d3 b4+ 9.c3 xc3+ 10.bxc3
c5 11.dxe4 e5? Cekro, E (2410)-
Timman, J (2625)/Vlaardingen op act rapid
2005 (8). and after ( 11...cxe4 was more
natural and prudent) 12.f4 White would be
clearly better ]
8.d3 Protecting the knight on d4 by tactical
means. e5 Black decides to keep the
queens on.
[ 8...xd4 enters an endgame which is hard
808
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

to evaluate: White has a strong bishop pair some problems with the a7-bishop in this line.
but the king in the center can give Black [ 19...f5 20.b3 d8! attacking the
some activity 9.exd4 xd4 10.dxe4 xd1+ b i s h o p o n d 2 21.fd1 c7 22.ac1
11.xd1 0-0 12.c3 and Black managed and White's pieces are a bit more
to block the position in Miroshnichenko, E harmonious ]
(2624)-Roiz, M (2668)/Bundesliga 1112 [ 19...b8 is probably the best move,
2011 (7.4). ] followed by a bishop exchange 20.c3 e5
9.dxe4 21.xe5 xe5 22.fd1 e6 23.d4 fd8
[ 9.c3 was also played, but Black can 24.ad1 xd4 25.xd4 and White is
answer in a good way exd3 10.xd3 0-0 slightly better, but the position is close to
11.0-0 a6 12.a3 b6 the counterplay is equal ]
based on attacking the queen on d3 13.b4 20.xa5 h6
d8 and it's not clear if White can [ 20...d4 stays a pawn down 21.exd4 xa5
consolidate the position, Zhigalko, A 22.fe1 d8 23.ad1 and Black will suffer
(2619)-Balogh, C (2630)/EU-chT (Men) 19th for a long time ]
2013 (9.14). ] 21.b3! b6 and Black will get the h3-pawn.
9...xe4 10.c3 White doesn't care about [ 21...xh3 22.xb7 xe3 doesn't work,
isolating the pawn. because the f-file is now open and the f7
[ 10.0-0 0-0 11.b3 d7 12.b2 df6 pawn hangs, 23.fxe3 xe3+ ( 23...xa5
13.d2 ] 24.xf7++- ) 24.f2 and the attack is over. ]
10...f6 Now both players can finish their 22.c3 xh3 23.a4 ab8 Locking the
development before something happens. bishop on a7, since ...b5 is not realistic.
[ 10...xc3 11.bxc3 0-0 12.0-0 d7 13.e4 [ 23...xg2 was not so different, but Black
and the pawn on c3 helps White's strategy a still has b8 for the bishop 24.xg2 g6
lot, but the position is also playable for 25.c4 and White is more comfortable ]
Black ] 24.c2 c5 25.fd1 xg2 26.xg2 c6+
11.f3 e7 12.c2 A good move, avoiding 27.g1 bc8?! There is not much reason to
...Bf5 and also leaving the d-file. 0-0 13.0-0 avoid fighting for the d-file.
bd7 14.a3 a5 I'm not sure if this move is [ 27...bd8 28.xd8 xd8 29.d1 d7
really necessary. After this and the next move was more consistent, but White will have a
Black needs to take some care. be t t e r qu e e n , b e t t er b isho p a n d b e t t e r
[ both 14...d6 15.d1 e5 16.d4 c7 ] pawn structure in the endgame ]
[ and 14...b6 15.b4 e5 16.xe5 xe5 28.f5 c7 29.d5 White has increased the
17.b2 f5 are ok for Black ] pressure a lot over the last few moves and
15.h3 e5 16.xe5 xe5 17.d5! B l a c k ' s p o s i t i o n i s a l r e a d y d e l i c a t e . f6
With some subtle exchanges White can put 30.ad1 xa4? Now Black is just lost.
pressure on the a5-pawn and thus [ 30...e6 was still possible, and better, but
discoordinate the Black pieces. Still it's not White has a large advantage after 31.h5
su c h a b ig d e a l b u t t h e p o sit io n is m o re f7 32.e2 e6 33.b5 ]
pleasant for the first player. a7 31.d7
[ 17...cxd5 is a move that nobody wants to [ 31.d8 also wins ce7 32.1d7 xd8
play, but it's a concrete way to deal with the 33.xd8+ e8 34.e6+ f8 35.b3!
position 18.xc5 e4 19.d4 ( 19.b5 a nice shot, the queen is not able to come
e6 and White has problems developing the back from b5, b5 36.xf6 gxf6 37.xf6+
c 1 b i s h o p .) 19...xd4 20.exd4 a6! g8 38.d5 winning. ]
creating pressure on the b-file 21.f4 b6 31...b8 32.xf6 e4 33.g5 g6
22.ab1 a4 and Black is still ok ] 34.d5+
18.xf6+ xf6 19.d2 Black can now 1-0
defend the pawn in several ways, but always
d o i n g s o m e t h i n g u n n a t u r a l . e8?!
Black wants to play actively, but there are

809
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

819 A20 wins the e-pawn. ]

Schlosser,Philipp 2505 35.e2 f4 36.f2 xg2?!
Khenkin,Igor 2622 [ 36...g5! ]
Bundesliga 1999-2000 (7) 08.01.2000 37.xg2 d3 38.d2 d5 39.e6?!
[Tony Kosten] [ 39.f3 xe5 40.f4 d5 41.e4 c5
42.xd3 should be drawn, but White has all
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.d4 b4+ 4.d2 xd2+ the chances. ]
5.xd2 d6 Having exchanged dark-squared 39...fxe6 40.fxe6 f8 41.f3 e7 42.e4
bishops, Black seeks to place his central d6 43.xd3
pawns on dark squares. 6.c3 f6 7.g2 ½-½
e7 8.e3 0-0 9.ge2 e8
[ The model game in this line was Dorfman,J-
Razuvaev,Y/Burgas 1992, which continued: 820 A20
9...bd7 10.h3! e8 11.g4 b6 12.b3 Soffer,R 2506
a5? 13.0-0 a4 14.ae1! axb3 15.axb3 d5 Belousov,D 2340
16.c5 bd7 17.g3 f8 18.g5 6d7 Chigorin Memorial (8.40) 03.11.2012
19.f4 e4 20.f5 d8 21.d6 and Black [John Bartholomew]
was lost. However, Dorfman mentions that
Black could have played 10...h5!?, to stop A new position by move four in the King's
this plan of h3, g4, and Ng3-f5. ] English! 1.c4 e5 2.g3 h5!? The tenth(!)
10.h3 h5! As the Dorfman game showed, most popular move (53 games out of 16,
allowing W hite to play g4, and Ng3, is very 00 0 +) a n d n e ve r p revio u sly e xp lo re d o n
risky, and although moving the black h-pawn ChessPublishing.com. Compared to other
weakens his king position, it may be the lesser obscure rook pawn sorties, this one seems
of evils. 11.e4!? fairly logical. One nice point is that 3.Nf3 can
[ White changes plan, 11.0-0 e4 12.ae1 still be met by 3...e4, so Black isn't compelled
f5 13.d1 bd7 14.f4 g6 to go crazy and sacrifice an exchange (though
wo u l d t r a n s p o s e t o S h e r, M- L a ke t i c, G / that might be interesting: 3...h4!? 4.Nxf3 Rxh4
Belgorod 1990, 1/2-1/2 (14). ] etc.). Also, should White respond with 3.h4 or
11...a6 12.0-0 b5! 13.b3 bd7 14.f4 3.h3, Black has the luxu ry of ch oosing a
White plays aggressively, but Black is more King's English line where the inclusion of rook
comfortable in these type of positions when he p a w n m o v e s m i g h t b e n e f i t h i m . 3.d4?!
has no dark-squared bishop. b7 15.a3 Principled, but unconvincing. Of course there's
ad8 16.ad1 bxc4 Black will target the no established theory on 2. ..h4!?, so White
weak c4-pawn. 17.bxc4 a5 18.a2 a6 has met Black's last move in a number of
19.c5! Hitting the black pawn chain at its base. different ways.
exd4 20.cxd6 xd6 21.xd4 c5 [ Most common is the no-nonsense 3.h4
Black's pieces are actively placed, and he . Now
manages to avoid any disadvantage. 22.h2 A) Th ere 's also 3...d5!? 4.cxd5 f6
f8 23.xd8 xd8 24.e5 d5 25.f3 ( 4...xd5!? ) 5.f3 g4!? , as in Larsen,
W hite is hoping to use his strong kingside B (2575)-Shirazi, K (2430)/New York 1986.
pawn chain as a basis for an attack, but the Shirazi actually managed to "out-Larsen"
queenside and centre are too open. xc3 Larsen in this one and went on to win!;
26.xc3 d4 27.f2 c5 28.e3 d3 B) 3...f6 4.g2 c6 5.c3 c5 6.d3
Stopping White from playing f5. 29.e2 looked like a normal Karpov Variation until
[ 29.f5?? xc3 ] B la ck p la ye d g4!? (making use of the
29...xe2 30.xe2 h4! 31.g4?! e6 32.f5 s q u a r e we a k e n e d b y h 2 - h 4 ) w i t h a n
f4 The one passive black piece has been interesting game: 7.h3 d6 8.a4 b4+
activated, and W hite must take care not to 9.d2 a5 ( 9...xd2+ 10.xd2 f6= )
lose. 33.xd4 cxd4 34.f2 d3 10.0-0 d4 11.e3 f5 12.a3 xd2
[ 34...g5! is tempting, as 35.fxg6 xg6 13.xd2 h6!? Kovacevic, B (2460)-

810
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Bosiocic, M (2593)/Zadar CRO 2011. ]
[ 3.h3 is another normal (if hesitant)
reaction. h4 4.g4 e7!? (setting his sights
on the f4 square) ( I'd be tempted to gambit
a pawn with 4...d5!? 5.cxd5 f6 6.a4+
c6 7.dxc6 xc6 ) 5.d3 g6 6.c3 c6
7.g2 e7 8.e3 ( 8.e4! ) 8...d6 9.ge2
a6 10.d4 c7 11.d5 d7 12.e4 0-0
13.c2 e8 14.d2 c8 Khropov, B
(2235)-Szabo, Z (2305)/Budapest 1994. ]
[ With 3.g2 White resolves to ignore
B l a c k ' s d e m o n s t r a t i o n , b u t a f t e r h4
the constant threat of ...h4-h3 is annoying.
4.c3 c6 5.a4?! (trying to discourage
Black from playing ...d7-d6?) f6 6.d3 c5
7.a3 a5 8.h3 d6! 9.xc6+ bxc6
10.xc6+ d7 11.g2 b8 12.g5 d4
13.d1 h3 Swinkels, R (2483) -
Rakhmanov, A (2585)/Shenzhen CHN
2011. ]
[ Similar is 3.c3 . Following h4 4.g4 I like
e7!? , as in Kovacevic-Bosiocic (above).
( 4...h3?! 5.xh3 h4 was the bizarre
course of Dzindzichashvili, R (2565)-Shirazi,
K (2450)/ Durango 1992. Black shouldn't
have sufficient compensation after 6.d3 . )]
[ Finally, 3.f3!? e4 4.h4 is a critical test
After ( 4.d4 c6 ) 4...e7 ( 4...d6; or
4...f6 also look fine) 5.f5 d6 6.xe7
xe7 7.c3 f6
A) 8.d3 h4!? ( 8...c6 9.g5
King, D (2500)-Smith, A (2265)/Dublin
1993 );
B) 8.g2 h4 9.d3 exd3 10.xd3 h3
11.f3 c6 12.0-0 e5 13.d1 xf3+
14.exf3 e6 15.g5 0-0-0 16.e1
W hite was f or choice in Markowski, T
(2573)-Andriasian, Z (2540)/Polanica Zdroj
2007. ]
3...exd4 4.f3 A novelty!
[ It looks stronger than the 4.xd4?! c6
5.e4+ of Schmitt, T-Lisanti, A (2300)/
G r i e s h e i m 2 0 0 0 . N o w a f t e r e7
I think Black is definitely for choice. ]
4...h4! Black plays his trump card without
delay.
[ I like this better than 4...c5 5.e3 dxe3
6.xe3 . ]
5.gxh4?! Rather unsightly.
[ White should keep his structure tidy with
5.xh4 . Then c6 ( 5...c5!? 6.e3 c6
7.f3 f6!? 8.exd4 cxd4 9.xd4 c5 )
6.g2 c5 7.0-0 d6 leads to a balanced
fight. ]
5...c6 6.g5
[ Or 6.xd4 xh4 . ]
6...b4+ 7.bd2 ge7 8.a3 xd2+
9.xd2 f6 10.f4 f5 11.d3?! d6
12.0-0-0 e6 13.e4 dxe3 14.fxe3 d7
15.g3 0-0-0 Black already stands better in
view of White's abysmal structure and array
of weaknesses. 16.e4 h6 17.c3 e8
18.c5!? dxc5 19.xd8+ xd8 20.xc5
g4 21.d2 d4 A queen trade simplifies
White's defensive task.
[ I'd prefer 21...f7!? , intending to active the
rook via h5. ]
22.xd4 xd4 23.c4 e6 24.f2 xc4
25.xd4 e6 26.g1 h7 27.f3 f7
28.d2 b6 29.e3 d6 30.f4 d7
31.e5 e8 32.exf6 gxf6 33.d1 e7
34.e1
[ 34.b4!? might be a little better, just trying to
frustrate ...c7-c5. ]
34...h5 35.f2 f7 36.d4 d7 37.g3
c5! Black begins to active his queenside
majority. 38.e2 d6 39.f3 f5
[ 39...c4!? ]
40.f4 xh4+ 41.f2 f5 42.d1 e6
43.d8 g6 44.e3 e5+ 45.d2 e4
46.xg6 xg6 Black is up a clean pawn, but
the presence of opposite color bishops means
he probably can't win. 47.b8! a4 48.d6
f7 49.c6 d4+ 50.e3 f5 51.c7+ f6
52.xa7 e4+ 53.f2 c4 54.b4 cxb4
55.axb4 f4 56.c7 f5 57.c8!
Soffer defends impeccably. d4 58.f8+
g4 59.h3+ g5 60.c7 b5 61.d8+ g6
62.c7 d2+ 63.f3 d5+ 64.xf4!
Definitely the simplest. f2+ 65.e5 xf8
66.xd5 h8 67.c6 xh3 68.xb5
Draw agreed. Though it hasn't caught on, 2...
h4!? certainly has merit against the "Marin"
move order with 2.g3. My recommendation for
White is to play 3.Nf3 e4 4.Nh4 in search of
an edge.
½-½
811
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

821 A20 22.xb4 xb4 23.d3 a5 is far from clear,

Sorokin,Maxim 2574 as the two bishops are strong, and ...a4 an
Makarov,Marat 2527 awkward threat. ]
Chigorin mem (7) 08.11.1999 20...xe6 21.xe6+ f8 Forced, but the
[Tony Kosten] i n c o n ve n i e n c e o f t h e b l a c k k i n g i s o n l y
temporary, and White cannot bring any other
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5 pieces over to help the queen. 22.a4 c7
5.f3 c6 6.0-0 b6 7.b3 An idea of 23.b2 g5 24.h4 e7 25.xe7+
Speelman's, intending to put quick pressure ½-½
on e5. e7
[ This position may call for a change of plans
now, and 7...g6 has its points, ready to 822 A20
def e nd e5 wit h t he bishop on g7 , 8.c3 Svidler,Peter 2738
g7 9.a3 a5!? 10.e1 b4 11.d3 Gelfand,Boris 2720
e7 12.f4 led to unclear play in Speelman,J- Tal Memorial Blitz blitz (30) 30.08.2008
Oll,L/Pula 1997. ] [Carsten Hansen]
8.b2 f6
[ The most natural means of defending e5, if 1.c4 e5 2.f3 This is a very rare bird that we
8...f6 9.c3 f5 10.d3 threatens Ne4. ] haven't covered previously on
9.d4!? Chesspublishing.com, but I couldn't resist the
[ If this is possible, then why not? 9.a3 e6 temptation because it gives me a chance to
10.d3 a5 11.bd2 0-0 as in Speelman,J- q u o t e a f e w o l d g a m e s b y t h e l i k e s o f
Romanishin,O/Moscow 1985, leads to more Nimzowitsch, Alekhine, Rubinstein and Euwe.
normal lines. ] e4 3.d4 c6 4.c2
9...exd4 [ 4.xc6 dxc6 5.c3 ( 5.d4 exd3 6.xd3
[ 9...e4 10.fd2 f5 seems like a more xd3 7.exd3 f5 8.d4 0-0-0= Alekhine-
critical test. ] Tartakower/Warsaw/1935) 5...f6 6.h3
10.xd4 xd4 11.xd4 ( 6.d3 exd3 7.e4 c5 8.h3 e6
[ T h e m o s t i n t e r e s t i n g c h o i c e , 11.xd4 is very good for Black, Shatskes-Seredenko,
is also possible, aiming for a slight edge in V/USSR/1967) 6...b4 7.c2 d4 8.e3
the ending, e.g. xd4 12.xd4 c6 13.a4!? e5 9.d4 exd3 10.xd3 xc3+ 11.bxc3
e6 14.a5 d5 15.d2 although Black is e6 , and Black has the upper hand, Murey,
fine, Hramtsov,A-Martin,A/Moscow 1991. ] Y-Ivanov, AV/ New York 1989 ]
11...c6 12.c3 e6 13.d3 0-0 14.ad1 4...f6 5.c3 c5 6.d4
White hopes that his slight lead in [ White has a number of alternatives at this
development, and the weakness of the e6- juncture: A) 6.b3 0-0 7.g3 ( 7.b2 e8
square is enough to give him an advantage. 8.d4 exd3 9.xd3 e5 10.d2
c7 15.e4 is more solid, though still rather comfortable
[ Another way to approach this position would for Black )
be 15.e4 ad8 16.c2 fe8 17.e3 A) 7...e8 8.g2 a5 9.0-0 d6 10.e3
, a n d l a t e r f 4 , h o p i n g t o u s e h i s e xt r a d4 11.d3 exd3 12.xd3 d7
central pawn. ] with approximately equal chances,
15...f7 16.h3 fd8 17.f5 g6 Rubinstein, A-Saemisch, F/Breslau 1925;
Black refuses to weaken his light squares. B) 7...a6 8.g2 e8 9.0-0 d6 10.e3
18.e6 f5 19.xb6 d4 11.d3 ( 11.b2 c6 12.d3 f5
[ 19.xf7+ xf7 20.e3 doesn't lead to 13.xf5 xf5 14.dxe4 xe4 15.xe4
much either, after f8 ] xe4 16.e3 g5= Lisenko, A-Fradkin, B/
19...xb6!? Offering a pawn sacrifice. 20.c4 Sverdlovsk 1989) 11...exd3 12.xd3 b8
[ Evidently White had intended to win a pawn 13.b2 c6 14.cd5 e5 15.d2 c6
by 20.xf5 but then thought better of it. In 16.xf6+ xf6 , and the chances are
fact, the ending after xd1 21.xd1 b4 about even, Rubinstein, A-Tarrasch, S/

812
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Breslau 1925; and the slightly better chances)

C) 7...d5! When I wrote my book on 1 c4 16...e6 17.b2 h6 18.b1?!
e5, I rather indiscriminately quoted ECO, ( Here White can improve with
wh i c h g i v e s t h i s m o v e a s l e a d i n g t o 18.a3 xc4 19.xc5 xc5+
equality (probably based on the outcome 20.xf2 xf1 21.axf1
of the game, which was a short draw), but with approximately even
matters are far from that simple. chances ) 18...xc4;
Alternatively Black has also tried a couple C1a212) 15.f1;
o f le s s c rit ica l c o n t in u a t io n s : 8.cxd5?! C1a22) 12.xc5 xf3+ 13.e2
( 8.g2 dxc4 9.bxc4 is relatively better, , and now rather than Alekhine's
but still quite good for Black. ) xc5 , which is only clearly better
C1) As Alekhine himself pointed out (and for Black ( Black should have
I'm baffled why this hasn't made it into played 13...fxh2! 14.xh2 xh2
the ECO), Black has the considerably 15.f2 xf1 16.xf1 xc5
stronger 8...g4! available (the with a won game. );
following analysis is by Alekhine, except C1b) 9.e3 xe3 10.fxe3 f6
where noted), e.g. 11.c2 ( 11.xe4 xa1 ) 11...f2+
C1a) 9.e3 ce5 10.xe4 ( 10.d4 12.d1 f5
f3+ 11.e2 gxh2! 12.dxc5 C1b1) 13.xe4 b4 14.b1
g4-+; 10.e2 d3+! 11.xd3 exd3 ) xe4-+ Alekhine;
10...xd5 ( CH: 10...f5!? also looks C1b2) 13.dxc6 d8 14.e1??
rather promising 11.d3 xd5 12.f3 ( 14.b1 f2+ 15.e1 xh1
ad8 with a distinct advantage for 16.xe4 h5 17.b2 f5 )
Black ) 14...f2+ 15.d1 xe3#
C1a1) CH: 11.g2! is the lesser evil, - analysis by the ChessBase editorial
e.g. d3+ 12.f1 f5 13.f3 team;
( 13.f4!? ) 13...b6 14.a3 e8 C1b3) 13.e1 b4 Alekhine;
15.h3 h6 16.g4 , and while ugly, C1c) 9.xe4 xd5 10.g2 ( 10.f3
White's position is probably xe4 ) 10...xf2+ 11.f1 f5
survivable; Alekhine;
C1a2) 11.f3 f5! ( CH: Again Black C2) 8...b4?! 9.xb4 xb4 10.g2
s h o u l d g i v e t h o u g h t t o 11...f5!? e8 11.0-0 f5 12.b2 xd5
, e.g. 12.d3 ad8 13.h3 h6 13.xd5 xd5 14.d3 ad8 15.dxe4
with a strong initiative to compensate xe4 16.xd5 , and here a draw was
for the pawn. ) agreed, 1/2-1/2, Euwe, M-Alekhine, A/
C1a21) CH: This is just an N L D 1 9 3 5 a f t e r xd5 17.fd1
absolutely terrible move that loses , the position is completely drawn. ]
o n t h e s p o t , w h e r e a s 12.c4!? [ B) 6.g3
xc4 ( 12...xc4 13.bxc4 xc4 A) 6...0-0 7.g2 e8 8.0-0 d6
14.xc5 is much better for White - A1) 9.e3 h5 10.ed5 f5 11.e3 h4
analysis by ChessBase) 13.f6+ ( 11...xd5 12.cxd5 b4 13.xh5
xf6 14.bxc4 d3+ g6 14.g4 e7 leaves Black with
C1a211) The editorial team at excellent compensation for the pawn)
ChessBase only off ers 15.e2 12.xf6+ xf6 13.f3! was played in
gf2 16.f1 ( 16.g1! Chabanon, J-Cramling, P/France 1997,
isn't mentioned either, e.g. e6 a n d h e r e B l a c k s h o u l d o p t f o r e6!
17.b2 h6 18.d4 xc4 14.fxe4 g4 15.b3 h3! 16.h1 d4!
19.xc5 h3 20.b1 xc5+ 17.xb7 ab8 18.a6 e2+ 19.xe2
21.d3 xd3+ 22.e1 e8 xe2 20.f4 xc4 with an unclear
23.b4 b6 24.d2 a5 position;
, and Black still has the initiative A2) 9.b3 f5 10.e3 xe3

813
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
( 10...d7!? ) 11.fxe3 d7 12.b2
e5?! ( 12...a6!? ) 13.c2 Gorbatow,
A-Rotstein, A/Arco 1999;
B) 6...e5 7.b4?! ( 7.g2 xc4 8.xe4
xe4 9.xe4= ) 7...e7 8.g2 ( 8.d3!? )
8...xc4 9.xe4 xe4 10.xe4 d5
11.g2 c6 12.b1 a5 13.b5 c5 14.d4
( 14.d3!? ) 14...f5 Lisenko, A-Cebalo, M/
Makarska 1994;
C) 6...d6 7.g2 ( 7.b4 xb4 8.xb4
xb4 9.g2 f5 10.b1 is a suggestion
f rom my book, but Black seems to b e
doing fine after a5 11.a3 a6 12.xb7
c5 13.b2 0-0 with approximately equal
chances ) 7...f5
C1) 8.0-0 d7 9.e3 h3 10.ed5
xg2 11.xg2 h5 12.h4 was Rejfir, J-
Florian, J/ Prague 1955, and now xd5
13.cxd5 e7 is about even;
C2) 8.b4!? b6 ( 8...xb4
would transpose to the line given above
after 7 b4.) 9.e3 d7 10.0-0!? xe3
11.fxe3 xb4 12.f4 with an unclear
position and chances to both players;
C3) 8.e3 g6 ( 8...xe3 9.dxe3 d7
10.d5 xd5 11.cxd5 e7 12.d4
0-0 13.xe4 xe4 14.xe4 ae8=
Gutop, Y-Rutman, A/Moscow 1999) 9.b3
d4 ( 9...0-0 10.b2 e8 11.0-0 a5=
Lis enk o, A-It kis, B/B ucharest 1 99 3)
10.b2 h5 11.h4 0-0 12.c1 e5
13.cd5 xb2 14.xb2 xd5
15.xd5 c6 16.f4 f6 17.c3
, a n d t h e c h a n c e s a r e a b o u t e ve n ,
Lisenko, A-Lerner, K/Beltsy 1981 ]
[ C) 6.e3?! d4?! ( 6...d6!? ) 7.b3
( 7.ed5! d6 8.b4 xd5 9.xd5 c6
10.bxc5 cxd5 11.cxd5 ) 7...b5 8.b2 a6
9.cd5 ( 9.ed5!? b7 10.e3 e6
11.c2 is actually better for White) 9...xd5
10.xd5 c6 11.b4 a7 12.c5 e6
13.e3 d6 14.cxd6 xd6 , and Black is
clearly better, Pliester, L-Welling, G/Dieren
1987 ]
[ D) 6.a4 e7 7.g3 d5 8.cxd5 xd5
9.g2 0-0 10.c3 e5 11.0-0 e8
is comfortably better for Black, Tate, E -
Dougherty, M/ Philadelphia 1993 ]
6...exd3 7.exd3 d5 8.d4 e7 9.c5 0-0
[ Here we depart the established theory.
However, I'm quite certain that the move
chose by Gelf and doesn't constitute an
improvement. An old classic game
c o n t i n u e d w i t h 9...f5 10.d3 xd3
11.xd3 b6 12.0-0 0-0 13.g5 h6
( 13...bxc5 14.dxc5 b8 15.b3 d4= )
14.h4 bxc5 15.dxc5 e5 16.d4 g6
17.g3 c6 18.b4 c8 with a comfortable
game for Black, who eventually won the
game, Reti, R-Nimzowitsch, A/Marienbad
1925 ]
[ Another option is 9...g4 , for example
10.e2 xe2 11.xe2 0-0 12.0-0 e8
13.d3 e4 , and Black has equalised,
Kwatschewsky, L-Petschar, K/Austria 1989 ]
10.d3 b6 11.cxb6 axb6 12.0-0 a6
13.g5
[ 13.xa6 xa6 14.g5 h6 15.d3 a8
16.h4 d7 is about even ]
13...h6
[ 13...xd3 14.xd3 d7 15.f3
is also slightly better for White ]
14.h4 xd3 15.xd3 h5!? 16.f3=
[ After this move, I don't think White can
claim any advantage. Instead White should
consider 16.g3!? , e. g. f6 17.ad1 e7
18.b4 , and White has the initiative ]
16...xh4 17.xh5 f6 18.fd1?!
[ This looks like a case of the wrong rook.
White would be doing fine after 18.ad1!?
e7 19.e3 c6 20.g4 d6 21.f4
, a l t h o u g h B l a c k c a n e q u a l i s e w i t h c5
for instance: 22.xf6+ xf6 23.dxc5 bxc5
24.xd5 xd5 25.xd5 xb2 26.xc5
xa2 27.f2 ]
18...e7 19.a4
[ 19.e3 c6 20.g4 d6 is slightly better
for Black ]
19...c6 20.g3
[ White could possibly do better with 20.e1
d6 21.ad1 g6 22.g3 with only a
minimal disadvantage for White. ]
20...d7 21.f3 f5
[ Black invites a repetition of moves.
Alternatively he could consider 21...g6
with an edge. ]
22.e2 e6
[ 22...h3 23.d3 h5 leaves Black with the
initiative and the better position, but
unf ortunately he is ready to settle for a
draw. ]
23.d3 f5 24.e2 e6 , and here a draw
814
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

was agre ed, alth ough Bla ck's position is [ Black has some tempting possibilities
undoubtedly to be preferred. which unfortunately rebound, for example
½-½ 10...d4+ 11.c2 xd1+ 12.xd1 xd5
13.h3 e3+ 14.d2 xg2 15.xf2
leaves Black's knight on g2 trapped. ]
823 A20 [ or 10...xd5 11.f3 e3+ 12.c2 e4+
Svidler,Peter 2730 13.d3 e3+ 14.d2 xd3+ 15.exd3
Mastrovasilis,Athanasios 2547 xg2 16.f1 e1 17.h4 g5 18.f5
12th ch-EUR Aix les Bains FRA (4) 25.03.2011 gives W hite a massive attack even in the
[Nigel Davies] endgame. ]
[ As the endgame that arises after 10...fxg1
1.g3 e5 2.c4 f6 3.g2 c6 4.d4 e4 5.d5 11.xg1 xg1 12.xg1 is also bad Black
cxd5 decides just not to recapture his sacrificed
[ Most of the strong players who've reached piece. But this leaves him with woefully
this p os ition with Black h ave p re f erre d inadequate compensation. ]
5...b4+ 6.d2 e7 , for example 7.c3 11.f3 f5 12.c3 0-0 13.b3 d8
0-0 8.a3 ( 8.e3 e8 9.ge2 d6 10.dxc6 14.hf1 e8 15.xf2 g4 16.e1
xc6 11.a3 xc3 12.xc3 g4 White can comfortably afford to offer some of
was quite good for Black in Giardelli, S- the booty back. e7 17.e4 d7 18.e2
Campora, D/Asuncion 2003.) 8...c5 9.e3 g6 19.xb7 h5 20.c7 ge5 21.xe5
d6 10.ge2 cxd5 11.xd5 xd5 12.cxd5 xe5 22.xd7 xe2 23.xe2 g5
d7 13.0-0 f6 14.c3 and now the 24.xd6
speculative g4 left Black with inadequate 1-0
compensation for the pawn after ( 14...f5
wa s b e t t e r) 15.xf6 xf6 16.b4 b6
17.xe4 in Carlsen, M-Anand, V/Nice 824 A20
2008. ] Thiede,Lars 2432
6.cxd5 b4+ Graf,Alexander 2630
[ 6...a5+ 7.c3 b4 8.d2 xc3 9.xc3 Bundesliga 2002-3 (8) 11.01.2003
xd5 is very bad for Black after 10.xf6 [Tony Kosten]
xd1+ 11.xd1 gxf6 12.xe4 etc. ]
7.d2 e3?! This might have seemed like a Another look at the anti-Reversed Dragon line
good idea at the time but it works out bady. that I recommended in The Dynamic English,
[ B l a c k h a d p r e v i o u s l y p l a y e d 7...e7 but the judgement is unchanged. 1.c4 e5
i n t h i s p o s i t i o n w h i c h a l t h o u g h l e s s 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5 5.f3
spectacular is probably just a better move. c6 6.0-0 b6 7.d3 e7 8.bd2
After 8.a3?! ( 8.c3 looks more natural) Of course, White can always try the mainlines
8...c5 9.c3?! Black could now have with
played xf2+ ( 9...d6 10.xe4?! xf2+ [ 8.c3 ]
11.xf2 xe4+ 12.xe4 xe4 8...0-0 9.a3 a5 10.b3 e6 11.b2 f6
was quite good for Black in Hala, V-Koys, 12.c2 d7 13.e3?! Chernin's move relies
M/Czechia 2007) 10.xf2 e3+ when on a tactical continuation that seems to be
11.xe3 g4+ would have put White in faulty.
desperate straights. ] [ 13.ac1 ad8!? (the other rook seems
8.xb4 exf2+ 9.d2 b6 stronger) 14.fd1 h3 15.h1 g4
[ Th e im me d ia t e 9...fxg1 looks nice for 16.e4 fe8 Lobron,E-Fritz 5/Frankfurt
W h i t e a f t e r 10.xg1 g4 ( 10...d6 1998, when 17.d4!? xf3 18.xf3 exd4
11.e3+ is strong ) 11.d4 g5+ 12.f4 ] 19.c5 xc5 20.xc5 is interesting: White
[ but 9...a6 10.a3 fxg1 11.xg1 d6 will capture on c6, then on d4. ]
12.e3+ f8 looks kind of playable. ] [ 13.fd1! fd8 14.c4!? ( 14.ac1 f8
10.a3 d6 15.d4? exd4 16.e4 f7! attacks b3 and

815
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

wins a pawn, Giddins,S-Gurevich,M/ 25.c1 d7 26.c4?! White should take the
Amsterdam NED 2000 ) pawn:
A) 14...d5 15.e4!? ( 15.d4?! e4! [ 26.xc5 bxc5 27.xc5 c8!? 28.xc8+
16.xe4? f5 17.h4 g5 traps the xc8 29.xc8+ xc8 30.c4+ f8
queen ) 15...b6 16.xb6 cxb6 17.d4; and White has fair chances of defending this
B) 14...xc4 15.bxc4 ( 15.dxc4!? e8 ending. ]
16.h4 and Be4 is interesting) 15...a4?! 26...f8 27.d4 xc4 28.xc4+ f7
( 15...c5!? ) 16.d4! exd4 17.xd4 xd4 29.e6 d6
18.xd4 c8 19.xd8+ xd8 20.e4 [ 29...b3! i s a w k w a r d , 30.f4 ( 30.xd8?
W hite enjoys some advantage with his xc4 31.xc4 b2 makes another queen;
centralised pieces, Pecorelli Garcia,H- 30.xb3? d6 win s a p ie ce .) 30...b2
Franco Ocampos, Z/Havana CUB 2001. ] 31.b1 c5+ 32.f1 ( 32.h1 a8
13...fd8! Critical, although other moves have wins. ) 32...a8! wins, as 33.xb2? a1+
been tried: 34.e2 h5+ forces mate. ]
[ 13...d5 14.fd1 fd8 15.c4 e6 30.xf8 d1+ 31.g2 xc1 32.xc1 xf8
16.ac1 with complex play, Vallejo Pons,F- After the tactics Black has a simply winning
Tiviakov,S/Ohrid MKD 2001. ] queen and p awn e nding. 33.c8+ e8
[ 13...f5 14.e4 fd8 15.d4!? exd4 34.c4 e7 35.d5 b3 Offering to swap
16.xd4 xd4 17.xd4 d5 equal, Van one of the b-pawns for the white e-pawn. 36.f3
Me c h e le n , J -Gu re vich , M/ Ch a rle ro i B E L b4 37.d8+ f7 38.d7+ e7 39.d4
2001. ] c5 40.d7+ Once White runs-out of checks
14.d4 exd4 15.xd4 Not forced, as against the game will be short-lived. g6! 41.h4
Yakovich, at Gausdal in 2000, fellow [ 41.g4+ g5 ]
contributor Nigel Davies preferred 41...h5 42.g4 hxg4 43.fxg4 b2 44.d3
[ 15.xd4!? xd4 16.xd4 d5 17.c4 e5 45.f3 h7 46.h5 b5 47.b3 d4
xg2 18.xb6 cxb6 19.xg2 d5+ 48.c2 e5 49.b3 h6 Presumably the
agreed drawn. ] players are short of time, as
15...xd4 16.xd4 c5! 17.xc5 ac8 [ 49...h2 wins on the spot, the threat is ...
18.b4 d5! Stronger than Qh1+ and b1(Q). ]
[ 18...axb4 as we saw in Matamoros Franco, 50.b4 h2! Finally! 51.xb5 h1+
C-Volzhin,A. ] 52.g3 b1 53.g5+ xh5
19.b3!? b6 20.e4 xb4! 21.axb4 axb4 0-1
22.fd1 c7 23.xd8+?! This attempted
improvement on
[ 23.d4 xd4 24.xd4 bxc5 25.c4! 825 A20
which we considered in Bourquin,P-Vnukov, Topalov,Veselin 2700
D/IECG 2000, seems weaker - or was White Timman,Jan H 2649
simply not aware of this game? ] Hoogovens Wijk aan Zee NED (1) 16.01.1999
23...xd8 24.f1 My Fritz suggests the tricky [Tony Kosten]
line
[ 24.d4!? xd4 25.h3! f7 ( 25...xh3? 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
26.b3+ f8 27.xd4 ) 26.xe7! 5.f3
but then Black has xe7 ( not 26...xc2?? [ 5.c3 b6 6.f3 would transpose into
27.a8+ e8 28.e6+ h8 29.xe8# ) the main variation. ]
27.c6 d6 28.a8+ d8 29.a1 5...c6 6.0-0 A tricky little move. e7
but Black's forward b-pawn is very [ 6...b6 is the normal move, keeping hold
dangerous. ] of the d4-square. ]
24...xc5!? 7.d4 Thematic, if Black doesn't stop this, then
[ 24...bxc5 25.c4 allows White some White has to play it! e4 8.e5 f5 The only
c h a n c e s o f b lo c ka d i n g t h e p a wn s, b u t m o v e t o a vo i d d i s a d v a n t a g e , t h e b l a c k
appears more logical. ] queenside pawns will be severely hamstrung,

816
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

but his e-pawn is strong. 9.xc6 bxc6 [ 34.e4 g6 35.c3 forcing off pieces,
10.a4 d7! By immediately breaking the pin and which should be drawn. ]
on the c6-pawn, Black manages to force the 34...e8 35.a4 And again, but this time with
move .. .c5. serious consequences. f4?? A terrible
[ 10...d6 11.c3 had been played blunder, just at the moment when Black's
previously. ] centralised pieces gave him the advantage,
11.d1 c5! Exchanging the first of the once again, e.g.
doubled pawns. 12.xd7+ xd7 13.dxc5 [ 35...f6 36.h8+ e7 and both white
e6 Defending the knight before recuperating rooks are offside. ]
t h e c 5 - p a w n . 14.d2?! Very dangerous, 36.xf4
W hite tries to keep some advantage, but 1-0
should have been happy with equality by
[ 14.c3 xc3 15.bxc3 xc5 16.f4 ]
14...0-0-0 15.a3?! e3 Black has a large lead 826 A20
in development, and now sets-about the white Turner,Matthew 2519
position. 16.f1 exf2+ 17.xf2 xc5+ Yastrebov,A2 2207
A good time to recover his c-pawn, with check 4NCL Telford ENG (10) 04.05.2003
s o a s n o t t o l o s e t i m e . 18.e1 he8 [Tony Kosten]
Bringing the last piece into play. 19.g5 d6
20.ac1 White manages to develop his 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.d4 exd4 4.xd4 d5
queen's rook. b6 21.f3 White carefully 5.g2 dxc4!? There is nothing wrong with
protects the e2-pawn, and moves the bishop this move, although up till now I have mainly
from g2, in preparation for playing Bf4, else, if concentrated on
the immediate [ 5...f6 6.f3 e6 7.cxd5 cxd5
[ 21.f4?! then xf4 22.xd6? xg2+ with the standard IQP position. My recent
wins. ] game against Shchekachev, French Tch
21...h6?! A case of forcing White to do what 2003, continued 8.0-0 c6 9.a4 c5
he wanted to do anyway! 22.f4 Possible as 10.g5 h6 11.xf6 xf6 12.c3 0-0
t h e d 5 - k n i g h t i s p i n n e d . d7 23.e5 13.e1 fd8 ( 13...ad8 was Seirawan,Y-
White's disadvantage is limited now that this Sokolov, I/Wijk 1995) 14.d3 d4 15.ac1
piece has found a good square. g5 24.d4 a6 16.f4 b5 new, ( 16...e5 17.e3 xc3
g4 25.h1 f7 26.xb6 axb6 White has 18.xc3 d4 was level in Taylor,M-Berry,N/
eased his position somewhat, but his knight is Telford ENG 2003) 17.d1 e7 18.e3
passive, and his pawn structure worse xc3 19.xc3 ac8 20.xc8 xc8 21.d2
(somewhat ironic if compared with the d4!? which turned-out to be fairly level. ]
respective pawn structures after the opening). 6.xc4 The critical line is
27.c6 Not best, the rook's placement will [ 6.xd8+!? xd8 7.f3 when Black has a
a ll o w a s m a l l t a ct ic . f4! 28.f2 h5 large choice: f6 ( 7...d6 8.0-0 f6 9.d1
Missing the line c7 10.bd2 b5?! 11.e4 e7 12.f4+
[ 28...f3! 29.exf3 f4! winning the won very quickly in Rotstein,A-Rahls,P/Arco
exchange, 30.gxf4 ( 30.xd7?? allows the 1998, and; 7...b4+ 8.d2 xd2+
surprising 'snap mate' h3+ 31.g2 e2# (8...Na6!?) 9.bxd2 f6?! 10.xc4 c7
in either move order.) 30...xd1 31.fxg4 11.c1 favoured White in Suba,M-Peric,S/
b1 32.c2 c5 and the possibility of Geneve 1995) 8.0-0 bd7 9.d1 e8
swapping off the white rook by ...Bb3, and ... 10.bd2 b6 11.e5 e6 12.xc6!?
Rd8, leaving t he wh ite b -pawn sho rt o f is unclear, Suba,M-Sax,G/Baile Herculane
defence, is good for Black. ] 1982. ]
29.d4! fxg3+ 30.xg3 Having activated 6...e6 7.c2 f6 8.f3 a6 The most
this piece, W hite is close to equality. e5 aggressive,
31.h6 d8 32.e1 d6 33.h8+ d7 [ 8...b4+ 9.bd2 h6 10.0-0 0-0 11.b3
34.h7?! Missing the simple a5 12.b2 bd7 13.ad1 h5 14.d4

817
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
is slightly better for W hite, Serper,G-
Vakhidov,T/Bishkek 1993. ]
9.c3!? A novelty, as normally White has
played
[ 9.a3 to keep the knight from b4: c5
( 9...h6 10.b4 e7 11.0-0 0-0 12.b2
c8 13.bd2 with an edge, Raicevic,M-
Paunovic,T/Belgrade 1988) 10.bd2 d5
11.0-0 e7 12.b4 ce4 13.c4 0-0
14.b2 e8 15.ad1 planning to gain the
bishop pair by Ne3, Spraggett,K-Schroer,J/
Quebec 1986. ]
9...b4 10.b1 bd5 Black can also wait
until his knight is 'kicked' for this move, and
play
[ 10...c5 say. ]
11.0-0 xc3 Black is playing a lot of moves
with his knight, although this is hardly critical
as yet. 12.bxc3 b6 13.e3! White simply
plays natural developing moves. a6
[ 13...xb1 14.fxb1 is more than a little
awkward, as the b-pawn needs defending. ]
14.d4 e7 15.b2 d5 16.fd1 d8
Again, whilst this move is not actually bad,
[ 16...0-0 seems simpler. ]
17.f1!? An original idea which succeeds
im m e d ia t e ly, W h it e t h re a t e n s e 4 , wh ic h
discovers an attack on the black queen. a3?!
A queen move would be best, i.e.
[ 17...a4 as the b-pawn is indirectly
defended 18.xb7?? c5 wins a piece. ]
18.c2 e4?? Black expected a repetition of
moves, no doubt, and was looking-forward to
a draw with his strong opponent, but this loses
on the spot!
[ 18...e7 i s s t i l l O K : 19.e4?!
20.xe4 xf1+ 21.xf1 xe4 22.xg7
g8 and Black has no problems. ]
19.xf6!
[ After 19.xf6 Black drops a piece, gxf6
( 19...xc2? 20.xd8# ) 20.xe4+ ]
1-0
827 A20
Urban,Klaudiusz 2472
Krasenkow,Michal 2702
chT Zakopane chT (2) 03.09.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.g3 e5 2.c4 f6 3.g2 c6 4.d4 exd4
5.xd4 d5 6.f3 e6 7.cxd5
[ 7.g5 Might be better, dxc4 8.xe6 b4+
9.d2 xd2+ 10.xd2 fxe6 11.xc4
with a small edge, Jaderberg,B-Adler,B/
Sweden 1998. ]
7...cxd5 8.a4+!? An interesting finesse,
White decides to 'fall before he is pushed'.
c6 9.d4
[ 9.0-0 c5 would transpose into the main
line. ]
9...d7 10.0-0 c5 11.xc6 White hopes to
exploit the hanging pawns on the c and d-files.
bxc6 12.c3 0-0 13.g5 g4 14.ac1
b6 15.d1 An odd move, but White wishes
to bring his knight to c5 via a4, and, of course,
the queen was in the way. e5 16.a4 h3
17.b3
[ 17.c5 is met by f5 , hitting the g5-
bishop. ]
17...fe8 18.d2 xg2 19.xg2 d4!?
Menacing to fix the e2-pawn, and threatening
...Qd5+. 20.e4 f5! 21.exf5 d3!?
[ Black continues to advance the newly-
passed d-pawn, not bothering with 21...xf5
although this is also good. ]
22.xb6?!
[ Opening the a-file is dangerous, if 22.f4
then f7 maintains the pressure, but this is
xe4! certainly a better bet. ]
22...axb6 23.e3?! d5+ 24.f3 Forced.
g4! 25.ce1 xa2! Lightning strikes from
the side! 26.xa2 xe3+ 27.xe3 xe3
At the end of the tactics Black is lost, the d3-
pa wn is t o o stro n g, an d th e b la ck he a vy
pieces well centralised. 28.f2 h5 29.d2
e5 30.h3 c5 31.g4 h4 32.f4 e4+
33.h2 e2
0-1
818
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
828 A20
Wang Hao 2733
Rublevsky,Sergei 2681
27th ECC Rogaska Slatina SLO (4.1) 28.09.11
[John Bartholomew]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
5.f3 c6 6.0-0 e7 7.d4 e4 8.e5 f5
9.xc6 bxc6 This position is critical to the
e v a l u a t i o n o f 7 . d 4 . H i g h - l e ve l d i s p u t e s
continue to flare up. 10.d2 White scored 2/2
with this move at the European Club Cup
against 2680+ opposition. Positionally
speaking, it is quite desirable to maneuver the
knight to b3 in order to clamp down on c5 and
prevent the liquidation of Black's doubled
pawns. Past updates have dealt with the
alternatives:
[ 10.a4 d7! Topalov, V (2700)-Timman,
J (2649 )/Wijk aan Zee 1999/[TonyK] ]
[ Jonathan Rowson gives the popular 10.c3
, as in Carlsen, M (2714)-Gelfand, B (2736)/
Moscow 2007, ]
[ and 10.c2 good coverage in his notes to
Paunovic - Topalov. Check the archives. ]
10...0-0
[ Premature is 10...c5? Janssen, R (2437)-
Van den Doel, E (2607)/ Dieren NED 2001/
[TonyK] ]
11.b3 d6 Black begins to shift his
resources to the kingside, but this may not be
the best way to handle the position.
[ Rowson gives 11...a5 an "!", but the pawn
sacrifice 12.d2 a4 13.a5 d7 ( 13...c5!
i s a m o v e t o i n ve s t i g a t e .)
( 14.c1!? Rowson. ) 14...e8 in Paunovic,
D (2539)-Topalov, V (2777)/Villarrobledo
20 08 /[ Jo n at ha n Ro wso n] h as no t be e n
repeated since. ]
[ The natural 11...e6 was played earlier this
year. 12.d2 b6 13.c2 c4 14.e3
( 14.c3 is more accurate.) 14...xd2?!
( Here 14...a5! is strong. If White attempts
to stop the a-pawns advance with 15.a4
then d5 threatens to embarrass the knight
on b3. ) 15.xd2 ( 15.xd2!? ) 15...d5
16.c4 a5 17.fc1 c5 18.dxc5 xc5
19.d1 c6 20.e5 d6 21.d7 xd7
22.xc5 Matamoros Franco, C (2549)-
Lapshun, Y (2438)/Philadelphia USA 2011.
White holds a marginal advantage. ]
[ A d a y a f t e r t h e t e x t g a m e , 11...d6
was tried in Vitiugov, N (2726)-Motylev, A
(2690)/Rogaska Slatina SLO 2011. Black
again ta kes aim at W hite 's king. 12.d2
( 12.c2 is flexible.) 12...e8 13.e3 e6
( 13...a6!? seems like a more useful
diagonal, i.e. 14.e1 b8 15.f1 b5
, when Black isn't making it easy for White
to exploit his positional advantage on the
queenside.) 14.c1 e7 15.a5 d5
16.b3 f6 17.e2 h5 18.h4 g6 19.c4!
Hurrying back to eliminate the dark-square
bishop. e8 20.e5 xe5 21.dxe5 e6
22.c3 ( 22.a5!? ) 22...h6?! ( After
22...g4 23.xg4 hxg4 24.a5 g6
25.xc7 xe5 26.xe5 xe5 27.c5
t h e re a rise s a n e n d in g t h a t re se m b le s
Matamoros Franco - Lapshun (though in
slightly b ett er f orm ). W hite h as a n ice ,
w o r k a b l e a d v a n t a g e .) 23.f4!?
A h u m a n d e c i s i o n . ( The computer is
unimpressed with Black's kingside display
and wants to continue 23.h3 g5 24.a6 )
23...exf3 24.xf3 g6 25.h2 xf3
26.xf3 g4 27.d3 g5?! ( 27...e6 )
28.d7 I feel it's speculative to stake
everything on a kingside attack as Motylev
did in this game. ]
[ I believe 11...b8N ]
[ or 11...a6N also deserve practical
outings. ]
12.c2 g6 13.d2 f4? This is simply
unsound. Black is extremely underprepared
to breach White's defenses.
14.xa4 [ Straightforward development with 13...a6
was called for, i.e. 14.fe1 ab8 15.ac1
b4!? ]
14.fc1
[ White can also just take the pawn: 14.xe4
f5 15.xf5 xf5 16.ac1 and Black's
threats are largely illusory. ]
14...f6 15.a5
[ or 15.xe4 ]
15...f3
[ Maybe 15...fxg3 16.hxg3 f5 17.xc6
d6 had a better shot at confusing the issue.
If White finds 18.e5! things would be fairly
straightforward for Wang Hao. ]
16.exf3 exf3 17.xg6 hxg6 18.f1
W ith more than half his pawns as targets,
Black is clearly suffering. d7 19.a3 e8
819
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
20.b4 f8?! 21.g5! Black's rickety position
can't handle the strain. f5
[ 21...d6 22.c4 de6 23.h3+- ]
[ 21...fe6 22.h3 d6 23.xd7 xd7
24.xc6+- ]
22.h4 e7 23.c4 d5 24.e5 xd4
25.e3 d5 26.c4+- White wins material
and the game is decided. e6 27.xd5
xd5 28.xa7 f5 29.xg6 d6 30.c5
h7 31.h5 xc5 32.xc5 d4 33.d1
e2+ 34.h2 h6 35.g4 e4 36.h3
d4 37.g3 g5 38.xd4 xd4 39.e5
f6 40.xc6 d3 41.b5
1-0
829 A20
Xu Jun 2654
Christiansen,Larry Mark 2559
2nd Summit Shanghai CHN (3) 14.07.2002
[Tony Kosten]
Sometimes it doesn't pay to take too many
risks to win - especially against a very strong
opponent! 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6
4.d4 exd4 5.xd4 d5 6.f3 e6 7.g5!?
Pestering the bishop. We have considered
[ 7.cxd5 many times, and the resulting IQP
position seems to give Black good tactical
play, so it is certainly appropriate to
consider this critical alternative. ]
7...bd7 I think this is best, Black simply gets
on with his development, hoping that the
strengthening of the black centre will provide
compensation,
[ 7...d7!? also allows White to capture the
bishop, 8.xe6 xe6 9.0-0!? dxc4
10.d2 bd7 11.xc4 xc4 12.xc4
b6 13.xb6 axb6 White's bishop pair
give him the edge, Serper,G-Zagorskis,D/
Lyon 1994 ]
[ 7...dxc4?! is worse, though, 8.xe6 b4+
9.d2 xd2+ 10.xd2 fxe6 11.xc4 e7
12.0-0 0-0 13.f3 White has the superior
pawn structure, Jaderberg,B-Adler,B/
Sweden 1998. ]
8.xe6 fxe6 9.e3 The white queen was
going to be attacked anyway, so moves before
b e i n g p u s h e d . f7!? A new idea, Black
decides to castle 'by hand'.
[ 9...b4+ was the previous try, and would
be my choice: 10.d2 e7 11.0-0 c5
12.b3 b6 13.cxd5 exd5 Black has good
p ro sp e ct s d e sp it e c o n ce d in g h is ligh t -
squared bishop, Serper,G-Xu Jun/Jakarta
1994. ]
10.h3 b4+ 11.d2 xd2+
[ 11...e7!? could now be met by 12.xe6+
xe6 13.xe6+ xe6 14.xb4 dxc4
although both sides have chances. ]
12.xd2 e8 13.0-0 b6 14.c3 a5 15.e3
b4 Black feels more comfortable in the
ending, in f act his king might prove well-
placed there. 16.ac1 xc3 17.xc3 e5
18.cxd5 exd5 19.g2 a4 20.d1 ad8
21.f3 c4 22.d4!? e4
[ 22...xb2? 23.b1 c4 24.xb7+
is good for White, but ]
[ 22...c5!? 23.e2 b5 is interesting. ]
23.c2 f6 24.e2 a3! 25.b3 b2 26.f1
d3 27.xe4 dxe4!? A risky winning
attempt,
[ 27...xe4 would be most players' choice. ]
28.c4 e5 Black seems to making slow but
sure progress. 29.a4
[ 29.xe4? f3+ 30.g2 xe4 ]
29...d3!?
[ 29...d2!? 30.c3 f5 31.xa3 c2
also keeps a useful initiative. ]
[ 29...a8 was more circumspect, 30.xa8
xa8 31.d1 f8 level. ]
30.xa3 b5!?
[ 30...ed8 31.a4 f3+ 32.g2 e5
33.c1 might also favour White. ]
31.a6 g5?! But this is going too far, was
Larry hoping to set-up a mating net? 32.d4
d2 33.a4 bxa4 34.bxa4 Now Black is a
p a wn d o wn wit h n o n o t i ce a b l e c o m p . c5
35.e6+ g4 36.g2!
[ 36.xc5 h3 would allow some cheapo
chances. ]
36...e7 37.xc5 c4 38.e1 b2 39.h3+
h5 40.b3 d5 41.d4 d3 42.e2 g6
43.a5 c5 44.g4+ h4 45.f4! c4?
[ 45...exf3+?? 46.xf3# ]
46.f5+! After the knight is captured White
mates on h6 with his rook.
1-0
820
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
830 A21
Agrest,Evgenij 2604
Conquest,Stuart 2563
19th Open Reykjavik ISL (8) 12.04.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 e7 4.d4 d6
5.e3
[ An unusual alternative to the normal 5.e4
f6 6.xe7 xe7 7.f3 when Black has
reasonable play, although White's bishop
pair and extra space offer him long term
advantages. ]
5...f6
[ 5...f5!? is the aggressive alternative, 6.e2
f6 7.ec3 0-0 8.e2 xd5 ( 8...e6
9.0-0 bd7= ) 9.xd5 g5 10.0-0 c6
( 10...c6!? ) 11.c3 and Black has no
reason to be unhappy with his position,
Lobron,E-Bologan,V/Moscow 1994. ]
6.xe7 xe7 7.e2 0-0
[ 7...f5!? 8.g3 g6 9.e2 c5 10.d5
is favourable to White, Williams,S-Pert,N/
Birmingham ENG 1999. ]
8.d5 bd7!?
[ Conquest's innovation, which prepares a
more aggressive strategy than the positional
8...a5 to gain the c5-square, 9.c3 a6
10.e4 c5 11.f3 h6 12.h3 h7 13.g4
(e l s e B l a c k p la ys . . . f 5 ) h4 14.e2
and White has more space, and the pair of
bishops, Onischuk,A-Bologan,V/W ijk aan
Zee II 1996. ]
9.c3 e4 The idea behind Black's previous
move, he plays ...e4 before White can do it
himself. Which will be more important, Black's
extra space on the kingside, or the open
a1-h8 diagonal for White's c1-bishop? 10.h3
c6 11.dxc6 bxc6 12.b3 Menacing Ba3. d8
13.a3 e5 14.d2 a5 15.e2 c5
Another committal move, as now d5 is
weakened, but the black pieces can control
this square easily, and it is more important to
block White's bishop. 16.a4 b7 17.c3
c6 18.b2 fd7
[ 18...xa4!? is certainly possible, but
playing with two knights against two bishops
is not everyone's cup of tea. ]
19.0-0 g5 Black has plans on the kingside,
his ninth move does give him a space
advantage here. 20.h2 e8! 21.ad1 e6
22.g1 h6 Storm clouds are gathering
around the white king. 23.f4! The best move,
at the price of weakening the kingside, White
gains some valuable space, and opens the g-
file. exf3 24.gxf3 h5 25.g3 xf3?
[ This seems tempting, but White can defend.
I prefer 25...g6 , when 26.dg1?! allows
( 26.xg6! xg6 27.g1 is better, although
h5 28.g3 e8 favours Black) 26...xf3!
27.xf3 xf3!! the point, for if 28.xf3??
xf3+ 29.h1 xg1# ]
26.xf3 xf3+ 27.xf3 e5 Defending
against the mate on g7. 28.df1 xf3+
29.xf3 g6 The g7-square had to be
defended again. 30.e4
[ Possibly, in his habitual time trouble Black
had missed this resource, the only move to
defend the rook, otherwise, if 30.f2?? g5
wins. ]
30...e8 31.e3! White is ready to play Nc3-
d5, when his troubles will be behind him. f5!?
A good practical try, as the rook will be more
influential in the endgame. 32.xf5 xf5
33.exf5 xe3 34.fxg6 e2+ 35.g3 hxg6
W h it e is su re l y b e t t e r, b u t h a s d if f ic u lt y
moving his pieces without losing his
queenside pawns. 36.f3 h2 37.e4!?
White decides to jettison his h-pawn and go
after the black queenside pawns, but this will
allow Black counterplay on the kingside, of
course. f7 38.d5 e7 39.c6 xh3
40.c1
[ White prefers to keep an eye on the g-
pawns, 40.c3!? g5 41.xa5 g4 42.c7
h6 is very risky. ]
40...e6 41.b6 h2 42.a4?!
[ White wants to create a passed a-pawn, but
42.f4 xa2 43.xd6 g5 44.a4 g4
45.xc5+ is very promising. ]
42...h3 43.b5 e5 44.d5 xb3+
45.xa5 g5 46.a6?
[ After this Black is better, the evident
46.xg5 keeps White on top. ]
46...g4 47.f4+ e6
[ 47...d4 48.xd6 g3 is excellent for
Black. ]
48.a5 g3 49.e3 d7 50.a7 c6 51.a6
g5! This move wins one of the white pieces for
t w o p a w n s . 52.xg5 g2 53.xg2 g3
54.e3 xg5 55.d5 Amazingly, this
appears to be drawn as the black king cannot
821
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

approach the a-pawn. g7+ 56.b8 g8+ 14.gxf4 The white structure has been
57.a7 e8 58.f6 e7+ 59.b8 f7 we a k e n e d , b u t h e h a s a p o we r f u l d a r k -
60.d5 h7 61.a8 squared bishop as compensation. e4
[ For after 61.a8 h4 62.b8 xc4 63.a7 [ 14...f5 and ...Be4 is also possible, but
a4 64.e7+! b5 65.d5 xa7 Black clearly doesn't want to allow W hite
66.xa7 c4 67.c3+ b4 68.e2 to generate too much pressure along the
White has time to bring his king back to stop a1-h8 diagonal. ]
the pawns. ] 15.c1 f6!? Always a double-edged decision:
½-½ Black impedes the b2-bishop's influence, but
weakens his kingside light squares. 16.d4
b6 17.e3 d7 18.h5 Attacking d5 from
831 A21 the side! xd4!? 19.xd4
Agrest,Evgenij 2599 [ 19.xd5+!? e6 20.xe4 c6 21.c2
Sasikiran,Krishnan 2650 is also good, Black doesn't have a lot to
Ordix Open Mainz GER (10) 18.08.2002 show for his pawn. ]
[Tony Kosten] 19...d6? A bad mistake,
[ 19...e6 avoids losing a piece. ]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 d6!? 20.f3 Of course! The knight has no retreat as
Unusual, Black intends ...c6 and ...Bc7, we d6 is occupied by the queen. g6 21.h4 g5
have previously considered 22.h6
[ 3...a5 and Shirov's ] 1-0
[ 3...e7 ]
4.d4 Obviously best, White is not going to let
Black develop too easily. c6 5.dxe5 xe5 832 A21
6.f4!? An innovation, White spurns gaining Almasi,Zoltan 2693
the bishop pair by Vallejo Pons,Francisco 2700
[ 6.f3 d6 7.xe5 ( 7.f4!? is clearly a 49th Capablanca Elite 2014 (6.3) 14.05.2014
move much liked by Agrest! e7?! 8.xe5 [Fier, Alexandr]
dxe5 9.xd8+ xd8 10.d3 f6 11.b3
wa s f a v o u ra b l e t o W h i t e i n A g r e s t , E - In a reverse d Gra nd Prix Att ack po sitio n
Moberg,K/Haninge 1997) 7...dxe5 8.c3 W h it e ch o o s e s t o st a rt t h e ga m e o n t h e
xd1+ 9.xd1 e6?! ( 9...a6 or; 9...a5 queenside before Black is able to castle. 9.c5
are superior) 10.b3 a5 11.b2 f6 12.c3 is interesting, but I'm not a big fan of 10.Bg5?!
a6 13.0-0-0 h6 14.h3 f7 15.e3 0-0 1.c4 f5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 e5 4.c3
16.e2 b4 17.f4! b5 18.g4 led to a fine [ 4.d4 d6 Black has excellent results in the
white win in Salov,V-Kramnik,V/Linares m i d d l e g a m e w i t h o u t q u e e n s ( 4...exd4
1993, the e6-bishop is a problem. ] 5.xd4 b4+ 6.d2 xd2+ 7.xd2 d6
6...f6 7.f3 c7 As the white knight is no 8.c3 c6 9.h3 was slightly better for
longer on d5 Black can simply withdraw his W h i t e in P o p o v, V (2 5 4 8 )- G o r o v e t s , A
bishop, rather than play as above with (2467)/Petersburg Summer rapid 2013.)
[ 7...d6 ] 5.c3 ( 5.dxe5 dxe5 6.xd8+ xd8
8.g3 0-0 9.g2 d5 Black correctly heads for and the king is not really exposed) 5...e7
an IQP position, if he plays with ...d6 his was played twice by Kasparov in blitz games
position will become too passive. 10.cxd5 6.e3 0-0 7.ge2 c6 KEB-Kasparov, G/
cxd5 11.0-0 c6 12.b3 e8 13.b2 Internet blitz 1998. ]
White menaces the capture on f6, destroying 4...b4 5.f3 xc3 6.bxc3 d6 Black enters
the defence of d5. xf4 a typical 1...e5 English position, but with the
[ 13...e6 is a viable alternative, but then his difference that the pawn is on f5 instead of f7.
previous move doesn't make a lot of sense - This brings some extra attacking chances.
it would be better to leave the rook on the f- 7.d3
file should White play Nxe6. ] [ 7.0-0 0-0 8.d4 is more active, but White

822
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
needs to take care of the c4-pawn ( 8.b1
would be a solid way to play e7 9.e1
bd7 10.d3 c6 with a complex middlegame
in Shimanov, A (2516)-Volkov, S (2594)/
Rilton Cup 40th 2010.) 8...e4 9.d2 e8
( 9...e7 is also possible) 10.e1 bd7
11.c2 and White's plan should be to play
12.f3 and bring the knight to e3, as seen in
Simic, R (2495)-Nikcevic, N (2450)/YUG-chT
Igalo 1994. ]
7...c6 8.b3 This idea has two purposes.
To make Black lose a tempo defending the b7-
pawn to develop his bishop and to gain the a2-
g8 diagonal. White thinks he is quick enough
to combat Black's center.
[ 8.b1 would be normal, and a possible
continuation would be 0-0 9.0-0 e8
with a typical Dutch attack ]
8...b8
[ 8...0-0 would be usual and it would bring a
similar position compared to the game if
9.c5+ d5 10.g5 b8 11.xf6 xf6
and now W hite can take the d5-pawn by
force ( 11...xf6 12.g5 e7 13.c4 d4
14.d5+ xd5 15.cxd5 is an interesting
idea with a complicated position) 12.d2
e7 13.xd5+ xd5 14.xd5+ e6
15.f3 bd8 but Black should have enough
compensation for the pawn ]
9.c5 Setting some kind of trap. Black can't
take the pawn. d5
[ 9...dxc5 10.g5 and because of the rook
on b8, Black has problems defending f7 and
c6 at the same time d7 11.xc6! xc6
12.f7+ d8 13.0-0 g8 14.d4
and Black's king is in danger ]
10.g5?! Since White can't take the pawn on
d5, this move doesn't make much sense to me.
I would prefer to keep the bishop pair.
[ 10.d4 is t he most direct e4 11.e5
it looks like White's pawns are going to be
shattered, but Black's center is also not so
stable xe5 ( 11...d7 12.f4 0-0 13.0-0
b6 14.a3 is interesting, White has many
ways to fight against Black's center) 12.dxe5
g4
A) 13.a4+ f7!? ( 13...c6 14.h3 xe5
15.f4 e7 16.d4 is the idea) 14.d4
e8 and Black's king is doing well on f7;
B) 13.f4 exf3 14.xf3 xe5 15.xd5
e7 and here White's pawns can become
weak 16.0-0 c6 17.g2 e6 18.b4
d8 and Black should be fine;
C) 13.f4 this is the best g5 14.c1
xe5 15.h4 gxh4 16.xh4 0-0 17.h5
and big complications are on the way ]
[ 10.0-0 is also ok, bringing more pieces to
the game before striking in the center 0-0
11.d1 e7 12.e4 fxe4 13.dxe4 a5
14.a4 dxe4 15.g5 g4 16.e1 c6
17.xe4 xe4 18.xe4 f7 19.e3 e6
with an interesting position. Of course,
nothing of this is forced ]
10...h6 11.xf6 xf6 12.0-0
[ 12.xd5?? would be embarrassing e6-+ ]
12...e6 Black is ready to finish his
development and White had no reason to give
t h e b i s h o p p a i r . 13.ab1 e4 14.d4
White makes a temporary sacrifice to create
some counterplay.
[ 14.d2 is possible, but Black is also fine
here 0-0 15.c2 b6 16.b3 e5
and Black's chances are slightly preferable ]
14...xd4 15.cxd4 xd4 16.dxe4 fxe4
17.a3
[ 17.bd1 is the alternative e5 ( 17...xc5
is not necessary 18.xe4 c6 19.g6+ f7
20.xf7+ xf7 21.f3+ g8 22.e4
with compensation) 18.c6 trying to recover
the pawn in a strange way 0-0 ( 18...b6
19.a3 is not what Black is looking for)
19.cxb7 c5 20.b1 f7 with some
advantage to Black ]
17...0-0 18.e3 f6 19.xa7 g4!
Activating the bishop, now W hite has some
coordination problems. 20.a5 Sacrificing an
exchange to rearrange the pieces, but White
has insufficient compensation.
[ 20.xb7?? a8 wins the queen ]
[ 20.be1 is a sad move, but at least White
defends e2 c6 21.a3 a8 22.b3 h8
and White's pawns on the queenside are too
weak ]
20...e2 21.d2 d3!? Black is not in hurry
to take the exchange. The bishop is basically
stronger than the white rooks.
[ 21...xf1 is also ok, but White can take the
ce n t ra l p a wn s 22.xd5+ h8 23.xf1
fe8 24.xe4 e5 and the c5-pawn will fall
25.g2 xd5 26.xd5 e5 27.b3 xc5
and Black should be close to winning ]
22.bc1 b6 23.c6
823
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 23.cxb6 xb6 15.xh8 xg5 16.xg8 h6 resulted in a

and the rook enters the
game 24.f4 d6!? Black just doesn't want sudden and quite unexpected agreement to
t h e e x c h a n g e 25.fd1 c5 26.f1 c4 a draw. The position is quite unclear, for
27.c3 c5 28.e1 a8 and Black is example one possibility is 17.d5 e3 18.fxe3
dominating ] f7 19.xf8+ xf8 20.d4 with weird and
23...xf1 Finally, Black goes for the exchange, wonderful play. ]
now it's just matter of technique. 8.bc3
[ 23...a8 is also good, but less human
[ I think that White also has a pull after
24.fd1 b5 25.f1 c4 26.xc4 dxc4 8.xe7 but after xe7 9.c3 e6
and White is in trouble ] I think White should play 10.b3 ( 10.e3 c6
24.xd5+ f7 25.xf7+ xf7 26.xf1 f5 11.b4 d5 looked fine for Black in Williams, S
27.a4 d8 ( 2 4 8 7 ) - H o we l l , D ( 2 3 4 8 ) / C a l e t a 2 0 0 5)
[ 27...c5 was already possible, the
10...c6 11.g5 0-0 12.e3 and maybe 13.
endgame without rooks is hopeless 28.xc5 d5 next. ]
bxc5 29.b5 f7 30.f1 e6 31.e2 8...0-0 9.xe7+
d5 and because of the weak f-pawn White [ Another possibility is 9.g3 , for example
is lost ] e6 10.xe7+ xe7 11.d5 f7 12.h3
28.c4 e5 29.c2 c5 And the c-pawn g4 was Speelman, J (2533)-Howell, D
falls. 30.b2 xc6 31.b4 c1 32.g2 (2501)/Sunningdale 2007, and now 13.0-0
c2 33.xe4 f8 34.c4+ h8 35.h3 looks interesting after which ( Rather than
cxf2 36.e7 c6 37.e4 c2 38.f7 f2 Speelman's 13.xg4 ) 13...h5 14.f3 exf3
39.c4 h5 40.c7 g5 41.e6 d8 42.f7 15.exf3 e5 16.b5 xc4 17.d4
g4+ 43.h4 xh2+ 44.g5 h4 45.xg4 is suddenly very good for White. ]
h3 46.e5 hd2 47.xh3 2d7 48.xd7 9...xe7 10.g5 f7 A new move from
xd7 49.e6 e7 50.g4 g7 51.f5 b5 Volkov.
52.axb5 cxb5 53.h5 b4 54.d1 c7 [ In an earlier game Black played 10...e6
55.e5 c3 56.a4 b3 57.e7 b2 58.d6 after which 11.e3 bd7 12.e2 c6 13.0-0
d3+ 59.c5 e3 60.d4 f7 14.d5 cxd5 15.b5 e5! 16.xd6
0-1 g6 17.xf6 ( 17.f4!? ) 17...xf6 18.cxd5
d7 19.c4 xc4 20.xc4 f4 gave Black
counterplay in Lautier, J (2620)-Shirov, A
833 A21 (2685)/ Tilburg 1996. ]
Andreikin,Dmitry 2696 11.e3 c6 12.e2!? At first sight this looks
Volkov,Sergey 2607 l i k e a b l u n d e r b u t i n r e a l i t y i t i s a m o s t
Baku Open A Baku AZE (6) 11.08.2011 interesting pawn sacrifice.
[Nigel Davies] [ Having said that White could also get a
nice position with 12.h4 a f t e r w h i c h h6
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 e7 4.d4 d6 13.xf6 xf6 14.h5 leaves him with a
5.f3 e4 6.d2 f5 7.b1 This paradoxical pleasant looking reversed French. ]
retreat makes perfect sense the knight is not 12...g6 13.h4 h6 14.xf6 xg2 15.d2!
well placed on d2 but really good when it gets xf6 16.d5 f7 17.g1! The brilliant point.
to c3. So why not simply reposition it even if White goes into a pawn down endgame but
this involves some undevelopment. one in which Black has serious problems. Very
[ White's most popular choice has been 7.e3 deep and inventive chess. xg1 18.hxg1
.] f4
7...f6 [ 18...f8 19.f4 would renew the threat of
[ Bogdan Lalic playced his own undeveloping 20.Bh5. ]
move with 7...f8 in Solonar, S (2445)-Lalic, 19.h5 f8 20.xc7 b8 21.e8
B (2590)/Manresa 1995 after which 8.h4 c6 The knight's journey continues, this time
9.g5 d7 10.f4 f7 11.h5 xc4 forking d6 and g7! h8 22.xd6 e6
12.c3 f7 13.g6 hxg6 14.hxg6 xg6 23.g6 g8 24.ag1 fd8 25.c5 b6

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

26.xg7 bxc5 27.7g6 d7 the sake of the two bishops. 8.e3
[ 27...cxd4 28.xh6+ h7 29.f7# [ 8.e2 exd4! ( 8...f5!?; 8...0-0!? )
would see White's heroic knight deliver the A) 9.g4!? For the bold or slightly insane.
mate! ] h4+ ( 9...f6 10.xd4 0-0 11.e2
28.dxc5 xa2 29.xh6+ h7 30.xh7+ looks comfortable.) 10.d2 f6 11.xd4
xh7 31.g6+ h8 32.exf4 xb2+ h5 12.gxh5 xh5 13.c2 is unclear.;
33.e3 b3+ 34.xe4 b4+ 35.e3 a5 B) 9.xd4 c6 10.d2 f5 11.exf5
36.f7 b3 37.xb3 xb3+ 38.e4 b2 e5! As pointed out by John Watson in
39.d5 d8 40.e4 It's fitting that the last the third edition of Mastering the Chess
move should be made with this knight. Black Openings, works well for Black. ]
now has no good defence to the threat of 41. 8...f5
Nf6 and 42.Rg8 mate. [ 8...exd4 9.xd4 c6 10.c3 0-0
1-0 intending f5 next, is also playable, ]
9.exf5 f6!? 10.e2
[ 10.g4!? e4 ( 10...exd4 11.xd4 c6 )
834 A21 11.h3 does not lend itself to an immediate
Aronian,Levon 2739 refutation. If this were Black's only way of
Shirov,Alexei 2755 playing it would be worth investing some
XXV SuperGM Morella Linares MEX/ESP (5) more time here, but given the alternative on
[Jonathan Rowson] move eight and the more general sense that
White is trying too hard, I think it's best not
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 e7 4.d4 d6 to get embroiled any further. ( 11.f4 h5 )]
5.e4 I think many, myself included, have 10...exd4 11.xd4 xf5 12.d2 c6
a s s u m e d t h a t t h i s is t h e b e st m o ve d u e 13.0-0-0
principally to Kasparov-Shirov below. However, [ 13.c3 e5 ]
Black's play can be significantly improved 13...0-0-0 14.g4 g6 15.f4 xd4
f6! 16.xd4 b8 17.h4 f7 18.d3
[ 5...c6 6.xe7 xe7 7.e2 f5 8.dxe5 At first I felt W hite made quite a generous
xe5 9.exf5 f6 10.d4! xf5 11.f4 offer, but in fact if anybody is better in the
a5+ 12.c3 xc3+ 13.xc3 0-0 final position it is probably Black e.g.
14.0-0-0 d5 15.d6 c8 16.f3 bd7 [ 18.d3 c5! 19.f2 c7!? 20.g5 d5! ]
17.g4 e6 18.g5 e8 19.cxd5 xd5 ½-½
20.g3 e6 21.d3 c5 22.c2 d8
23.h4 f7 24.e4 xe4 25.fxe4 f8
26.df1 g8 27.h5 d7 28.f2 d6 835 A21
29.g6 e6 30.gxh7+ h8 31.h6 g6 Aronian,Levon 2739
32.f6 e8 33.xg6 c4 34.e1 xh7 Shirov,Alexei 2755
35.g3 e5 36.c3 c4 37.g7+ 43 XXV SuperGM Morella Linares MEX/ESP (5)
1-0 Kasparov, G (2805)-Shirov, A (2740)/ [Carsten Hansen]
Novgorod 1994/CBM ]
6.xe7 xe7 7.f3 h5! Black has to play 1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 e7 Black has
q u i c k l y a n d u s e h i s a s s e t s - p r i n c i p a l l y also tried several other moves here including
development- before W hite can show the 3...Ba5 and 3...Bc5, but the text is considered
relevance of his extra space and bishop pair. the most solid and best 4.d4 d6 5.e4 f6
My f eeling about this line is that if W hite 6.xe7 xe7 7.f3 h5
wants to invest some time making sure he can [ This is considered the main line in this
tread a tightrope for the next few moves then variation complex. Nevertheless, Black has
it might be rewarding, but on the face of it, I tried several other things in this variation: A)
believe in Black's prospects, because his 7...c5 8.d5 ('+/=' Ftacnik) h5 ( 8...0-0
position is sound and active and there is only 9.g5 h6 10.h4 bd7 11.d2 e8
so much suffering one should put up with for 12.d3 b5 13.cxb5 xe4 14.xe7 xd2

825
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

15.xd6 e4 16.xd2 exd3 17.xd3 a6 20.d4 xc2 Marin, M-Dizdarevic,

Degerman, L-Davies, N/Stockholm 1995, E/ Istanbul 2003, and now 21.xc2
and now 18.h3 axb5 19.he1 ) 9.e2 with a space advantage and better
0-0 10.e3 f5 11.c3 ( 11.exf5 xf5 chances for White;
12.g4 e4! ) 11...f4 12.f2 a6 13.e2 B1c) 10...e8 11.f4 f5 12.d5
c7 14.d2 d7 Ater, G-Rausis, I/ f7 13.exf5 xf5 14.e3 f6
Calella 1994 ] 15.0-0-0 a5 16.a3 a4 17.d3 xd5
[ B) The only move previously covered here 18.cxd5 a5 19.c2 xc2 20.xc2
o n C h e s s p u b l i s h i n g . c o m i s 7...exd4 b3+ 21.b1 a5 22.d3
, where the game Cu.Hansen-I.Sokolov, , and now Megacorr 3 gives this as
Groningen 1995 was the subject, but since e n d i n g i n a d r a w, 1 / 2 - 1 / 2 , a t t h i s
this is the main line and it has been played a juncture in the game Wrba, K-Gehret,
lot since that game, let's take a closer look A/corr 1997, but Black is clearly better
at that variation: 8.xd4 c6 ( 8...c5?! after e8 23.he1 e5!;
9.d2 e6 10.d3 c6 11.e2 0-0 B1d) 10...h5 11.g4 ( 11.e3 f5
12.0-0 a6 13.b3 ab8 14.c3 d4 12.exf5 xf5 13.g4 ae8 )
15.b2 b5 16.d5 xd5 17.cxd5 11...h4+ 12.d1 f6 13.g3 e6
Karpov, A-Illescas Cordoba, M/Dos 14.e3 Lalic, B-Shirov, A/Moscow ol/
Hermanas 1994) 9.c3 ( 9.d1?! h5! 1994;
10.g3?! f5 11.g2 fxe4 12.fxe4 f6 B2) 10.g5
13.g5 0-0 14.e2 h6 15.xf6 xf6 B2a) 10...e5 11.d2 ( 11.xe5
16.0-0-0 e5 Grant, J-Zueger, B/Ohrid xe5 12.xf6 gxf6 13.e2 xc4
2001 ) 14.c3 b6 15.b5 d7 16.xc7
A) 9...e5 10.e2; ac8 17.b5 xb5 18.xb5 c2=
B) 9...0-0 Kubasky, A-Koch, C/IECG Email
B1) 10.e2 2002 ) 11...e8 12.e2 a6 13.c3
B1a) 10...e5 11.e3 a6 12.f4 c5 e6 14.d1 h6 15.f4 a5 16.e2
13.e2 d7 14.0-0 b5 15.fd1 fd8 ab8 17.d5 Olarasu, G-Ionescu
16.b3 Lenz, A-Ganaus, H/Vienna Brandis, I/Iasi 1999;
1998; B2b) 10...e5 11.e2 e8 12.g3
B1b) 10...d7 11.f4 h6 13.xf6 xf6 14.e2 d7
B1b1) 11...h4+!? 12.g3 d8 15.xf6 xf6 16.f2 e6 17.hd1
(Ribli) 13.e3 de5 14.g2; g6 18.f1 d7 19.e3 Williams, S-
B1b2) 11...f5!? is likely Black's best: Buckley, M/ Scarborough 2001;
12.d5 h4+ 13.g3 d8 14.exf5 B2c) 10...e8 11.d2 ( 11.xf6 gxf6
( 14.h4!? c5 15.g5 d7 16.h3 12.0-0-0 f5 13.d3 Lalic ) 11...h6;
f7 17.0-0 e6= ) 14...e7! B3) 10.e3 (+= Shirov)
( 14...xf5 Ribli 15.f4!? ) 15.e3 B3a) 10...e8 11.e2 e5
xf5 16.xf5 xf5 17.e3!? xf3 B3a1) 12.g3!? c6 13.0-0-0 d5!?
18.g2 f8 19.0-0-0; 14.cxd5 cxd5 15.exd5 d7
B1b3) 11...b6?! 12.a4 ( 12.e3 ) 16.c5?! ( 16.b1!? ac8 17.b3
12...a5 13.e3 d7 14.d5 d8 xf3 18.f4! ) 16...d8 17.a3
15.d1 b6 ( Ribli suggests 15...c5 c8 18.b1 c7 19.c1 xd5
16.xc5 dxc5 17.b6 xd1+ with a complicated game and
18.xd1 cxb6 with some chances to both sides, Chernin, A-
compensation for Black for the Moberg, K/Gothenburg 1996;
queen on account of the d4-square B3a2) 12.f4 eg4 ( 12...g6
where Black will place a knight, but 13.0-0-0 was Hansen, Cu-Sokolov, I/
whether it is fully adequate is an Groningen 1995 - see the PGN
open question) 16.d3 c5 17.c2 a rc h ive s wi t h T o n y a n n o t a t i o n s)
e6 18.0-0 xd5!? 19.cxd5 b4 13.d2 ( 13.fxg4? xe4 14.a3

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

xg4 15.d5 d8 leaves White's ( 10.d2 ) 10...f4 11.e2 cxd5

king temporarily stuck in the centre, 12.cxd5 h4+!? ( 12...xe2 13.xe2 )
f a c i n g a n a s t y d e f e n s i v e t a s k .) 13.f2 f6 14.xf4 ( 14.c1 ) 14...exf4
13...d7 ( 13...xe4?! 14.fxe4 15.d4 Nielsen, P-Pedersen, S/Aalborg
xe4+ 15.e2 g5 16.0-0 gxf4 2000 ( 15.d2 )]
17.xf4 g6 18.f3 leaves White [ E) 7...xe4 8.fxe4 h4+ 9.d2 f4+
with amble compensation f or the ( 9...xe4 10.f3 f5 11.c3 exd4+
pawn ) 14.e2 e5 15.0-0 a6 12.xd4 e5 13.d3!+- ) 10.d3 f2
16.b4 b5 17.fc1 bxc4 18.xc4 11.f3+- Raetsky, A-Kleinert, J/Biel SUI
a4 is Kund, W-Zawadka, A/IECG 2003 ]
Email 2001, and now 19.f1 c6 8.e3
20.d3 fd7 21.f2 intending f3-f4 [ 8.e2 0-0
leaves W hite with the better A) 9.g4!? is probably the critical line,
chances; though largely ignored, e.g. h4+ 10.d2
B3b) 10...h5!?; A1) S v i d l e r d i s m i s s e s 10...f4
B3c) 10...d7 11.e2 f5 12.exf5 , but matters aren't as clear as Svidler
e8 13.f2 de5 14.g3 f7 leads us to believe, for instance 11.xf4
15.e2 xf5 16.h3 e6 17.b3 g6 exf4 12.c2 (+/- Svidler) c6 13.d5
( 17...f6!? ) 18.he1 f8 19.g1 f2+ 14.e2
f4 20.d2 e5 with a comfortable A1a) 14...d4+ looks promising, but
position for Black, Ibragimov, I- is probably better for White I couldn't
Kovacevic, B/Djakovo 1994; find anything for Black in the following
C) 9...e6 10.e3 0-0-0?! ( 10...0-0!? line: 15.d3 b5 16.cxb5 xe2
11.0-0-0 a5 12.b1 a4 is rather double- ( 16...a6? 17.e1 xe1 18.xe1
e d g e d , a n d s h o u ld b e f i n e f o r B l a c k) xe2 19.xe2 g5 20.c2 a7
11.0-0-0 d7 12.xg7 hg8 13.c3 f5 21.bxa6 xa6+ 22.d4+- ) 17.xe2
14.exf5 xf5 15.e2 c5 16.d4 b6 18.a4 d7 ( 18...a6 19.b4 )
Popov, V-Evertsson, K/Stockholm 2001 ] 19.e1 f5 20.gxf5 xf5 21.g1
[ C) 7...0-0 ( 21.exf5?? xf5+-+ ) 21...b7
A) 8.e2 c6 9.c3 d5 10.cxd5 cxd5 22.d4;
11.dxe5 xe5 12.xd5 c6 13.c4 A1b) 14...xg4! 15.fxg4 f3 16.f1
d8 14.0-0 e6 15.e1 xd5 16.exd5 xe2+ 17.xe2 d4+ 18.d3 xe2
d6 , and here a draw was agreed upon, 19.f1 h5 20.xf3 ( 20.gxh5?! f5! )
1/2-1/2, in Mellado Trivino, J-De la Villa 20...hxg4 21.f1 xc1+ 22.axc1
Garcia, J/Zaragoza 1995, but White has a , and White has more space, but Black
strong initiative after 17.g5! , e.g. c5+ should be able to defend;
18.h1 d7 ( 18...xc4? 19.xd8 xd8 A2) 10...f6 11.e1 h6+
20.dxc6!! xd1 21.exd1 f8 22.d8+ ( 11...xe1+ 12.xe1 ) 12.d1 g6
e7 23.cxb7+- ) 19.c2 xd5 20.f5 13.g1 fd7 14.d5 c6 15.e3 cxd5
d6 21.f4 dd8 22.ac1; 16.cxd5 a6 Fridman, D-Sulskis, S/
B) 8.g5 h6 9.h4 exd4 10.xd4 c6 Riga 1995 17.c3 ac5 18.c2
11.xf6 '!' Ribli. gxf6 12.d2 f5 13.0-0-0 (Svidler);
fxe4 14.xh6 f5 15.fxe4 xe4 16.f3 B) 9.e3
f5 17.d3 Uhlmann, W-Onischuk, A/ B1) 9...exd4
Dresden 1994 ] B1a) 10.xd4!? c6 11.d2
[ D) 7...c6 ( 11.d5 e5 12.g3 xg3
A) 8.g5 d5 9.cxd5 cxd5 10.exd5 13.hxg3 e6 14.d4 c5 15.c3 f5
exd4+ 11.e2 ( 11.e2 xe2+ 16.exf5 xf5 Svidler ) 11...f5
12.xe2 xd5 13.xd4 ) 11...b4+ - > 9 . . . f 5 ! ? 12.c3 fxe4 13.xe4
12.d2 xd5 13.xd4 Ribli; ( 13.fxe4?! g4! is a positional toilet
B) 8.d5!? h5 9.e3 0-0 10.g4!? for White ) 13...f5 14.d3 e5

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

15.0-0 xd3 16.xd3 xe4 17.fxe4 c6 12.d2 xf5 13.0-0-0 ae8=
f6; was played in Lautier, J-Shirov, A/Las
B1b) 10.xd4?! c6 Pa lm a s/ 1 9 9 4, a n d n o w Sh iro v c a lls
B1b1) 11.c3?! is given as equal 14.f2 g6 15.c3 f7 equal, but as I
by Gulko in Informator, but as already pointed out in my book on the
mentioned in my book, Black is just King's English, this position already feels
better after f5 12.d5 f7; more comfortable for Black, a verdict my
B1b2) 11.d2!? is probably best, computer now (I didn't have an chess
though Black is quite comfortable engine when I wrote the book) agrees
after e6 12.c3 xd4!? with, e.g. 16.c5!? f4 17.cxd6 b4
( 12...f5!?; 12...e5 ) 13.xd4 g5 18.d4 ( 18.dxc7?? xa2+ 19.xa2
14.d2 c5 15.0-0-0 b5; xa2-+ )
B1b3) 11.g4?! xg4 12.fxg4 xe4 B3a) 18...xa2+ 19.xa2 e2
13.gxh5 xh1 Gulko, B-Granda 20.d2 xa2 21.xe2 b1+ 22.d2
Zuniga, J/Moscow ol/1994; c2+ 23.e3 b3+ 24.d2 c5!?
B2) 9...c5?! 10.dxc5 dxc5 11.d5 ( 24...c2+= ) 25.xc5 d3+
a6 12.0-0-0 ( 25...xb2+= ) 26.c1 b1+ 27.d2
B2a) 12...e6 13.d6 f6 xb2+ 28.d1 b1+ 29.d2
( 13...h4? 14.xe5+- ) 14.c3 fd8 b2+=;
( 14...f4 -12...Qf6 ) 15.d5! h4 B3b) 18...c5! 19.xc5 ( 19.c4?
16.e7 xe7 17.xe7+ f8 fd3+ 20.xd3 xd3+ 21.xd3
18.d5 Svidler; xd3 22.xd3 g6-+ ) 19...xa2+
B2b) 12...f6 13.c3 ( 13.xc5? 20.d2 ( 20.xa2 c8-+ )
e6 14.d6 xc5 15.xc5 fc8 20...xc3-+ ]
16.d6 xc4 17.xf6 xa2+! 8...f5
Svidler ) 13...f4 14.d6 e6 [ This is Shirov's novelty, immediately
Svidler: ' -12...Qf6' ' -12...Qf6' sharpening the game by opening the centre
( 14...xd6 15.xd6 e6 16.d5 with only a few pieces developed and both
d4 17.f4 Yakovich ) kings still on their original squares. Normally,
B2b1) 15.d5? xd5 16.cxd5 Black castles first before playing this pawn
fd8 ( 16...ad8 17.dxe6 xd6 advance. Black has also tried a couple of
18.xd6 e7 Yakovich 19.exf7+ other things in this position: A) 8...0-0
xf7 20.xa6 bxa6 21.d5 ) A) 9.e2?! f5 ( 9...exd4?! is Gulko, B-
17.dxe6 xd6 18.xd6; Granda Zuniga, J/Moscow 1994 - see
B2b2) 15.xc5 fd8 16.e7 xc5 above )
17.xc5 xg2 18.xg2 g5+ A1) 10.dxe5 dxe5 ( 10...xe5?!
19.b1 xg2; 11.d5+ xd5 12.exd5 ) 11.c3 c6
B2b3) 15.d2 b4 ( 15...ad8 12.exf5 xf5 13.g4?! xg4 14.fxg4
Yakovich 16.d5 xd5 17.exd5 ) h4+ 15.d2 d8+ 16.d3 a6!
B2b31) 16.d5 bxd5 Shirov;
( 16...xd5 17.cxd5 ) 17.cxd5 A2) 10.exf5 exd4! 11.xd4 ( 11.xd4
d7 18.b1 b6 19.g3 g6 xf5 12.g4 xg4! 13.fxg4 e4
20.f4; 14.g1 f4 15.g3 c6 Shirov )
B2b32) 16.xc5 fd8 17.e3 11...xf5 ( 11...c6 transposes to
xd1+ 18.xd1 xa2+ ( 18...c6 Lautier, J-Shirov, A/Las Palmas 1994
Yakovich 19.b1! b6 20.a3 above ) 12.0-0-0 c6 13.d2 f7
d8 21.c3 ) 19.b1 d8 14.c3 ( 14.g3!? ) 14...e6 15.e2
( 19...d8 Yakovich 20.f2 ) a6 16.g4 f6 17.g5 d7 18.d5?!
20.f2 Yakovich, Y-Solozhenkin, ( 18.g6! hxg6 19.he1! ) 18...xd5
E/St Petersburg 1995; 19.cxd5 b4 20.g6 hxg6 21.g5 e5
B3) 9...f5!? 10.exf5 exd4 11.xd4 22.f4 e4 23.b3 c5 , and Black is

828
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

clearly better, De Ramos, J-Bui Vinh/ f7= ]

Phu Quoc VIE 2007;
B) 9.d5 f5?! ( 9...g6 (Ribli) 10.d2;
9...a6!? 10.d2 d7 11.g4 f4 12.h4
c5 13.0-0-0 a5 looks fine for Black)
10.exf5 f4 ( 10...xf5? 11.g4 xg4
12.fxg4 h4+ 13.d2 g3 14.hxg3
xh1 15.h3 /\ g5 - Ribli) 11.g4 b5
12.cxb5 ( 12.d2!? Ribli ) 12...b7
13.c4 g2+ ( 13...d7 14.e2 g2+
15.f2 xe3 16.xe3 g5+ 17.f2
h4+ 18.g3 e4 19.fxe4 f6 20.g2
xg4 21.d4 Ledger, A-Hebden, M/
Hastings 1995 ) 14.f2 xe3 15.xe3 ]
[ B) 8...exd4!? 9.xd4 c6 10.c3 e5
( 10...f5 11.exf5 0-0 12.g4 e8 13.d2
f6 14.e1 e5 15.d4 b6 16.xe5
dxe5 17.h3 b7 Williams, S-Pert, R/
W itley 1999) 11.e2 d7 12.0-0-0 0-0
13.g4 f6 14.h4 fe8 15.g1
Smirin, I-Lehner, O/Vienna 1998 ]
9.exf5 f6!
[ W h ite ca n claim a n e d ge af t e r 9...exd4
10.xd4 c6 11.d2 0-0 ( 11...xf5
12.g4 ) 12.0-0-0 xf5 13.g4 e5 14.f2 ]
10.e2
[ W hite should of course consider 10.g4!?
, e.g. d7 11.g2 exd4 12.xd4 c6
13.c3 0-0-0 14.0-0-0 , and White appears
to have the better chances. What did Shirov
have in mind in this variation? ]
10...exd4 11.xd4
[ Taking back with the queen doesn't offer
W hite anything: 11.xd4 c6 12.c3
xf5 13.g4 d7 14.0-0-0 b4!? ( 14...0-0
15.g3 e5 16.d2 ) 15.d2 a5
with a complex position where Black by no
means is worse ]
11...xf5 12.d2
[ 12.g4 grabs space and attempts to gain a
tempo, but Black is doing very well after d7
13.g2 c6 14.0-0 0-0-0 15.e1 f7
16.c1 g5 ]
12...c6
[ Or 12...0-0 13.0-0-0 c6 14.g3 e6
15.c3 ad8= ]
13.0-0-0 0-0-0 14.g4 g6 15.f4 xd4
16.xd4
[ 16.xg6 hxg6 17.xd4 b8= ]
16...b8 17.h4
[ 17.d3 xd3 18.xd3 d7 19.he1
17...f7 18.d3
[ 18.d5 xd5 19.cxd5 he8 20.d3
g6= ]
18...c5!? 19.f2 d7!?
[ 19...d5 looks tempting, but White keeps the
balance: 20.h2 ( 20.g5 h5 21.xd5
xd5 22.cxd5 xd5 23.h2+ c7
24.xc7+ xc7 25.c2 f4 26.e4
e5= ) 20...e3+ 21.b1 a8 22.he1
xf3 ]
20.he1 e5 21.b1 f6 , and here a draw
was agreed upon, but Black already has a
pleasant game. According to the comments
online, Black was already quite short of time.
½-½
836 A21
Cheparinov,Ivan 2687
Stevic,Hrvoje 2626
CRO-chT Bol (9.4) 22.09.2013
[Fier, Alexandr]
One of our subscribers asked about the other
lines without 6.f4 in the Erdos - Stevic game,
so I'm giving an overview of the options in
these positions when Black has a setup with ...
e5, ...f5 and ...Be7. 1.c4 e5 2.c3 d6 3.g3
f5 4.g2 f6 5.d3
[ 5.d4 when I received the email, ChessPub
Support mentioned that the critical lines are
with 5.d4 or 5.e3, so I'm also taking a look
at these moves: e7 6.f3 forces some
definition in the center ( 6.e3 0-0 7.ge2
c6 8.0-0 a6 9.b1 c7 10.b4 e6
11.b5 xc4 12.bxc6 b5 Kovalyov, A (2606)
-Arencibia Rodriguez, W (2526)/Quebec-ch
op 2013. ) 6...e4 7.g5 c6 8.d5
these kind of position are hard to understand.
White can sometimes play a committal f3
g4 9.h4 0-0 10.f3 exf3 11.exf3 e8
12.e6 xe6 13.fxg4 f7 ( 13...cxd5
is bad, but was played in Khismatullin, D
(2 6 57 )-S kob e rn e , J (2 5 09 )/E U-c h 1 1 t h
R i j e k a 2 0 1 0 . 14.gxf5 and White has the
a d v a n t a g e .) 14.0-0 fxg4 15.xg4
with a complex position, which looks
slightly better for White ]
[ 5.e3 is a slower approach where White
tries to play a reversed closed Sicilian e7

829
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

( 5...g6 is analysed in Wang Yue-Smirin, see
the PGN Archive.) 6.ge2 0-0 7.d3 c6
8.0-0 e6 9.f4 e8 and in this kind of
positions I feel that the bishop would be
better on g7, Das, A (2470)-Pert, N (2563)/
Hastings Masters op 87th 2011. ]
5...e7
[ 5...g6 would transpose into another kind of
position, basically a Closed Sicilian with
reversed colors ]
6.f3
[ 6.e4 was another interesting option
suggested by Tony K, entering a Botvinnik
System 0-0 7.ge2 c6 8.0-0 a6
and White can try one of the typical ideas in
this position, with 9.h3 e8 10.exf5!?
to open the center before Black develops
his pieces in a harmonous way xf5 11.g4
e6 12.f4 with good prospects in McNab, C
(2466)-Greet, A (2433)/Edinburgh Quality
Chess 2009. ]
[ 6.f4 was analyzed in Erdos, V (2650)-
Stevic, H (2626)/CRO-chT Bol 2013. ]
6...0-0 7.0-0 c6
[ 7...e8 is an interesting alternative 8.b4
( 8.c5 doesn't make too much sense to me,
and after c6 9.cxd6 xd6 10.g5 h8
Black has good potential for an attack, he
has good squares for all his pieces 11.xf6
xf6 12.e3 d7 and Black is fine and
managed to win in Flores, D (2578)-Peralta,
F (2609)/ARG-ch 88th Resistance/Saenz
Pe n a 2 01 3 .) 8...h5 Black goes for a full
attack 9.b3 h8 10.d2 f4 11.d5
xd5 12.cxd5 and Black can try ...g5-g4
and then meet Rac1 with ...Bd8. The
question will be whether White's counterplay
is faster or not Morley, P (2315)-De Carlos
Arregui, I (2361)/email 2011. ]
8.b4 h8
[ 8...a6 9.a4 h8 10.b1 transposes. ]
9.b1
[ 9.b5 is also possible and after
A) 9...cxb5!? it's strange to open the
qu ee n sid e, bu t B lack ca n get th e c6 -
square for the knight 10.cxb5 ( 10.xb5
c6 11.b2 a6 12.c3 e6
is also level) 10...a6!? 11.b1 axb5
12.xb5 c6 with chances for both
players;
B) 9...e8 10.a4 h5 11.c5 it looks like
White's chances are slightly preferable ]
9...a6 10.a4 e6 11.b5 axb5 12.axb5
fd7
[ 12...c7 is more logical, trying to finish
d e v e l o p m e n t 13.bxc6 bxc6 14.b3
with a typical kind of position, as seen in
Spraggett, K (2585)-Dolmatov, S (2615)/
Hastings 8990 1989. ]
13.d2 f6 14.b2 c5 15.c2
[ 15.b3 is a thematic move and the game
could continue like this: xb3 16.xb3
c7 17.fc1 ]
15...c7 16.bxc6 bxc6 17.b5! d7 18.d4
a2
[ 18...a4 is also logical, but White can
claim an advantage after 19.dxe5 dxe5
20.a3 e7 21.xe7 xe7 22.a1 b6
23.c5 xa1 24.xa1 d5 25.d6
with a pleasant position for White ]
[ 18...exd4 is just bad 19.xd4 g8 20.e3
and White is clearly better ]
19.dxc5 cxb5 20.b3 a7
[ 20...a4 is n ot e nough 21.xb5 xb5
22.cxb5 dxc5 23.b6 and White's passed
pawn is much more dangerous than Black's
one ]
21.c6
[ 21.cxd6 was more precise bxc4 22.xc4
and W hite can go away f rom the pin by
tactical means a6 23.fc1 d7 24.b7!
and both knights are hostages, so White is
better ]
21...bxc4 22.xc4 a6
[ 22...xc6 was quite direct, but Black's
position can be unpleasant after 23.xc6
b8 24.d3 xc4 25.xc4 axb2
26.xb2 xb2 27.e6 e7 28.xf5
since W hite's bishop is much better than
Black's one ]
23.a1 xc6 Fearlessly going into some
strange complications.
[ 23...c5 was also possible 24.a3 xc4
25.xc4 xc4 26.xd6 c8 27.xb8
xb8 28.xa6 xa6 29.a1 c4 30.c7
c8 31.b7 xc7 32.a8+ g8 33.d5
h5 34.xg8 g6 ]
24.xc6 xa1 25.xa1 c5 26.b5 b8
27.a5
[ 27.a4 was more prudent g6 giving some
air to Black's king ( 27...d5 28.b4 d8
29.a4 and White is somehow getting out

830
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

o f t h e p i n s c6 30.a3 h6 31.b3 4.a3

and f inally the piece s a re more o r less
unpinned d5 32.xc6 xb3 33.xb3
xb3 34.c4 and White can try to work in
t h e e n d g a m e) 28.a3 ( 28.b4 xc4
29.xc4 xb5 30.c2 d5 31.c8+= )
28...xb5 29.xc5 xb3 30.xd6 d5
31.f3 c3 32.a3 b3 and the endgame is
level ]
27...d8 28.a3
[ 28.d7 it's hard to understand what's going
on in this position, since there are too many
pieces hanging
A) 28...xb3 i s o k f o r W h i t e 29.xc5
xd7 30.d5 and the d6-pawn is going to
fall c7 31.xd6 g8 ( 31...xb2
32.f7+ g8 33.xd7= ) 32.d2
with a draw;
B) 28...xa5!? since everything is
hanging, the natural laws of chess are not
working 29.xb8 e1+ 30.g2 d5+
31.f3 xe2+ 32.g1 d1+ 33.f2
xf3+ 34.e1 h1+ 35.d2 xh2+
36.d1 and Black has an initiative, but
White should be ok, since the threats on
the back rank give enough counterplay ]
28...xc4? Now the exchanges leads to a
draw.
[ 28...d4! was better, and sufficient to enter
the same position with a pawn up, since
White can't get away from the pins 29.b2
xc4 30.xd4 xb3 31.a7 xa5
32.xb8 b4 and the pawn on d6 is still
alive, so Black has chances. ]
29.xc5 xb3 30.xd6 xa5 31.xb8 c3
½-½
837 A21
Cook,Robert
Williamson,Harvey
BCCA v Bccs 2004
[Tony Kosten]
Harvey Williamson writes: "What do you think
of 3...Na6!? with the idea of a later ...Nc5 - is
...Na6 a good move? Or an interesting
novelty?" 1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 a6!?
This is Harvey's new move, it resembles
[ 3...c6 but keeps the possibility of ejecting
the white knight with a later ...c6. ]
[ 4.xb4 xb4 5.b3!? is Dill,J-Sidi,M/
Buenos Aires 1978, although starting with
3...Nc6. ]
4...a5!? The most ambitious. 5.b4 c6
This is the point of Black's play, a retreat
square on c7 is prepared. 6.c3
[ 6.bxa5 cxd5 7.cxd5 f6 8.e4 c5
is similar to the 3...Ba5 4 b4 c6 mainline,
and seems fine for Black. ]
6...c7 7.d4 The natural central thrust, if
[ 7.e4 f6 8.f3 Black might try d5!? ]
7...e7!? One of several possible replies,
Black keeps the f-pawn's advance unhindered
should W hite decide to close the position.
8.e4 White grabs even more space, other
possibilities:
[ 8.f3 exd4 9.xd4 0-0 10.b2 c5!?
to justify the a6-knight's placement, 11.bxc5
f5 12.d5 d6 with some play for the
sacrificed pawn, McMahon,F-Williamson,H/
BCCA v Bccs 2004 ]
[ 8.d5 d6 9.e4 might be the most
unpleasant for Black, sidelining the a6-
knight. ]
8...exd4 9.xd4 0-0 10.b2?!
[ 10.c5 b6 11.b2 is superior, but Black's
development compensates for the offside
knight. ]
10...c5! This pawn sac prepares a lovely
square for the a6-knight on c5, and is the key
theme in this line. 11.bxc5 c6 Gaining time
on the queen. 12.e3 e8 The line-up of the
white king and queen on the e-f ile spells
problems. 13.d1 b6! 14.cxb6 xb6
15.d2 c5 16.f3 a6 Black's pieces have
found active squares, and W hite is yet to
d e ve lo p h is k in g sid e a n d t h is wi ll p r o v e
dif f icult be cau se o f t he we aken ed g1 -a 7
diagonal. 17.e2 e5 18.d5 If White loses
th e c-p a wn he will b e worse wit h ou t a n y
material compensation. b7 19.d2 f5!
There is no let-up for White, Black levers the
e - f i l e o p e n . 20.d5 a5 Keeping the
pressure on, although
[ 20...xe4! 21.fxe4 h4+ 22.g3 xe4
appears crushing as the h1-rook has no
escape. ]
21.c3 xc3 22.xc3 fxe4 23.f1 d6
24.fxe4 xe4 25.d4 h4 Black has a
crushing attack, and isn't even materially

831
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
down. 26.h3 xd5 27.cxd5 f8+ 28.g1
ac8 The threat is ...Rc3xh3 and mate on f2.
29.g3 xh3 30.xe4 c4! 31.xc4 f3+
32.xf3
[ 32.f2 g5+ 33.e3 xe4 is also quite
hopeless. ]
32...xf3 33.f1 c8 Intending ...Qc5+, or ...
Qc2.
0-1
838 A21
Crouch,Colin S 2424
Norwood,David 2518
4NCL Birmingham ENG (7) 25.03.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 3.f3 e4 4.fd2
[ Slightly more passive than the usual 4.g5
f5 5.c3 , but playable, nonetheless. ]
4...f5 5.e3 f6 6.c3 e7
[ Black can also consider a more active
placement of his dark-squared bishop, on g7,
after 6...g6 ]
7.f3 White contests Black's central space
advantage head-on. exf3
[ T h e p a w n s a c , 7...0-0!? is also worth
consideration: 8.fxe4 fxe4 9.dxe4 xe4
10.xe4 d5 11.f2 b4+ 12.d2 e7
13.e2 c6! 14.cxd5 xd4 15.exd4
xe2+ 16.xe2 xd2+ 17.xd2 xf2
an d B la c k s oo n re cu p e ra te d h is p a wn ,
Raicevic,V-Guzijan,M/Niksic 1996. ]
8.xf3 0-0 9.d3 f4!?
[ Very much in David Norwood's style, he
at t e m p ts t o 'b lo w W h it e awa y', b u t t h e
position doesn't really justify this. Normally
Black defends his f-pawn: 9...g6 10.0-0 c5
( 10...c6 11.e4 fxe4 12.dxe4 xe4
13.xe4 xf1+ 14.xf1 f5 15.f3
xd3+ 16.xd3 is a fairly drawish line,
L e n t r o d t , T - P o h l K u e m m e l, J/ G e rm a n y
1997. ) 11.b3 c6 12.e2 cxd4 13.exd4
b6 14.b2 e5 led to a great position for
Black in the game Potocnik,P-Kanstler,B/
Ljubljana 1992, after 15.g3? h5 16.e3
f4 17.xf4 xf4 but 15 Qe3 was more
sensible. ]
10.exf4
[ 10.xf4 may also be playable, although
Black has some initiative f ollowing g4
11.e4 g6 ]
10...c6 11.b3 g4 12.f2 b4 13.b1
d5 For his sacrificed pawn Black has gained a
certain initiative. 14.cxd5!? fxd5 15.0-0
White plans f5, to free his c1-bishop. d6
[ Black's pieces are aggressively placed, and
now he must find a way to increase their
activity. The text plans to attack f4, but as
the pawn can advance it may be better to
l o o k f o r o t h e r m o v e s . 15...h4!?
is annoying for White, and after 16.g3 f6
Black has real positional compensation for
his pawn. ]
16.f5! g6?!
[ Attempting to justify his previous move, but
White was on top anyway, i.e. 16...c6 17.h3
h5 18.e4 and a3 is coming. ]
17.xd5 xd5 18.e4 f6!?
[ Otherwise 18...c6 19.xd5+ cxd5 20.f6
is strong, the f6-pawn will be a constant
problem for Black. ]
19.d3!?
[ White is afraid of entering the complicated
line 19.xb7 xf5 20.xa8 because of
xh2+! b u t h e ca n p l a y 21.h1 g4
22.e1 xa8 23.h4 although Black has
various tactical chances. ( 23.f4? e4 )]
19...gxf5?
[ It is probably better to return to the
previous note, by 19...d5!? 20.c4 c6
( and not 20...xf5? 21.xd5+ xd5
22.f7+ winning ) 21.xd5+ cxd5 22.f6 ]
20.h6 This wins material. f7
[ 20...e8? loses quickly to 21.h3 h5
22.xf5 e7 23.g5+ with mate to follow. ]
21.c4 e4 22.xf7+ xf7 23.e3 h4
Threatening mate, but it is easily countered.
24.f4 e2 25.xe4!!
[ 25.xe4 as after fxe4 26.g5+ xf1
27.xf1+ g6 28.xh4 White has an extra
piece. ]
1-0
832
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

839 A21 White a pawn up. ]

Damljanovic,Branko 2611 26.f2 c7 27.c4 e7? Rather setting
Drazic,Sinisa 2501 himself up for White's powerful reply.
TCh-SRB Premier Men (5.5) 31.08.2011 [ 27...h6 would have been a better idea
[Nigel Davies] when 28.g4 doesn't have quite the same
impact. ]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 e7 4.d4 d6 28.g4 g6
5.f3 c6 6.c3!? I can understand why [ 28...h6 W h i t e w i n s w i t h 29.e5!
nobody has had the idea to play this move , for example dxe5 30.g5 hxg5 31.fxg5
before - W hite retreats an apparently well xg5 32.g2 h6 33.d6! etc. ]
placed piece. White's idea is that there's now 29.g5 g7 30.f5 e5 31.f6
a positional threat to gain space with 7.d5, [ 31.b5! would have been even better. ]
and Black's knight on c6 does not have a 31...f8 32.c1 xa4 33.f4 e8 34.e3
convenient retreat square. And meanwhile a3 35.xa3 bxa3 36.e3 h6?!
Black can't play 6...e4. Helping White to open up the kingside. The
[ In earlier games White has often preferred later stages of this game bear the marks of
6.e3 , for example e4 7.g1 g5 8.h4 t i m e t ro u b l e wi t h b o t h s id e s co m m it t i n g
e7 9.e2 f5 10.ef4 f6 11.xf6+ certain inaccuracies. 37.gxh6 d7 38.g1
xf6 12.d5 0-0 13.d2 e7 14.xf6+ h7 39.d3 d8 40.g5 f5 41.h3
xf6 15.d5 g6! 16.c3 e5 17.xe5 xh6 42.f3 c8 43.h4 c4 44.c2 b7
dxe5 18.c2 c5 was about equal in 45.h5 b2 46.g2?
Gelfand, B (2685)-Shirov, A (2710)/Moscow [ 46.e2! was strong here, for example
1992. ] xa2 47.hxg6+ fxg6 48.e5 xe5
[ Another popular move has been 6.xe7 49.xg6+ wins Black's queen. ]
but then xe7 7.d5 d8 8.e4 f5 9.d3 46...e5 47.g3 xa2 48.hxg6+ fxg6
fxe4 10.xe4 f6 was fine for Black in 49.c1 a1 50.xa3 d4?!
Me llad o Trivino , J (2 39 5)-Sp ra gget t, K [ 50...h5+ 51.g1 xa3 52.xa3 f7
(2550)/Casablanca 1994. ] would have seen Black escape into an equal
6...exd4 Opting for a 'little centre' structure in endgame. ]
which White has more space. 51.e3?!
[ Old timers like myself would probably prefer [ 51.g5 was better but then xg5 52.xg5
to keep their outpost in the centre with xf6 53.e3 f7 gives Black play on the
6...f6 7.d5 b8 with transposition into a dark squares. ]
kind of Old Indian Defence. ] 51...h5+ 52.g1 e5
7.xd4 xd4 8.xd4 f6 9.d2 e6 [ 52...xf6 is just fine for Black. ]
10.e4 e7 11.e2 0-0 12.0-0 c6 13.b3 53.a7+ h8? 54.a8 g8
d4 14.d3 a6 15.b2 c6 16.d1 b5 [ 54...xf6 55.f2 shows why black should
17.e3 c5 have put his king on g8 on his 53rd move. ]
[ 17...e8 looks interesting here also, 55.xg6+ f7 56.g2 g4 57.a7+ e7
keeping his pawn structure flexible for as 58.fxe7 h8 59.e8+
long as possible. As the game progresses 1-0
the knight on d4 looks very impressive but
without pawn levers it's difficult for it to
gain support. Meanwhile White can advance 840 A21
his kingside pawns. ] Erdos,Viktor 2650
18.h1 e8 19.ae1 b8 20.c3 b4 Stevic,Hrvoje 2626
21.b2 a5 22.f4 a4 23.bxa4 a8 24.d5 CRO-chT Bol (2.5) 14.09.2013
xd5 25.cxd5 a5 [Fier, Alexandr]
[ And not 25...xa4 b e c a u s e o f 26.xd4
xd4 27.b5 c3 28.e2 a7 29.xe8 Here White plays 6.f4 before developing the
xe1 30.xf7+ xf7 31.xe1 , leaving g 1 - k n i g h t wi t h t h e i d e a o f s t o p p i n g a n y

833
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

attacking ideas for Black. I like the 10.exf3 White.

idea and soon W hite got a tangible space [ 15.b3 to play d4 doesn't work g6 16.e3
advantage. For Black I would take a look at f4 and Black is fine. ]
1 2 . . . e xf 4 . 1.c4 e5 2.g3 d6 3.c3 f5 15...d7 16.f4 g4
This is quite a flexible setup. 4.g2 [ 16...f7 I prefer this move. The knight on
[ 4.d4 is the main line and played by various g4 soon needs to go to h6. From f 7 it's
t o p p l a y e r s e4 5.h3 was analyzed in passive but still better placed, 17.e2 c7
Kramnik, V (2788)-Svidler, P (2738)/Tal 18.ae1 ae8 19.b4 with the same kind of
Memorial Blitz 2008. ] position as in the game. Now Black can try
4...f6 5.d3 e7 6.f4!? In a strange way a5 20.b5 xc3 21.xc3 cxb5
this is the same idea Black made some moves to complicate matters. Still 22.Bd4 can come
ago. With this move it's much harder for Black and the position remains dangerous for
to cre a te an y at t a ck on t he kin gsid e . 0-0 Black. ]
7.f3 c6 8.0-0 d4 9.h1 xf3 17.g1 e8
10.exf3! White is going to exchange the f4- [ 17...h5 18.f3 h4 19.g2 hxg3 20.hxg3
pawn and then bring another pawn to f4. With g5 and we reach a similar position to the
this in mind White has time to bring the rooks 12...exf4 note where the f6-bishop is not so
to the center and expand on the queenside. useful ]
c6 Now the d6-pawn can be an issue if White 18.h3 h6 19.b4 Now we see the White
plays something with d4. position improving little by little. c7 20.a4
[ 10...e8 could be a solid option 11.e1 a6 21.a5 xe1 22.xe1 e8 23.a4 xe1
f8 def ending e 5 12.e3 and White still 24.xe1 The basic plan for White is to keep
has a lot of useful moves like Qd2 and b4, expanding on the queenside, since all the
a4. For Black is not clear where the pieces pieces are aiming there. Maybe Black can
should go. ] defend successfully, but the task is far from
11.e1 d7 12.e3 f6 easy. f8 25.b6 e8 26.d4 e7 27.d2
[ 12...exf4 is more active, more or less It's important to keep the queens on,
winning a tempo compared to the game otherwise the lack of space is not so
13.xf4 e5! all the counterplay is based prob lema tic. f7 28.d5 Finally the break,
on the f4-square. If Black manages to play ... Black is almost lost. c5 29.bxc5 dxc5
f4 the position should be fine even a pawn 30.e3 c7 31.a8 c8 32.b6 c7
down 14.e3 ( 14.d2 is too slow g6 33.a8 c8 34.d6! It's necessary to open
15.e3 f4 and Black is fine; 14.xe5 dxe5 the position for the bishops. xa8 35.d7 e7
15.xe5 d6 16.e1 f4 and Black has 36.dxe8+
good activity) 14...h5 ( 14...g6?! 15.f4 [ 36.d5 was a nice finesse, making one
locks the knight) 15.f4 g4 16.g1 useful move, since Black's bishop can't get
and we reach a similar position compared to away, xd7 37.xd7 d8 38.xb7 xa5
the game, with the difference that the pawn 39.c8+ d8 40.xf5 with a clear
is already on h5. Now a quick expansion on advantage for White ]
the kingside can work h4 17.f3 hxg3 36...xe8
18.hxg3 g5!? with a risky position for Black, [ 36...xe8! activating the pieces was
but full of life. ] necessary 37.xb7 d6 38.d5 e4
13.d2 39.xe4 fxe4 40.d5 a4 and Black is
[ 13.d4 exd4 14.xd4 c5 15.d2 ] still in the game. ]
13...exf4 37.d5 d8 38.xb7 xa5 39.h2
[ 13...a5 waiting is not good, since White still This is not necessary.
has useful moves like 14.ad1 with the idea [ 39.c8+ w a s s i m p l e r d8 ( 39...d8
of 15.d4! ] 40.c6+ f7 41.xf5+ g8 42.e4
14.xf4 e5 15.e3 f4 is coming and Black wins ) 40.xf5 and Black's position will soon
won't have counterplay on the kingside in time. collapse. ]
The position is already more pleasant for 39...g6 40.b8+ d8 41.a7 d3

834
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 41...d6 defending the pawn was better 842 A21

and it's not clear how W hite is going to Estremera Panos,Sergio 2353
make progress. 42.d5 f8 ] Georgiev,Vladimir 2538
42.xc5 xc5 43.xc5 d2 XVIII Open Andorra AND (2) 25.06.2000
[ 43...h5 44.c6+ d8 45.d5 e2+ [Neil McDonald]
46.g2 h4 ]
44.c8+ Now W hite is just winning e7 1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 3.f3 e4 4.g5 f5
45.b7+ d7 46.xa6 c7 47.a3+ e8 5.c3 f6 6.g3 White's strategy is
48.c5 h5 49.d5 f8 50.e3 g5 51.fxg5 fundamentally different from Xu Jun's in the
h4 52.g6 e5 53.h6+ g7 54.xh4 no te ab ove . He pre f e rs to f ian che tt o h is
xg6 bishop rather than develop it on e2 and plans
[ 54...xg6 55.h8+ e7 56.xe5+ wins ] to attack the black centre with f2-f3 rather
1-0 than gain space with d4-d5. e7 7.g2 0-0
8.h3 c6 9.0-0 a6 10.f3 h8 11.g5
e6 12.b3 d5 Now we have a similar
841 A21 structure for Black as in Sultanov-Poluljahov,
Ernst,Sipke 2392 which featured 4 Nfd2 instead of 4 Ng5. Once
Dunnington,Angus J 2372 again, W hite is attempting to dismantle the
IM Lichfield ENG (5) 10.07.2000 black centre. Black agrees to this, but makes
[Neil McDonald] sure it is dissolved under conditions which are
favourable to him. 13.f4 d7 14.h3 b4
1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 3.c3 exd4 4.xd4 c6 15.c1 exf3 16.exf3 dxc4 17.xe6 xe6
5.d3?! Black has been unable to 18.bxc4 ad8! This threatens 19...Rxd4!
demonstrate a way to equality after Most of Black's centre has disappeared but
[ 5.d2! -see the analysis in Tratar- his pieces are enjoying their activity and there
Srebrnic. ] is a clear target on d4.
5...e5 6.c2 Besides the time lost, the [ On the other hand, dangerous would be
queen will prove worse here than on d2. g6 18...xc4 19.e4 f7 20.xf6 gxf6
[ Not 6...xc4?? 7.a4+ ] 21.h6 ]
7.g3 g7 8.g2 f6 9.b3? 19.e4 White strives to activate his bishops,
[ White is playing with fire. The modest 9.f3 b u t t h e e n d g a m e t h a t r e s u l t s f r o m h i s
was essential. ] combination turns out to be unfavourable for
9...0-0 10.b2 e8 11.e4 him. xe4 20.fxe4 xd4! 21.exf5
This is unsatisfactory, but if Of course if
[ 11.f3 f5 12.d2 d3+ is painful. ] [ 21.xd4 c5 ]
11...b5! The beginning of a brilliant attack. 21...xd1 22.fxe6 c5+! This accurate move
12.xb5 c6 13.d4 d5 14.0-0-0 xe4 forces the white king one square further from
15.f3 d6 16.f4 c5!! Black gives up a piece the centre as going to g2 loses a rook to 23...
to open lines for his bishops against the white Rfxf1. 23.h1 fxf1+ 24.xf1 xc1
king. 17.fxe5 cxd4 18.exd6 f5 19.f2 25.xc1 c7 26.h3 g8 Black now has
h6+ 20.d2 a5 21.d1 xa2 an evident advantage because the passed
A really severe punishment for White's failure pawn is a weakness rather than a strength.
to develop his king's knight. 27.f4 e8 28.g2 f8 29.f3 g1
0-1 30.e5 e7 31.g4 c5 32.h4 g6 33.h5
d6 34.d4 b6 35.hxg6 hxg6 36.e3 f6
37.d4+ e5 38.e3 c5 39.f2 d6
40.e3 Here White resigned or lost on time
before Black could play xc4
0-1

835
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
843
Friedgood,David
James,David J
Four Nations Chess League 2000
[Paul Motwani]
Curiosity of the Month Consider game W11,
the encounter D.Friedgood-D.James in the
UK's Four Nations Chess League (4NCL) at
Birmingham on 1 May 2000. David Friedgood
is especially renowned for his prowess in
endgame studies, but on this occasion there
was no possibility of testing his skills in that
a r e a . . . b e c a u s e h e f o u n d a d e va s t a t i n g
combination immediately after the opening,
and won at lightning speed in only 16 moves!
Here's wha t happene d 1.c4 The English
Opening has long been David's favourite e5
2.c3 f5 Certainly playable, although Black
should be aware of the fact that he is really a
tempo down compared to what White got with
1 e4 c5 2 f4 ingameW10 3.d4 e4
[ I would pre f e r 3...exd4 4.xd4
5.e3+ f7!? intending rapid active piece-
development with ...Bb4, ...Nf6, and ...Re8,
which is a speciality of Finland's GM Heikki
Westerinen ]
4.h3! The white knight has spotted a
promising position for itself at f4 f6 5.g5
c6 6.f4 e7 7.e3 0-0?!
[ Missing the strength of White's next move
Black should have played 7...d6 ]
8.c5! White's f1-bishop is eager to deliver a
big check at c4! d5 9.cxd6 xd6 10.c4+
h8 11.h4! White goes straight for Black's
king with a powerful case of "h for hunting"!
b5?
[ 11...g8 may not look very appealing, but
at least it would stop 12.g6+ ]
12.g6+!! hxg6 13.h5 g8
[ Black is dead lost, as is demonstrated by
lines like 13...bxc4 14.hxg6+ g8 15.xf6
xf6 16.h8+ xh8 17.h5+
18.h7+ f8 19.h8# ]
14.hxg6+ h6 15.xh6 gxh6 16.h5
Black resigned, having no satisfactory way to
protect his h6-pawn, since 16...Bg5 is
crushed instantly by 17 Qxg5.
1-0
A21 844 A21
Gajewski,Grzegorz 2629
Heberla,Bartlomiej 2544
2000 POL-ch Warsaw (3) 27.03.2014
[Fier, Alexandr]
A good game for W hite. It's always a good
sign when it's hard to define where it went
wrong for Black. My guess is that c5 doesn't
help the counterplay and afterwards Black
should try something with ...f5. 1.c4 e5
2.c3 b4 3.c2 White just tries to play the
position like a normal English Opening.
[ 3.d5 is the main move and it was seen
many times on ChessPublishing e7 4.d4
d6 5.f3 ( 5.e4 f6 6.xe7 xe7 7.f3
was extensively analyzed in Aronian, L
(273 9)-S hiro v, A (2 755)/XXV Sup erG M
Morelia/Linares MEX/ESP 2008.) 5...e4
6.d2 f5 7.b1 is a thematic idea that was
tried and analyzed in several games, such
as Andreikin, D (2696)-Volkov, S (2607)/
c6 Baku Open A AZE 2011. ]
3...f6 4.f3 e7 5.e4!? 0-0
[ 5...a6 was played last year by Sokolov
6.d3 c6 7.a3 a5 8.b4 b6 keeping the
f le xib i lit y 9.e2 d6 and both sides have
their pluses and minuses, Short, N (2688)-
Sokolov, I (2650)/Canadian op 50th 2013. ]
[ 5...xc3 6.bxc3 d6 7.b1 0-0 8.d3
bd7 Bachmann Schiavo, A (2555)-Volkov,
S (2594)/Dubai op 11th 2009. ]
6.e2 xc3 The idea behind this exchange is
to close the position with the pawns on dark
squares. 7.bxc3 Another thematic idea. With
the pawn on d2 the structure is not so bad
and with the pawn on c3 the d4-square is
under control. d6 8.0-0 c5 Consistent, but
not forced.
[ 8...bd7
A) 9.d4!? this is always a committal move,
b u t h e r e i t c a n w o r k exd4 ( 9...b6
g8 10.h4 ) 10.cxd4 xe4 ( 10...xe4
11.d3 f5 12.e1 df6 13.g5 d8
14.h3 with good compensation) 11.d3
e7 12.b2 and White's bishops are
quite scary;
B) 9.d3 c5 5 would also be possible
here and was the Volkov idea in the note
to move ]
9.d3 c6 10.g3 White slowly prepares his
836
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

expansion on the kingside. h3 Somehow I ok ]

already don't like this move. White's plan will 17.h1 b5
work really well in the game, and probably it's [ 17...e7 is another idea, but it's not so
around here and over the next few moves that clear what the knight is doing here
Black should seek something different. A) 18.d4 looks nice, but probably its not
[ 10...e8 is one of the options, preparing n e c e s s a r y t o o p e n t h e c e n t e r c7
the pieces for ....f5 11.h4 g6 12.g2 ( 18...exd4 19.cxd4 is also good for
( 12.f4 exf4 13.xf4 g7 ) 12...h3 White; 18...cxd4 19.cxd4 only helps
A) 13.f4 White ) 19.dxc5 dxc5 20.d6 xd6
A1) 13...exf4 14.xf4 xg2 15.xg2 21.xd6 b6 22.f3 and White will try to
g7 16.f2 ( 16.e3 f5 is not what play on the d-file;
W h i t e w a n t s) 16...f6 17.h6 B) 18.g1 is more to the point a6 19.d2
and W hite can be better, but Black's b5 20.cxb5 axb5 21.d4 now this move is
position is solid; b e t t e r a n d g i ve s s o m e a d v a n t a g e t o
A2) 13...g7 14.f2 f5 15.f3 g4!? White ]
otherwise the bishop on f3 can become 18.cxb5 xb5 19.d4 And White has a clear
too strong 16.xg4 fxg4 17.e3 e6 advantage, Black is going nowhere on the
18.d5 f7 with a double-edged game; queenside. b2 20.dxc5
B) 13.e1 f5 and Black has much more [ 20.d5 is not good because xf5 21.dxc6
play than in the game ] xe4+ is with check ]
11.e1 h6 12.h4 h7 13.d1! 20...d5 21.exd5 xd5+ 22.f3 f6 23.c4
It's funny, but now the position is already xf3+ 24.xf3 Black is a pawn down and
unpleasant for Black. White is ready to start h a s n o g o o d s q u a r e s f o r t h e k n i g h t s h5
the game on the kingside and the last moves Opening the kingside for the white pieces, but
of Black are not helping anything. there was not much to do.
[ 13.f5 it looks tempting to take the second [ 24...e8 25.g5 and White is winning ]
bishop, but Black is fine after xf5 14.exf5 25.gxh5 e7 26.xe7 xe7 27.d4 b7
f6 15.f3 d7 16.g4 fe8 17.h3 d5 28.c6
with chances for both sides ] 1-0
13...e6 Coming back to keep the bishops in
the game.
[ 13...ab8 14.g4 this is the move Black 845 A21
wanted to avoid. Without the bishops, the Gonzales,Jayson 2524
knight will be stronger on f5 xg4 15.xg4 Sadorra,Julio Catalino 2470
f6 16.e2 b5 17.f5 d7 18.cxb5 ch-PHI Finals (4) 03.07.2008
xb5 19.d4 with a slight advantage for [Carsten Hansen]
White ]
[ 13...d7 avoids 14.Bg4 14.b1 b6 15.g4! 1.c4 e5 2.c3
and the bishop is out of play e7 16.f5 ] [ A related line 2.g3 f5 3.d4 was the subject
14.f5 d7 15.g4 ab8 16.e3 h8?! of Kramnik-Bacrot, Moscow 2007. ]
[ 16...a6 looks like a better option, Black 2...f5 3.d4 e4
needs this move to play ...b5 under good [ The text move is considered somewhat
c o n d it i o n s 17.f4 ( 17.h1 b5 18.cxb5 dubious, whereas 3...exd4 is supposed to
axb5 and Black is doing ok) 17...h8 be somewhat more critical ]
18.d2 and White is at least attacking with 4.f3
some danger now. His king can become too [ 4.h3!? was discussed in Friedgood-
e x p o s e d a t s o m e p o i n t b5 19.d4 James, 2000, which can be found in the
is an entertaining position with too many PGN archives. ]
p o s s i b l e c h a n g e s . F o r e x a m p l e : xf5 4...exf3
20.gxf5 cxd4 21.cxd4 exd4 22.xd4 xd4 [ Black's best option is possibly 4...f6!? ]
23.xd4 bxc4 24.xc4 b4 and Black is [ As discussed in my book on 1 c4 e5, White

837
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

h a s t h e b e t t e r c h a n c e s a f t e r 4...b4 9...0-0 10.g5

, for instance: 5.h3 f6 6.d2 e7 7.e3 [ 10.b4!? is also worthwhile of
0-0 8.b3 xc3 ( 8...a5 9.e2 h8 consideration. ]
10.f2 c6 11.f4 d5 12.c5 xc3 13.xc3 10...h6 11.xf6
c7 14.a3 , and White has the clearly [ 11.d2!? ]
better chances, Stuart, P-Ker, A/Auckland 11...xf6 12.e4!?
NZL 2003 ) 9.xc3 d6 10.0-0-0 e8 [ 12.e3!? ]
11.e2 bd7 12.f2 f8 13.f4 d5 12...c6 13.ad1 g5
14.hg1 , and White has the better position [ 13...f7 14.d5 ]
and a simple plan to follow, Petursson, M- 14.exf5?!
Vidarsson, J/ Gardabaer 1996 ] [ 14.d5 e5 is pleasant for Black ]
5.xf3!? [ White, however, can improve further with
[ White can also obtain the better chances 14.d5! , for instance: d8 15.e5! b8
with the simple and straightforward 5.exf3 ( 15...f7 16.fe1 with a very uncomfortable
, e.g. f6 6.d3 d6 7.ge2 c6 8.c2 position for Black. ) 16.f2 a6 17.fe1 ]
g6 9.e3 d7 10.a3 g7 11.0-0-0 0-0 14...xf5
12.b1 Vescovi, G-Rodrigues, A/Itabirito [ While the exchange of queens are in
1998 ] Black's interest due to the open position
5...f6 6.c2 and Black holding the pair of bishops, White
[ At this juncture, in addition to the text move, can ea sily side ste p it. The ref ore Blac k
W h i t e h a s t wo wo r t h wh il e a lt e rn a t i ve s sh o u l d c o n t i n u e h i s d e ve l o p m e n t wi t h
available: A) 6.g3 c6?! ( 6...b4 7.h3 14...xf5!? 15.b3 ab8 with a double-
xc3+ 8.bxc3 d6 9.h4 ) 7.g2 d6 8.0-0 edged position ]
e6?! 9.d5 cxd5 10.cxd5 d7 11.e3 15.d2
, and Black is already in severe trouble, [ White has a couple of alternatives here: A)
Engel, G-Bachler, W/Graz 1995 ] 15.b3 d7 16.c5+!? ( 16.d5 e7
[ B) 6.g5 e7 7.xf6 ( 7.e3 0-0 8.d3 17.e4 b6= ) 16...h8 17.cxd6 cxd6
is quite pleasant for White.) 7...xf6 8.e4 ( 17...xd6 18.b5 d8 19.d5
fxe4 9.xe4 leaves White with the initiative) 18.d5 d8
A) 9...0-0!? with chances to both sides ]
A1) Or 10.xf6+ xf6 11.e2 [ B) 15.e1!? lets Black exchange queens,
( 11.d3 e8+ 12.d2 c6 ) 11...d6 keeping in mind the somewhat soft Black
12.0-0; q u e e n s i d e . xc2 ( 15...g4 16.xf8+
A2) 10.d3 h4+ 11.xh4 xh4+ xf8 17.f2+ f5 18.b5 xf2+
12.g3 h6 13.d2 h5; 19.xf2 g4 20.d2 c8 21.xc6 bxc6
B) 9...e7 10.d3 b4+ 11.d2 xd2+ 22.xa7 a8 23.xc6 xa2 24.e3 )
12.xd2 e7 13.eg5+- 16.xf8+ xf8 17.xc2 g7 18.b5!?
Cuadras Avellana, J-Lopez, E/Catalunya g4 19.f1 e8 20.f2 e2 , and the
1996 ] chances are about even. ]
6...d6 7.g3 15...g6 16.d5
[ White has another good continuation [ The alternatives don't have much to offer
a v a i l a b l e : 7.e3 g6 8.d3 c6 9.a3 f o r W h i t e : 16.b5 f7 17.d5 e5
( 9.0-0!? g7 10.d2 0-0 11.a3 ) 9...g7 18.xe5 xe5 19.xf7 xf7 20.f1 h7
10.b4 0-0 11.0-0 e7 12.d5 Eitel, P- , and Black has almost equalised. ]
Kuehl, R/Germany 1992 ] [ Or 16.d5 f7 17.b4 e6 18.xc7 xc7
7...g6 8.g2 g7 9.0-0 19.d5 f7 20.dxc6 bxc6 21.c1 f6 ]
[ White can also send the king in the 16...e5 17.xe5 xe5
opposite direction with 9.f4 0-0 10.0-0-0!? [ 17...xf1+!? 18.xf1 xe5 19.b5 h7
, a n d wi t h o u t a n e -p a wn f o r B l a c k , h e with an identical position to the one after 16
appears to have a harder time generating Nb5 above in the note after W hite's 16th
real counterplay. ] move. ]

838
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
18.xf8+ xf8 19.b5 g7?!
[ Now Black is getting himself into a bit of
trouble. The correct move is 19...h7! , e.g.
20.d4 ( 20.f1+ g8 21.e2 f5 )
20...g8 21.e6 xe6 22.dxe6 c6
23.h3 , and White's advantage is truly
minimal. ]
20.d4?
[ White returns the favor He can obtain an
advantage with 20.f1+! g8 21.e2 g4
( or 21...a6 22.xc7!! xc7 23.h5 d4+
24.h1 g7 25.e4 ) 22.e4 d7
( 22...a6 23.xc7 xc7 24.g6+ g7
25.e8+ h7 26.e4+ ) 23.xc7 f8
24.e6 xe6 25.dxe6 xb2 26.d1 e5
27.xb7 xb7 28.xb7 , and White has
excellent winning chances. ]
20...g8?!
[ Here 20...xd4+ equalizes effortlessly:
21.xd4 xd4+ 22.xd4 d7 23.e4 a5
. Now on the other hand, White grabs the
initiative once again, and Black has to play
accurately. ]
21.e6 xe6 22.dxe6 c6 23.e2
[ 23.b4 to soften up Black's queenside and
remove Black's protection of the d5-square
makes perfect sense: f6 24.b5!? ( 24.h3
f3 25.d3 xd3 26.xd3 h5 27.f5
f8= ) 24...c8 25.bxc6 bxc6 26.e7 xe7
27.xc6 g7 28.d5 , White's advantage
mainly consists of Black's weak light
squares around the king, whether W hite
can a ct ua lly e xp lo it th is weakne ss is a
different issue altogether. ]
23...e8?!
[ Black continues his parade of inaccuracies.
Instead 23...g4 also leads to a better game
for W hite, e.g. 24.e4 f8 25.b4 f6
26.e7 xe7 27.xg4+ ]
[ whereas 23...g6! challenges White more,
for instance 24.g4 ( 24.b4 initially looks
like a good idea, intending xe6 25.b5
, b u t t h i s p l a n i s r e f u t e d b y d4+
, and it is game over for White.) 24...e8
25.h3 xb2 26.e2 a3 27.f1
, and White has compensation for the pawn,
but not much more than that. ]
24.h3 d4+
[ 24...xb2!? 25.xd6 a3 26.d7 c5+
27.h1 f6 28.a4 ( White can play
28.xb7 , but it invites nothing but problems
after a1+ 29.g2 g1+ 30.f3 h5
31.g7+! h8! (taking the rook loses for
Black) 32.f7 d4 33.g4 h4 , and Black
has successfully dug his way into the game
again. ) 28...e7 29.d1 ]
25.h1 e5??
[ B l a c k s h o u l d h a v e p l a y e d 25...e7
, a n d t h e n o n l y a f t e r a m o ve l i k e 26.b4
Black could proce ed wit h e5 , after
27.d3 c3 28.a3 , White has a small but
clear advantage. ]
26.d3! Game over, Black gets mated or
loses the bishop on d4. f8 27.f1+ e7
28.h7+ g7 29.f7+
1-0
846 A21
Gulko,Boris F 2620
Short,Nigel D 2645
Elenite 1995
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 d6 3.f3 White wishes to
play d4, but should Black capture this, to be
able to recapture with the knight on d4, rather
t h a n t h e qu e e n . f5 Now that Black will not
want to take on d4, he needs to control e4,
ready to answer d4 with ...e4. The alternative
is playing ...Nd7, with a transposition to an
Old Indian. 4.d4 e4 5.g5 Sometimes other
kn igh t m o ve s a re p la ye d , b u t t h is is t h e
modern preference, the knight is unlikely to
rest on g5, but will go to the important square
f 4 , v i a h 3 . c6 Preparing to bolster the e4-
pawn by ...d5,
[ 5...e7 6.h3 c6 will transpose. ]
6.g3 This way White can develop his light-
squared bishop whilst keeping the c1-h6
diagonal open for the use of his brother.
[ 6.h3 a6 7.e3 is the, nowadays less
popular, alternative, ( 7.g3 will transpose)
7...f6 8.f4 c7 planning . ..d5, or ...Ne6,
to challenge W hite's forward knight. 9.d5!
e7 10.b3!? The c1-bishop must be
developed. 0-0 11.b2 d7 12.e2 g5!
with unclear play, Timman,J-Yusupov,A/
Amsterdam 1994. ]
6...e7 7.h3 f6 8.g2
[ 8.d5 is possible here, but it seems to me
that it might be premature as Black's
839
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
queen's knight can 'change course', and
instead of heading for c7, can go to e5.
bd7 9.g2
A) 9...b6!? i s t r i c k y , a s , i f 10.b3?
then Black wins a pawn: ( 10.dxc6 bxc6
11.b3 is better, but equal.) 10...cxd5
11.cxd5 bxd5! 12.xd5 a5+ 13.d2
xd5 Lazarev,V-Gofshtein,L/Oberwart
1993.;
B) 9...e5 10.b3 0-0 11.0-0 e8 12.f3
exf3 13.exf3 f8 14.dxc6?! ( 14.e1
keeps more control, d7 15.e3 c5
16.f4 f7 17.c2 with a space
advan ta ge , Nikolic,P -V an de r W iel,J/
Netherlands (ch) 1997.) 14...bxc6 15.f2
d5! 16.cxd5 a6! 17.e1 c5 18.e3
d3! 19.xd3 xe3+ 20.h1 cxd5
Black's pieces have exploded into life,
Poluljahov,A-Kotsur,P/ Novgorod RUS
1999. ]
8...0-0 9.0-0 a6 A key manoeuvre,
borrowed from the Advance French, the knight
comes to c7, either to prepare the ...d5-push,
or to continue towards the kingside via e6.
10.f3 Attacking the black pawn chain head-on,
but now is a good time for
[ 10.d5 both gaining space in the centre, and
stopping Black from playing ...d5himself.
c7 11.h1 ( 11.f4 is met by g5
with sharp play.) 11...cxd5 12.cxd5 b5!
with the annoying threat of ...b4, winning the
d5-pawn. 13.b4 a5 14.b1 axb4 15.xb4
d7 16.b1 g4 17.f3 exf3 18.exf3 f6
with good play, Piket,J-Adams,M/Tilburg
1996. ]
10...exf3 Black prefers not to defend e4, but
[ 10...c7!? is also possible, 11.fxe4 fxe4
12.d5 b5!? 13.dxc6 bxc4 14.b3! e8
15.f2 xc6 16.cxe4 d5 with chances
f o r b o t h s id e s, P o rt is ch -G u lko , B i e l I Z
1993. ]
11.exf3 c7!? 12.d5 cxd5 13.cxd5 b5!
Black mounts a concerted attack on the d5-
pawn, did this pawn cross the boundary too
soon? 14.b4 A little bit weakening,
[ 14.a3 a5 15.f4 might be an
improvement, b7 can be met by 16.e6
xe6 17.dxe6 unclear. ]
14...a5 15.b1 axb4 16.xb4 d7 17.a3
a6 18.b1 c7 Black is happy to sacrifice
the b-pawn, knowing that his piece activity will
be enough to recuperate the a, or d-pawns.
19.d4
[ 19.xb5 c5+ 20.d4 ab8 21.xc5
xc5 and ...Nxd5, is typical of the
possibilities. ]
19...c5 20.xc5 xc5 The endgame is
pleasant for Black who has two targets- the
w e a k w h i t e q u e e n s i d e p a w n s . 21.e1?!
After this move White's game slips downhill,
[ 21.d1! was necessary, protecting the d-
pawn, and preparing to bring the g2-bishop
into the game on f1. ]
21...d8 22.xb5 d3 23.d1 b6+
B la ck 's ' b a d ' b i sh o p h a s f o u n d a s t r o n g
diagonal. 24.h1 xc1 25.dxc1 c5
26.f4 e3! 27.c4 xb5 Time to garner
the fruits of his previous play, first Black takes
the a-pawn. 28.xb5 xa3 29.b1 fa8
The white king is awkwardly placed, and the
back rank weak. 30.f1 g5 31.e6 xd5
Now Black is a pawn up, and still retains his
positional plusses. 32.c2 a1 33.cb2
c3 34.xa1 xa1 The black pieces are
homing-in for the kill. 35.g2 f7 36.c7
d5 Black has another trump: the passed d-
pawn. 37.d3 g1+ 38.h3 f6?!
[ 38...d1 39.e2 f2+ would have been
more immediate. ]
39.f4 gxf4 40.gxf4 d1? 41.b3!
A clever trick, for if 41...Rxd3 there is 42 Rxc3
Rxc3 43 Nxd5+, drawing. White doesn't give
up, but uses all the resources at his disposal.
d4 42.a6 g6 43.b8 f6 44.b6! e4
45.e8 d2 46.c8 h5 The opposite-colour
bishops may yet prove a problem for Black.
47.d6 xd6 48.xd6 h4 49.e6?
Careless, now Black is back on track . d4
50.d7 e2 51.c6 e3+ 52.g2 h3+
53.f1 f7 54.d7+ e6 55.h7 d3
56.f2 d4 57.d7 c5? Strange, a
computer would play
[ 57...e4+ 58.f3 d2 and queens, without
a moment's reflection. ]
58.d8 f6 59.f1 b6 60.d6+ e7
61.d7+ e6 62.d5 c7 63.d4 f6
Forcing a curious zugzwang. 64.b7
[ 64.b5 would lose to f3+ 65.e1 a5+
66.d1 f1# ]
64...xf4! 65.a6
[ 65.xf4 d2 66.d4 e1+ forces the d-
pawn through. ]
840
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

65...f3+ 66.e1 xh2 67.xd3 g3+ 27.a5

68.e2 White would draw, easily, if he could 1-0
exchange the rooks. f2+ 69.e3 h2
70.d1 f4+ 71.d3 b2 72.c4 e5
Unfortunately, with the rooks on the board, 848 A21
Black wins easily! 73.c3 g2 74.d5+ Gurevich,Mikhail 2694
e4 75.h5 f3 76.d5+ e3 77.h7 e5+ Topalov,Veselin 2702
78.c4 g1 Bosna SuperGM (9) 26.05.2000
0-1 [Tony Kosten]

1.c4 g6 2.c3 g7 3.g3 e5 4.g2 f5

847 A21
Gupta,Abhijeet 2412
Nanjo,Ryosuke 2154
XLIII WJun Kochin IND (1) 20.11.2004
[John Watson]
1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 3.f3 e4 4.g5 f5
5.c3 e7 This has been a reliable system
used by professionals for many years now. It 5...exd4
often arises from the move order 1.c4 e5 2.
Nc3 d6 3.Nf3 f5 4.d4 e4 5.Ng5 Be7. Of course
in that case White has options like 3.g3, 4.g3,
and 5.Bg5!?. 6.h3 f6 7.g3 c6 8.g5
[ 8.g2 0-0!? 9.0-0!? d5 10.cxd5 cxd5
11.g5 e6 12.f4 f7 looks equal. ]
8...e6! 9.d5 cxd5 10.cxd5 f7 11.g2
[ It's hard to get any pressure on Black's
c e n t r e , f o r e x a m p l e , 11.b3 d7
( 11...bd7!? ) 12.xf6 ( 12.e3! ) 12...xf6
13.f4 a6! and with ...Nc5 Black will have 7.f3 f6 8.f4?!
the better game. ]
11...bd7 12.0-0 0-0 13.d2?!
[ 13.b1 b6 14.xf6 xf6 15.f4 ]
13...b6! 14.f3 exf3 15.xf3 d7
[ 15...h6! 16.xf6 ( 16.e3 c4 ) 16...xf6
17.d3 ( 17.f4 c4 ) 17...d7 ( 17...c8!
18.xf5 c4 ) 18.f4 fc8 and Black
seems to have the better of it again.
White's whole setup looks suspect. ]
16.b3 ac8 17.a4 e4? Losing material.
Naturally Black was in no trouble and could
have played
[ 17...h6 ]
18.xe4 fxe4 19.xe4 xh3??
[ But 19...ce8 20.f5 is very strong for
White. ]
20.xe7 fe8 21.f5 h5 22.g4
Trapping the queen. h3 23.f3 xf3
24.exf3 xe7 25.xc8 xc8 26.c1 b6 10...0-0 11.c5 e4 Once again , opening the
An aggressive move, Black makes his
intentions on the kingside clear. 5.d4!?
[ A sharp reaction, White exploits tactical
features of the position to make this
advance, 5.e3 e7 6.ge2 d6 7.d3 ( or
7.d4 ) 7...0-0 8.0-0 a5 9.a3 c6
is more typical, Hort,V-Byrne, R/Sousse
1967. ]
[ Best, 5...e4!? maintains Black's central
pawn, but allows White a plus, 6.g4!? ( 6.f3
is simpler) 6...c6 7.gxf5 gxf5 8.h3!?
xd4 9.d5 d6 10.g5 d7 11.e3 xb2
12.b1 g7 13.h5+ with some initiative,
Miles,A-King,D/Moscow 1990. ]
6.b5 c6
[ Naturally, 6...c5?? allows 7.d6+ ( 7.f4
a6 8.d6+ f8 9.xb7 is also strong)
7...f8 8.xb7 ]
[ White tries to extract the utmost from the
position, but the bishop proves misplaced
here, 8.0-0 is more solid e4! ( 8...d5?
9.f4 ) 9.bxd4 xd4 10.xd4 0-0
( 10...d5? loses a pawn, prettily, 11.cxd5
xd5 12.xf5! xf5 13.a4+ ) 11.b3
is level, Benko, P-Petrosian,T/Curacao
1962. ]
8...d6 9.fxd4
[ A new move, if an exceedingly obvious one,
9.c5!? e4 10.cxd6 cxd6 11.0-0 0-0
12.bxd4 xd4 13.xd4 b6 14.b3
e6 allowed Black sufficient activity to
co u n t e r-b a l a n c e h is we a k d 6 -p a wn , i n
Gaspar,A-Santos,C/Loures 1996. ]
9...xd4 10.xd4!?
[ The logical follow-up, 10.xd4 e4 11.0-0
g5 would allow Black active kingside play. ]
long diagonal a1-h8, for the g7-bishop, and

841
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

u s i n g t h e e 4 - o u t p o st t o r e s t ra in t h e g2 - t rick, t ra p p in g t h e ro o k, b u t t h e t e xt i s
bishop's influence. 12.c4+ d5 13.b4 a5 stronger. ]
14.a3 f7 33.xe3 e6 34.d4 7g5 35.e4 g8
[ 14...c6 15.d6 b6 is also reasonable. ] 36.f4 xc5 37.f5 g7 38.f6+ g6 39.e7
15.d1 g5!? Black plays very aggressively. f7 40.d4 c4+ 41.d3 c6
16.e3 0-1
[ 16.xc7 xc7 17.xc7 xc7 18.xd5
e6!? is dangerous for White. ]
16...e8 17.c3 849 A21
[ 17.d4 also allows f4 ] Hansen,Curt 2635
17...xc3 18.bxc3 f4! 19.gxf4 Sokolov,Ivan 2630
[ 19.d4 f3 20.f1 fxe2 21.xe2 g4 Groningen 1995
22.e3 e4 also leaves White on his [Tony Kosten]
knees. ]
19...gxf4 20.d4 g4 1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 e7
[ 20...f3 21.f1 fxe2 22.xe2 g4 A surprising move, popularised by Shirov.
is also dangerous, but 23.e3 defends for a Black seems happy to lose the pair of bishops,
while. ] h e wi l l p l a c e h i s p a w n s s o l i d l y o n d a r k
21.0-0? squares. 4.d4 d6 5.e4 The most ambitious
[ The kingside will prove to be an move, White takes control of the centre. f6
inhospitable place for the king, perhaps The safest choice, perhaps, Black wishes to
21.f1 was the best try, xe2 22.xe2 f3 oblige White to capture on e7. The alternative
allows 23.d2 fxe2 24.g1 with real is
chances. ] [ 5...c6 although the risk here is that the d6-
21...a6! square might be weakened. 6.xe7 xe7
[ The last piece in the jigsaw, the rook will 7.e2! f6 ( 7...f5!? is too risky, 8.dxe5
make its presence f elt on the kingside. xe5 9.exf5 f6 10.d4! xf5 11.f4
21...xe2 22.xd5 h8 is not so a5+! 12.c3 xc3+ 13.xc3 0-0
effective. ] 14.0-0-0 with an ideal endgame for the
22.f3 bishop pair, and a consequent advantage for
[ This is positionally undesirable, but if W hite, Kasparov, G-Shirov,A/Novgorod
22.xd5? then g6 23.h1 xe2 1994. ) 8.f3 ( 8.c3 may well be superior.)
threatens mate on f3, and wins. ] 8...d5!? 9.dxe5 xe5 10.c2?! dxe4
22...f5 23.f2 g6 24.f1?! 11.f4 f5 12.0-0-0 0-0 13.c3 c5 14.g4
[ This loses a piece. 24.h1 was a better e6 Smirin,I-Stisis,Y/Tel Aviv ISR 1999, but
bet, but although White may have avoided Black's computer-like pawn grabbing came
immediate mate, his position is still awful. ] out on top. ]
24...xd4 25.xd4 fg7 6.xe7 xe7 7.f3 Black has a lead in
With an unstoppable threat of capturing the g2- de ve lo pm en t, bu t, m uch as in t he 4 Q c 2
bishop. 26.xd5 h3 Nimzo, unless he manages to achieve
[ 26...xg2 27.xg2 h3 also wins. ] something concrete with it, White's bishop pair,
27.b3 and space advantage, will gradually come
[ 27.xh3?? g1# ] into their own. exd4 8.xd4 c6 9.c3 0-0
27...h8 28.d1 xg2+ 10.e3 A perfectly logical move, preparing to
[ It is surprising that White plays on, which evacuate the king to the queenside if
suggests that Black was short of time. Here, n e ce ssa ry, a n d p o ss ib ly b e t t e r t h a n t h e
28...xg2 29.xg2 xg2 30.d4+ g8 alternative
is even more straightforward. ] [ 10.e2 although this might transpose. ]
29.e1 h3 30.d4 g1+ 31.d2 e3+ 10...e8 11.e2 e5 12.f4
32.xe3 fxe3+ Both continuing development, and keeping an
[ 32...d1+ 33.xd1 fxe3 is an amusing eye on d5. g6 13.0-0-0 xf4 14.xf4 a6

842
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Hoping to generate some queenside play, with is desirable, but more chances were offered
...b5, but it may be too late for Black as White by
has almost completed his development and [ 43...c8 cutting the white king off from the
can start making his trumps count. 15.h4 e6 defence of the kingside. ]
16.g4 With a strong hold on the centre, White 44.b4 xd2 45.xd2 f6 46.c4 a2
can happily advance on the kingside, Black 47.d3 a3+ 48.e2 The white king has
risks being flattened. d7 17.g5 b5?! come back, winning with the limited number
Black's best chance lay in of pawns remaining will take care. f7 49.f4
[ 17...f8! planning to answer h5 with ...f5, a5 50.gxf6 xf6 51.f2 h5?
and thereby attempting to put up some sort Black misses the clear-cut line
of defence on the kingside. ] [ 51...g5 52.e3 g6 53.f4 g4 54.f5+
18.h5 f8? After this, the game slides quickly h5 55.f4 a3 when White has two
out of Black's finger-tips, connected passed pawns, but his king is cut-
[ 18...f6 was better, although Black is really of f , and stopping the g4-pawn won't be
struggling. ] easy. ]
19.h6 g6 Black's dark squares are horrifically 52.e3 h2+ Now, if
weak, and of course he has no bishop to [ 52...g5 then 53.d4+ g6 54.g7
d e f e n d t h e m ! 20.xd6! The thematic dark- defends the h6-pawn. ]
squared explosion. b4 53.g3 e2 54.d4+ g5 55.g7
[ If 20...cxd6 then 21.xd6 wins the black The black king cannot pass, and the position
queen, which cannot leave g7 undefended. ] is therefore drawn. e3 56.f8 b3 57.g7
21.d4 ad8 22.xd7? A bad mistake that h5 58.f8 g5 59.f2 b2+ 60.e3 b7
ruins White's previous fine play, 61.g7 f7 62.e2 h4 63.e3 g3
[ 22.xa6! wa s st r o n g, a s c5 23.f6 Black has managed to force the white king
xa6? allows mate in five, starting 24.e5 ] away, but at a cost, it is now perfectly-placed
22...xd7 Now Black is fine, and may even be to aid the passed e-pawn. 64.e5 h4
better. 23.b3 h3 24.b2 xf1 25.xf1 [ 64...xf3+ 65.e4 g4 66.e6 a3 67.e7
d3 26.xc7 c3+ 27.b1 c5 a8 68.f5 will be drawn, but only if Black
Black has managed to free the queen from is careful. ]
the defence of g7. 28.f4 d8 29.e2 d4 65.f6 h5 66.e4 g6
30.c1 a5? Black's turn to err, [ 66...xh6 67.f5 is simple for White. ]
[ h e s h o u l d k e e p q u e e n s o n b y 30...d3 67.f4 gxf4 68.xf4 f8 69.e4 xh6
31.b2 c5 as the endgame is more 70.f5 e8 71.e6 h5 72.g7 xe6
dangerous for Black than it might appear at ½-½
first sight. ]
31.b2 d3+ 32.xd3 cxd3 33.f2
[ 33.g7! would have asked some searching 850 A21
questions, for how will Black manage to Hodgson,Julian M 2570
extricate his king from g8? ] Psakhis,Lev 2585
33...f8 Phew! 34.c2 e3 35.e5 e8 Metz 1994
36.c7 c3+ 37.b2 a8 The position is [Tony Kosten]
level. 38.a3? A time-trouble mistake, worried
bout the further advance of the black a-pawn, 1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.g3 This is certainly a
White tries to stop it, and only encourages it! very logical reply, White ignores the threat to
Preparation of the c-pawn's advance was his pawn structure and continues his
called-for. a4! 39.bxa4 xc4 40.d6 bxa3+ d e v e l o p m e n t . xc3 Little point putting the
41.xa3 cxa4+ Black has liquidated the bishop on b4 unless Black plays this. 4.bxc3
queenside pawns, and has obtained a serious d6 5.g2 f5 Perhaps a trifle over-optimistic,
advantage again. Can Black set-up some sort Black wants to play as in a Grand-Prix Attack
of f o rt re s s ? 42.b3 4a6 43.d2 d8 reversed. 6.c5! If this is good, it is the
Forcing the exchange of a pair of rooks, which refutation of Black's previous move. W hite

843
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
frees the position for his bishops, and rids
himself of his doubled pawn.
[ 6.d4 is much less critical. ]
6...dxc5 Black shows no fear, of course he
doesn't want White to capture on d6, when he
will have no compensation for the bishop pair,
but
[ 6...d5!? is possible. ]
7.a3 d6 8.d4! No expense spared in
opening the position! exd4 9.cxd4 xd4
10.c1! A computer would be very happy with
this position, I suppose, Black has two extra
p a w n s , a f t e r a l l . f6 Black attempts to
complete his development, defending the c-
pawn by
[ 10...d7? w o u l d a l l o w 11.b2
12.f3 g6 13.h5! deviating the queen
from her defence of g7, and winning
material. ]
11.h3 White is in no rush to capture the c-
pawn, but prefers to complete his
development. d7 12.0-0 e7 13.b2 f7
14.e4!? White further exposes the soft black
underbelly, but
[ 14.e3! was also good, with a strong
initiative. ]
14...0-0 15.g5 g6 16.exf5 xf5 17.e1
The strong b2-bishop, and awkwardly -placed
black knights, cause Black no end of
problems. d5
[ 17...xg5? e n c o u n t e r s 18.f4
19.xe7 and Black will soon lose. ]
18.h4! 7b6 19.xc5 Black was obliged to
return a pawn to develop his queenside. c6
20.e4 White decides to 'cash-in' but 20 h5!
was more in the spirit of his previous play. h6?
[ 20...a4! would change the powerful b2-
b i s h o p , w h e n B l a c k wo u l d h a ve s o m e
compensation for the exchange he is about
to lose. ]
21.f3 a4 Too late! 22.c2
23.d4! Of course, the b2-knight is going
nowhere, and now White can take the f5-rook
with his knight. e7 24.xf5 xf5 25.xb2
White is no ahead on material, and retains
t h e b e t t e r p o s i t i o n , s o s h o u l d w i n . f7
26.c2! c5
[ 26...e6? would not have successfully
countered the threat of 27 Bb3, because of
the evident 27.xe6! xe6 28.b3 ]
27.b5! Renewing the menace of Bb3. e6
28.xc5 c8 29.xc8+! After 29...Bxc8 30
Bb3, W hite finds himself in an ending with
two extra exchanges.
1-0
851 A21
Illescas Cordoba,Miguel 2605
Arencibia Rodriguez,Walter 2550
Spanish Teams (1) 05.09.1998
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 d6 3.d4 exd4 4.xd4 c6
[ 4...f6 5.g3 c6 6.d2 will transpose. ]
5.d2 g6 6.b3 There is no reason to defer
g4 t h e d e ve lo p m e n t o f t h e q u e e n 's b i s h o p ,
although it is quite playable:
[ 6.g3 g7 7.g2 f6 8.h3 0-0 9.f4
Getting a grip of d5. a5 10.0-0 e8
11.e1?! ( Now would certainly be a good
time for 11.b3 , with an edge.) 11...a4
Forcing W hite to prepare the b3-move.
12.b1 d7 13.b3 axb3 14.axb3 ce5!
15.c2 c5 16.b4 f5 17.e4 e6!
and the e1-rook allowed Black to conjure-
up favourable complications, Petursson,M-
Anand,V/Manila 1990. ]
6...g7 7.b2 f6 8.g3 The best time to
develop the king's bishop. 0-0 9.g2 f5?!
[ 9...e8 might be superior, and if 10.h3
g6 d5 exploiting the h3-knight's temporary
sojourn on h3. ]
10.h3 e8 11.f4! This way round Black
fails to liberate his position, White's hold on
d5 should give him a certain plus. e5 12.0-0
c6 13.e4 The problem for Black is that his
pieces can be driven away from their,
apparently active, posts. g4 14.f3 b6+
15.h1 d7 16.ad1 White has finished his
development, and has a consequent space
xb2 a d v a n t a g e . g5?! 17.d3 g4
Black, understandably, tries to generate some
play, but only succeeds in compromising his
position. 18.xe5 dxe5 19.f4 Suddenly
Black is lost, the tactics are working against
him. ad8
[ Not 19...exf4? 20.xf4 with unstoppable
threats along the f-file ]
20.fxe5 xe5 21.a4 White picks-up the
exchange, but the d-f ile pin assures that
Black will obtain absolutely no compensation
844
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
for it. c7 22.f4! Precise to the end. de8
23.xe5 xe5 24.xd7! A further, killing,
blow. xd7 25.xf7+ h8 26.d1
Winning significant material.
1-0
852 A21
Iordachescu,Viorel 2584
Kritz,Leonid 2571
16th Monarch Assurance (7) 28.09.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 e7 4.d4 d6
5.f3 c6 6.xe7
[ This is the normal move, White can also
retreat his knight, although this leads to an
Old Indian with an extra tempo for Black
6.c3 d7 ( 6...c7 7.e4 f6 8.e2 0-0
9.0-0 h6 10.h3 e8 11.e1 f8 12.d5 a5
13.e3 with a typical Old Indian type set-up
for Black, and a white space advantage
that matches W hite has a slight plus,
Gofshtein, L-Stisis, Y/Panormo 2001) 7.g3
gf6 8.g2 0-0 9.0-0 b8 10.c2 a6
11.d1 c7 12.c5 e8 13.g5 h6
14.cxd6 xd6 15.dxe5 xe5 16.xe5
hxg5 17.c4 e5 18.d6 d8
Felecan, F-Nanu, C/Tusnad 1997 19.xc8
bxc8 20.f5 with a better game for White ]
6...xe7 7.c5
[ The text move markedly sharpens the battle
with immediate effect. White has a couple
alternatives here: A) 7.g5 f6 8.e3
( 8.d2 g4 9.dxe5 dxe5 10.b3 a6
11.e3 0-0-0 12.a4 b8 13.a5 b6
14.c5 xc5 15.xg4 bxa5 16.c1
Grant, J-Shaw, J/Scottish Ch 1994) 8...a6
9.g3 f7
A) 10.d2 f5 11.g2 f6 Gulko
( 11...f4? 12.e4! Gulko );
B) 10.b3 e7 11.g2 0-0 , and Black
has a very decent position, Renet, O-
Gulko, B/St Martin 1993 ]
[ B) 7.e3 f6 8.h3 ( 8.e2 0-0 9.0-0 g4
10.h3 h5 11.b4 bd7 12.a4 fe8
13.b2 ad8 14.e1 f8 15.b5 c5=
Hansen, C-Lutz, C/Groningen 1993/) 8...0-0
9.e2 e4 10.0-0 d7 11.c2 f5 12.b3
c5 13.b2 b6 14.d3 b7 15.d5 df6=
Lutz, C-Renet, O/Kaufbeuren 1993 ]
7...e4 8.cxd6 xd6 9.e5 e6 10.b3 b5
Thus far everything has been played before,
and that was nearly a decade and a half ago.
11.f3!?
[ In the only previous encounter in this line,
White instead went with 11.h3 e7
A) 12.e3 f6 ( If 12...h5 then 13.e2 g6
14.0-0 f6 15.c2 fxe5 16.dxe5 d7
17.xe4 d5 18.c2 with messy
complications is acceptable for W hite)
13.g4 d7 14.b2 d8 15.e2 f5
16.h2 0-0 , and Black has the upper
hand;
B) 12.b2?! A brave and gutsy move, but
at the same time a very bad one too. h5
13.c2 f6 14.xe4 fxe5 15.dxe5 d5
16.c2 a6 17.e4 c5 , and White has
nowhere near enough compensation for
the piece, Miles, A-Mainka, R/
Copenhagen 1993 ]
11...f6 12.g4 xg4
[ Black shouldn't necessarily rush to make
this exchange, but clearly Black thinks this
will leave him with a long term advantage.
A l t e r n a t i v e l y , 12...e7 13.f2 exf3
14.gxf3 f5 15.g2 0-0 16.0-0
like ly f ollowed by e2 -e4 will le a d t o a n
unclear position ]
13.fxg4 e7 14.g3 h5
[ 0.64 Deep Shredder 10: 14...a6 15.g2
b4+ 16.d2 e3 17.xb4 xb4 18.e4
bd5 19.b2 ]
15.g5 f5 16.f4 b4+ 17.d2 xd2+
18.xd2 g6 19.e3 xf4 20.gxf4 g6
The smoke has cleared and we are down to a
position with two rooks and a minor piece on
both sides. W hite has a clear advantage
thanks to his ability to break with both a2-a4
and d4-d5 in addition to penetrating on the
dark squares with the king, play along the
open c-file with his rooks and the fact that
nearly all of Black's pawns are fixed on light
squares, the colour of White's bishop. 21.a4!
bxa4
[ The alternative pretty much sucks too:
21...b4 22.a5 e7 23.a4 c5 24.dxc5
d8+ 25.c2 d7 26.xb4 xc5 27.c4
, and White is a pawn up and should win the
endgame ]
22.bxa4
[ White figures the b-file will be even more
845
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
useful to him than the a-file, though 22.xa4
h7 23.a5 b7 24.c4 d7 25.ha1
also looks promising for White ]
22...h7 23.e2
[ 23.b1 c7 24.e2 d7
transposes to the game continuation.
( 25.hc1!? )]
23...c7 24.a5
[ 24.hc1!? ]
24...d7 25.ab1 e7 26.hc1 d6
27.c4 f8
[ 27...b8 28.f7 xb1 29.xb1 f8
30.c4 c5 31.d5 d7 32.c3 e7
33.a6 followed by Bb7-c6, and White will
penetrate decisively on the queenside. ]
28.a6 c5 29.b7
[ W h i t e c a n a l s o c o n s i d e r 29.b5!?
, f o r e x a m p l e : cxd4 30.xc7
31.xe3 xc7 32.b7+ d6 33.xa7
b8 34.c4 , and White has every chance
of winning, but Iordachescu undoubtedly
prefers to keep matters simple and waits to
open up the position ]
29...b8?!
[ Here 29...cxd4!? looks like a better shot, e.
g. 30.exd4 b6! 31.a6 xc1 32.xc1
d5 33.xd5 xd5 34.c7
, and this is no longer a win for White ]
30.a6 e8
[ Now 30...cxd4 isn't as strong as on the
previous move, because White doesn't need
to spend a tempo guarding the bishop on b7,
and therefore gains a winning advantage
with 31.exd4 xc1 32.xc1 f8 33.e3
d8 34.d5 e7 35.d4 d6 36.c6+ ]
31.b5 d8 32.c4 e8 33.c2 f8
34.b3 b8 35.a3 f8 36.c2 b8
37.b2 f8
[ 1.35 Deep Shredder 10: 37...h4 38.h3 c4
39.c3 b6 40.b4 e6 41.c1 e7 ]
38.c4 b8 39.c2 f8 40.b3 b8
41.b2 f8 42.c1 b8 43.d1 f8
44.b2 cxd4 After a bit of shadow boxing to
get past the time control, Black decides to
exchange on d4 before White place a rook on
d 2 a f t e r w h i c h t h i n g s c a n b e c o m e ve r y
un co m f o rt a ble . 45.xc7 xc7 46.c2+
b6?!
[ This isn't exactly the best place, though it is
hard to fault Black for not wanting to put his
king on the back row. One line runs
46...d8 47.exd4 e8 48.d5 e7 49.e2
g8 50.c7 d6 51.c6+ e7 52.c8
d8 53.xd7 xd7 54.xg6 xd5
55.g7+ and White wins without too many
25.a5 headaches. ]
47.c6+ b5 48.exd4 b6 49.xg6
Now the win is elementary - the g-pawn will
decide d8 50.f6 xd4+ 51.e1 a4
52.xf5+ c4 53.g6 c3 54.g7
1-0
853 A21
Kelly,Brian 2390
Speelman,Jonathan S 2605
ch-GBR, ENG Torquay (3) 1998
[Tony Kosten]
dxe3+
1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 This is an alternative
method of reaching this position, which will be
of interest to anyone thinking of playing this
line as black, against 1 c4. however, there are
two things to note with this move-order, first
White can play 2 e4, with likely transposition
into a Pirc, and secondly, 3 dxe5 dxe5 4
Qxd8+ is possible, and although this ending is
xd4 fine for Black, it might not be to everyone's
taste. 3.f3 e4 4.g5 f5 5.c3 c6 6.f3!?
A more direct approach, aiming to dissolve
the black centre before black has time to
defend it. e7
[ 6...exf3 is not bad either, 7.xf3 f6 8.e3
g6 9.d3 g7 10.0-0 0-0 11.c2 a6
12.a3 c7 13.d2 d5 14.b3 h8
and with a firm hold on e4, Black has no
reason to be unhappy, Hodgson,J-van der
Wiel,J/ Amsterdam 1995. ]
7.h3 f6 Black prefers to keep his e-pawn
for the moment. 8.g5 0-0 9.e3 White is
loathe to capture on e4 because of the
opening of the h3-c8 diagonal.
[ 9.b3 h6 10.xf6 xf6 11.0-0-0
is another way to castle long, but the black
f 6 -b is h o p l o o k s o m i n o u sl y s t r o n g , exf3
12.exf3 h8 13.f4 e8 stopping h4-5
because of the threat to play ...Qe3+, and
then driving the knight away by 14...g5,
Than Soe Aung-Mas,H/ Yangon MYA
1999. ]
9...a6 10.d2 c7 11.0-0-0 The white
king looks quite safe here, but appearances
846
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

can be deceptive! d5 Black has managed to 0-0 11.e2 d7 12.g3 a5 with an unclear
keep his e-pawn safe, and can now give it position in Xu Jun-Adams, Yerevan 1996.
further support. 12.cxd5 fxd5! d5 provides Black is ready to play Nc5 and Bf6 etc. ]
a fine square for a black knight, Black keeps 7...a6 8.g3 The fianchetto doesn't really fit
e4 def ended with tactical motif s. 13.xe7 in with the d4-d5 advance. Maybe he should
xe7 14.c4 play
[ 14.fxe4 fxe4 15.xd5 xd5 16.f2 [ 8.f4 to aim for the Xu Jun line given
is passive. ] above. ]
14...e6 15.f2?! Black achieves an edge 8...f6 9.g2 c7 10.0-0 0-0 11.f3
after the following exchanges, but if After this White's centre proves too loose and
[ 15.fxe4 fxe4 16.xd5 then xd5 Benjamin plays in incisive style to further
17.xd5 xd5 and White doesn't have time soften up White's defences. cxd5 12.cxd5
for Nf4, because the a2-pawn is hanging. ] b5! 13.b4 a5! 14.a3 a6 15.b1 d7
15...xc3 16.xc3 exf3 Black picks the right 16.d4 h5 17.fc1
time to capture this pawn, the white central [ If 17.fxe4 f6 18.d2 axb4 ( 18...b6+!?
pawns will be very loose. 17.gxf3 xc4 19.h1 fc8 ) 19.xb4 xb4 20.xb4
18.xc4+ h8 19.de1 d5 20.d1 a5 looks awkward for White. ]
An ugly move, White would like to play Nd3-e5, 17...f6 18.e3 e5 19.f4 xc3 20.xc3
but he doesn't have the time, axb4 21.xb4 xb4 22.xb4 xa2 23.a3
[ 20.e2 ae8 and White has to play xa3 24.xa3 b6+ 25.e3 f6 26.d4
21.d1 anyway. ] c5 27.b3 a8 28.f1 a3
20...b5! Switching attack from the centre to 0-1
t h e q u e e n s i d e . 21.e2 c5 22.xb5
W h a t e ls e ? fc8 23.b1 ab8 24.a5
The black attack has developed quickly, but 855 A21
wh a t n e xt ? cxd4! Black throws a piece onto Kramnik,Vladimir 2788
the fire. 25.xd5 c7 26.a3 Forced. c2+ Svidler,Peter 2738
27.a1 Tal Memorial Blitz blitz (2) 29.08.2008
[ 27.a2 is scarcely better, c4 28.e5 [Carsten Hansen]
b3+ 29.b1 d3 and Black should win. ]
27...c3! The threat is 28...Rxa3+. 28.a2 1.c4 e5 2.c3 d6 3.g3 f5 4.d4
cb3 This is White's most aggressive response to
[ 28...cb3 if 29.xd4 then xa3+ 30.xa3 Black's set-up. I have preferred 4 Bg2 in my
b3# ] own games, following up with 5 e3, 6 Nge2, 7
0-1 0-0, 8 d3, and then either f2-f4 or Rb1 and a
p a w n a d v a n c e o n t h e q u e e n s i d e . e4!?
Svidler goes for a fairly obscure line that is
854 A21 seen only very rarely in games invo lvin g
Kleist,F strong players. Alternatives such as 4...Nc6 or
Benjamin,Joel 2577 4...Be7 allow early queen exchanges after 5
Canadian Open (4) 10.07.2000 dxe5 and are considered slightly better for
[Neil McDonald] White and therefore they can be thought of as
right up Kramnik's alley. There are more
1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 3.f3 e4 4.g5 f5 de ta ils on t his in t he P DF e -b oo k on t h e
5.c3 e7 6.h3 c6 7.d5 By advancing his King's English. The text move was first played
d p a w n W h i t e p r e v e n t s B l a c k f r o m by Tal. 5.h3
consolidating his pawn chain with d4-d5, as [ This move was given as interesting in my
occurred for example in Estremera Panos- book on 1 c4 e5, but without further details
Georgiev. However, this move seems and the ECO doesn't mention it all, but
premature here. A more solid method was compare with the lines after 1 c4 e5 2 Nc3
[ 7.e3 f6 8.f4 a6 9.h4 c7 10.d5 d6 3 Nf3 f5 4 d4 e4 5 Ng5, and now after

847
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
both main moves 5...c6 and 5...Be7, White
chooses set-ups involving Nh3 and g2-g3.
Therefore you would think that White should
have a safe edge, having spared a couple of
tempi by developing the knight to h3 in one
go. The alternative is 5.f3 , which is also
what is mentioned in the ECO: f6
A) 6.g5!? exf3 7.exf3 e7 8.d3 0-0
( The sharp 8...c5!? looks like a much
better way for Black to proceed.) 9.ge2
h5 10.xe7 xe7 11.d2 c6 12.0-0-0
, and White has the better chances, Frog,
I-Yuferov, S/Moscow 1989;
B) 6.g2 exf3 7.xf3 g6 ( 7...e7 8.0-0
0-0 9.d3 c6 10.a3 a6 11.g5 d7
12.ae1 with a comfortable edge for
W hite, Lerner, K-Savchenko, S/St
Petersburg 1992) 8.0-0 g7 9.d5 ( 9.e4
fxe4 10.g5 0-0 11.gxe4 xe4
12.xf8+ xf8 13.xe4 c6 14.e3
f5 , and Black already had nothing to
worry about in Toran Albero, R-Tal, M/
Ob e rh au s e n (E U-chT )1 9 6 1) 9...0-0
10.g5 e7 ( 10...e8 11.e4 a6
is given as unclear in the ECO, but White
may have a little initiative) 11.e4 xe4
12.gxe4 fxe4 13.xf8+ xf8 14.xe4
g7 , and Black has a comfortable game,
McNab, C-Kilgour, corr 1993. I think it is
safe to say that Black doesn't have much
t o wo r r y a b o u t i n t h e l i n e a f t e r 5 f 3 ,
provided the suggestion of 8...c5!? holds
up in the 6 Bg5 line. ]
5...f6
[ This strikes me as a little odd. Usually in the
3 Nf 3 f 5 4 d4 e4 5 Ng5 line, Black only
commits to this move later. Black has a
couple of alternatives here: A) 5...g6 6.g5
f6 7.f4 g7 8.h4 c6 9.h5 f7 10.d2
a6 11.0-0-0 c7 12.f3 exf3
was Vanderwaeren, S-Lanzani, M/Haifa (EU-
c h T ) 1 9 8 9 , a n d n o w t h e s i m p l e 13.exf3
would have left White with a position that
is nothing short of outstanding. ]
[ B) 5...c6 6.g2 e7 7.f3 exf3 8.exf3
f6 9.d5 e5 10.f4 f7 11.g1 ( 11.f2
0-0 12.e3 looks very comfortable for
White. But in the game W hite is targeting
the soft e6-square.) 11...0-0 12.ge2 e8
13.0-0 Kourkounakis, I-Myhrvold, R/
Gausdal 1992 ]
[ C) 5...c6 6.g2 f6 7.g5 e7 8.f4
a6 9.e3 0-0 10.b3 c7 11.0-0-0
, Lappalainen, S-Tuutti, P/Finland 2001, and
here Black can equalize with g4 12.xe7
xe7 ]
6.g2
[ Either here or on the next move, White
should give serious thought to 6.g5!? ]
6...e7
[ Or 6...g6 7.f3 exf3 8.exf3 g7 9.0-0 0-0
10.d5 bd7 11.b5!? e5 12.b3 h5
13.g5 d7 14.d4 Galego, L-Leonardo,
J/Lisbon POR 2007 ]
7.0-0 0-0 In the main line with 3 Nf3 f5 4 d4
e4, White normally only reaches this position
with Black having played ...c6 already and is
now to move again (3 Nf3 f5 4 d4 e4 5 Ng5 c6
6 g3 Be7 7 Nh3 Nf6 8 Bg2 0-0 9 0-0). So with
two extra tempi White should be on top here,
yet in our main game he goes down in a hurry.
8.d5
[ In an earlier game, White played the equally
good 8.f4!? c6 9.h4 ( 9.f3!? ) 9...h8
10.b3 a6 11.f3 exf3 12.exf3 c7
13.e1 Mascarinas, R-Romero Holmes, A/
Novi Sad 1990 ]
8...c5?!
[ Here Black can consider 8...bd7!? 9.f4
e5 with an interesting position and
chances to both sides ]
9.f4 a6 10.f3 exf3 11.exf3 c7
12.e1 e8 13.d3 d7!? 14.xf5?!
[ White's last chance of retaining the
advantage is 14.e6!? xe6 15.dxe6 f8
16.d5 , and White is in control ]
14...e5 15.e6 xe6 16.dxe6 f6
17.f4?!
[ After this weak move, Black takes over the
initiative. Instead White should have given
preference to 17.d5 , e.g. xe6 18.xf6+
gxf6 19.c2 f7 , and although Black will
pick up the c4-pawn, W hite will have
adequate compensation ]
17...xe6 18.c2 g4 19.f3?!
[ White is playing too passively. A radical
and better choice is 19.xe6 d4+ 20.h1
f2+ 21.g1 xe6 22.d5 f6 23.g2
h8 , and Black has the better chances,
though White can still play. ]
19...xc4 20.xe8+ xe8 21.e4?! d4+
22.g2 d5 23.d2?! g6 24.e1?
848
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ Everything is pretty ugly at this point, but Black might have thought that the d-pawn is
relatively best is 24.c1 e3+ 25.xe3 untouchable because of the fork on b5, the a-
xe3 , though this too is clearly better for pawn being pinned, but it was probably his
Black. ] only chance:
24...f2 25.e3 d3 26.e2 b4 [ 27...xd6 28.b5 axb5 29.xa7 bxc4
0-1 30.c7 d3 31.xe5 White is better, but
can he win? ]
28.xe5 xc4 29.d1 f7 30.e7 a5
856 A21 The black a-pawn looks dangerous, but it is
Lalic,Bogdan 2530 the white d-pawn that is the real match-winner.
Ivanov,Alexey 2455 31.d4! a4 32.f4 g6 33.e6
Maidstone 1994 With a powerful triple attack, on a7, d8, and
[Tony Kosten] g7. aa8
[ 33...xe7 34.dxe7 d1+ 35.f2 f7
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 The critical allows the pretty finish: 36.e8+! xe8
reply. a5 4.b4 c6 Clearly forced. 5.bxa5 37.f8# ]
cxd5 6.cxd5 xa5 7.e4 The dust has 34.xd8 a3 35.e6 a2 The a-pawn is
settled, and White has gained the bishop pair, u n s t o p p a b l e ? 36.xg7+ h8 37.a7!
and a space advantage in the centre, but has No, 37...Rxa7 is impossible because of 38 Rf8
yet to develop a piece. f6 8.f3 d6 9.e2 mate, and the other alternative is:
The knight is coming to the g3, or c3-square, [ 37.a7 a1+ 38.xa1 xa1+ 39.f2
a s a p p r o p r i a t e . 0-0 10.b2 a6 a8 to stop Rf8 mate, 40.d7 and the d-
Black intends to place this piece on c5, and pawn queens. ]
then play for ...f5. He must be quick, for if 1-0
White completes his development, and plays
d4, he will have a dominating position. 11.c3
Chasing the queen from its aggressive post. 857 A21
a3 Obvious, but it doesn't work out too well, Lautier,Joel 2666
perhaps he should have retreated. 12.d4 d7 Fressinet,Laurent 2637
13.b3! Showing-up the problem of Black's ch Val d'Isere FRA (4) 19.08.2004
eleventh, the endgame is very pleasant for [Tony Kosten]
White. xb3 14.axb3 f5 15.exf5 c7
16.dxe5 xe5 Black is fighting hard to 1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 a5!?
d e s t r o y t h e w h i t e c e n t r e . 17.xe5! Well, we've looked at almost every other legal
It is always difficult to give-up such a piece, move in this position, it was time we looked at
but it has to be made for tactical reasons, the this one! 4.a3 e7 Now the position
newly-created d-pawn will decide the game. r e s e m b l e s a 3 . . . B e 7 v a r i a t i o n , w i t h t h e
dxe5 18.g3 e8 Black must try to a d d i t i o n o f a 3 a n d . . . a 5 - I wo u l d h a v e
blockade the d-pawn. thought this favoured Black, but lets see what
[ 18...xf5? would demonstrate the point of happens afterwards. 5.d4 d6 6.f3
White's 17th move: 19.d6 this pawn is now [ 6.e4 also makes sense, c6 7.xe7 xe7
passed, e8 20.c4+ h8 21.xf5! xf5 8.e3 f6 9.f3 0-0 10.e2 with a white
22.d7 d6 23.xa7! winning. ] plus, Schaller,S-Kalinitschew,S/Chemnitz
19.c4 d6 20.e4 Absolutely correct, 1997. ]
W h i t e m u s t b r e a k t h e b l o c k a d e - b y 6...e4!? The sharpest possibility.
exchanging the blockader. xc4 21.bxc4 [ 6...c6 7.xe7 xe7 8.g5 ( 8.c5!? ) 8...f6
xf5 22.d6 b6 23.0-0 g6 24.fe1 9.e3 c5!? 10.dxc5 dxc5 11.g3 c7
The frailty of the a7 and e5-pawns 12.g2 e7 looks OK for Black, although
guarantees White a plus. fd8 25.b5 a6 White has the bishop pair, and went on to
26.c7 a7 27.d6! 'Passed pawns must be win, Renet,O-Glek,I/ Groningen 1992. ]
pushed'. d3? This loses to a nice tactic. 7.d2 f5!? An aggressive new move,

849
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

supporting the e-pawn and gaining some
space on the kingside.
[ 7...c6 8.c3 f5 is similar, 9.e3 f6 10.f3
d5 11.cxd5 cxd5 12.b5+ c6 13.fxe4
fxe4 14.0-0 0-0 and Black was doing well in
Zak,U-Luther,T/Catalan Bay ENG 2003. ]
8.b1! This move is worth an exclamation
mark because of the thought behind it! White
prepares to bring this knight to c3 to further
control d5, and meanwhile his dark-squared
b is h o p i s f re e t o m o ve ( h e wo u ld like t o
develop this outside the pawn chain before
playing e3). d7
[ 8...c6 is another possibility, White will
hardly play Nc3 here, as t his square is
p r o m i s e d t o t h e b 1 - k n i g h t , s o : 9.xe7
( 9.f4!? f6 10.c3 ) 9...xe7 10.f4
f6 11.e3 0-0 12.c3 with the two
bis ho ps an d h armo nio us de ve lop me nt ,
although Black has more space. ]
9.bc3 df6 10.f4 h5 Black refrains
from ...c6 once again, and drives the bishop
back . 11.d2
[ 11.b5?! is very dodgy: c6 12.dc7+ f8
13.xa8 xf4 and Black gets two pieces
for the rook, as 14.c3 d7 and the knight
on a8 is lost. ]
11...hf6 12.f4 h5 13.d2 hf6 14.e3
White decides to refuse the repetition, even
though this means hemming his bishop in. c6
Finally! 15.xe7 xe7 16.c2 0-0 17.f4!?
White coul d play to attack the centre by f3,
but as Black can easily defend this by ... d5,
instead Lautier closes the kingside (much as
in some lines of the French) to play on the
queenside. d7
[ 17...exf3!? is risky, 18.gxf3 and White will
castle long and has a mobile centre, and the
open g-file. ]
18.e2 b8 Black also has designs on this
sector of the board. 19.a4!? White puts paid
to possibilities of ...b5, and prepares to play
Rb1 and b4 with pressure on the b-file.
[ 19.0-0 is also good, as Black cannot really
play b5?! b e c a u s e o f 20.cxb5
21.xb5! xb5 22.b3+ h8 23.xb5
b6 24.a4 with a good pawn more. ]
19...h8 20.0-0 h6 21.ab1
A lt h o u gh i t s e e m s ri gh t t o a t t a ck o n t h e
kingside, the problem is that Black weakens
the a1-h8 dia gonal, and he has n o dark-
squared bishop to counter White's.
[ 21...e6 is more sensible, although 22.b4
axb4 23.xb4 b6 24.fb1 is more pleasant
for White who has a straightforward plan of
attack on the b-file. ]
22.b4 axb4 23.xb4 g6 24.b2
Aiming at b7 while at the same time lining-up
threats against the black king. c8 25.d5
a8 26.h1 h7 The king has to get off the
l o n g d i a g o n a l s o o n e r o r l a t e r . 27.dxc6
Now White hits on the queenside, by creating
a p a ss e d a -p a wn . bxc6 28.b8 xb8
29.xb8 e7? Black is worried about playing
an endgame with White's bishops and a-pawn,
but it might have been the better chance
anyway:
[ 29...e6! and if 30.xd8 xd8 31.b1
gxf4 32.exf4 d5 with plenty of counterplay. ]
30.b6 d5!?
[ 30...d7 is more circumspect, but then
31.a5 and the pawn is difficult to stop. ]
31.cxd5! The simplest, although
[ 31.xc6 se em s p erf ect ly le ga l, dxc4
32.xc4 d8 33.c1 and White is a whole
pawn ahead. ]
31...cxd5 32.d4 e6 33.b1 g8 34.a5
Passed pawns must be pushed! g7
[ 34...gxf4 35.exf4 is better, but then g7
36.g3 and Black's attack grinds to a halt. ]
35.fxg5! Closing the g-file. hxg5 36.a6 f4
37.b7 f7 38.a7 h4 39.b8 The white a-
pawn will queen.
1-0
858 A21
Lautier,Joel 2645
Kramnik,Vladimir 2685
Cannes m (1) 1993
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 c5 I have to
admit that I am a bit confused by this line,
mainly because I can't find any line for White
cxb5 that looks particularly compelling. 4.f3
[ 4.e3 f6 5.e2 xd5 6.cxd5 0-0 7.g3
d6 8.d4
g5?! A) 8...b4+ 9.d2 ( 9.c3 ) 9...xd2+
10.xd2 e4 11.g2 f5 12.0-0
followed by f3, looks pleasant for White.;
B) 8...exd4 9.xd4 e8 10.g2 d7

850
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11.0-0 f6 12.d3 d7 13.b3 e7
14.b2 e5 15.c4 h5 I don't think
Black is worse here. 16.fe1 e7 17.b4
b6 18.a4 h3 19.f3 g4 20.g2
ae8 21.a5 xd4 22.xd4 f3 23.xa7
xg2 24.xg2 g4 25.h3 xd5+
26.g1 xf2 27.xf2 f5+ 28.g2
e4+ 29.f2 f5+ 30.g2 c2+
31.g1 xb2 32.xb7 h6 33.ab1 f6
34.a6 c5 35.c6 e5 36.b5 d5 37.h2
f5 38.b2 c8 39.d6 e6 40.d7
a8 41.b7 ee8 42.b6 f6 43.ee2
1-0 Azmaiparashvili, Z (2658)-Bruzon
Bautista, L (2677)/Beersheba 2005 ]
4...e4?!
[ 4...c6 5.c3
A) 5...d6 allows 6.e4!? b6 7.c5 dxc5
8.xe5 f6 ( 8...e7 9.c4! ) 9.xf6+
xf6 10.f3 0-0 11.e3 Bricard, E-
Taimanov, M Wildbad 1990;
B) 5...e7
B1) 6.e3 d6 ( 6...e4 7.d4! exf3 8.dxc5
fxg2 9.xg2 xc5? 10.e4 ) 7.d4
w h a t e l s e ? ( 7.e2 e4 ) 7...exd4
8.xd4 f6 and I doubt White has any
real advantage.;
B2) 6.d4 exd4 7.xd4 d6 8.f4
f o l l o w e d b y e 3 , o r p o s s i b l y ( 8.g3
but in all these cases, with the bishop on
c5 I feel Black is active enough to claim
his full share of the chances. )]
5.g5!
[ 5.d4!? exf3 6.dxc5 fxg2
also looks promising. ]
5...e3!
[ 5...f5 6.d4 ]
[ 5...c6 6.xe4 cxd5 7.xc5
8.a4 ]
6.d4!
[ 6.dxe3? c6 7.e4 cxd5 8.xc5 a5+-+
Kramnik. ]
[ 6.fxe3 c6 7.e4 h4+-+ Kramnik. ]
6...exf2+ 7.xf2 e7 8.xe7 xe7 9.e4
d6
[ 9...c6!? ]
10.d3 c6
[ 10...c5? 11.dxc5 dxc5 12.e5!
13.e1 ]
11.c2 f6
[ 11...f6+ 12.f3 g4 13.e3 ]
12.e1?!
[ 12.h3! indicated by Korchnoi and Kramnik,
followed by Re1 and Kg1, keeps full
control. ]
12...g4! 13.d3
[ 13.f3 xf3 14.gxf3 h5 ( 14...h5
Korchnoi 15.e3 h4+ )]
[ 13.d2! ]
[ 13.f3!? Ribli ]
13...d7!
[ 13...b4 14.a4+ d7 15.b3 ]
14.a4
[ 14.e3!? ]
14...h6
[ 14...f6+ 15.g3 h5 ]
15.e5!?
[ 15.f3 xf3 16.gxf3 h4+ ]
[ 15.g3 f6+! ]
[ 15.xc6 Ribli bxc6 16.f3 0-0 ]
15...dxe5 16.d5 d4!? By this point the
game has become random and is no longer
theoretically relevant, so I will spare you the
worst of the complications and just give the
remaining moves.
[ 16...b4! Ribli ]
17.e4 e2! 18.h3 b5! 19.xb5 xb5
20.xe2 d4 21.d1 h4+! 22.f1 0-0
23.e3 f5 24.c2 xe3+ 25.xe3 f5
26.g1 ae8 27.f2 e4 28.c3 f6
29.g3?! h5 30.f1 d7! 31.g2 e5
32.h3 f4! 33.gxf4? xf4 34.xe4? g6+
35.g3 xf2+ 36.xf2 xe4+ 37.h2
xc4 38.xc7 xd5 39.xa7 d6+
7.xg2 40.g2 e3+ 41.h1 d5+ 42.h2 d1
43.g2 d6+ 44.h1 e1+ 45.g1 d5+
0-1
dxc4
859 A21
Markowski,Tomasz 2568
Sasikiran,Krishnan 2573
34th Olympiad (13) 10.11.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.g3 e5 2.c4 g6 3.g2 g7 4.c3 d6
5.d3 f5 6.e3 a5 7.ge2 f6 This time
Sasikiran plays the black side of this structure.
c6 8.0-0 0-0 9.b3 c6 10.a3 a6
[ 10...e8 11.c1 a6 12.d2 c7
13.b2 e6 14.a4 f7 15.fd1 g5
16.c5! is unclear, Serper,G-Isakov,D/
Leningrad 1989. ]
851
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11.c1
[ A new move, bringing the white pieces to
their optimum squares before undertaking
a n y a c t i o n , 11.d4 b4 12.d2 c7
13.b2 e6 14.a3 a6 15.ac1 f7
16.fd1 ae8 offered chances to both sides
in Ledger,A-Mestel,A/Hastings 1991. ]
11...b8!
[ A fine move, preparing ...b5, and removing
the rook from the h1-a8 diagonal. 11...e8
would transpose into the Serper game. ]
12.b2 d7 13.d4
[ 13.f4 is a more flexible way of proceeding. ]
13...e4 14.d5 e7 15.dxc6 bxc6 16.d2
White eyes the d6-pawn. fd8 17.cd1 e8
18.a4 b4 19.c1
[ Played to control the d3-square ready to
kick the knight from b4, but 19.c3 c5
20.a3 xa4 21.bxa4 d3 22.c1
was only level, anyway. ]
19...c5!? Black plans to capture on a4, and
decides that the weakening of the d5-square
is unimportant. In passing he sets a devilish
trap. 20.c3?
[ Obvious, but bad, 20.a3 c6 21.f3 ( or
21.c3 and there is everything to play for. )]
20...d5! This move grants Black a huge
advantage, and the funny thing is that White's
last move was expressly played to avoid this!
21.xd5
[ There is not much of a choice, 21.e2 d4
22.b1 d3 is horrible. ]
[ and 21.cxd5 fxd5 22.e1 xc3
23.xd8 xd8 24.xc3 b5 wins the
exchange. ]
21...fxd5 22.xg7
[ 22.cxd5 xd5 23.e2? b5 ]
22...c7 23.d4 White has lost a piece, and
Black retains a good position as well. e6
24.e2 a4 25.b2 cxd4 26.exd4 axb3
27.axb3 d3
[ 27...d3 28.c3 f6 wins one of the two
pawns. ]
0-1
860 A21
Miezis,Normunds 2530
Popov,Valerij 2588
39th Rilton Cup (6) 02.01.2010
[Nigel Davies]
People have been queuing up to play this line
against the predictable Miezes, though like
Uhlmann and his French Defence he
understands the position well. Maybe not well
enough... 1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.g3 xc3
4.dxc3 d6 5.e4
[ The Latvian GM has also played first 5.g2
, for example c6 6.e4 e6 7.e2 d7
8.h3 ge7 9.f3 h6 10.b3 0-0 11.a3
a5 12.d1 was Miezis, N (2540) -Davies, N
(2478), Liverpool ENG 2008, and now in
retrospect I might have done better to play
b6 and on ( rather than 12...fd8 ) 13.d2
play f5 . ]
5...c6 6.f3 h6 This has been played quite
a lot against Miezes, though it doesn't look
that natural. Alternatives:
[ a) 6...f6 7.e2 h6 8.g2 e6 9.h3
d7 10.d2 g5 11.f1 0-0-0 12.e3
e7 13.b3 was probably better for White in
Mi e zi s , N (2 5 0 2 ) - Ja k o b s e n , O ( 2 3 7 9 ) ,
Copenhagen DEN 2004 because Black's
king can become vulnerable whilst W hite
has maintained flexibility about where he
intends to castle. ]
[ c) 6...f5 7.exf5 xf5 8.h4!? e6
9.h5+ g6 10.e2 f6 11.g2 d7
12.f3 h3 13.xh3 xh3 14.g5 0-0
15.xf6 xf6 16.g5 g2 17.f1 xf1+
18.xf1 was fine for Black at this stage in
Miezis, N (2547)-Borisek, J (2489), Nova
Gorica SLO 2005. I'm not sure Miezes would
repeat his 8.Nh4 as it cost quite a bit of
time. ]
7.h4 It looks like Miezis hasn't played this
way before and neither has anybody else. So
'novelty'...
[ A number of his earlier games featured
7.g2 e6 8.e2 ( 8.b3 d7 9.h3 ge7
10.d2 0-0 11.h5 a6 12.a4 a5 13.0-0
b5 14.f4 f6 gave Black good counterplay in
Miezis, N (2547)-Gyimesi, Z (2602), Cork
IRL 2005 ) 8...d7 9.h3 a6 10.d2 ge7
11.f1 a5 12.e3 b5 13.b3 b8
( 13...bxc4 14.b4 b7 15.f4 f6 16.0-0
852
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

was similar in Miezis, N (2527) -Hammer, J 8.xc3 e4 9.d4 e5 10.f4! exf3
(2306), Gausdal NOR 2006) 14.f4 f6 15.0-0 11.xf3 e8 12.0-0 g4 13.b4 xf3+
bxc4 16.b4 b7 17.f2 a5 18.a3 c5 14.xf3 xf3 15.xf3 e4 16.c2 a5
19.xc4 axb4 20.fxe5 xc4 21.xc4 17.b5 d5 18.f4 g5 19.b2 e4
dxe5 22.axb4 cxb4 23.d2 was quite 20.cxd5 xd5 21.xe4 xe4 22.d3 g5
promising for White at this stage in Miezis, 23.a4 e6 24.e4 g5 25.f1 c5+
N (2 5 2 4 ) -J o n e s, G (2 5 2 6 ) , P o rt o S a n 26.f2 e3 which was equal in Kosten, A
Giorgio ITA 2007. ] (2515)-Sokolov, I (2625)/Tilburg 1992. ]
7...ge7 8.h5 g6 9.e2 So White's queen 4.d5 c6 5.g3 Fairly insipid, but White just
goes back after having weakened Black's wants to play chess.
dark squares. Not a bad idea. e6 10.h3 [ White normally plays the aggressive 5.g3
d7 11.g2 a5 12.b3 a4 13.b4 a7 f8 ( 5...f8 6.e3 d6 7.e2 f6 8.a3
14.f4?! An attempt to take the initiative that c5 9.ec3 h5 was playable for Black,
backfires this time. B a n a s, J (2 3 7 0 )- W e is s , C (2 2 9 0 )/ L i n z
[ White should probably have settled for 1996. ) 6.e3 ( 6.d4 xd4 7.xe5+ e6
14.f3 so as to meet c6 with 15.d2 . ] is nothing, Luce, S (2395)-Bedos, M (2170)/
14...c6 15.c5 dxc5 16.e3 0-0-0 17.bxc5 France 1990.) 6...d6 7.d3 ge7 8.xe7
[ 17.0-0 b5 would also be better for xe7 9.e2 e6 followed by ...g6 and ...
Black. ] Bg7, Soffer, R (2520)-Gyimesi, Z (2360)/
17...g5 18.f3 exf4 19.d4 fxg3! 20.xh8 Budapest 1994. ]
xh8 21.e3 g6 White is the exchange up [ 5.e3 f6 6.d3 0-0 7.e2 xd5 8.cxd5
but his position is a total wreck. 22.0-0 b5 e7 9.a3 d6 10.c3 c6 equal, Pelletier,
23.fe1 d8 24.d4 xc5 25.xe6 Y (2478)-Gyimesi, Z (2518)/Bad
xe3+ 26.xe3 fxe6 27.f1 a3 28.xg3 Woerishofen 2000. ]
e5 29.c1 b5 30.g2 b7 31.e2 b6 5...f6 A novelty.
32.f2 g6 33.d1 xd1+ 34.xd1 f4 [ 5...d6 6.e3 ( 6.g2 ge7 7.f3 e4!
35.h2 b1 36.c2 c5 37.c4 b4 38.g4 W oe rd em an n, M (2 30 5)-Dunn in gt on , A
c3 39.a3 b3 40.xc3 b2 (2445)/Rotherham 1997.) 6...f5 7.g2 e4
0-1 8.a3 c5 ( 8...a4!? ) 9.c3 e5 10.d4
b4!? Wow! 11.axb4 d3+
A) 12.f1! axb4 13.xd3! xa1
861 A21 ( 13...exd3 14.xa8+- ) 14.c2
Morozevich,A 2739 with some advantage.;
Vitiugov,N 2719 B) 12.e2? axb4 13.xb4 (now White
FIDE World Cup 2013 (3.7) 19.08.2013 can't capture on d3 as ...exd3 would be
[Gormally/Kosten] check!) xa1 14.xd3 exd3+ 15.xd3
f6 and Black went on to win, Hodgson, J
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.b3 A sensible (2545)-Wolff, P (2485)/London 1989. ]
l o o k i n g m o v e a t t a c k i n g t h e b i s h o p a n d 6.g2 0-0 7.e3 xd5 8.cxd5 e7 9.e2
avoiding doubled pawns. It was quite popular c6 10.a3 d6 11.c3 cxd5
20 years ago, but doesn't give White anything. [ 11...b6! 12.0-0 a6 ]
[ White should certainly play 3.d5! e7 12.xd5 xd5 Black is playing safely.
4.d4 when generally speaking he can count 13.xd5 b6 14.0-0 c5?!
on some advantage. ] [ 14...c7 followed by ...d6, ...Ra7 and ...
[ but not 3.g3?! xc3! 4.bxc3 c6 Be6 would be fairly equal. ]
when I learnt many years ago that Black 15.d3 xd5 16.xd5 a4 17.d2 a6
scores very well from this position ] 18.ac1 W hite is no w m uch be tt er. b5
3...a5 19.b4?!
[ 3...c6 s e e m s m o r e n a t u r a l , 4.f3 [ 19.e4 followed by f4, or Be3, must be good
( 4.d5 a5 would transpose to the game.) for White. ]
4...d6 5.e3 f6 6.e2 0-0 7.a3 xc3 19...xb4 20.axb4 d6 21.f4

853
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 21.c7 a3 22.bxa3 xa3 23.fc1 h3
24.b7!? xd3 25.e4 g5 and Black has no
real problems. ]
21...exf4 22.xf4?!
[ Moro was obviously not on good form, as
he misses the simple tactic 22.xf7+! xf7
( 22...xf7 23.xf4+ e7 24.xf8 xf8
25.xc8+ e7 26.c7+ f6 27.f2
with a pawn more.) 23.xc8+ f8 24.xf8+
xf8 25.xf4+ e7 26.f5 with some
chances, but perhaps he considered this
was too drawish? ]
22...e6 23.d4 h6 24.c3 e8
[ 24...c8! ]
25.e4
[ 25.c6! is possible: c8 26.xd6 f8
27.e4 ]
25...g6
[ 25...c8! ]
26.f2?
[ 26.c6! again! ]
26...g7 27.e3 f6 28.c7 b8 29.f4
g5+ 30.e3 c8 Finally Black contests the c-
file. 31.b7 c2 32.xe6 fxe6 33.xb5
xb2 34.a5 c6 35.xd6 xd6 36.e5+
e7 37.exd6+ xd6 38.xa4 xh2
½-½
862
Petursson,Margeir
Sokolov,Ivan
Manila ol (Men)
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 a5 I remember 1-0
this move being popular around 1990,
because my first serious chess trainer,
Donald Holmes used to play it. Since then 863
however, it has always looked somewhat
dubious to me, but I suppose it has some
value in unblancing the game very early, Bundesliga 2000-1 (12)
which is not such a bad thing against 1.c4 [Tony Kosten]
players who tend to be a bit on the stodgy
side. 4.b4 c6 5.bxa5 cxd5 6.cxd5 xa5 1.c4 e5 2.c3 d6 3.f3 f5 4.d4 e4
7.b3
[ 7.e4!? might be better, and the following
game makes a strong impression. Lautier's
b e s t g a m e s a r e / w e r e a l w a y s h i g h l y 8...g4!?
thematic. f6 8.d3!? Odd-looking, but this
is an odd position. White's utopia is Ne2, 0-0,
B c 2 , B b 2 a n d d 4 , wi t h a 4 t h ro wn i n t o
prevent counterplay- White achieves these
objectives, and the onus is on Black to show
how it can be stopped. a6 9.f3 d6
10.b2 c5 11.c2 d7 12.a4! 0-0
13.e2 ac8 14.c3 a6 15.d4 exd4
16.xd4 a5+ 17.f2 e8 18.g4 c7
19.g5 b5 20.f4 b4 21.d2 b6 22.a5
b5 23.hb1 b3 24.d1 7a6 25.e2
b7 26.h5 g4 27.xg7 b4 28.g1
c2 29.fxg4 xe4 30.f5 fe8 31.d3
xa1 32.xa1 b4 33.d4 xd4+
34.xd4 d2 35.d1 c2 36.b5 b8
37.d3 a2 38.c3 b2 39.xd2
1-0 Lautier, J (2580)-Kotronias, V (2550)/
Chalkidiki 1992 ]
7...d6?! An instructive error.
[ 7...f6 first is necessary. The point being
t h a t a f t e r 8.f3 d6 9.a3 e4!
is an important resource, after which Black
can stabilise the position by using the c5
square. ]
8.a3 f6 9.xd6 bd7 10.f3 e4
11.d4 b6 12.b5 White already has a
decisive advantage and could probably have
won even more easily than he did. bxd5
13.a3 e6 14.d6+ d7 15.xb7 b6
16.c5+ d8 17.e3 xb3 18.axb3 b6
19.xe6+ fxe6 20.a6 c8 21.e2 b8
A21 22.hc1 d7 23.c4 xb3 24.d4+ c7
2555 25.c5 e5 26.c4 b6 27.c2 d7
2630 28.c4 xc4 29.xa7+ e6 30.xc4 c8
1992 31.b4 d3 32.b6+ f5 33.xg7 xc5
34.f7 c2 35.bxf6+ g5 36.f4+ exf4
37.exf4+ g4 38.g7+
A21
Poldauf,Dirk 2405
Graf,Alexander 2649
31.03.2001
5.g5 e7 6.h3 f6 7.g3 c6 8.d5
[ Gaining space, and stopping ...d5, 8.g2
is considered elsewhere. ]
[ A novelty, intending to play the knight to e5,
and bishop to f6. 8...bd7 is analysed in a
854
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

note to a previous game, whilst the other 864 A21

possibility is ]
[ 8...a6 9.g2 c7 10.0-0 0-0 11.f3
exf3 12.exf3 cxd5 13.xd5 fxd5
14.cxd5 f6 with reasonable chances,
Urban,K-Chekhov,V/Lubniewice 1995. ]
9.f3 This must be the critical reply. e5
[ 9...exf3 10.exf3 e5 11.f4 cuts right
across Black's plan. ]
10.fxe4 xc4?!
[ 10...fxe4 11.xe4?! 0-0 (menacing ...
Rxf1+, and then ...Bxh3) 12.g2 xc4
is m ore awk wa rd , st o p pin g W h it e f ro m
castling. ]
11.exf5 xf5 12.e4 Forking c4 and f5, and
f o r c i n g t h e f o l l o w i n g e x c h a n g e . xh3
13.xc4 This stops Black from castling,
because of the discovered check.
[ 13.xh3 is also interesting, but allows
Black to establish a knight on e5. ]
13...d7 14.f4 f6 15.d2 White intends
to simply castle long, with enormous pressure
on d6, so Black enters into the f ollowin g
complications. xc3 16.xc3 cxd5
[ 16...g2?! 17.g1 xe4 also favours
White after 18.dxc6 xc6 19.0-0-0 ]
17.xd5 c6 18.0-0-0 e7!?
[ Black tries to 'buy' the right to castle, but,
a n y w a y , h e i s i n a b a d w a y , 18...c8
19.b1 g4 20.d2 e5 21.b4
only puts off the inevitable, he still cannot
castle, and d6 is dropping. ]
19.xg7 0-0-0 20.b3! There is no point
a llo win g B la c k t o ca p t u re t h is a n d f o rce
opposite-colour bishops. c6+?
[ This pawn-grab loses a piece, and hastens
th e en d, o bjective ly 20...c7+ 21.c3
xc3+ 22.bxc3 c7 is better, but quite
hopeless. ]
21.b1 xe4+ 22.c2 e6 23.he1 f5?
24.c3+
1-0
Poldauf,Dirk 2404
Kasimdzhanov,Rustam 2664
ECC Rethymnon GRE (3) 30.09.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 c5 A perfectly
logical move, although out-of-fashion at the
moment. 4.f3 The critical reply, hitting the
black e-pawn, that provokes bizarre
com plicat io ns. e4!? More exciting than the
older
[ 4...c6 5.c3 e7 as in Adorjan,A-Timman,
J/Linares 1985, although this is fairly level. ]
5.g5! A surprising counter. e3!? The pawn
cuts across the c1-h6 diagonal, but there are
other possibilities:
[ 5...f5 is preferred by 'Mr Mo', 6.d4 e7
7.f4 (menacing to win the queen with Bxc7)
a6 8.e3 f6 ( now 8...xg5?! is met by
9.h5+ g6 10.xg5 with advantage)
9.xe7 xe7 10.h4!? curious, ( 10.e2
0-0 11.h4 d6 12.h5 h6 13.h3
Vigorito,D-Dembo,Y/Budapest HUN 2003;
10.c5 l o o k s s t r o n g e s t : h6 11.h3
menacin g the capture on a 6) 10...h6
11.h3 d6 12.e2 e6 13.h5 c6 14.g3
f7 15.f4 c7 draw agreed, McNab,C-
Motwani,P/Edinburgh SCO 2003. ]
[ 5...c6?! is nicely met by 6.xe4 cxd5
7.xc5 and ]
[ 5...xg5?! by 6.d4 ( rather than 6.xc7+?!
d8 7.xa8 when the knight is trapped )]
6.d4 C l e a r l y b e s t . exf2+ 7.xf2 e7
8.xe7 White might as well grab the bishop
pair, although
[ 8.f3 is also plausible, f6 9.xf6+ xf6
10.e4 when White has a big centre, but his
king isn't ideally placed, Renet, O-
Steingrimsson,H/Reykjavik 1993. ]
8...xe7 9.e4 d6 10.b3!? A novelty in the
st e m ga m e , t e n ye a rs p re vio u sly, W h it e
preferred
[ 10.d3 c6 11.c2 f6 12.e1?!
( 12.h3 first, is good for White) 12...g4!
13.d3 d7! 14.a4 h6 and Black was at
le a st e qua l, a s th e kn ight h ad n o e a s y
retreat, Lautier,J-Kramnik,V/Cannes 1993. ]
10...c6 11.f3 f6?! A strange move from
such a strong player,
[ 11...f6 i s n a t u r a l , 12.d3 g4+

855
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

13.g1? ( 13.e1! ) 13...xd4! 14.xd4 to push the centre. dc4 39.3e2 b3
f6 winning. ] 40.c2 a3 41.cc1 Black's temporary
12.d3 f7 13.f1 ge7 Black has chosen initiative is easily parried. d7 42.h3 b6
a solid set-up, but White's centre and bishop 43.d6! The advance of the d-pawn is decisive,
pair give him the edge. 14.g1 White has the black pieces are stuck on the queenside
had time to get his king to safety. h5 15.a3 and unable to help stop it. c4 44.e5!?
0-0 16.b4 White's space advantage is [ 44.d7 is even easier, followed by Red1, or
b e c o m i n g p r e o c c u p y i n g . a6 17.a2! Bxa5. ]
A nice way to bring the rook into play. e8?! 44...fxe5 45.xe5 a7?!
18.e2 g6 19.e1 d7 20.g3 [ 45...d8 46.e6+ f8 47.f5+ e8
White has a large advantage, his pieces are 48.e1 is also crushing. ]
well placed behind the powerful centre and 46.e6+ h7 47.f5+
Black can only sit and wait. ce7 21.fe1 [ 47.f5+ g8 48.ce1 xc3 49.e8+
d8 22.b2 e6 23.h4 h5 24.e3 b6 f7 50.8e7+ xe7 51.dxe7
25.c5! The time for action has come. bxc5 makes a queen. ]
26.bxc5 dxc5 27.d5 Opening the b2- 1-0
bishop's diagonal. g4 28.xc7
[ 28.xa6 looks good, after all, the weak
Black c-pawns are hardly going anywhere. ] 865 A21
28...xf3 29.gxf3!? White elects to Popov,Valerij 2580
strengthen his centre, although Konovalov,Nikolay 2453
[ 29.xf3 is very promising. ] Chigorin Mem A (2) 02.12.2007
29...d7!? [Jonathan Rowson]
[ 29...xh4 is worth a try, although White is
still on top. ] 1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 a5!?
30.g3 b8! The point of Black's play, I am surprised this move is not played more
exchanging queens and hoping to tie White to often, because in general the inclusion of a3
the h-pawn in the endgame. 31.xb8 xb8 and a5 should favour Black, and it is rarely a
32.a1 a5 The a-pawn was en prise. 33.a4 good idea for White to take on b4(the extra
c8! The knight is looking for a better square. space and a-file are typically worth more than
34.b5 db7 35.c3 d6 36.f1 the bishop pair. 4.a3 Not forced of course.
White has to keep his bishops on the board. [ 4.g3 f6 5.g2 is also viable, and there
a8 A bit passive, Black avoided are so me scena rio s whe n t aking on b 4
[ 36...xh4 because it concedes control of might be ok. ]
f4, and 37.f4 is unpleasant, with the idea of 4...c5
e5, but Black can try g6 ( 37...xe4!? [ 4...e7 5.d4 d6 6.f3 ( 6.e4 f6
38.xe4 f3+ 39.f2 xe1 40.xe1 7.xe7 xe7 8.f3 h5 In most cases a5/
but the two bishops dominate here.) 38.e5 a3 should favour Black in this line,
c8 which is not so clear. ] because White's king looks (even) less safe
37.h2 e5? After this Black has no on the queenside, where it generally has to
compensation for the centre and two bishops, seek refuge.) 6...e4 7.d2 f5 8.b1 d7
he should have tried ( 8...f6 9.bc3 0-0 10.xe7+ xe7
[ 37...xh4 which is still met by 38.f4 but 11.g5 e6 12.e3 bd7 ) 9.bc3 df6
b3! ( 38...xe4?! 39.xe4 f3+ 40.g2 10.f4 h5 11.d2 hf6 12.f4 h5
xe1+ 41.xe1 b3 42.e3 is still good 13.d2 hf6 14.e3 c6 15.xe7 xe7
for White ) 39.e5 e4! is unclear. Could 16.c2 0-0 17.f4! An instructive decision,
Black have rejected this because of the although it is difficult to say why. The main
rating difference: wanting to win and trying point is to avoid the f5-f4 pawn sacrifice/
to ke ep t he p osit ion as complicat ed a s breakthrough. d7 18.e2 b8 19.a4!
possible? ] h8 20.0-0!? h6 21.ab1 g5 22.b4 axb4
38.g3 Defending the h-pawn and preparing 23.xb4 g6 24.b2 c8 25.d5 a8

856
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

26.h1 h7 27.dxc6 bxc6 28.b8 xb8 8.a3!? h6 ( 8...xb2?? 9.a4 ) 9.c1 g5
29.xb8 e7 30.b6 d5 31.cxd5 cxd5 10.e3 intends Qh5+ and b4;
32.d4 e6 33.b1 g8 34.a5 g7 B) 7.e3 f6 8.f4 c7 is the standard
35.fxg5 hxg5 36.a6 f4 37.b7 f7 38.a7 idea that has held up for years. Tony cites
h4 39.b8 1-0 Lautier, J (2666)-Fressinet, T i m m a n - Yu s u p o v, A m s t e r d a m 1 9 9 4 ,
L (2637)/Val d'Isere 2004 ] w h i c h w e n t 9.d5! e7 10.b3!? 0-0
5.e3 11.b2 d7 12.e2 g5! with unclear
[ 5.f3 play. ]
A) 5...c6 6.c3 d6 ( 6...e7 6...f6
Black's position looks suspect here, but I [ Previously in ChessPublishing we saw
can't see any clear refutation. 7.e3 ) 7.e4 6...e7 7.h3 f6 8.g2 0-0 9.0-0 a6
a7 8.c5; A key manoeuvre, borrowed from the
B) 5...e4 6.g5!? e3 is very similar to Advance French, the knight comes to c7,
the main line with Bc5 7.d4 still looks either to prepare the ...d5-push, or to
better for White. ] continue towards the kingside via e6. 10.f3
5...c6 6.f3 f6 Attacking the black pawn chain head-on, but
[ 6...e4 7.d4! ] now is a good time for ( 10.d5! ) 10...exf3
7.d4 d6 8.c5! xd5 9.cxd6 e4 10.d2 ( 10...c7!? ) 11.exf3 c7!? 12.d5 cxd5
f6 11.d5! White plays with impressive 13.cxd5 b5! 14.b4 a5 15.b1 axb4
vigour. e5 12.xe4! xe4 13.d4 cxd6 16.xb4 d7 and Black stood well in Gulko-
14.xe4 0-0 15.e2 b6 16.0-0 a6 Short, Elenite 1995. ]
17.xa6 xa6 18.d2 a8 19.ac1 c8 7.g2 h6 8.h3 g5 This kind of position has
20.h3 xc1 21.xc1 e8 22.b3 h6 23.c3 usually been satisfactory for Black, whose
b8 24.d4 f6 25.d2 b7 26.f4 g6 kingside pawn formation is solider than it look.
27.d3 e7 28.e4 c8 29.xc8+ xc8 9.g1
30.e3 c7 31.c4 b7 32.f5 f7 [ 9.0-0 f4!? looks playable, due to the well-
33.b5 c8 34.f2 e7 35.g4 c7 know tactic ( 9...d5 10.cxd5 cxd5 11.f3
36.c4 b7 37.c3 f7 38.h4 e7 with approximate equality) 10.gxf4? ( 10.d5
39.d4 b8 40.g3 c8 41.xc8 xc8 g7 with a complex position) 10...g4!
42.a4 f8 43.f3 f7 44.e3 e7 trapping the knight and forcing W hite to
45.e2 d8 46.d4 e7 47.d3 d8 sacrifice a piece by 11.g5 hxg5 12.fxg5
48.g5 d5! , intending 13.gxf6? c7 ]
1-0 9...d5 10.h4 g8
[ 10...gxh4 11.xh4 dxc4 may look anti-
positional, yet Black wins a pawn. Best
866 A21 seems 12.h3 and 13 Nf4 compare the
Prohaszka,Peter 2392 game. ]
Vitor,Antonio 2414 11.hxg5 hxg5 12.h3
FSGM October (9) 15.10.2006 [ 12.cxd5 cxd5 13.h3 h6!? ]
[John Watson] 12...g4 13.f4 dxc4 14.f3 b4
[ S a f e r t h a n 14...gxf3!? 15.exf3 xg3
We take another look at one of Black's most 16.e2!? ]
successful def ences to the English when 15.fxe4 fxe4
White has committed to Nf3. 1.d4 [ 15...xe4! ]
[ The game variation commonly arises via the 16.0-0 e7 Too slow.
English move order 1.c4 e5 2.c3 d6 [ 16...f5 is better, since e4 is the key
3.f3 f5 4.d4 e4 5.g5 ] defensive square. ]
1...d6 2.c4 e5 3.f3 e4 4.g5 f5 5.c3 17.c2 xc3 Otherwise e4 falls. 18.xc3
c6 6.g3 e6 19.b3 Already intending Ba3, which only
[ 6.h3 a6 becomes better af ter W hite's next move.
A) 7.g5!? is in t e re st in g, wh e n b6 cxb3?! 20.axb3 d5 21.xd5

857
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ Or 21.a3 ] [ The queen and rook were both on the same

21...xd5 22.c2 f6 23.f5!? mined diagonal, and there was no time for
[ 23.a3 e6 24.f4 is extremely strong. ] 21.xg7 as xg3 menaces the queen, and
23...bd7 24.g5?! xg5? Nxe2+. ]
[ 24...d6! h i t s d 4 a n d g3 , b u t 25.c3 21...xf2!! A killer! 22.xf2
( 25.xf6 xf6 26.e3 0-0-0 ) 25...d5 [ Forced, as 22.xg7? xh1 23.b2 xg3
is equal. ] 24.hxg3 e3+ 25.h1 xb1 26.xb1 f2
25.xg5 d6 26.c3 d8 27.e3 c7 wins, as does ]
28.f4 xf4 29.gxf4 a6 30.e3 White is [ 22.xf2 xe2+ 23.g1 c2 ]
obviously winning. b5 31.f1 d5 32.xb5 22...xb1 23.xg7 xg7 24.xb1 f6!
b8 33.c4 xe3 34.xa6 xc4 35.bxc4 The point, ...Ra1 is the immediate threat.
b1+ 36.f2 b7 37.a2 b6 38.g7+ 25.d2
b8 39.c2 b4 40.g3 xc4 41.h2 [ If 25.f1 xe2 and ...Raa2 wins easily. ]
d6 42.h8+ c8 43.gg8 xd4 25...d4 26.d3??
44.xc8+ b7 45.b8+ a7 46.a8+ b7 [ This allows a neat mate, the only possibility
47.ab8+ a7 48.xg4 was 26.b3! (to guard a1) xc4 27.b2+
1-0 e5! 28.a5 b5 29.d4 g8
but White's minor pieces are no match for
the rooks (and pawns). ]
867 A21 26...a1+
Ruban,Vadim 2395 [ 26...a1+ 27.f1 xf1+! 28.xf1 a1+
Miles,Anthony J 2500 leaves the king somewhat embarrassed! ]
Belgrade 1988 0-1
[Tony Kosten]

1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 Transposing into the 2...d6 868 A21

King's English. 3.c3
[ The endgame after 3.dxe5 dxe5 4.xd8+
xd8 is equal. ]
3...exd4 4.xd4 f6 5.b3 g6 6.b2 g7
7.g3 0-0 8.g2 bd7!? The knight will
come to c5, to survey the e4-square.
[ 8...c6 9.d2 is the mainline. ]
9.f3 c5 Threatening a nasty discovered
attack, with ...Nfe4. 10.d2 a5 11.d4
Directed against ...Bf5. e8 12.0-0 c6
13.ab1
[ 13.ad1 i s a b e t t e r m o v e , b6
the position has become typical of a KID
Fianchetto Variation, Classical line, 14.e3
a4 with chances to both sides. ]
13...e7 14.a3 h5! Very strong, the h-pawn
will soften-up the white kingside. 15.c2?!
[ White is soon in trouble after this, he should
aim for exchanges with the immediate 15.b4
axb4 16.axb4 ce4 17.xe4 xe4
18.c1! ]
15...h4 16.b4 axb4 17.axb4 ce4 18.xe4
xe4 19.f3? By allowing the black bishop
to f5 W hite loses. h3! This leaves the white
king without any moves. 20.h1 f5 21.b3
Salov,Valery 2660
Kramnik,Vladimir 2685
Linares 11th (8) 1993
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 d6
Some people love to put their bishops on d6,
in front of their d-pawns. It is almost like the
dark squared bishop is the elder brother of
the light squared bishop on c8, and delights in
dominating him by refusing to let him out until
he is ready...but sometimes it's actually a
decent move, although here I think Black has
better ones. 4.d4! c6
[ 4...c6 5.f3 e4 6.g5 f5 ( 6...f6
7.a3!? e7 8.xf6+ xf6 9.xe4 xd4
10.e3 looks like a decent Budapest Gambit
for both sides, which means that White is
p ro b a b ly b e t t e r .) 7.c5! f8 8.b3
is actually winning! ]
5.dxe5 xe5 6.f3 What follows is pleasant
for White, but perhaps nothing special from a
theoretical point of view, and a stronger Black
player could certainly outplay somebody who
didn't have a feeling for where to put his

858
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
pieces in the queenless middlegame that
results.
[ 6.f4!? f6 7.f3 c7 8.g3 0-0 9.g2
d5 10.cxd5 cxd5 11.0-0 I like White's
position here, even if just from an optical
perspective- those knights on f4 and f3 are
a pleasure to behold. c6 12.b3 e8
13.b2 xf4 14.gxf4 e4 15.c1 f6
16.d4 b6 17.e3 d7 18.h5 xd4
19.xd4 d6 20.f3 g6 21.h4 g5 22.h6
1-0 Agrest, E (2599)-Sasikiran, K (2650)/
Mainz 2002/CBM 089 ext ]
6...d6 7.xe5
[ 7.c3!? xc3+ 8.bxc3 is probably not
worse for White. ]
[ 7.f4 is not an exact transposition to 6.
Nf4 above, because there is no longer any
question of the bishop going to c7. e7
8.g3 f6 9.g2 0-0 10.0-0 is quite a
strange position, because the bishop on e5
lo o k s b o t h a ct ive a n d m isp la ce d , b u t I
suspect White is somewhat better due to his
extra space and prospect of having the
bishop pair. ]
7...dxe5 8.c3 xd1+ 9.xd1 e6?!
A natural move, but given that White is going
to play b3 anyway, the bishop was better
deployed on f5.
[ 9...a5!? ]
10.b3 a5 11.b2 f6 12.c3 a6 13.0-0-0
h6 14.h3
[ equally good is 14.e3 g4 15.e4 b4
16.h3! ]
14...f7 15.e3 0-0 A concession.
[ 15...e7!? 16.a3+ ( 16.d3 ) 16...b4
17.a4 d6! is not so clear, but it's easy to
understand that Black didn't want to walk
into pins on the a3-f8 diagonal. ]
16.e2 b4 17.f4 b5! 18.g4
[ 18.cxb5 cxb5 19.xb5 fc8 20.d2
( 20.b1 exf4 21.exf4 f5+ ) 20...exf4
21.exf4 d6! ]
18...exf4
[ 18...bxc4 19.f5 c8 ( 19...d5 20.e4 )
20.xc4 a6 21.a3 xc4 22.bxc4 a6
23.e4 fd8 24.c3 a4 25.a5 ]
19.exf4 bxc4 20.bxc4 f5 21.a3 a6
22.a4 ab8 23.hg1 fxg4 24.hxg4 fe8
25.d2 d8 26.f5 f7 27.g5 b7 28.g6
hxg6 29.fxg6 e6 30.g5! bd8! 31.xd8
xd8 32.e5 e8! 33.d2 d6 34.d4
c7 35.c3 f5! 36.d3
[ Ftacnik points out a neat trick here:
36.c5? xg6 37.f3 cb5+! 38.cxb5
xb5+ 39.c4 f7+ 40.d3 d8 41.e4
g6 42.b3 c5! ]
36...xd3 37.xd3 d8?
[ 37...e6! is still viable. ]
38.c5 a8 39.e4 xe4 40.xe4 c7
[ 40...c7 41.b6 c8 42.xc7 xc7
43.e8# ]
1-0
869 A21
Savchenko,Boris 2583
Shirov,Alexei 2739
World Blitz Moscow RUS blitz (5) 21.11.2007
[Carsten Hansen]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.f3 xc3 4.bxc3
[ I more or less dismissed this line in my
book on 1 c4 e5 and instead gave
preference to 4.dxc3 , but Black should be
okay in that line too. White's best may well
be 4 bxc3 after all. ]
4...d6
[ Black has also tried 4...e4 ]
[ 4...e7 ]
[ , and most frequently 4...c6 ]
5.d4
[ The most aggressive, which almost seems
odd a f ter the more rese rved 3rd move .
White has also tried: A) 5.g3
A) 5...c6 6.g2 ( 6.b1 ge7 7.g2
0-0 8.0-0 b8 9.d3 h6 10.e4 g4
11.h3 e6 Kanellopoulos, P-Kritz, L/
E r m i o n i G R E 2 0 0 6 , a n d h e r e 12.e2
d7 13.g4 a5 14.h4 ) 6...ge7
( 6...e6 7.b1 c8 8.b3 b8 9.g5
ge7 10.xe6 xe6 11.0-0 0-0 12.d3
h8 13.e4 Raicevic, I-Perunovic, M/Nis
1994; 6...g4 7.d3 d7 8.h3 h5 9.b1
b8 10.g4 g6 11.h4 Hansen, V-
Steinbacher, M/Bad Wiessee 2000) 7.0-0
0-0 8.d3 ( 8.a3 g6 9.b1 b8 10.d3
b6 , was played in Kantorik, M-Laketic, G/
Cheliabinsk 1991, and at this point White
should have tried 11.d2 b7 12.e3
a5 13.xb7 xb7 14.f4 f5
, but as it turned out Kantorik was having
the worst tournament of his life and lost all
859
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

his games in this tournament) 8...b8 8.d3 h8 9.b1 b8 10.0-0 f5
9.a4 ( 9.c2 g4 10.h3 e6 11.g5 , Pils, W-Weinzettl, E/Vienna 1986, and here
f5 12.e4 g6 13.f4 was Orchard, C- 11.g5 e8 12.h4 d7 13.f4 ]
Clough, P/corr BPCF 1995) 9...e8 10.e4 [ C) 5.d3
b6 11.h4 d7 12.g4 d8 13.f4 exf4 A) 5...f6 6.e4 0-0 ( 6...h6 7.g3 0-0
14.xf4 g6 , O'Rourke, R-Brady, S/ 8.g2 e6 9.0-0 c6 10.a3 a6 11.a4
Drogheda 1999, and now 15.xg6 fxg6 e8 12.fb1 Diehle, J-Annabi, S/
16.a5 appears best; Ronneburg 1996 ) 7.e2
B) 5...e6!? 6.d3 c6 7.g2 ge7 A1) 7...c6 8.0-0 e7 9.b1 d8
8.0-0 f6 9.b1 b8 , Perez, J-Lugo, B/ 10.e1 e6 11.c2 ( 11.f4!? )
Fuerteventura 1992, 10.e4 0-0 11.e3 11...f4 12.e3 c6 13.f3
d7 12.h4 b6; Levieux, P-Amram, R/Cappelle la
C) 5...f5 6.d4 e4 7.g5 f6 8.d2 h6 Grande 1995;
9.xf6 xf6 10.g2 0-0 11.0-0 f7 A2) 7...bd7 8.0-0 h6 9.e1 c5
12.e3 d7 13.f3 exf3 14.xf3 f6 10.f4 e8 11.c2 c6 12.e3 exf4
15.e2 Schweda, R-Rogozenko, D/ 13.xf4 Hiebel, J-Maier, C/Gladenbach
Stockerau 1993; 1992;
D) 5...e7 6.g2 0-0 7.c5 e4 8.cxd6 B) 5...c5 6.g3 c6 ( 6...d7 7.g2 c6
cxd6 9.d4 d5 10.0-0 bc6 11.a4 8.0-0 d7 9.c2 gf6 10.e4 f8
d7 ( 11...xd4 12.cxd4 g4 13.f3 exf3 11.d2 e6 12.h4 Orchard, C-
14.xf3 xf3 15.xf3 e8 16.b1 c8 McMillan, N/corr 1994) 7.g2 ge7 8.e4
17.a3 f5 18.e3 ) 12.a3 e8 13.d3 0-0 9.0-0 h6 10.b1 b8 Lerner, K-
e5 14.b3 exd3 15.exd3 c6 Onischuk, A/Cuxhaven 1993 11.e2 g4
16.fe1 Raicevic, I-Maric, D/Nis 1995; 12.h3 e6 13.d1 c8 14.h2 c7;
E) 5...e4 6.d4 f6 7.g2 0-0 8.0-0 C) 5...f5 6.g3 f6 7.g2 0-0 8.a3
e8 9.d3 c5 10.c2 exd3 , Silseth, S- e8 9.d2 c6 10.e4 b8 11.0-0 e6
Breivik, L/Gausdal NOR 2005, and now 12.f4 g4 13.e2 d7 14.h3 h6
W hite c an o bta in a b et ter gam e af te r ( 14...f6 15.g4 fxg4 16.f5 f7
11.exd3 g4 12.f3 d7 13.b1 b6 17.hxg4 ) 15.h2 bd8 16.f2
14.g4 h6 15.e3; Musikhin, P-Frolov, A/Ufa 1999;
F) 5...f6 6.g2 0-0 7.0-0 D) 5...d7 6.g3 g4 7.g2 xf3 8.xf3
F1) 7...e8 8.d3 ( 8.c2 h6 9.b1 c6 9.b1 c7 10.0-0 f6
bd7 10.d3 c6 11.d2 c7 12.e4 D1) 11.d4 bd7 ( 11...e4?! 12.g2
b6 13.f4 Kovtun, S-Khmelnitsky, S/ 0-0 13.f4 h5 14.xe4 xf4 15.gxf4
UKR 1986 ) 8...bd7 9.e4 f8 10.h4 d7 16.d3 f6 17.g2 ) 12.b3
c6 11.f5 d5 12.cxd5 cxd5 13.f3 b6 13.c2 0-0 14.g5;
dxe4 14.dxe4 Rahman, Z-Handoko, E/ D2) 11.g5 bd7 12.c2 h6 13.xf6
Dhaka 1995; xf6 14.b2 h5 15.fb1 b6
F2) 7...h6 8.d3 bd7 9.b1 b8 , Schre ib er, W -B a st ia n , S/ G erma n y
10.d2 c5 11.a3 b6 12.d4 cd7 2001, and now 16.d2;
Vita, F-Klinova, M/Bratto 1997, and here E) 5...e7 6.c5 bc6 7.cxd6 cxd6 8.g3
13.e4!? looks like a worthwhile try; 0-0 9.g2 e6 10.0-0 d7 11.a3
F3) 7...c6 8.d3 e4 9.d4 exd3 ad8 Jungbluth, R-Deinert, W/
10.exd3 d7 11.b1 b8 12.h3 h6 Recklinghausen 2005 12.g5 g4 13.f3
13.e3 Pitam, E-Klinova, M/Dresden h5 14.f4;
1998; F) 5...c6 6.g3 f5 7.g2 f6 8.b1
F4) 7...bd7 8.d3 e4 9.d4 ( 9.g5!? 0-0 9.0-0 e8 10.c2 ( 10.d2 b8
exd3 10.exd3 ) 9...e8 10.b1 c5 11.e4 fxe4 12.xe4 xe4 13.xe4
Meyer, E-Christiansen, L/New York 1985 f5= Gonzalez, J-Estrada Nieto, J/ Merida
11.f3 exd3 12.exd3 d7 13.g4 ] 2002 ) 10...b6 11.d2 b7 12.e4 e7
[ B) 5.c2 c6 6.g3 ge7 7.g2 0-0 13.f3 c6 14.exf5 xf5 15.e4 d7

860
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
16.f4 e7 17.d2 Avery, R-Bisguier, A/
Chicago 1987 ]
[ D) 5.c5!? appears to be White's best
chance for an edge in this variation:
A) 5...c6 6.cxd6 cxd6 7.g3 ge7
8.g2 0-0 9.0-0 b6 10.c4 c7 11.d3
h6 12.a3 b7 13.c1 fe8 14.d2
ad8 15.e4 1-0 Dzindzichashvili, R-
Khmelnitsky, I/Philadelphia 1992;
B) 5...f6 6.cxd6
B1) 6...cxd6
B1a) 7.d4 e4 8.d2 0-0 9.e3 a5
10.c4 d5 11.a3 d8 12.b3
e8 13.d2 f5 , Gerasimov, V-
Hasangatin, R/Tomsk 2001, and now
14.c4 g6 15.0-0 c6 ( 15...h3
16.xf7+ xf7 17.xf7+ xf7
18.gxh3 f6 19.f3 exf3 20.xf3 )
16.d5 f6 17.f3 xd5 18.xd5
exf3 19.xf3 e6 20.e4;
B1b) 7.g3 0-0 8.g2 c6 ( 8...c7
9.0-0 c6 10.d3 b6 11.g5 d7
12.d2 h6 Thompson, I-Davies, N/
Port Erin IOM 2003 ) 9.0-0
B1b1) 9...e8 10.d4?! ( 10.d3!? )
10...e4 11.d2 d5 12.e3 g4
13.a4 a5 14.a3 e2 15.fe1
d3 16.b3 xb3 17.axb3 b5
18.b4 a5 Gerasimov, V-Glek, I/
Tomsk 2001;
B1b2) 9...f5 10.d3 d7 11.c4
h3 12.e4 ab8 13.a4 g4
14.e3 e8 15.d2 xf3 16.xf3
Arkell, K-Pert, N/Hastings 2000;
B2) 6...xd6 7.a4+ bd7 8.a3 c5
9.d4 0-0 10.e3 c7 11.c1 b6
12.e2 b7 13.0-0 Knott, S-Davies, N/
Scarborough 1999;
C) 5...e4 6.a4+ d7 7.xe4++-
Wiese, D-Keller, S/IECC 1997;
D) 5...dxc5 6.xe5 f6 7.e3 0-0 8.e2
e8 9.f3 b6 10.0-0 b7 11.a4 d6
12.d4 bd7 13.a3 e4 14.c2 h6
15.ad1 Arkell, K-Plaskett, J/ Hastings
1988 ad8 ]
5...e7
[ 5...c6 6.g5 ( 6.e4!? ) 6...ge7 7.e3
0-0 Kulczyk, P-Merklejn, K/Bydgoszcz
2001 ]
[ 5...e4 6.d2 f5 ( 6...e7 7.e3 f6
8.e2 0-0 9.0-0 bd7 10.a3 b6
Datta, A-Lee, W/Stillwater 2002) 7.e3 f6
8.e2 0-0 9.0-0 c5 10.f4 c6 11.b3
b6 Oakley, P-Brilla Banfalvi, S/corr 1983 ]
6.c5!?
[ White may also consider another sharp
move: 6.e4!?
A) 6...exd4 7.cxd4 f6 ( 7...xe4+
8.e3 ) 8.d3 0-0 9.0-0;
B) 6...f6 7.d3 bd7 ( 7...exd4 8.cxd4
xe4 9.0-0 f5 10.e1 0-0 11.g5 f6
12.xe4 fxe4 13.xe4 g6 14.b2 )
8.0-0 0-0 9.e2 e8 ]
6...e4! 7.cxd6 cxd6 8.d2 e3 Shirov as
expected doesn't hesitate to sacrifice a pawn
to gain a lead in development 9.fxe3 f6
[ 9...xe3? 10.a4+ d7 11.a3
(threatening Nc4) e6 12.e4 d5 13.d3
, and Black is in danger of being beaten to
pulp. ]
10.g3 0-0 11.g2 g4 12.f1?!
[ This is simply too passive, all just to hang
on t o a pa wn . T h e b et te r a lte rn a tive is
12.b3!? , e.g. f5 13.0-0 g6 14.d2
c6 15.f4 f6 16.a3 fe8 ( 16...h5?!
17.e4! ) 17.af1 ad8 ]
12...f5 13.f3 d7
[ 13...e8!? ]
14.b3 b6 15.g1
[ 15.a4 ac8! 16.a5 c4 17.xb7 c7
18.d5 c2 19.a2 f6 20.g5 e4 ]
15...ac8
[ Black should consider 15...e6!? 16.c2
ac8 17.e4 f5! ]
16.e4 e6 17.d5?!
[ 17.b4!? is relatively best: c4 ( 17...fe8
18.a4 ) 18.a5 c7 19.d2 a4 20.g5
f6 ]
17...d7 18.f4 c5 19.d2
[ 19.a3 a5 20.b2 c4 21.xb7
ge5 ]
19...fc8 20.c1 xh2 21.e3?!
[ 21.c4 xf3+ 22.exf3 xd5 23.xb7
xf4 24.gxf4 d5!? ]
21...b5
[ 21...xd5!? ]
22.a3 xd5 23.xa7?
[ 23.d4!? xf3+ 24.exf3 f5 25.f2 fxe4
26.xe4 c6 27.c4 a6 28.xa6 bxa6
29.cxb5 axb5 , and Black has the much
better game and should win in the long run,
but there is a lot of work left before the win
861
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

can be scored on the tournament table. ] and all W hite did was to fight to stay in the
23...xf3+ game, though only barely so, though his effort
[ 23...b6 24.c4 a5 25.b2 xa7 26.cxd5 is prize-worthy.
xc1+ 27.xc1 xf3+ 28.exf3 transposes 1-0
to the game continuation ]
24.exf3 b6 25.c4 a5 26.b2 xa7
27.cxd5 xc1+ 28.xc1 xa2 870 A21
[ 28...f6! 29.a3 d4-+ ] Skembris,Spyridon 2446
29.b1 a6 30.b4?! Lazic,Miroljub 2512
[ 30.b2!? f5 31.f2 fxe4 32.xe4 f7 11th Open Verona ITA (7) 07.01.2005
33.b3 b5 34.c1 h5 35.c7 a2+ [John Watson]
36.e3 h6+ 37.d3 ( 37.f4? h2
38.xd7 e2+ 39.d4 a4+-+ ) 37...h2 1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 3.f3 e4 4.g5 f5
38.c2 xc2 39.xc2 h5-+ ] 5.c3 A position also arising from 1. c4 e5 2.
30...f5 31.e2 fxe4 32.xe4 a4!? N c 3 d 6 3 . N f 3 f 5 4 . d 4 e 4 5 . N g 5 . c6
[ 32...b5!? 33.c1 a2+-+ ] This move has become a standard solution
33.xb6 g4! 34.f2?! versus d4 and Ng5. White has yet to make a
[ 34.d2 a2+ 35.e3 a3+ 36.d2 dent in it. 6.h3 e7
xf3 37.e1 h6 38.d4 ( 38.xd6?! [ Avoiding 6...f6 7.g5 with the idea e3
b7!-+ ) 38...f5 39.a1 e5 40.c3 and Nf4. ]
f5-+ ] 7.e3
34...a2+ [ 7.f4 f6 8.e3 a6 9.e2 0-0
[ 34...f8!? ] is equal ]
35.e3 a3+ 36.d2 xf3 37.b8+? 7...f6 8.f4 0-0 9.h4 Versus ...g5. a6
[ 37.e1!? f8 38.xd6 a7 39.c5 10.e2 c7 11.b3 b8
a2+ 40.d3 c8 41.b4 f5-+ ] [ Another course is 11...b6 12.d2 d5 ]
37...f8 38.b4 f3!? 12.d2 e6 13.d5 xf4 14.exf4 c5
[ 38...e5! 39.c3 f2+ 40.d3 e2+ [ 14...cxd5 15.cxd5 b5!? ]
41.c2 c4+ 42.b1 d4-+ ] 15.h5 d7 16.a4 h6 17.0-0-0 a6 18.de1
39.e1 xe4 40.xe4 g5+ 41.e3 h5!? b6 Black should definitely consider
[ 41...d8! 42.g4 a5+ 43.e2 b5+ ] [ 18...b5!? ]
42.e6+ h7 43.d3 f5 44.d4 g4+ 19.f3 exf3 20.xf3
45.c3 g5 ½-½
[ 45...f3! 46.xg4 xe3+ 47.d2 hxg4
48.xe3 g6 49.f4 f6 ]
46.d4 f6 47.e4+ h6 48.c4 g6 871 A21
49.b5 d8 50.f4+ h7 Sorokin,Maxim 2574
[ 50...g5 51.e6+ h7 52.xd6 xd5+ Tseshkovsky,Vitaly 2547
53.xd5 xd5+ ] 99 Krasnodar RUS (10) 22.11.1999
51.e4?! [Tony Kosten]
[ 51.f5!? g5 52.xg5 xg5 53.c6
g6 54.f3 h6 55.f7!= ] 1.c4 d6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 f5 4.d4 c6 5.dxe5
51...b8+ 52.c6 c8+ 53.b5 c5+ The standard method of treating such
54.a6 h6 55.f4+ g5??+- positions, the resulting ending is not quite as
[ 55...h7! ] simple as it might seem. dxe5 6.xd8+
56.e6+ h7 57.xg5 c8+ 58.b6 xd8 7.f3 e4 8.d4 f6 9.g5 e7
b8+ 59.c6 c8+ 60.xd6 a6+ Forced, as Bxf6+ is a serious positional threat.
61.e5 a1+ 62.f5 f1+ 63.f4 d3+ 10.h3
64.g5 xd5+ 65.f5+ This is not a just [ 10.d1 seems tempting, but Black may be
outcome of the game, where Black created able to hold on af te r c7! ( 10...e8?
everything and obtained a winning advantage, 11.h3 g6 12.xf6 xf6 13.xe4

862
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
wins a good pawn) 11.h3 g6 12.db5+
cxb5 13.xb5+ ( 13.xf6 xf6 14.d5+
c6 15.cxb5+ xb5 is not so bad for
B l a c k , a n d h i s k i n g s i d e p a wn c h a i n i s
strong ) 13...b6 14.xf6 xf6 15.d6+
c5 16.xf6 ]
10...h6?!
[ It might not be a good idea to weaken g6
like this, better 10...g6 as now
can be met by d7 ]
11.f4 g6 12.f3 White only allows Black to
ad va nc e h is pa wn s so th a t th ey be co m e
easier to attack! exf3 13.xf3
[ Threatening Ne5, with an attack on f7 and
g6, but 13.0-0-0 e8 14.exf3 opening a
second central file against the king, is also
tempting. ]
13...g5 14.e5 h7 15.0-0-0+ e8 16.d2
a6?!
[ 16...bd7! is best, exchanging the
annoying e5-knight, or obliging it to retreat. ]
17.hf1 g4?
[ After this inaccuracy the black position
d i s i n t e g r a t e s , h e h a d t o t r y 17...d6!
whilst W hite cannot defend this with Bf4,
18.d3 g4 19.g2 and now
gains a tempo attacking the c4-pawn. ]
18.g2 c7 19.e4 e6
[ Black is forced to seek compensation for his
f-pawn, as 19...fxe4 20.xe4 is extremely
disagreeable for him. ]
20.exf5 d4 21.f4 c5
[ 21...xf5 loses material after 22.df1 ]
22.e1 h5 it is difficult to suggest any better,
Black is a pawn down with a rotten position.
23.b5 xb5 24.cxb5 a6 25.b6 a5
26.c4 f8 27.c3 It is indeed a bad sign
for Black when W hite's pieces find strong
squares so easily. h6 28.e5 d6 29.f2
d7?
[ 29...d7? 30.xd7+ xd7 31.e6 xe6
32.fxe6+ wins the knight. ]
1-0
872 A21
Speelman,Jonathan S 2533
Howell,David 2501
4NCL 2006-07 (5) 13.01.2007
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 b4 3.d5 e7
This is currently the most popular retreat, and
11.d1 White's approach in this game is not the most
critical line, but is noteworthy nonetheless,
and as far as I can tell it does yield some
advantage. 4.d4
[ 4.f3 I include the following striking game
(Ehlvest-Shirov) more for entertainment
than theoretical value, but it is worth noting
that White doesn't have to meet Be7 with
d4.
A) 4...d6 5.b3!? ( 5.d4 ) 5...f5 6.b2 f6
looks fine for Black.;
B) 4...e4!?;
C) 4...c6 5.xe7 xe7 6.b3 d5 7.e3
h6 8.cxd5 cxd5 9.a4 c6 10.a3
e6 11.c1 d7 12.b4 f6 13.b5 d8
14.e2 f5 15.0-0 d6 16.b3 b6
17.d4 e4 18.d2 8b7 19.f3 f5 20.fxe4
e6 fxe4 21.b1 1-0 Ehlvest, J (2655)-Shirov,
A (2580)/Manila 1990 ]
4...d6 5.f3!? e4
[ 5...c6 seems unnecessary, though it does
give Black the option of playing ...f5 before
...Nf6. 6.xe7 ( 6.c3 doesn't make sense,
si n c e W h it e h a s e f f e c t i ve ly l o s t h a lf a
tempo. ) 6...xe7 There are several ways to
play now, but after something simple like
7.e3 f5 8.e2 f6 9.0-0 0-0 10.b4
White remains somewhat better, but it will
take some skill to show it e.g. e4 11.d2
e6 ( 11...d5 12.a4! ) 12.a4 bd7 13.a3
f7 14.b5 c5 15.b3 b6 16.a5 ]
6.d2 f5 7.b1 f6 8.bc3 0-0 9.g3!?
Perfectly playable, but White can probably do
better.
[ 9.xe7+ xe7 10.g5 e6 ( 10...h6
11.d5 ) 11.e3 bd7 12.e2 c6
Un d e rst a n d a b le , b u t n o w W h it e 's d a rk
squared bishop is strong. 13.0-0 f7 14.d5
( 14.b3 is also playable, and somewhat
better for White.) 14...cxd5 15.b5 e5
( 15...dxc4 16.xd6! and Nc7 or Nd4.)
16.xd6 g6 17.xf6 ( 17.f4! xc4
18.xb7! xb2 19.d4 c4 20.c5
863
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
and White has positional domination for his
pawn and will increase the pressure with
Rab1-b7. ) 17...xf6 18.cxd5 d7 19.c4
xc4 20.xc4 f4 21.exf4 h3 22.g3 xf4
23.d6+ h8 24.d5 xf1 25.xf1 ff8
26.d1 ad8 27.g2 f6 28.d2 e3
29.fxe3 h6 30.d3 f6 31.d2 h6
32.d3 f6 1/2-1/2 Lautier, J (2620)-Shirov,
A (2685)/Tilburg 1996 ]
9...e6 10.xe7+ xe7 11.d5 f7 12.h3
g4! 13.xg4 fxg4 14.e3
[ 14.d4 g6 15.b3 d7 16.b2 ]
14...d7 15.d4 g6 16.0-0?! This gives
Black a very clear and strong plan of Q-h5
followed by Ne5-f3 or Qh3 and Rf5-h5.
[ 16.h3!? is fine for White, who can still
castle queenside. ]
16...ae8 17.xa7 e5! 18.fc1 h5
19.f1
[ 19.d4 h3 20.d1 looks a bit passive,
but many good ideas do, and in this case it
is not clear how Black strengthens his attack,
because White can play Qf1-g2 to bolster
his king's defences. ]
19...c5 20.a3 xh2 21.e1 Black now
has various ways to win. W hite's rooks are
not pulling their weight. a8 22.b4 d3+
23.exd3 g1+ 24.d2 xf2+ 25.e2
xe2+ 26.xe2 g2+ 27.d1 exd3
28.e1 f8 29.f4 e8 30.e3 f8 31.f4
e4 32.c3 e8 33.c1 g6 34.d1 e2
35.d2 f2 36.b3 e4 37.xg4 f1+
38.b2 xd2+ 39.a3 f5 40.h4 xa1
0-1
873 A21
Suba,Mihai 2501
Bosboom Lanchava,Tea 2325
6th Open Malaga ESP (5) 25.02.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 d6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 f5
[ 3...c6 is my preferred move in 'The
Dynamic English', keeping control of d4.
Play is then likely to transpose into a
normal Closed English. ]
4.d4 This is the thematic reply, as now Black
can only capture on d4 at the cost of
conceding the f4-square to a white knight.
d7 Black defends e5. Alternatives:
[ 4...exd4 5.xd4 c6 6.e3+ e7 7.g2
e5 8.b3 f6 9.b2 0-0 Van't Veen,G-
Janssen,E/Haarlem 1988, and now 10.h3
is logical, followed by Nf4. ]
[ We considered 4...c6 in the game Sorokin,
M-Tseshkovsky,V/Krasnodar RUS 1999. ]
5.h3!? A surprising novelty! It seems so
automatic to bring the light-squared bishop to
g2 t h a t m a n y o f u s wo u l d d o s o wi t h o u t
thinking.
[ 5.g2 is good, of course, gf6 ( 5...c6
6.e4!? Smokina,K-Martyniuk,T/Tapolca
1996 ) 6.e3 ( 6.f3!? e7 7.0-0 e4 8.g5
f8 9.f3 is better for White, Davies,N-
Hartm an,C/ Katrineholm 199 5) 6...g6
7.ge2 g7 8.0-0 0-0 9.b3
with a standard type of position, except that
the black queen's knight is more passively
placed on d7 than on the habitual c6,
Vehreschild,A-Kovalev,A/Cappelle la
Grande 1996. ]
5...b6?! Maybe not the best, after
[ 5...g6 I assu me W h ite in tende d 6.e4
to soften-up the diagonal, fxe4 7.xe4
gf6 with unclear play, whilst ]
[ 5...e7 is also possible. ]
6.dxe5! dxe5?! This almost loses by force,
Black should try a pawn sac with
[ 6...e6 ]
7.xd8+ xd8 8.g5+ e7 9.0-0-0+
Everything with check! d7 10.xe7+ xe7
11.c5 Each move of White's is forcing, but will
his initiative achieve anything concrete? c4
[ 11...bc8 12.f3 wins. ]
12.f3 e8 13.b3 The answer is yes, Black
is forced to jettison material. e4
[ 13...a5 14.xe5 e6 15.b5
is even worse. ]
14.xe4! c6 15.eg5 a5 16.e6
W hite has a pawn more, the more active
pieces, and the black king is misplaced -
enough for a quick victory. f7 17.xc7
xf3
[ 17...ac8 fails to trap the knight because of
18.e5+ g8 19.xc6 axc6 20.d7 ]
18.exf3 ad8 Again,
[ 18...ac8 19.d7 leads nowhere for
Black. ]
19.b5 a6 20.d6+ f6 21.f4
W ith W hite's two extra pawns and various
other advantages the game is effectively over.
864
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

b8 22.he1 g6 23.f1 b5 24.g2 hd8 10...c6 11.0-0 e6 12.b3 b6 13.d2
25.d2 ec6 26.de2 b4 27.e6+ g7 [ White would like to exploit the weakness of
28.e7+ g8 29.b1 ac6 30.c7 d3 c6 but 13.b5 c8 14.d2 d6 15.c1?
31.xc6 would fall for the Greek Gift xh2+ 16.xh2
[ 31.d5+! h8 32.f7+ g7 33.g5+ g4+ 17.g1 h4 etc. ]
forces mate. ] 13...a6 14.e1 d6 15.c1 e7 16.h5+
31...e5? g6 17.h4 0-0 White is att acking with his
[ 31...xe1 is hopeless, but allows Black to pieces without the support of his pawns and
continue: 32.d5+ f8 ( 32...h8? so he proves unable to put the black centre
33.f7+ ) 33.f7+ g8 34.e7+ f8 under any real pressure. It remains intact, and
35.xe1 ] so confers a space advantage on the black
32.d5+ f8 33.f7+ g8 34.e7+ pieces without any drawbacks. 18.xg6 hxg6
1-0 19.e1 b8 20.h3 a7 21.e2 af7
22.g3 d7 23.xd6 xd6 24.g3 xg3
25.xg3 b5 26.f2 e8 27.xf7 xf7
874 A21 28.c8 e7 Black has a clear advantage in
Sultanov,Alexander V 2290 the endgame as his bishop is clearly the best
Poluljahov,Aleksandr 2525 minor piece on the board. Both white knights
53rd ch-RUS Samara 2000 are passive and cannot easily find anyrthing
[Neil McDonald] to attack. Meanwhile the black king is active
while its counterpart is shut in on g1. 29.c1
1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 3.f3 e4 4.fd2 White cannot exploit the c file for if
[ White can also play more aggressively with [ 29.b8 f6 planning Rc6. ]
4.g5 for example f5 5.c3 e7 6.h3 29...d7 30.c2 d6 31.b3 a5 32.a4 a6
c6 7.e3 f6 8.f4 a6! 9.h4 c7 10.d5 33.c3 f5 34.ge2?
0-0 11.e2 d7! clearing the way for Bf6 [ 34.xf5 White had to bite the bullet with
and heading for the active c5 square 12.g3 gxf5 ]
a5 with unclear play in Xu Jun-Adams, 34...g5! Zugzwang! 35.g3? A fatal weakening
Yerevan 1996. ] of the f3 square. The only move was
4...f5 5.e3 f6 6.c3 c6 A well established [ 35.h2 when if c8 36.g1 xc3
alternative, which has also brought Black 37.xc3 xe3 38.f2 would keep up the
some impressive successes over the years, is fight. ]
[ 6...c5!? aiming to counterattack against d4. 35...e7 36.g2 f3 37.g1 Losing, but
I n t h e p r e s e n t g a m e B l a c k a d o p t s a there was no answer to the threat of 37...Nf5.
completely different plan. He prepares to f1+ 38.h2 f2+
consolidate a space advantage in the centre. 0-1
The question is whether W hite is able to
disrupt Black's build up with a blow from
the flanks. ] 875 A21
7.f3 Tratar,Marko 2435
[ Instead 7.d5 g6 looks unclear, though I Srebrnic,Vojko 2200
suspect fine for Black. ] 11th Open Ljubljana 2000
7...d5 8.cxd5 [Neil McDonald]
[ 8.b3 a6! 9.e2 b5 10.c5 a5!
turned out well for Black in Ribli-Quinteros, 1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 3.c3 exd4?!
Las Palmas 1974. ] Black concedes the centre. This isn't
8...cxd5 9.fxe4 fxe4 10.e2 This seems too recommended as although Black gains time
slow to hurt Black. Much more enterprising with his next move he doesn't seem to be able
would be t o ge n e ra t e e n o u g h d yn a m i sm t o o f f s e t
[ 10.b5+ perhaps in combination with Qa4 White's space advantage and control of the
or Qb3. ] d5 square. 4.xd4 c6 5.d2 g6 6.b3

865
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
g7 7.b2 f6 8.g3 0-0 9.g2 e8
10.h3!? The knight is heading for the f4
square where it will clamp down further on the
important d5 centre point. This persuades
B la ck t o p a rt wit h t h e t wo b ish o p s . xh3
11.xh3 e4 12.xe4 xe4 A couple of
exchanges have eased the congestion in
Black's camp, but he still suffers from a space
disadvantage. Furthermore, W hite's light
squared bishop will soon demonstrate its
superiority over the black knight. 13.g2 e8
14.0-0 e7 15.e3 a5 16.ac1 xb2
17.xb2 d8 Black cannot find a
constructive plan. All he can do is bolster his
defences in anticipation of W hite's coming
attack. 18.fd1 b8 19.a3 With all his
pieces on optimal squares, White decides it is
time for a queenside pawn advance. e6
20.c3 b6 21.c6 ed8 22.b4 axb4
23.axb4 dc8 24.a1 d8 25.g2 b5
26.a7 bxc4 27.d5 e8 28.xc4 c6
Th is b id f o r f re ed o m me et s wit h a sha rp
response. 29.xf7+!?
[ 29.g2 Of course, another way to keep up
the pressure was the quiet ]
29...xf7 30.xd6 d8?
[ 30...a8 Black reacts badly to the sacrifice.
H e wo u l d h a ve d r a wi n g c h a n c e s a f t e r
31.xa8 ( 31.b7 ab8 32.a7 draws. )
31...xa8 32.xc6 though stopping the past
b pawn would be a demanding task. ]
31.e6 f8 32.ee7 d5 33.xf7 xb4
34.g7+ This is a drastic warning about the
dangers of conceding the centre if you don't
gain a lot of piece play as compensation.
1-0
876 A21
Vera Gonzalez Quevedo,Reynaldo 2530
Hodgson,Julian M 2590
Winnipeg 1997
[Tony Kosten]
1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 3.c3 exd4 4.xd4 c6
5.d2 Seems like an odd square for a queen,
but it is very common in similar positions. The
c1-bishop will be developed on b2, so the
queen will be able to defend both the bishop
on b2, and the g3-knight, from d2. f6 6.b3
e6 Threatening the freeing move 7... d5.
7.e4 And stopping it! g6 Sensibly continuing
development, Black plays his bishop to the
a1-h8 diagonal, but
[ the immediate attack on the queenside
7...a5 is favoured by some, 8.b2!? a4
9.d1 freeing the a1-square for the bishop,
otherwise ...a3 would be annoying. axb3
10.axb3
A) 10...g6 is also reasonable, 11.d3
g7 12.ge2 0-0 13.0-0 d7 14.d5
Lautier, J-Piasetski,L/Manila 1990, and
i n s t e a d o f xd5?! which allowed White
some advantage along the open c-file
after exchanging dark-squared bishops,
and recapturing on d5 with the c-pawn,
( 14...a2! might be OK for Black. );
B) 10...e7 11.ge2!? ambitious,
perhaps 11 Bd3, and then 12 Nge2, was
safer. 0-0 12.f4 d7 13.fd5
the point of White's play, ...Bf6 is ruled out,
but White is getting behind in
d e v e l o p m e n t . c5 14.c2 f5!
and the opening-up of the position
proved embarrassing to White, Akesson,J-
Agrest,E/ch-SWE, Ronneby SWE 1998. ]
8.b2 g7 9.d3 0-0 10.ge2 g4!
Black's pieces are ready for action, already
the white king is under fire. 11.h3 Driving the
knight to the central e5-square, but
[ the natural 11.0-0 was dangerous: h4
12.h3 ge5! (threatening 13...Bxh3) 13.f4
xd3 14.xd3 f5 with good play. ]
11...ge5 12.0-0-0!? White obviously felt that
the king was safer here, but it is rarely the
case. b4 Black passes immediately to the
attack, although
[ 12...xd3+ was also playable. ]
13.b1 xc4! Shattering the king's defences.
14.bxc4 xc4 15.f4 e5 16.h6
[ 16.g4? would lead to an amusing finish:
h5! 17.f3 g5+ and the poor white king
has no escape squares. ]
16...c6
[ 16...g7 with a repetition on the queen,
would draw immediately, but Black strives
for more. ]
17.d4! Sensibly returning material to blunt
the attack. xd4 18.xd4 xb2 19.xb2
e8 An unbalanced position has arisen,
W hite's two pieces should be a match for
Black's rook and two pawns, but the openness
866
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

of the white king is also a factor. 20.d1 f6 [ 17.d4! ]

21.f4 Risky, White cuts his queen off from the 17...h6 18.cd1 g8 19.f3? This is a bad
rest of his forces, sign! 19.d4 was better. The rest of the game
[ 21.d2! was better. ] shows Black executing a very nice attack.
21...a6 22.f5 c5 Countering the threat h5
to d6, with an even bigger menace: ...Na4+. [ Or 19...xd5 intending exchanges on d5
23.e5 Desperately trying to close the diagonal. and ...Ne7-f5. ]
dxe5 24.d6 e6 25.xe6 fxe6?! 20.e2
[ 25...xe6 was far better, keeping the pawn [ 20.g4 h4 21.de1? ( 21.e2 c6 )
structure intact with a clear advantage. ] 21...xg4! 22.fxg4 xg4 23.e2 f3
26.fxe5 f8 27.xf8+ xf8 28.e3 24.xh6 fxe2 ]
The endgame should certainly favour Black as 20...g7 21.c1 h4! 22.e1 fxg3
rooks tend to come into their own in this phase 23.hxg3 xc1 24.xc1 g5 25.h2 bg8
of the game. d7 29.e4 xe5 30.c2 26.g1 xg3 27.xg3 h6 28.e3 xf3#
d8 31.c3 Trying to defend all the entry 0-1
squares, if the black rook is passive, White
will have drawing chances. b6 32.g5 d6
Short of time, Black allows a repetition of 878 A21
position, but Zvjaginsev,Vadim 2653
[ jettisoning the pawn by 32...c5 at one point Tseshkovsky,Vitaly 2538
in the next few moves, would keep a plus, e. 56th ch Krasnoyarsk RUS (8) 11.09.2003
g. 33.xe6 d6 34.c7 f7 ] [Tony Kosten]
33.e4 d8 34.g5 d6 35.e4 d8
36.g5 1.c4 e5 2.c3 d6 3.g3 f5 4.d4 e7
½-½ [ Not long ago we looked at 4...d7 5.h3!?
in Suba,M-Bosboom Lanchava,T/Malaga
ESP 2003. ]
877 A21 5.h3!? Again this amazing idea, and again it
Wang Yue 2585 is a novelty.
Smirin,Ilia 2673 [ 5.dxe5 is common, dxe5 6.xd8+ xd8
WCC Khanty Mansiysk RUS (2.3) 02.12.2005 7.g2 f6 8.b3 c6 9.b2 but this ending
[John Watson] doesn't offer White too much, as he hasn't
even displaced the black king, Taimanov,
A good example of how to play one of the M-Vaganian,R/Leningrad 1977. ]
main ...e5/...f5 English Opening lines. White's 5...exd4 This looks best, Black probably
setup is good but he can't slip up because wanted to avoid
Black's pieces are always ready to spring into [ 5...f6 because of 6.dxe5 dxe5 7.xd8+
action. 1.c4 e5 2.c3 d6 3.g3 f5 4.g2 xd8 8.e4 when the f-pawn is pinned. ]
f6 5.e3 g6 6.ge2 g7 7.b4 c6 8.b5 6.xd4 c6 7.d1 White loses time with his
e7 9.a4 0-0 10.d3 b8 11.a3 e6 queen, but, as I have stated many time s
12.c1 h8 13.0-0 All standard stuff, but the before, this structure is very favourable to
rook's placement on c1 is an improvement White: he can use the f4 and d5 squares, the
over b1, and allows him to play f4 without c3 e6 and f7 squares are weak, and the black
hanging. g5 I've always been a little skeptical light-squared bishop is curbed by the f-pawn.
of this kind of attack, but it certainly is e5 Trying to hinder White's natural
difficult to face over the board! 14.d2 g6 development. 8.f3!? Offering to take play in
15.d5 a new direction,
[ 15.f4! gxf4 16.exf4 ] [ 8.g2 followed by Nh3-f4 was a
15...f4 16.exf4 gxf4 17.ec3?! The knights reasonable alternative. ]
step over each other a bit. A good alternative 8...c6 Black threatens the c4-pawn, which
was could not be captured immediately because of

867
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
the queen check on a4.
[ 8...xf3+ 9.exf3 f6 10.0-0 0-0 11.e1
is nice for White because of his extra space
and open central files. ]
9.c2!? Rather than defend the c-pawn White
counterattacks the f5-pawn. xc4 10.xf5
xf5 11.xf5 d7
[ 11...d5 is also possible. ]
12.d3 e5!? An odd decision, Black prefers
to play an endgame with an isolated e-pawn,
rather than play the logical-looking
[ 12...d5 as 13.e4 is no particular problem:
dxe4 14.xe4 d6 15.c2 f6
with equality. ]
13.xe5 dxe5 14.xd7+ Now White is
ha p py t o e xc h a nge qu e en s, a s h e ha s a
weakness to exploit. xd7 15.e4 f6
16.e2 e6 17.f3 c5 18.a4 d4
19.e3 xe3!? Again this seems a bit too
compliant, but perhaps Black was worried that
[ 19...b6 20.xd4 exd4 21.d3 c5 22.b4
d7 23.f4 left the white pawns mobile and
the black pawns rather static. ]
20.xe3 b6 21.b4 White hinders ...c5, which
straightens the black structure, he will try to
p r e s s u r i s e t h e b a c k w a r d c - p a w n . hc8
22.ac1 c7 23.c2 d8!? Black prefers
not to defend to passively, but
[ 23...ac8 is not so bad, for after 24.hc1
Black has the resource c5! 25.bxc5 d7
and the c-pawn is pinned, 26.c6 b8
with no particular problems. ]
24.hc1 d4 This is his idea, the b-pawn is
pinned against the knight. 25.a3!
[ 25.xc6+ xc6 26.xc6+ d7 27.c2
xb4 is nothing for White. ]
25...c5?! Black follows his defensive plan, but
[ 25...d6 is better. ]
26.b2 d7 27.d3 This is the problem,
now Black has no method of breaking the pin
o n t h e c - l i n e a n d w i l l d r o p a p a w n . g5
To hinder f4.
[ 27...c4? is n o im p ro ve m e n t : 28.xe5!
xe5 29.f4+ wins an exchange and pawn. ]
28.bxc5 bxc5 29.xc5+ xc5 30.xc5
xc5 31.xc5 a4 Black is a pawn down in
the rook ending, but plays for activity - his
only chance. 32.c6+ f7 33.c3 h5 34.h4
gxh4 35.gxh4 e7 36.f4 exf4+ 37.xf4
White has been forced to liquidate two of the
k i n g s i d e p a wn s t o f r e e h i s p o s it io n . f6
38.c6+ e7 39.c5! The only try - if White
is tied down to the a-pawn he can never win.
xa3 40.xh5 a5 41.f5 h3? I am not so
sure about this, perhaps he should try
[ 41...a1! 42.h5 a4 43.a5 a3 44.e5
(the king seeks cover in front of the pawn,
otherwise Black would win by ...a2, and then
rook somewhere check) a2 45.a7+ f8
46.h6 ( 46.e6 e1 47.xa2 xe4+
draws ) 46...g8 and how can White make
progress without dropping his e-pawn? ]
42.h5 a4 43.g4 h1 Perhaps Black had
missed that after
[ 43...e3?! White has 44.h6! xe4+
45.g5 e1 46.h7 h1 47.g6
and wins, as the white rook comes to h5. ]
44.a5 g1+ 45.f5 h1 46.g6 g1+
47.h7 a1 Now Black puts his rook on a1,
but the difference with the note at move 41 is
that White has brought his king over to help
the h-pawn. 48.h6 a3 49.g6 g1+ 50.f5
h1 51.a7+ f8
[ 51...d6 52.xa3! xh6 53.a6+ ]
52.h7 a2 53.xa2 g7
[ 53...xh7 54.a8+ f7 55.a7+
leads to a winning king and pawn
endgame. ]
54.e5
[ 54.e5 xh7 55.g2 cuts the black king
and wins in textbook fashion. ]
1-0
879 A22
Boensch,Uwe 2524
Ftacnik,Lubomir 2580
TCh-AUT 2006-7 (1) 03.11.2006
[John Watson]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 c6 4.f3 d6
Black goes for the Old Indian formation.
[ 4...e4 is the traditional move. ]
5.g2 e7 6.0-0 0-0 7.e4!? Now White is
ready for d4, but if Black stops that we get a
so rt o f B o tvin n ik with Nf 3 in . T h is is n o t
necessarily b ad, because t he knight ca n
always go to h4 to support f4 or perhaps play
Nf5. In this game Black tries to exploit the
knight position, but not too successf ully.
g4!?
[ To White's horror, Black might play 7...c5!
868
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

, cancelling out d4, 8.d3 c6 9.h3!? b8 6...a5 7.d3 e7
might follow, with W hite going for f4 and [ With this move order 7...b4 is possible,
Black for f5. ] 8.f3 c6 9.0-0 0-0 the bishop is more
[ Other ideas are: 7...bd7 8.d4 ] active on b4, Leepin, P-Alekhine, A/ Munich
[ 7...e6 8.b3 a5 intending ...b5!? ] 1941. ]
8.h3 h5 8.e3 0-0 9.xb6 cxb6 10.f3 c6
[ 8...xf3 9.xf3 c5 10.d3 c6 11.0-0 e6 12.b5
is still irritating, but this time W hite can [ 12.d2 is analysed in Karlsson, L (2482)-
play for f4-f5, g4, etc. ] Narciso Dublan, M (2544)/Badalona 2011. ]
9.d4 bd7 10.e3 12...c8
[ An interesting juncture. Traditionally, White [ 12...f5 13.d2 ( it is probably better to
is supposed to have some advantage in keep the knight on f3 when Black plays .. .f5,
p o s i t i o n s l i k e 10.g4 g6 11.e1 so 13.e3 should come into consideration.)
because Black's bishop is so bad, but it's 13...d7 14.c4 c5 15.xe5!? xf2+
not clear how he can show that. ( Maybe ( 15...xe5 16.d4 ad8 17.dxc5 bxc5
11.h4! with the idea xe4 12.xe4 xe4 18.c2 b6 19.fd1 is about equal.)
13.f5 is a goo d gambit : ef6 14.f4! 16.xf2 xe5 17.f4 g5!? 18.d4 e7
and Black faces some real problems. I think 19.c1 ac8 20.xc8 xc8 21.d2 c5
that White is better, and almost certainly so 22.xb7! xb7 Blot, J (2324)-Colin, V
in practice. )] (2324) / Mans 2001, 23.d8+ g7 24.d4
10...e8 11.e1 d5 25.d6 with advantage. ]
[ Better 11.g4 g6 12.h4! ] [ 12...f6 13.d2 c8 ( 13...d7 14.c4
11...exd4! 12.xd4 c5 15.c1 fd8 16.c2 ac8 17.fd1
[ 12.xd4 gives more hope to get a little b4 18.b1 f7 19.b3 White plays all his
so me th in g ou t of t he p osit io n, b u t a5! useful moves, next up e3 and d4 is on the
l o o k s e q u a l ( 12...f8 13.c2 e5 c a r d s , b u t B l a c k b l u n d e r s f i r s t ! d7?
14.d2! )] 20.xb6! winning, Vedral, O-Plasgura, P
12...e5!? (2186)/ Czechia 2001.) 14.c1 f7 15.c4
[ or 12...c5= ] c5 16.h1 Kortschnoj, V (2639)-Zhu Chen
13.xe5 dxe5 14.xe5 a3! 15.d4 xb2 (2497)/Amsterdam 2001. ]
16.ab1 xc3 17.xc3 xe4 18.d4!? 13.c1 h8 Black waits for White to move
[ 18.xe4! xe4 19.xb7 , but the opposite his f3-knight before pushing his f-pawn.
colours will make it difficult to get anything. ] [ 13...f6 is again good, 14.d4!? ( 14.e3 d7
18...xd4 19.xd4 d2 20.xe8+ xe8 15.d4 should not be answered by exd4 as
21.xb7 f3+ 22.xf3 xf3 23.e5!? a6 16.fxd4 leaves White with a positional plus,
24.b8 xb8 25.xb8 e2 26.c5 f6 27.f4 Nagy, A (2090)-Turkova, K (1908)/ Banska
f7 28.a4 d1 Stiavnica 2010.; 14.d2 would be the
½-½ normal move, heading for c4, f7 15.c4
c5 transposing to the 12...f6 note.) 14...e4
15.d2 f5 16.e3 b4 17.b3 is possible,
880 A22 White will prepare the f3 break, Dableo, R
Chernyshov,Konstantin 2570 (2453) -Panopio, R (2212)/ Manila 2007. ]
Kachur,Alexander 2284 14.d2 f5 15.c4 g5 This seems a bit
Geller Memorial op-A 3rd (1) 08.09.2007 pointless, the bishop is best on the a3-f 8
[Tony Kosten] diagonal, protecting d6. 16.c3
[ Or 16.e3 ]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 f6 3.g3 d5 4.cxd5 xd5 16...e7 17.b3 e8 18.e3 White simply
5.g2 b6 6.a4 continues 'the plan'. b4 19.c1 White is
[ 6.d3 e7 7.a4 was the move order in ready to push d4, or play first Qe2, Rfd1 and
Karlsson, L-Narciso Dublan, M, though this then d4. xc4?! Introducing opposite-colour
might be less accurate. ] bishops. 20.xc4

869
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 20.bxc4 must also have been tempting. ]
20...f6 21.c2 ed8 22.d1 g5?!
W eakening the kingside when W hite was
r e a d y t o e x p a n d i n t h e c e n t r e . 23.d4
Of course, this gains in strength now that
Black's king is exposed. exd4 24.exd4 f4
25.d5 e7 26.d4 The knight has done its
job on b5 and now heads for e6.
[ 26.c7! also stops Black exchanging
rooks. ]
26...fxg3 27.hxg3 xc4 28.bxc4 g6
29.e4 f8 30.g2 e8 31.f5
W hite dominates on the light squares. e5
32.f3 c5 33.h6 White has a number of
routes here, as both
[ 33.d6 and ]
[ 33.h1 were also natural and strong. ]
33...f6 34.g4 g7 35.h1 g8 36.f5
I suspect both players were short of time here,
but Black is completely lost anyway. d4
37.h5 g6 38.d6 f8 39.d5+ h8
40.xg5 c5 41.e4 g8 42.h6 f7
43.xh7! xh7 44.xg6+
1-0
881 A22
Griffiths,Ryan Rhys 2310
Howell,David 2633
4NCL 2011-12 (5.12) 11.02.2012
[John Bartholomew]
1.c4 f6 2.g3 e5 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
5.c3 b6 6.e3!? A high-profile victory in an
u n e xp l o re d li n e is a su re -f i re r e c i p e f o r
copycat games in subsequent TWIC updates!
c5 Interestingly, Howell is content to repeat
Navara's play until move 15.
[ Two new games saw the logical 6...c6
7.ge2 . Here Black has a choice:
A) Zygouris, H (2205)-Felgaer, R (2571)/
Caleta ENG 2012 went 7...f5 8.0-0?!
( My recommendation last month was
8.d4! when White gets the upper hand in
the complications of b4 9.0-0
10.e1 g6 11.f4! . See Nakamura, H
(2759)-Navara, D (2712)/W ijk aan Zee
NED 2012/ [John Bartholomew].) 8...d3
( I s u g g e s t e d 8...d3 the text is also
fine. ) 9.f4 exf4 ( 9...h5!? ) 10.xf4 d6
11.d4!? ( W h i t e c o u l d p l a y 11.f2
though 0-0 12.f4 xf4 13.xf4 e7
isn 't m u ch .) 11...xf4 12.xc6 bxc6
13.xc6+ f8 14.gxf4 ( 14.xa8 xg3
15.hxg3 xa8 ) 14...b8 15.b3 h5!
16.a3+ g8 17.f3 h6 18.c1 a6
19.d4?? g6+ and White resigned in view
of 20.h1 ( 20.f2 h4+-+ ) 20...xc6
21.xc6 b7-+ .;
B) 7...e7 8.0-0 0-0 9.f4! exf4 ( I gave
9...f6; Zvjaginsev, V (2663)-Mikhalevski, V
(2584) / Aix-les-Bains FRA 2011/[Nigel
Davies] went 9...a5 10.fxe5 xe5 11.d4
g6 12.b3 c6 13.e4 c5 14.e3 cxd4
15.xd4 xd4 16.xd4 d7 17.d5 )
10.xf4 e5 11.d4 g6 (this maneuver
l o o k s a l i t t l e s u s p i c i o u s ) 12.xg6
( 12.d3!? ) 12...hxg6 13.e4 c5! 14.d5
c4 15.f4 g5! 16.e2 gxf4 17.xc4
fxg3 18.e5! gxh2+ 19.h1 h4 20.e4
b5 21.e2 e8? 22.e6! fxe6 23.h5 e5
24.f7+ h8 25.d6 g4 26.g6
1-0 Matinian, N (2438)-Grover, S (2532)/
Moscow RUS 2012. A spectacular
victory! ]
[ Turov, M (2645)-Brandenburg, D (2527)/
Wijk aan Zee NED 2012 was played in the
"C" section several rounds after Nakamura-
Navara. It continued 6...e7 7.ge2 0-0
8.0-0 f5 (this is somewhat loosening) 9.d4!
A) 9...e4 10.f4 ( or 10.f3 exf3
11.xf3 );
B) 9...exd4 10.exd4 f6 11.d5
(White has several good alternatives, too)
8d7 12.f4 e5 13.e1 e8 14.h5
d7 . A t th is po in t 15.f4 looks very
promising for White. In my opinion these
recent practical tests should not at all
dissuade you from venturing 6.e3!? in your
own games. ]
7.ge2 c6 8.0-0 e7 9.f4 exf4 10.xf4
0-0 11.b3 f5 12.b2 d7 13.e4 ad8
14.f2 b4 15.f1 g6 A safe novelty,
a d d re ssin g t h e t h re a t o f N f 4 -h 5 . H o we l l
doesn't feel the need to refute Nakamura's
c2 previous play rather, he's aiming for a solid
position in which he can outplay his lower-
rated opponent.
[ The source game went 15...xe4 16.xe4
6d5 17.h5 g6 18.a3!? a6?? 19.xd5
xd5 20.f6!+- and White won beautifully.
Nakamura, H (2759)-Navara, D (2712)/ Wijk
870
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

aan Zee NED 2012/[John Bartholomew]. ] 69.xf5 g3 70.f4 f8+ 71.g4 g8+
16.xg6 72.f4= ]
[ E x p e c t e d , b u t 16.c1! is much more 54...xg4 55.e4? A fatal miscalculation.
challenging, i.e. c8 ( 16...xa2? 17.xc5 [ 55.c3! still offered chances for the half
is definitely not advisable; I like White's point. ]
attacking potential with the bishop pair after 55...xe4 56.xe4 f7 Black gets back in
16...xe4 17.xe4 f5!? 18.b1 ) 17.a3 time. 57.d5 e7 58.c6 d8
4d5 18.xg6 hxg6 19.c3 ] 0-1
16...hxg6 17.d4 cxd4 18.exd4 6d5
Black has a sound position. 19.c5
[ 19.e1!? ] 882 A22
19...c7 Grigoriants,Sergey 2503
[ 19...xc5 20.dxc5 e3 21.e1 bd5! Sadvakasov,Darmen 2509
was an unbalanced alternative. ( 21...bc2? Tournament for the 21st Century (4) 21.12.00
22.c3+- )] [Tony Kosten]
20.a3 e3 21.b5 xc5 22.c1 d7
23.xc5 xg2 24.xb4?! 1.c4 e5 2.c3 f6 3.g3 b4 4.g2 0-0
[ White is admittedly passive after 24.xg2 5.e4 xc3 The simplest line, this must be
d5 25.xd7 xd7 26.e2 , but this was played now before White can play his other
his best bet. ] knight to e2. 6.bxc3 c6 I always felt that this
24...e3 25.d5?! Trying to offload the was Black's strongest option here, he will play
weakness. f6!? 26.e4 f5 for ... d5. 7.a3 e8!
[ 26...d1!? ] [ Black is not worried about the bishop's
27.e6+ f7 28.fc2 xe6 incursion to d6, judging correctly that he can
[ 28...e7! was stronger. ] regain control of this square. W hen I had
29.dxe6 e7 30.e2 de8 31.f2 xe6 t h i s p o s i t i o n m y s e l f , I p r e f e r r e d 7...d6
32.xe6 xe6 33.c7 b6 , but this means Black will have to play ...d5
[ It's unclear why Black refrained from the in two moves. Nevertheless the game turned
natural 33...e7 since a rook trade is not in out rather successfully for me: 8.e2 e8
White's best interest. ] 9.b3 a6 10.c5?! to stop Black from
34.b4 a5 35.g4 d6 36.d4 a6 37.c5 p l a y i n g . . . b 5 , b u t i t w a s t e s t i m e , dxc5
e4+ 38.e3 xc5 39.c8+ f7 40.xc5 11.xc5 b5 12.d1 e6 13.a3 bd7
W h ite ha s go o d d ra wing ch a nce s in t h is 14.d6 b6 the menace is ...c5, trapping
ending. axb4 41.axb4 e6+ 42.d4 d6+ the bishop, 15.f4? too aggressive, ( 15.d4
43.e4 c6 44.b5 b6 45.h4 e6 46.h5 c4 was only slightly better for Black,)
g5 47.d4 d6+ 48.e4 f7 49.e3 15...g4 16.f1 xh2 17.fxe5 xf1
e6+ 50.d4 g6 51.hxg6+ xg6 52.d3 18.xf1 c5 Black won easily, Miezis,N-
e1 Seeing no other way to make progress, Kosten,A/Elgoibar 1995. ]
Black makes for the g-pawn. 53.xb6 g1 8.b3 White needs to control the d5-square.
54.e6?! Missing a sure draw. b6 9.e2?!
[ 54.b5 xg4 55.c6! b4 56.c5 [ 9.d3 b7 10.f3 d5 11.d2 ( 11.cxd5?!
s a ve s t h e d a y, in t e n d i n g K c 3 -c2 wh e n cxd5 12.exd5 xd5 13.c4 e4
Black's rook cannot maintain an active post. is overwhelming) 11...a6 12.0-0 c7
For example, h5 ( 56...g4 57.c3 b1 which is fairly level, Huebner,R-Christiansen,
58.c2 b4 59.c3 b1 60.c2 h1 L/Munich 1992. ]
61.b6 h7 62.b5 b7 63.d3= f5 9...b7 10.d6
64.e3 g5 65.f2= ) 57.c3 b1 [ White still strives to stop ...d5, 10.c5 a6
58.c2 b4 59.c3 b1 60.c2 e1 11.c4 bxc5 12.xc5 d6 13.a3 c5
61.b6 e8 62.d3 b8 63.b5 g4 ( 13...d5!? ) 14.0-0 a5 15.d3 c6
64.e3 g3 65.e4 with an easy draw, e. is fine for Black, Balduan, M-Lingnau,C/
g. g4 66.b3+ h2 67.f4 f5 68.b7 g2 Germany 1999. ]

871
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

10...e6 11.a3?! fe8 13.d2 xf4?! 14.xf4 h3 15.h1

[ New, 11.xb8 xb8 12.0-0 d5 13.cxd5 ad8 16.b2 e7 17.f2 White is
cxd5 14.exd5 xd5 favours Black because certainly f o r p ref ere nce , b ut Karjak in's
of his superior pawn configuration, Bruzon, defensive skills came to the fore and he won
L-Sadvakasov,D/Istanbul TUR 2000. ] this rapid game in the end anyway,
11...c5 Forcing this move is obviously White's Nepomniachtchi, I (2703)-Karjakin, S (2786)/
plan, now Black can no longer play ...d5, but Moscow 2013. ]
he has overlooked a tactical point. 12.xb8 [ 7...f5!? Is a very natural way to play, with
xe4! 13.xe4 xe4 White's bishop is two ideas, either to clamp down on the d4
trapped! 14.f3 f6 15.xa7 c8 16.0-0 break by playing ..Bd3, or just by continuing
b7 17.b2 xa7 After recapturing the with the straightforward ..Qd7 and ..Bh3.
bishop Black retains a plus- he has the better The problem though is that it runs into an
pawn st ructure . 18.d4 h6 19.a4 a6 equally natural response: 8.d4! exd4
20.a2 e8 21.fb1 d6 22.d5 ea8 ( 8...d6 9.d5! Is awkward for Black)
23.f2 The weakness of a4 and c4 seems to 9.xd4 xd4 10.exd4 Now Black may feel
be balanced by the frailty of b6, so Black the absence of the light-squared bishop from
must open up a new front. e4! 24.fxe4 e8 th e qu e en side - h an din g W h it e o bvio u s
25.b5 ae7 Now the white pieces look to be pressure so early in the game is a risky path.
on the wrong side of the board. 26.a5 bxa5 c6 11.0-0 e6 12.d5 Obvious, but strong.
27.xa5 c8 Black requires his most cxd5 Diagram 13.e3?! I feel this throws
powerful piece in the attack. 28.a8 g4 away any claims to an advantage. ( 13.d4!
29.xe8+ xe8 30.f4 g5 31.g2 xe4+ f6 14.xf6 gxf6 15.e3 was a very
32.g1 xc3 33.d2 f3 Decisive, there is promising endgame) 13...e7 14.f4!?
no defence. 34.e1 ( 14.xb6 xb6 15.xd5 xd5 16.xd5
[ 34.f2 e2+ 35.f1 d3 leads to a killer 0-0 17.f3 ad8 18.fe1 f6
discovered check. ] Looks extremely drawish) 14...0-0 15.f5
34...e2 d7 16.xd5 c6 Delchev, A (2622)-
0-1 Cheparinov, I (2664)/Panagyurishte 2012. ]
8.b3!?
[ 8.0-0 g7 9.f4 0-0 10.fxe5 xe5 11.d4
883 A22 c6 12.f4 e7 13.b3 c6 14.a4 a5
Hera,Imre Jr 2573 15.d2 f5 16.ad1 Artemiev, V (2461)-
Ribli,Zoltan 2554 Brodsky, M (2563)/Tyumen 2012. ]
AUT-chT 1213 (11.2) 24.03.2013 8...a5!? Black is thinking smartly in the
[Danny Gormally] opening. You may think this is played with the
intention of playing ..a4, but in fact it is also
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5 a defensive measure, Ribli understands that
5.c3 b6 6.e3!? An interesting approach W h i t e will p la y B a 3 a t so m e p o in t i f t h e
which has gained some popularity lately. bishop goes to g7, so gets ready to meet this
[ Instead of the normal stuff with 6.f3 c6 with the neutraliser ...Nb4! It's so easy to drift
7.0-0 Which like most main-line theory these through the opening phase without paying
days has been analysed to death, W hite attention to things- with the attitude that "any
p la n s t o p u t t h e kn igh t o n e 2 a n d p la y old move will count" but if you see chess as a
directly in the center with d4. ] fight of ideas from move one, then you will be
6...c6 7.ge2 g6 less likely to overlook your opponent's plans.
[ Already it has become clear that there are 9.0-0 g7 10.a3 b4! 11.f4 0-0 12.fxe5
many ways of playing against this line . xe5 13.d4 g7 14.d2 I'm unconvinced
An o t he r ap p roa ch is t he n at u ra l 7...d6 a b o u t t h i s c o m b i n a t i o n o f B a 3 a n d f 4 ,
After 8.0-0 0-0 9.f4! exf4 10.xf4 somehow it just doesn't feel right. On the
A rather original position has arisen, with bright side White has an extra center pawn,
very unclear play. f5 11.d4 d7 12.b3 but his position looks a bit clumsy. Black soon

872
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

initiates strong counterplay in the center. c5! taking on d1, then when the king goes to f2,
15.ad1 cxd4 16.exd4 e8 17.f4 f5 the Knight retreats to f5, and a splendid
18.g4 e6 19.xb4? When your opponent slaughter on the dark squares will then
keeps finding strong moves, then it's easy to ensue. Basically to cut a long story short
lose patience, but this just gives away the the computer just smells mate. ]
ga m e in o n e m o ve . W h it e e m b a rks o n a [ I did wonder why Black couldn't just play
forcing tactical line, that it wasn't difficult to 28...d4 with the smothered mate threat,
see would not end in his favour. This is also very strong, for example 29.d7
[ Nevertheless Black's game was already d5+ 30.h1 xf4-+ ]
clearly preferable, as the f ollowing line 29.c8 xg2+ 30.h1 xh2+ 31.xh2
might indicate 19.xb7 b8 20.f3 6d5! g4+ 32.h3 f2+ 33.h2 h4+ 34.g2
21.xd5 xd5 22.d2 c8! g4+ 35.f1 xc8 36.xc8+ xc8
Leaving W hite with an extremely difficult 37.xf2 f8 Nevertheless the smoke has
choice, either exchange the knight on d5, now cleared and Black is easily winning.
which will almost certainly lead to his king 38.xf8+ xf8 39.f3 g8 40.e4 f7
being butchered on the light-squares, or 41.d3 d6 42.d5 e7 43.f2 h5
allow the knight into e3, where it will 44.e4 c7 45.c5 b6
inevitably cause havoc. ] 0-1
19...axb4 20.d5 xg4! Perhaps White had
missed this strong blow in advance. Either
way, the game is now more or less over. 884 A22
21.xg4 bxc3 22.f3 c2 23.c1 xd5 Jones,Gawain C 2665
[ 23...xa2! 24.xf7+ h8 25.f4 e7 Le Roux,Jean Pierre 2560
26.xg6+ hxg6 27.xg6 e5 Politiken Cup 36th (6) 25.07.2014
W a s t h e m o s t e f f ic ie n t wa y o f wi n n in g [Kosten, Tony]
according to a computer, but a human will
almost always choose a less hair-raising 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
path... ] 5.g2 b6 6.e3!? This fashionable move
24.xc2 e3 25.xf7+ h8 26.c7 g8 was covered extensively by John Bartholomew
27.fc1 xa2? a year or so ago, and of course Gawain would
[ 27...g5! 28.f3 xa2 was killing, as the have seen this. c6
Rc 8 re s o u r c e i sn 't g o i n g t o h u rt B la c k [ W e've also looked at 6...c5 quite a lot,
anymore. ] 7.ge2 c6 8.0-0 e7 9.f4!
28.f4? Returning the compliment. as in Nakamura, H-Navara, D, for instance -
[ D o u b t l e s s W h i t e s a w 28.c8! see the Archive. ]
But dismissed it, as Black's forces look far 7.ge2 f5 This seems critical, and Jean-
too active for him to resist for long. But this Pierre is not one to shy away from a fight!
was certainly the way he should have played, [ 7...e7 is solid, and the most popular here,
even if Black is still much better after xc8 8.0-0 planning f4, see Zvjaginsev, V-
29.xc8 xc8 30.e6 f8 31.xe3 a1+ Mikhalevski, V in the PGN Archive. ]
32.c1 c8 ] [ 7...g6 8.b3!? a5!? was analysed by Danny
28...g5 in Hera, I- Ribli, Z. ]
[ Perhaps I'm cheating by putting this game 8.d4! This was recommended by John
through an engine, as then the commentator Bartholomew in his notes to the Nakamura
always looks like a genius, while the players game.
look like patzers (if only this was always true [ 8.0-0?! d3 ( or 8...d3 ) 9.f4 e4
in real life.) The computer indicates that the Nakamura, H (2760) -Fressinet, L (2700)
m o s t b r u t a l k i l l w a s w i t h 28...d2! Beijing 2012. ]
Don't quote me on this, as I rarely 8...b4 Obviously critical.
understand computer moves anyway, but I [ 8...exd4 is the alternative:
think the idea is to play ..Rd1, followed by A) 9.exd4 is OK, but b4?! is a waste of

873
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
time, ( 9...e7 10.0-0 0-0 looks almost
level. ) 10.0-0 c6 ( 10...c2?! 11.g4 g6
12.xb7 xa1 13.c6+ d7 14.f4
is strong.) 11.a3 ( 11.f4 Grigoryan, K
(2604)-Licznerski, L (2354)/Al Ain 2013,
1-0 (42), e7 12.a3 4d5 13.cxd5
xd5 14.xd5 cxd5 15.b3 e6
16.xb7 is Black's best bet, with a pawn
less. ) 11...4d5 12.f4 ( 12.xd5 )
12...xf4 ( 12...xc3! 13.bxc3 e7 )
13.xf4 e6 Kuenitz, K-Mendl, M (2155)
St Veit 1995, 1-0 (54), 14.d5!
15.xd5 cxd5 16.e5 and Black can
hardly move.;
B) 9.xd4 xd4 10.exd4 c6 11.0-0
White is ahead in development, and d5 is
coming,
B1) 11...e6 doesn't help: 12.d5! cxd5
Delchev, A (2622)-Cheparinov, I (2664)/
Panagyurishte 2012, 0-1 (42), when
13.a4! is lo gica l , ( 13.d4!? ) 13...d4
( 13...c5 14.a5 c4
almost forces f8 16.b3 e5 17.f4
with a strong attack.) 14.e2
15.b4! xb4 16.a5 and Black is in big
trouble.;
B2) 11...e7 12.d5! xd5 13.xd5
cxd5 14.xd5 0-0
B2a) 15.f4 b6 16.f3
17.xb7 ( 17.ae1! ae8 18.e5 )
17...ad8 there are too few pawns left,
Mejzlik, O-Bechyne, J (2155) Czechia
1999, 1/2-1/2 (28).;
B2b) 15.e3 c o u l d b e b e s t , h3
16.xb7 b8 17.g2 xg2 18.xd8
fxd8 19.xg2 xb2
with some advantage in the
endgame.;
B2c) 15.b3 a5! 16.e3 ad8
17.fd1 ( 17.xb7!? e6 18.c3
b5! 19.g2 f6 20.c5 xb2
should draw.) 17...b6 18.ac1 d7
an d with accu ra t e play B lack he ld
q u i t e c o m f o r t a b l y i n B o c h a r o v, D
(2602)-Ponkratov, P (2603)/Khanty-
Mansiysk 2013, 1/2-1/2 (47). ]
[ 8...d6 is a sensible try, 9.d5 e7 10.e4
d7 11.a4 0-0 12.0-0 c6 13.a5 bc8
Cuenca Jimenez, J (2481)-Zaragatski, I
(2488)/Hamburg 2014, 1/2-1/2 (44),
14.e3 ]
9.0-0 c2 10.e1
[ 10.d2?? c4 11.e1 d3 would be
extremely embarrassing! ]
10...g6 11.f4! 'With an initiative:' - John.
c2
[ 11...exd4 12.xd4 ]
12.f2 xa1
[ It's too late to turn back: 12...exd4 13.f5
h5 14.xd4 and Black virtually has to play
xa1 anyway, 15.xb7 ]
13.xb7! 'with complications favoring White.'
xd5 according to John, let's see if he was right.
exd4?! White's powerful play refutes this
move. The alternatives:
[ 13...c2 i s h o p e l e s s , 14.c6+ d7
15.f3 ( or 15.fxe5 b4 16.f4! ) 15...b8
16.f5 h5 17.xh5 exd4 18.f6! gxf6
19.e4 e7 20.g5! f8 21.e6 c8
22.xf8 xf8 ( 22...xf8 23.exd4 ) 23.xf6
now it's a forced mate: d8 24.xf7 e7
25.xh7 a6 26.g8+ 1-0 Rooze, J (2340) -
15.a4+ Geske, J (2402)/Augsburg 2014. ]
[ 13...b8 14.c6+ d7 15.f5 f6
c5 ( 15...h5 16.dxe5 ) 16.g2 xf5 17.g4 ]
[ 13...b4 might be the best chance, trying
to get the king to safety, 14.c6+ d7
15.f3 0-0 16.f5 b8 17.fxg6 hxg6
18.d5 with a strong initiative for the
xb2 exchange, and the knight has yet to escape
from a1. ]
14.c6+ d7 15.f5! Actually the first new
move, and a big (if obvious) improvement over
[ 15.xd4 c5 16.f5 0-0 17.xa8
( 17.fxg6 fxg6 18.e2 xd4 19.xa8
xf1+ 20.xf1 is rather more convincing.)
20.fb1! 17...xa8 18.fxg6 ( 18.e2 ) 18...fxg6
19.g2 xf1+ 20.xf1 xg2+ 21.xg2
wi t h a s m a l l a d va n t a g e i n t h e e n d i n g ,
b e c a u s e o f B l a c k ' s d o u b l e d g - p a wn s ,
Mogranzini, R (2461)-Baron, T (2467)/Ortisei
2012, but 1/2-1/2 (57). ]
15...h5
[ 15...dxc3 16.fxg6 f6 17.f5! is no better. ]
16.xd4 d6 Black is getting ready to castle,
and is still a rook up! 17.e6! Decisive! This
powerful move just wins. f6
[ 17...fxe6 18.fxe6 f8 19.xd7+ e7
20.d5# ]
18.e4?
[ St ra nge t ha t Ga w sho uld miss 18.d5!
e5 19.e4! fxe6 20.f4 winning the
874
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

queen, 0-0 21.xe5 xe5 22.xa8 xa8 885 A22

23.fxe6 Black has 3 pieces for the queen, Kamsky,Gata 2714
but this is only temporary as the a1-knight Gelfand,Boris 2736
is trapped. ] Tal Mem Moscow RUS (1) 10.11.2007
18...e5 19.xd6+ xd6 20.xg7+ [Carsten Hansen]
White still has a strong attack. f8 21.xa8
[ 21.e6+ fxe6 22.xa8 e5 23.b4 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 b4 4.f3
and Bb2 might be better. ] This is a rare variation, and not considered
21...xg7 22.g2 f6 23.e4 The position is particularly dangerous for Black, but against a
not so clear now. White has 2 pawns for the strong theoretician like Gelfand, especially
piece, and the a1-knight is trapped, but he has when you are not that strong in that particular
to f irs t win it a n d t h e n co n so lid a t e . d3! department, like Kamsky, this isn't necessarily
Jean-Pierre is a tough fighter and will make a bad policy.
the most of his chances. 24.d2! xd2 [ The variation played in this game can also
25.xd2 c2 be reached after 4.g2 xc3 5.bxc3 0-0
[ 25...b8!? 26.xa1 xb2 returns the 6.f3 e4 7.d4 ( White can also consider,
piece for a pawn and some activity. ] although Black scores very well in that line
26.c1 d4 27.xc7 d8 28.xa7 too. 7.g5 )]
[ 28.a5! keeps the pressure on. ] 4...xc3 5.bxc3
28...f7 [ If my analysis of Black's 7th move
[ 28...e8 defends d7 and avoids the alternative, 7... c5!?, is correct, White may
exchange of rooks. ] want to consider 5.dxc3 as discussed in the
29.a5 c6 30.xd8 xa7 31.a3 game Taimanov-Rublevsky, St Petersburg
4 pawns and the two bishops should vanquish 2 0 0 1 , wh i c h c a n b e f o u n d i n t h e P G N
the two knights and bishop, but only two of archives ]
the pawns are passed and Black has a good 5...e4 6.d4 0-0 7.g2 d5
square for a knight on e5. c6 32.c7 b3 [ Black has a number of alternatives
33.f2 c5 34.e3 a4 35.d2! available here: A) The main continuation is
The king is rushing over to the rescue! f7 7...c5!? 8.c2 d5 9.cxd5 xd5
36.g4 e7 37.h4 d7 38.f4 a5 39.f1 A) 10.f3
c4 40.xc4 xc4+ 41.c2 c5! Tricky! A1) 10...h5?! 11.fxe4 h3 12.f3
42.c3 xb2 Regaining one pawn, but now g6 13.d3 c4?! ( 13...c6 14.f4
W hit e a dva nce s o n t he kin gside and th e h5 15.e3 ) 14.f4 c6 15.e3
knights are stranded too far away. 43.g5 cxd3 16.exd3 fe8 17.f2 ad8
[ 43.xb2 d3+ 44.c3 xf4 45.a4 18.e2 b5 19.a3 a5 20.hc1 b4
might also be enough, but why exchange the 21.axb4 axb4 22.a6 e6 Kreizberg,
strong bishop? ] M-Shevelev, D/Tel Aviv 2002, and now
43...fxg5 44.hxg5 d1+ The next few White has 23.xc6! xc6 24.e5 e8
moves were probably played with increments. 25.xc6 xc6 26.f3;
45.d4 b3+ 46.d5 a5 47.e5 c3+ A2) 10...e6 11.0-0 b6 12.d4 exd3
48.c5 e4+ 49.d4 f2 50.e6+ e7 13.exd3 b7 14.e1 c6= Costello, C-
51.d5 Boersma, P/Leeuwarden 1993;
1-0 B) 10.e3 h5 11.h3 c6 - Ribli;
C) 10.d4?! d8 11.0-0 c6 12.e3 e5
13.e1 g4 14.f3 xf3+ ( 14...exf3
15.xf3 e4!? 16.b2 c4 ) 15.xf3
exf3 16.xf3 xf3 17.xf3 xf3 18.xf3
e4 , and Black has a comfortable edge
in the endgame, Gollain, M-Danielian, O/
Paris 1994;
D) 10.0-0 h5 11.e3 h3 12.f3

875
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
( 12.xh3 xh3 13.a3 bd7 14.f4
exf3 15.exf3 fe8 16.g2 ad8 17.e1
e5 18.f4 f5 19.f1 c4 20.c1
e3 21.dxe3 xd1 22.xd1 c2 23.f1
d8 24.e4 d1 25.xd1 xd1+ 26.f2
g5 27.e2 g4 28.b2 c2 29.a3
gxf3 30.xf3 xe4+ 31.f2 g4+
32.f1 f3+ 0-1 Gordienko, A-
Dolzhikova, K/Kiev 2005/CBM 107 ext)
12...xg2 13.xg2
D1) 13...d5!?
D1a) 14.d3 exf3+ 15.xf3
16.xd5 xd5
D1a1) 17.b3!? d7 ( 17...c4!? )
18.f4 a5 19.a3
with chances to both sides, though I
prefer Black due to W hite's loose
pawn structure, along with Black's
ability to apply pressure along the
open e- and d-files;
D1a2) 17.c4?! h5 18.b2 fe8
19.d2 e5 20.xe5
, and Black is in control of the game,
Shuraev, A-Vysochin, S/St-
Petersburg RUS 2006;
D1b) 14.b3 xe3+ 15.dxe3 b6
16.d1 c6 17.d5 g6 18.b2
a5 19.a4 e6 with a terrible
position for W hite, Alterman, B-
Oratovsky, M/Jurmala 1989;
D2) 13...c6 14.d3 ( 14.fxe4 xe4
15.f5 g6 16.f1 b6 17.d5 d6
18.f4 g5 19.e3 ae8 , and Black
has the initiative thanks to his better
coordinated pieces and better
development, Stopkin, V-Vysochin, S/
K y i v U K R 2 0 0 3) 14...exd3 15.xd3
( 15.exd3 ad8 is thanks to the weak
d3-pawn better for Black) 15...fe8
16.f5 ad8 17.c2 e7 18.g4
( 18.xe7+ xe7 19.e4 ed7 20.e3
d3 21.ad1! ) 18...g6
i s g i v e n a s u n c l e a r i n E C O xg4!?
( 19...h5 20.h4 h7 21.g5 d7
Ribli 22.a4 g6 23.f5
24.b1 ) 20.xe7+ ( 20.fxg4? xf5
21.exf5 xg4+ 22.h1 e2-+ Ribli )
20...xe7 21.fxg4 xg4+ 22.h1
D2a) 22...xe4 23.f2 f6 24.e3
R i b l i , . e . g . e5 25.ae1!
26.g2 d7 ( 26...xc3 27.h6 d7
28.c1 ) 27.g1;
D2b) 22...xe4+ 23.xe4 xe4
24.f4 f6 with an interesting endgame
with fairly even chances, Anastasian,
A-Danielian, O/ Protvino 1993 ]
[ B) 7...e8 8.0-0 d6 9.f3!? ( 9.d3 bd7
10.c2 c5 11.g5 h6 12.xf6 xf6
13.ab1 exd3 14.exd3 g6 15.fd1 g4
16.d2 e7 , and Black has the upper hand,
Psakhis, L-Adianto, U/London 1994) 9...c5
10.c2 exf3 11.xf3 c6 12.d3 d5
c6 13.g5 dxc4 14.xf6 gxf6
A) 15.f4!? e5 ( 15...cxd3 16.exd3
d6 17.b1 ) 16.d4 ( 16.dxc4!? )
b6 16...cxd4 17.cxd4 g6 18.f2;
B) 15.d4 cxd4 16.cxd4 e6 17.f4 e7
18.d2 , and a draw was prematurely
agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, Marin, M-Garcia
Ilundain, D/ Barcelona 2000, clearly there
is plenty of play left in this position ]
[ C) 7...c6 8.0-0 e8 ( 8...e5 9.d3 c5
xe5 10.c2 d5 11.f4 e7 12.e3 exd3
13.exd3 dxc4 14.dxc4 d8 was played in
Portisch, L-Cao, S/Szekesfehervar HUN
2006, and now W hite can obtain a large
advantage with 15.d5! xd5 16.cxd5 f6
17.e1 )
A) 9.a4 xd4 10.cxd4 d5 11.b2?!
f5 12.ac1 c6 13.cxd5 xd5 14.c5
d7 15.fc1 h3 16.h1 g4 ( Also
16...f4 17.d1 g4 18.f3 is quoted on
Me ga Co rr wit ho ut an e va lu at io n, a n d
although Black is still better, White is still
in the game g6 19.e5 e6 20.xe6 )
17.c2 b6 18.c4 ( 18.xc6 b4
19.c7 xc2 ) 18...xe2 19.xe4 xe4
20.xe4 e8 21.c2 xc4 22.xc4
e6 , and Black has a positionally won
position the knight is many times stronger
than the lame dark-squared bishop,
Altschuler, B-Grivainis, K/corr 1987;
19.e4 B) 9.d3 '+/=' exd3 10.exd3 xd4
11.cxd4 h6 12.h3?! ( 12.b1!? d5
13.f4 g4 14.a4 ) 12...d5 13.b1 b6
h4 14.f4 ( 14.f4!? e6 15.c5 ) 14...b8
15.c5 a6 16.cxb6 axb6 17.f5 e7
18.f4 , and in this even position, the
players agreed upon a draw, 1/2-1/2, in
Ha n s e n , C u - R o g o ze n ko , D / G e r m a n y
c4 Bundesliga 1999 ]
[ D) 7...a6 8.0-0 d6 9.f3 c5 10.c2 exf3
876
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11.xf3 b8 12.d3 d7 13.a4 c7
14.f4 e7 15.d2 e8 16.e4
Marin, M-De Vreugt, D/Tel Aviv 2000 ]
8.cxd5
[ 8.a3 e8 9.cxd5 xd5 10.b3 h5
11.h3 b6 12.c4 bd7 13.b5?! ( 13.g4
e5 14.b2 b7= ) 13...a6 14.c3 c5
15.xc5 xc5 , and Black is in the driver's
seat, Vaulin, A-Gavrilov, A/St Petersburg
2001 ]
8...xd5 9.f3!?
[ A novelty, previously White had only tried
9.d3 , which is also perfectly fine for White,
e.g. c5 ( 9...e8 10.0-0 c5 11.dxe4 xe4
12.b5 ) 10.c2?! ( 10.dxe4!? xe4
11.b3 c4 12.b5 e6 13.a3 d8
14.b1 is very nice for W hite) 10...d8
( 10...e5 11.d4 cxd4 12.cxd4 h5
, and Black is already in control, Dominguez,
H-Velasquez Ojeda, C/Santiago 1994) 11.c4
h5 12.b2 h3 13.xh3 xh3 14.xf6
gxf6 , Winants, L-Danielian, O/ Cappelle la
Grande 1993, and now White's best chance
to stay in the game is 15.e3 c6 16.d5
g7 17.d2 exd3 18.xd3 e6
, and Black has the initiative ]
9...c5
[ I'm not too keen on this move on account
o f W h i t e ' s s t r o n g 1 1 t h m o ve c o u n t e r .
Instead the normal continuation is 9...exf3
10.xf3 e5 11.d3 e7 with chances to
both sides, though I think White's has the
upper hand thanks to his bishop pair ]
10.fxe4 xe4 11.b3! h5?!
[ This is an attempt at grabbing the initiative
at the cost of a pawn, but as Kamsky will
demonstrate, this approach falls flat on its
f a c e . S o l i d a n d b e t t e r i s 11...e5
, although I af ter 12.f3 e7 13.0-0
prefer White ]
12.xe4 cxd4 13.cxd4 c6 14.b2 h3
[ 14...e8 15.f3 g4 16.xg4 xg4
17.0-0 e7 18.e3 ]
15.f3 g5 The following three moves from
Kamsky are very good and change the nature
of the game, from Black having some
compensation for the pawn to White having
t h e e xt r a p a wn a n d " t h e co m p e n sa t io n "
16.c1! ad8 17.c5! f6 18.h5! c8
19.d5!?
[ 19.e4!? is also good: g6 20.f1 e7
21.h4 , but White doesn't seek
complications when already having a
winning position ]
19...d4 20.xd4 xd4 21.h4 e5
[ Now White can start consolidating before
proceeding to slowly but surely advance his
central p awns. 21...a1+ 22.f2 e5
23.c1+- ]
22.0-0 b6 23.d4 g5 24.e4 a6 25.d1
c8 26.f4 d8 27.e5??
[ This move is difficult to explain White is on
the road to win, and then blunders away a
central, passed pawn. Needless to say,
most moves than don't blunder material
away in this position are better than this, e.g.
27.a3 b5 28.e5 a6 29.d6 , and Black is
going down ]
27...c4 28.b2 xd5 29.b5
[ 29.g2 xf3 30.xf3 e7 31.b3 ]
½-½
886 A22
Karlsson,Lars 2482
Narciso Dublan,Marc 2544
Badalona op 37th (8) 08.08.2011
[Tony Kosten]
1.g3 e5 2.c4 f6 3.g2 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
5.c3 b6 6.d3 This move order might gain
a few seconds on the clock.
[ 6.f3 c6 7.d3 ( 7.0-0 e7 8.d3 0-0
9.e3 e6 10.a4 might not transpose as
Black can prefer d5 ) 7...e7 8.a4 a5
9.e3 0-0 10.xb6 ( or 10.0-0 e6
11.xb6 ) 10...cxb6 11.0-0 would be the
right way to transpose to the game from
alternative move orders (more specifically
the Four Knights.) ]
6...e7
[ T h e p o i n t i s t h a t 6...c6 could be
answered by 7.xc6+!? ( although I would
probably not bother to actually capture on
c6 myself, and prefer 7.f3; or 7.e3 )
7...bxc6 8.f3 d6 9.0-0 0-0 10.d2 g4
11.c2 f5 12.ac1 e8 13.h4 h5
14.fe1 g5 but this looks dangerous for
W hite, Ivanchuk, V (2762)-Ruisinger, W
(2175)/ Mainz 2007. ]
7.a4
[ 7.e3 0-0 8.a4 is another move order. ]
877
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

7...a5 The white a-pawn must be stopped, 18.xb6+ ) 18.xe6+ xe6 Wirig, A (2304)-
[ 7...c6?! 8.a5 d7 9.a6 c5 10.e3 Abergel, T (2307) /Hyeres 2002, 19.xa5! ]
with pressure on the queenside, Demidov, D 15...d7 16.e2 xc3
(2017)-Yakovenko, A (1898)/Novosibirsk [ 16...xd3 17.xb6 d2 18.e1 b8
2007. ] 19.d5 is the tricky point, although xd5
8.e3 0-0 20.bxd5 xd5 21.d1 threatening e4,
[ 8...c6 9.f3 8d7 10.b3 ( 10.0-0 ) ca n b e m e t b y e4 when 22.f3!? exf3
10...b4 11.0-0 0-0 12.fd1 e7 23.f2 xc3 24.bxc3 is messy, White will
Kincs, I (2225)-Ruck, R (2435)/Harkany win a piece but Black will get some pawns. ]
1994, 13.d4 exd4 14.xd4 c5 15.c2 17.xc3 b4 18.d4! White can achieve this
with a small plus. ] ad va n ce a s th e e 6 -b ish op is lo o s e . exd4
9.xb6 19.exd4 f7 20.e3! b8 Defending b7,
[ 9.f3 c6 10.0-0 ( 10.xb6 ) 10...e6 which is always a problem for Black in this
11.xb6 cxb6 ] line.
9...cxb6 10.f3 c6 11.0-0 So we reach a [ 20...xd4 21.xb7 b8 22.f5 d2
key position. White has conceded the bishop 23.g4 g6 24.e4 gives White play on
pair but has weakened Black's queenside the kingside, xb2? 25.fc1 wins, a2
pawns, White has nice outposts on b5 and c4 26.d5+ h8 27.h4 b1 28.c7 ]
for his knights, while Black has b4. W hite's 21.f5 White is a bit better here, as his IQP
simple, but effective plan is to put his pieces ju s t h a s t o b e m o r e u s e f u l t h a n B l a c k ' s
on these light squares and then prepare the doubled b-pawn. g6 22.h6+ g7 23.xf7
advance of his (extra) d-pawn. e6 12.d2 xf7 24.c4+
The knight heads for c4. [ 24.e1! is more natural, and stronger:
[ 12.b5 is considered in the game xd4 25.e6+ g7 ( 25...f8?! 26.c7!
Chernyshov, K (2570)-Kachur, A (2284. ] xc7 27.xf6+ g8 28.xd4 ) 26.e7+
12...f6 A standard plan to control d4, Black xe7 27.xe7+ h6 28.cc7
intends ...Rf7, ... B-f8 (or c5/b4) and ...Rd7, with advantage. ]
[ 12...f5 i s m o r e a g g r e s s i v e , 13.c1 24...g7 25.d1 d5 26.xd5 xd5
( 13.c4 e4 Jolivel, P-Brunner, N (2407)/ 27.e2 d6 Black is close to equal as long
Metz 2006.) 13...c5 14.b5 d7 when as he keeps the d4-pawn well blockaded.
15.f3 might be best, h6 16.xe5! xe5 28.e3 f8 29.e6 d8 30.c4 f7?!
17.d4 still, this does suggest that Nd2-c4 This careless move drops a pawn.
can be delayed a bit. ] [ 30...d6 ]
13.c4 f7 14.c1 b4 31.xb6! xb6 32.xd5 xb2 33.xa5
[ 14...c8 15.b5 c5 16.h1!? This position won't be easy to win, but isn't
( W h i t e w o u l d l i k e t o p l a y 16.e3?! that easy to draw either! b3 34.e1 b6
but with Black's clever play this would be Black decides to head for a rook endgame as
ans we red b y d7 ) 16...d4 ( 16...d7 ) they are often drawish.
17.xd4 xd4 18.e3 c5 19.f4?! [ 34...d7 ]
this looks weakening, ( I would play 19.e2 35.b5 xb5 36.axb5 d7 37.e6 xd4
and Rfd1. ) 19...exf4 20.xf4 d7 21.d4 38.xb6 g5? Making room for the king but
xd4! 22.xd4 xd4 23.exd4 allowing White to activate his rook.
1/2-1/2 Kortschnoj, V (2639)-Zhu Chen [ 38...b4 39.b7+ h6 looks right. ]
(2497)/Amsterdam 2001, as xc4 24.xc4 39.c6 b4 40.b6 g6 41.f1 b2
xc4 25.xb7 is fine for Black. ] 42.e1 h5 43.d1! The older GMs know
15.e3!? h o w t o p l a y r o o k e n d g a m e s ! xf2?
[ White can also continue to improve his This loses by force. 44.c1 f5 The only
pieces: 15.b5 d7 16.b3 c5?! m o ve t o st o p b 7 . 45.c2! b5 46.b2
17.h3! the exchange of the light-squared Nice technique! c5+ 47.d2 c8 48.b7
bishops should normally favour White with b8 49.d3 f5 50.d4 g4 51.d5 f5
t h i s s t r u c t u r e , e7 ( 17...xh3?! 52.c6 f4 53.gxf4 xf4 Black is much too

878
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
slow. 54.f2+ e4 55.f7 h4 56.h3 h8
57.c7 g4 58.hxg4
[ 58.hxg4 h3 59.b8 xb8 60.xb8 h2
61.f1 ]
1-0
887 A22
Kosten,Anthony C 2545
Salem,Zahed 2319
Golden Cleopatra (5) 05.06.2003
[Tony Kosten]
When I prepared for my Egyptian opponent I
noticed that he had played this sharp, but
perhaps slightly unsound, line before, and so
with a little preparation I went into the game
feeling very confident. 1.c4 e5 2.c3 f6
3.f3 e4!? A sharp idea of the Spanish GM
Bellon-Lopez, but just what I was hoping for!
Of course, since the advent of ChessBase
such lines only have surprise value the first
time you play them, as on the second
occasion your opponent is almost certainly
ready! 4.g5 b5 5.d3! This is well-known to
be the best move here, as accepting the pawn
by either
[ 5.xb5 c6 6.c3 d5 or ]
[ 5.cxb5 d5 allow Black a strong centre and
useful initiative for the pawn. ]
5...exd3
[ 5...bxc4 6.dxe4 is the other main variation,
but is very dangerous for Black: h6 7.xf7!
the shot that justifies this line for W hite,
xf7 8.e5 c6 ( 8...b7 9.exf6 xf6 10.e4
e6 11.e2 c5 12.0-0 with a clear
advantage to White, because of the better
s t ru c t u re a n d sa f e r k in g , C ve t k o vi c, S -
Nedeljkovic,M/ Jugoslavija 1976; 8...g8?
9.d5+ wins the a8-rook) 9.exf6 xf6
10.e4 d5 11.exd5! c5 12.e3 e8
Psakhis, L-Sermek,D/Groningen 1995, and
now Psakhis gives 13.h5+ f8 14.xc4
xe3 15.fxe3 xe3+ 16.e2 e5 17.f1!
as winning. ]
6.cxb5 h6 7.f3 dxe2 8.xe2
The key position, W hite has a lead in
development, and free play for his pieces.
a6!? This may be too ambitious,
[ 8...c5 is possibly stronger, 9.0-0 b7
( 9...0-0 10.e5 d5 11.f3 b7 12.d3
d6 13.f4 puts the d-pawn under strong
pressure, Shahade,G-Tamburro,P/Chicago
1994 ) 10.d4 0-0 ( 10...xd4?! 11.xd4
0-0 12.b4 d6 13.b2 worked well for Black,
but White is clearly on top here, Plaskett,J-
He m p so n , P /B la ckp o o l 1 9 8 8) 11.e3
(with a threat!) b6 12.f3 d5 13.f5 e8
14.e1 with a big advantage, Ghitescu, T-
Ermenkov,E/Moscow 1977/EU-chT. ]
[ 8...b7 is similar, 9.0-0 e7 10.d4 0-0
11.f3 d5 12.f5 and once again Black is
under pressure, Smejkal, J-Bueno Perez,L/
Leipzig 1977. ]
9.0-0 e7
[ 9...c5 came a cropper in the game Stean,
M-Regan,K/New York 1977: 10.d4 0-0
11.f3 a7 12.e3 axb5? missing the
menace ( 12...b6 was better, if still not too
inspiring ) 13.c6! ( 13.e6! is also rather
strong, maybe stronger) 13...xc6 14.xc5
forking the black rooks, b7 15.xf8 xf8
16.e1 with a significant advantage. ]
10.d4 0-0
[ 10...d5 11.f4 0-0 12.a4 d6 13.xd6
xd6 14.f3 b7 15.e1 d7 16.b3 c5
17.bxc6 xc6 18.ad1 e7 19.a5 ab8
20.a4 Kalevic,S-Stojanovic,A/Herceg Novi
YUG 2001/The Week in Chess 344 ]
11.f3 d5 12.b3!?
[ 12.f4 may be simpler. ]
12...axb5
[ 12...b7 13.f4 is also pleasant for
White. ]
13.xd5 xd5 14.xd5 a6
[ After the game a spectator suggested
14...a4! when 15.d1 b4 ( 15...g4!? )
16.f3 g4 ( 16...c6!? 17.xc6 xc6
18.xc6 g4! is a nice trick, 19.xd8 xd8
and Black recuperates the queen.) 17.xg4
xd5 18.f5 ( 18.a3!? a4 19.xh6 f6
20.e3 ) 18...e5 is better for White, if
hardly earth-shattering. ]
15.d1 b4 16.f4 White's nicely centralised
position, and better development give him a
c l e a r e d g e . d6?! Falling for a nice trick.
17.b5! This gave my opponent a jolt. b6
[ 17...xf4 18.xf7+ h8 19.xd8 xd8
20.xb4 is crushing. ]
18.xd6 cxd6 19.g3
[ 19.e3 a6 20.xb4 is also good, of
course. ]
879
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

19...f6 20.ac1 d7 Black desperately 888 A22

tries to finish his queenside development. Mestel,A Jonathan 2496
21.e3! a6 I had expected Hynes,Anthony 2289
[ 21...c5 when 22.d4 g5 23.xg5 4NCL West Bromwich ENG (7) 01.05.2004
hxg5 24.xc5 dxc5 25.xc5 wins a good [Tony Kosten]
pawn. ]
22.c4 c6? This loses material, although 1.c4 f6 2.c3 g6 3.e4 e5 4.f3 d6
the better Black wants to keep his e5-pawn, after
[ 22...a5 is hardly fantastic: 23.xd6 xb2 [ 4...g7 5.d4 Black has to capture, exd4
24.xh6 ] 6.xd4 see Lautier,J-Taddei,B. ]
23.xf7+ This may be the best move 5.d4 e7?! A new move,
objectively, but in retrospect perhaps I should [ 5...exd4 6.xd4 g7 leads to a King's
have preferred Indian, while ]
[ 23.d4 g5 ( 23...e5 24.f4 ) 24.xg5 [ 5...g4? lo se s m at eria l, 6.dxe5 xf3
hxg5 25.xf7+ xf7 26.xc6 7.xf3! ( 7.gxf3 dxe5 8.xd8+ xd8
with an exchange and pawn more in the 9.g5 e7 10.0-0-0+ is also promising,
endgame. ] Santos,L-Reis,L/Evora 1995) 7...dxe5
23...xf7 24.xc6 I had expected my 8.g5 e7 9.xf6! ( 9.d1 fd7
opponent to resign here, after all an exchange is less effective, Chabanon, J-Grimberg,G/
a n d t wo p a wn s d o wn a ga in st a G M ? f6 Toulouse 1995) 9...xf6 10.d1 d7
25.xd6 g4 26.f3 d7 27.cc1 11.g3 and Bh3 will win material. ]
[ 27.c7 wins, but I didn't want my opponent [ However, 5...bd7 is a superior method of
to regain the exchange by e8 28.xd7 defending e5, and leads to the KID, once
xc7 although this is still hopeless, again. ]
naturally. ] 6.g5 Menacing Nd5. c6 7.c5! The most
27...xa2 28.xb4 f7 29.b7 e8 incisive, the position opens-up and Black is in
30.d4 P l a n n i n g e x c h a n g e s . e2 some trouble. g4?!
W ith a tact ical threa t, th at do esn't work! [ 7...exd4? 8.cxd6 xd6 9.e5 wins ]
31.b8+ Of course, I had intended [ 7...dxc5? 8.dxe5 likewise, but the only real
[ 31.xf6! but didn't want my opponent to chance was ]
play xg2+ as there were so many [ 7...h6 although 8.h4 g5 9.cxd6 xd6
s p e c t a t o r s ! 32.h1! ( 32.xg2? h3+ 10.g3 b4 11.a3! is very unpleasant for
33.xh3 xb7 34.e5 xf3+ Black. ]
is problematic) 32...xf6 33.xg2 g5+ 8.cxd6
34.h1 and there are no more checks - but [ 8.b3! may well be even stronger, Black
why give him the pleasure? ] can hardly protect b7, e.g. xf3 9.cxd6!
31...h7 32.xf6 xf6! 33.xd7! g5 xd6 10.xb7 transposing to the game,
Hitting g2 and c1, but White had seen further. whilst avoiding Black's superior
34.xg7+! xg7 alternatives. ]
[ 34...xg7 35.c7+ ] 8...xd6 9.b3
35.c7 e7 [ 9.dxe5 xd1+ 10.xd1 fd7 11.c1
[ 35...xg2+? 36.f1 and the queen is xf3 12.gxf3 h6 is obviously good for White,
lost. ] but Black is still fighting. ]
36.xe7 xe7 37.h3 To stop the mate 9...xf3?!
threat! e1+ 38.h2 h5 39.b4 h4 40.b5 [ 9...exd4 10.e5 b4 11.xf6 dxc3!
b4 41.b6 Black has no way to stop Qc7, b7 is a far better bet. ]
and b8(Q), and there are no checks for White 10.xb7 The a8-rook is lost. exd4 11.d5!?
to worry about. W hite plays to the crowd, and goes for an
1-0 attack, but
[ 11.gxf3! i s p e r h a p s s i m p l e r , dxc3
( 11...e7 12.b5 cxb5 13.xb5+ f8

880
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

14.h6+ g8 15.c1 ) 12.d1 and Black setup. ]

can happily resign. ] 8.f3 a6 This has been played successfully
11...cxd5 12.b5+ bd7 13.xf6 for 50 years or so. It is also a good plan with
Clearly best, colours reversed. Another proven idea is
[ 13.xa8+?! e7 14.xd7 ( 14.gxf3? [ 8...a5 intending ...a4 or ...Nc5. ]
b4+ forks king and bishop) 14...xd7 9.0-0
15.gxf3 g7 16.xd5 xd5 17.exd5 d6 [ 9.a4?! c5 hits b3, when 10.d2 a5
gives Black fair chances in the endgame, as 11.0-0 c6! makes it difficult for White to find
his better structure and active king a plan. ]
compensate the lost exchange. ] 9...b5! Still book. The idea is to grab the light
13...d8 Obviously forced. 14.xd8 xd8 squares by force, and after ...Bb7, White will
[ 14...xg2 is not much of an improvement: have to defend e4 but watch out for ...d5 as
15.g5 f6 ( 15...xh1?? 16.c8# ) 16.c1! well. 10.d1! Switching plans. Inferior would
h3 17.d2 with extra material and an be
attack. ] [ 10.cxb5 axb5 11.d2 ( 11.xb5? a6 )
15.gxf3 dxe4?! Black doesn't have time for 11...c5 ]
this. 10...bxc4 11.xc4 a5 12.e2 a6 13.c4
[ 15...b6 ] a4! 14.b1 b7!?
16.c1! White threatens Rc8+, and then Rc7, [ 14...e7 , to prepare ...Nc5 and in some
winning another piece. b6 cases ...Rfb8, is also logical. Then 15.h4
[ 16...g7 17.c8+ e7 18.xd7 xd7 e6! 16.b3 axb3 17.axb3 c5 18.f5 g6
19.c7 is also hopeless. ] 19.h6+ g7 achieves little. ]
17.0-0 Calm development. e5? This allows 15.h4!? c5 16.e3 fd7 17.f5 g6
mate in two, but even after [ 17...xe4?? 18.xe4 xe4 19.g4 ]
[ 17...g7 say, White wins by 18.c6 d7 18.h6+ The knight isn't doing much here.
( 18...e7 19.b8+ ) 19.xb6 ] h8 19.f4 e7
18.c8+! [ Again, grabbing the pawn runs into tactical
1-0 trouble: 19...xe4? 20.xe4 xe4 21.fxe5
xe5?? 22.f4 ]
20.fxe5 xe5 21.d4 e6
889 A22 [ or 21...f6 ]
Miezis,Normunds 2547 22.c3 c5?! Black hopes for ...Nd4 at some
Olsen,Heini 2345 point but the timing is wrong. Simply
Nordea Cup Dianalund DEN (9) 20.02.2005 [ 22...f6 was good, when White's e-pawn is
[John Watson] the only weakness in the position. ]
23.g4! d4
With the move 3.Bb5 being so popular after 1. [ Black would like to have been able to play ...
e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6, it's interesting to take a look Nxg4 if ...f6 had been in, but now 23...f6
at the reversed position. 1.c4 e5 2.c3 f6 24.e3 brings the knight back from h6 to a
3.g3 b4 More than the Keres Variation useful post. So Black mixes it up, but his
[ 3...c6 4.f3 e4 , this move drove people pawn sacrifice is unsound. ]
away from 3.g3 (as opposed to 3.Nf3 Nc6 4. 24.xd4 cxd4 25.xd4 f5 26.exf5 xg2
g3, which is still going strong). ] 27.xg2 b7+ 28.d5 ae8 29.fxg6 xg6
4.g2 0-0 5.e4 xc3 6.dxc3 d6 7.e2 30.d2 White is practically winning, and
bd7 [ 30.d3! would have been even better,
[ In the long history of this variation, Black preventing Black's only idea of ...Re4. ]
h a s v e r y s e l d o m c h o s e n 7...c6 30...g7?!
with the idea of ... Be6 and ...Qd7, as White [ 30...e4! (h i t t i n g c4 a n d g4 ) 31.c3+
does in the reversed position. I don't think e5 ]
that the Rossolimo will continue to be much 31.h3! e4 32.h1?!
of a threat if White has to count upon that [ 32.xd6! ]

881
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

32...xc4 33.xd6 b7+ 34.d5 xd5+ significant pressure, and Adams went on to
35.xd5 c2 36.g1?? White is two pawns win. Miezis, N (2547)-Adams, M (2734) /
up and can consolidate by 36.Re3. Also good Porto Carras GRE 2011. ]
is 6...c6 Preparing the ...d7-d5 advance is the
[ 36.b5! , in view of f3? 37.b8+ g7 most critical challenge.
38.b7+ and Re1 or Rd1 g8 39.e1! ] [ S t r a n ge ly, 6...d6 , as in Smirin, I (2685)-
36...f3 Uh-oh. Now the tactics don't quite Comp Deep Shredder/ Kasparovchess.com
work out and Black recovers. 37.d8+ g7 2002/[TonyK], is much less worrisome for
38.d7+ g8 39.d8+ g7 40.d7+ g8 W hite. One might think that with W hite's
41.h6+ doubled pawns and bishop pair, Black ought
[ 41.e1 xg3+ 42.f1 f3+ ] to play this way to keep the game closed.
41...h8 42.f7+ Instead, experience has shown that Black
[ Or 42.h1 e5 43.e7 ff2 as occurs in has at least equally good play in the open
the game. Now the game is drawn. ] positions after 6...c6 and 7.. .d5. A
42...g8 43.h6+ h8 44.h1 e5 possible justification is that White's pawn
45.e7 ff2 46.xe5 h2+ 47.g1 cg2+ weaknesses will not simply disappear (the
48.f1 c2 49.e8+ g7 50.f5+ f7 a2/c3/d2 cluster is doomed to fragility), and
51.d6+ g7 52.g1 cg2+ 53.f1 c2 the open nature of the position will make it
54.g1 cg2+ 55.f1 c2 easier for Black to target them. ]
½-½ 7.b1!? White has an extremely wide choice.
Various alternatives have been covered in this
site:
890 A22 [ 7.d4!? Vallejo Pons, F (2674)-Aronian, L
Naiditsch,Arkadij 2712 (2724)/Khanty Mansiysk 2005/[John
Topalov,Veselin 2768 Watson]. ]
18th European Teams (5.2) 07.11.2011 [ 7.d3 Rogers, I (2569)-Acs, P (2623)/Wijk
[John Bartholomew] aan Zee 2003/ [TonyK]. ]
[ 7.a3 Grigoriants, S (2503)-Sadvakasov, D
1.c4 e5 2.c3 f6 3.g3 b4 (2509)/ Subotica 2000/ [TonyK]. ]
The possibility of this tried and true move is [ A kind of tabiya for this variation is reached
one of the reasons why 2.g3 has become so after 7.e2 d5 8.cxd5 cxd5 9.exd5 xd5
popular. 4.g2 0-0 5.e4 10.0-0 c6 . White's practical results from
[ Most common is 5.f3 ] this position have been mind-boggling poor:
5...xc3 6.bxc3 +1, =14, -21!!! Seriously, confirm for
[ Another game from the European Team yourself! Of course, this is an anomaly and
Championship, Miezis-Adams, saw Black isn't a reflection of the true assessment of
having success after the alternative capture, the position. Also, play has a tendency to
6.dxc3 . Interestingly, I discovered that merge with other move 7 alternatives - for
Miezis has an incredible devotion to this line. instance, 11.b1 (most common and
The database shows him playing the White possibly best) reaches our main game - and
side of this position some 45 times! He has thus we can't take the statistics for gospel
preferred 6.bxc3 on only seven occasions. truth (you never can!). However, one thing
d6 7.e2 bd7 8.h3!? that these games suggest is that with his
( See the archives for 8.f3 , Miezis, N fewer weaknesses, perhaps Black may have
(2547)-Olsen, H (2345)/Dianalund 2005/ the easier/more manageable game in
[John Watson].) 8...a6 9.f3 b5! A typical practice. ]
pawn offering in the 6.dxc3 variation. 10.e3 [ Finally, 7.b3 aims to prevent the ...d7-d5
( Accepting is reckless: 10.cxb5 axb5 advance entirely, but a6 (other moves are
11.xb5?! c5! ) 10...bxc4 11.xc4 a5! playable) 8.a3 d6 9.e2 ( 9.d3 b5
12.d3 a6 13.c2 b8! 14.f2 a4 10.cxb5 e6 1/2-1/2 Kasimdzhanov, R
15.b1 d5! White was already under (2 6 9 0 ) - T k a c h i e v, V ( 2 6 5 7 ) / N e w De lh i /

882
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Teheran 2000.) 9...c5 has done very well
for Black. ( or 9...e6 )]
7...d5 8.cxd5 cxd5 9.exd5 xd5 10.e2
c6 11.0-0 e8 My feeling is that Black is
quite comfortable here and thus has a few
good ways of proceeding.
[ Carlsen played the immediate 11...b6
in a blitz match against Nakamura a couple
years ago. That game continued
A) 12.a3 e8 13.d3 f5 14.c1 e4!?
15.b5 f6 16.dxe4?! xe4 17.xe4
xe4 Olafsson, H (2445)-Christiansen, L
(2550)/Grindavik 1984. This is the
sce na rio W hit e n e ed s to avo id: cle a r
pawn weaknesses with no bishop pair or
other compensation.;
B) 12.c2 g4 ( 12...e6 13.d3 d7
1/2-1/2 Benko, P-Hecht, H/ Olot 1971.)
13.d3 d7 14.g5 h6 15.e3 d5
16.b3 ac8 17.c4 de7= 18.f4?! f5
Askarov, M (2421) -Plischki, S (2366)/
Karvina 2005.;
C) 12.d4
C1) 12...e6 13.d2 ( 13.a4 c4
14.e1 d7 15.a3 fd8 16.c5
d5 Pribyl, J-Hecht, H/ Bamberg
1972. ) 13...d5 14.dxe5 xe5
15.xd5 xd5 16.h1?! b6
( 16...a5 Ivkov, B (2570)-Olafsson, F
(2570)/ Wijk aan Zee 1971. );
C2) 12...g4!? Kasubke, M (1950)-
Maus, S (2270)/Germany 1988.;
C3) 12...f5?! An inaccuracy. 13.b3?!
( 13.b5! creates more problems.)
13...e6 14.d5?! xd5 15.xd5 xd5
16.a3 e8 17.xb7 c8 Nakamura,
H (2715)-Carlsen, M (2801)/Oslo NOR
2009. ]
[ Perhaps unnecessary (though not bad) is
11...b8 , i.e. 12.a3 e8 13.b5 e6
( 13...e4!? ) 14.b1 d7 15.e1 a6
16.b2 b5 17.d3 f5 Budnikov, A (2535)-
Naumkin, I (2450)/London 1993. ]
12.d3
[ 12.a3 Stein, L (2620) -Gheorghiu, F
( 2 5 2 0 ) / L a s P a l m a s 1 9 7 3 . a5!?
( 12...b6 is Olafsson-Christiansen above. )]
[ Black was fully coordinated with a superior
pawn structure after 12.c2 g4! 13.e1
d7 14.a3 ad8 , Stefansson, H (2525)-
Olafsson, H (2535)/Vestmannaeyjar 1994. ]
12...b6
[ 12...g4!? is thematic, threatening 13...
N x c 3 . A f t e r 13.f3 e6 14.xb7
White's rook gets stranded, but he can make
it ugly: b6 15.f4! c8 16.xb6 axb6
17.f5 xa2 18.f6 ]
13.e3 g4
[ I'd prefer the simple 13...f5 with fine
play. ]
14.c2 e7 A useful move, securing b7.
15.c1 e6?! White has a little something to
work with after this.
[ 15...d5 gels better with Black's last
move. ]
[ 15...c8 is likewise good. ]
16.b5!?
[ 16.b3 seems more natural, but
Naiditsch wants to pressure the e-pawn. ]
16...d5! G o o d d e f e n s e ! 17.c4 xe3
18.fxe3 c8 19.b2 Black has to pitch his e-
pawn, but fortunately he'll get decent
compensation in return. White must exchange
off his good bishop and will still suffer from
multiple pawn weaknesses. b6 20.xc6
xc6 21.xe5 f6 22.e4 h3 23.ff4?!
An awkward square for the rook.
[ After 23.xe7 xe7 24.e1 White faces
a long road in converting his extra pawn,
but there's no doubt about his advantage. ]
23...f5! Topalov brings the evaluation level
with this alert move. 24.xe7 xe7 25.f2
e6 26.d2 b7! 27.e4 Not a move White
wanted to make, but the threat of 27...Qg2+
must be addressed. e8 28.e2 fxe4
29.e3 c6 30.xe4
[ or 30.d4 a4 with counterplay. ]
30...f8+ 31.f4 e8 32.e4 f8+ 33.f4
e8 34.f3? Naiditsch's decision to play on
was likely influenced by the match situation
(Bulgaria won the match 3-1). His fighting
spirit is commendable, but unfortunately White
is a little worse now. c5+ 35.d4
[ 35.d4?? g5-+ ]
[ 35.e1 g5! ]
35...xc4 36.g4??
[ Nece ssary is 36.e4 , when the B vs. N
endgame after e6! 37.f4 f7 38.xe8+
xe8 39.d5+ xd5 40.xd5 f7
is a bit more pleasant for Black. ]
36...g5! Of course, the other possibility is that
N a i d i t s c h j u s t m i s s e d t h i s m o v e ! 37.f5
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Naiditsch resigned here due to
[ After 37.f6 xg4! 38.xg4 xe2+
39.xe2 xd4+ and 40...Qxf6, Black
should convert the queen ending. ]
37...xe2+ 38.xe2 xe2+ 39.xe2
xg4+-+
0-1
891 A22
Nakamura,Hikaru 2759
Navara,David 2712
74th Tata Steel GMA 19.01.2012
[John Bartholomew]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 f6 3.g3 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
5.g2 b6 6.e3!? Nakamura is fond of e2-
e3 setups in the English, and this time he
strikes gold. The text is extremely unusual (I
find only 76 games of nearly 4400 to reach
this position), with the similarly creative Vadim
Zvjaginsev being the only other GM to have
ventured it here.
[ In the first round Navara got nowhere in the
main lines after 6.f3 c6 7.0-0 e7
. See Navara-Topalov in this update. ]
6...c5 Navara chooses to clamp down on d4.
This is logical, and one might now expect
W hite to adopt a reversed Hedgehog
formation with Ng1-e2, 0-0, d2-d3, a2-a3, b2-
b3, Bc1-b2, etc. Nakamura has a different
idea in mind.
[ Zvjaginsev, V (2663)-Mikhalevski, V (2584)/
A i x - l e s - B a i n s F R A 2 0 1 1 w e n t 6...c6
7.ge2
A) He could consider a disruptive move
like 7...f5 , but then 8.d4! ( 8.0-0?! d3
is annoying,; 8.xc6+ bxc6 9.d4 d6
and I'd prefer Black.) 8...b4 (critical)
9.0-0 c2 10.e1 and now an attempt to
force a repetition with ( 10.d2?? c4
11.e1 d3 would be an embarrassing
queen trap) 10...g6 can be met by ( or
10...f5 ) 11.f4! with an initiative: ( 11.d1
c2= ) 11...c2 12.f2 xa1 13.xb7!
with complications favoring White.;
B) I like the look of 7...g4!? , for example
B1) Black has a completely sound
position af ter 8.d4 exd4 ( 8...f6!?
and 9...0-0-0 is friskier.) 9.exd4 d6
10.0-0 0-0=;
B2) 8.0-0 d7! is very flexible Black
may castle queenside and unbalance
the struggle, or simply complete
development and castle kingside.;
B3) 8.h3 h5 9.0-0 d6 10.g4 g6
11.d4 0-0 12.f4 f6!? 13.dxe5 fxe5
14.f5 f7 with an interesting game.;
C) 7...e7 . Black reacts normally, but he
has grounds for a more proactive
approach: 8.0-0 0-0
C1) Better than 9.d4 exd4 10.xd4
xd4 11.exd4 ( 11.xd4 c6
12.xd8?! xd8 O'Siochru, M (2100)-
Quinn, M (2275)/Dublin 1992. );
C2) 9.f4! a5 ( 9...f6 looks preferable)
10.fxe5 xe5 11.d4 g6 12.b3 c6
13.e4 c5 14.e3 cxd4 15.xd4 xd4
16.xd4 d7 17.d5 . See Nigel
Davies's notes in the archives. ]
[ Black has also played 6...e7 , though
after 7.ge2 0-0 8.0-0 Black will probably
revert to
A) or 8...c5 9.d4! ( 9.f4!? );
B) 8...c6 as in the Zvjaginsev game. ]
7.ge2 c6 8.0-0 e7
[ 8...d6 Scheidegger, U-Habibi, A (2255)/
Ba d Ra ga z 1 9 9 0 . He re 9.f4!? is again
possible. e.g. ( 9.d4 cxd4 10.exd4 0-0
11.dxe5 w a s t h e g a m e w h e n xe5
is very close to equal.; 9.b3!? ) 9...0-0 10.b3
with a more comfortable game for White. ]
9.f4! The key idea of 6.e3, perhaps contrary to
early expectations. W hite breaks down the
center with f2-f4 instead of d2-d4. exf4
[ White is for choice after 9...0-0 10.fxe5
xe5 11.b3! , i.e. d3 12.f4! ]
[ , but 9...h5!? was interesting. ]
10.xf4 0-0 11.b3 f5 12.b2
[ 12.g4!? ]
12...d7 13.e4 ad8 14.f2 Black has
developed strictly according to principle, yet
W hite has still emerged with a slight edge.
His minor pieces have secured slightly better
squares, and Black has no real weaknesses to
attack. b4 15.f1! xe4 Not ideal, but
White was menacing Nf4-h5. 16.xe4 6d5
[ 16...f5 17.g2 g6 was preferable, though
White is still sitting pretty with the bishop
pair. ]
17.h5 g6
[ Black must weaken the long diagonal since
884
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

17...f6? 18.a3 c6 19.f5 d6 20.d3 6.e3!? , which he used to beat Navara last
leads to disaster on a corresponding year in the same event. See Nakamura, H
diagonal, e.g. h6 21.h7+ h8 22.g6+- ] (2759)-Navara, D (2712) Wijk aan Zee 2012.
18.a3!? It's worth noting that Laurent Fressinet
[ There was also the remarkable possibility of de f ea t e d Na ka m ura in t his va ria t ion in
18.f5!? when Black cannot take: gxf5 December at the W orld Mind Games in
19.xf5 d6 ( 19...c7 December: c6 7.ge2 f5 8.0-0?!
20.xh7+
and 21. Qf5+ mates quickly.) 20.h3!
( I r e c o m m e n d e d 8.d4 in the notes to
and with threats like 21.Qg4+, 21.Bxh7+, Nakamura - Navara) 8...d3 9.f4 e4 10.a3
and 21.Nf6+ hanging in the air, Black is e7 11.b4 f6 12.a2 0-0-0 13.c2
lost. ] he8 and White was somewhat paralyzed
18...a6?? Overlooking a pretty idea. in Nakamura, H (2760)-Fressinet, L (2700)
[ 18...f5! was necessary. ] Beijing 2012. ]
19.xd5 xd5 20.f6! Now Black must 4.f3!? An attempt to enter standard Four
allow the knight to f6 to avoid a decisive loss Knights territory.
of material. d6 21.xe7 xe7 22.f6+ [ 4.g2 is examined in the archives. See the
g7 23.c4!+- Deadly geometry. Black is
guide "King's English - Moves other than 3
unable to defend against the direct threats of Nf3". ]
Qc4-c3 and Qc4-h4 in addition to the simple 4...e4
e s c a l a t io n o f p re s su re wi t h Ra 1 -f 1 . e5
[ Nakamura has experience against 4...xc3
24.af1 h5 25.xh5+! Nakamura concludes as well: 5.bxc3 c6 ( 5...e4 6.d4 0-0
the game with an efficient sequence. xh5 7.g2 d5 8.cxd5 xd5 Kamsky, G (2714)-
26.xf7+ xf7 27.xf7+ h6 28.f4+ g5 Gelfand, B (2736) Moscow 2007/[Hansen,
[ 28...g5 29.h7++- ] Carsten] ) 6.g2 0-0 7.0-0 e8 8.d3 e4
29.f6+ g6 30.f1! Nice! Now the threats 9.d4 exd3 10.exd3 xd4 11.cxd4 d5
are 31.Rf6 and 31.Qh3+ Qh5 32.Rh7+. h5 12.e3 and White obtained some
31.xb7 Black is totally helpless. c4 advantage in Nakamura, H (2758)-Howell, D
[ 31...xd2 32.f6+ g6 33.h8+ mates. ] (2633) London 2011/[John Bartholomew]. ]
32.f6+ g6 33.xd8 b1+ 34.f2 [ 4...c6 would transpose to the Four
Black resigned, since White easily escapes Knights. ]
the checks. It's too early to declare 6.e3!? 5.d4 c6 6.c2 xc3 7.bxc3!?
theoretically challenging, but it's telling that a
Somewhat rare.
seasoned 2700 could not equalize out of the [ White usually captures away from the
opening. W e'll definitely be seeing more of c e n t e r w i t h 7.dxc3 , which lends more
this line. support to d5. For example, h6 8.g2 d6
1-0 9.e3 0-0 10.0-0 e8 11.c2 e5!?
12.d2 e7 13.f4 exf3 14.exf3 f5
15.g4 e8 16.ae1 e6= Portisch, L
892 A22 (2650)-Timman, J (2620) Amsterdam 1981. ]
Nakamura,Hikaru 2769 7...0-0 8.g2 d5 Also the choice of super-
Sokolov,Ivan 2667 solid British GM Michael Adams.
Tata Steel Chess 2013 (2.6) 13.01.2013 [ The fact that Karpov has also played this
[John Bartholomew] position for Black only adds to the line's
pedigree: 8...e8 9.0-0 d6 10.e3 d7
Many English authorities consider W hite's 11.c2 a5 12.d3 c6 13.d2 d7
move order in this game (2.Nc3, 3. g3) to be 14.ae1 b6 15.f3 exd3 16.exd3 h5!?
suboptimal, but Nakamura has displayed a 17.f2 e7 18.fe2 ae8= and Black went
clear preference for it in recent years. 1.c4 e5 o n t o wi n a h i g h l y i n s t r u c t i ve g a m e i n
2.c3 f6 3.g3 b4 Huebner, R (2630)-Karpov, A (2715) Baden-
[ A reputable line that avoids Nakamura's Baden 1992. ]
patented 3...d5 4.cxd5 xd5 5.g2 b6 9.cxd5 xd5 10.f3 Challenging Black in the

885
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
center, but with logical moves Black soon
obtains a great position. Nor do the
alternatives seem to promise much.
[ Amanov, Z (2401) -Adams, M (2728)
W heeling 2012 took a dif f erent course:
10.d4 h5 11.h3 e6 12.f4 fe8
13.d2 a5 (immediately exploiting the
w e a k e n e d c 4 s q u a r e ) 14.e3 c4
15.xc4 xc4 16.e5 d5! 17.xe4 f6
18.f3 f7 19.f4 xf4 20.gxf4 xe2+!
21.xe2 e8 22.e3 xe3 23.fxe3 d5
24.g1 e6 25.g3 b6 and Black later
won. ]
[ On 10.0-0 it looks logical for Black to play
h5 intending ...Bc8-h3. ]
[ Likewise 10.e3 ought to be answered by
h5 . ]
10...exf3 11.xf3 a5 12.g2 f5 13.0-0
e4! 14.e3
[ Black has good play after 14.xf6 xg2
15.f4 h3 . ]
14...xg2 15.xg2 fe8 16.f5?! e5
17.f1 ae8 Black is fully mobilized and
enjoys a wonderfully coordinated position.
18.xf6 True to his style, Nakamura opts to
u n b a l a n c e t h e ga m e ra t h e r t h a n d e f e n d
passively. gxf6 19.xf6 8e6 20.f3 e7!
Pitching the b-pawn to engage White's strong
knight on e3. 21.xb7 f5 22.c4 c5
23.b3 e4
[ Here 23...c6+! would have been very
strong. For example, 24.g1 d4 25.d3
( 25.b8+ e8 26.b2 xe2+-+ ) 25...d6
and White's position collapses. ]
[ Likewise, 23...d4 makes a lot of sense
since 24.b1? is refuted trivially: e4+
25.g1 b6-+ . ]
24.d3 xe3+ 25.dxe3 xc4?!
[ 25...f6! ]
26.d8+ g7 27.b2+ f6 28.f1
Nakamura has managed to coordinate some
of his pieces, thereby minimizing the damage.
c6 29.g1 d6 30.xd6 xd6
The game now enters a technical phase.
31.c1 xe3 32.xc7+ g6 33.f2 ee6
34.c2 c6 35.d2 ed6 36.xd6 xd6
This endgame ought to be winning for Black.
37.a3 a5 38.c3 a4 39.b4 b6 40.c5
b5 41.d6 b3 42.h4 f5 43.e7 g4
44.d6 f5 45.g2 h6 46.f2 h5 47.g2
f4?!
[ Computers were quick to point out a win:
47...c3! (White must give ground with his
king) 48.f2 ( 48.h2 e3 picks up the e-
p a w n a n d w i n s t r i v i a l l y) 48...h3
( z u g z w a n g ) 49.e3 g4 50.e2 b3
(zugzwang again!) 51.f2 b2+ 52.e1
f3-+ . ]
48.gxf4 xh4 49.e4 g4 50.f5 d3
51.b4 h4? This move significantly
complicates things.
[ 51...f3! freezes White's pawns and ought
to be decisive. ]
52.f6 h3+ 53.h2 f3 54.e5 f2+ 55.h1
h5
[ Unfortunately for Black, the natural
55...g3 would be a huge blunder in view of
56.e1!+- . ]
[ 55...h2 56.f7 xf7 57.xh2 is the game. ]
56.c5 f3 57.h2 g4 58.b4?
[ Better is 58.b6! ]
[ or 58.a7! , covering f2. On f5 59.b8
e6 60.d6 it appears that White can
hold. ]
58...f2+ 59.h1 h2 60.f7 xf7 61.xh2
Can Black win? If he can nab the e-pawn and
keep the White king sufficiently far from the a-
pa wn , t h en yes. Ho we ver, it 's e xt re m e ly
difficult to pull off, and in the game Sokolov
was unable to figure it out. The analysis of
this endgame is better suited to an engine/
tablebase, so I won't say much more. f2+
62.g1 e2 63.d6 f3 64.f1 e4
65.g1 e1+ 66.h2 d1 67.b4 d4
68.d6 h4+ 69.g1 h6 70.f8 h8
71.d6 h6 72.f8 b6 73.d6 b1+
74.h2 e1 75.c7 a1 76.d6 d1
77.b4 d4 78.d6 g4?
[ The engines indicate that Black can
eventually win the e-pawn with 78...d2+
79.g1 d1+ 80.h2 e1 . ]
79.e6! Advancing the pawn to e7 makes
White's defensive task much, much easier.
g2+ 80.h1 e2 81.e7 g4 82.g1 f5
83.f1 e6 84.f2 g6 85.f3 f7
86.b4 e8 87.c5 d7 88.b4 b6
89.c5 c6 90.b4 c4 Draw agreed.
White should probably opt for 6.dxc3, though
I don't think he has much there either.
Sokolov was understandably upset after his
failure to win this game, but I think even he
wo u ld a d m it t h a t h is re a ct io n wa s k in d a
886
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
funny! http: //www.youtube.com/
watch?v=pTg46f85RBQ
½-½
893 A22
Nepomniachtchi,Ian 2716
Lintchevski,D 2563
65th ch-RUS HL (11) 27.06.2012
[John Bartholomew]
A rec ent d evelo pm en t in the 6 .e 3 K in g's
En glis h f ro m th e Russian Ch am pion sh ip
Higher League. 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 d5
4.cxd5 xd5 5.c3 b6 6.e3 You'll recall
that Nakamura's victory over Navara in Wijk
aan Zee was the catalyst for the explosion of
interest in this line. g6!? A fresh approach.
Given that White's plan is to assault Black's
center with f2-f4 (or perhaps d2-d4), directing
the bishop to the long diagonal is entirely
logical. On g7 Black can monitor the dark
squares from afar.
[ 6...c5 was Nakamura, H (2759) -Navara, D
(2712)/W ijk aan Zee NED 2012/[John
Bartholomew]. ]
7.ge2 g7 8.f4 Consistent with White's
stated goal.
[ The only prior game with 6...g6 went 8.0-0
0-0 9.d4 (too straightforward to pose any
problems) exd4 10.xd4 c6 11.f3 a6
12.d1 e7 13.a3?! c5 14.b4 e6
Schwabe, M-Koch, T/ Griesheim 1997. ]
8...exf4 9.xf4 c5?! Reverting to Navara's
strategy to discourage d2-d4, but the
available games have shown that this isn't
necessarily the ideal structure for Black.
[ It looks better to maintain some flexibility.
After 9...0-0 10.0-0 Black has many viable
options, i.e. c6 ( or 10...e8; or even
10...a5!? ) 11.d4 e7 intending ...c7-c6.
Black is doing well from a structural point
of view so long as he refrains from ... c7-
c5. ( 11...a5!? )]
10.0-0 0-0 11.b3 c6 12.a3 b4 13.c1
Black already experiences problems with the
c5 pawn. W hite is ready for Nc3-e4. d7?!
14.xb4
[ Good enough for the advantage, but the
computer is enthralled by the exchange
sacrifice with 14.e4!? xa2 15.xc5!
xc5 16.xc5 , for instance e8?! ( 16...a5
17.d5! ) 17.d6 e7 18.d5
with spectacular threats, i.e. e6 19.xf7!
xf7 20.xe7 xe7 21.xg6! hxg6
22.xf7 xf7 23.xf7+ xf7 24.b4!+- ]
14...cxb4 15.cd5 a5 16.c2 e5 17.c7
[ 17.c5!? ]
17...c6 18.d4 xc7?!
[ 18...a4!? looks more competitive. ]
19.xc7 b8 20.d3?!
[ It's unclear why Nepomniachtchi rejected
20.xc6 bxc6 21.xc6 . Other than the
bishop pair (which isn't even very effective
here), Black has no compensation for the
missing pawn. ]
20...g4 21.fe1 e7 22.c5 b6 23.b7
h5 24.b5 e6 25.7d6 fd8 26.c7
d5 27.xd5 xd5 Now it's a similar story
to 20.Bxc6 bxc6 21. Rxc6, but White doesn't
have the luxury of an extra pawn. 28.c4
[ 28.e4!? suggests itself. ]
28...e6 29.d1 dc8 30.d5 g4 31.d2
xc7 32.xc7 c3 33.f2 d7 34.d6?!
f8
[ Here Black could have given White a sweat
with 34...e5! . 35.xf7? doesn't work in
view of ( 35.cb5 f6 ) 35...h3
, wh e n W h it e ' s l a c k o f co o r d i n a t io n i s
evident, i.e. 36.cb5 d8-+ ]
35.cb5 xb5 36.xb5 d8 37.d6 e5
38.d2 f6 39.f2 f7 40.f3 e6 41.c2
c3 42.a4
[ 42.xc3 bxc3 43.xc3 xd6= ]
42...c8 43.c1 Draw agreed. 6...g6!? is
definitely worth further investigation,
especially if Black works to maintain some
flexibility in the center.
½-½
894 A22
Olafsson,Helgi 2491
Kortschnoj,Viktor 2659
Chess@iceland rapidplay Group A (4) 1.4.00
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.e3!? Very rare, but not bad at all.
Lines with an early e3 were recommended by
W atson many years ago, but have neve r
r e a l l y c a u g h t o n . f6 3.c3 b4
Here lie s t he ad van ta ge of de f erring th e
887
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

g1-knight's development, W hite is ready to [ 17...h6?? loses quickly to 18.xg7 xg7

gain the bishop pair without losing time, or 19.xh6+ ]
ruining his pawn structure. 18.d1 g6 19.e2 g5 20.c3
[ Very logical, as is 3...d5 4.cxd5 xd5 Despite the drawish nature of the opposite-
with a reversed Taimanov Sicilian, 5.f3 colour bishops, the presence of other pieces,
xc3 6.bxc3 d6 7.d4 e7 8.b1 0-0 and his far superior pawn structure, mean
with mutual chances, Hansen,S-Hector,J/ that W hite should win. a4 21.d6 e6
Helsingor DEN 1999. ] 22.h4! With his king perfectly safe in the
[ 3...c6 ] centre, W hite decides to develop his rook
4.ge2 c6!? straight to a strong post. ae8 23.f1
[ Preparing to setup a strong centre, the one [ W hite doesn't fall for 23.xa4? xe3!
time I had this position myself I preferred 24.fxe3 xe3 winning the queen. ]
4...0-0 5.a3 ( 5.g3 c6 6.a3 a5 7.b4 23...c5 24.c4 f5 25.g1 c2 26.d2
c7 8.e2 d5 is more than reasonable for [ 26.xa4?! xa4 27.xa4 c2 28.dd4
Black, Milov,V-Morozevich,A/Tilburg 1994.) would throw away much of W hite's
5...xc3 6.xc3 d5 7.cxd5 xd5 8.c2 advantage. ]
c6 9.d3 h8!? with sharp play, 26...c1+ 27.h2 e5?! 28.g4?!
Johnstone, P-Kosten,A/Birmingham ENG [ An odd move, when 28.xa4 won more
1999, although 0-1 (21). ] material. ]
5.d4 e4!? 28...e4!?
[ Watson considered this move to be a [ 28...h5+ 29.h4 he5?! would repeat
mistake, and it certainly didn't succeed too the position, although White would simply
well in this game, so perhaps Black should c h a n g e h i s m i n d , a n d p l a y 30.xa4
prefer 5...exd4 6.xd4 0-0 7.d2 e8 , no doubt. ]
8.d1 d6 9.g3 g4 seems fairly level, 29.xe4 xe4 30.xa4??
Rivas Pastor,M-Garcia Ilundain,D/ Cala [ Both players must have been short of time,
Galdana 1994. ] I suppose, as this allows a draw. Better
6.d5! Before Black can play his own pawn to 30.b5! c6?! (else White captures on d7)
d5. cxd5 31.g5 with an almost unstoppable mate. ]
[ A new move. In the game Torre-Balinas/ 30...f6??
Marboro PHI 1977, Black tried 6...0-0 7.a3 [ 30...f6?? after 31.xd7 g6 32.c6
d6 8.g3 e8 9.e2 a5 which is more the d-pawn will queen. ]
comfortable for White. ] [ but Black might have saved the game by
7.cxd5 a6 8.d2 0-0 9.g3 e8?! 30...f1! 31.f3 e6 32.g4! e1
[ L o s i n g, o r s a cr if ic in g, a p a wn . 9...e7 A) the only other possibility is 33.d5!?
is better, keeping the b4-bishop defended. ] with the point that h4+ 34.g1 xd5
10.xa6! bxa6 11.cxe4 xe4?! 35.xd7 h6 ( 35...b7!? ) 36.c8+ h7
[ Aiming for opposite-colour bishops, but 37.d7 wins!!;
11...xd2+ 12.xd2 b8 gave more B) 33.g5 h4+ 34.g1 e1+
chances ( 12...xd5?! allows 13.c4 and a draw. ]
wh e n t h e k n i g h t c o m e s t o d 6 t o g o o d 1-0
effect. )]
12.xb4 a5
[ So as to try to keep the white king in the 895 A22
c e n t r e , i f 12...b7 then 13.d4 f6 Papaioannou,Ioannis 2577
14.c3 xd5 15.f5 is favourable to Gelfand,Boris 2703
White. ] EuTCh Plovdiv BUL (1) 11.10.2003
13.c3 a6 14.d4 h4 15.h5 [Tony Kosten]
White must drive the active black queen away.
e7 16.a3 xg3 17.hxg3 With a brief mate 1.c4 e5 2.c3 f6 3.e3 This move has a
threat on h7. d3 certain novelty value, but for the moment it

888
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

doesn't seem to bring White particularly good
positions. b4 4.ge2 0-0 We looked at
[ 4...c6!? in Olafsson,H-Korchnoi,V. ]
5.a3 e7 Black preserves his bishop pair.
[ 5...xc3 also has its points, Black is willing
to concede the bishop for straightforward
development: 6.xc3 d5 7.cxd5 xd5
8.c2 c5!? ( 8...c6 Johnstone,P-Kosten,
A / G B R 1 9 9 9) 9.d3 xc3 10.dxc3
( 10.xh7+? h8 11.dxc3 f5 12.g6 g5
wins the hapless bishop) 10...f5 11.0-0 e6
12.c4 c6 Black has more space, White
the bishop pair, Franco, Z-Morozevich,A/
Pamplona 1994. ]
6.g3!? The knight controls e4 and f5.
[ 6.d4 exd4 7.xd4!? a5 8.b3 a6 9.b2
c5 the pressure on b3 gives Black good
play, Quinteros,M-Kouatly,B/Luzern 1985. ]
6...c6 The most ambitious move, attempting to
construct a strong centre.
[ 6...d5 7.cxd5 xd5 leads to an Open
Sicilian structure, 8.c2 e6 9.d3 g6
10.b4 c6 which was previously preferred
by Gelfand, against Klaus Bischoff,
Dortmund 1990. ]
7.d4 Virtually forced if White wants to hinder
Black's plans,
[ 7.f5!? d5 8.xe7+ xe7 9.cxd5 cxd5
10.d4 c6 hands Black a useful lead in
development. ]
7...exd4 8.exd4
[ 8.xd4 d5 9.e2 c5 10.d1 dxc4
11.xd8 xd8 12.xc4 c6 favours Black,
Novgorodskij,V-Sherbakov,R/Omsk/Perm
1998. ]
8...d5 9.c5 White grabs space on the
queen side, this pawn can have a s evere
cramping effect on Black. The alternative was
to play an IQP position:
[ 9.e2 dxc4 10.xc4 bd7 11.0-0 b6
12.b3 bd5 13.e1 e6 but of course,
Black is fine here, Bezold,M-Lukacs,P/Gyula
1997. ]
9...e8 10.e2 b6! A strong novelty which
relies on a neat tactic to break the queenside
bind.
[ 10...h5!? is also interesting, to embarrass
the knight, 11.xh5!? ( 11.g5 ) 11...xh5
12.xh5 xc5+ 13.e3 d6 and Black is
doing well, Corral Blanco,J-Campos Moreno,
J/Barcelona ESP 2000. ]
11.b4 In view of what follows White could
prefer
[ 11.e3 ]
11...bxc5 12.bxc5 xc5! The point. 13.dxc5
d4 14.0-0
[ 14.g5 dxc3 15.xd8 xd8 16.xf6 gxf6
17.c1 is similar to the game continuation,
and if the knight moves ]
[ 14.a2 then Black recuperates his piece
by d3 ]
14...dxc3 15.xd8 xd8 16.g5 a6!?
Black heads for a drawn endgame.
[ 16...bd7 17.fc1 h6 is also perfectly
sound. ]
17.xf6 gxf6 18.ac1 xe2 19.xe2 a6
20.xc3 d5 The black kingside is weakened
but he will liquidate most of the queenside
pawns and remain with active pieces.
21.f4!? xc5 22.xc5 xc5 23.c1 e8
The knight is taboo because of the back-rank
mate. 24.g4
[ 24.g3 e5 is also equal, Black's extra
pawn doesn't count for too much. ]
24...e4 Exchanging into a drawn rook
endgame,
[ 24...e5?! encounters 25.h5 ]
25.xc5 xf4 26.h3 a4 27.xc6 g7
[ 27...xa3 28.xf6 g7 is quite drawn. ]
28.c3 f5 29.gxf5 f6 30.g2 h5 31.f3
h4 32.f1 e4 33.c3 a4
½-½
896 A22
Rogers,Ian 2569
Acs,Peter 2623
GMB Wijk aan Zee NED (3) 14.01.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 b4 4.g2 0-0
5.d3
[ 5.e4 xc3 6.bxc3 c6 is a more habitual
move-order, and should transpose, although
White can defer playing d3. ]
5...xc3+ 6.bxc3 c6 7.e4 d5 8.cxd5 cxd5
9.exd5 xd5 10.e2 c6 11.0-0
I always thought that these positions were
slightly better for Black, who enjoys easy
development, play on the light squares and
pressure against the white central pawns,
whilst White's bishops have little immediate

889
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
scope. e8
[ 11...g4!? i s a l s o p r o m i s i n g , 12.f3?!
( 12.d2 ) 12...f5 13.h1
and the d3-pawn is a problem, Hibbeler,S-
Abel,E/Germany 1992. ]
12.b2 In this rare position this is new.
[ 12.h3 f5 13.b3 b6 14.d1 d7
15.h2 Arbakov,V-Naumkin,I/Warsaw 1992,
and now Black can probably snatch the d-
pawn: xd3! 16.e4 d4! which unpins
the bishop by blocking the d-file! 17.xd3
xb3 18.xd7 xc1 and wins a pawn. ]
12...f5 13.d2 White develops his pieces
s e n s i b l y b e h i n d h i s c e n t r a l p a w n s . e4!?
The young Hungarian tactician plays true to
style,
[ 13...d7 and ...Rad8 is a reasonable
alternative, but he wants more. ]
14.c4! Provoking wild complications, but this is
better than
[ 14.d4? a5 to c4, which is positional
suicide. ]
14...e3!?
[ 14...exd3 15.cxd5 xe2 16.f4 e7
( 16...xb2 17.dxc6 ) 17.d4 f6 is far from
clear. ]
15.e1 White cannot capture the pawn as the
knight lands on e3. b6 16.c3 e5 17.f4
a4 The other good move was
[ 17...xd3!? , forcing 18.fxe5
19.fe1 xc4 20.xe3 and Black has won
a pawn, although White's bishops might yet
save him. ]
18.a3 xd3 It looks like White's position is
falling apart, but he keeps trying to play the
best moves. 19.d4 b6
[ 19...d7 20.c5 also leaves the black
knights looking misplaced. ]
20.c5 c4 Perhaps too complicated,
[ 20...d5 might have been simpler. ]
21.c3 d2 22.xg7! e6? Black under-
estimates White's next move,
[ 22...xf1 23.h6 ( 23.h8!? f6 24.xf6
is a ls o me ss y) 23...f6 24.b3+! h8
25.xb7 d7 26.a6 e6
might be good for Black, but calculating this
over the board would not be simple. ]
23.d4! White grabs the lifeline he's been
thrown - now he is better as the black pieces
are all loose. xf1?!
[ 23...c8 24.xe6 fxe6 is better, Black's e-
pawn could still prove useful. ]
24.xf5 e2 25.h6+! White doesn't waste
d7 the chance he has been given, and plays
accurately till the end. xh6 26.xh6 f6
27.e4! e1 28.xe1 xe1 A picture! Black
is a ro o k up , b u t lo ses b y f o rce ! 29.b3+
h8 30.xb7 Hitting h7, g7 and a8.
[ 30.f7! is perhaps even stronger, but
W h i t e p r o b a b l y d i d n ' t wa n t t o h a v e t o
calculate the checks: f3+ 31.xf1 d1+
32.f2 d4+ 33.xf3 and they soon peter-
out. ]
30...d4+?!
[ 30...f3+ 31.xf3 d4+ 32.xf1 g8
would allow Black to carry-on a few moves. ]
31.xf1 c4+ 32.xe1 A sad end for the
two knights! c1+ 33.e2 c4+ 34.f2
1-0
897 A22
Smirin,Ilia 2685
Deep Shredder
Smirin vs Computers (1) 14.04.2002
[Tony Kosten]
Smirin showed good 'anti-machine' tactics in
his match against a selection of four of the
best programs, and managed to come out on
xe2 top. 1.c4 e5 2.c3 f6 3.g3 b4 4.g2
0-0 5.e4 A good practical choice, White
closes the centre and aims for a position
d e v o i d o f t a c t i c s . xc3 6.bxc3 d6
Not a good decision from the program. I think
[ 6...c6 is best, and leads to a more open
position where the computer's tactical ability
may well come to the fore, see Grigoriants,
S-Sadvakasov,D/Subotica YUG 2000. ]
7.e2 g4!? New here, but this 'pseudo-
active' move achieves little, Black has a wide
choice here, although
[ 7...bd7 may be best , 8.d3 a6 9.0-0
( I prefer 9.a4! keeping a lid on Black's
queenside play) 9...b5 10.cxb5 axb5 11.f4
27.c6 with chance for both sides, Sakharov,A-
Gavrikov,V/Beltsy 1977. ]
8.f3! White wants to keep pieces on the
board. e6 9.d3 c5? Absolutely g. When left
to their own devices (i.e. when their opening
knowledge runs out) computers often play
p o o r p o s it io n a l m o ve s. B la ck s h o u l d b e
890
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
playing for ...b5, or ...c6 and ...d5. 10.0-0
h6?! Black wishes to avoid Bg5, which wasn't
a t h re a t (! ) a n d p lays a m o ve wh ich ju st
weakens his kingside. 11.h3 White's intention
is to play f4-f5 with a powerful kingside attack,
b u t m u s t c o n t r o l g 4 f i r s t . a6 12.a4!
I always play this move in similar positions -
White is happy to close the queenside as he
hopes to mow Black down on the other (more
important) side of the board. b6 13.f4 c6
14.f5 d7 15.g4 c7?
[ Black should probably try to defend against
g5 by playing 15...h7 and ...f6. Notice how
Blac k su f f ers f rom conceding h is d ark-
squared bishop in the opening, as if this
piece were still on e7 he would be able to
control h4 and g5 and White's attack would
be more difficult to construct. ]
16.g3 a5
[ Black is quite lost, as it is now too late for
16...h7 : 17.f6! stopping Black from
playing ...f6 himself, xf6 18.xf6! gxf6
19.h5 and Black 's king is trapped on the
kingside without any defenders, and will be
mated in a few moves, e.g. fb8 20.d2
f8 21.xh6+ e8 22.h8+ e7
23.xf6+ e8 24.h8+ e7 25.g5+ ]
17.h4 It is all too simple for White. h7 18.g5
hxg5 19.hxg5 b7 20.e3 b5 21.axb5
axb5 22.h5 His big space advantage on the
kingside allows White to bring his pieces over
whilst stopping Black from doing likewise.
bxc4 23.f6 The simplest, although White has
many other ways to prosecute his attack, for
instance
[ 23.f2 (t o b rin g a ro o k t o h 1 ) b2+
24.f3 xg5+ (what else?) 25.xg5 f6
26.h1 fxg5 27.h7+ f7 28.g6+ g8
29.h7 f7 30.ah1 ]
23...fc8 24.fxg7 g4 Desperation, Black
has n o d ef en ce against W hit e's multiple
threats, like Qh6 with Nh5/or Nf5, or Kf2 and
Rh1.
1-0
898 A22
Taimanov,Mark E 2454
Rublevsky,Sergei 2657
Korchnoi 70 St . Petersburg RUS (7) 22.03.01
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 f6 3.g3 b4 4.f3!?
[ White wants to force Black to play .. .Nc6,
a n d e n t e r n o r m a l l i n e s . 4.g2
is more common, and is seen in the
archives. ]
4...xc3!?
[ Black prefers to avoid the main line with
4...c6 ]
5.dxc3
[ Again unusual, 5.bxc3 is more ambitious,
e4 6.d4 0-0 7.g2 with typical play,
Marin,M-De Vreugt,D/Tel Aviv ISR 2000. ]
5...d6 6.g2 h6 7.0-0 c6 8.e1?!
[ Actually, this is a new move here, although
this is a very thematic idea in such
positions: the knight manoeuvres to d5 via
e1, c2, and e3. However, whilst this works
well when Black has already castled
kingside, there is a big problem here. More
drastic measures are called for: 8.c5! d5 ( if
8...dxc5 9.xd8+ xd8 10.e3 d7
11.ad1 e7 12.d2 frees the position for
White's bishops) 9.b4 a6?! 10.c4! dxc4
11.xd8+ xd8 12.b2 e8 13.fd1+
d7 14.a4 White has a powerful initiative,
Uhlmann,W-Gavrikov,V/Tallinn 1987. ]
8...e6 9.b3 d7! 10.c2 h3 This is the
problem, the white knight no longer defends
the kingside so Black castles long and levers-
open the h-file. 11.e3 h5 12.d5 xg2
13.xg2 h4 14.h1 White is already forced
into playing this ugly move. 0-0-0 15.g5
f5 16.xf6
[ The h-pawn is poisoned, 16.gxh4? e4
or ]
[ 16.xh4? g5 ]
16...gxf6 17.d3 g5 18.e3 g6
Na t u r a l ly W h it e a vo i d s t h e e xch a n ge o f
queens. 19.b4 b8 20.d3 f5 21.b5 e4!
To free the e5-square for the knight. 22.e3
e5 23.d4?!
[ White should grab the opportunity to
exchange his weak c-pawn by 23.c5 ]
23...g4 24.f4 dg8 25.f1
W hite's position is a mess, and it simply
891
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
remains for Black to find a killer blow. hxg3
26.fxg3 f3! 27.f2
[ An unfortunate necessity, 27.exf3? xf3+
28.g1 xg3+ mates. ]
27...d2+ 28.e1 xc4 With an extra pawn,
and a dominating position, the end should not
b e f a r o f f . 29.a4?! xg3! Another shot!
30.hxg3 xh1+ 31.f1 xf1+ 32.xf1
xg3 33.f2 xc3 Black now has four extra
pawns! 34.h1 a5?!
[ Perhaps Black was short of time, as
otherwise he would surely pref er 34...c6
, controlling d5. ]
35.d5 c2 36.h8+ a7 37.xc7 b6
[ This is fine, but 37...e3+ 38.g3 ( 38.f3?
e5+ 39.xe3 xc7 ) 38...xe2
would force a quick resignation. ]
38.e8 d5 39.d6 White has managed to
drum-up some counterplay, but it has to be
insufficient. f4 40.h7 c4
[ 40...f3 41.xf7 xe2+ 42.g3 c4
wins easily. ]
41.c8+ b8 42.e7 e3??
[ A dreadful blunder, 42...d4 43.h8+ c7
44.d5+ d6 45.xf4 d3 is still crushing,
and there were many other good lines, too. ]
43.b6 Threatening mate! This must have
come as quite a shock. c8 Fortunately for
Bla ck he is s till slightly bet te r a f t er th is.
44.xc8
[ 44.xf7 d8 45.xf4 d1+ 46.e1 c3
47.e3 is also worth consideration as the
black king and rook are confined to the back
rank. ]
44...xc8 45.xf7 c4 46.c7+ b8
47.c5 xb6 48.xa5 c7 49.c5+ d6
50.b5 c6 51.b4 c4 So, the situation
has clarified, White has an exchange for two
pawns, but without passed pawns of his own,
or weak pawns to attack, the rook is hardly
stronger than the knight. 52.b1 e3+ 53.g2
d2 54.b4?
[ 54.c1+ d6 55.c8 keeps the game
alive, the rook is most active when behind
pawns. ]
54...d4! 55.xd4 f3+ 56.exf3 e2
Black has skilfully arranged for one of his
pa wn s t o qu e e n . 57.xd2 e1 58.d4
e2+ 59.g3 e5+ 60.f4 d5 61.g4
g7+ 62.h3 e5 63.g4 c7 64.g2
f5 65.e4 White attempts to form a barrier
against the advance of the black king. g7+
66.f2 b2+ 67.g3 d2 68.g4 e1+
69.g2 e2+ 70.g3 d2 71.e4 b6
72.g4 e1+ 73.g2 e3! 74.g3
[ The problem is that 74.e4 loses to xe4!
75.fxe4+ xe4 and the pawn ending is
lost. ]
74...g1+ 75.h3 f2 Now that the white
king has been forced to concede ground, the
rook has to defend the f-pawn, and W hite
loses. 76.g3 f4 77.g4+ xf3 78.g6
f1+ 79.h2 e2+ 80.h3 e5 81.h4
e4+
[ Black pragmatically captures the pawn, but
81...f5! 82.g1 f4+ 83.h5 h2+
wins the rook, instead. ]
82.h5 xa4 83.f6+ g3 84.g6+ h3
85.f6 g4+ 86.h6 b5 87.h7
0-1
899 A22
Turov,Maxim 2630
Edouard,Romain 2686
Tata Steel Chess 2013 (7.8) 19.01.2013
[John Bartholomew]
Two strong 2600s debate a line that ha s
underwhelmed us in the past. 1.c4 e5 2.c3
f6 3.g3 b4 4.g2 0-0 5.e4 xc3
6.bxc3
[ T h e a l t e r n a t i v e r e c a p t u r e 6.dxc3
is a persona l f avorite o f GM Normund s
Miezis (he had played it 45 times at my last
count!). Black ought to have good play, i.e.
d6 7.e2 bd7 8.f3 a6 9.0-0 b5!
s e e M i e zi s , N ( 2 5 4 7 ) - O l s e n , H ( 2 3 4 5 )
Dianalund 2005/ [John Watson]. ]
6...c6 7.e2
[ 7.a3 e8 8.b3 b6 9.e2?! b7
10.d6 e6 11.a3?! c5 12.xb8 xe4!
was excellent for Black in Grigoriants, S
(2503) -Sadvakasov, D (2509) Subotica
2000. ]
7...d5 8.exd5 cxd5 9.cxd5 xd5 10.0-0
c6 A tabiya for the 6...c6 line. At the end of
2011 I mentioned White's unbelievably poor
practical results from this position (+1, =14, -
21 at the time). W ell, it's my duty to report
some improvement in 2012: White scored a
single win to bump his stats to +2, =14, -21.
892
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Hallelujah! In all seriousness though, it will 25.a4 e6 26.c4! f6 27.b3
take something major from White to overturn [ Better is 27.a3! preventing ...e4-e3 and
the theoretical assessment of this line. allowing White to keep an eye on the knight
Perhaps Turov has something in mind? 11.d3 on c3. ]
[ The position after 11.b1 was reached in 27...e3! 28.f1 f3 29.c2 g4?!
Naiditsch, A (2712)-Topalov, V (2768) Porto [ Black had more active possibilities for
Carras 2011 (W hite actually played it on example 29...ce5!? 30.dxe5 d2 31.a4
move seven in that game). Following e8 xe5! with threats of ...Ng6-h4, ...Rd2xe2,
12.d3 b6 13.e3 Black could have and ... Re5xc5. ]
p l a y e d t h e s i m p l e f5 with fine play. 30.f3 c8 31.a3 a5 32.c1
Naiditsch, A (2712)-Topalov, V (2768) Porto [ 32.a4! ]
Carras 2011/[John Bartholomew]. Readers 32...a6 33.d1 c8 34.f4 f8 35.d5 b8
may want to have a look at the notes to this [ 35...d7!? 36.xe3 b4 ]
game as I detail a lot of the early 36.xe3 xe3 37.xe3 xc4 38.a3 a4
alternatives in this line. ] 39.d4 b5 40.d3 b6 41.g2 bd7
11...g4!? Tony called this "promising" in his 42.c4 xc4 43.xc4 e3 44.xf8 b6
notes to Rogers-Acs (below). 45.b5 xf8 46.h3 xd5 47.xd5 xe2
[ Black also had excellent play after 11...e8 48.d8+ e8 49.xa5 c8+ Draw agreed.
12.b2 f5 13.d2 e4!? in Rogers, I White got a little something from the opening
(2569) -Acs, P (2623) Wijk aan Zee 2003/ here, but it's hardly e nough to upse t th e
[TonyK]. ] theoretical assessment. There's a reason why
12.b2 this line isn't very popular.
[ 12.f3?! f5 13.h1 d7 14.d4 exd4 ½-½
15.cxd4 fe8 was hardly attractive for
W h it e in Hib b e le r, S -A b e l, E G e rm a n y
1992. ] 900 A22
12...d7 Turov,Maxim 2658
[ Another game saw 12...e8 13.h3 f5 Potapov,P 2473
( 13...e6 ) 14.b3 b6 15.fd1 e7 6th Agzamov Memorial (3) 08.03.2012
16.d4?! , Giles, N-Ardovsky, P Dos [John Bartholomew]
Hermanas 2003. Here a5 17.b4 ac4
suggests itself. ] 1.c4 e5 2.c3 f6 3.g3 d5 4.cxd5 xd5
13.e1 b6 I don't think there was a 5.g2 b6 6.e3 e7 7.ge2 c5 8.0-0 0-0
compelling reason to withdraw this knight from 9.f4 exf4 10.xf4 c6 11.b3 f5 12.b2
the center. d7 13.e4 b4?! Immediately heading for
[ Instead 13...ad8 14.d2 b6 15.ad1 the d5 square.
c4 16.c1 xb2 17.xb2 fe8 [ Black attempts to improve on 13...ad8
was at least equal for Black in Strozewski, , which was seen in the source game
F (2046)-Diesner, M Germany 2010. This Nakamura, H (2759)-Navara, D (2712)/ Wijk
underscores the fact that Black doesn't have aan Zee NED 2012/[John Bartholomew].
to do anything particularly impressive to The position after 14.f2 b4 15.f1
obtain a good game in this line. ] i s p r o m i s i n g f o r W h i t e a f t e r xe4
14.a4 ad8 15.a5 c8 A little passive. ( o r H o w e l l ' s m o r e s o l i d t r y 15...g6
[ 15...d5= is safe enough. ] , wh ich we d iscu sse d la s t m o n t h - s e e
16.d4! 8e7 17.a4 h3 18.xh3 xh3 Griff iths, R (2310)-Howell, D (2633)/
19.a3 fe8 20.a6 White has a slight Sunningdale ENG 2012.) 16.xe4 6d5
initiative, but it doesn't amount to much. c8 17.h5! , as Nakamura demonstrated. ]
21.axb7 xb7 22.c5 g6 23.a6 d7 14.a3 4d5
24.ed1 e4?! [ 14...d3?? just drops a piece: 15.xd3
[ 24...exd4 25.cxd4 b8 26.d3 xd3 16.xf5+- ]
( 26.xa7?? xe2 ) 26...g4 ] 15.d3! A strikingly similar motif to

893
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Nakamura-Navara above (17.Nh5!). Black's
kn igh t s a re ra t he r su p erf lu o us, wh ere a s
White's contain plenty of dynamic potential.
Thus, Turov avoids a trade. Black is already
under significant pressure here, so I believe
13...Nb4 ought to be discarded.
[ N o t i c e , h o w e v e r , t h a t 15.h5?!
is less effective because of g4 , e.g.
16.f3 xh5 17.xh5 f5! 18.f2 f6 ]
15...ac8?!
[ It's marginally better to surrender the
b i s h o p p a i r i m m e d i a t e l y w i t h 15...xe4
, but here too after 16.xe4 f5 17.g2
ad8 18.e5! ( not 18.c1? xe3 )
18...d6 19.c2 White has a very
pleasant advantage to work with. ]
16.c1 xe4 17.xe4 f5 18.g2 cd8
19.e5 e6 20.c2 Black has made fairly
normal moves, but he's already in big trouble.
g6
[ 20...d7! is a tougher defensive try. ]
21.e4! Thematically opening the position.
[ The preparatory 21.fe1! is possibly even
stronger. ]
21...fxe4 22.xe4
[ 22.xe4! was more direct in view of f6
23.xg6! xb2 ( 23...hxg6? 24.xd5
xd5 25.xg6+ h8 26.c4!+- ) 24.xf8
d4+ 25.h1 xf8 26.xh7+ g7
27.xf8 xf8 28.f5+ xf5 29.xf5 . ]
22...xf1+ 23.xf1!? g5 24.c2 f5?
Black wasn't doing too badly here, but he had
to keep queens on board.
[ 24...e7!? 25.g2 ]
25.xf5 gxf5 After this it's impossible to trust
t h e s c o re . W h i t e o f f i ci a l ly p l a ye d 26.f3
but the further moves
[ I suspect that 26.d3 was actually seen,
when Black will lose a pawn. ]
26...e8?? 27.h3?? surely would not have
been played. Black's bishop hangs for the
next several moves. e7 28.xc5 d8
29.xf5 xd2 30.e6+ f8 31.f1 e3
32.e5 d3 White is completely winning in
this final position after 33.Ke2. Despite the
finish, this game further illustrates the
dangers Black has encountered in the newly-
popular 6.e3 lines. 13...Nb4?! is dubious, but
even Navara's 13...Rad8 gives White an edge.
1-0
901 A22
Vallejo Pons,Francisco 2674
Aronian,Levon 2724
WCC Khanty Mansiysk RUS (4.1) 06.12.2005
[John Watson]
In a battle of heavyweights, Vallejo Pons plays
an odd variant that turns out worse that the
normal line. But he proceeds inventively and
holds a balance, after which a complex battle
ensues. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 b4
4.g2 0-0 5.e4 xc3 6.bxc3
[ 6.dxc3 d6 isn't much better for White than
when Black plays it in the Rossolimo Sicilian,
f or example, 7.e2 bd7 8.f3 c5
9.d2 a5= ]
6...c6 A line that has always been considered
comfortable for Black.
[ 6...d6 7.e2 a6 intending ...b5 is also
played. ]
7.d4!? This move wasn't played in the old
days and I can f ind only 3 examples. But
White never did very well with
[ 7.e2 d5 8.cxd5 cxd5 9.exd5 xd5
10.0-0 c6 anyway, 11.d4 b6! ]
7...exd4
[ Black can also be content with the superior
structure following 7...d6 8.e2 . Then
( 8.f3!? ) 8...c5!? is double-edged because
it forgoes the idea of ...c6 with play on the c-
file. Thus Black needs to get immediate
access to c4, or White might sacrifice that
p a w n i n o r d e r t o a t t a c k : ( a positional
approach is 8...e6! 9.d5 d7; 8...e8 )
9.d5 ( 9.0-0! c6 10.d3 ) 9...e8
( 9...bd7! 10.0-0?! a5 11.f4 a6 )
10.h3 g6 ( 10...f5 ) 11.h6 g7 12.g4
( 12.0-0 f5 13.f4! would exploit the absence
of Black's dark-squared bishop) 12...d7
13.g3 f6 14.f1 a5 15.d2 b6
with approximate equality, Sorokin-Motylev,
Calcutta 2002. ]
8.xd4 White's point, operating on the d-file.
[ 8.cxd4? xe4! 9.xe4 e8 ]
[ In notes to the Sorokin game, Ribli gives
8.e5!? e8 9.cxd4 d6 10.f4 dxe5 11.fxe5
"W hite possesses the bishop pair and a
strong pawn centre in return Black has a
lead in development". Interesting, because
after c5 that centre is collapsing and White
is forced into a line that might be good for
894
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

him: 12.f3 c6 ( 12...cxd4 13.0-0 g4 [ 21...g6 22.b5! establishes definite
14.g5! ) 13.0-0 e4 14.d5! xe5 counterplay, and the bishop pair may well
15.xe5 xe5 16.b2 e8 17.xe4 xe4 be active shortly. ]
18.xf7! ] 22.d6!?
8...e8 9.e2 [ 22.b3= ]
[ 9.g5 c5 10.xf6 b6 11.d3 xf6 22...xd6! This has to be well calculated,
12.e2 c6 ] since t h e b ish op on d7 will h an g. 23.b3
9...d5!? b5! 24.g5 c3 25.d6
[ Stirring things up with a pawn sacrifice. It [ 25.d3? e2+ 26.f2 b5 ]
would be interesting to see what White had 25...e1+ 26.f1 Always bold. The draw was
in mind after 9...d6 10.f4 ( 10.0-0 c5! to be had by
and ...Nxe4 or ... Nc6-e5; 10.g5!? ) 10...c5! [ 26.f2 e2+ 27.g1 ( 27.g3?? h5+ )
11.xd6 xd6 12.xd6 xe4 13.xe4 27...e1+ ]
xe4 14.xc5 g4 15.e3 xc4 26...h3 27.b2 xf1+ 28.xf1 e8!
wi t h t h e l i g h t s q u a r e s . W h i t e ' s w h o l e 29.xc3!?
variation looks a little suspicious. ] [ 29.d2 xf1 30.xf1 xa2 is bad. ]
10.cxd5 cxd5 11.exd5 f5 12.d1 29...xd6 30.d1 b5 A slugfest. Now it
[ 12.e3 e4! ] looks lke Black is winning but W hite keeps
12...g4 coming up with resources until he manages to
[ 12...e4 13.xe4 xe4 14.g5 bd7 escape. 31.e5 e8 32.d5 a3 33.d2
15.0-0 is unclear, but White still has his c2 34.f4 b4?!
pawn, ] [ 34...b6 ]
13.f3 f5 14.c4 bd7 Black has superb 35.b5 d3 36.xb7 xe5 37.fxe5 h6
development for the pawn, and moves like . .. 38.gxh6 xe5 39.xa7 e2 40.a8+ h7
Ne5, ...Rc8, and ....Qb6 all have to be dealt 41.hxg7 xg7 42.a3 g2+ 43.h1 xd2
with. White properly runs away. 15.0-0 e5 44.xh3 xa2
[ A tempting move although it runs into a ½-½
little trick. Also unconvincing is 15...c8
16.g4 g6 17.g5 h5 18.f4 b6+
19.h1 e4 20.xe4 xe4 21.d3! 902 A22
cxc4 22.b1 ] Van der Elburg,Freddie 2359
[ The simple 15...c5 with the idea 16.a3 Van Beek,Alexander 2379
a5 looks best to me. ] 10th Essent Open (7) 26.10.2006
16.g4 b6+ [John Watson]
[ 16...d3!? 17.g5!? ]
17.c5!? A surprise. 1.c4 c6 2.e4 e5 3.c3 f6
[ 17.h1 d3!? 18.b3 f2+ 19.g1 [ 3...a5!? is the subject of Postny-L'Ami in
h3+ 20.h1 is only a draw. Maybe Black this month's column. ]
could try 17...Bg6. ] 4.d4
[ 17.d4? d3! ] [ 4.f3 i s p r o b a b l y b e s t , w h e n b4
17...xc5+ 18.d4 c2! is an old move that gives W hite the edge
[ Oddly unconvincing is 18...xd4+ 19.xd4 after ( Black's best is the normal 4...d6 5.d4
d3 20.d1! xd5 21.f4 c3 22.d2 bd7 with an Old Indian after ... Be7 and
ad8 23.fxe5 xd4 24.b2 and White perhaps a King's Indian after ... g6 and ..Bg7,
actually stands better. ] although White has options in the second
19.d1! Another subtle move. The obvious case. ) 5.xe5 e7
[ 19.gxf5 xe2 20.g5 ed7 21.d6 A) or 6.f3 xc3? ( 6...xe4! 7.e2
is interesting, but still in Black's favour. ] d5!? 8.cxd5 0-0 is an interesting gambit,
19...c4 but W hite must still be better) 7.dxc3
[ 19...c5+ 20.d4= ] xe4 8.e3 is very good for White;
20.d4 xd1 21.xd1 d7! B) 6.d3 xc3 ( 6...xe4 7.e2! xc3

895
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
8.dxc3 xe2+ 9.xe2 e7 10.f4 )
7.dxc3 xe4 8.e2 0-0
with the advantage due to active piece
play and Black's backward pawn. ]
4...b4 5.f3!?
[ An odd move. White is trying to avoid
5.dxe5 xe4 6.d4 xc3 ( 6...a5
7.ge2 c5!? threatens ...Nb3 (HiArcs'
suggestion), when 8.d1 e4
repeats ) 7.bxc3 e7 with moves like ...Na6-
c5 and perhaps ...Qa5 to come. ]
5...exd4
[ or 5...d6 6.dxe5!? xc3+ 7.bxc3 dxe5
8.xd8+ xd8 and Black's king looks safe
enough on c7. ]
6.xd4 e7
[ Black can also emphasise development by
6...0-0 , i n t e n d i n g 7.f4!? d5! 8.cxd5
xc3+ 9.xc3 cxd5 10.0-0-0
with chances against White's king. ]
7.g5 h6?
[ 7...c5 ]
8.xf6 xf6 9.xf6 gxf6 10.ge2 d6
11.a3 c5 12.0-0-0
[ 12.b4 e3 13.d1 e7 14.d4 ]
12...e7 13.d4 a5 14.f5+!?
[ 14.e2 is calm and good. I'm not sure that
W hite wants the opposite-coloured
bishops. ]
14...xf5 15.exf5 d8 16.d3
Losing material and giving up central squares
at the same time!
[ 16...d7 17.he1+ f8 18.f4 , stopping
...Ne5, and Black is tied down although
this doesn't look so bad. ]
17.he1+ f8 18.cxd5 cxd5 19.e4
Perhaps Black missed this. d4
[ 19...c6 20.xd5 ac8 21.b1 ]
20.a4?!
[ 20.xb7! is less complicated that it looks
after a7 21.e4 c8 22.b5! ]
20...d6 21.b1 xh2?
[ 21...c6! 22.xc6 bxc6 23.xd4 xh2
24.c4 d2 25.g4 g7 26.xc6 h5
is better for White but not so easy. ]
22.c5 a7 23.xb7 d7 24.c5 d8
25.d3! d6 This really IS a bad bishop, and
it can't cover all of Black's weaknesses.
[ 25...d7? 26.h1 ]
26.c1 c7 27.xc7 xc7 28.c1 b6
29.f4 d6 30.d5 d8 31.c4 c6
32.c2 g7 33.b4 axb4 34.axb4 d3+!?
9.0-0 (a little desperate) 35.d2 e5 36.c8!?
b6 37.b8
[ 37.f4! g4 ( 37...d7 38.xd3 )
38.xb6! xb6 39.c4 and Black's knight
i s s t u c k , e v e n a f t e r f2 40.d5
, the c-pawn will win. ]
37...a7 38.b7 a6 39.c3? A mistake at
9.d4 time control. Simply
[ 39.xd3 a2+ 40.c2 c4+ 41.c3
d6 42.d7 ]
39...d4 40.d5 d6 41.b5 xc3+
42.xc3 c6 43.b3 d2! 44.d1 e7
45.a5 d5+ 46.xd2 xb4+ 47.e1
½-½
903 A22
e6= Wen,Yang 2581
Sasikiran,Krishnan 2680
Asian Continental 13th (9) 25.04.2014
[Fier, Alexandr]
This game really impressed me with the ease
that White got the advantage. I don't think this
idea actually leads to a concrete plus, but
B la ck n e e d s t o t a ke ca re t o n o t ge t in t o
trouble. 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.c3 b4
4.g2 0-0 5.f3 e8 6.0-0 c6 Black tries
d5? to control the center using the fact that the
knight is still on b8. Later White tried to play a
plan with 8.Ne4, not afraid to allow doubled
pawns since with the pawn on c6 the black d-
pawn may prove exposed on d6.
[ 6...e4 is the main line 7.d4 c6 8.c2
xc3 and here 9.bxc3 was seen in Kanep,
M (2510)-Sammalvuo, T (2458)/TCh-FIN
2006-7. ( 9.dxc3 is the main line )]
[ 6...c6 7.e1 is an interesting sideline h6
8.c2 c5 9.d3 d4 10.b1 a6 11.b4
with a n orma l En glish t yp e of p os it io n ,
analysed for ChessPublishing in Malakhov,
V (2679)-Roiz, M (2605)/8th ch-Euro
Dresden GER 2007. ]
7.d3 h6 8.e4!? Apparently this is a
committal decision and White won't have an
easy pawn break after 8...Nxe4, but all the
pieces have good squares to go to and White
will create annoying pressure on the d-file.
a6 Keeping the options open. Black thinks
that without the open d-file it will be harder for
896
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
White to create play in the center.
[ 8...xe4 it's hard to say if this is better than
t h e ga m e o r n o t . I t h i n k b o t h lin e s a r e
equivalent 9.dxe4
A) 9...f8 i s a l s o o k 10.e3 ( 10.b3
maybe this is a better option, bringing the
bishop to the long diagonal) 10...d6
11.d2 e6 12.ac1 d7 with a level
position, as seen in the rapid game
A d i a n t o , U (2 5 2 0 ) -B a re e v, E (2 6 7 5 ) /
Tilburg rapid20 1994.;
B) 9...a5 getting some space on the
queenside 10.b3 d6 11.b2 e6
12.h4 c5 13.a3 and the position is ok
for both players, Polgar, Z (2510)-Torre, E
(2530)/San Francisco 1991. ]
9.a3 A quite logical move, expanding on the
queenside and still leaving the knight on e4
for the moment.
[ 9.xf6+ would avoid any structural change
xf6 10.e4 avoiding 10...d5 d6 11.h3 c5
12.a3 c7 13.b4 b6 14.b2 and I think
White has a tiny plus. It was interesting to
see both Kosintseva sisters forced to play
against each other in the W orld Cup,
Kosintseva, N (2539)-Kosintseva, T (2515)/
Wch World Cup (Women) 2012 (3.6). ]
9...f8 10.b4 d5 Active, but it also gives
White some targets.
[ 10...d6 11.b2 c7 would be a solid way
to play. Probably one day one of the players
will lose the contest and finally exchange
the knights. For example: 12.fd2 xe4
13.dxe4 ( 13.xe4 d5 14.cxd5 cxd5
15.c5 b6 16.b3 g4 with interesting
game ) 13...a5 14.c2 e6
with a middlegame full of play ]
11.xf6+ xf6 12.b2 White has all his
minor pieces targeting Black's center. So, the
question is whether Black can finish
development without making any big
c o n c e s s i o n . d6?! Black tries to keep the
center together, but it's too slow to spend one
more tempo on the queen.
[ 12...d4!? aiming against the bishop on b2.
It's a committal decision, but then Black has
more freedom for the other pieces 13.e3 c5
14.bxc5 ( 14.b5 is less good, White should
try to open the position c7 15.d2 a6
16.a4 b8 and Black is fine) 14...xc5
15.exd4 exd4 16.d2 f5 17.e4 e7
with a complex position. White has a lot of
potential, but Black's pieces also active ]
13.c1 f5? Now this is a mistake, Black
overlooked something, maybe 15.e4.
[ 13...g4 was a better square for the bishop
14.cxd5 cxd5 15.d4 e4 16.e5 e6 17.f3
is an active answer, and maybe White can
h a v e a s m a l l p l u s exf3 ( 17...f6
is not interesting for Black 18.g6 f5
19.xf8 xf8 20.b5 c7 21.a4
and the bishop will find a good diagonal on
a3 ) 18.exf3 ac8 19.f4 with some
pressure ]
[ 13...d4 was still possible 14.c5 d8 15.e3
dxe3 16.fxe3 f6 17.h4 e6 18.e4
and W hite's position is promising, but if
Black's knight arrives on d5 before he get
mated he should be ok ]
14.cxd5 cxd5 15.e4! This is not a real pawn
sacrifice, but activates all the position while
the black pieces are still uncoordinated. g4
Black wants to take the d5-pawn with the
knight, but there is no time for his.
[ 15...dxe4 was probably a better option, but
W h it e st ill h a s so m e a d va n t a ge 16.h4
( 16.dxe4 is probably not enough xe4
17.xd6 xd6 18.fe1 c6 19.xe5
xg2 20.xg2 c7 and with some
precision Black should hold) 16...h7
17.dxe4 b6 18.f5 with good prospects ]
16.exd5 c7 17.h3 The most forcing.
[ 17.e1 would also win a pawn but Black
h a s a b i t o f c o m p e n s a t i o n a f t e r xd5
18.b3 b6 19.xe5 e6 20.d1 d5 ]
17...h5 18.g4 g6 19.e1 f6
[ 19...xd5 20.xe5 and the difference now
is that the bishop can't go back to the long
diagonal ]
20.h4 f7 21.f5 First activating the knight
[ 21.d4 was also an interesting option and
similar to the game, enough for an
advantage e4 22.xe4 xd5 23.f5 b6
24.c2 Black's pieces are poorly placed and
the king is not that safe ]
21...d7 22.d4 e4 23.xe4
[ 23.d6 trying to put the bishop in the way
was slightly better xd6 24.xe4 d5
25.f3 and now the knight is attacked c7
26.c3 ad8 27.d2 with a dangerous
attack ]
23...xd5 24.f3 a5 25.bxa5 b5
897
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 25...xa5 was a better way to try to hold this passive position, but he should not be
t h e p o s it io n 26.d3 g6 27.e3 g7 giving up a pawn here.
and it's not so easy to break Black's [ 21...ge5 would have been much
position ] tougher. ]
26.c2 ac8?? A wrong idea, now White is 22.xg6 hxg6 23.xc5 g4 24.b1 axb3
winning with a simple trick. 27.xc8 xc8 25.axb3 f3+
28.xh6+! gxh6 29.f5 [ 25...f6 would have been better here. The
1-0 text allows White to set up a mating net. ]
26.xf3 xf3 27.f1 e2
[ Perhaps Black's initial calculations had not
904 A22 t a k e n a c c o u n t o f t h e l i n e 27...xe4
Zvjaginsev,Vadim 2663 28.e7+ h7 29.f4 threatening both the
Mikhalevski,Victor 2584 bishop and mate on h4. ]
12th ch-EUR Aix les Bains FRA (6) 27.03.2011 28.e7+ h7 29.f4 a1+ 30.g2 a2
[Nigel Davies] 31.h4+ h5+ 32.h3 h6 33.g4
Winning a piece. f5 34.exf5 e8 35.g5+
1.c4 f6 2.c3 d5 3.cxd5 xd5 4.g3 e5 xg5 36.fxg6+ f6 37.d5+ xg6
5.g2 b6 6.e3!? Welcome to the World of 38.xh5
Va dim Zvjagin sev. He's f o rever crea tin g 1-0
original positions with unusual opening moves,
and in practice this can be a very effective
approach. c6 905 A23
[ One of the very few games to feature 6.e3 Al Hadarani,Hatim 2356
varied here with 6...e7 after which 7.ge2 Soon Wei Yee
0-0 8.0-0 c6 9.d4 ( 9.f4!? would have 14th Asian Cities (2) 22.03.2004
been interesting here.) 9...exd4 10.xd4 [Tony Kosten]
a6 11.h5 g6 12.e2 f6 13.d1 e7
14.e4 d8 wasn't much for White in 1.c4 c6 2.g3 d5 3.g2 e5!?
Dornieden, M-Usachyi, M/Naumburg 2002. ] Very ambitious, but can it be good? 4.cxd5
7.ge2 e7 8.0-0 0-0 9.f4 This might be We looked at
what attracted Zvjaginsev to 6.e3, the [ 4.d4!? in Lauvsnes,A-Grotnes,N. ]
possibility of undermining Black's e-pawn with 4...cxd5 5.b3 Critical, White puts immediate
f2-f4. pressure on the black centre and on the long
[ T h e s t a n d a r d p a w n l e v e r i s 9.d4 diagonal. f6 The most common, but
, but this doesn't bring much apart from [ 5...d4!? i s i n t e r e s t i n g : 6.xb7 c7!
simplification. For example exd4 10.xd4 (the neat point) 7.xa8 xc1+ 8.d1
xd4 11.xd4 c6 12.xd8 xd8 13.e4 xb2 and now White must force a draw,
e6 14.f4 c4 was nothing for White in 9.b3 c1+ ( 9...xa1!? 10.xb8 e7
O'Siochru, M-Quinn, M/Dublin 1992. ] 11.f3 is wild ) 10.d1 etc. ]
9...a5 10.fxe5 xe5 11.d4 g6 12.b3 6.c3 e4!? The most popular choice here is
[ Af te r t he im me d ia t e 12.e4 Black can the strong pawn sac
blockade the central pawns with c5 13.d5 [ 6...c6! with the continuation 7.xd5 d4
d6 . So White first prepares it. ] 8.xf6+ xf6 and White has certain
12...c6 13.e4 c5 14.e3! The point behind development problems, 9.d3 d7 10.e3
1 2 . b 3 B l a c k c a n n o t p l a y 1 4 . . . N c 4 . cxd4 c6 11.e4 0-0-0 12.b1 e6!
15.xd4 xd4 16.xd4 d7 17.d5 with a strong initiative, Gurevich,M-
It's now clear that White has an edge because Sveshnikov,E/Alekhine mem op 1992. ]
of his lead in development and powerful knight 7.d3 White continues his assault on the
on d5. c5 18.ac1 b6 19.xc5 bxc5 centre. exd3
20.fd1 a4 21.ef4 de5? An active player [ 7...c6!? i s a g a i n p o s s i b l e : 8.d2
like Victor is not going to be comfortable in ( 8.dxe4!? ) 8...exd3 9.xd5 c5 10.xd3

898
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

0-0 Black has some play for the pawn, which also offers Black fine play. ]
Njirjak,J-Starostits,I/Szombathely 1993. ] 6.c2
8.xd5 dxe2?! An unsuccessful innovation. [ Probably the best square for the knight, as
[ 8...xd5 is best, 9.xd5 ( 9.xd5!? b4+ 6.b3?! is met by a5 menacing the win of
10.f1 dxe2+ 11.xe2 0-0 12.e3 the knight by ...a4, but ]
seems about level, Wexler,B-Bazan,O/Mar [ 6.e3 is a good alternative, d5 7.c2 ]
del Plata 1960) 9...b4+ 10.d2 xd2+ 6...d5 7.g2
11.xd2 xd5 12.xd5 dxe2 13.xe2 [ Better than 7.cxd5 which allows the black
and W hite has a slight development knight the c6-square: cxd5 8.g2 e6 9.d3
advantage, Duarte,R-Ramalho,J/Lisbon c6! 10.0-0 d8 with good play for Black,
1999. ] Andersen,B-From,S/Nykobing 1961. ]
9.xe2 7...dxc4!
[ 9.e3+! i s a w k w a r d t o m e e t : e6
[ The simplest solution to the pressure on the
10.xf6+ gxf6 ( 10...xf6? black centre, 7...e6 8.0-0 e7 allows
11.xb7 )
11.xe2 c6 12.0-0 with the better
9.cxd5 cxd5 10.d3 Hentunen,A-Rytshagov,
structure. ] M/Espoo 1993, although, even here c6!?
9...c6?! Black plays inaccurately, s e e m s r e a s o n a b l e , a s 11.dxe4 dxe4
[ 9...xd5 10.xd5 b4+! is almost level. ] 12.xe4 xe4 13.xe4 d8 14.e1 f6
10.g5 e7 11.d1 Piling-on the pressure. is active. ]
a5+? 8.0-0 e6
[ 11...xd5! is the best chance, 12.xd5 [ T h e a g g r e s s i v e 8...h5!? is worth a
b4+ ( 12...xg5? 13.xf7+ e7
thought. ]
14.xd8 ) 13.d2 xd2+ 14.xd2 e7 9.xe4 xe4 10.xe4 d7 11.e3
15.0-0 0-0 and Black succeeds in getting [ Planning to exchange the light-squared
his king to safety. ] bishops, and weaken the black c4-pawn
12.d2 d8 13.c3 Now Black is in real which exerts a cramping effect on the white
trouble. d6 14.xf6+ gxf6 15.0-0 0-0 position. 11.g2 was agreed drawn in
16.f4 Heading f or h5. f5 17.h5 a5
Perez-Barreras,A/Fuerteventura 1992. ]
18.f6+ h8 19.xd6 When the queen 11...f6
captures on d6 it is lost to a discovered check [ A logical innovation, that improves on
from the knight. 11...d4 12.f5 xf5 13.xf5 e4
1-0 14.e3 Dorfman-Karasev/USSR (ch)
1976. ]
12.f5!
906 A23 [ White uses Dorfman's recipe, which is not
Bacrot,Etienne 2613 too surprising as he was Dorfman's student
Svidler,Peter 2689 for many years! 12.g2 offers little. ]
FIDE WCh KO New Delhi IND (2.4) 02.12.2000 12...xf5 13.xf5 b5 14.c2 0-0-0
[Tony Kosten] 15.e3 Thus we see the point of White's play,
the c4-pawn is compromised. e8 Black uses
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 c6 Keres' line is tactics to defend his c-pawn. 16.e1 e4
effective here because of the c3-knight. 4.f3 17.b3!
[ The problem with having the knight on c3 is [ Best, White gives-up trying to win the c-
shown by the line 4.d4 exd4 5.xd4 d5 pawn, if 17.f3 then d4 and White has only
6.cxd5 cxd5 7.g2 c6 8.a4 succeeded in weakening his dark squares. ]
when the move d4! is awkward, i.e. 9.xc6+ 17...h5!?
bxc6 10.e4 b4+! ( 10...xe4? [ Playing for the attack, but it is dubious,
11.xc6+ ) 11.xb4 xe4 12.f3 c5 17...cxb3 18.axb3 is positionally good for
with advantage. ] White, who has a strong centre, but had to
4...e4 5.d4 b6 be played. ]
[ This is rarer than 5...d5 6.cxd5 b6 18.b2

899
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 18.bxc4?! c5 ( 18...xe3? 19.dxe3 g4
leads nowhere after 20.h4 ) 19.b2 xe3
20.dxe3 g4 21.h4 he8 gives Black a
useful initiative. ]
18...g4 19.xg4 xg4 20.bxc4 d6
Although White's kingside light squares are
weak, the black attack appears insufficient for
the moment. 21.e4 e8 22.d4 e6 23.e5
b4 24.f3?
[ The beginning of White's troubles, 24.e3
h6 25.f4 consolidates. ]
24...f4! A surprising blow, regaining a pawn
as both e1, and f3 are attacked. 25.f1
[ 25.gxf4? g6+ wins the white queen, or
allows mate. ]
25...xf3 26.e4??
[ The second mistake, 26.xf3 xf3 27.b3
exchanges the queens with a positional
advantage in the endgame, because of the
powerful, and mobile, white centre. ]
26...h6! Of course! 27.h4?
[ W h i t e c o m p l e t e l y c r a c k s , 27.c2
i s t h e o n l y c h a n c e , xg3+ 28.h1
leaves him some chances. ]
27...xf1+ 28.xf1 e2 The white queen
can 't move with out allowing ma te on h2 .
29.f2 e1+
0-1
907 A23
Kapostas,Z
Kallai,Gabor
Hungarian Team Championship 20 2001
[Paul Motwani]
B36: "Crushed by Keres' System!" 1.c4 e5
2.g3 c6 Known as the Keres System, this is a
very logical counter to W hite's last move,
because Black's c6-pawn blunts the effect of
the opponent's bishop which is about to be
fianchettoed on the long h1-a8 diagonal.
3.g2 f6 4.c3
[ 4.d4 is a more popular option, by which
White acts in the centre just before Black's
d-pawn can do so. ]
4...d5 5.cxd5 cxd5 6.b3 c6! The gambit
that goes with this move is known to be strong
for Black, as he will get a powerful lead in
development in return for sacrificing his d5-
pawn. 7.xd5 d4 8.a4+?
[ Better is 8.xf6+ , but even then Black still
obtains excellent play via gxf6 9.d1 c7
, threatening to cash a big 'cheque' with
the check & fork ... Nc2+. ]
8...d7 9.xf6+ xf6 10.d1 c8
Clearly, Black has an even stronger version of
what he was getting in the notes at move 8.
11.b1
[ If 11.f1 t h e n 1 1 . . . a6 creates the
deadly duo of threats ...Ba4 and ...Nc2. ]
11...a6! 12.b3
[ I n t h e c a s e o f 12.a3 a4 13.b3
Black wins on the spot by capturing the b3-
pawn with his knight or bishop. ]
12...b4!
[ Black's actual move in the game is more
devastating than 12...xa2 since it carries
the crushing threat of ...Bf5, which W hite
will not be able to meet with d2-d3 because
his d-pawn is now pinned. ]
13.b2 f5 14.xd4
[ After 14.e4 c2+ White is horrified to find
that his king cannot move, and so he's then
f orce d to give up h is qu ee n f o r th e c2 -
knight. ]
14...xb1 15.xb1 xa2! Black brings this
neat game to a classy finish. 16.b2
[ 16.xa2 c1# was another way for White
to exit. ]
16...exd4 White doesn't wish to see any more,
and so he throws in the towel here.
0-1
908 A23
Kosten,Anthony C 2504
Fedorchuk,Sergey A 2576
Open Marseille FRA (8) 06.07.2006
[John Watson]
Our W ebmaster provides yet another
demonstration of the power of 1 c4 versus top
opposition. 'I think it is an interesting game as
I couldn't quite believe that he played this line
when I was doing my prep, and was hoping
that he would play it against me, which he did!
It might not be so bad for Black, but I
personally f eel very comfortable in these
positions where White gets to dictate the play.
' He provides a few notes and I add some
others, particularly about the opening. 1.c4 e5
900
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
2.c3 f6 3.g3 c5 4.g2 c6 5.e3 d6
[ jw: It seems to me that there are two moves
tha t are m ore consiste nt with .. .c6 : (a )
5...0-0 6.ge2 ( 6.d4 exd4 7.exd4 b4
8.ge2 d5 ) 6...d5 7.d4 exd4 8.exd4 b6
( 8...b4 9.cxd5 xd5 10.0-0 e6= )
9.cxd5 xd5 10.xd5 cxd5 11.c3 c6
12.e3 e6= ]
[ (b) 5...d5 6.cxd5
A) HiArcs suggests 6...0-0!? 7.d4 exd4
8.exd4 b6 but then 9.g5! h6 10.xf6
xf6 11.ge2 f5 ( 11...g4!? ) 12.0-0
is better for White;
B) 6...cxd5
B1) 7.b3 c6 ( 7...d4 8.xb7?!
xb7 9.xb7 bd7 10.e4 0-0!
W hite stands poorly.) 8.xd5
9.xf6+ xf6 and Black has plenty of
compensation.;
B2) 7.d4 exd4 8.exd4 e7 ( 8...b6
9.ge2 c6 10.g5 e6 11.0-0 0-0
, about equal.) 9.ge2 c6 10.0-0
g4!? 11.h3 xe2 12.xe2 b6= ]
6.ge2 a5 7.d4 a7 8.b3
[ jw: 8.dxe5 dxe5 9.xd8+ xd8 10.a4
a6 11.d2 b4 12.0-0
with a balanced game. ]
8...a6 9.b2 Tony K: I don't really believe
this system for Black, White has all the pawn
breaks: d5, dxe5, c5 plus f4, and also h3
followed by g4.
[ jw: Again 9.dxe5 doesn't achieve much:
dxe5 10.xd8+ xd8 11.b2 e7 12.0-0
f5 , about equal ]
9...0-0 10.h3 e8 11.d2 f5 12.0-0 h6
13.ad1 h7?! 'Careless,
[ 13...e4!? 14.d5 ]
[ 'I had expected 13...c7 ' ]
14.d5! cxd5 15.xd5 Tony K: Control of this
square will win the game! e4 16.c1 b4
17.a3 c6
[ 17...xd5 18.xd5 c5 19.c3 f6
( 19...xc3?! 20.xc3 ) 20.d2 e7 ]
18.b4 c8 19.ec3 xc3 20.xc3
[ 20.xc3!? ]
20...b8?!
[ 20...b5! and at least Black is hanging in
there. ]
21.bxa5 c5 22.b4! xa5 23.c3 c5
24.xb7 d7 25.b5 e6 26.c3 a4
27.c7 xc7 28.xc7 e7 29.c6 a7
[ 29...xc4? 30.d5 ]
30.d5 e6 31.b4 c2 32.d2 a4
33.b5 xb4 34.axb4 xb5 35.cxb5 b7
36.a1 b6 37.a6 xd5 38.xd5 f8
39.c6 e7 40.b6 d7 41.b5 Tony K: Just
in time! f6 42.e4 Tony K: Black is
completely dominated, I started wandering
around the tournament hall expecting him to
resign! h5 43.d2 h6 44.h4 e6 45.g2
g6 46.f3 f5 47.e3 f6 48.f3 b8
49.a2 e6 50.a7 f4+ 51.gxf4 xf4
52.g7! a8 53.cc7 a3+ 54.d2 a2+
55.c1
1-0
0-0 909 A23
Kveinys,Aloyzas 2511
Stocek,Jiri 2552
9th HIT Open (7) 03.02.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 c6 4.d4 exd4
5.xd4 d5 6.f3 White refrains from the
immediate exchange,
e7 [ 6.cxd5 b e c a u s e o f cxd5 7.f3 c6
8.a4 d4! as we saw in Ljubojevic,L-
Gelfand,B/Monaco MNC 2001. ]
[ 6.g2 is a similar idea, see Chabanon-
Kasparov. ]
6...a6!? We have seen ideas like this before
in the Keres, Black plans ...Nb4 to menace
winning the white queen. This is borrowed
from the c3-Sicilian.
[ 6...e7 is solid, 7.cxd5 ( 7.g2 c5 8.d3
d4 is level ) 7...cxd5 8.g2 c6
with a transposition to the mainline here. ]
[ 6...e6 is more ambitious, 7.cxd5 cxd5
8.g2 c6 9.a4 c5 bringing the bishop
to a more active diagonal. ]
7.g5! The most precise,
[ 7.g2 c5 ( 7...b4! 8.0-0 c2 9.e5+
e7 ) 8.e5+ e7 9.xe7+ xe7 10.cxd5
b4 May,F-Lambert,A/GER 1998, and as I
pointed-out in the notes to my game against
Collins, 11.dxc6! c2+ 12.f1 xa1
13.d4 is probably good for White. ]
7...c5!? An innovation,
[ 7...e6 8.cxd5 b4
Couso,L-V anderwae ren,S/Sa longerna s
1996, and now 9.xf6 gxf6 10.0-0-0 xd5
901
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
looks a tad better for White. ]
[ 7...e7 is best, in my opinion. ]
8.e5+ e6 9.0-0-0
[ 9.cxd5!? cxd5 10.e3 is worth a try, b4
11.b5+ ]
9...d6
[ 9...xf2? is to o gree dy, 10.cxd5 cxd5
11.e4 with nasty threats. ]
10.d4 c5 11.xf6 This brings the slightest
of advantages in the ensuing endgame,
[ 11.h4 d4 12.d5!? might offer more. ]
11...cxd4 12.xd8 dxc3 13.a5 cxb2+
[ 13...c2 14.xc2 c8 is no improvement,
15.e3 b5 16.c3 bxc4 17.e4!
taking advantage of the d-file pin. ]
14.xb2 d4!?
[ 14...c7 15.cxd5 xa5 16.dxe6 fxe6
17.d4 gives White a very slight plus, but
the opposite-colour bishops give
significant drawing chances. ]
15.xd4 xc4 16.e4 xf1 17.hxf1 0-0
18.f4 White gains some space, and his pieces
are slightly more active. fc8 19.e5 f8
20.f5 c5 21.c3 ac8 Black defends
well, and his pawn structure is solid, so the
draw seems close. 22.f3 b5+ 23.a1
b4?! Threatening mate, but
[ 23...bc5 i s s t r o n g e s t , wh e n 24.b2
( 24.d4?! d5 is a self pin 25.fd3 b4
and W hite has got his pieces in a tangle)
24...b5+ is a repetition. ]
24.xb4 xb4?? Losing a piece,
[ 24...xb4 25.fd3 g6 26.a3 is better for
White, but there is plenty of play left in this
position. ]
25.b3! Pin and win! b6?! 26.xb4
[ 26.xb4 xb4 27.e7+ wins a piece. ]
1-0
910 A23
Ljubojevic,Ljubomir 2566
Gelfand,Boris 2712
Amber Blindfold (1) 17.03.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 f6 3.g3 c6 4.d4 exd4
5.xd4 d5 6.cxd5
[ 6.g2 may be the most accurate, e6
7.cxd5 cxd5 8.f3 c6 9.a4 stops the ...
d4 thrust c5 with transposition into a main
line. ( 9...d4? 10.xd4 xd4?? 11.xc6+ )]
6...cxd5 7.f3!? c6 8.a4 d4!
This space-gaining advance is the reason why
the Keres can be so effective when the white
knight is on c3 too soon. 9.b5 b4+
[ Good but so is 9...c5 10.g2 0-0 11.0-0
a6!? 12.c2?! e7 13.a3 b4 14.d1
d8 Black is on top, Uhlmann,W-Gligoric,S/
Moscow 1956. ]
[ and 9...e4! (planning ...Nc5) is probably
even stronger, although I cannot find any
examples of it being played, for instance
10.g2 c5 11.a3 ( 11.d1 a5+ )
11...f5 12.b4 d3+ winning. ]
10.d2 xd2+ 11.xd2 0-0 The e2-pawn is
seriously exposed on the e-file. 12.g2 e8
13.f3!?
[ A new attempt to make this line work,
13.xc6 bxc6 14.xd4 c5 15.4f3
, Kubicek,A-Kozma,J/Luhacovice 1968, is
difficult to believe as the white light
squares are too weak without the bishop. ]
13...d3 14.e3 g4 15.0-0 d7 16.c3
ad8 Black certainly seems to be well in
charge here, he has a powerful passed d-
p a wn , a n d p e rf e ct d e ve lo p m e n t . 17.ad1
e5
[ Tempting, but 17...f5! is very strong. ]
18.xd7 fxd7 19.xe5 The only move.
xe5
[ White is saved by the variation 19...xd1
20.xd3 when he will win the b7-pawn, and
gain two pawns for the exchange. ]
20.f3 e6 21.b3 c8!?
[ 21...a6 first, is better. ]
22.b5 c2?!
[ 22...ed8 ]
23.f2 ec8 24.d4 Although Black has
played aggressive moves, it seems that White
has managed to defend, and his strong d4-
knight gains equality. xf2?!
[ 24...c1 ]
25.xf2 Now White is much better, he can
simp ly pla y Bf 1 xd 3 . d7 26.f1 f8
27.xd3 c1 28.e2 xd1 29.xd1 d3+
30.f1 e7 31.a3 a5 32.e2 e5 33.e4
Now the win is just a matter of technique, even
in a blindfold game. d6 34.e3 c5
35.e2 f6 36.f4 c6 37.xc6 xc6
38.c4 d6 39.d4 b6 40.h4 h6 41.f7
d7 42.b4 axb4 43.axb4 g4 44.e5+
902
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

fxe5+ 45.fxe5+ e7 46.g8 d1 47.c4 dxe4 16.e3 ) 14.fxe3 xe3+
g4 48.a6 d1 49.c8 f3 50.e3 d1 15.e2+- was seen in R.Nowak-J.
51.f4 c2 52.g4 d1 53.g5 c2 54.g4 Widera, Wisla 1998;
b3 55.e2 e6 56.gxh6 gxh6 57.g4+ C2b) 10...xe4 11.dxe4 dxe4
e7 58.h3 d5 59.f1 b3 60.e4 e6 12.c2 f5 ( 12...f5 13.d5 a5+
61.d4 d1 62.h3+ e7 63.f5 f7 14.d2 xd5 15.xc8+ ) 13.g2
64.d5 e7 65.c6 xf2+ ( 13...c5 14.0-0 0-0
1-0 15.xa4+- ) 14.xf2 e3+ 15.xe3
xc2 16.ac1 f5
C2b1) 17.b5 a5 18.c7+ e7
911 A23 19.b6! e5 20.d4 a5 21.d5+
Marin,Mihail 2533 e6 ( 21...d7 22.c7++- ) 22.e4
Bacrot,Etienne 2709 g6 23.b6+-;
Spanish Team Ch Gp2 (3) 29.06.2007 C2b2) 17.b5! 1-0 H.Heemsoth-J.
[Carsten Hansen] Lorenzen, corr 1966;
C2c) 10...dxe4
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 c6 4.f3 e4 C2c1) 11.e3 b4 12.c2 ( or
5.d4 d5 6.cxd5 b6 7.b3 a5 8.d3 a4 12.g2 0-0 13.0-0 xc3 14.bxc3
9.e3 g4 15.c2 e2 , N.Hocevar-F.
[ Based on the evidence from the analysis Bentivegna, Cutro 2005, and now:
below, W hite's best choice is likely 9.d2 16.b1 a6 17.xe4 xe4
, and now: 18.xe4 c6 19.a3 d3 20.g4
A) 9...exd3 10.c4 ( 10.g2 cxd5 fd8 ) 12...0-0 13.g2 f5 14.0-0
11.xd5 xd5 12.xd5 e6 13.g2 xc3 15.bxc3 e6 16.b1 b6
dxe2 14.xe2 e7 15.0-0 0-0 17.a3 c8 18.b4 d5 19.c4
, so far V.Duart-Z.Smuk, corr 1998, and , G.McIntrye-S.Kerr, CCLA 2001,
now: 16.e4 c6 17.e3 a5 18.fc1 d7 20.xe4 xc4 21.xf5 xc3
, and White has the initiative) 10...c5 22.xe6 xc2 23.xd5 a5=;
11.exd3 cxd5 12.d4 e7+ 13.e3 e6 C2c2) 11.dxe4 xe4 12.xe4
14.b5+ ( 14.g2 d7 15.0-0 e7 b4+ 13.d2 0-0 14.g2 d8
16.f4 ) 14...c6 15.0-0 a3 16.f4 b4 15.c1 xd2+ 16.xd2 e6
17.b1 A. Nikitin-A.Gorchakov, Moscow 17.0-0 c6 18.f3 ac8 19.f4
1970; xb2 20.xa4 xe2= , and a draw
B) 9...a3 10.c4 b4 11.d2 cxd5 was agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, W.Hort-P.
( 11...exd3 12.exd3 axb2 13.b1 e7+ Leisebein, e-mail 2002;
14.e2 xe2+ 15.xe2 ) 12.bxa3 c5 C2c3) 11.g2!? a3 ( 11...e3
13.a4 c7 14.cb6 a6 15.f4+- 12.fxe3 d7 13.0-0 xe3+
D.Komljenovic-F.Salamero Pelay, 14.h1 T.Krovel Velle-N.
Zaragoza 1994; S p i r i d o n o v , I E C G E m a i l 2 0 0 0)
C) 9...cxd5 12.b3 xb3 13.axb3 axb2
C1) 10.g2 a3 11.bxa3 c5 12.0-0 14.xb2 xa1+ 15.xa1 e3
e3 13.b3 exf2+ 14.h1 xa3? 16.fxe3 c6 with a complicated
( 14...0-0 15.xc5 xc5 16.b2 e8 game, M.Sorokin-A.Raetsky,
17.e4 ) 15.xa3 xa3 16.c1+- Pardubice 1992 ]
W . Ch o wa n ie c-M. S zcze d ryg in , co r r 9...b4 10.d4
1993; [ This line is both rare and not particularly
C2) 10.dxe4 good, a somewhat odd choice for player
C2a) 10...c5 11.e3 a3 ( 11...dxe4 with Marin's expertise in the English
12.xa4 c6 13.xc5 xc5 Opening. Another inadequate line is 10.dxe4
14.g2 ) 12.bxa3 xe3 13.b5+ axb3 11.a3
c6 ( 13...d7 14.0-0 xd2 15.xd2 A) 11...a5 12.g2 c5 13.xc5 xc5

903
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
14.0-0 0-0 15.e3 b6;
B) 11...e7 12.xb3 g4! 13.h3 h5
( 13...b4 14.axb4 xa1+ 15.d2 xh1
16.f4 ) 14.f4 ( 14.0-0 h4 15.d6
e6 ) 14...d7 15.dxc6 bxc6 16.0-0 g5
17.d2 de5;
C) 11...c4 12.d4 cxd5?! ( Black can
do better by getting the queen away from
t h e c - f i le wit h 12...a6 13.e3 a5
14.xf6 gxf6 15.g2 g7 16.xb3
a6 , now White has a number of
in te re st in g a lt erna tive s o ve r th e ne xt
several moves:) 13.e3 ( 13.c1! c7
14.xd5 xd5 15.xc7 xc7 16.e5 )
13...c7 14.exd5 ( 14.c1 a5 15.xf6
gxf6 16.exd5 ) 14...a6 ( 14...g4 15.f3
d7 16.e4 a5 17.c1 ) 15.xb3
( 15.xf6 gxf6 16.g2 ) 15...c5
( 15...e7 16.c4 xc4 17.xc4 f5
18.d1 ) 16.d1 ( 16.xf6 gxf6 17.b5+
d7 18.d1 ) 16...g4 17.xa6
( 17.b5+ d7 18.xg7 g8 19.h6
xd1 20.xd1 0-0-0 21.c2 d6 )
17...bxa6 18.a4+ d7 ( 18...f8!?
19.xc5+ xc5 20.d2 h3 ) 19.xc5
xd1 20.e4+ e5 21.xd1 xe4
22.xe4 xc5 23.xc5+- S.Hutchings-d.
Sherman, Brighton 1972 ]
[ 10.d2
A) 10...cxd5
A1) An untried, but excellent alternative
is 11.a3!? which promises a relatively
simple road to an advantage, e.g. a5
( 11...xb2? 12.xa4+-
is much worse) 12.g2 exd3 13.exd3
e7 14.0-0 ( 14.f3 g4 15.f4 c6
16.0-0 e6 ) 14...0-0 15.d4 c6
16.c2 d8 17.f3 g6 18.g5;
A2) 11.c1 e6 12.dxe4 c6 13.exd5
( White can claim an advantage with
13.a3! a5 14.b4 axb3 15.xb3 d8
16.g2 ) 13...xd5 14.g2 ( 14.g5
xc3 15.bxc3 a5 16.e4 h6
17.e3 xa2 ) 14...xe3 15.fxe3
xb2 16.c2? ( 16.d5 is better, but
still leaves Black better: d8 17.c4
b4 18.0-0 a5 ) 16...xc2 17.xc2
b4 18.c1 a3 , and Black is winning,
Machler-Schilde, corr 1988;
B) 10...a3! is Black's best:
B1) Or 11.c2 xb2 12.xb2 axb2
13.b1 b4 14.d4 leads to
fascinating play one possible line is c5
( 14...xd5!? ) 15.xf6 gxf6 16.d1
xa2 17.xb2 xb2 18.xb2 b5
19.d1 a3 20.c2 exd3+ 21.xd3
c4 22.f4 d6 23.g2 e7 24.a1
, and the complications continue;
B2) 11.cxe4 xd5 12.bxa3 xa3
13.b1 ( 13.g2 f5 14.b1 a5
15.0-0 xe3 16.fxe3 fxe4 17.c4
a7 18.xa3 xe3+ 19.h1 xa3
20.b3 d6 21.xe4 ) 13...a5
( 13...xe3 14.fxe3 a4 (ChessMail)
15.xa4 xa4 16.c3 a3 17.b3
, and Black has insufficient
compensation for the pawn) 14.d4
xa2
B2a) 15.c1 is given as interesting in
ChessMail, but Black appears to be
better in this line too, e.g. b4 16.c2
f5 17.c5 a3 18.xg7 ( 18.g2
c3 19.xc3 xc3 20.0-0 xc5
21.b1 b3 22.c1 xb1 23.xb1
a3 24.a2 b4 25.c2 e5 )
18...c3 19.c1 g8-+;
B2b) 15.a1 b4! 16.c1 g4 17.f3
e6 18.c5 xc5 19.xc5 b6
20.h3 0-0 21.xe6 fxe6 22.c4
a5 23.c3 with a complicated
game;
B2c) 15.e3?! b4 16.xg7 g8
17.e5 g4 18.e2 xe2 19.xe2
d7 20.a1 f5-+;
B2d) 15.g2 f5 16.g5 b4
17.gf3 c3 18.xc3 xc3 19.c1
e6 20.c2 b3 21.xa2 xa2
W.Etzold-Fritsch, corr 1988;
C) 10...exd3 11.c1 a3 12.bxa3?!
( 12.b3!? improves, e.g. e7 13.g2 0-0
14.0-0 g4 15.dxc6 xc6 16.h3 dxe2
17.xe2 d7 18.c4 ) 12...xa3
13.db1 ( A slight improvement is
13.cb1 xa2 14.c3 a3 15.cb1
a1 ) 13...xa2 14.xd3 xd5 15.d2
xc3 16.xc3 a3 17.e3+ e6
18.g2 c5 19.e5 d7 20.c7 0-0-+
, with an extra pa wn and much bette r
position for Black, P. Nikolic-D. Rajkovic,
Borovo 1981 ]
10...xd5
[ 10...a3 looks attractive, but promises White
904
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
the better chances immediately after
11.c2! xb2? ( 11...a5 12.b4 xb4
13.xb4 xb4 14.c1 ) 12.d4 b4
( 12...c5 13.xf6 gxf6 14.xe4 e7
15.d6 f5 16.dxe7 fxe4 17.g2 e6 18.0-0
xa2 19.xe4 b3 20.d4 d7 21.b1
xc2 22.xc2 xe7 23.xb2 axb2
24.ab1 a2 25.b3 ) 13.xb4 xb4
14.xf6 gxf6 15.d2 exd3 16.b1 a5
17.xd3 0-0 18.g2 d7 19.0-0 e5
20.d4+- B.Schneider-T.Van Houtte,
Antwerp 1999 ]
11.d2
[ Black also obtains the better chances after
11.a3 xe3 12.fxe3 xb2 13.xe4 f5
14.h3 fxe4 15.xc8 c3+ 16.f2 xa3
17.e6 f8+ ( 17...exd3 18.exd3 b2+
19.g1 f8 ) 18.g2 b5 ( 18...d7
19.a2 c5 20.c2 a5 ) 19.f1 a7
, and a draw was agreed upon, 1/2-1/2, in E.
Pet it -M. Ge ene n, Clichy 19 98, a nd no w
20.xf8+ xf8 21.c1 a5 22.d5 c7
23.xc6 b6 24.xb8 xc1 25.xc1
xb8 26.c6+ d8 27.xe4 a3 28.d5+
e7 29.xh7 b4 30.g8 ]
11...xe3 12.fxe3 exd3 13.exd3 g6
14.g2
[ Or 14.c2 b6 ( 14...e7 15.e4 h5!?
16.d4 h4 17.g2 e6 18.f2 g5
19.d2 xd2+ 20.xd2 h6+ ) 15.g2
g7 16.0-0 0-0 17.ab1 d8 ]
14...h6 15.c2 e7 16.0-0 0-0 17.ae1
d7 18.d4 It's easy to second guess White's
choices in this game, White obviously wanted
to grab control over some squares, but the
text move weakens the light squares and
gives Black several targets to play against
right away. b6 19.a3
[ This prevents Black's knight from jumping to
c4, but also places the white knight on an
awkward square. Alternatively 19.d5!? cxd5
20.d4 d8 21.xd5 xd5 22.xd5
looks slightly better than the game
continuation, but Black's better pawn
structure and bishop pair promises Black the
upper hand, e.g. f5 23.d1 e6 24.e4
g7 25.b4 a5 26.d6 ae8 27.e7+
h8 28.exf5 ( 28.xe6 c5+ 29.f2
fxe4-+ ) 28...xf5 29.xf5 xf5 ]
19...e6 20.d3 ad8 21.f2 g7 22.d2
fe8 23.e2 h5
[ This is standard ploy to break up White's
kingside structure further. A different plan is
23...f5!? 24.f2 f7 25.dd1 d5
26.xd5 xd5 27.xd5+ cxd5 ]
24.f2 b4 25.f3 h3 26.e4 f5
[ White is gradually pushed backwards into a
hold position. The alternative is 26...e7
27.de2 d5 28.c2 b5 29.b1 c4
30.b3 f5 31.c3 xc2 32.xc2 axb3
33.axb3 xe3 34.xb5 xc2 35.xc2
cxb5 36.d5 h4 the opposite coloured
b i s h o p s a n d W h i t e ' s we a k e n e d k i n g ' s
position promise Black a long-term
initiative. ]
27.c3 c5!?
[ Black opens the position up for his better
coordinated pieces and his bishop pair,
W h i t e i s i n s e r i o u s t r o u b l e . 27...e6!?
was also possible, but the text move seems
more effective. ]
28.dxc5 xc5 29.e4??
[ This loses on the spot, but White's situation
isn't exactly easy. The alternatives are as
f o l l o w s : A ) 29.xb7 xc3 ( 29...xd2
30.xd2 h4 31.gxh4 e7 32.f3 h6
33.c2 xc2 34.xc2 xh4 ) 30.xd8
xd8 31.bxc3 xa3 32.e4 h3-+ ]
[ B) 29.ab5 xd2 30.xd2 c4 31.d5
e5 32.xc5 xc5-+ ]
[ C) 29.xd8 xd8 30.ab1 a3
( 30...e8!? 31.a3 xe3 32.xe3 d4
33.d1 c4-+ ) 31.xa3 xc3 32.bxc3
xa3 33.e4 h3 34.xb6 d3 35.e2
xc3 36.f2 d2 37.e3 f6+ 38.f3
b6+ 39.e3 a5-+ ]
[ D) 29.cb5 d7 30.d4 h3 31.d3
g5 32.ab5 h4 33.g2 hxg3 34.xg3
xg3 35.hxg3 g4 36.b3 axb3 37.axb3
c8 ]
29...xf2+ 30.xf2 d4 (White could have
continued a bit longer, but most likely thought
it a waste of time given Black's very effective
play so far, and Black is winning anyway)
0-1
905
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

912 A23 powerful black knight on e5. xd3 25.xd3

Markowski,Tomasz 2550 e6 26.d2 c5?
Hickl,Joerg 2600 [ A careless move, 26...c8 first was best,
Bundesliga 2001-2 (3) 24.11.2001 and the black knight can come to c5 next
[Tony Kosten] go. ]
27.d5! This is the problem for Black: White
1.g3!? Markowski is a specialist with this hits f7 and forces the exchange of queens,
move, but to play it against the '1 g3 king' is and the ironing-out of his structure. xd5
v e r y d a r i n g ! e5 2.c4 Play returns to the [ 27...e6 28.xc6 xc6 29.fd1
English. c6 And then to a Keres System. wins the d-pawn. ]
3.g2 f6 4.c3 e7!? 28.exd5 Black's pieces are shut-out of the
[ We have already considered the critical game on the queenside, and d6 is a problem.
4...d5 ] c8 29.df2 This is strong, although
5.e4!? White puts a clamp on d5 to prevent [ 29.g5 , h4 and Bh3 is another logical plan,
Black's freeing move. 0-0 6.ge2 a6 bringing the maximum pressure to bear on
Hickl likes wing play. 7.0-0 This exact position the black position. ]
seems to be new, although it soon returns to 29...f6 30.d4 Another good move, although I
the fold. would possibly have been tempted by the
[ 7.d4 d6 8.0-0 b5 is fairly level, Ujtelky,M- exchange sac
Csom,I/Amsterdam 1969, but in the main [ 30.xf6!? xf6 31.xf6 a4 ( 31...d8
game White decides to keep his d-pawn on is n o b e t t e r , 32.xd6 axd6 33.xd6
d3 to protect c4. ] xd6 34.xc5 a6 35.d6 xg2 36.xg2
7...d6 8.d3 b5 9.h3 Often a useful move in a8 37.b6 and the d-pawn costs Black
such positions, stopping Black from using the dear. ) 32.bxa4 xa4 33.xd6
s q u a re o n g 4 , a n d p r e p a ri n g a ki n g si d e with a powerful position, note that if xc4
advance. 34.f1 ]
[ 9.c2 bd7 10.f4 risks weakening 30...d7 31.e2 e5 Black tries his utmost
W hite's dark squares, Hole,O-Jansson,J/ to stop an invasion along the e-file. 32.g5!
NOR-ch 1993. ] fxg5 33.xd6?!
9...bd7 10.e3 b7 11.g4 [ If only White had continued his plan of
White envisages Ng3-f5. e8 12.d2 g6 undermining e5 by 33.c5! as Black has no
Black controls the f5-square, and thinks about b e t t e r t h a n f8 when 34.xd6 xd6
expanding on the kingside himself, by ... Ng7, 35.cxd6 d7?! 36.e7 and the end is
and ...f5. 13.f4 exf4 Obviously forced, Black nigh. ]
would be foolhardy to allow f5 when White's 33...xd6 34.xe5 e8 35.fe1 c5+
k i n g s i d e s p a c e a d v a n t a g e w o u l d b e 36.h1 a4 Black has managed to blockade
s i g n i f i c a n t . 14.xf4 g7 15.h6 b4 t h e p a s s e d wh i t e p a wn s a n d g a in s o m e
16.d1 c5! Black opens the h1-a8 diagonal counterplay. 37.b2 xe2 38.xe2 axb3
for his light-squared bishop, and prepares the 39.axb3 a2 40.f3 f7?!
e5-square for his knight, at the cost of the [ 40...h5! ]
loss of control over d5. Sometimes it can be 41.g2?!
very difficult to judge which are more important, [ 41.g4! to e6+ keeps White in the driving
the advantages of a move, or the seat. ]
disadvantages. 17.d4 a5 18.f2 cxd4 41...c8! 42.c1
19.xd4 b6 20.ad1 fe8 Both sides [ 42.d6! kept some advantage: e6 43.d7
have strengths and weaknesses, and with all e7 ( 43...xd7? 44.d5+ f8 45.g7+
the pieces still remaining on the board a xg7 46.xa2 wins an exchange.) 44.d5
c o m p l e x s t r u g g l e i s a c e r t a i n t y . 21.b5 xd5+ 45.cxd5 a7 46.f2+ g8 47.d6
White takes aim at d6. a6 22.e3 c6 d8 48.d4 xd7 49.c5 followed by
23.b3 e5 24.d3! Of course White is advancing the white king. ]
happy to swap his passive knight on f2 for the 42...xe2+ 43.xe2 h6 44.f1?

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
Adding weight to the defence of h3, but he
overlooks Black's threat of ... Bf5-c2.
[ 44.g4 f5! looks like a draw. ]
44...f5 45.f3 e7! Black must keep the
dark-squared blockade,
[ 45...c2? allows White to free his passed
pawns by 46.e3 xe3 47.xe3 xb3
48.d4 and these two pawns will take some
stopping. ]
46.e2
[ 46.e3 is met by d6 , naturally. ]
46...c2 47.g2 xb3 48.d3 a2! 49.f1
b1+ 50.e2 f5 51.f3 d4 White can
no longer stop the b-pawn from continuing its
route, except at the cost of a piece.
0-1
913 A23
Miezis,Normunds 2510
Zapata,Alonso 2549
11th Monarch Assurance (6) 03.10.2002
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 With a different move-order,
[ 2.g3 e5 3.g2 c6 4.d4 exd4 5.xd4
a6 is likewise possible (someone even had
the effrontery to play it against me!), and
n o r m a l l y t r a n s p o s e s , a l t h o u g h 6.f3
( 6.h3!? c5 7.e5+ e7 8.xe7+
xe7 9.f4?! b4 10.d1!?
and White was forced to return: 11.h3 0-0
and Black was better, Bezold,M-Collinson,
A/Birmingham ENG 2001.) 6...e7 7.0-0
0-0 8.c3 the advantage of the 2 g3 move-
order is that I have been able to complete
my kingside development very fast, and only
play this move afterwards, d6 ( 8...d5!?
9.cxd5 c5 ) 9.b3 a5 10.b2 h5
11.h4 aiming for a slight edge in the
endgame, Kosten,A-Miltner,A/Menton
2001. ]
2...e5 3.g3 c6 4.d4 exd4 5.xd4 a6!?
I had been meaning to examine this move for
some time, Black plays much as W hite
sometimes does with the c3 Sicilian, the
knight can hop to b4 to threaten to fork the
white queen and king, and then recapture on
d5.
[ 5...d5 is the standard move, of course. ]
6.g2 Others:
[ 6.e4?! xe4 7.xe4+ e7 8.g5
Breier,A-Feist,P/ Pinneberg 1996, and now
f6 9.d2 b6 10.c3 d5! 11.cxd5 cxd5
12.xd5 b4 looks like lots of fun for
Black. ]
6...e7 A novelty! Previously Black had
preferred
[ 6...c5 gaining a tempo on the queen,
7.d1 ( 7.e5+! e7 8.f3 0-0 9.0-0
e8 10.d4 is best, although fairly level,
Shestakov, S-Dokuchaev,A/Tula 1998.)
7...d5 ( 7...b6!? 8.e3 b4 is interesting)
8.cxd5 b4!? 9.f3 ( 9.dxc6 xd1+
10.xd1 xc6 offers fair compensation for
the pawn ) 9...bxd5 10.xd5 xd5
11.0-0 0-0 Black has avoided the IQP, and
ha s equ a lise d , 12.a4 ( 12.b3?! h5
13.b2 g4 14.d2 e8 15.ac1 b6
is d an ge rou s f o r W hite , O'Cin ne id e, M-
Sutovsky,E/Halkidiki GRE 2002) 12...e4
13.xe4 xe4 14.d2 xd2 15.xd2
e8 16.e3 f5 17.c3 is completely equal,
Kelly,B-Motwani,P/Lichfield ENG 2000. ]
[ 6...d5 7.cxd5 b4 is also a good idea,
8.d1 bxd5 9.xd5 xd5 10.f3 b4+
11.d2 0-0 12.0-0 equal, Tsivelekidis,G-
Kogan,A/Athens 1999. ]
7.h3!? White wants to bring this piece to f4
to further control d5, but it is ambitious.
[ 7.f3 0-0 8.0-0 is sounder, and
g4 transposes to my game in the note to move
2. ]
7...d5 8.cxd5 b4 Again, this move is the
theme of this line. 9.0-0! xh3
[ 9...c2?! fails to 10.a4 xa1
( 10...xh3 11.xc2 ) 11.dxc6 bxc6
12.xc6+ d7 ( 12...f8 13.xa8 xh3
14.g2 xg2 15.xg2 e8 16.d1
traps the knight, and once White
recuperates it he will have a pawn or two
more. ) 13.d1 b8!? 14.e4 b7! 15.g5
with a virulent initiative - remember, White
may have a rook less but he can recapture
the a1-knight at any time when he will have
two pawns for the exchange. ]
10.xh3 0-0
[ 10...c2!? is again very risky: 11.a4
xa1 12.dxc6 bxc6 13.xc6+ f8 14.g5
and now if c2 15.a4 d4 ( there is no
escape for the knight, 15...b4 16.xf6
gxf6 17.a3 ) 16.d1 White recuperates the
907
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

k n ig h t a n y wa y! xe2+ 17.xe2 b6 7.dxe4 with an interesting position. ]

18.g2 and although White only has a pawn 6...c5 7.c2 d5 8.g2 b7 9.d3
for the exchange, the awkward position of W hite must try to disarm the black centre
the black king is a def inite f actor in his before Black finishes his development. e7
favour. ] 10.0-0
11.d6!? xd6 12.f5 e7 13.f4 g6 [ 10.dxe4 is met by d4 ]
14.b1!? The bishop is taking a torturous 10...a6 Benko-style play to free the queenside
route to the queenside. bd5 15.f3 xc3 columns and to rid Black of the annoying b5-
16.xc3 d5 17.f3 f6 18.h4!? pawn. 11.bxa6 xa6 12.dxe4 d4 13.d5
This is typical of Miezis' aggressive 'hit or [ The tactical line 13.e5 xg2 14.xg2
miss' chess. fd7 15.d5 xe5 also allows Black good
[ 18.a3 e7 19.a2 seems more logical. ] compensation. ]
18...e7 19.g2 fe8 20.e3 ad8 13...xd5 14.exd5 xd5 15.xd5 xd5
Black simply centralises his pieces. 21.a3 White has managed to exchange a couple of
b6! 22.h5 If pieces, but still has problems because of
[ 22.a2 then d7 prepares ...Ne5-d3. ] Black's extra space, and 'swinging' rook. 16.b4
22...c4 23.a2 White is getting into a tangle Continuing his counterattack against the
on the queenside. e6 24.hxg6? A careless black central pawns. 0-0 17.bxc5 xc5
move, White obviously hadn't reckoned with 18.e3 d3 19.d4 xd4 20.xd3
the possibility of being attacked along the h- This fork is the point of White's clever play,
file he has just kindly opened for Black! hxg6 reducing the black centre to nothing. c6
25.b4 g7! 26.h1 h8 27.xh8 21.exd4
W hite has to give way on the h-file as his [ 21.xa6?? allows xa1 ]
queen's rook is unable to return to the first 21...fa8 Defending the a6-rook, and
rank to help out. xh8 28.g1 e5 29.e4 m e n a c i n g . . . N e 5 . 22.d1 Necessary, to
h3 30.b2 h5! This move, threatening defend the queen. h5 23.h4 b4
both ...Qd1+ and ...Nf3+, wins. 31.g4 Forced. [ 23...xa2 24.xa2 xa2 might be OK for
xg4 32.f3 h2+ 33.f1 h1+ Black, who has the superior minor piece, but
The bishop never did leave b1!! no more. ]
0-1 24.e2 f5 Black attempts to keep some
initiative, as he is the stronger player and
probably hopes to win, but he is playing with
914 A23 fire. 25.e3
Sliva,Frantisek 2327 [ If 25.a3 then e6! ( and not 25...c2?
Efimov,Igor 2445 when 26.a2 xa3 27.xa3 xa3
15th ECC Gp 3 (3) 03.10.1999 28.xa3 xa3 29.d5 is winning, as the
[Tony Kosten] p a w n i s t o o s t r o n g .) 26.d2 f3
with threats. ]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 c6 As White 25...a3 Black is still nurturing his initiative.
h a s n ' t f o rc e d B l a c k t o p l a y . . . N c 6 , t h u s 26.ac1?!
obstructing the c-pawn, this is a strong move, [ Hoping to free his position by returning one
intending to set-up a strong centre with ...d5. of the pawns. No doubt a computer would
4.f3 e4 5.d4 b5!? be very happy with something like 26.d2
[ An incredible innovation, offering a pawn in e8 27.b2 d5 28.b5 e6 29.c5
return for a strong centre which will sweep but then axe3 30.fxe3 f3 grants Black a
the white knights away. The main move here strong attack. ]
is 5...d5 but Tal's move, ] 26...xa2 27.d2 2a3 28.d5?! Returning
[ 5...b6 is also popular. ] th e second pawn, but a draw is still far off as
6.cxb5 White's light squares are weak. xd5 29.c5
[ Acceptance of the gambit is often strongest, a1 30.xa1 xa1+ 31.d1 xd1+
but 6.d3 was also possible, e.g. bxc4 A strange decision, swapping the rooks, if

908
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Black wants to win. 32.xd1 c3 33.d8+ of opposition. ]

h7 34.e3 e2+ 35.g2 e4+ 36.f1? 82...f3+ 83.h2 f2+
[ L o s i n g a p a w n . A f t e r 36.h2 b1 0-1
White was no doubt worried about the threat
of mate in two, but 37.d5 defends h1, and
draws comfortably. ] 915 A24
36...xg3+ 37.fxg3 xe3 38.b8 f6 Biocanin,Goran 2273
W ell, I suppose this should be drawn Rankov,Petar 2127
relatively easily, but White has a lot of work Belgrade Cup (1) 05.04.2005
before him yet. 39.c7 h6 40.b8 e5 [John Watson]
41.b3 g6 42.g2 e4+ 43.h2 f5
44.f7 e2+ 45.h3 g4+ 46.h2 e2+ 1.c4 f6 2.c3 g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 e5
47.h3 g4+ 48.h2 e5 49.c7+ e6 5.e4 0-0 6.ge2 d6 7.0-0 e6 The position
50.c6+ f7 51.c7+ g6 Black can from Motwani-Apicella. 8.d3
afford to take his time, to see how White will [ 8.b3 (with the idea d4) was briefly analysed
defend. 52.b8 e2+ 53.h3 f5 54.f4+ in that game. ]
e6 55.b8 f7 56.c7+ e7 57.b8 g5 8...d7 9.d5 Again foregoing the f4-f5 idea
Exchanging a pair of pawns, but Black has in order to harass Black first. This should be
realised that he won't be able to make harmless. xd5?! Not terrible, but it would be
progress otherwise, as his g7-pawn will need much easier to play
d e f e n d in g . 58.hxg5 fxg5 59.b2 e6+ [ 9...c6 10.xf6+ xf6 11.f4 g7 ]
60.h2 g6 61.b1+ f5 62.b6+ f6 10.cxd5 h3 11.e3
63.b1+ h6 64.a2?! [ I prefer an idea that I used repeatedly when
[ Black should take the opportunity to I w a s a c 4 / e 4 p l a y e r : 11.f4 g4
centralise his queen at some point. Here, ( Probably better is 11...xg2 12.xg2
64.e4 is good, for instance, as after f2+ exf4! 13.xf4 a6 14.d4 ) 12.f5! gxf5
65.h1 Black cannot capture the g-pawn 13.h3! xe2 14.xe2 fxe4 15.dxe4 f5
without allowing a perpetual. ] (else Rf5 and/or h4 and Bh3) 16.exf5 xf5
64...d6 65.g2 g4 66.b2 g6 67.c2+ 17.e3 with more than enough
f6 68.f2+ e6 69.c2 d5+ 70.h2 compensation: a6 18.xf5 xf5 19.f1
f3!? Giving the h-pawn with check, but this ( 19.b5! ) 19...d7 20.h5 f8 21.e4
does allow his king to cross to White's side of xf1+ 22.xf1 f7+ 23.xf7+ xf7
the board. 71.g6+ e5 72.xh5+ d4 24.xh7 with the two bishops and two
73.h8+ d3 74.b8 Black's winning dangerous passed pawns. ]
chances reside in the fact that the king and 11...xg2 12.xg2 c6 13.dxc6 xc6
pawn endings are almost all winning for him. 14.d4 exd4 15.xd4 fe8 16.f3 d5
e2+ 75.g1 d1+ 76.h2 d2+ 77.h1 [ 16...f5!? also looks good. Black is too
e2 78.b5+ d3 79.b2+ e1 80.c1+ active for White and stands better. ]
d1 81.e3+?? 17.xc6 bxc6 18.d4 dxe4 19.xg7
[ One check too many! As is often the case, it exf3+?!
only brings the king to a better square. [ Black would have had the better game after
Simply 81.f4 should be played, cutting the 19...xd1 20.axd1 e3 ( 20...xg7
black king from the f-file. After f3+ 82.g1 21.fxe4 xe4 22.d7 ) 21.fe1 xg7
holds comfortably. ] intending 22.d3 ad8 ]
81...f1 82.d2 20.xf3 xd1 21.xd1 xg7
[ An obvious stalemate attempt, if 82.g1+ [ The draw may be slightly premature as
in s t e a d , t h e n e2 swaps queens, with a Black can play on by 21...xg7 22.d7
simple win: 83.xd1+ xd1 84.h2 e2 e2+! ( 22...f8?! 23.c7 ) 23.f1
85.g2 e3 86.h1 f3 87.h2 f2 ( 23.h3 f8 -the White king is a little
88.h1 xg3 and the king on the sixth rank, exposed, e.g., 24.b3 h5 25.xa7 d8!
in front of his pawn, always wins, regardless 26.bb7 dd2! 27.xf7+ h6 28.h7+

909
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

g5 29.a5+ f6 and wins ) 23...xb2 21.xa6 xd4 22.xd4 xe5 offers some
24.fxf7+ h6 25.xh7+ g5 26.xa7 compensation, but not enough. ]
xa7 27.xa7 xh2 , etc. ] 20.f4
½-½ [ Not 20.dxe5?? when g4 forces mate. ]
20...e6!! 21.xe5
[ O n c e a g a i n f o r c e d , 21.dxe5?? xf4
916 A24 22.xf4 g4 and mate. ]
Bruzon Batista,Lazaro 2568 21...xf4 22.xf4 g4 23.e1 Giving the
De la Paz Perdomo,Frank 2462 king some room. h6
Guillermo Premier I (7) 01.06.2000 [ Winning material, the obvious 23...xh2+
[Tony Kosten] 24.f1 c2 seems strong, but after
25.e8+ f8 26.d2 is forced, but
1.c4 f6 2.c3 g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 0-0 su f f i cie n t h1+ 27.e2 xa1 28.b8
5.d3 d6 6.e3 e5 7.ge2 c6 In this typical and White is winning. ]
position, Black normally prefers to play his 24.f3 xh2+ 25.f1 c2 26.e2
knight to c6, but controlling d5 thus, is a good The best defence. h3+ 27.e1 xc1+
idea. 8.0-0 d5!? 28.xc1 xc1 29.e7 Black has won two
[ Very ambitious, but rarely played, normally pieces for a rook, but finds his pieces slightly
Black prefers careful preparation, by say, misplaced. h6 30.d5 c8
8...e8 or ] [ 30...xb2 31.d6 f8 32.c6 will win a
[ 8...e6 9.b4 d5 10.cxd5 xd5 11.b1 piece, although the game is far from
d7 12.c2 h3 13.e4 xg2 14.xg2 finished. ]
xc3 15.xc3 a6 16.e3 c7 31.d6 g5 32.d5!? c1+
leading to a Sicilian-type position, slightly [ 32...xe7 33.dxe7 g7 34.e5+ f6
favourable to White, Nunn,J-Gruenfeld,Y/ 35.e8+ and White is in charge, once
Groningen 1974. ] again. ]
9.cxd5 cxd5 10.b3 Necessary, if White 33.e2 xb2+ 34.f1 f6?
wants to punish Black. d4!? [ An unfortunate inaccuracy at the end of a
[ A new idea, leading to sharp tactics, beautifully-played game, 34...f6! draws,
10...c6! i s t h e o t h e r m o v e , 11.d2 35.e8+ g7 36.d7 g4 forcing 37.c5
( superior to 11.xd5 xd5 12.xd5 a5 , when b1+ 38.g2 b7+ 39.g1 b1+
13.b5 a6 14.c5 h3 15.g2 xg2 forces a perpetual. ]
16.xg2 xd3 and if anyone is better, it is 35.e8+ g7 36.d7 g4 37.c5 a1+
Black ) 11...d4 12.exd4 exd4 13.e4 But now there is no perpetual, the queen is on
xe4 14.dxe4 e6!? with counterplay, the wrong square. 38.g2 e3+ 39.fxe3
Hofland,L-Ligterink,G/Leeuwarden 1977. ] 1-0
[ Otherwise , 10...a6 11.d4 e4 12.f3
with pressure on the black position. ]
11.exd4 exd4 12.xb7! Critical. xb7 917 A24
13.xb7 bd7 14.xd4 c5 15.b5 c8 Contin,Daniel 2371
[ W h it e h a s ca lc u la t e d we l l, i f 15...xd4 Sabia,Corrado 2173
16.e3 xd3 17.xc5 Black has no 64th ch-ITA Montecatini Terme ITA (1) 29.1.05
compensation for the pawn. ] [John Watson]
16.c6 d7 17.e5! h3
[ The tactics f avour W hite af ter 17...d6 In this game we see the standard e4/c4 setup
18.f4 h5 19.xf7! xd3 20.h6+ h8 against a King's Indian with ... c6. Black plays
21.e3 ] well and it's not at all clear that White could
18.d4 fe8 19.e2 xe5! have achieved an advantage from the
[ The point of Black's seventeenth move, and opening. 1.c4 c6 2.e4 e5 3.c3 d6 4.g3
nearly leads to mate, but W hite has f6 5.g2 bd7 6.ge2 g6 7.d3 g7
sufficient resources, 19...a6 20.c4 e6 8.0-0 0-0 The basic position. White would like

910
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
to play standard moves like h3, Be3, and d4.
Failing that, an alternate idea is f4-f5 and
advance on the kingside. 9.h3 a6 10.a4
Preventing Black from breaking up W hite's
centre, for example,
[ 10.f4 b5 11.f5 ( 11.fxe5 dxe5 12.e3
e7= ) 11...gxf5 12.exf5 b7 13.g4 b6+
( 13...h6 14.g3 d5 ) 14.h2 h6 15.g3
d5 16.cxb5 axb5 17.h4 b4 18.b1 b3!
19.a3 d4! and White's kingside play
comes too late. ]
[ Also too slow is playing for d4 by 10.e3
b5 11.cxb5 axb5 12.d4 b4 13.b1 a6 ]
10...a5 The standard positional idea to capture
the c5 and b4 squares. Maybe Black could
also angle for ...b5 by
[ 10...b8!? ]
11.f4 c5 12.e3 fd7!? Black prepares
for f5. Perhaps
[ 12...e7 preventing d4 and preparing ..
Bd7 was playable, for example, 13.f5 h6
14.g4 h7 ]
13.f5
[ The critical move here now that ...Nfd7 has
released pressure on e4 is 13.d4 exd4
14.xd4 ( 14.xd4 xd4+ 15.xd4 b6
16.f2 e8 ) 14...e8 Black seems okay
with careful play. Here are some thematic
alternatives: ( 14...b6 15.b3 f5 16.exf5
xf5 17.xf5 gxf5 18.c1 f6; 14...b6
15.de2 e8!? ) 15.e1 b6!? ( 15...b6!
is probably best, thinking about ...f5 as well
as ...Qb4 ) 16.b3 d7 with the idea ...f5, e.g.
, ( 16...f5!? 17.e5! ) 17.h2 ( 17.f2 f5
18.exf5 xe1+ 19.xe1 xd4! 20.xd4
xb3; 17.d2 f5 18.exf5 f6 ) 17...f5!
with at least equality ]
13...f6! With the idea ...Bg5. 14.h4
[ 14.h6 e8 ( or 14...g7 15.xg7 xg7
16.g4 f6 -White's bishop on g2 is a liability )]
14...b6 15.a3 g5!?
[ 15...b7 ]
16.d2
[ 16.h5 h6= ]
16...h6
[ 16...gxh4! 17.g4 h8 with the idea 18.g5
g8 ]
17.g4 h7 18.h1 g8 19.h5 Now neither
side should be able to make legitimate
progress. That doesn't stop them from trying,
but I'd recommend going to the next game.
It's amusing that the players go 48 moves
wit h o u t a n e xc h a n ge a f t e r 2 5 . Nxb 4 . b7
20.d1 e7 21.c1 ad8 22.f2 ge8
23.1a2 b8 24.b4 axb4 25.xb4 ba6
26.c2 b8 27.a2 a8 28.f1 b3
29.g1 bc5 30.aa1 ed8 31.ab1 c7
32.c1 e8 33.e3 d7 34.b2 ac5
35.f2 b7 36.c2 a8 37.a1 g8
38.db1 eb8 39.c1 h7 40.d2 g8
41.e2 a6 42.b4 b7 43.c3 bc5
44.f3 c8 45.b2 h7 46.ab1 c7
47.a3 b7 48.g2 a5 49.b4 aa8
50.f1 g8 51.e2 a6 52.a3 ac5
53.a1 g7 54.f1 a7 55.e3 aa8
56.ba2 g8 57.b4 a6 58.a3 ac5
59.c1 g7 60.d2 c8 61.a3 a7
62.a2 ba8 63.b1 b8 64.e1 ba8
65.f2 g8 66.f1 a6 67.d2 b8
68.e3 a8 69.b4 a7 70.b1 ab7
71.b2 g7 72.b3 c7 73.xc5 xc5
74.aa2 g8 75.d1 e7 76.b1 g7
77.ab2 h7 78.b4 g7 79.1b2 h7
80.b1 c7 81.d2 g7 82.d1 g8
83.c2 g7 84.g1 e7 85.e2 g8
86.f3 g7 87.g3 g8 88.h3 g7
89.b1 g8 90.d2 g7 91.b1 g8
92.4b2 g7 93.f3 h7 94.d4 exd4
95.xd4 d7 96.e1 c5 97.e5 cxd4
98.exf6 xf6 99.xd4 c7 100.e7 bc8
101.xf6 xf6 102.xc7 xc7 103.d2
e7 104.b3
½-½
918 A24
Gurevich,Mikhail 2656
Lanzani,Mario 2352
12th Aosta Open (2) 09.02.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 0-0
5.d3 d6 6.e3
[ 6.e4 would save a move! ]
6...e5 7.ge2 c6 8.e4!? A curious decision,
White plays a Botvinnik System with a tempo
down,
[ 8.0-0 is more normal, see Bruzon,L-De la
Paz,F/Santa Clara CUB 2000. ]
8...a6 9.0-0 h5 Black inhibits f4, and
prepares f4, but
[ 9...c7 to e6 is quite f easible, 10.d4
911
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

curiously reaching a King's Indian position, will tu rn ou t t o h ave wea ken e d Bla ck 's
wit h W h it e h a vin g lo st t wo m o ve s! e7 kingside pawn structure. A better move is
11.h3 d8 ( 11...exd4!? ) 12.d5! 13...f5!? although 14.f4 c6 15.exf5 gxf5
leaving the c7-knight misplaced, Espig, G- 16.fxe5 dxe5 17.d4 is very pleasant for
Werner,V/Germany 1997. ] White ) 14.f4 f5 15.d4 h4 16.dxe5 dxe5
10.e3 e7 11.d2 c5 12.ad1 17.exf5 gxf5 18.d5 a6 19.fxe5 e8
Gurevich improves over his game against 20.f4 1-0 Bruzon Bautista, L-Kobese, W/
Grischuk, A/ Ca nnes FRA 2001 , wh en h e L i s b o n 1 9 9 9 ( An alte rna tive is 20.d4
played the immediate which is very problematic for Black, e.g.
[ 12.d4 d7 13.ad1 e8 14.b3 hxg3+ 21.g2 xe5 22.xf5 xf5
which looks very promising for W hite, his 23.xf5 and White is winning )]
loss of two moves is balanced by Black's ... 9.h3
Na6-c5-d7, also losing two tempi! ] [ 9.b1
12...a5 13.d4 exd4!? Black could follow A) 9...a5
Grischuk's lead, and play A1) 10.a3 h5 11.g5 c5 12.b4
[ 13...d7 but he prefers to maintain his ( 12.d4?! e6 13.e3 exd4 14.xd4
strong knight on c5. ] g4 is better for Black) 12...axb4
14.xd4 f6 So here Black loses two tempi 13.axb4 e6 14.d2 h4 ( 14...d7!? )
by ...Nh5-f6, thus bringing about a KID-style 15.c1 hxg3 16.fxg3 g4 17.h1
position after all! 15.g5 Pinning the knight ( 17.h3 can also be tried, but leads to a
protects the e4-pawn. h6?! A small tactic, messy p osition : b6+ 18.c5 dxc5
radically unpinning the knight, but it rebounds 19.hxg4 cxb4+ 20.e3 d4 21.h3
on Black, better e6 22.h1 a5 and Black appears to
[ 15...e8 for instance. ] have sufficient compensation for the
16.xh6 fxe4 17.xe4 xe4 18.xe4 piece ) 17...b6 18.d1 d4 19.ec3
xh6 ( 19.xd4 is worth a t ry, e. g. xd4
[ 18...xe4 is no im p rove me n t , 19.fe1 20.h3 f6 21.b2 ) 19...f5 20.e3
g4 20.xg7 xg7 21.c3 with a big xe3 21.xe3 c7 with chances to
advantage. ] both sides, Ye Rongguang-Strikovic, A/
19.xh6 xe4 20.fe1 g4 21.f3 d7? Novi Sad 1990;
Bringing the game to a swift conclusion, A2) 10.h3 c5 11.e3 fd7 12.d4
[ 21...h5 was a far better try, although after exd4 13.xd4 e8 14.c2 e7
22.xh5 gxh5 23.e4 White can win the h- 15.fe1 a4 16.b4 axb3 17.axb3 f6
pawn by Rh4xh5. ] 18.b4 e6 19.b3 is a typical
22.e4 Black can only stop Rh4 and Qh8 Fianchetto King's Indian position, that is
mate by giving his queen for the rook. better for W hite on account of Black's
1-0 lack of space and counterplay,
Spiridonov, N-Radev, N/Pernik 1976;
B) 9...a6 10.b4 ( or 10.b3 e8 11.h3 b5
919 A24 12.a3 b7 13.g5 b8 14.d2 c5
Harikrishna,Penteala 2673 15.e3 , and the players prematurely
Poldauf,Dirk 2427 agreed upon a drawn, 1/2-1/2 Vakhidov,
Bundesliga 2006-7 (13) 18.03.2007 T-Kakageldyev, A/Bishkek 1993, but there
[Carsten Hansen] obviously loads of play left in this position,
and I prefer W hite.) 10...e8 11.a4
1.c4 f6 2.c3 g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 0-0 ( 11.g5 f8 12.d2 e6 13.e3 g4
5.e4 d6 6.ge2 e5 7.0-0 bd7 8.d3 c6 14.h3 xe3 15.fxe3 h6 is pleasant for
[ 8...a5 9.h3 c5 10.e3 fd7 11.d2 Black ) 11...a5 12.b5 c5 13.h3 d7
e6 12.h2 a4 13.ad1 h5?! 14.e3 ( 14.f4!? ) 14...c8 15.h2 c7
( this move is very weakening, because one 16.c2 ( 16.f4!? looks very good for
side or the other will play f5, and then this White ) 16...ad8 17.fd1 c8 18.d4

912
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
( 18.f4!? ) 18...exd4 19.xd4 is another
position that is just pleasant for W hite,
Teske, H-Van der Weide, K/Seville 2004 ]
9...c5
[ 9...a5 10.e3
A) 10...e8 11.d2 ( 11.f4 f5 12.exf5
gxf5 13.d4 e4 14.d5 Florian, T-Fletzer,
G/San Benedetto 1957) 11...f5 12.ad1
a4 13.exf5 gxf5 14.f4 e7 15.h2 f7
16.c2 a3 17.b4 Kashljak, A-Gorshkov,
A/Yaroslavl 1995;
B) 10...e7 11.d2 c5 12.ae1 b6
13.f4 a6 14.f5 b5 15.g4 ( 15.cxb5
cxb5 16.g5 ) 15...b4 16.d1 fd7
17.g3 ab8 18.g5 f6 19.h4
Schmittdiel, E-Lendvai Wells, N/Oberwart
1995;
C) 10...e8 11.d2 c5 12.f4 exf4
13.gxf4 e7 14.g3 a4 15.ae1 fd7
16.d4 e6 17.f5 Jeric, S-Mazi, L/
Feffernitz 2000;
D) 10...b8 11.f4 b5 12.f5
13.dxc4 b6 14.b3 gxf5 15.g5 d5
16.exd5 cxd5 17.cxd5 d6 18.h2 d7
19.d2 ( 19.g4!? f4 20.d2 ) 19...a4
20.bxa4 a8 21.ab1 xa4 22.xa4
xa4 with a complicated struggle, Kotov, A-
Geller, A/Leningrad 1956 ]
[ 9...a6 10.e3 b5
A) 11.b3 b7
A1) 12.c1 b4 13.a4 c5 14.f4 c6
15.fxe5 xe5 16.b2 ( 16.c2 e8
17.f2 fd7 18.cf1 ) 16...a5 17.c2
b6 18.f2 b7 19.d1 a4 20.e3
axb3 21.axb3 a3 22.d5 xd5
23.exd5 d7 24.d4 f5 25.d2 xb3
26.dxe5 xe5 27.g4 d3 28.fe1 a6
29.f1 a3 30.ed1 e4 31.h6 f5
32.g5 b2 0-1 Turner, M-Kristensen, B/
Hafnarfjordur 1996;
A2) 12.d2 e7 13.ac1
14.fd1 c5 15.b4 e6 16.a4?!
( an alternative is 16.b1 d7 17.a4
d4 18.cxb5 cxb5 19.axb5 xb5
20.xb5 axb5 21.c3 ) 16...a5!
17.b2 bxc4 18.dxc4 axb4 19.xb4
c5 20.b1 d4 21.d3
and Black is in control, Eingorn, V-Van
der Weide, K/Bad Wiessee 2004;
B) 11.d2
B1) 11...b8 12.b3
B1a) 12...e8 13.f4 exf4 14.gxf4
( 14.xf4!? ) 14...h5 15.ac1 b4
16.a4 f5 17.ce1 f8 18.c5 dxc5
19.e5 e6 20.xc6 Hebert, J-Ree,
H/Luzern 1982;
B1b) 12...c5 13.ae1 e8 14.c2
fd7 15.f4 e6 16.d2 d4 17.f5
b7 18.f2 xe2+ 19.xe2 d5
Hebert, J-Spraggett, K/Montreal 1982
20.fxg6 hxg6 21.ef1 d4 22.h6;
B2) 11...b7 12.f4 exf4 13.gxf4 e8
( 13...h5 14.f3 b4 15.d1 c5
16.xh5 gxh5 17.g3 h8 18.h2
g8 19.f5 Ruettinger, J-Dobrovolsky,
L/Bayern 2002) 14.g3 ( 14.b3 e7
15.ae1 ad8 16.f2 Tempone, M-
P e r a l t a , F / M a r d e l P l a t a 1 9 9 8 b4
17.a4 a5= ) 14...b6 15.a4 b4
16.ce2 a5 17.b3 c5 18.ad1 e7=
Lein, A-Vasiukov, E/USSR ch (Tbilisi)
1966 ]
bxc4 [ 9...h6 10.e3 h7 11.d2 g8 12.d4
Liebert, H-Hoshino, I/Siegen 1970 ]
[ 9...h5
A) 10.h2 c5 11.e3 e6 12.d4 c5
13.dxc5 dxc5 14.d5 d4 15.f4 e6
16.f5 xd5 17.exd5 f6 18.g4 ( here
18.b4!? is best, e.g. b6 19.fxg6 fxg6
20.bxc5 bxc5 21.c3 is very good for
W h i t e , d u e t o b e t t e r p a wn s t r u c t u re ,
passed pawn on d5 and the bishop pair)
18...gxf5 19.gxf5 h8 with a complicated
struggle, Bilek, I-Gligoric, S/Teeside 1972;
B) 10.e3 c5 11.d4
B1) 11...d7 12.c2 f5?! 13.exf5
gxf5 14.dxe5 dxe5 ( 14...xe5!?
15.b3 ) 15.f4 exf4 16.xf4 xf4
17.xf4 e5 18.ad1 Makarichev, S-
Petrovic, V/Novi Sad 1983;
B2) 11...exd4 12.xd4 e5 13.f4
fe8 xd4+ 14.xd4 b6 15.f5 d3
16.xb6 axb6 17.b3 e5 18.ad1
Miezis, N-Schuurman, P/Seefeld 2000;
B3) 11...e6 12.d5 cxd5 13.cxd5 g5
14.g4 xh3+ 15.xh3 h4 16.g2
f5? ( Better is 16...xg4 although this is
c6 h a r d l y d e s i r a b l e f o r B l a c k : 17.xg4
xg4+ 18.g3 f4+ 19.xf4 xf4
20.ce2 ) 17.gxh5 f4 18.h1 fxe3
19.e6+ 1-0 Kroll, O-Oney, F/
Groningen 197300 ]
913
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 9...e8 10.e3 f5 11.d2 df6 12.b3
c7 13.exf5 ( 13.f4!? ) 13...gxf5 14.f4 exf4
15.xf4 Kourkounakis, I-Novidis, N/Hania
1993 ]
[ 9...b6 10.b3 ( 10.f4!? ) 10...d5 11.exd5
cxd5 12.g5 e6 13.d2 ( 13.d4!? )
13...d4 ( 13...d6 14.f4 c5+ 15.h2 )
14.b5 d7
A) 15.f4!? h5 16.g4 xf4 ( 16...f6
17.fxe5 fxg5 18.xg5+- ) 17.xf4 exf4
18.xf4;
B) 15.h2 e8 16.h6 xh6 17.xh6
f5 18.f4 a6 19.a3 Gurevich, M-Wortel,
M/Gent 1997 ]
[ 9...e8 10.e3 a6 11.d2 b5 12.b3
( 12.f4!? ) 12...b7 13.ae1 ( 13.f4!? )
13...a5 14.f4 exf4 15.gxf4?! ( 15.xf4 )
15...h5! 16.f3 g3! 17.f2 xe2+
18.xe2 xd2 19.xd2 c5
Deng, K-Shaked, T/Honolulu 1997 ]
[ 9...b8 10.e3 a6 11.a4 b6 12.b4 b7
13.b5 ( 13.f4!? ) 13...axb5 14.axb5 c5
15.f4 exf4 16.gxf4 h5 17.d2 f5 18.a7
e8 19.f2 Talla, V-Cerveny, M/Czech
Rep 2006 ]
10.e3 e7
[ 10...a5 11.f4 exf4?! 12.gxf4 e7 13.d2
b8 ( the alternatives are no more
promising: 13...h6 14.g3 e8 15.d4
h4?! 16.dxc5 xg3 17.f3 h4
18.cxd6+- Hickl, J-Venkataramanan, T/
Calcutta 1994; or 13...d7 14.g3 ae8
15.ae1 c8 16.f5 David, P-Kaposztas,
M/Slovakia 1998) 14.ae1 cd7 15.g3
e8 (from here onwards the annotations are
from the tournament bulletin) 16.d4 c7
17.e5 dxe5 18.fxe5 b4 ( 18...c5 19.g5
e8 20.ce4 ) 19.h6 xc4 20.xg7
xg7 21.e4 e6 22.h4 h5 23.d5!
A) 23...cxd5 24.xh5+! gxh5 ( 24...h8
25.f6+ g7 26.h7#; 24...g8
25.h6! gxh5 26.xh5+- ) 25.g2+ h6
26.f5!+- ( 26.g4?? xd4+!-+ );
B) 23...xf1+ 24.xf1 cxd5 25.xd5 b6
26.f4 xf4 27.xf4 a6+ 28.g1 d3
29.g5 h8 30.h6+ 1-0 Markland, P-
Hort, V/Hastings 1970/[Bulletin] ( 30.h6+
g8 31.xh5!+- )]
11.d2
[ 11.b3 a5 12.d2 e8 13.fe1 e6
14.d4 exd4 15.xd4 ad8 16.ad1 c8
17.f4 c7 18.f2 b6? 19.xc6! xh3
20.xd8 xg2 21.xg2+-
Csom, I-Suradiradja, H/Surakarta 1982 ]
11...fd7 12.f4 e6 13.f5 d4 14.g4 a5
15.g3
[ Also 15.g5 f6 16.xd4 exd4 17.xd4
fxg5 18.xg7 xg7 19.d4 is very good for
White, but White doesn't need to hurry, as
we s e e i n t h e r e s t o f t h e g a m e , B l a c k
doesn't have any counterplay of significance,
so White can take all the time he needs to
get his pieces on the right squares before
breaking through ]
15...c5 16.f2 f6 17.h4 d7 18.af1 f7
[ Trying to run the king away from his
kingside woes may appeal for a short while,
but once you look at White's simple answer,
the appeal quickly drifts... 18...f7 19.ce2
xe2+ 20.xe2 a4 21.g5 e8 22.d4
exd4 23.xd4 and Black's position reeks
badly ]
19.ce2! Forcing the exchange of Black's
only truly active piece. xe2+ 20.xe2 e8
21.g3 d7 22.g5 af8 23.h3
[ 23.h5!? gxf5 ( 23...fxg5 24.xg5 e8
25.f6 h8 26.d4 exd4 27.hxg6 hxg6
28.xd4 e6 ) 24.g6 f4 25.f5 xf5
26.gxf7+ xf7 27.xc5 dxc5 28.exf5+- ]
23...d8 24.h2 c8 25.g2
[ 25.h5!? fxg5 26.xg5 e8 27.h6 h8
28.h4 b5 29.cxb5 cxb5 30.h5
is clearly also very dangerous for Black,
but W hite decides he is not in any hurry
and continues to build up his attack
undisturbed ]
25...h8?! This doesn't make any sense
when looking at what follows, but clearly Black
is at a loss of good moves 26.e2 fxg5
[ Or 26...d7?! 27.fxg6 hxg6 28.h5
and Black is in the ropes ]
27.hxg5 g8 28.gf2
[ Also 28.f6 h8 29.xc8 xc8 30.d2
is pretty awful for Black, but by keeping
the tension and the pawn on f5, Black is
left waiting for White to make a move, while
White can improve on his position in several
ways. ]
28...h8 29.h1! Black is being torn apart,
and with White transferring the rooks to the h-
file, the conclusion of the battle is
approaching rapidly. b5 A rather desperate
914
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

attempt at counterplay, but it doesn't help at 33...h5 34.f1 g4

all because Black has no immediate follow-up, 0-1
and also White's attack is quite menacing on
t h e k i n g s i d e 30.cxb5 cxb5 31.g1!
Getting out of the way of the rooks, Black is 921 A24
lost. b4 Motwani,Paul 2543
[ Or 31...c7 32.fh2 e8 33.fxg6 xh3 Apicella,Manuel 2543
34.xh3 xg6 35.h6 f7 36.g6+- ] ch-FRA Top 16 GpA (7) 03.04.2005
32.fh2 g7 33.g4 e8 34.xh7 gxf5 [John Watson]
35.exf5 b7 36.1h3 e4? 37.d4 d3
38.h2 In this game Black allowed W hite's ideal
1-0 attack and should have lost. 1.c4 f6 2.c3
g6 3.e4 d6 4.g3 g7 5.g2 0-0 6.ge2
e5 7.0-0 Here we are again by the King's
920 A24 Indian route. e6 An unusual move not found
Kosikov,Andrey 2210 in Hansen but appearing in three games of
Solomaha,Andrey 2384 this update. Black plays without committing
ch-Kiev Kiev UKR (1) 15.01.2005 his queen's knight to either c6 or d7 (or a6).
[John Watson] Nor does he decide upon ...c6. In most cases
he wants to exchange the g2 bishop, but even
1.f3 f6 2.c4 g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 0-0 that might (or should) depend upon White's
5.0-0 d6 6.c3 e5 7.d3 bd7 move order. By attacking c4 and immediately
Here we see the line without ...Nc6. Normally playing ...Qd7, Black prevent h3 followed by
Black plays some combination of . . . c6, Re8, Be3. 8.d3
and ...h6 here. This game shows an [ An option is 8.b3 , thinking about d4: d7?!
independent plan that has enjoyed some ( 8...c6 is probably fine. White can try the
success for Black but probably favours White speculative 9.f4!? d4 10.f5!? . Sounder
with perfect play. I'll give it without many is simply 9.h3 Qd7 10.Kh2; 8...c5!? 9.f4
notes: 8.b1 c5 9.b4 e6 10.b5 d7 exf4! 10.xf4 c6 11.b2 e8
11.a4 f5 12.d5 g5!? 13.d2 is unclear) 9.d4 exd4 10.xd4 h3 11.f3!
[ 13.xg5!? xg5 14.xg5 xg5 15.xc7 xg2 12.xg2 e8 13.de2! intending c6
b8 16.d5+ h8 17.e6 e7 18.xf8 14.f4 ]
xf8 is very unclear ] 8...d7 9.f4 h3?! I don't like this move,
13...f4 14.e4 dc5 15.xc5 xc5 which allows W hite to set up his ideal
16.a3 e6 17.c1 formation. Preferable seems
[ 17.e3 g4 18.f3!? ] [ 9...c6 , when 10.f5?! ( 10.h1 intending
17...g4 18.c5 f7 19.cxd6 cxd6 20.c4 Be3 is logical) 10...gxf5 11.g5 e8 12.b3
g5?! 21.gxf4 exf4 22.xf4 h3+ followed by Qd2 offers some compensation
23.xh3 gxh3 24.xc8! xc8 25.d5 h8 for the pawn but nothing impressive. ]
26.h1?! 10.f5 This is the consistent follow-up and in
[ 26.xd6! allows for Bg3 and destroys the theory poses the greatest challenge to Black's
vestiges of Black's centre. Now the play plan. White inaugurates a flank advance by h3,
degenerates, probably due to mutual time g4 and g5. The exchange of his bad bishop on
pressure: ] g2 is not unwelcome, since it isn't needed for
26...f6 27.g1?! d7 28.e1? f4 29.e4 defence of the kingside. Nevertheless, this
af8 30.b4 g4 31.e1 d4 32.d1 attack is begun before W hite is developed
gf4? and allows central counterplay. Another good
[ 32...xf2 wins outright ] move is
33.f3? [ 10.e3 , which still intends f5 but adds the
[ 33.c1! xf2? 34.e3! ] idea of Qd2 and Bh6 to its effect. In some
cases the bishop will support the move d4

915
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
(especially in the case of ... exf4). W hite
retains a definite advantage. ]
10...xg2 11.xg2 c6 The other and
probably better way to get central counterplay
is
[ 11...c6 12.h3 h6 13.g4 d5!? 14.cxd5
cxd5 15.fxg6 fxg6 16.b3 a6! 17.e3
( 17.exd5 c5 18.c4 ac8 with plenty of
play. ) 17...c7 ]
12.h3
[ 12.d5! forces the kind of position that
White achieves in the game. Now Black gets
a chance to break the bind. ]
12...gxf5?!
[ 12...e7! 13.g4 gxf5 14.exf5 h6 15.g3
d5 changes the equation ( or 15...c6+
16.h2 d5 )]
13.xf5! Not part of White's original game
plan, but from now on he controls the key f5
square and allows Black no counterplay.
[ 13.exf5 e7 would be the last note. ]
13...e7 14.f2 h8 15.g4 b5!?
This probably isn't sound but Black wants to
kick-start his play before moves like Ng3 and
g5 happen. 16.g3 A good move, although
[ 16.xb5 d5 ( 16...c6 17.bc3 d5
18.g3 ) 17.g5! is also strong ]
16...b4? It makes no sense at all to close the
position and give White a free hand. On the
other hand, Black stands worse even after
[ 16...bxc4 17.dxc4 c6 18.g5 fg8
19.e3 ]
17.ce2 c6 18.g5 fg8 19.h5 f6
20.d2 a5 21.eg3 d5 22.c2
[ 22.e2 keeps an eye on the kingside
attack but it doesn't matter much. Black's
problem is that he has no effective break,
and opening the d-file doesn't stop White's
attack. ]
22...ad8 23.af1 dxc4 24.dxc4 d4
25.c1! g6 No better is
[ 25...f7 26.e3 d6 27.g5 , e.g., df8
28.xg7 xg7 29.gxf6+ xf6 30.h6+!
xh6 31.xf6 xf6 32.h5+ ]
26.xg7 h4+ 27.h1 xg7 28.e3
[ 28.g5! wins on the spot because Bxh4
and Nh5+ are both threatened. The play
goes fxg5 29.xg5+ g6 30.f5+ xf5
31.exf5 etc. ]
28...d6 29.h6+? Probably ti me trouble is
setting in for both players, but W hite sells
himself too cheaply.
[ 29.g5! intending gxf6+ and/or Nh5+ would
leave Black no good defence. ]
29...xh6 30.h5+ g6 31.xf6+ xf6
32.xf6+ xf6 33.xf6 Suddenly things
have gone wrong. White is probably better but
has won less material than he might have and
left his king exposed. f7!?
[ 33...d3! would have posed very real
problems, since at the very least White's h-
pawn falls and king can't escape without
material loss, e.g., 34.h2 f3+ 35.g2
h4+ 36.f2 ( 36.g1 xh3 ) 36...f3+
37.e2 xf6 38.g5 f4 39.gxh6 xe4+
etc, ]
34.e1!?
[ 34.f1 , covering f3 and d3, was more
a c c u r a t e . T h e n g5 35.d5! cxd5
36.exd5 threatens Qf2 and creates
dangerous passed pawns. ]
34...f3 35.e3?
[ Last chance for 35.f1! ]
35...7g5?? Black's attack is probably
winning after
[ 35...d1+! 36.g2 e1+ ( 36...d3?!
37.c5 xf6 38.xc6+ g7 ) 37.f2
( 37.h2 xf6 , when 38.c5 loses to
d2+ ) 37...d3+ 38.g3 f4 ]
36.d5! This is still good, but White loses his
way: d7
[ 36...cxd5?? 37.b6+ ]
37.b6
[ 37.c5! d4 38.e7+ f7 39.xc6
is winning. ]
37...d4 38.e3 xe4 39.xa5 f3
40.g2?? This allows a simple perpetual
check. W hite could have penetrated into
Black's camp by
[ 40.a8 , when there's no defence to a
coordinated attack by White's pieces. ]
40...h4+ 41.f1 d2 42.f5 f3 43.a7
h2+
½-½
916
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
922 A24 923
Rotstein,Arkadij 2528
Scharrer,Patrick 2210
Open Verona ITA (3) 03.01.2006 Essent Open Hoogeveen NED (2)
[John Watson]
A play o n th e Bo tvinn ik S yste m. W hite 's
misplaced knight turns out to be well-placed
indeed. 1.c4 g6 2.g3 g7 3.g2 d6 4.f3
f6 5.c3 0-0 6.0-0 e5 7.d3 h5 8.e4
I used to be dogmatic that one shouldn't play
this when the knight was on f3 instead of e2.
However, the combination of ...Nf6 and ... e5
in the Sicilian is sometimes best, so why not
here? c6 9.g5! f6 10.e3 Threatening
d4. f5
[ 10...d4? would be the thematic answer
were ... f6 not in, whereas he it simply loses
a pawn. ]
11.exf5 xf5 12.d4
[ P r o b a b l y b e s t , a l t h o u g h 12.g5!?
has the ideas g4, Nd5 and Nge4. The most
reasonable move is f6 13.h3 h6 14.g4
d7 15.ge4 and I like White. ]
12...exd4 13.xd4 d7 14.c5!?
[ or 14.d2 White is somewhat better in
both cases. ]
14...dxc5?
[ 14...xd4 15.xd4 c6 ]
15.xc6 xc6 16.xc6 bxc6 17.xc5 e8
[ The lesser evil was 17...xd1 18.axd1
fe8 19.fe1 ]
18.b3+ h8 19.ad1 g5 20.d4
[ 20.c4! would tie Black down more. ]
20...f6?
[ 20...xd4 ]
21.c4! c5 It's hard to find a good move, and
c6 is hanging anyway. 22.xc5 g4 23.d4
e5 24.xe5 xe5 25.d5 e6 26.fd1
c6 27.c5 xc4 28.xc4 It's all over. xc3
29.xc3 e2 30.xc6 xb2 31.d7 xa2
32.cc7 a6 33.xh7+ g8 34.h4!
Zugzwang. Neither rook can stray from the a-
file due to Rxa7, and Ra6-anywhere is
answered by ...Rcg7+ and Rxg6. And 34...Kf8
allows mate in one.
1-0
A24
Sareen,Vishal 2375
Ahlers,Ben 2198
22.10.2005
[John Watson]
This game illustrates what happens if White
manages to establish the f5/g4 structure in
t h e B o t vin n ik S yst e m a n d B la ck d o e s n ' t
obtain early counterplay. The play is flawed
yet the basic idea is clear. 1.c4 f6 2.g3 g6
3.g2 g7 4.c3 d6 5.e4 0-0 6.ge2 e5
[ 6...c5 transposes into the Symmetrical
version of the Botvinnik, probably a better
(or at least easier) version. A recent
example shows something new for Black:
7.d3 c6 8.0-0 a6 9.h3 b8 10.a4 d7
11.e3 e8 12.d4 cxd4 13.xd4 c7
14.h2 e6 15.de2 a5! 16.b3 b5!
17.cxb5 axb5 18.b4 c4 19.a7 bxa4
20.xb8 xb8 21.d5 e8 with full
compensation, Alekseev, E (2632)-
Mamedyarov, S (2674), Istanbul TUR 2005 ]
7.0-0 c6
[ A typical sequence after 7...c6 is 8.h3
d4 ( 8...h8 ) 9.f4 h5!? ( better is
9...e8 10.d3 c6 11.e3 f5 ) 10.f5 c6
( 10...gxf5 11.xd4 exd4 12.xh5 dxc3
13.dxc3 ) 11.g4 xe2+ 12.xe2 f4!
13.xf4 exf4 14.xf4 d4+ 15.h1 g5
16.f1 f6 and Black has some
compensation but he needs a plan before
White unwinds. ]
8.d3 e6?!
[ Asking for f5. One better line is 8...bd7
9.h3 a6
A) 10.a4 a5 11.e3 c5 12.f4 b6
( or 12...e7 13.f5 gxf5 14.exf5 h6 )
13.c2 fd7 14.f5 b3 15.d2 b4!;
B) 10.f4 b5 11.f5 ( 11.cxb5 axb5
12.fxe5 b6+ 13.h2 dxe5= ) 11...gxf5
12.exf5 b7 13.g4 h6= ]
9.f4!?
[ 9.h3! first makes sense, also preparing
Be3. ]
9...b6+ 10.h1 g4 11.f5 c8 12.e1
e3
[ Black should probably try the computer idea
12...gxf5 13.exf5 d7 14.f3 ( 14.h3 )
14...e3 15.a4 a6 16.xe3 xa4
17.g4 but he is still faced with g5, regardless
917
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

of whether he plays moves like ...h6 and/or 924 A25

...f6, even if the queens go off after c2 Adianto,Utut 2588
18.c3! xc3 19.xc3 ] Sorbe,Stephane 2340
13.a4 2nd Dato' Arthur Tan Malaysian Open (7)
[ The extent of Black's difficulties is even [John Watson]
more clearly shown after 13.f6! xg2
14.xg2 h8 15.b3 ] 1.c4 f5 2.c3 f6 3.g3 g6 4.g2 g7
13...xg2 14.xg2 d8 15.g4 Black is 5.e3 0-0 6.ge2 d6
stuck. This is the desired result for a Botvinnik [ There are many ways to approach this
System. The only drawback is that White has standard position, for example, one game
rid himself of his bad bishop, which could be analysed in this colum n proce eded (b y
used for defence! Still, White can neutralize a transposition) 6...e5 7.d3 c6 8.b1 h8
counterattack. d5 16.ac3 d4 17.d1 9.b4 a6 10.a4 a5!? 11.b5 b4 12.a3
[ 17.b1! b5 18.a3! ties Black down c5 13.bxc6 dxc6 Rogozenko-Sadler,
while White progresses on the kingside. ] H e n g e l e 2 0 0 0 , w h e n 14.xb4 axb4
17...d7 18.f3!? 15.xb4 d6 16.b2 d8 would have
[ 18.g3! b5! 19.b3 and something like Nf2 given Black excellent compensation for the
and g5 can follow. ] pawn. Note the value of omitting ...d6, which
18...f6 19.d2!? can sometimes come in handy if one wants
[ 19.h6 e8 20.g3 g5 21.xg5 xg5 to play ...Ne7 and ...d5 in one go. ]
22.f2 b8 23.c1! xc1 24.xc1 7.0-0 White can try to gain time by delaying
g5 is still threatened, and g5 25.f6!? c5 castling. Another ChessPublishing game
26.f5 keeps the edge. ] Moor-Gallagher, Zurich 2000 went (again by
19...g7 20.h3 transposition)
[ 20.f2 ] [ 7.d3 e5 8.b1 c6 9.b4 ( 9.b3 ) 9...g5!?
20...f6 21.f2 h5! 22.g3?! h4 10.b5 e7 11.f4! h6 with complications. ]
[ Blac k misses th e ch ance f o r 22...xg4! 7...e5 The Dutch has become a full-fledged
23.xg4 hxg4 24.xg4 h7 and ..Rh8. ] E n g l i s h O p e n i n g . 8.d3 c6 9.b1
23.f3 h7! 24.h3 g5? Locking up the Now we're back to "normal". a5 In his book on
position gives W hite free rein on the the ...e5 English Hansen makes a case that
queenside. Better was this is not the best move, since Black doesn't
[ 24...b5 ] win the a-file anyway.
25.f1 [ 9...e7 is another way to reorganize for
[ Or 25.b1 ] example: 10.b4 ( 10.b3 ) 10...c6 11.f4 e6
25...a5 26.eg1 f6 Necessary, but now the 12.b5 c7 ]
highly-desirable manoeuvre ...Bf6-d8 can't [ The most interesting try is 9...g5!? 10.f4
occur. 27.f3 f7? Allowing the following ( 10.b4 f4 ) 10...h6 11.b4 and now 11.. .
tactic, but W hite was clearly better on the Qe8 or h8 12.d5!? xd5 13.cxd5 e7
queenside. 28.hxg5! xg5 29.xg5 fxg5 14.e4 gxf4 15.gxf4 g6 16.fxe5 dxe5
30.xg5 xg5 31.xg5 f6 To stop Bxh4 17.exf5 h4 Kurajica-Piskov, Skopje
nevertheless White's pawns are too strong. 1991. ]
32.xf6 xf6 33.g5 f7 34.h3! h7 10.a3 e6 11.d5
35.g4 d7 36.g6 h8 37.g5! [ Also normal and good is 11.b4 , e.g., axb4
A nice finish. c5 38.a4 12.axb4 b8 13.b5 e7 14.a3 b6
[ 38.f6! ] 15.b3 g5 16.d4 e4 17.d5 d7 18.d4 ]
38...a6 39.f2 b6 40.af1 d6 41.f6 11...b8
e6 42.f7+ [ 11...f7 12.xf6+ xf6 ( 12...xf6
1-0 13.c3 ) 13.c3 e4!? 14.d5
with advantage, according to Hansen. ]
12.d2
[ 12.b4 axb4 13.axb4 e7= ]

918
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
12...d7 Perhaps considering ...b5, but I don't
like this. f6 was a good square for the knight
and where's it going now? 13.b4 axb4
14.axb4 e7 15.ec3?!
[ 15.b5! c5 16.c2 . Then Bb4 and f4
are themes. ]
15...c6 16.xe7+ xe7 17.b5?
[ 17.e4!? ]
17...e4! 18.dxe4 xc4 19.e1 fxe4
20.xe4 d5! Black has a nice advantage with
his centre and bishops but there are tactics to
consider. 21.b4! f7
[ 21...c5? 22.xc5 xc5 23.xd5+ xd5
24.xd5+ ]
22.xf8 xf8 23.bxc6
[ 23.d6 xf2+ 24.h1 c3 is unclear. ]
23...bxc6 24.b7
[ 24.d6! ]
24...dxe4 25.xd7 xf2+ 26.h1 c3!?
[ Black has more than enough for the
exchange after 26...d3! ]
27.g1 xe3 28.c1 f3! 29.d8+
[ White could launch a dangerous
counterattack by 29.a3! ]
29...g7 30.d7+ g8 31.gd1 d5
32.d8+ g7 33.d7+ g8 34.a3
Not quite as effective now. d4 35.d8+
g7 36.e7+ f7 37.e8 f6?! 38.d7+
f7 39.f1 b3 40.dxf7+ xf7 41.xe4
c5 42.e7 e6 43.a7 Avoiding the 2-
bishop ending. The rest of the game is a
lengthy attempt by White to make progress
that shouldn't have succeeded but eventually
did: h5 44.b1 g8 45.b8+ g7 46.f4
e3 47.f3 d4 48.d1 b3 49.e2 e6
50.e4 e5 51.f3 f6 52.d3 e6
53.b1 a2 54.f3 f2?? No ned for this
at all. 55.xf2 xf2 56.g2 d4 57.b7
f6 58.b6+ g7 59.d6 e5 60.d7 f6
61.d5 xd5+ 62.xd5 c4 63.f3 e6
64.e4 f6 65.c5 c3 66.c6+ f7 67.h3
h8 68.d5 g7 69.c7+ g8 70.e6
h7 71.g4 h6 72.g5+ h7 73.f7 e5
74.c6 f4 75.xg6
1-0
925 A25
Balashov,Yuri S 2575
Najer,Evgeniy 2597
IV Russian Cup Final (11) 30.08.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 c6 3.g3 b4!?
A move that is becoming popular, the idea is
to delay the development of the g8-knight so
that it may go to e7 (instead of the habitual f6),
or Black may be able to play first ...f5, and
only then ... Nf6. 4.d5
[ O b v i o u s l y t h e c r i t i c a l r e p l y , i f 4.g2
then Black can play xc3 5.bxc3 d6
( 5...f6 is considered previously) 6.f3 f5
7.d3 f6 with a respectable reversed Grand
Prix Attack, Cvek,R-Jovanovic,Z/Patras GRE
1999 (9). ]
4...c5 5.g2 ge7 6.e3 0-0
[ The first new move of the game, previously
6...xd5 had been preferred, 7.cxd5 e7
( the 7...b4 of Balashov,Y-Pribyl,J/
Schwaebisch Gmuend 1998, is mentioned
elsewhere ) 8.e2 c6 9.c3 d6 10.0-0
0-0 11.d4 with an edge, Gunter,D-Lalic,S/St
Heliers 1997. ]
7.e2 xd5 8.cxd5 e7 9.0-0 f5!?
[ This is the second innovation of the game!
This position has been reached before, via
the move order 1.c4 e5 2.g3 Nf6 3.Bg2 Nc6
4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Nd5 Bc5 6.e3 0-0 7.Ne2 Nxd5
8 . cxd 5 Ne 7 9 . 0 -0 , wh e n p l a y n o rm a l l y
continues: 9...d6 10.d4 b6 11.dxe5 dxe5
12.c3 c6 13.dxc6 xc6 14.d5
with a tiny plus, Dorfman,J-Nedev,T/Cannes
1996. ]
10.b3
[ Simple development, but White could also
shake-off Black's attempted hold on d4 by
the standard trick 10.d4 exd4 11.e4 d6
12.xd4 with a space advantage. ]
10...d6 11.b2 b6 12.a4 d7??
[ B l a c k h a s o ve r l o o k e d a t a c t i c , 12...a5
is much more prudent, preparing a 'luft' for
t h e b i s h o p , 13.d4 f6 with reasonable
chances. ]
13.d4!
[ This is all the stronger for being delayed.
13.a5 c5 14.d4 b4 ( 14...exd4??
loses a piece as below, 15.e4 e7 16.b4
xb4 17.xd4 etc. ) 15.e4 e7 16.dxe5
919
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

dxe5 17.xe5 is also pretty miserable for employed by Black previously. 11.b1?!
Black. ] [ 11.exf5! xf5 12.h3 followed by f4, and g4,
13...c5 is just as effective here, as in the
[ Black is obliged to ditch his e-pawn, as he previously cited link. ]
needs to make space for his b6-bishop, 11...fxe4 12.xe4 h3 Hoping to gain a
13...exd4? loses, as 14.e4 e7 15.a5 c5 tempo to ease his development problems.
16.b4 wins a piece: xb4 17.xd4 f6 13.f4? Flashy, but faulty. exf4
18.xb4 ] [ B e t t e r t h a n 13...xf1?! 14.e6 e7
14.dxe5 dxe5 15.xe5 With a solid extra 15.xf8 f6 16.g5 ]
pawn, and a strong centre, White is winning. 14.h5 f6 15.xh3 xe4 16.e6+ h8
e8 16.b2 d6 17.f4 c8 18.c1 a5 17.xe4 f3!
19.h5 [ In view of the rating difference, Black wants
[ A good move, forcing a weakening of the m o r e t h a n t h e t i n y e d g e o f 17...fxg3
black kingside, and making Black further 18.hxg3 b8 ]
regret the absence of his e5-pawn, but 18.f4 d7 Menacing ...Qh3. 19.h4
19.xc5 xc5 20.d4 is also strong. ] [ W h i t e h a s l i t t l e c h o i c e , 19.xf3?
19...f6 20.f4 The knight returns to eye the loses a piece to g5 ]
newly-created hole on e6. c4?! A further 19...e5
mistake, in a hopeless position. 21.a3 b6 [ Now if 19...h3?! 20.xf3 and ...g5 is no
22.xd6 xd6 23.bxc4 Black has had longer possible. ]
enough. 20.h2
1-0 [ Again forced, 20.xe5?? loses the queen
after h3 ]
20...ae8?
926 A25 [ Missing a straightforward win: 20...xd3!
Cekro,Ekrem 2390 21.xd3 xf4 is st ro ng, 22.gxf4?? g4
Georgiev,Kiril 2661 23.g1 xh4# ]
34th Olympiad (5) 01.11.2000 21.xe5 xe5 22.xb7 g4?
[Tony Kosten] [ 22...g5! is much more to the point. ]
23.xc7 White sees no win for his opponent,
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.c3 b4 so grabs another pawn. g6 24.b8 xb8
5.e4 xc3 6.bxc3 The move that White most 25.xb8+ e8 26.b1 h6 27.d4
wants to play. 0-0 7.e2 d6 8.d3 a6!? Agreed drawn, but W hite has a clear
[ Planning to play ...b5, to gain the advantage.
ascendancy on the queenside, otherwise: ½-½
8...e6 9.0-0 a6 10.f4 exf4 11.gxf4
the white centre gets bigger, and bigger,
g4 12.e1 xe2 13.xe2 d7 14.h3 927 A25
with advantage, Schuh,K-Pinkas,K/Weilburg Chabanon,Jean Luc 2455
1995, and ] Godard,Maxence 2340
[ 8...e8 was roughly treated in another Top 16 Marseille (7) 02.05.2010
annotated game. ] [Nigel Davies (Based on analysis by GMI Jean-L]
9.a4!
[ The right move, in my view, keeping a lid on 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7
t h e b l a c k q u e e n s i d e c o u n t e r p l a y , b u t 5.b1 a5
strangely an innovation, 9.0-0?! is careless, [ S o m e o l d b o o k s a r g u e t h a t 5...f6
b5 10.cxb5 axb5 11.f4 b4! (to weaken d4) is a good reply to White's early 5.Rb1, for
12.b2 e7 13.h3 a6 with good example the game Taimanov, M (2580)-
possibilities for Black, Skalkotas,N- Gulko, B (2480)/Vilnius 1975 went 6.b4 0-0
Pandavos,E/Serres 1990. ] 7.b5 e7 8.f3 d5! 9.cxd5 exd5
9...e8 10.0-0 f5 The same plan as 10.b2 e8 11.0-0 e4 with a very good

920
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

game for Black. But White does not need to example xd5 27.dxe4 c3 28.exf5 f6
plunge in with b2-b4-b5 and can instead try 29.c5 with three pawns and a powerful
to exploit the fact that Black's knight on f6 initiative for the piece. ]
is not optimally placed for the middle game 26...dxe4 27.h4!? dc6 28.h3 d4
because it blocks his f-pawn. So 7.d3 is one 29.b7 ae8? Allowing White's powerful
of several improvements. ] reply.
6.a3 d6 [ 29...a2 was better. ]
[ 6...f6 is very similar to Taimanov - Gulko 30.a3! d5 31.xf8
above and features in the game Ivanov - [ 31.xg7+! was also good, for example
Razuvaev. Once again White should avoid xg7 32.b2! b6 33.xe8 xe8
getting too excited and play just 7.b4 0-0 34.xd4+ xd4 35.xf5+ etc. ]
8.d3 . ] 31...xf8 32.fb1?!
7.b4 axb4 8.axb4 ge7 [ 32.a1! was much stronger intending to
[ The alternative treatment is 8...f6 ] double on the 7th rank. ]
9.e3 Taking the d4 square away from Black's 32...xe3 33.fxe3 f3+ 34.h1 e5
knight on c6 which no longer has e7 to retreat 35.f7 xg3 36.xf5+ g8 37.xf8+ xf8
to. 38.g4+?!
[ 9.d3 transposes into Davies, N (2500)- [ H e r e W h i t e s h o u l d p l a y 38.e6+
Sadler, M (2440)/London 1991. ] , for example h8 39.f6+ g7 40.f4
9...f5 etc.. ]
[ Black can also play 9...0-0 , a famous 38...xg4 39.xg4 xh4 40.f1! c5
example proceeding 10.ge2 e6 11.b5 41.f4 g7? 42.xe4?
a5 12.d3 c6 13.0-0 d5 14.cxd5 cxd5 [ 42.h5 is much simpler. ]
15.a3 e8 16.b4 b6 with a good game 42...f6 43.e6+ g5 44.d1 a7 45.e7
for Black in Kasparov, G (2800)-Kortschnoj, b6 46.c2 f3 47.g7+ h4 48.f5
V (2625)/Paris 1990. ] [ A n d h e r e W h i t e s h o u l d p l a y 48.d1!
10.d3 d7 11.h3 Preventing the exchange , for example e1 ( Or 48...e5 49.e7! )
of White's light square bishop via ... Bf5-h3, 49.h2 h5 50.h7 g5 51.xh5+ g6
though White will not be able to castle right 52.e4 with a win in sight. ]
away. 0-0 12.f3 h6 13.b5 d8 14.e4 48...g5 49.e4? This could have thrown
e6 15.d5 h7 16.h4 c8 away the win.
[ After 16...f5 White can play 17.xe7 xe7 [ White should have activated his king with
18.exf5 gxf5 19.0-0 White has some 49.g2! a f t e r w h i c h xe3 50.c7!
pressure. ] le a d s t o a wi n n in g a t t a c k , d e s p it e t h e
17.e3 c6 paucity of material. For example d2 ( Or
[ This time 17...f5 can be strongly met by 50...h5 51.g3 d4 52.f4 h4
18.exf5 gxf5 19.h5 . But Black's delay 53.c2 ) 51.c2 e3 52.c3 d2 53.d3
also has serious consequences on account a5 54.d7 h5 55.e8+ g4 56.d4+
of White's brilliant reply. ] f5 57.d5+ wins the bishop. ]
18.hf5! gxf5 49...g3! 50.g6 e3? Forgetting that
[ After 18...h8 W hite can play 19.d2! White's passes pawn must be kept under lock
, f o r e x a m p l e h5 20.g4 gives White a and key.
dangerous attack. ] [ 50...d4! is much better when it's difficult
19.exf5 e7 20.h5 d5 21.bxc6 bxc6 for White to win. ]
22.fxe6 xe6 51.e5 f4 52.e6 c5
[ 22...xe6 might have been better, though [ 52...xf5 53.e7 xg6 54.e8+
the bish op p air still gives W hit e all th e picks up the bishop on e3. ]
chances. ] 53.c2! e5 54.b3 e7
23.0-0 f5 24.cxd5 cxd5 25.b5 e4 [ Black also loses the h6 pawn after 54...f8
26.dxe4 55.xh6! because his bishop is needed
[ 26.xd5! seems very strong here, for where it is to stop White queening. ]

921
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

55.xh6 f5 56.a4 e5 57.d7 d6 the open e-file. e7 15.e1 d8
58.h2 e4 59.a2 c5 60.d2+ e5 [ Black wants to avoid conceding the e6-
61.c8 g5 62.e2+ d6 63.g2 c7 square, 15...d6 16.g5 h6 17.e6 ]
64.c2 d6 65.a2 c7 66.a8 d6 16.d6! Larry is a master of attack, and sets
67.f3 e5 68.a7 d6 69.g4 e7 about the black position with gusto. First, he
70.f5 h4 71.h7 e7 72.h8 d3 o p e n s t h e a 2 -g 8 d i a go n a l wi t h a t y p i c a l
73.h1 c5 74.d1+ c7 75.d7 d6 sacrifice hindering Black's development - the
76.b5 e7 77.g6 xe6 78.f7 two black pieces remaining on the queenside
1-0 will stay there till the end of the game. cxd6
[ 16...xd6? lose s immed iat ely, 17.g5
with twin threats of Qh5, and Qb3+. ]
928 A25 17.xe7! White wants to use the g5-sqaure,
Christiansen,Larry Mark 2578 so eliminates its defender. xe7
Charbonneau,Pascal 2405 [ 17...xe7 18.g5 h6 19.d5+ h8
WCN Ch-North America (4) 14.06.2002 20.h5 is also crushing. ]
[Tony Kosten] 18.g5 d5
[ T h e o n l y t r y , 18...h6 19.b3+ d5
O n e r e v i e we r d o u b t e d t h a t t h e E n g l i s h 20.xd5+ h8 ( 20...xd5?! 21.xd5+
variations that I recommended in The h8 22.f7+ xf7 23.xf7 g8 24.g6
D y n a m i c E n g l i s h we r e ' D yn a m i c ' . W e l l , with decisive threats against g7) 21.f7+
perhaps he should have a look at this xf7 22.xf7 regains the exchange with an
attacking masterpiece! 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 enormous positional advantage. ]
3.g2 c6 4.c3 b4 5.d5 19.e2 h6 20.e1! hxg5 21.xe7 xe7
[ I like this move, and recommend it in my 22.xe7 Black has no sensible defence
book on the English, although we have against Rxg7+.
mostly considered 5.e4 which is also quite 1-0
good. ]
5...c5 6.e3 Placing a barrier between the
bish o p o n c5 an d t h e se n sit ive f 2-p awn . 929 A25
xd5?! Davies,Nigel R 2500
[ This is probably premature, I prefer 6...0-0 ] Sadler,Matthew 2440
7.cxd5 e7 8.b4!? London WFW 1991
[ 8.e2 and d4 is also good, but this exploits [Nigel Davies]
the fact that Black hasn't castled. ]
8...d6!? 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7
[ 8...b6 9.b2 d6 10.d4 exd4 11.xd4 5.d3
0-0 12.e2 left White with a nagging edge [ G i v e n t h e p o t e n t i a l d a n g e r s o f 5.b1
in Stanec,N-Ganaus,H/Austria 1999, (i.e. that Black may be able to play f6
because of the potential c-f ile pressure followed by ...Nc6-e7 and a quick ...d7-d5)
against c7. ] it makes sense to wait for Black to play ...d7-
[ 8...xb4 allows White to destroy the black d6 before lunging forward with b2-b4. ]
kingside: 9.g4 c5 10.xg7 g6 5...d6 6.b1 a5 7.a3 ge7 8.b4 axb4
11.h6 ] 9.axb4 0-0 10.f3
9.b2 0-0 10.a3 f5?! [ T h e r e ' s d e f i n i t e l y a c a s e f o r 10.e3
[ This weakens the kingside, and does , stopping Black's c6 knight from going to d4.
nothing for Black's development, 10...c6 Aronian, L (2420)-Chipashvili, M (2320)/
would justify Black's eighth move. ] Pasanauri 1997 continued e6 11.ge2
11.f4 White will lever-open the a1-h8 diagonal. d7 12.d5 xd5 13.cxd5 a7 14.0-0
g6 12.f3 e8 13.0-0 exf4 14.exf4! b5 15.b3 a6 16.b2 c6 17.c3
Recapturing the other way would be xc3 18.xc3 b6 19.a1 xd5 20.xd5
positionally correct, but White wants to use cxd5 21.xd5 c8 with approximate

922
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
equality. ]
10...d4 11.0-0 xf3+
[ The game Geller, E-Mazzoni, G/Monte
Carlo 1967 varied with 11...c6 after which
12.e1 f5 13.f4 h8 14.h1 g8
15.b2 f6 16.e3 e6 17.c2 exf4
18.exf4 d7 19.d2 c7 20.f2 e6
21.h3 e8 22.a1 left White with a slight
edge. This kind of indirect manoeuvring
battle is typical of this line which is more
dependent on positional understanding
than theoretical knowledge. ]
12.xf3 h3 13.e1 c6 14.g5
[ 14.b5 might have been better here, setting
up immediate pressure on the queenside. ]
14...f6 15.d2 f5 16.b5 d7 17.bxc6 bxc6
18.b3 e6 19.b7
[ 19.b6 was stronger as then after e4
20.dxe4 Black does not have ... Bd4
available. W hite would stand better after
xc4 21.b4 f7 22.c7 . ]
19...e4 20.dxe4 d4 21.b3 xf2+!
Once the tactics started Matthew Sadler was
immensely strong. 22.xf2 fxe4 23.xe4
xe4 24.g1 f5 25.e3 e6 26.b7
f7 27.c3
[ 27.eb1 would have been more testing. ]
27...h5 28.g5 af8 29.h6 e8 30.a1
g4 White's position is still more comfortable,
but it's dif ficult to see where the winning
chances will come from.
½-½
930 A25
Davies,Nigel R 2505
Tebb,David 2280
BCF-chT 9798 (4NCL) (2.1) 1997
[Nigel Davies]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7
5.b1 a5 6.a3 d6 7.d3 f6 8.b4 axb4
9.axb4 0-0 10.b5 Various other moves have
been tried here but I still like my choice. Other
strong players have also tended to prefer it.
e7
[ A n o t h e r p o s s i b i l i t y i s 10...d4
when Dgebuadze, A (2510)-Vaznonis, V
(2282)/Dresden GER 2007 continued 11.e3
e6 12.ge2 h5 13.0-0 f5 14.d5
e8 15.d2 f7 16.f4 exf4 17.gxf4 c5
18.b4 with the better game for White. ]
11.b2
[ I seem to have been in a minority in my
preference for this move, a more common
one being 11.f3 . A n e xa m p le i s h6
12.0-0 e6 13.b3 d7 14.a3 f5
15.d2 b8 16.d5 c5 17.bxc6 bxc6
18.xe7+ xe7 19.c2 which was slightly
better for White in Schlosser, P (2564)-Nataf,
I (2552)/Cannes FRA 2008. ]
11...h5 Nobody else seems to have played
this way.
[ The critical line is 11...d5! , for example
12.cxd5 ( 12.a1 xa1 13.xa1
seems better) 12...exd5 13.xd5 xd5
14.f3 e4 15.dxe4 ( 15.e5 is better, but
b y n o m e a n s c o m f o r t a b l e f o r W h i t e)
15...c3 16.xc3 xc3+ was good for
Black in Vinke, A (2070)-Roemer, U (2250)/
Seefeld 199600. ]
12.f3 f5 13.0-0 h6 14.d2 Now White is
better, his pressure on the queenside being
far more significant than anything Black can
do on the opposite flank. h8 15.a1 xa1
16.xa1 g5 17.a8 b6 18.a1 White is
gaining serious control of the position whilst
Black's play on the other flank is stillborn. f4
19.de4 fxg3 20.hxg3 f5 21.d5
[ I did not want to weaken myself with 21.g4
, despite the fact that it would win a piece. ]
21...f4 This, on the other hand, is an offer
tha n ca n no t be ref used . 22.gxf4 gxf4
23.b8 e8
[ After 23...h4 White can kill the attack with
24.xc7 e8 25.a7 g6 26.xg7+
etc. ]
24.a8 g6 25.xc8 xc8 26.xc8+ h7
27.xc7 h5 28.f1 h6 29.h3 h4
30.d7 h5 31.xf5 xf5 32.xg7 h3+
33.g1 f3 34.c1 Closing the mating net
around Black's king. He has no good defence
to the threat of a knight coming to f6.
1-0
923
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

931 A25 29.e2

Dorfman,Josif D 2600 1-0
Kishnev,Sergey 2495
Bundesliga 2000-1 (9) 18.02.2001
[Tony Kosten] 932 A25
Dorfman,Josif D 2608
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7 Libiszewski,Fabien 2451
5.b1 a5 6.e3 d6 7.ge2 h5!? Monte Carlo MNC (5) 05.02.2004
[ An aggressive move that is popular in [Tony Kosten]
similar positions, a more positional approach
is 7...f5 8.d3 b4 9.e4 e6 10.0-0 e7 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 d6!?
11.a3 bc6 12.b4 axb4 13.axb4 0-0 A rare line, trying to speed-up the queenside
14.b5 b8 15.e3 d7 16.c2 c6 development,
W hite has no real advantage, Gulko,B- [ 4...g7 is normal. ]
Karpov,A/Moscow 1992. ] 5.b1 e6 6.b4! xc4?! A doubtful novelty.
8.h3 f5!? Previously Black had played
[ Black is really going flat-out! However, this [ 6...d7 7.b5 ( 7.a4 g7 8.d5 ge7
hyper aggressive novelty, also has its down 9.xe7 xe7 10.xd7+ xd7 11.d3 d5
sides, the kingside, and in particular g5, is is very nice for Black, Azmaiparashvili,Z-
loosened. 8...e6 9.d3 d7 10.d5 f6 Malaniuk,V/Moscow 1983) 7...d8 8.d4! f5
11.ec3 h7!? deters White from short 9.dxe5 dxe5 10.b3 f7 11.f3!
castles, Foisor,C-Ibragimov,I/Linares 1994. ] excellent! e4 ( 11...xc4? 12.a4 g7?
9.h4! Obviously White has to play this before 13.g5 wins the c4-bishop) 12.g5 e7
Black plays ...h4 himself. e6 10.b3 f4!? 13.0-0 f6 14.b2 with some advantage,
I suppose this is only to be expected from as the black pieces are misplaced, Smyslov,
Black's previous play! 11.exf4 g4 12.fxe5 V-Kupreichik, V/URS 1969. ]
dxe5 So, Black has the open d and f files to 7.a4 Menacing to win a piece in two ways,
play with, and controls d4. Still, a pawn is a and given as best by Gelfand, but
pawn! 13.d3 e4? [ 7.b5 is also effective: ce7 8.a4 e6
[ A sharp, if doubtful, tactic, but 13...ge7 9.xb7 b8 10.xa7 and White has an
14.g5 0-0 was a sensible alternative, extra pawn. ]
Black has some compensation. ] 7...e4 It is difficult to suggest anything better,
14.xe4 d4 15.f3! [ 7...e6 allows 8.b5 d4 9.e3 f5
[ 15.b2!? f3+ 16.xf3 xf3 17.0-0 10.xb7 b8 11.b6+! d7 12.bxa7! xa4
was another option, White is happy to give 13.axb8 xb8 14.c6+ xc6 15.xb8+
the exchange, and can easily defend his wining an exchange. ]
kingside light squares. ] 8.b5!
15...xf3+ 16.xf3 xf3 17.0-0 g4 [ 8.xe4 d5 is Black's idea, no doubt. ]
18.g5 Without having done anything special, 8...e5 9.xe4?! Simple, but White misses
White finds that he has an extra pawn, and a [ 9.d4! exd3 10.f4 which wins a piece for
large development advantage. e7 19.d2 limited compensation. ]
f5 20.f6+ xf6 21.xf6 0-0 22.xf5!? 9...d5
[ Simply 22.g5 is very strong. ] [ 9...d5! is stronger, and avoids problems
22...gxf5 23.h6 along the a1-h8 diagonal. ]
[ Black's weakening of his kingside returns to 10.b2 g7? It is surprising how many errors
h a u n t h i m . 23.g5+ f7 24.f1 ca n o ccu r in t h e o p e n in g d u rin g a ga m e
is also very unpleasant. ] between two very good players when there is
23...xf6 24.xf6 xd3 25.g5+ f8 no theory to follow!
26.e1 e4 27.f2 d8 28.c3 c2+?? [ 10...e7! is the best bet: 11.f4 ( 11.b6+!
[ An inexplicable blunder, 28...d4+ 29.e3 c6 12.xa7!? xa7 13.bxa7 d8
d7 keeps the game alive. ] 14.xe5 might be good for White, though)

924
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
11...d3+! the tactical point, 12.exd3 xd3
13.c1 xe4 14.xe4 f6 regaining the
piece on e4. W hite can try 15.b6+ c6
16.xc6 but after xe4+ 17.xe4+ dxe4
18.e6+ d7 19.xe4 axb6
White's advantage is minimal. ]
11.f4 After this Black is in real trouble. dxe4
12.xe5 xe5 13.xc4 d4 The only
reasonable try, if the bishop moves then Qxe4
is check and b7 will drop immediately
afterwards. 14.c2 d6
[ 14...g7 is slightly superior, 15.e3 d3
16.xd3 exd3 17.xb7 d8 but objectively
Black is lost here. ]
15.e3 c5
[ 15...d3 16.xd3 exd3 17.xb7 b8
18.e4 wins a second pawn. ]
16.xe4+ e7 17.f3!? The practical move,
but there was absolutely nothing wrong with
grabbing the second pawn by
[ 17.xb7 0-0 18.e2 ]
17...0-0 18.0-0 fe8 19.fc1
[ 19.xb7 is still good. ]
19...b6 20.c4 f5 21.h1 Played to free
the e-pawn's advance and avoid any tactical
tricks. White has an extra pawn and the better
position so Black decided to avoid wasting his
time! Two possible continuations:
[ 21.h1 e7 ( or 21...g7 22.e4 e6
23.f5 g7 24.d4 gxf5 25.e5 e7
26.xc7 with a trivial endgame win) 22.e4
h6 23.e5 g4 24.d4 and the bishop is
lost. ]
1-0
933 A25
Filippov,Valerij 2593
Volzhin,Alexander 2556
XIII Torre Open (5) 18.12.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 f5 4.c3 f6 5.e4 d6
5.e3 d5!? 6.xd5 xd5 7.cxd5 b4
The thematic point, Black threatens to
recapture on d5, but also to check on d3,
exploiting the slight weakening of the white
light squares on White's fifth move. 8.e4!?
[ A novelty, hanging on to the pawn by
8.b3!? is risky, e4 9.f3 d3+ 10.e2
c5 11.c4 b6 those light squares again!
12.b4 a6 13.b5 b7 14.fxe4 fxe4
15.xe4 forced, White cannot allow Black to
play ...Bxd5 for free, xe4 16.xe4+ e7
17.f3 xd5 18.g4 0-0 White's problems
on the light squares are worsening, 19.f1
, Pismenny,A-Zemerov,V/ Budapest 1994,
f6 with a clear advantage ]
[ 8.d3 is the safest, xd5 9.f3 b4+
10.d2 xd2+ 11.xd2 d6 12.0-0 0-0
13.ac1 e6 Black enjoys a comfortable
equ a lit y, Lo b ro n, E -S oko lo v, I / Nus s lo c h
1996. ]
8...f6?!
[ This is not sufficiently forcing. 8...d3+
9.e2 fxe4 10.xe4 c5 11.d3
offers reasonable positional compensation
for the (doubled) pawn. ]
[ but 8...c6! appears strongest, for if 9.dxc6
d3 threatens ...Nc2+. ]
9.d3 c5 Black plays for pressure on the f-
file. 10.f3 fxe4 11.dxe4 g4 12.a3 0-0
[ Better than 12...a6? 13.h3 when the pin
is broken, and White can consolidate. ]
13.axb4 xb4+ 14.f1 xf3 15.xf3 xf3
16.xf3 xf3 17.e3 a6 18.e2 af8
19.hc1 The backward c-pawn assures White
a positional plus. 3f7 20.f4 exf4 21.gxf4
e8 22.c4 a5 23.ac1 b5 24.d4 d7
25.f3 ed8 26.c6 White prepares his win
c a r e f u l l y. f8 27.d2 a4 28.dc2 b4
29.xc7 xc7 30.xc7 a3 31.bxa3 bxa3
32.a7 b8 33.e5
1-0
934 A25
Franco Ocampos,Zenon 2482
Akopian,Vladimir 2656
Anibal Open Linares ESP (10) 17.01.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7
[ A couple of my opponents have tried
5...d4 6.ge2 c5 completely closing the
centre, although W hite maintains a very
slight plus. ]
6.ge2 ge7 7.0-0?!
[ In the light of what follows, this may be
p r e m a t u r e . 7.d3 retains White's options,
and will lead to a normal position. ]
925
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
7...h5 A new move here, although quite
common in similar Botvinnik positions. 8.h4
White wants to stop the further advance of the
h-pawn, of course. d4
[ T h e i m m e d i a t e 8...g5!? 9.hxg5
is also possible. ]
9.xd4?
[ White doesn't want Black to establish a
p i e c e o n d 4 , b u t co n t r o l l in g g 5 b y 9.d3
was certainly safer. ]
9...exd4 10.e2 g5! 11.hxg5
Black f rees the d4-square f or his bishop.
12.f4 h4 13.h5 d4 14.f6+
[ 14.gxh4 g6 fails to stop the white king's
cover from disintegrating. ]
14...f8 15.gxh4 g6 16.h5 f4 17.f3
e2+ 18.h1 xf6
[ 18...xf6 19.gxf6 e8 is decisive, White
cannot stop Black from play ...Qe5, and ...
Rxh5+, mating the white king. ]
0-1
935 A25
Georgiev,Kiril 2676
Sokolov,Ivan 2659
Bosnia 2001 Sarajevo BIH (1) 13.05.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7
5.b1 f5 Typical reversed Closed Sicilian
play: Black expands on the kingside, but
concedes the queenside to White. 6.b4 a6
7.a4 f6 8.b5 The White queenside initiative
is well advanced, and he has yet to complete
his kingside development. axb5 9.axb5 e7
10.b3 d6 11.d3 0-0 12.f3 h8 13.0-0
W hite has brought his king to safety, and
Black must now find a good way of continuing
his kingside expansion. fg8!?
[ I really don't know what to make of this new
move. 13...h6 is more common, planning ...
g5, but the white queenside attack is very
fast, 14.c5! g5 15.b6! (hitting the pawn
chain at its base!) c6 16.a3 e8 17.cxd6
xd6 18.b4 Black's position is already
disintegrating, Anilkumar,N-Saravanan,V/
Calcutta 1993. ]
14.b2 f4 15.a1 b8!? Black prefers to
keep pieces on the board, and reasons that
the a-file is not too useful for W hite. 16.d4!
With his pieces perfectly developed, and the
black ones awkwardly placed, White strikes in
the centre. fxg3 17.hxg3 exd4 18.d5 c5
[ Black cannot hang-on to the d-pawn,
h4 18...f5 19.fd1 ge7 20.xd4
and W hite opens the a1-h8 diagonal,
whilst maintaining a structural advantage. ]
19.bxc6 xc6 20.fd1 e6 21.f4 f7
22.xd4 f6?!
[ A l l o wi n g a c o m b i n a t i ve li n e , 22...xd4
d3! 23.xd4 xd4 24.xd4 b5 is Black's best
chance. ]
23.xc6! xb2 24.xb2 xb2 25.xb8
xa1 26.d7 d8 So far all forced. 27.c5!
T h e k e y p o i n t , w i n n i n g m a t e r i a l . e5
28.xb7 e8 29.d5 h6 30.e3 b8
31.b6 f5 32.d7 c8 33.g4 h4
34.xe5 dxe5 35.d6 c7 36.xf7+ xf7
37.d8+ g7 38.d5 White's extra pawn,
and superior minor piece, is decisive. e7
39.c5 h5 40.gxh5 gxh5 41.c6
1-0
936 A25
Goganov,Aleksey 2590
Khismatullin,Denis 2680
Samara Polugaevsky Memorial 4th (8) 9.7.14
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 c6 3.f3 Presumably
White is aiming for a 4 Knights, but I would
avoid this particular move order myself, and
prefer
[ 3.g3 ]
3...f5 4.d3
[ 4.d4 e4 is critical, with a reversed French-
style setup, although we haven't looked at it
too much on ChessPub [A27]. ]
4...f6 5.g3 b4 6.g2?!
[ 6.d2 avoids the doubled pawns, and is
definitely best, as is the case with reversed
colours. ]
6...xc3+ 7.bxc3 d6 This is like a Reversed
Grand Prix Attack, which is generally thought
to b e qu ite go o d f o r W h it e (wit h c o lo u rs
reversed), but here does the extra move make
any difference? 8.0-0
[ 8.b3 b8 was Almasi, Z-Vallejo Pons,
from a few months ago. ]
8...0-0 9.b1 The rook goes to the open file,
926
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

to pressure the b7-pawn together with the fxg3?! 13.fxg4 gxh2+ 14.xh2 g6
bishops on g2 and hinders the development of 15.h3 Black doesn't have nearly enough
the c8-bishop. for the piece, Anwesh, U (2413)-Roshan, R
[ 9.c5!? is probably incorrect, but opens the (2062)/New Delhi 2012. ]
position for the bishops, d5 ( 9...dxc5!? 11.c2 b7
10.a3 d7 11.h4 with some initiative.) [ 11...d7 makes a lot of sense, 12.b4
10.c4 ( 10.d4 e4 11.e5 xe5 12.dxe5 xb4 ( 12...a5 13.d5 xd5 14.cxd5
g4 13.f4 b6 14.h3 h6 15.a4 e8 e7 15.c4 Cruz, F (2338)-Sustach, M
favoured Black in Wohl, A (2458) -Jones, G (2254)/Arequipa 2003, can be answered by
(2561)/Sydney 2010.) 10...dxc4 11.b2 f4 when White has no real counterplay.)
e7 12.a4 e6 1/2-1/2 Kosten, A (2535)- 13.cxb4 c6 14.xc6 xc6 15.b5 b7
Degraeve, J (2525)/Montpellier 1998. with a slight plus to Black has his minor
( 12...cxd3 13.exd3 and Rfe1 with play for piece is more useful in this closed position,
the pawn. )] Pfleger, H (2500)-Hort, V (2615)/Germany
9...e8 The queen heads for h5 "with a typical 1984/ GER-chT. ]
Dutch attack" - Alex. This position scores very 12.b4 a5 13.d5 Thematic, the knight
well for Black, his play is simpler, he will aim finally reaches its destination on d5.
f o r th e st an da rd . .. f 4 , .. .B h3 a nd . .. Ng4 . [ 13.f3?! also keeps the bishop pair on the
10.e1 Probably best, , heading for d5 via b4 board, Heinrich, P (2240) -Hughes, B (1920)/
o r e 3 , a n d p r e p a r i n g a p o s s i b l e f 4 . b6 Sa n t a Mo n ica 1 9 7 4 , b u t c5 is strong,
Playing in more positional style, Black 14.c2 d5 15.cxd5 xd5
protects the b-pawn and can try to exchange with advantage. ]
the light square bishops. The alternatives are [ P o s s i b l y W h i t e s h o u l d o p t f o r 13.g5
also good: and take on f6 - his dark-squared bishop is
[ 10...h5 continues the kingside build-up, no better than the knight. ]
11.f4 ( 11.c2 f4 12.e3?! g4 13.f3 fxg3 13...f7 14.xf6+ xf6 15.f3 f4
14.hxg3 Froitzheim, R (1870)-Witte, T So simple, White's structure is worse, and his
( 1 6 6 8 ) / T r o i s d o r f 2 0 0 8 , c8!? bishops stymied. 16.e4 ae8
with advantage.) 11...e4 12.c2 e8 [ 16...c8! looks good, stopping White's
and I would pref er to be Black, W hite's next. ]
extra tempo doesn't seem to help at all, 17.h3 h6 18.g4 g6 19.b2!
13.d4 xd4 14.cxd4 b6 ( 14...c6 15.e3 Swinging the rook to the kingside . fxg3!?
f7 also favours Black, he will gain the e4- Black decides to sacrifice the exchange to
square for his knight, Bagheri, A (2531)- 'prove' his advantage, but it would be better to
Gerard, N (2272)/Nantes 2003.) 15.e3 keep the position closed. 20.hxg3 h5
( 15.d5 looks right, followed by an eventual [ 20...c8 21.xc8 xc8 22.g2
Bb2. ) 15...xd1 16.xd1 d7 17.dxe4 is almost level, but Black certainly isn't
xe4 18.xe4 xe4 Black is slightly better, worse. ]
but the opposite colour bishops make this 21.f5 xf5!? 22.exf5 xf5 23.d2 e6
drawish, Dornieden, M (2279)-Ljubarskij, J Planning ...Rg6. Black has enough
(2338)/Dresden 2004. ] compensation with his light squared play, but
[ 10...b8 is slower, 11.c2 d7 12.b4 n o m o re a s is k n i gh t i sn ' t p a r t i c i p a t i n g .
( 12.e3 e7 13.d5 exd5 14.cxd5 b6 24.g5!? White switches to attacking mode,
15.f4 e4 16.c4 h5 Wang, H (2724)- it's possible that a shortage of time for one or
Vitiugov, N (2722) /Ningbo 2010, 17.dxe4 both players contributed to this decision.
fxe4 18.b2 is about equal, as g4 19.h3 [ 24.e3 g6 25.g2 h3 26.f2 f5
e3 20.d4 f5 21.c3 xe2 22.fe1 27.e3 with a likely repetition. ]
d3 23.g4 regains the pawn.) 12...e7 24...xd3 25.d8+?!
13.g5 c6 14.d4 g6 Ihsan, J (2166) - [ 25.xh5 i s s t r o n g e r , xc4 26.h2
Safin, S (2510)/Al Ain 2008, 15.c5!? ] looks dangerous ... for both players! ]
[ 10...f4!? 11.e3 g4?! ( 11...fxg3 ) 12.f3 25...h7 26.h2 xf3 27.g5 g6?

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Missing a trick. D (2217) -Sanzhaev, D (2056)/Kazan RUS

[ 27...f6! protects f3 and stops Qd8, 28.g4 2008, 13.b3! ) 13.xe4?! ( 13.d4!
( 28.xh5+ g8! 29.h2 xc4 30.hf2 opens the centre while Black is unable to
d5 and ...e4 with domination.) 28...g8! castle ) 13...f6 14.f3 e6? ( 14...h6 )
29.gxh5 ( 29.xh5?? loses on the spot to 15.d4! exd4 16.g5 f7 17.xd4 c6
xf1+ 30.xf1 xg4+ ) 29...f5 18.xe6 xe6 19.e1 and Black soon
an d with c4 d ro p ping B lack will ha ve 3 re si g n e d , W e b st e r, A ( 2 4 3 0 ) -V a n d e
strong pawns for the exchange. ] Berkmortel, T (2262)/ Sutton 1999;
28.xf3! xf3 29.xh5+ h6 Forced. C) 10...f6 the best way to solve the
30.xh6+ gxh6 31.xh6+ g8 32.e6+ problem of the loose knight,
White has a perpetual. g7 33.e7+ g6 C1) 11.b3!? 0-0 12.b2 aims for a nice
34.e6+ f6 35.g4+ f7 36.d7+ e7 Reversed Dragon setup, and would be
37.f5+ e8?? An awful blunder, any other my choice, e7 13.c2 d7 ( 13...b8
m o v e d r e w ! 38.g5 d7 39.f6! 14.e4 fxe4 15.dxe4 g4 16.h4
W a s t h i s t h e m o v e B l a c k m i s s e d ? h7 Stryjecki, M (2420)-Miton, K (2636)/
40.e6+ W arsaw 2005) 14.d2! ab8 15.c4
[ 40.e6+ f8 41.h6+ ] with a small plus, Markowski, T (2560)-
1-0 Miton, K (2592) /Poznan 2005;
C2) 11.b3 to hinder Black from
castling, e7 12.e4 fxe4 13.dxe4
937 A25 ( 13.g5!? exd3 14.e3 is fun, e4
Grischuk,Alexander 2720 15.d4 and White will recapture the
Cobbers,Martin 2102 pawns with an edge) 13...c6 to defend
Mainz CCM5 simul 08.2005 b7 laterally, and prepare ...Be6
[Tony Kosten] ( 13...f7!? 14.c3 h5 15.d2 0-0
16.f3 Gofshtein, L (2507)-Mitkov, N
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 f5 4.c3 f6 (2509)/Lisbon 1999) 14.e3 the most
5.e3 The natural move, White is ready to play logical, ( 14.g5 e6 15.c2 0-0
Nge2 which both defends the knight on c3 is nothing for White, Portisch, L (2600) -
(against ...Bb4xc3) and prepares d4 (against Polgar, S (2480)/London 1996,; 14.d2
...Bc5). Instead, I recommended c5!? 15.c2?! 0-0 16.b3 b6
[ 5.d3 in 'The Dynamic English', to avoid 17.f3?! a6 18.e1 g4
Black's next. ] was already crushing for Black, Ruck, R
5...d5!? This is the problem, the weakness of ( 2 3 6 0 ) - N a j e r , E / B r a t i s l a v a 1 9 9 3)
d3 allows Black to play an Open Sicilian-type 14...e6 15.c2 0-0 16.h3 h6 17.h4
position. 6.cxd5 b4 7.d3 bxd5 8.xd5 fe8 18.fd1 c7 19.f5 xf5
xd5 9.f3 The question is whether this is a 20.exf5 with advantage, Dzagnidze, N
good Sicilian position for Black (because of (2484)-Kovalevskaya, E (2471)/Mallorca
the potential weakness of d3) or for W hite 2004. ]
(active bishop on g2, pressure on e5). b4+!? 10.d2 xd2+
This allows Black to castle quickly, but also [ 10...e7 11.xb4 xb4+ 12.d2 e7
helps W hite as his undeveloped bishop is ( 12...xd2+? 13.xd2 and the e-pawn is
exchanged. lost ) 13.0-0 c6?! 14.e4! fxe4 15.dxe4 f6
[ 9...d6 is the main move, 10.0-0 16.c3 and the e-pawn is in trouble, d7
A) 10...c6?! 11.e4! fxe4 Velikov, P Schmittdiel, E (2387) -Giroux, F (2204)/
(2329)-Gerard, N (2283)/Angers 2006, is Avoine 2006, when White can brazenly play
met by 12.xe5! 0-0 13.dxe4 xe5 17.h3 0-0 18.fd1 ready to capture on d7
14.exd5 with an extra pawn; then on e5. ]
B) 10...e6?! also defends d5, but then 11.xd2 d6 12.0-0 0-0 At first glance this
11.e4! fxe4 12.g5 puts Black in all sorts position looks to be quite satisfactory for Black,
of trouble, g8 ( 12...d7?! Ospennikov, but he is slightly behind in development and

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

e5 is more exposed as there is no knight on anyway. 30.e6? A mistake but at this stage of
c6. 13.fe1! The key move, White threatens a simultaneous display it is normal to feel tired,
e4 to expose the e5-pawn. and play worse.
[ 13.a5!? b6 14.b5 c5 15.c4 e6 [ 30.d8+ f7 31.e6+ f6 32.f8+
16.g5 ad8 is fine for Black, Komljenovic, leads to mate. ]
D (2 4 2 5 ) -P s a k h is , L ( 2 5 6 5 )/ B e n a sq u e 30...h6??
1998. ] [ 30...g6! keeps the game alive, 31.d7 f8
[ 13.ac1 e6 14.g5 c6 15.xe6 xe6 32.h3 gxf5 33.xf5 xd7 34.exd7 e7
16.fe1 ad8 17.a5 a6 18.e4 although W hite should certainly triumph
is about level, Lobron, E (2590)-Sokolov, I after 35.xh7 ]
(2665)/Nussloch 1996. ] 31.d8+ h7 32.d7
13...f4! Taking the sting out of e4. [ 32.e4! ]
[ 13...e6 is the main alternative, 32...e8 33.f6 xe6 34.f7 f6 35.e4+
A) 14.e4! i s t h e m a t i c , fxe4 15.xe4 1-0
when f5 ( 15...f6 16.xe5 g4
17.e4 f6 18.d4 with a pawn more)
16.xe5 g4 fails to 17.g5! xf3 938 A25
18.xf3 xf3 19.xd5 b6 20.f1 xb2 Gurevich,Mikhail 2641
21.d7 menacing Qd5+; Gagunashvili,Merab 2472
B) 14.g5 ad8 15.e4 f6?! 3rd IECC Playoff (1.2) 27.06.2002
Mareco, S (2187)-Garcia, G (2453)/ [Tony Kosten]
B u e n o s A i r e s 2 0 0 5 , 16.xe6 xe6
17.exf5 xf5 18.xb7 xd3 19.e2 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7
with a structural plus. ] 5.b1 A popular and flexible idea, White
14.e4 wants to expand on the queenside, but keeps
[ 14.gxf4! exf4 15.e4 e7 16.d4 his kingside development plans hidden. a5
gives White a mobile centre, and a certain 6.d3 d6 7.e3 f5 8.ge2 f6 9.b3
edge. ] This piece set-up is a very popular one for
14...b6 W hite, but with the white rook on b1, and
[ 14...e7! m i g h t b e b e t t e r , 15.d4 black pawn on a5, it is even better, as, for
(else ...Nc6) g6 16.c3 exd4 17.xd4 one thing White doesn't have to worry about
e5 with a good hold on e5. ] tactics along the a1-h8 diagonal. 0-0 10.b2
15.c3 H i t t i n g e 5 a g a i n . e8 16.d4 e6 One of many alternatives tried by
The 'equalising' Sicilian move, but here it Gurevich's opponents here:
gives White the advantage. exd4 17.xd4 [ 10...h5!? 11.f3 ( 11.0-0 f4!
e5 18.ac1 c6 19.b3+ h8 20.f3 is the point) 11...e6 12.0-0 f7 13.g2
Freeing the e-pawn's advance. f6 21.e5 e8 14.d2 Gurevich,M-Ehlvest,J/ Reggio
e7 22.d4 e6? Emilia 1991, ]
[ 22...fxg3 23.hxg3 g4 is obviously better, [ 10...d7?! seems inferior, 11.d2 b8
but even so 24.e4 h5 25.f4 gives White 12.0-0 b6 13.be1!? planning f4, e4 h8
an obvious advantage, with the e and f- 14.f4 led to a nice victory for White in
pawns marching up the board. ] Gurevich,M-Kamsky,G/Reggio Emilia 1991. ]
23.xe6 xe6 24.xe6 xe6 25.gxf4 11.d5 Black was intending the freeing ...d5.
This leaves White with an extra pawn to add d7!? This appears logical, but is actually an
to his other plusses. d8 innovation:
[ 25...f8 was a better try, 26.h3 g6+ [ 11...f7!? intending 12...Nxd5 which, if
27.h1 xf4 28.e6 f8 29.e7 e8 played immediately would lose a piece,
30.cd1 winning easily, e.g. d5 31.xd5! 12.ec3 xd5 13.xd5 b8! 14.c3
cxd5 32.d7 ] c6= , Gurevich,M-Nikolic,P/ Antwerp 1997. ]
26.f5 e7 27.cd1 xd1 28.xd1 g8 12.0-0 h6 13.d2 White often plays these
29.f4 c4? But the position was hopeless opening moves fairly quickly, as his pieces

929
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

almost always go to the same squares. h7 ( 3.f3 c6 4.g3 This is one of the main
14.be1!? White intimates that he will play f4 lines, but now I have noticed that many top
and e4 to attack in the centre. ae8 15.ec3 players pref er to put their bishop on c5
b6!? I prefer rather than b4. c5 and theoretically, as far
[ 15...f7! so that if 16.b5 Black can play as I can tell, this line is fine for
xd5 17.cxd5 b4 ] B la c k(a lt h o u gh ve ry r ich in id e a s , a n d
16.b5!? certainly fine for W hite too).) 3...b4
[ 16.a3 is safer. ] is comfortable, because without the knight
16...c8?! This offers the exchange, on c6 Black can castle and play Re8, and
[ 16...xd5! is better, 17.cxd5 b4 18.c3 not only is Nd5 not such a big threat(knight
e4! and Black has dynamic compensation on c6 is not attacked after it is captured)
for the white bishop pair, in particular his but Black also has the option of c6 and d5,
knight threatens to land on d3. ] or of taking on c3 and then perhaps putting
17.xf6+ xf6 18.xc6! White boldly takes the b8 knight on a different route(e. g. d7-
t h e m o n e y. xc6 19.a7 f3 20.xc8 c5). ]
f4?! This threatens ...Bh3, and forces White2...c6
to exchange the queens! [ 2...f6 3.g2 Here is where Black would
[ 20...xc8 is better, although after 21.d4! sort of like to play Bb4, but it makes no
White is well on top, f4 ( 21...b7 22.d5 sense without a knight on c3 and putting the
and the long diagonal is closed.) 22.e2 bishop on c5 before White has played Nf3
b7 23.f3 h3 with some play for the runs into e3 and d4. c6 4.c3 b4
exchange. ] ( 4...c5 5.e3 intending Ne2. Now this line
21.e2 xe2 is not obviously bad for Black, and there
[ 21...b7? 22.xd6 cxd6 23.f3 are complications with Black playing d5
is much worse than the previous line. ] around here, but we will revisit that.) 5.d5
22.xe2 f3 23.d2 xc8 24.d4 e4 is probably somewhat better for White. ]
Black tries to keep the position closed, as the 3.g2 c5!? An interesting set-up against the
rooks can only function if they have open so-called 'Kostenites' i.e. those who rely on
lines. 25.c1 e7 26.c5! This is the problem, Tony Kosten's book on the English for their
White offers a temporary pawn sac to free the White opening repertoire and therefore begin
d and c-files. dxc5 with 2.g3 4.c3 a6 Perhaps not necessary,
[ 26...b5 might be a better chance. ] but
27.dxc5 xc5 28.d4! d8 29.dc2 xd4 [ 4...ge7 5.a4!? looked annoying. ]
[ 29...d6 is also insufficient: 30.xb6! cxb6 5.e3 d6 6.ge2
31.xc8 ] [ 6.d4!? exd4 7.xc6+ bxc6 8.exd4
30.xc7+ g7 31.xc8 d2 32.8c2 d7 looks too ambitious, but I must admit that it
Black could easily resign here. 33.c4 d2 scared me a bit at the time. ]
34.xe4 xa2 35.h4 g5 36.h5 b5 37.e7 6...ge7 7.0-0 0-0 So Black has achieved
a4 38.bxa4 b4 39.cc7 the solid Bc5 line set-up but now with his
1-0 knight on e7 the idea of e3 and d4 is not so
t h r e a t e n i n g . 8.d4 I wouldn't go so far as to
say this was a mistake, but it does make
939 A25 good sense of Black's piece set up, all of
Hanreck,Alan E wh ic h i s d ir e c t e d a t t h e d 4 s q u a re . I t i s
Rowson,Jonathan notable that the two top W hite players who
Brentwood Weekender 17.02.2008 have faced this line, Van W ely and Peter
[Jonathan Rowson] Heine Nielsen, have both preferred set ups
where d4 is delayed or avoided. After looking
1.c4 e5 2.g3 at these lines for a while, you find that it is
[ My understanding of these move orders is not so easy to play Black's position because
t h a t a f t e r 2.c3 f6 ( 2...b4!? ) 3.g3 unless W hite plays d4, the knight on e7 is

930
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

r a t h e r a w k w a r d l y p l a c e d . a7 9.d5 e8

I am not sure about this move. I suspect [ 26...cxd5 27.exd5 fxd5 28.xd5 xd5
whatever White gains is not as much as he 29.d1 e4 30.xe4 e6 is clever, but just
loses by making my bishop on a7 so enough for a draw. ]
influential. 27.dxc6? xc6 28.c1
[ 9.a3 exd4 10.exd4 f5 11.e3!? [ 28.d1 ]
not as bad as it looks- taking on e3 leaves 28...e6 29.d5? White was getting short of
white with some tender dark squares and a time, but this walks in to a lost ending. xd5
weakened king, but the bishop on a7 is a 30.exd5 xc1
little bit snuf fed, and white's remaining [ 30...b6 also looked good, but I couldn't
pieces are rather good. ( 11.xc6 bxc6 see any defence for him after what I did. ]
12.b4 is strategically critical, because if 31.xc1 f5 32.gxf5 gxf5 33.e2 e4
White gets c5 then my bishop will be snuffed 34.f4 f6 35.g3 e5 36.h4 f6 37.h5
out, perhaps forever. c5! comes just in time exd5 38.xd5 xd5 39.h6 f6?!
and after 13.bxc5 dxc5 14.d5 Black is [ 39...f4+ 40.h4 f6 41.g5 f3 42.h1
better, mainly because there is no f2 43.g2 e3 44.f1 h7+ 45.g6 f8+
convenient way to protect c4 (after ...Nd6) 46.f7 e6 an instructive little dance! It
and the bishop on a7 has a future on a5. )] seems I can win the pawn by force. ]
9...b8 10.b4 d7 11.h1 h5 I am not 40.h3 It now seems obvious that I should
sure about this move. play f4 while I had the chance, but at the time
[ 11...f6!? looks more flexible 12.e4 g4 I didn't want to commit myself. e7 41.f4
13.e1 f5 is a bonus. ] g6+ 42.e3 f8? To control h7, but...
12.e4 43.g2
[ 12.e4!? didn't occur to me, and is not [ 43.h7! We both completely missed this
very human, but actually quite annoying. ] move, which narrows Black's winning margin,
12...h4 13.d3 a5 though doesn't close it. xh7 ( 43...g6
[ 13...h3 14.xh3 c5 15.bxc5 xh3 44.d4 is tense. ) 44.f4 e3! 45.xe3
16.g1 xc5 17.g4 ] e5 should eventually win. ]
[ 13...g6 14.f4 hxg3 15.f5 f4 16.xg3 43...e5 44.h3 h7 45.f1 f4+ 46.d2
I found this position hard to judge, but Black f6
is probably ok. ] [ 46...f5 ]
14.a3 b6 15.e3 xe3 16.xe3 hxg3 47.h3 b6 48.b5 h7 49.d7 g5
17.fxg3 c6?! A bit too ambitious. I knew that 50.g4 f6 51.h5 h7 52.d1 g6
if the position were to open the bishop on g2 53.c2 f6 54.c3 xh6 55.d4 f3
and knight on e2 might look very badly placed, 56.e3 g5
and that is indeed what ultimately happened, 0-1
but I take too many liberties to achieve this
goal.
[ 17...axb4 18.axb4 xa1 19.xa1 c5 940 A25
is more solid. ] Hansen,Curt 2619
[ 17...f5!? was also a better move. ] Hodgson,Julian M 2596
18.c5 axb4 19.axb4 xa1 20.xa1 f6 Bundesliga 2000-1 (11) 11.03.2001
21.cxd6? [Tony Kosten]
[ 21.a8! I saw this, and wasn't scared, but
perhaps I should have been. ] 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7
21...xd6 22.c5 Superficially White is 5.e3 d6 6.ge2 h5 This aggressive
better, but keep an eye on the bishop on g2 response, is very popular, and White has to
and knight on e2- terrible pieces that struggle know how to handle it. 7.d4
to play a role. d8 23.h3 [ White replies in the centre, in classical
[ 23.a8 h7!= ] fashion, but 7.h4 is a sensible alternative. ]
23...g6 24.h2 g7 25.xd6 xd6 26.g4 7...exd4

931
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ The further advance of the h-pawn is the
main alternative, but allows White to play a
promising KI position : 7...h4 8.d5 ce7
9.e4 f5 10.g5 h3!? , Sokolov,I-Chernin,A/
Debrecen 1992, and now W hite pref ers
11.f1 with prospects of an advantage. ]
8.xd4 ge7 9.de2?!
[ White preserves pieces, and avoids the
exchange on d4, e.g. 9.h3!? xd4 10.exd4
f5 11.e4! 0-0 12.0-0!? ( 12.g5 )
12...xd4 13.g5 f6 14.xd4 fxg5
15.d5+ h8 16.xg5 f6 when Black's
bishops promises him good play, Geller,E-
Kholmov,R/Moscow 1964. ]
[ However, 9.xc6 is more popular. ]
9...h4 The critical reply, before White can play
h 3 , o r h 4 . 10.0-0? This is really asking for
trouble, but W hite obviously feels that his
kingside is easily defendable. hxg3 11.hxg3
h3 12.xh3 xh3 13.f4
[ White has difficulty opposing rooks on the
open h-file, i.e. 13.g2? d7 14.h1 xh1
15.xh1 0-0-0 and ...Rh8. ]
13...h7 14.c5 A desperate attempt to open
the position, but it is not as if W hite has a
development advantage. xc3! 15.bxc3
dxc5 16.f3 d7 17.a3 0-0-0!
[ W hite was hoping for 17...b6 18.ad1
, although even here Black has no
problems. ]
18.ad1
[ This fails, but recapturing the pawn allows
Black a winnin g at tack: 18.xc5 e5
19.e4 7c6 20.d4 f5 21.g2 g5 etc. ]
18...e5 19.e4 xd1 20.xd1 xd1+
21.g2 7c6 The exchange of two rooks for
the black king has done nothing to dampen
the black attacking prospects. 22.h3
[ Hopeless, but 22.xc5? f5 23.c2 dh1
forces mate. ]
22...b6 23.g4 b7 24.g3 f5 25.gxf5 gxf5
26.xf5 g7+ White must jettison material to
avoid mate.
0-1
941 A25
Hulak,Krunoslav 2566
Almasi,Zoltan 2630
TCh Pula CRO (1) 10.09.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7
5.e3 d6 6.ge2 h5 7.d4 h4
[ T h e a l t e r n a t i v e 7...exd4 fared well in
Hansen,C - Hodgson,J. ]
8.d5 Gaining space, and taking play into a
type of KI position. ce7 9.e4 f5 10.g5 h3
11.f3
[ Personally, I feel that the bishop can be
awkwardly placed here, and I prefer 11.f1!
f6 12.exf5 ( Chernin indicates 12.d2
xe4 13.xe4 fxe4 14.c3 followed by
the recapture on e4 with a positional
advantage because of Black's 'KI bishop'.
One possible continuation: g4!? 15.e2
f3 16.xf3 exf3 17.d3 but this doesn't
look to be too clear to me .) 12...gxf5
13.d2 a6 14.f3 d7 15.g1 and the h3-
pawn was a problem, Larsen, B-Karlsson,
L/Copenhagen 1985. ]
11...f6 12.0-0 0-0 13.d2!?
[ A novelty, but it allows some interesting
tactics. 13.h1 seems safer, removing the
bishop from the f-file, h7 14.e3 g5?!
15.exf5 xf5 16.d2 g4 17.e4 e7
18.b3 c5 19.f3 gxf3 20.xf3
when White's space, and possession of e4,
give him an edge, Comas Fabrego, L-Gual
Pascual,A/Terrasa 1995. ]
13...h7! 14.e3 f4! 15.gxf4 exf4 16.d4
[ 16.xf4? g5 wins a piece, and this is why
White hastened to move the bishop from f3
in the previous note. ]
16...h6 17.c5!? Possibly White was worried
about Black playing ...c5 himself, but putting
his king in the corner, and bringing a rook to
the g-file, may have been better. g5 18.h1
f7
[ 18...f3 19.g3 leads nowhere, the knight
has no useful discovered attack. In fact, its
real destination is f7, to control e5. ]
19.cxd6 cxd6 20.d3 h7 21.fe1 e5!?
22.xe5 dxe5 23.ad1 g8 24.d6
T h i s p a wn s e e m s s t r o n g . f6 25.f3
Now that the f-file is closed this is a much
safer square for the bishop, of course. d7
932
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

26.d5 xd5 27.xd5 g7 28.h1? enough that its soundness isn't in question." -
[ Pawn-hunting by 28.xb7!? b8 29.xa7 John Watson.
xb2 30.h1 was worth consideration. ] [ The text certainly does score much better
28...b6 29.f1 than the routine 5...0-0 ]
[ 29.g1 might be the best move, but it is
[ and 5...d6 . ]
difficult to admit one's mistake. ] 6.cxd5 b4 7.f3!? A novelty. Chucky
29...ac8!? ignores the light-square weaknesses and
[ 29...xb2 is possible, although 30.b1 carries on with development, leaving Black to
a3 31.b3 xa2 32.c3 a6 33.e2 weigh the ramifications of this decision. A
gives White some initiative. ] strategy well-suited to the time control, I'd say!
30.d3 f6! Out-of-the-blue the d-pawn is
[ The main continuation is 7.d4 exd4 8.exd4
being rounded-up. 31.c3 xb2 32.d5 e7 , i.e. Sarakauskas, G (2414)-Kiik, K
f7 (2452)/Jyvaskyla 2006/[John Watson] and
[ Preferring to avoid opposite-colour bishops Rogozenco, D (2577)-Parligras, M (2377)/
after 32...xd6 33.f6+ xf6 34.xd7 ] Iasi 1999/[TonyK]. ]
33.b1 d4 34.b3?! [ White also often chooses 7.d3 , aiming for
[ 34.xd4 exd4 35.xb7 a reversed Sicilian-type position after bxd5
offers better
chances. ] 8.xd5 xd5 9.f3 . This quiet approach
34...e6 35.bd1 c5 36.d3
has some venom. One recent example: ( or
White defends the d6-pawn with tricks, but it 9.a3 ) 9...b4+ 10.d2 xd2+ 11.xd2
shouldn't hold-out for long. c4!? d6 12.0-0 0-0 13.d4! e4 14.e5 f5
[ 36...d8 37.d2 fd7! 15.fc1 e6 16.c5 f6 17.ac1 c6
( 37...xd6
38.f6+ xf6 39.xd6 xd6 40.xd6 18.b4 d7 19.xd7 xd7 20.f1 a6
is p la ya b l e f o r W h i t e) 38.b2 21.c4 xc4 22.1xc4 ad8 23.a4
b6
and the pawn is lost next go. ] Vachier Lagrave, M (2699) -Hunt, A (2462)/
37.b1 c6 38.c7 d7 39.g1 f8 Caleta ENG 2012. ]
40.c1 d4 41.b3 With a passing threat of 7...d3+ Svidler "calls."
capturing the loose rook on f7. f6 42.d5 [ It's a close decision between the text and
fxd6 43.cd1 xf2 44.f6+ xf6
7...f5!? . Following 8.0-0 c2 ( 8...c2?
45.xd7+ g7 ...Rc2 is the nasty threat, and 9.e4+- ) 9.e1 d3 ( 9...e4!? ) 10.e2 0-0
White is quite lost. 46.d1 f3 Now, ...Qg2+ is White can begin the process of untangling, i.
threatened. 47.d3 c3! 48.xg7+ e. 11.e1 xe1 12.xe1 e4! 13.c4
[ 48.xc3 g2+ 49.xg2 fxg2+ 50.g1 e7 14.a4 xa4 15.xa4 ]
f1# would be a nice way to finish (for
[ Natural is 7...e4 , but 8.e5! isn't too
Black!) ] promising for Black. ( 8.g5!? obviously
48...xg7 49.d7+ f7 50.xh3 xg1+! comes into consideration as well. )]
[ 50...xg1+ 51.xg1 f2+ 52.f1 xh3 8.e2 f5?! Now this isn't such a good idea.
is quite hopeless. ] [ 8...xd5! w a s n e c e s s a r y . 9.a4+!?
0-1 ( clearly not 9.xd3?? f4+ with mate to
come ) 9...d7 10.e4 xc3+ 11.dxc3
( 11.bxc3!? ) 11...xc1+ 12.hxc1 f6
942 A25 13.d1 gives White a semblance of an
Ivanchuk,Vassily 2769 initiative, though the position remains fairly
Svidler,Peter 2749 balanced. ]
World Rapid Final (15) 08.07.2012 9.a4+! A disruptive check. c6?!
[John Bartholomew] [ Black can't claim much compensation after
9...d7 10.c4 xc1+ 11.hxc1 d6
Ivanchuk's innovative 7.Nf3!? catches Black 12.f1 , but maybe this was the best
off-guard in this unbalanced line. 1.c4 e5 practical chance. ]
2.g3 c6 3.g2 f6 4.c3 c5 5.e3 [ Similar is 9...f8 10.c4 d6 11.e4
d5!? "This move has been around long xc1+ 12.hxc1 . ]

933
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
10.h4! Svidler begins to realize that he's
been caught wrong-footed by his wily
opponent. xc1+? Essentially losing.
[ 10...b5! was the last chance to make a
mess of things. Then 11.b3 c8 12.e4!?
xc1+ 13.axc1 g4+ 14.f3 d7
leaves W hite in control, but not without
plenty to consider. ]
11.hxc1 g4+ 12.e1 Of course. White
has no interest in blocking the h1-a8 diagonal.
b5 A day late and a dollar short! 13.xb5!
cxb5 14.xb5+ d7 15.xc5 0-0 16.c3
Th e re st is ea sy, even u nd er a f ast tim e
control. b8 17.c4 f6 18.b3 c8
19.b4 b8 20.a4 d7 21.c4 c8
22.d3 b8 23.f5 b5 24.c2 g6 25.a4!
gxf5 26.axb5 e4 27.f1 xd5 28.c5
As a su rp rise wea po n 7. Nf 3! ? wo rked t o
perfection in this encounter. It looks legitimate,
so keep an eye out for further developments.
1-0
943 A25
Ivanov,Alexander 2395
Razuvaev,Yuri S 2465
URS-ch FL46 Ashkhabad (13) 1978
[Nigel Davies]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7
5.b1 a5 6.a3 f6 7.e3 I don't like this
much in this position.
[ I think White has several very reasonable
moves that prevent a Black central
expansion, for example 7.d3 and ]
[ 7.e4!? will both do the job quite nicely. ]
[ Another possibility is 7.b4 , looking to
consolidate the centre after this queenside
expansion. W hat he should avoid is axb4
8.axb4 0-0 9.b5? e7 when Black is
getting ready for a quick ...d7-d5. ]
7...0-0 8.ge2 d6 9.d3 e7!?
An interesting plan, aiming to play ...c7-c6 and
...d6-d5. It goes without saying that if Black
achieves this without making serious
concessions elsewhere he will have a very
comfortable game. 10.e4?! Razuvaev's reply
gives him a good position.
[ If White wants something here he should try
10.d4! a f t e r w h i c h f5 ( 10...c6!?
is probably better ) 11.e4 is quite good. ]
10...c6 11.d4 d5! 12.exd5 exd4 13.xd4
cxd5 14.cxd5 exd5 15.0-0 xc3 16.bxc3
d5 17.d2 a4 18.e1 a6 19.f3?!
[ 19.e4 was better. Black's reply takes the
initiative. ]
19...xc3! 20.xc3 xd4 21.bd1 d6
22.b4 f6 23.e4 xf2+ 24.h1 xe1!
25.xd8 xb4 26.d1?
[ 26.d4 is better after which e7 27.xf8+
xf8 28.g4 h6 29.h4 g5 30.xa4
will probably lead to a draw. ]
26...xa3 27.xa4 c5 28.a1 f2
29.e5 b6 Now Black has more than enough
for the queen and with a little help from his
opponent grinds out the win. 30.h3 h5 31.f1
xf1+ 32.xf1 e6 33.f6 a8 34.g4
hxg4 35.hxg4 a4 36.e2 a2 37.d8+
g7 38.d1 e3 39.d3 g5 40.g1 f6
41.f1 a1+ 42.f2 a2 43.f1 b2
44.d6 g5 45.c6 b4 46.e1 e5
47.f3 b1+ 48.e2 b2+ 49.f1 b5
50.e2 b4 51.e4 c3 52.c4 b1+
53.f2 e1 54.c6 c1! 55.e4 xc4
[ After 55...xc4 56.xc4 e1+ the queen
is lost. ]
0-1
944 A25
Kortschnoj,Viktor 2643
Kasparov,Garry 2827
Korchnoi Birthday KO (1.2) 29.04.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 3.e3!? An unusual
move, recommended by John Watson many
years ago, but it has never caught on. c6
4.d4!?
[ Sensible, yet 4.ge2 (taking the sting out
of an eventual ...Bb4) or ]
[ 4.a3 (aiming for a reversed Sicilian) are
more usual. ]
4...b4 5.d5 xc3+ 6.bxc3 e7
Aiming for a Nimzo-style position, but White
has other ideas. 7.d6!?
[ White attacks on the dark squares,
previously other moves had been tried, i.e.
7.e4 d6 8.f3 0-0 9.e2 d7 10.g4 c5
giving Black a reasonable Nimzo, Garcia
Gonzales,G-Bronstein,L/Rio de Janeiro
1979. ]
934
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
7...cxd6 8.xd6 a5 9.b4 c7
Obviously Black cannot iron-out the white
pawn structure by capturing on b4. 10.a3
c6 11.b1 d6 12.d3 a5! Black plays
with great precision. 13.xd6? Too optimistic,
W hite is obliged to sacrifice the exchange.
f5! 14.xf5
[ There is little choice, 14.d2 e4 ]
14...xc3+ 15.e2 xa1 16.f3 d8
17.c5 White has trapped the black king in the
centre, but it is obviously not enough,
especially as the white king is hardly ideally-
placed! xa2+ 18.d2 d5 19.g4 g6
[ Not bad, but 19...c3+! 20.d3 a4
is instantly decisive. ]
20.d3 d4+ 21.e1
[ Awkward, but 21.exd4? f4+ wins the
queen. ]
21...xd6?! Hardly necessary. 22.cxd6 a1+
23.b1 a5+
[ Kasparov decides to give a half-point as a
70th birthday present! 23...b4 24.d1
dc2+ is still very good for Black. ]
24.d1 a4+ 25.e1 a5+
½-½
945 A25
Kosten,Anthony C 2551
Touzane,Olivier 2350
Montpellier (3) 06.07.2002
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 g6 2.g3 g7 3.g2 e5 4.c3 c6
5.e3 I decided to play the 'Staunton set-up'
(double fianchetto, and the knights on e2 and
c3) just as in the Gurevich game this month,
but
[ 5.b1 might be a more accurate way to do
this, enticing Black to play ...a5 and
removing the white queen's rook from the
a1-h8 diagonal. ]
5...f5 6.ge2 f6 7.d3 0-0 8.b3 e4?!
Bla ck t ries t o e xp lo it t he we aken ed lon g
diagonal but W hite f orces a positionally-
advantageous structure whilst avoiding any
tactics. 9.a3! Simple and good,
[ 9.dxe4 fxe4 10.xe4 xe4 11.d5+ f7
12.xe4 wins a pawn, but allows Black
some play on the light squares. ]
9...exd3
[ 9...e8 10.0-0 d5!? was a more principled
choice, 11.cxd5 xd5 12.xd5!? ( 12.c1
xc3 13.xc3 xd3 14.xd3 exd3
15.d5 d8 16.fd1 is a calmer choice)
12...xa1 13.xa1 xd5 14.dxe4 fxe4
15.c3 f5 16.d1 leads to a lot of fun for
White, who ca n combine threats to the e4-
pawn with mating possibilities along the
a1-h8 diagonal. ]
10.xd3 e8 11.0-0 We reach a structure
that is known to favour White - he has good
squ a re s o n d 5 a n d f 4 f o r h is kn igh t s . b6
12.ad1 b7 13.d5! An important point,
the knight closes the diagonal for the b7-
bishop, Black dare not capture the knight as it
opens the c-file against the c7-pawn. e4
14.c2 d6 15.b2 d7!? 16.f3 This is the
dif f e rence be twee n W h ite's square s an d
Black's - th e black knights can eas ily b e
driven from e4 and e5. c5 17.b4
[ 17.f6+?! xf6 18.xf6 xe3
favours Black. ]
17...e6 18.f4! Re-opening the g2-bishop's
diagonal. This time
[ 18.f6+?! xf6 19.xf6 allows xb4 ]
18...a5 19.a3 Of course White cannot
advance the b-pawn as it would concede the
c5-square to Black. f7
[ 19...axb4 20.axb4 a2 21.ec3
leads nowhere. ]
20.ec3 It seems that White gives-up on his
efforts to play a knight to f6, but has he? ad8
21.g4! Unexpected and strong! a8
[ 21...fxg4 allows White to bring another
knight to f6: 22.e4 h8 23.g5 xg5
( 23...d7 24.b5 a7 25.f6 xg2
26.xd7 wins ) 24.fxg5 e6 ( 24...d7
25.f6 c8 26.xe8 is crushing) 25.xc7
xe3+ 26.h1 e7 27.xd6! ( 27.d5
is a good alternative, gaining an exchange)
27...xb2 ( 27...xd6?? 28.f8#;
27...xc7?? 28.xd8+ xd8 29.f8# )
28.xb2+ e5 29.xe5+ xe5 30.df6!
and the threat to capture a piece on c6
cannot be successfully countered. ]
22.gxf5 This was a difficult decision, as
[ 22.g5 e7 23.f6+ xf6 24.gxf6
was also very promising. ]
22...gxf5
[ 22...xf5 allows 23.e4 ]
23.f3! Crude but effective! The rook swings
935
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
over to g3 to put further pressure on Black's
dark-squared bishop. f8 24.g3
[ 24.b5 is also quite good, d7 25.xg7
xg7 ( 25...xg7 26.c3+ winning. )
26.g3 g6 27.xf5 is very good fro Bulmaga, I (2258)/Albena 2010, 1/2-1/2
White. ]
24...e6 I had expected
[ 24...g6 although 25.b5 is winning (2584)/Copenhagen 2010, 0-1 (51).) 11.f4
much as in the last note. ]
25.xc7! The most elegant. d4!
[ 25...xc7 26.d5 wins on the spot, both
Nxc7 and Rxg7+ are menaced. ]
26.xd4 xc7 27.b5 e7 28.xa8
One of a number of wins here, perhaps
[ 28.xd6! is the best: exd6 ( 28...xe3 5...a5
29.xf5 e1+ 30.f1 ) 29.xd6 g6 weakens b5.
( 29...xd6 30.xg7+ is no improvement)
30.xd8+ and White is a rook to the good. ]
28...xa8 29.g2 Hitting a8. g6 The only
chance.
[ 29...b8 30.xd6 g6 31.xf5
is obviously hopeless, and ]
[ 29...xe3 is simply countered by 30.xg7+!
xg7 31.xg7+ xg7 32.e4+ ]
30.xa8! After Black's checks run out he will main position. ) 6...d6 7.ge2 0-0
resign: xe3+ 31.f1 xg3 32.hxg3 xd4
33.d5+! e6 34.xd4 d3+ 35.g2
1-0
946 A25
Kosten,Anthony C 2455
Velten,Paul 2429
TCh-FRA Top 12 2014 (11.7) 03.06.2014
[Kosten, Tony]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 f6 4.c3 c5
According to Jonathan Rowson: "theoretically,
as far as I can tell, this line is fine for Black
(although very rich in ideas, and certainly fine
for White too)." Which seems about right. 5.a3
In his GM Repertoire book Marin considers
this move dubious, and prefers
[ 5.f3 transposing to a 4...Bc5 Four Knights,
see Istratescu-Navara, this month. However,
he later wants to play a3 and b4 anyway, so
this makes no sense. ]
[ 5.e3 would be nice, if it weren't for d5
6.cxd5 b4 see the Archives for some
examples. Still, I was tempted to try this as
White gets some very, very slight advantage
anyway, after, for example 7.d4 ( or 7.d3
bxd5 8.xd5 xd5 9.f3 ) 7...exd4
8.exd4 e7 9.d6!? xd6 ( 9...xd6 10.a3
c6 11.ge2 0-0 12.0-0 Raeva, E (2286)-
(40). ) 10.ge2 c6 ( 10...f5 11.0-0 c6
12.a3 bd5 Jepson, C (2394)-Hector, J
as analysed by Marin. d8 12.0-0 0-0
13.e5 bd5 14.b3 b6 15.f4 g4
16.ad1 xe5 17.dxe5 c7 18.e6
( 18.fe1 g4 19.c1 Marin. ) 18...g5
19.ce2 Bacrot, E (2709)-Gelfand, B (2733)/
Odessa 2007, 1/2-1/2 (51). ]
Radically stopping b4, but this move
[ 5...a6 immediately (or later), might be
better, preparing a retreat square for the
dark square bishop, although the downside
is it allows W hite to expand on the
q u e e n s i d e . 6.e3 ( of course, White can
always transpose back into 4 Knights lines
anyway by, say 6.d3 d6 7.f3 h6 8.0-0
0-0 9.b4 a7 10.b2 reaching Marin's
A) Marin only gives 8.b4 a7 9.0-0 f5
( or 9...e7 10.b2 c6 11.d4 ) 10.d4
( 10.d3 d7 ) 10...e8 11.h3 exd4
12.exd4 d7 13.h2 h6 14.e3 d8;
B) 8.h3 a7 9.d3 is another, more
flexible approach.;
C) 8.0-0
C1) 8...a7 9.d4 ( I mentioned 9.f4!?
in 'D E ', b u t i t n e ve r r e ce i ve d m u c h
testing. ) 9...exd4 10.exd4 h6 11.h3
e8 12.b4 ( 12.e3 e7 plans ...d5,
Tallarico Tallarico, O (2216)-Korneev, O
( 2 5 8 3 ) / M o n d a r i z 2 0 0 2 , 0 - 1 ( 3 1 ) .)
12...e7 13.c5 c6 14.f4 probably
a b o u t e qu a l a s B l a c k c a n b r in g h i s
bishop into play via b8, Reinderman, D
(2560)-Quick, S (2197)/Canberra 2009,
1-0 (57).;
C2) 8...f5 9.d4 a7 10.h3 ( not 10.b4
d7 and ...Bh3. ) 10...e8
C2a) 11.d5 e7 ( 11...b8 12.e4
g6 13.b4 bd7 14.d3 1-0 (39)
Af ek, Y (2 301 )-L ampe rt, J (22 67)/
Haarlem 2012.) 12.e4 d7 13.d3
1-0 (36) Edouard, R (2607)-Lampert, J
(2205)/Deizisau 2012.;
936
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
C2b) 11.g4!?;
C2c) 11.h2 h6 12.b3 exd4
13.exd4 e4 14.e3 1/2-1/2 (23)
Sielecki, C (2424)-Scheerer, C (2140)/
Heringsdorf 2000. ]
[ 5...0-0 could transpose if Black plays a
quick ...a6 or ...a5, 6.e3 d6 was already
played by my opponent a couple of times:
7.ge2 ( 7.b4 b6 8.ge2 a5 9.b5 e7
10.0-0 e6 11.xb7 b8 12.g2 xc4
13.d3 e6 14.d4 0-1 (72) Pogorelov, R
(2403)-Velten, P (2385)/San Sebastian
2013. ) 7...f5 8.d3 ( 8.d4 b6 9.b4 a6
10.h3 must be better with the bishop on b6.)
8...h6 9.h3 a6 10.g4!? a nice kingside
plan, h7 11.g3 b8 12.h4!? h8
13.b4 ( 13.g5 g8 ) 13...a7 14.b2 e7
15.g5 fg8 with sharp play in Wohl, A
(2362)-Velten, P (2422)/Naujac sur Mer
2013, 1/2-1/2 (72). ]
6.e3 d6 7.ge2 I like this setup for White, for
several reasons, one being, as I mentioned in
'DE ' : " W h i t e c a n st a rt a s t ro n g k in g sid e
initiative with f4-f5, h3, g4 as the f2 pawn's
advance is unhindered." 0-0 8.0-0
[ W hite can also play the immediate 8.h3
and then d3, g4, f4, etc., but it makes sense
to play d4 and chase the bishop back. ]
8...f5
[ 8...e8 is another good move, 9.d4 ( 9.d3
g4?! 10.h3 e6? 11.d4 won material in
Grivas-Miles, Komotini 1992.) 9...a7 10.h3
h6 11.b3 d7 12.h2 c8 13.b2
( 13.d5?! was Psakhis, L (2598)-Janev, E
(2445) in the Archive.) 13...e4?! 14.c2
f5 15.ac1 h5?! (to stop g4, but the cure
is worse than the disease) 16.d5 h7
17.ef4 g5 18.e2 and Black is almost
lost, Kosten, A-Janev, E/Aurec 2001. ]
[ 8...g4 is actually the most played move,
but after 9.h3 the bishop has to go back,
h5 ( 9...xe2?! 10.xe2 is clearly good
for W hite, Lie, E (2266)-Meyer, F (2348)/
G a u s d a l 2 0 0 3 , 0 - 1 ( 6 0 ) .; 9...e6?
is a known b ut quite com mon, blunder:
10.d4 exd4 11.exd4 and Black loses a
piece, Czebe, A (2496)-Frink, F (2239)/
Zalakaros 2004, 1-0 (25), as a7 12.d5;
9...f5 loses a move on the mainline, 10.d4
b6 11.g4!? g6 12.f4! Garcia, H-Saadi, J
Cordoba 1970, 0-1 (36).) 10.g4 g6 11.d4
a7 12.b4 ( 12.f4! ) 12...axb4 13.axb4
with advantage, Trauner, R (2233)-
Waldmann, G (2153) Austria 2006, 1-0 (69),
as xb4? 14.xb7 ]
[ 8...e6? aga in lo se s a p ie ce t o 9.d4
and this has occurred a number of times! ]
9.d4
[ 9.d3 is worse here, d7 and ...Bh3. ]
9...a7
[ 9...exd4 10.exd4 a7 11.h3 transposes
below. ]
10.h3! A necessary move, otherwise Black will
play ... Qc8 (or maybe ...Qd7) and exchange
the light square bishops with ...Bh3. Further
White may harbour aggressive intentions on
t h e k i n g s i d e w i t h g 4 , N g 3 a n d f 4 . h6
A logical move, preparing a luft for the f5-
bishop, and also ... exd4 without having to
worry about Bg5 after. Alternatives:
[ 10...exd4 11.exd4 e8 ( 11...h6 12.g4
h7 13.b5 b6 14.ec3 e8 15.e3
with more space, Miezis, N (2557)-Nikolajev,
D (2325)/Riga 2012, 1-0 (63).) 12.g4! e4
( 12...g6 13.e3 ) 13.xe4 xe4
14.c3! xf2?! 15.xf2 xd4+ 16.g3
e5+ 17.f4 f6 18.d2? ( 18.xc6 bxc6
19.d2 sh o u l d wi n .) 18...g5! 19.xe5
xe5+ 20.f2 c5+ 21.g3 e5+
22.f2 c5+ 1/2-1/2 Frumkin, E (2029)-
Hess, R (2439) New York 2007. ]
[ 10...h5!? 11.h2 d7 12.d5 xd5
13.cxd5 e7 14.e4 g6 15.f4 f5 16.dxe5
dxe5 17.fxe5 fxe4 18.f4 Favoured White,
Skembris, S (2420)-Botsari, A (2335)/Athens
1996, 1-0 (36). ]
11.h2 It was a morning game, and I just
wanted to play 'simple chess', so protected h3
and moved the king off the g1-a7 diagonal as
a precautionary measure. It turns out that this
is a novelty.
[ 11.d5 (I don't like this move in such
positions myself) e7 12.e4 d7 13.h2
g6 14.f4?! ( 14.d3 ) 14...exf4 15.xf4?!
xf4 16.xf4 e7 17.d2 ae8
e5 and e4 are weak, as are W hite's dark
squares, Serafimov, D (2157)-Van Elst, A
(2258)/Condom 2006, 0-1 (43). ]
11...e8 12.b3 exd4 13.exd4 e4
Black's play is very logical, he uses the e4-
square to exchange some pieces.
[ If 13...h7 then I was planning to play
937
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

14.b5! b6 15.ec3 and Na4, 29.e6 g6 30.f4! Stopping ... Ne5 and ...f4
embarrassing the b6-bishop. Curiously, the ideas. g8 31.c2 h8 32.e2
idea came to m e f rom a game I h ad a s Tripling the heavy pieces again. f6
Black against Tony Miles 30-odd years ago, [ 32...h7? 33.g5+ hxg5? 34.h5#
with the same queenside structure where he was one idea. ]
h a d p l a y e d t h i s wa y . I t h i n k I a c t u a l l y 33.d4 f7 34.h5 f6 35.h4! Preparing a
managed to draw, and stop him winning the later h5 and Re7, Black is totally passive and
G ra n d P rix, b u t n o t a f t e r c o n sid e ra b l e c a n o n l y a w a i t t h e i n e v i t a b l e e n d . . f7
suffering. ] 36.e2 c8 37.h5 f8 38.e7 g8
14.e3 White has more space and a small 39.d3 g5 Desperation.
advantage, while Black must find a way to [ I was e xpe ct in g 39...h7 to defend f5,
bring the a7-bishop into the game. b8!? when 40.b5 ( 40.g2 leaves Black in
Played to reposition the knight and continue ... some sort of zugzwang, the only move to
c6. 15.xe4! avoid immediate material loss is g8 when
[ 15.b5 d7! 16.xa7 xa7 and it didn't 41.c6 h8 42.a7 d8 43.xc7 )
s e e m t o m e t h a t m y e 3 -b is h o p wa s s o 40...g8 41.xc7 starts taking some
useful. ] material. ]
15...xe4 16.xe4 xe4 17.c3 e7 40.xf5 gxf4 41.g7!
[ 17...e8 18.g4 h8 ( 18...e6 [ 41.g7 xg7 42.xg7 xg7 43.e7+
t r a n s p o s e s t o t h e g a m e .) 19.ae1 g8 ( 43...f7 44.xf7+ xf7 45.f5+
with advantage, d7?! 20.f3! forking f7 forks king and rook. ) 44.gxf4 and Qg3+. ]
and b7. ] 1-0
18.g4 Menacing to take on h6, perhaps. e6
[ 18...d7 i s m o r e n a t u r a l , 19.ad1
( 19.xh6 f5 20.g5 xd4 21.d5 f7 947 A25
22.xd8+ xd8 23.ad1 might also be a Macieja,Bartlomiej 2607
bit better for W hite.) 19...f6?! 20.f3 Pavlidis,Antonios 2478
and this time b7 and h6 are threatened. ] GRE-chT 42nd (5.3) 01.07.2014
19.d5! I was happy to gain a small but sure [Tony Kosten]
positional advantage, while avoiding any
sharp tactics. g6 20.e4 xe3 21.xe3 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.c3 c5
d7 22.ae1 This position is very pleasant 5.e3 An interesting choice, this move is by far
for White, he has more space and controls the the most popular here even though it is not
only open file. In the meantime the g6-rook is considered very accurate. d6
offside, has no easy route back into play and [ We have only looked at the critical 5...d5
must beware f4-f5 and Ne4. f5?! To play ... previously, I wonder what Maiceja intended
Rf6-f7, but now the weakness on e6 is a 2nd against this? ]
serious problem for Black. In my opinion he is 6.ge2 f5 Logical.
now already lost! [ Marin looks at both 6...a6 7.0-0 0-0 8.d4
[ He suggested 22...h5 in the post mortem, a7 9.h3 ]
to hide the rook on h6, but 23.e2 c5 [ and 6...0-0 7.d4 b6 8.0-0 ( 8.b4 )
24.e4 xe4 25.xe4 f6 26.fe1 8...e8 in his book. ]
keeps Black passive, g5 27.f4 f5 7.d4 This exposes the drawbacks to the . ..
28.e7 ] Bc5 lines, the bishop is a target for the white
23.e2! f6 24.f4 f8 25.e2 pawns. I remember Alekhine considering them
Preparing to triple the heavy pieces on the e- weak for this reason. b6 Not a very good
file. d7 26.fe1 f7 27.c3! b6 square, which is why Black often prefers an
Solid, but now he loses any possibility early ...a6 so the bishop can retreat to a safer
(however slim) of creating some counterplay. s q u a r e o n a 7 . 8.b4! If this is good, then it
28.e3 I was in no rush, the game should 'win seems critical, White threatens to suffocate
itself '. This prepares R1e2 and Qe1. h7 the b6-bishop with c5.

938
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
[ 8.0-0 allows d7 stopping h3, ( 8...0-0
9.h3! ) 9.dxe5!? xe5 10.xb7
11.g2 xc4 12.d4 g4
Khasin, A (2503)-Gubajdullin, A (2305)/St
Petersburg 1999, e5 ]
[ 8.a3 see ms unn ece ssa ry, a5
transposing to 5 a3 lines. ]
8...d7 Probably best, supporting the knight
on c6.
[ 8...a6?! was the only previous try, giving
the bishop some room, but 9.c5!
10.xc6+! bxc6 11.dxe5 e4!? ( 11...dxe5
leaves no way for the a7-bishop to escape.)
12.exd6 cxd6 13.d4 g5 14.f4 h3?!
15.e4! xe4 16.xe4+ Black is in a bad
way, Kuljabin, V (2360)-Cisler, P (2165)/
Klatovy 1997. ]
[ 8...a5!? is risky: 9.b5 b4 10.0-0 b8
(t o d e f e n d b 7 ) ( 10...c2 11.e4
12.xe4 xa1 13.b2 favours W hite.)
11.e4 ( 11.a3 d3 might be OK.; 11.h3 )
11...g4 12.d5 and a3 will win material. ]
[ 8...xb4? is im possible : 9.a4+ c6
10.d5 ]
9.a3 Defending b4 and renewing the threat of
c5.
[ 9.c5?! i s n o t h i n g : dxc5 ( or 9...exd4
10.xd4 dxc5 11.xc6 bxc6 12.a4 0-0;
9...xb4?! 10.cxb6 c2+ 11.f1 xa1
12.xb7 d8 13.bxa7 ) 10.dxc5 xb4 ]
9...a5
[ If 9...a6 10.c5 a7 11.a4 is awkward. ]
10.b5 d8 11.h3! A key move in such
positions (see my game with Velden last
month, for another example), both stopping
the simplifying ...Bh3 and preparing kingside
e x p a n s i o n . h5 T o s t o p g 4 . 12.a4
I like W hite's extra queenside space and
f l e x i b l e p a wn f o r m a t io n . c6?!
Eyeing d6 and supporting the c5 advance.
exd4 14.xd4 c5 15.xc5 Simple and
good.
[ 15.bxc6 bxc6 16.xf5 xf5 17.b5
also wins material. ]
15...dxc5 16.xf5 xf5 17.d6!
White is already winning. c8 18.0-0 e6
19.xc5 d7 20.a7
[ 20.d4 0-0 21.fd1 f6 should also
win. ]
20...0-0 21.xa5 xc4 22.e4 White is a
good pawn up with the better minor pieces.
e6 23.bxc6 xc6 24.xh5 a8 25.g5
b8 h6 26.xh6 gxh6 27.e4 This is now a
13.c2 formality. a5 28.fb1 a6 29.b5 c8
30.d1 c7 31.xa5! xa5 32.xd7 xd7
33.f6+ f8 34.xd7+ e8 35.f6+ e7
9.0-0 36.g8+ f8 37.xh6 b6 38.c6
1-0
948 A25
a7 McNab,Colin Anderson 2416
Hodgson,Julian M 2640
MSO Ron Banwell mem (5) 24.08.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.c3 c5
5.a3
[ To control the b4-square, as the obvious
xe4 5.e3 allows d5 6.cxd5 b4 as we have
seen before. ]
5...d4!?
[ A speciality of Julian Hodgson. Stopping b4
by 5...a5 is the normal reply, when White
can continue 6.e3 and Nge2. ]
6.c2
[ A very sensible reply, the Scottish GM
wishes to avoid doubled c-pawns, and so
d e f e n d s c 3 w i t h h i s q u e e n . 6.d5
had been preferred in the game Spraggett,K-
Hodgson,J/ W innipeg 1997, which
continued: 0-0 7.f3 b6 8.d3 h6 9.0-0
d6 10.xb6 axb6 11.b3 with a plus to
White. ]
6...xc3 Anyway! 7.xc3 d5 8.b4!?
[ White refrains from playing a reversed
Sicilian position after the natural 8.cxd5
xd5 9.c5 ]
8...0-0 9.b2 e8 10.d3 a5!
13.a3 [ W h i t e w a s c l e a r l y h o p i n g f o r 10...d4
leading to a Benoni structure in which he is
well-versed, but, instead, Black embarks on
a sharp tactical operation to exploit the
white king's extended stay in the centre. ]
11.b5 d4 12.e3 a4! Of course, the d4-
knight is untouchable f or the moment, so
Black prepares a strong square for it on b3.
13.f3?
[ White brings a deluge down upon his head,
there was still time for 13.cxd5 i.e. xb5
14.c5 with balanced chances. ]
13...h3! Undermining the f3-knight's support
939
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

in the most dramatic way. 14.xh3 xf3+

8.ge2 Transposing to the mainline, but
15.e2 [ 8.fxe5!? i s t e m p t i n g : e8 ( 8...xf2+
[ 15.f1 dxc4 16.dxc4 e4
9.xf2 e4+ 10.e1 f2 leads nowhere
is also awkward. ] a f t e r , s a y , 11.h5 ) 9.f3 ( is Black's
15...d4+ The knight turns to this apparently
compensation sufficient after 9.xc6!? dxc6
inhospitable square, but Black has to achieve 10.d4 ? ) 9...d6 10.d4 xd4? 11.xd4
something quickly, for otherwise White's two xe5+ 12.e3 g4 13.c2 won easily in
bishops will prove usef ul. 16.f1 b3
Andrade,J-Santos,A/ Odivelas POR 2000. ]
17.d1 c6 To open a queenside file for the 8...d6 9.0-0 This is good, although I
rook. 18.bxc6 bxc6 19.c2 d4 20.e4? recommend
[ [ 9.h3 e8 10.e4 in my book, as I don't
Closing the position does nothing to help
the white bishops, 20.g2 seems better. ] like committing the white king too early
20...b8 21.g2 c5 The knight finally
here. ]
reaches a safe square, and what a strong one 9...e8 This is the standard manoeuvre in all
it is too! The threat of infiltration along the b-
these lines, the queen heads for the kingside.
line is difficult to counter. 22.he1 b3
10.e4! This is known to be best since:
23.g1 h5 24.e2 a5 25.c1? [ 10.a4?! d4! 11.xd4 exd4 12.h3
[ White overlooks a tactic, but after 25.f1 ( 12.a3 a5 13.b3 and White managed to
eb8 26.d2 the white position is near
draw in Karpov,A-Bellon Lopez,J/Madrid
breaking-point anyway. ] 1973 ) 12...h5 13.a3 a5 14.b3 g6
25...xd3! 26.d2 and Black won a beautiful game, see Saidy,
[ Of course, if 26.xd3?! xd3 27.xd3? A-Fischer,R/New York 1969. ]
then xe1+ 10...xe4 11.dxe4 h5 12.h1 Played to
but White could just as well
resign. ] unpin the f-pawn so that White can repel ...
26...c5 27.f1 xc4 28.g5 b2
Bg4 with f3. f6 Black's play is direct, but this
29.xc4 xc4 30.xf6 gxf6 31.d7 d8 m a y we ll le a d t o a qu ick m a t e a ga in s t a
32.xc6 At least one of White's bishops has
w e a k e r o p p o n e n t ! 13.f5!? A new move,
found some activity, but it is far too late tocovering h6.
save W hite. xa3 33.a1 xa1 34.xa1 [ 13.c3 g4?! ( 13...xd1 14.xd1
c8 35.xa4 a8 Pinning, and winning. xf2 ) 14.f3 h6 15.h4 e6
36.a2 d3 Oepen,L-Hermann,T/Germany 1987, and
[ White loses a piece after 36...d3 37.f1 now 16.d5 looks good. ]
( 37.b3 xa2 38.xa2 d2 39.b3 b2 ) 13...g6! Black forces open the f-file. 14.fxg6?!
37...d2 38.e2 xa4 39.xa4 d1+ A risky reply, better
40.xd1 b2+ ] [ 14.e3 when White's position is
0-1 preferable. ]
14...xf2? A pity,
[ 14...g4 was the right way to continue:
949 A25 15.d5+ ( 15.f3 xf3! 16.g1 xf1
Miezis,Normunds 2523 17.gxh7+ xh7 18.xf1 g7 with threats
Simonsen,Olavur 2265 of ...Rf8, and ...Rh8.) 15...h8 16.c3
Troll Masters (2) 08.01.2003 xf2 which is dangerous for White, e.g.
[Tony Kosten] 17.f4? xf4! 18.gxf4 g3 winning. ]
15.d5+ h8 16.f4! The e-pawn is pinned
Fischer's pawn sacrifice is rarely seen these along the rank. h6 17.d3 And now the
days, but still contains a lot of venom. 1.c4 b i s h o p i s p i n n e d . f8 18.g5 f3
c6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 f5 4.g2 f6 5.d3 W ith a very, very tiny hope that W hite will
c5 6.e3 f4?! Fischer's famous pawn sac, capture the rook! 19.xf2 xf2 20.xf2
borrowed from the similar line with colours xf2 21.f1
reversed. 7.exf4 0-0 1-0
[ 7...d6! is more accurate. ]

940
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
950 A25
Moor,Roger 2360
Gallagher,Joseph G 2514
Christmas Open (3) 27.12.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 g6 2.g3 g7 3.g2 e5 4.c3 c6
5.b1 f5 6.d3 d6 7.b4 f6 8.e3 0-0
9.ge2 g5!? Very aggressive, Black plays for
out-and-out attack on the kingside. 10.b5
e7 11.f4 A standard device, White doesn't
want to let Black play ...Ng6, and ...f4, himself,
wh e n h e r is k s b e in g m o wn - d o wn o n t h e
kingside, so stops the pawn's advance. h6
[ Keeping the tension, 11...exf4 12.exf4
( 12.gxf4!? ) 12...g4 13.0-0 h5 14.e1 h4
should favour W hite, Lange,C-Rechel,R/
Kassel 1996. ]
12.d4!?
[ A new idea, 12.0-0 e8 13.b3 g6
14.d5 xd5 15.xd5+ h7 is not so
clea r, J an s en , C-A ub el, J/ NLD-ch T 94 9 5
1994. ]
12...e4?!
[ 12...gxf4 13.exf4 e4 14.d5!? followed by
Nd4, is interesting. ]
13.fxg5! hxg5 14.h4 White thereby gains the
f4-square for his knight. gxh4 15.f4!?
[ Sacrificing a pawn for a square, 15.xh4
g6 limits White's advantage. ]
15...hxg3 16.ce2 e8
[ Perhaps Black should try to evacuate his
king by 16...f7!? 17.xg3 e8 ]
17.xg3 g6 18.gh5 xf4 19.xf4 f7
20.f1 g4 21.e2 c6 22.h5 a6 23.b6
d7
[ Blac k ha s to b e very ca re f u l, 23...h6?
24.xg4 xf4 25.exf4 fxg4 26.g5+ h8
27.d5 and Bb2 wins. ]
24.d2 fd8 25.xg4 fxg4 26.d5!
The diagonal must be opened. cxd5?!
[ 26...c5 would at least keep d5 out of
White's hands. ]
27.g5 f6??
[ Presumably a time-trouble blunder, 27...f8
28.a3 f5 29.xd5 xd5 30.xd5 e6
is uncomfortable, but it may be possible to
hold it. ]
28.xd5+ f8 29.b2
1-0
951 A25
Movsesian,Sergei 2647
Acs,Peter 2548
FIDE WCh KO Tripoli LBA (2.2) 22.06.2004
[Tony Kosten]
1.g3 e5 2.g2 c6 3.d3 g6 4.c4 g7
5.c3 d6 By transposition we arrive at a
standard Closed English. 6.e3 ge7 7.ge2
h5 We have already examined this idea with
the white d-pawn on d2, which gives W hite
the possibility of playing d4. 8.h3 d7!?
As far as I can see a new move, Black wants
to play .. .Qc8 and a ttack the h3-pawn t o
hinder White from castling.
[ 8...e6 has the same idea, but is met by
9.d5 which eyes c7, d7 10.d2 a6
11.b3 b8 12.b2 Sokolov,A-Bern,I/
Cappelle la Grande 1994. ]
[ 8...h4 is clearly critical, 9.g4 f5 10.gxf5
xf5 11.d5 d7 12.ec3 0-0-0
with sharp play, Otero,E-Pecorelli Garcia,
H/Cienfuegos 1991. ]
9.d2 White often plays this move first to
protect c3 and avoid tricks along the a1-h8
diagonal, but I don't think it is necessary here,
as there is nothing wrong with
[ 9.b3 ]
9...c8 10.b3 d8 11.b2 This is the
standard white set-up in this line, a piece
formation that has been popular since first
played by Staunton. It is true that here White
cannot castle, but he often retards castling in
this line, waiting to see how Black places his
pieces and adapting his subsequent play
a cco rd in gly. 0-0?! 12.g4! Perhaps Black
should have thought twice about castling
kingside too! h4 Black elects to keep the h-file
closed, he hopes to open the kingside later
with ...f5, but his h-pawn will prove a problem.
[ 12...hxg4 13.hxg4 xg4 wins a pawn, but
is very risky, 14.0-0-0 c6 15.f3 e6 16.f4
planning moves like Rdg1, Qe1-h4, etc., with
a strong attack. ]
13.d4 White is still hesitant about castling, first
he gains space, and makes sure that he has
plenty of central play to dissuade Black from
a kingside attack. a5 14.f4 Another typical
move in this line, which has the advantage of
stopping Black from playing ...f5-f4.
[ 14.a4 is also a good idea, stopping Black's
941
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

qu e en s ide pla y, t h e wea kn ess o f b4 is 10.0-0 g7 11.e3 ( Or 11.a3 0-0

irrelevant. ] 12.b3 g4 13.d5 xd5 14.cxd5 b6
14...a4 15.bxa4!? exd4 16.xd4 dc6 15.c4 b7 16.ac1 f7 17.c2 c5
[ 16...xa4 17.f3 wins the h4-pawn. ] A.Perkins-J.Tarjan, Graz 1972, and now
17.0-0 As so often in this particular line, White 18.xc5 dxc5 19.a5 ) 11...0-0 12.b3
castles quite late, and only when he has g4 13.a5 a6 14.d2 c8 , so far F.
maximised the possibilities of his pieces. a5 Svoboda-J.Simek, corr 1996, and now:
The c-pawn is weak, but relatively easy to 15.c5+ e6 16.b4 ( 16.a3!? ) 16...axb5
defend, and difficult to attack. 18.d3 e8
17.cxd6 cxd6 18.fc1 ]
19.ae1 White continues to strengthen his [ B) 8...h6 9.0-0 ( Another interesting try is
position, grabbing the h-pawn by 9.d4!? xc4 10.dxe5 g7 11.0-0 xb5
[ 19.f3?! is worse, c6 20.xh4 xg2 12.xb5 xb5 as played in V.Privalov-A.
21.xg2 e6 with lots of counterplay
Zajarnyi, Lvov 1998, and now 13.a3 dxe5
against the weakened white queenside. ] 14.b1 a6 15.b3 e4 16.d2 f5
19...ac6 The attack on the c-pawn has not 17.c4 offers White excellent compensation
amounted to too much, and so Black decides for the pawns) 9...g7 10.e4 ( 10.b2!? )
to exchange some pieces to get some room to 10...e7 11.a4 0-0 12.d2 f5 13.d5 c6
breathe. 20.e2 xd4 21.exd4 c6
14.xe7+ xe7 , H.Hoffmann-T.Escher,
Targeting d4. 22.e4! The knight aims for the Germany 1990, and here 15.h4 f6
kingside, suddenly the black pieces seem far 16.exf5 xf5 17.xf5 xf5 18.e2 h7
away. xa4 19.ab1 ]
[ 22...f5 is tempting, but ... 23.g5! xe2 [ C) 8...g7 9.g5!? e4 ( Or 9...f5 10.e4
24.xe2 fxg4 25.d5+ h8 g4 11.f3 e6 12.e3 ) 10.b2 exd3
26.f5!
a n d B l a c k i s l o s t , e . g . xf5 11.xd3 a6 12.h4 axb5 13.cxb5 e7
27.e1
(threatening Qxh4+) g3 28.f4 h6
14.d2 ( 14.h5!? is another fun line, so
29.xh4 g7 30.xc6 and d5+. ] f orgive me f or taking the ana lys is a bit
23.d5 The point, the f6-square beckons. b4 longer than can reasonably be expected to
24.d1 f6 The situation is grim. be accurate: d5 15.0-0-0 f5 16.e4 g4
[ 24...xb2 25.xb2 and there is no defence 17.f3 d4 18.fxg4 xg4 19.f3 dxc3
against the threats of Nf6+, Black must lose 20.h3 h6+ 21.b1 xg3 22.hxg6
an exchange. ] xg6 23.xc3 f6 24.hg1 f7 25.d7+
[ 24...d8 controls f6 for one move, but then f8 26.xd8+ xd8 27.xd8+ e8
comes 25.g5 ] 28.xe8+ xe8 29.e6+- ) 14...0-0 15.h5
25.a3 a6 26.xf6+ xf6 27.xf6 xe2 gxh5 ( 15...h6 16.xe6 xe6 17.d1 e8
28.xe2 e8 29.f2 Black must have been 18.hxg6 fxg6 19.0-0 ) 16.xh5 f5
rueing putting his h-pawn on h4! xa3 30.e1 17.e4! ( 17.d5!? xb2 18.xb2 xd5
[ 30.xh4 19.xd5 e8 20.c4 e5 21.d1+- )
immediately is also winning, of
course. ] 17...g6 18.xh7+- xh7 19.xh7+ h8
1-0 20.0-0-0 g8 21.h1 h6 22.d5 f6
23.e4 xa2 24.xh6 xh6 25.xh6 g7
26.h4 1-0 Tigran V. Petrosian-Y. Estrin,
952 A25 Moscow 1968 ]
Navara,David 2720 9.xh3 xh3 10.d4! g7
Ledger,Andrew 2413 [ Black recently tried 10...f6 and obtained a
4NCL 2006-07 (11) 07.05.2007 quick draw, but analysing the few moves
[Carsten Hansen] they played reveals that Black is on his
heels in this line too: 11.e3! g7 12.dxe5
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 d6 4.c3 e6 dxe5 13.a4 b6 ( 13...f7 14.e4 c8
5.d3 d7 6.b4 g6 7.b5 d8 8.f3 h3 15.d1 ) 14.d5 ( 14.c5 c8 15.d1
[ The alternatives for Black also offer White e7 16.g4 e6 17.c4+- ) 14...e6
the better chances: A) 8...f6 9.a4 e7 15.a3 ( 15.d1! f7 16.c5+- ) 15...f7

942
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

16.d1 f8 17.b2 A.Colovic-D.Otero, 953 A25

Havana CUB 2007 ( 17.b3!? )] Pelletier,Yannick 2624
11.dxe5 Hansen,Sune Berg 2537
[ 11.d5!? ] Bundesliga 2002-3 (15) 30.03.2003
11...e6? [Tony Kosten]
[ After this move, Black is on the brink of
d i s a s t e r . A b e t t e r m o v e i s 11...dxe5 1.c4 c6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 g6 4.g2 g7
though after 12.b2 f6 13.d3 ( 13.a4 ) 5.e3 d6 6.ge2 e6 This move is similar to
13...f7 14.a3 c6 15.bxc6 bxc6 16.b1 the 5 Be3 line that is currently 'all the rage' in
( 16.e4 c8 17.0-0 ) 16...e6 17.e4 the Closed Sicilian, Black wants to force White
White is much better. ] to defend his c-pawn when he will continue
12.d5 w i t h . . . Q d 7 a n d p o s s i b l y . . . B h 3 . 7.d4!
[ Or 12.b2!? dxe5 ( 12...0-0-0 13.d5 This temporary pawn sac, f irst played by
dxe5 14.a4+- ) 13.d5 f6 14.a4 f7 Botvinnik over 60 years ago, is the critical
15.d1 ] reply. d7 Black prefers to keep the position
12...0-0-0?! closed.
[ 12...dxe5 is marginally better: 13.g5! [ 7...xc4?! is generally considered a
( 13.b2 f6 14.a4 is less convincing) mistake: 8.d5 xe2 ( 8...ce7 9.a4+ b5
13...g2 14.f1 c8 15.a4 e7 16.b6+ 10.xb5 is very good for White; 8...b8
c6 17.bxa7 0-0 18.b1 , and White is 9.a4+ b5 10.xb5 xb5 11.xb5+ d7
winning ] 12.e4 likewise, Botvinnik,M-Levenfish,G/
13.a4 dxe5 14.e3 e4 Leningrad 1937 as W hite's light-squared
[ Or 14...f6 , and now 15.b6! completely bishop will be too strong) 9.xe2 b8
c r u s h e s B l a c k : axb6 16.xe5! b8 10.b5+ d7 11.xb7 a6 ( 11...b8?!
17.xb6 c5 18.b1+- ] 12.xa7! c5 13.a5! the only move, but
15.0-0-0! exf3 good f5 14.0-0 and Black had insufficient
[ 15...xd5? 16.g5! xg5 17.b6 c6 compensation, King,D-W olff,P/New York
18.bxa7+- ] 1990 ) 12.c6 e7 13.c4 0-0 14.e4 f5
16.xa7 15.0-0 with a white positional advantage
[ Another winning line is 16.b6 a6 17.bxc7 because of the open c-file and bishop pair,
xd5 18.e8+ xc7 19.cxd5 d4 Suba,M-Karlsson,L/Las Palmas 1982. ]
20.xf7+ e7 21.xd4 xd4 [ 7...exd4 8.xd4 d7 ( 8...xd4 9.exd4
22.xe7++- ] d7 10.0-0 e7 11.e1 0-0 12.d5 f5
16...d6 17.b6+ cxb6 18.xd6 e5? 13.h3! is very nice for White, Quinteros,M-
[ 18...fxe2 represents a better chance as it Ho rt , V / V in ko vci 1 9 7 0) 9.0-0 ge7
complicates matters considerably, yet White 10.de2! otherwise Black can capture on d4
still wins: 19.xb6 f1+ 20.c2 d4+ when he likes, 0-0 11.b3 c8 12.b2 h3
21.xd4 e1+ 22.d1 d3+ 23.xe1 13.xh3 xh3 14.f4 d7 15.e2
h6 24.c5+ b8 25.xg7 e8+ 26.e5 with an edge to White, Delchev,A-De Vreugt,
e4+ 27.d2 xe5 28.xe5 xe5 D/Ohrid MKD 2001. ]
29.e1+- ] 8.d5
19.c6+!? [ 8.0-0 c8 9.d5 h5 10.ec3
[ Elegant, but 19.a8+! c7 20.xb6 d8 is also perfectly reasonable, Krasenkow,M-
21.d1 wins even faster ] Fritsche,L/Germany 1993/GER-chT. ]
19...bxc6 20.bxc6 d8 21.a6+ b8 8...ce7 9.c5!? A sharp novelty.
22.xb6+ c8 23.d1 c7 24.a6+ b8 [ 9.e4 would be 'normal', f5 10.f4 h6
25.xd8+ 11.fxe5 dxe5 12.0-0 f7 13.c5
1-0 with advantage, Kennedy,M-W alls,B/IRL
1992. ]
9...f6 Black decides to avoid the challenge,
[ 9...dxc5!? puts White's move to the test,

943
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

10.e4 b6 11.d6 c6 12.2c3 f6 954 A25

13.b5 cxd6 14.bxd6+ is unclear, as Psakhis,Lev 2598
although the black king has been forced to Janev,Evgeni 2445
move, and the white knight is in the heart of Open Ubeda ESP (8) 28.01.2001
the black position, Black has a solid pawn [Tony Kosten]
structure, and a pawn more. ]
10.b3 b8 11.cxd6 cxd6 12.a4 0-0 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.c3 c5
13.e4 A King's Indian position has been 5.a3
reached. h8 14.0-0 c8!? [ This is my personal preference, 5.e3 allows
[ 14...e8 and ...f5 seems more normal. ] d5!? see the archives. ]
15.f3 g8 16.e3 h6 17.f2 Naturally 5...a5
White doesn't want to swap his better bishop. [ Hodgson's 5...d4!? was considered
f5 18.exf5 gxf5 19.f4 This is a standard previously. ]
method of treating such positions, which is 6.e3 0-0 7.ge2 d6 8.d4
helped by the presence of the white knight on [ T h i s i s g o o d , a l t h o u g h 8.d3
e 2 - t h e b l a c k p a w n s a r e b l o c k e d . f6 is more flexible. ]
20.h1 g4 21.g1 e8 22.ae1 h5 8...a7
This looks menacing, but White can defend [ Best to keep the central tension. 8...exd4?!
easily. 23.c4 b6 24.b4 c8 25.b5 9.exd4 a7 frees the c1-bishop, 10.0-0
f6?! Both defending d6 and hoping to bring g4 11.h3 h5 , Rehorek,L-Rehorek,R/
this piece to h6 as the black attack is in need Brno 1999, would tempt me to play 12.g4
of reinforcements, however, g6 13.f4 h6 14.f5 with a wonderful
[ 25...xb5 might have been a better idea to position. ]
avoid losing the a7-pawn. ] 9.h3 e8
26.f3 g7 27.ec3 After considerable [ Theoretically this seems to be a new move,
manoeuvring White finally threatens to capture although, curiously, Black played it against
on e5, and forces the pawn to advance. e4 me recently! W as it before, or after, this
28.xg4! Players don't normally like game? 9...h6 10.0-0 exd4?! 11.exd4 e8
exchanging their fianchettoed bishop, but here 12.h2 f5 13.b4! axb4 14.axb4 xb4
its counterpart is blocked by the black pawn 15.xb7 c2 16.a4 won an exchange for
chain. xg4 29.xa7 And White wins a White, Chabanon,J-Caposciutti,M/Cannes
pawn for no compensation. e8?! 1995. ]
[ 29...xa7 30.xa7 g8 31.f2 h6 10.0-0 h6 11.b3 d7 12.h2 c8 13.d5?!
offers better chances. ] [ I don't really like this move myself, White
30.c6! h5 Black threatens ... Qf3+ with a ga in s e ve n m o re sp a ce, b u t o p e ns t h e
nasty smothered mate, but it is easily avoided, g1-a7 diagonal. I preferred 13.b2 e4?!
and then Black can resign. 31.d4 h3 14.c2 f5 15.ac1 h5?! (to stop g4, but
32.g1?! the cure is worse than the disease) 16.d5
[ 32.xf6 xf6 33.f2 appears even h7 17.ef4 g5 18.e2 and Black is
stronger. ] almost lost, i.e. g6 19.h4 f3+ 20.xf3
32...g6 33.e3 f3 34.fxf3 bxc6 exf3 21.xf3 e4 22.xh5 e7
[ 34...exf3? 35.e8# ] 23.xe7+ xe7 24.d5 f8 25.g4
35.xg7+ , Kosten, A-Janev, E/Aurec 2001, and White
[ 35.xb8?? xd4 would completely turn h a d t h e a t t a c k t o a d d t o h i s e xt r a t wo
the tables! 36.xc8+? g8 37.xc6 exf3 pawns! ]
and mate follows. ] 13...e7 14.e4 g6 15.d3 c6 16.e3
35...xg7 36.xb8 exf3 37.c7+ h6 If W hite must exchange his 'better' bishop,
38.xf3 h5 39.e3 The knight on c8 is lost. then Black should be fine. xe3 17.xe3
1-0 cxd5 18.xd5 xd5 19.cxd5 b5 20.fc1
b7 21.b4 e7 22.d2 a4 23.c3 f5

944
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
24.d1
½-½
955 A25
Rahman,Ziaur 2465
Kortschnoj,Viktor 2659
Goodricke Open (1) 06.02.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 c6 3.g3 b4!?
[ An unusual move, Black plans to capture on
c3 and double the white c-pawns. 3...g6
is normal here, of course. ]
4.g2
[ White is happy to allow Black to concede
his dark-squared bishop. The alternative is
4.d5 c5 ( 4...f6!? 5.g2 0-0 6.a3
c5 7.b4 d4 8.b1 d6 9.e3 b6
10.e2 looks to be very promising for White,
Miles,A-Rossiter,P/ GBR 1999.) 5.g2
ge7 6.e3 xd5 7.cxd5 b4 8.d4 exd4
9.exd4 d6 10.a3 a6 11.e2 c6
12.c3 cxd5 13.e2+ e7 14.xe7+
xe7 15.xd5+ with an edge, Balashov,Y-
Pribyl,J/Schwaebisch Gmuend 1998. ]
4...xc3 5.bxc3 f6
[ A n a t u r a l d e ve l o p i n g m o ve , b u t 5...d6
is more flexible, so that Black can play ...
Nge7, if he wants, and the f-pawn is
unhindered, e.g. 6.f3 f5 7.d3 f6 8.0-0
0-0 9.g5 e8 1/2-1/2 Cvek,R-Jovanovic,Z/
Patras GRE 1999 (9) ]
6.e4! A fine move, the white pawns will act as
a barrier to the black bishop. normally this
position is reached from a different move-
order, 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.g3 Nc6 4.Bg2 Bb4
5.e4 Bxc3 6.bxc3 etc. 0-0 7.e2 d6 8.d3
e8 9.0-0 f5 Black plays the same plan as in
the Nimzovich Variation (1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.
Nf3 Nc6 4.e4), but here the white knight is on
e2, instead of f3, and this may prove
important. 10.exf5 xf5 11.h3!
[ Careful play, the immediate 11.f4?! d7!
and the white kingside expansion is
stopped, 12.d4?! e4 13.d5 a5 14.d4
f6 15.xf5 xf5 16.e2 ae8 17.e3
g4! winning the c4-pawn, Solomon,D-
Ivanov,I/Philadelphia 1994, 0-1 (22). ]
11...e6 12.f4 b8 13.g4! Not only does
White gain space on the kingside, but he will
also stymie the black bishop. e7 14.f5 f7
15.g3 It becomes clear that e2 was a
superior square for the white knight, after all,
and now it threatens to hop into e4, and then
g5. d5 16.c5 c6 17.g5 The white kingside
majority continues on its way. b6 18.g4 g6
19.a3 b5 20.f6 White drives this pawn deep
into the black king position. The black position
is in a critical state. a5 21.ab1 b4 22.cxb4
axb4 23.b2
[ Good, but there is nothing obviously wrong
with 23.xb4 , winning a pawn. ]
23...b5 24.d4 exd4 25.xd4 xd4?!
[ F o r c i n g W h i t e t o wi n a p a wn , 25...a5
may be better, but still looks pretty grim for
Black. ]
26.xd4 c6 27.xb4 c7 At least this piece
has found a square. 28.xb5 xb5 29.h4
h5 Offering another pawn to stop threats of
Qh6-g7. 30.gxh6!? On the one hand this wins
a pawn, but, on the other, W hite allows the
break-up of his pawn chain. h7 31.a4 c7
32.b4 With two extra pawns, and a clear
positional advantage, White should win easily.
a8 33.b1 a6 34.a5 c8 35.f1 c7
36.a7 e6 37.b7 f7 38.h2 xh6
39.b8
[ Aiming for an endgame, where he hopes to
use his a-pawn, but 39.b6 is stronger,
returning the queen to the fray. ]
39...g5 Black simply picks up the f6-pawn.
40.a5 xf6 41.xc8 xc8 42.b6 e6
43.a6?!
[ 43.xc6 b7 44.b6 c7 45.a6 a8
46.d3 retains some chances. ]
43...c7 44.b8 d7 45.b7 c8 46.b8
d7 47.b7
½-½
956 A25
Rogozenco,D 2576
Parligras,Mircea 2377
ch-ROM Lasi ROM (14) 26.12.1999
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.c3 f6 4.g2 c5
5.e3!?
[ This temporary weakening of the d3-square
has interesting consequences, I prefer 5.a3
myself, and on a5 then 6.e3 is fine. ]
945
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

5...d5! 6.cxd5 b4 Threatening both ...Nd3+, up the a1-knight later. e.g. 0-0 19.f4 f6
and to recuperate the d5-pawn. 7.d4 exd4 20.d2 ]
8.exd4 e7 9.ge2 f5?! 18.e1 xe1 19.xe1+ f8 20.fxg6 hxg6
[ In the light of this game, perhaps Black 21.g2
should prefer either 9...0-0 10.0-0 bxd5 [ Safe, and good, but 21.d1 is also strong,
11.b3 ( 11.f4 xf4 12.xf4 c6 keeping the knight 'in the box'. ]
is equal ) 11...c6 12.g5 h6 13.xf6 xf6 21...c2 22.f2 b4 23.e6 It transpire
14.d5 which seems fairly level, Bunzmann,D- that White is not only material up, he also has
Hodgson,J/Germany 1999, but 0-1 (34). ] a strong attack. f6
[ Or the immediate 9...bxd5 10.0-0 e6 [ If 23...f5 24.f1 threatens Nxf5, and
11.f4 xf4 12.xf4 c6 13.e5 0-0 Qb5. ]
14.xf6 xf6 15.d5 cxd5 16.xd5 xd5 24.f4 h4 25.xd6+ cxd6 26.d2 a6
17.xd5 and the draw is not far off, Foisor,C- 27.d3 g5
Korneev,O/Paris 1995, 1/2-1/2 (33). ] [ If 27...h6 28.b5 threatening Qd7, and
10.0-0 c2 Qxb7, and mate on f7. ]
[ Thought to give Black a draw, but it is not 28.b5
t h e c a s e ! I t i s t o o l a t e f o r 10...bxd5? [ Not bad, but 28.g6 leads to mate in a few
now, as 11.xd5 xd5 12.b3 moves. ]
wins a pawn. ] 1-0
[ However, 10...d7 is feasible. ]
11.g4!
[ In the previous game, Chernin,A-Miles,A/ 957 A25
Moscow 1989, both players made attempts Rogozenco,D 2560
to win bef ore settling on a draw: 11.b1 Sadler,Matthew 2630
b4 12.a1 c2 13.g4 g6 14.g5!? d7 chT, NED Hengelo (4) 2000
15.b1 b4 16.a1 b6?! ( 16...c2 [Tony Kosten]
draws on the spot) 17.f4 c2 18.d2 h6
19.g3 c4 20.f2 d3 21.d1 c2 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.c3 g6 4.g2 g7
22.f1 ( 22.e1! ) 22...d3 23.d1 c2 5.b1 f5 An aggressive treatment by Black.
1/2-1/2 ] 6.d3 f6 7.e3 0-0 8.ge2 a6
11...g6 12.f4!! A powerful novelty that An interesting move, whose point becomes
refutes the variation. xa1 clear later. 9.b4 h8
[ 12...xg4 13.f5 xa1 transposes, ( if [ This novelty is a useful waiting move,
13...xf5 14.xf5 xa1 15.d2 which rem ove s th e bla ck kin g f ro m th e
and, after the capture of the a1-knight, the e x p o s e d a 2 - g 8 d i a g o n a l . 9...e7!?
two white pieces are superior to the rook h a s a lso b e e n p la ye d , wit h a n e n t ire l y
and pawn,; 13...ge3? 14.xe3 xe3 different idea, 10.b3 h8 11.0-0 d6
15.a4+ is also good for White. )] 12.a4 g5 13.f4! gxf4 14.exf4 g6
13.f5 xg4 14.g3 with an un cle a r p osit ion , Mo ut o us is, K -
[ Trying to gain a tempo on 14.fxg6 hxg6 Prasad,D/ Manila 1992. ]
15.h3 ] [ 9...d6 would return play to more familiar
14...xh2?! paths. ]
[ Tempting, but faulty. 14...d7 loses to 10.a4
15.xg4 as White will pick-up either the g6- [ Obviously White should play this move if he
bishop, or the pathetic a1-knight. ] wants to force-through b5 (and he always
[ 14...f6 15.fxg6 hxg6 16.f4 d o e s ) , b u t i t we a k e n s b 4 . I t w o u l d b e
may be best, but the white pieces look good interesting to see whether Black could find
here. ] another non-committal move after 10.0-0
15.xh2 d6 16.ce4 h4+ 17.h3 xe4 or whether he would be obliged to continue
[ Desperation, but after 17...xg3+ 18.xg3 with d6 ]
White will capture the g6-bishop, and pick- 10...a5 The first point. 11.b5 b4 This move

946
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
justifies Black's playing of ...a5 in two goes,
as now his well-posted knight will hold-up the
white queenside onslaught. Of course, this
whole idea is only possible after White plays
a4, as otherwise White would now win a piece
with a3! 12.a3 c5 13.bxc6 dxc6
O n l y n o w c a n we s e e wh y B la c k h a s s o
studiously avoided playing the 'automatic'
move ...d6. By recapturing this way he
highlights the potential weakness of d3. 14.0-0
[ Capturing the pawn by 14.xb4 axb4
15.xb4 is critical, although Black will have
good compensation after d6 16.b2 d8
be c a u s e o f h is b ish o p p a ir, a n d b e t t e r
pawn formation. ]
14...h5
[ Preparing ...f 4. 14...c5?! concedes too
many important light squares. ]
15.c1
[ 15.xb4 axb4 16.xb4 is now countered
by f4 with strong pressure on the dark
squares (not to mention the threat to win a
piece with ... f3). ]
15...f4 This is always a double-edged move,
for, the kingside threats are balanced by the
loss of control over e4. In this position it is
perfectly justified, as Black cannot afford to
lose the initiative. 16.e4 f6 17.xf6
xf6 18.xb4
[ White hereby allows the further advance of
the f-pawn, but the only move to stop this,
18.f3 is obviously too artificial. ]
18...axb4 19.xb4 f3 20.h1
If Black can bolster the f3-pawn, the
h1-bishop will be completely shut out of the
game. 21.a2 e4! A positional sacrifice to
stop the knight coming to e4. 22.dxe4
23.c2 a5! Black swings another piece over,
to molest the white king. 24.c5 e7 25.c1
e6 26.h3 White attempts to open the
kingside. h5 27.e5 h4! Black switches to
direct attack. 28.hxg4 hxg3 29.fxg3 f2+
30.f1 xe5 31.e4?
[ A n u n f o r t u n a t e m o v e , 31.g2
avoided immediate loss. ]
31...d5?!
[ Good, but I suppose Black was in his
habitual time-trouble, otherwise he would
surely have found 31...h7! 32.g2 h2
winning a lot of material, e.g. 33.xe5 g1+
34.e2 xg4+ 35.d3 xg2 and the f-
pawn queens. ]
32.xe5 xe5 33.xd5 xd5 34.e4
[ If 34.c3+ g8 and the a5-rook cannot be
captured because of 35...Qh1+. ]
34...e5 35.d2
[ 35.c3 xc3 36.xc3 xc5 is quite
hopeless. ]
35...xe4 36.h6+ After White's checks run-
out, he will be a whole exchange down for
nothing. g8 37.g5+ h7 38.h5+ g7
39.g5+ g6 40.e5+ g8 41.d1 xg4
0-1
958 A25
Rustemov,Alexander 2544
Mchedlishvili,Mikheil 2651
Bundesliga 1213 (11.2) 16.03.2013
[Danny Gormally]
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 f6 4.c3 b4
5.d5 c5 6.d3 h6 7.e3 In these reverse-
Sicilian lines White generally prefers a slow
build up, the serious questions will be asked
later on. 0-0
[ 7...d6 was the choice of the great Vassily
Ivanchuk. I do recommend you study his
games in great detail- they will undoubtedly
deepen your strategic understanding! 8.e2
a6 9.a3 a7 10.0-0 0-0 11.b4 xd5
12.cxd5 e7 13.d4 f6! 14.h3 d7 15.e1
( 15.e4 b5! Is B lack's ide a) 15...c6
g5 16.dxe5 dxe5 17.c3 cxd5 18.xd5 e6
19.xe7+ xe7 Black has completely
equalised 20.b2 fd8 21.e2 d5
22.ed1 xg2 23.xg2 b6 24.xd8+
g4 xd8 25.d1 xd1 26.xd1 e6 27.d3
c7 28.e4 c6 29.g4 b5 30.d5+ xd5
0-1 Kotsur, P (2548)-Ivanchuk, V (2769)/
Astana 2012. I'm not exactly sure what
happened here, but in the bishop ending
only Black can possibly hope to win, as the
d-pawn is a potential weakness ]
8.e2 a6 9.0-0 d6 10.h3 a7 11.d2
f5?! The problem with putting the bishop on
this square, is that it aims at little. White can
easily defend the h3 pawn if Black elects to
attack it with ..Qd7 at some point.
[ 11...xd5 12.cxd5 e7 Would have been
a normal approach, similar to the Ivanchuk
game. 13.c3 d7 14.d4 g6 15.a4 e7
947
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

W hen W hite can probably lay claim to a bxa4 34.xa6 xc1 35.xc1 xb2
slight advantage, due to having more space Is the difference- in the game White gets b4
and more potential plans of action, (for f or f ree, ensuring tha t su ch a variatio n
example at some point he might play Qb3, cannot save Black. ]
or Ba5, teasing the queenside, but Black 32.xc5 xc5 33.b4 b6 34.a4!
would remain extremely solid. ] So simple. All of a sudden Black is in serious
12.c3 xd5 13.cxd5 e7 14.h2 c6 trouble on the queenside. bxa4 35.xa6
The typical freeing move. White was already b8 36.xa4 c3 37.e2 c4 38.d4
intending to continue with a Kingside advance, xd4 39.xd4 c1+ 40.f1 g6 41.c6
so it wa s im p ort an t to f ight f or sp a ce a s c8? 42.c4!
quickly as possible. [ 42.c4 xc6 43.dxc6! And the pawn goes
[ 14...g6 15.e4 d7 16.f4! And there is a through. ]
d a n g e r y o u w i l l g e t s t e a m r o l l e r e d . f5 1-0
17.exf5 xf5 18.g4 d7 19.f5 h4
20.g3 Would be very pleasant for White-
the pawn on f5 rather cramps Black. ] 959 A25
15.dxc6 xc6 16.d4! Effectively cutting the Sarakauskas,Gediminas 2414
a7 bishop out of the game. If Black elects to Kiik,Kalle 2452
exchange on d4, he risks making both his d 16th Heart of Finland Open (8) 15.07.2006
and b pawns potential targets. e7 [John Watson]
[ 16...exd4 17.xd4 xd4 18.xd4 xd4
19.xd4 Is White's dream and Black's This gam e f e atu res a po pular t empo rary
nightmare- the weak black pawns are easy sacrifice for Black that has become a fixture
t a r g e t s . I m a g i n e t r yi n g t o d e f e n d t h i s and seems to offer equality. I give the game
against Carlsen! ] with only a few notes because of the
17.d2 ad8 18.ae1?! A measured build- entertaining battle in the middlegame: 1.c4 e5
u p , b u t p e r h a p s i t wa s t i m e t o b e m o r e 2.c3 c6 3.g3 f6 4.g2 c5 5.e3 d5!
proactive. This move has been around long enough that
[ There was certainly an argument for 18.d5 it's soundness isn't in question. W hether
b8 19.e4 g6 20.f4 gaining crucial White can gain even a small advantage is still
space. f6 21.f5 f7 22.g1! being disputed. 6.cxd5
Diagram Intending to cycle the knight around [ 6.xd5 xd5 ( 6...f5!? )
to the g6 square. ] A) 7.xd5 b4 8.e4 ( 8.g2?? d3 )
18...e4 Unable to withstand the tension 8...f5 9.a3 d3+ 10.xd3 xd3 11.e2
anymore, Black decides to gain some space in xe2+ ( 11...b3! 12.d4 e7
t h e c e n t e r . B u t t h is d e ci sio n is a l s o n o t m a y b e b e t t e r) 12.xe2 e4!?
without it's risks, as potentially the e4 pawn with compensation, probably just enough.;
c o u l d b e c o m e w e a k . 19.d5 e5 B) 7.cxd5 ]
But of course, the knight is much better placed 6...b4 7.d4 exd4 8.exd4 e7
on e5 than b8, so really White should have [ 8...xd4?? 9.a4+ ]
committed to playing d5 earlier. 20.f4 fe8 9.ge2 bxd5 10.b3 c6 11.0-0 0-0
21.c2 h7 22.d1 c8 23.e2 d7 12.xd5 xd5 13.c3 xc3?!
24.c1 c5 25.fd1 b5 26.a3 b6 27.g4 This strengthens White's centre. Better
e7 28.h5 g6 29.xe5 xe5+ 30.f4 [ 13...b4!? 14.d5!? f5 15.dxc6 bxc6 ]
h7 31.g1 Diagram c5? A serious error. 14.bxc3 d6 15.c4 b8 16.b2 f5 17.d5
[ Easy equality could be found with 31...g5 c5?! Black may well be equal after this, but
32.h5 g6! This would solve the key W hite gets all the practical chances. From
st ra t e gic qu est io n of t h e ligh t -squ a re d now on W hite gains the initiative and
bishop, which in the game effectively eventually breaks through. The attack is fun
remains a spectator, unable to exert any so I'll leave it to you to look at. 18.fe1 c7
meaningful influence on the action. 33.a4 19.e4 d7 20.a4 be8 21.c2 b6

948
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

22.d3 f5 23.f4 a6 24.c3 xe1+ exchange, but Black could have tried this. ]
25.xe1 f7 26.d3 xa4 27.e6 f8 13.xd2 b8 14.g2 White has a small, but
28.e5 b7 29.xf5 b5 30.e8 bxc4 certain, advantage. e7
31.b8 xb8 32.xb8 xf5 33.c8 f7 [ 14...e7? achieves nothing: 15.0-0 xe2
34.xa6 e8 35.d6 d7 36.e5 f7 16.fe1 and the bishop is recuperated with
37.c8 e6 38.xc5 g6 39.f2 f7 advantage. ]
40.f3 b7 41.g4 d7 42.h3 h5 43.gxh5 15.f4 0-0 16.0-0 c8 17.b5 a6
1-0 In principal a good idea, swapping his weak a-
pawn. 18.a4 axb5?! Black could certainly
delay this. 19.cxb5! Capturing away from the
960 A25 centre, but the a-pawn will prove very
Seirawan,Yasser 2644 da n ge rou s. b7 20.xb7 xb7 21.fe1
Kriventsov,Stanislav G 2415 c6? Missing a simple tactic,
ch Seattle USA (4) 08.01.2002 [ 21...d7 is preferable. ]
[Tony Kosten] 22.bxc6 xc6 23.d5 c7 24.xg6
This is the problem, the f7-pawn is pinned.
1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.e3 g7 b4 25.b3 Good, but White misses a sweet
5.e2 d6 6.bc3 h5 7.h4 tactic:
[ This is the most radical solution to the [ 25.e7+! xe7 26.xh5 f6 27.g4+
problem of stopping the advance of the forking king and knight, and winning
black h-pawn, although it weakens g4. We quickly. ]
have considered the main alternative, 7.d4 25...c2 26.xf8 xf8 27.a5 a8??
in both Hansen,C - Hodgson,J, and Hulak,K - Black is lost anyway, but this should hasten
Almasi,Z. ] matters. 28.b2 The threat of mate in one
7...g4 8.b4!? An innovation, attacking allows White to pin the knight. g8 29.ec1
straightaway on the queenside, but is it good? c8 30.a2 With an exchange and a pawn
[ The two most common moves are: 8.d3 less, Black should certainly resign this. d4
f6!? 9.d5 xd5 10.cxd5 e7 11.b3 31.xc7 f3+ 32.g2! The most accurate.
c8 12.c3 0-0 13.d2 with a tiny edge xh4+ 33.f1
to White, Larsen,B-Spassky,B/Malmo 1968, [ Of course, White is never going to fall for
and ] 33.gxh4?? g4+ 34.f1 d1+
[ 8.b1 e.g. d7 9.b4 ge7 10.d3 d8 with a perpetual. ]
11.b5 with chances to both sides, Suba,M- 33...h3+
Hort, V/Reggio Emilia 1986, but if White can [ If 33...xc7 then 34.gxh4
play b4 in one go, why prepare it? ] is now possible. ]
8...d4!? Wow!! I bet Yasser didn't expect 34.e2 g4+ 35.d3 f5+ 36.c3
this one! Surely The checks soon run out. f3 37.e2 f6+
[ 8...xb4 had to be tried, 9.a4+ c6 38.b4
10.b1 and now c8! is critical. ] 1-0
9.exd4 exd4 10.xb7
[ The knight can't move, i.e. 10.d5?! d3
attacking a1 and e2. ] 961 A25
10...dxc3 11.dxc3!? White enters into the Spangenberg,Hugo 2531
spirit of things, offering an exchange Slipak,Sergio 2521
(although this game was played a full two ch-Najdorf mem (11) 02.12.1999
weeks after Christmas), but simply [Tony Kosten]
[ 11.d4 looks adequate, the c3-pawn will be
picked-up later. ] 1.c4 e5 2.g3 c6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7
11...xc3+ 12.d2 xd2+?! 5.b1 A popular and flexible line for White,
[ 12...xa1 13.xa1 f6 14.f4 who initiates queenside play before deciding
will certainly offer White plenty of play for the h o w b e s t t o d e v e l o p h i s k i n g s i d e . a5

949
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
The normal response, stopping b4 at the cost
of a slight weakening of the b5-square. 6.e3
d6 7.ge2 ge7 8.d3 0-0 9.0-0 e6
Black threatens ...d5, exposing the d3-pawn.
10.d5 The inevitable reaction in such
positions, d5 is occupied while Black is unable
to capture. d7 11.ec3
[ A perfectly logical move, if quite unusual,
reinforcing White's control of d5. Normally,
White prefers to continue with direct action
on the queenside, by 11.a3 and b4. ]
11...d8
[ Intending to play ...Nc8 (else White can
answer ...c6? with Nb6), and ...c6, expelling
the powerful d5-knight. 11...f5 has also
been played, when, as well as the standard
12.a3 returning to normal positions, as in
Abel,P-Klemanic,E/SVK 1997, there is also
12 Qa4!?, as in the game, menacing 13
Nxe7+. ]
12.a4
[ A tricky move, which is the point of White's
subtle move order. 12.b3 led to nothing for
W hite f ollowin g xd5 13.xd5 a6!?
14.a3 c6 15.c3 Bazaj Bockai,S-Stadler,
B/Pula 1996. ]
12...xd5!
[ The best reply, making a fine temporary
p a w n s a c . O f c o u r s e , 12...xa4??
is a blunder, allowing the Zwischenzug
13.xe7+ winning a bit, h8 14.xa4 ]
[ t h e p a w n s a c r i f i c e 12...dc6?
is also unsound, as after 13.xe7+ xe7
14.xc6 bxc6 15.xc6
Black's compensation is almost nothing- as
the light-squared bishop is equalled by the
white knight, which threatens to hop into
d5. ]
[ 12...ec6?! is the only sensible alternative,
bu t le ave s t h e b la ck p ie ce s a wkward ly
placed. 13.a3 ]
13.xd7 xd7
[ The move 13...xc3? seems tempting, at
first sight, as Black picks-up a rook and two
pieces for the queen, but the knight on b1
will be trapped, and following a sequence
like 14.xc7 xb1 15.b6 a4 16.e4
, and c1-bishop moves, the knight is lost,
and Black too. ]
14.xd5
[ Winning material, but, in retrospect 14.cxd5
might promise more. ]
14...e6
[ The point of Black's defence. Obviously not
14...c6?? because of 15.b6 ]
15.e7+ h8 16.xb7 ae8! The key,
forcing the two advanced white pieces into a
tangle. 17.c6 c5
[ No t b a d , b u t 17...a4! was worth serious
consideration:
A) after 18.b4?! White only escapes
material loss by the skin of his teeth, b8
19.c6 xc6 20.xc6 b6 21.a5
( 21.e7?? c6 traps the poor knight)
21...c5 22.d1 a8 23.d2 xd3
with an edge to Black;
B) 18.a5 c5 19.c6 xc6 20.xc6
xd3 21.e4 f5 with good play. ]
18.xa5 Obviously forced. xb7 19.xb7
a8 Cutting off the knight's retreat. 20.d2
[ 20.a3? fb8 and the knight is lost, and
a l t h o u g h W h i t e wi l l h a ve t h r e e p a wn s
following 21.xd6 cxd6 , it is not enough. ]
20...xa2 21.c3 fa8 22.a5!?
[ An interesting alternative to 22.b4 ]
22...d5!
[ The best chance, if 22...e4 then, simply
23.d4 ]
[ but the real point of White's 22nd move is
that following 22...2xa5? 23.xa5 xa5
B l a c k i s i n a b a d wa y : 24.a1 xa1
25.xa1 and, despite his two bishops, Black
will experience great difficulties defending
his queenside pawns, g8 26.a7 f5
27.e4 g4 28.xc7 e2 29.b4!
the b-pawn will cost Black a bishop. ]
23.b3
[ If 23.cxd5 Black can now take the knight,
8xa5 24.xa5 xa5 as, on 25.a1 xa1
26.xa1 the c7-pawn can be defended by
f8 27.a7 d6 ]
23...dxc4 24.dxc4 f5 Black remains a
pawn down, but his bishop pair will provide
reasonable compensation. 25.a1 d3
26.xa2 xa2 27.d1 e4 28.d4
[ 28.xg7+? xg7 and Black regains either
the c or b pawns. ]
28...h5
[ Creating a bolt-hole for the king, if
28...xc4?? 29.e6! and the threat of mate
wins a piece. ]
29.c5 h7 30.h3 a4 31.c1 g8 32.g2
950
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

f8 33.g4 h4 This keeps the white king [ 6...exf4 7.d4! forces the awkward
confined. 34.b3 xc3 35.xc3 b4 response f6 ]
36.c1 xb2 37.xd3 exd3 38.xd3 c2 7.fxe5 xe5 8.f3 g7 9.e4 f6
The black activity is enough to assure the We've reached a standard position in which
draw. 39.d5 e7 40.g5 e6 41.e4 c3 Black has the e5 outpost in front of a
42.f4 backward pawn. If W hite doesn't move to
[ White is unable to improve his position, as change the structure he will probably stand a
42.f3 allows c2+ confining the king to the little worse. Now and for some time to come,
back rank, and other tries lose either the h- my engine prefers White by almost a whole
pawn or c-pawn. ] pawn! 10.e2 0-0 11.0-0 g4 To secure
42...e3 43.e5+ d7 44.f5 gxf5 45.xf5 e5. 12.e1
e6 46.f6+ [ Perhaps 12.h3 xf3 13.gxf3 was worth a
[ 46.f6+ e7 47.c6 d7 and White look, but it's dangerous after h5 14.g2
must repeat moves, or lose his e-pawn. ] f5 ]
½-½ 12...xe2 13.xe2 d7 14.d3 c8!?
A clever move to activate Black's queen and
reinforce the blockading square, as we will
962 A25 see. 15.d2
Timman,Jan H 2565 [ 15.e3 e7! ( 15...cb6 16.c5 )]
Jussupow,Artur 2600 15...cb6!?
Remco Inv Wolvega NED (5) 26.11.2006 [ 15...e7 ]
[John Watson] 16.b3 e5 17.xe5 xe5 18.ac1 d7
19.d1
An odd game between two top-level GMs. [ perhaps 19.b4 a5 20.a3 was best. Then
Timman seems to miss something in a very Black's piece activity comes into play: axb4
conservative opening because he allows Black 21.axb4 h4 22.g3 h3 ]
a positional advantage for free. Then, just 19...e7 20.c3 f5!
when Black is about to cash in, Yusupov [ 20...ae8 21.d2! c5 22.e1
p l a y s i n a c c u r a t e l y a n d a l l o ws W h i t e a n holds everything together, although I still
unlikely drawing combination. 1.c4 e5 2.c3 prefer Black by just a bit. ]
c6 3.e3 Avoiding standard theory. I once 21.xe5
wrote extensively about 2 Nc3 Nf6 3 e3. g6 [ 21.exf5?? xh2+ ]
[ 3...f6 can be answered by 4 Nf3 with a [ 21.f2 f6 ]
main line, or by a Sicilian Reversed idea 21...xe5 22.c3 ae8 23.b5 c5?!
such as 4 a3 but I don't like 4.d4 due to b4 The simple 23...Re7 preserves a moderate
( 4...exd4 5.exd4 d5 is also adequate, but superiority, but it's surprising that Yusupov
not as likely to gain an advantage) 5.d5! would miss
( 5.dxe5 xc3+ 6.bxc3 xe5 obviously [ 23...f6! with a substantial and possibly
favours Black, and; 5.f3 exd4 6.exd4 0-0 winning advantage, e.g.,
gives Black an irritating lead in A) No better is 24.g3 xe4;
development) 5...xc3+ ( or 5...e7 6.d2 B) or 24.d3? c6! 25.dxc6 bxc6 26.d4
0-0 ) 6.bxc3 e7 7.e4 d6 with a double- ( 26.xa7?? fxe4 with ...Qc5+; 26.xd6?
edged position that I think is harder for fxe4 27.d1 c5+ 28.h1 e6 29.b7
White to play. ] b4 30.d8 d6 ) 26...fxe4 27.c3
4.d4 d6 5.d5 ce7 6.f4?! I'm not sure what g4 28.g3 xf1+ 29.xf1 e3 and wins;
the point is, except to hope for 6... exf4. Black C) 24.cd1 is perhaps best, but then g4
will be glad to activate his bishop along the 25.g3 g7! covers c7 and will win a
long diagonal. central pawn;
[ 6.e4 ] D) 24.xc7? g4 25.g3 d4+ 26.h1
[ or 6.f3 would be normal. ] xe4 and Black breaks through. ]
6...g7 24.xc7! Leading to a well-calculated

951
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

simplification. e7 25.e6 xe6 26.dxe6 useful queenside pawns in return. ]

c5+ 27.f2 fxe4 28.xc5 dxc5 29.xf8+ 19.b5 e7 20.fe1 d8 21.d3 de8
xf8 30.f2 xe6 There's really nothing P i l i n g t h e p r e s s u r e o n e 4 . 22.d5
positive to do after 31 Ke3. White decides that it is time to stop the threat
½-½ of ...exd4. c5 23.b5 d8 24.h4 a6
25.f1 c8 26.c4 White has more space,
but Black has a strong grip on the queenside
963 A25 dark squares and White will almost certainly
Vallejo Pons,Francisco 2648 never be able to play c5 to break through.
Smirin,Ilia 2676 ee8 27.g3 d7 28.f3 h7 29.g4 g6
GM Biel SUI (9) 31.07.2002 30.e3 e7 31.f2 Pawn breaks are few
[Tony Kosten] and far between, and neither player wants to
take unnecessary risks. d6 32.h3
1.c4 e5 2.c3 f6 3.e3 c6 4.c2!? ½-½
W hite plays in reversed Sicilian style, we
have examined
[ 4.d4 b4 in a game Korchnoi-Kasparov. ] 964 A25
4...d5 A novelty at move four! However, this Watson,John L 2345
move is so natural that it is hard to believe Enhbat,Tegshsuren 2408
that it hasn't been played before, somewhere, ch Seattle USA (4) 12.01.2003
although I can't find any examples of it! [Tony Kosten]
[ 4...g6 is generally favoured here, 5.a3 g7
6.b4 0-0 Sunye Neto,J-Karpov,A/ 1.c4 e5 2.g3 f6 3.g2 c6 4.c3 b4
Amsterdam 1985. ] 5.d5 c5 6.e3 xd5 Black can also defer
5.cxd5 b4!? But this is any interesting idea, this capture, but
[ 5...xd5 would lead to known position- [ 6...0-0 7.e2 xd5 8.cxd5 b4 9.d4
types. ] exd4 10.exd4 transposes. ]
6.b1 White wouldn't be happy with 7.cxd5 b4 This sort of tactical sequence is
[ 6.b3 f5 7.d3 xd3 8.xd3 xd3+ t e m p t i n g f o r a c o m p u t e r a s . . . N d 3 + i s
9.e2 c5 ] threatened, but, as we shall see, Black simply
6...bxd5 7.d3 b4 8.d2 0-0 9.f3 gets rebuffed.
So, a Sicilian position has been reached, [ 7...e7 8.b4!? led to a crushing tactical
although the black knights are on odd victory for W hite in Christiansen,L-
squares. e8 10.e4!? This is not too bad, as Charbonneau,P/Richmond CAN 2002. ]
there is no black knight on c6 capable of 8.d4!
controlling d4, and the problem for White was [ 8.b3?! is not so good, a5 ( 8...c6! ) 9.a3
that a4? ( 9...a6 ) 10.c3 a6 11.xe5+
[ 10.e2 can be met by xc3 11.bxc3 e4 wins, Nemeth,Z-Bordas,G/Budapest HUN
breaking-up the white pawn structure. ] 2000. ]
10...xc3!? 11.bxc3 c5 12.e2 b6 8...exd4 9.exd4 White has doubled pawns in
13.c2 h6 14.d1 a6 15.a4 b7 the centre, but they control important squares,
16.0-0 White has completed his development, and drive Black's two developed pieces back.
and he has more central pawns, and will try to e7 This is best,
manage the d4-thrust although then the e- [ 9...xd4? loses, but you should know how:
p a wn wo u l d n e e d lo t s o f d e f e n ce . d7!? 10.a3 ( 10.xd4?? c2+ ) 10...f6 11.f3
17.xd7 xd7 18.d4!? d6 Black is not ( 11.e2+ d8 12.axb4 e8 13.e3
tempted by xb2 14.b1 c3+ 15.d1 is also good
[ 18...exd4 19.cxd4 xe4!? 20.b5 for White ) 11...c3+!? ( after 11...xb2
( 20.d3? g4 attacks f3) 20...c6 21.d3 12.xb2 xb2 13.axb4 xb4+ 14.d2
xd4 22.xd4 xd4 is an interesting Black has 3 pawns for the piece, but this is
exchange sac whereby Black obtains two insufficient, as the pawns are all on their

952
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

starting squares and are good targets for 19.f3 b8 20.fe1 f6 21.a4 b6 22.f4
the white rooks.) 12.f1! the most accurate, b7 23.d5 Exchanging the light-squared
although ( 12.bxc3 xc3+ 13.d2 c2+ bishops is positionally desirable, as the black
14.d1 xd2+ 15.xd2 xa1 16.d6! queenside pawns are stuck on dark squares.
cxd6 17.b2 is also favourable to White) xd5 24.xd5 c8 25.d6? This is where
12...a6+ 13.g1 f6 at first glance it White throws away his advantage,
appears that Black has avoided losing a [ 25.ac1! is more natural, e8 26.xe8+
piece, but the knight has no squares, 14.f1 xe8 27.c7! and Black is in serious
good, but ( 14.f4 xd5 15.xd5 0-0 t ro u b le , a s xc7? 28.xc7 Hoovers the
16.xc7 is very convincing) 14...b5 15.f4 queenside. ]
xd5 16.xd5 b7 17.e1+ d8 18.d3 25...e8 26.ac1 e6 27.g2 xe1
and White soon won, Spraggett,K-Gonzalez [ 27...c6 would be prettier! ]
Galvan,J/Dos Hermanas ESP 2000. ] 28.xe1 Although White could still continue
[ 9...d6?! is unnatural, 10.a3 a6 11.e2 here.
c6 12.c3 cxd5?! 13.e2+ e7 ½-½
14.xe7+ xe7 15.xd5+
with a significant advantage, Balashov,Y-
Pribyl,J/ Schwaebisch Gmuend 1998. ] 965 A26
10.a3 a6 A sad square for a knight! Bareev,Evgeny 2702
11.e3?! This new move is White's mistake, Azmaiparashvili,Zurab 2673
better to play the natural FIDE World Cup KO (1.4) 08.09.2000
[ 11.e2 0-0 ( 11...d6 12.0-0 g4 13.h3 [Tony Kosten]
xe2 14.xe2 0-0 concedes the bishop
pair, Vandevoort,P-Schuermans,R/BEL 1.c4 e5 2.c3 d6 3.g3 g6 4.g2 g7
1992, when I would be te mpted to pla y 5.d3 e7 6.e4 A good choice given the
15.b5 as the knight's future looks bleak) ma tch situ a tio n: W h ite ne e ds to dra w t o
12.0-0 c6 Black will have to play this move, qualify. This avoids the typical black kingside
sooner or later, if he wants to be able to attack that occurs when W hite plays
recycle his offside knight, but it allows White exclusively on the queenside. bc6 7.ge2
to undouble his pawns, and establish a h5 8.h4
piec e on d5 . 13.f4! the key move, White [ The best reply, White doesn't want to place
stops Black from playing ...Nc7. This is why too many pawns on light squares by 8.h3 h4
this piece should not go to e3, as in the main 9.g4 ]
game. cxd5 14.c3! d6 ( 14...c7 8...e6 9.g5 f6 10.e3 d7 11.d5 0-0
15.xc7! xc7 16.xd5 d8 17.e1 f6 12.0-0
18.c1 is crushing) 15.xd5 e6 16.e1 [ It is difficult to believe that 12.d2 h7
( 16.b3!? ) 16...e8 17.xe7+ xe7 13.0-0-0 can be better, f5 14.b1 ab8
18.h5 d5 19.xd5 xd5 20.xe7 xe7 15.g1 b5 with sharp play, Beikert,G-
21.xd5 White has a solid extra pawn, Gil Hamdouchi,H/FRA 1999. ]
Reguera,J-Servat,R/Orense 1997. ] 12...f5 13.g5 f7 14.d2 af8 15.ae1
11...c6 12.e2 c7! Black manages to bring [ A logical innovation, and completely in
the knight back. 13.c3 xd5 14.xd5 keeping with White's game plan, 15.b4 c8
cxd5 15.0-0 0-0 16.xd5 White has still got 16.ac1 allows White possibilities on the
an edge because of his extra space, and queenside, Ribli,Z-Nunn,J/ Plovdiv 1983, but
better development, but the absence of black Black is not devoid of counterplay. ]
weaknesses means that exploiting this may 15...fxe4
not prove easy. a5!? 17.b3 Should White be [ A common idea is the redevelopment of the
concerned by the possibility of ...a4 ? badly-placed e7-knight by 15...c8 but then
[ 17.e1 d6 18.d3 a4 19.ac1 16.exf5! is strong,
keeps White on top. ] A) 16...gxf5? keeps control of e4, but
17...a6!? Very provocative. 18.c4 a8 closes the f -f ile 17.f4 ( even 17.f3

953
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
is possible );
B) 16...xf5 and White can place a knight
on e4. ]
16.dxe4 g4 17.b3 h7
[ 17...f3?! appears tempting, but is a
positional error, as after 18.xf3
19.g2 3f7 Black has merely exchanged
his good bishop for White's worse one. ]
18.f4 Played to reduce Black's pressure on
t h e f - f i l e . g8 19.e3 h3
Forcing Black to play the unfavourable
exchange, and creating an outpost on f5.
xg2 21.xg2 ce7 22.fxg6+ xg6
23.xf7 xf7 24.c3 f6 25.f1 g4
Now W hite forces further exchanges that
l e a v e B l a c k i n t r o u b l e . 26.xf7
27.xe7 xe7 28.f5+ f8 29.g5 f6
Forced, but now the remaining black knight is
swapped, and only the bad bishop remains.
30.d5 f7?
[ A mistake, simplifying White's task, but
30...xe4 31.xh5 f6
is also losing, the white kingside pawns are
free to advance. ]
31.xg7 xd5
[ Obviously not 31...xg7 32.xf6+ ]
32.cxd5 xg7 33.d8+ f7 34.xc7+
g8 35.xg7+ And a draw was agreed, as
t h is wa s s u f f icie n t t o gu a ra n t e e W h it e ' s
qualification, but Black could otherwise resign
this.
½-½
966 A26
Belotti,Bruno 2419
Collutiis,Duilio 2332
ch-Playoff Montecatini Terme ITA (2) 01.12.02
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 c6 3.g3 g6 4.g2 g7
5.d3 d6 6.e4 f5 7.ge2 f6 8.0-0 0-0
9.d5 e7!? Edward Dearing wrote on the
Forum that he was having difficulty proving an
advantage against this move, whereby Black
hopes to chase the knight away from d5 (with
...c6), or exchange it. 10.xf6+ xf6 11.d4
'The logical reaction' as I wrote in my book,
although
[ 11.h6!? g7 12.xg7 xg7 13.d4!
( 13.exf5 xf5 14.d4 exd4 15.xd4 f6
gave White nothing in Psakhis,L-Collutiis,D/
Bled SLO 2002) 13...c6!? 14.d5 e7
15.f4! favours White, Hanley,C-Meis,F/
Hoogeveen NED 2002. ]
11...fxe4! This is the problem, in my book I
xf3 gave
[ 11...c6 when White gained an appreciable
advantage by 12.dxe5 xe5 13.h6 e8
14.d4 fxe4 15.xe4 d5 16.cxd5 xd5
20.f5! 17.e1 f6?! 18.b3+ h8 19.f3
Serper,G-Ludwikow,T/Gausdal 1991. ]
12.xe4 Automatic, but perhaps White should
prefer Dearing's suggestion
[ 12.d5!? (planning to use the e4-square by
Nc3xe4) g4 13.xe4 c6 14.f3 h3
xf7 15.f2 b6 and now I like 16.c3!? f5
17.d3 f7 18.d2 af8 19.b3
when I prefer White, as Black's pieces are
'all dressed up with nowhere to go'. ]
12...h3 13.e1
[ 13.g2 xg2 14.xg2 is just level,
32.g5 Sadorra,J-Tay,J/ Singapore SIN 2001. ]
13...c6 14.h6 For what it is worth, a novelty,
[ 14.dxe5 dxe5?! ( 14...xe5! ) 15.h6
xd1 16.axd1 fd8 is slightly better for
W h i t e , b e c a u s e o f t h e i s o l a t e d p a wn ,
Dannevig,O-Sagafos,M/Asker NOR 2000. ]
14...f7 15.d2 d7 16.dxe5 xe5
17.d4 f5 Black invites exchanges.
18.xf5 xf5 19.ad1 xe4 20.xe4 f5
21.e2 The backward d-pawn, and White's e-
file build-up promise him a slight plus. g7?
[ 21...h3 ]
22.xg7 xg7 23.xd6 Now White is
winning. af8 24.f4
[ 24.f4! White controls both central files, and
has an extra pawn. ]
24...c5 25.xf7+ xf7 26.e6 b5 27.cxb5
cxb5 28.e5+?! Quite unnecessary, we all
know that rook and pawn endings are drawish,
whilst with the queens on W hite has every
chance of winning (particularly as his king is
safer). xe5 29.xe5 b7 30.b4 f6
31.c5 h5 32.h4 Black seems quite passive
here, but he soon activates! b6! 33.g2?!
[ 33.a3 a6 34.c3 was a better chance. ]
33...a6 34.xb5 xa2 35.f3 b2 36.e3
a6 37.b8 f5 38.f8+ e5 39.e8+ f5
40.f8+ e5 41.f4 a5! Swapping the last
queenside pawn brings about a theoretical
draw. 42.bxa5 b3+ 43.e2 a3 44.b4
954
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
xa5 Of course, this is a draw, although I
almost lost one like this against I. Sokolov
once at Tilburg! 45.b6 f5 46.f3 a2+
47.e3 a3+ 48.f2
½-½
967 A26
Botvinnik
N,Archana
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 c6 3.g3 g6 4.g2 g7
5.e4 d6 I don't want to dwell too long on the
strategic aspects of this line, they will be very
familiar to anyone who has a copy of The
Dynamic English. So, rather than repeat that
(which probably wouldn't go down too well with
my publishers!) I have decided to concentrate
exclusively on the most recent games. One of
the advantages of this line for W hite is that
the opponent often only has a vague idea of
how to respond, although there are a few
signs (in particular with 8...Nd4!?) that some
players have been preparing. The Latvian GM
Miezis has been playing this line a lot with
White and has scored very well, so there are a
lot of his games mentioned at various points.
6.ge2 ge7 This is generally considered to
be one of the two main lines.
[ 6...f5 is an important move, because this
position can arrive from various move orders
where Black plays an early ...f5 (i.e. 1 c4 f5).
7.d3
A) 7...h6 8.h4 fxe4! as I suggested in
my book, this is Black's best try, 9.g5
d7 10.dxe4!? ( White keeps a hold of f5,
but loses the uses of the e4-square, I
prefer 10.xe4 ) 10...f7 11.d5 d4!?
12.xd4 exd4 , Delchev,A-Grigore,G/
Budapest HUN 2000, and now White has
several tempting continuations, for
instance 13.a4+! ( 13.xh6 xh6
14.xd4 ) 13...c6 14.f3 and;
B) 7...f6 8.0-0 0-0 9.d5 The best
move, this and alternatives are discussed
in Mie zis,N-Ru st emo v, A/ Tallinn ES T
2001. ]
[ 6...f6 7.0-0 0-0 is examined in Bruzon,L-
Kempinski,R/Linares ESP 2001, whilst 8.d3
d7!? , where Black plans to bring his
knight to e6, is seen in the archives. ]
[ 6...e6 Can transpose to 6...Nge7, but
Black can also play more aggressively: 7.d3
d7 8.d5 d8 ( not 8...f6? 9.h6!;
b u t m o ve s s u c h a s 8...f5 are fine, and
transpose elsewhere,) 9.0-0 c6 10.e3
f5?! allowing White to play his normal
exchange: 11.exf5! gxf5 12.f4 f7 13.d4
exd4 14.xd4 0-0-0 15.b1! f6 16.b4
White's typical queenside advance proves
even more effective when the black king is
in the way! d5 17.b5 dxc4 18.xe6 xe6
19.a4 d5 20.xa7 Black can resign,
Franco Ocampos, Z-Mantovani,R/8th Valle
d'Aosta Open, Saint Vincent I 2000. ]
7.d3 Simplest, and best.
[ 7.0-0?! s e e m s t o b e a m i s t a k e , h5!
, Franco Ocampos, Z-Akopian,V/Linares
ESP 2001, see the archives for the
gruesome details! ]
7...0-0
[ 7...h5!? is often played at move six, so that
B la ck re t a in s t h e o p t i o n o f p l a yin g h i s
king's knight to h6, instead of e7, but just
recently it has also been tried at this juncture
a number of times, have a look at Miezis,
N-Seirawan,Y/Istanbul TUR 2000. ]
8.0-0 e6
[ 8...d4!? 9.xd4 exd4 has been
resuscitated recently, with Black finding
new ideas that have been giving W hit e
problems, look at the analysis in Zueger,B-
Gallagher,J/ Pontresina SUI 2000. ]
9.d5 f5 10.e3 reaching the main position,
which is considered in Miezis,N-Praytino,S/
Jakarta INA 2001.
968 A26
Bruzon Batista,Lazaro 2584
Kempinski,Robert 2543
Anibal Open Linares ESP (9) 16.01.2001
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f6 2.c3 g6 3.e4 d6 4.g3 g7
5.g2 c6 6.ge2 0-0 7.0-0 e5 8.d3
[ Solid, the move 8.f4 is tempting, one recent
example: exf4 9.gxf4 g4 by pinning the
knight, defender of d4, Black hopes to put
pressure on the dark squares. 10.h3 ( but
10.d4 is critical, if Black cannot exploit this,
955
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
he could be worse, e8 11.e5 d7 12.h3
with an edge) 10...xe2!? 11.xe2 e8
stopping White from playing d4, 12.d3 a5
13.e3 a4 14.d2 White has the better
prospects, Ostenstad,B-Mortensen,E/Aars
DEN 1999. ]
8...e6
[ 8...d7!? is seen in the archives. ]
9.d5
[ 9.f4 is best, threatening f5. ]
9...d7 10.e3 a5 11.d2 c5 12.f4
White prefers to play this advance after due
preparation. exf4 13.dxf4 Menacing both
t o p l a y d 4 , a n d t o c a p t u r e o n e 6 . e5
The attack on c4 holds-up pawn to d4.
14.h1?!
[ To prepare the g1-square for the dark-
s q u a r e d b i s h o p , b u t t h e s i m p l e 14.b3!
is strong, preparing d4 again, g4 15.d4
xe3 16.xe3 d7 and now, 17.xe6
fxe6 18.e5 opens the g2-bishop's diagonal
with great advantage. ]
14...g4 15.ad1?
[ White prevaricates again, but this time it is
really serious, 15.h3 kept an edge. ]
15...cxd3! 16.xd3 xc4 17.c1 xb2!
The point, Black gives two pieces for a rook,
b u t g a i n s a t h i rd p a wn , a s we l l . 18.xb2
xe2 19.a4 d7 20.c2 xf1 21.xf1
b5!? 22.e5 ae8 23.d3 bxa4 24.c6
h3 25.g1 b8 26.exd6 cxd6 27.xa4
e6 28.a7 bc8 29.f4 White manages
to coordinate his bits, and regain equality. e5
30.d5 h8 31.b7 ce8 32.c6 c8
33.b7 cd8!? Black has the draw in hand.
34.xa5 b2 35.c7 de8 36.f4 d4+
37.xd4+ xd4+ 38.h1 d2 39.g2 e1
40.c4 xf1+ 41.xf1 g7 42.e2?! e8
43.g2?? g5
0-1
969 A26
Cebalo,Miso 2524
Tkachiev,Vladislav 2643
CRO-Cup Rabat CRO (2) 27.05.2003
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 e5 2.c3 f6 3.f3 c6 4.d3 g6
5.g3 g7 6.g2 0-0 7.0-0 d6 8.g5
With this move W hite's plan is to exchange
his dark-squared bishop for the knight and
then play for control of d5, and eventually a
good knight versus imperfect bishop position.
[ 8.a3 is the main move for White here, but
will often transpose should White play a later
Bg5, and to avoid this Black often plays h6 ]
8...h6 9.xf6 xf6 10.b1 a5 Not so much
to restrain b4, as White can easily force this
move, but to ensure that his rook will enjoy an
open a-file when W hite does play b4. 11.a3
e7 Possibly the best move, the knight makes
way for the c-pawn, so that Black can control
d5 with ...c6, and aims for f5.
[ 11...e8 12.b4 axb4 13.axb4 d4
14.d2 g7 15.e3 e6 is an alternative
method of playing, but the knight may not
be optimally placed on e6, Gelfand,B-Anand,
V/Linares 1991. ]
12.b4 axb4 13.axb4 g7 14.d2?!
Falling into an instructive trap, and one that
often occurs in this line.
[ 14.b5 e8 15.d2?! e4 is similar,
Vaganian,R-Lautier,J Manila izt 1990. ]
[ 14.c2 is safer, defending the knight, c6
15.d2 d5 16.e4!? e6 17.fd1 d6
18.exd5 cxd5 19.cxd5 xd5 20.c4 d8
21.xd5 xd5 22.xd5 xd5 23.b6
a2 24.c4! and White was getting on top,
Rotstein,A-Wahls,M/Vienna 1991. ]
14...e4! This is the surprising shot! Still once
yo u h ave se en it yo u sho u ld n 't f o rge t it !
15.c2
[ 15.d4 might be better, xd4 16.dxe4
g7 17.d5 ( 17.b3 e6 18.b5 b8
19.d5 xd5 20.cxd5 f5 21.c4 b6
22.bc1 e8 23.c3 a3 24.a2 a7
25.b4 a4 26.e4 d7 Sloth,J-Jansa,V/
Svendborg 1981/ MCD) 17...xd5 18.xd5
e6 ( 18...b8 19.fd1 f5 20.c5
is about equal, Berkes,F-Acs,P/Budapest
HUN 2003 ) 19.xb7 a2 ( 19...xc4!? )
20.c5?! f5! and White was in trouble,
Rotstein,A-Herndl,H/Werfen 1989. ]
[ Note that 15.cxe4? f5 and ]
[ 15.dxe4? f5 both lose a piece. ]
15...exd3 16.exd3?! This novelty is probably
an error, conceding control of d4,
[ 16.xd3 seems better, c6 ( 16...a3
17.b3 xb3 18.xb3 c6 19.xc6!?
bxc6 20.d1 f5 and I prefer Black, but
White managed to hold this, Georgiev, V-
956
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Benjamin,J/Europe vs Americas, Mermaid doesn't stand at all badly. ]

Beac h B ER 199 8) 17.xc6!? ( 17.d5 6.g2 0-0 7.0-0 d6
e5 18.c2 c6 19.e3 isn't so bad for [ In this situation it's more risky to play
White ) 17...bxc6 18.b5 and by gaining 7...d5!? because White can answer with
control over d5 White managed to hold the 8.cxd5 xd5 9.xe5!? . Even so the
balance, Jirovsky, M-Makharadze,J/ Batumi p o s i t i o n i s f a r f r o m c l e a r a f t e r xc3
GEO 2002. ] 10.xc6 xe2+ 11.xe2 bxc6 12.xc6
16...c6 17.fe1 White does not even b8 because Black is very active. ]
contest d4 with 8.d3 h6 9.b1
[ 17.f3 ] [ After the immediate 9.b4 Black might try
17...d4 18.d1 h5!? Menacing the e4!? but then 10.e1! g4!? 11.d2 e3
annoying ... Bg4. 19.d5?! Perhaps White 12.fxe3 xc3 13.xc3 xe3 14.c1 xf1
should play 15.xh6 e5 16.f3 was very dangerous
[ 19.h3 ] for Black, Horvath, G-Farago, I, HUN tch
19...g4 20.f3 A tactical error, White thinks 1992. ]
t h a t h e h a s t i m e f o r N e 3 , b u t t h e r e i s a 9...e6 10.b4 d7 11.b5 d8 12.a4
problem. [ In the game Kortschnoj, V (2615)-Lutz, C
[ Still, 20.f3 e6 21.f4 f5 is nothing to (2580), Garmisch Partenkirchen 1994 the
write home about! ] great Victor played the immediate 12.e4
20...a2! 21.b5? This misses the threat, when Black saw no immediate reason to
[ 21.f1 avoids the worst. ] excha n ge W hit e's n e wly in h ib it ed ligh t
21...xf3 22.xf3 d2! square bishop with 12...Bh3. The game went
[ 22...d2 23.xd2? xf3+ wins the c6 13.h4 h7 14.a4 and now h3
queen. ] 15.bxc6 bxc6 16.xh3 xh3 17.a3 d7
0-1 18.c5 dxc5 19.xc5 e8 20.e3
left White slightly better. ]
12...h3
970 A26 [ Here too there's a case for delaying this
Gelfand,Boris 2758 move with 12...a6 . ]
Vachier Lagrave,Maxime 2718 13.d5 xg2 14.xg2 e8 15.e4
World Cup Khanty Mansiysk RUS (4.8) As White definitely wants to play this once the
[Nigel Davies] light square bishops are gone it makes sense
to play it straight away.
Gelfand's failure to get much after 4.g3 Nd4 [ Officially it seems that this is the 'new move'
saw a switch to 4.a3 in this game. Black was as 15.b3 had been played in an earlier
doing OK until he got edgy with 16...f5 and game. But after e6 16.a3 h7 17.bc1
within a few moves had White at his throat on f5 18.c2 c6 19.c3 d4 was already
the kingside. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 3.f3 slightly better for White in Seul, G (2415)-
c6 4.a3 g6 This move makes a lot of sense L u t z, C (2 5 5 0 ), G e rm a n y (B u n d e s liga )
because White's 4.a3 is not his most useful 1993. ]
move in this kind of Reversed Sicilian. Usually, 15...e6 16.b2 Looking to play d3-d4,
for example, the idea of b2-b4 will be prepared wh i c h i s p e r h a p s w h a t i n s p i r e s B l a c k ' s
b y R b 1 , g e t t i n g t h e r o o k o f f t h e h 8 - a 1 loosening reply. f5? After this White obtains a
diagonal. 5.g3 g7 powerful initiative.
[ If Black wants to play an Reversed Open [ Black sh ould probab ly p lay jus t 16...a6
Sicilian with ...d7-d5 it's probably best to do , when his position is a little worse but by
so before White has his bishop on g2. Thus no means decisively so. ]
5...d5 6.cxd5 xd5 7.d3!? ( 7.g2 17.h4! h7 18.exf5 gxf5 19.h5
might be met by xc3 8.bxc3 e4 ) 7...g7 [ 19.f4 would also have been very strong.
8.xd5 xd5 9.g2 brings about a After the text Black should play 19...Qf7. ]
reversed Sicilian Dragon in which Black 19...c6?! 20.bxc6 bxc6 21.e3 f4 22.ef5

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

f6 23.d4 Opening the position like this 14.c1 xf1 15.xh6 e5 16.f3
exposes the weaknesses in Black's camp. is very dangerous for Black, Horvath, G-
exd4 24.xd4 xd4 25.xd4 e6 Farago,I/HUN tch 1992. ]
[ 25...f7 was probably more stubborn. ] 10.b1 e6 11.e4!? A key idea that has
26.f5+ g8 27.fe1 c7 28.xg7 xg7 o f t e n b e e n u t i l i s e d b y G u r e v i c h , W h i t e
29.b7 e7 30.xe7+ xe7 31.xf4 g8 transposes into a Botvinnik structure with his
32.f5 knight on f3. This can be even more effective
1-0 when Black plays ...Re8 instead of ...Be6, as
then the rook is misplaced. d7 12.d5
e8 13.b2 h7 14.d4 White opens the
971 A26 centre, but restraining ..f5 by
Gurevich,Mikhail 2644 [ 14.h4 is also possible, as in my game. ]
Plischki,Sebastian 2310 14...g4 15.dxe5 dxe5 16.e3 Hitting the
KB Czech Open (1) 18.07.2003 b i sh o p , a n d t r a n sp o si n g i n t o a s u p e ri o r
[Tony Kosten] e n d g a m e w i t h t h e g r e a t e r s p a c e . xd1
17.fxd1 xf3 Black has to concede the
By simple moves W hite gains a crushing bishop pair, as
advantage. This game is worth seeing for the [ 17...e6?! 18.b5 axb5 19.cxb5
plan White employs. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 wins a pawn. ]
3.f3 c6 4.a3 g6 5.g3 g7 6.g2 18.xf3 d6 This knight will just get kicked
Both players head for a Closed English, and and have to return,
this can transpose into [A26] at any moment. [ 18...d4 looks better. ]
0-0 7.d3 19.g2 fd8 20.c5 e8 21.d5 d4
[ 7.0-0 d5!? is seen in Ruck - Romanishin. ] 22.f4 White is gaining lots of space. c6
7...h6 To stop Bg5, or later Ng5 when the 23.d3 exf4 24.gxf4 xb2 25.xb2 g7
black bishop comes to e6. 26.bd2 By a series of simple moves White
[ 7...d5!? is pla ya b le he re, to o , 8.cxd5 has gained a dominating position. f6 27.h4
( perhaps White can try 8.g5!? ) 8...xd5 f7 28.h3 Every white piece finds a good
9.xd5 xd5 10.0-0 b5 which is level, post. ab8 29.a4 b6 30.b5 axb5 31.axb5
H o r v a t h , G - R u c k , T / S z o m b a t h e l y H U N a5 32.c3 xd3 33.xd3 bxc5 34.d7+
2003. ] A f t e r ga in i n g c o n t r o l o f t h e d - f i le W h i t e
8.0-0 d6 Maybe not the best, after infiltrates the 7th rank. f8 35.e6 d6
[ 8...a5 9.b1 d6 10.b4 Black can open the 36.e5 fxe5 37.fxe5 xb5 38.f7+ g8?!
a-file by axb4 11.axb4 e6 and now I Now Black gets mated, but
surprised my opponent with the same idea [ 38...e8 39.e4 amounts to much the
of the main game: 12.e4!? d7 13.d5 same. ]
e7 14.h4!? h7 15.h1 xd5?! 39.d5 d4
16.cxd5 f5 17.exf5 xf5 18.xf5 1-0
( 18.xg6!? xg6 19.e4 f6 20.g4
xe4 21.gxf5+ xf5 22.dxe4 f7
is nothing special for White) 18...gxf5 19.f4 972 A26
(fixing the weak f-pawn) e8 20.c2 c8 Gurevich,Mikhail 2667
21.fxe5 xe5 22.d4 g6 23.b2 b5 Shirov,Alexei 2746
24.xf5 and won, Kosten,A-Gozzoli,Y/St FIDE WCh KO New Delhi IND (3.4) 05.12.2000
Affrique FRA 2003. ] [Tony Kosten]
9.b4 a6 With the rook on a1
[ 9...e4!? is possible: 10.e1! ( 10.dxe4!? 1.c4 f6 2.c3 g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 0-0
xe4 11.xe4 xa1 12.xh6 g7 5.f3 d6 6.0-0 c6 Black provokes White
13.g5 was not very clear in Haase,W- into playing d4, when transposition into a
Bu c h e na u , F/K a ssel 1 9 9 5) 10...g4!? King's Indian, Fianchetto Variation, would
11.d2 e3 12.fxe3 xc3 13.xc3 xe3 occur. 7.b1 a5 8.d3 White prefers to play a

958
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
King's English, to avoid any early dissipation
of tension. Having lost the first rapid game he
had to win this game at all costs to stay in the
tournament. e5 9.h3!?
[ A very unusual move, normally White
c o n t in u e s h is q u e e n sid e p la y wit h 9.a3
when play often goes: h6 10.b4 axb4
11.axb4 e6 and chances for both sides. ]
9...h6 10.e4!? Very unusual, White
transposes into a Botvinnik-style structure.
Now we see why he play h3 on the move
before, it was to stop Black from continuing ...
Bg4, and winning the fight for the d4-square.
d7
[ T e c h n i c a l l y a n i n n o v a t i o n , 10...e8
had been played before, with the idea of
stopping d4, but e8 is a worse square for
the k night , 11.e1?! ( 11.e3 ) 11...e6
12.e3 d7 13.h2 f5 14.exf5 xf5
15.d2 with rough equality, Junquera,M-
Frois,A/Candas 1992. ]
11.e3 c5
[ This shows the disadvantage of Black's
tenth move- he can no longer stop W hite
from playing d4, 11...d4?! would lose a
pawn to 12.xd4 exd4 13.b5 although
Black's g7-bishop offers some
compensation. ]
12.d4 exd4 13.xd4 The position resembles
a K i n g ' s I n d i a n p o s i t i o n a f t e r a l l . d7
14.db5! White avoids simplification, and
shows-up the disadvantage of Black having a
knight on c6, instead of a pawn. e5 15.e2
c6?! 16.bd1
[ 16.xc5! dxc5 17.f4 d7 18.e5
is tempting. ]
16...ed7 White doesn't get another chance
t o c a p t u re o n c 5 , a n d cr e a t e a k in gs id e
majority. 17.d5 xd5 18.cxd5 e8
Black hopes for active piece play to
compensate White's space advantage, and
two bishops. 19.c2 h5 20.fe1 a4 21.f4
a5 Black finds an original way of attacking
the b5-knight that appeared to be
u n t o u c h a b l e . 22.a3 h4 23.g4 b5!?
Shirov in his element, somehow he manages
to conjure-up complications out of nothing. To
avoid Nc4, and the positional bind, he
sacrifices an exchange. 24.d2 a8
[ 24...a6? 25.xb5 would just lose a pawn
for nothing. ]
25.xa5 xa5 26.h1 b4 27.c4 b3!?
28.axb3 axb3 29.e2
[ 29.xa5? bxc2 30.d2 xe4! 31.xe4
xe4 is far from clear. ]
29...b4 30.e5!? White shows that he can
also play sharply. b6!?
[ 30...dxe5 31.d6 cxd6 32.xd6 e7
33.d5 is White's idea, reclaiming the
initiative. ]
31.xb6 cxb6 32.d2 Effectively forcing the
exchange of queens. xd2 33.xd2 g5
34.e6!? I am not sure that this is the best,
W hite excha nge s a p air of ro oks b ut th e
p o s i t i o n b e g i n s t o l o o k d r a w i s h . gxf4
35.exf7+ xf7 36.xe8 xe8 37.f1 f7
38.g2 e4 39.d3 c5 Having played the
whole game as though he had to win at all
costs, Black now shows that he hasn't
forgotten that a draw would be quite alright,
t h a n k yo u ! 40.f3 xb2 41.xf4+ g6
42.b4 e5 43.c4 b2 This strong b-pawn
will present enormous technical difficulties to
White. 44.a2 g5 45.b1 d7 46.f3
f6 47.b5 d4 48.c2 d7 49.e4 e5
50.e3 f4+ 51.e2 e5 52.f5 c5
53.b4 f6 54.f3
[ 54.xb6 is no better, a4 55.b8 c3+
56.d2 xd5 and White's winning chances
are problematic, to say the least. ]
54...c3! 55.xb6 e5 So, Black wins the d-
p a w n a n y w a y . 56.b1 xd5 57.g5
The g-pawn's route to g8 is opened. d7
58.b7 e5+ 59.f4 c4
[ 59...c6 60.h7 c4 61.g6 d2 62.a2
b1 63.xb1 xb1 64.g7 also wins for
White. ]
60.g6 c6 61.g7 e5+ 62.f5 e3+!?
[ Shirov continues to try and bamboozle his
opponent, 62...xg7 63.xg7 d2 64.g1
is hopeless for Black. ]
63.e4
[ 63.g5 xg7 64.xg7 c4 65.xh4
d2 66.d3 wins easily enough,
( but not now 66.g1?? f3+ )]
63...d5 64.f7??
[ A typical move at the end of a fifteen minute
game, 64.d3 wins immediately, Black has
to concede his bishop for the g7-pawn, and
that is that! ]
64...c3+ 65.d3 xg7 66.xg7 xb1
67.c2 Fortunately White has this move or he
959
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

would even lose! d2?? 11.g2 d4 12.xd4 Perfectly logical,

[ A n d n o w i t i s B l a c k ' s t u r n , 67...c3 although it is a novelty here, I recommend a
68.xb2 d1+ 69.c2 f2 wins White's similar ploy in related positions, the d4-pawn
last remaining pawn, and draws. ] hinders the black bishop.
68.xb2 d5 69.c2 f3 70.d3 e5 [ 12.g5 e6 13.h4 c6 14.e3
71.g4 f5 72.e3 The king comes over in is nothing special, Salov,V-Khalifman,A/St
time to help the rook, the h3-pawn will win the Petersburg 1997. ]
game. g5 73.xh4 d5 74.f4+ g6 12...exd4 13.d5 c8!?
75.h4 d4+ Tricky to the end, neither white [ 13...xd5 14.cxd5 leaves White with a
piec e c an ta ke th e p awn . 76.d3 f5 small advantage - the better bishop and an
77.h8 e6 78.c4 e4 79.h4 f5 open c-file. ]
80.g8 e4 81.h5 d3 82.c3 f5 14.h4
The h-pawn is unstoppable. [ 14.g5!? xg5 15.xc7+ might be
1-0 possible. ]
14...c6 15.f4 d7 16.h5 e7 17.b4
Typical Botvinnik System play, W hite has
973 A26 stabilised the centre, and attacks on both
Kasparov,Garry 2838 wings. 0-0-0 Probably the safest choice,
Paehtz,Elisabeth 2349 kingside castling looks very risky when Gary
ZMD Blitz Munich GER blitz (6) 13.11.2002 can open the h-file! 18.a4 f5 Black looks for
[Tony Kosten] counterplay on the f-file. 19.exf5 xf5 20.b5
g5 21.g4 f7 22.h3 h6 23.b1 hf8
1.g3 e5 2.c4 d6 3.g2 g6 4.c3 g7 24.f1 e5 25.a5 This is a very quick game,
5.d3 c6 6.e4 I think that this move is less of course, so there is not too much subtlety in
accurate here, as we shall see. d4 the play. c5 26.a6 b6 27.f4
[ 6...h5! is best, 7.h4 ( 7.h3!? d4 8.ge2 Having established a mighty queenside pawn
xe2 9.xe2 e6 was quickly drawn in chain, and in particular a possible spot on b7
Miles,A-Sadler,M/ Hastings 1998) 7...d4 for the white queen later-on, White utilises his
8.ce2 ( t h e p o i n t i s t h a t 8.ge2 extra kingside pawn. He has to act quickly as
is n o w a ns were d b y g4 and White no B l a c k wo u l d b e p l a yi n g . . . d 5 s o o n . gxf4
longer has the possibility of h3) 8...e6 28.xf4 g7 29.f3 A little mate-in-one
9.f3 ( 9.e3 f6 10.f3 0-0 11.d2 threat to keep Black on her toes! d5 30.h1
led to exciting play in Kosten,A-Georgadze,A/ Played to unpin the g-pawn as ...Nf5 was a
P . S . G e o r gi o 1 9 9 4) 9...f6 10.g5 possibility. xf4 31.xf4 g5 32.b2 d6
which is fairly equal in Chernin,A-Karpov,A/ Both sides bring their weight to bear on the f-
Tilburg 1992. ] file. 33.bf2 d7
7.ge2 With the h-pawns on their original [ 33...df6 34.g3 e5 looks more
squares this is good. g4 8.h3! f3 logical. ]
[ 8...f3+?? 9.f1 wins a piece. ] 34.h2 ff6 35.g3 dxc4 36.dxc4 g8?!
[ 8...xe2?! 9.xe2 xe2 10.xe2 e7 the knight was badly placed, but a move like
11.h4! c6 12.g5 f6 13.e3 h5 [ 36...e5 was indicated. ]
14.0-0-0 e7 15.h3 White's bi shop pair 37.f3 W ith a nasty threat. e5 38.g2
give him a pleasant edge, Csom,I- e7 39.d3? OK, it is difficult to criticise
Kindermann,S/ Debrecen 1989. ] moves that are played instantaneously, but
9.xf3 xf3+ 10.f1 Black's check counts [ 39.e2 g5 40.b7+ was one of many
for nothing, as the white king will go to g2 with wins here. ]
tempo, and Black has simply exchanged his 39...g5 40.b7+ e8 41.b8+ f7??
better bishop. e7 [ 41...d8 is far from clear. ]
[ 10...c6 11.g2 d4 12.xd4 exd4 42.xd6 The rook was not defended as its
13.e2 e7 14.h4 is similar to the game, partner is pinned! xg4+ 43.g3
Benko,P-Szabo,L/Winnipeg 1967. ] 1-0

960
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

974 A26 dark-squared pawns. 16.fxe3 xf1+ 17.xf1

Kharlov,Andrei 2656 The white queen is required on the queenside.
Popov,Valerij 2559 d7 18.g1 d5!
5th Russian Cup Final (5) 06.10.2001 [ This is the best way to free his dark-
[Tony Kosten] squared bishop, Black has no time to play
18...g4 as 19.b5 h5 20.a4
1.c4 e5 2.g3 g6 3.g2 g7 4.c3 d6 and the pressure on c6 is too great. ]
5.d3 f5 6.e4 The advantage of playing a 19.cxd5 cxd5 20.a4!? d6
Botvinnik structure against such aggressive [ 20...xa4 21.xa4 f8 22.a3 d6
black systems (with ... f5) is that White has a is also fine, the bishop covers the c7-square
say on the kingside, and should be able to and stops the rook from infiltrating on the c-
avoid being 'mown down' there. c6 7.ge2 file. ]
ge7 8.0-0 0-0 9.d5 21.b5 c8 22.e2
[ 9.e3?! allows the annoying reply d4! [ 22.xb7 d4 23.e2 xc1+ 24.xc1
, it is important that White can capture on dxe3 25.xa7 is a bit risky, if playable. ]
d4 with a knight. ] 22...xc1+ 23.xc1 f8 24.xb7 xb4
9...h6!? 25.xd5 xb7
[ In my book I say that this move 'does not [ Both sides head for a draw. 25...e1+!?
appear to be overly useful', we will see if I 26.g2 d2+ 27.f3 g4+ 28.e4 h8
am right! 9...e6 10.e3 d7 leads to the 29.b3 is far from clear. ]
main line. ] 26.xb7 a3 27.b3 xb3 28.axb3 c5
10.e3 g5!? The opposite-colour bishops assure the draw.
[ An innovation, planning a kingside pawn 29.f2 g4 30.c8 h5 31.h3 gxh3 32.xh3
avalanche, but White should be well-placed f7 33.f3 b4 34.d4
t o h a n d l e t h i s . I n S e r p e r , G - H a r l e y , A / ½-½
Hastings 1990, Black pref erred 10...d4
11.xd4 exd4 12.xe7+ xe7 13.d2 c6
14.b3 fxe4 15.xe4 h7 16.ae1 f7 975 A26
17.f4 but White's mobile kingside pawn Kokarev,Dmitry 2650
majority gives him an easy plus. ] Levin,Evgeny A 2501
11.xe7+!? Samara Polugaevsky Memorial 4th (7) 8.7.14
[ Apart from the fact that White exchanges a [Tony Kosten]
well-placed piece that has moved twice for a
piece that has only moved once, this move 1.g3 g6 2.g2 g7 3.c4 e5 4.c3 d6
also suffers from the disadvantage that it 5.d3
makes it easy for Black to cover the d5- [ 5.e4 is slightly more accurate if White is
square with .. .c6. 11.exf5 xf5 12.b4!? g o i n g t o p l a y a B o t vi n n i k S ys t e m , b u t
is an interesting alternative, White will try to perhaps he wanted to keep his options open
play b5 as quickly as possible in order to here. ]
gain light-squared domination. e4?! 13.d4 5...f6 6.e4 c6 7.ge2 0-0 8.0-0 d7!?
e8 14.b5 favours White. ] "Black plans to bring his knight to c5, and
11...xe7 Black needs to be able to recapture then possibly to e6, to control d4."
on f5 with a knight. 12.exf5 Almost forced, [ The mainline 8...e6 Bruzon, L-Kempinski,
White cannot allow Black to play ...f4. xf5 R, and ]
13.c3 The knight eyes e4 and d5. c6 [ 8...d4!? Prusikin, M-Schunk, E, are both
14.c1 e6 15.b4 White plans b5, softening- analysed in the Archive. ]
u p t h e l o n g d i a g o n a l a n d t r yi n g t o g a i n 9.e3 In my view this 'automatic' move is a
c o m p l e t e c o n t r o l o f d 5 . xe3!? slight mistake.
This exchange has been on-the-cards for [ Otherwise, 9.f4 is popular,
some time, Black gains the bishop pair, but A) 9...f5?! 10.exf5 gxf5 11.e3 d4
risks seeing his g7-bishop stymied by all his 12.xd4!? ( 12.fxe5 dxe5 13.xd4 exd4

961
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
14.d5 is only a little better for White,
because of the f 4-square, Rotstein, A
(2525)-Krasenkow, M (2676)/Izmir 2004.)
12...exd4 13.b5 s e e m s s t r o n g , c6
14.xd6;
B) 9...exf4 10.gxf4!? ( 10.xf4 d4
Black has good dark-squared control.
11.e3 xe2+ 12.xe2 Popov, V (2542)-
Ba rba s hin , I (2 24 0 )/ E le t s 2 00 8 , e5 )
10...d4 11.e3 xe2+ 12.xe2 f5
13.exf5 xf5 14.e4 f8 15.f5 gxf5
Stean, M-Biriescu, I/Teeside 1973,
16.xf5!? ]
[ My preferred 9.d5 is seen in Kosten, A-
Lilley, G, where I say: "As I explained in my
book, this is almost invariably superior to 9
Be3"! ]
9...d4 This is the problem, Black occupies
the d4-square, and White cannot capture with
the knight. 10.d2
[ 10.xd4 exd4 11.b5 can be answered
by b8 12.bxd4 c5 13.c2 xb2
regaining the pawn (on b2), 14.b1 g7
Lju bicic , F (24 80 ) -Ja nkovic, A (2 54 8)/
Sibenik 2007, 15.f4 c6 fairly level. ]
10...c6 An innovation, although play will later
transpose.
[ 10...c5 is the most common, when 11.f4
( 11.b4 ce6 ) 11...c6 12.ae1 f5
transposes to the game. ]
[ 10...a5?! stops b4, but is too slow, 11.xd4
( 11.h3 c5 12.f4 c6 with good play for
Black, Rodrigues, J-Askarov, B/St. Lorenzo
1995. ) 11...exd4 12.b5 winning a pawn. ]
11.f4 f5 12.ae1 c5 13.h1 a5 14.g1
Finally White can take on d4 with his knight.
ce6!? Another new move, but perfectly
logical.
[ 14...xe2 is simpler, 15.xe2 Marantz, M
(2420)-Ginsberger, A (2200)/Israel 1984,
fxe4 16.dxe4 g4 which looks pretty good
for Black. ]
[ 14...a4!? Burwick, M (2239)-Couso, L
( 2 3 4 5 ) / S w e d e n 2 0 0 2 , 15.exf5 xf5
16.xd4 exd4 17.e4 Fairly equal. ]
15.exf5 Such positions can be a gold mine for
the stronger player, as we often reach
s it u a t io n s wit h a d yn a m ic t e n sio n in t h e
centre (e4 and f4 against e5 and f5) and a
difficult choice of which exchange to make, or
whether it's better to keep the tension and
allow the opponent the same choice.
[ 15.xd4 xd4 16.xd4 exd4 17.d1
would be an interesting alternative here,
planning Nf2 and doubling rooks on the e-
f i l e . T h e n fxe4 18.xe4 and White can
push his kingside pawn majority. ]
15...xf5 16.fxe5 dxe5 This double
exchange favours White slightly, his backward
d-pawn is less of a problem than the e5-pawn,
and he has the e4-square for a knight.
However, Black has good control of d4 and ...
Bh6 can be awkward.
[ 16...xe5?! 17.d4 ]
17.e4
[ 17.a4! is interesting, aiming at the b6-
square and answering h6 with 18.c3
when e5 is hanging. ]
17...h6 18.d1 e3 19.xe3 xe3
20.g1 xf1 21.xf1 xg1! I like this
decision, the bishop was quite strong, but it is
not the pieces that leave the board that are
important, it is those that are left, and now
Bla ck h as th e po t en t ially su pe rio r min o r
pieces.
[ 21...d4 22.d2 e7 as also playable,
but 23.f3 keeps the pressure on, at some
point Nf6+ will be a problem. ]
22.xg1 A strange choice, the rook was
perfectly placed on the f-file, and
[ 22.xg1 d4+ 23.h1 xb2?
is no problem: 24.f3 and wins. ]
22...d4 23.c5
[ 23.f1 might be best, and if so the last
move is shown to be a mistake. ]
23...e6 24.d6 xa2 25.e1?!
White plays for the initiative, but it is not sure t
hat this is the best square for the rook,
[ 25.xb7 b8 also favours Black, 26.a1
xb7 27.xa2+ g7 because of his strong
knight, but White is still in the game. ]
[ 25.a1! is right, b3 26.xb7 b8
27.d6 and the difference is that the b-
pawn is defended. ]
25...f6 26.xb7 b8 27.d6?!
[ 27.f1 e6 28.xa5 xb2 leaves the
material equal. ]
27...xb2 28.e4 e7 29.c3?!
These last few moves smell of severe time
trouble. f7 30.a1 xg2! 31.xg2 c2
32.c1 xe1+ 33.xe1 xc5 Two extra
pawns should prove decisive. 34.h3 e6+
962
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

35.g4 b4 36.d4 xd4 37.e4 d3+ [ 12...xf5 concedes control of e4. ]
38.h4 d8+ 39.g3 f8 40.h3 f4+ 13.f4 cd4?! This allows White to force a
41.h4 h6 favourable adjustment of the pawn structure.
0-1 14.fxe5! Much better than
[ 14.xd4?! exd4 (threatening to win the d5-
knight by 15...c6) 15.b5 a5! (renewing the
976 A26 threat by controlling the knight's escape
Kosten,Anthony C 2515 s q u a r e , b 4 ) 16.bxa6 xa6 and Black is
Lilley,Graham 2235 doing well. ]
86th ch-British (4) 04.08.1999 14...dxe5 15.xd4 xd4 16.xd4!
[Tony Kosten] Co nced in g th e b isho p pa ir, b ut in re tu rn
White closes the gap on d4, gains control of
1.c4 f6 2.c3 g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 0-0 the f4-square, and isolates the f5-pawn. exd4
5.d3 e5 6.e4 Botvinnik's set-up is a good line 17.b5 So that if Black tries to chase the knight
wh en Bla ck p lays . . .e 5. Th e g2-b is h op 's away from d5 he will give himself a weakness
h1-a8 diagonal is only likely to be closed on c6 (after b5xc6). d7 18.e1 h8
temporarily, as Black nearly always plays ...f5 19.h5 Black's loose kingside provides useful
at some point, when White's reply e4xf5 will squares for the white pieces. c6 20.bxc6
re-open it. c6 7.ge2 d6 8.0-0 d7!? bxc6 21.f4 f6?!
Black plans to bring his knight to c5, and then [ 21...e8 was the only chance. ]
p o s s i b l y t o e 6 t o c o n t r o l d 4 . 9.d5 22.e7! e8
As I explained in my book, this is almost [ 22...xe7?? is impossible because of
invariably superior to 23.g6+ , of course. ]
[ 9.e3?! w h i c h a l l o w s : d4! as here 23.e2 f7 24.e1 The move
10.d2 ( 10.xd4 exd4 11.b5 [ 24.c7 is also strong, justifying White's
can be answered by a6 12.bxd4 c5 seventeenth move, but how could I resist
regaining the pawn (on b2).) 10...a5 11.h3 tripling on the e-file? ]
c5 12.f4 c6 with good play for Black, 24...fe8? This brings the game to a swift
Rodrigues,J-Askarov,B/St.Lorenzo 1995. ] conclusion. I had expected
[ Otherwise, 9.f4 is popular, but after exf4! [ 24...h6 although 25.e5 xe5 26.1xe5
10.xf4 Goeslbauer, H-Schwarz,C/Graz xf4 27.gxf4 e8 28.b7 followed by
1994, d4 Black has good dark-squared doubling rooks on the seventh, would win
control. ] easily. ]
9...c5 25.xe8+! xe8 26.xe8+ xe8 27.xe8+
[ 9...a5 is possibly superior, stopping White's f8 28.e6 Black loses a piece.
next, 10.b1?! ( 10.e3 ) 10...c5 11.e3 1-0
d4 12.d2 c6 13.dc3 e6 14.f4 f5
and Black was doing very well, Turner,M-
Haydon,R/ENG-chT 1997. ] 977 A26
10.b4 Taking the opportunity of gaining some Kosten,Anthony C 2533
space on the queenside. e6 11.b2 f5!? Renner,Christoph 2431
This is always a do uble-edged ad van ce . Bundesliga 2-Sud 17.03.2002
Previously, Black had played [Tony Kosten]
[ 11...ed4 i.e. 12.xd4?! (White's play is
timid, better ( 12.b5 xe2+ 13.xe2 d4 I arrived in Munich for this match, rushing
14.xd4 exd4 15.a4 wi t h a n e d g e )) straight from the Austrian league, after 1am in
12...xd4 13.e3 c6 14.c2 g4!? 15.f3 the morning, and by the time I found my hotel
Mchedlishvili,M-Banikas,H/Zagan 1995, and it was almost 2am. I was awoken before 8 the
now xc2 16.xc2 e6 should be next morning, as although we didn't play till 10,
played. ] apparently the venue was some way away.
12.exf5 gxf5 However, the car I was assigned to didn't

963
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
leave until after ten, and I arrived over 40
minutes late! I was not very happy, to say the
least, and rather than my planned preparation,
decided to play something I knew very well,
so that I could blitz-out my first 15 moves ...
1.c4 f5 2.c3 f6 3.g3 g6 4.g2 g7
5.d3 d6
[ Against Santo-Roman, a few weeks later
the game differed here: 5...0-0 6.e4 d6
7.ge2 fxe4 8.dxe4 e5 9.0-0 c5!?
not a bad idea, as Black will follow-up with ...
Nc6-d4 the backward d6-pawn will be safe,
10.h3 e6 11.b3 c6 12.g4!? d4
13.g3 d7 Black intends ...Qh4, ...Nf6,
and a possible sac on g4, 14.d5! b6
15.e3 xd5 16.exd5 d7 17.c1 c7
18.e4! the right piece! Placing the knight
here would block the bishop on g2. Now
White planned Kg2, f3, and then h4-5 with
a kingside attack, and this was carried-out
successfully. ]
6.e4 c6
[ 6...e5 may be more accurate, 7.ge2 0-0
A) 8.0-0 is more natural, but allows f4!?
9.gxf4 h5 10.f5! ( White should return
the pawn, 10.fxe5?! dxe5 gives Black
excellent compensation f or the pawn,
because of the weak white dark squares,
K o s t e n - P h i l i p p e , C a p D ' A g d e 1 9 9 8)
10...gxf5 11.g3 xg3 ( 11...f4?!
12.xf4 exf4 Rychel,D-Gruschinski,R/
Heimbach W eis 1997, and now 13.xf5
xf5 14.exf5 favours W hite) 12.fxg3
but this looks a little better for White, so
may be best.;
B) 8.exf5!? I gave this an exclamation
mark on page 121 of my book The
Dynamic English, so I was happy to try it,
but now I am not so sure ... gxf5 9.f4?!
this is probably faulty, I was still worried
about Black playing ...f4, and so I decided
to 'nip it in the bud', but this is too
we a k en in g, ( 9.0-0 c6 10.d4 was my
recommendation (maybe I should read my
own book?!)) 9...c6 10.0-0! e6 11.h3
d7 12.e3 ae8 1/2-1/2 Kosten,A-
McDonald,N/Birmingham ENG 2002, I
decided to accept Neil's draw offer, as
a f t e r m y i n t e n d e d 13.d2 I was a bit
concerned about d5!? 14.fxe5 xe5
15.d4 f7!? 16.c5 dxc4 sacrificing the
exchange for dark-squared control. ]
7.ge2 e5 Play returns to a pure Botvinnik
System. 8.0-0
[ I had an idea that my opponent might
capture on e4, after 8.h3 he had played
fxe4 9.dxe4 e6 against Danny King,
Germany 1997, and had drawn. ]
8...fxe4?!
[ This fixing of the pawn structure is
premature, in my opinion, 8...0-0 9.d5
is normal. ]
9.dxe4 g4?! This loses a move, as f3 is
useful for White.
[ After 9...0-0 Spraggett has been known to
play 10.f3 anyway. This demonstrates the
u se f u ln e ss o f kn o win g t yp ica l p la n s i n
such positions. ]
10.f3 e6 11.d5 d7 12.e3 0-0 13.d2
f7 this is the standard plan in such positions,
ever since Botvinnik successfully employed it,
against Benko. However, I remember playing
similarly as Black against John Piggot when I
was very young, and being crushed by a quick
c5! Since that time I have learnt my lesson!
14.b4 b6 15.ac1 It always pays to remove
this rook from a1 - you never know when the
a 1 - h 8 d i a g o n a l m i g h t b e o p e n e d ! af8
The position is very similar to the Psakhis -
Danielsen game I have examined, but here it
i s W h i t e t o m o v e ! 16.fd1?! I was a bit
doubtful about moving this rook f rom the
defence of the kingside, but I had already
managed to catch-up on the clock, and
w a n t e d t o k e e p t h e p r e s s u r e o n ! h3
17.xf6+!? Giving my opponent something to
think about. xf6!
[ 17...xf6 18.c5 puts the pressure on
Black's centre. ]
18.f1! The rook returns to defend f3. I wrote
about this in my '101 tips' book: one should
never be afraid of taking a move back.
[ 18.xh3? xh3 19.d5+ h8 20.xc6
xf3 and there is no way to defend the
bishop on e3. ]
18...xg2?! I am not too sure about this move,
the black bishop is much more active than its
counterpart, so why exchange it?
[ 18...e6 19.c5!? bxc5 20.bxc5 d5
is almost level. ]
19.xg2 f7 20.g1 Black's initiative turns-
out to be quite temporary, as once the f-pawn
964
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
is well-defended, White can concentrate on
the centre and queenside. d4? This loses.
21.xd4 exd4 22.b5! Sealing the d-pawn's
fate, White has mobile kingside pawns, and a
potentially food knight versus bad bishop.
h6?! 23.d3 Freeing the knight. a6 24.a4
g5 25.e2 g4 26.f4
[ 26.xd4 gxf3+ 27.xf3 is also sufficient. ]
26...h5 27.f5
[ 27.xd4 h3+ 28.g1 xf4?!
is Black's little trick, but even here, after
29.xf4 xf4 30.f5 White wins. ]
27...a8 28.f4 g5
[ 28...e8 29.d5 f7 30.f6 h8 31.e5!
dxe5 32.g6+ is devastating. ]
29.e6 xe6
[ 29...e3 30.xe3 dxe3 31.xc7 a7
32.d5 is also without hope for Black. ]
30.fxe6 e5 31.f7! a7 32.a5!
The cleanest kill. axb5 33.axb6 a2+ 34.f2
xf2+ 35.xf2 cxb6 36.cxb5 xe6
37.c4 xc4 38.xc4 f7 39.c7+ g6
40.c6
1-0
978 A26
Ledger,Andrew 2450
Rendle,Thomas 2370
ch-EU Cork IRL (10) 31.03.2005
[John Watson]
1.c4 f5 2.c3 f6 3.g3 d6 4.g2 g6 5.d3
g7 6.e4 c6 7.ge2 0-0 8.0-0 e5
N o w we ' v e t r a n s p o s e d t o t h e R e ve r s e d
Closed Position with ...f5 and ...Nf6,
extremely popular at the top levels. 9.b1
Not given in Hansen but a good waiting move.
White wants to play b4 but he is also waiting
for ...Be6 before he plays Nd5. e6
[ 9...fxe4 10.dxe4 g4 11.f3 e6 12.d5
is no improvement. Sometimes Black
plays aggressively with ]
[ 9...h5 intending ... f4, when White has
10.exf5 ( or 10.f3!? with the idea f4 11.g4
f6 12.d4 xd4 13.xd4 exd4 14.e2 )
10...xf5 ( 10...gxf5 11.d4 or 11.f4, both
with advantage) 11.h3 e6 12.d5 d7
13.g4 ( 13.h2 ) 13...f6 14.f4 ae8
15.ec3 d4 16.fxe5 dxe5 17.xf6+
xf6 18.xf6 xf6 19.e4 e7 20.h6
and Whites pieces seem better-placed than
Black's (Qd2 and Rf1 is an obvious plan). ]
10.d5 d7
[ 10...fxe4 11.dxe4 d7 12.g5
intends Qd2. Then ... Bh3 is impossible
because Black's c-pawn hangs. ]
11.b4 d8 This sort of reorganisation is a
normal idea, intending ...c6 to expel or trade
off the knight. Also typical is
[ 11...e7 , but in this particular instance it
loses a pawn to 12.xe7+ xe7 13.exf5
xf5 14.xb7 ]
12.b5
[ 12.xf6+ xf6 13.exf5 xf5 14.h6
g7! offers Black no problems. ]
12...c6 13.bxc6 bxc6 14.exf5 Accommoda
ting.
[ 14.xf6+ xf6 15.f4 at least unbalances
the play. Black shouldn't have too many
difficulties, but fxe4 16.fxe5 xe5 17.xf8+
xf8 18.xe4 d5 leaves Black's king is a
little loose and I would rather play White. ]
14...xf5 15.e3 h3 16.d4?! This both
isolates the c-pawn and cedes the e4 square.
xg2 17.xg2 f7
[ 17...exd4! 18.xd4 e4 and White has
some problems, probably solvable, with
ideas like ...Nc3 and ... Ng5. ]
18.f4?! More loosening play as now e4
becomes a permanent outpost. exf4
[ 18...exd4! 19.xd4 e4 puts real
pressure on, e.g., 20.b2 ae8 21.e1
h6! ]
19.xf4 d5 20.cxd5 xd5 21.exd5 cxd5
22.b3 White is fine but he has the worse
bishop, so
[ 22.a3 fe8 23.c5 is a better solution. ]
22...ad8 23.d2! fe8
[ 23...xd4 24.d3 g7 25.a5 e5
26.b3 is roughly equal. ]
24.h4? These innocent-looking positions are
often the hardest play. Better was
[ 24.a5 c8 25.xd5 c2+ 26.h1 ]
24...xd4 25.d3 e5
[ Even better is 25...e4! with a pawn and
very nice game. In any case Black stands
very well and either time trouble or rating-
fear must have influenced his decision to
split the point. ]
½-½
965
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
979 A26
Lyanguzov,Oleg 2355
Klimov,Sergey 2481
Czech Open A (2) 22.07.2006
[John Watson]
When you're on the White side of the English
Opening, one of the scariest things to face is
a massive pawn advance on the kingside,
even if you know that it's premature or
shouldn't be correct. It's important to study
and think about these positions. Here's a
cautionary tale: 1.c4 g6 2.f3 g7 3.g3 e5
4.c3 c6 5.g2 d6 6.0-0 f5 7.d3 h6!?
Presumably Black is trying to avoid
[ 7...f6 8.g5 , although it's difficult for
W hite to get anything ou t of the lin e h6
9.xf6 xf6= ]
8.b1
[ White's preparation for b4 is logical and
perhaps best, but I used to play the move
8.d2 in such positions, with the idea b3
and Bb2, e.g., g5 9.b3 g4 ( 9...ge7
10.b2 0-0 11.e1 f4 12.d5 ) 10.h4
ge7 11.b2 ]
8...g5!? 9.d5 Since the knight can't stay
here White loses some time and control over
d5. Two preferable courses were
[ 9.d2 a5 10.a3 f6 11.b4 axb4
12.axb4 intending b5, and ]
[ 9.d2 a5 10.a3 f6 11.b4 axb4
12.axb4 ]
9...ce7! One good thing about this standard
retreat is that it does no good for W hite to
reinforce d5 in view of ...c6. 10.xe7 xe7
11.b4 g6!? Black is asking a lot from his
kingside attack, although W hite has no
obvious counterplay. Also possible was simply
[ 11...e6 12.d2 c6 , simply preparing ...
d5. ]
12.d2
[ 12.b2 might be met by 12...c6 (best?), or
0-0? 13.d2 ( the central break 13.d4
is reasonable but unimpressive following e4
14.d2 d5 15.cxd5 xd5= ) 13...e6
( 13...e7 14.b5 ) 14.b5 ( 14.xb7 b8
15.d5 xd5 16.cxd5 xb4 ) 14...c8
15.a4 f4 ]
12...g4!? Plunging ahead! Black plays single-
mindedly. 13.a4+
[ 13.b2 h5 14.d4 has the idea 14...exd4
15.Nb3!, but h4 keeps the initiative. ]
13...d7 14.b5 c8 15.c5!? This is the
logical way to continue W hite's queenside
atta ck, and hard to f au lt in spite of wha t
happens.
[ 15.a3 a6! looks effective. ]
15...dxc5 16.c4 b6! Not only good, but
p o s i t i o n a l l y f o r c e d . 17.xa8 xa8
With the light squares, an extra pawn, and ...
h5 -h 4 co m in g, B lack ha s e no ugh f or t h e
excha nge . Bu t h e ha sn't castled an d his
centre is a bit loose. 18.e4?! This is the key
point. From now on White's defensive task is
a tre me n do us bu rde n . I t hin k th e wa y t o
counter Black's attack was to close the long
diagonal:
[ 18.f3!
A) 18...h5?! 19.fxg4 hxg4 ( 19...h4
20.gxf5 hxg3 21.e4! ) 20.e4!
cuts off the attack and has the idea Ng5 or
even Bg5;
B) 18...gxf3 19.xf3 c6! 20.a4 e4
( 20...h5? 21.g5 ) 21.e1 ( 21.dxe4
cxb5 22.axb5 xe4! creates new
chances because 23.xe4+ fxe4 24.e1
e7! with the idea ... Nd5 emphasizes
White's weaknesses on b5 and e2. That's
probably about equal.) 21...cxb5 22.axb5
and alth ough Black is quit e a ctive h e
needs a plan. Perhaps e7 ( 22...exd3
23.xd3! ) 23.b2 e5 24.b3 d8
is a start, although W hite's position has
improved considerably and he stands
better overall. ]
18...f4 19.f3 What else? c8!?
[ 19...h5! would ask White what he's going to
do about the attack. ]
20.b2 e6 21.c2 d7 22.c4
[ 22.fxg4 makes sense, before ...h5 comes.
There might follow xg4 23.c4 fxg3
24.hxg3 h5 , when I prefer Black's attacking
chances (... h4 and ...Bh6 are themes) but at
least 25.e3 grabs some squares. ]
22...h5?!
[ 22...fxg3! 23.hxg3 gxf3 24.xf3 h5!
looks more accurate. It's very difficult to say,
especially over-the-board. ]
23.a4? This ultra-conservative defence of the
b-pawn throws away the last opportunity:
[ 23.gxf4 at least gets this move in before
Black can recapture with the knight (23...
966
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Nxf4? 24.Nxe5), so there might follow exf4! c8 Black needs to move his knights if he
( 23...xc4 24.dxc4 xf4 25.bd1 ) wants to play ...c6, to drive the powerful d5-
24.xg7 xg7 25.b2 h7! 26.xg7 knight back, but as soon as the e7-knight
xg7 27.f2!? xc4! 28.dxc4 e5 moves, White has the following stratagem:
You can see how little material need be on 16.exf5! xf5 17.d4 h3 18.dxe5 xe5
the board for an exchange sacrifice to retain 19.f4 g7 20.xh3 xh3 21.d4
i t s p o s i t i o n a l e f f e c t . 29.e2 xf3 the black rooks are now misplaced on the f-
( 29...xc4 30.fxg4 xg4 also looks good file, White is almost winning, e6 22.xg7
White may be all right but he's struggling.) xg7 23.d4 d7 24.f3 c6?!
30.xf3 gxf3+ 31.xf3 and White is stilt , Davies,N-Duncan,C/ Scarborough ENG
worse but can probably hold. ] 1999, White winning quickly, but in fact he
23...fxg3 24.hxg3 h4! This is decisive. Apart could have won immediately by: 25.e5! as
from the obvious threat of crashing through on dxe5?? 26.f6+ wins the queen!
the h-file, the move ...hxg3 will win the f4 In cide n t a lly, Nige l t o ld m e th a t he h a d
square for a knight, and even ...Bh6 can be started playing this line after reading my
part of the attack if necessary. 25.f4 book! ]
[ 25.gxh4 xh4 26.fxg4 xg4+ 27.f2 11.d2 h7 12.ac1 With less pressure on
xc4! (to keep the knight from defending at his kingside W hite is free to start his
e3) 28.dxc4 f4 and White should resign. ] queenside play. g8!?
25...hxg3 26.f5 h2 27.d1? [ Trying to bring the knight to a better square,
[ 27.fxe6 e7! 28.xh2 ( 28.b3 h4 12...d7 is more natural, 13.b4 ab8 14.b5
and mates ) 28...gxh2+ 29.h1 isn't bad d4 15.xd4! (White will play with his
materially, but W hite's position has too knights on the light squares- worth
man y h oles f o r h im to survives, e .g. , a remembering!) exd4 16.ef4 c5 17.xe7
pretty line is g3 30.e3 f4 31.xf4 exf4 xe7 18.ce1 Black has problems on the e-
32.f5 g5 33.xg7+ f8 34.e7+ xe7 file, f7 19.xe6 xe6 20.exf5 xf5
35.f5+ e8 and there's nothing to be 21.e7 White has a strong initiative, despite
done about ... Qg4. ] the opposite-colour bishops, Istratescu,A-
27...f4 . White resigns (0-1). ...Nh3+ and ... Nikolaidis,K/ Halkida GRE 2000. ]
Ne2+ are threatened, while 28.xf4 exf4 13.b4 d4?! 14.xd4! As in the previous
29.xg7 xg7 actually mates within just a note, but this time a tactic is involved that
few moves. guarantees the f4-square for White's knights.
0-1 exd4 15.df4 c8
[ A necessary retreat, 15...d7?! 16.exf5
xf5 17.xb7 wins a pawn. ]
980 A26 16.exf5 gxf5 17.c5 c6 18.a4 e7 19.a2
Miezis,Normunds 2532 a5 20.b5 dxc5 21.xc5 d6 22.fc1
Prayitno,Sugeng 2391 White's queenside initiative gathers in pace.
Wotulo Mem Jakarta INA (5) 26.03.2001 d7 23.bxc6 xc6 24.b3 ab8 25.b6
[Tony Kosten] f7?! 26.xa5! f8 27.ac5 e5 28.g6!
A s i m p l i f y i n g c o m b o . xg6 29.xe5
1.c4 g6 2.c3 g7 3.g3 d6 4.g2 c6 As the knight is now pinned. h7 30.xc6
5.d3 e5 6.e4 ge7 7.ge2 0-0 8.0-0 f5 xc6 31.xd4 xa4 32.xf5! e8
9.d5 e6 10.e3 h6!? [ 32...xf5 33.xf5 xf5? 34.c7+
[ Quite a common move in OTB chess, Black wins the exchange. ]
puts his king in a safer spot, and controls g5, 33.c7 e1+ 34.g2 ee7 35.e6 e8
but it is not that useful. 10...d7 is best, 36.xf7+ xf7 37.xb7 xe6 38.xf7+
11.d2 f7 12.ae1 ( I also like 12.f3 g6 39.g7+ f6 40.c7
f irs t , b u t t h e t e xt is q u it e re a so n a b le ,) 1-0
12...af8 13.b4!? a6 14.a4 d8
( 14...fxe4 15.dxe4 g4 is possible) 15.a5

967
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

981 A26 12...af8 13.f4!?

Miezis,Normunds 2518 [ White decides to allow a hanging pawns
Rustemov,Alexander 2534 structure, but Black is well-placed to handle
Keres Mem Rapid rapid (2) 06.01.2001 this, 13.f3 is my preferred move, ]
[Tony Kosten] 13...fxe4 14.dxe4 e8 15.b3 g4 16.ec3
exf4 17.gxf4 d4 18.h1 e6 Black's play
1.c4 g6 2.c3 g7 3.g3 f5 4.g2 f6 is normal, he tries to put pressure on the
5.d3 d6 6.e4 c6 7.ge2 0-0 8.0-0 e5 hanging pawns. 19.f5! But these pawns have
9.d5 great dynamic potential! xg5 20.xg5 h5
[ 9.f4!? is an interesting alternative, White is 21.h3! Suddenly it seems that the black
happy to play with hanging pawns on e4 and q u e e n i s o n a n e x p o s e d d i a g o n a l . c6
f4, but it lacks the strategical bite of the 22.g2?!
main line, fxe4 10.dxe4 e6 11.d5 d7 [ White unpins the f-pawn, at the cost of a
12.d3 h5 13.e3 f7 14.ad1 exf4 piece! However, whilst this may succeed in a
15.gxf4 with chances to both sides, q u i c k g a m e , o b j e c t i v e l y 22.f4!
Movsziszian,K-Lautier,J/Cala Galdana ESP is far stronger, for if xc3? 23.fxg6 wins. ]
1999. ] 22...cxd5 23.xd5
9...e6 [ Unf ortunately, if 23.fxg6 Black has the
[ 9...xd5?! if this move were possible, there resource: f2+! 24.xf2 xf2+ 25.xf2
would be little point W hite playing Nd5 ! xh3 and wins. ]
10.cxd5 d4 with drawish intent, but the 23...h6! 24.h4 c6?
open c-file, and target on c7, assure White a [ Missing 24...f6! for 25.xf6+ xf6
plus, 11.xd4 exd4 12.d2 h6 13.c1 a5 26.fxg6 xg6+ is check. ]
14.c2 f7 15.f4 a6 16.fe1 White also 25.fxg6 xg6 26.xf7 xf7
has more centre pawns, e7 17.e5! dxe5 [ Not 26...xf7?? 27.e7+ ]
18.fxe5 xe5 19.xh6 d6 20.g5 27.e6 h7 28.xf7 xf7 29.e7
White is well on top, Istratescu,A-Agouridis, White has a strong initiative. g6 30.f4
A/Korinthos GRE 2000. ] f6?? 31.e6 No w W h it e wins . xe4+
10.g5 32.g1 h5 33.xe4 b6+
[ I think this is the most accurate, but 10.e3 [ 33...xe4? 34.f8+ ]
is also worth consideration, the ideas are the 34.c5 dxc5 35.g4 c4+ 36.f1
same: d7 11.c1 h5 12.exf5! 1-0
the standard plan, gxf5 13.f4 f6 14.d4
thematic! g4 ( Black has little choice,
14...e4? 15.xf6+ xf6 16.d5 982 A26
loses a piece) 15.dxe5 xe3 16.xe3 Miezis,Normunds 2518
dxe5 17.fxe5 xe5 18.f4 White has Seirawan,Yasser 2647
c o n c e d e d t h e i m p o r t a n t d a r k - s q u a r e d 34th Olympiad (3) 30.10.2000
bishop, but has gained f4 for his knight, and [Tony Kosten]
weakened f5, c6 19.b3 h8 20.cd1
e7 21.xe6 xe6 22.c5 the f5-pawn is 1.c4 e5 2.c3 c6 3.g3 g6 4.g2 g7
soon lost, Nogueiras,J-Paramos Dominguez, 5.d3 ge7 6.e4 d6 7.ge2 h5 8.h4 0-0
R/Santa Clara CUB 1999. ] [ 8...d4!? 9.xd4 exd4 10.e2 a6
10...d7 11.d2 f7 11.0-0 b8 Black plays aggressively on the
[ Possibly not the best move, for 11...h5 queenside, 12.b4 b5 13.cxb5 xb5 14.a3
, intending ...f4, see the note in the 0-0 15.g5 g4 16.f3 e6 17.c1
archives. ] the pressure on the c-file assures White an
12.ae1 slight pull, Franco Ocampos,Z-Pazos
[ To me, the most logical, although 12.f3!? Gambarrotti,P/Havana CUB 2001. ]
is also good, see the archives. ] [ 8...e6 is examined in the excellent game
[ 12.ac1 is likewise examined therein. ] Bareev,E-Azmaiparashvili,Z/Shenyang CHN

968
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
2000, see the archives. ]
9.0-0 g4 10.f3 e6 11.d5 d7 12.g5
f6 13.e3 A typical main line position is
re ac he d, e xc ep t th a t th e two side s ha ve
a d v a n c e d t h e i r h - p a wn s t wo squ a r e s . f5
The problem from Black's viewpoint, is that
this standard advance concedes control of g5.
However, Seirawan is a great English
Opening expert, so must be aware of this.
14.d2 f7 15.g5 h7 16.b4 White has
nothing to fear on the kingside, so expands on
the queenside to accentuate his space
advantage. g8 17.ab1 af8 18.b5 ce7
19.f4!? Most players would continue on the
queenside, but Miezis certainly believes in
this move in such positions. c6 20.bxc6
bxc6 21.e3 h6 With so many pieces
clustered together on the kingside the
s i t u a t i o n t h e r e i s v e r y t e n s e . 22.d4!?
More oil on the fire! exd4 23.xd4 fxe4
24.xh6! xh6 25.xe4 White's idea is
revealed, the f4-pawn acts as a barrier to the
black rooks, and meanwhile the e4-bishop
points at g6, and c6. g7?! 26.b7!? xb7
27.xe6 d7 28.xf8+ xf8 29.f5
White attacks on the light squares. g8
[ 29...xf5 30.xf5 gxf5 31.d3
is more awkward for Black than it appears at
first glance, Qg5 is a strong threat. ]
30.d3 e5 31.g2 d5!? Black wants to
exchange pieces, even at the cost of a pawn.
32.cxd5 cxd5 33.fxg6 xf1 34.xf1 e6
[ Forced, 34...dxe4?? 35.f7+ h8
36.h7# ]
35.f5 To win White would like to swap his
bishop for the black knight, as otherwise the
opposite-colour bishops will present technical
problems. f6 36.f3 d4? Time-trouble, no
doubt. 37.d5 Forced, but strong. xd5
38.xd5+ f8 39.a8+ e7 40.xa7+
f8 41.a8+ e7 42.b7+ f8 43.c8+
g7 44.d7+ f8 45.a4 e7 46.xe7+
xe7 47.a5 The passed a-pawn makes all
the difference, as without it this would be
drawn.
1-0
983 A26
Mulyar,Michael A 2391
Revesz,Zoltan 2161
34th World Open (2) 29.06.2006
[John Watson]
As far as I can make out from the PGN search
there isn't a game in the ChessPublishing
database with this popular position, one of
B l a c k ' s f a vo r i t e s i n t h e C l o s e d S i c i l i a n
Reversed (White's Botvinnik setups dominate
the A26 system). It is considered fully equal,
but the move chosen by Mulyar, 8.Nd5, isn't
even mentioned in Hansen's excellent survey
of the ...f5, ...Nf6 system. Here W hite
produces a nice positional win in a game with
almost no tactical element. This is a difficult
variation against which to gain an advantage,
and Mulyar makes it looks easy, lower-rated
opposition or not. 1.c4 e5 2.c3 c6 3.g3
g6 4.g2 g7 5.d3 d6 6.f3 f5 7.0-0 f6
8.d5 This is a good way to defuse Black's
attacking setup, but has the drawback that it
allows Black a choice of safe lines.
Nevertheless, there seems a little poison in 8.
Nd5, and 8.Bg5 hasn't gotten White very far.
The main line has been the saame for many
years, generally considered to lead to equality:
[ 8.b1 a5 9.a3 0-0 10.b4 axb4 11.axb4
h6 12.b5 e7 13.b2 ( 13.b3
with the idea Ba3 was played by Seirawan
verus Kamsky in Tilburg 1990. One of the
better answers seems to be h7 14.a3
d7 -Kamsky.; 13.c5!? is best answered by
e6 ) 13...e6 with dynamically balanced
play. ]
8...0-0
[ 8...xd5 9.cxd5 e7 10.g5!?
is messy, e.g., h6 ( 10...c6 11.a4 h6
12.dxc6 bxc6 13.xc6+ xc6 14.xc6+
d7 15.xd6 hxg5 16.xg6+ f8
17.xg5 gives White four pawns for a piece,
albeit against two bishops. Only his h-pawn
is passed, however, so it seems fair to call
the position only slightly better for White. )]
9.g5 e7!?
[ 9...d7!? 10.xf6+ xf6 11.xf6 xf6
12.d2 gave White a small edge in
Romanisin-Kupreichik, USSR Ch 1981. This
is similar to the game: ]
10.xf6+ xf6 11.xf6 xf6 12.c5!?
969
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

[ 12.b3 b8 13.c3! ( 13.d4 e4 14.d2 984 A26

d5 15.cxd5 xd5 looks fine for Black )]
12...g7!? Out of the a2-g8 frying pan into the
a 1 - h 8 f i r e . 13.b3 c6 14.c3! e7
15.b4! d5
[ 15...dxc5 16.bxc5 d7 17.ab1 b8
18.e3 and d4 keeps a small edge. ]
16.b5 d4 17.b2 d8 18.e3! xc5
[ 18...dxe3 19.fxe3 xc5 20.xe5! xe5
21.xe5 and Black is under a lot of
pressure. ]
19.exd4 exd4 20.xd4 No threats, but that
d a r k - s q u a r e d d i a g o n a l i s o m i n o u s . d7
21.fe1 a6 22.e2 axb5 23.ae1 d6!?
[ 23...h6 is the machine recommendation,
although White has a lot of activity following
24.xb5 : e6 (vs Re7) 25.xe6 xe6
( 25...xe6 26.a3 threatens both Bxb7 and
Re5 ) 26.xb7 b8 27.e5 b6 28.xf5!
d4! ( 28...gxf5 29.f6+ h5 30.f3# )
29.f4 c5! 30.d2 xb7 31.xd4 cxd4
32.f7+ g5 33.h4 ]
24.e7+ g8 25.xb5 xb5 26.xb5 c6
27.b3+ h8??
[ 27...f7 28.xf7 xf7 29.xb7 xa2
30.xc6 with an extra pawn. ]
28.b2??
[ 28.e8+ f8 29.1e7! hits f8 and there's
no defence: ]
28...g8 29.d7? There may be time trouble
hereabouts. White's perfect buildup could still
be rewarded after
[ 29.e8+ f8 30.1e7 (threatening mate)
f7 31.xf7! xf7 32.xa8 xa8
33.xb7+ ]
29...xd7 30.xf6 f7 31.d6! White is
still way on top, but it's become a technical
affair. f8 32.d7! f7 33.xb7 xa2
34.xc6 b4 35.e8+ g7 36.d5 a7
37.g2! d6 38.c4 d7 39.e6 d4
40.e7 xe7 41.xe7 f6 42.xf7+ xf7
1-0
Nikolaev,Leonid 2301
Cyborowski,Lukasz 2564
Open A Krakow POL (4) 30.12.2004
[John Watson]
The old but ever-popula r lin e with W hit e
playing d3 versus a King's Indian is still of
great interest. Here Black's system includes
the move ...Nc6. If White is going to give up
his bishop pair by Bg5 and Bxf6 he needs to
esta blish a p ositio nal bind. Th at doe sn't
happen in this game. 1.c4 e5 2.g3 g6
3.g2 g7 4.c3 c6 5.d3 d6 6.b1 a5
7.a3 f6 Delaying castling can be useful for
Black because it forces W hite to commit.
Here White deviates early but transposes by
a circu ito u s ro u te to a ma in lin e . 8.g5?!
Perhaps not really weak, but this move is too
early to challenge Black, who can now
transpose into a favourable line. h6 9.xf6
xf6 10.f3 g7 11.0-0 0-0 12.d2
White has had a hard time here. The point is
that Bg5 is appropriate after Black has
committed to a plan like ...Bf5 or ...Re8, but
not before because Black can wait to pick his
best plan. 12.Nd2 is a concession in that
Black now needn't fear d4 or Nxd4 after ...
Nd4.
[ (a) By f ar the main m ove here is 12.b4
axb4 13.axb4
A) or 13...e7! 14.b5 ( 14.d4!? ) 14...e6
15.d2 e4! 16.c2 (upon a knight
capture on e4, ...f5 wins) exd3 17.exd3
c6 gave Black a small edge in Kharlov-
Bacrot, playchess 2004;
B) 13...e6 is also commonly played;
C) 13...e8!? 14.b5 d4 ( 14...e7
15.b3 e6 is equal ) 15.d2 a3
16.b3
C1) (Probably unnecessary. White's only
plan is e3, so even a cheeky move like
16...g5! -from HiArcs- looks good:
17.d5! ( 17.e3? g4! ) 17...c6
( 17...d8!? is equal! ) 18.bxc6 bxc6
19.b4 c5! ( 19...g4!? 20.xd4
exd4 ) 20.d5 g4! with the idea
21.e1? xe2 22.xe2 xb3;
C2) 16...c6!? 17.e3 xb3 18.xb3
xb3 19.xb3 and according to
Kapengut and Gelfand White is slightly

970
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

better. I think that's true after, e.g., c7 that Nd5 (or ...Nd4) is best delayed until after
20.a1 f5 21.e4 e6 22.a7 ] ...Be6 (or Be3) is played. Then the opposing
[ (b) 12.e1!? c a n b e m e t b y g4 knight can't capture the intruder without being
(among others) 13.h3 e6 14.c2 d7 forked. Nevertheless, such an exchange does
15.h2 f5 and Black's attack is coming open W hite's c-file and more importantly, it
pretty fast ] t ra d e s o f f o n e o f B la ck 's m o s t e f f e c t iv e
12...e8 attacking pieces. In Ledger-Rendle, Cork 2005,
[ 12...e7 and ] White played 9.Rb1, waiting for ...Be6, which
[ 12...d4 are also played. The text is a transposed to another typical position.
useful semi-waiting move that supports [ W h i t e p l a y s 9.h3 extremely often, for
Black's centre after an eventual ...c6 and ... example, e6 ( Like hundreds before him,
d5. ] Black doesn't play 9...f4! , the remarkable
13.d5 m o ve f r o m R o c a - P e r a l t a , I T T R i c a r d o
[ 13.b4 axb4 14.axb4 e4! ( or 14...e7 ) Lettieri 2005 in the March column.) 10.d5
15.b5 ( White loses a piece after d7 11.h2 fxe4 12.dxe4 d4=
15.cxe4?? f5; or 15.dxe4?? f5 ) was Harpur-Almond, Cork IRL 2005. ]
15...exd3 ( or 15...e7 ) 16.bxc6 ( 16.exd3 [ The most attractive alternative to 9.Nd5 is
d4 ) 16...xc3 17.exd3 b6 18.c2 d4 9.exf5 xf5 ( 9...gxf5 10.d4 or 10.Nd5 )
( 18...g7 19.xb6! ) 19.b3 g7 10.h3 , but apart from the normal 10...Qd7
and Black's two bishops and open files give Black can try b4!? , which looks good and
him the advantage. ] isn't mentioned in any modern source that I
13...e7 14.b4 axb4 15.axb4 c6 16.xe7+ know of. ]
xe7 Now ...d5 is in the air. 17.b3 9...xd5
[ 17.b5 d5 18.b3 e6 ] [ A main line is 9...e6 , when White can
17...e6 18.b5 d5 It's been so easy. Black is play 10.g5 d7 11.d2 with only a small
better. The rest of the game is instructive: edge if that, e.g., h5! ( 11...f7!? 12.exf5
19.cxd5 cxd5 20.fc1 d7! 21.f1 h5 xf5 13.xf6+ xf6 14.xf6 xf6 15.f4 )
22.b6 h4 23.c7 h3! 24.h1 e4! 25.bc1 12.exf5 xf5 13.ae1!? ( 13.ab1 f7
e5 26.7c2 exd3 27.exd3 d4 28.c7 14.b4 ) 13...f7 14.b4 af8 15.b5 d8= ]
f6 10.cxd5 e7 11.f4!? This activates Black's
[ or 28...d6!? 29.xb7 a6 ] bishop on g7. . It's better to play in the centre
29.c2? xb6 30.xd7 xd7 31.d2 e6 or on the queenside, e.g.,
32.e3 d4 33.b1 a3 34.e2 c5 [ 11.b3 ,as given by Hansen with an '!', but
35.xb7 xd3 36.b8+ g7 37.f5+ he follows up with two poor examples that
Spite check. went h8 12.e3 c5 ( 12...c6 is natural
[ 37.xd3 xd3 and the bishops will escort and roughly equal, in my opinion) 13.f4 exf4
the d-pawn in even if W hite survives that ( Black can play 13...fxe4 14.dxe4 g4 )
long. ] 14.gxf4 , with 14...Qc7? in one and b6?
37...xf5 ( perfectly fine is 14...fxe4! 15.dxe4 g4
0-1 16.c3 d7 ) 15.e5 dxe5 16.fxe5 xe5
17.d4 cxd4 18.xd4 xd4+ 19.xd4
d6?? 20.c3 1-0 Klimera-Radecki, corres
985 A26 1993 ]
Paunovic,Dragan 2518 [ Also logical (and perhaps best) is 11.e3
Marholev,Dimitar 2381 , intending Rc1 or sometimes d4. The play
XXVIII Open San Sebastian ESP (3) 20.03.05 should be about equal. ]
[John Watson] 11...c6!? This is the standard break after the ...
Nxd5 and ...Ne7 sequence. It might be better
1.c4 g6 2.g3 g7 3.g2 e5 4.c3 f5 to open the diagonal for the c8 bishop first,
5.d3 c6 6.e4 f6 7.ge2 0-0 8.0-0 d6 [ 11...fxe4 12.dxe4 ( 12.xe4? h3
9.d5 There a kind of "rule" in these positions or ...Bg4 gives Black what he wants) 12...c6

971
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

( or 12...h8 , to avoid diagonal tricks) 23.a4

13.b3! ( 13.c3 b6+ 14.h1 exf4 ) [ 23.c1 d7 ]
13...b6+! ( 13...cxd5 14.c3! ) 14.xb6 23...xd3!?
axb6 15.c3 b5! 16.fxe5 xf1+ 17.xf1 [ 23...c8! and ...Rfe8 might prepare this
xe5 with the idea of ...b4 and the more better. ]
active pieces ] 24.xd3
12.e3 Developing normally. [ 24.fxe5! dxe5 25.xd3 e4 26.dd1 exf3
[ A natural-looking sequence that gains some 27.xf3 is a much-improved version of the
central control is 12.fxe5 game. ]
A) 12...dxe5 13.b3 cxd5 ( 13...b6+?? 24...e4 25.dd1 exf3 26.xf3 e4
14.xb6 axb6 15.d6 ) 14.exd5; 27.xe4 xe4 28.f2 fe8 29.b3 h7?!
B) 12...xe5 13.d4 g7 14.dxc6 bxc6 [ 29...8e7! with ...Qe8 to follow is a good
15.b3+ h8 16.g5 , e.g., h6 17.e3 idea. ]
b6 18.e5!? dxe5 19.dxe5 xb3 30.h4 d4? 31.xd4! xe1 32.xe1 xe1
20.axb3 xe5 21.xh6 with superior 33.c4 W hite has escaped. e7 34.h3
activity. ] h6 35.c3 h1+ 36.g2 e2+
12...cxd5 This is drawn, although the game result is
[ Again, 12...fxe4! looks advantageous, if given as '0-1'. Perhaps a tragic time forfeit?
m e s s y , a f t e r 13.dxe4 exf4 14.xf4! 0-1
( 14.xf4 b6+ 15.h1 cxd5 ) 14...xb2
15.b1 e5 16.dxc6 bxc6 17.b3+ h8
( 17...g7? 18.d3! f6? 19.xf6! xf6 986 A26
20.d4 ) 18.d3 xf1+ 19.xf1 g7 ] Prusikin,Michael 2540
13.exd5 h8! Schunk,Eduard 2337
[ The difference is clear in a line like 13...exf4 76th ch-GER Altenkirchen GER (1) 18.02.05
14.xf4 xb2 15.b1 g7 16.e6! xe6 [John Watson]
17.dxe6 etc. Still, the text conceals a potent
idea. ] A mini-game whose opening shows another
14.d2?! It turns out that d5 needs protection typical structure. 1.c4 f6 2.c3 g6 3.e4
and that W hite should move to activate his d6 4.g3 c6 5.g2 e5 6.ge2 g7 7.d3
pawns, e.g., 0-0 8.0-0 d4 9.xd4 exd4 A position with
[ 14.fxe5 dxe5 15.c3! intending g8 a 'dead point' on d4 is usually held to favour
16.c5 e8 17.b5 ] W hite's mobile kingside pawns but any
14...g8! A nice reorganisation. Black wants advance is difficult to achieve, since ...f5 will
to pressure d5 without being harassed by fxe5 be available. Anyway White, a 2500+ player,
and d6. This follows Black's long-term plan of didn't see much reason to try. 10.e2 e8
capturing on d5 and then attacking it. 15.h3!? 11.h3 c6 12.b4!?
A slow move that anticipates ...Nf6-g4. [ 12.b3 c7 13.b2 e6 14.f4 f5 15.exf5
[ 15.ac1!? ] gxf5 16.d2 a5 is an illustration. White can
[ 15.b4!? ] play g4 at some point and try for kingside
15...f6 16.h2?! play. Should White do nothing, I wonder if
[ A more active move was 16.ac1 , e.g., b6 Black can try for ... Bd7-e8-h5/g6 in addition
17.fxe5 dxe5 18.d6 b8 19.d4! xd6 to using the g-file? ]
20.c6 d7 21.dxe5 xd2 22.xd2 e4 [ 12.f4 f5 ]
23.xe4 fxe4 24.xf8+ xf8 25.e6 ] 12...a5 13.b5 cxb5 14.cxb5 a4! 15.d2
16...b6! From here on out Black is better b6
because White is tired to the d-pawn. 17.c3 ½-½
[ Or 17.fxe5 dxe5 18.d6 b8 19.d4 e4 ]
17...b7 18.ae1 d7 19.f3 f7!?
[ 19...fe8 ]
20.g2 a6 21.d1 ae8 22.fe1 h5!?

972
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
987 A26
Psakhis,Lev 2611
Danielsen,Henrik 2519
3rd Int Torshavn FAI (2) 07.10.2000
[Tony Kosten]
1.c4 f5 2.c3 f6 3.g3 d6 4.g2 g6 5.d3
[ White avoids the main line of the Leningrad
D u t c h w h i c h w o u l d a r i s e a f t e r 5.d4
, and plays a Botvinnik structure instead. ]
5...g7 6.e4 c6 7.ge2 0-0 8.0-0 e5
9.d5 e6 10.g5 d7 11.d2 f7
[ P o s s i b l y n o t t h e b e s t m o v e , 11...h5
intends ...f4, and has more venom, 12.exf5
xf5 13.b4 ae8 14.b5 d8 15.e3 c6!
16.bxc6 bxc6 17.dc3 f6 18.c2
1/2-1/2 Gavrikov,V-Ibragimov,I/Katrineholm
1999. ]
12.f3!?
[ A new move in this position, although the
plan is a typical one, 12.ac1 af8 13.exf5
xf5 14.xf6 xf6 15.xf6+ xf6 16.d4
is another possibility, but offers White little,
Marszalek,R-Bielczyk,J/Warsaw 1988. ]
12...af8 13.ac1 fxe4 This capture leads to
a favourable structure for W hite, but Black
had few other useful moves. 14.dxe4 e8
15.e3 h3 Played to weaken the white king
position, but this exchange leaves White with
the better bishop. 16.c5 xg2 17.xg2 a6
18.cd1 c8 19.c2 h8 20.b4
White prosecutes his queenside attack, and
meanwhile Black has dif f iculty achieving
anything on the other wing. g8!? In order to
bring the bishop to f8. 21.a4 dxc5 22.xc5
e6 23.c1 f8 24.d3 The knight arrives
in time to recapture on c5 if necessary. d6
25.b2 gf8? 26.b5 axb5 27.axb5 b8
28.b6! White undermines the black bishop.
d7
[ 28...cxb6 29.xd6 xd6 30.xe5+ xe5
31.xe5 wins material. ]
29.3f4! The black queen is trapped in its
own side of the board! xf4 30.xf4 xf4
[ Black has to concede a further exchange,
as 30...f7 is met by 31.bxc7 xc7
32.xf8 ]
31.xd6
[ 31.gxf4?? xc5 ]
31...xd6 32.gxf4 c4 33.bxc7 c6
34.xd7 xd7
[ 34...xd7 35.xb7 d6 36.d1
is decisive, and, anyway, ]
[ 34...xb2 35.d8+ g7 36.c8
is no better. ]
1-0
988 A26
Roberts,Paul 2176
Rowson,Jonathan 2591
ch Edinburgh SCO (8) 18.07.2009
[Jonathan Rowson]
1.f3
[ 1.e4 Not a flank opening I know, but you
need to be familiar with the following game
to understand the main ideas in the English
lines that follow. c5 2.c3 d6 3.g3 c6
4.g2 g6 5.d3 g7 6.f4 f6 7.f3 0-0
8.0-0 b8 9.h3 b5 10.a3 a5 11.e3 b4
12.axb4 axb4 13.e2 b7 14.b3! a8
15.c1! This idea of ceding the a-file and
p l a yi n g b 3 i s b a s i ca l l y a wa y o f s e m i -
permanently stabilising the queenside, and
limiting Black's targets to the c2 pawn. By
avoiding or at least delaying the exchange
of rooks Spassky also makes it less likely
his extended kingside will be infiltrated by
major pieces. a2 16.g4 a8 17.e1
a6 18.f2! ( 18.h4? xc2! 19.xc2
xd3 is bad news for white.) 18...a7 19.f5
b5 20.fxg6 hxg6 21.g5 a3 22.h4
c8 23.xf6! exf6 24.h7+ f8 25.xf7!
xc2 26.h6 xc1+ 27.xc1 xf7
28.xg7+ e8 29.g5 f5 30.xg6+ d7
31.f7+ c6 32.exf5+ 1-0 Spassky, B-
Geller, E/Sukhumi 1968/Candidates ]
1...g6 2.c4 g7 3.g3 d6 4.c3 e5 5.g2
c6 6.d3 f5 7.0-0 f6 8.b1 Black can
meet Rb1 in three main ways. Ignore it, delay
it(a5) or wait for b4 and play a6. In most
cases the details won't matter much, because
the structure is likely to be the same. It is
really just a question of when the a-pawns are
exchanged. Against a5, White plays a3 and b4
and chop chop if b4 a6, white plays a4 and b5
then chop chop, and if Black does nothing,
white plays b4-b5 and follows up with a4-a5
and Black usually feels obliged to stop b5-b6
by playing b6 himself, leading to chop chop
and the same structure! T here are som e
973
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
h id d e n n u a n c e s, b u t yo u a r e u n like ly t o
remember them so it is more important to
grasp the basic structural themes and pay
a t t e n t i o n a t t h e b o a r d . h6 Given an
exclamation mark by Psakhis in his notes to
the following game. The ideas that follow are
based partly on that game, and partly on it's
precursor from the Closed Sicilian. I have
included Spassky-Geller because it is really
the model of how to play these positions and
players on both sides should be aware of it.
[ 8...a5 9.g5! According to Psakhis's
notes in Informator, but what the plus-equals
sign really means is that such positions
are relatively easy for White to play rather
than that pinning the knight gives him the
advantage. That said, there is an issue with
this particular move order. Ideally Black
would meet Bxf6 and Nd5 with Qf7, and
then after b4-b5 the knight comes to e6 via
d8 and the coordination is good. However,
when Black plays an early a5, it means that
when a White knight lands on d5 it can only
be chased away by weakening b6. In that
case the queen needs to be on d8 and Black
will probably have to meet b5 by
exchanging knights on e7, which is not
usually ideal, because it makes it easier
for White to attack the queenside. ]
9.b4 a6!?
[ 9...0-0 10.b5 e7 11.a4 e6! 12.a3
( 12.c5? dxc5 13.xe5 e8!-+; 12.d2
d5 ) 12...c8! ( 12...b6? 13.xe5!; 12...b8
13.c5 ) 13.d2 b6 14.e3!? ( 14.a5 g5
15.axb6 axb6 16.b2 d7 17.a1
Interesting assessment- Psakhis clearly
thinks that such positions are generally
slightly in Black's favour.) 14...g5 15.d4
exd4 16.exd4 f4!? 17.e1 g4 18.f3!
d7 19.c5 ce8 20.c1! f5 21.d3
h8! At this moment the position is merely
tense and unclear, but Black eventually won
in Psakhis, L (2575) -Kasparov, G (2800)/La
Manga (m/5) 1990. ]
10.a4 0-0 11.b5 axb5 12.axb5 e7
13.b2 e6 14.b3 b6 15.a1 c8!
F o l l o w i n g S p a s s k y ' s e x a m p l e . 16.d2?!
Perhaps not a mistake, but the knight doesn't
have much perspective here and to my mind it
makes much more sense to play
[ 16.e1 intending Nc2-b4. ]
[ 16.a7!? g5 17.fa1 e8 18.1a4 h5
19.a2 f4 20.a8 intending to defuse the
attack by swapping rooks, is another
plausible approach. ]
16...e8?! I think this is probably a bit
inaccurate, but it shouldn't have done me any
harm.
[ 16...g5 makes more sense, so that the
queen stays guarding c7 for now. ]
17.a7 g5 18.d5?!
[ 18.b7!? is often played in such positions
and tends to be annoying, but I forgot about
it. d8 19.g2 ( 19.d5 xd5 20.cxd5
d7 leaves White's kingside vulnerable.)
19...c8 not forced, but after anything else it
is no longer as easy to play in the thematic
style of Spassky-Geller. ]
[ 18.fa1!? The position is very rich so there
are lots of ways for White to compete with
B l a c k ' s p e n d i n g k i n g s i d e a t t a c k . h5
19.b7 cd8 20.f3 g4 21.g2 d7
22.a8 ]
18...exd5 19.cxd5 d7 d5 and b5 are
weaker than c7, so Black should probably be
better, but I was not in good enough form to
find the relevant details over the next few
moves. 20.c1 h5! 21.f3 This felt
dubious to me at the time.
[ 21.f3!? is better than it looks and probably
ke ep s th e ba la nce . e8 Rybka prefers
White but doesn't offer any plan to improve
the position. Black's idea is Bf6-d8 followed
by bringing the knight back to f6 and
generally attacking on the kingside. 22.c4
f6 23.e4 f4 24.g4 h4 25.h3 h5 26.c3
g7 and I prefer Black's practical chances. ]
21...e8 22.ca1 f4 23.a8 f6
[ A f t e r t h e g a m e I f e l t t h a t 23...f7!?
is probably much better. 24.xc8 xc8
25.f1 ( 25.a8 b7! is one point, and
otherwise Black plans to take on g3 and play
g4 and Qf2.) 25...b7 26.d2 f6 27.e4!
A typical computer detail that we missed in
our post-mortem analysis- White is not doing
so badly after all. fxe3?! 28.fxe3 xd5
29.xd5 xd5 30.xf6! ]
24.xc8 xc8 25.a7 e8 26.c2
The trouble is that White's moves are almost
f orce d, so I didn't give my op ponen t an y
difficult decisions. xb5 With a heavy-heart!
[ 26...e4 was plan A, and I had intended this
974
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

when I played Nf6, but then I saw an played in this position. I have appended a lot
annoying detail a few moves down the line: of analysis to show the ideas. 1.c4 g6 2.c3
27.dxe4 xe4 28.xe4 xe4 29.xg7 g7 3.g3 d6 4.g2 f5 5.d3 f6 6.e4 c6
xg7 30.e5! f5 31.c6! f6 32.d4 7.ge2 0-0 8.0-0 e5 9.h3 A standard move,
and here I felt W hite was at least ok and but Black's response makes a good case for
probably better. The immediate threat is to [ 9.f3 ]
t a k e o n f 4 , t h e n f 5 a n d p l a y B h 3 + e5
[ Instead, 9.exf5 xf5 10.e3 d7
33.xf5 ( 33.c6+ forcing a draw was the is comfortable for Black. ]
reason I didn't look any further.) 33...xf59...f4! Out of the hundreds and hundreds of
34.gxf4 c3!? with a complex ending. ] games (including those at the top levels), I
27.xc7 d7 28.d2 b5 29.a3 f8 can find only 7 rather obscure games with this
30.e4 xe4 31.xe4 a8 move, 3 of them leading to very quick wins for
[ 31...d8 is obviously the soundest move,
Black. In fact I see nothing wrong with it!
but I began to feel that the resulting 10.gxf4
endgame was unwinnable. 32.xc8 xc8 [ It's pretty easy to see that slow alternatives
I felt White could take on c8, play Bb4 and such as 10.h2 g5 are undesirable, but
exchange some pawns and I didn't see even worse is ]
myself winning, but Paul said he was going [ 10.d4?! h5! ( or 10...f3 11.xf3 xh3;
to keep the queens on, after which I can at 10...fxg3 11.fxg3 exd4 12.xd4 xd4
13.xd4 e6! with a nice advantage) 11.d5
le a s t h o p e t o g e n e r a t e s o m e c h a n c e s
although I don't think I am actually better. ]( 11.g4?? f3 ) 11...d4 12.gxf4 h4! ]
32.b2 a4?! Fishing in murky waters
10...h5 11.f5
without any bait. In a vain ef fort to win, I [ (a) an important defensive try is 11.d5
generate plenty of losing chances. 33.e3 h4! 12.f5 ( 12.xc7 exf4! ) 12...gxf5!
[ 33.d4! exd4 34.h7+ h8 35.f5! ] 13.g3! ( 13.xc7? f4 14.xa8?
33...fxe3 34.fxe3 d8 35.b7 -- but otherwise h3 falls -- f3 and Black's
[ 35.d4! ] attack is simply winning) 13...xg3 14.fxg3
35...a2 36.b3 a5 37.c3 xg3 15.xc7 b8 16.f3!? Balashov,Y-
[ 37.xd7 e1+ 38.g2 e2+ ] Dubinsky,R/Moscow 1999/, when Black
37...a3 s h o u l d h a v e p l a y e d xf3 ( instead of
[ 37...a1+ Actually forces a draw so would
16...h4? 17.e3 f4 when the players
have been a better move, but I was short of agreed to a draw Black would also get an
time and placed all my hopes in my peace a d v a n t a g e f r o m; 16...g6 ) 17.xf3
offer. 38.xa1 ( 38.g2 a2+ ) 38...e1+ ( 17.xf3 fxe4 18.xe4 xf1+ 19.xf1
39.g2 e2+ 40.g1 e1+ ] xh3+ 20.g1 d4 ) 17...d4 18.f1 f4! ]
[ 37...a3 38.xa3 xa3 39.xe5 dxe5 [ (b) 11.fxe5 and: (b1)
40.xd7 A) (b2) 11...dxe5!? 12.d5 h4
I felt it was better to offer the draw
before we actually reached this position, A1) 13.xc7! xh3 14.xa8 xg2
because the b-pawn looks much less scary 15.xg2 f3! 16.g3! ( 16.xf3?
than the d-pawn here. ] h3+ 17.g3 d4+ 18.e3 h6+
½-½ 19.f4 xf4 and wins ) 16...xg3+
17.fxg3 xg3+ 18.h1 h3+=;
A2) 13.f4? xh3 14.e1 g4 15.e3
989 A26 d7 16.xh3 xh3 17.f5 ad8
Roca,Alfredo 2366 0-1 Gelman,A-Annakov,B/Moscow
Peralta,Eduardo 2252 1997;
ITT Ricardo Lettieri (7) 14.03.2005 B) 11...h4 12.f4 ( 12.d5 xh3
[John Watson] 13.xh3 xh3 14.ef4? xf4 15.xf4
xf4! 16.xf4 xe5 17.f3 f8 18.xe5
I'm not sure why the pawn sacrifice employed xe5 ) 12...xh3 13.e1 g4 14.f2
by Black in the following game is so rarely xe5 15.d1 c6 16.d4 xg2 17.xg2

975
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

xg2+ 18.xg2 xc4 Marinangeli- b e c a u s e Q g 4 i s n ' t a v a i l a b l e : 18.xb7

Panesso, Bogota 2004. ] ( 18.g1 c6! 19.xg5 xg5 20.g4 xg4
11...gxf5 21.hxg4 f3! and ideas like ..Be5+ and ... Rf8-
[ 11...h4 is also possible and apparently f4 give White problems) 18...b8 19.d5+
equal: 12.d2?! ( B e s t l o o k s 12.g3! h8 with threats of ...Rxb2 and ...f3. Black
xg3 13.fxg3 xg3 14.f3 h4 15.b5 stands better. ]
d4= ) 12...h6 ( 12...gxf5! 13.g5 xg5 18.g1 h8 19.xg5 xg5 20.g4 f3+
14.xg5= --Ribli, but fxe4 15.dxe4 f4 21.h1 h6? Now White's attack is better
should favour Black) 13.f3 gxf5 14.e1 than Black's. Black would have maintained at
xe1 15.xe1 b4 ( 15...e6 16.d5 least equality by
f7 --Ribli ) 16.d1 c2 17.b1 c6 [ 21...xg4 22.hxg4 d4 23.b5! f8
18.d2 #0 Gurevich-Maiwald, Germany 24.xd4 ( 24.e1 f4 25.xd4 xd4
2003 and now the easiest course was f4! 26.xb7 h5 27.gxh5 xf2 28.e4 f5! )
19.b4 e3 with an obvious advantage. ] 24...xd4 25.g1 f4 ]
12.g3 22.g1 f8 23.d5?
[ 12.exf5 i s p r o b a b l y b e s t : h4?! [ White has a clear advantage after 23.b5!
( 12...xf5! results in equality or perhaps a f4 ( 23...xb2 24.xc7 , as in the game.)
slight Black advantage after 13.g3! xg3 24.xf4 xf4 25.xc7 h4 26.xf3 ]
14.fxg3 d7 15.g4 g6 ) 13.g3 f4? 23...xb2?
( 13...xg3 14.fxg3 d4+ 15.h2 xf5 [ 23...d4! 24.g3 e5 25.g4 d4
16.b5! b6 17.e2 intends Be3 and 26.g3 draws. ]
White has a definite advantage) 14.g4! 24.xc7 e5 25.e6?
xg4 15.hxg4 xd3 16.d5?! ( 16.b5! [ A cute win follows 25.g3! c6 26.d5!
wins a pawn and shatters Blacks position.) (threatening mate on g8) e7 27.e6 g8
16...d7?? ( 16...f7 17.h5 and Black is 28.xg8+! xg8 29.g5! ]
tied down ) 17.xc7 ad8 18.b5 25...xe6 26.xe6 f6 27.b1 c3?
1-0 S Williams-R Palliser,Birmingham 2002. The last mistake. Black should try
One of White's only successes. ] [ 27...xe6 28.xb2 b6 ]
12...f4! 13.xf4 exf4 14.xf5 xf5 28.c7 h6 29.xb7 xh3+ 30.g1 d5??
[ Black played the riskier but interesting B u t W h i t e wa s wi n n i n g . 31.e6 g8
14...e5!? in Heilinger-H Dobosz, 32.b8+ f7 33.g5+ f6 34.xh3 dxe4
Vorarlberg 1997: 15.h5!? ( 15.d4 xc4 35.dxe4 d4 36.f4 b6 37.d5+
16.e2 is another try, when b6 17.xg7 1-0
xg7 18.f3 c6 is probably about equal)
15...f3! 16.xf3 g5+! 17.h1 xh5
18.xh5 xf5 19.exf5 xd3 20.d5 ab8 990 A26
( 20...c6 ) 21.ab1 c6 22.e2 c5 23.e3 Tatisic,Milan 2281
e4 with rough equality ] Blesic,Vaso 2254
15.exf5 xf5 Belgrade Cup (1) 05.04.2005
[ A dynamic try was 15...d4!? 16.xb7?! [John Watson]
( 16.g4? xf5 ) 16...b8 17.d5+ h8
18.b1 xf5 , but 16.Be4 is a solid 1.c4 f6 2.c3 e5 3.g3 c6 4.g2 g6
response. ] 5.d3 g7 6.e4 d6 7.ge2 e6
16.e4 It's hard to come up with another [ 7...0-0 8.0-0 h5 ( 8...d7!? -in this case
move in the face of ...f3, e.g., with the idea of ...Nc5- 9.d5 c5 10.b4!?
[ 16.h1 f3! 17.xf3 h4 18.g2 af8 e6 11.b2 Kosten-Lilley,Scarborough
( 18...h5!? 19.b3 d4 20.xb7 af8 ) 1999 ) 9.h3 f5 10.exf5 gxf5 11.f4
19.g4! (only move) xg4 20.hxg4 xf2 gave W hite some advantage in Smejkal-
and Black stands better. ] Bruckner, Bundesliga 1990/91. Here Black
16...g5+ 17.h2 e5!? benefits by not castling. ]
[ This time 17...d4! is more effective 8.d5 d7 This is the same idea as in the

976
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
last note.
[ 8...0-0 9.g5! , when Black is stuck in the
pin for a while in view of h6? 10.xf6+
xf6 11.xh6 ]
9.e3 0-0 10.d2 f5 11.f3 Normally this is
played both to take the bite out of ...f4 and to
enforce d4. Bruzon-Kempinski, Linares 2001
saw the plan f4 instead - see ChessPub f6
12.0-0 d7 Now this looks like one of the ...f5
systems, but White has gained two tempi due
to ...Nd7-f6. 13.h1
[ 13.b4 is a normal plan. ]
13...ae8 14.g1!? e7 15.d4?! fxe4
16.fxe4 exd4 17.xd4 g4 White's pawn
on e4 is isolated and he must stand slightly
worse. 18.g5!? h6
[ Better was 18...exd5 19.exd5 e5! ]
19.d2 h7 20.ac1 eg8 21.f4 h5!?
22.xh5 xh5 23.h3 g5 24.g4 f7 25.b3
e5 26.h2 e7 27.f5 e6 28.f2
The position is relatively closed and a draw
seems a fair result.
½-½
991 A26
Vachier Lagrave,M 2742
Aronian,L 2795
6th Final Masters (4) 10.10.2013
[Fier, Alexandr]
This was a great game of prophylaxis in the
opening with subtle manoeuvres and unusual
ideas compared to the normal English. 10...
Ne7 is aime d a gainst W hite's qu een sid e
expansion but to retreat the knight before
being attacked allows White to choose plans
other than the normal 11.b5. 1.c4 f6 2.c3
e5 3.f3 c6 4.g3 g6 In this order Black
tries to go to a King's Indian setup, but allows
White to immediately play in the center. 5.g2
[ The direct 5.d4 is also quite common exd4
6.xd4 g7 is the subject of plenty of
strong games and was analyzed recently in
Jones, G (2641)-Swiercz, D (2609)/
Bundesliga 1213 2012 (12.3). ]
5...g7 6.0-0 0-0 7.d3
[ 7.d4 is still possible and can transpose to
a n e a r l y d 4 exd4 8.xd4 e8
was a nalyzed in Gretarsson, H (2 516)-
Bacrot, E (2671)/Hrokurinn Reykjavic ISL
2003. ]
7...h6 8.b4!? Without ...d6 played this move
become possible. It looks a bit dangerous to
open the diagonal with the rook still on a1, but
there is no good way to use it. d6
[ 8...xb4 could be one attempt to 'refute' 8.
b4 9.xe5 e8 ( 9...e8 10.b3
defends everything a5 11.f3 ) 10.f3
A) 10...fd5? is not good since Black
cannot really take the exchange, 11.cxd5
xc3 12.xh6 xd5 ( 12...xa1
13.xa1 f6 14.d4+- Black's position is
just too open. ) 13.e4;
B) 10...d5 11.b1 c6 12.cxd5 xd5
13.xd5 xd5 14.c2 and White has
two good files to use and all his pieces
can quickly be active. W hite's chances
are preferable. ]
9.b1 Now the position transpose to the
normal path.
[ 9.b5 d4 10.d2 would be a normal way
to continue, but with the rook on a1 it does
not really work a6! and 11.a4 is not possible
since the rook is undefended. ]
9...a6 10.a4 e7!? One of the ideas of
moving the knight before it is attacked is that
against 11.b5 Black is not forced to capture
anymore. On the other hand, W hite is not
forced to play 11.b5 either.
[ 10...e6 11.b5 axb5 12.axb5 e7
is the main line and almost one thousand
games were played in this position so far,
13.b2 was seen in a recent top level game
c8 ( 13...d7 is more common) 14.e1
with chances for both players in Movsesian,
S (2693)- Andriasian, Z (2608)/EU-ch 14th
Legnica 2013. ]
11.a3 Preparing 12.c5.
[ 11.b5 would be logical, a5 ( 11...axb5
12.axb5 just transposes to the line with 10...
Be6 ) 12.c5 allows Black to finally use the
diagonal ( 12.a3 d7 and Black stops the
a d v a n c e j u s t i n t i m e 13.d2 b8
followed by 14...b6 can be one option.)
12...dxc5
A) 13.xe5 looks like a blunder, but in
fact can lead to a funny repetition, or a
messy position h5! 14.f4 xe5 15.fxe5
d4+ 16.e3 xc3 17.b2!
a n d t h e q u e e n c a n n o t r u n a w a y b4
18.d4 a3 19.a1 b4 20.b1 cxd4
977
Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014
( 20...a3 21.a1 b4 22.b1= )
21.xb4 axb4 22.exd4 with unclear
consequences;
B) 13.b2 d7 14.d2 would be a
gambit plan, and I'm not sure the
compensation is enough for the pawn. ]
11...c6 With the bishop on a3 White can't go
for b5 anymore, so ...c6 makes a lot of sense.
12.c5 e8
[ 12...ed5 is another idea
A) 13.b2 xc3 ( 13...e8; 13...xb4
14.cxd6 xd6 15.xe5 xe5 16.e4
e7 17.xf6+ xf6 18.xf6 xf6
19.xb4 ) 14.xc3 e8;
B) 13.c2 puts the queen in the line of
fire, xc3 14.xc3 e4! 15.d4
( 15.dxe4 xe4 16.c2 c3 and Black
is too active) 15...exd3 16.xd3 d5
and Black should be fine ]
13.e4 Gaining some space in the center and
restraining Black's position
[ 13.c1 defends the bishop, and threatens
b5 d5!? 14.xe5 f5 ( 14...d4 recovers
the pawn, but allows White to use the c4-
square 15.d1 f5 16.c4 xe2 17.b6
b8 18.b2 and White is slightly better)
15.f4 ( 15.f3 d4 gets the pawn back)
15...d7 with good compensation ]
13...g4 Without the bishop on c8 the knight
can go to d7, where it's more useful.
[ 13...b5 is forcing, but usually opening up
the queenside is better for White. Aronian
wants to wait for cxd6 first, 14.cxb6 xb6
15.c2 ]
14.b3 d7 15.d2
[ 15.cxd6 does not win a pawn, since c8
16.b5 axb5 17.axb5 e6 18.b2 c5
is fine for Black ]
15...c8 16.c2 f8 Forcing matters, now
the position opens up in a dangerous way.
17.cxd6
[ 17.d1!? hold the pawn on c5 with idea of
bringing the knight to e3 dxc5 forcing
18.bxc5 b6!? 19.cxb6 xa3 20.b7 b8
21.bxc8 xc8 22.e3 and White has a
go o d s qu a re on c4 . Me a nwh ile B lack' s
bishop will also be strong on c5. ]
17...xd6 18.b3 b5! An important move
for Black, W hite's bishop needs to find
another place to go. 19.h3 e6 20.fd1
Black also needs to be careful here, if d4
arrives without any good counterplay White is
better. bxa4!? Opening space for the d6-
kn igh t t o sto p d 4 p lan s. 21.xa4 b5
22.b2 xb3 23.xb3 c5 Now everything
will be a mess! 24.bc1
[ 24.bxc5 is not the dream position for White
xc5 25.xc5 xc5 and Black is slightly
better. ]
24...b8 25.a2
[ 25.bxc5!? is also possible, sacrificing the
exchange, d4 26.a2 e2+ 27.h2
xc1 28.xc1 a5 and White probably
h a s e n o u g h c o m p e n s a t io n t o h o l d t h e
balance. ]
25...cxb4 Black wins a pawn, so White needs
t o b e qu ick in o rd e r t o f in d co u n t e rp la y.
26.c6 g7 27.d4 Finally opening the
position. Both players are probably soon
getting into time trouble so it's quite easy to
lose control for both sides. b3 28.b1 exd4
29.xd4+ xd4 30.xd4 Here is the critical
position! The computer says Black is better,
but with a hard move to find over the board.
a5 It is natural to escape from the pin, but
now White finds counterplay on the seventh
rank just in time.
[ 30...e7 doesn't really unpin the queen
31.c7 ed8 32.b2! ( 32.d1 b2
33.xb2 xb2 34.dxd7 xd7 35.xd7
f6 and White is under pressure) 32...g8
33.d2 e5 34.cxd7 b2 35.xb2 xd7
36.xd7 xb2 now the queen is on e5
instead of f6 37.d5 xd5 38.xd5 b4
and W hite will find sufficient counterplay
with Bf1-c4. ]
[ 30...g8 this is the computer move, a bit
mysterious but in some variations the king
is better here, 31.d3 ( 31.e5!? to avoid ...
Ne5! xe5 32.d3 e7 33.d5 g7
34.xg6 f8 35.xg7 xg7 36.xb3
and the computer says Black is better, but
there is still fight) 31...e5! and Black is just
winning! 32.xd8 exd8 33.xa6 xc6
34.xc6 d1+ 35.h2 b2 36.xb2 xb2
and there is no way to stop the rooks going
to the second rank, surprisingly White has
n o c h a n c e s a n y m o r e , 37.e5 ( 37.f6
dd2 ) 37...xf2 38.e6 dd2 ]
31.xd7 xa4 32.e5
[ 32.cc7! it looks like Black is promoting
w i t h c h e c k , b u t i t ' s n o t e n o u g h , a2
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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

( 32...b2 looks really scary 33.xf7+ g8 54.g4

34.e5! a1 35.h2!! xb1 36.d5 [ 54.gxf6+ xf6 55.e3 a4 56.e7
and Black is just mated!) 33.xf7+ g8 ( 56.d4 d8 wins ) 56...xe7 57.e6
34.d3 bringing all the pieces into the attack ( 57.d3 d8-+ ) 57...d8-+ ]
b2 ( 34...e7 35.e5! xf7 36.d5+ g7 54...b8 55.gxf6+ xf6 56.e7
37.c6 and there is no way to defend g6 [ 56.h5 d8 57.a2 d2 58.b1 a4 ]
d6 38.xd6 c2 39.d7+ h8 56...a4 And the pawn is decisive.
40.d4 ) 35.d7 b1+ 36.h2 ba1 0-1
37.xf8+ xf8 38.d6+ g8 39.xg6+
f8 40.f5+ g8 41.g6+= of course, all
this lines are hard to see for a human. ] 992 A26
32...e7! Now W hite is in trouble. 33.dd6 Yudin,Sergei 2419
a2? But now White is winning! Stellwagen,Daniel 2512
[ 33...b2 wa s d e c i s i v e , 34.xg6+ fxg6 WYb18 Heraklio GRE (6) 08.11.2004
35.xg6+ h8 36.e4 xe4 [John Watson]
and the pawn promotes ]
34.xg6+ fxg6 35.xg6+ h8 36.d5 g7 When Black plays the king's Indian Defence
37.xh6+ h7 38.e6 a g a i n s t t h e E n gl i s h O p e n i n g a n d W h i t e
[ 38.g6! was necessary, g7 ( 38...g7 chooses d3 instead of d4, a classic struggle
39.h5+ h7 40.g4 now the queen is between White's queenside attack and Black's
better placed g7 41.h6++- ) 39.e4 h6 on the kingside. After at least 50 years of
40.f5! and the threats of Rxh6 and Rc8 are theoretical and practical examination it's very
unstoppable ] unclear who stands better. 1.c4 f6 2.c3
38...b1+ Bringing the queen back to the g6 3.g3 g7 4.g2 0-0 5.d3 d6 6.f3 e5
defence. 39.g2 g7 40.c8 xc8 7.0-0 c6 8.b1 a5 9.a3 f5 Here various
41.xc8 g8 Black is not getting mated moves such as
anymore and the a6 pawn proves to be quite [ 9...h5 ]
i m p o r t a n t i n t h e e n d g a m e . 42.b7 [ 9...e8 ]
Trying to keep some pieces on. [ and 9...d4 have been played. ]
[ 42.xg8 was another option, but also not 10.d2
enough e4+ ( 42...xg8 43.e6+ h8 [ The plan with 10.g5 (to prevent ...e4 as
44.f6+ g7 45.d8+ is a draw ) 43.h2 we ll as t o in crea se p re ssu re a lon g t h e
xg8 44.e6+ h8 45.xb3 ( 45.f6+ h1-a8 diagonal) h6 11.xf6 xf6 12.d2
g7 46.d8+ h7 and the checks are h a s n 't b e e n a c h i e vi n g m u ch , e . g . , g7
over ) 45...xe5 and Black's pawn will be 13.b4 axb4 14.axb4 b8 15.b5 e7
quicker than White's counterplay. ] 16.b3 c6= Oll,L-Jussupow,A, Elista
42...h7 43.xb3 g5 44.e3 e7 1998. ]
Black's plan is to advance the p awn an d 10...d7 11.e1 h3 12.h1 h6 13.b4
exchange the queens. It's hard for White to axb4 14.axb4 g4
advance his pawns in order to create [ Another and safer plan is 14...ab8 15.b5
counterplay without exchanging anything, so d8 16.b2 c6= ]
Black is probably winning. 45.f4 g7 46.f5 15.b5 d8 16.b3!? It's a bit odd to
g5! 47.xg5 xg5 48.g4 g7 49.e6 f6 abandon the kingside. White want to get either
White can play g4-g5 at some point but Black c5 or d4 in. The normal plan is still dangerous
d o e s n 't n e e d t o wo rry so m u ch a b o u t it . if Black over commits:
50.g3 a5 51.h4 g8 52.g5 g7! [ 16.b2 f5 ( 16...f5!? 17.f3 e6
[ 52...a4 allows counterplay 53.f4 g7 18.d5 h5 19.a1 and Black's attack
54.h5! and the position is drawn, h8 was going nowhere, Kuehn,P-Lindinger,M,
55.h6+ xh6 56.gxh6+ xh6= ] Berlin 1996.) 17.a1 xa1 18.xa1 f4
53.f4 h8! The most precise. 19.ce4 f5?! 20.f3 fxg3 21.hxg3 h5
[ 53...a4 54.h5= ] 22.a7 with a clear advantage, Shurygin,S-

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

Czakon,J, Koszalin 2001. ] thematic 15.exf5! as the knight can no

16...f5 17.c5 dxc5! longer recapture on f5. ]
[ 17...f4 18.f3 h8 19.cxd6 cxd6 9.xd4 exd4 10.e2 a5!?
20.d5?! should have been met by fxg3 [ This move shows some thought. As White
21.hxg3 xb5 in Aleksieva,S-Zielinska, needs to play b4 at some point, either to
Elista 1998, in view of 22.c7?? b6 ] attack the d4-pawn, or to deflect the c5-
18.d5+ pawn (if Black plays ...c5), Black simply
[ 18.xc5?? d4 ] stops it! 10...b8!? is another good idea,
18...h7 19.xc5 e7 20.3a4 e4 Black intends to counter on the queenside
Pointing out the weakness of White's kingside. with ...b5: 11.b4 ( White can stop ...b5 with
The Re1/Bh1 plan always carries this risk. 11.a4?! but then a5 stops b4 for good,)
N o w W h i t e b l u n d e r s : 21.dxe4? fxe4 11...b5 12.cxb5 xb5 13.d2 c5!
22.e3? xf2! 23.xe4 ( curiously, just before this game Davies had
[ 23.xf2 e3 24.d3 exf2+ 25.xf2 e3 ] this position again, but this time as White,
23...g2+ against Murshed,N, also at Dhaka (BAN)
[ 23...g2+ 24.xg2 xe3+ 25.h1 f2+ 2 0 0 1 . T h a t g a m e c o n t i n u e d , 13...b8
wins the queen, for starters. ] 14.c2 c6 15.ab1 h6 16.fd1 g4
0-1 17.f3 d7 18.a4 and White has some
advantage, but clearly Nigel had spotted
the potential of the line!) 14.bxc5 dxc5
993 A26 15.c2 b6 16.ab1 d7 if the white
Zueger,Beat 2416 knight could get to c4, Black's queenside
Gallagher,Joseph G 2514 would be weak, and White would be clearly
ch Pontresina SUI (5) 17.07.2000 better. However, the knight is miles away
[Tony Kosten] f r o m c 4 , a n d t h i s c h a n g e s e ve ry t h in g !
17.xb5 xb5 18.b1 a6 19.f4 c8
1.c4 g6 2.g3 g7 3.g2 e5 4.c3 c6 20.h4 e5 preparing ...c4, with equality,
5.d3 d6 6.e4 ge7 7.ge2 0-0 8.0-0 Miezis, N-Davies,N/Dhaka BAN 2001. ]
d4!? 11.d2 c6 12.c2 d7 13.f4 f5 14.ae1
[ This appears to be a respectable alternative W hite develops sensibly, his one problem
to the standard 8...Be6. Other oddities: piece is the knight on e2 which, just as in the
8...a6!? 9.e3?! even the best can forget previous note, has no useful square to hop to.
that this is wrong! d4! the problem, White h8 15.h1 P r e p a r i n g N g 1 - f 3 . fxe4
can no longer capture on d4 with his e2- 16.dxe4?!
knight, 10.f4 c6 11.a4 e6 12.h3 d5!? [ White hopes to use d3 for his knight, a
Black decides to liquidate the central common idea in these lines, but I would
tension, 13.cxd5 cxd5 14.fxe5 xe2+ prefer 16.xe4 myself, followed by Ng1-f3,
15.xe2 dxe4 16.d4!? d5 17.d2 c8 and attempting to exploit the extra kingside
18.f4 xf4 19.xf4 d5!? 20.xe4 pawn. ]
xe4 21.xe4 d5 Black has positional 16...b4 17.xb4?!
c o m p e n s a t i o n f o r t h e p a wn , M ie zi s, N - [ This concedes the bishop pair, and opens
Ibrahimov,R/Dubai UAE 1999. ] the a-file. Obviously White wasn't too keen
[ 8...g4?! shows that Black doesn't know on a move like 17.b1 as d3 18.c3 c2
this line too well, as f3 is a move White will is possible, but this is probably less
of ten want to play anyway! 9.f3 e6 serious. ]
10.d5 d7 11.g5 ( 11.e3 17...axb4 18.c1 c5 19.b3 Necessary, to
will transpose directly into my main line in defend the a-pawn, if W hite wants to play
The Dynamic English, with White having an Nd3. b5 20.f2 a5 21.cxb5 xb5
extra move) 11...f5 12.d2 f7 13.ae1 22.e5?! ae8 23.d5 f5
af8 14.b3 c8 Mecking, H-Vescovi,G/Sao [ Something has gone wrong for White, and
Paulo BRA 2000, when I would play the Black could even win a pawn by 23...dxe5

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Scorpionchess Prinout, 06/10/2014

24.fxe5 f5! although the move played is dark-squared bishops, as the weak c-pawns
strong enough. ] will drop off eventually. ]
24.d2 dxe5 2