CONTENTS
Contents
Symbols Introduction
8 9
Section 1: Open Games
11
Italian Game Perfect Centre Bishop Exchanges Giuoco Piano Møller Attack Evans Gambit Two Knights Two Knights Main Line Max Lange Attack King’s Gambit Rare 2nd moves Petroff Philidor Four Knights Scotch Game Ruy Lopez Kingside Manoeuvres Ruy Lopez Part 1 Berlin Third-Move Alternatives Ruy Lopez Part 2 Exchange Lopez Steinitz Deferred Open Lopez Møller Ruy Lopez Part 3 Marshall Attack Anti-Marshall Early d4 Chigorin Breyer Zaitsev Closed Lopez: Other Systems
12 12 13 14 14 16 19 19 20 22 24 26 28 30 31 34 34 36 36 38 40 40 41 42 44 46 46 48 49 49 51 52 53
4
UNDERSTANDING THE CHESS OPENINGS
Section 2: Semi-Open Games Sicilian Dragon Set-up Scheveningen Set-up Najdorf Set-up Maroczy Bind Set-up c-File Dragon Accelerated Dragon Classical (and Richter-Rauzer) Sozin Scheveningen (and Keres Attack) Classical Scheveningen Taimanov Kan Najdorf (and English Attack) Najdorf Íg5 Najdorf Íc4 Najdorf Íe2 (and Other Moves) Sveshnikov Kalashnikov Moscow & Rossolimo Grand Prix Attack Closed Sicilian c3 Sicilian 4 Ëxd4 and Other Sidelines French Pawn-Chain Bad Bishop Exchange French Advance French Tarrasch Rubinstein Winawer Classical Caro-Kann Open Centre Exchange & Panov-Botvinnik Advance Caro-Kann Main Line: 4...Íf5 (and Deviations) Main Line: 4...Ìd7 (and 4...Ìf6) Alekhine Scandinavian Nimzowitsch
54
55 55 55 56 56 56 57 60 61 62 63 64 66 67 68 71 74 76 77 79 81 82 83 84 85 87 87 87 88 88 90 92 93 94 96 96 96 98 99 101 103 105 107
CONTENTS
5
Pirc/Modern Austrian Classical 150 Attack P„ibyl Pirc Gurgenidze Fianchetto Anti-Pirc Owen’s Defence
108 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115
Section 3: Queen’s Gambit
116
Light-Squared Bishop Queen’s Gambit Accepted 3 e4 3 Ìf3 with 4 e3 Two Knights (4 Ìc3) Queen’s Gambit Declined Carlsbad Structure Orthodox & Lasker Tartakower Exchange 5 Íf4 Catalan Tarrasch & Semi-Tarrasch Cambridge Springs Slav Main Line with 6...e6 (and Early Deviations) Main Line with 6...Ìbd7 Early e3 ...a6 Slav Exchange Slav Semi-Slav 5 Íg5 5 e3 and the Meran Wedge Variation Chigorin and Unusual Lines Blackmar-Diemer Gambit
116 117 117 119 120 122 122 122 124 125 126 127 128 130 132 132 134 135 135 137 138 138 140 142 143 145
Section 4: Indian Defences
146
Nimzo-Indian
147
6
UNDERSTANDING THE CHESS OPENINGS
The Isolated Queen’s Pawn Idea for White No. 1: d4-d5 Advance Idea for White No. 2: Central Attack Idea for White No. 3: Kingside Attack Idea for White No. 4: Queenside Play Idea for Black: Simplification Working on the Queenside Weaknesses Sämisch & 4 f3 Rubinstein Leningrad Kasparov Variation Classical (4 Ëc2) & Others Queen’s Indian 4 g3 4 a3 4 e3 & 4 Íf4 Bogo-Indian King’s Indian Pawn-Storms Classical: Introduction Classical Main Line Sämisch Four Pawns Fianchetto Averbakh and Unusual Lines Grünfeld Grünfeld Centre Exchange: Introduction & Classical Modern Exchange Russian System Fianchetto Early Bishop Moves (and Minor Lines) Benoni Systems Modern Benoni Benko Gambit Dutch Stonewall Leningrad Classical Odds & Ends Trompowsky Torre, Barry and Colle Veresov ...d6 System Black Knights’ Tango & Budapest
148 148 148 149 149 149 149 150 151 153 155 156 158 158 160 161 163 165 165 166 168 170 172 174 175 177 177 177 180 182 183 184 186 186 189 191 191 193 194 195 196 198 199 200 201
CONTENTS
7
Section 5: Flank Openings
203
English Symmetrical: Queenside Play Symmetrical: Central Play Symmetrical: Hedgehog Four Knights Botvinnik System Reversed Dragon Nimzo-English Réti Anti-Grünfelds English Defence Bird’s Opening Larsen’s Opening Dunst Opening Basman’s Opening
204 204 205 207 208 209 210 211 213 215 216 217 218 219 220
Index of Variations
221
SCOTCH GAME
Scotch Game 1 e4 e5 2 Ìf3 Ìc6 3 d4 (D) Garry Kasparov has called the Scotch Game “the only serious alternative to the Ruy Lopez”. He tends to be well up on such things so his opinion is worth attention. White immediately pulls the trigger on d4, liquidating Black’s central strong-point and opening up further lines for his pieces. This advance cannot be profitably prepared with 3 c3, the Ponziani Opening, since after 3...Ìf6 4 d4 Ìxe4 5 d5 Ìe7 6 Ìxe5 Ìg6 7 Ëd4 Ëe7 8 Ëxe4 Ëxe5 9 Ëxe5+ Ìxe5 10 Íf4 Íd6! the endgame holds no dangers for Black.
B
r+lwkvnt zpzp+pzp -+n+-+-+ +-+-z-+-+-ZP+-+ +-+-+N+PZP+-ZPZ TNVQML+R
3...exd4 Black is really obliged to capture White’s pawn. 3...d6 gives a bad Philidor, with the knight committed to c6. 4 Ìxd4 (D) 4 c3, the Göring Gambit, is less exciting than it looks. Black can claim immediate equality with 4...d5, or accept the challenge with 4...dxc3 5 Ìxc3 Íb4 6 Íc4 d6 7 Ëb3 Ëe7 when White has enough for the pawn, but no more than that. 4...Ìf6
B
r+lwkvnt zpzp+pzp -+n+-+-+ +-+-+-+-+-SP+-+ +-+-+-+PZP+-ZPZ TNVQML+R
This targets the e4-pawn, and so forces some sort of concession. 4...Íc5 5 Íe3 Ëf6 6 c3 (6 Ìb5 has been played by Ponomariov, but for anyone who hasn’t been a world champion recently the move carries a health warning – after 6...Íxe3 7 fxe3 the doubled e-pawns control a lot of squares but are still extremely ugly, and after 7...Ëh4+ 8 g3 Black can drop back to d8 or play 8...Ëxe4 9 Ìxc7+ Êd8 10 Ìxa8 Ëxh1 with an utterly unclear game) 6...Ìge7 is another main line, rapidly developing and preparing ...d5. After 7 Íc4 Ìe5!? (7...b6 8 0-0 Íb7, preparing to castle queenside, is an excellent alternative) 8 Íe2 Ëg6 White sacrifices the e4-pawn; for instance, 9 0-0 d6 10 f4 Ëxe4 11 Íf2 Íxd4 12 cxd4 Ì5g6 13 g3 Íh3 14 Íf3 Ëf5 15 Îe1 d5 16 Ëb3 0-0 17 Ìc3 c6 18 Ëxb7 Îfb8 19 Ëc7 Ëf6 with equality. 4...Íb4+!? 5 c3 Íc5 is also popular at top level – Black provokes c3 to prevent the white knight from developing naturally on this square, without having to resort to ...Ëf6. 4...Ëh4?! is extremely risky. White can play 5 Ìb5 immediately, but 5 Ìc3 Íb4 6 Ìb5 looks even better, when 6...Ëxe4+ 7
32
UNDERSTANDING THE CHESS OPENINGS
Íe2 gives White a truckload of compensation. 5 Ìxc6 5 Ìc3 Íb4 transposes to the Scotch Four Knights. 5...bxc6 (D) Not, of course, 5...dxc6? 6 Ëxd8+ Êxd8, when Black has no compensation for his crippled pawn-majority in the endgame.
W
r+lwkv-t z-zp+pzp -+p+-s-+ +-+-+-+-+-+P+-+ +-+-+-+PZP+-ZPZ TNVQML+R
Black’s trumps, as will become apparent, are that he can develop all of his pieces quickly to good squares. On the other hand, White holds a structural advantage. Thus Black’s job is to generate some relevant play in the next few moves, while White needs just to get out of the opening alive to claim a long-term edge. 6 e5 Now the knight is threatened without any stable squares available, so Black must be accurate to avoid falling into passivity. 6...Ëe7! (D) 7 Ëe2 Taking the comment at move 5 into account, it should be clear that if both sides fully develop then White will be better. Accordingly, Black undertakes this disruptive manoeuvre in order to hinder White’s development. It’s true that his own development is similarly hindered, but (after ...Ìd5) his queen will have a greater range of options
W
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than the white queen, which will be tied to the e5-pawn. I’ve tried to present this as if ...Ëe7 “conforms to the demands of the position”, but in fact any such statements in the context of opening theory are at worst incorrect and at best post hoc – players started playing 6...Ëe7 because Black was getting creamed after 6...Ìd5 and needed to look for alternatives, found this one and discovered it worked. 7...Ìd5 8 c4 (D)
B
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Kicking the knight immediately makes sense and forces a concession – Black can misplace either his knight or his bishop. 8...Ía6 8...Ìb6 is the alternative, when Black aims for play down the a-file (...a5-a4) or rapid
SCOTCH GAME
development (by means of ...Ía6, ...Ëe6 and ...Íb4). 9 b3 (D) White can also play 9 g3, but I think it’s more flexible to defend the c-pawn at once.
B
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33
9...g5! This is a perfect example of how good opening moves are found. The reason Black plays this is because the alternative way to develop the bishop, 9...g6, runs into 10 f4! when White is prepared to play Ëf2 and Ía3 with unpleasant consequences. Accordingly Black realized he needed some more control over f4, while still facilitating his own development, and came up with this gem. Play typically now runs: 10 g3 Íg7 11 Íb2 0-0 12 Íg2 Îae8 13 0-0 Íxe5!? 14 Ëxe5 Ëxe5 15 Íxe5 Îxe5 16 cxd5 Íxf1 17 Êxf1 cxd5 The endgame is dynamically balanced – if White can keep the rooks in check he will be much better, but if they become active White could be routed.