play 1 I

EVERYMAN CHESS
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Copyright © 2008 Yury Lapshun and Nick Conticello

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7 1 . _c6, 1...f5 and Unusual Moves 143

Index of Complete Games 171

EVERYMAN CHESS SERIES
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 Bibliogra phy Introduction
by Nick Conticel l o
One Saturday evening in September
Books 2004, I was sitting in the Marshall
Debyut 1 b2-b4, Alexei Sokolsky (Minsk 1963) Chess Club, mired in a dreadful slump,
1 P-QN4, Andrew Soltis (Chess Digest 1992) when Yury Lapshun carne up to me
An Opening Repertoire for Black, Drazen Marovic and Bruno Parma (Batsford 1 987) and asked if I would be interested in
An Opening Repertoire for the Attacking Player, Eduard Gufeld (Cadogan 1996) helping him write a book on the move
Beating Unusual Chess Openings, Richard Palliser (Everyman Chess 2007) 1 b4. I gave the matter due deliberation
Black to Play and Win with 1 ... g6, Andrew Soltis (Chess Digest 1988) (a whole 20 seconds) and agreed. "It
Chess Openings for Black, Explained, Dzindzichashvili, Alburt and Perelshteyn shouldn't take too long:' he said.
(Chess Information and Research Center 2005) "Maybe three weeks? I'm going to be
Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings Volume A (Sahovski Informator) busy after that." Three weeks? Once he
My Best Games of Chess 1905-1930, Savielly Tartakower (G. Bell and Sons 1953) realized we were writing a book and
The New St. George, Michael Basman (Cadogan 1993) not a pamphlet, he understood it
Winning Unorthodox Openings, Angus Dunnington (Everyman Chess 2000) would take a bit longer. In fact it took
three years! (We finished the first draft
Databases after two years, then found a pu blisher
Mega Database 2007 and rewrote the entire t hing.) Anyway,
The Week in Chess once I had agreed, the benefits were
immediate. The next day I played two
terrifically creative games and finished
second in a strong tournament. There's
something about Yury ...
My main function on this project
has been to assist Yury, whose native
tongue is Russian, to communicate his
I
ideas to an English-speaking public.
But I have also contributed research
and the occasional piece of analysis, so
it can be said t hat this book is truly a
cooperative effort.
History of the Opening
The move I b4 had been played spo­
radically by masters of iconoclastic
bent before 1919, but without too much
success. Here is the game B.Fleissig­
K.Schlecter, Vi!'nna 1893 (or 1895;
sources are confused on the date), that
is a typically frightful beating for
White:
1 b4 e6 2 il.bl li:lf6 3 a3 e5 4 b5 d5 5 d4
�a5+ 6 li:le3 li:le4 7 �d3 exd4 8 �xd4
il.e5 9 �xg7 il.xfl+ 10 Wd1 d4! 11
�xh8+ We7 12 �xe8 dxe3 13 j.,C1li:ld7!
14 �xa8 �xb5 15 il.f4 �d5+ 16 We1
il.e3+! 17 il.xe3 li:lf2! 18 il.xfl �dl+ 19
Wb1 'i!l'd1+ 20 lfia2 'iil'xc2 mate (0-1)
As we say in the USA, don't try this
at home!
But in 1919 Savielly Tartakower
5
Play 1 b 4 !
famously used it to beat Richard Reti
in a match in Vienna (this game is
covered in Chapter One). ] must take
this opportunity to correct Richard
Palliser's explanation in his excellent
book Beating Unusual Chess Openings.
Tartakower recounts in his book My
Best Games of Chess that he visited the
Central Park Zoo in New York just
before he tried 1 b4 against Geza
Mar6czy in the 1924 New York tour­
nament. He was very impressed by
the climbing skills of an orangutan
and thought the 'climb' of the white b­
pawn was similar. So he dubbed the
opening 'the Orangutan' and the
name stuck.
The American master Anthony San­
tasiere played a version prefaced with
1 ILlf3, and Reti himself often advanced
the b-pawn two squares in conjunction
with the fianchetto of the king's bishop
in character with his eponymous sys­
tem. In more recent times the British
International Master Michael Ba5man
has played 1 b4 (or first 1 a3 or ev<>n 1
h3!?) as part of his unique complex of
offbeat systems. Consider the follow­
ing:
M.Basman-B.Thipsay
British Championship.
Eastbourne 1991
1 h 3 d 5 2 b41Llf6 3 ILlf3 e6 4 a31Llbd7 5
e3 .!id6 6 (4 (6 7 1Ll(3 o..() B .!ib2 l:i:eB 9
'/li'c2 a5 10 b5 C5 11 g4! dX(4 12 .!ixC4
ILlb6 13 .!ie2 .!ifB 14 g5 ILlfd7 15 h4
ILld5 16 h5 1Llxc3 17 .!ixc3 b6 lB .!id3!
6 7
1B...f5 19 gxf6 ILlxf6 20 lbg5 l:i:a7 21
.!ixh7+ �hB 22 h6 1-0
However, this book would probably
never have been written without the
pioneering work of the Soviet master
Alexei Sokolsky, whose games and
analysis in his book Debyut 1 b2-b4
demonstrated beyond any doubt that
the Sokolsky Opening was a viable
weapon at the highest levels of play.
Great players such as Smyslov,
Bronstein, Spassky and Larsen have
used this opening with success against
grandmasters. None of these experts
have used the Sokolsky frequently, but
at the right moment it can be brutally
effective.
General Theory
The advance b2-b4 gains space on the
queenside from the outset and an­
nounces a general policy of left flank
expansion. On the fourth rank the b­
pawn is active in the fight for central
control; it can dri.ve away an enemy
knight from c6 or exchange itself for a
c-pawn foolhardy enough to challenge
it too swiftly. Should the pawn ad­
vance to the fifth rank, it may attack an
enemy pawn chain (b7-c6-d5) or con­
trol the c6-square which might become
weak after an exchange of Black's fi­
anchettoed light-sguared bishop.
White's dark-squared bishop will
generally start life on b2 and exert con­
siderable influence on the a1-h8 diago­
nal. The light-squared bishop has a
choice, but a good rule of thumb is to
put it on e2 or d3 against a Black set-up
based on ... d7-d5, and to fianchetto it if
time permits against set-ups with ...e7-
e5. This deployment, in conjunction
with the thrust c2-c4, Tesembies an
English Opening, and the reader is ad­
vised to acquaint himself with that sys­
tem. Of course, against a King's Indian
formation by Black, one may also play
e2-e3 and d2-d4, put the bishop on e2,
and play a French Defence with an ex­
tra tempo. Flexibility is one of the main
virtues of the Sokolsky.
Against ... d5 defences White may
even opt for a Bird Opening set-up
with f2-f4 and Iilf3, strong-pointing eS.
But it's usually a good idea to avoid an
early d2-d4, as the weakness of the c4-
square may make itself felt.
Black's main defensive systems in­
volve advanCing the e-pawn or d-pawn
two squares at once, or playing an
early ...c6 to attack the b-pawn quickly.
The move 1 . . .e5 is the most critical op­
tion, as the blocking of the long diago­
nal and the threat to dominate the cen­
tre with ... d7-d5 may leave White, if he
is not careful, with a passive position
Introduction
without much space to manoeuvre. It
may be necessary t o sacrifice material,
often the f-pawn or the b-pawn, to
meet this strategic threat. The positions
after 1 b4 e5 2 .!ib2 f6!? (Chapter One)
require the most accuracy from both
players.
The line 1 b4 c6 2 i..b2 a5 aims to
weaken the b-pawn before attacking it
with pieces. We recommend the gambit
3 b5!? as the best option. White will
lure the pawn to b4 and then attack
with a2-a3, as in the Benko Gambit (see
Chapter Seven).
Why should you play this opening?
There is one outstanding reason to play
the Sokolsky: il is virtually certain that
your opponenl will be unfamiliar with
the positions that arise. The best way to
reach good positions from the opening
is to play reasonably sound systems
with which you are familiar and com­
fortable, and with which your oppo­
nents are unfamiliar and uncomfort­
able! Under these conditions, your op­
ponents will surt?ly make mistakes
which you can exploit to win.
Notice [ said 'reasonably sound'. If
you want to guarantee yourself a small
advantage with no risk, the Sokolsky is
not for you! After the best practical
continuation (in my opinion), 1 b4 e5! 2
.!ib2 _lixb4!, Black can be assured of an
active position, at least for the first ten
or so moves. However, we feel that
White is not worse here, and the first
player has the significant practical ad­
vantage of being on familiar turf, given
Play 1 b41
proper preparation.
So much for familiarity_ As fOT com­
fort, the Sokolsky is flexible enough to
offer players of widely varying styles
positions to suit their tastes. For in­
stance, Alexei Sokolsky was a solid,
perhaps even a stolid, player; a plod­
der if you will. His contemporary, Bo­
ris Katalymov, an equally ardent devo­
tee of this opening, was a daring tacti­
cian who revelled in risky flank at­
tacks. Bukhuti Gurgenidze is a lover of
un usual, closed structures, while the
author of this book, Yury Lapshun,
detests closed games. There is truly
something for everybody in the Sokol­
sky.
If you want to explore untrodden
paths, if you enjoy thinking for your­
self, or if you prefer to ' play chess and
not variations', you have come to the
right place. Memorization is required
only for the sharpest lines occurring
after 1 b4 eS. Other first moves for
Black place a premium on understand­
ing and judgment. A careful study of
the material in this book will provide
you with a grasp of the basics of nu­
merous structures your opponents will
try, and the confidence to confront
them effectively.
Opening books may not be too helpful
What of your opponents who may be
aware of your predilection for I b4?
Where can they turn for guidance?
Most of our readers will be club
players, as will their opponents. The
average non-professional will not be
familiar with the best methods of wad-
8 9
ing through databases for the most cor­
rert information, so one may assume
your adversaries will seek guidance
from the standard opening reference
works and repertoire books like this
one. Fortunately for us, very few of
them offer really usef ul information.
For instanc�, the late Grandmaster
Eduard Gufeld, in his book An Opening
Repertoire for the Attacking Player, rec­
ommends I b4 e6 2 il.b2 lbf6 3 bS dS 4
e3 cS S bxc6 bxc6, and now he gives the
move 6 �f3 after which Black grabs the
initiative on the queenside. But I prefer
the continuation 6 c4! il.d6 7li:1f3 O-{) 8
'/IjIc2 lj)bd7 9 lbc3 il.b7 10 i.e2!, as
played in KNovikov-D.Pincher, Tula
2000.
Another book, A" Opening Reper­
toire for Black by GMs Drazen Marovic
and Bruno Parma, considers only 1l7Jf3
lbf6 2 b4 and offers only one exam pie:
2 ... g6 3 i1.b2 i1.g7 3 4 04 0-0 S e3 c6 6
il.e2 dS 7 0-0 il.g4 8 lba3?! lj)bd7 9 bS
cxbS 10 lj)xbS dxc4 1 1 il.xc4 a6 12 lj)bd4
eS 13 lbe2 e4 14 lj)fd4 J:tc8 IS il.b3 lj)cs
16 il.a3lbfd7 17 ):tc\ 'i!!'aS 18 il.xcSlbxcs
19 h3 .kxe2 20 lj)xe2 lkdB 21 lj)g3 i1.eS?
(Marovic and Parma prefer 21 ... lIfe8)
22 lIxcS! '/IjIxcs 23 lj)xe4, and White ac­
tually won a long rook and pawn end­
ing, V.Smyslov-W. Uhlmann, Moscow
1967. But what of the move order I b4
li:If6 2 i1.b2 g6 3 i1.xf6�?, one may ask -
the authors offer no advice. The King's
Indian is no sim pie panacea against the
Sokolsky.
Many repertoire books don'l even
discuss 1 b4, considering only 1 b3 (the
Nimzowitsch-Larsen Attack), which
Introduction
poses vastly different strategic prob­ writing in these games.
lems for both sides. A few books, how­ However, our primary purpose was
ever, do make decent suggestions to put forth Yury Lapshun's games and
against our opening. For example, the ideas, as he is certainly one of the
American Grandmaster Andrew SoltiS, strongest active players who regularly
in his Black to Play and Win with 1.. . g6, plays the Sokolsk y. Yury has annotated
offers a sound King's Indian set-up and more than 60 games here, including 20
considers the Sokolsky separately from of his own best games, and I believe
the Nimzowitsch-Larsen. Our prefer­ they are a valuable contribution to the
ences against this structure will be literature of chess.
found in Chapter Three.
Two recent books, Chess Openings Pronoun Questions
for Black, Explained by Grandmasters For the remainder of lhis book, the
Dzindzichashvili, Alburt and Perel­ pronouns '1', 'me' and 'mine' fpff'J to
shteyn, and Beating Unusual Chess Yury Lapshun, and' co-author' refers to
Openillgs by 1M Richard Palliser, have Nick Conticello. The authors under­
presented a strong challenge based on stand that a significant portion of our
the line 1 b4 e5 2 i1.b2 i1.xb4. How to readership will be female, and there­
deal with their recommendations is fore we have used gender-neutral pro­
discussed in Chapter Two. nouns whenever possible.
The Sokolsky Connection Conclusion
Part of our mission in writing this book J will now step aside and let Yury Lap­
was to present the best of Sokolsky's shun, with some help from Alext'i
work to the English-speaking chess Sokolsky, guide you the rest of the
world. All the games played by Sokol­ way. On behalf of Yury. I wish you
sky (except Game 10), and several f'very success in your games with 1 b4,
other pre-1970 games (5, 26, 4S, 47, SO, and J hope you experience as much
68, 74, 76 and 77) include notes based pleasure in reading this work as the
heavily upon or directly translated authors enjoyed while writing it.
from Sokolsky's book. OccaSionally
Sokolsky got somet hing wrong, and we Nick Conticello,
have corrected his analysis where nec­ New York,
essary. But we have tried for the most March 2008
part to retain the flavour of Sokolsky's
 Cha pter One I
The Sokolsky Gambit

1 b4 e5 2 il.b2 f6!1 3 e4! (or 3 b5!1)

We begin our survey of 1 b4 with one
of its most complicated and most theo­
retical variations, the so-called Sokol­
sky Gambit. With his second move
Black embarks on a policy of building a
strong, c1assical pawn centre, using it
to blunt White's pieces, in particular
the dark-squared bishop, and eventu­
ally expanding and breaking through
on the kingside. We believe White
must combat this plan by drastic
means, including the offer of a pawn or The Katalymov-Estrin twins
two in 19th century style. (Games 5 -6) consider the theoretically
We start with two classic Tarta­ approved thrust 3 . ..d5. Instead of the
kower games that put the Sokolsky pedestrian 4 exdS i..xb4, as given by
Opening 'on the map' so to speak. Angus Dunnington in his excellent
These games, and two later ones, book Winning Unorthodox Openings, we
Fischer-Gloger (Game 3) and Kataly­ recommend the lively 4 f4!. This thrust
mov-Muratov (Game 4), examine the of lhe bishop's pawn suits my style
acceptance of the gambit with 3 .. . il.xb4. better.
White replies 4 il.c4 with the idea of My encounters with Laframboise
continuing with the advance f2-f4, and and Blumenfeld (Games 7-8) illustrate
often f4-fS following a similar strategy two logical but - perhaps rightly - rare
to that used in the Vienna Game. attempts by Black. These games, I

11
Play 1 b4/ The Soko/sky Gambit

hope, will demonstrate that a thorough lowed b y . . .lLlg6). good for White.
understanding of the ideas from the S f4 12 d 31Llf6 13l!!'g S h6 14 'ilfg3!
previous examples will enable you to The immediate 5 "fYh5+ is White's 14 'ill'xg6?? allows Black to trap the
cope with the unexpected, even in such main alternative (see Game 3). queen with 14 .. 1Ig4!.
a wild opening as this. S...dS 6 exds Jtd6 14 e4
.•.

Of course, not everyone will want
to play in this gambiteering way, and
for people of a more conservative tem­
perament (like my co-author) we in­
clude three exam pies of the positional 3
b5, one of which was played and ana­
lysed by Alexei Sokolsky himself.
Gamel
S.Tartakower-R.Reti
Vienna 1919
1 b4 eS 2 il.b2 f6 3 e4 il.xb4
Black's attempts at refUSing
gambit are discussed in Games 5-8.
4.1/.<4!
According to Sokolsky, this is the
best move.
4...IiJe7
This knight helps to prepare ... d7-
d5, and later on to protect f4 (for ex­
ample, after f2-f4, met by ...exf4 fol-
Latcr Colle tried 6 ...exf4 aga in st Tar­
takower (see Game 2).
7 fxes fxes 8l!!' hS+ ILlg6 91Llf3
25 ...lIf6?
But there is not enough com pensa­
tion for two pawns! 25 ... 'iII'c3!? is an
improvement. Tartakower men I ions
25...b6 26 c4, but even 26 ...'iWc3 is tough
Black is not ready to open the cen­ to crack.
tre. 14 ... il.g4 , bringing another piece 26 'iWxa7 !:tb6 27 d6! il'xd6 28 �c4+
the out, would have been better. ..t>h7
Tartakower i s strangely silent about lS ltlxe4 1Llxe4
the rest of the opening phase until 15_.II:xe4 16 'ill'xg6 litg4 17 i:.xf6
move fourteen. Perhdps he felt the �xf6 18 il'xf6 gxf6 leads to a pawn-up
game was complex enough to dispense endgame for White.
with any (urther comments on compli­ 16 dxe4
cations that didn't occur. 16 �xg6! would have been more
9...lLld7 dangerous for Black. After 16 •.l:Ig4 17
9...0-0 10 ILlg5 h6 ] ] ltle6 ILlf4 12 'ill'hS ILlf6 1 8 il.xf6 �xf6 19 d4 White's
ILlxd8 ILlxh5 13 1Lle6 J:(f7 14 ILlc3 looks a strong centre outweighs any problems
bit better for White because of his lead associated with the mispldced queen
in development and that powerful stal­ on h5. Note that 19...litxd4? 20 �e8'
lion on e6. ..t>h7 21 �d3+ wins material for White.
10 0-0 16 il.g4
..• 29'i!i'b8
After 10 il.d3 0-0 1] il.xg6 hxg6 12 16 ...'iWe8! ]7 il.d3l:Ixe4 is unclear. Now the threat is il'g8 mate, and
"l!i'xg6 ILleS 13 0-0 the position is un­ 17 'iWe1 il.xf3 18 J:txf3 J:txf3 19 gxf3 White is winning.
clear. il'g5+ 20 '.t>h1 'ill'h 5 21 'ill'f2 I:If8 22 il.e2 29_lLle6 30 il.xe6 �xe6 31 �x<7 'il'f6
10 0-0 111LlC3 J:tf4
•.. il.e5 23 il.xe5 il'xe5 24 I:Ig1 1Llf4 25 .1/.f1 321:txg7+! 'i!Vxg7 33 'ill'xb6 1-0
1l ... lLlf6 12 'ill'gS e4 131Lld4 il.xh2+ 14 Black is a pawn down, but his ac· 33 ... 'iWal� 34 Wg2! 'il'g7+ 35 '.t>f2, as
..t>hl (but not 14 '.t>xh2?? ILlg4+!) tive pieces probably offer enough given by Tartakower, is an easy win for
1 4 ...lLle5 IS il.b3 h6 16 'iWh4 should be compensation. White.

12 13
Play 1 b4!
Game 2
S.Tartakower-E.Colle
Bardejov 1926
1 b 4 es2 il.b2 f6 3 e4 il.xb4 4 il.c4 liJe7
Sf4 d S
After 5...exf4 6 liJh3 d5 7 exd5 il.xh3
8 lli' h5+ g6 9 lli'xh3 Whit e has a stTOng
, 7...liJc6
in itiati ve in r eturn for the pawn.
6 exdsexf4 7lli'f3
Probabl y 7lli' h5+ g6 and only then 8
lli'f3, k eeping some pressure on t he f 6 -
pawn , was a better c hoic e. Add ition­
ally, White also had the po ssibi li ty of 7
liJ h3 tr an spo sin g to the previous no te.
7_..il.d6 8liJe2 liJg6 9 d4 lli'e7 10 il.Cl!
T hi s passive - looking move assures
the recapture o f the pawn and keeps
the posi tion c los e to equal. 10 0-0 was
ano ther possibili ty.
10__il.fs 11 il.d3 il.xd3 12 lli'xd3 0-0 13
0·0 ne8 14 liJxf4 liJxf4 lS il.xf4 il.xf4
16 J:l:xf4liJa6 17 liJd2lli'e3+
17 ...liJb4!? 18 lli'b3 lli'e3+ 19 lli' xe3
lhe3 20 c 4 J:l: ae8 m ay give B lac k a
sli ght adv antage.
14
18lli'xe3 Ilxe3 19 Ilbl!
T ar tako wer poin ted out that i t's
nec�ss ar y to sto p ...liJb4 hpr e.
19_ ..Ilc3 20 IIb2 b6 21 Ilf3 IIxf3 22 gxf3
Defending the d 4 p a w n with 22
- The cldssic miniature B.Katalymov­
liJxf3 was a better option.
22...lId8 23 c4
23...liJb8
Neither player no tic ed that af ter
23 ... c6! 24 lIb3 (or 24 d xc 6 Il xd4 25 c5
b5 26 liJe4 liJc7) 24 ... cxd5 25 lla3liJb4 26
lha7 d xc4 27 liJxc4 bS 28 liJ a3 liJc6 29
lIb7liJ xd 4 30liJ xb 5 liJ xb5 3] lhb 5 lId 1+
32 wf2 Ild2+ 33 Wg3 Ilxa2 B lack has go t
an extra pawn , although it's tru e that
there ar e alm os t n o chanc es to win this
po sition.
24 wtz Wf7 2 S a4 c6 26 dxc6 liJ"c6 27
dS liJas 28 We3 liJb7 29 wd4 Ilc8 30
liJe4 h6??
(see following diagram)
30 .. f5 31 liJc3 liJa5 32 Ilb4 would
r eac h an equal p osi tion. T ar tak ower
poin ted o ut a nice w in sim ilar to the
game continuation after 30...�e7 31
lIg2 g6 32 Ile2 Wf7? (32 ... liJa5! m ight
ho ld ) 33 as! .
The 50kolsky Gambit
6 f4exf4
B lack has li ttle c ho ice, as the threat
was f4-f 5 winnin g a pi ece.
7liJf3
G.Iliv itsk y, Fr unze 1959, sh ow s what
c an happen i f B lac k is not c areful: 7 a3
d5 8 il .xd 5 c6 9 il.b3 lli' a5 10 eS' il. e7? 1 1
il.f7+! and B lack r eS ign ed .
31 as! f5
Both captures on a5 lose.
32 axb6! fxe4 33 bxa7 1-0
After 33... liJd6 34 nb8 nxc4+ 35 We5
n a 4 36 a8lli' liJc4+ 37 Wxe4 liJb6+ 38
'iWxa4 liJ xa4 39 wd4 thes tr anded kni ght
is tr apped and wi ll s oon be c aptur ed.
Game 3
R.Fischer-J.Gloger
8liJc3
Cleveland
T he d ir ec t 8 liJh4 is a r eason ab le al­
(Simultaneous Display) 1964
ternativ e. OUf analysis runs 8...tDce7 9
a3 and no w:
Who c ould have im agin ed that such a) 9 ...il.d6 10 lflf5 il.E' S 11 d4 d5 12 d xe5
a c lass ic al theor etic ian as F isc her dxc4 13 liJ xg7+ wf7 14 exf6liJg8 15 e5
played the Soko lsk y O pen in g? This is a 'i!!'d S 16 0-0 lli'e4 17 �c3 'iW e3+ (or
very im por tan t gam e, with F isc her 17 ...il.e6 1 8liJ xe6 Wxe6 19 'i\'g4+ 'i!!' fS 20
winning b y a direct attack on his o p­ lli'e2 b5 21 lli'f3 nd8 22 g4 lli'g5 23lli'c6+
pon en t' s king. Let's take a look at this wf7 24 e6 + , whE'n the c en tr e pawns
m as terpiece. m arc h to victory) 18 wh 1 lli' e4 19 ne1
1 b4 es 2 il.b2 f6 3 e4 il.xb4 4 il.c4liJe7 lli'd5 20 liJd 2 with a winning posi tio n.
slli'hS+ b) 9. . d 5 10 il.xd5 il.d6 11 liJc3 c6 12
.
T his move has b een played m or e of­ il.b3 'iWd 7 13 h3 b 5 14 0-0i..c 7 15 liJf3 a s
ten than 5 f4. 1 6 a 4 il.b6+ 17 w hl b 4 18 liJe2 il.a6 1 9
S... liJg6 d3 il. e3 20 liJ ed4, when B lac k' s kin g i s
5 ... g6 c an b e met b y 6 'I'fll 4 (or even tr apped in the c en tr e and White's b3-
6lli'f3). bishop is very strong.
15
Play 1 b 4 !
S... �_xc3 9 �xc3 d 6 10 tZlh4 tZlce7 11 13...�xfS
tZlfs Alternatives lead to greater trouble
for Black: 13...gxf6 allows male in one
with 14 "iWh6; or 13 . ..It'lxf5 14 exf5 "iltc6
15 fxg6 "iWxc4 16 'l!i'h6!! 'l!i'g8 (] 6 ... gxh6
17 g7+) 17 "iWxf4 >te8 18 nael+ �e6 19
"iWa4+ c6 20 "iWb4 gxf6 2] "iWxd6 with a
crushing attack for White.
14 exfS d S
Possibly 1 4. . .tZlg8 is more resilient.
Then 15 �xg8 Wxg8 16 fxg6 gxt6 1 7
gxh7+ II<g7 18 'l!i'f3 b 6 1 9 llael "iWf7 20
"iWg4+ wf8 21 'lWxf4 lhh7 22 "iWxf6 'lWxf6
23 IIxf6+ should be a winning rook
11 .'Ms?!
.• ending for White.
1 1 . . . d5! would have been a stronger 15 fxg6gxf616"iWh6+ wgS 17 g7 3.-0
defence. After 12 tZlxe7 "iWxe7 13 "iWxd5
c6 14 "iWd4 b5 15 �d3 lhe5 16 �b4
tZlxd3+ 17 cxd3 'l!i'd8 18 �d6 �e6 19
"iWc5 "iWb6 2 0 "iWc3 IId8 21 �c5 'l!i'c7, the
outcome would still be very much in
doubt.
12 0-0 'l!i'eS?
A fatal mistake, cutting off his
king's escape. J2 ... "iWd7!? 13 tZlh4 'l!i'g4
14 tZlxg6+ "iWxg6 15 'l!i'f3 "iWg5 is a
stronger defence.
13 �_xf6!
Black loses material and his position
is hopeless.
Game 4
B.Katalymov-V.Muratov
Novgorod 1961
This is a very complex game, in
which we discuss some important the­
ory.
1 b4 eS 2 �b2 f6 3 e4 �xb4 4 �c4 "iWe7
16
Black has also played 4 ...lhc6 5 f4
and now:
a) 5...exf4 6 iLlh3iLlge7 7iL1xf4 tZla5 8
.i.xf6! nf8 9 lhh5! iLlxc4 10 IiIxg7+ Wf7
11 0-0 Wg8 12 "iWh5! lhf6 13 >:xf6 iLlg6
14 lhg6! hxg6 ]5 "iWxg6 Wh8? 16 It\e8!
"iWe7 17 tZlf6 1-0, A.Sokolsky-Strugach,
Minsk 1958, is a good demonstration of
White's attacking chances in this line.
b) 5 ... d6 is a passive but solid reac­
tion. We suggest 6 fS, after which Black
must decide how to develop his king's
knight:
bl) 6 ...iLlh6 7 "iWh5 Wf8, and now
Sokolsky's suggested improvement on
a game of his against Veresov is 8 a3
�c5 9 lhc3, with ideas of castling long
and dropping the bishop back to a2.
b2) 6 ... iLlge7 has become
popular recently. After 7 "iWhS+ g6 8
fxg6 iLlxg6 9 tZlf3, as played in the stem
game A.Sokolsky-A.Gurvich,
spondence 1963, the position remains
unclear.
5 a3
5 c3 didn't lead to any success for
White after S ... . lil.cS 6 'l!i'e2 d6 7 d4 .lil.b6 8
a4 a6 9 as . lil.a7 10 liJd2 iLlh6 11 iLlgf3
The Sokolsky Gambit
iLlc6 in K.Richter-L. Relistab, Bad Oeyn­
hausen 1939.
5 It\e2, as given by Andrew Soltis,
seems more to the point. I-or example:
a) 5... d6 6 c3! (Soltis) 6 ....lil.c5 (or
6 ... .lta5 7 d4 exd4 8 O-O! - presumably
this is always the answer to Black's
... exd�) 7 d4 . lil.b6 8 0-0, and now
8 ... iLlh6 Iransposes to note 'b'.
b) s ..iLlh6 6 0-0 d6 7 c3 Ji.c5 8 d4
.
.lil.b6 9 a4 a6 10 as �a7 11 'l!i'b3 lhc6 1 2
iLld2 iLlf7 13 f4 was slightly better for
White in th� game E .Schiller-E.Richter,
correspondence 1971. This is a curious
mixture of the Evans and King's Gam­
bits!
s....lil.as 6f4 iL1c6
Black needs to avoid 6 ... exf4? 7
more 'l!i'h5+ wd8 8 "iWxaS "iWxe4+ 9 Ji.e2.
715
corre­
Gaining more space for a possible
kingside attack. As mentioned in the
introduction to this chapter, f4-f5 is
often part of W hite's plans.
7... d6?!
After this mov� Black can forgel
about castling.
7 ...g6!? 8 "iWf3 "iWc5 9 Ji.b3 iLld4 1 0
17
Play 1 b4 ! The 50kolsky G a m bit

i1.xd4 'i!fxd4 11 :ta2 0Je7 12 0Je2 'i!l'd6 13 0-0 'i!l'e5 1 9 lLlf4 'i!l'c5 2 0 a4 d3+ 2 1 W h l had prepared thi' bishop move as a
lLlbc3 i s a typically unclear variation, dxc2 22 .tIb2 a6. novelty. Both continuations give White
quite common for the Sokolsky Gam­ 17 i1.ds c4?! an initiative which compf'nsat� for the
bit. Too late! Black should continue sacrificed pawn."
8 'tiI'hS+ \l;f8 9 lLlc3 i1.xc3 10 i1.xc3 i1.d7 17...ne8!? 18 0-0 lLlf7 19 lLlf4 a6 20 'tiI'g3 8...i1.fs
11l:!bl b6 12 'tiI'ez t<ld4 13 'i!fd3 lLlh6 lLle5. 8...liJd7 is what Estrin chose two
18 'i!l'xd4 /i)xfs 19 'i!l'f2 .tIe8 20 0-0 'i!l'eS years later (see Game 6).
21lLlf4lLld4 91Ji e2!
"The move 9 ...i.xc2 doesn't make
any sense. After 10 lLlxf4 the knight can
jump to e6."
10lLlbc3lLld7
Every white piece is on a perfect 10 ... �xc2?! is weak on account 01 11
square, and now the passed c-pawn d3.
will decide the game. 11lLld4!lLleS 12 i1.b3lLle7 13lLlcbS!
39...f4 40 gxf4lLle6+ 41\1;c3 l:tf6 42 cS
nxf4 43 c6lLlcs 4411f7+ %1Kf7 4S ::!xf7+
Wg846 );1f3+ \l;h7 47 i1.f7lLle4+ 48\1;<2
14lLlh3 t<lgS 49 Itxh3+ lLlxh3 SO i1.xe8 1-0
Grabbing a pawn is a mistake: 1 4 In two more moves White will have
i1.xd4? exd4 15 'i!l'xd4lLlxfS 16 'i!l'd3 .tIe8. 22 'i!l'h4?1 a new queen.
14...bs IS i1.a2 cS 22 c3! is much stronger, and here
22...'l!!'xI4 23 'i!l'xd 1 'i!l'e5 24 'l!!'xa7 );Ie7 25
Game 5
'i!l'b8+ I1e8 26 'i!l'b7 'l!!'e7 27 .tIte! .tId8 28
B.Katalymov-Y.Estrin
i1.c6 i1.xc6 29 'i!l'xc6 'i!l'd7 30 'i'!'xb5 'i!l'xb5
Spartak Championship,
31 l:!xb5 rearhes a winning rook end­
Minsk 1962
game.
22...£e6? 13...a6
22...\I;e7! 23 c3 lLlb3 24 d4 'i!l'g5 is Sokolsky wrote that this game was 13 ...0-0-0? is metby 14lLlxa7+, while
more resilient and gives Black chances played in Minsk, although some against 13 ... 0-O? White has 14 t;)xc7!
to hold on. sources give Moscow as the location. i1.xc7 15 d6+.
23lLl-<e6+ lLlxe6 24 );Ixbs Notes in quotation marks are by Sokol­ 14 t;)xd6+ cxd6 lS 0-0 i1.e4
White's active pieces and Black's sky, translated by Yury Lapshun. Against 15 ... g5?, 16lLlxl5lLlxf5 1 7 g3
poorly placed king add up to a huge 1 b4 es2 i1.b2 f6 3 e4 dS 4 f4 exf4 13 18 d4! regains the pawn with a large
16 i1.xd4?! advantage for White. "A sharp variation, not yel· well in­ initiative. Black's position would be
16 ,;cd5!?, intending 16 ....tIe8 17 24..:'�'d4+ 2S ',!H2 'i!l'xf2+ 26 Wxf2 IiJcs vestigated in practice." riddled with weaknesses.
,;cxd4 exd4 1 8 0-0, i s stronger. 2711,;e3 a6 28I1b6lLlxe4 29 Wd4! lLlxd2 S 'l!!'hS+ g6 6 'l!!'xds 'l!!'xds 7 exds i1.xb4 16 :txf4 fS 17lLlf3! i1.xf3
16 exd4?!
••• 30 J:i:dl c3 31l:1b7 hS 32 Wxc3lLle4+ 33 8i1.c4 17 ... lLlxd5? loses material to 18
16 ... c4!? is perhaps a more promis­ wd4lLlgS 34l:!dbl h 4 3S .tIlb6 h3 36 g 3 "In the game Sokolsky-Estrin (Baku, lhe4! fxe4 !9 lLlxe5 dxe5 2 0 ii.xd5, and
ing option; for example, 17 'i'!'f3 exd4 18 l:!h6 37 ):txd6 fS 38.tIdd7 .tIg6 3 9 c4 1958) 8 lLle2 had been played. White 17 ... i1.xd5? 18lLlxe5 dxe5 1 9 i1.xe5 gives

18 19
Play 1 b4!
White the better position.
18gxf3 g5 19 l:I.b4 0·0·0
"White, with a pair of active bish­
ops, is better."
19 .. .tilxf3+? is a mistake, as 20 Wf2
fl)es 21 .u.xb7 improves White's pieces.
20 Wf2 1tl7g6 21 ne1 nhe822 d4
"By kicking the knight from the
centre, White gains the possibility of
moving the rook to the e6-square."
22...ltlf7 23l:1.e6! iLlf4
"Black hoped to eliminate the rook
from e6, but he was disappointed."
24 il.C1! iLlg6
"It' 5 very dangerous 10 capture the
exchange. After 24 ... li1xe6? 25 dxe6
iLlh8 26 il.xg5 White should win."
25 nc4+ Wd7 26l:1.c3 f4 27 a4!
"It's necessary to involve the light­
squared bishop. By advancing the a­
pawn, White achieves his goal."
27 .rLe7
•.
27 ...a5 28 il.c4! wins.
28 a5 .!:tc8 29 .!:td3 lilf8 30 J:!f6 wd8 31
il.a3 lild7 32 l:I.e6lilf8 33 J:td2! g4!
For a second time Black declines the
exchange. Accepting the sacrifice after
33...lilxe6 34 dxe6 lilh6 35 il.xd6 is ob­
viously not a good idea.
34 J:txe7
"The best move. 34 fxg4 lilxe6 35
dxe6 iLlg5 36 ne2 Itc3 allows Black
counterplay."
34...Wxe7 35 fxg4
"White should decline the pawn of­
fered by his resourceful opponent. Af­
ter 35 J:Ie2+ wf6 36 c4!, White could
count on victory,"
35.. .l:tc3!
"Because of the threat of ...lilg5,
20
Black gets counterplay."
36J:Ie2+Wf6 37 h4l:1.h3 38l:1.e8
"Better is 38 g5+ with subsequent 39
l:!.e7. The entry of the black knight into
the bat tie more than outweighs the loss
of the d-pawn."
38...lilg6 39 il.xd6 .lIh2+?
"A timE> pressure mistake. By play­
ing 39... lilxd6 40 .lIe6+ Wg7 41 .lIxd6
lilxh4 Black had a chance to save the
game. I'or example: 42 .lId7+ Wg6 43 d6
J:Ih2+ 44 Wf] lilf3."
However, in this position we (YL
and NC) believe that White can win
with 45 il.d5! iLld2+ 46 Wg1 Ite2 47 .!:te7
f3 48 .lIxe2 fxe2 49 wf2.
40 Wg1 .lIxh4 41 il.e5+ 1-0
"Here the game was adjourned.
Black sealed the move 4 1 ...Wg5 and
resigned without resuming. The diffi­
cult, sharp fight in this game is very
typical for the gambit variation after I
b4."
Game 6
B.Kata Iymov-Y. Estrin
Spartak Champion ship,
Moscow 1964
1 b4 e5 2 .liI.b2 f6 3 e4 d5 4 f4 exf4 5
"iWh5+ g6 6 "iWxd5 "iWxd5 7 exd5 il.xb4
This was the second time Kataly­
mav and Estrin playpd this position
against each other in a tournament
game.
8il.c4
We prefer this natural move to 8
ltJe2!?, which was played in
A.Sokolsky-Y.Estrin, Baku 1 958.
8...ltld7 9 iLle2 il.d6 10 iLlbc3
10...Wf7?!
Black has to develop. He should
consider 1O lilb6, after which II il.b3
..•
a5 12 a4 g5 13 lile4 il.e5 14 d4 j/.d6 1 5
lilxd6+ cxd6 1 6 c4 lile7 1 7 il.a3 il.g4 1 8
il.xd6 iLlE5 1 9 il.cS lild7 reaches a n un­
clear mess. Positions that are so imbal­
anced are very difficult to evaluate.
11 0-0 iLle5 12 il.b3
12 J:Ixf4? loses material after 12 ...gS!
13 nd4 .iccS.
12...g5 13 iLle4 il.g4 14lild4
Let's look at this position. W e can
see a typical King's Gambit, but with­
out the white b-pawn. White's domina-
The 50kolsky Gambit
tion of the centre - especially the e6-
square - and the awkward position of
the black king compensate him for his
missing pawn.
14...I!d815 iLlb5 Wg6
15 ... il.e2!? 16 lilbxd6+ cxd6 17 IIfel
f3 18 d4 lilg6 19 �a3 lilf4 20 lilxd6+
Wg6 21 wf2 g4 22 lilxb7 JIb8 23 lilcs
leaves Black a pawn down with noth­
ing to compensate for White's queen­
side pawn mass.
16 lilxa7 il.e2 17 lUe1 �a6 18 a4 iLlh6
19 lilb5 iLlhf7 20 d4lilg4 21lilc5 j),xc5
22 dxc5 c6 23 dxc6 bxc6 24 il.xf7+ Wxf7
25 lild6+ wg6 26 il.d4 .!:thf8 27 l:tab1
�c4 28J:l:b6
White has improved all his pieces.
Now it's time to push the a-pawn,
which should decide the game.
28...�.d5 29 a5 lilh6 30 a6 lilf5 31 il.f2
g4 32 C4 g3 33 hxg3 fxg3 34 cxd5 gxf2+
35 Wxf2 cxd5 361tlxf5 Wxf5 37 c6
Material is equal. but Black can't
stop the ,"WO passed pawns.
37 ...11a8 38 C7 .lIfc8 39 nC1 We5 40 >ile3
f5 41 wd3 ng8 42 J:1e1+ Itf4 43 wd4
lhg2 44 nfH wgS 45 �C1 nc8 46 JIb8
.!:td2+ 47 We5 1·0
21
Play 1 b4!
Game 7
Y.Lapshun-M.Laframboise
Montreal 2004
This was my final-round game at
the Montreal tournament and I had to
win to claim a high place. My oppo­
nent was a young.. talented Canadian
chess master who didn't have many
games on my database.! decided that it
was time to use my favourite weapon...
1 b4 e5 2 �b2 f6 3 e4 e 6
A new move to me, at the time of
this game at least. But with the themes
of the previous games in mind, it's easy
to construct a good plan against 3 ...c6.
3.. .lne7!? is a rare alternative. Soltis
gives it an exclamation mark, but it has
not been explored whatsoever at high­
level chess. One example, the best of a
bad bunch, is the following gem: 4
�h51 ILlg6 5 f4 t'xf4 61Llf3 d6 (6...lLlc6 is
better) 7 ILlM lIg8? 8 il.c4' and Black
resigned, T.Juscamayta Zuegel­
G.Semmler, Bad Wiirishofen 2000.
4 f4 exf4 5 �e4 �e7
22
5 ...d5 6 exd5 cxd5 7 �h5+ g6 8 'iWxd5
'iWxd59 il.xd5ii.xb4 10 lhe2 is unclear.
6�e2
6...d6
Black should speculate with
6...�xb4 7 fl.b31Lle7 81Llf3.
7 ILltl ILld7 8 lLle3 lLle5 9 il.b3 ILlh6 10
0-0-0 il.e611 d41Llxf3
11 ...lLleg4 12 d5 il.d7 13 dxc6 bxc6 14
b S ILle3 15 bxc6 fl.xc6 161LldS il.xd5 17
ii.xd5 l:l:b8 18 ILld4! promises White a
strong attack, something that can be
verified by using Fritz.
12 gxf3 il.xb3 13 axb3 a6 14 h41Llf7 15
'iWf2!
A very difficult move to find, with
many ideas. By playing 15 'iWf2, White:
1) Keeps an eye on a 7-g I diagonal;
2) Defends the h4-pawn;
3) CleaTs the e-file fOT the TOok; and
4) Prepares to push the centTal
pawns.
Instead 15 h5 g5 16 hxg6 hxg6 17
l:txh8 ILlxh8 18 �h2 ILlf7 19 �xf4??
would not be a good idea in view of
19, ..il.h6!
15 g516 d5!
•.•
The aim of this move is to expose
the black king and to manoeuvre the
knight via e2 and d4 to fS or e6.
16...lLle5 17 lLle2 h5 18 ILld4 exd5 19
ILlf5 'iWe7 20 );(xd5
The result of the breakthrough on
move sixteen is that White's pieces
have much gTeater scope than their
counterparts.
20..J;I,e8 21 hxg5 fxg5 22 l:l:hd1l:l:h7 23
e4
This is thematic, but alTeady White
can play simply with 23 ILlxd6+! il.xd6
24 l:l:xd6 ILlxf3 25 l:l:e6+ wf8 26 l:l:d5 g4
27 lIfS+ lIn 28 .!IxhS, which should be
winning.
However, White should avoid 23
The 50kolsky Gambit
lIxd6?!, when 23 ...lLlxf3 24 lIe6+ Wf7 25
);(f6+ Wg8 26 lil:g6+ wf7 27 l:l:f6+ Wg 8 28
l:tg 6+ is only a draw.
23 ...g4 24 �d2
Once again White could play 24
ILlxd6<! �xd6 25 l:l:xd6 ILlx£3 26 l:l:e6+;
for example, 26 ... Wf7 27 .!Idd6 l'l.d8 28
e5 .!:!g7 29 'iWc2 lH8 30 'iil'f5+ Wg8 31
'iWxhS 'iWf7 32 .!:!g6 ILlM 33 l'l.xg7+ 'iWxg7
34 e6, winning.
24...gxf3
25l'l.xd6?
At the Tisk of repeating myself, 25
ILlxd6+! il.xd6 26 lIxd6 ILlf7 27 lle6+ wf8
28 ..i.d4 l:l:d8 29 J:l.gl b6 30 �c3 J:l.xd4 31
�xd4 'iil'd8 32 � xd8+ ILlxd8 33 llxb6
l:l:e7 34 Itf6+ We8 35 l:l:xf4 and again
White wins.
25 ...lLlxe4! 26 bxe4 'iii'JCC 4+ 27 Wb1
'iWxe4+ 28 Wu?
Another mistake - 28 �d 3! was bet­
ter. One possibJe line from here is
28... �xd3< 29 );(6xd3 il.xb4 30 J::d 4
(Black is struggling despite having five
pawns for the piece) 30 ...fl.cS 31 l:t el+
ne7 (31...W£8 32 nxf4 lH7 33 l'l.xf3 ncc7
34 .!:!e6 is good for White) 321Llxe7 f2 33
lIfl Wxe7 34 );(xf4 We6 35j"d4 j"xd4 36
23
Play 1 b4! The 50kolsky Gambit

1::txd4 lI<e5 37 :r:td2 ru8 38 :r:tdxf2 :r:txf2 3Y
:r:txf2 and White wins.
2S i'WxfS 29 ):I dS
•..
29 :r:td8+ leads a draw after 29 ...lhJ8
30 \'l!'xd8+ 1I<f7 31 "i!!'c7+ il.e7 32 Ile111<g6
33 :r:tg1+ il.g5 34 \'l!'b6+ II<f7 35 'l!I'c7+ :1i..e7
36 :r:tel lI<e8 37 "i!!'b8+ 1I<f7 38 "i!!'c7.
have been stronger: 33...il.xb2+ 34Wxb2
f2 35 i'Wb8+ We7 36 i'Wxb7+ Wf6 37
i'Wxa6+ Wg5 38 i'We2 h4 39 i'Wxf2 h3 40
i'Wc5+ II<g6 41 i'Wd6+ Wg7 42 i'Wd7+ II<g6
43 "i!!' g4+Wf6 44 "i!!' xf4+ II<g6 45 "i!!'h2 and
White w i ns.
33 il.xb2+ 3411<xb2 ):I f7 3SII<0 h4
..•
35...Wd8! draws as Black is able to
set: up a fortress: 36 i'Wd5+ l::!d 7 37
J:tc7+ 38 Wd4 l:!c6 39 II<d5 II<c8 40 i'Wf5+
Wb8 41 i'Wxf4+Was 42 i'We5 �a7 43 i'Wg7
Was 44 i'Wd7 Wa7 45 'ii' d8 :!:tel 46 We5
:!:tc6 47 i'Wd4+ II<b8, when White can
make no further progress.
36W d4
48 <M6 b6 49 �e4+ wgS so i'W aS+ Wh7
Sl i'Wxa6 1·0
My favourite b4-pawn survived the
whole game, even though it could have
been captured many times.
Game 8
Y.Lapshun-R.Blumenfeld
i'Wxh5
Marshall Chess Club 2004
1 b4 es 2 il.b2 f6 3 e4 as
Another unusual try by Black. u d6!
4 bS il.cS 5 f4 I guess he overlooked this impor­
Again White goes for this f-pawn tant in- between move. 11 .!hgl??
push. Here 5 ...exf 4?? loses to 6 'l!Yh5+. would have been met by IL ii'c5 win­
. ,

S...d6 6 il. c 4 \'l!'e7 7 fSIiJh6 ning materiaL

29 :iWC2??
.•
A blunder. 29 ...'l!I'g6?? also loses, to
30 Ite5+ :r:te7 31 'ii'd 7+ 1I<f7 32 :!:tf5+ II<g8
33 'l!I'd5+ II<h7 34 :r:txh5+ il.h6 35 ll.xh6+!
"i!!'xh6 (35...lI<xh6 36:!:thl+) 36 \'l!'f5+ II< g8
37 :r:tgl+ :r:tg7 38 'l!I'xc8+. But Black can
survive by playing 29...'ii' g4! 30 :r:td8+
:r:txd8 31 i'Wxd8+ 1I<f7 32 :!:tel! II<g8 33
"i!!'d5+ lW 34 l:!e5 f2! 35 l:!g5+ il.g7 36
With the idea of ...liJf7 so as 10 allow
Black to castle kingside. 7...g6 8 IiJc3
gxf5 9 i'Wh5+ Wd8 10 exf5 'lIi'g7 11 \'l!'f3
reaches an unclear position.
S IiJc3 c6 9 g4
36 <MS?
••.
u... ii'xd6 12 liJe4 "i!!' e7
12 ... �b4 is met by 13 1;.c3! intending
13 ... ii'xc4?? 14 IiJd6+!. 1\ would proba­
bly have been better to play 12 ...ii'c7.
Then following 13 l:Ixgl cxb5 14 i.xb5+
il.d7 15 ii'e2 'l'Ib6 16 0-0-0 il.xb5 17
ii'xbS+ "i!!'xb5 18 /fld6+ Wd7 19 IiJxbS,
White has only a small advantage.
13ll:xgl

i'Wd8+ II<h7 37 i'Wd3+ II<g8 38 l=!xg4 (38
i'Wd8+ II<h7 is perpetual check) 38...hxg4
39 'l!I'd8+ il.f8, when White must be con­
tent with perpetual check after 40 i'Wg5+
icg7 41 \'l!'d8+ l:tf8 42 i'Wd5+ :!:tf7 43
'ii'd8+.
30 ):I dS+ !txdS 31 i'Wxc2?
Black can draw only if his king can
reach the queenside comer protected
by two connected pawns, as shown in
the previous note.
3711<es ):Ie7+ 3SII<d6 "tJ.f7 39 "i!!'hS Wg7
40 "i!!' gS+ W fS 4111<e6h3 42 "i!!' h6+
Now the white queen will capture 9 .. dS?
.

Just one of those days! 31 "i!!'xd8+! Black's pawns one by one. Even so, 42 Opening the position with the king
Wf7 32 i'Wf6+ II<g8 33 l:!d8 was the right \'l!'h5! ne7+ 43 II<f6 is a quicker win as stuck in the middle is a bad idea. The
way. Black is soon mated. consistent 9 ...lbf7 would have been
31...lbd1+ 32 i'Wxdl.ig7 33 i'Wxf3 42...lI<gS 43 "i!!'xh3 f3 44 "i!!'hS .!l: g7 4S much more sensible. 13 W dS?
.••

This is natural, but 33 i'Wd6 would \'l!'xf3 �h7 46 \'l!'hS+ II< gS 47 \'l!'eS+ wh7 10 exdsil.xgl 13 ...cxb5 14 il.xb5+ il.d7 15 il.xd7+

24 25
Play 1 b 4 /
lUxd7 1 6 'i!i'f3 lUI7 17 SLa3 'WdS IS 'Wb3
leaves Black's king caught in the cross­
fire of White's queen and bishop, but
the text is even worse for Black.
14 'i!!'f 3 <j;c7??
14 ... cxb5 15 SLxb5 'Wb4 16 'Wd3+ SLd7
17 ilxd7 lUxd7 IS <j;e2 'Wb6 19 .!tab 1
'Wc6 20 SLa3 isn't pretty, but this would
still have been better than Black's
choice in the game.
15 SLa3 'i!!'d7
16 b6+l <j; xb6
16 ...\PdS 17 d4 blasts open the cen­
tre againsi the black king, e.g. 17 ... exd4
IS 0-0-0 neS 19 lUc5 .!te3 20 'Wf4 'We7 21
lUxb7+ "l!i"xb7 22 "l!i"xd4+ SLd7 23 "l!i"xe3
and White wins.
17 SLd61
White builds a mating net in the
style of Petrosian's famous win against
Pachman from Bled, 1961: I lUf3 c5 2 g3
lUc6 3 ilg2 g6 4 0-0 ilg7 5 d3 e6 6 e4
lUge7 7 .!tel 0-0 S eS d6 9 exd6 "l!i"xd6 1 0
lUbd2 'i!!'c7 1 1 �b3 �d4 1 2 SLf4 "l!i"b6 1 3
ILleS lUxb3 1 4 ILlc4 'i!!' bS 15 axb3 as 1 6
il d 6 iI.f6 17 'i!!'f3 <j;g7 18 .!te4 .!tdS 1 9
'tli'xf6+!! IPxf6 2 0 SLeS > \PgS 2 1 SLg7! and
Black resigned.
26
17_ lt>a7
.•
After J7 ...lLla6, White wins with I S
'i!!'e3+ c S I9 ::tbl+ \Pa7 20 SLxa6.
18'i!l'eH b6
A good exercise for students. It's
White to rlay and win:
19 "l!i"xb6+!!
A beautiful queen sacrifice, leading
to a forced mate.
19_..Wxb6 20 lIb1+1-0
20 ... Wa7 21 il.cS is mate.
Game 9
A.Sokolsky-A-Kotov
Leningrad 1938
[J the previous games seem too haz­
ardous for you, we offer now three ex­
amples of the positional approach - the
safe 3 bS - preferred by Sokolsky him­
self. Notes in quotation marks are by
Sokolsky, translated by Yury Lapshun.
1b4
"This game was annotated by Kan
in the tournament bulletin under the
title 'Irregular Opening'. The move 1
b4 was not taken seriously. Nowadays
The Soko/sky Gamb;t
1 b4 has earned its ' citizenship' and is a
respectable member of the openings
family."
1-..e5 2 �_b2 f6
"With this move Black assumes the
obligations of a hig centre and a potential
weakness on the a2-gS diagonal. which
White may attempt to exploit directly by
playing 3 e4!? SLxb4 4 SLc4, the so-called
Gambit Variation. In addition Black's .. .f6
does nothing to further his development.
White's actual move eschews gambit
play, hoping to undermine Black's centre 8 lUbd2 lUgf6 9 <4 c6 10 SLe2 0-0 11
by positional means." lUg5 �e7
3 b5 d5 4 e 3 SLe6 5 d4 Alternatively 1 LSLfS 12 cxdS cxdS
13 e4! lUxe4 14 lUdxe4 SLb4.
"Better than 5 lUf3, which Black can
answer with 5... c5." and now:
5...lUd7 a) Sokolsky stopped his analysis af­
"One year earlier, in the game ter 15 Wfl? dxe4 16 'i!!'b3+ (16 ii.e4+ �h8
Sokolsky-Rovner from the Leningrad 17 lUf7. �xf7 IS SLxf7 'il'f6 gives Black
Championship, Black played the in­ the advantage), believing that 16 .. .WhS
consistent S. .. exd4 6 'lIfxd4!, abandon­ J 7 1Llf7+ IJ.xf7 IS 'lIfxf7 would be good
ing the attempt to build a big centre for White. However, looking further on
and rendering the move 2 ...f6 useless. IS ... 'i!I'b6! 19 'il'xfS ll:fS 20 'il'xfS+ j",xfS 21
The most natural answer was 5 ... e4." lIdl lUeS is actually better for Black
6 dxe5 fxe5 7 lUf3 il.d6 since White is undeveloped.
"Black's pawn centre is dearly both b) We believe 15 il.c3! is the best
a source of strength and weakness." move, improving on Sokolsky's line.
27
Play 1 b 4 !
Then 15. . .�xc3+ 1 6 �xc3 'iil' xg5 1 7
"ifxd5+ II<h8 1 8 0-0 J:!ac8 1 9 li'ie4 reaches
an equal position.
12 �xe6 "ifxe6 13 0-0
13 ...lt>h8
"Necessary. 13 ... l"!ad8 14 cxd5 cxd5
IS e4! �xe4 (15 ... dxe4 16 �c4!) 16 �xe4
dxe4 17 �g4 "ifg6 18 "ifd5+ II<h8 1 9
�xd7 l"!xd7 20 J:! a e I! regains the pawn
and stabilizes the position."
We agree with this assessment. and
our computer-aided analysis continues
20 ... "iff5 21 "i!i'xe4 "ifxe4 22 lhe4 �c5 23
�xeS �xf2+ 24 II<hl It>g8 25 a4 l"!d2 26
h3 g6 27 l"!c1 with a level endgame.
14 a4 l"!ad8 15 "i!i'c2
28
15...e 4
II A move in the spirit o f the posi­
tion. Otherwise 16 cxd5 cxd5 17 e4!
would be unpleasant. Now Black can
count on the creation of an attack on
the kingside, and White should be on
the alert!"
16 �a3�e5 17 �xd6 J:!xd6
"The exchange of bishops decreases
Black's attacking chances. After c4-c5
and �d2-b3-d4, White, gaining tempi,
repulses Black's pieces. During the
struggle there comes a turning point
when White captures the initiative."
18c5 l"!d7 19�b3 �fg4 20 h3
20 �h6
••.
"Attempts to destroy White's posi­
tion by sacrificing don't work: 20 ...�f31
21 gxf3 (21 �xf3 exf3 - 2 Ll"!xf3 22 bxc6
bxc6 23 �d4 - 22 �d4 �xe3 23 �xe6
�xc2 24 �xf8 wins for White) 21..exf3
22 io_xf3 (22 �4 "i!i'h6 23 hxg4 fxe2 24
"ifxe2 also wins) 22 ...J:!xf3 23 �d4 "ifh6
(23 ... �xe3 24 �xe6 �xc2 25 bxc6 bxc6
26 J:!abl h6 is equal) 24 �f3 "ifxh3
(24 ... l"!f7 25 hxg4 !:!xf3 26 l"!fcl wins for
White) 25 "i!i'f5 '!;!d8 26 'liI'f4 and Black's
attack is refuted."
Going back to the position after 21
gxf3, we believe that Black actually can
win by playing 2L�e5!!'
For example, 22 f4 "i!i'xh3 23 fxe5
lID!! 24 IHdl Il.f5 25 14 exf3 26 �xf3
"ifxf3 27 "i!i'xfS (or 27 J:!d2 J:!df7! 28 �d4
'i!'xe3+ 29 It>g2 J:!g5+ 30 II<hl 'i!l'h3+ 31
Ilh2 Ilfl+ 32 Ilxfl "ifxfl mate) 27 ... "ifxf5
28 Ilfl "ifg4+ etc.
2 1 �d4 "i!i'e7 22 as! �f5 23 �l<f5 nxf5
24 bxc6 bxc6 25 l:lab1
Interesting here is the continuation
25 f4 �c4 26 �xc4 'iil' xc5! 27 �b3
'iil'xe3+.
Sokolsky stops here and opines that
the two connected pawns in this posi-
The 50kolsky Gambit
lion provide enough compensation for
the sacrificed knight. We don'l believe
this to be true and offer the following
line as evidence: 28 II<h2 Ild6 29 �a4 c5
30 l:tf3 'i!'d4 31 l:tdl '&b4 32 l:lb3 "ifxa5
33 "ifxe4. nf8 34 'l!I'e5 nb6 35 J:!.g3 nbf6
36 �c6 "ifb4 37 lhd5 "ifxf4 38 "ifxf4
Ilxf4 39 nxc5 and White wins.
25 ...'l!!'f81
"Better is 25. . .nf8, even though this
abandons all pretence of aggression."
26a6
"White misses a chance to finish the
struggle immediately by 26 j4! �4
(26 ... exf3 27 'ii'xf5! wins) 27 �xc4 dxc4
28 'iixc4, when Black remains a pawn
down with a bad position."
26...l::tdf7 27 l:lb7 ! h6
hf2? 28 l:lxf2 l::txf2 29 '//fb I !
"27 ....
Ilxe2 30 llb8 Ilel+ 31 It>h2 wins a
queen."
28llfb1 It>h7
IIWhite's advantage is obvious. The
task is only to find the most precise
method to convert it into victory. First�
it's important to exchange one black
rook to decrease the pressure on the f­
file."
29
Play 1 b4!
29 1Ixf7
Sokolsky believed 29 l:tb8 'iiVe7 30
Itl b7 'iiVg5!? 31 Ilxf7 Itxf7 32 f4 to be
good for White, but we think that after
32 ...'i'!'g3 33 'iiVcl (33 fxeS l:tf2 wins)
33 ...d4 Black has a strong attack; for
example, 34 .lIb7 d3 3S iLg4 IH6 36
l::txa7 Ii:lf3+ 37 iLxf3 exf3 38 'iiVd 2 fxg2 39
'iiVxd3 > .lIg6 40 llxg7+ Wxg7 41 'iiV d7+
Wh8 42 'iiV d8+ .lIg8 43 'iiVd4+ 'iiVg7 and
Black wins.
29 ...'i!!'x f7 30 l:tb7
"There are not many pieces left on
the board, so it's hard for Black to at-
tack the enemy king. AI the same time
White threatens a rook penetration to
the seventh rank capturing the pawn
on a7. Here White had to play 30 iLg4!
Ii:lxg4 (30 .. .lH6 31 f4; 30 ....lIg5 31 f4) 31
hxg4 ng5 32 f3 'iiVg6 33 l::tb7 with real
chances for a win. The natural con-
tinuation in the game gave Black a
chance to force a draw by perpetual
check."
30...'i!!'g6 31 );Ixa7 IlgS
32 g3
"32 g4 h5 33 .!:taB hxg4 34 h4 llhS 35
a7 Ii:lf3+ 36 \l;>fl llxh4 37 );Ih8+ Wxh8 3 8
30
a8'i!!' t 'it<h7 39 iLxf3 gxf3 40 \l;>el lith2 41
'it<d2 l::txf2+ 42 'it<c1 l::txc2 . 43 'it<xc2 f2
wins for Black."
However, Fritz suggests 32 iLf1!!
and gives the line 32...li:lf3+ 33 \l;>hl Ibel
34 'Wd1 Ii:lxg2 35 iLxg2 lhg2 36 'Wfl
l:tg5 37 );Ib7 'i!!' f5 38 a7 'i!!'f3+ 39 Wh2 d4
40 llb3 dxe3 41 :!Ixe3 'i!!'f 8 42 :!Ixe4 lldS
43 );Ib4, which is winning for White.
32... );IxgH 33 fxg3 'Wxg3+ 34 Wfl
'i!!' xh3+ 35 'it<el 'Wxe3! 36 'it<dl Y,·Y,
"36 'it<dl 'i!!'d4+ 37 Wcl li:ld3+ 38 Wbl
'iiVb4+ 39 ..t>a2 'iiVa5+ 40 I!;>bl 'iiVb 4+ 41
'it<a2 'iiVa5< with a perpetual ch�ck."
Game 1 0
A.Sokolsky-S.Zhukhovitsky
Kiev 1945
1 b4 e S2 iLb2 f 6 3 bS dS 4 e3 �d6
4 ...iLe6 is more often played, to hin­
der the advance c2<4, (see Game 9).
Sc4c6 6 1i:lf3 lbe7 7 d4
7...e4
7 ... /L)d7 is insufficient, because after
8 dxe5 fxe5 9 cxd5 cxd5 the defence of
the centra1 pawns is a heavy burden on
Black, and 10 iLe2 0-0 II 0-0 e4 sees
Black being forced to concede the d4-
square.
81i:lfd2 0-0 9 Ii:lc3 fS
Black's pawn advances on the king­
side provide him with a space advan­
tage. On the other hand, White has cre­
ated pressure against d5 and has the
initiative on the queenside. A lively
game with chances for both sides is in
prospect.
10g3
White must prevent Black's in­
tended advance ...f4.
10 li:ld7 1 1 a4 1i:lf6 12 iLa3 J..c7
..•
A mistake - Black loses valuable
time trying to save his good bishop. In
addition, its counterpart now creates
uncomfortable pressure on the a3-f8
diagonal. The right way was 12 ...iLxa3
13 lha3 dxc4 14 iLxc4+ li:led5, occupy­
ing the important central square dS.
13 as a6
White threatened a5-a6 to detonate
the enemy pawn chain, and 13 ... iLxa5?
loses a piece after 14 iLxe7 'i'!'xe7 15
lha5.
14 b6 iLb8 15 Ii:lb3 �f7 16 itlcs gs 17
The 50kolsky Gambit
�b3 iLd6
On 17 .. .f4, there could follow 1 8
gxf4 gxf4 19 l:r.gl+ \l;>h8 2 0 cxd5 cxdS 2 1
1i:l3xe4'.
180-0-0
An original position! The white
king is safe despite having no pawns
defending it, and Black is being pushed
back.
18 h6 19 ,xdS cxd5 20 h4 g4?
..•
With this move Black abandons all
hope of counterplay. The immediate
20 .. .f4 is doubtful after 2 1 hxg5 hxgS 22
gxf4 gxf4 23 iLh3, but the option of _ .f4
must be kept in reserve, not ruled out
altogether.
2 1 .Il.d2 l'l.b8 22 Il:c2 iLx,S 23 iLx,S Ii:lc6
24 'iiVa3 J..d7 25 W b2 l:r.c8 26 iLe2 iLe6
27 1i:la2 1i:le828.Il.hCl
White concentrates his forces on the
only open file and Black cannot oppose
this plan.
28...lhb8 29 iLb4 llxc2+ 30 Il:xc2 'Wd7
31 itl'l
The knight is heading for the c5-
square.
31...itl,6 n li:lb3 Ii:lxb4
32 ... li:lf6 is met by 33 Ii:lc5 'iiVc8 34
31
Play 1 b4!
'ii'a4, threatening 35 1Llxa6.
33 'ii' xb4 ""'d6 34 'iWa3 'ii'xa3+ 35 'it>xa3
ILld6 36 ill eS J:'te7 37 'it>b4 Wi7
381Llxa6!
The logical culmination of White's
queenside attack. Now the b-pawn will
march to its coronation.
38 bxa6 39 Lxa6 'it>e840 li[e6 Wd7 41
•..
'it>cs 1-0
41 ._lLlf7 42 il.c8+ wins, as does 42
b7.
Carnell
K.VoIke-V.Kuprei(hik
Minsk 1994
1 b4 eS 2 il.b2 f6 3 bS dS 4 e3 cS 5 d4!?
A risky move, fighting for control of
the centre. After 5 bxc6 ILlxc6 Black's
centre looks very solid.
S exd4
•..
5...cxd4 6 exd4 e4 7 c4 il.e6 8 ILlc3
il.b4 9 'iWb3 il.a5 10 cxd5 il.xd5 I I il.c4,
as played in U.Kreuzer-P.Turati, corre­
spondence 1990, sees White maintain­
ing dangerous pressure on the a2-g8
diagonal.
32
The Sokolsky Gambit
6 exd4 e4! 1 1 bxa6? is bad due to the reasons 19 il.xb4lLlxd4 20 il.xe7 'ii'xe7 21 'iWd2
mentioned previously, and Black can Here White could have played 21
continue with 1 1 ....!:txa6 12 il.g2 il.e4 1 3 'ii'f2! defending 13. After 2 l...1ile6 22
'ii'e3 IIe6. Instead 11 il.g2 looks like the IIel na6 23 1Ll14 'ii'd7 24 Wg2 0-0 25
best chance for White. lhe6 lhe6 26 1Llxe6 'l!i'xe6 27 lIel White
11...il.e4 12 'i!i'e2 axbS?! has more lhan enough play for a pawn.
12 ...'ii'e7! 1 3 13 il.xc2 wins a pawn. 21...lLlxf3 22 'iWxdS 'ii'e4 23 'ii'b S+ 'it>f8
24 'iWb4+ Wg7
24 ...'it>g8 25 ILlf2 'ii' c6 26 'l!i'xb7 i!l'xb7
27 l:1xb7 h5 should be equal.
2S Iilf2 'iWe6 26 'ii'e 7+ 'it>g6 27 1bb7
After this strong move White has
some problems to solve: his bishops
look bad, the b5-pawn is weak, and
Black has more space.
71LlC3 il.b4 8'iWhS+
Forcing a weakening in Black's
kings ide. 13 W fl
8...g6 9 'iWf3 a6 10 g3 Ducking the pin and clearing el for
10 bxa6 J:l.xa6 only helps to improve the rook. Possible is 13 f3!? l:!a3 14 fxe4
Black's rook and weaken the a2-pawn. il.xc3+ 15 il.xc3 l:1xc3 reaching a posi­
tion with chances for both sides. 27 lild2+ 28 W gl ILlf3+ 29 Wfl Iil d2+
•••
13...il.xe3 14 il.xC3 lLle7 15 f3 iI.fS 16 30 W gl y.-y.
il.xfs gxfS 171Llh31Llbe618l:1bl b4 Perpetual check ends an entertain­
18...Xlxa2 19 lhb5 'ii'd7 looks more ing game in which both players
logical. showed their lactical skills.
l o...il.fs
1O ... axb5 11 ILlge21Llc6 12 ii.g2 gives
White a big enough initiative for a
pawn.
11 il.h3
33
Play 1 b 4 !

Summary
This is probably the most difficult chapter in the book from a tactical point of

I
view. Players with sharp styles will relish the complications of the Sokolsky Gam­
bit (3 e4 il.xb4 4 il.c4 or 3 e4 d54 f4). Opponents who don't know what to do can
meet the same fate as mine did in Games 7 and 8, and a study of these two en­ Cha pter Two
counters should give you some encouragement.
Players who don't enjoy complications should look more closely at 3 b5, as
seen in Games 9-1 1 .

1 b 4 e 5 2 il.b2 f6 3 e4 1 b4 e S 2 .i. b2 .i. x b4

3 b5 d5 4 e3 (0)
4 ...il.e6 - Game 9
4 ...il.d6 - Game 10
4...c5 - Game 1 1
3 il.xb4
...
Now we proceed to a popular defence challenge to the Sokolsky: Chess Open­
3 ...c6 - Game 7
for Black, 1 b4 e5 2 31.b2 31.xb4. Black ings for Black, Explained by GMs
3 ... a5 - Game S
concedes an extra central pawn to his Ozindzichashvili. Alburt and Perel­
3 ... d54 f4 exf4 5"ill'h5+ g6 6 'i1!'xd5'i!fxd57 exd5il.xb4 8 il.c4 (0)
opponent but hopes to develop quickly shteyn, and Beating Unusual Chess
8 ...il.f5 Game 5
-
and start an attack with his better mo­ Openings by 1M Richard Palliser. Both
8 .. .tL'ld7 - Game 6
bilized forces. of these books advocate the line 1 b4 e5
4 iI.<4 fiJe7
The main line runs 3 31.xe5 fiJf6 4 c4 2 31.b2 31.xb4 3 31.xe5 fiJf6 4 e3 0-0 5 fiJf3
4 ...'i1!'e7 - Game 4
0-0 5 fiJf3. Games 12-15 examine the ne8! 6 c4 d5 7 cxd5 fiJxd5.
4 ...fiJc6 Game 4 (notes)
common ...lilc6 attacking the e5-bishop
S f4 (0)
(before or afler ... d7-<l5; there are dif­
5 'i1!'hS+ - Game 3
ferent move orders but usually it just
5 ..•dS 6 exd5 il.d6 - Game 1
transposes) with subsequent plans for
6 ...exf4 - Game 2
Black of . . . 31.e7-f6 and/or . . . 31.g4 or
. . .31.f5. In all of these cases the extra
centre pawn proves more useful than
the lead in development.
In Game 16, prodigy Ray Robson
produces the interesting idea 8 _ .'i1!'d6,
intending to swing the queen to g6 to
spearhead an attack on the white king.
Despite Black's reverse in this game, it Here the books deviate, with Pal­
strikes us as an idea worth testing. liser offering the more challenging
8 iI.<4 5 /4 2.. ..fLxb4 has been recommended as lines after 8 31.b2 fiJf4! or 8 31.e2 .!!xp5! 9
Black's best option by some authorsl lLlxe5 �f6 10 1"4 tL:Jxe3.
and two recent books pose a strong All this looks vE'ry dangerous, and

34 35
Play 1 b4!
to bypass the line I recommend a
slightly different version of a line sug­
gested by Palliser himself, namely 4 c4
(Sokolsky's preference) 0-0 S a3! iLaS 6
iLlf3, with the intention of 6 ... IIe8 7 e3
dS 8 cxd5 iLlxdS 9 iLe2 IIxeS 10 iLlxeS
'i!i'f6 11 iLlc4 (the point) 'i!i'xal 12 iLlxaS
il.lS 13 0-0 'i't'b2 14 'i't'b3 'i't'xb3 IS iLlxb3
with a playable position. S a3 also
avoids the main line offered in Chess
Openings for Black, Explained.
Of course, our analysis is untested
and other possibilities may be possible
for Black to pose new problems, for ex­
ample the tricky S a3 ne8!? But While
can play differently too, even avoiding
2 . .Ihb4 altogether with 2 a3, in the
. .
style of Michael Basman (one example
from many you can find in databases is
M.Basman-B.Kouatly, London 1979).
Game 17 considers the rare idea (af­
ter 3 iLxeS iLlf6 4 c4 0-0 S iLlf3 dS 6 e3)
of 6 ... cS. We don't like this move, as the
cS-pawn can easily become a target and
Black's development is slowed by a
vital ternpo.
Finally, for true romantics, Game 18
explores the gambit idea of 3 f4, refus­
ing to take back the e-pawn. Tacticians
might en joy the ensuing bizarre posi­
tions, which bear more than a passing
resemblance to the ideas seen in Chap­
ter One.
Game 12
A.Sokolsky-Anishchenko
Minsk 1959
1 b4 e 5 2 .l1i.b2 .l1i.xb4 3 .l1i.xe5 iLlf6
36
In principle, the exchange of a flank
pawn for a central pawn favours the
side gaining the central pawn, as even­
tually that side will construct a strong
pawn centre. In truth, Black gets an
advantage in development. and for
some time \rVhite mus1 play precisely to
neutralize the opponent's threats.
4 c4 0-0 5 e3 iLlc6 6 .l1i.b2 d5 7 cxd5
7...iLlxd5
Recapturing with the queen, as
happened in the game Sokolsky­
Litvinov from the same tournamentl is
unconvincing. White didn'l use the
chance to capture on f6, and came to
regret it later on: 7... 'i't'xd5 8 .l1i.xf6 gxf6 9
iLle2! .l1i.d6 10 iLlbc3 'i't'aS 1 1 iLlg3 with
better play for White.
siLlf3 .l1i.g4 9 .l1i.e2 !IeS 10 0-0 .l1i.e7
The plan to transfer the bishop to f6
can't be the strongest continuation.
No better is 10 ... io.d6 because of 1 1
iLlc3. Probably Black has to pia)'
1O...'i!'d7 11 d4 !Iad8, but in this case
White's position is better because of the
extra central pawn and the potential
pressure on the c-file.
11 d4 .l1i.f6 12 iLlbd2 .l1i.f5 13 iLl c4 iLlb6 14
l:!c1 iLlxc4 15 .l1i.xc4 iLla5
Black wants to play ... c7-<:5, but he
can't get what he wants.
lS ... 'i't'd6 1 6 '!!Ib 3 .l1i.g6, and if 1 7 'i't'xb7?
then 1 7 .. .l:!ab8.
16.l1i.e2 b6
This prepares the move ...c7-cS and
prevents the threat of 17 lIcS. But al­
Teady Whitels next move stops the
movement of the c-pawn and Black
must take care of the backward pawn
on the c-file.
17 .l1i.a3 io.e7 1S .l1i.xe7 'iii'xe7 19 'i't'a4
lIacS 20 .l1i.a6 IlcdS
Now White has time to double
rooks on the c-file.
1 b4 .5 2 iLb2 iLxb4
21 l:i:O jte4 22 .l1i.e2 ncs2 3 IHc1 c6
How to increase the pressure on the
Better is c6-pawn? White decides to exchange
both of Black's minor pieces which are
defending this pawn.
24 iLld2 iLd5 25 .l1i.f3 iLxf3 26 iLl"f3 f6
27h3 IledS 2siLld2 wfS 29 iLlb3 Ild5
This leads to a forced loss, although
even after 29 ... iLlxb3 30 axb3 cS 31 b4
Il:dS 32 bxcS bxcS 33 'i't'c2 Black is losing
a pawn.
30 iLlxa5 Ilxa5 31 'i!i'C2 g6 32 nxc6
White not only wins a pawn but in­
vades the opponent's camp, and this
quickly decides the game.
32 Jld8
.•
Possibly Black had intended to play
32 .. .1hc6 33 'i't'xc6 Ilxa2, but in this case
after 34 'iii'c8+ 'i't'e8 3S '!!Ib7! the threat
.!l.c8 would force resignation.
33 'i't'b3 l:i:ad5 34 l:i:1c4!
On the immediate 34 Ilcl there
could follow 34 ... nSd7. White occupies
the open file in the proper manner, lin­
ing up his two rooks in front of his
queen. In lhis case the threat of coming
to the seventh and eighth rank is
stronger.
37
Play 1 b4 !
34...!'!Sd6 3S "iii'c3 ):1xc6 36 !'!xc6 Iti>g7 37
"iii'c4 :!l:d6 3B dS wfB
The exchange 38...Ilx<:6 will lead to
immediate death after 39 dxc6! 'j!jIc7 40
"iii'e6.
39 g3 Wf7?
A mistake in a lost position.
40 nC7! 1-0
Game 13
Y.Lapshun-LMilman
New York Masters 2002
Lev Milman is a very young and
strong American chess master who has
beaten many GMs. and in 2004 he be­
came US Junior Champion. I heard his
rating on the Internet Chess Club (ICC)
was over 3100. He knew his openings
very welt so I decided to play 1 b4.
1 b4 e5 2 �b2 il.xb4 3 il.xe5 thf6 4 C4
The best, according to Sokolsky. 4
c4 tries to control the centre and Black
can only play ... d7-dS at a cost of ex­
changing his only central pawn.
4... 0-0 Sl2lf3
The suggestion of inserting 5 a3
38
1 b4 .5 2 �b2 il.xb4
here, which is a measure against early ter for White due to the strong position A waiting move - 1 wasn't sure at
...!'!e8 lines (instead of ... l2lc6J. was dis­ of his knight. this moment whether to advance the e­
cussed in the introduction to the chap­ lB �f3 c5? pawn or the g-pawn.
teT. 18 ...<:6 would have been a better 30...ndB
5... 121c6 6 il.b2 dS 7 e3 il.g4 B cxd5 choice. 30 ... J:l.xa4 31 .I1l.xg7! 1We4 32 "iii'xe4
l2l"ds 9 il.e2 19 121b5 �xe4 33 .1lc3 still leaves \!\'hite a pawn
ahead.
31 'i!lib7 .lIdbB
And here 31...:!l:xa4 32 J:l.xb6 !'!da8 33
n6b5 is good for White.
32 'i!lic611cB 33 'i!lif3 .lIdB 34 11a1 'i!lid6 35
d4
Sooner Or later I had to get rid of
this weakness.
35 ...'i!lid5 36 'i!lixd5 n"d5 37 as bxa5 3B
.I1l.x35 .I1l.d6 39 .I1l.c3
Much stronger is 39 1:1c1! nc8 40
��b6, when White wins a second pawn.
9 ...'i!lie7 Black can" defend a7 and b7 at the 39...1:Ixal+ 40 .I1l.xal fS 41 .t>g1 Wf7 42
More usual is 9 ...!'!e8 1O 0-0 'i!lie7 and same time, so White wins a pawn. J::tb7+ .I1l.e7 43 Wfl cxd4 44 .I1l.xd4 g6 45
now: 19 ...'i!lie7 20 lilxa7 .I1l.bB 21 121b5 l2lf5 22 11<13 We6 46 g4 fxg4+ 47 hxg4 h5
aJ 11 'i!lic2 nad8 was agreed drawn 34 121d6 23 l2lxd6 !'!xd6
in G .Kochetkov-A.Kovalev, Minsk
1996. Note here that 12 d4? allows
12...121xe3! 13 fxe3 'i!lixe3+ ] 4 :!l:f2 il.xf3
IS .I1l.xf3 121xd4 when Black is winning.
b) 1] a3 .I1l.a5 12 'i!lia4!? (12 'i!lic2)
1 2. . .'i!lie4 13 'i!lixe4 lhe4 14 likl J:::e7 15
d4 .!id8 16 l2lc3 l2lb6 17 h 3 .I1l.f5 1 8 .I1l.b5
gave Whit.. an edge in the endgame
due to his strong centre in M.Parry­
W.velker, correspondence 1 997.
100-0 nadB 11 33 il.d6 12 121c3 l2lxc3 13
.I1l.xc3 121es 48 g5?!
Chances are equal. 24 nfbl Here 48 We4! lita5 49 f5+ gxf5+ 50
14 l2ld4 'i!lih4 15 f4 .I1l.xe2 J.6 'i!lixe2 121g4 In this position I was trying to at­ gxf5+ .t>d6 51 f6 .I1l.f8 52 J::tbB .I1l.h6 53
17 h3 121h6 tack the weak l>- and c-pawns. nh8 .I1l.g5 54 £7 is a sim pier win for
The only way. 17 ... thf6 18 thf5 'i!lih5 24...b6 25 :!l:bS .I1l.c7 26 J:l.abl :!l:ddB 27 White.
19 'i!lixh5 lLlxh5 20 g4 l2lf6 2] .I1l.xf6 gxf6 �b7 J:l.bB 2B 'i!lic6 .!rfcB 29 'i!lif3 .!raB 30 4B ...J:l.aS 49 J:l.b6+ w f7 SO .!rb7 We6 Sl
22 d4 lUe8 23 .t>f2 would be clparly bet- Whl nb6+ .t>f7 52 .I1l.e5 na7
39
Play 1 b 4 !
52. . ..ltxg5 loses after 53 IIb7+ We8 54
.!:!g7 .lte7 55 '!:!xg6.
53 fS! .ltxgs
53... gxf5 54 g6+ wg8 55 J:!b8+ .ltf8 56
S/.d6 is also hopeless.
S4 fxg6+ We7 S5 g7 .!l:a8 56 .!l:g6
56 IIb7+ We6 57 .ltb8 is a bit more
ruthless.
56._. .ltxe3 57 g8Wi J:txg8 58 l:Ixg8 .lte5
59 J:!g5 1-0
Game 1 4
Y.Lapshun-M.Sinn
World Open, Philadelphia 2003
This game was published by Joel
Benjamin in the magazine New in Chess.
M y opponent sacrificed his rook, and
my king survived all the dangerous
threats.
1 b4 es 2 .ltb2 .ltxb4 3 iLxes lZlf6 4 e4
0-0 S lZlf3 lZlc6 6 .ltb2 ne8 7 e3 d S 8
exd5 lZlxd5 9 .1te2
9 .l:txe3?
.•
This looks like a very good sacrifice,
but in reality it doesn't work.
9 ....ltg4 transposes back to Game 12,
40
while 9 ....lte7 is discussed in Game 15.
A furth"r possibility for Black
9 ...iLf5; for example, 10 0-0 .ltf8 11 a3 a6
12 d4 h6 13 Illbd2 1ll b6 14 J:!el iVd7 15
h3 nad8 16 lZlc4 lZlxc4 17 .ltxc4 S/.e4 18
lZld2 iLg6 19 lZlb3 .lte4 20 lZld 2 'II_V"
G.Baranov-LYudasin, Chigorin
morial, 5t P"tersburg 1998.
10 fxe3 Illxe3
11 'i!l'b3
At the board it seemed to me that
this was the best way to proceed, and I
still think this is the case. 1 1 'i!l'c1
lZlxg2+ 12 Wf2 lZlf4, as played
E.Engelhardt-J.Rollwitz, Berlin 1995, is
a known route 10 an advanlage (or
White.
11 tZlxg2+ 12 Wd1!
..•
12 Wf2 .lth3! is less convincing for
White, as Black gets a strong attack.
12 ..Ite6 13 'i!l'd3 'i!l'e7 14lZld4 1ll f4
•.
1 4. . .J:!d8 is met by 15 Illxc6 bxc6 1 6
'i!l'g3. Another game continued 1 4....ltd5
15 1ll f5 'i!l'c5 1 6 J:!fJ J:!d8 17 .ltxg7 .1txd2
18 tZlxd2 liJb4 19 1llh6+ Itxg7 20 'i!l'g3<
Wf8 21 'i!l'g8+ We7 22 IIxf7+ $..xf7 23
'i!l'xf7+ Wd6 24 iVf6+ Wd7 25 .ltg4+ iff5
26 .ltxf5< We8 27 Wif7 mat", H.Muri-
1 b4 e5 2 iLb2 iLxb4
J.Bjorn, correspondence 1993. 10 0-0 .ltf6 11 d4 .ltf5 12 lZlbd2 lZlcb4
is lS lll 1(e6 bxe6 16 ifd4 il.b3+ 17 axb3
Wixe2+ 18We2 1-0
Me­
13 Illb 3?!
13 lllc4, protecting the e3-pawn, is
After playing 18 Wc2 I lefl t h e roo m. stronger. Now after the tactics the re­
When I came back my opponent, the sulting position is unclear.
set and the clock had aU disappeared. 13 ..• lllc2 14 lId IIIcxe3 15 fxe3 lll ..e3
Five minutes later Mr. Sinn came back 16 Wid2 1ll xf1 17 �xf1 $..e4 18iLc4b6?!
and announced his resignation. This is weakening, and in the future
Black could have problems with the
squares c7 and c6. 18 ...c6!? looks
Game 1 5
stronger.
Y.Lapshun-D.Wang
19 iff4 .ltxf3 20 ifxf3 e5 21 il.b5
Kapuskasing 2004
in
Wang is a young talent who had al­
ready drawn against a Grandmaster in
this tournament. He had prepared for
my favourite opening, but only for the
first eight moves. We repeated the
moves to my game against Sinn, but
Wang was not bold enough to sacrifice
his rook.
1 b4 es 2 il.b2 .ltxb4 3 .ltxes Illf 6 4 e4
0-0 5 1llf3 Illc6 6 .ltb2 d5 7 cxd5 1ll xd5 8
e3 lite89 il.e2 $..e7 2 1...lite7?
This is rare, but it's the same ap­ 2 1 . ..ne6 22 .!:!dl l:Id6 would have
proach that Anishchenko used against been preferable to the text.
Sokolsky (see Game 12). 22 lId1! c4
41
Play 1 b 4 ! 1 b4 .5 2 iL b 2 iLxb4

22. . .cxd4 2 3 4:lxd4 iLxd4+ 2 4 �xd4 12-year-old Senior Master, Ray Robson, 10..:�*,g6 11 0-0 iLh3! 16 d4 i s more natural.
'liVc8 25 i1.c4 Wh8 26 �g4 f5 27 ll:h4 'liVe8 who according to Kasparov is an ex­ Forcing me to undevelop my 16•..J:!e7 17 d4 a6 18 iLe2 4:ldS 19 iLxaS
28 'liVh3 'liVg6 29 :lIh6! is a neat win for tremely talented player. I had no time knight. 4:lJ<a5
White. to prepare for him and decided to use 12 4:lel Even though almost all my pieces
23 iLxe4 :lIe8 24 iLd3 'liVe8 2S II1 fl iLh4 my favourite opening weapon. As Korchnoi said, "I'm preparing were on the first rank, my position
26 g3 );te3 27 '/IO'f2 '/IO'e6 28 Wgl iLgs 29 l b4 my pieces for the next game!" This wasn't worse and I was ready to attack.
d5 'liVg4 30 :lIfl .!:tf8 3 1 4:lel 'liVd7 32 i1.a3 This move made him smile, and he backward move actually contains a 20 4:ld2 lld6 21 a4
ll:es 33 'liVf3 ll: d 8 34 d6 i1.eH 3S It>hl thought for about one hour over his trap: on 12_.Ilfe8? there follows 1 3 During the game I felt this was the
iLeS opening ten moves. i1.hs! 'liVg5 1 4 f 4 'liVe7 IS 'liVf3, winning best defence to the idea of ... 1:::c6, be­
The d-pawn goes, but the attack 1... eS 2 i1.b2 i1.xb4 3 .1l.xeS 4:lf6 4 e4 0-0 material. cause my queen needed more f reedom.
rages on. 5 4:lf3 4:lc6 6 i1.b2 d5 7 cxd5 4:lxd5 8 e3 12 •••iLf5 13 "iliel 2 1...h 5
36 iLb2 :lIe3 37 'liVds J:i:e6 38 i1.<4 'liVxd6 In this theoretical position my op­ Going for checkmate! Here I was
39 'IiVxd6 :lIexd6 40 ll:xf7 ll:dl+ 41 Wg2 ponent played a dangerous move really beginning to worry over the
J:i:8d2+ 42 Wh3 hS which nobody had previously used safety of my king.
42...b5 43 i1.e6 ll:d6 44 �f6+ ll:xe6 45 against me: 2 2 iLf3 4:lf6 23 'liVa3 h4 24 :lIn
J:txe6 �d2 46 ne2 is also winning. 8...'liVd6!?
43 nxg7+

Preparing to gain some freedom

Look how the white rook and two
bishops are building a mating net.
43 ..•Wf8 44 iLf6 We8 4S i1.f7+ .t>f8 46
i1.e6 .t>e8 47 nxa7 1.()
Game 1 6
Y.Lapshun-R.Robson
World Open, Philadelphia 2007
I n this game I was playing against
I thought I had remembered seeing
8... 'liVd6 in some book, and that the idea
was to play at some point ...\\!i'g6 with
pressure on the g2-pawn. I had no idea
what to do, so ] chose a wailing move
which decides where Black's dark­
squared bishop goes and protects the
b4-square - this could be useful in the
future.
9 a3 i1.a5 10 �_e 2
I think 10 'liVc2 is best, preparing
4:lc3 and discouraging ... \\!i'g6.
with 4:lc3, and also laying another trap.
13...�fe8
13 ... i1.xbl?! 14 lhbl i1.xd2?? is los­
ing because of IS 'liVxd2! "ilixbl 16 4:ld3 Creating my first threat: winning a
'liVa2 17 4:lc1 'liVbl 18 iLd3, trapping the pawn after l:!xc7 and 'liVxd6.
queen. 2 4...4:leB
14 i1.e4 4:lb6 With this and his following move
14 .. Jtad8 looks more natural. my opponent seemed to be preparing
1S iLb5 .!lad8 his pieces for the next game too! Right
Black can try to win a pawn with now he was experiencing some time
15 ...i.xb1?! 16 \\!i'xbl 'liVxbl 17 l:txbl pressure because he had spf"nt too
i.xd2, but here 18 4:lf3 i1.a5 1 9 i1.xc6 much of it in the opening.
bxc6 20 l:tbcl 4:ld5 21 l:txc6 gives White 25 e4!
a slight advantage. The beginning of my attack in the
16 iLe3 centre. Black's initiative has disap­
Trying to release the pressure, but peared and it was a time for him to

42 43
PlaY l b4 !
trade pieces with 25...il. g4.
25 ... il.e8?! 26 e5
Now White has a clear advantage.
26 •..l!dd7 27 il.e4 "lWh6 28 f4 IPf8
Defending the rook on e7 and thus
threatening to capture the d4-pawn.
29 d5
An unbelievable position, in which
all of Black's pieces have problems
moving.
29...f5
This is the only way to complicate
the position, but White's next move
renders Black's position hopeless.
30 d6! exd6
Or 30 ... lLlxd6 31 exd6 ::Xxd6 32 il.d3,
with a good extra piece.
31 il.xf5 't1e7 32 :1."e7?
White could win easily with 32
il.xc8!, but in my calculations I missed
that after 32 .. .lhc1 33 'ilfxc1 J:'tc7 White
has 34 'ilfbl! ::Xxc8 35 'ilff5+ and 'ilfxc8.
32 ...lhe7 33 il.xc8 ::Xxc8 34 'ilfb4!
Winning a couple of pawns.
34...lile6 35 'ilfxb7 :1.e7 36 �xa6 dxe5 37
fxe5+ We7 38 lLlef3 h3 39 gxh3 'ilfxh3
40 �e4 ILlxe5?
Blundering, although the position
44
was already losing
41 �b4+ IPd8 42 'ilfb8+ lPe7 43 llel
�g4+ 44 Wf2 1·0
Black can't save the knight. This is a
good exam pIe of a white pawn storm
in the centre prepared by careful open­
ing strategy.
Came 1 7
B.Katalymov-S.Giterman
USSR Championship,
Novgorod 1961
1 b4 e5 2 il.b2 il.xb4 3 il.xe5 tDf6 4 tDf3
0·0 5 e4 d5 6 e3
6 cxd5 ILlxd5 7 e3 tDc6 8 il.b2 would
transpose to previous games in this
chapter.
6..•e5
6 ... tDc6 7 .i_b2 ne8 8 cxd5 Iilxd5 9
il.e2 would reach Games 14-15.
7 a3 il.a5 8 cxd5 1Ll xd5 9 'ilfe2
White must try to prove that in the
middlegame two pawns in the centre
are better than two pawns on the edge
of the board.
9. • .tDe6 10 il.b2
10 �xc5? tDxe5 1 1 tDxe5 il e6 12 �b5
Ilc8 13 /l)c4 'ilff6 14 Ila2 tDb6 15 tDxa5
il.xa2 wins for Black.
10 ...'i!!'e7 11 il.d3 h6 12 0-0 il.e6 13 l::tel
il.b6 14 tDe3 Ilad8?
This move allows White to gain the
two bishops and saddle Black with
weak doubled pawns on the b-file.
14 ...tDxc3!? 15 �xc3 f6 16 il.e4 tDa5 17
il.c2 11fd8 looks about equal.
15 tDa4 il.g4 16 tDel tDa5 17 Ilabl Ile8
18 h3 il.e6 19 tDxb6 axb6 20 tDf3 e4 2 1
il.h7+ IPh8
22 tDd4
22 il.e4!? tDb3 23 Ildl Ilfd8 24 tDd4
tDxd4 25 il.xd4 'l!i'xa3 26 il.xb6 might be
1 b4 e5 2 Ji.. b 2 il.Xb4
a slightly better approach.
22 ...e3?!
Trying to win the h7-bishop, but
this allows a lre-mendous attack on the
black king. Instead 22... tDb3! 23 ILlxe6
fxe6 24 Ildl 'i!!'h 4 25 (3 b5 26 il.e4 is un­
clear, as Black f'ojoys some coun terplay
on the queenside.
23 dxc3 g6 24 il.xg6 fxg6 25 C4
White has a crushing attack
25 ...lLlf6 26 'l!i'xg6 tDxc4 27 'l!i'xh6+ IPg8
28 'l!i'g6+ wh8 29 il.a1 I!f7??
Losing at once. 29 ... il.d7!? puts up
more resistance, although after 30 llb4
ILleS 31 'l!i'h6+ IPg8 32 l::txc8 .Il:xc8 33 tDb3
wf7 34 Ilf4 Ile8 35 il.c3 il.c6 36 iI.b4
'l!i'd8 37 11Wh7+ lPe6 38 tDd4+ IPd5 39 'l!i'c2
il.a4 40 e4+ White is winning easily.
30 ILlxe6 'l!i'xe6 31 J:'tb5! 1·0
There is no defence to 32 .Il:h5<�.
Came 1 8
Y.Lapshun-R.Kaufman
National Chess Congress,
Philadelphia 1999
National Master Raymond Kaufman
45
Play 1 b4! 1 b4 e5 2 iLb2 iLxb4

is the son of 1M Larry Kaufman. In the White wins. S ummary

first round of this tournament they were 11 .1i.f6 1ilg6 12 e3 .1i.g4 13 �fl liJd7n The reader should devote most of his or her attention to the lines stemming from
somehow paired against each other. Black should play 13 ...il.e6. S...liJc6 (or S...dS followed by ...liJ(6), as it's the most popular way for Black to play
Larry Kaufman protested, and they 14 1iJ<3? and several books recommend this as a good line against the Sokolsky. Robson's
were repaired. As a result, both of them ]4 iLh4! IiJxM IS 'l!Yxf7+ Wd8 16 8...'iI'd6 with the idea of ...'iI'g6 is worth studying, and this move will appeal to
lost: Raymond to me and Larry to the 'il'g8+ IiJf8 17 'il'g5+ We8 18 'il'xh4 was opponents with aggressive styles of play.
young Canadian player Zhe Quan. the right way.
1 b4 es 2 il.b2 il.xb4 3 f4!1 exf4 14...<6 I S 11bl as 16 a3 .1i.d6 17 l'(xb7 1 b4 es 2 .1i.b2 .1i.xb4 3 .1i.xes
An adventurous move. We prefer 3 f4 (0) - Game 18
3 ... d6 4 fxeS dxeS S il.xeS IiJf6 6 IiJf3 0-0, 3 ...liJf6 4 <4
as played in a few games, which we 4 e3 0-0 5 liJf3 Ile8 - chapter introduction
feel is slightly better for Black. 4 ... 0-0 5 IiJO
4 .1i.xg7 'i:l'h4+ 5 g3 fxg3 6 .1i.g2 gxh2+ 7 S a3 - chapter introduction
Wfl hxgl'i!1'+ S ... 1iJ<6
S...dS 6 e3 cS (0) - Game 17
S.. .ll:e8 6 e3 dS - chapter introduction
6 .1i.b2 dS 7 <xds liJxds S e3 (0) IleS
8 ...�d6 - Game 16
8...iLg4 9 iLe2
9 ... 'i!'e7 - Game 13
17...lt\desn 9 ...11e8 - Game 12
Another big blunder. 17 ...liJgf8 18 9 .1i.e2 .1i.e7 - Game 15
Ith6 IiJxf6 1 9 'l'I'xf6 jce6, although still 9...Ilxe3 - Game 14
good for White, was preferable to the
text move.
18 IiJe2?!
Several players chuckled whE'n they Another slip. 18 iLxe5 IiJxe5 19
saw this position. llbxf7 IiJf3+ 2 0 .!:(xf3 .1i.xf3 21 'i!'xf3 II'!'xf3
S Wxgl 'i:l'g3 9 .1i.xhS d S 22 il.xf3 would have finished Black off.
I think it's better to save the h-pawn lS... �xe2 19 'i!'xe2 IiJg4??
by playing 9 .. .h6. Three strikes and you are out.
10 lIxh7 liJe7 19 ....1i.xa3 would have kept things go­
1O.. . liJc6?? loses to I I .!:(g7!; for ex­ ing a while longer.
314 6... cS 8 e3
ample, 1 1....1i.cS+ 1 2 e3 .1i.xe3+ 13 dxe3 20 l'lh3
'i!l'xe3+ 1 4 wfl 'ikf4+ IS 'ikf3 'ikc1 . 16 wf2 The queen can't escape.
'i!l'xc2+ 17 'ike2' 'i!l'xe2+ 18 Wxe2 and 20...lI'!'xh3 1-0

46 47

Cha pter Three
Black Plays ... e 5 a n d . . . d 6
This chapter deals with a very common
approach by Black, the King's Indian
structure. Black eschews an immediate
tactical clash and instead adopts a
sound formation with which he or she
will no doubt be very familiar.
We also include the Old Indian sys­
tem under the King's Indian umbrella
since many players like to feint with an
early ... d6 before either fianchettoing
their dark-squared bishop or playing
...:;_e7. Games 19-22 pretty much run
the gamut of Old Indian structures.
There is one with an early ...e5-e4 by
Black, one without, one with a massive
space grab of ...e5-e4, ...f5, ... c6 and
... d5, and finally one in which White
plays d4-d5 himself.
Lapshun-Reeder (Game 23) shows
an attempt by Black to imitate Smys­
lov's ... il.e6 defenoe to the English
Opening, but White's early space gain
proves quite useful. The next six games
explore the possibilities of standard
King's Indian play by Black. Games 25,
48
I It's hardly worth hurrying the b­
27 and 29 feature the idea of quet>nside
castling (or even no castling) by White
in an attempt to evade Black's kingside
play and to counteral tack on that very
flank, and this plan is very promising
It is surprising that Capablanca's
double fianchetto approach in his game
against Reti is not used more often by
modem players. Perhaps they are influ­
enced by the result, the Cuban's first
loss in serious play since 1916! At any
rate, don't pass up on this fine game.
OUf final game shows a modem exam­
ple of the Double Fianchetto defence in
a contest between two of Canada's best
players in recent history. It's not flashy,
but it's worth studying.
Game 19
A.Sokolsky-S.Flohr
USSR Championship,
Moscow 195 3
1 b4 e 5 2 il.b2 d6
Black Plays .. . e5 and . .. d6
The most solid continuation, in open file and the weak d6-pawn.
Flohr's style. 12 ..•exd3 13 'ilI'xd3 lZles
3 c4 as If J3 ...lZlb6, 14 e4! il.e6 15 lZle3 stops
pawn, as the move h4-b5 is part of
White's plans.
the advance of the d-pawn, after which
Black remains cram ped.
14 'ilI'd2 il.e6 1s lZla3
4 bs lZlf6 S e3 il.e7 The knight on a3 is poorly placed,
The development of the bishop on but this disad vantage is only tempo­
e7 is a little passive. Black was luckier rary. The defects in Black's position are
in the games Sokolsky-Kholmov and more serious; a weak d6-pawn and the
Sokolsky-Lilienthal from the final of invasion square dS. The knight on e5
the 21st USSR Championship, where can be easily pushed away.
the continuation 5...g6 followed by 1S•..il.fs 1613!
6 ... il.g7 was more in the spirit of the Insisting on the advance e3-e4.
King's Indian Defence. 16 •..lZled7 17 e4 il.g6 18 ::!:ad1 lZlb6 19
6 lll f3 0-0 7 il.e2 c6 8 lZlc3 1:e8 9 0-0 lZlC2
e4!?
19 ..• dS !?
Too active - Black is not yet devel­ This pawn sacrifice is the best prac­
oped enough. 9...lZlbd7 intending tical chance. If 20 cxdS il.d6 Black ac­
10 ...lZlf8 is stronger. quires dangerous pressure on the h2-b8
10 lZld4 c5 diagonal. Also, after 20 lZlxd5 lZlbxd5 21
Black kicks the knight out of the exd5 il.d6 22 14 lZle4 Black gains the
centre, but loses the use of the c5- initiative.
square. 1O ...'ilI'c7 is a better option. 20 exdS il.d6 21 f4 'iil'c7 22 g3 il.hs 23
11 lZlc2 lZlbd7 12 d3 lZle3
The natural reaction. By eliminating 23 il.xh5? is met by 23 ...lllxc4.
the central e4-pawn, White opens the 23 ..•il.xe2
d-file and creates pressure on the semi- Not 23 ...'ilI'e7? 24 lZlf5.
49
Play 1 b4!
24 IUxe2 IUe4
Or 24 ...'l!!'e7 25 lilf5 'l!!'xe2 26 'l!l'xe2
Ihe2 27 il.xf6 IUxc4 (27...gxf6 28 IUxd6)
28 il.xg7 1:!xa2 29 il.f6 with the threat of
30 lkl, and here retreating the bishop
is inlpossible because of dS-d6.
2S 'l!!'d 3 'l!l'd7 26 111 g 2 hS 27 1UC3 IUf6 28
Il1bl
White is threatening 29 il.xf6. After
28 ...lUe4 29 illd2 the exchange of the
knight on e4 will be inevitable.
28 ...lUg4 2 9 IUxg4 'iWxg4 30 IUc3 fS
Preventing lUe4, but weakening e6.
By sacrificing a pawn, White's rook is
able to reach this square.
3 1 Iitde1! litJee1 32 ::tXe1 il.xf4 33 ::te6!
Not 33 ::tfl il.d6 34 'l!!'x f5IUxc4.
H. .ic7
No better is 33... lUd7 34 h3 'iWg5 35
lUe2 il.c7 36 d6 il.b6 (36... il.d8 37 il.c1)
37 'l!!'d 5 Wh7 38 il.c1 'iWd8 39 'iWxf5+, and
White wins.
34 d6 lLd8 3S h3! 'iWxc4
35 ... 'iWg5 36 ::te5 g6 (36 ... il.f6 37 ::txf5
'l!!'g6 38 IUd5!) 37 ::te8+ Wf7 38 'l!!'e2 'ii'f6
39 lile4! is crushing.
36 'l!l'xfs il.f6
50
3 7 ::txf6! gxf6 3 8 'l!!' g6+ Wf8 3 9 'l!!'xf6+
'l!l'f7
Alternatively 39 ... Wg8 40 'l!!'g6+ 1It18
41 i..c 1! 'l!l'f7 42 il.h6< We8 43 'l!l'e4+ Wd8
44 'iWe5 ::tc8 45 lUe4 IUd5 46 .i.d2, with a
winning attack for White.
40 'l!l'h6+ lIIe 8 41 1i:le4 'l!!' d s 42 'l!!' h8+ 1-0
The game is up. 42... Wd7 43 'iWg7+
lIIe6 44 'iWe7+ 11115 45 'iWf6+ Itxe4 46 'iW13
is mate.
Game 20
B.Katalymov-A.Suetin
USSR Team Championship,
Moscow 1959
1 b4 eS 2 il.b2 d6 3 c4 i.e7 4 lilc3 c6 S
e3 IUd7 6 d4 lUgf6 7 1i:lf3 0-0 8 il.e2 a6 9
'l!!' b3 bS 10 cS as 11 dxeS dxeS 12 a3
'ii'c 7 13 0-0
White enjoys a comfortable posi ­
tion. Black's e5-pawn is a target, while
White's c5-pawn claims considerable
space on the queenside. Also, in the
luture White may be able to attack the
weakling on c6.
13 •..a4?!
Releasing the tension on the queen­
side only helps White \0 add more
pressure to the other wing.
14 'l!!'c 2 l:Ie8 ls li:le4 lUxe4?
I5 ...lUd5!? 16 );lfdl f5 17 IUc3 IUxc3
18 il.xc3 e4 19 IUd4 lUe5 would restrict
W hite to a small edge.
16 'iWxe4 .!l:a7 17 il.xeS
17 .i.d3 g6 18 .i.xe5 IUxe5 19 'ii' xe5
'l!l'd8 20 !:tadl il.f6 21 'ii'f4 !:td7 22 il.c2
il.b2 23 IUd4 il.xd4 24· exd4 would leave
White with an extra pawn, but also a
hard task to convert it into a full point.
17 ...il.f6 18 .i.xc7 J:[xe4 19 il.d6 il.xal
20 lhu
Black Plays . . . e5 and . . . d6
Black can't defend the c6-pawn.
\t\'hite's active pieces are more than
f"nough compensation for an exchange,
and White soon reaches a completely
winning endgame.
20••.:!!'e8 21 �d4 il.b7 22 fi.. f3 �b8 23
il.xb8 ll.xb8 24 il.xc6 il.a6 2 S f4 III f8 2 6
>l<f2 g6 27 l:1.dl J:[c7 2 8 .i.f3 il.c8 29 IUc6
llbb7 30 ll.d8+ IIIg7 31 IUd4 nb8 32 il.c6
Wf6 33 .i.xbs
The beginning of the end.
33 ...Ila8 34 il.c6 ];!a6 3S bS r.!axc6 36
IUxc6 .i.b7 37 e4 ..t.>g7 38 l::d6 fS 39 e5 1-0
Game 21
Y.Lapshun-X.Vila Gazquez
Barcelona 2007
I t was very important for m e 1 0 de­
feat this talented Spanish 1M. A win
would give me a shot at a G VI norm
and an opportunity to play a GM on
the top board next round. A perusa l of
my opponent's repertoire convinced
me that the Sokolsky was my best bel.
1 b4 eS 2 il.b2 d6 3 c4 fS 4 e3 IUf6 5 IUf3
.i.e7 6 IUc3 0-0
51
Play 1 b 4 !
Black has shut out the Sokolsky
bishop and prepares to attack in the
centre and on the kingside. White must
counter in the centre at once.
7 d4 e4 8 1Zld2 c6 9 dS
The routine continuation 9 �e2 dS
10 a3 .ite6 11 0·0 IZlbd7 leaves Black
with an easy life. [ refused 10 allow
this!
9".cxdS 10 IZlxdS lZlxdS 11 cxdS
Let's evaluate this position. The d5-
pawn, though a weakling, offers White
space and attacking chances, and
White can also dream of getting a
knight to e6. Black wants to nab the d5-
pawn, attack the king, and sink a
knight into d3. Both sides have chances
for success.
11 .•.il.f6 12 'i!!' b3 as
Black tries to gain the c5-square for
his knight. [ was afraid of this move,
but Black's undeveloped pieces did
make me believe that m y position was
playable.
13 .ite2 axb4 14 0·0
14 1!i'xb4 leads to an unclear posi·
tion after 14 ...lZla6 15 .itxa6 .itxb2 16
1!i'xb2 lha6 ]7 o'{) na5 18 1!i'd4. After
52
the text move, Black can reach that
same position with 14 ... .itxb2 15 1!i'xb2
lZla6 16 .itxa6 nxa6 1 7 1Wxb4 !:ta5 IS
'i!fd4.
14...lZld7 1S £xf6 1:!xf6
15 ...lZlxf6 16 'il'xb4 IZlxd5 17 .itc4 .ite6
18 'i'fu3 1!i'a5 19 !:tfdl lIfc8 20 IZlfl lhc4
21 1!i'xc4 lZlf4 22 1!i'c2 IZld3 23 a4 is again
unclear, and roughly eq ual
16 '/Wxb4
16 ..,nh6
This is probably the slarl of the bad
plan, which will eventually cost B[ack
the game. My opponenl was dreaming
of mating my well·guarded king, while
leaving his qUE-enside valuables in the
lurch. Not all dreams can come true . ..
1 7 g3
] wasn't sure about this move, but I
couldn't find another way to
l S...'i!I'h4.
17...liJf6
17 ... b6! improves Black's bishop and
defends his queenside. After 18 liJb3
.itb7 19 liJd4 1J.f6 both sides have win·
ning chancE-s_
18 !:tfc1 '/Wd7
Accepting the pawn sacrifice is
Black Plays ... e5 a n d . . . d 6
rather dangerous. After Is ... lZlxd5 1 9 good winning chances.
.it c 4 �e6 2 0 'i'fu3 IZl c 7 2 1 1!i'xb7 lIcS 2 2 21 fxe3 '/We8
�b3 White's passed pawn and active 21...lIxh2?? loses a piece to 22
pieces promise him some advantage. Ihc8+! nxc8 23 1tixh2.
19 1!i'b6 22 'i'i'd4
During the game 1 thought that Ihis This is the sad end·product of
was a winning move because of my B[ack's reverie. White covers every·
many threats on the queenside. thing and enjoys two extra pawns_
19 ...f411 22 ....itfS 23 lIc7 lIa4 24 nC4 lIa3 2S e4
The besl defence is not always a �d7 26 .I1I.f3 liJg4 27 .itxg4 ii.xg4 28 ];c3
sacrificial counterattack! Black should '/WhS 29 IZlh lIa8 30 1J.c7 1J.g6 31 fS ngs
instead play 19 ...ltih8! avoiding all the 32 lIac1 lIe8 33 nc8 1·0
threats, and after 20 �c4 '/We8 21 lIc2 Reality had finally set in, and Black
li:ld7 22 '/Wc7 IZlc5 he can probably hold resigned_
the queenside. Black can also try
20 .. .f4!? (instead of 20 ... '/We8), although
Game 22
following 21 exf4 'i!!'h 3 22 IZlfl �g4 23 f3
A.Sokolsky-S.Sama rian
exf3 24 lIc2 lile4 25 '/Wxb7 lIcS 26 lIet
Correspondence 1958
�f5 27 'i!l'xc8+ .itxc8 28 llxe4 Itig8 29 nf2
stop White passed pawn and well'p[aced
pieces should give him a big advan· 1 b4 e S 2 �b2 d 6 3 c4
tage, albeit in a complicated position_ White's goal is to capture space on
20 exf4 e3?? the queenside. Against this Black in·
Black could show more resilience, tends to adopt the Dutch str ucture,
although probably nol save the game, hoping to attack by advancing the
with 20 ...ltih8. Following 21 'i'fus -..vfS pawns on the kingside_
22 a4 'i!!'xd5 23 '/WxdS liJxd5 24 li:lxe4 3 .•.fS 4 e3 liJf6 S liJf3 �e7 6 d4 e4 7
White would have an extra pawn and liJfd2 dS
53
Play 1 b4!
successfully continues the queenside
attack. For Black it's harder to develop
kingside activity because he has to de­
fend the centre.
12 �e2
8 bS
W hite will play a further a2-a4 to
continue the queenside pawn attack.
Possible is B "l!I'b3 c6 9 lZlc3 0-0, as in the
game 50kolsky-5uetin (Minsk, 1955),
where White also had to play 10 a4 and 12.•.cS!?
later b4-b5. In trying to get rid of the unpleasant
8 .•.c6 9 a4 0·0 pressure on the centre, Black decides to
temporarily sacrifice a pawn to stabi­
lize the position. But, as the game
shows, opening the c- and d-files is in
White's favour. 12 ... 'i!VeB is better, to
which White would answer 13 i...a3.
13 lZlxdS lZlxdS 14 cxdS �f7 1s !:In
Nothing comes of 15 �c4 because of
15 ...lZlb6. It's dangerous to try holding
on to the pawn with IS dxc5 lZlxc5 1 6
"l!I'c3: after 1 6 ...�f6 1 7 'i!Vxc5 jcxb2 I B
l:i:bl ncB! 1 9 "l!I'xa7 �c3 White gets into
a difficult position.
10 "l!l'b3 lS ....!l:c8 16 0-0 lZlb6 17 dxcS lZlJ(dS 18
This move is useful in order to pres­ �c4
sure the d5-square and defend the e3- On 18 lilfd l, Black could answer
square, preventing a possible break­ IB ...lZlf4! 19 �c4 lZle2+ winning the ex­
through with 1O .. .f4 11 exf4 e3. change. After the text move, IB... lZlf4 i s
10..•�e6 l1 lZlc3 lZlbd7 not good because of 1 9 i.xf7+ IIxf7 20
Let's evaluate this complicated exf4 "l!I'xd2 21 lilfdl 'i!Vxf4 22 lild7 with
position. White pressures the centre an advantage for White.
and successfully continues the
54
18 ...!:IxcS 19 lUdl !:Ic7
Black is trying to play ...!:Id7, getting
rid of the unpleasant pin on the dome.
The following unexpected strike pre­
vents this idea.
20 lZlxe4! lilxc4! 21 "l!I'xc4 fxe4 22 "l!I'xe4
White gives up two pieces for a
rook and two pawns. It's difficult to
call this a sacrifice, as the material is
approximatel y level. The benefit of this
continuation is obvious: the pin on the
d-file is maintained. Black has to search
for a way to release his knight.
22 ..."l!I'd6 23 "l!I'g4 'li'h6
Probably the best. 23 ... lZlf6 is bad
because of 24 .!l:xd6 lZlxg4 25 .!l:d7, while
against 23 ...�f6 White answers 24 i.xf6
"l!I'xf6 25 'i!Vd4 'i!Vxd4 26 lilxd4 reaching a
winning endgame. It's difficult to see
how Black can prevent the threat of e3-
e4 (after g3) with a subsequent occupa­
tion of the seventh rank.
24 "l!I'd7 �e6 2 S "l!I'xb7 'li'h4
Finally Black has threats on the
kingside, but White can defend and
keep the material advantage.
26 1i1d2
Of course not 26 g3?, because of
Black Plays ... e5 a n d ... d 6
26 ...i¥h5 27 nxd5 "l!I'f3! and Black is
winning. On 26 nfl or 26 .!l:c2, Black
replies 26..."l!I'xa4.
26..."l!I'b4 27 !:Icdl lZlb6 28 �c3 'i!Va3 29
'li'e4
This centralization coordinates
\,Vhite's forces and clinches the win.
29...�f7
Or 29 ... �b3 30 i... b2! "l!I'c5 3 1 !:Icl
'i!Vg5 32 f4! etc.
30 �b2 "l!I'cs 31 .!l:n '!!f b4 32 "l!I'd4 '!!fxd4
33 �xd4 �b4 34 ndc2 1-0
If 34 ...liJxa4, the easiest way to win
is 35 lilc7.
Game 23
Y.Lapshun-A.Reeder
World Open, Philadelphia 2003
I f you want to play I b4, you need
to know something aboul the King's
Indian Defence. This gamE'" shows how
White can deal with Black's typical
pawn storm.
1 b4 eS 2 �b2 d6 3 c4 i...e6 4 e3 lZld7 S
lZlf3 fS 6 lZlc3 g6 7 d4
White leaves the paths of the Reti
55
Play 1 b4!
Opening and enterS an unorthodox
King's Indian set-up.
7...il.g7 8 d5 il.f7 9 il.e2 h6 10 e4 0,e7
11 �C2 0-0 12 0-0 f4
We have rpached a typical King's
Indian battle scenario. White is trying
to break through on the queenside
while Black wants to checkmate the
white king on the other wing.
13 0,d2 g5 14 lbcl h5 15 <5
White must not delay this essential
line-opening - the pawn sacrificed is
not too important. [n fact, after
15 ... dxc5?! 16 0,a4 cxb4 17 Wixc7 b6 1 8
il.b5 0,c5 1 9 �xd8 Il:fxd8 2 0 0,xc5 bxc5
21 Il:xc5 ll:ac8 22 Il:fcl Il:xc5 23 Il:xc5
White has regained his pawn and
dominates the queenside.
15 ...g4 16 f3 0,g61!
Maybe Black did not like 16 ...g3 be­
cause of the obvious reply 17 h3, but
then Black could bring his knight to h4
with the idea of a later sacrifice on g2.
17 fxg4 0,h4 18 t:iJdl 'IlYg5 19 0,f2
White needs more pieces to defend
his king.
19 ...0,f6 20 Widl hxg4 2 1 il.xg4 il.h5 22
0,0 0,,,fH 23 il.xf3 il.h6 24 Il:c3 Il.f7 25
56
il.xh5 liJxh5 26 'IlYf3 1l:g7 2 7 cxd6
There is not enough lime to COffi­
plptely secure the king, so White must
attack on the queenside.
27 ...cxd6 28 Il:fcl �h4 29 Il:c7 Il.g6 30
Il:xb7 nf8 31 ncc7
31...Il.g311
31...0,g3 is a better try, although
even here with 32 Il.c2' White puts an
end to all of Black's hopes of ...lLle2-t.
32 hxg3 fxg3 33 �g4+ iLg5 34 Wixh4
il.xh4 35 0,h3 1-0
Game 24
A.Sokolsky-R.Kholmov
USSR Championship, Kiev 1954
1 b4 e5 2 il.b2 d6 3 c4 /))f6 4 e 3 g6 5
0,0 iLg7
Black has chosen to defend with the
King's Indian set-up. Here White's best
choice is 6 d4.
6 0,c3 0-0 7 il.e2
Again 7 d4 is best. In the game
Sokolsky-Flohr from the semi-final of
this Championship (see Game
White also allowed the move
without first playing d2-d4, but Black's
bishop had been developed on e7. In
that game White was better, but here
Black will seize the initiative.
7 ...e4! 8 1Lld4 <5 9 1Llc2
9 bxc5 dxc5 leaves White with a
backward pawn on an open file, and
surrenders the chance to place a pawn
on b5 for counterplay.
9 lLlc6 10 bS 0,e5 11 0-0 >"_e6
•••
If 1 1 ...0,d3, 12 il.xd3 exd3 1 3 0,el
creates problems only for Black
12 1Lla3 ne8
A complex position has arisen.
19), Black will use the e-pawn as the spear­
...e4 head for a kingside attack, but White
Black Plays . . . • 5 and ...d6
can pressure that pawn and use the d5-
square and his queenside space for
counterplay.
13 �C2
White prepares 0,d5 by luring the
enemy bishop from its defence of that
square. 13 Wib3 d5! would open the
game to Black's benefit.
13 ..• il.f5 14 'lWb3
Not the immediate 14 /))d5, because
of 14 ... lLlf3+ 15 gxf3 exf3 16 il.d3 ILlxd5!
with the twin threat of 17 ...'IlYg5+ or
17...0,b4.
14 .•. hS! 15 0,ds 0,xd5
This trade ffees the c4-squafe for
White's knight, but the stronger steed
on d5 could not be tolerated.
16 cxd5 h4!
The threat of ...h3, g2-g3, ...iLg4 etc
forces a direct response f rom White.
17 f4 exf3 18 gxf3 h3 19 II<hl "ilih4 20
"l!I'c3
Preparing ILlc4. The immedlate 20
li:lc4? allows 20 ... 0,xc4 21 >"_xg7 (21
il.xc4? il.xb2) 21 ...0,xdl.
20 if6 2 1 li:lC4 li:lg4 22 Wib3 1I.xb2 23
•.
li:lxb2
Not 23 �xb2? 0,f2-t 24 II<gl 0,d3!,
57
Play 1 b 4 1
when 2 S.. :ill'gS+ i s a killing threat.
23 ... itles
23...itlf2+ 24 Wg] 'il¥gS. 25 Wxf2
'il¥g2+? (2S...'il¥h4+ draws by perpetual
check) 26 We] 'il¥xh2 27 itld] followed
by 28 itlf2 will prevenl the h-pawn
from advancing.
24 itlc4 l::tad8 2S ll:aC1?!
White has beaten off the first wave
of the attack and should now advance
with 25 a4 at once. To delay gives Black
fresh chances.
2S ...b6 26 a4 .i.c8! 27 f4
27 a5 is not quite fast enough, due
to 27 ... .i.b7 28 axb6 .i.xd5 29 bxa7 'lil'g4!.
27 ... .i.g4! 28 .i.xg4 itlxg4
28 ...'il¥xg4 29 ll:f2 gives Black noth­
ing.
29 lIf3 itlf2+ 30 wg1 itle4
The last few moves have seen
Black's attack growing in menace, so
White decides to offer an exchange to
slow Black down.
31 'il¥d1! 'il¥g4+ 32 Itg3
32 :�I'fS
.•
Kholmov reckons that if he trades
queens and l'akes the exchange h e will
not be able to win because of While's
58
blockading knight, so he keeps the
queens on for attacking purposes. The
offer will not be withdrawn.
33 'lil'f3 itlxg3 34 hxg3 \l;>g7 3S g4 'il¥d3
36 Wh2 lle4
This wins the d-pawn but leads to
an ending in which the rook is in a box.
Was there anything beller? I don't
think so, since White also has threats,
for instance 36...'il¥b3 37 £5 with f6+
looming.
37 ll:c3 'il¥xdS 38 d3 nd4 39 'lil'xdS lhdS
40 Wxh3 gS!
The starl of a good and necessary
manoeuvre to return the exchange.
41 fs ll:h8+ 42 Wg3 Wf6 43 \l;>f3 nes! 44
itlxes wxes
So we have an ending with equal
material and equal chances. White
chooses the simplest drawing line.
4S d4+! 1i>f6
Accepting the pawn sacrifice with
4S ... cxd4 46 exd4> Wxd4 47 lIc7 is dan­
gerous for Black. No better is 4S...WdS
46 dxcS dxcS 47 l::td3+ Wc4 48 l::td 7.
46 dxcS dxcS 47 l::td3 We7 48 as! l::t h 1
4 8. . .bxaS 4 9 .!:ta3 lIb8 5 0 IlxaS .!:tb7 5]
We4 wd6 52 lIa6+ Wc7 53 WdS! even
gives White good winning chances.
49 We4ll:b1 SO axb6 axb6 S1 wes
The idea of this move is to induce
Black into blocking the f6-square from
his own king. If 51 na3, Black plays
5 ] ... \I;>f6 followed by ... l:txb5
51 ...f6+ S2 wd5 nxbS 53 11a3 y,-y,
Now if 53 ... IIaS 54 1':[b3 1':[a6, 5S \I;>c6
threatening 56 nd3 guarantees a draw.
Came 2S
B.Katalymov-I.Zaitsev
Odessa 1972
Katalymov played this crazy game
in the city and year of my birth. His
opponent sacrificed many pieces going
for checkmate, but Katalyrnov won a
bishop and trium phed without moving
his king's rook aT king's bishop!
1 b4 eS 2 .i.b2 'il'e7 3 c4 g6 4 bS .i.g7 S
e3 itlf6 6 itl<3 <6 7 itlf3 0-0 8 d4 e4 9
ll\d2 dS
Now we can see that Zaitsev, play­
ing a King's Indian system, has saved a
tempo by pushing his pawn to dS in
one move.
Black Plays ... e5 a n d . . d6
.
10 a4
White plans to storm the queenside.
The immediate threat is 11 .i.a3.
10.. .Il.d8 11 as itlbd7?!
l 1. . cxbS!? 12 cxb5 .i.f5 13 .i.e2 a6 14
'l'!'b3 axb5 15 'i'hb5 itlc6 16 0-0 'iiic7 17
itlb3 .i.f8 18 .i.a3 itlxaS ]9 il.xf8 11.xf8 20
lJ.xa5 �xc3 2] l::txa8 l::txa8 22 'il¥xb7
reaches an equal position.
1 1 ... .i.e6, however, allows White to
apply pressure with ]2 cxd5 .i.xd5 13
itlxd5 1hdS 14 'il¥b3 'lil'd7 1 5 a6 b6.
12 a6
From this poSition it's impossible to
calculate the countless variations, but
it's clear that Black is under consider­
able pressure, which will continue un­
abated.
12 ... <S 13 .i.a3
Setting up a deadly pin. from which
it's difficult to escape.
13...'il¥e8?
13 ...dxc4!? 14 .i.xc4 bxa6 ]5 bxa6
'il'e8 is far from clear, for example after
16 itlb5 'il'e7 ]7 'lil'a4 itlg4 ]8 'il¥a5 itlb6
19 .i.e2 'lil'h4 20 g3 'lil'f6 2] .i.xg4 .i.xg4
22 jtxc5 .!! d7 23 itlc3 .i.f3.
14 dxcS
59
Play 1 b 4 !
14...d41
Another mistake. It's true that
14 ... bxa6!? 15 cxd5 '!!fe5 1 6 1l.c1 Iilxd5 1 7
Qixd5 '!!fxd5 18 c6 Qif6 19 bxa6 il.g4 20
'!!fc 2 .!:tac8 21 il.c4 '!!fe5 22 il.b2 is also
good for White, but this is not as bad
for Black as the text.
15 axb7 il.xb7 16 exd4 e3 17 Qib3!
W hite has to b e careful: 1 7 Qif3?
exf2+ 18 Wxf2 Qig4> 19 Wg3 il.xf3 20
gxf3 iIle3 21 '!!fd 2 il.xd4 22 f4 Qif6 is
winning for Black, for example after 23
il.d3 il.xc3 24 '!!f xc3 Qie4+ 25 il.xe4 '!!f xe4
26 IIhgl IId3.
17...exf2+ 18 Wxf2 Qies 19 '!!f e2 Qifg4+
20 Wg1
60
White's t wo extra pawns outweigh
Black's activity - White hasn't devel­
oped all his pieces, but his passed
pawns can crush everything in their
path. In this hopeless position Black 's
only practical chance is to continue
sacrificing pieces.
20 Itxd4 21 Qixd4 J::t d 8 22 Qic2 il. f3 2 3
.•.
'!!fu
23 gxf3 is another way to win. After
23 ... Itd2 24 fxg4 Itxe2 25 il.xe2 Q\d7 26
c6 Qib6 27 il.f3 il.xe3 28 .!:ld 1 il.g7 29
�_c5 il.f8 30 il.xb6 axb6 31 IiIg2, White
enjoys a decisive material advantage.
23 ...il.h6 24 Ii',ds il.xdS 25 cxdS .!:lxdS
26 h3 Qie3 27 Qixe3 Itlf3+ 28 <i.lf2!
There was still time to blunder. If 28
gxf3?? il.xe3+ 29 <oi>h2 Il.g5, Black wins
as there is no good way to deal with
the mate threats; for example, 30 '!!fg3
lhg3 31 Wxg3 '!!fe5+ 32 IiIg2 '!!fg5+ 33
<oi>h2 il.f4 mate.
28 iIlxe1 29 Qixds '!!f e5 30 J:::Xe1 '!!f"fS+
.•.
31 Wg1 '!!f xds 32 IiIh2 '!!f b3 H il.C1
il.xc1 34 .!:tXC1 '!!f e3 35 lld1 'i!l'xc5 36 g3
h5 37 h4 g5 38 hxg5 h4 39 nd3 '!!f c2+
40 Wh3 hxg3 41 .!:txg3 '!!f h 7+ 42 IiIg2
'!!fe4+ 1·0
White's king will eventually escape
all the checks, the black pawns will
disappear, and the white pawns will
become queens. One possible line is 43
nf3 '!!f g4+ 44 Wf2 '!!fd4+ 45 Wg3 �e5+ 46
Wg2 'OlI'b2+ 47 llf2 'OlI'd4 48 IIh3 'OlI'g4+ 49
llg3 '!!f e4< 50 11ff3 '!!fe2+ 51 Wh3 '!!fh7+
52 <oi>g4 'i!l'e4+ 53 J::tf4 'i!l'e6+ 54 <oi>h4 'i!l'e5
55 ll.gf3, and White wins.
Game 26
B.Katalymov-Bakhtiar
Tashkent 1959
1 b 4 Qif6 2 il.b2 g6 3 e3 il.g7 4 Qif3 d6 5
d4 Qibd7 6 c4 0·0
If White's pawn were on the b3-
square, we would have a famous, well­
studied King's Indian position. The
active move by the b-pawn lends a dis­
tinct flavour to White's position.
7 il.e2 ll.e8 8 0-0
8 ...Qie4
More often players continue with
B. . .e5 9 dxe5 Qig4. Bakhtiar's choice is
original, but probably not correspond­
ing to the spirit of the position.
Black Plays . . . e5 and . . . d 6
9 'i!l'c2 f5
After 9... Qidf6 10 �d3 il.f5 11 Qih4!
Black's pieces are not well placed, and
he will lose at least a pa wn.
10 d5 Qief6
This humiliating retreat is forced..
Black now realizes that it's better not to
trade the bishop on g7 which defends
his king. On 1O .. .li:ldf6, White replies II
Qid4 and later f2-f3, kicking the knight
out of the centre. Black is trying to play
...Qif8 with the t urther ...e7-e5, which is
probably the best he can do in this
situation.
11 Qid4 Qif8 :J.2 il.f3 J::t b8
The pawn on b7 must be protected.
The immediate 12 . . .e5 would be weak,
after 13 dxe6 Qixe6 14 Qixe6 il.xe6 15
il.xb7.
13 Qic3 e5 14 dxe6 Qixe6 15 Qid5! Qixd5
16 �_xdS
16 Qixe6 is not good because of the
in·between move 16 ...Qixb4!. The sharp
16 cxd5 Qixd4 17 il.xd4 �_xd4 18 exd4
il.d7 leaves Black with chances for
counterplay.
16...c6 17 il.xe6+ icxe6 18 1lfd1!
The exchange of the minor pieces
61
Play 1 b 4 !
wou ld lead to an approximately equal
gam e. Despite giving the oppon en t a
pair of bishops, White beli eves that the
great position of the d 4-knight in the
c en tre promi ses him an unquesti on able
ad van tage. Black can't exchange this
knight (18 ... .lixd 4?), bec au se weaken ­
in g the squares on the m ain a I-h8 d i­
agon al c ou ld be fatal for him .
18.. .Sl.f7 19 e5! d5
Forc ed , otherwi se there would f ol­
low 20 c xd6 'il'xd 6 21 itJxf5 . Now White
begin s the pawn storm on the qu een ­
sid e.
20 a4 'ili'e7 21 b5 llbe8 22 lIaCl 'i!fd7 2 3
'i!i'e3
23 •.. b6?
To preven t the threat of 24 'il'a5 , bu t
23.. 'i!i'c7 wou ld have been a better way
. Unexpected and very eff<>etive. Re­
to d o this. The pawn move weakens
the c 6-square and gi ves White a c hanc e
to c reate a stron g passed pawn.
24 'i!i'a3! exb5
Black wou ld lose a pawn after
24... bxc5 25 bxc6 'ili'd 6 26 'ili'xc 5, whi le
24. .. �f8 is really bad bec au se of 25
itJxc 6 bxc 5 26 'il'c 3 .
25 e6! 'l!i'e7 26 axb5 lle4 27 lIa1 lIa8 28
62
'l!i'a6 h5 29 lIae1 IIee8 30 'i!!' b7 �_e5
30 ... 'i!fxb7 is a m istake bec au se of 3 1
c xb7 nab8 3 2 lIc7 ice5 (preven tin g 3 3
itJc 6) 3 3 lId7 �e6 3 4 itJxe6 Ihe6 3 5
.lixe5 l:!:xe5 3 6 l:tc l ll,ee8 37 ncc7 etc.
31 f4 �d6 32 �a3! nebS
Blac k wants to forc e the queen ex­
c han ge and after 3 3 'l!I'xc7 i..xc7 con­
tinue the fight by blockin g the d an ger­
ou s passed pawn. But an unexpec ted
queen sac rifice shatters all his hopes.
33 Sl.xd61 nxb7
If Black do esn 't ac cept the queen
sacrific e and plays 3 3 ...'il'xd 6, following
3 4 'l!I'd 7! ::ld 8 3 5 'l!I'xd 6 IIxd 6 36 lIal !
lId d 8 3 7 It>6 IIdc8 38 l:td a I White eas­
ily forces a win (3 8 ... nc 7 3 9 l:txb6).
34 exb7!
c a ptu ring I he qu een by 34 .lixc 7 llxc 7
35 nal ne8! wou ld en able Blac k to re­
sist st rongly. Although Black's po sition
wou ld still be inf erior, the realizat ion
o f White's ad van tage wou ld need a
c onsid erable in vestm en t of lime and
energy.
34...'il'xb7 35 :te7 'i!i'b8
Black has a sm all materi al ad van -
Black Plays . . . e5 and . . d6
tage, bu t the ac t�i vity and proximity of pawns on the qu een side and then hides
the white forces enables the fi rst player his kin g there, and som ehow i t works!
to c reate insu perable threats. Bu t thi s plan i sn't really nt'w; Sokolsky
36 itJe6 'l!I'e8 37 itJe5 �e6 38 ne7 'l!I'e8 wrote abou t suc h an id ea 50 years ago.
39 .1:tf1! 1 b4 e5 2 �b2 d6 3 e4 g6
Whi te m oves the rook away from Qui te a rare m ove ord er. 3 ...itJd 7 4
the potenti al thrust ... 'ili'c2. On 3 9 itJxg6 g3 g6 5 ;tg2 ;tg7 6 tib3 tile7 7 1tlf3 0-0 8
there c ou ld follow 3 9_.'l!i'c 2 40 lI fl 'ife4 0-0 itJc 6 was equ al in S.Bemstei n­
with c oun terpLay. J.5herwin, New York J 959.
39 d4
.•• 4 d4 itJd7 5 e3 il.g7 6 itJf3 e4 7 1tlfd2 fS
Blac k pitc hes a pawn to c lear d 5 for 8 itJe3 itJh6 9 'iWb3 e6 10 itJe2
his bishop.
40 itJxg6 d3 41 lIe7 'l!I'e8 42 itJe7+ -j;f7
Not 42 ...-j;h8 bec au se of 43 Sl.e5+.
43 itJxf5+ -j;f6
Or 43. ..-j;g8 44 itJh6+ �h8 45 .lie5
m ate.
44 1ilg7 'l!I'g8 45 .lie5+ Ilig6 46 f5+ �xf5
4 7 1tlxf5 1-0
Game 2 l
V.Alekseev-K.Sakaev
Petrov Memorial,
At first sight thi s looks like a waste
St Petersburg 1996
of time, bu t in ord er t o stop Blac k's
ki ngsid e attac k Alekseev wanted to
White d oes som ething qu ite un­ gain c ontrol of the f4-squ are.
u sual in thi s gam e. He pu shes hi s 10...ltlf6 11 h4 il.e6 12 Itlf4 il.f7 13 a4
63
Play 1 b 4 !
0-0 14 b S
Here w e see our favourite queen­
side attack. Howeverl ] believe that
White is actually trying to close the
queenside and castle there, and so it's
Black's duty to prevent White from
doing this by opening up the queen-
side. For example, 14 ... a6!? 15 ....e2 axb5
16 axb5 lJ.xal � 17 ....xa1 with a level
position.
14 lZlhg4 15 ....e2 "i!Ye7 16 as cS 17 d S
.•.
J:1aeS I S a 6 b 6 19 IZlfl lZles 2 0 IZlg3
IZlfg41
Sakaev would pay for not prevent­
ing White's line-opening on the king-
side. 20 ... h5!? looks like a better option.
21 hS "i!YgS 22 IZlh3 1!Yf6 23 hxg6 hxg6
Now, with the queenside locked,
the white monarch will be safe there,
so White is finally ready to castle!
Many years earlier Sokolsky
played in a similar way.
24 0-0-0! g5
After 24. . ."i!Yh4!? 25 l:!dfl IZlxf2 26
IZlxf5 gxf5 27 1Zlxf2 '/!!" g3 28 l:!h3 '/!!" xg2 29
l:thh1!, with the further l'!:hgl White can
easily use the open lines to attack the
black king.
64
Black Plays . . . e5 a n d . . . d 6
2S iLxg4 fxg4 2 6 IZlxe4 IZld3+ 2 7 J:lxd3 lO. . . aS!? 1 1 b 5 exd4 1 2 exd4 c5 13 0-0
'l!i'xb2+ 2S '/!!" xb2 �xb2+ 29 Itxb2 .!txe4 cxd4 14 Ii"lxd4 1Zlc5 15 'l!i'c2 is equal.
30 IZlxgs .!txC4 ll 1Zld2 hS
40 l'!:f4+
]t's curious how two strong chess
players missed checkmate in three
White has an extra pawn. but also moves: 40 llg7+ Wf6 41 lIh6 c We5 42 We have reached a typical King's
some weaknesses. In order to maintain ng5 mate. Indian Attack position, with colours
the advantage, he must attack Black's 40...�g6 41 1ZlfS+ �g7 42 1Zle6+ 1-0 reversed. White is attacking on the
weak pawns. After 42 ... �g6 White mates as in the queenside while Black will try to
31 e41! note above with 43 llg4+ �f7 44 llg7+ checkmate the king on the other wing,
31 .!:!.h6' would have been the best �f6 45 llh6+ �e5 46 llg5. assuming White chooses to castle
way forward. After 31 e4 the position is there ...
unclear again. 12 h3 IZlfS 13 as C6 14 bS lZle6 1 S lZla4
Game 28
31 iLeS 32 f3 ....xbS 33 J:tddl iLa4 34
. •• cS 16 dS IZlgS 17 b6 a6
V.Alekseev-V.Komliakov
J:tdgl .ll:C 2+1! As we sa w in Alekseev-Sakaev, and
Petrov Memorial,
After 34...nb4+!? 35 �c3 lJ.b3+ 36 as noted by the Irish GM Alexander
St Petersburg 1996
�d2 l:!f6 37 l:!h4 l:!g6 38 f4 l:!b2< 39 �c1 Baburin, White has reaped the benefits
l:!c2+ 40 wb 1 l:!f2 41 l:!xg4 iLb5 42 f5 from his decision to postpone castling.
iLd3� 43 �a1 l'!:g7 the outcome is in 1 b4 eS 2 .... b2 d6 3 c4 IZld7 4 e 3 g6 S
doubt. IZlf3 .... g7 6 ....e2 lZlgf6 7 d4
35 �bl C4 36 .ll: h4 C3 37 J:bg4 .ll:c S n White can also postpone the strug­
Black's king is in a mating net and gle until a later stage by playing d2-d3,
had there was no time to contemplate how as Benko does in the next game.
to checkmate the white king. Instead 7 :Wie7
•.
Black should be content with a perpet­ After 7...0-{) 8 0-0 lle8 9 dxe5 ILlg4 10
ual check, which arises after 37.. .l:!b2+! IZlc3 IZlgxe5 II 'Wib3, as played in
38 �a1 ....b3 39 lZle6+ �f7 40 l:!g7+ �f6 A.5okolsky-V.Kirillov, Minsk 1957,
41 1'k7 J:!.a2 c 42 Wb1 l'!.b2< 43 �c1 l'!:c2< White's plan of IZld5 affords him a
44 �b1 l'!.b2+. standard positional edge.
3S l:!hl l:!c4 39 lLle6+ �f7 S ILlc3 0-0 9 'Wib3 l'!.eS 10 a4 e41!
65
Play 1 b4!
18 0-0-0!
I'<ow let's enjoy White's kingside at­
lack. First of all, though, White im­
proves the position of his pieces.
18__.h4 19 W b 1 il.fS 20 Wa2 Ibd7 2 1
Ibe] Ibes 22 l'!dg1 Ibd7 23 -,,-d 1 1bf6 2 4
-"-<2 Iil h S 2 S -,,- a 1 -,,- es 26 l'!e1 'iWf8
27 f4!
The first step of an attack is often
the most difficult one. This move forces
Black to open lines against his own
king.
27 .._exf3 28 gxf3 -"-x<2 29 'iWx<2 -,,-g 7 30
f4 lbh 7 31 1bf3 'iWe7 32 l'!hg1 Ibg3 H e4
White finally is able to advance the
pawns in the centre. The oncoming
avalanche will sweep away all resis-
tance.
33 ...Ibf6?
Giving away an important pawn.
33 ...jcd4!? would at least prolong
Black's battle, although White does
remain on top after the continuation 34
Iig2 'iWf6 35 f5 g5 36 lbxd4 cxd4 37 lbe2
Iixe4 38 litxg3 litxe2 39 litxg5+ Ibxg5 40
Iixe2 wf8 41 'iWd3 IleB 42 nxe8+ Wxe8
43 �xd4.
34 Ibxh4 Ibfxe4
66
3 s lbxe4
35 Ibxg6! wins quickly: 35... fxg6 36
Ibxe4 -,,- xal 37 Iilxg3 'iWxpl 38 'iWxg6+
Wf8 39 l'!xel lhel 40 'iWxd6+ WgB 41
'iWg6+ wh8 42 lbe4 -,,-d4 43 Ibg5 ll:e7 44
Ibf7; elc.
3S...'iWxh4 36 -,,- xg7 1b >:e4 37 -,,-b 2 'iWxf4
38 litg4 'iWd2 39 litgxe4! 'iWxa5+
39 ...'iWxc2 40 ll:xe8 , Wh7 4] .Il:xa8
'iWxc4+ 42 wbl should be winning for
White.
40 Wb1 'iWxe1+ 41 litxe1 lil.. e1+ 42 Wa2
Jil.ae8 43 'iWf2 1-0
This looks like a good time to re­
sign. Black is down a bishop, his king
is in big trouble and his pawns are
weak
Game 29
P.Benko-V .Ciocaltea
lugano Olympiad 1968
G M Pal Benko is a famous H ungar­
ian-American chess legend who has
crossed swords many times with World
Champions. I had the honour to meet
(but not play) him on three occasions.
Black Plays ... €5 a n d ... d6
The most memorable w a s the first, al 4 .0-0 S e3 d6 6 -,,-e 2 eS 7 d3
__
the W orld Open in Philadelphia more
than a decade ago. Benko was provid­
ing free game analysis for amateur en­
trants. I was so upset after losing one of
my typically crazy games againsl an
American 1M that ] went to him and
asked him to show me how could I have
won. The Grandmaster played over the
game, shook his head sadly, and in­
formed me that I should analyse the
game with a computer, because Uno
human being could possibly make sense
of this!" It was good advice; Fritz found In contrasl to 7 d4, White does not
the win! It's a pleasure to include a cou­ allow the advance of Black's e-pawn. 7
ple of his games in this book. d3 also prepares an efficient develop­
1 1bf3 Ibf6 2 b4 g6 3 <4 -,,- g7 4 -,,- b2 menl of White's bI-knight.
7 ):'te8 8 li'ibd2 Ibbd7 9 0-0 h6
•••
After 9 ... dS!? 10 cxdS lbxd5 11 a3 ( 1 1
'O'fu3!?) 1 Le4 1 2 -,,-xg7 exf3 13 -,,-xf3
Ibxe3 14 fxe3 Q;xg7 15 Ibc4 the position
looks roughly equaL
10 'iWc2 Ibf8 1 1 <S!?
A typical way to reach this position
via the Sokolsky move order would be 1
b4 Ibf6 2 �_b2 g6 3 Ibf3 -"-g7 4 c4. With
this move order Black needs to be aware
of the possibility 3 -"-xf6!? For example,
4 ...exf6 4 a3 -,,-g 7 5 g3 0--0 6 -,,-g2 f5 7 d4
d6 8 e3 c6 9 lbe2 Ibd7 10 0--0 Ibf6 11 c4 An unusual move, bUI the idea to
as 12 bS lile4 13 Iilbc3 ):k8 14 'iWd3 'iWe7 open the c-file in order to attack the
IS lba4 �c7 16 lbee3 Ibxc3 17 Ibxc3 with queenside is a logical one.
an edge for White, CBulcourf-Llanos, 11...lb dS
correspondence 1987. Attacking the b4-pawn and prepar-
67
Play 1 b4!
ing a dangerous pawn storm on the
kingside.
12 a3 fS 13 :lfdl
This is a good move which prepares
an attack in the centre by pushing the
e- and d-pawns. Another idea was 13
nacl, pressuring the queenside.
13 ... il.e6 14 il.fl Wie7 is l'!acl il.f7 16
e41
I�ight on time! White lands a strong
blow in the fight for the centre.
16...Iof6 17 g3
17 d4!? looks like the righ t idea, as
all of White's pieces are ready for the
complications after this push. After the
possible continuation 1 7 ...ltlxe4 18
Itlxe4 fxe4 19 cxd6 cxd6 20 Wixe4 dS 21
"i!!'g4 e4 2 2 l;)eS il.e6 23 "i!!'g3 "i!!'d 6 24
11c51 White's active pieces offer him a
chance to fight for the advantage. That
said, despite White's logical play it
can't be said that he has a real advan­
tagf' - look at his dark-squared bishop,
for instanCE.
17 ... il.e6 18 il.g2 gs 19 d4!
After improving his light-squared
bishop, White decides to attack the cen­
tre, but Black's advanced pawns on the
68
kingside have taken considerable space
and start to cause problems.
19.. li)xe4 20 Iflxe4
. been in some trouble after 28 ...il.h6 29
Perhaps a better chance is 20 dxeS'?
dS 21 c6 b6 22 Itlfl as 23 1tle3 'iWf7 24
itld4, when White enjoys a slight ad­
vantage in this com plica ted position.
2 0.••fxe4 21 cxd6 cxd6 22 "i'!'xe4 dS 23
'i!l'e3 e4 24 Ifles g4!
This move contains many idea!:.,
such as preventing White's f2-f3 break
and preparing to open up a diagonal
for the g7-bishop.
2S "i'!'f4 hS
26 h31
Losing a pawn and a tempo. After
the obvious 26 1:tc5 the position should
be equal; for example, 26 ... l:lac8 27
:lde1 ):Ixc5 28 ll:xc5 :!lc8 29 'iW c1 l'!xcS 30
dxc5 .ltc8 31 'iWd2 'iWe6 32 b5 Itlh7 33
"i'!'c3 il.xe5 34 "i'!'xe5 'iWxe5 35 il.xe5.
26 •.•gxh3
This simple move gives Black a
slight advantage.
27 il.f1 ¢>h7
Prf'paring a dangerous 28... il.h6.
28 l'!cs 'I.-V.
Probably in this position Benko of-
fered a draw which his opponent ac­
cepted, even though White would have
Wih4 'iWxM 30 gxM I;)g6.
Game 30
R.Reti-J.Capablanca
New York 1924
This game is perhaps the most fa­
mous example of b2-b4 in the Reti
Opening. It has already been annotated
numerous times by many strong play­
ers, and we have little to add.
l 1tlf3 I;)f6 2 <4 g6 3 b4 Jl.g7 4 Jl.b2 0-0
5 g3 b6
S ... dS 6 cxd5 Itlxd5 7 il.xg7 ¢>xg7 8
Wib3 Itlf6 9 il.g2 Itlc6 10 0-0 e5 11 d3
il.g4 12 Itlbd2 'iWe7 13 b5 itld8 14 'iWb2
itld7 15 Itacl, as played in R.Reti­
A.Pokorny, Maehrisch Ostrau 1923, is a
bit better for White. Capablanca prefers
a dou ble fianchetto and later adopts a
King's Indian formation.
6 il.g2 Jl.b7 7 0-0 d6 8 d3 Itlbd7 9 Itlbd2
eS 10 'iWc2 .te8 11 llfdl as
Black is fighting for control of the
Black Plays .e5 and ... d6
c5-square.
12 a3 h6 n ltlfl <S 14 bs Itlf8
14 ...d5 15 cxd5 Itlxd5 16 Itlld2 'iWe7
17 l'!acl Itlc7 18 a4 l:ad8 19 1tlc4 Itld5 is
a good alternative.
is e3 "i'!'<7 16 d4 �e4 17 'ilI'c3 exd4 18
exd4 1tl6d7 19 "lWd2 cxd411
BefoTe you do something active,
make sure your pieces are developed
optimally! Black should play 19 .. .l::ad8,
and here 20 llle3 Itlf6 21 I:ael dS 22
dxc5 dxc4 23 cxb6 'ilI'xb6 24 'iWel lIxdl
25 'iWxdl c3 26 il.xc3 'l!I'xbS maintains
equality.
20 il.xd4 'iWxc4 21 i..xg7 ¢> xg7 22
"i'!'b2+!
Capablanca apparently undprpsti­
mated the strength 01 this move.
22 •..¢>g8 2 3 :lxd6 "i'!'C5 24 J:adl l:ta7
White's pieces are well coordinated
and Black is saddled with weak f6- and
c6-squares. The pawn on b6 is another
useful target for White.
2S ltle3 "i'!'hs 26 Itld4 il.xg2 27 Itixg2
"i'!'eS
Black's position is virtually indefen­
sible. For example, 27.. Jk7 28 Itlf3 lIe6
29 III d5 g5 30 I;)fS Itlf6 31 lIxe6 fxe6 32
69
Play 1 b 4 ! Black Plays .. . e5 and . d 6
..

�xf6 exfS 3 3 �xb6 g 4 3 4 lilh4 is hope­
less.
28 lile4 �e5 29 lile6 lIe7 30 lile3 liles
31 IhdS l-0
seur o f the English Opening, knew well
thaI the Double Fianchetto is a tough
nut to crack.
9 0-0 lilbd7
Opening. White's light-squared bishop advantage. Almost all the pieces are
has nothing to target in this structure, traded and it's soon time to agree a
and in fact the white knight was a more draw,
dangerous piece.
IS iLxf3 'fIe7 16 g3 l"Llf6 17 Itabl Itfd8
18 !l:d2 hS 19 h3 'iWd7 20 1:I.g2 eS 2 1
'fIb2 'fIe6 2 2 llbdl llb8 2 3 llc2?!
It is hard to understand why White
didn't prevent Black's next move by
playing 23 bS!?
23 ...bS 2 4 !Ibl
White could keep a slight advan­
tage with 24 'fIc3!?, with one possible
line being 24 ... !Idc8 2S l:!dcJ a6 26 'fId2
bxc4 27 l:!xc4 cxb4 28 axb4 dS 29 !IcS .

2 4... aS 2S 'fICl axb4 26 axb4 bxc4 27 );1>« 4

If 31._lilc4, W hite replies 32 lhcs
lilxb2 33 lIc2 lila4 34 lildS and wins a
piece.
Game 3 1
K.5praggett-I.lvanov
Montreal 1981
1 lilf3 lilf6 2 b4 g6 3 iLb2 iLg7 4 e4 0-0
S e3 b6 6 iLe2 d6 7 lilc3 cS 8 a3 iLb7
10�b3 Now with best play in this compli­ cxb4 28 llcxb4 llxb4 29 ll xb4 dS 30
The immediate 10 d4 looks more cated position, neither side can gain an l:!bs IIe8 31 l:!es IIxes 32 �xes e4 '/2-'/2
aggressive, but White wants to prepare
this advance with l:!fd 1.
10",l:!e8 1 1 1Udllile4
] believe that this move favours
White because it allows the trade of
Black's important King's Indian
bishop.
12 lilxe4 1:I.xe4 13 1:I.xg7 Wxg7 14 d3

14 1:I.xf3
..•

The late GM Igor Ivanov, a connois- An idea borrowed from the Catalan

70 71
Play 1 b4!

Summary
The King's Indian set-up is quite popularbut shouldn'! be too troublesome for the

I
Sokol sky specialist. White·s early capture of queenside space will give him an im­
portant lead in the standard pawn races seen in many King's Indian games. In
some lines it's worth considering castling long for White, as a way of hiding the Cha pter Four
king from the opponent's attack or even as a prelude to counterpunching on the
kingside (see Games 27-28).

1 b4 1llf6
l . ..e5 2 Ji.. b2 Queen's I n d i a n Systems
2 ... 'l!I'e7 - Game 25
2 ... d6 3 c4
3... a5 - Game 19; 3...Ji..e7 - Game 20; 3... Ji..e6 - Game 23;
3 ...lll f6 - Game 24; 3 ... g6 - Game 27; 3 ... llld 7 Game 28
3 .. .f5 4 e3 1ll f 6 5 1llf3 Ji.. e 7 (D)
In this chapter we move away from the Black, and like it or not the question of
6 1ll c3 - Game 21
direct, cut-and-thrust opening play of what to do about the b5-pawn must
6 d4 - Game 22
...e5 systems and proceed to the more always be uppermost in his or her
2 il.b2 g6 3 1ll f3
leisurely, amorphous, strategic life of thoughts.
3 Ji.. xf6 - Game 29 (I1otes)
the reversed queen's pawn opening. White will generally develop the
3 ... Ji..g7 4 <4 0-0 S e3
Tactics and variations mean little here; light·squared bishop via e2-e3 and
5 g3
plans and ideas count for much more. Ji..e2, to cover b5 and leave a route for
5 ...b6 (D) - Game 30
It was quite difficult to decide the d-pawn to advance two squares in
5.. .dS - Chapter 7
whether some of games given below the delayed fight for the centre
S .•. d6
belonged to this or the next chapter. In (Fischer-Ina, Game 43, is an example of
5...b6 - Game 31
the end we decided that games in the difficulties facing White should he
5...d5 - Chapter 7
which the fianchetto of Black's Iight­ fianchetto his king's bishop). After de­
6 d4
squared bishop was the dominant fac­ veloping the king's knight to f3, with
6 Ji..e2 - Game 29
tor, whether the move ... b6 was played or without the Bird-like advance f2-f4,
6.. .lllb d7 (D) - Game 26
early or late, would belong here. White will castle and decide whether to
The basic idea of countering the clarify the central position at once or
Queen's Indian set-up may be stated proceed directly with queenside play.
quite simply: put a pawn on the b5- Early direct attacks on the kingside are
square and keep it there as long as you uncommon in this system.
can. A pawn on b5 takes the best One of the key games in this chap­
square away from the enemy queen's ter is the encounter Sokolsky-Keres
knight and acts as a spearhead for an (Game 32). Sokolsky's notes discuss in
attack on the left flank. The possibility considerabl.. detail th.. strategic prob­
of a white piece occupying the weak­ lems in the opening, and the note to
s...Ji.. e7 S b6
.•• 6...lll bd7 ened square c6 must be respected by move fifteen demonstrates the viability

72 73
Play l b4 1 Queen 's Indjan Systems

of his approach. This game and several 7 ...0-0 8 iLlbd2 b6 9 ie2 ib7 10 0-0 true that White has a weakness - the
others in this book show Sokolsky as 'i!l'e7 pawn on a4 - which needs defending.
Came 32
an excellent defender and endgame The placement of the black pieces is 13 d4 na7 14 liles
A.Sokolsky-P.Keres
expert. the most natural, in the spirit of the
USSR Championship,
The ideas discussed by Sokolsky in position. 1O 'i!Yc7 is weaker because of
•.•

the Keres game are illustrated well by
Games 33-34. The notes to the former
deal with the theme of the struggle for
the centre, while the latter is a good
example of solid positional play arising
from the early thrust f2-f4.
The remaining Sokolsky games here
are all quite instructive. Sokolsky­
Moscow 1950
1 1 I!c1! and later d3-d4.
1 b4 e6 2 .tb2 lilf6 3 bS
The most principled continuation.
The pawn on bS restricts Black's play
while gaining space for '"uture opera­
tions on the queenside.
3 <5 4 e3 dS
•••

Chekhover (Game 35) features the The Simplest and perhaps best
queenside attack in all its glory as well scheme of development.
as another well-played ending. His S lilf3 14...l:lfa8
encounters with Usov and Byvshev Worth a look is 5 f4, taking control [n this position the chances are
(Games 36-37) demonstrate the im por­ of eS. Without the knight on c6, Black equal. A later game. A.5okolsky­
tant concept that White need not op­ will find it difficult to push through 11 a4 P.Atyashev. USSR Correspondence
pose rooks on an opened a-file when ...d5-d4. Can Black do this at once? White's plan is to advance pawns Championship 1953/54, continued
the heavy pieces have major tasks Probably White can answer this with 6 on the queenside by a2-a4-aS, and 14 ... Ik8 Is lilxd7 lilxd7 16 cxdS exdS 17
elsewhere. White's space advantage iLlf3 or 6 id3 with 7 iLlf3 to follow. Black feels impelled to stop this. ibS c4 18 iLl bl iLlf6 19 .ta3 ic6 20
weighs heavily upon Black in these s iLlbd7 6 <4 �d6
••• 11...aS ixd6 'i!Yxd6 21 iLlc3 l:IaS? (21...:e7) 22
games. This counter-movement on the ixc6 'l!Yxc6 23 f3 l:!ca8 24 'il'd2 /i"e8 25
We've also included Lapshun­ queenside, where Black is under pres­ e4 tiJc7 26 litael, with White achieving
Scekic (Game 38) as an exam pie of a sure, is proba bly not good. Black an advantage.
virile counter to aggressive Black play, played better in the game A .Sokolsky­
as well as a superb piece of entertain­ V.Efremov, USSR Correspondence
ment. This is easily one of the two most Championship 1 953/54. with l l . ..nad8
complex games in this book; its only 12 as ib8 13 axb6 axb6. Instead of 14
rival for top spot is the first of the Lap­ d4 as in the game (which allowed
shun-Furdzik encounters in Chapter 1 4 ... eS!) White needed to play 14 'i!l'c2,
Six. We must note here that these two moving the queen from the d-file,
tactical slugfests were played at a which would lead to a complex game
rapidplay time control of 30 minutes with mutual chances.
per player for the entire game! Thus 7 d3 12 bxa6 lba6
the notes will point out quite a few er­ Instead of this, White can play 7 The opening of files on the queen­
rors by both sides, which under the il.e2 b6 8 d4. saving a tempo. Kataly­ side is in principle better for White. [n
circumstances we hope will be par­ mov recommends here 7 iLlc3, and if addition. Black will have to spend time 1S f4
doned by the reader. 7... 0-0 then 8 'iWb3; if 7 ...b6 then 8 a4. repositioning his rooks. Of course, it's White overestimates his chances.

74 75
Play 1 b4! Queen 's Indian Systems

Instead 15 Illxd7 Illxd7 (15...� xd7?! is 33 ... IIxa4 34 Wh2 IIb4 35 .lia3 nd4! Here Black could trade rooks, but
answered by 16 cxd5 exd5 17 dxc5 bxc5 If 35 ...ne4 36 .lixc5 bxcS 37 ndS c4 he prefers to transfer the king to e6.
18 Sl.xf6 gxf6 19 Sl.d3! with the threat of 38 ncs, White would reach a close-to­ 42 IIfH
�h5) 16 cxd5 exd5 17 Sl.b5 would leave drawing position. 42 e6? nxe6 43 Sl.xg7 fails to
White in a good position. 36 IIb3 IIe4 43...ng6i .
1S .•. cxd4 16 exd4 SLb4! After 36... Sl.xa3 37 llxa3 b5 38 lla7 42 .••We6 43 .!!d3 hS 44 Wf3 Wfs 4S g3
The threat is 17 ... Sl.xd2 18 �xd2 Wg6 39 g4 nd5 40 ne7, the black king Sl.e5 46 e6!
Ilxa4, so White must move the knight can't approach the e5-pawn, the b­
away from the d2-square, allowing the pawn will be stopped by lhe rook from
black knight to enter e4. the b7-square and the game should
17 liJdf3 liJe4 18 �b3 liJxe5 19 fxe5 finish as a draw.
W hite must avoid 19 Illxe5? Illd2, or 37 Sl.b2
19 dxe5? Sl.c5+. By 'gentle' play Black achieves a White didn't risk 37 Sl.xcS bxc5 38
1!/..Jlc8 20 naC1 position in which he is winning the a­ IIb7 nxe5 39 IIxf7 Wg6 because in this
pawn by (orce. endgame Black has real chances to win.
31 nd8+ 37 ...l::te1
White had based his hopes on 31
Sl.d4 Sl.xd4 (3l. ..nxa4? 32 Sl.xe3 nal+ 33
Sl.gl ) 32 nxd4, but Keres had prepared
32 ... b5! when Black is winning. By decreasing the number of pawns
31•..wh7 32 nd3 .lies on the board White increases his
chances for a draw.
46._fxe6 47 Sl.xg7 na4 48 Sl.b2
Preventing 48...n a3 .

48..Jlb4 49 Sl.e3
49 Sl.a3 e5 50 1:c3 was another pos­
20••.liJd2 sibility.
Black is trying to simplify into a fa­ 49•.Jle4
vourable endgame. �8 nf3 49 ...nb3 might be stronger, pinning
21 liJxd2 �xd2 22 ne2 dxe4 23 nxe4 Probably better here was 38 g4 with the white pieces.
Black wins a pawn after 23 Sl.xc4 the idea of cutting off the black king. 50 Sl.b2 h4
�g5 24 d5 �e3. 25 whl �xb3 26 Sl.xb3 The bishop endgame which occurs af­ This allows White to activate his
nxc2 27 Sl.xc2 Sl.xd5. ter 38...IIe2i 39 Wg3 ne3+ 40 l:Ixe3 piecesl but [ can't see how Black can
23 ..•nxe4 24 Sl.xe4 �g5! 25 d5 33 h� .lixe3 41 Wf3 Sl.c5 42 We4 Wg6 43 Sl.c1 is improve his position. For example:
White has little choice: 25 nf2? Sl.e3!; The transition to the rook endgame drawish. 50 ... Ilc2 51 g4+ hxg4+ 52 hxg4+ Wg5 53
25 g3? Sl.e3+!; or 25 � g3 � xg3 26 hxg3 by 33 .lia3 llxa4 34 .lixc5 bxc5 35 Wgl 38..._ItgH 39 Wg3 Wg6 .lieS; 50 ...e5 51 .!!.dS Sl.d4 52 Sl.xM nxd4
nxa4 and White loses a pawn with a wouldn't offer White any hope after After 39 ....!!.e3 40 wf4! '!! xf3+ 4 1 gxf3 53 nbS; and finally SO ... bS 51 .!M7. In all
bad position. 35 ... IIa7! 36 IIc3 IIc7 (not 35 ...c4? 36 Wg6 42 We4, pushing the pawn to f5 cases the endgame should finish as a
25 ...�eH 26 Wh1 �xb3 27 Sl.xb3 Sl.xdS l:Id7 Wg6 37 nc7, with drawing gives White serious counterchances. draw.
28 Sl.xdS exdS 29 IId1 Sl.e3 30 llxdS h6 chances). 40 .lie3 .!!.e4 41 nd3 Wf5! 51 g4+Wg5 52 &e5 Ile2 53 Sl.e7 wg6 54

76 77
Play 1 b4 1 Queen 's Indian .systems

j>_d8 j>_f2 55 .l'!b3 Wf7 56 .ltxb6 pressure against the two hanging 24 'il'd2 'il'h4 would give Black a win­ axb6 axb6 3 4 "i!!' xf5 would have given
With the capture of the passed b­ pawns on c5 and d5. ning attack. White an edge.
pawn, a draw becomes inevitable. 11 .l.e8
•• 18 il.xc3 dxe4 19 lilxe4 Iild5 3 1 lile1+ 3 2 Wh Iil d3 33 axb6 axb6
• .•

56 SLxb6 57 .l'!xb6 Il:h2 58 g5 Il:xhH 59

.•• 34 il.c3
Wg4 J:!h1 60 llb7+ Wf8 61 J:!h7 Il:gl+ 62 34 il.xb6! l:te5 35 l:ta5 c3 36 Wg2 c2
<j;f4 I1fl+ 63 <l<g4 e5 64 l'Ixh4 <l<f7 65 37 l:ta8+ 'it>f7 38 l:!c8 Ille l+ 39 �f1 ]:!,xbS
l:th6 e4 66 J:tf6+ V.-V. 40 Wxel lhb6 4 1 11xc2 is a dead draw.
34...liJxh2+ 35 'it>g2 1ilg4 36 lila7 I1e2 37
il.d4
Game 33
Even though Black now has two ex­
L Kiss-P.Kiss
tra pawns, White's two very active
Eger 1992
pieces provide enough com pensation.
37 <3
•••

In a tournament i n Hungary [ The position after 37 ... ll:d2!? 38

played an opponent named Kiss, and
one of my students played another
Kiss. But I've never seen a game be­
tween two Kisses, until now!
1 b4 d5 2 SLb2 Iilf6 3 e3 e6 4 b5 <5 5
Iilt3 Iilbd7 6 <4 b6
6 ... il.d6 7 d3 O,{) 8 Iilbd2 b6 was
Sokolsky-Keres (see Game 32).
7 il.e2 il.d6 8 0-0 il.b7 9 <xd5 exd5 10
d4 0-0
12 'it>hl?!
A complete waste of time - it's dif­
ficult to believe a master would play
such a move before developing the rest
of his pieces. 12 "i!!c2 c4 \3 a4 'ite7 1 4
lilfcl a6 1 5 bxa6 j"xa6 would be
roughly equal.
12 ••. 'iWe7 13 a4 <4 14 Iild2 il.b4 15 xf3
liJt8 16 .t!e1 liJe6 17 e4?!
il.xb6 c3 39 .l'!c7 c2 40 il.a7 Wf8 41 b6
20 SLb2 lIxf2+ 42 'it>gl c1"1!f+ 43 J:lxc1 lZb2 44
20 'il'c2! ? "i!!'d7 21 Iild2 1ilg5 22 il.xd5 .l'!cB+ We7 45 .l'!c7+ 'it>d6 46 J:txg7 offers
il.xd5 23 f3 is about equal. White some winning chances, bul we
20...'iI'c7 21 'il'd2 lilef4 22 1ilc3 Iilxc3 23 think Black should be able to hold.
"l!fxC3 il.xf3 24 'itxf3 Iild3 25 J:l.xe8+ 38 I1xg7+ W f8 39 J:l.c7 C2 40 il.xb6
I1xe8 26 il.c3 h6 27 g3 'ite7 28 l:[a2 'il'e4
29 'it>g2 f5
Black has very active pieces, but it's
not enough to claim an advantage.
30 as 'itxd4

40...lile5?
40 lId2 41 'it>f3 Iile5. 42 'iPe3 :t:!d6 43
...

il.a5 lIdS 44 lhc2li1xb5 45 il.c3 'it>e7 46

ll liJc3
11 dxc5!? is another option. After
1 l ._bxc5 12 'itc2 lite8 13 Iilbd2 .!Ic8 1 4
l:tfdl 'ite7 1 5 il.d3 White can build
17 ...Ji.xc3?
1 7 ...lilf4' 18 'il'c2 (18 e5 Iild3)
18 ... il.xc3 19 il.xc3 dxe4 20 il.dl e3 21
I1xe3 SLxg2; 22 <l<g 1 lile4 23 Iilxe4 il.xe4
31 il.xd4?
In chess, captures aTe not compul­
sory! 31 J:!e2! 'il'd7 32 J:!xe8; 'il'xe8 33
il.xe5 �xe5+ 47 Wf4 �f6 is a draw,
while even simpler is 40 ...l:e5 41 J:txc2
:r:!xb5.
41 il.e3!
The bishop stops Black's c-pawn,

78 79
Play 1 b 4 !
whereas the white b-pawn will run to
glory.
41, liJd3 42 1i>0 cl� 43 il.xC1 IiJxC1 44
.•
IlxC1 llb2 45 ll:c5 f4 46 gxf4 Ii>g7 47
Ii>g4 ll:xf2 48 ll:c7+ Ii>f6 49 Ilc5 li>e7 50
Wfs hS Sl 1i>gS ll.b2 1-0
White grabs the h5-pawn, after
which one of his pawns will become a
queen.
Game 34
M.Vokac-M.Tratar
Ceske Budejovice 1996
1 b 4 liJf6 2 il.b2 e6 3 b5 b6 4 e3 .icb7 5
f4
With 5 f4 White is aiming to gain
control of the e5-square. 5 IiJf3 is more
common: 5... .ice7 6 �_e2 (6 c4 0-0 7 �_e2
d5 8 a4 was Sokolsky-Chekhover - see
Game 35) 6 ... 0-0 7 0-0 d5 8 d3 c5 9
IiJbd2 IiJbd7 10 c4 .icd6 1 1 Ilet �c7 was
equal in A.Miles-Z.Ribli, London 1984.
5...a6 6 a4 axbS 7 axbs ll.xal 8 .icxal d6
9 IiJf3 IiJbd7 10 .ice2 �a8 11 .icb2 .ice7
12 0-0 0-0 13 c4 Ild8 14 �c2 c5
Black seeks active counterplay
80
along the c-file, s o he pushes his r­
pawn and induces White to capture.
15 bxc6 .icllc6 16 liJc3 ll:c8 17 '!'I'bl .icb7
18 IiJb5 d5 19 odS .icxd5 20 .icd4
White has managed to trade off his
weak c4-pawn and now starts \0 attack
Black's vulnerable b-pawn.
20..:'li'a2 2 1 liJc3 �xbl 22 ll.xbl .iccs 2 3
IiJxds IiJ x d s 24 g3 .icxd4 2 S t;',xd4 g6 2 6
Wf2 ll:a8 2 7 il.0 l:la2 28 il.xd5 exd5
Despite the two weak pawns, Blark
should hold this ending. However, the
task proves to be Loo difficult after a
blunder by Black and some excellent
endgame play by White.
29 We2 h5??
Black should rush his king to the
centre with 29 ... wf8!' The text move
wastes time.
30 ll:bs Ilas 31 ll:xas bxas 3 2 liJc6 Wf8
Winning a pawn, as 32 ... a4 can be
met by 33 liJe7� Wf8 34 IiJxd5.
n liJxas li>e7 34 liJb7
A long time ago somebody told me
that knight endgames are very similar
to pawn endgames, in which case an
extra pawn is almost always a decisive
factor.
34 ... liJf6 3S d3 Ii>d7 36 h3 Ii>c7 37 IiJ<S
Ii>c6 38 IiJb3 Ii>d6 39 IiJd4 IiJd7 40 IiJf3
IiJf8 41 liJg5 f6
This move weakens Black's pawn
structure, but the only alternative was
an undesirable king retreat.
42 liJf3 li>cs 43 IiJd4 Ii>d6
44 1i>d2
Now the white king will circle
round its counterpart.
44.. ,liJd7 45 Wc3 IiJc5 46 IiJf3 liJa4+ 47
wd4 1ilc5 48 IiJh4 1iJe6+ 49 1i>C3 Q)f8
White's strategy is based upon at­
lacking the two weaknesses on g6 and
d5.
50 wb4 Wc6 51 d4 Ii>d6 52 1i>b5 f5 53
Queen's Indian Systems
1i> ..6 1iJd7
53 ...We7 54 wb6 1i>d6 55 <i>b5 1i>e6 56
W c6 is zugzwang, and 53...We6 54 1i>b6
wd6 55 Ii>b5 Ii>d7 56 Wc5 li>e6 57 Wc6
reaches the same position.
S4 1iJ"g6 IiJf6 SS IiJh4 li>e6 S6 IiJf3 Ii>d6
S 7 IiJg5 <i>c6 S8 WaS IiJd7 59 Wb4 1-0
Two extra pawns, together with
Black's thret> weaknesses, are more
than enough to win this position.
Game 35
A.Sokolsky-V.Chekhover
Leningrad 1938
1 b4 liJf6 2 �b2 e 6 3 b5 b6 4 e 3 il.b7 5
1iJ0 i.e7
Black plays in the style of the
Queen's Indian Defence. White begins
an advance on the queenside, where he
has a space advantage.
6 c4 0-0 7 il.e2 d5 8 a4 dxc4
Giving up the centre leads to an ad ­
vantage for Whit... Black should play
8... c5.
9 liJa3 <3 10 il.x<3 IiJd5
And here too it's better to play
81
Play 1 b 4 !
1 0...cS.
11 il.b2 id6 12 il.xf6 'f¥xf6 13 0-0 ndB
14 'i!!'bl! li'ld7
A natural move. Now on 14 ... cS, 1 5
lZlc4 lZld7 1 6 a s ! is very strong.
15 lZlc4 lZlc5 16 liIC1
W hite has finished the mobilization
of his forces and threatens moves like
d2-d4, a4-aS or lZlc4-aS. Black's knights
must retreat.
16u.lZle7 17 d4 �e4
17 ...lZle4 would have been better,
but even in this case White develops
strong pressure after 18 as.
lB 'iWb2 il.d3
J8 ...lZld3 is bad because of J9 �_xd3
il.xd3 20 lZlce5.
Against 18 ... il.d3 White could reply
19 �dl, but after 19 .. £><c4 20 Ji:xc I a6!
Black would obtain some counterplay.
The continuation in the game leads to
an ending which is clearly better for
White.
19 dxc5 'iWxb2 20 lZlxb2 i.xe2 21 li'ld4
il.h5
21...�g4 would have offered more
chances for Black.
22 cxb6 cxb6 23 lZlc4 Ji:acB 24 as bxa5
82
25 lZlxa5
25 .. .li!xCl+
Otherwise there would follow 26
lZlac6.
26 J:bCl WfB 27 f3 :!lcB
In the annotations to this game,
published in the tournament bulletin,
the chess master Alatortsev suggested
for Black the variation 27... e5 28 lZldc6
Ji:c8, believing lhat Black could put up
stiH resistance. Bu t White can win in a
study-like way, as tollows: 29 lZlc4!
lZlxc6 30 lZld6 J:lc7 3J 1:!xc6! J:ld7 32 nc8.
We7 33 lZlfS. �f6 34 g4, and there is no
good defence to the threat 35 llc6+.
2B llxcB+ Ii:'lxcB 29 1i:'lde 6 WeB 30 Ii'lxa7!
Using the strength of the far ad­
vanced b-pawn. White carries out a
small combination. After 30... lZlxa7 3J
b6, the b-pawn becomes a queen.
30u.lZlb6 31 Wf2 �d7 32 e4 f6 33 �e3
e5 34 ¢'d3 � f7
Finally t he black bishop can gel into
the game.
35 1i1e3 l!/e7 36Wb4 il.a2 37 lZl7e6 g6 3B
lZlb3 �bl 39 lZlc5 il.e2 40 lZle6+
40 WaS is easier, but this was the
last move of the time control.
40_. �d6 41 lZlfB �d3 42 g3 g5 43 lZlxh7
lZld7 44 lZla5
44u.g4
This is the only chance to compli­
cate things a little bit. On 44 ... il.e2,
White answers 4s lilc4 ' We7 46 li'ld2.
45 �e3 il.bl
White wins eaSily after 4S ... il.xbS 46
fxg4 We7 47 g5.
46 lZle4+ �e7 47lild2 il.a2 4B fxg4 il.g8
49 lZlxf6 �xf6 50 h4
Passed pawns on both flanks ensure
White's victory.
50...il.e6 51 g5+ �g6 52 lZle4 IiIh5 53
b6! il.xe4 54 �xe4 lilxb6+ 55 � e5 lila4+
56 �d5 lile3+ 57 �xe5
Quee n 's (ndian Systems
Four pawns against the knight! A
very interesting endgame to thp finish.
57._lile2 5B g4+! Wg6 59 Wd6 lilC3 60
e5 lile4+ 61 �d7 lile5+ 62 �e6 lZld3 63
�d6 lZlf2 64 e6 lilxg4 65 e7 1i1f7 66 h5
Of course not 66 �d7 because of
66 ... lZle5+ 67 ¢'d8 lilc6. , and against 66
g6. Black has 66 . �e8 67 g7 lilh6 68
. .
W e6 lilg8.
66...�eB 67 h6 lilf2 6B h7 lile4+ 69 �e5
lilxg5 70 hB'iW+ 1-0
Game 36
A.Sokolsky-D.Usov
Odessa 1960
1 b4 e6 2 il.b2 lilf6 3 b5 a6
Trying to open the a-file. In princi­
ple opening a file on the queenside
should be better for White, because he
has more space.
4 a4 d5 5 e3 e5
S ... axbS 6 axbS l:txal 7 il.xal has
been played in other games.
6 lilf3 .lid6 7 e4
White consolidates his space on the
queenside. He now wishes to play d2-
83
Play 1 b 4 !
d4, achieving central parity.
7 ...lbbd7 8 .l>.e2 b6 9 d4 'iIIe7
Black's decision to place his queen
here is both premature and poorly
judged, as White will soon open the c­
file. Better is 9 ... .I1l.b7 10 ltlbd2 0-0 1 1 0-0
"iIIe7, with a later ...lIfd8.
10 ltlbd2 .l>.b7 11 nel!
A 'positionaJ' sacrifice, not of mate­
rial, but of a file! White 'sacrifices' the
open a-file, realizing that Black, with his
lack of space, can't do anything with it.
On the other hand, White will profit
from the opening of the central files.
11...axbS 12 axbS 0-0 13 h3 l'Ia2
This is the beginning of a wrong
plan. 13 ...11ac8, and later ..."illb8, is a
better option.
14 'ii' b3 nfa8 15 0-0 cxd4
Releasing pressure in the centre.
Black can't continue slowly because
White can play nfd1 followed by ltld2-
bl-c3, beginning central operations
himself as in the similar game Sokol­
sky-Byvshev (see Game 37).
16 .l>.xd4 ltleS 17 "iIIb1 eS
Against other moves, like 17...'ii'e7,
White would start to attack with 18
84
cxd5 .l>.xd5 1 9 .I1l.c4.
18 .lU2'i!i'e7
Black's position seems active, but
after two further moves White's advan­
tage becomes apparent.
19 exds �_xdS 20 .I1l.c4
20...lIxb2
An exchange sacrifice - a result of
Black accepting that his position was
not good. It's true that 20 ... .l>.xc4 2 1
ltlxc4 e 4 22 ltld4, and 2 0. . .J:12a7 2 1 .l>.xd5
ltlxd5 22 ltlc 4 with t he threat of 23
lIidI, are not attractive for Black.
21 'ii'x b2 e4 22 ltlh2
White must play carefully: 22 ltld4
is worse because of 22 ...'ill e5.
22...l:ld8!
The best move, containing a clever
trap. On the natural 23 J:::fd1 there fol-
lows 23 ... i1.xc4 24 J:Ixc4 (or 24 ltlxc4
ltld3) 24 ...ltld3 25 1l¥c2 .l>.xh2+ 26 IIIx h2
ltlxf2 27 lIn 'ii'd6+ 28 111gI ltlxh3+!.
2 3 ltlb3 ltld3! 24 i<_xd3 �a3
Black is regaining the exchange, but
he still can't achieve material equality.
25 'i!!'e3 .l>.x<l 26 J:IxC1
Not 26 ltlxc1 exd3 27 ltlxd3, because
of 27...i1.xg2! 28 111 xg2 'iIIe4< .
26 .l>.xb3
.••
Not a lot better is 26... exd3 27 ltld4,
when the d3-pawn should disappear.
27 .l>.xe4! ltlxe4 28 1l¥xb3
The tactics have ended. White has
got an extra pawn and plenty of
chances to win. One might expect a
quiet transfer to a winning ending, but
soon complications arise again.
28 ...ltleS 29 'ii'e4 lId2
Black's counterplay is based upon
this rook on the seventh rank.
30 ltlf3 11b2 31 nn !
White decides matters b y capturing
the a-file. How ironic!
31 ... h6 32 'i!!'d S! lti>h7
If Black accepts the pawn sacrifice
with 32. ..lhb5, then after 33 naB+ IIIh 7
34 'ii'f5+ g6 35 'i!!'c8 he can't escape from
checkmate.
33 'i!!' fS+ g6 34 'OiI'e8 h5
34...'i!!' f6 35 naB 'i'!'g7 is a little more
resilient, although even here White
achieves victory by playing 36 'i!l'e8
with the threat of :!!.a7.
35 lIa8 '!lVf6
Now there follows a little combina­
tion.
Queen '5 Indian Systems
36 ltlg5+! lti>h6 3 7 ltlxf7+! 'ilIh7?
Zeitnot! But 37 _ .'!!l'xf7 38 '!lVh8< 1l¥h7
39 'i!!' xb2 is hopeless for Black in any
case.
38 'OiI'g8 mate (1-0)
Game 3 7
A.Sokolsky-V.Byvshev
Lvov 1951
1 b4 ltlf6 2 .l>.b2 e 6 3 b S dS 4 e 3 a6 5 a 4
ltlbd7
Black could exchange rooks on the
a-file, but this exchange probably fa­
vours White. With more room to ma­
noeuvre on the queenside, White is
more likely to use this file.
6 ltlf3 .l>.d6 7 e4 <5 8 d3
Another plan is to put pressure on
d5 after 8 tilc3 and 9 'i!!' b3.
8...0-0 9 ltlbd2 b6 10 .l>.e2 .l>.b7 11 0-0
'ii'e 7
In time the c-file can be opened, so
it was better for Black to place his
queen on e7.
12 h3 nfe8
13 lIel!
85
Play 1 b 4 !
Conceding the a-file, White pre­
pares to open the centre with d3-d4.
:13.•. axbs 14 axbs I\a2
Black's idea 10 use the a-file for
counterplay doesn't work, as his rooks
can't be supported by the rest of the
pieces duf' to a lack of space. II would
have been better to play 14 ...l:tac8 in­
lending ... 1!Ib8.
lS �b3 nea8
Black stubbornly continues the
wrong plan. It was actually better to
return the other rook to a8.
16 liJb1 'lWd8 17 !Hd1 Il2a4
After a random move like 17 _.h6,
White would carry out his threat 18
liJa3, and if 18 ...lI8xa3, then 19 i<.xa3
:!xe2 20 ""n trapping the rook.
18 liJc3 .!!:4a S 19 d4!
With his pieces well posted, White
will benefit from opening the centre.
19.. �b8
19 ...'�;-e7 would have been a slightly
stronger choice. Now there follows an
unexpected sacrifice.
20 cxd5 exd5 21 dxc5 bxc5
22 liJxdS!
A positional exchange sacrif ice.
86
White's active pieces, especially h i s
bishops, and his strong b-pawn prom­
ise good winning chances.
22 ...<1)xds 23 ll xdS il.xd5 24 'lWxd5 'lWe7
25 lld 1
2 5.•.<1)f8
On 25...liJf6 there could follow 26
'lWd8+ �f8 27 il.xf6 il.h2+ 28 11<xh2 Ihd8
29 il.xd8!, and having three minor
pieces tor the queen, White should win.
26 il.c4 118a7 27 liJe5! il.xe5 28 il.xe5
lIa4 29 il.d6 'ilKe6 30 b6!
The b-pawn decides. It's interesting
to observe the connection between the
opening and the finish of the game!
30..JId7 31 b7 .Il:b4 32 'lWxcs
3 2 ...l:txd6!
Probably the best chance.
33 l:txd6!
It would have been a mistake to
capture the queen because of 33 �xe6
nxdJ t 34 ""h2 nxb7.
33 ....!:tb1+ 34 1t>h2 'lWe7 35 il.d5 g6 36 f4
II<g 7 37 'lWd4+ <ot>h6 38 I1b6 1-0
The b-pawn will become a queen.
Game 38
Y.Laps hun-M.Scekic
Marshall Chess C l u b (Rapid) 2004
I had se<>n that my opponent in I his
game, the Yugoslav 1M Milos Seekic,
was a strong tactician, so 1 b4 was a
very good positional choice.
1 b4 e6 2 �b2 liJf6 3 bS a6 4 a4 b6
For 4 ... d5 5 e3 c5, see Games 36-37.
Another viable way for Black to play is
with 4...c6 5 bxc6 bxc6 6 liJf3 c5, as in
K.Volke-Y.5hulman, Minsk 1 994.
5 liJf3 il.b7 6 e3
6...il.b4!?
6 ... axb5 7 axb5 .Il:xal 8 il.xa1 d6 9
_Q.e2 liJbd7 1 0 c4 'lWa8 J 1 liJc3 iLe7 12 0--0
Queen 's Indi a n Sys tems
0--0, as played in A.Ornstein­
R.Akesson. Stockholm 1998, is a fairly
t"ypical continuation.
7 c3
I didn't want to see any of his pieces
in my camp. so I felt obliged 10 play
this weird-looking move.
7...1Le7 8 C4 0-0 9 iLe2 d6
A reasonable alternative is 9 ... d5 10
0-0 dxc4 11 iLxc4 axbS 12 axb5 :!l:xal l3
iLxal.
10 0-0 e5 11 liJc3 liJbd7 12 d4 axb5 13
axb5 exd4
It would not be prudent to advance
in the centre. After 13 ...e4 14 liJd2 .Il:xal
15 'ilKxal ne8 16 'lWa4 �f8 17 'f!I'c2 g6 18
nal White can combine play on the
open a-file with pressure on the e4-
pawn.
14 liJxd4 llxal 15 'ilKxa1 l::e8 16 iLf3
In order to occupy the weak d5- and
c6-squares. I had to trade my light­
squared bishop.
16...1Lxf3 17 liJ.d3 liJc5 18 liJd4
18 liJd5 was more promising, for
example after 18 ...<1\c..4 19 liJd4 'f!I'd7 20
.!!.el liJc5 21 .!!.c3 liJxdS 22 cxdS f5 23
liJc6 iLf6 24 lla3 1Lxb2 25 'ifxb2.
87
Play 1 b 4 !
lS ..• 'iI!'d7 19 l1:d1 lilfe4 2 0 li'lds �h4!
A good move, forcing a weakening
of White's kingside and thus gaining
countf'rplay.
21 g3 �dS 22 Wg2?!
22 �'a8! il.f6 23 �c6 �xc6 24 bxc6
il.d8 25 f3 lilg5 26 lIal would have kf'pt
an advantage.
22 ...li'lgS 23 li'lf4 �f6 24 h4 li'lge4 25
li'lf3?
I was afraid to play 25 f3! because of
25...i..e5 26 fxe4 �g4, but here 27 ll:gl
li'lxe4 28 'i!!' el 1ta8 2 9 Wh2 l'ta4 30 ll:g2
I!xc4 31 'i!!' b1 li'lcs 32 'il!'fS beats of f the
attack.
2S ...il.xb2 26 �xb2 'il'g4
Scekic was coming after me with his
whole army! I had to work hard to de­
fend his threatened sacrifices on g3 and
f2.
27 11ds
27 ...f611
27 ...li'le6 is stronger: 28 li'lxe6 (28
li'ld4?! li'lxf4 t 29 exf4 h6 30 �f'2 'il!'c8
favours Black; but it was worth consid­
ering 28 'fIic2, for example 28 ...li'lxf4+ 29
exf4 li'lf6 30 rld2 li'lh5 31 l:!d4 'i!!'d 7 32
l:!e4 li'lf6 33 lhe8+ 'fIixe8 34 li'ld4)
88
28. ..fxp6 29 li'lh2 'l!I'g6 3 0 l1d4 li'lf6 with
an equal position.
2S li'lh2 'i!!' c s 29 f31
The slart of my combination.
29...li'la4 30 'i!!'a1 li'lees 31 li'lg4 fS 32
IZlhS lite7
My inluition told me that one of the
knighl sacrifices should win, but which
one? I was thinking about li'lh6+,
tZlgf6+, li'lhf6+ and li'lxg7. At this mo­
ment bot h of us were in severe time
trouble and I had to make my decision
quickly.
n li'lgf6+!?
Only 33 IZlxg7!! gives White a sure
win. I saw it but was afraid of 33 ... fxg4.
However, White can play 34 li'lf5 gxf3+
35 Wft 'lWe6 36 IZlxe7+ 'il'xe7 37 l:tg5+
�f7 38 J:lg7+ winning the black queen,
a point I managed to miss while calcu­
lating the jungle of variations.
After the game Aleksander
Wojtkiewicz told me t hat 34 J:tg5? (in­
stead of 34 lilf5) was a winning move,
but the position is so complex that even
sl rong grandmasters can be mistaken:
34 ...gxf3i 35 wh2 l:!e5! 36 l:!xe5 dxe5 37
'lIi'xe5 'lWf8 38 li'lJ 5 li'lc3 39 'lWf4 'lWf6 40
'fIixf3 1Zl3e4 and it's Black who should
win.
33 _.gxf6 34 IZlxf6+ 1t>f7!
34... Wh8 is bad on account of 35
IZlg4+ l:!g7 36 IZlh6 'il'e6 37 IZlxfS 'i!!' d7 38
g4 'il'f7 39 hS h6 40 IZlxh6 'ti'f8 41 IZlfS.
Alternatively, 34 ... wf8 35 tZlg4! l:!g7 36
'il'f6+ Wg8 37 li'lh6+ wh8 38 li'lxf5 'i!!'g8
39 li'lxg7 'i!!'xg7 40 'lWd8+ 'lWg8 41 'i!i'xc7 is
also hopeless for Black.
3s lilxh71
3S ...IleS!
Black keeps finding the best practi­
cal chance. Against 35 ... Wg8, White
wins after the sequence 36 li'lf6+ wf7 37
li'lh5 Wg8 38 g4 'i!i'd8 (38 ... fxg4 39 l::tg5+)
39 Ilxf5 Ile5 40 :XeS dxe5 41 'lIi'xe5 wf7
42 'iI'g7+ We6 43 lilf4+ wd6 44 e4 lild7
45 'lWg6+ We7 46 'lWgs+ li'lf6 47 e5 �d2+
48 Wh3.
36 f4 lil b3!
36 ...lIxd5 allows 37 'fJ'f6+ Wg8 (or
37... We8 38 �f8i wd7 39 li'lf6 t We6 40
cxd5 mate) 38 �g6+ wh8 39 li'lf6 l:d2+
40 wh3, when Black cannot prevent
mate.
37 'lWxa4 1he3!
The complications reach their peak,
Queen 's Ind;an Systems
and both players were desperately
short of time!
3 S li'lgS+ wg6 39 'lWa7?
Under time pressure it was not pos­
sible for me to calculate that I could
win with the sequence 39 'lIi'a2! 'lIi'h8 40
'i!!'c2 li'ld4 41 �d 1 IZlb3 42 Wf2 'il'c3 43
hSi Wh6 44 Ihf5 lilc5 45 lIf7 lile4i 46
li'lxe4 llxe4 47 'il'd5 �c2 t 48 �f1 �xc4+
49 �xc4 Ihc4 50 g4, reaching a win­
ning rook ending.
39...lIe2+?
After defending so well, it was a
pity for Black that he missed the oppor­
tunity to play 39 ... �e8! 40 �xc7 lle2+
41 \l;>h3, when 41..l!h2i I forces a per­
petual check after 42 IIIx h2 �e2+ 43
wgl 'il'e1+ 44 wg2 �e2+.
40\l;>h3
40...li'ld2?
Allowing a simple tactic. 40 ...'i!i'e8 41
li'lf3l:te7 puts up more resislance.
41 11xd6+!
Good enough, but more precise is
4 1 �a1! li'le4 42 li'lxe4 nxe4 43 h5+ \l;>h7
(43 .. .'.t>xh5 44 �g7) 44 �f6 l:!xc4 45
�e7+Wh8 46 h6 �g8 47 l:txf5.
41...�hS
89
Play 1 b4!
42 J::rt6??
42 'i!!'a l ? allows Black to save the
game with 42 .. .Ibe4! (42 ... cxd6? 43 'i!!'g7
lTh2+ 44 �xh2 'i!!'xc4 45 g4+ �xg4 46
lile4+ �xf4 47 lilxd2 \\!fe2; 48 'fil'g2
'i!!'xg2+ 49 �xg2 is winning for White)
43 J:1d5 Illf2+ 44 Il<g2 Illg4+ 45 1l<f1 'i!!'e8
46 J:1e5 Illxe5 47 'i!!' dl Illxc4 48 'i!!' xe2+
'i!!'xe2+ 49 �xe2 Ill d6.
42 1lxd2!! is the only move thai wins
here - who could believe such a thing?
42...J:1xd2 43 'i!!' al 'iil'e8
44 Ill f3! (44 'i!!'g7 J:1h2+! draws by
perpetual check) 44. ..J:1f2 45 'i!!' f6 'i!!'g6 46
'i!!'h8+ 'i!!' h6 47 'i!!'e8 'i!!'f6 48 'i!!'d7 \\!fg6 49
ille S 'i!i'f6 50 'i!i'h7+ and White forces
90
mate. A mere human can't possibly
work this out with no time on the
clock.
42 ...lllf1 43 Illf3
43 .J:1f2??
.•
My opponent could have turned the
tables completely with 43 ...llle 3!! 44
'i!!' al 'i!!'g8 45 Illg5 Illg4 46 1i!'gl Illxf6 47
'i!!' dl 'i!!'xc4, when Black is winning.
44 'i!i'a3! 'i!i'b7?
This allows mate, but Black's mo­
ment had already passed and White
was now winning in any case.
4S J:1h6+!!
At this moment both of us had less
than 15 seconds left on our clocks.
4S ... ll<xh6 46 \\!ff8+ whS
Or 46 ...�g6 47 1lle5+ It>h7 48 'i!!'f7 •.
47 'i!!' h8+ Il<g6 48 Ille s mate (1-0)
This beautiful checkmate excited
the 20 or so spectators who were
watching the finale to this game.
Game 39
D.Bronstein-B.lvkov
Amsterdam I nterzonal 1964
1 1llf3 Illf6 2 b4 e6 3 a3 b6 4 g3 il.b7 S
il.g2
The fianchetto of White's light­
squared bishop is a rare idea in the
Queen 's Indian Sys tems
Sokolsky, and is sometimes employed
by those more familiar with the Reti.
S •••<S
A serious attem pi to claim the ini­
tiative by attacking the centre.
6 bXC5
After 6 b5?! a6 7 bxa6 il.xa6 Black
enjoys an edge due to the isolated
pawn on a3. This is a consequence of
playing b4-b5 without I he precaution
of il.b2.
6 bxc5 7 C4 Illc 6 8 0·0 il.e7 9 Illc3 0·0
•.•
10 d3 J:1b8 11 il.f4 d6 12 J:1b1 il.a8
The pawn structure now resembles
the English Opening. With the passive
12 ... il.a7 Black is trying to trade pieces
and achieve a draw.
13 'i!!'a4
Following 13 lhb8!? 1i!'xb8 14 'i!!'a4
'i!!'c7 (14 ...'i!!'b2?? 15 .!! bl 'i!!'xc3 16 il.d2
llle4 17 il.xc3 Illxc3 18 'i!i'c2 Illxb1 19
'ill' xbl should be winning for White) 15
.!!b1 nb8 16 nxb8+ 'i!!'xb8, White's activ­
ity shouldn't be sufficient to win.
13 ...'i!!'d7 14 il.gs h6
15 il.xf6
15 il.d2 was safer, but Bronstein al­
ways tried to force the issue. By captur-
91
Play 1 b 4 !
ing Black's knight, White tries
strengthen his control of the squares e4
and dS. But he succeeds only in im­
proving Black's position.
:lS .l11.xf6 :l6 liJ e4 .i.. b2 :J.7 IUd1 fS
•..
17...:tb6!? is the natural move, pre­
paring to double rooks and allowing
Black to fight for the initiative.
:l8 liJed2 liJeS 19 'iWas
19 'iWxd7 liJxd7 20 liJel �b6 21 .l11. xa8
lIxa8 22 liJc2 lIab8 is better for Black.
19...liJc6
19 ...liJxf3+! 20 .l11. xf3 .l11.xf3 21 liJxf3
liIb3 would have given Black an advan­
tage.
20 'iWa4 liJes 2 1 'iWas liJc6 22 'iWa4 liJes
V.-V.
Game 40
B.Gurgenidze-A.Schneider
World Senior Championship,
Biel 1994
:l liJf3 liJf6 2 b4 e6 3 a3 b6 4 g3 .l11. b7 5
.l11.g2 .l11.e7 6 0-0 0-0 7 C4 d6 8 'iWc2 liJbd7
9 liJc3
9 .l11.b2 would be in the style of
92
to Sokolsky's Opening, but in this game
White chooses another path for the
Sokolsky bishop.
9...cS 10 bxcS bxcS 11 d3
The position now looks very much
as if it arose from the English Opening.
11 lIbl would have been another good
choice.
11... h6 12 .l11.f4 liJ h s 13 .l11. d2 fS 14 �ab1
.l11.c6
Black should consider 14 ...liJb6!?
1 S liJgS! hxgS
lS ... .l11.xg2 16 liJxe6 'iWc8 17 IlIxg2
wins a pawn for White.
16 .l11. xc6 nc8 :J.7 .l11. x d7?!
White would maintain an advan­
tage if he kept this active bishop by
playing 17 .l11.g 2.
:J.7 . . 'iWxd7 18 'iWa4 'iWxa4 19 liJxa4 nb8
.
20 h3
20...dS?
Black should play 20...1tif7. In the
endgame you should activate your
king and also try to avoid creating
weaknesses in your own camp. After
20... d5 White could have won a pawn
with 21 cxdS! exdS 22 liJc3 d4 23 liJdS
.l11 .d6 24 .i..xgS.
21 .l11.e3 d4 22 .l11.d 2 e5
22...g6 frees the g7-square for the
knight and prepare ...e6-eS.
23 g4 itlf4 24 .l11.xf4 gxf4 25 gxfs ltif7 26
n b S nxb5 27 cxb5 nb8 28 J:!b1
White should have an edge because
in this closed position a knight ought to
be stronger than a bishop.
28...ltif6 29 b6 axb6 30 J:!xb6+ J:!J(b6 3:J.
liJxb6ltixf5 32 a4 e4 33 f3 exd3 34 exd3
White's advantage is increasing
every move.
34 ...ltie6 35 Itif1 .l11.d 8 36 itlc4 il.c7 37
ltie2 ltids 38 Itid1 ltic6 39 1tiC2 Itib7 40
Itib3 Il1c641 1tic2 ltidS?!
41...ltib7 would have offered some
drawing chances.
42 h4! g6 43 as Itic6 44 a6 .i.b8 4S Itib3
ltids
Or if instead 4S....l11.c7 46 llIa3 .i.b8
47 ltia4 .i.c7 48 a7 Itib7 49 Itib5 and
White wins.
46 Iilb6+ Itic6 47 Iilc8 .i.es 48 liJe7+
Itib6 49 a7 Itib7 SO liJxg6 .l11.f6 51 h S
.i.gS 5 2 Itic4 ltixa7 5 3 liJeS l!lb6 S4 liJf7
1-0
Black cannot stop the h-pawn and
so he resigned.
Queen 's Indian Systems
Game 41
B.Gurgenidze-G.Kalatozishvili
Kirovabad 1973
1 liJf3 itlf6 2 b4 e6 3 a3 iLe7 4 C4 b6 S
e3 cs 6 bs .l11. b7 7 d3 0-0 8 .l11. b2 ds 9
liJbd2 liJbd7 10 �_e2 '/Wb8
Sokolsky-Byvshev (see Game 37)
reached a very similar position. In that
game Byvshev tried to attack by cap­
turing the a-file, but this plan didn't
work and Sakolsky won. HeTe Kala­
tozishvili slowly regroups his pieces to
prepare an attack in the centTe.
11 0-0 liJe8 12 a4 as
Stopping any movement from
White's a-pawn.
13 J:!c1 itld6
Black is ready to push his f-, e- and
d-pawns to gain control of the centre,
and White must prevent this plan.
14 itleS liJxe5 15 .l11.xeS f6 16 .l11. g3 eS?!
Now White's Iighl -squared bishop
becomes very dangerous, and Black
should have dealt with the pin on his
knight in a different way. One of the
93
Play 1 b4!
possibilities was to play 1 6...�d8.
17 d4
Copying Sokolsky's idea from his
game against Byvshev. After 17 cxd5
$'_xd5 18 �f3 'ifb7 19 'ifc2 �xf3 20 ttlxf3
the position would probably be equal.
17 ...ttlf5 1B cxdS
White could secure a pull by con­
tinuing 18 dxc5!? �xc5 19 cxd5 ttlxg3
20 hxg3 �xd5 21 �f3 �xf3 22 'ifxf3.
1B_cxd4 19 e4 ttlxg3 20 hxg3 fS 21
exfs �gS
22 f4!
White wants to break up Black's
strong centre and advance his d-pawn.
22 ...exf4 23 ttle4 $'_h6?
94
A mistake. The move 23...f3! could
lead to a drawish position after 24
ttlxg5 fxe2 25 'ifx('2 'ifxg3 26 ttle6 nae8
27 'ife4 IIf6 28 nf3 'ifd6 29 'lWxd4 'ifxd5
30 'ifxd5 i.xd5 31 ttlc7 lle5 32 ttlxd5
l:l:xdS.
24 'lWxd4!
The only way to achieve an advan­
tage is by taking the initiativf> with this
exchange sacrifice.
24 f3 25 j>_xf3 �xC1 26 IIxC1 II.ds
•.•
White's well-placed pieces and a
passed d-pawn should give an advan­
tage, despite the small material deficit.
27 il'xb6
If you have a passed pawn, push it!
Black's pieces are poorly placed, and
White should use his passer to confuse
the enemy forces. After 27 d6! 'i!tf8 28
'ifxb6 llc8 29 l:l:dl �xe4 30 d7 ll:d8 3 1
$>.xe4 ):(f6 3 2 'ifc7 'ife7 33 b6 ):(ff8 34
'i!tc6, only the slightly exposed white
king offers Black any slim hope of sur­
vival.
27...$'_xdS 2B ttlf6+?
It's not easy to see, but Black has a
problem with his bishop. White could
have exploited this by playing 28
'ifxb8+! l:i:xb8 29 ttld6 lIg5 30 lIcs. and
following 30 ... 1I.xf3 31 l:(xg5 1I.dl 32
l:(cS 1I.xa4 33 b6 <;!tf8 34 b7 Black would
be in big trouble.
2B ....!lxf6 29 1I.xd5+ 'it>hB
Suddenly Black might even be bet-
ter.
30 'ifcS .!lfS 31 'ifc6
31 .!lxdS??
•..
Black couldn't find the right de­
fence. 31. . .llf8! was pOSSible, because 32
'ifxa8?? loses to 32 ...'ifb6+ 33 Whl 'lWh6+
34 WgI 'ifxc1 + and .. .!has.
32 'ifxds
Now White's passed pawn decides
the game.
32 ...'ifb6+ 33 'ifcS 'ife6 34 b6 l:te8 35 b7
'ifb3 36 ..whS g6 37 'iff3 "i!fb6+ 38 Wh2
gs 39 'ifc6 il'e3 40 'ifxe8+ 1-0
Game 42
B.Spassky-L.Lengyel
Moscow 1975
1 ttlf3 ttlf6 2 b4 e6 3 a3 b6 4 �b2 $>.b7 5
e3 $>.e7 6 c4 dS?!
It's perhaps too early for Black to
Q u e e n 's I n d ian Systems
decide which pawn structure he wants
in the centre, and it's certainly safer to
castle first, as we saw in the previous
two games.
7 cxdS exdS B bS
Spassky demonstrates his positional
ability. He fights for control of the c6-
square by occupying d4 with his
knight, placing the rook on the c-file
and - f irst of all - putting his pawn on
bS.
8 ...a6 9 a4 axbs 10 axbS �xa1 11 .i.xa1
0·0 12 i.e2 ttlbd7 13 o-ottles 14ttla3
The knight is aiming fOT the d4-
square via c2.
14 ttle6 15 ttla ttle4 16 ttlcd4 ttl4es 17
.••
il'c2
Now it's time to think about both
the weak c6-square and the backward
c7·pawn.
17 1I.f6 18 ttlxe6 ttlxe6 19 .i.xf6 il'xf6
••.
20 d4 �a8 21 ttles 'ife7 22 .Iil.g4 );leB 23
llC1
Let's take a look at what's going on.
Obviously White slands better here
because:
1) His pieces occupy great positions;
and
95
Play 1 b 4 !
2) There are two weaknesses on the
c-fiIe that are under attack: c6 and c7.
I believe these advantages should
be enough for White to win.
23 g6 24 lilc6 'tlYd6 25 h4
.••
The continuation 25 11.xe6
(2S...'tlYxe6 is answered by 26 lila7 win­
ning a pawn - 26 ...lIa8? loses to 27
"f!i'xc7 lIxa7 28 "f!i'b8+) 26 lileS gives
White many positional advantages.
25 ...f5 26 11.f3 11.xc6 27 'tlYxc6 lId8
28 g4!
Striving to create another weakness
in Black's camp. Instead White could
have won a pawn with 28 "f!i'xd6?! Ihd6
29 lIc61 but it's not enough to win the
96
game after 29. . .lIxc6 3 0 bxc6 Wf8 31
�xdS lild8 32 Wf1 We7 33 We2 Wd6 34
fl.g8 lilxc6 35 fl.xh7 lile7.
28 ..."f!i'xc6 29 lIxc6 Wf7 30 Wf:1 IId7 3:J.
We2
After 31 gxfS!? gxfS 32 �e2 �e7 33
hS lId6 34 Itc1 there would be further
weaknesses for White to attack.
32 IIe:1 We6 33 g5 h6 y..y.
3:J. •••lild8
It's probably too early to take a
draw here. 33 ... h6 34 lIg1 lIh7 35 h5
gxhS 36 fl.xhS hxgS 37 lhg5 nh6 38
fl.f3 is still slightly better for White.
Game 43
R.Fischer-D.lna
Cleveland
fxe6
(Si m u ltaneous Display) 1964
:1 b 4 e 6 2 fl.b2 d 5
I n this and the following game,
Black commits to an early .. dS..
3 liJf3liJf6 4 b 5
For the alternative, 4 a3, see Cam­
pora-Visier Segovia (Game 44).
4... b6 5 g3
Fischer liked to fianchetto the king's
bishop, just like in his favourite King's
Indian Defence. In this position 5 e3,
protecting the b5-pawn, is safer.
5...a6 6 a4 axb5 7 axb5 .!! xa1 8 fl.xa:J.
"f!i'd6 9 fl.g2 fl.e7 :10 0-0 0-0 U 'tlYc:J. 'tlYb4
Black exploits the absence of
White's light-squared bishop on the 11-
a6 diagonal by attacking bS.
:J.2 lbc3 d4 :J.3 lila2 "f!i'xb5 :14 lbxd4 "f!i'a6
:15 lilc3 fl.b7 :16 e4 e5?!
16 ...c5 offers good counterchances;
for example, 17 liJde2 c4 18 tl'b1 lId8 19
.lid] fl.cs 20 d4 cxd3 21 cxd3 e5.
:J.7liJf5 fl.b4 18 liJd5 liJxd5 :19 exd5 f6
20 "f!i'd:1 fl.c5?
Black should play 20...g6, and fol­
lowing 21 liJe3 .!!e8 22 c4 liJd7 23 d4
fl.d6 24 "f!i'c2 na8 25 fl.b2 tl'a4 26 tl'e2
both sides have chances.
2 1 d4!
This excellent advance activates
White's pieces and shuts out Black's
best unit - the bishop on cS.
2:J. ...fl.d6?
2Lexd4 22 fl.xd4 fl.xd4 23 lilxd4
fl.cB 24 lIe1 is also good for White, but
this would have been a better choice
for Black than the tex!.
Queen 's Indian Sys tems
22 'tlYg4
Now White crashes through with
an unstoppable attack.
22 ...g6 2 3 liJxd6 cxd6 24 tl'e6+ Wg7 25
'tlYxd6 exd4 26 fl.xd4 b5 27 'tlYc7+ �h6
28 l'1.a:1 :ac8 29 fl.e3+ g5 30 fl.xgs+! 1-0
White wins after 30 ...Wxg5 31 "f!i'g7+, Dr
30 ... fxgS 31 lIxa6+.
Game 44
D.Campora-F.Visier Segovia
Canete 1994
In this game we ran see how a
Grandmaster beats a FIDE Master from
a completely level endgame.
:1 b4 d5 2 fl.b2 lilf6 3 lilf3 e6 4 a3 as
4...cS 5 bxcS fl.xcS 6 e 3 i s discussed
in Chapter Five (see Games 50-51).
5 b5 liJbd7 6 e3
6 d4 liJb6 7 liJeS 1i.d7 B e3 fl.d6 9 c4
dxc4 10 lilxc4 liJxc4 11 fl.xc4 c6 was
comfortable for Black in the game
C.Skalicka-J.salas Romo, Buenos Aires
1939.
6 ...c5 7 c4 dxc4 8 fl.xc4 b6 9 0-0 11.b7 :10
d3 fl.d6 u lilbd2
97
Play 1 b4!
White is thinking about the c4-
square, and the fact that a knight on
that square can add more pressure to
e5. All the bishops are pointing menac­
ingly at the kingside, and both sides
must also be careful since any pawn
movement in the centre could create
some weak squares.
11. .-0-0 12 e4 1Llg4 13 h3 ILlges 14 1Llel
ILlg6 IS lLlef3 ILldeS 16 'IW<2 ILlxf3+ 17
ILlxf3 ILlh4 1S 'lWe2 ILlxf3+ 19 1IKxf3 1IKc7
20 'lWhs il.f4 21 es g6 22 'lWe2 I!ad8 23
g3 il.h6 24 f4 il.d5
In this closed position both White
and Black have ineffective dark­
squared bishops. I don't see any win­
ning plan for Black, but White has
some options. He can try to attack the
black king by pushing his kingside
pawns, but he must take care not to
expose his own king by doing so as this
would lead to big trouble. Also, White
can place rooks on cl and d 1 , prepar­
ing the push of the d-pawn.
25 I!ad1 il.xc4?!
This poor move trades off a good
piece and eliminates a white weakness
at the same time. 25 ... .!Id7!? 26 .!Id2
98
Queen 's Indian Sys tems
.!Ifd8 27 il.c3 il.f8 28 a4 'lWb7 29 Wh2 Summary
il.e7 would be okay for Black. The Queen's Indian system o f development is a logical response to the Sokolsky,
26 dxc4 I!xd1 27 I!xd1 J:: d 8 28 Wf2 il.f8 but you should be able to deal with it comfortably if you remember to put a pawn
29 il.c3 I!xd1 30 'lWxd1 on b5 and protect it, and look for the right moment to break in the centre. It's hard
White has a slight advantage, but it to be more specific; a certain amount of 'fee)' is required to play this type of posi­
shouldn't be enough to win. The only tion well.
chance is a pawn storm on the king­
side. 1 b4 1Llf6
30 ... il.e7 31 'lWf3 il.dS 32 We2 'i:fd7 33 l...e6 2 iI. b2 d5 3 ILlf3 ILlf6
g4 WfS 34 'lWe4 WeS 3S h4 ..tiS?! 4 b5 b6 - Came 43
Perhaps Black should grab the 4 a3 as 5 b5 /i)bd7 6 e3 c5 7 04 dxc4 8 il.xc4 b6 - Came 44
pawn on h4. Following 35 ... il.xh4!? 36 2 il.b2
g5 il.g3 37 'lWf3 il.h2 38 'lWf2 Black has 2 ILlf3 e6 3 a3
the resource 38 ...1!i'b7!, and after 39 3. il.e7 4 c4 b6
__ - Game 41
'i:fxh2 �e4+ 40 Wd2 �xc4 41 Wc2 �xb5 3 ...b6
42 'lWhl a4 43 Wd2 �c4 44 �f3 I believe 4 il.b2 - Came 42
the game should finish in a draw. 4 g3 il.b7 5 iLg2 (0)
36 h5 'oi>g8 37 il.e1 WfS 3S il.f2 �gS 39 5 ... c5 - Came 39; 5 ...il.e7 - Came 40
1!i'aS 1!i'e7 40 il.e3 f5 2 ... e6 3 b5 b6
3...c5 4 e3 d5 5 1Llf3 1Llbd7 6 c4
6 ... b6 - Came 33
6 ... il.d6 7 d3 0-0 8 1ilbd2 b6 - Came 32
3... a6 4 a4 (0)
4 ...b6 - Came 38
4 ... d5 5 e3
5 ...c5 6 1Llf3 il.d6 7 c4 ILlbd7 8 il.e2 b6 - Came 36
5 ...lLlbd7 6 1Llf3 il.d6 7 c4 cS 8 d3 0-0 9 1Llbd2 b6 - Came 37
4 e3 il.b7 5 1Llf3 (0) Came 3S
5 £4 - Came 34
This looks suicidal, but perhaps
Black was afraid that White would
play h6, il.xc5 and then b6.
41 exf6 �xf6 42 g5 �e7 43 il.d2 wf7 44
il.c3 'IW d7 45 hxg6+ 1-0
After the recapture 45 ...hxg6, White
plays 46 'i!¥h l !, and here 46...'lWd6 47
1!i'h7+ We8 48 1!i'xg6+ makes matters
5 il.92 4 04
pretty clear.
99
 Black Plays ... dS and . , e 6.

pawns? Black has no great edge in the ILlxe4 'i!!'xb5 1 2 ILld6+ would not be a
centre or in development at this mo­ good idea.
ment, so why not? 8 ILlf3 ILlbd7 9 c4 'i!!'a S 10 ILlc3 ILlb6

I
Black is striving for active counter­

Cha pter Five play, but it would be mOTe advisable to

complete de velopment with lO .. . St..d6
and ... 0-0.
11 bxc6
Spassky wants to grab e5 for his
Black Plays .•• d S a nd ..• e6 knight, so he takes on c6 first to gain a
tempo. Probably trading on d5 fol­
lowed by il.e2 is a better option.
11... bxc6 12 ILles il.d7 13 il.e2 il.d6 14
f4 0-0 15 0-0 na8
The next two chapters are important ends up getting in the way. The excep­
because many Black players choose a tion seems to be Spassky-Smyslov 4 ... axbS 5 axbs .lba1 6 il.xa1
reversed queen's pawn opening (Game 45), in which Black's queenside This position looks nothing like

against the Sokolsky (or, for I'hal mat­
ter, against any unorthodox opening).
For the sake of convenience, in this
chapter we deal with an early ...e6,
whereas in Chapter Six we move on to
play nearly carries the day. Possibly those seen in so-called standard theory.
Nonetheless, the following lively
Spassky's plan of attacking on the
struggle bel ween two top Grandmas­
kingside was inappropriate.
ters shows there is plenty of scope for
In Simagin-Flohr (Game 50), White
avoids b4-bS and uses the time saved interesting play in this system.

games where Black develops his light­
squared bishop outside the pawn
chain.
This chapter consists of games,
many originally from Sokolsky's book,
which examine attempts by Black to
play a reversed Queen's Gambit with
his light-squared bishop locked in be­
hind his e-pawn, and not fianchettoed.
This plan seems like a poor one from
the evidence accumulated here.
nearly every game Black feels the need
to open the a-file with ...a6 and ... axb5.
The usual result is that White ends up
with control of the a-file and has room
to make good use of it, especially as
Black's light-squared bishop often just
to build an attack on the righl flank, 6 ... c6 7 e3
but Flohr's carer ul defence neutralizes
White's threats. The classic encounter
Alekhine-Drewitt (Game 51) shows
Often in this variation White uses
what can happen against a less than
the a-file for active operations on the
perfect response.
left flank. In this game White's outpost
on e5 prepares the ground for a king­
Game 45 side attack, and Black will be the one to
B.Spassky-V.Smyslov play on the queenside.
Moscow- Leningrad Match, 16 g4!
In
Moscow 1960 It's not every game you see one
player pushing pawns on both wings
7...dS in the first sixteen moves.
1 b4 liJf6 2 il.b2 e6 3 bs a6 4 a4
Of course Black could take on b5, 16 ...il.e8 17 'i!l'el lLla4 18 1Llxa4
Not your everyday opening! Does it
make sense to keep the centre pawns but the surviving b-pawn would be 18 g5 is met by 18 . ..lLle4.
isolated. The forcing variation 7 ...cxb5 18 ...'i!!' xa4 19 gs lLle4 20 d3 il.b4! 2 1
home and throw up the a- and b-
8 il.xb5 'i!!'a5 9 1Llc3 1Lle4 10 'i!!'bl il.b4? 1 1 'i!!' h 4 1Lld6

1 00 101
Play 1 b4 !
2 L li'ld2 22 /tlg4 /tlxfl 23 �xg7 ice7
24 �xf1 is very dangerous for Black, if
not losing outright. However, 21 ...'l!i'c2!
looks to bl' winning for Black. Instead
he prefers to bring his knight to f5 to
defend his king.
22 'ilI'f2 'ilI'c2 23 �g4
The retreat of the knight has lifted
all the prl'ssure off White's position,
and he can now defend quite easily.
23 'ilI'xf2+
••.
23 ... lIa2 24 'ilI'xc2 lIxc2 25 1H2 lIc1 +
26 1Hl 1:tc2 27 nf2 draws at once.
24 IPxf2 dxc4
After 24...na2+ 2S Ii'g3 dxc4 26 /tlxc4
li)xc4 27 dxc4 I1c2 28 I1dl iLe7 29 nbl
iLd6 30 lIdl iLc7 31 iLd4 I1xc4 32 I1al,
the penetration on the eighth rank,
combined with the pressure of the
dark-squared bishop on g7, makes the
draw clear. 32...g6 33 na8 1l<i8 34 lIc8
�aS 3S �e2 I1c1 36 ..l.b2 I1bJ 37 �a3i
�_b4 38 nbf! cS 39 iLxb4 .!hb4 40 lk8
would even offer White the better
prospects.
2S /tlxc4 /tlxc4 26 dxc4 cS
The position has stabilized, and
peace will soon be at hand.
1 02
27 ices lIa2+ 28 'it>g3 i1.a4 29 lIal y,-y,
Game 46
A.Sokolsky-A.Shagalovich
Minsk 1959
1 b4 e 6 2 iLb2 /tlf6 3 bS a 6 4 a4 axbs 5
axbS nxu 6 £xu d 5 7 e3 c5 8 /tlf3
iLd6 9 c4 0-0 10 iLe2 /tlbd7 11 0-0
11 ...dxc4
A mistake - it's wrong to give up
the important c4-square. 1l ... b6 fol­
lowed by ... �b7, finishing the devel ­
opment of the minor pieces; is a better
way forward.
12 /tla3! /tlb6
Obviously Black shouldn't allow a
white knight to stay on the c4-square,
so the upcoming exchange is forced.
13 /tlxc4 /tlxc4 14 iLxc4 b6 15 /tles
White exploits the absence of a
knight from d7 to capture the impor­
tantcf'ntral square eS.
Is...iLb7 16 f4 '/IiIc7
On 16 . .'/lil e7, Black is afraid of the
. lent chances for a win by continuing 33
reply 17 /tlc6!.
17 /tlg4!
Real threats begin to appear. Now
17 .../tlxg4 is bad on account of 18 'ilI'xg4
g6 (or 18 ... eS 1 9 'ilI'g3!) 19 'ilI'gS £e7 (not
19 ... 'ilI'e7?, because of 20 iLf6) 20 'il'h6 f6
21 iLxe6+. Black also can't play 17... /tle4
because of 1 8 d3. Finally, on 17 ... /tldS
or 17.../tle8, 18 fS! is very strong; for
example, 17 ... /tle8 18 fS exfS 19 llxfS
iLc8 20 li'lh6+! and White is winning.
This is why Black allows the doubling
of his pawns: it's better than losing ma­
terial.
17 iLe7 18 /tlxf6+ iLxf6 19 icxf6 gxf6
..•
20 fS! es 21 'ilI'g4+ 'it>h8 22 e4! 'l!id7 23
d3
White violates a well-known pre-
Black Plays . . d5 a n d . . . • 6
.
cept by placing his pawns on light
squares whl'n there are Iight-squarl'd
bishops present. Nonetheless, in this
exceptional case the decision is sound.
Black's bishop stays restricted by the
pawns, but its counterpart is active,
threatening Black's weakened kingside.
So Black seeks salvation in an I'nding,
but unfortunately for him this still fa­
vours his opponent.
2 3...'i!Jld4+ 24 Whl 'i!Jle3 25 'i!Jlh5 1i'g7 26
h4 'i!i'h6 27 'l!I'xh6+ Ii'xh6 28 nul
The a-file is at last in White's grasp,
and the imminent invasion of the sev­
enth rank will terrorize the black
forces.
28 ...l1d8 29 J:: a 7 lId7 30 Wgl Wg7
Black gets nothing from 3O li'hS ..•
because of 31 g3 Wg4 32 Ii'f2 Ii'hS 33
iLdS iLc6 34 1:txd7 s.. xd7 3S iLc6 iLeB 36
iLe8, when hI' is quite losl.
31 �f2 1i'f8 32 �e3 �g7
33 'it>d2?
A sad mistake! White could have
reached a bishop endgame with excel­
�dS! iLe6! 34 lhd7 iLxd7 3S iLc6 .tc8
36 Ii'd2 'it>f8 37 'it>c3 �e7 38 �c4 �d6 39
1 03
Play 1 b 4 f
g 4 h6. In this position it's sufficient for
White to lose a tempo to put Black into
zugzwang, as follows: 40 iLd5 We7 41
il. a8! wd6 (or 4 l . .. il.d7 42 il.c6! il.xc6 43
bxc6 ..t.>d6 44 Wb5 Wc7 45 h5! etc) 42
iLc6. The pawn endgame after the
forced 42 ... il.d7 43 il.xd7 II<xd7 44 Wd5
II<c7 45 g5 hxg5 46 hxg5 fxg5 47 Wxe5 is
winning for White; for example, 47.. .16+
48 11<xf6 g4 49 e5 g3 50 e6 g2 51 e7 gl'i!l'
52 e8'i!1' 'i!l'd4+ 53 'i!l'e5+.
33 ...il.e6!
Black at once seizes his chance to
save the game. This move was im pos­
sible before because of :!l'.a6, but now
after 34 11a6 there follows 34...il.xe4.
After the text move White must swap
rooks but this exchange lacks the de·
sired effect.
34 �xd7 il.xd7 3S II<e3 M8 36 ..t.>b3 We7
n ..t.>a4
Defending the b5·pawn allows
White to play il.d5, but Black of course
will not allow it to reach c6.
37 ....liLe8 38 il.ds II<d6 39 il.b7 We7 40
-'".dS ..t.>d6 y,.y,
Game 4 7
S.Bernstein-H.Seidman
US Cham pionship 1959
1 b 4 121f6 2 il.b2 e 6 3 bS a6 4 a4 axbS
Lock at the diagram at the end of
this game, and note how active a role
White's rook on the a·fiIe played.
Should Black open a file for his oppo·
nent to capture? This question proba­
bly doesn't need an answer.
S axbs l'lxa1 6 il.Xa1 dS 7 121f3 i.e7 8 e3
1 04
8 121bd7
..•
Here it's better to play 8 ...c5. Leav·
ing a pawn on c7 keeps Black a little
passive, and it will be difficuh in futurP
to come up with a good plan.
9 il.e2 0·0 10 0·0 l2le8
Again 1O ...c5 is stronger. Black's reo
grouping of his pieces will not prove to
be successful.
11 e4 il.f6 12 l2le3 dxe4 13 il.xc4121d6 14
il.e2 b6 1S 121a2!
Black's previous move intended to
deploy his light·sguared bishop ac·
tively, but White immediately aims the
knight on the route l2lc3·a2·b4-<:6, to
reach the accordingly weakened point.
It's also worth noting the backward
pawn on the half·opened c·fiIe. If the
pawn were on cS, Black wouldn't have
these problems.
1S ...il.b7 16 il.xf6 'OIVxf6 17 l2lb4 l2leS 18
l2ld4!
Now both knights are controlling
c6, and Black can't avoid an unpleasant
invasion.
18 'Wgs 19 g3 'Wh6 20 'i!l'c2 'Wh3
•.•
Usually the pressure on the open
diagonal creates too many problems.
Here it's easily eliminated because the
white knight is coming to c6.
21 121bc6 wh8 22 1131
So, the a-file is in White"s power!
It's worth observing that the reply
22 ...li!a8 is not good for Black. Continuo
ing 23 11xa8i il.xa8 24 'Wa4, White's
queen invades on the a-file, achieving
the advantage. This is a logical turn of
events, since on the queenside White
has a space advantage, and using the
open a-file is easier for him.
22 ...lbg4 23 l2lf3 'il!'hs 24 :a4!
A beautiful idea! White offers Black
a choice of either of the pawns on bS or
h2. On 24 ... 121xb5 there follows 25 Ibh4!,
Black Plays . . . d5 and . . . e6
winning a piece. Black prefers to cap·
t ure the pawn on h2 but is trapped in a
clever snare.
24...lbxh2
Maybe Black counted on 25 llh4?
l2lxf3, 26 .t.xf3 "i1t'f5!, meeting all the
threats.
25 121fes!
In this position 2S ... 'iI!'f5 10ses a piece
after 26 'WxfS l2lxfS 27 IPxh2. Nor is
Black saved by 25...'Wh6, because of 26
li!.M.
2s ...'i!I'xe2
Now, by sacrificing a queen, White
forces a checkmate in four moves:
26 'i!l'xhH! 1·0
(Co·author's note: My late friend
Sidney Bernstein was guite proud of
this elegant win against his old rival
Herb Seidman, and I am pleased to
include it in this collection.)
Game 48
A.Sokolsky-E.Geller
USSR Championship. Kiev 1957
1 b4 121f6 2 il.b2 e6 3 b s a 6 4 a 4 i1.e7
1 05
Play 1 b 4 1 Black Plays . . . dS a n d ... 06

Placing the bishop o n e7 i s a stan­
dard opening ploy and is hence unol:>­
jectionable, but the continuation 4 ... d5
5 e3 c5 6 llif3 �d6 is more active.
S "3 0-0 6 llif3 axbs?!
Opening the a-file is good
Whitp, who now has a base for activp
operations on the queenside. 6 ... d5 is a
stronger option.
7 axbs l:txa1 8 �xa1 dS 9 d4
This move is probably not worse
than the usual 9 c4. White plans to de­
velop by llibd2 and -'.d3. Black must
open the game with ...c5 or else he will
remain cram perl.
9 ••.cS
Geller brings about a lively position
with this mandatory thrust.
W hite's dark-squared bishop comes
alive, but so do the black pieces.
10 dxcS llie4!?
Hoping to get in a useful ... '/WaS< ,
but 1O ... �xc5 would have
stronger.
11 llibd2ll1'as 12 �e2 �d7
After 12...llic3? 13 llib3! 'i!!'b4 14 'i!!' d 2
llia2 15 llI'xb4 llixb4 16 Ii>d2, the black
knight is in a precarious position.
13 0-0 �xbS are obviously in White's favour. The
Or 13 ...llixc5 J 4 'i!!'bl, and a later c2- ensuing transfer of the bishop to c6 is
Came 49
c4 will give White the belter chances. probably the best that Black can do in
A.Sokolsky-N.Abzhirko
14 �xbS 'i!!'x bs this position.
Omsk 1943
If 14...llixd2, White replies 15 llixd2!
for 'l!I"xbS 16 'l!I"g4 g6 17 'l!I"d4 f6 18 nbl
'i!!' xcs 19 l1xb7, arriving onto the sev­ 1 b4 llif6 2 �b2 e6 3 bs il..e7 4 e3 0-0 5
enth rank with many threats. llif3
1S llixe4 dxe4 16 'l!I"d4! �_f6 n 'i!!'xe4 It's a matter of taste which move to
�Xa1 1 8 X!.Xa1 prefer: s llif3 or 5 f4.
Ma ybe better here is 18 lligS g6 19 5...c6
'l!I"M hS 20 l1xa 1. In this game Black decides to de­
18... 'l!I"xc5 19 'l!I"xb7 'l!I"xc2 stroy the nuisance on bS. It's possible
to do so by a more exact order of
moves: 5 ... a6 6 a4 axbS 7 axbS x!'xa1 8
�xal c6 9 c4 dS.
6 a4 d5 7 C4 a6 8 llic31 12 ...il.d7 13 0·0 .!>.c6 14 llifd4 �dS 1S
):(c1 llibd7
The tempting continuation
15 ....!>.xc4 16 lhc4 'l!I'dS leads after 17
lIc7! �d8 18 llic3 to the loss of a pawn.
16 .!>.a3!
The battl.. on the queenside has
ended satisfactorily for both sides.
White's pieces are placed mOfe ac­
tiv..ly, but Black has ehminated all the
True, pawns on the left flank and has thus Now after the exchange of rooks on
assu red himself of not losing. the a I-square White's queen will come
20 h3 to the a-file, and this greatly improves
After 20 llid4! 'l!I"c8 (20...'l!I"c3 21 l:!.bJ his position.
�c8) 21 Itbl �d7 22 It\c6 'l!I"xb7 23 l::txb7 8 ... axb5 9 axbs r!xa1 10 'i!!' Xa1 dxC4 11
been llif6 24 llieS, Black would still have to �xc4 cxbS 12 llixbS The goa l of this pxchang.. is to gain
negot iate a few difficulties before Black has achieved his goal of de­ the d6-square for the knight, from
achieving the draw. In the actual event stroying the bS-pawn, but he has spent where it can attack the pawn on b7.
peace was concluded more quickly. too much time in doing so. Further­ 16..•.!>.xa3 17 'iil'xa3 It\b6 18 �xdS
20 ..:iWc6 21 );ta7 'iWxb7 22 l1xb7 llic6 more, the b7-pawn is now exposed as a llibxdS 19 l1id6
Y.-Y. weakness. The results of the opening White has carried out his plan, but

106 107
Play 1 b41
Black defends admirably.
19... 'i!I'e7! 20 fil4bS fileB 21 g 3
An important preparation. White
wants to push Ihe knight away from
dS, but 21 e4 allows 21. _filf4.
21 .. .filxd6 22 'l'fxd6 'liI'g s
22...'l'fxd6 23 filxd6 b6 (23 .. JlbB 24
filxb7!) 24 e4 iDf6 2S f3 IitbB 26 Wf2 etc
leads to a difficult ending for Black.
23 fild4
Black was threatening the move
23 ...filxe3!, and 23 litcS was no good
because of 23 ...b6 24 1.'lc6 filxe3. In turn,
White is now threatening to sacrifice
on e6.
23 •. .I!dB 24 'l'fcs h6 2S 'i!lbs eS 26 file2
Black has defended very imagina­
tively until now. Here he has to play
26 ... b6, but in this case by continuing
27 filc3! filxc3 28 nxc3 1.'lb8 (or 28 .. Jlxd2
29 'liI'e8+ <;\;>h7 30 'liI'xf7) 29 Itc7 White
could ke<>p an advantage.
26 •..'lWe7 27 );Ics 'lWd6 2B d4 exd4
On 28... b6 there could follow 29 1.'lc6
'lWe7 30 e4 filf6 3 1 dxeS filxe4 32 liIxb6,
winning a pawn.
29 iDxd4 filc7
It's difficult for Black to defend after
108
29 ...b6 30 /lc4, with threats of 31 filfS or
31 1'4.
30 'i'l'c4 fila6?
Thl' transfer of the knight to the
edge oj the board is a serious mistake.
Coming back to d5 leads to immediate
defeat: 30...fildS 31 filfS 'lWe6 32 J:hd5
l:txdS 33 'i'l'xdS etc. Only 30 ... file6! offerS
hopes of saving the game.
31 Ubs 1l: bB 32 'lWb3
Here it's possible to win a pawn,
playing 32 Ji[xb7 nxb7 33 'lWc8+ Wh7 34
'lWxb7 lbc7. But White is well aware thai
realizing his extra pawn in such an
ending is not an easy task, so he prefers
to keep the rooks on and increase the
pressure.
32...'lWd7
32 ... g6 is not good because of 33
litb6 'l!I'c7 34 lhg6+.
33 IilfS �h7 34 'lWb2 f6 3S 'lWb1 l1<hB 36
h4
It's hard to defend when you can'l
make a good movf'. White threatens 37
hS followed by Ii:lh4. The move Black
chooses permits White to include the
rook in the allack.
36•..\I; gB 37 ll:dS! 'lWc7
37... 'lWe6 38 l:td6 'lWc4 39 filxh6+! is
destructive.
3B 'lWd1 ncB
Equivalenl to g1vmg up. But after
38 ...filcs 39 'lWg4� Black has no defence
to the threats of 40 J:txcS or 40 filxh6; .
39 nd7 1-0
White has successfully convl'rtl'd
his early queenside activity into a dev­
astating attack on the olher wing.
Game 50
V.Simagin-S.Flohr
USSR Championship,
Moscow 1955
1 b 4 d S 2 .l1i.b2 filf6 3 Ii:lf3 e6 4 a3
4 b S is stronger. Simagin writes that
after 4 bS a6 S a4 Black can simplify the
position with S... axbS 6 axb5 .thaI 7
.l1i.xaI. But this exchange cannot be
good for Black - il opens a file on the
side where White has more space.
Practice shows that in such cases White
has more chances to play on this file.
4 ...c S 5 bxcS .l1i.xcs 6 e3 0-0
The game has started Similarly to
Black Plays . . . dS and . • 6
the beginning of Alekhine·Drewitt,
Portsmouth 1923. Alekhine continued
here 7 c4 Ii:lc6 8 d4, which is probably
better than Simagin·s preference.
7 d4 ii.e7
This is stronger than retreating to
b6, which was Drewill's choice.
B l.ilbd2
And here 8 c4 was better. Flohr
immediately exploits his opponent"s
mistake.
B ...b6! 9 files
Now after 9 .l1i.d3 or 9 c4 Black can
continue 9 ... .l1i.a6!. The idea of White's
actual move is to make it harder for
Black to exchange I he light·squared
bishops: 9 ... .l1i.a6 is met by 10 Ii:lc6! filxc6
1 1 .l1i.xa6.
9• . ..l1i.b7 10 .l1i.d3 1i:lc6
11 0·0
After 11 'lWf3 (with the idea of pre­
paring 'lWh3) 1 1 ._li:lxeS 1 2 dxeS file4! 1 3
Ii:lxe4 dxe4 1 4 �x1'4 .l1i.xe4 1 5 'l!!' xe4 nc8,
even though Black has lost a pawn his
position is not worse.
11 ... lile8 12 Ii:lxc6
In the spirit of the position was 1 2
f4, to which Black should reply 1 2 .. .fS.
1 09
Play 1 b 4 ! Black Plays . . dS a n d
. ... • 6

White instead prepares the advance c2- Weaker is 19 e4 dxe4 2 0 fxe4 �f4! 21 side, but at least this avoids a quick
c4. d5 l:!.e8. defeat.
Game 5 1
12 il.xe6
..• 19...I!e8 13 t4 ll:ae8 14li1<1 lild7?
A.Alekhine-J.Drewitt
So Black has succeeded in stopping Even here, the move 14...il.c7!?
Portsmouth 1923
the ad vance of the e-pawn. White be­ could be played. 15 'i!l'f3 h6 16 c5 bS 17
gins play along the c-file. SLxb5?! �xd4 18 exd4 it.xbS poses some
20 il.a6 'i!l'b8! 21 il.xb7 'i!l'xb7 22 '!ii' e2 h6 ! had heard a bout this A!ekhine awkward problems for White, al­
23 'i!l'e6 'i!l'e7 game which features a famous two­ though taking on b5 is obviously not
bishop sacrifice, but [ never imagined forced.
the opening had been the Sokolsky.
1 121t3 dS 2 b4 e6 3 il.b2 l2lt6 4 a3
This i s m y favourite move, but
some players - including Sokolsky -
prefer 4 b5.
4.. '<:S S bxes i.xes 6 e3 0-0 7 <4
13 e4 121t6 14 lle1 lle8 1S 'i!l'e2 il.b7 7 d4 was covered in Simagin-Flohr
White must resolve the tension in (see Game 50).
the centre because of the threat of 7 121e6 8 d4 il.b6 9 l2lbd2 'i!l'e7 10 i.d3
•..

1 6...il.a6. ll:dS 11 0-0

16 exds exdS
Not 16 ... 'i!I'xd5 17 e4! 'i!l'a2? 18 I!bl,
with a threat of 19 il.c4.
17 f3
A preferable way to prepare the
central push was with 17 llxc8! 'i!l'xc8
18 f3. Also worthy of attention was 1 7
il.f5.
17.. 1'!xe1! 18 llxe1 il.d6 19 l2lh
Flohr declines the exchange, think­
ing that with queens on the board it 15 l2lxe6 .!!:xc6?
will prove easier for Black to get coun­ 15 ... bxc6 avoids an immediate catac;­
terplay. tmphe, but 16 c5 il.a5 17 il.c3 ii.xc3 1 8
24 a4 i.a3 2S 'i!l'e3 il.d6 26 'i!l'b3 'i!l'e6 liIxc3 l:tbB 19 l2lf3 l2lf6 2 0 'i!l'c2 ll:d7 2 1
26 ... 'i!I'd7 is weaker because of 27 ):1.bl J:tdb7 22 J:!.cb3 J:!.xb3 23 ll:xb3 J:!.xb3
'i!l'b5. 24 'i!!'xb3 leaves White with the advan­
27 il.a3 il.xa3 28 'i!l'xa3 Ile8 29 lheS+ tage thanks to his stronger minor
'i!l'xe8 pieces.
The situalion has sim plified. 16 c5 121xe5
White's small threats are easily dealt This is clearly desperation, but
with, and the drawish outcome of the White enjoys a very comfortable 16 ... il.a5 17 l2lb3 ii.c7 (l7...b6 18 l2lxaS
st ruggle is now inevitable. position because his pieces are control­ bxa5 19 il.c3 l:tb8 20 lIbl lil:xbl 21 'i!!' xbl
30 'i!l'e7 'i!l'a6 31 'i!l'b4 'i!l'd3 32 h3 hS 33 ling the centre and Black has a bad l2lf6 22 il.xaS is hopeless for Black) 18
h 4 'i!l'e2 34 'i!l'a3 'i!l'e1! 35 'i!l'd3! bishop on c8. il.bS wins the exchange, as does
The sim plest: after forcing the ex­ 1L . .il.d7 12 121e5 il.e8 16 ...il.c7 17 il.b5.
change of the pawns on the edge the , 12 ...il.c7!? 13 ll:cl ll:ac8 14 f4 dxr4 15 17 dxes il.xcs 18 lit3 il.xa3 19 ll:xe6
position is more stabilized. l2ldxc4 121d5 1 6 'i!!'f3 f6 17 121xd7 'i!l'xd7 18 il.xc6
35 :iixh4 36 'i!l'a6 'i!l'e1 37 �xa7 �b4
.• 'flI'h3 g6 leaves White with attacking Now comes the thematic double­
38 'i!l'a8+ \t>h7 39 'i!l'e6 \t>gS y.-y, chances because of Black's loose king- bishop sacrifice:

110 111
Ploy 1 b 4 !
2 0 �xh7+!! 'OlIxh7 21 l:!h3+ 'OlIg8 22
�xg7 1-0
After 22 .. .£6 23 iLh6 'lil'h7 24 'lil'h5
�fS 25 'lil'g4+ 'OlIf7 26 iLxfS White wins a
piece; or 22 ... 'OlIxg7 23 'lil'g4+ and White
mates with 23 ... 'OlIf6 24 l:!h6 or 23 ...'OlIf8
24 l:th8.
This type of sacrifice was made fa­
mous by Emanuel L asker, who used it
to win a classic game over tOO years
ago: 1 f4 d5 2 e3 liJf6 3 b3 e6 4 iLb2 iLe7
5 Sl.d3 b6 6 1iJf3 Sl.b7 7 liJc3 IiJbd7 8 0-0
0-0 9 liJe2 c5 1 0 IiJg3 'il'c7 11 liJe5 liJxe5
12 Sl.xe5 'i'i'c6 13 'il'e2 a6 14 IiJhS IiJxhS
IS Sl.xh7< 'OlIxh7 16 'il'xhS+ wgS 1 7
Sl.xg7 'OlIxg7 IS 'l'fg4+ 'OlIh7 1 9 .l'!f3 e S 20
112
l:!h3. \!'h6 2 1 nxh6 . 'OlIxh6 22 'lil'd7 Sl.f6
23 \1I'xb7 wg7 24 l:!fl nabS 2S \1I'd7 Itfd8
26 \1I'g4+ �f8 27 fxeS iLg7 28 e6 l:!b7 29
'lil'g6 f6 30 l:!xf6i Sl.xf6 3 1 'l'fxf6i 'OlIeS 32
'lil'hSi 'OlIe7 33 'l'fg7+ 'OlIxe6 34 'lil'xb7 .l'!d6
35 'i!l'xa6 d4 36 exd4 cxd4 37 h4 d3 3S
\1I'xd3 and Black resigned, Em.Lasker­
).Bauer, Amsterdam IS89.
Game 52
Y.Lapshun-J.Szabolcsi
Budapest 2007
I played this game in a 'First Satur­
day' tournament in Budapest. The op­
position consisted mostly of sll ong
IMs, so I knew it wouldn't be easy.
Even though I finished tied for last
place, I was very happy to have played
some wild games. After a short draw
against a GM in the first round, my
next opponent was the Hungarian
chess coach, 1M Janos Szabolcsi. Dur­
ing my preparation for the game, 1 got
pretty nervous because I he guy had
four good defences against 1 e4. After
hours of hard work, the best I could
find against them was a very small
edge. This was not particularly satisfy­
ing, so I figured it was time to trot out
1 b4 for its maiden appearance in this
event. After reviewing a few Sokolsky
games (this book wasn't available yet!)
I was ready ...
1 b4
The other competitors, all titled
players, came over to my board one by
one and each of them left with a big
smile - I get this reaction all the time!
1 ...<6 2 il.b2 cIS 3 e3 liJf6 4 IiJf3 e6
When my opponent shut in his
light-squared bishop with this move, I
began to feel comfortable.
5 a3 as 6 b5 Sl.d6 7 <4 0-0
8 d4
Grabbing the bigger share of the
centre, at a cost of weakening the im­
portant e4-square. But, as Fischer said,
you gotta give squares to get squares.
8 . _dx<4 9 1iJ<3
.
9 il.xc4!? cxbS 10 �xb5 �d7 1 1 �d3
iLc6 12 IiJc3 liJbd7 13 e4 is also good.
9 .. _liJd5 1 0 il.X<4 IiJxc3 11 il.xc3 'lil'c7 12
'il'd3 cxb5 13 il.xb5 il.d7 14 W d2!?
Steinitz, anyone? I wanted to de-
Black Plays " .dS and , . e6
fend my bishops and couldn'l find any
other way to do so. It looks very risky,
yes, but the black pieces ar" in a differ­
ent time zone from the white king.
14 0-0 Sl.xb5 15 'ii'xb5 Ile8
(15 ... 'iII'xc3?? allows the queen to be
trapped by 16 l:!fd) 16 nfd should be
<,qual.
14...Sl.xbS 15 'lil'xbs liJd7 16 l:!hc1 IiJf6
My opponent could not rf'Sist the
temptation to give a check with his
knight on e4, but now White can trade
his lousy bishop and create problems
for Black.
17 iLb4! liJe4+ 18 wd3 'i'l'e7
IS ... liJxf2+?? 19 We2 'fIr'dS 20 Sl.xd6
'lil'xd6 21 lllxf2 and Black loses a piece.
19 Wxe4 axb4 20 axb4 �xb4
What is going on here? The white
king is not afraid of anything and
demonstrates that he is a valuable
member of the team. Black can'l. do
anything to harm him, and later on he
will return to his shelter. Meanwhile,
Black will have big problems with his
weak b-pawn.
Fritz or some other computer en­
gine will tell you that this position is
113
Play 1 b4!
equal. but don't you believe it! I felt
then, as I feel now, that White is win - 25 .jcd6
ning a pawn and has a big advantage.
21 l::txaS! l:!xaS 22 l:!b1 f5+
Despite my faith, I must point out
that Black has a better defence here
with 22 ... .l>.d6! 23 'i!l'xb7 'i!l' xb7+ 24 llxb7
lla2 25 l:!d7 .l>.f8 26 liJe5 lhf2 27 lld8
fS+ 28 Wd3 1:lxg2 29 h4 llh2 30 IiJd7 Wf7
31 IiJxf8 We7 32 l:tc8 l:!xh4, with very
good chances to draw because White's
knight doesn t have anywhere to go.
' 14 liJgxe4 axb5 15 J:.xbS ,!:ldB 16 ,!:lcl
23 Wd3
23...lla3+
In comparison to the previous note,
after 23 ... .l>.d6 24 'i!l'xb7 'i!l'xb7 25 llxb7
l:!a2 26 l:!d7 .l>.f8 27 liJg5 l:!xf2 28 IiJxe6
l:!xg2 29 ll:d8 Wf7 30 liJxf8 We7 31 l:!a8
1Ixh2 White is winning as the knight
can escape (d4-d5 followed by liJe6). In
this line Black can choose to defend
with 27...l:!a6, but White has excellent
chances to convert his advantage.
24 We2 l:!a2+ 25 Wf1
It was thoughtful of the rook to es­
cort my king home, but this really
hasn't accomplished very much fOT
Black. And now White possesses that
114
nice inviting cubby-hole on e5.
__
2 6 h4
I liked the idea of moving this pawn
out of the bishop's firing line, but the
direct 26 liJg5 was an excellent alterna­
tive. Then 26 ...lla8 27 'i!l'xb7 'i!l'xb7 28
ll:xb7 ll:al+ 29 We2 ll:a2+ 30 Wf3 e5 31
dxe5 .l>.xe5 32 ll:e7 J:.d6 33 :I1e8+ J:.f8 34
liJxh7 Wxh7 35 lhf8 leaves White with
a winning rook ending.
26 .ll:c2 27 'iil' b 3
__
Another good way was 27 "iWxb7
llcl+ 28 We2 llc2+ 29 WeI llcl + 30 Wd2
l:!xbl 31 'iil'x bl, with an extra pawn.
27 .llcs 28 liJg5 b5 29 liJxe6
__
The b-pawn will also drop shortly,
and the rest requires no explanation.
29 'i!l'f7 30 'i!l'd5 J:.e7 31 J::!x b5 J:.xh4 32
•..
g3 J:.f6 33 'i!l'xf5 'i!l'a7 34 IiJc5 J::!a 8 35
'i!l'e4 'i!l'a1+ 36 Wg2 l:IdS 37 IiJd7 'i'l'a6 3S
ll:b6 1-0
My opponent had seen enough and
gave up. So after two rounds I was tied
for the lead, but I then lost my next
three games. My play was as reckless
as my king's wanderings in this game!
Game 53
V.Akopian-S.Ganguly
Goodricke Open, Calcutta
1 b4 e6 2 J:.b2 1iJf6 3 b5 d5 4 e3 J:.d6
4 ... J:.e7 5 f4 0-0 6 J:.d3 a6 7 a4 axb5 8
axb5 lhal 9 J:.xal IiJbd7 10 1iJf3 liJe4
looks level. S.Tartakower-G.Maroczy,
New York 1924. The moves 4 ...a6 and
4.. cS, in conjunction with an early . . b6,
. .
were discussed in the previous chapter.
5 liJf3 a6 6 a4 "iWe7
Black is preparing to advance in the
centre with ... es.
7 <4 dxc4 S J:.xc4 e5
Black Plays . . . d5 a n d . . . e 6
Now the position looks like i t arose
from a reversed Sicilian Defence.
9 IiJg5 0-0 10 "iW<2 h6 11 h4! e4
Accepting the sacrifice is quite
risky: after 1 1 . ..hxg5 12 hxg5 IiJbd7 13
IiJc3 ne8 14 gxf6 IiJxf6 15 bxa6 bxa6 16
IiJd5 "iWd8 17 f4 l'tb8 1 8 J:.c3 J:.e6 19
IiJxf6 > "iWxf6 20 "iWh7 > 'il<f8 21 icxa6
Black has succeeded only in losing a
pawn.
12 liJ<3 J:.f5 13 g4 I2ixg4 14 liJd 5
ttJa6 is unclear.
14... "iWeS 15 f4
Even a computer does not under­
stand what is going on in this crazy
position. White has a very dangerous
attack, but his king is not castled, his
rooks are not connected and the knight
on g5 is under threat .
15 ...axb5?
IS ...Wh8 looks like the best defence;
for example, 16 J:.a3 axb5 J7 .l>.xb5 "iWd8
18 1iJxc7 l:ta7 19 J:.e2 J:.xa3 20 lha3 "iWe7
21 liJ b5 ll:a5.
15 ...liJd7, on the other hand, could
lead to lhe following aesthetic varia­
tion: 16 bxa6 bxa6 17 "iWc3 liJdf6 18 J:.e2
115
Play 1 b4 !
ibh5 19 �gl hxg5 20 S/.xg4 S/.xg4 21
Ilxg4 <6 22 'iii' Xg71 !! ibxg7 23 ibf6. Wh8
24 hxg5! ibf5 25 ibxe8+ \t>g8 26 ibf6+
\t>g7 27 ibxe4. \t>g6 28 ]:tel, and White
is winning.
16 'ifc3l S/.e5 17 fxe5 bxc4 18 e6 f6 19
e7 hxg5
19 ..ibe5 20 exf8'i!V+ 'il!'xf8 21 ibxc7 is
. 21 ...f6 22 I1bl
hoppless for Black.
20 iLa3
20• . .ibd7 2 1 exf8'if+ ibxf8 22 ibe7+ >tIf7
n li'lxfs li'le5 24 hxg5
White has managed to achieve a de­
ClSlve material advantage without
moving his king or either of his rooks.
24 ...'ilfd7 25 ll:f1 ibfg6 26 gxf6 gxf6 27
116
'ilfd4 'ilfe6 28 >tIdl /bf3 29 'i!i'e5 t:d8 30
ibd4 ibxd4 31 exd4 e3 32 dxe3 1-0
Game 54
R.Fischer-K.Walters
San Francisco
(Simultaneous Display) 1964
1 b4 ib�6 2 �b2 e6 3 b5 d5 4 ibf3 C6
This idea is not seen very often.
Usually Black plays instead 4 ... a6!? 5 a4
axb5 6 axb5 ]:txa1 7 �xal (transposing
to Bernstein-Seidman, see Game 47),
4 .. .<5 5 e3 (Games 32-33) or 4 ... iLd6
(Game 53).
5 e3 cxb5 6 iLxb5+ iLd7 7 iLxd7+
lilbxd7 8 0-0 S/.e7
Black has achipved a fairly comfort­
able position from the opening, with a
nice c�file and no weaknesses.
9 d3 0-0 10 t;)bd2 'fie7 11 c4!
Fischer exchanges his weak c-pawn.
11...dxe4 12 lilxe4 IIae8 13 a4 IIfd8 14
'i!i'e2 b6 15 Itfel 'lWb7 16 h3 ibe5
The knight on c5 is a danger, attack­
ing a4, b3, d3 and e4.
17 ibd4 �xd4 18 S/.xd4 ibb3 1 9 �ebl
ibXa1 20 IIxal ibd7
21 "i!O'b2
21 'i!i'g4!? might be stronger. 2Libf6
is met by 22 S/.xf6 iLxf6 23 li'ld6 'ilfd7 24
ibxc8 iLxal 25 'i!i'c4' g6 26 "il'a6 'iii' c7 27
ibxa7, when White wins a pawn and
has very good winning chances.
22 a5!? b5 23 a6 'O!¥c6 24 t;)a5 "il'xa6
25 ibb3 'i!i'd6 26 1:txa7 leads to very in­
teresting complications after 26...e5!,
which in all likelihood will boil down
to equality after 27 'i!i'a2 �f8 (27 ... exd4
28 I1xd7!) 28 IIa6 "il'c7 29 IIa7.
22 ••.e5 23 iLC3 ibes 24 'i!i'a2?
24 'i!i'c2 'i!i'd5 25 ibb2 ibe6 26 ibdl.
preventing annoying Black moves such
as .. .'1l1a2 and ... S/.b4, makes sure that
White holds the balance.
24..•'i!i'd5 25 ltdl ibxd3 26 J:txd3 'i!j'xe4
27 "il'd2 "il'xa4
White 15 two pawns down and com­
pletely lost.
28 IId7 'i!i'a3
28...\t>f8!, preventing 29 'ilfd5, is
stronger.
29 'ilfd5+ 1t>#8 30 �d2 h6 31 'ilfe6 l:e8 32
e4 b5 33 iLe3 as 34 �h2
Black Plays . . . dS and ... e 6
34 "iWd5! ltc8 3 5 "iWxb5 'ilfc3 3 6 S/.d2
'i!i'c6 37 "iWxc6 I1xc6 38 iLxa5 is dpad
equal. Fischer was probably "till trying
to win!
34. .."iWb4 35 S/.b6
35..."iI'xe4??
35...a4! would have collected the
Fischer scalp. For example, 36 "il'fS a3
37 Ila7 'i!i'c4 38 'i!i'd7 b4 39 S/.d8 'i1t'c5 40
iLxe7+ lhe7 41 J:ta8+ ¢>f7 42 'ilfd8 "i!O'c6
43 'i1t'g8+ \t>g6 and White runs out of
ideas. After the text move, however,
the tables are abruptly turned .
36 iLes! 'i!i'f4+
36... S/.xcS allows mate in one with
37 'i!i'f7.
37 g3 1-0
Poor Walters missed the chance of a
lifetime in this game.
Game 55
B.Gurgenidze-A.Dgebuadze
Georgian Championship,
Tbilisi 1996
1 ibf3 ibf6 2 b4 e6 3 a3 d5 4 e] c6 5 c4
iLe7 6 iLe2 0-0 7 0-0 ibbd7 8 exd5 exd5
117
Ploy 1 b4 ! Block Ploys .. dS a n d
. ... •6

9 �b2 a s 1S...g6 16 g3 After 36 'ilfel 'ilfd4+ 37 il'e3 il'd5 38

A good move, which helps Black to
gain some control in the centre.
10 bS CS 11 a4 ne8 12 d3 b6 13 liJbd2
�b7 14 I1C1
Planning a possible liJh4-g2-f4, add­
ing pressure to dS.
16.. �g7 17 liJh4 ncB 1B liJg2 1:C7 19
'ilfu
White wants to attack the d5-pawn
with the queen on a2, bishop on f3 and
knight on f4. Black decides to strike
first, but probably the counterattack is
premature and 19 ...'ilfe7 is safer.
19...d4 20 liJc4
36 liJe1
'i!l'e8+ Wg7 39 'ilfe7+ Wg6 40 'ilfe8+ Wg7
41 'ilfe7, Black should allow the p�r­
petual check, as 41...'ilff7 42 tixf7+ Wxf7
43 liJe3 is good for While.
36...'i!I'ds 37 'i!l'xf6 'i!l'h1+ 3B ..t>f2 'i!l'xh2+
39 >!<e3
39 Wfl 'ilfd2 40 'ilfe6+ is probably
also a draw.
39 ...'lil'xg3+ 40 Wd2 1-0
The game should be drawn after 40
Wd2 'lil'f4+ 41 'lil'xf4 gxf4 42 liJd3 h5 43
liJxf4 h4, but maybe Black lost on time.

Such a position can easily occur in

the Sokolsky. Ideally White would like
to swap off Black's d-pawn by playing
e�4, but Black's concentration of
forces on that square makes this idea
impractical. So instead White conceives
a plan of direct attack on the enemy's 20.. .IiJeS?!
central bastion. Black should play 20 ...'iiI'a 8�?, when
14 ...�f8 1S 1l:c2 21 liJel dxe3 22 fxe3 1l:e6 23 �dl offers
chances for both sides.
21 liJxeS Ilxes 22 exd4 cxd4 23 l:! .KC7
'iil' xc7 24 �xd4 l:!xe2 25 �xf6 � d6 26
'ilfxf6
White has won a pawn, but Black's
pieces are active and it will be hard to
make it count.
26 ...l.e6 27 'iil' d4
27 'iil' a l! �xg2 28 Wxg2 'ilfd7 29 );tdl
keeps the extra pawn and offers some
winning chances.
27 ..Jl.d6 28 'iil'e5 'ilfd7 29 liJf4 f6 3 0 'ilfe3
Defending both bishops and gs 31 liJg2 l:!xd3 32 'ilfxb6 'e'dS 33 f3
preparing a thematic 'ilfa1. Ilxf3 34 Ilxf3 'ilfxf3 35 'ilff2 'ilfd1+

118 119
Play 1 b4!

Summary

I
The Queen's Gambit set-up without ...b6 is less logical than the Queen's Indian -
players don't employ the Queen's Gambit as White by locking in their queen's
bishop anymore, do they? The recipe for White is often the same as the one sug­
gested in Chapter Four. put a pawn on b5, cover it, and then strike at the centre. Cha pter Six
However, playing with a more restrained a2-a3, as in Garnes 50-52, is also possible.
It's not covered here, but the Bird set-up with f2-f4 mighl be worth exploring,
and this can be compared with a similar approach in the imzowitsch-Larsen At­
tack with 1 b3 (a good source is Dunnington's Winning Unorthodox Openings).
Black Plays .•• dS and
1 b4 ibf6
... �fS / ... �g 4
Ld5 2 il.b2 ibf6 3 ibf3 e6
4 b5 (D): 4 ... c6 - Game 54; 4.. .ltd6 5 e3
. - Game 53
4 a3
4 ... c6 - Game 52; 4 ... c5 5 bxc5 -,,-xc5 6 e3 O-{) (D)
This chapter is devoted to reversed
7 c4 - Game 51; 7 d4 Game 50
queen's pawn openings in which Black
2 il.b2 Game 56
develops his c8-bishop outside the
2 ihf3 e6 3 a3 d5 4 e3 - Game 55 B.Larsen-W.Browne
pawn chain so that it will not be
2 •••e6 3 bS Las Palmas 1974
hemmed in when he supports the cen­
3 a3 d5 4 ibf3 - see I . .d5
.
tre with ... e7-e6.
3...a6
Against an early ...S:l.f5 White can 1 b4 ds 2 il.b2 Si.fs 3 lZlf3 e6 4 e3 lZlf6 S
3 ...Si.e7 4 e3 0-0 5 lZlf3 c6 Game 49; 3 ... d5 - see I dS
...
borrow an idea from the Nimzowitsch­ a3
4 a4 axbS
Larsen Attack and play a quick f2-f4 to White's main alternative, 5 c4, is
4 ...il.e7 - Game 48
seize the eS-squace. Larsen was quite discussed in Katalymov-Litvinov
S axb5 l:[xa1 6 il.xa1 dS (D)
fond of this plan and dubbed it ·the (Game 57).
6...c6 - Game 45
Dutch Orangutan', an acknowledge­
7 e3
ment to another common name for 1
7 lZlf3 il.e7 8 e3 lZlbd7 - Game 47
b4. My encounter with Gravel (Game
7 ...(5 B lZlf3 Si.d6 9 (4 - Game 46
59) explores this approach, while
Games 56-58 concentrate on the more
usual development with ibf3 followed
by a quick c2-c4.
One of Black's most challenging de­
fences to the Sokolsky consists of play­
ing L.d5 followed by ...S:I.g4, either on
the second move or a bit later. The final
seven games of this chapter will exam-
ine various White plans against this 5 <5.•.

4 bS 6...0·0 6.•.dS set-up. 5 ...lZlbd7 6 c4 dxc4 7 il.xc4 as 8 b5

120 121
 Play 1 b4!
<7lb6 9 .1l.e2 -'-d6, as playe d in E.Agur­
S.Dudakov, Netanya 1973, is a sound
path to a reasonable position for Black.
6 <4!? cxb4 7 axb4 liJ<6
After 7 ....lixb4 8 III a4+ liJc6 9 liJd4
.lie7 10 liJxc6 bxc6 11 'l!!'xc6+ I.!;f8 12
liJc3, the awkward position of Black's
king assures White of an advantage.
8 'l!!'a4 .lie7
8....1l.xb4 transposes to the previous
note.
9 cxd5 exd5 10 liJd4 �d7 11 b5 liJb4
Let's take a look at this position.
White is trying to finish his de velo p­
ment. He does have an isolated b5-
pawn, but the knight on d4 is strong
enough to protect all the weaknesses.
Black has almost finished his develop­
ment, but he must protect the isolated
d5-pawn. I prefer White's position be­
cause his pieces - when they are devel­
oped - have the potential to exploit
Black's weaknesses later in the game.
12 .1l.a3 as 13 liJc3 0-0 14 .1l.e2 liJe4 15
0-0 liJxd2 16 nfd1 liJc4
1 6...liJe4 would have been stronger,
and 17 liJxe4 dxe4 18 liJf5 il.xf5! 19
l:!xd8 l:!fxd8 20 il.c4 il.f6 2 1 .!Idl liJd3 22
122
f3 pxf3 23 g xf3 <7le5 reaches a dynamiC
position w ith rough material equality -
our assessment is 'unclear'.
17 liJxd 5! liJxa3 18 <7lxe7+ llIxe7 19
'ilixa3 b6 20 nd2 l:!ac8 21 l:!ad1 nc7 22
h3 lUc8 23 llIa1
This position should be equ al:
White possesses a strong knight on d4,
but Black has a passed pawn on a5.
23 ...g6 24 liJf3 il.e8 25 .!!. d 6 llIxd6 2 6
l:! ..d6 l:!C1+ 27 ll1xcl l:tx<1+ 28 W h 2 a4
Now it begins to get really compli­
cated. It's very difficult for most play­
ers to calculate all th ese crazy varia­
tions, but for Larsen it's not a big deal.
29 J:txb6 a] 30 nbS WfS 31 b6 a2
32 .lib5
32 b7 liJc6 33 !la8 al'i1i 34 .lib5 'l!!'f6
35 .lixc6 'l!!'d6+ 36 g3 lIbl 37 l:!xe8' Wg7
38 liJd4 h5 39 Wg2 llb6 40 nc8 nb2 41
.liB n b4 is fascinat ing but far from
clear. White may be better, hut we
would not be surprised to see a draw
as the final result.
32 .•.liJc6?
Browne could have reached a com­
pletely drawn position after 32 ... al 'l!!'!
33 lhe8+ Wg7 34 b7 liJa6 35 .lixa6 nbl
36 b8'l!!' l:txb8 37 ll.xb8 'l!!'xa6 38 nb2.
Probably he was very short of time, but
who wouldn't be in such a game?
33 .1l.xc6 al'l!!' 34 axe8+ IP g7 35 b7
Now White gains a decisive mate­
rial advantage.
35._Itb1 36 b8'l!!' l:!xb8 37 nxb8 'i!!' a 5 38
ll.b7 Wf8 39 e4 '!!Vc5 40 .lids f5 41 liJe5
1·0
After 41... '!!Vd6 (what else makes any
sense?), 42 lH7+ We8 43 �.c6+ IPd8 44
nd7+ wins what's left of Black's posi­
tion. Just anot her day at t he office for
the Great Dane.
Game 5 7
B.Katalymov-V.Litvinov
Minsk 1971
1 b4 d 5 2 il.b2 il.f5 3 e] liJf6 4 liJf3 e6 5
C4 liJbd7
After 5...il.xb4 6 'lli'a4' liJc6 7 liJd4,
7... 'lli'd6?? is a blunder which drops a
piece to 8 liJxc6 bxc6 9 a3 �c5 10 d4
il.b6 11 c5. Instead, 7...Ji.e7 8 <7lxc6 bxc6
9 'l!!'xc6+ Wf8 10 il.d4 dxc4 11 '!!Vxc4 of­
fers White chances to attack Black's
Black Plays . . . dS and ... j,.fS I. .. � 9 4
weaknesses and exploit the poorly
placed king on f8.
6 C5
White starts a queenside attack.
6...il.e7 7 liJd4 j"xb1 8 n"bl c6 9 g4!?
This could be the move either of a
total beginner or a very st cong player.
A f ter pTessing on the queenside, White
begins attacking the k ingside! I don't
really believe in t his attack, but such
crazy moves did help Katalymov to
win a considerable number of games.
9 -'-e2 as 10 a3 axb4 11 axb4 0-0 12
0-0 l1e8 13 f4 llIc7 14 1!I'c2 lla2 IS Ital
l1ea8 16 lha2 lha2 17 :a1 lha}' 18
.i.xal leaves White with a minimal ad­
vantage in space. The text is much
more ambitious!
9...e5
Castling into it with 9 ...0-0 allows
White to build a promising attack al ter
10 g5 liJe8 11 f4 e5 12 fxe5 liJxe5 13 h4
as 14 liJb3 liJd7 15 a3 axb4 16 axb4.
10 Illf5 g6
After 10 ...0-0 1 1 d4 exd4 12 �xd4
liJe8 13 il.e2 il.f6 White can abandon the
plan of a direct attack by playing 14 0-0,
which still leaves him with an edge.
123
Play 1 b 4 !
1 1 lilg3 0-0 1 2 h4 lile8 13 g S fS 14 f4
'lIf c7?!
14 ... exf4!? 15 exf4 offers chances for
both sides, for example after 15 ... lilg7
16 h5 as 17 hxg6 hxg6 18 a3 axb4 19
axb4 ;/:te8 20 lile2 1<.f8 21 ..wb3.
lS 'lIff3
lS ...1H7?
Black should seek counterplay with
15 ... a5!?, although White is still better
after 16 h5. One possible line runs
16 ...axb4 17 hxg6 hxg6 18 Ilh6 lilg7 19
I1xg6 IItn 20 I1h6 lIte8 21 lilh5 lilxh5 22
'lIfxh5+ �d8 23 g6 lilf6 24 1<.xe5 'lIfxe5 25
fxe5 lZlxh5 26 IlxhS �xcS 27 :tb2 lIte8,
and here 28 1<.d3 gobbles the f-pawn
because it's all over after 28.. .f4? 29 exf4
Ilxf4 30 Ilh8+ Ilf8 31 g7.
16 h S ! iLf8 17 lile2!
Defending the f4-pawn, and prepar­
ing to move the queen to the h-file.
White is able to attack without moving
his bishop or rook.
17 ... b6 18 hxg6 hxg6 19 'lIfh3
After this move White's attack be­
comes deadly.
19...lIg7 20 fxes lilxes 21 lilf4 bxcS
Against 21...lItn, White can win ma-
124
terial with 2 2 lilxg6! lilxg6 23 'lIfxf5+
lIte7 24 iLxg7 j.xg7 25 'flI'xg6.
22 'i!!'h 8+1!;>f7
23 'flI'xf8+!
This is decisive, winning a piece
23 .••lIt xf8 24 lile6+ �g8 2S lil"c7 lil f3+
26 lIte2 :txc7 27 lith8+ �f7 28 � xf3
cxb4 29 1<.es l1e7 30 lith7+ 1·0
Game 58
Y.Lapshun-O.Adu
Richard Aronow Memorial,
Philadelphia 2002
I will always be grateful to Mikhail
Belorusov for organizing the Aronow
Memorial tournament, because in it I
achieved. my third and final Interna­
tional Master norm. This game marked
my first test with 1 b4 against an 1M.
1 b4 dS 2 iLb2 c6 3 e3 j.fS 4 lilf3 e 6
Black has chosen a reversed London
System. This is also known as the New
York System, since Emanuel Lasker
used it to defeat R<'ti at the 1 924 New
York tournament.
S C4 lilf6 6 cxd S
Black Plays . . . d5 a n d . . 1<./5 1.. >l.g4
. .
6 bS dxc4 7 il.xc4 il.e7 8 a4 0-0 9 0·0, his own knight.
as played in H.Ree· Y.Bernstein, 26..Ac8?!
Netanya 1 968, is nothing special for 26 ...�f8, centralizing the king, is
White. Against 6 a3, 6 ... a5 is rather an- stronger.
noying, while 6 ... dxc4 7 il.xc4 as is also
not bad. White can also play in the
same style as Katalymov, with 6 c5
(compare Game 57).
6 •..exdS 7 a3 il.d6 8 il.e2 0-0 9 d3 'lIfe7
10 lilbd2 lilbd7 11 0-0
White has nothing here, and 1 1 ...a5!
is a strong idea. After Black's actual
choice, I could see a favourable struc­
ture shaping up.
11...lileS 12 lilxeS iLxeS 13 il.xeS 'lIfxeS
14 lilf3 'lIfe7 lS 'lIfd2 il.g4 16 lild4 il.xe2
17 'lIfxe2 27 I1bcl lilfS?!
And here 27 ...I:ta8!? lessens the force
of the thrust b4-bS.
28 lilxfS lhfS 29 Ilcs I1d8 30 bS axbs?
30...cxbS!? 31 axbS �f8 would have
at least avoided the immediate loss of a
pawn.
31 axbS Wf8 32 bxc6 bxc6 33 d4
White wins a pawn and keeps
enough on the board to clinch t he win.
33 • .Af6 34 Ilxc6 l:l.xc6 3S l:l.xc6 l1te7 36
g4!
The exchanges have left White with
a superior minor piece and a clear plan:
to play the Minority Attack on the
queenside.
17•. Afe8 18 llfcl a6 19 l:l.abl 'flI'es 20
l:!C2 lild7 21 'flI'g4 l:l.ad8 22 'flI' g3 lilb6 23
'flI'xeS tlxeS 24 lilb3 lilc8 25 a4 lild6 26
lild4
White is happy to have his pawn on
d3 to keep Black's knight out of e4 and
c4. In contrast, he has the d4-square for
125
Play 1 b4!
3 6. . •I!aS 37 \!ig2 \!id7 3 S ll:b6 \!i(7 3 9
It b 2 W ( 6 4 0 h4 nes 41 l:ta2 Ii>b6?
4l. ..ne7! ? is the right way to meet
the threatened 42 ll:a7.
42 na!
It"s useful to cut off the black king
from the rest of his army.
42 .•.ndS 43 n(S f6 44 gs fxgs 45 hxgs
hS 46 gxh6 gxh6 47 111 g3 J:: gS+ 4S Ii>h3
JUS 49 ltig2 nfS 50 f4! 1-0
50 ... h5 51 IIIg3 1i>b7 52 e4 is decisive.
So I won, but it seems that the reversed
London System is a viable defence to 1
b4.
Game 59
Y.Lapshun-S.Gravei
Montreal 2004
It took a long journey to reach this
game. My Canadian friends drove me
from Kapuskasing to Montreal. a trip
of more than ten hours. When I finally
arrived, I was about 30 minutes late. It
was very difficult to find the venue
because all the signs were in French. I
had absolutely no idea what my oppo­
n ..nt liked to play, so I figured this was
a good time for the Sokolsky.
1 b4 ill f6 2 il.b2 dS 3 e3 il.fs 4 f4
The idea of this move is to control
the e5-square. 4 illf3 e6 reaches Games
56-58.
4.. .e6 5 a3 as 6 bS (S 7 illf3 ill bd7 S (4
il.d6 9 (xdS exdS 10 il.e2 0-0 11 0-0 h6
My opponent didn't wan! to have to
part with his bishop afler illM.
12 ill (3 il.h7 13 d4!?
I was worried about giving myself a
126
weak e-pawn and e4-square, but at
least in return I was getting the e5-
square for my knight.
13...ihb6 14 ille s n<8 15 �_f3 (xd4?!
15 ... c4 is strongeri later on Black can
work on White's weaknesses.
16 exd4
16.••ill (4?!
Black should have prepared this
move.
n ill xc4 ll:X(4 1S illx dS ill xd5 19 il.xds
]:ttl 20 �_C1 il.xa3 21 'iff3 jc 1« 1 22
J:taX<1 ]:teS
White has emerged well from all the
complications, with an active bishop
and a passed pawn. The next step is to
shut out the black bishop.
23 fS .!!:XC1 24 .!!:X<1 'ifgS?!
This tempting counter will fail, al­
beit in an amusing fashion. 24 ... b6
would ha ve been stronger.
2S l:I(7
I had to calculate many variations,
and eventually I decided that my king
would be safe after a short trip round
my g-pawn.
2S ...ll:e1+ 26 Itif2 'i!l"d2+ 27 Ii>g3 'iIo>h8!
28 1I(8+ il.g8 29 'i!l"g4 .!!:e 3+ 30 il.f3 b6
It's hard to say for sure whether or
not it's wise to interpolate 30... 'ifel+ 31
'ot>h3.
31 f6 g5 32 h3
It's time to move my king to h2. 32
h4!? was also possible, but I wanted to
hide my king, not expose it!
32... 'ife1+
32_ ..l:te6 is possible too. Fritz offers
the following variation, which may
uncover the truth, but it's too difficult
for any human ( know to work out
over the board. Take it for what it's
worth: 33 llc6 J:::el 34 Ii>h2 'ife3 35 h4
:tbl 36 iLdl lhb5 37 :tc8 'iff4+ 38 'ifxf4
gxf4 39 .l:!d8 :tf5 40 .l:!d6 l:Ib5 41 dS l:Ib4
Black Plays . . . dS and . . · il.fS I ... :>.. g 4
4 2 lld8 a4 4 3 d 6 .l:!d4 44 il.g4 f3 4 5 gxf3
h5 46 il.e6 Ii>h7 47 icf5+ Wh8 48 Ii>g3 b5
49 d7 a3 50 :ta8 b4 51 d8'if .!!:xd8 52
l:Ixd8 b3 53 �e4 a2 54 .!laB b2 55 .!lxa2
and White wins!
33 Itih2
33...lle8??
Black had to try 33 ....I:!e6, although
White is still winning here after 34 l:Ic6
'i!l"e3 35 M a4 36 hxg5 'ifxg5 37 'i!l"xg5
hxg5 38 d5 J:e8 39 lhb6 �h7 40 llb7
il.g6 41 lla7 llb8 42 d6.
34 'ifhs Wh7 35 �g4!
Winning, as Black must give up a
rook to prevent il.f5+.
3S ...'iff2 36 llxe8 'i!l"f4+ 37 'iIo> g1 'ifxd4+
3S ltih 1 'ifxf6 39 il.e2 Ii>g7 40 'l!l"f3 1-0
Game 60
Y.Lapshun-A.Hahn
US Championship,
San Diego 2004
In this game I beat a US Women's
Champion with 1 b4. Before I played
her, I looked at her games and didn't
know which move to open with. I was
127
Play 1 b4 !
thinking about 1 <'4, but she plays vari­
ous openings after this; the Sicilian Or
1...e5, with the Ruy Lopez or Marshall
Gambit. Before the game I was talking
with my roommate, Salvijus Bercys,
and he toJd me I was preparing too
much for my opponents, and that it
was taking up too much energy. So [
decided to take his advice, forget
preparation, and play ] b4. She played
great chess in the opening but [ de­
cided to attack when she got into time
trouble, and I won. Maybe she could
have defended with 39_.i!'dB, but by
then I was doing well.
1 b4 dS 2 SLb2 SLg4 3 �C1
The idea of this move is to play 4 e3
and later .\te2, so that the knight will
recapture the bishop with a tempo for
development . Black plenty of play after 26 ...bxc5 27
3".li:lf6
3... liJd7 fE-ached a very similar posi­
tion in Lapshun-Paschall (see Game
6]).
4 e3 e6
4 . ..li:lbd7 5 c4 e5 6 b5 il.d6 is equal,
S.Rocha-V.Akopian, World Junior Ch.,
Mamaia 1991.
lZ8
S a 3 il.e7 6 i:.e2 il.xe2 7 Illxe2 < 6 8 <4
0-0 9 0-0 as 10 <S 6 11 'lil'c3 axb4 12
axb4 b6 13 d4 li:le4 14 �e1
The white queen defends the b­
pawn and - indirectly - the aJ -rook,
while preparing to attack the black
king after f2-f3 and 'i!l'g3.
14_,,'IiI'b8
The black queen indirectly attacks
the b2-bishop and also points at the
white king.
1S f3 li:lf6 16 iI.<3 li:l<7 17 li:ld2 li:lbs 18
il.b2 :xa1 19 IlI'xa1 'Il'b7 20 llI'a4 :a8
21 'il'b3 li:l<7 22 li:lc1 nb8 23 iI.<3 li:ld7
24 'i'<2 li:lbs 2S .\tb2 e S
Black i s trying t o break up White's
centre, but it is standing like a rock.
1 his centre is worth maintaining;
breaking it up with 26 dxe5 would give
bxc5 il.xc5 2811el il.a3_
26 1i'1d3 exd4 27 exd4 il.f6 28 lil b3 11a8
28 ...I1e8 is also reasonable. White
has nothing after 29 f4 bxc5 30 bxc5
il.d8 31 ]:tel ]:txel + 32 li:lxel.
29 l:te1 li:l<7 30 cxb6 �xb6 31 n<1
White has two isolated pawns, but
Black's c-pawn is very weak and White
can use the a5- and cS-sq uares.
31,,_li:l b8 32 \Ph1
I'm not sure if this is the best move,
but a little prophylaxis can't hurt.
32 _._li:le6 33 'i!I'<3 h6 34 f4
My opponent's time pressure and a Ilxg2! 44 Wxg2 't'fgSi 45 't'fg3 'i'xcJ 46
bad knight on b8 convinced me to
make my first attacking move.
34__ lIa4 3S fS lil<7 36 lilbcS na8 37
li:leS
It was a huge pleasure to have two
great knights on c5 and e5, but I also
wanted to improve the b2-bi shop .
37. __li:lbs 38 'i!l'e1 na2
39 li:lg4
39 lbxf7!? is an interesting sacrifice:
Black Plays __ odS and _ _ _ SLJ5 1 ___ Ji.g4
39 ... \Pxf7 (39 ... li:lc7? 40 li:lxh6+ gxh6 41
'Il'g3i il.g5 42 h4 l:!xb2 43 hxg5 hS 4 4 f6
li:leB 45 'Vife5 g ives White a winning at­
tack ) 40 �e6+ \Pf8 41 'il'c8+ �f7
(41 . _ il.d8 is more resilient but White
still en joys a strong attack after 42
li:le6+) 42 li:le6! (42 't!i'e6i �f8 is a draw)
42 ... il.e7 43 tie I l:!xb2 44 li)g5 >!, and
White mates after 44 ...hxg5 45 �e6+
\Pf8 46 't!i'xe7-t \Pg8 47 'i'e8+ IiIh7 48
't'fh5+ IIIg8 49 ne8 .
39...il.gS??
Instead the move 39 ... � d8! defends .
After the continuation 40 li:lxI6+ 'fj'xf6
41 'l'!'e8+ III h7 42 'i!l'xbS 'i'xf5! (42 ...Ilxb2
43 li:ld7! 't!i'xfS 44 li:lf8+ �88 45 li:lg6+
IIIh 7 46 li:le7 wins for White) 43 il.a 1
'l'!'d3+ \Pg8 47 't'ffl 'i!l'd2i 48 'i'f2 'fI'dl 49
't'fgJ �d2+ 50 't'ff2 't'fdl, White cannot
improve on a draw.
40 'il'e8+ \Ph7 41 'l'!'xf7 'il'd8 42 li:le6 1-0
The deadly attack by White's queen
and two kn ights forces Black to resign.
After 42 ... 'I'!'g8 (or 42 ...'i!I'e7 43 121f8+ \PhS
44 li:lg6+), a flight is taken from the
black king and White forces mate with
43 li:lxg5+ hxg5 44 'i!l'h5.
1 29
Play 1 b 4 !
Game 61
Y.Lapshun-W.Paschall
New York Masters (rapid) 2003
The tournament organizer sug­
gested that my game against 1M Wil­
liam Paschall deserved to be on the
Internet. When I asked why, he said
that people like the way I play 1 b4. He
was joking, but in the end I decided
that if people want to see it, they will
see it!
1 b4 dS 2 1l.b2 i.g4 3 'i!i'c11tld7 4 c4 e6 S
e3 Itlgf6 6 a3 as 7 cs c6 B i.e 2 i.xe 2 9
Itlxe2 b6 10 d4 1l.e7 11 0-0 0-0 12 Itld2
'i!I C7 13 'i!i'c2
I felt at the time. as I do now. that
this position is evenly balanced and
offers chances for both sides.
13• ..liJg4 14 g3 fS?!
There are two problems with this
move. Black is left with:
1) A weak e-pawn; and
2) A weak e5-square.
1s ltlf4 Ilf6 16 h3 Itlh6 17 Itld3 a4?
17 ...axb4 18 axb4 IlffB 19 Itlf4 �f7
130
holds the balance. Black's choice in the
game deprives him of counterplay.
18 cxb6 'i!!'xb6
Black has too many problems: the
squares cS and e5 are weak, and in ad­
dition Black has to defend his a-, c-
e-pawns.
19 IlaC1 IZlb8 20 Itlf3 .!:If8 21 Itlf4 .!:Ie8
n ltles Ila6 23 'i!i'e2 .ltd6 24 Itlfd3?!
24 Itlxc6 Itlxc6 25 b5 l:ta5 26 l:txc6
'i'Kb8 27 �_c3 l'la7 28 b6 Ilb7 29 '/!!b 5
would have been a simpler way to \Ivin.
24 ..•:a7 2 S l:!c2 1tlf7 26 J:tfC1
26...ltlxes?
This move loses material. Black
should play 26... Ilc7.
27 dxes i.fB 2B i.d4 'i!!' a6 29 i.xa7
'i!!'xa7 30 IZlcs g6 31 .c:c3 i.g7 32 f4 .UB
33 h4 h6 34 �f2 lle7 35 'iil'c2 :teB 36
'i!!'d1 g s 3 7 hxg5 hxg5 3 B 'i!i'hs 1-0
Game 62
P.Benko-J.Belion Lopez
Torremolinos 1973
Here's another example of 1 b4 be­
ing played by a great American legend.
Benko demonstrates an unusual and
risky way to play this opening.
1 b4 dS 2 .ltb2 1l.g4 3 h3 il.hS 4 g3
and
The dOllble fianchetto is an interest­
ing approach. A certain familiarity
with the Reti Opening. particularly the
so-called Capablanca System. is a use­
ful thing to have if you want to play
this way.
4 ...e6 S 1l.g2 Itlf6 6 a3 Itlbd7 7 Itlf3 c6 8
d3
I don't trust this passive set-up be­
cause the b4-pawn can become an ob­
ject of Black's attack. White has to solve
this problem by weakening himself
further.
Black Plays . . . d5 a n d . . �f5 1. . . >l.g4
.
B...as!
Giving White another headache.
9 C3
White must close the diagonal of
the Sokolsky bishop for the moment.
This position now looks more like a
Philidor than a Sokolsky.
9... 1l.d6 10 /t)bd2 'i!!' b6 11 J:l.b1 0-0 12 g4
In order to castle White is forced to
weaken his kingside. as 12 O-O?! 1l.xg3
13 bxa5 'i!!' a7 (13 ... .!!xa5? 14 c4 'i!!' a7 1 5
1l.d4! wins a piece) 1 4 a6 bxa6 15 Itld4
.ltf4 16 Itlxc6 'i!!'c 7 leaves Black with the
advantage.
12...1l. g6 13 0-0 J:: adB
Another active alternative is
13 ... axb4 14 axb4 J:l.a2 15 c4 .ltf4. with
level chances.
14 c41l.bB
After 1 4... axb4?! 15 axb4 .ltxb4 16
1l.c3 c5 1 7 1l.xb4 cxb4 18 'i!!'a 4 'i!!'c7 19
'iil'xb4 Itlcs 20 'i!!'b6. White has a com­
fortable position and a target on b7 to
attack.
15 'i!!'c2
1S .•.'i!!'c7
15 ... axb4 16 axb4 dxc4 17 Itlxc4 'i!!'c7
would have been safer. AfteT the text
131
Play 1 b 4 !
move, 16 bxa5!? �xa5 1 7 1I.xf6 Ibxf6 1 8
ILxb7 �xa3 1 9 lHbl 11.f4 20 Ibd4 is dan­
gerous for Black.
16 nfC1 dxc4 17 lbxc4
It's taken a while, but at last we
have a Reti structure that favours
White" since Black's pieces are in odd
places and White can execute a minor­
ity attack with his Sokolsky pawn.
17.••axb4 18 axb4 lbd5 19 b5 f6
19 ... cxb5?! 20 Ibce5 Ibxe5 21 1I.xeS
�xc2 22 nxc2 b4 23 iLxb8 nxb8 24 lbh4
ILfc8 25 l:1xc8+ lhc8 26 iLxd5 exdS 27
l:lxb4 is better for White.
20 iLa3 c5 21 b6!
White's b6-pawn sticks like a bone
in Black's throat. Black cannot take the
pawn, as 21...({)7xb6 loses material to
2 2 lbxb6 lbxb6 23 11.xc5.
21 ...�f4 22 �d2
22 lbaS? allows Black to com plicate
with 22 ...lbe5, and after 23 lbxb7 iLxd3!
24 � xd3 Ibxd3 25 exd3 nc8 26 Ibxc5
�d6 27 b7 ILcd8 it's probably Black
who has more chances to win.
22•.Ac8?
Losing the b7-pawn doesn't help
matters. After 22 ... �xd2!? 23 Ibfxd2
132
iLf4 2 4 l:!c2 l:la8 25 lbe4 l:lfc8 2 6 e 3 iLh6
White has a good position, but Black
does at least have some counterplay.
23 e3 �h6 24 Ibas! l:lf7 25 Ibxb7
1b7xb6 26 lbxc5 l:la7 27 l:lu i..d 6 28 d4
%leaS 29 i.. b2
Benko cleverly trades all the pieces
to reach a winning endgame.
29.. .fI.f7 30 !'!xa7 l:lxa7 31 "ii'd 3 "ii' g 6 32
"ii'x g6 hxg6 33 lbe1 l:la2 34 ({)ed3 Q,b4
35 iLc3 Ibxd3 36 lbxd3 iLa3 37 l:lb1 l:lc2
38 iLb4 iL xb4 39 !'!"b4 ({)d5 1-0
Probably Black lost on time in this
position. After 40 iLxd5 exdS Black will
face severe problems trying to survive
a pawn down and with several weak­
nesses.
Gome 63
Y.Lapshun-J.Bonin
Marshal l Chess Club 2002
Jay Bonin is a renowned 1M from
New York. He's won countless tour­
naments, defeated many GMs and won
many club and state championships; he
recently received a lifetime achieve-
ment award from the USCF.
Bonin has always been a tough op­
ponent for me. Fifteen years ago, when
I started my career in New York City,
he beat me like a drum. Now, of
course, I do much better. We've played
each other in hundreds of serious
games, and God only knows who is
ahead because we have stopped count­
ing.
1 b4 d S 2 iLb2 iLg4 3 h3 iLh5 4 Ibf3
iLxf3 5 gxf3
I prefer this capture to 5 exf3 be­
cause I don't know what to do about
the possibility of an isolated d-pawn in
that variation. 5 ...lbf6 6 c4 dxc4 7 iLxc4
e6 8 O-D Ibbd7 9 a3 iLe7, as played in
G.Baranov-A.Payen, St Petersburg
1998, illustrates the d-pawn problem
quite clearly. White doesn't want to
play d2-d4 and close the line of his
dark-squared bishop; the move d2-d3,
obstructing the light-squared bishop, is
also undesirable; and finally leaving
the d-pawn at home may lead to a
weakness on the d3-square. I think
White is struggling to equalize here!
5 ... c6 6 e3 e6 7 c4 Ibf6 8 "ii' b3 Ibbd7 9
Black Plays . . . dS a n d . . . fLJ5 1. .. fLg4
cxd5 exd5 10 1b<3 as 1 1 a3 axb4 12
axb4 Il1<a1+ 13 iLxa1 �b6 14 b5 �a5?!
14 ... iLd6 15 iLe2 0-0 16 0-0 l:la8 100ks
equal, and in fact is easier for Black to
play with all his pieces well posted.
1S .ltb2 .lkb4 16 .lke2 lbcs 17 "ii' c2 d4!?
Jay decided to sacrifice a pawn to
keep my king in the centre. Of course
he could have just castled and stood
perfectly okay.
18 exd4
I was nervous playing with all of
my remaining six pawns being weak,
but I did at least have an extra pawn
and the two bishops for my sulfering.
18 ..•lbe6?
18 ... lbcd7 19 lile4 0-0 20 bxc6 bxc6
21 �xc6 Ibxe4 22 fxe4 iLxd2+ 23 1lIf]
"ii'a 2 is more consistent and a better
choice, If Black does not like this posi­
tion, he shouldn't offer the pawn in the
first place.
19 1be4! IbdS 20 bxc6 0-0 21 cxb7 "l'tb6
22 l:lg1
Fritz prefers 22 lilc5 Iilxc5 23 dxc5
iLxc5 24 .ltd3 .lkxf2+ 25 II<dl "ii' xb7 26
iLxh7+ II<h8 27 iL.,4 lld8 28 lI<e2 "ii'b6,
but this position didn't look so great to
1 33
Play 1 b 4 !
m e at the board. The move I played
seemed simpler and stronger.
22 .. .'!'>'xb7 23 il.c4 lilef4 24 'i!fb3 wh8 25
'iild 1
I couldn't find a safer place for my
king.
25 ... 11b8 26 l::tg 5! il.e7 27 'i!fxb7 nxb7 28
il.xd5 IIxb2 29 ne5
29 );tfS is also strong.
29 ... lilg6 30 il.xf7! Iilxe5 31 dxe5
In this winning position J had only five
minutes left and wasn't able to keep
any further score of the game. Little by
little I was able to push my passed
pawns forward and eventually I forced
my opponent to resign.
Game 64
W.Lombardy-M.Quinteros
Torremolinos 1974
G M William L ombardy, who swept
to the World Junior Championship
with a perfect 1 1-0 score fifty years ago,
is a legend of American chess. I've ana­
lysed with him several times at the
Marshall Chess Club, and I'm always
134
astonished b y his rapid grasp o f the
position and his original but accurate
approach to strategic problems. I al­
ways come away from these sessions
feeling like a humble student who has
been taught by a true master.
1 1ilf3 Iilf6 2 b4 c6 3 c4 d5 4 e3 �g4 5
il.b2 e6 6 'i!fb3
In most games White defends the
b4-pawn by pushing it or protecting it
with a2-a3. Here Lombardy uses an
interesting idea - defending it with the
queen.
6 ... lilbd7 7 cxd5 exd5 8 il.e2 il.d6 9 h3
il.e6
I believe the e6-square isn't the best
choice for the bishop in this typf' of
structure, and instead Black should
maintain the pin with 9 ...il.hS.
10 Iild4
This ambitious move blocks thp dS­
pawn, attacks Black's bishop and helps
to attack both flanks.
10 ...'i!fe7 11 b5 c5 12 Iilxe6 fxe6 13 d 3
0-0 1 4 0-0 Wh8 1 5 1il c 3 1ilb6
This position offers levt"l chances:
White enjoys the advantage 01 the two
bishops, while Black has a strong cen-
tre. Lombardy now provokes
Quinteros into an advance which
weakens his d ynam ism in the centre.
16 1Lla4 e5 17 Iilxb6 axb6 18 il.f3 e4 19
dxe4 dxe4 20 �e2 J:rae8
It would have been better to get rid
of White's two-bishop advantage by
playing 20...il.eS .
21 J:rad1 �b8
An unsuccessful attempt to check-
mate the white king only leads to a loss
of time, and White uses this to strike
back in the centre. It wasn't too late to
trade White's dangerous bishop
playing 21 ...�eS.
22 J:rd2 'i!fa 23 g3 'i!fc8 24 Wg2 'i!l'f5 2 5
'i!fd1 �e5 26 .i.xe5 'i!fxe5
After wasting so much time Black
has finally traded bishops, but he has
lost the initiative.
27 il.c4 h5?!
Black continues to attack the king,
but it was time to fight for control of
the d-file and defend the weak b6-
pawn. 27...'l!I'c7 would have helped to
solve these problems.
28 lJ.d6 h4
A desperate pawn sacrifice can't
Black Plays ... d5 a n d ... iLI5 1 ... fi-g4
free Black from White's grasp.
29 gxh4 g5 30 .!!. xb6 J:rd8 31 'i!fa1 'i!ff5
32 hxg5 'i!l'xg5+ H Wh2 'i!fh4 34 'i!fe5
IId7 35 J:!g1 'i!fxf2+ 36 );tg2 'i!fh4
37 l:!xf6 ! 1-0
White is winning in all variations:
37 ...'i!fxf6 38 ):I.g8+ Wh7 39 'i!fhS+ 'i!fh6 40
'i!fxh6+ 'iilx h6 41 l::t xf8; or 37 .. l!xf6 38
'i!fe8+ Wh7 39 'i!fxd7+ It>h6 40 'i!fg7+ WhS
41 'i!fh7+ .!:th6 42 il.f7 mate.
Game 65
Y.Lapshun-R.Furdzik
by
New York Masters (Rapid) 2002
M r. Furdzik is a National Master
who has beaten some GMs. He plays
openings creatively and well, but de­
spite this I have bpaten him with I b4
many times. Even though he knows
what I will play against him, the result
is always the same. Here is ont" exam­
ple of his I b4 woes.
1 b4 d5 2 il.b2 1ilf6 3 e3 c6 4 f4
4 Illf3 iLg4 5 c4 reaches Lombardy­
Quinteros (Game 64).
4 .••�g4 5 il.e2
135
Play 1 b4!
For 5 ltlf3, see the next game. ltlxc6 ltlc4 offers Black good compensa­
S ...�xe2 6 1!i'xe2 e6 7 a3 ltlbd7 S ltlf3 tion for the queen. 15 ... .lil.xf4! is even
Continuing to fight for the <,5- stronger, as 16 .!1xf4 1!i'xb2 17 .!l:ffl 1!i'b6
square. would leave White with nothing fOT
S... .lil.d6 9 c4 0-0 10 0-0 as 11 cxdS exdS the missing pawn.
12 bS neS 1S... cS 16 ltlfs
16 ltldb5 d4 17 ltlxd6 'lIt'xd6 18 ltlb5
1!i'b6 19 a4 is roughly equal.
16._.lil.fS
Furdzik could have probably forced
a draw here with 16 ... j.xf4· 17 .!l:xf4
1!i'xb2 18 nan d4 19 ltle4 dxe3
(l 9 . . I!xe4? 20 llxe4 ltlxe4 21 1!i'g4 g6 22
. 28 ...'i!l'f8 29 ltlxc3 J:lc8 30 'lIt'b5 ltlxc3 3]
Ibh6< Ili'h8 23 1!i'xei .!l:f8 24 Ibxf7< Ili'g7
25 1!i'e7 1!i'b8 26 ltld8+ wh6 27 Ilxf8 ltlxf8
28 'lIt'xf8+ is winning for White; and
]9 ...lbxe4 20 'lIt'g4 dxe3 2] Iilh6+ IiIh8 22
ltlxf7+ Ili'g8 23 ltlh6+ is another draw)
13 bxc6? 20 'lIt'xe3 ltld5 21 ng4! ltlxe3 22 ltlh6+
This premature exchange gives Ili'h8 23 ltlxf7+ Ili'g8 24 ltlh6+, when the
Black too much play, and 13 ltld4! is game ends in perpetual check.
much stronger. 17 nab1 d4 1S ltlbs g6 19 12lg3
13 ...bxc6 14 ltld4 1!i'bS
19 ....lil.g7?!
1s ltl c3 19 ...1!i'b7 20 f5 nab8 2] a4 ltld5 22 e4
I overestimated my chances when ltlSb6 would have been okay for Black.
playing this tricky move. Now 20 1!i'd3 dxe3 21 dxe3 Ibb6 ?!
15...'lIt'xb2!? 16 .!l:fbl �xa3 17 .!l:xb2 Black should have restrained the
.lil.xb2 18 lla2 .lil.xc3 19 dxc3 ltlb6 20 force of 22 e4 by playing 2] ....ll:d8, in-
136
Black Plays .. d5 and
. ··· �f5 /. . . � 9 4
tending 22 e4 'iO'b6 23 'i!l'c4 nab8. 2 7..•whS?
22 e4 c4 23 'lIt'f3 J:ldS White enjoys a big advantage after
27... lli'xf7 28 12le4 cxb2 29 ltlg5< Ili'f8 30
'lIt'e6 .lil.d4+ 31 ltlxd4 'lIt'e8 32 lil:xb2, but
the text is even worse for Black.
28 .lil.a1?
28 ltlxc3 'lIt'c8 (or 28 ...ltlxc3 29 IHe l !
and :e8+) 29 'lIt'xc8+ lhc8 3 0 ltlxd5
ltlxd5 31 littel lite3 32 ltlfl lhe] 33 1hel
leaves White with two extra pawns and
should lead to victory.
28 litfel is also good enough:
.lil.xc3 litdxc3 32 :e8, winning the
24 eS?! queen.
In such a complex position, it is 2S...'iII'fS 29 fS 'ill' xf7 30 ltld6 'lIt'd7
natural that both sides make mistakes.
24 .lil.d4 is stronger, with White obtain­
ing an attack after 24...1!i'b7 25 f5 ltle8
26 "iil'f2 .lil.xd4 27 12lxd4 liId7 28 e5.
24.. Jl.d3 2 S 1!i'<6I2lfds 26 e6 <3?!
26 ...15 is the best try here. Following
27 .lil.xg7 Ili'xg7 28 ltld6 ltle7 29 ltldxf5+
gxf5 30 1!i'xb6 'lIt'xb6+ 31 J:lxb6 Ili'f6 32
J:lcl J:lxa3 33 J:lxc4 J:le3 34 na4 J:lxe6 35
J:lb5 J:lea6, Black has good chances to
hold the dra w.
27 exf7+
31 'lIt'xaS+!
White is trying to build a mating
net, even though his bishop on al can't
move!
31...ltlxaS 32 J:lbS+ .lil.fS 33 J:lxfS+ Ili'g7
34 fxg6 'l1t'aH?
Amazingly, Black can play
34 ... 'lIt'xd6!. After 35 ltlf5+ Wxf8 36
ltlxd6+ Ili'g7 37 gxh7 Ili'xh7 38 ltle4
ltlab6 39 Ibf2 .!l:d2 40 ltle4 J:ld3 41 ltlf2
J:ld2 42 ltle4 it's a draw by repetition -
White can hard Iy try to win with his
137
Play 1 b 4 !
bishop locked i n the corner.
3 S \I;hl hxg6
36 lbge4?!
36 I18f7+ �xf7 37 lbxf7 l2lab6 38 4\e5
is simpier.
36...�d4 37 lbg s ? lbac7??
37 ... Ji!e3! is the best try. White can
still win, though, with 38 lbe8+! (38
J:!.xa8? l'I'f6! 39 :IIa7+ \l;g8! 40 J:!.a8+ \l;g7
41 J:!.a7+ \l;>g8 is only a draw) 38 ... .l:txe8
39 1:txe8 lbac7 40 �d8 a4 41 Ji!d7+ Wh6
42 lbf7+ Wg7 43 h3 �c5 44 ll\e5+ Wh6
45 lbg4+ \l;g5 46 :IIel, when at long last
the black king is caught.
38 !it8f7+'it>h6 39 l.'l de4!!
White has built a mating net with
138
two rooks, t wo knights and two
pawns.
39 ...WhS 40 Jii h 7+ Wg4 41 h3+ 1-0
It's mate next move after 41...J:!.xh3+
42 gxh3.
Game 66
Y.Lapshun-R.Furdzik
M a rshall Chess C l u b 2002
Here's another exciting win over
Furdzik. In this game he onc� more
gets mated, and my king doesn't even
make a single move.
1 b4 dS 2 Si.b2 c6 3 e3 lbf6 4 f4 �g4 S
lbf3 e6 6 a3 lbbd7 7 fLe2
7 c4 fLd6 8 cxd5 exd5 9 �e2 0-0 10
0-0 J:!.e8 11 lbc3 J:!.c8 was fairly comfort­
able for Black in A.Ornstein-5.Hansen,
Gausdal 1999. White can continue with
moves such as lbd4 and 'i!!'c2, trying to
control the squares £5 and cS.
7... fLxf3 8 gxf3?!
I was nervous about recapturing
this way because it spoiled my pawn
slTucture, and I had to think about king
safety. On the other hand the f3-pawn
Black Plays ... d5 a n d .. . iLf5 1... iLg4
is controlling the centre and White
does obtain the g-file for the rook.
8•.•�c7 9 c4
2 3 ..•gxh5 24 J:tc5
White is down a pawn, but look at
all those weak black pawns' It's time to
9...es?! collect them in a harvest.
This opened the centre for my two 24.••J:td8 25 't!j'c3 d4 26 il:e5+ �f8 27
bishops and my opponent was going to �cS+ �d6 28 11>'f5+ \l;>e7 29 Jl:e5+ 1t>f8
pay for this. As I usually tell my stu­ 30 il:f5+ �e7 31 'ill' c4 J:thf8 32 J:te5+ 1t>f6
dents, "Before you do something ac­ 33 lIexhS JIg8 34 Il:xh7 'iO'ds 3 5 'riIIc7
ti ve, develop YOUT pieces!" �e6
10 cxd5 lbxd5 11 fxe5 lbxeS 12 lbc3
liJxc3
12 ...ll:d8 is stronger.
13 fLxc3 f6
This is an unpleasant move to play,
but it's forced because of the pressure
exerted by White's c3-bishop. Now
White can exploit the new weaknesses
on the light squares.
14 f4 lbd7 15 fLh5+ g6 16 fLg4 fLg7 17
�b3 liJb6 18 fLe6 f5 19 h4 lbd5?
Black would still be okay af ter
19 ...Jhc3 20 �xc3 lH8 21 fLb3 (21 h5 36 ll:7h6+
g5! is quite unclear.) 21...0-0-0. 36 J:tf7+ also wins after 36 ...�xf7 37
20 fLxd5 cxd5 21 fLxg7 �xg7 22 Ji!Cl �e5+ \l;>g6 38 �g5 mate, or 36... Wg6 37
'i!!'d7 23 h5! J:tgl + � h5 38 J:th7+ �h6 39 �e5+ �h4
After creating weaknesses on the 40 l':txh6 mate.
queenside, it is now time to force con­ 36 ...J:tg6 37 J:txg6+ \l;>xg6 38 �h7+ �f6
cessions on the other wing. 39 J:!h6 mate (1-0)
139
Play 1 b4!
Game 6 7
Y.Lapshun-A.Smith
Canadian Open,
Kapuskasing 2004
One day before this game I was
analysing some openings together with
GM Dmitry Tyomkin and his coach
Mark Tseitlin, a very humorous
Grandmaster from Israel. During our
analysis, whenever the king was uncas­
tied in the middle, he was constantly
repeating "The father is in the middle!"
Next day, against the Canadian player
Andrew Smith, my king didn't make a
single move in the entire game. When­
ever I was away from the board I
would laugh like crazy, and constantly
repeat "The father is in the middle!"
1 b4 <6 2 .ikb2 dS 3 e3 liJf6 4 f4 a5 5 b5
<5 6 lilf3 .ikg4 7 h3 .ikxf3 8 'l!¥xf3 e6 9 <4
liJbd7 10 g4!?
A very risky move, but if need be
W hite can always castle long.
10...IiJe4 11 g5 a4 12 .ikd3 fS 13 liJa3
This looks strange, but soon
140
knight will go to the c4-square.
13... h5
With this move my opponent was
trying to stop my kingside attack. In
order to finish his plan. he would have
to push his pawn to g6. I had to pre­
vent this.
14 h4 :!!.h 7 IS <xdS exdS 16 g6! Ilh6 17
'i!!' h 3!
A t this moment, I thought that I
was simply winning a pawn and that
my opponent could already give up,
but I was wrong - he could have de­
fended with 17 ... 'iilb6. Then 18 ti'xf5
'iWxg6 19 'i!!'xg6+ (19 'iWxd5 'iWg3+ 20 Wdl
the liJf2+ 21 Wc2 Ild6 22 'i!i'xhST g6 23
Black Plays . . . d5 and ... iLf5 1 ... fl.g4
.ikxg6+ 'iWxg6+ 2 4 'iWxg6+ lhg6 is un- liJxb7+ 1-0
clear - Black has a piece for three
pawns) 19 .. .lhg6 20 .ike2 liJef6 21 .ikf3
.ikd6 22 We2 is better for White, who
has two bishops and many pawn tar­
gets.
Black's actual choice is considerably
worse.
17.••'iWa5? 18 .ikxe4 dxe4
18 .. .fxe4 19 'iWe6+ Wd8 20 'iWxdS
Ilxg6 21 'iWxb7 Ilb8 22 'i!!'xe4 leaves
White two pawns ahead and winning.
19 'i!!'xf5 'i!!' b4 20 'i!!'e6+
White can also win by playing 20 My opponent resigned because he
'i!!'f7+ Wd8 21 �xg7 .ikxg7 22 'iWxg7 thought that after 29... We8, 30 'iWf7 was
'i!!'xa3 23 'i!!' xh6 'i!!'b2 24 Ildl. mate, but in fact Black's king can es­
20• . .wd8 21 J:lbl 'i!!'a S 22 'i!!' xe4 'i!!'b6 23 cape to d7. Instead I was considering
flgl liJf6 24 'i!!'f s .ike7 2 S .ikeS We8 26 29 ... We8 30 liJd6. Wd8 31 liJf7. We8 32
liJ<4 'i!!' d 8 27 'i!!'e6 'iWd3 28 liJd6+ wd8 29 'i!!' c6+ Wf8 33 'i!!' xa8+.
141
Play 1 b4!

Summary

I
Systems with ....!tf5 are certainly playable for Bldck, but Games 56-59 show that
White has chances to fight for the advantage. II does seem, however, that White
cannot get much against ... �g4 systems, and often it's necessary to take some
risks. White's kingside pawns may become compromised, as in Lapshun-Bonin Cha pter Seven
(Game 63), and dynamic play is required to compensate for this. In general, the
earlier Black gets his bishop to g4, the better off he is.

1 b4 dS 2 .!tb2 .!tfS
2 ... .!tg4 1 . . . c6, 1 . . . fS
and
3 h3 .!th5
U n u su a l Moves
4 g3 - Game 62
4 lbf3 - Game 63
3 'fWd (0)
3...lbf6 - Game 60
We conclude our study of the Sokolsky �b6, when White is forced to incarcer­
3...lbd7 - Game 61
Opening with an examination of 1. ...c6, ate his bishop with 6 d. We prefer in­
2 ...lbf6 3 e3 c6
the Outch Oefence ( .. .f5) and some un­ stead the thrust 3 b5.
4 lbf3 .!tg4 5 c4 - Game 64
usual tries by Black.
4 f4
First we consider the ambitious
4 ... a5 - Game 67
1. ..c6, and after 2 .!tb2 Black has two
4... .!tg4 (0)
main options: 2 ...'ill'b 6 and 2 ... a5. This
5 lbf3 - Game 66
defence is sharp and White must react
5 .!te2 - Game 65
aggressively, otherwise he ends up
3 e3 e6
with a poor position. Against 2 ...'&b6
3...lbf6 4 f 4 - Game 59
(Games 68-70) White can neut ralize
4 lbf3 lbf6
Black's early threats with the variation
4 ... c6 - Game 58
3 a3 as 4 c4 axb4 5 c5!, and if 5 .. .'lWxc5?
5 a3 (0) - Game 56
then 6 axb4 attacks two pieces and
5 c4 - GameS7
wins material. In this line White gains
some space on the queenside but Black This move, offering a pawn to dis­
obtains targets for counterattack; rupt Black's pawn formation and creat­
chances seem roughly balanced. By the ing a later target for a Benko Gambit­
way, we should mention here that style line opening on the queenside, is
1 . ..c6 is Richard Palliser's 'fallback' de­ discussed in Games 71-73. Rudenkov­
fence in his book Beating Unusual Chess Strugach (Game 74) displays a delayed
Openings, and we cover his recommen­ but no less effective version of the
dations in the notes to Game 69. gambit.
Against 2 . . .a5, we don't like the The three main approaches for
3 'fWC% 4···$;.94 S Q3 spineless 3 a3 axb4 4 axb4 Ihal 5 J1/.xal Black in the Outch are the Fluid System

142
Play 1 b 4 !
(sometimes called the Ilyin-Zhenevsky
Variation), the Stonewall, and the Len­
ingrad. We offer an example of White's
play against each of these possibilities.
In Katalymov-Kondratiev (Games
75-76), White counters Black's 'small
centre' approach by first grabbing the
centre and then advancing on the
queenside as in the English Opening.
By the way, '75-76' is not a misprint;
we submit two versions of this game,
one with OUf own notes, and one with
Sokolsky's. Yury had written notes to
this game by himself, overlooking that
Sokolsky had included it in his book.
After reading both sets of notes, Nick
suggested leaving both versions intact,
to provide the reader with two signifi­
cant viewpoints of an interesting game,
from two strong players with vastly
different styles and outlooks.
In Game 78, Dutch 1M Gerard Well­
ing counters the Stonewall by holding
back his central pawns and blasting
open the kingside with h2-h3 and g2-
g4, a sort of 'mirror English', and the
idea of frustrating the Stonewaller's
am bitions by keeping a pawn on d3 is a
noteworthy concept. In Shiffler­
Schmidt (Game 77), White borrows yet
another English Opening idea, used by
Larsen and Karpov, of giving up the
queen's bishop to double the enemy's
(-pawns. This Trompowsky-like ap­
proach is especially effective against a
Dutch set-up.
Games 79-80 cover 1... as, while
Games 81 -82 supply a few examples of
play in a Griinfeld (or Schlechter) type
set-up for Black, which admittedly
144
tends to occur more from games start­
ing J tIlf3.
Finally, after 1 b4 dS 2 �b2 you are
not likely to encounter moves like
2 ...'lWd6 or 2 ... 121d7 very often, but the
final two games show sensible ways to
meet them, and should comfort those
who worry about dealing with bizarre
variations.
Game 68
B.Katalymov-V.Sakharov
Kiev 1962
1 b4 <6 2 �_b2 �b6
Another try for an opening 'refuta­
tion'. This prepared idea is met by a
strong counter.
3 a3 a5 4 <4 axb4 5 <5!
Interesting play! Katalymov's nov­
elty demonstrates the waste of time by
an early queen move. The queen can't
take the pawn, so she is forced to re­
treat.
5 .. ,111"<7 6 axb4 .Ibn 7 �xn ltlf6 8 e3
g6 9 1t1<3 �g7
Here Black has to play 9 ...dS to pro-
hibit the move l2le4. In the case of 10
cxd6 �xd6 (not 1O exd6?, because of
..•
1 1 ltldS!) J 1 ltle4? ltlxe4 12 il.xh8 f6,
White's bishop on h8 is trapped. Such
an approach probably couldn't lead to
success, and this is why White should
choose either 10 cxd6 'i!l'xd6 1 1 bS or
immediately 10 bS! cxbS 1 1 ltlxbS �xcS
12 il.d4 �c6 13 ltlf3, with strong pres­
sure for a sacrificed pawn.
10 ltle4! 0-0 11 1i.xf6 il.xf6
Obviously 1 1 . ..exf6 is not good be­
cause of 12 ltld6.
12 ltlxf6+ exf6
13 1t1f3
Not immediately 13 'i!l'al, because of
1 .. <6, 1 . . .f5 a n d U n u Jual Move>
.
13 ...d6! 14 �xf6 dxcS 15 bxcS �aS.
13.,.d6 14 �a1 �e7
Or 14 ... dxcS 15 bxcS lild7 16 d4 b6
17 cxb6 �xb6 18 il.d3, with the better
position for White.
15 cxd6 'i!l'xd6 16 'i!l'd4 'i!l'e7
Black has his reasons for not trading
queens, because in the ending White
will be more active. By the way, soon
the white rook will occupy the open a­
file, and this will be a substantial ad­
vantage in I he future.
17 �e2 lild8 18 �f4 �f5 19 0·0 il.e4
The best chance for Black. 19 .�e4 _
is a mistake because of 20 �c7, win­
ning the pawn on b7.
With 19 ...il.e4 Black prevents White
from capturing the open a-file. On 20
nal there follows 20 ...�xb4, when 2J
d3 is bad because of 21. ..�b2, and in
Teply to 21 �xf6 Black answers
2 1 ...�d6.
20 ltld4 f5 21 d3 il.d5
22 b5
22 nbJ is also not bad.
22...<5 23 1t1<2 1t1d7
This allows White to penetrate via
c7, but it's difficult to find a better al-
145
Play 1 b4!
temative. On 23...'ifd6 there could fol­
low 24 lIi'xd6 :!lxd6 25 d4 (or 25 :!la1),
with an advantage for White in the
ending.
24 'ifc7! naS 2S na1 I,!xa1+ 26 Ibxa1 b6
27 lbc2 'O'Ne6
Black sidesteps the pin and defends
his pawns on the queenside. Even so,
Black is not able to eliminate all his
difficulties, and he has to constantly
defend the pawn on b6. White inlends
now to trade light-squared bishops and
bring into Ihe game the knight on c2.
2S Ibel Wg7 29 h3 ""-as 30 il.f3
A logical continuation of the in­
tended plan. Less clear are the results
of the sharp 30 g4.
30.,.il.xf3 3l lbxf3 'O'Nds 32 d4 cxd4
32 . .c4? is mistaken because of 33
. 36 l1i'g3 'ifa2 37 f4 lb c4 38 fs
'ifc6!. It's worth noting the active role
the pawn on bS plays in this game.
33 Ibxd4
Even after many exchanges, White
has preserved his advantage. Now he
is threatening to play 34 lIi'c6!, and after
exchanging queens the b-pawn win
advance to become a new queen. In
response Black tries to free himself by
146
sacrificing a pawn.
3 3...f4!1
Game 69
Now on 34 'iYc6, Black gains coun­
L.Yudasin-V.Epishin
terplay with 34 ...lbf6 35 'O'Nxb6 I xe3 36
New York Open 1990
fxe3 'ife4.
34 'O'Nxf4 lbes
At firsl sight il seems Black has real 1 b 4 e 6 2 il.b2 l1i'b6 3 a3 as 4 e4 d6
chances to save the game, but White's The main continuation here is
next move will demonstrate that he has 4... axb4 5 c5 'OIVc7 (5...'OIVxc5?? 6 axb4!) 6
not only a material advantage, bUI also axb4 nxal 7 il.xa1,
an initiative.
3S lli'gS! f6
A forced weakening - White was
threatening to play 36 f4. Now 36 lbf5+
is no good because Black defends by
playing 36 ...wf7 37 Ibh6. Wg7 with a
draw I but White finds an interesting
way 10 continue the attack.
and now:
a) Palliser's main line runs 7... d6 8
d4 with two branches:
al) 8 ... e5 9 e3 (Palliser stops here)
9 ... lbf6 10 dxe5 dxe5 11 ILlf3 with a
comfortable position for White,
Y.Lapshun-J.Gonzalez Diaz, Sants
2006.
a2) 8 ... lbf6 ("a solid continuation" -
3 s...lbd2? Palliser) 9 Ibc3 b6 10 cxd6 'iiixd6 1 1 b5
A mistake in a lost position. It was lI!'b4 12 e3 Ibd5. Here we vary with 13
necessary to revert to defence, playing 'OIVc1 (instead o f Palliser's 13 'OIV(2)
38 ...lIi'a7. Even so, the queen ending 13 ... e6 14 il.d3 c5 15 Ibf3 cxd4 16 ILlxd4
after 39 fxg6 hxg6 40 IbfS+ Wf7 4] Ibd6+ il.c5 17 0-0, when White has no prob­
Ibxd6 42 'ifxd6 should be winning tor lems and can fighl for an advantage.
White. We must remind the reader that this
39 lbe6+ wf7 40 lIi'c7+ WeS 41 ilidS+ analysis is untested in practice.
\!;>f7 42 'iffS mate (1·0) b) Another option for Black is 7 ... b6,
1 . . . c6, 1 . . .J5 a n d U n u s u a l Moves
after which 8 e 3 d 6 9 lba3 bxc5 1 0 bxc5
dxc5 11 Ibf3 offered White compensa­
tion for Ihe sacrificed pawn in
M.Bosboom-S.Emst, Dieren 1999.
c) 7 ...lbf6 reaches Katalymov­
Sakharov (see Game 68).
s lbe3
s...lLlf6
Grabbing the b-pawn with S... axb4 6
axb4 Ihal 7 'OIVxal 'OIVxb4? is punished
by 8 lbd l ! Ibt6 9 il.xt6 exf6 10 'OIVa8, win­
ning material.
6 bs g6 7 n b l 'OIVdS S g 3
Possibly 8 bxc6 should be preferred.
White has an edge after 8 ... lbxc6 9 ,,4
il.g7 10 d4 0-0 11 Ibf3 il.g4 12 il.e2 Mc8
13 il.c1 lIi'd7 14 il.e3.
S.. ,il.g7 9 il.g2 0-0 10 ILlf3 dS
This position looks like an English
Opening where \Vhite has gained some
extra tempi.
11 bxc6 bxe6 12 0-0 il.a6
12 ... dxc4 13 'OIVc2 'OIVd6 14 lIfe] il.g4
15 lba4 lbbd7 16 lIi'xc4 is roughly equal.
13 cxds cxds 14 d3 Ibc6 lS 'OIVa4 neS 16
nfel
White exerts some pressure on the
queenside, so Black has to be careful
147
Play 1 b 4 !
here. Epishin solves his problems with
a pawn sacrifice.
16.,.e6 17 liJdl 'iii' d7 18 il.c3 h 6 19 il.xa5
liJxa5 20 'iii'xa5 ILxCl 21 ILxCl 'ilVb5 22
'iii'x b5 il.xb5
Black's two bishops should provide
enough compensation for the pawn
deficit, and this proves to be the case.
23 ,l:l.bl j
td7 24 liJe3 ,l:l.a8 25 liJc2 il.f8
26 d4 il.a4 27 liJfel ncB 28 liJb4 J:i:C3 29
::tal liJe4 30 liJed3 liJd2 31 e3 liJc4 3 2
liJ c 5 jI_xc5 33 dxc5 liJa5 34 lfla6 y.-y.
After 34 liJa6 liJb3 35 l:tbl liJxc5 36
liJxc5 nxc5 the position is equal.
Game 70
Y.Lapshun-C.Stevens
Guelph 2004
This was my final-round game at
the Guelph Open. After five draws in a
row against GMs and a loss to an 1M, [
had to beat Stevens. He was a young
player and I didn't have many games
of his in my database. In this situation,
what to play on my first move became
obvious.
148
1 b4 c6 2 il.b2 'iii' b6 3 a3 as 4 c4 d6 5 d4
e5
This surprised me. My b4-pawn
was under attack and J was afraid to
open the centre by playing 6 dxe5. [t
took me more than 20 minutes of think­
ing time to understand that I had to
bring my pieces out first and only then
decide on how to open the centre.
5 ... axM 6 c5 'iii'c7 7 axb4 I!xal 8
il.xal e5 9 e3 reaches the position dis­
cussed in the note ' aJ ' to Black's 4th
move in Game 69.
6 'ilVd2 il.e6 7 C5 'iii' c 7 8 liJf3 liJd7 9 e3
liJgf6 10 liJc3 Ji.e7 1 1 il.e2 0-0 12 0-0
lHd8 13 'iWcz
Sidestepping the rook on dB. I
wanted to bring my rook from f1 to dl,
but first of all my queen needed a safer
place. It's unbelievable, but both of us
had spent about an hour for the first
twelve moves. It was time to move
more quickly, and [ managed to do this
more effectively than my opponent.
13 ...dxc5 14 bxc5 exd4 15 exd4
Finally Black has released the ten­
sion in the centre. Let's take a look at
this position. Both sides have problems
- White has a weak d5-square, a vul-
nerable d4-pawn and a bad bishop on
b2. Black has a backward pawn on b7,
and holes on b6 and d6. Whoever is
able to exploit the enemy weaknesses
more successful1y will win the game.
15...liJds 16 liJe4 liJf4 17 il.c4 .1xc4 18
'l!!'xc4
White pressures the f7-pawn, but
Black has total control of the d5-square.
18...liJf6 19 liJe5 liJ6d5 20 J:tfel f6 2 1
liJf3 il.f8 22 .l11. n
This strange-looking backward step
is the best move according to Fritz.
With my following move [ would solve
the problem of the bad bishop.
1 . . . c6, 1 .f5 a n d U n u s u a l M oves
..
2 2 ...'iii'f7 23 il.xf4 liJxf4 2 4 'iii' xf7+ Wxf7
25 ll:abl
In trying to add pressure to the b7-
pawn, my d4-pawn had also become
vulnerable.
25 ...l:l.d7 26 Iileg5+!
26...Wg8
After 26...fxg5 White wins a piece:
27 liJe5+ We6 28 liJxd7+ Wxd7 29 lhb7+
Wd8 30 litf7 liJg6 31 f4! gxf 4 32 h 4 .l1I.e7
33 h5.
27 liJe6
Reaching here was easy. but can the
knight escape later?
27 ...liJd5 28 Wfl
28 liJd2!? is another possibility.
28.. Jl'.e8 29 l'l.b2 J:l.de7 30 liJxf8 Wxf8 31
lhe7 :!!:x e7 n liJd2 liJc37
32 ... a4! 33 liJc4 .li:e4 34 .li:d2 .li:h4 35
h3 liJc3 36 liJe3 liJb5 37 liJc2 J:[e4 38 f3
J:[e8 leaves Black marginally better,
although White should hold easily.
33 liJc4 J:[d77
33 ...:e4! 34 liJxaS J:txd4 35 g3 J:ta4 36
liJxb7 J:[xa3 37 J:[b6 J:[a7 38 liJd8 liJe4 39
J:txc6 We7 40 ,l:l.e6+ Wxd8 41 l:xe4 Wd7
reaches a tenable rook endlng for
Black.
149
Play 1 b 4 !
34 ltld6
I had been dreaming about landing
on d6 with my knight about 20 moves
ago, and finally my dream came true.
34•.•ltlbS 3S tiJ"bS cxbS 36 lhbS lhd4
37 llxas
37 Ihb7 nc4 38 nbS a4 39 na5 <t<f7
40 J:ta7+ �g6 41 �e2 J:txc5 42 J:txa4
would leave Black with drawing
chances.
37 ...J:!d2 38 l:[a8+ <t<e7 39 J:ta7 1-0
In this position my opponent re­
signed. After 39 ... l:[d7 40 c6 bxc6 41
ltxd7+ �xd7 we have a classic illustra­
tion of the power of the outside passed
pawn. Black will capture the a-pawn,
150
but he will lose his c-pawn first and
then his kingside pawns too.
Game 11
Y.Lapshun-I.Figler
Marshall Chess Club (Rapid) 2004
Ilye Figler, originally from Mold­
ova, is a strong FIDE Master who has
scored two 1M norms. He is also a good
correspondence player with a solid
knowledge of openings. I had played
normal systems against him without
great success, so on this occasion I
thought the Sokolsky might come as an
unpleasant surprise.
1 b4 c6 2 �b2 as!?
I am always a( raid of this move be­
cause it practically forces White to sac­
rifice a pawn, as 3 a3 axb4 4 axb4 l::x al
5 �xa I 'l:fu6 6 c3 e5 is pleasant for
Black.
3 bS!? cxbS 4 e4 b4 S a3
Welcome to the Sicilian Defence,
Wing Gambit!
S...ltlf6
5 ... bxa3 is discussed in Campora-
Anguix Garrido (Game 72), and 5 ... ltla6
is the subject of Volke-Wegner (Game
73).
5... �b6 6 li'If3 e6 7 �c4 ltlf6 8 �xf6
gxf6 9 0-0 �c7 10 �e2 b6 1 1 axb4 �xb4
12 lba3 leaves White with compensa­
tion, K.Volke-A.Aleksandrov, Minsk
1 994.
6 es ltlds 7 �c4 ltlb6 8 �bS ltlc6 9 ltlf3
dS 10 exd6?!
10 axb4!? axb4 11 ):Ixa8 tiJxa8 12 0-0
�d7 13 ltlg5 �a5 14 e6 �xe6 15 �h5
<t<d8 16 �xc6 bxc6 17 tiJxf7+ il..xf7 18
�xf7 �c5 1 9 �xg7 �xg7 20 �xg7 ne8
21 �xh7 leaves White a pawn ahead.
It's hard to assess, but I believe that
White is better.
10 •.•'lli' xd6 11 0-0 �g4
12 d4?!
I don't like this move here: it weak­
ens c4 and also makes d4 a target.
White should instead consider 12 h3!?
il.. h5 13 �e2 e6 1 4 'i!i'e3.
12 .••�dS! 13 c4?
13 �e2 ltlc4 14 �c1 e6 15 axb4 �xb4
16 c3 gives White chances for equality.
13•••ltlxc4 14 il.xc4 'i!!' xc4 1S axb4 ltlxb4
16 h3 il.xf3
1 . . . c6. 1 .../5 and U n u s u a l M o ves
After 16 ...il.h5 1 7 ltlbd2 "ill' d5 18 il.a3
e6 19 J:!e1 f6, White doesn't have nearly
enough for his two pawns.
17 �xf3 �c6 18 'i!i'e2 e6 19 ltlc3 il.e7 20
dS ltlxds 21 ltlxds 'lli'xds 22 lHd1 'i!i'fs
23 g4 'i!i'gS 24 h4 'l!i'xh4??
Black has to defend the b5-square.
After 24 ... 'i!i'cS 25 nacl �b4 26 .i.c3 'i!i'a4
27 nal �b3 28 il..xg7 J:!g8 29 nabl �a4,
Black keeps a winning advantage.
2S j>_xg7!
2S ...f6
25 ...J:!g8 is met by 26 'i!i'b5 mate.
26 'i!!'xe6 na6 2 7 'i!i'c8+ wf7 28 �xh8
J:!c6 29 'i!i'd7 ne6 30 .!:!d4 neS 31 �xb7
hS 32 'i!i' b3+ �f8 33 J:!C1 I:cs 34 J:!xcS
�xcS 3S 'i!i'b8+ � f7 36 �b7+ iLe7 37
I!e4 fS 38 �dS+ 1-0
Game 72
D.Campora-J.Anguix Garrido
Canete 1994
1 b4 c6 2 �b2 as 3 bS cxbS 4 e4 b4 S a3
bxa3 6 ltlxa3 d6 7 d4 e6 8 �d3 ltlf6 9
ltle2 il.e7 10 0-0
White has developed almost all his
151
Play 1 b 4 ! 1 . . .c6, 1 . /5 a n d U n u s u a l Moves
. .

pieces. and he's also captured the Cf'n­ 21 'il'd4 1ba4 22 �a1 li'\c5?! 10 0-0, White's centre provides suffi· 20 exd5 exd5 21 �xd5
tre and the b5-square. This adds up to 22 ... d5!? leads to another messy po­ cient compensation for the pawn in­
full compensation for the missing sition after 23 liJf5 IiJc5 24 'il'e3 liJfe4 25 vestment.
pawn. J:l:g3 IiJxg3+ 26 'il'xg3 �g5 27 'il'xg5 f6 28 8 �c4 d6 9 0-0 4ijf6 10 .,hf6
10..•liJc6 11 l11 h 1 'il'g4 g6 29 'il'd4 'il'xf5 30 'il'xc5 J:tad8 31 10 e5 is also possible. Following
I believe this prophylactic move is a �gL On this occasion we think the lO ... dxeS 1 1 IiJxeS �e7 12 �bS+ IiJd7 13
waste of time, but many players like to chances are level. 'il'g4 �f6 White can play 14 na2, de­
prepare the [·pawn push in this man- 2 3 liJf5 liJe6 24 'il'h4! fending his loose bishop and thus free­
nero ing his knight on e5 to move.
11...liJb4 12 �b5+ �d7 13 C3 �xb5 14 10...gxf6 11 C3 �d7 12 cxb4 IiJxb4 13
IiJxb5 liJc6 lS liJg3 0-0 16 c4liJb4 17 d5 IiJc3 �e7 14 I1bl liJc6 15 d4
exd5
White retains com pensation after
17...'iI'd7 18 'il'e2 exdS 19 cxdS J:t£e8 20 \,Vhite has a saff" king and activf"
:I:1fb 1. pieces; Black possesses the two-bishop
18 exdS advantage but is saddled with three
Also possible was 1 8 cxd5!?; for ex­ isolated pawns. The overall verdict:
ample, l8 ... 'iI'd7 19 IiJd4 nlc8 20 IiJgf5 White is better.
�d8 21 na3 with a strong attack 21•..il.e5 22 IiJf3 na6 23 'il'e2 il.e8 24
against the black king. nfd1 nd6 25 'il'a2 �f5 26 :!tbel b6 27 h3
18 ...'iI'd7 19 l:!a3 lilbxd5 20 l:!f3 Now White enjoys a clear advan­ lle8 28 IiJh4 il.e8 29 'il'bl i..a 3 30 :!te2
tage. Black's two extra pawns are �c5 31 'ii c1 ne5??
meaningless when compared to the This beginner's blunder will cost
aggressiveness of White's pieces. White has enough play. His pieces Black an exchange. After 31. ..ll:e7 32
24. • ltfe8 2 S liJxe7+ 'il'xe7 26 lhf6! are well developed and they are ready ncd2 :t:I:ed7 33 lilf5 lilb3 34 'il'c2 lilxd2 35
This is winning. to attack Black's weakened pawns. IiJxd6 il.xd6 36 �c6 nc7 37 'il'xd2 nxc6
26...gxf6 27 il.xf6 'il'd7 28 f4! 15 nxb7 lilaS 16 J:txd7 IIIxd7 1 7 38 IiJb5 'iig8 39 lilxd6 il.xh3 40 g3,
Kicking out the last defender on e6. �bS+ IIIc8 1 8 IiJd4 i s a promising alter­ White's dominating knight promises
28 ...lilf8 29 'il'g5+ 1-0 native, as White's pieces can quickly him full play for his pawn, bul no
After 29 ...liJg6 30 'il'h6, Black cannot swarm around the black king. more.
prevent mate with 'il'g7. 15 ... 0-0 16 d5 lila5 17 dxe6 fxe6 18 32 1iJg6+ 1-0
�a2 III h8 19 lild4 Black loses material, as 32 ...hxg6 al­
White has found another weak lows mate in one with 33 �6.
Game 73
20•••lilb6 pawn on e6 and hastens to attack it.
K.Volke-H.Wegner
20 ...nlc8 21 cxd5 'il'xb5 22 lilf5 J:tc7 19...d5?!
German League 1993 Game 74
23 'il'al �d8 24 l:!el 'i!t'xd5 25 lilxg7 1iJe4 19 ...'iI'c8 20 'il'd2 lilc6 21 lildbS liJe5
Rudenkov-Strugach
26 nxe4 'il'xe4 27 ne3 'il'xe3 28 fxe3 22 l:tfcl l:ta6 23 lild4 lilc6 24 il.c4 na8 25
Correspondence 1961
reaches an unclear position in which 1 b4e6 2 �b2 a5 3 bs exbS 4 e4 b4 S a3 lildb5 lile5 26 �a2 lla6 repeats the posi­
we believe White maintains slightly the liJa6 6 lilf3 e6 7 axb4 axb4 tion, and this is Black's best option ac­
better chances. After 7 ... lilxb4 8 �_b5 lilf6 9 e5 lil£d5 cording to Fritz. 1 b 4 c 6 2 e3 'il'b6

152 153
Play 1 b4! 1 . . . c6, 1 .. ./5 and U n u s u a l M o ves

Black is trying to refute White's
opening, but this early move by the
queen leads to difficulties.
3 a3 as 4 bS!
It would have b""n better to play cause of 18 l:txa5 IiJc6 1 9 .!! b5. Maybe it's better to make an ugly
the immediate 9... e6. 18 liJb6 .!l:b7 19 liJa4 move, 21...lIIe7, not weakening the
10 IiJf3 light squares. Black has a dark-squared
bishop and his pawns are also placed
on dark squares, which is not good
from a positional point of view,
22 We2 il.e7 23 f4 111 a 24 l:thC1lI:e8

The complications have ended with

10...e6 material eq uality and a White advan­
An interesting pawn sacrifice, On IO ...bxc4 there follows I I il.xc4!, tage. He has a pair of active bishops
which Black must accept, otherwise his and here 1 1...�xc4 would be bad be­ and superiority in the centre. Black's
play makes no sense. cause of 12 Rcl !. passed pawns are blocked and pose no
4.•. cxbS S IiJc3 11 liJ es! 'lil'b7 1 2 'lil'f3! d 6 serious danger. 2S cS!
White knights occupy positions i n 19...liJd7 20 g3! White decides matters quickly by
the centre, but both o f them are under Black's e6-pawn is the juiciest target blasting open the position.
attack. White's next move reveals the in his camp. 2S .•• dxcS 26 fxes liJg8
true state of affairs. The natural 20 d4 is weaker - White Against 26 ... liJe4 or 26.. .lbd5, 27
13 /tjb6! Ra7 doesn't want to close the diagonal for il.g2 is very strong.
Obviously not 13 ...�xb6, because of the bishop on b2. 27 e6 IiJdf6 28 IiJx<S il.xcs 29 lh<S+
14 'l!i'xf7+ IIId 8 15 'l!i'xf8+ III c7 16 'l!i'xg7+. 2 0• . .liJgf6 2 1 il.h3! III d6 30 .!:taxaS lII e 7 31 i.eS .!:td8 32
On 13 ... dxe5 there could follow an in­ Ji[cbS l:lxbS 33 �xbS 1-0
teresting variation: 14 i.xf8 IIIx f8 15 Black's risky play to grab a pawn at
IiJxa8 e4 16 'lil'g3 'lil'xa8 17 'lil'c7 etc. the start, combined with a loss of time
In the game White snatches back with the queen, was strongly refuted
the pawn. by White.
S. ..b4 14 'l!i'xf7+! 'l!i'xf7 1S IiJxf7 lhf7 16 1iJ1<C8
Playing to save the pawn is f ully b4
Came 75
consistent. Against other replies White There is no way to exploit White's
B Katalymov P Kondratiev
.
-
.

plays 6 il.xb5 and 7 rtbl, achieving the
better development.
6 axb4 �Xb4 7 il.a3 �b6 8 liJds
8 l'lbl is also good here.
8...�c6 9 C4 bS
isolated knight, which is surrounded
Spartak Championship,
by black pieces. On 16 ...lIId7, White
Minsk 1962
answers 17 liJa7 followed by IiJb5.
17 il.b2 111d8
It was senseless to play 17 ...l:Ib7, be- 2 1...eS 1 b4 fs 2 iLb2 lbf6 3 e3 e6 4 bs i..e7

1 54 155
Play 1 b 4 !
5 e4
5 liJ f3 0-0 6 c4 d6 7 liJc3 cS 8 bxc6
liJxc6 9 1I.e2 b6 10 0-0 was equal in
W.lombardy-L.Evans, New York 1962.
5 ... 0-0 6 liJc3 liJe4?!
It's too early for this activity; Black
needs to develop some pieces first.
7 t4 1I.t6 8 d4 liJxe3 9 1I.xc3 a6 10 a4
axb5 11 axb5 1bu 12 'i!l'xu d6 13 liJf3
b6?!
The bishop never gets to b7, and in
the future the weak c6-square can pre­
sent Black with a number of problems.
Fritz likes 13 ...liJd7!? in order to reply
to 14 1I.d3 with 1 4 ... eS!. Of course
White could instead play 14 i.e2, and
156
the open a-file assures him o f a slight
advantage.
14 'i!l'a8!? liJd7 15 Wd2
White prevents 16 ... liJcS followed
by 17 ...liJe4. So the black knight tries to
get to e4 via the f6-square, to attack
White's dangerousl y centralized king.
15 ...1I.e7 16 11.d3 liJt6 17 ll:u !
White consistently pursues his at­
tack along the a-file.
17.•.1I.d7?
17...dS! was the right move. Black
shouldn't trade queens when the white
king is in the centre. In general, if
somebody is attacking you on the
flank, try to hit back in the centre, es­
pecially if your opponent's king hap­
pens to be situated there.
18 'i!l'xd8 I1xd8 19 I1a7 I1e8 20 1I.b4 wf8
21 h3 h6 22 g4
Maybe this is not too bad, but I
don't think a sacrifice is necessary_
White should calmly prepare a push of
his C-, e- and/or g-pawns to win in a
controlled manner.
22 .•.fxg4 23 hxg4 Illxg4 24 e4 Illt2 2 5
il. b 1 d 5 !
When you have extra material and
you are defending, it's a good idea to
trade pieces. (Remember what I said
before about hitting back in the cen­
tre?)
26 Jixe7+ Wxe7 27 exd5 exd5 28 liJe5
4'le4+ 29 iLxe4 dxe4 30 We3 jets 3 1 <5
we6 3 2 1ll< 6
32 ...g617
32 ...bxcS! 33 dxcS g6 34 .!l:a6 wf7 35
lIa7 We6 36 lIa6 wf7 should hold.
33 d 5 + ! wxd5
After 33...wf6, White wins with 34
cxb6 cxb6 35 d6 gS 36 d7 Jixd7 37 lJ:xd7
I1e8 38 litd6+ ll'.e6 39 lhe6+ w xe6 40
fxgS hxgS 41 Wxe4.
34 1lle 7+ 1·0
Game 76
B.Katalymov-P.Kondratiev
Spartak Championship,
Minsk 1962
1 b4f5
This answer has some logic. To
White 's pawn thrust on the queenside,
Black replies in a similar fashion on the
other wing.
1 . . . c6, 1 . . ./5 a n d U nusual M o ves
2 1I.b2 lilf6 3 e 3 e6 4 b5 1I.e7 5 e4 0-0 6
lll e3
Perhaps 6 liJf3 or 6 f 4 is a better op­
tion. Obviously this move, developing
a piece, is also possible.
6 ...lbe4
Black hastens to engage in direct
combat. Now 7 Ill xe4 fxe4, with pres­
sure on the f2-square, is no good for
White. And it's too early to play 7 d3
because of 7. . .lllxc3 8 s..xc3 a6 9 a4 d5,
with counterplay. Finally, after 7 Illf3
Black has possibilities of expansion on
the kingside with ... f5-f4 or . .. g7-g5.
Katalymov decides to prevent such
plans.
7 f4! il.f6 8 d4 1ll xc3
Black shouldn't hurry with this
trade. 8 . . .d6 or 8 . . .dS would be a better
choice.
9 Sl.x<3 a6 10 a4 axb5
Probably this trade is the primary
reason for Black's defeat. 1n principle
it's a mistake to open a file on the flank
where your opponent has a space ad­
vantage, and this is borne out by the
development of events in this game.
11 axb5 lIXU 12 'i!l'xa1 d6 13 lllt3 b6
Of course it's no\ unfavourable to
develop the bishop on thp main diago­
nal, but an intrusion by the white
queen will prevent this possibility.
14 'i!l'a8 1lld7
Black intended here to force White's
qUef>n to retreat due to the threat of
15 ... lllc5!.
1 5 Wd2!
With this move vVhite solves a ff'w
problems: the bishop on c3 is defended
and the threat of Is ...lllc5 is neutral-
157
Play 1 b 4 !
ized; a transfer o f the rook t o the open
a-file becomes easier; and Black's plans
of counterplay on the kingside (possi­
ble with White's kingside castling) are
destroyed.
Less successful is a retreat of the
bishop with IS �a 1 , or IS �b4 because
of IS ...ll:e8! followed by ...e6-eS. But the
text move is excellent, helping the fu­
ture mobilization of \,yhite's forces.
15 .•. �e7 16 �d3 liJf6 17 l:1a1 �d7
In these conditions, when Black
probably can't hope to create counter­
play, the plan of trading pieces with a
goal of decreasing White's pressure is
natural.
18 'i\l'xd8 l'bd8 19 l1:a7 lJe8 20 �_b4 wf8
White was threatening to play li:les,
exploiting the undefended bishop on
e7.
21 h3 h 6
White i s much better: Black has to
defend c7 and his pieces don't have
much space. But it's not easy to find a
plan to exert pressure on such a stable
enemy position. Katalymov decides to
make an interesting pawn sacrifice on
the kingside to prepare a breakthrough
in the cen tre.
22 g4! fxg4 23 hxg4 liJxg4 24 e4 liJf2 25
�bl d 5
Rather than wait, Black decides to
counterattack. The strength of White's
threats is illustrated in the following
variation: 25...hS 26 e5 dxe5 (the threat
was 27 exd6 winning a piece) 27 �xe7+
Wxe7 28 fxe5 i..e8 (otherwise 29 �g6 is
unpleasant) 29 d5 exd5 30 cxdS �xb5
31 �f5 �d7 32 d6+ Wd8 33 e6! etc.
2 6 �xe7+ Wxe7 2 7 exd5 exd5 28 liJe5
158
liJe4+
Probably the only move. White was
threatening 29 1ilxd7 followed by �f5;.
On 28 ...�e6, 29 c5 is very strong.
29 �xe4 dxe4 30 .tIe3 �f5 31 e5 o;t.e6
Black's king must leave the seventh
rank. On 31. wf6 there could follow 32
_ It's
.!!.a6 ll:b8 33 d5! (with a threat of d5-d6)
33...il.c8 34 J:!a7 bxc5 (or 34 ...J:!b7? 35
.!!.a8 �f5 36 c6, winning a rook) 35
nxc7, and White should win.
32 1Zle6 g6?
Immediately losing. But after the
best defence 32 ... bxc5 33 dxc5 g6 34
J:!a6! wf7 35 liJd4 Wg7 36 liJxf5+ gxf5 37
ll:c6, White is winning because of the
threat of b5-b6!. It's instructive to ob­
serve the active role of the b-pawn in
all t hese variations.
33 d5+! Wxd5
After 33...wf6 34 cxb6 cxb6 35 d6
Black is losing a piece, and it's not dif­
ficult for White to win.
34 liJe7+ 1-0
The pressure on I he open a-file and
the presence of the far advanced pawn
on the queenside enabled White's suc­
cess in this interesting ending.
Carne ll
LShiffler-Schmidt
Correspondence 1950
1 b4 f5 2 �b2 Iilf6 3 �xf6!?
An interesting solution. White gives
up a beautifully placed bishop and
concedes the bishop pair in exchange
for inflicting upon Black doubled
pawns on the f-file, decreasing Black's
pawn mobility on the kingside.
3•••exf6
Obviously not 3...gxf6? 4 e4!. when
Black's king is in danger.
4 e3!
This and White's next few moves
meet with the position's demands. Af­
ter exchanging the dark-squared
bishop, White places pawns on the
dark squares.
4 ... d5 5 e3 �d6 6 �d3!
White takes aim at the f5-pawn, not
allowing it move forward.
6•.• �e7 7 liJe2 e6 8 �e2 g6
9 h4! h5
Otherwise h4-h5 will be quite po-
1 . . . c6, 1 . . ./5 a n d Unusual Moves
tent. B y plaCing his pawns on dark
squares in conjunction with owning a
light -squared bishop, White has cre­
ated an original and harmonious posi­
tion.
10 a4 liJd7 11 f4! as!
necessary to prevenl a4-a5.
Black is trying to keep some life in his
position.
12 b5 liJe5 13 e4 liJxd3+ 14 'i\l'xd3 dxe4
15 "i!!' xe4 �e6 16 'i\l'e2 0-0
17 bxe6
It's easier here to play 17 IZlbc3 with
<;I;>f2 to follow. White's task involves
restricting the enemy bishops if possi­
ble while creating good squares for his
knights. To open the c-file Black sooner
or later has to capture on bS, when
White will answer IZlxb5.
17 .. . bxe6 18 liJb<3
A careless capture of the pawn on
c6 would lead to big problems after ]8
"li'xc6 nfc8.
18 ..•nab8 19 liJd4 �e4!?
An interesting exchange sacrifice,
and working out the resulting compli­
cations will prove to be very difficult.
More natural was 19 ... i..d7 20 Wf2, with
1 59
Play 1 b 4 !
chances for both sides.
20 itlxe6!
White bravely meets the danger
head-on, and a maelstrom of complica­
tions arises on the board.
20..:i!Vb7 21 itlxbS "i!l'xg2 22 0-0-0 .... a3+
23 'Ot>b1 IlxbS+
24 itlb5!
An unexpected move! If Black now
plays 24 ... il.xb5, then after 25 �b3+
Wg7 26 axb5 White beats off the attack
and remains with a material advan­
tage.
24•.:,Wd5 25 'Ot>a1 il.b3
Now on 25...il.xb5 there follows 26
llbl.
26 "i!l'e7 Ilb7 27 "i!l'e8+ wh7 28 Ilb1 il.b2+
At first glance Black has achieved
success...
2 9 Ilxb2!
...but this exchange offer dashes his
hopes! In the event of 29 Wxb2 il.xa4,
Black enjoys a huge attack.
29..."i!I'xh1+ 30 J:l.b1 "i!l'd5 3 1 Ilxb3!
Very business-like. Black remains a
piece down.
31 ..."i!I'xb3 32 �xb7+ wh6 33
"i!l'xa4+ 34 'Ot>b2 "i!l'b4+ 35 'Ot>e2 "i!l'a4+ 36
160
WC3 "i!l'b4+ 37 'Ot>d3 g5
There is no perpetual check after
37.. "i!I'e4+ 38 We2 "i!l'g2+ 39 Wdl "i!l'fl+ 40
. equal. White would be doing well were
'Ot>c2 "i!l'c4+ 41 lilc3. But the text move i s
the equivalent o f resignation.
3 8 hxg5+ fxg5 39 "i!l'c6+ 'Ot>g7 40 fxg5 h4
41 "i!l'h6+ wg8 42 'i!l'g6+ Wh8 43 itld6 1·0
An original game with a very sharp
fight.
Game 78
G.Welling-R.Achleitner
Velden 1994
1 b4 d5 2 e3 e6 3 ii.b2 f5
Black plays the Dutch Defence,
Stonewall variation.
4 c4 itlf6 5 itlf3 c6 6 a3 il.d6 7 itlc3 0-0 8
'i!l'c2 'i!l'e7 9 il.e2 il.d7
In the Stonewall Black often mao
noeuvres his bad bishop via e8 to h5.
10 h3
Preparing a kingside attack with a
pawn on g4, rook on gl and bishop on
b2.
'il'd7 10...a5 11 b 5 itle4 12 g4 itlxe3 13 'i!l'xe3
f4 14 h4
14 itle5!? il.e8 15 exf4 nxf4 16 d4
dxc4 17 b6 itld7 1 8 itlxc4 is roughly
it not for the weaklings on d4 and b6.
14...fxe3 15 dxe3 exb5 16 cxb5 il.xb5 17
itlg5 il.d7?
17 ... il.xe2!? 18 Wxe2 itlc6 19 "i!l'd3 g6
20 f4 Ilad8 offers level chances.
18 "i!l'd3! g6 19 'i!!'d4! e5 20 "i!l'xd5+ Wg7
2 1 l:!d1 il.c7
After 2 1 ..J:!f6 22 f4 il.c6 23 fxe5
il.b4+ 24 axb4 Ilfl+ 25 nxfl il.xd5 26
IIxdS, White has extra material as well
as the attack.
22 "i!l'xb7 il.c6 23 'i!!'xc7 'i!!'xc7 24 1tle6+
wf7 25 itlxc7 il.xh1 26 il.xe5 lla7 2 7
il.c4+ We7 2 8 il.d6+ wd7 29 itl b 5 il.f3
3 0 il.xf8+ il.xd1 3 1 itl "a7 ii.xg4
After a long tactical middlegame
Black is down a bishop. White has a
completely winning position and the
rest of the game requires no further
comments.
32 il.h6 'Ot>d6 33 il.f4+ �c5 34 il.xb8
'Ot>xc4 35 itlc6 wb3 36 itlxa5+ Wxa3 37
itlc4+ wb4 38 itle5 il.e6 39 il.d6+ �e3
40 f3 We2 41 Wf2 Wd2 42 il.b4+ We2 43
itlg4 wb3 44 il.f8 'Ot>c3 45 itlf6 h5 46
1 . _ . c6, 1 .f5 a n d Unu sual M o ves
.
itle4+ �c4 47 Wg3 �d5 48 Wf4 ii.f7 49
Wg5 'Ot>e5 50 il.d6+ 1·0
Game 79
Y.Lapshun-L.Oms Fuentes
Barcelona 2007
1 b4 a5 2 b5 c6
2 ...itlf6 3 il.b2 g6 is the subject of
Akesson-Ernst (see Game 80).
3 a4 itlf6 4 il.b2
I remember how several titled play­
ers who inspected our board sepmed
shocked that two players trying to fin·
ish high in the standings could reach a
position like this.
4...d5 5 e3 il.f5 6 itlf3 e6 7 e4 e5 8 exd5
exd5 9 d3
9 d4 il.xbl 1 0 Ilxbl c4 gives Black a
passed pawn and a smal1 advantage.
9 ...il.d6 10 itlbd2 0·0 11 1I.e2 l:I.e8 12
0·0 itlbd7 13 l:e1 itle5?
I3 .. JIc8 is a good move.
14 itlxe5 il.xe5 15 .i.xe5 llxe5 16 d4!
cxd4 17 itlf3 Ite8
1 7...dxe3?! 18 itlxe5 exf2+ 19 Wxf2
itle4+ 20 Wfl "i!l'b6 21 itld3 "i!l'e3 22 .!Ia2
161
Play 1 b4!
'tWh6 23 -lif3 'tWxh2 24 na3 nc8 2S �_xe4
i.xI'4 26 'il'g4 'il'hl+ 27 We2 'tWxg2 + 28
'ti'xg2 �xg2 29 J;!cl is winning for
White.
lB IL\xd4
White, with a strong knight on d4
and an isolated pawn to attack, has the
advantage.
lB ..• -lid7 19 J:[C1 'ti'b6 20 .if3 J:[aeB 21
'ti'd2 -lie6 22 1L\b3 );laB
23 l;tc3
23 'ilI'd4! 'ilI'xd4 24 1L\xd4 nec8 25 1L\b3
b6 26 ttc6 looks very dangerous for
Black.
23 ...lL\e4 24 il.xe4 dxe4 2 5 1L\d4 'ti'd6 26
J:[ecl g6 27 'tWcz -lids 2B h3 l:IadB 29
1 62
.!te7 b6 30 'tWc3 h5 31 h4
Stopping Black's kingside attack.
White is still slightly better, but
couldn't se(' how I could win.
31...'i!I'f6??
Finally Black has made a mistakl',
and he pays for it.
32 liJc61 'tWxc3 33 .u xc3 -lixc6 34 J:[7xe6
Black can't defend all his pawns.
34...ndl+ 35 Wh2 nd2 36 wg3 l:Ie5 3 7
lhb6 g 5 3 B J:[bc6 gxh4+ 3 9 Wf4 J:[eB 40
tlc2 Ild1 41 nb2 1-0
The strength of my passed b-pawn
and the task of defendmg his numer­
ous islands (only Japan has more) con­
vinced my opponent to resign.
Game 80
R.Akesson-T.Ernst
Kraft Chess Cup, Skelleftea 1999
I met GM Ralf Akesson in Barce­
lona. I spent many rounds in that tour­
nament placed between his board and
his countryman GM Lars Karlsson's. I
kidded them that they were my two
SwedIsh bodyguards!
1 b4 as 2 b5 liJf6 3 il.b2 g6 4 g3
A typical King's Indian pawn race
I looms after 4 e3 il.g7 S IL\f3 0-0 6 c4 d6 7
d 1 ll\bd7 8 il.e2 eS 9 liJc3 e4 10 Iild l ne8
11 'i!l'c2 'i!l'e7. This was played
A.Sokolsky-Y.Nikolaevsky, Kiev 1957.
with White eventually winning.
4...�_g7 5 il.g2 0·0 6 c4 d6 7 liJO e5 B d3
A typical English Opening!
B ... liJbd7 9 liJa4 neB 10 'i!!'C2 llbB 11 e3
b6 12 liJe2 il.b7 13 �xb7 Ilxb7 14 e4
In this closed position Black is sad­
dled with weak c6- and d5-squares.
W hite tries to prepare f2-f4.
14 ...liJfB 15 liJac3 liJe6 16 0-0 'il'd7 17
l:!ae1 c5 1B bxc6 'lWJ(c6 19 a4
1 ... c6, 1 . . ./5 and Unusual Moves
Fixing the weak b6-pawn and rein­
forcing the outpost on bS. In addition,
Black has to take care of his d6-pawn
and the dS-square. He should play th..
in prophylactic 19 ... liJd7!?, intending to
answer 20 f4 with 20 ... exf4 21 lbxf4
IL\xf4 22 nxf4 illeS.
19...'tWd7?! 20 f4 liJc5 21 1H3
2] f5!? was the most logical way to
attack the black king.
21 ... 'tWh3 22 Wh 1 'i!kh5?!
22 ... liJg4!? 23 liJgI 'i1i'hS 24 IL\bS J:[d7
25 h3 f5 would have been a better try,
although we bl'lieve While would still
have I he advantage.
23 Wg2 g5?!
23...nc7 24 liJbS ll:d7 2S h3 l:Ie6 26
-licl is not quite as bad as the lex\.
24 ng5 'tWxg5 2 5 nef1
White piles on more pressure down
the f-file, and on all the black weak-
nessE'S there.
2 5 ...'i!I'g6 26 IL\d1!?
This knight is going to e3 and on to
the magical f5-square.
26...lilfxe4
A desperate sacrifice in an awful
position. Black refuses to lose slowly
163
Play 1 b 4 !
and tries to survive in the tactical wil­
derness.
27 dxe4 'iWxe4 2S 'iWxe4 lilxe4 29 .IId 3
lilcs 30 l:Ia3 e4 31 �xg7 Wxg7 3 2 lile3
WfS n lilf4
This is winning for White, who has
an extra knight for just two pawns.
n .•J:1eS 34 .!Idl .II d7 3S l"lbl l"lb7 36
liledS lild7 37 Wf2 IreS 3S lile3 IicS 39
lilfdS f6 40 .!!b b3 Wf7 41 l:tbs .!!cbS?
Black needed to defend b6 with
41...l:tc6.
42 lilfS We6 43 lilf4+ 1-0
White wins after 43 ...Wf7 44 lilxd6+
We745 lilxb7.
Game 81
D.Bronstein-V.Lepeshkin
USSR Championship,
Tallinn 1965
l lilf3 lilf6 2 g3 g6 3 b4
3...d5
V.Hort-M.Krisko, Trinec 1972, conti­
nued 3... �g7 4 �b2 O.{) 5 c4 d5 6 �g2
dxc4 7 lila3 lild5 (the attempt to save the
c4·pawn doesn't succeed after 7 ...'i1!'d6 8
164
b 5 'i1!'b 6 9 'i1!'cl �e6 10 lile5) 8 �xg7
�xg7 9 'i1!'c1 Wg8 10 'iWxc4 c6 11 O.{) lild 7
12 'i1!'h4 e5 13 lilg5 lil7f6 14 b5 lbe7 15
bxc6 bxc6, and White enjoyed a slight
advantage due to the weak c6-pawn.
4 �g2 �g7 5 �b2
White employs a double fianchetto
against the Griinfeld sel-up.
5.,.c6 6 lila3
Another extraordinary idea from
Bronstein: \Nhite prepares to strike at
the centre with his c-pawn.
6,..0-0 7 e4 'iWb6 S 'iWb3 lile4
8 ... aS!? 9 cxdS cxdS 10 b5 reaches an
equal position.
9 0-0 lile5
A tactical trick, which only serves to
improve White's pawn structure. Soon
White is able to take control of the cen­
tre.
10 bxe5 'iWxb3 11 axb3 �xb2 12 J:l.a2
�f6 13 exd5 exd5 14 lilbS lba6 15 d4
�d7 16 lile3 lilb4 17 .IId 2 .!'I.aeS lS lila2
Wresting control of the b4-square
will give White added possibilities on
the queenside.
lS..,lilxa2 19 .!'I.xa2 a6 20 e3
20,..b6?!
This overambitious Ihrust merely
creates weaknesses. Black should
choose 20 ... J:[c7, with a defensible posi-
tion.
21 b4
21 cxb6 �bS 22 ll:fal J:!b8 23 lbeS
J:[fd8 24 l:tcl .lhb6 25 .!lac2 is close to
equal.
21...�b5 22 l:!:e1 �e4 23 ll:aal e6 24
�f1 as?
l.osing a pawn, and the game. After
24 ... �xf1 2S �xf1 bxcS 26 bxcS l:tc6 27
ll:aS White has only a small advantage.
25 �xe4 dxe4 26 bxa5 bxc5 27 nxe4
exd4 2S ll:xeS J:l.xeS 29 lilxd4 �fS 30 a6
�xd4 31 exd4 We7 32 �g2 wd6 n �f3
1 . . . c6, 1 .. .f5 and Unusual M o ves
�dS 34 We3 .11 3S 3S 37
35,..f5
3S ... f6 36 h4 h6 37 g4 hS 38 f3 Itid6
39 gxhS gxhS 40 naS Wc6 41 We4 �d6
42 .l:l:a6+ We7 43 f4 �d7 44 fS exfS+ 4S
WxfS is a typical winning line - White
can always gain an entry square for his
king. The text move shortens the proc­
ess.
36 J:1.a5+ 1-0
After 36...�d6 37 wf4 h6 38 M,
Black runs out of useful moves and
must allow the white king to penetrate
and eventually gobble up some more
pawns.
Game 82
B.Gurgenidze-E.Mnatsakanian
USSR Team Championsh ip,
Mos[QW 1972
l lilf3 lilf6 2 b4 g6 3 e4 � g7 4 £b2 0-0
5 e3 d 5
The drawback o f playing a Griin­
feld set-up in this pseudo-English
Opening is that Black's important dark­
squared bishop is likely to be traded.
1 65
Play 1 b 4 !
6 exdS ttlxdS 7 .fI.xg7 \tixg7 S 'l!!'el
White puts his queen on a dark
square (now thai the dark-squared
bishops have gone) and indirectly de­
fends his pawn: 8 ... ttlxb4?? 9 'l!!' c3+ wins
the knight.
S •..f6 9 a3 e6?!
Too many pawn moves is risky.
Maybe Black should play 9. ..fI.g4!?
. 22....fI.bs 23 ttld2
10 d4 as 11 bS 'l!!' b6 12 bxe6 'i!i'xe6 13
ttlbd2 il.d7 14 'i!i'xe6 ttlxe6 lS il.e4 ttle7
16 1Ibl
White's strong centre and Black's
weak b-pawn add up to give White the
advantage.
16 ...:tabS 17 l'Ib6 ttla7 lS ttle4
166
This knight is racing to c5, but it
was more logical to castle first.
lS ...il.c6 19 ttles ttleS 20 I!b2 ttld6 21
ttle6+ ttlxe6 22 il.xe6
The while bishop on e6 inhibits
Black's movement, but after his reply
the dark side of failing to castle be­
comes apparent.
To get his king's rook into Ihe fray,
White relreats the knight to prepare f2-
f3 followed by \tif2.
23 ...fS 24 f3 \t>f6 2S dS .fI.eS 26 \tie2 .fI.f7
27 il.xf7 \tixf7 28 :tel ntes 29 :txeS
IlxcS 30 \tid 3 bS
White's edge has evaporated, but
Black must still be careful to restrain
his opponent's ambitions in the centre.
31 e4 eS
A step in the wrong direction.
31 ... 11<£6! 32 f4 fxe4+ 33 ttlxe4+ ttlxe4 34
\tixe4 Ilc4. 35 \tif3 looks drawish.
32 t4! 1:!es?
The rook ending after 32 ... \tif6 33
fxeS , \tixe5 34 ttlf3. Itf4 35 e5 ttlc4 36
lhb5 ttlxe5+ 37 ttlxe5 (37 \tid4?? Ilc4
mate) 37...ltxe5 38 lha5 ncl should
probably end as a draw.
33 fxeS l-o
It's more than likely that Black lost
on time here. A possible conclusion
could be 33 fxeS ttlxe4 34 Itd4 lte7 35
a4! (35 ttlxe4 Ilc4+ 36 Itd3 l1xe4 37
1:!xbS :txe5 38 lhaS looks drawish)
35 ... 1:!cl 36 axb5 ttlxd2 37 1:!xd2, and
White wins.
Game 83
A.Sokolsky-F.Villard
Kiev 1955
1 b4 ds 2 il.b2 'i!i'd6
This early movement of the queen is
1 . . . c6, 1 . .f5 a n d Unusual Moves
.
probably nol good. By attacking the b4-
pawn, Black gains time to create a
pawn centre, but in future the poor
position of his queen will weigh
against him.
3 a3
White could offer a pawn sacrifice
by continuing 3 b5, intending 3 ...'lWb4?
4 il.c3 'i!i'xbS 5 p4 with I he initiative.
Instead Black should reply consistently
with 3...e5, as in the IPxt.
3 ...es 4 ttlf3 f6
This is essential, as it's unfavour­
able to allow White's pieces to invadE"
the centre after 4. . .e4 5 ttld4. In addi­
tion, the continuation 4... ttld7 5 e3 il.e7
followed by a later ...ii.f6 is simply un­
realistic.
S e3 il.e6 6 d4 e4
Maintaining the centre by playing
6. ..tZld7 7 dxe5 {xeS requires consider­
able concessions after 8 c4! c6 (or
8...dxc4 9 'lWxd6 il.xd6 10 ttlg5 i1.d5 1 1
ttl(3) 9 cxd5 cxdS 1 0 /2\c3 a6 1 1 ttlg5
ttlgf6 12 ttlxe6 'lWxe6 13 'i!i'b3 - there is
strong pressure on Black's central
pawns.
7 ttltd2 ts 8 <4 e6 9 ttle3 ttlf6
167
Play 1 b41 1 . . . c6, 1 .. ./5 and Unusual Moves

Black has advanced pawns into the
centre and hopes to develop the initia­
tive. But it's possible to spot two bad
omens for Black: the poorly placed
queen on d6 and the undeveloped
queenside. Under these circumstances,
White is first to begin active operations
on the queenside.
10 �c2! a6
White was threatening to play 1 1
cxd5 cxd5 1 2 111b5.
11 111 a4! 'i'fd8
Admit! ing the mistake of 2 ... 'Wd6.
On 1 1 . ..111 bd7, 12 Ill c5! would be very
strong.
12 111cs i<c8 13 liC1
Being better developed, White now
prepares to open the c-file.
13,.•�e7 14 �e2
Here it's possible to play 14 cxd5
lll xd5 (not 14 ... cxd5, because of 15
IIIcxe4 !) 15 �c4.
14...0-0 15 0-0 il.d6 16 f4
�h2+ 22 Whl �g3 23 d5 etc) 21 �3.,.
Wh8 22 axb4, when even though Black
has an extra piece, he can't escape de­
feat because virtually every move he
makes will lose something.
16...li)g4
Black should try to attack without
opening th� poSition, and 16 ...liIg4 is a
serious mistake. 16 ...b6 is a much bel ter
move.
n �xg4 fxg4 18 cxdS cxdS 19 'Wb3
�xcS
Forced, o therwise a pawn goes.
20 dxcS IP h8 21 l:Icd1 il.fS 22 1ll b1 il.e6
2 3 111 c3
Black's resources have run out. He
must lose material.
2 3...'iI'e8 24 111 x dS
26 111c7 'Wf7 2 7 li1xa8 g3!1 sacrifice. 6...111b 6 7 �b3 and only then
A desperate counterattack, which 7... �g7 would have avoided the im­
misses the mark. pending disaster.
28 lll b6 gxh2+ 29 Wh 1 IiJhs 30 'i!!'u
'l!/'g6 31 Wxh2 1:tfs 32 lllc8! lllf6 33 i<xf6
gxf6 34 1lld 6 and White soon won (1-{J).
Game 84
M.Vokac-P.Bazant
Czech Championship,
Turnov 1996
And finally, 10 end this book we
show how a strong player (raled nearly
2300) lost in seven moves against Ihe 7 il.xf7+!! 1-0
Sokolsky! White wins the queen after 7 _. �
1 b4 dS 2 �b2 lll d 7 3 lllf3 lll gf6 4 e3 g6 8 lllg5+ WeB 9 llle6, while 8. ..WgB is
5 c4 dxc4 6 1I.xc4 �g7?? even worse because of 9 'i!l'b3+, mating
Black fails to see a thematic bishop on f7.

White is prepared for a sharp fight,
in which the advantage in develop­
ment should be felt. For example,
24...111 d7
After this Black loses an exchange,
but who can give advice in this posi­
tion? On 24 ...'Wf7 or 24 .. .lH7, very
strong is 25 f5!.
25 'iW<3 lll f6
Nor would the result be any differ­
ent after 25 .. 'ili'f7 because of 26 lll c7
.

16 ...exf3 17 �xf3 'lIic7 18 h3 b6 1 9 cxd5! 1I.b3 27 'lIixg7+ 'lIixg7 28 �xg7+ Wxg7 29

bxc5 20 dxc6! cxb4 (or 20 ...lllxc6 21 bxc5 lhd7+, winning easily.

1 68 169
Play 1 b 4 !

Summary
The Dutch is best handled by the 'avoidance' strategies we offer here (English

I
Opening and Reti players will have no problems with this). Of the other Black op­
tions studied in this chapter, 1 . .. c6 is the most critical. It's worth investing some
time memorizing lines here, as inaccurate play could get punish ed.
Index of Co m p lete G a mes
l b4 c6
1...fS 2 iLb2 itlf6 (0)
3 e3 - Games 75-76; 3 iLxf6 - Game 77
I._aS 2 bS

2. . .c6 - Game 79; 2.. . itlf6 - Game 80

1 . ..itlf6 2 i;.b2 g6 3 itlf3 iLg7
4 c4 0-0 S e3 dS - Game 82; 4 g3 dS 5 iLg 2 c6 6 itla3 - Game 81
1...dS 2 iLb2

2. ..'i!i'd6 - Game 83
Akesson.R-Emst.T, Kraft Chess Cup, Skelleftea 1999. .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . .. . . . . . . 162
2 ... itld7 - Game 84
Akopian.V-Ganguly.S. Goodricke Opm, Calcutta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . ........ 115
2. . .e6 3 e3 fS - Game 78
Alekhine.A-Drewitl.J, Portsmouth 1923. . .. . . .... . .. . . . . .. . . . . .. . . . . .. . . . .. .. . . .... . . .. . ... .. . . . . . .. . . ... . . ....... 1 1 1
2 il.b2
Alekseev.V-Komliakov.VI Petrov Memorial, S I" Petersburg 1996 ................................... 65
2 e3 - Game 74
A lekseev. V-Sakaev.K, Petrov Memorial, 5t Petersburg 1996 . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ........... 63
2 ...'i!i'b6
Benko.P-Bellon Lopez.J, Torremolinos 1973 .__. __ . .. .......... .... . . ...... . .... ... .... . ... .. ... . . ...... ....... 130
2. . .aS 3 bS cxbS 4 e4 b4 S a3 (0)
Benko.P-Ciocalted.V , Lugano Olympiad ]968. .. . . . . . . . . . . . . ................................................... 66
5 itlf6 - Game 71
...

Bemstein.'i-Seidman.H, US Championship 1959. .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . 104

S ... bxa3 - Game 72
Bronstein .D-lvkov.B, Amsterdam Interzonal 1964 . . . .. ........ . . ... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .......91
S...itla6 - Game 73
3 a3 a5 4 <4 (0) d6 Bronstein.D-Lepeshkin.V. USSR Championship. Tal linn 1965 . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

4 ... axb4 - Game 68, Game 69 (notes) Campora.D-Anguix Garrido.J, Canete 1994 . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . .. . . .. . .. . .. . . . . . . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 151

5 itlc3 - Came 69 Campora.D-Visier Segovi.F, Canete 1994 . ... . . .. . . .. . .. . . . . .. . . . . .. . . . .. . . . . .. . . . . . . .. . .... . . .. . . . .. . . .. . . .. .. . .. . 97

S d4 - Came 70 Fischer.R-Gloger.J, Cleveland (Simultaneous Display) 1964 . . . .... . . .. . . . . . .. . . . . .. .. .. . . . . .. . . ... . . . 15

Fischer.R-lna.D, Cleveland (Simultaneous Diplay) 1964,. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . 96

Fischer.R-Walters.K, San Francisco (Simultaneous Display) 1964, ......... ................ ... . 116

Gurgenidze.B-Dgebuadze.A, Georgian Championship, Tbilisi 1996 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . 117

Gurgenidze.B-KalatozishviILG, Kirovabad 1973 ..... .. ......... . ..... . ................ .... . ..... . .... ....... 93

Gurgenidze.B-Mnatsakanian.F, USSR Team Championship, Moscow 1972 .............. 165

Gurgenidze.B-Schneider.A, World Senior Championship, BieI 1994......... . .......... 92

Katalymov.B-Bakhtiar, Tashkent ]959 ... ..... ...... .. . .... ... ........................................ . ........ 61
Katalymov.B-Estrin.Y, Spartak Championship, Minsk ]962. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ 19

Katalymov.B.Estrin.Y, Spartak Championship, Moscow 1964 ........... . ................ 20

Katalymov.B-Giterman.S, USSR Championship, Novgorod 1961 . .. . .. .. . ... . . .................... 44

2••.tt:.J6 5 03 4 <4
Katalymov.B-Kondratiev.P, Spartak Championship. Minsk 1962 .. . .. . ..... ........ ..... ..... .. 155

1 70 1 71
Play 1 b4 ! Index of Complete G o mes

Katalymov.B-Kondratiev .P, Spartak Championship, Minsk 1962 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ............ .. 157 Sokolsky.A-Chekhover.V, Leningrad 1938. . . . . . . ... . . .. . .. . . . . . . . . ... . . .... . . . . .. . .. . .. . . . . .. . .... . .. . .... . .. . ... 81
Katalymov.B-Litvinov.V, Minsk 1971 ..... . .... . .. .. . . .. .. .. .. .... .. .. .. ... .... .... ... . .... . . . . ... . .... . ... ......... 123 Sokolsk y.A-Flohr.S. USSR Championship, Moscow 1953 ... ....... . ...... .... ......... ..... . ...
. . ... ..48

Katalymov.B-Muratov.V, Novgorod. 1961..................................... . .................... . 1 6 Sokolsky.A-Geller.E, USSR Championship, Kiev 1957 .. .. .. ... . ... ...... . . .. . . . . . .......... .. . . . . ... 105
Katalymov.B-Sakharov.Y, Kiev 1962. .. . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . ... ..... ... . ... . . . . . .. . . ... . . . . . ... . .. . . . . .... ... . . . ... .. . 144
. . Sokolsky.A-Keres.P, USSR Championship. Moscow 1950 . . .... ....... . . . .. . . ... .. ...... ..... . . .... . . .74
.

Katalymov.8-Suetin. A, USSR Team Championship, Moscow 1959 . .._ _. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . ..... .50 Sokolsky.A-Kholmov.R, USSR Championship, Kiev 1954 ... .... .. . ... .. . . . . . . . . . ..... . ... ... .... .. . 56 . .

KataJymov.B-Zaitsev.l, Odessa 1972 .. . . . . .. . .. . . . . . . . . .. . . . .. ....... . .... . .. .. . . . . . .. . . .. .. . . .. . . . . . .. . . . . . .. . .... . .. .59 Sokolsky.A-Kotov.A, Leningrad 1938. . .... .. .. . . . . . . . . . .. . . .. . . ... . .... ... . . ... . . . . . . . . .. . .... ... . ... . . . . .. ... . . .. 26 . . .

Kis•.l-Kis•.P, Ege.- 1992 . . . . ... . . ... . . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. .. .. . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. ... . . . .. . . . .. .. . . . .. . . . . .. . . . .. . . . . .. . . . . 78 Sokolsky.A-Samarian.S, Correspondence 1958 .. ... . . .... .... .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . . .. .. . ......... .. . . . . . ..... 53
lapshun.Y.Adu .O. Richard Aronow Memorial, Philadelphia 2002. . . . . . . . . .
.......... ......... 124 Sokolsky.A-Shagalovich.A, Minsk 1959. ... . .... .... .. .. . . .... . .. ... . . ... . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .. . . . . . . . . .. .. . ..... 102 . .

lapshun.Y-Blumenfeld.R. Marshall Chess Club 2004 . .. . .. . . .. . .. . . . .. . . . ... . . . . .. . . . . .. . . . . . . ...... .. .. 25 . . Sokolsky.A-Usov.D, Od<ssa 1 960 . .. . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . .... ... . ... . . . . . . . . . . . . ...
. . . .. . . . ... . ... . . ... . . .. . . . . . . . .... . ... 83
.

lapshun.Y- Bonin.j, Marshall Chess Club 2002 . . .. . . .. . . . . .. . . .

. . . . ... .. . . . . . . . . .......... ................... 130 Sokolsky.A-Villard.F, Kiev 1955 . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. .. . .. .. . . . . . .. . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . ... . ... . .. .. . ... .. . . . . .. . .. . . . .. .
. ... .. . . . . . 167

tapshun.Y-Figler.l. Marshall Chess Club (Rapid) 2004 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... .. . 150 Sokolsky.A-ZhukhovitskyS, Kiev 1945 . .. . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . .. . . . .. . . ... . .. . . . .. . . .. . . ... .. . .. .
. .. ... .30
lapshun.Y-Furdzik.R, Marshall Chess Club 2002 .. . .. . . ... .. . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. 138 Spassky.B-lengyeI.L, Moscow 1975 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... .. . . . . . . .. . . . . .. ... .. .. ... .. . ... . . .. . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . ... . . ... 95 .. .

lapshun.Y-Furdzik.R, New York Masters (Rapid) 2002 .. . ... ............................... . . . .. . . .. 135 Spassky.B-Smyslov.V, Moscow- Leningrad Match. Moscow 1 960. . . . . . . .. . . . .. .. .... . . . .... . 100 . . .

Lapshun.Y -Gravel.S, Montreal 2004 .. . . .. . .. .. . .. . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .... .. .. .. . . . ... . . . .. .. . . . ... . . ... . . . . .. . . ... . .. . 125 Spraggett.K-lvanov.l, Montreal 1981 . .. .. ......................... .. . ........ . ...... . . . . . . .. .. .. . .. . . . .. .. . .... .. .. 70
. . .

lapshun.Y -Hahn.A. US Championship, San Di�go 2004 .. .. .. .. . . . ......... ................... .... . . 126 Tartakower.S-Colle.E, Bardejov 1926 .... . .... ... . ...... ...... . . . .. . . . . ....... . . . .. . . . .. . .. .. .. .. ..... ... . . . .. ...... .. . 14

lapshun. Y-Kaufman.R, National Chess Congress. Philadelphia 1999 .. .. . . . . ... . . . . . . . .. . . .. .45 Tartakol'l'erS·ReHi.R, Vienna 1919 .. . .. . .... . . .............................. .. . ................. ... . .. .. ...... ..... . . . . . 12

Lapshun.Y -Lafram boise.M, Montreal 2004 . .. .. .... ... ... . . . .. . .. ... ....
. . .. . ... .... .. . . . .. . ................... .. 22 . Vokac.M-Bazant.P, Czech Championship, Tumov ] 996 . . . . . . . . . .. .. . . . .... ... ... .. . . .. ..... . . . . .. . ... . 169

Lapshun.Y-Milman.L, New York :Masters 2002 . . . .. ... . . . . . . . . .. . . . .. . . .. . . . ._ .. . ....... . ... . ... . ... ... . . . .. . . 38
. Vokac.M-Tratar.M, Ceske Budejovice 1996 ................................ ...... ............ .. ... ..... . . .. _ ... . _ . 80
.

Lapshun.Y-Oms Fuentes.L, Barcelona 2CXJ7 . . . . . . . . . .. _ ...._. . . . .. _ . _ . . . . . ._ . . ...........

. ..................... 161 Volke.K-Kupreichik,V , Minsk 1994 . .... .. . ............................. .. ....... . ... .. . . . . . . . . .. . . . .. .... . .. .. _ .. . . 32
. .

Lapshun .Y-Paschall.W, New York Masters (rapid) 2003. .... . .. . . ... . . . . . . . . .. ... . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . .. 129 Volke.K-Wegner.H, German Leag ue 1993 . . . . . . . ... . .... . . . . .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. . . . . . . .. . . .. . . .. . . . .. . . . . . .... . . . .. 152
Lapshun.Y-Reeder.A , World Open, Philadelphia 2003 . . ... . .. . . . . . . . . . ... . .. . . . .. . . . . .. . . . . .. . . . .. . . . . . . . . 55 Welling.G-Achleitner.R, VelMn 1994 . . . ... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... .... .... .... . . . ... . . .. . . .... .... 160

lapshun.) -Robson.R, World Open, Philadelphia 2007 . ..

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .. . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . . . . . . .42 Yudasin.L-Epishin.V I New York Open 1990 .... .. . . . .. . . . . .. .. . . ... . . . . . .... . .. . . . .. .. . . . . .. . . . . . .. . . . . ... 147 . . . .

tapshun.Y·Scekic.M . Marshall Chess Club (Rapid) 2004 ...... . . . .. . ... .. .. . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... . . . .. . . 87

lapshun.Y-Sinn.M. World Open, Philadelphia 2003 ........... ................... ....................... . 4 0

lapshun.Y-Smilh.A, Canadian Open, Kapuskasing 2004 .. . . .. ... . . . . . . . . . . . .. ...... . . . . .. . . . ... . . . . . 14U .

lapshun.Y-Stevens.C, Guelph 2004 . .. .. . . . . ...... . . . .. . . . . . .

.. . .. .... .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . . . . .. . . . . .. . 148
. .

lapshun.Y-SzabolcsLj, Budapest 2007 .. . . . .. .. . .. . . . . .. . .. ... . . .. . . . . . ... . .... . . .. .. . . ... . .. . .. . . . . . . . ... .. .. .. . 112

Lapshun.Y-Vila Gazquez..X, Barcelona 2007 ... . .. . . . .. . . ... . ... .... .. ... . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . .... . . . ... . .... . . ... . .. . 51
.

lapshun.Y-Wang. D, Kapuskasing, 2004 ................... ........................................ ................. 41

Larsen.B-Browne.W, Las Palmas 1 974 .. . . .. . .. . . . .. . . . .. .. . . . . . . . .. .. . ... . . .. . . . .. . ... .. . .. .. .... . . . . .. . . _...

. . . . 121

lombardy.W-Quinteros.M, Torremolinos 1974 . .. . .. . . . . ... ....... .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

.. . ...... 134

Reti.R-Capablanca. j, New York 1924 ... . . . .. . .... . . . . . . . .. . ... .. . . .. . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . ... . . . . . . . . . . .. . . .. . . . . . 69

Rudenkov-Strugach, Correspondence 1961 . . . . . . .. . .. . . . . . . ... . . . . . .. .. .. . .. . _ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . 153 .

Shiffler.L-Schmidt, Correspondence 1950 .. . . .... .. .. . . . ........ . ... .............. .. . .. . . .... ........ . .. . . . . . . .. 158 .

Simagin.V-Flohr-S, USSR Championship, Moscow 1955 . . . .. . .. . . .. . .. . .. .. . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 109

Sokolsky.A-Abzhirko.N, Omsk 1943 . . . .

. . . . . . . . . .. . ... . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... 107

Sokolsky.A-A nishchenko, Min�k 1959 . . .... . . ... .. . ... . . .... . . . .. . . .... . . .... ........ .... .. ... .. ...... ... . . .. .. .. . . . 36

Sokolsky.A-Byvshev.V. Lvov 1951 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

... . . . . . . . . . . . ... . . . . .. . .. . ... . ... . . . . . .. ..................... 85

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