Classical Nimzo- IndianClassical Nimzo- Indian the ever-popular 4 Qc2 by Bogdan Lali¢ EVERYMAN CHESS Published by Everyman Publishers plc, LondonFirst published in 2001 by Everyman Publishers plc, Gloucester Mansions, 140A Shaftesbury Avenue, London WC2H 8HD Copyright © 2001 Bogdan Lali¢ The right of Bogdan Lali¢ to be identified as the authors of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyrights, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of the publisher. British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. ISBN 1 85744 286 5 Distributed in North America by The Globe Pequot Press, P.O Box 480, 246 Goose Lane, Guilford, CT 06437-0480 All other sales enquiries should be directed to Everyman Chess, Gloucester Mansions, 140A Shaftesbury Avenue, London WC2H 8HD tel: 020 7539 7600 fax: 020 7379 4060 email: dan@everyman.uk.com website: www.everyman.uk.com The Everyman Chess Opening Guides were designed and developed by First Rank Publishing. EVERYMAN CHESS SERIES (formerly Cadogan Chess) Chief advisor: Garry Kasparov Commissioning editor: Byron Jacobs Typeset and edited by First Rank Publishing, Brighton. Production by Book Production Services. Printed and bound in Great Britain by The Cromwell Press Ltd., Trowbridge, Wiltshire.1 d4 AFG 2 c4 eG 3 Ac3 Bb4 4 Wo2 Bibliography Preface Introduction: World Champions and the Classical Nimzo-Indian Part One: 4...d5 1 5a3 &xc3+6 Wxc3 De4 7 We2 Acé 5.a3 Rxc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 Wc2: Others 5.a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3: 6...c5 and 6...dxc4 5 cxd5 Wxd5 6 Af3 WES 7 Wxf5 exf5 5 cxd5 Wxd5 6 Af3 Wi: 7 Wb3 and 7 Wd1 5 cxd5 Wxd5 6 e3 DUR wn Part Two: 4...0-0 7 503 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 b67 &g5 La6 8 5a3 2xc3+ 6 Wxc3: Others 9 5e4l? Part Three: Other lines 10 4...c5 11 Odds and Ends Index of Complete Games 5 24 33 46 55 63 77 86 101 118 134 146 158BIBLIOGRAPHY Books Nunn’s Chess Openings, Nunn, Burgess, Emms, Gallagher (Everyman Chess 1999) Easy Guide to the Nimzo-Indian, Emms (Everyman Chess 1998) Periodicals Informators 1-78 New in Chess yearbooks 1-56 Chessbase Magazine Websites The Week in ChessPREFACE The idea behind 4 Wc2 is crystal clear: White prevents the doubling of his c-pawns which is one of Black’s main ideas in the Nimzo- Indian. In most lines we see the fight be- tween two opposing strategic elements: White’s pair of bishops and Black’s superior development - which will triumph? Because chess has not yet been fully exhausted, we don’t have a universal answer to our ques- tion; everything depends on the specific situation on the board because each position is different. ‘The reader might ask why I have included some old games. The reason is that I have often tried to show the development of variations from their beginnings to their cur- rent theoretical standing. Also, as in my pre- vious books, I have intended the complete games to help the reader to see connections between the opening and complicated mid- dlegames. The reader will also notice that I have in- cluded many games by the same players - for instance there are several by the Belgian GM Mikhail Gurevich on the White side of the opening, and from Black’s side by the Eng- lish GM Nigel Short. The old truth is that the best method of learning an opening is to go through the games of the experts. Undoubt- edly both these players are great experts and I learned an awful lot myself about the 4 Wc2 Nimzo just by playing through their games! I must admit that when accepting the con- tract to write this book I never realised just how many variations there are in the 4 Wc2 Nimzo-Indian, nor how many new lines have recently been developed. To quote a conver- sation I had with GM Kogan from Israel: when I told him I was writing a book about the 4 We2 Nimzo he simply shook his head replying ‘Yes, there are at least 100 different lines.’ Therefore, because the space is re- stricted I have concentrated on the currently fashionable lines. In particular, after 4 We2 d5 5 cxd5, T have focused largely on Romanishin’s variations with 5...Wxd5 (Chapters 4-6), the 5Preface reason being that nowadays this line has be- come fashionable and has superceded the older 5...exd5 which I have relegated to a single game in Chapter 11. The 4 Wc2 Nimzo-Indian is a very elastic line with many variations and sub-variations for both sides. Please don’t look at the open- ing from one side only, but play it with both White and Black. Even a committed 1 e4 player like Nigel Short has adopted it against Anatoly Karpov to score an excellent win (see Game 61). The reason is that the 4 Wc2 Nimzo is alive as never before and, along with Rubinstein’s 43, is White’s most popu- lar way to meet the Nimzo-Indian Defence. So study this book and meet the Nimzo- Indian Defence head on - don’t chicken out with some other rare opening (like the Trompowsky!). Enjoy yourself and happy studying. Bogdan Lalic, Sutton, April 2001.INTRODUCTION World Champions and the Classical Nimzo-Indian The move 4 We2 against the Nimzo-Indian Defence has been popular for a long time and it is a remarkable fact that all world champions have featured in games in this variation. This chapter will concentrate on the games played by these great players. As well as providing a historical background to 4 Wc2, this will also introduce a number of thematic ideas that occur frequently in this variation. When going through my database I was stunned to discover that even the first World Chess Champion, Wilhelm Steinitz - consid- ered to be one of the greatest positional play- ers of all time - played an early queen sortie against the Nimzo-Indian. This was before the great Cuban champion Capablanca started to adopt it. In the following game, for example, play is similar to the We2 variation despite the queen’s initial development on b3. Steinitz-English Vienna 1882 1 d4 e6 2 c4 2b4+ 3 Ac3 DE 4 Wb3 @c6 5 D3 d5 6 e3 0-0 7 a3 Axc3+ 8 Wxc3 De7 It should be noted that this game was played more than a century ago and therefore might now seem a little old-fashioned. Ane Be & Y BORG YW ‘ac 2 The text frees the c7-pawn, although later alternatives merit our attention: White was in trouble in Riumin-Ragozin, USSR 1934 after 8...2d7 9 b4 a5 10 b5 Da7 11 a4 06 12 a3 He8 13 Hb1? dxc4 14 b6 AbS! 15 axb5 cxb5 16 De5 b4 17 Wel Lb5 18 Le? Hc8, while the modern 8...5 9 b3 &d7 10 &b2a4 11b4 dxc4 12 &xc4 a7 13 d5!, opening the di- agonal for the dark-squared bishop, was seen in both Donner-Taimanov, Havana 1967 and Arlandi-Naumkin, Saint Vincent 1999. The former went 13...exd5 14 &xd5 Db5 15 We5 Dd6 16 0-0 h6 17 2a2 Be8 18 We3 Leb 19 Rxe6 Bxe6 20 Hfdi with an edge to White, while the latter led toa White initiative after 13...We7 14 dxe6 &xe6 15 0-0 &xc4 16 Wxcd c6 17 Ad4 Wed 18 Bact Bfd8 19 We2 7Nimzo-Indian Classical We6 20 Bfdi ho?! 21 £3 Ad5 22 e4 Af4 23 WE Deb 24 DES. 9 2d3 ‘The alternative is 9 c5!? c6 10 &d3 We7 11 b4 a5 12 &b2 axb4 13 axb4 Exal+ 14 &xal b5 15 0-0 Bb7 16 Ae5 DAd7 17 Bc2 £5 18 £3 @xe5 19 dxe5 when, thanks to the bishop pair, White stood better in Votruba- Neckar, Cihak 1969. Also deserving of atten- tion are 9...b6 10 b4 a5 and 9...Ae4 10 We2 b6 11 23 2b7 12 b4 a5 13 b5, with only a slightly better position for White. 9...b6 10 0-0 a5 11 b3 RaG 12 Ad2 12 He5!? is interesting. 12...2c8 13 Bd1 c5 Looking at the diagram position it is diffi- cult to imagine that this game was played 119 years ago! Black exerts maximum pressure on White’s centre, thus maintaining the balance. 14 dxc5 Exc5 15 &b2 dxc4 16 Axc4 Despite its appearance 16 2xcd! is stronger, reserving the option of “d2-e4. 16...We7 17 Wd2 Ag4 18 f4 &xc4 19 bxc4 D5 20 &d4 At this point a draw was agreed because White has failed to establish an advantage. The second World Champion, Emanuel Lasker, had a preference for 1 ¢4. Inthe next game we see the clash of the titans ending in aquiet draw in the so called Zurich variation, of which Alexander Alekhine was a re- nowned expert. It should also be mentioned that in the 1930s the Zurich variation was considered to be Black’s best weapon against the 4 Wc? Nimzo! Em.Lasker-Alekhine Nottingham 1936 1 d4 Df6 2 c4 e6 3 Ac3 Lb4 4 Wc2 Dc6 5 D3 dé 6 a3 2xc3+ 7 Wxc3 ad "The idea of this advance is to prevent White from expanding with b2-b4, and in some lines Black can fix the queenside with a5-a4, 8295 The main move here is 8 b3, but 8 d5 de- serves further investigation and was tried recently in the game Ward-Quinn, Isle of Man 2000. After 8...exd5 9 cxd5 De7 10 e4 @Dxe4 11 Wxg7 Hg8 12 Wd (t00 risky is 12 Wxh7?! £5! and Black’s initiative looks very threatening) 12...Ac5 13 &g5 f5!? the fol- lowing position was reached: The position is very messy. For instance White could play 14 Wc3, when Black re- sponds with 14..Me4! 15 &xd8 Dxc3 16 &xc7 Dxd5 and now after the forced 17 Hcl the position is roughly equal. Another try is 14 Wf4?! but this looks suspect for White after the simple response 14...f6 15 S2b5+ 171, and White will lose his g?-pawn. Finally there is the alternative variation 14 Qb5+ c6! 15 Rxd8 Dxd4 16 Dxd4 cxb5! and again Black is fine. Plenty of food for thought! 8World Champions and the Classical Nimzo-Indian 8...h6 9 2xf6 Obviously Lasker was in a peaceful mood ~ perhaps due to the fact that the opponent is Alekhine. Otherwise there is 9 2h4, after which Black could continue 9...We7 10 d5!? with unclear play, or 9...g5 10 2g3 Aes 11 ‘We2 £5, although this looks somewhat suspi- cious since White can sometimes execute a central breakthrough with d4-d5!, exposing the Black king. 9...Wixf6 10 e3 0-0 11 Se2 e5 12 dxe5 dxe5 13 0-0 ga This is the key feature of the Zurich varia- tion - Black has solved the problem of the development of his light-squared bishop, and the position is now equal. 14 h3 2h5 15 Efd1 Bfe8 16 Sd5 &g6 17 Bad1 &f5 18 S5d2 %-% The third World Champion, Jose Raul Capablanca, was a rarely seen chess talent who, due to his immense ability, did not need to study too much chess. In the following game he outplays his opponent from an equal position. We shouldn't forget that the 4 Wc2 Nimzo is also known as the Capablanca variation. In fact this opening was well suited to Capablanca, who was happy to play it with either colour. Enevoldsen-Capablanca Buenos Aires Olympiad 1939 1 d4 OG 2 c4 e6 3 Ac3 Ab4 4 We2 0-0 5 a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 dé 7 g3 We7 8 292 e59d5 9 dxe5 dxe5 10 Af3 e4 11 Ad4 c5 looks good for Black. 9...a5 10 b3 Abd7 11 D3 Ac5 12 Dd2 Bf5 13 0-0 Aced 14 Axed &xe4 15 £3 .g6 16 2e3? It doesn’t seem very natural to place the bishop in front of his own e-pawn. Correct is 16 e4 with approximately equal chances. 16...b6 17 b4 Dd7 18 Bfcl axb4 19 axb4 f5 20 £4 exf4 21 gxf4 A worthy alternative is 21 &xf4!? Wxe2 22 Bxa8 Bxa8 23 Hel with the intention of Be7 with counterplay for the sacrificed pawn. 21...Q{6 22 h3 Hxal 23 Bxal He8 24 Ba3 White is forced to place the rook on a slightly risky square and Black has control of e4 - not uncommon in the Nimzo Indian. Consequently Black maintains the initiative. 24...&h5 25 We2 Ded 26 2d4 Wha 27 e3 Wel+ 28 Gh2 2f3! 29 Baz Or 29 Ba7 Be7 30 &xb6 &xg? 31 Wxg2 @d2! and Black has a devastating attack. 29...He7 Defending the seventh rank. 30 Wad wf7! 31 Was Da2! see following diagram 32 Axf3 It is quite amusing that after 32 Wc8 Sg6! 9Nimzo-indian Classical it is Black’s king preventing White getting any counterplay; Black wins easily. 32...Wi2+ 33 &h1 Wit 34 wh2 OAxf3+ 35 @g3 Dxd4 0-1 Now we move on to the fourth World Champion, Alexander Alekhine, who was the first genuine professional chess player. He lived for chess and gave his best in all his games, and here we see him destroy Max Euwe, the defending champion, on his way to regaining the crown. Watch how Euwe’s king is kept stranded in the centre of the board. Alekhine-Euwe World Championship (game 8) 1937 1d4 Df6 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 Sb4 4 We2 dd 5 cxd5 Wxd5 6 e3 c5 7 a3 The alternative is 7 2d2. 7...&xe3+ 8 bxe3 Abd7 The other possibility is 8...0-0, which Euwe would surely have chosen had he known about the unfortunate destiny of his king! 9 £3 cxd4 10 cxd4 Db6?! And here, too, 10...0-0 is preferable. 11 De2 2d7 12 Ata Was 13 2d2! This bishop is heading for the a3-f8 di- agonal. 13...c8 14 Wb2 Dfd5 15 2xd5 exd5 16 &b4 We6 17 &f2 Dad? The cause of this crushing defeat is Black’s uncastled king, so Euwe should have chosen 17...f5 or even 17...2c4, although then 18 @xc4 Exc4 19 Bact Excl 20 Excl &c6 21 e4! is clearly better for White accord- ing to the analysis of another World Cham- pion, Mikhail Botvinnik. 18 Wd2 b6 19 2a6 Zb8 20 e4! Now the centre opens up and it is clear that Black’s king is in trouble. 20...b5 21 Wf4 Eb6 22 exd5 Wxd5 23 Bhe1+ £e6 24 Haci f6 25 Bc7 das No comment! 26 Exa7 1-0 Max Euwe, the fifth World Champion, had a great gift for combinations, as we are about to witness in the following game. He humiliates his opponent in the very early stages of the game after poor play from Black. Kramer simply ends up in a sad posi- 10World Champions and the Classical Nimzo-Indian tion and a pawn less, the ‘compensation’ being an uncastled king! Max Euwe quickly puts the American out of his misery. Euwe-Kramer Amsterdam 1950 1 d4 D6 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 Bb4 4 We2 c5 5 dxc5 Ac6 6 Af3 &xc5 7 Ag5 Ada This manoeuvre is less appropriate for Black here compared with the lines in which White wastes time with a2-a3 in order to force the capture on c5. White is a whole tempo up and therefore the whole line is suspect for Black. 8 Dxd4 &xd4 9 Db5! Led More than forty years later the Israeli GM Leonid Yudasin tried to revive this line for Black in his game against Ionov in Seville 1993. Play continued 9...&c5 10 0-0-0 0.0 (10...Sxf2? 11 €3 leaves the bishop trapped, and poor for Black is 10... Wa! 11 2.d2 Wb6 12 &£4! 0-0 13 e3 a6 14 Ac3, which has been seen on several occasions) 11 €3 a6 12 dé b5!? and now Ionov should have con- tinued 13 Ae4 Be7 14 Qxfo Qxf6 15 c5I, maintaining some modest advantage due to the nagging pressure against the backward d7-pawn. 10 0-0-0 d5? This blunder leaves Black with a terrible position. Better is 10...h6, although 11 2xf6 Sxf6 12 €3 0.0 13 {4 is clearly better for White. 11 #4 &b8 12 cxd5 2d7 Only now did Black realise that after 12..exd5 13 2xf6! gxf6 (even worse is 13...Rxf4+? 14 €3! 2xe3+ 15 Gb1 Wxfé 16 ADc7+ and Black is getting crushed) 14 g3 followed by @f1-g2 and e2-e4 his position is strategically lost. 13 dxe6 fxe6 14 b1 WaS 15 2xf6 gxf6 16 e3! a6 On 16...2xb5 White wins with the simple 17 We8+, picking up a rook. 17 De3 Se7 18 2c4 b5? More resilient is 18...2c6. 19 We4 2d6 20 Bxd6! x 7 mae Y Another winning continuation is 20 Ad5+ A721 Axi etc. 20...&xd6 21 Bd1+ Se7 22 Bxd7+! Gre 22...xd7 23 Wb7+ 1-0 After 23...Wc7 24 Rxe6+! dd6 25 Det+ Black loses his queen. reNimzo-Indian Classical The sixth World Champion, Mikhail Bot- vinnik, was a follower of classical methods. The following game - considered for along time to be one of Botvinnik’s most stunning wins — is an illustration of the early occupa- tion of the centre, a key Botvinnik character- istic. Keres-Botvinnik Leningrad-Moscow 1941 1 d4 Df6 2 c4 e6 3 Ac3 Bb4 4 We2 dd “Black already occupies the centre. 5 cxd5 exdd5 6 295 h6 7 &h4 c5 8 0-0-0? Nowadays this move is considered a near decisive mistake. However, in the old days, when players did not have the luxury of enormous databases, even the chess giants such as Paul Keres were sometimes in the dark. The text allows Black to seize a deadly initiative down the c-file, White’s king having castled ‘into it’. Correct is 8 dxc5. 8...2xc3 9 Wxe3 On 9 &xf6 Black should play the inter- mediary 9...2xb2+! with a superior position. 9...95 10 93 cxd4 11 Wxd4 11 Wa3 does not improve as Black has 11..Dc6 12 DLS Wh6 13 3 215 14 2d3 De4 15 Dxd4 Dxd4 16 exd4 Bc8+, as in Lukin-Gretchkin, USSR Corr. Ch 1960. After 17 &b1 Bc3 18 b3 Bxd3 19 Bxd3 Axg3 20 Hel+ De4 21 £3 Sd7 22 fxe4 Rxe4 23 Bal!? Rxd3 24 We7+ Bc8 25 Ecl+ Bc4 (not 25...@b8?? 26 We5+) 26 We5 Hd8 27 bxc4 We7 Black was much better. Inanother correspondence game from the same event Black (instead of 11...Ac6) played 11...2f5 12 Df3 Ded! 13 Hxd4 Ac6 14 e3 (White has to part with the exchange because there is no time for 14 Hd in view of 14...8c8! and White’s king is doomed) 14...g4! and already had a decisive advantage, Lukin-Estrin, USSR Corr. Ch 1960. 11...Dc6 12 Wa4 25! It is important to prevent White from transferring his king to b1 (and possibly al). 13 e3 Sc8 14 &d3 Wd7! ‘Threatening a deadly discovered check and practically forcing White’s next. 15 &b1 &xd3+ 16 Bxd3 WES 17 e4? Due to Black having control of the b1-h7 diagonal this is understandable, although White's position is in ruins. 17...Dxe4 18 &a1 0-0 Of course 18..,2\xf2 is enough to win but this is far stronger, playing for the initiative. 19 Ed1 b5! g ys on Z, lds . 20 Wxb5 Ad4 21 Wd3 Ac2+ 22 &b1 BDb4 0-1 ‘An impressive win. The seventh World Champion, Vassily Smyslov, was a renowned strategical posi- tional player. He did not play this opening with the white pieces often but faced it with Black. In this game he refutes the unjustified 12World Champions and the Classical Nimzo-Indian kingside attack launched by his opponent. Lipnitsky-Smyslov USSR Ch 1951 1 -d4 D6 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 Bb4 4 We2 Ac6 5 Df3 d5 6 a3 2xc3+ 7 bxc3 Nowadays it is known that 7 Wxc3 is bet- ter, after which play might continue 7...e48 Wb3, or 8 We2 e5!? 9 dxe5 &{5 with sharp play in which White’s chances are considered preferable. 7...Da5 Smyslov already targets the vital c4-square, which he hopes to occupy. 8 Ded Dd7 9 Axd7 &xd7 10 cxd5 exdS 11 Sf4 11 e3 severely restricts the future of White’s dark-squared bishop. 11...2b5 Black has already solved the problem of his light-squared bishop, which is now very active. 12 4? Over-ambitious. Black is slightly better af- ter 12 ¢3 &xfl 13 dxf Ac4 but worth con- sidering is 12 g3 0-0 13 2g? He8 14 2f3 etc. 12...0-0 13 Hb1 Wd7 14 Bh3 Notice that 14 2xc7?? loses a piece to 14...2a4. 14...Bfe8 15 Hg3 Dc4 16 Zh6 g6 17 We1 dé! This knight is heading for £5, after which White’s attack comes to an end and his posi- tion will be in total disarray. 18 Wia 226 A quicker win is 18...Af5 19 Bxb5 Bed! 20 WES Wxb5 21 WxfS Wbi+ 22 d2 Bxd4+! (the point) followed by ...Wexf5. 19 e3 ATS Also sufficient to win is 19...&xf1 20 Sxf1 WES! etc. 20 &xa6 bxa6 21 Zb7 Babs! Black’s attack along the b-file is irresisti- ble. 22 Bxc7 Eb1+ 23 de2 23 @d2 meets with the same reply. 23...Wad! 0-1 Nothing can be done about the threat of ...Wa4-di mate. Mikhail Tal, the eighth World Champion, was mainly a 1 e4 player but, occasionally, no doubt in order to surprise his opponent, he 13Nimzo-Indian Classical would switch to 1 d4. In the next game his combinational talent comes to the fore. Tal-Gipslis Riga 1951 1 d4 Af6 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 2b4 4 &g5 d5 5 We2 Abd7?! Although at the time this was considered a reasonable move, according to current theory this is already a mistake. Correct is 5...dxc4! which gives Black reasonable chances. 6 a3 &xc3+ 7 Wxc3 h6 8 2h4 0-0 9 Dt3 b6 10 e3 &b7 11 Des Wc8? Too passive. Black must play 11...5 re- gardless of the consequent kingside weak- nesses. 12 Dxd7 Dxd7 13 Kel c5 14 cxd5 xd5 15 dxc5 Dxc5 16 Ed1 Wb7 17 b4 De4 18 Wd4 Zac8 19 #3 Ac3 20 Hal g5 21 293 &xf3 Planning to obtain a kingside attack if White takes the sacrificed piece with 22 gxf3? Wxf3 23 Hei Hfd8 etc. Unfortunately for Black Tal was never one to miss a tactical opportunity... 22 Wf6! The threat of £2g3-e5, with a mating at- tack, is decisive. White is simply winning a piece. 22...We4 23 Wxf3 We2 24 2a6 1-0 ‘The ninth World Champion, Tigran Pet- rosian, was renowned for his iron grip with which he used to squeeze his opponents into submission. This is exactly what happened to Mark Taimanov in the following game. White gets the dream position typical of the 4 Wc2 Nimzo - a clear advantage of the bishop pair without giving Black a potentially promising development lead. Petrosian-Taimanov Moscow Trade Unions Ch 1964 1 c4 eG 2 Dc3 Ab4 3 D3 DAE 4 Wo2 d6 5 d4 0-0 6 &g5 Dbd7 7 e3 Wes?! ‘The beginning of a faulty plan that is just too slow. Black unpins and prepares ...e6-€5, but better is 7...b6 8. 2d3 h6 9 &h4 2b7 10 0-0-0 &xc3 11 Wxc3 Hc8!, preparing ...c7-c5 when, if White takes on c5 Black can recap- ture with the rook with sufficient counterplay on the c-file. 8 Bh4l? An interesting reply. White wants to take back with the queen in case Black exchanges on c3, denying Black the sometimes annoy- ing ... Afo-e4. 8...e5 9 0-0-0 c6 10 Dd2! The knight is heading for e4, from where it will pressurise the potentially weak d6- square. 10...a6 11 dxe5 dxe5 12 Ade4 We6 13 Dxf6+ Dxf6 14 2d3 h6 15 Dad e4 16 S&e2 Dd7 17 Hd4 Be8 18 Bhd1 bS 19 De3 Axc3 20 Wxe3 b4 21 Wd2 Note that 21 Wxb4?? c5 nets Black a rook. 14World Champions and the Classical Nimzo-Indian 21...b3 22 axb3 Petrosian is not afraid of ghosts and takes the offer. Also good for White is the calm 22 a3. 22...dc5 23 Wb4 Db7 24 W6! oe ti zmee Vu el A splendid move that effectively paralyses Black and steers him into a dismal ending that, for Petrosian at least, is merely a matter of time and technique. 24...a5 25 293 c5 26 Wxe6 Xxe6 27 B4d2 Eb6 28 &c2 Re6 29 Bal! f6 30 h3 @f7 31 &g4 f5 32 &e2 Bb4 33 Sed a4 34 Exa4 Ebxa4 35 bxa4 Bxa4 36 b3 Ha2+ 37 Sc1 Ha3 38 &b2 Sa6 39 &c3 96 40 Hd1 Se7 41 h4 h5 42 &f1 Dds 43 Re5 At7 44 2t4 Sf6 45 Re2 Ded 46 al Bb6 47 &c3 Dc6 48 2c7 1-0 After 48...8b7 49 Sd6 the key c5-pawn falls. The tenth World Champion, Boris Spassky, rarely employed 4 Wc2, favouring instead 4 295 (the Leningrad Variation). He later switched from 3 @c3 to 3 Df. Nevertheless, in this 1988 encounter he succeeds in outplaying his opponent in a rather dull ending of bishops of opposite colour. Spassky-Greenfeld Thessaloniki Olympiad 1988 1d4 Df6 2 c4 e6 3 D3 &b4 4 We2 0-0 5 295 c5 6 dxc5 h6 7 &h4 Da Also possible here is 7...Wa5 with the standard counterplay along the a5-e1 diago- nal. 8 e3 Dxc5 9 De2 Dce4 10 a3 Wad 11 Bet &xc3+ 12 Dxc3 b6 13 &d3 &b7 14 0-0 Axc3 15 Wxc3 Wxc3 16 Exc3 Ded 17 Eoc1 g5 18 Sxe4 2xe4 19 £93 Bfc8 This ending should be drawn despite White’s minimal lead. White is also slightly better after 19...d5 20 5. 20 Bfd1 £6?! Here Black misses a simple draw with 20...d5 21 £3 Bg6 22 cxd5 exd5 23 Bxc8+ Bxc8 24 h4 ga! 25 fxg4 Hc2 26 Bxd5 Bxg2+ 27 Bxg2 Rett 28 Bh3 Vxd5 29 Be5 Sh7 30 &g3 h5! 31 gxh5 @h6 followed by -exh5. 21 &d6 a5 22 b3 a4 23 b4 b5 24 cB! 16 25 £3 &f7 26 df2 Hg8 27 e4 g4? This weakening of the d8-h4 diagonal un- expectedly proves to be the decisive mistake. 15Nimzo-Indian Classical Black must keep the position closed with 27...05. 28 2g3! gxf3 29 gxf3 Hae8 30 Sd2 Ec8 31 Hed1 de8 32 Ah4! eis" mse M, ere a 32...2f8 33 Se3 Ba8 34 Ed6 Bc8 35 &4 £5 36 Le5! fxe4 37 fxe4 Eg8 38 h3! ‘Taking the g4 square away from the Black rook. 38...g7 39 Hf 3f7 40 &f6 Bh7 41 Bd3 Black is in a kind of zugzwang, with no useful move. 41...Bf7 42 Bg1 d5 With mate threatened Black is forced to give up a pawn to free the d7 square for his king. 43 cxd6 &d7 44 Hc3 1-0 The eleventh World Champion - and per- haps the greatest of them all - was Robert Fischer. With White he usually played 1 e4.so it is only with the Black pieces that we see his contribution to the 4 Wc2 Nimzo. Here, in his comeback after along break, he takes on another ex-World Champion. Spassky-Fischer Belgrade (game 10) 1992 1d4 Dt6 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 2b4 4 We2 dd Fischer was fond of classical chess and he always preferred clear cut plans to more ob- scure continuations - hence his liking for 4...d5. 5 cxd5 exd5 6 2g5 h6 7 &h4 c5 8 dxcS Ac6 9 e3 g5 10 2g3 Wad 11 Df3 Ded 12 Dd2 Axc3 Interesting yet risky for Black is 12...2xd2!? 13 Wxd2 2e6, with compensa- tion for the sacrificed pawn. 13 bxc3 &xc3 14 Eb1 Wxc5 If Black prevents White from playing Bb1-b5 with 14...a6?! there follows 15 &d6! with the initiative. 15 Bb5 Wa3 16 Eb3 The d5 pawn should be avoided - 16 Hxd5?! Qe6 17 Bd3 Ab! 18 Wxc3 Axd3+ 19 Wxd3 Wel+ 20 2 0.0 and it is very unlikely that White will survive with his dor- mant kingside. 16...2xd2+ 17 Wxd2 Wa5 18 &b5?! ‘This is an inaccuracy. After the correct continuation 18 Wxa5 @xa5 19 Bb5 c6 20 Exd5 &e6 21 Bd2 the chances are roughly equal. 18...Wxd2+ 19 @xd2 2d7 20 &xc6 Axc6 21 h4 de7 22 Le5 £6 23 2d4 g4! Black is a pawn up and it is he who is try- ing to win the ensuing endgame which, due to the bishops of opposite colour, should be drawn. 24 Hel e6 25 Bb4 h5 26 Ec3 Ehc8 27 a4 b6 28 &c2 Se8 29 Sb2 Exc3 30 &xc3 Ec8 31 4?! This unnecessary activity allows the black bishop to become more mobile. A waiting policy is called for. 16World Champions and the Classical Nimzo-Indian 31,..266 32 exd5+ 2xd5 33 g3 2c4 34 d4 &d5 35 Se3 Bc7 36 Sc3 f5 37 Sb2 Se6 38 Sc3 Ad5+ 39 Gb2 Le4 40 a5 bxa5 41 Eb5 a4 42 Bcd 42 a5?! Hc2+ 43 Gad Sco 44 Bxa7 $45! looks dangerous for White due to the activity of Black’s king. 42...Bb7+ 43 $a3 a6 44 dxad 2d5 45 a5 Led 46 Sxa6 Hb3 47 Hc7 Sea 48 Eh7 Exe3!? The only realistic winning try, although the position is still drawn. 49 fxe3 Terrible would be 49 He7+? f3 50 Bxe3+ sbxf2 51 Bc3 4! and Black’s pawns are unstoppable. 49...2xe3 50 Exh5 £e4 51 Bh8 &f3 52 Be8 &xg3 53 h5 2d3+ 54 wb6?! Simpler is 54 a5! f4 55 Hd8 @b1 56 Hb8! with an immediate draw due to the constant attack on the bishop. 54...f4 55 Sc5 £3 56 kd4 25 Unluckily for Black after 56...f2? 57 Hf8 f1W 58 Bxfl Sxfl 59 h6! the h-pawn queens. 57 Be ota 57...8¢23! can only be dangerous for Black - after 58 e3! &2g2! (the only move: 58...2h4?? 59 Bc8 &bi 60 Hel £5 61 Ss and White wins) 59 h6 g3 60 Eixf3 #h2 the game is still a draw. 58 h6 g3 59 h7 g2 60 hsW giW+ 61 Sc4 Wel+ 62 Sb3 Wc2+ 63 Sb4 Wea+ 64 &c3 We6+ 65 &b3 Wd5+ 66 &c3 We5+ 67 b2 Wb4+ 68 @a2 %4-% In the next game we see the subtle posi- tional understanding in his beloved Nimzo Indian of the twelth World Champion Ana- toly Karpov, who ruthlessly exploits the poor position of Jan Timman’s king. Unlike Fischer, who had a clear preference for bish- ops, Karpov liked to play with knights and, for him, the advantage of the bishop pair was less relevant. Timman-Karpov World Championship (game 15) 1993 1d4 Df6 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 &b4 4 We2 0-0 5 a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 b6 7 295 c5 8 dxc5 bxe5 9 e3 Dc6 10 Dh3 h6 11 &ha? This move leads White into serious diffi- 17Nimzo-Indian Classical culties due to Black’s superior development and the fact that White will lose the right to castle. Better is the simple 11 S.xfo Wxf6 12 Wxf6 gxfo 13 0-0-0 Hd8 with about equal play. 11...95 12 £93 The sacrifice 12 Axg5? hxg5 13 &xg5 is refuted by 13...De4! 14 &xd8 Axc3 etc. 12...2e4 13 We2 Wa5+ 14 be2 Forced since 14 b4? Runs into 14...\xb4 15 Wxe4 Dd5+! and White loses his queen after ...c3+. 14.45 15 13 Dxg3+ 16 hxg3 Hb8 17 Df2 Rab! 18 Dds There is no time for 18 Hxh6? because Black wins with the nice 18...2xc4+! 19 Ad3 (19 Wxc4? Bxb2+ leads to a quick mate) 19...De5 20 Hf2 Sxd3 31 Lxd3 Bxb2! 22 Wxb2 Axd3+ followed by ...Axb2. 18...d5 19 b3 Xxb3! Decisive, smashing through White's de- fences. Black will obtain two huge pawns for the sacrificed exchange, when he should be winning. 20 Wxb3 dxc4 21 Wa2? This blunder makes things even simpler for Black. Better is 21 Wb2 cxd3+ 22 @f2 keeping the queen active and not allowing Black’s 22nd move. 21...cxd3+ 22 @f2 Bf6! 23 2c1 &g7 Also possible is 23...c4!?, e.g. 24 &xd3 @®bd! and Black wins. 24 £4 c4 25 Wb2 With the obvious threat of Bh1xhé! Etc. 25...e5 26 fxg5 hxg5 27 Hc3 Wh6 With the exchange of queens things are simple for Black; his pawns are unstoppable. 28 Wxb6 axb6 29 Bh5 De7 30 &xd3 A desperate attempt to avoid the inevita- ble as 30 Hixg5? @hél traps the rook. 30...cxd3 31 3c7 He6 32 ve1 &2b5 33 94 &g6 34 Ens £4 0-1 Our next game features the thirteenth World Champion Gary Kasparov (1985- 2000) who, like Capablanca, has been happy to play both sides of the 4 Wc2 Nimzo. In our next game he plays Victor Korchnoi, who many say deserved the title of world champion. The key factor in the crushing win is White’s raking dark-squared bishop. Kasparov-Korchnoi Tilburg 1989 1d4 Dt6 2 c4 e6 3 Ac3 Ab4 4 We2 dd 5 cxd5 exd5 6 295 h6 7 2h4 c5 8 dxc5. Le M27 7, a2. PERT) Ui “6 oo 6. aA Again I would like to stop at this position. As we already know this is surely White’s strongest continuation but occasionally White also tries 8 e3, which is quite harmless for Black after 8...cxd4 9 exd4 @c6 10 &b5 0-0 11 Ae2 Whé! with active play. 8 43 is rarely played yet I do not believe it is a poor move. For example after 8...xd4 9 @xd4 Dcé White should try 10 0-0-0! 2xc3 11 Wxc3 De4 12 Bxd8 Dxc3 13 bxc3 18World Champions and the Classical Nimzo-Indian Sexd8 14 e4! with a big advantage to White. Instead in the game Anastasian-Balashov, Moscow 1995 the game was approximately even after 10 Axc6 bxc6 11 e3 0-0 12 Bd1 Wd6 13 Be2 Des 140-0 We5 15 Hel &xc3 16 bxc3 He8 etc. After 8 f3 Black can also play 8...c6, transposing to the lines with 8 dxc5 Ac6 9 DFS ete. 8...0-0 Not without good reason this is a rare continuation because after castling kingside Black has practically ruled out the possibility of commencing a kingside attack with ...g7- g5. More popular is 8...Ac6, or 8...5. 963 90-00 is too sharp and gave Black good counterplay in Relange-Sosonko, Cannes 1995, after 9...&2xc3 10 Wxc3 g5 11 &g3 R512 £3 (or 12 h4 Des 13 Wed Wa! 14 Waf5 Wxc5+ 15 Gb1 Hc8 with a terrific at- tack) 12...Abd7 13 &d6 cB! - the White king is just too exposed on the queenside. 9...Dbd7 10 2d3 Wad?! Black achieves nothing from the pin on the a5-el diagonal. Better is 10...@xc5. 11 De2 Axc3+ 12 Wxe3 Wxc3+ 13 Axc3 Dxc5 14 &c2 g5 15 &g3 Le6 16 £3 With the bishop pair White has a clear ad- vantage. Black also has a weakened kingside. 16...a6 17 h4 Efc8 If 17...¢4 then both 18 &f4 and 18 h5 look very strong for White, so Black has little alternative but to allow the opening of the h- file. 18 hxg5 hxg5 19 0-0-0 Acd7 20 b1 S97 21 &b3 Ec5 22 e4! z Fa a. GY GY Y a 6:8 Was Maw Wp, Oae 7) 7 Y Kasparov is especially strong in dynamic positions where he holds the initiative. The text opens up the d-file for White’s rooks. ‘The bishop on g3 will dominate the board. 22...dxe4 23 2xe6 fxe6 24 Dxe4 Ha5? This hastens the end. Instead 24....d5 25 Hxd5 exd5 26 Axgs He8 offers some chance of survival for the price of a pawn. 25 Ehe1 Af8 26 DAd6 b6 27 Rf2 Adds 28 2d4+ &g6 29 Ac4 Bb5 30 Des+ @h7 31 Bh1+ Sg8 32 Ehé! 1-0 White is about to double along the h-file. Alexander Khalifman, the fourteenth World Champion, is especially dangerous when he holds the initiative on the queenside 19Nimzo-Indian Classical - I am well aware of this because I lost a beautiful game to him in the final round of the Linares Open in 1997. B.Lalic-Khalifman, went 1 d4 Df6 2 c4.c5 3.d5 b5 4 cxb5 a6 5 £3 6 6 e4 exd5 7 &5 We7 8 We2 Ags 9 Ac3 &b7 10 Dh3 c4 11 Be3 axb5 12 0-0-0 Wh4 13 Df De7 14 Qbor! hs! A new position thanks to Black’s theoreti- cal novelty. 15 Eixd5 Wxc3+! 16 bxc3 Dxd5 17 Dxd5 Rxd5 18 Wd2 Re6 19 Be2 Dc 20 4 b4 21 £5 bxc3 22 Wxc3 Ha3 23 Wb2 c3 24 Wb5 Sxf5 25 Bfl Bxa2l! 26 Exf5 Db4 27 Was g6!! 0-1 Mozetic-Khalifman Belgrade 1993 1d4 D6 2 c4 06 3 Ac3 2b4 4 We2 0-0 5 a3 Oxc3+ 6 Wxc3 b6 7 2g5 c5 8 dxc5 bxc5 9 e3 d6 10 £3 The alternative is 10 2d3 followed by De2. 10...Abd7 11 Dh3 Eb8 12 0-0-0 hé 13 ata With the White rook on di the following variation is possible: 13 &h4 Ae4! 14 2xd8 (very bad is 14 We1? Wh6 15 We2 @c3! and Black wins the exchange because 16 bxc3? loses to ...Wb1+, while after 14 Wxg7+?! exg7 15 Qxd8 Bxd8 16 fxes De5! Black is better thanks to his opponent’s poor pawn structure) 14...Axc3 and now: a) 15 &c7 Dxd1 (15...Bxb2!) 16 &xbs 4xe3 17 &xd6 Bd8 and Black is OK. b) 15 bxc3 Bxd8 16 Exd6 b3 17 &d3 x23 (avoiding 17...Bxc34? 18 b2, trapping the rook) 18 Bd1 &f8 and Black is better. 13...e5 14 293 Hb6 15 243 £a6 16 Hd2 Wc7 17 &c2 Bfb8 18 b3 &c8 19 Ehd1 Des 20World Champions and the Classical Nimzo-indian Black’s pieces co-ordinate effectively. His d-pawn is well protected by the knight on 8 and Black has play down the b-file. 20 f4 20 &f2 seems more natural. 20...e4 21 £5? White wants to activate his bishop on g3 but better is 21 Af2 f5 22 &h4!?, preparing h2-h3 and g2-g4 with counterplay on the kingside. 21...Adf6 22 Bf1 2d7 23 2h4 Beb7! Black plans ...Wic7-b8 with the possibility ofa sacrifice on b3. 24 Df4 There is no time for defence since after 24 &d1? Wb8 25 Bb2 Lad! Black wins the b3- pawn. 24...Wb8 25 De2 a5! 26 a4 Taking on a5 is no better because after 26 Wrxa5 Ba7 followed by ...Hxa3 Black has a decisive attack. 26...xb3! 27 &xb3 Exb3 28 Wal Wb4 29 Bc2 Za3 30 Wb2 Wxa4 31 DAc3 Wxc4 32 Wxa3 Wxf1+ 33 db2 a4 Black’s pawn mass is too strong and the game is practically decided. 34 Qxf6 Dxf6 35 Wa2 Wd3 36 Wb1 dS 37 a2 d4 38 Wbs+ The infamous spite check. 38...2h7 39 Hb2 0-1 ‘The fifteenth and generally accepted cur- rent World Champion Vladimir Kramnik is an incredibly deep strategic player. In the following game he squeezes the former world championship candidate Sergey Tivia- kov. Black’s protected passed c-pawn helps little. Kramnik-Tiviakov World Championship KO (game 2) Las Vegas 1999 1 d4 D6 2 c4 06 3 Ac3 2b4 4 We2 0-0 5 a3 2xc3+ 6 Wxc3 b6 7 2g5 2b7 8 3 h6 9 2h4 d5 10 e3 Zes!? “ : tai 443 mee a The mystery rook move that is in reality a waiting move. 11 @h3 Dbd7 12 cxd5S exd5 13 Le2 We7 14 2f2 c5 15 0-0 c4?! I mistrust this advance because it presents White with the possibility of €3-e4. 15... hac8 improves. 16 b3! b5 17 bxc4 bxc4 Even worse is 17...dxc4?! 18 e4 Db6 19 &d1! when White has an indisputable advan- tage in the centre. 18 2d1! Ab6 19 2c2 Lc 20 ad! White must prevent the ...&c6-a4 ma- noeuvre at any cost. 20...Wd7?! Black stays loyal to his plan but the text al- lows White to push his opponent back still further. Black is compensated in the form of control of the b5-square, but 20...a5 looks better. 21Nimzo-Indian Classical 21 a5 DcB Not 21...A\a4?? 22 Wa3}, picking up the knight. 22 &h4 Dh7 23 Af2 Ad6 24 Aga AS 25 22 £6 26 h3 Dd6 27 Htel Zac8 28 e4! Dbs In reply to 28...dxe4 White has the strong 29 d5!, when 29...xd5? 30 Hadi! wins ma- terial due to the pin on the ¢-file. 29 Wd2 h5!? 30 De3 dxe4 31 d5 £5? Preferable is 31...c3 32 Wd1 28, al- though White still has the better position. 32 Dxf5! Viswanathan (‘Vishy’) Anand as a deep posi- tional player who outplays his rival by accu- mulating modest but definite positional ad- vantages. Anand is mostly a 1 e4 player but recently he has begun to broaden his reper- toire by opening with 1 d4. No wonder he decides to adopt the ultra positional 4 Wc2 against the Nimzo. Anand-Adams Tilburg 1998 1 d4 Df6 2 c4 e6 3 AF3 b6 4 Ac3 2b4 5 We2 &b7 6 a3 &xc3+ 7 Wxc3 0-0 32...Wxd5 A lesser evil is 32...Wxf5 33 dxc6 as the text loses the exchange by force, albeit in an odd way. 33 Wxd5+ &xd5 34 a4! a6 35 2xb5 axb5 36 fxe4! Accurate to the end. After 36 Ad6 Af Black is still alive and kicking. 36...2¢6 Black loses the other rook after 36...8xe4?? 37 Bxe4 Sxe4 38 De7+, and 36...8xe4 37 Dd6 wins the exchange in simi- lar fashion to the game. 37 Dd6 DIE 38 a6! White has a decisive advantage. 38...03 39 a7 c2 40 e5 Ded 41 AxeB Exe8 42 Eec1 1-0 Our final game in this section shows the sixteenth and latest World Champion BAT @w Alternatives are 7...a5 and 7...Ae4. 8 S95 White also has options of 8 g3, 8 e3 and 8 4, but the text, creating an unpleasant pin, is best. 8...h6 9 &h4 c5 10 Bd1 Aed ‘The tactical trick in this line, with the rook on dl, is that White cannot capture on d& because ...2xc3 then leaves him with dou- bled pawns. 11 Wo2 We8 12 e3 £5 13 e2 Acé In response to 13...d6 140-0 d7 White obtains good play on the queenside with 15 bal. 14 dxcB bxc5 15 Dd2 De5 16 Axed xed 17 Wc3 White enjoys the advantage of the bishop pair which, combined with Black’s backward d-pawn, guarantees a clear advantage. 17...Dg6? 22World Champions and the Classical Nimzo-Indian This runs into a deadly pin on the e8-h5 diagonal, Necessary is 17...¢7. 18 2h5! 18...f4 19 £3 Bf5!? In order to generate counterplay and re- move the annoying pin Adams ventures a sacrifice. 20 Sxg6 Wxg6 21 fxed Wxg2 22 Bf1 Bh5? Now White is clearly winning. An interest- ing try is 22.8722, when 23 exf4 Wxe4+ 24 Sd2 Exf4 25 gi Wd4+! is excellent for Black, as is 23 Bixf4? Exf4 24 exf4 Welt, e.g. 25 S22 Wxh2+, or 25 de? We4+. White should still win the ending after 22...f7!? 23 Bd2 Wxe4 24 Wd3 Wxe3+ 25 Wxe3 fxe3 26 Edo Exfi+ 27 dxfl Bf8+ 28 de2 BE4 29 2g3 Exc4 30 Bxd7 Bic2+ 31 &xe3 Bxb2 32 Bixg7+ dxg7 33 Bed+ Lg6 34 Bxb2 Lf5 35 Sd3 etc. 23 Exf4 Wg1+ Now it is too late for 23...5 24 Bf2 Whi+ 25 de2 Wxe4 26 2p3, and White wins. The rest is simply a matter of technique. 24 de2 Wxh2+ 25 £12 e5 26 Bf3 Eg5 27 Wd3 Xb8 28 Hd2 WhS 29 Wxd7 &hB 30 Wh3 We8 31 Hf5 X96 32 W3 1-0 23CHAPTER ONE 4...d5 5 a3 2xc3+ 6 Wxc3 Ae4 7 Wc2 Ac6 1 d4 Df6 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 2b4 4 We2 dd 5 a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 Ded 7 Wc2 DAc6 Seeing Black’s sixth move it should come as no surprise that this variation tends to give rise to aggressive play. After parting with his bishop Black must exploit his slight lead in development, endeavouring to cause maxi- mum inconvenience while White is still trying to bring out his pieces. Otherwise White will simply regroup and use his bishops to secure the better game. Of course White’s develop- ment problem can be compounded by the presence of the unwelcome guest on e4, and Black should seek to combine this advance posting with the fluid mobilisation of his forces. ‘This chapter features one of the sharpest variations of the entire 4 Wc2 Nimzo-Indian. The exchange sacrifice, 8 €3 €5 9 cxd5 Wxd5 10 Bc4 Wa5+ 11 b4 Dxb4 12 Wxe4, was very much in vogue in the 1930s and is cur- rently undergoing its second youth. After 12...2c2+ 13 &e2, Game 1 shows why it is considered bad to take on al immediately. The main line is 13...Wel+ 14 2f3 Dxal 15 2b20-0 16 $g3 reaching a critical position. In Game 2 we see 16...Sd7 which still is not quite sufficient for equality after the rook sacrifice 17 @f3!, In the next two games Black plays 16...@h8? striving to get counter- play by pushing his f-pawn; this makes 17 £3? unplayable for White (see Game 3), but Game 4 shows the refutation - the simple 17 dxe5! with a subsequent mating attack along the al-h8 diagonal. This game was seen all over the world at the time because the win- ner was awarded the Chess Informant prize for best novelty of the year! Game 5, however, sees the revitalisation of 16...h6, which was previously considered almost refuted. Finally we end this chapter with another strategy for Black - rather than face along defence Black strives for counter-attack by 15...2e6, sacri- ficing his bishop in order to castle long (Game 6). Game 1 Pachman-Barcza Budapest 1948 1d4 AG 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 2b4 4 We2 d5 5 a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 DAc6 7 e3 Ded 8 We2 e5 9 cxd5 Wxd5 10 &c4 Wa5+ 11 b4 Dxb4 12 Wxe4 Dc2+ ‘This extremely sharp and forcing line is very old and was analysed thoroughly by the late world champion Max Euwe. Black wins material but his knight will be out of play on al, and in many variations the black king finds itself defending against a crude kingside 244...d5 § a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 Wc2 Acé 13 Se2 Of course 13 &f1?? Wel mate should be avoided, while 13 &d1? is weak because on di the white king would be vulnerable to a later... Wa4+ forking the king and the bishop onc4, 13...2xa1? Black immediately takes the rook and abandons the check on e1, thus defending against the possibility of White taking one5 with the queen. However, practice has shown that White emerges with a huge advantage after best play. 14 DF3! ixd4 Bxd4!? 19 Wxd4 Bd8 20 Wet Wb5+ 21 Sf3 Hes 22 Wh4 Wd5+ 23 g3 c5 24 Wet+ £5 25 WE Wd6+ 26 dh3 Wh6+ 27 <&g3 draw agreed, Pachman-Pytlakowski, Warsaw 1947. b) 15 d5 0-0-0! 16 &xal (the point behind Black’s last move is that 16 dxe6? loses the bishop to 16...Wd2+ etc.) 16...&xd5 17 &xd5 Hxd5 18 Dh3 fo 19 Sf3 Bhd8 20 Wxh7 Wexa3 21 Wxg7 b6 22 &g3 Wd6 23 Hcl a5 with a sharp position and chances for both sides, Biriukov-Vlassov, Chigorin Memorial 2000. 14...2d7 Black can try 14...f5 but then 15 Wxe5+ Wxe5 16 @xe5 leads to a huge advantage for White, because Black’s knight will soon drop and White will emerge with two minor pieces against rook and a pawn which is undoubt- edly in his favour. Black might try 14...Wb6 with the inten- tion of bringing the knight into play via b3. However, the position looks extremely dan- gerous for Black after 15 Wxe5+ 8 16 S.d2 or 15 Axe5 Leb (after 15...0-0 16 Axf7! is crushing for White) 16 d5 etc. 15 Dxe5 0-0-0 16 Axd7 Bxd7 17 &b2 Wa4 18 Wd3! We2+ 19 Wxc2 Axc2 20 $d3 Dxd4 21 exdd Old games are still worthy of analysis and this game proves it. Clearly worse is 14 2b2?! 2e6! and now: a) 15 Wd3 &xc4 16 Wxc4 exd4 17 Bxal 0-0-0 (17...dxe3!? might be stronger) 18 The endgame is technically winning for White whose two bishops clearly outweigh Black’s rook and pawn. 21...2e8 22 h4 a6 23 &c2 Sb8 24 Bh3 25Nimzo-Indian Classical Be4 25 Ef3 f6 26 g3 h6 27 2d3 Reb 28 &f5 He2+ 29 &d3 Hde7 30 &c1 Ea2 31 He3 Exe3+ 32 fxe3 h5 33 e4 Eg2 34 e5 Exg3+ 35 de4 fxe5 36 dxe5 Hc3 37 Rf4 Bxa3 38 e6 Black has managed to win a lot of mate- rial, but White’s passed e-pawn is unstoppa- ble since Black’s king cannot blockade it. 38...2a4+ 39 %e3 Ha3+ 40 we2 Ha2+ 41 2d2 1-0 Game 2 Sadler-Tukmakov Linares Open 1995 1d4 Df6 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 Ab4 4 We2 dd 5 a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 We2 Acé6 & e3 e5 9 cxd5 Wxd5 10 &c4 Wa5+ 11 b4 @Dxb4 12 Wxed Dc2+ 13 Ye2 Welt 14 Sf3 Dxal 15 2b2 ‘Taking on e5 with check only helps Black: 15 Wxe5+? Reb! when both 16 &xe6 0-0! and 16 £b2 0-0-0! (certainly not 16...0-0 17 5! £6 18 Wxe6+ with a winning advantage for White) give Black the upper hand. 15...0-0 16 &g3 White has to remove his king from the dangerous square £3, since 16 Wxe5? fails to 16... Wd1+ etc. 16...2d7 Black hurries to connect his rooks hoping that White’s kingside attack will not succeed. After 16...Wd2?! 17 Df3! Wxb2 18 Ags g6 19 Wxe5 2e6 (the only defence against White’s deadly threat @xf7! etc.) 20 Axes fxe6 21 Bxe6+ Hf7 22 Wie Bafs 23 h4! etc., Black is completely tied down despite his huge material advantage. It should also be noted that on the naive variation 16...exd4?? 17 Wxd4 Black can’t avoid being mated along the long diagonal, demonstrating how dangerous the white bishops are when hitting Black’s kingside! 17 Df3! The frequent motifin this variation. White sacrifices a rook in the romantic style of the last century in order to start a kingside attack by means of 4f3-g5. Black has to tread care- fully because, although he has an enormous material advantage, his knight and queen are stuck in the corner and thus are virtually out of play. 17...Wxh1 18 Dg5 g6 264...0d5 § a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 We2 Dc6 19 Wxe5 But not 19 Wh4? h5 20 Wes 2f5 21 Wxe5 h4+! (an unpleasant check crossing all of White’s plans) 22 dxh4 Wxg2 0-1, S.Nikolov-Mikac, Ljubljana 1997. 19...Rae8 20 Wf6 Zxe3+! A beautiful sacrifice, though practically forced because White was threatening to open up the deadly diagonal al-h8 with d4- d5, while 20...e6? loses to 21 Axe6 fuxe6 22 We7 etc. However, as we shall see, even this clever reply will not be sufficient for Black to yield full equality! 21 fxe3 We1+ 22 Sf3 This is stronger than 22 Wf2 which led to a draw in the game Neumann-Stoliar, corr 1991, after 22...Wxf2+ 23 @xf2 b5 24 222 Bc2 25 Bb3 b4 26 Bxc2 bxad 27 Bxad Hb8 28 e2 Bb5 29 &c5 Kb2 30 edi. 22.,.Wd1+ 23 &g3 Later it was found that White can con- tinue to play for the win by means of 23 Re2! Bet+ 24 fA! and now 24...Wxe2? loses to 25 d5 W£2+ 26 Af3! as indicated by the Belgrade master Ugrinovic. 23...We1+ 24 #f3 Wd1+ 25 &g3 Wel+ 26 {3 Draw Game 3 Hillarp Persson-Timman Koge 1997 1 d4 D6 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 2b4 4 We2 d5 5 a3 Bxc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 We2 Acé6 8 e3 e5 9 cxd5 Wxd5 10 2c4 Wa5+ 11 b4 Dxb4 12 Wxed DAc2+ 13 we2 Wel+ 14 S13 Dxal 15 2b2 0-0 16 &g3 Lh8? Black is preparing to launch a counter- attack against the white king by means of ..f7-£5-f4 opening up the file for his rook. However, the black king will find himself very vulnerable on the long al-h8 diagonal. 17 13? Wxh1 18 Ags f5 19 Wxe5 2d7! 8 @ oes A very important improvement over Lau- tier-Timman, Amsterdam 1994, which con- tinued 19...f4+? 20 exf4 2h3 21 Sxh3 Wh1 22 d5 Wi5+ 23 Wxf5 Bxf5 24 Deb Dc2 25 yxg7 EE7 26 Df5+ g8 27 Dho+ LB 28 Dxi7 Sxi7 29 dé+ Be 30 dxc7 kd7 31 2e5 and White had a winning ending due to the powerful passed c7-pawn. 20 AF7+ The alternative is 20 &f7 when Black 27Nimzo-Indian Classical must not fall for the excellent cheapo 20...h6? 21 Wrxg7+!! 21...62xg7 22 d5+. Although being up a whole queen and more, that is not a great consolation to Black who is mated along the diagonal a1-h8. Correct is 20...f4+! 21 exf4 Wd1 22 £3 Hae8! and Black takes over the initiative, which grants him a winning posi- tional advantage to go with his material ad- vantage. This is surely what Jan Timman had in mind when repeating the whole line. It should also be mentioned that after 20 d5 Black defends succesfully with 20...2f6 21 dé Bg6! etc. 20...Exf7 21 &xf7 4+! From now on White's king will also be exposed. 22 exf4 Wd1 ‘The mating threat on g4 gives Black a vital tempo. 23 3 Dc2 24 2c3 Wd3 25 d5 Egs 26 fa With this move White admits defeat but is there any better move to suggest? On 26 2xg8 Black wins with 26... Wg6+! protecting the g7-square, while if 26 Wxc7 Hc8! (but not 26... WE5? 27 Sxg8 dexg8 28 dé as in the game Pelletier-Solak, Halle 1995 World U20 Championship) with a winning position for Black. 26...Wa6! 27 &xg8 Wb6+ 28 we2 Ws A multi-purpose move - Black simultane- ously hits White’s pawn on g2 while also defending the vulnerable g7-square. I, 0,5: bas “a eet! Y ee 29 WF2 x98 Black has emerged a piece up, so the rest needs no comment. 30 Wxc7 Wb6+ 31 Wxb6 axb6 32 2b2 b5 33 Ye2 b4 34 a4 0-1 Game 4 Atalik-Sax Maroczy Memorial, Szeged 1997 1 d4 Of6 2 c4 e6 3 Ac3 Lb4 4 Wo2 d5 5 a3 2xc3+ 6 Wxc3 Ded 7 We2 Acé 8 3 e5 9 cxd5 Wxd5 10 &c4 Wa5+ 11 b4 Dxb4 12 Wxed Ac2+ 13 ke2 Wel+ 14 $f3 Dxal 15 &b2 0-0 16 &g3 &hs? 17 dxe5! i 17...2e6 This is practically forced as Black has to shut out White's bishops. Black’s misfortune 284...05 § a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 We2 DAc6 is that with inspired play White can probably force a win from this position! 18 D3! We have already seen this rook sacrifice in Games 2 and 3. Black’s queen will be stuck in the corner and White will have a very strong attack against the black king. 18...Wixh1 19 Ag5 g6 20 Dxt7+! Ext7 Of course 20,...x47? is out of the ques- tion due to 21 e6+ followed by murder along the dark diagonal. 21 &xe6 Hg7 The attempt for counterplay by means of the rook sacrifice backfires. After 21...2xf2!? 22 dexf2 Bf8+ 23 dg3 Welt 24 Gh3 dg7! 25 2d7 dh6 26 6 Efs 27 @f6l! Hh5+ (or 27...Bxf6 28 e7 and White's passed e-pawn promotes) 28 dg4 Ef5 29 7 Wdi+ 30 &h3 Wxd7 31 e8W, both doubled discovered checks are harmless: 31...2f3+ 34 @h4! and 31...Bh5+ 32 @g3! and White wins in both cases. 22 QF7!! Freeing the e-pawn to advance as well as opening the long diagonal. 22...Bx7? This loses immediately. A more stubborn defense was 22...Wd1!? 23 e6 Wd6+ but now White can try the very interesting recom- mendation of Turkish GM Suat Atalik: 24 f4 g5 25 ded! exf4+ 26 Sh5 with a winning attack! 23 e6+ &g8 Or 23...fig7 24 We5 Hg8 25 e7 and it is all over for Black. 24 Wd4! &f8 25 exf7 &xt7 26 Wd7+ 1-0 After 26...8f8 27 2f6 mates. Game 5 Sapundjiev-Gysi Correspondence 1999 1 d4 Af6 2 c4 e6 3 Ac3 Ab4 4 We2 dd 5 a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 We2 Acé6 & e3 e5 9 cxd5 Wxd5 10 2c4 Wa5+ 11 b4 Dxb4 12 Wxe4 Dc2+ 13 Se2 Wel+ 14 S13 Dxal 15 2b2 0-0 16 &g3 hé 16...h6 has long been considered almost losing for Black, but this game completely changes the assessment. Black takes control of the key square g5, trying to prevent the familiar white knight manoeuvre @g1-f3-g5. 17 ha! The key move, which for along time was considered as the refutation of 16...h6. Much weaker was 17 h3? Wd2 18 Wb1 We2 as in Gerusel-Johansson, Halle zonal 1967. 17... Wd2 Much stronger than 17...@h8? 18 &h2 Wrf2 19 Qxal V5 20 Dh3 Rxh3 21 Sxh3 £5 22 Wxe5 Rae8 23 &e6 with huge advan- tage for White in the game Toth-Varnusz, Hungary 1969. 18 Df3! White has to play vigorously because the meek 18 Wb1? Wc2! leaves Black with both a 29Nimzo-Indian Classical winning material and positional advantage. 18...Wxb2 19 Ags! The is the idea behind 17 h4!. Despite »-h7-h6 the knight comes anyway to g5, of- fering itself in order to open up the deadly h- file. 19...We2! This is the improvement over the older move 19...hxg5 (clearly bad is 19...He8? 20 Rxf7+ GF 21 Lxe8 We2 22 Bad! Wxad 23 W£3+ Se7 24 Wf7+ which gave White anear decisive attack in Baay-Stumpers, Nether- lands championship 1948) 20 hxg5 He8 (again forced as Black is immediately mated after 20.,.Wic2?? 21 Wh4!) and now: a) 21 Wh7+ Sf8 22 Wh8+ Be7 23 Wxe7 Reb 24 Rxeb (or 24 d5 Hg8? 25 Wier dede 26 dxe6 Bg6 27 Hdi+ &c5 28 Wxf7 Exps+ 29 deh4 Be7!? 30 Wxg7 Wxf2+ 31 23 Bhs+ 32 deg4 dexcd 33 Wxc7+ 1-0, Praagman-De Kramer, corr 1949; but 24...2£g8? was poor — better was 24...¢¢d6! and in this crazy posi- tion Black might even be winning!) 24...d2xe6 25 Bh6+ should lead to a draw by perpetual check. b) 21 g6l? 206 22 gxf7+ exf7 23 WES+ Se7 24 Wxeb+ Sd8 25 Wd5+ Sc8 26 WI7 Hd8 27 Re6+ Sb8 28 We7 Hc8 29 Rxc8 a5 and in this sharp position suddenly all the chances are with White, which emphasises the strength of the improvement 19...Wc2!. 20 &d3 2f5! Forced and good, because 20...f5? loses immediately to the intermediate check 21 Wd54! winning Black’s queen. 21 Wxt5 g6! Vi, 72 ‘Y “ Black wins a vital tempo so that it is now White who is in a critical situation without knowing where he went wrong! This means that the whole line with 16...h6 is very much alive. 22 We4 Wc6 23 Wxc6 bxc6 %-% However, I think that Black has all the chances to play for the win in the final posi- tion due to his material advantage. Game 6 Feigin-Fine Hastings 1936/37 1 d4 Af6 2 c4 eG 3 Dc3 2b4 4 We2 dd 5 a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 Ded 7 We2 Acé6 B e3 e5 9 cxd5 Wxd5 10 &c4 WaS+ 11 b4 304...d5 § a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 Wc2 Acé @xb4 12 Wxe4 Dc2+ 13 Se2 Wel+ 14 Sf3 Dxal 15 &b2 Le6 A sharp continuation by which Black gives up some material in order to castle queen- side. There his king will be safer and away from White’s frightening bishops. Black also counts on the opening of the f-file which will be vital for the counter-attack against White's monarch. 16 d5 0-0-0 17 dxe6 fxe6 White’s huge f-pawn proved to be a great problem for Black after 17...Hd2? 18 De2! Wxh1 19 exf7 Hf8 20 Sxe5 Hd7 21 Wes Dc2 22 Qxg7 Del+ 23 Sia! Ad3+ 24 kg3 Exf7 25 &xf7 Wei 26 WES Acs 27 Rd4 Sb8 28 &xc5 1-0 as in Schaefer-Karu, corr 1937. 18 &g4? Also bad for White is 18 g3? Bd2 19 Sixal h5! 20 dg? Bxf2+ 21 h3 Wxal 22 @e2 Efi! when various old games have shown that Black’s attack breaks through in this position. Very interesting complications can arise after 18 dg3 Bhf8 19 &xe5 Bxf2 20 De2!? Hfl+21 bh3 Hxh1 22 Rxe6+ kbs 23 Dc3 (or 23 &xc7+ &a8! and things are unclear, though it is obvious that Black’s king is not safe even on the queenside!) 23... Wd2 24 Sxc7+ Sxc7 25 We5+ Bcb 26 Wh5+ &c7 27 We5+ Sc6 drawn by perpetual check, Lev-Negele, Baden Baden 1988. The critical line is 18 &xe5 Khf8+ 19 &g4! Bxf2 20 Dh3 h5+ 21 dxh5 Bh8+ 22 dg6! (but not 22 dg4? Bh4+!! 23 doxh4 Bf4+ and Black is winning) 22...Exg2+!? 23 Wxg2 Wxe3 and now in the game Lazarev- ASokolov, France (Team Tournament) 1998, the simple 24 &.xg7 should have led to awin for White. 18...Wxf2 19 @xa1 h5+ 20 wh3 g5! "There is no way the white king can escape from his coffin. The battle is decided. 21 Sxe6+ SbB 22 DB g4+ 23 Sxg4 hxg4+ 24 &xg4 Wxg2+ 25 &f5 Sh5+ 26 $16 518+ 27 Se6 Wg8+ 0-1 37Nimzo-Indian Classical Summary This chapter witnesses the most enterprising variations of the 4 We2 Nimzo Indian because it is not clear who is doing the attacking. Sometimes White sacrifices a lot of material in order to get at the black king on the kingside and sometimes it is even Black who sacrifices material by castling queenside in order to attack the white king along the semi-open file. So Iecommend that this line be studied carefully because, if nothing else, it will certainly sharpen your tactical awareness. The game Atalik-Sax is very important and demonstrates that what matters in this line isthe initiative and not material. 1 d4 Df6 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 &b4 4 We2 d5 5 a3 2xc3+ 6 Wxc3 Ded 7 We2 Dc6 Os e3 e5 9 cxd5 Wxd5 10 2c4 Wa5+ 11 b4 Axb4 12 Wxe4 Dc2+ 13 e2 (D) We1+ 13...2)xal - Game 1 14 Sf3 Dxal 15 &b2 0-0 15...S.6 - Game 6 16 sog3 (D) ehe 16...2d7 - Game 2 16...h6 - Game 5 17 dxe5 - Game 4 17 DB - Game 3 32CHAPTER TWO 4...d5 5 a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 Wec2: Others 1 d4 ATG 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 Lb4 4 We2 dd 5 a3 2xc3+ 6 Wxc3 Ded 7 We2 In this chapter we consider lines where Black meets 7 Wc2 with a move other than 7...2\c6. Games 7-10 demonstrate just how quickly the game can become complicated, with Black meeting the standard 7 We2 with 7...c5, seeking to open the position immedi- ately. Both sides can soon find themselves in trouble. The same can be said of 7...5, which is the subject of Games 11-13. Again Black wastes no time with acentral strike, but here he unleashes his bishop, with a view to men- acing White’s queen after ....2f5. Finally Games 14 and 15 deal with the quieter con- tinuations 7...b6 and 7...0-0 respectively. ‘These tend to lead to more of a slow posi- tional struggle. Game7 Bonham-Wolstenholme British Correspondence Ch 1949 1 d4 Af6 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 Bb4 4 We2 dd 5 a3 2xc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 We2 c5 A thematic thrusts that immediately con- tests the centre, opening the position to fa- cilitate rapid development. The next few moves make up the main line: 8 dxc5 DAc6 9 cxd5 exd5 10 D3 &f5 11 b4 Dg3? The attempt to gain material will backfire because the knight on hi will be trapped. A similar plan could be 11...A\xf2? and White emerges on top after 12 Wxf5 Axht (if 12...g6 13 Wf4 doesn’t change anything) 13 g3! followed by £92. In the arising position two minor pieces are clearly stronger than a rook and two pawns. Games 8-10 feature 11...0-0. 12 Wb2 Dxh1 13 Wxg7 Bf8 14 &h6 We7 Black can also try to escape with his king by 14...dd7 but after 15 Bd1 26 16 e4! White retains control - he will gradually re- gain all his sacrificed material and emerge a clear pawn up on the queenside. 33Nimzo-Indian Classical 15 Wxf8+ Wxf8 16 2xf8 Sxf8 17 93 Re4 18 2g2 a5 19 bd Ad4 20 Dxd4 xg2 21 c6! b6 22 13 we7 23 Sd2 Ata 24 Hg De4+ 25 fxe4 xed 26 Eft White now has an extra strong passed pawn in the ending which clearly wins. 26...a7 27 94 Ec7 28 g5 &d6 29 Ef6+ Sc5 30 Sc3 a4 31 h4 Ag6 32 e3 He7 33 Gd2 Bc7 34 Bf Sc8 35 Hh1 24 36 Ec1+ &d6 37 h5 Bc7 38 Bt &c5 39 96! hxg6 39...fxe6 40 De6+ also wins. 40 hé 1-0 Euwe-Najdorf Mar del Plata 1947 1:d4 D6 2 c4 e6 3 Ac3 Bb4 4 We2 dd 5 a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 We2 c5 8B dxc5 Ac6 9 cxd5 exd5 10 D3 2f5 11 b4 0-0 12 &b2 Dg3? Black’s ostensibly natural move is consid- ered a mistake and, in fact, virtually loses by force. It is strange that Black has never played 12...xf22! with the same idea, albeit lacking in promise. After 13 Wc3! d4 14 Dxd4 Dxd4 15 Wxf2 Deb 16 3 Let 17 We5! Wa2+ (17...Wh4+ 18 Wg3 and White keeps the extra pawn) 18 &e2 2d3 19 Bhel Black simply has no compensation for the pawn. The next two games deal with the rather better try 12...b6. 13 We3 d4 14 Axd4 Dxd4 15 fxg3 De2+ No better is 15...e6? 16 e3 Wd5 17 Bd1 We 18 df2 Bad8 19 Be2, O'Kelly de Gal- way-Foerder, Hilversum Zonal 1947, when White had two extra pawns. 16 Sf2 Wg5 17 h4 Wh6 18 94 An equally good alternative is 18 cl. 18...2e4 19 g5 Another example of 12...2)g3? being dealt a serious blow is Levin-Zagrebelny, Peter- maennsch 1997, which continued 19 Hct We4+ 20 gi We3+ 21 Wxe3 Dxe3 22 g5 Had8 23 Hh3! There followed 23...Axf1 24 @xf1 Hd2 25 &c3 Ha2 26 Be3 Rc6 27 Le5 Bb5 28 dé and, again, the two extra pawns were easily converted into a win, 19...Wg6 20 Bd1 16 Black sacrifices the exchange in order to 344...d5 § a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 We2: Others open the Ffile with the hope of exposing White's king. However, the attack fails to get into full swing, 21 Wb3+ @h8 22 gxf6 Exf6+ 23 Axf6 Wxf6+ 24 Sg1 Sf8 25 Eh3 More accurate is 25 Wg3!, after which the win should be easy. 25...h6 The stubborn 25...Qe1!? poses more problems. After 26 Exel Wf2+ followed by ...Mifxe1 the situation is less clear. 26 Sf3! White improves his pawn structure by re- turning material, the result being to success- fully address Black’s play down the File. 26...2xf3 27 exf3 Dd4 28 Wd5 DFS 29 Wxb7 De3 30 He1 We3 31 He2 Wd4 32 g3! Allowing a harmless discovered check. White’s huge material advantage finally de- cides. 32...He8 33 Wa6 Hd8 34 We6 Dxf1+ 35 =xf1 Wat+ 36 Sg2 Wxa3 37 WIT Wxb4 38 He8+ 1-0 White queens his c-pawn after 38...Rxe8 39 Wxe8+ dh7 40 We4+ Wet 41 fed. Game 9 M.Gurevich-A.Sokolov Clichy 1993 1 d4 Df6 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 Kb4 4 We2 dd 5 a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxe3 Ded 7 We2 c5 8 dxc5 Dc6 9 cxd5 exd5 10 Af3 Of course White must watch out for 10 b4?? Wf6!, simultaneously hitting al and {2 and therefore winning immediately. 10...2f5 11 b4 0-0 12 &b2 b6 13 b5S bxc5 14 bxc6 Bb8 The text is an attempted improvement on the alternative 14...Wa5+, which was later seen in I.Rogers-Ward, 4NCL 1997. After 15 @d2 Bab8 16 c7 Black should avoid 16...Axd2? 17 We3!, so the game continued 16... Wxc7!? 17 @xe4 Bxe4 18 Wd2 d4 19 £3 Bg6 20 e4 dxe3 21 We3 Hxb2 22 Wxb2 bs! and White’s king was a cause for con- cern. Instead of 20 e4, the position after 20 Hcl We7 has been evaluated as giving Black enough for the piece, while I. Sokolov offers the following: 16...8b3 17 2e5 (17 Edi c4! 18 e3 Dxd2 19 Wxd2 c3 is equal) 17...f6 18 £3 fxe5 19 fxe4 Hc3 with compensation. From the diagram position, after ASokolov’s 14...2b8, with best play White can repel Black’s creeping initiative. In fact we might wish to conclude that Black has insufficient compensation for the piece here, although the play is rich with possibilities. 15 Dd2 A solid reply, covering the vulnerable a5- e1 diagonal. 15 S.¢5?! Wa5+ 16 Dd2 Ebed! merely gives Black a dangerous attack but 15 Hct!? deserves further tests, the point being to answer 15...Wa5+ with 16 Sc3 etc. On the other hand 15 e3? could do without a repeat: 35Nimzo-Indian Classical 15...Wa5+ 16 Dd2 Dg3 17 We3 Wxc3 18 &xc3 Dxh1 19 &a6 Hb6 20 &b7 243, ‘Tjiptadi-Rozanski, Correspondence 1999. The critical move is 15 0-0-0!, which was first played in Nadanian-Yegiazarian, Arme- nia 1994, Black then has a choice: a) Matters are not so clear after 15...d4 16 Qxd42! cxd4 17 c7 We7 18 cxbsW Exbs when, despite being a whole rook up, it is White who is in a critical situation. 16 €3! De3 17 Wxc5 Dxh1 18 Wxf5 Whe 19 We2 with an edge for White. b) 15...Ag3 16 Wxc5 Axh1 17 Bxd5 Exb2 18 &xb2 (clearly worse is 18 Bxd8? Eb1+ 19 Ld2 Hxd8+ etc) 18...Wb8+ 19 Bc3! and now 19...Se6 loses to 20 c7 followed by d5-d8 or in some lines Wc5xf8+! while after 19...'Wb1 20 Bxf5 White should be winning due to the strong passed c-pawn despite the position of his king - some players would need nerves of steel to go into such a line with White but why not if it wins by force? c) 15...2xf2!? was played before in the aforementioned game Nadawan-Yeguasanan - 16 Wxf5 Dxd1 (bad is 16...Bxb2? 17 Ags! g6 18 Wxf2 Wbé 19 Wf6! with a win for White - there is no mate for Black along the b-file) 17 c7 (not so clear is 17 2e5?! De3! 18 Wd3 Whe! 19 Wxe3 Wbi+ 20 ded2 d4 with a dangerous attack) 17...Wxc7 18 2e5 (or 18 Ags g6 19 We5 Wxe5 20 Bxe5 Df2! which is OK for Black) 18...2e3 19 &xc7 (a very nice line is 19 Wg5 6 20 &xc7 fxg5 21 xb8 Bxb8 22 Axg5 - it looks as if White should win but 22...c4! 23 g3 c3 24. @2h3 Bb2 25 Se6+ Sf8 and Black has assured himself of a draw by perpetual check at worst!) 19...Dxf5 20 &xb8 Exb8 21 Del! intending Be1-c2 which is better for White. So after 15 0-0-0! Black’s best move is 15...A\xf2 which still doesn’t bring full equality, 15...d4 For 15...1e8?! see the next main game. 16 Axe4 &xe4 17 Wd2 There is no time for 17 Wxe4? because the awkward 17...Wa5+! cuts across White’s plans (18 dedi Exb2 looks unpleasant). 17...Wb6 18 2c1 c4 19 c7 19...2b7 20 13 96?! Ibelieve that 20...c3 is more accurate here, e.g. 21 WE4 2.020, or 21 Wa2 2b1!? with an unclear position. 21 ha? Superficial. White misses 21 e4!, when af- ter 21...Lxc7 22 Wb4! Black’s passed pawns are not the danger they might first appear! 21...h5 22 g4 ¢3 23 Wi4 d3! 24 exd3?! A more tenacious defence is 24 gxh5 d2+ 25 Sxd2 cxd2+ 26 Wxd2 &xh5 27 Bet Exc7 28 Exc7 Wxc7 29 Sf2 etc. 24...ReB+ 25 Re2 Axc7 26 f1 Ece7 27 Bh2 Exe2! With this final sacrifice Black will win back his invested material with interest, re- sulting in an easily winning position, 28 Hxe2 &xd3 29 Saa2 We6 30 &f2 364...d5 § a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 Wc2: Others Rxe2 31 We3 Wc6 32 Wi4 &c4 33 Bal Of course this is not a retreat White wishes to make, but there is nothing better. 33...e2+ 34 &g3 Wc5 35 fe3 Wxe3 36 Wxe3 Bxe3 37 3c1 &d5 38 gxh5 Exf3+ 39 &g4 2d3 40 h6 gxh6 0-1 Game 10 S.Nikolov-B.Lalic Pula Open 1998 1 d4 Af6 2 c4 eG 3 Dc3 Ab4 4 We2 dd 5 a3 &xc3+ 6 Wxc3 De4 7 Wc2 c5 8 dxc5 Ac6 9 cxd5 exd5 10 Df3 2F5 11 b4 0-0 12 &b2 b6 13 b5 bxc5 14 bxc6 Eb8 15 Dd2 Hes?! An attempted improvement but, as we shall see, not a very successful one! 16 Dxe4 Sxe4 17 Wd2 d4 18 ha? ‘Again a superficial move with some vague hope of activating the rook on h1. It was much more important not to allow Black to hammer down White's dark-squared bishop by 18 Hcl! and if 18...Wb6 then 19 c7! and if necessary White's bishop can retreat to al. In that case Black’s compensation for the sacri- ficed piece would be equal to naught and White should be winning. 18...Wb6 19 2c1 c4 20 c7 c3 21 Wa Ebc8 22 £3 2c2! 23 Sf2 d3+ 24 &e3 Wb2 25 Hci Exe3! 26 Wxe3 d2 27 Wd4 Whe! What an amazing position. The last 10 moves shows how each move is so precious in this tense situation. With the text Black defends against the mortal threat Wd4-d8+ and transfers to an easily won ending due to his monstrous passed c-pawn. 28 Wxb6 axb6 29 Hal d1W 30 Bxd1 &xd1 31 Se1 Funnily enough White's idle pieces, 2f1 and 2h1, are not capable of preventing the promotion of the black pawn. 31...c2 32 Sd2 Exc7 33 &c1 2a7 34 e4 Exa3 35 &d2 a1 0-1 Game 11 Baburin-Orr Kilkenny 1995 1 d4 Dt6 2 c4 eG 3 Dc3 2b4 4 We2 dd 5 a3 2xc3+ 6 Wxc3 Dea 7 Wc2 eS 37Nimzo-Indian Classical With this sharp continuation Black plans to embarrass White’s queen with ...&c8-f5, introducing the threat of a nasty discovered attack. Not surprisingly 7...e5 leads to sharp positions that are difficult to assess, as Black tends to enjoy a development advantage at the cost of a pawn or two ~ sometimes more. 8 dxe5 For 8 cxd5 see Game 12. 8...215 9 Ws An important alternative is 9 Df3!?. The Turkish-Bosnian GM Suat Atalik offers the following analyses: 9...Dg3 10 e4! &xe4 (10...Axe4 11 &d3 favours White) 11 Wate b5 12 Wxb5+ c6 13 Wb7 Axh1 14 Wxa8 Rxf3 15 gxf3 Whe 16 &e3 Wxb2 17 Lda! Wxd4 18 Wxb8+ de7 19 Wd6+ with acrush- ing attack, or 14...Wb6 15 &e3 Wxb2 16 &.d4 Wb3 17 d2! and White is winning. 9...Ad7 9...dxc4!? 10 Wxb7 Dd7, which also leads to complex play, needs further tests. 9...a6 is played occasionally, although White seems to be better after 10 cxd5 c6 11 Af3 WaS+ 12 Rd2 Dxd2 13 Axd2 Hd8 14 ef! Vxe4, when Gaborit-Hauchard, Pau 1989 saw the poor 15 &xa6? Rxd5 16 Wxb7 xg? 17 0-0-0 &xh1 with a near decisive advantage to Black. White should have opted for 15 d6!, and now 15...Wxe5? loses a piece to 16 We3! due to the pin on the e-file. After 10 Wxb7 BDac5 11 Web+ Bd7 12 Wxd5 c6 13 Wal Wh6 14 Be3 Wxb2 15 Qd4 (15 Wd4!? is interesting as if 15...Wb6 then 16 Wxe4! fa- vours White) 15..Wb6 16 2d4 We7 17 &xcd5 Wxe5 18 Hdi Oxc5 19 Df White stands better, while 18...Wxc5 19 Wxc5 ADxc5 20 Df3 leaves White a pawn up. 10 cxd5 0-0 11 Df3 a5 It is not easy for White to develop his dormant kingside, while Black’s plan is crys- tal clear — ...a5-a4 followed by ...Ad7-c5-b3, ..c7-c6 and ...Wd8-a5 with the makings of a terrible attack. 12 Be3 a4 13 Wxb7 Ddc5 14 &xc5? Sometimes choosing the simplest con- tinuation is not the best choice! Much better is 14 Wb4! Bb8 15 Wed, 14...b3 15 Edi or 14...Wxd5 15 Bd1, and White retains an ad- vantage in all variations. 14... Dxc5 15 Wc6 as! Caging the queen. 16 e6 fxe6 17 3 Re4 18 &b5 Now it is time for White to be careful, which explains why the game quickly fizzles out to a draw by perpetual check. 18...Bxb5 19 Wxb5 Wxd5 20 0-0 &xf3 21 gxf3 Wxf3 22 Wxc5 Wo4+ %-% Game 12 Grigorian-Korchnoi USSR Championship 1973 1:4 Df6 2 c4 e6 3 Dc3 Ab4 4 We2 dd 5 a3 Sxc3+ 6 Wxc3 Ded 7 We2 e5 8 38