Winning With 1 d4 - Soltis PDF

WINNING
WITH
1 d4
•
ANDREW SOL TIS
INTERNATIONAL GRANDMASTER
CHESS DIGEST, INC.

Copyrightc 1 988 A n drew Soltis
All rights rese rved u n d e r Pan A m e r i c a n a n d I n te r

n at i onal Cop y right con v e n t ions.
I S B N: 0-87568- 175· 1
T h i s is a rev ised a n d e x pa n d ed e d i tion o f "Wh ite

Ope n i n g System Wi t h 1 P 0 4 b y A n d re w Soltis ( 1 974).
-
No pa rt of t h i s p u b l i cation may be reprod u ce d ,

stored i n a ret r i e v a l s yste m , or t r a n s m i tted in a n y f o r m , o r
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A u t h or: A n d re w Soltis
Com p u te r T y pese t t i n g: E l a i ne S m i t h
Co v e r: T h e resa Wal k e r
Ed i t o r: K e n S m i t h (F.I .D.E. 2365)
Proo freade rs: Jude Acers & Paul Woe rner
F i n a l Prepa ration & D i agrams: D a v i d Sewell
Publisher: Ch ess D i gest, I n c.•, 1 1 836 Jud d Ct, S u i te 338-E,

D al l as, T ex a s 75243-4402
Send the p ub l i s he r $2.00 for the N e w Chess G u i d e

t h at ca ta logs e v e r y chess book f o r s a l e i n t h e U n i ted
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p rovement Cou rse for beg i n ners u p t h rough M aster level
p l a y e rs.
T able o f Contents j
TABLE OF CO NTENTS
Page
I N T ROD U CT I O N 5
C H A PTER O N E - A 6
T h e Queen's G a m b i t 6
A1 Queen's G a m b i t Accepted 8
A2 Queen's G a m b i t D e c l i n e d 27
A3 T he Slav D e fense 45
A4 O t h e r D e c l i n e d V a ri a t i o n s 1 d4, d 5 2 c4 53
A41 2...c5 S y m me t r i c a l D e fense 53
A42 2 ... N c6 The Tch igo r i n D e fe n se 55
A43 2 ... N f6 T he M a rs h a l l De fense 58
C H A PTER TWO 8 - 61
The K i ng's I n d i a n De fense 61
B1 K i ng's I n d i an D e fe n se 61
B2 The Old I n d i a n 74
B3 Th e A v e rb a k h I n d i an 78
(or Modern System)
C H A PTER T H REE - C 83
T h e G ru e n fe l d De fense 83
C H A PTER FO U R - D 94
T h e N i m zo-I n d i a n De fense 94
C H A PTER FIVE - E 102

The Dutch De fense 102
E1 Normal Dutch 103
E2 Len i ngra d S y stem 105
E3 The Hort-An tos h i n S y stem 110
C H A PTER S I X F - 1 12
T h e B u d apest D e fe nse 1 12
4 Table o f Contents
Page
C H APTER SEVEN G • 1 15
Albin Cou n tergam bit 1 15
C H A PTER EIGHT H • 120

The Benoni De fenses 120
H 1 Modern Benoni 120
H2 Ben ko Gambit 126
H22a The Volga Gambit 132
H 3 The Closed Ben o n i 135
H 4 T h e S c h m i d a n d S i c i l i an Benoni 140
C H APTER N I N E I • 141
Other Defenses to 1 d 4 141
(1) l .. .Nc6
(2) l ...e5
(3) l...b5
(4) l ...N f6 2 c4, b6
(5) l ...N f6 2 c4, N c6
(6) l...b6 2c4, e6
or l ...e6 2 c4, b6
l otroductloo: Wiooiog With 1 d4 s
I NTROD UCTION
Wh en Gary K as p a rov won the World C h a m p i o nsh ip

i n 1 985, i t h a d a s y m bolic but also sign i f i c a n t i m p act o n
h o w pla yers choose t h e i r fi rst move. For t h e fi rst t i me i n
m any years a con fi rmed 1 d4 pla y e r w a s recogn i z e d as t h e
best i n the world. But the selection o f a n e w k i n g a l so
m a rk e d a n e w era in 1 d4 h i story. V a r i a t i o n s t h a t b eg i n
w i t h t h e a d v a n ce o f Wh i te's queen p a w n h a d become m u c h
m o re com ple x since t h e e ra o f M i k h ail Bot v i n n i k a n d
Tigran Pet rosia n .
Th is book is designed t o a r m t h e serious to urn a m e n t

pla y e r w i t h t h e theoretical a m m u n i t i o n o f u p - to-d ate 1 d 4
pla y. While s o m e openings h ave c h a nged very little i n the
last t w o dec ades, others h a ve c h a nged d r a m a t i call y. D u r i n g
the e a rly 1 980s one d e fense, the N i m zo-I n d i a n , see m e d so
power ful t h a t m a n y tou r n a m e n t veterans sh i fl e d from
t h e i r beloved 1 d4 to 1 c4 or 1 N f3, o r e v e n 1 e4. M ajor
d i scove ries were also foun d in the Queen's G a m b i t Ac
cepted, Modern Ben o n i , Ben ko G a m b i t and v a rious I n d i a n
D e fen ses. I t even became fash i o n able t o pla y s u c h r a re vis
i tors to I n te r n a t i o n al c he s s as the B u d a pest De fense. B y a l l
measu res, 1 d 4 w a s c h a n g i ng.
Our a i m is t o a v o i d h e a v ily theoretical lines a n d

conce n t rate i nstead o n s i m ple, yet e f fe c t i ve l i t tle k n o w n
alt e r n a ti ves, to g i v e you a 1 d 4 ope n i n g system w i t h Wh i te.
Wi th 1 d4 Wh i t e h as less c h a n ce o f e n t e r i n g s uc h
little k n o w n alt e r n a t i ves i n the fi rst s i x o r se v e n m o ves as
w i t h 1 e4. And Black ha s a b ro a d e r repe rtoi re of good
v a ri a tions t h a n agai nst 1 e4. T h i s sh ould not d i s cou rage
the d - p a w n pla y e r. In fact, this p a m phlet i s a good i n s t ru
m e n t for a e - p a w n pla y e r t o use i n le a r n i n g t h e Q u e e n s i d e
ope n i n gs.
6 Winning With 1 d4
CHAPTER ON E
QU EEN 'S GAM B I T
1 d4 d5
V i r t u a l l y every top p l a ye r is p repared to p l a y l. dS

..
as well as one of the I n d i a n Sy stems. Bobby Fischer, for

e x a m p le, p l a yed the Sem i - Tarrasch v a r i a ti on of t h e
Queen's Ga mb it Declined a l t h o ugh he w a s best k n o w n for
his K i n g's I n d i a n De fense.
Moreover 1 . d5 is at once a st rategic a n d sol i d
..
open ing response. I t stops Wh i te i m medi ately f rom open i n g

u p h i s game a n d c a p t u r i n g t h e cen ter w i th e4. A n d i t es
tablishes a b ridgehead for B l a c k in the center so t h a t he
may l a ter occupy e4 o r c4 w i th pieces.
2 c4
Black has a choice here bet w een t h ree solid re

sponses and several u n u s u a l ones.
Al 2... d c
A2 2 ...e6
A3 2 ... c6
A4 V a rious o f fbeat replies.
Chapter One: Winning Witb 1 d4
I n each line, we w i l l con s i d e r the most d i rect and

sim ple methods o f obta i n i n g the bette r pos i t i o n . Wh ite
shou l d not be a f rai d , for e x am ple, to e xch a n ge pawns on
dS, e v en if t h at eases B l ack's developm e n t b y ope n i ng l i n es
for his u n d e veloped m i n o r pieces.
D WlDDlDK Wltb I d4
A1
Q U EEN'S GAM B I T ACCEPTED
1 d4 dS
2 c4 de
T rad i t i o n a l l y the Queen's Gambit A ccepted h a s

been a sim p le method o f reso l v i n g the center tension an d
developing the m i n o r pieces. B l a c k u s u a l l y p l a y s ... a6 an d
... bS (a fter the recapt u re B x c4) follo wed b y •.• cS w i th ac
t i ve Queenside play to counter the n a t u r a l a d v a n ta ge i n
t h e center that Wh ite i s gran ted by B l a c k ' s second m o ve.
3 e4!?
Usually 3 N f3 , N f6 i s p layed and both p layers f i n d
it very di f f i c u l t to p l a y e4 e f fect i vely. F l o r i a n o f H u n g ary
and several ot h e r lesser- k no w n p l a yers a n d a n a l ysts
showed in the 1960s that Wh ite can develop a great edge i n
space by tem pora r i l y sacri f i c i n g a p a w n . I n recen t years i t
h as been a favorite o f Vasser Sei r a w a n , Ton y M i les an d
o t h e r GMs.
Chapter One: Winning With 1 d4 9
We n o w con s i d e r th ree v a r i ants:

A l l 3 ... e5
A1 2 3 ... c5
Al3 3 ...N f6
A1 1
( 1 d4, dS 2 c4, de 3 e4)
3 ... eS
T h i s is the m ost e n e rge t i c a n d popu l a r a n s w e r. Also

possible i s 3 e6?! t hough a fter 4 Bxc4, N f6 (or 4 e5 5 d5
••• ...
transposing i n to (C)) 5 eS, NdS 6 N f3, cS 7 0-0 f a v o rs

Wh i te's better development.
4 N f3
B l a c k h as no d i f fi c u lties in an e n d i n g (a ft e r 4 d e,
Q x d l ch) i n w h i c h h e h as the Queenside m aj o r i t y a n d e a s y
m o b i lization i n t h e m i d d legame.
Now play d i v i d es f u rt h e r i n to:

A l l a 4 ... Bb4ch!?
A l lb 4 ... ed
A l l c 4 ...N f6
We w i l l e x a m i n e t hese l i nes i n some d e t a i l .

IU Winning Wlt b 1 d�
Al l a
( I d4, d5 2 e4, de 3 e4, e5 4 N f3)
4 ••• B b4eb!?
T his is an i m po r t a n t fi nesse s i n ce Wh i te c an n ot con

tinue with 5 Nbd2, e3! u n less he i n tends a r i s k y g a m b i t. I n
stead o f 5 Ne3, we p re fer:
5 B d2 Bxd2eb
6 N bxd2 ed
7 Bxe4
No w we h a ve:
A l l a l 7 N f6
...
A l l a2 7 N h 6
...
A1 1 a1
(1 d4, d5 2 e4, de 3 e4, e5 4 N f3, Bb4eb, 5 B d2, Bxd2e b 6
N bxd2, e d 7 Bxe4)
7 ••. N f6
(See d i agram on fol l o w i n g p age)

Ch apter One: Winning With 1 d4 11
Bla ck pursues n o r m a l d e velopment. I f 7 ... c5, Wh i t e

p l a y s 8 Qa4cb, N c 6 9 N eS o r 8 ... N d7 9 eS!, N e7 10 e 6 . O n
8 B d 7 Wh i te, o f cou rse, p l a y s 9 Qb3 w i th double a t t a c k on
.••
f7 a n d b7.
8 eS Ng4
9 h3 N b6
10 0-0 0-0
N o better is 10 N f5 because Wh i t e re g a i n s his p a w n

..•
w i t h a f i n e game a ft e r 1 1 N b3, 0 - 0 1 2 N b x d4. O n 1 1.. N c6

.
i n t h i s l i n e (or in t h e o r d e r o f 10 ... Nc6 1 1 N b3, N f5) Wh ite

can t r y 12 BbS or s i m p l y 12 Qd3, 0-0 13 R fel, Qe7 14
R acl w h e n h i s cent ral p ressure is well w o r t h a p a w n . I n
G urevlcb- Diugy, U.S. C h a mpionship 1 984, Wh i t e got a m a
jor a d v a n t age a fter 1 4 Rd8? 15 e6!, B x e6 16 R x e6, fxe6 17
•••
Qx fS, Kb8 1 8 Qe4!.
1 1 N b3 N c6
12 N b x d4 N x d4
So fa r as i n the game Pacbman- Tringov, Havan a

1965, w h i c h conti nue d 13 Qx d4!, Q x d4 1 4 N x d4, N rs 1 5
N b S w i t h supe riori ty i n t h e e n d i ng. I n t h e g a m e, Whit e's
edge grew w i t h 15 ... B d 7 16 R a d 1 , B x bS 17 B x bS, R fd8 1 8
B d7!. No m ajor i m p rovements h a ve been found for B l ack
i n the 20-plus years since t h e n .
12 Winning Wit h 1 d4
A1 1 a2
( 1 d4, dS 2 c4, de 3 e4, eS 4 N rJ , Bb4ch S Bd2, B x dl c b 6
N b x d2 , ed 7 B x c4 )
7 ... N h6
This is a ood i dea w h i ch re a res to castle a n d

k eep the pawn w i t h . . cS. A lso posst le is the normal de
.
velop ing move 7 N c6. For e x a m p le, 8 0-0, N f6 (8 .. N ge7

.•• .
leads to the better en d i ng o r m i d d legame we' ve seen ear

lier w i t h 9 N b3, b u t S uetin su ggests t h a t Wh i te can get
mo re w i t h 9 Ng5, Ne5 10 Bb3, h6 1 1 f4!) 9 eS, Ng4 10 h3,
N h6 ( 1 0 ... Ngxe5 1 1 N xe5, N xe5 1 2 Re1 costs a pi e ce) 1 1
Nb3, N fS is considered e q u a l b y the a n a l ysts b u t Wh i te
gets an edge w i t h 1 2 BbS!, Bd7 13 Qc2 i n ten d i n g B xc6
doubling the B l a c k p a w n s and hea d i n g for a K n i g h t vs.
bad Bishop m i d d lega me.
8 N b3 cS
9 Rcl N d7
lORdS
We a re follo w i n g B agirov- Gurgendize, U .S.S.R.

Spartaklade 196S w h i c h con t i n ued 10 Qe7 11 Qc2, 0-0 1 2
.••
0 · 0 , N f6 w i t h com p lex c h a n ces f o r b o t h s i des. A m o re a m

bitious pl a n for Wh ite i s 8 b4 ( o r 8 0 - 0 a n d t h e n 9 b4). For
i nstance, 8 b4, aS 9 bS, cS 10 bxc e.p. N x c6 1 1 0·0 or
8 . Qe7 9 Rbl, N c6 10 B dS with good play i n either c ase.
..
Ch apter One: Win ning Wit h 1 d4 13
A1 1 b
( 1 d4, dS 2 c4, de 3 e4, eS 4 N f3)
4 ... ed
S Bu:4
Now we a n a l yze:
' A l l b l 5 . Bb4ch
. .
A l l b 2 5 . Nc6 ..
Note t h at the first line is sign i fi c a n t l y d i fferent

from the positions we sa w in 4 ... Bb4ch beca use Wh i t e h a s
a l read y ca pt u re d o n c4. This m e a n s t h a t h e n e e d n o t m e et
t h e check w i t h B dl, b ut can i n ter pose a K n ight on d2
(si n ce ... c3 is no longer a t h reat).
A1 1 b1
( 1 d4, dS l c4, de 3 e4, eS 4 N f3 , ed S B x c4)
s ... Bb4cb
6 N bdl Nc6
7 0-0
N o w B l a c k b as several a l ternati ves:

A l lb l l 7 . Be6
. .
A l lb12 7 ...Nb6
A l lb13 7 . N f6
..
A l lb14 7 B x d 2
...
A l l b1 5 7 Q f6
...
The last tw o l i nes h a ve been parti c u l a rly popu l a r i n

the l ast few yea rs.
A1 1 b1 1
( 1 d4, d5 l c4, de 3 e4, e5 4 N r3, ed 5 B xc4, Bb4ch 6 N bdl,
Nc6 7 0-0)
7 ..• Be6
8 B x e6 h e6
9 Qb3! Qd7
1 0 Nc4 0-0·0
Or 10 N r6 1 1 Nce5, N x e5 1l N x e5, Qe7 13 Bg5!

..•
w i t h a d v a n t age according to Tibor F lori a n .
1 1 Bg5 R r8
1l N res N x e5
C h apter One: Winning Wit h 1 d4 IS
13 Q x b4
So far Flori a n - S l i w a, Gyula 1965, w h i ch led to an

easy w i n a ft e r 13 ... Ng6 14 R ac1, c6 1 5 NeS!. As a result,
7 .. Be6 is now in f re q u e n t l y seen.
.
A1 1 b1 2
( 1 d4, d S 2 c4, d e 3 e4, e S 4 N f3, e d S Bxc4, B b4ch 6 N bd2,
Nc6 7 0-0)
7 ••• N h6?
8 Nb3 Bg4
9 B d5 Ne5?
R e l a t i v e l y bette r w as 9 ... Qd7 10 h3, B h 5 11 N b x d4

or 11 Bxc6, b xc6 12 Q x d4 w i t h o n l y a moderate e d ge.
10 Qx d4! N x f3ch
11 g x f3 B x f3
12 B x h6 Qd7
13 Qe5cb
And i n t h e game Korchooi-Mestrovich, Saraj evo

1969 B l a c k dec ide d to resign h e re. None too soon. Early
reve rsals s u ch as t h is he l pe d con v i n ce B l a c k t h a t normal
de veloping moves a re i n s u f fi c i e n t and he should try m ore
i n volved methods o f k e e p i n g h i s d4- p a w n or o f com p l e t ing
16 Winning Wit h I d 4
h i s d ev elopment. The n e x t section shows a n other f a i l e d d e

fense.
A1 1 b1 3
(I d4, d5 2 c4, de 3 e4, e5 4 N f3, e d 5 BKC4, Bb4ch 6 Nbd2,
Nc6 7 0-0)
7 ... N f6
T his seems to be B l ack's best choi ce. In the g ame

Kluger-Buljovlch, H ambura 1 965, B l a c k t r i ed 7 ... N ge7? b u t
a fter 8 N g5!, Ne5 9 Qb3!, f 6 10 B f7ch, K f8 1 1 f4, h6 12
fxe5, h x g5 13 e f, g f 1 4 R x f6! Wh ite h ad a d e a d l y attack. I t
i s i m portant to remember t h at w h e n B l a c k frees h i s game
w i t h . . e5, he weakens t h e d i agon a l a i m i n g at f7.
.
8 a3 Be7
9 b4
And White follows up w i t h Bb2 and Qb3 rega i n i n g

the p a w n e v e n t u a l l y w i t h a grea t m i d d legame.
Chapter One: Winning Wit h l d4 17
A1 1 b1 4
( 1 d4, d5 2 c4, d e 3 e4, e 5 4 N f3, e d 5 B xc4, B b4c h 6 Nbd2,
·
Nc6 7 0-0)
7 ... B x d2
T his move s u r faced in West G e rman y i n 1984 w i t h

some su ccess. T h e i d e a i s t o slow Wh ite u p i n re cap tu ring
his pawn on d4, e.g. 8 B xd2, N ge7 (b u t not 8 Be6 9 B x e6,
...
fxe6 beca use of Wh i te's pressure w i th 1 0 Qb3, Qd7 11

R ac l , 0-0-0 12 Ng5! o r 1 l... Nge7 12 N g5 , N d 8 13 Qg3 as i n
Miles- Ullrich, B undesliga 1984).
8 Qxd2
Wh i te can rega i n h i s p aw n with b4 a n d Bbl if n ee-

essary.
8 ... Bg4
A fter 8 ... 8e6 Wh ite should avoid 9 B x e6, fxe6 1 0 b4,

a6 1 1 a4, N f6 12 B a3, N x e4 w h i ch worked poo r l y in
Bely avsky - H uebsner, Tilburg 1984. Correct i s 9 Bb5! ac
cording to B e l y a v s k y .
9 Q f4
Better t h an 9 B x f7cb?, Kx f7 10 Qf4cb, N f6 1 1 eS

w h i c h fails a fter 1 1 ... B x f3 12 e x f6, Bd5.
9 .•. Be6
O r 9 ... N f6 10 eS! a n d 9 .•. 8 h 5 10 NeS! a cco rding to

H u ebner.
10 BbS! Nge7
11 b3
A n d White regains his p a w n with an e x ce l l e n t game.
A1 1 b1 5
( I d4, dS 2 c4, de 3 e4, eS 4 N f3, ed 5 Bxc4, Bb4ch 6 Nbdl,
Nc6 7 0-0)
7 ... Q f6
A lso possible is 7 ... Qe7 with e a r l y q u e e n side

castling. Now 8 B dS, Bd7 9 Nc4, N f6 10 BgS, h6 11 B h4, gS
led to com plications in Ftacnik-Speelman, Mosco w 1985.
Sim pler is 8 Nb3, Bg4 9 N b x d4 sin ce 9 ... N e5? allows 10
N x eS!, B x d 1 11 B x f7ch with a ferocious attack.
8 e5
The most e n e rget i c method. On 8 N b3, B g4 9 Nbx d4,

N x d4 10 Qx d4, B x f3 ( Belyavsky- C b e k b ov, U.S.S.R. 1984)
B l a c k is slight l y w o rse in t he en dgame.
8... Qg6
C h apter One: Winning With 1 d4 19
9 N h4 Qg4
10 N d f3 Be6
11 h3 Qe4
U B d3 Qd5
T h i s e n d s the h a rassment of B l a c k's Quee n , but n ot

h i s troubles. A fte r 13 Ng5! then 13 Qxe5 14 N h f3, Q f6?
•••
loses to 15 N x h7, R x h 7 16 Bg5 a nd 14 Qc5 a l l o w s 15 a3

•••
w i th a th reat of 16 b4. In Tlmmon- Tal, Match 1985 Whit e ,
obtained a w i n n i n g game a fte r 13 8e7 14 Be4, Qd7

•••
( 14 Q xe5 1 5 Re1, Qd6 1 6 N xe6, f xe 6 17 Q h 5 c h , etc.) 15

...
N x e6, Qxe6 16 Bx c6c:h, bxc6 1 7 Qx d4.
A late r i m p rovement w as fo u n d for B l a c k i n

1 3 N ge7! 14 f4, h 6 but Wh ite was s u p e r i o r i n Timo
•••
shchenko-Che khov, Novosibirsk 1986 a fte r 15 N x e6, he6

16 N g6!
A1 1 b2
( 1 d4, dS 2 c4, d e 3 e4, eS 4 N f3, ed 5 B x c4)
5 ... N c6
6 0-0
Wh ite n o w h as good p rospects because Qb3 and N gS

a re on tap.
20 WlaaiDK Wit h 1 d 4
B l a c k now b as:
A l lb 2 1 6 ... Be6
A l lb22 6 ... Bc5?
A1 1 b21
(1 d4, dS 2 c4, de 3 e4, eS 4 N f3, ed S Bxc4, Nc6 6 0-0)
6 •.. Be6
Sol v i n g t h e attack-on-17 problem, b u t cre a t i n g oth-

ers.
7 Bxe6 lxe6
8 Qb3 Qd7
9 Qxb7 Rb8
10 Qa6 N f6
1 1 N bd2 Be7
12 a3
From the g a m e Mltltelv- Giorsadze, Buch arest 1 9 6 1.

Th ere fol lowed 13 b4, 14 Bb2 a n d Rac1 a n d Wh ite enjoyed
t h e n ext dozen moves.
Ch apter One: Winning Wit h 1 d4 21
A1 1 b22
( 1 d4, dS 2 e4, de 3 e4, eS 4 N f3, ed 5 Bxe4, N e6 6 0-0)
6 ... BeS?
A n other possib i l i t y i s 6 ... Bd6 t hough a fter 7 Nbd2,

N f6 8 a3, Bg4 (or 8 a 5 9 h3 , 0-0 10 N b3) 9 b4 Wh ite re
...
gains t h e pawn with a fine f ut u re.
7 NgS NeS
8 Nxf7! Nxf7
9 Bxf7 eh Kx f7
10 QbSeb g6
11 QxeS Qe7
12 Qe2 Be6
13 f4
A n d Wh ite is be a u ti ful, Stein- Kvatkovski, U kraine

196 1.
A1 1 c
( 1 d4, dS 2 e4, de 3 e4, eS 4 N f3 )
4 ... N f6
(See d i agram on follow i n g page)

5 Bxc4 Nxe4!
Better t h a n 5 B b4cb a fter w h i ch the g ame Korch·

•.•
nol- Suetln, U S S R 1970, con t i n u e d 6 B d2, Bxd2ch 7 Nbxd2,

ed 8 e5!, N g4 9 b3, Nh6 10 Nb3 w i t h better c h a n ces for
Whi te.
6 Bxf7ch
A lso possible is 6 0·0, N d6 7 Bb3, e4 8 N e S , Be7 or

6 Qe2 , Bb4ch 7 Kfl!?
But best of a l l i s 6 NxeS! w h i ch m a y re f u te 4 ... N f6.

T h e i d e a is to sacr ifi ce p a w ns for attack: 6 ... Bb4ch 7 Nc3,
Nxc3? 8 Bxf7ch, K f8 9 bxc3, Bxc3ch 10 K f l , Bxd4 I I
B a3cb, c5 12 Bxc5cb or 10 ... Qxd4 I I B a3cb, c 5 12 Bxc5cb!
No better is 7 ... 0-0 8 0-0, Nxc3 9 bxc3, Bxc3 beca use of 10
Bxf7cb!, Rxf7 I I Qb3! B l a c k shou l d try 7 ... 0-0 8 0-0, N d6
to sa fegu ard f7, b u t t he n 9 Bb3, Nc6 10 N d5!, BaS I I Qb5
is an ob vious edge for Whi t e ( Portlscb- N i kolic, A msterdam
1984).
N ote t h at Wh i te c a n also reach t h i s variation w i t h S

Nxe5, Nxe4 6 Bxc4.
6... Kx f7
7 NxeScb Ke8
8 QbScb g6
9 N xg6 bxg6
Ch apter One: Winning Wltb I d4
Wit h w i l d com p l i cations. Because of t he major

strengthening o f White's play with 6 N x e5! the de fe n s i v e
sy stem begu n b y 4 N f6 i s cu r re n t l y u n d e r a cloud.
•.•
A1 2
(1 d4, d5 2 e4, de 3 e4)
3 ... e5
4 dS N f6
Less exact is 4 e6 5 B x e4, ed 6 B x dS, Qe7 7 Nc3,

•..
N f6 8 Nge2, Bd6?! 9 Be4, a6 1 0 f4, b5 1 1 e5 w i t h a large

e d ge as in Raskbovsky- A. Petrosian, U . S.S.R. 1 9 7 1 . Or
wo rse is 6 N f6?? 7 B x f7+!
•.•
5 N e3 e6
A n a w f u l idea is a w i n g cou n t erat tac k w i t h 5 b5 6

...
e5, b4 7 ex f6, b x e3 8 be, Nd7 9 Q a4!, g f 1 0 B f4! an d White

h a d to m a k e several bad moves to lose i n Zil be r st e i n ·
A n lkaev 1972.
6 B x e4 ed
7 B x d5
T h e re a re no outstanding e xam pl es o f t h i s pos i t i o n ,

b u t i t seems that White m aintains a s m a l l e d ge a f ter:
7 ... N x dS
24 Wlaalag Wlt b 1 d4
8 NxdS Bd6
9 N e2 N c6
10 0-0 0-0
11 N ec3
Followed b y 12 f4.
I t is better for White to h a v e a k night on dS t h a n a

Bishop (as a ft er 7 N xd5, N x d 5 8 B xd 5, B d 6).
A1 3
( 1 d4, dS 2 c4, de 3 e4)
3 ... N f6!?
This p rov oca t i v e move became fas hion a b le abou t

1 985. The other K night move (3 .. . N c6) rese mbles the Tch ig
orin's De fense b y c h a l l e n g i n g Wh ite to a d v a n ce i n the cen
t e r . Wh i te i s doing w e l l w i t h 4 dS, N eS S B f4! (Tu kmakov
Kupreicblk, U.S.S.R. 1982) and a void positions such as 4
N f3, Bg4! S Be3?!, bS! 6 dS, NeS 7 Bel, Nxf3 c b (Cebalo
Vorotnlkov, Leningrad 1 984).
4 eS N dS
S Bxc4 Nb6
B l a c k has al s o e x perimente d latel y w i th S ... N c6,

with the idea of 6 Nb6 attack i n g d4 and c4. Wh ite shou l d
•..
p re ss u re dS w i t h 6 N c3, N b6 7 B b S a n d n o w 7 B d7 8 N f3,
..•
e6 lea ves B l a c k w i t h cramped q u arte rs. F o r e x am p le, 9 0-0,

C h apter One: Winning With 1 d4
Ne7 10 Bd3 , B c6 1 1 Ng5 (11...Q x d4? 12 N x f7!), h6 12 Qh5

with a great game, Belyavsky- Portisch, Thessalo oik.i 1 984.
Another rece n t e xample w e n t 9 Qe2 , Nb4 10 a3, BxbS 11
Qxb5ch, N c6 12 Be3, Qd7 13 0-0, Ne7 14 R a c l , a6 15 Qe2,
Ned5 16 Ne4 and B lac k's use of d5 n e v e r co m pe n sated for
his o t h e r p roblems in Seiraw a n - B arlov, Z agreb 1987.
Black is p robabl y better o f f w i t h 6 ... Be6 ( i ns tead o f

6 ... N b6) b u t 7 Bb3, N a5 8 B a4ch, c 6 9 N ge2 leaves h i s de
velopment far beh i n d sch e d u le (Seira w an- H ort, Zurich
1984).
6 B b3
K eeping t h is d iagonal appe a rs m o re valuable t han

i n h i bi t i n g B lack ' s d e ve l o p m e nt w i th 6 B d3.
6... N c6
7 N f3
Acce p t i n g t h e challenge. Wh ite can also t r y 7 Ne2,

B f5 8 N bc3, e6 9 0-0 s i nc e 9...N b4 can be m e t b y 10 f4!
w i t h a th reat o f 1 1 Ns3 and 12 rs. For e xample 10 ... N d3 1 1
&4! o r 10 ...c 5 1 1 a 3 , N d3 1 2 g4!, N x c 1 13 gx f5, Nxb3 14
Qxb3, exf5 15 d5 as i n Smit-Brilla Bon falvi, Correspon
dence 1986.
7 •.. Bg4
The o n l y good p lan o f d e v e l op m e n t . B u t i t a l l o w s

Wh ite to force B l a c k i n t o acce p t i n g a dange rous gam b i t .
8 Bxf7ch! Kx f7
9 Ng5ch Ke8
10 Qxg4 Qxd4
11 Qe2!
Wh i te su rren d e rs a paw n to e x ploit h i s lead in de

velopment. The model game for this line is Yusupov-Por
tlscb, Tunis 1985 w h i ch w e n t l l ... Qxe5 12 Be3, N d5! 13
26 Winning Wlt b 1 d4
N f3, Q fS 14 0-0, e6 IS N c3 , Rd8 16 R fe l , Be7 1 7 NbS with

strong play. I f B l a c k plays .••Nxc3 e arl ier, Wh i t e uses the
h a l f-open b- file with R b l -bS. Wh i te m i g h t h a v e i m p roved
h i s p l a y w i t h 16 Rac l!, Nu3 1 7 Rxc3, Bd6 1 8 Rb3.
C h apter One: Winning With 1 d4 1.7
A2
T H E Q U EEN'S GAMB I T DEC L I N E D
1 d4 dS
2 c4 e6
There was a time w h e n t h e v ariation s begin ning

with t h ese t w o moves threatened to petrify chess theory. I n
the 1927 Wo rld Championship Match between A l e k h i n c
and Capablan ca, 32 o u t o f the 34 games w e re Quee n's
Gambit Declin ed's. Were it not for the K i n g's I n d i a n ,
N i m z o an d Benoni, the dominance o f t his o p e n i n g mig h t
have continued till today.
T he Ex change Variation is t h e sim p lest an d e asiest

way to ass u re a pleasan t midd legame. I n t h e resulli n g
pawn s t r u c t u re White can c hoose among se v e r a l p lans:
(1) The Qu e e nside minorit y attac k i n v o l ving b4- b5

in o rder to u n de rmine Black's s u pport of the d - pa w n .
(2) T h e Kingside attac k in volving 0-0-0 a n d g 4 or

h4.
(3) T he ce n t e r attack with 0-0 a n d Rae l 10 prep ara

tion for e4.
3 Nc:J
(See diagram on following page)
18 Wlaalag With 1 d4
3 ... N f6
B l a c k h a s several altern ati ves w h ic h we can d i spose

o f easi l y . 3 ... 15 leads to the Dutch De fense considered
later. 3 ... Bb4 should f al l i n t o t he N i mzo-I n d i an . 3 ... dc i s a
k i n d o f Queen's Gambit Accepted t h a t f avo rs Wh ite a fter,
say, 4 e4, N f6 5 Bxc4, B b4?! 6 e5, Ne4 (or d 5) 7 N gel. A n d
3 ... c 6 4 N f3 fol lo w e d b y cd m ust l e a d t o o n e o f the E x
ch a n ge positions considered i n the B o r C Sections.
Two d istinct situ ations that can a ri se are (1) 3 ... Be7
d e l a y i n g the arri v a l of t he B l a c k K n i g h t, and (2) 3... c5
plunging i m m e d i ately i n to T a r rasch's De fense:
(1) 3 ... Be7 4 cd, e d 5 B f4 (Wh ite i!f> d en i ed 5 Bg5)

5 ... c6 (on 5 ... N f6 6 N f3 Wh i te h as a fine i n i t i a t i v e a fte r
6 ... c5 7 de!, B x c5 S e3, 0-0 9 Be2, N c6 1 0 0-0, Be6 1 1 N b5!,
R eS 12 R c 1 , Qb6 13 Bc7! as i n T a i m a nov- N e zmeti nov,
U .S.S.R. 1 969, or a fter 6 ... c6 7 Qc2, Nb d 7 8 e3, 0-0 9 Bd3,
R eS 1 0 g4!, N fS 1 1 h3, Be6 1 2 0-0-0 as i n Petrosian- I llivit
sky, Moscow 1965. Wh i te may also play 1 0 0-0 a n d 11 R a b 1
i n t h e last l i ne).
Now 6 e3, B f5 (6 ... N f6 t r ansposes i n to the p a ragraph

above) 7 N ge2!?, N f6 8 Ng3, Bg6 9 h 4, h 5 1 0 Bd3, B x d 3 1 1
Q x d3, g6 1 2 0-0-0, Na6 1 3 K b 1, Qa5 14 Bg5 ( Portisch- Pie t·
zsch, Kecskemet 1966) gi ves Wh ite a good i n i t i a t i v e even
t hough B l a c k h a s solved t he p roblem of h i s QB.
Simil a r to this is 7 ... Bg6 8 N g3, h 5 9 B d 3 w h e n

White again achie ve s a fin a l mid d legame position---9 ... h 4
10 N f 5 , B x f 5 1 1 B x f 5 , Bd 6 1 2 B x d 6 , Q x d 6 1 3 Qb3!, b 6 14
e4 a n d 15 e5 as in H ort-Rukavina, Dedn 1977.
(2) 3... c5 4 c d , ed (4... cd, the H e n nig-Sc h a r a G a m bit,

is not conside red sou n d because o f 5 Q x d4, N c6 6 Qd 1 !, ed
7 Q xd5, Be6 8 Q x d8ch, R x d8 9 e3, N b 4 1 0 Bb 5c h, K e 7 11
K f l , N f6 12 N f3, N c 2 1 3 R b l , B f5 14 B d 2 as in S m y s l o v ·
Estrin, U.S.S.R. 195 1) 5 N f3, N c6 6 g3!
N o w the con t r o v e rsial move o f t h e 1 930's, 6 ... c4, h a s

been p u t to sleep b y 7 Bg2, Bb 4 8 0-0, Nge7 9 N e5! si nce
a ft e r 9 ... N xe5 1 0 d xe5 Black fin d s it b a rd to d e fen d his e x
tended p a w ns. On 9 ...0-0 White secu res a n ob vious e d ge
with 1 0 N x c6, b x c6 1 1 N a4, N f5 1 2 b3! e.g. 1 2 ... Re8 13 be,
Ba6 1 4 R b 1 , B f8 15 R e 1 ( Smyslov- B arcza, Buch arest 1 953).
Spass k y rein t rod u ced 6 ... N f6 7 Bg2, Be7 8 0-0, 0-0 as

a w e apon in his 1969 m at c h with Petrosia n . The l a test v e r
dict is that White's best line is 9 d e! in viting 9 ... d4 10 N a 4,
B f5 ( 1 0 ... Bg4 1 1 a3, Ne 4 12 b4, B f6 13 Bb 2 is j u st a win o f
a p a w n f o r White) 1 1 B f4, B e 4 ( 1 1 ...Ne4 or 1 1...Qd 7 i s not
d a n ge rous a fte r 12 b 4!) 12 R c 1 , Qd5 1 3 Qb3, Q h 5 14 Ng 5,
Bxg2 15 K xg2, Q x e 2 1 6 Q xb7. B l a c k is prob a b l y better o f f
in t h e e n dgame b y p l a ying 1 3 ... Q x b3 (instead o f 1 3 ... Q b 5).
Then 1 4 a x b3, R ad8 1 5 Ne1 is O K for White, as is 1 5
R fd 1, N d 5 1 6 N e 1 , N x f4 1 7 g x f4 a n d fol lowed b y 18 R c4,
b4 (Marj anovlc- Rogulj , Smederevska Palonka 1980).
More respected is 9 ...8 x c5 al though h e re again White

stands well with 10 N a4, Be7 1 1 Be3, Ne4 ( l l ... B g4 12 N d 4,
Qd7 1 3 N x c6, b x c6 1 4 R e 1 ! followed b y R c l d e nies Bl a c k
e n o ugh counterplay t o b al anc e t h e w e a k ness o f his Q u e e n
side p a w ns) 1 2 R c 1 , Be6 ( 1 2 . . .Bg4 1 3 N d 4 or 1 2. . .Qa5 13
N d 2, B f5 14 a3 are fine for White as is 1 2 ... R e8 1 3 N d 4,
B d 7 1 4 Nc3 as in G h eorghiu- Giigorich , Novi Sod 19 82) 1 3
N d4, N xd 4 1 4 B x d 4, Qd 7 1 5 N c 3 G heorg blv-Medina, Mal·
lorca 1972.
30 Wiooiog With 1 d4
4 cd ed
When Bob b y Fische r played the B l a c k s i d e o f t h e

Q.G .D., he u s e d t h e m o ve o r d e r l .. . N f6, 2 e6 a n d 3 d5 so
..• .•.
t h a t in the case of 4 cd, he could p l a y the m o re f l u i d

4 ... Nxd5. H owever, i n stead o f the h ig h l y a n a l y zed 5 N f3,
c5 6 e4, t h e re is the i m m e d i ate 5 e4, Nu3 6 bxc3 w h i c h
h as n e v e r been re futed. T h e i m portant p o i n t i s t h a t o n
6 c 5 Wh ite p l a y s 7 R b l , cd 8 cd stopp i n g a c h e c k on b4.
••.
The endgame a ft e r 8 Qa5ch 9 Qd2, Qxd2 ch (or

...
9 ... N c6 1 0 Q x a5, N xa5 1 1 Bd2 t r a nspos i n g) 10 Bxd2, N c6 1 1

N f3 fol lowed b y Bb5 an d Ke2 i s e x ce l l e n t for Wh ite.
Blac k's ch oice is then between 8 N c6 9 Bb5!, Be7 10 Ne2,
••.
0-0 1 1 0-0, Bd7 12 Bd2, a6 13 B d3 , b5 14 B c3!, b4 15 Bat

(Teschoer-Trifuoovich, B led 1956) o r 8 Be7 9 N f3 , 0-0 10 ...
B c4 followed b y an u lt i m ate d4-d5.
5 B K5
H e re we h a v e another decision b y B l a c k w h o m ust

c hoose between 5 N bd7, 5 Be7, an d 5 c6.
... •.• •••
A21 5 ... Nbd7

A22 5 ... Be7
A23 5 ...c6
The t ranspositional possi b i l i ties a re enormous in

th ese l i n es and i t p ays to f a m i l i a rize yourse l f w i t h the ba
sic plans for each d e feasi ve setu p .
C h apter One: Wioolog With 1 d4 31
A21
(1 d4, d5 l c4, e6 3 N c3 , N f6 4 cd, ed 5 B g5)
5 ... Nbd7
This posi tion is usually reached via 4 BgS, N bd7 5

cd, ed, but w h y give B lack a broad c hoice at m o v e 4.
6 e3 c6
Black's moves are som e w hat fle xible and he can

also p lay i n to o u r K e y l i n e w i t h 6 ... 8e7 7 Bd3, 0-0 8 Qc2,
c6. B u t 8 c5 has been k n o w n to be bad s i n ce Resh evs ky
.••
Capablanca, Margate 1935, t h e game t hat made Sam m y

recognized as a mat u re G ran d maste r. A ft e r 9 Nf3, c4 12
B f5, Re8 1 1 0-0, g6 (n ecessary p reparation because l l...N f8
12 B x c8, R x c8 1 3 B x f6!, B x f6 14 Q f5 hangs a pa wn) 12
Bb3, N f8 13 Bxc8, R x c8 14 B x f6!, B x f6 15 b3! an d Black
was alread y i n t rouble be cause o f h is weak Oueen s i de
pawns. The absence o f a paw n on c6 to su pport h i s center
cost Capa the game.
7 B d3
T h i s is ne cessary to p r e v e n t Blac k ' s fre e i n g th reat

of ••• Ne4. For e xample, 7 N f3 , Be7 8 B d3 , N e4! e q ualizes.
7 ... Be7
32 Wloolog Wlt b 1 d 4
B l a c k w o u l d l i k e to post h i s Bishop more aggres

s i v e l y on d6, but the KB i s m o re u se f ul in d e fense on e7.
Wh ite obtains an a d v a n t age against 7 Bd6 w i t h e i t h e r 8
•.•
N f3 o r 8 N ge2. An e x ample o f the l a t te r is Spielmann-Ca·

pablanca, Carlsbad 1929 w h i c h went 8 N ge2, N f8 (8 . 0-0 9 ..
Qc2, h6 10 Bh4, ReS 1 1 h 3, Qa5 1 2 0-0-0 followed b y ei

t h e r K b 1 a n d R c1 o r b y g2-g4 w i t h an easy ed ge) 9 Qcl,
h6 10 B h 4, Qe7 I I a3, Bd7 1 2 e4! Even bette r was I I 0-0-0.
8 Qcl 0·0
Little su ccess h a s been had with t he alte r n ati ves:
( 1) S ... N h 5 9 B x e 7, Q x e 7 10 0-0-0, N b6 1 1 N f3 ( 1 1
h 3!?), Bg4 1 2 R d g 1! a n d B l a c k h a s just lost time. T o stop 1 3
Ne5, h e m ust p l a y 1 3 ... B x f3 a n d a fter 1 4 g x f3, 0-0-0 1 5
N a4, N x a4 1 6 Q x a 4, K bS 1 7 K b 1 Wh i t e sta n d s well. O r
1 0 ...g 6 1 1 K b 1, N b6 1 2 h 3, N g 7 1 3 g4!, S alov- A nderssoo,
Szlrak 1987.
(2) S ... h 6 9 B h 4, 0-0 1 0 N f3, Re S 11 0-0, N e4 ( B l a c k ' s

a i m s i n c e m o v e S ) 1 2 B xe4!, B xg5 ( 1 2 ... d x e4 costs a p a w n)
1 3 Bh7ch, K hS 1 4 B d 3 followed b y R a b 1 a n d b4-b5. The
loss o f the two B is ho p s i s n a t u ral for Wh ite i n t h is s emi
c lose d position.
(3) S ... N fS 9 N f3, Ne6 1 0 Bh4, g6 (to cast le) 11 0-0,

0-0 (one of Black's i deas i n this v a ri a t i on i s 1 1 ...Ng7 a n d
1 2 ... B f5 to rid h i m se l f o f the bad B i shop. B u t 1 2 b4!, B x b 4
1 3 N xd 5, c x d 5 1 4 Qa4ch, o r 1 2 ... a6 1 3 R ab 1 , B f5 14 a4 p uts
Whi te's m i n o r i t y attack f a r a h e a d .) 1 2 Rab1, a5 1 3 a3, Ng7
1 4 b 4 and Wh ite i s again m a k i n g m o re o u t o f the Queen
side t h a n Bla ck of t he K i n gsi de.
(4) S... Nb6 9 N f3, Nh5 1 0 B xe7, Q x e 7 1 1 h 3!, N f4 12

B f l a n d i t i s B l ac k w h o h as lost time.
9 N rJ Re8
On 9 h6 Wh ite t ransposes i n to (2) above w i t h 10

...
Bh4, b ut he may have m o re with 10 h4! And on the slow

9 a6 we h a ve Bot v i n n i k' s e ne rge t i c 10 g4!
•••
10 0-0
The most sol i d choice among 10 0-0-0, 10 g4 an d 10

h3. Wh i te's m i n o r i t y a t t a c k i s like m on e y i n the ban k .
10 ... N f8
Agai n 10 h6 can be m e t b y 1 1 B h4, b u t t h ere is a

••.
better a l te r n at i v e i n 1 1 B f4! ( l l ... N h 5 ? 1 2 N x d 5 is an old

t rap.) And 1 0 Ne4? s i m p l y loses material to 11 B x e4. Fi
.•.
n a l l y 10 b6 is good for White a f t e r 1 1 N eS!, N x eS 12 d x eS,

.••
Na4 13 B x b7cb, Kb8 14 B f4, B f8 15 B fS and R a d l .
1 1 R ab 1
N o w t here are man y choice s for Black:
A2 1 1 l l ... Ne4
A212 1 1... N h 5
A213 l l ... Ng6
A214 l l...Bg4
A215 l l...Bd 6
A216 l l...g6
34 Winning With 1 d 4
A21 1
( 1 d4, d5 2 c4, e6 3 N c3 , N l6 4 cd, ed 5 BgS, Nbd7 6 e3, c6
7 B d3 , Be7 8 Qc2, 0·0 9 N 13, ReS 1 0 0-0, N 18 1 1 Rab 1)
11 ••. Ne4
T he most thematic response. B lack eases hi s gam e

w i t h e x chan ges.
12 Bxe7 Qxe7
13 b4 a6
Wi t h t h i s move, Black t ries to hold u p the Wh ite

Q u e ensi d e attack and to make s u re h e w i l l get an open file
for his OR a ft e r an e v e ntual b5/ ... axb5.
O n the alternat i ve p lan of 13 ... Ng6 ( w i t h o u t ...a6)

Wh ite gets a good game w he t he r he plays the i m m ed iate
an d consistent 14 bS o r i nse rts use fu l d ev elopi n g moves
fi rst, e.g. 14 R le 1 , Bg4 15 Bxe4!, dxe4 1 6 N d2 , f5 1 7 Nil--
sa feguard i n g hi s K ingside--- 17 N h 4 18 N e2, Rad8 19 b5!,
...
R d6 20 bxc6, bxc6 2 1 Qc5! (Plachetka- Pelts, Lucerne 1982).
14 a4 Ng6
B lack may vary w i t h 14 ... 8 15 15 Rie l , R ad8 16 b5,

b u t Wh ite is sti l l better.
1 5 b5 ab
C h apter Ooe: Wiooiog With 1 d4 35
1 6 ab Bg4
O r 1 6 ... Nxc3 17 Qxc3, Bg4 18 Bxg6, h x g6 19 NeS,

although again Wh it e is doing w e l l . Also good is 1 8 Nd2.
17 Bxe4! dxe4
18 N d2 B fS
1 9 be be
A nd now t h e game Averbach - Koostantinopolsky,

Moscow 1966 con t i n ue d 2 0 Ne2 to be followed b y N g3 w i t h
an i d e a l e x ample o f t h e m i no r i t y a t t a c k .
A21 2
( 1 d4, d S 2 c4, e 6 3 N c3, N f6 4 cd, e d 5 B gS , Nbd7 6 e3, c6
7 B d3 , Be7 8 Qc2, 0-0 9 N f3, ReS 10 0-0, N f8 1 1 Rab 1)
11 .•• NbS
S i m i l a r to l l Ne4 e x cept t h a t B l a c k o n l y w a n t s to
...
t rade one set o f minor pieces. T he K nig h t can a l so be use d

for K i ngside a t t a c k .
12 Bxe7 Qxe7
13 b4 gS
Othe rwi se B l a c k's pieces are m i splaced. S e e below.
1 4 bS g4
36 Wlaaiag Wit h 1 d 4
IS NeS f6
16 b e! fxeS
17 NKd5 Qg7
And now a fter 18 eb, Bxb7 1 9 Ne7 Wh i te is w i n

n i ng. T h i s i l l u strates an o v e r l y aggress i v e p o l i c y b y B l a c k
i n vo l v i n g K i ngside e x pa nsion. A si m i l a r v e rsion 13 ... Be6 1 4
R fcl, a 6 I S N a4, RedS 16 N c5, B el 1 7 a4, g S w h e n White
can p u rsue hi s Queenside i nitiative with b4-b5 o r act in
t h e center with 1 8 e4! T he Black K n ight looks good on bS
i n t h ese positions, b u t i t plays a small role t h e re. More p er
t i n e n t is Ng6 as we exami n e next.
•••
A21 3
( I d4, dS 2 e4, e6 3 N e3, N f6 4 cd, e d 5 BgS, N b d 7 6 e3, e6
7 B d3, Be7 8 Qe2, 0-0 9 N f3, ReB 10 0-0, N f8 1 1 Rab 1 )
11 •.• N g6
Not recommended is l l ... N g4 w h i c h o n l y m i splaces

a piece. A fter ll . NI4 12 Bu7, Qxe7 13 b4, a6 14 a4 fol
..
lowed b y bS ob tains a clear edge. The text antici pates NeS

a n d there fore p rep ares for Bg4. .••
12 BKf6 Bxf6
13 b4 Bg4
B y exc h anging a B i shop for a K n ight at m o v e

t w e l v e, White e l i m i n ated a k e y attack i n g piece o f B lack's.
The Bishop on f6 " b i tes on grani te" because of Whit e's

strong center poi n t at d4.
T h e re fore, Black could try to repos1 t1on t h e Bishop

(...Be7-d6) so that it aims at a so fter, more assailable t a rget.
But a ft er 13 ... 8e7 14 b5, 8 d6 1 5 bxc6, bxc6 White eli mi
nates a l l K i ngside d a n g e r w i t h 16 8 15!, e.g. 16 ... N h 4 1 7
N x b4, Q x b4 as i n Einborn-Machulsky, Y a l t a 1983. White's
cont rol of the b - f il e an d pressu re against c6 and o ther
Queen side ta rgets (N a4-c5) a re m u ch g re a t e r t h a n Blac k ' s
options.
1 4 N d2 ReS
15 8 f5!
A n d B l a c k ' s t w o rem a 1 n 1 n g K in gside pie ces will

h a v e li ttle to do. The 8 15 move is a com m on theme of
these posi tions. P l a y might con t in ue: 15 ... 8xf5 16 QxfS,
N h 4 1 7 Qg4, g6 1 8 N a4! an d N c5.
A21 4
( 1 d4, d5 2 c4, e6 3 N c3, N f6 4 cd, ed 5 8g5, N b d7 6 e3, c6
7 8 d3, 8e7 8 Qc2, 0·0 9 N f3, ReS 10 0·0, N f8 1 1 R a b l )
1 1. .. 8g4
T he other d e p l o ym e n t o f t he QB to e6 also gi ves

Wh ite an edge a fter 1 1 8e6 1 2 b4, a6 13 a4 (bette r then 13
..•
N a4) 13 ... Rc8 14 bS with the usual min orit y at t ac k .

1 2 N e5 B h5
13 b4 a6
I f Black e x ch anges pieces w i t h 13 ... N6d7 (i nstead o f

1 3 a6) 1 4 Bxe7, Qxe7 1 5 N:�d7, Q:�d7 h e c a n a t le ast repo
...
sition hi s re m a i n i n g Bishop on g6. B ut again the position

favo rs Wh ite's Queenside c h a n ces a fte r 1 6 b5, Bg6 17 bxc6,
bxc6 18 N a4, Bxd3 19 Qxd3, Qg4 20 Rb7---Tri fonov-Mil
lanich, Gronlngen 1 983- 4.
14 a4
And now B l a c k h as noth i n g better t h a n a trad e o f

m i n o r pieces w i t h 1 4 N g4 1 5 Bxe7, Qxe7 1 6 Nxg4, Bxg4
••.
17 b5, ab 18 ab w h i c h m us t leave Wh ite w i t h the bette r

p a w n st ruct u re. T he m o re pieces t ra d e d o f f, t h e less B l a c k
h a s to compe n sate for h i s bad c-p a w n .
A21 5
( 1 d4, d5 2 c4, e6 3 N c3, N 16 4 cd, ed 5 BgS, Nbd7 6 e3, c6
7 B d3, Be7 8 Qc2, 0-0 9 N f3, ReS 10 0-0, N f8 1 1 Rabl)
11 .•• Bd6
I�A�.;�..,wJ
� ... � --�:�
�·�
� .& ffffj
Wffi t�i·
� �- .&
�1
� - �� - � fjfj
� �
� �.&� - · � �
� � � �
�:?'2 if.'\:. 1\ �� /:'\ ;�
� �.-.:r�'t....l @'i'
ft�it� �ft�
'f:yj;{ � 'i.//.1
;;;:;;:} � �
�t=.� �t=.-
The attempt to rest rain Wh ite's b2-b4 w i t h 1 1 . a5 ..
d oesn't m a k e any sign i fi c a n t d i f fe re n ce. A fte r 1 2 a3, Ne4

13 Bxe7, Qxe7 1 4 Bxe4, dxe4 1 5 N d2 Black m ust sti l l sol ve
t h e p roblems o f meeti n g b4-b5.
l.:bapter Uoe: WIDDIDg WilD J 0'1
12 b4 N g6
13 b5 Bd7
14 be be
15 N a4
A n d B l a c k s t i l l h as p roblems to solve. A beue r ver

sion of t h i s strategy for Black m i g h t be 12 ... Bg4 (i nstead
of 12 .. Ng6) 13 Nd2, Bd7 and i f 14 B f5 t hen 14 ... Qe8 15
.
Bxd7, N 6xd7 16 b5, e5! w i t h cou n te r p l a y . Better for White

is 16 B b4, Ne6 17 B g3 as in G beorgb iu·Csom, Iodooesia
1982.
A216
( 1 d4, d5 2 e4, e6 3 N c3, N f6 4 ed, ed 5 Bg5, Nbd7 6 e3 , c6
7 Bd3, Be7 8 Qe2, 0·0 9 N f3, ReB 10 0·0, N f8 11 R a b 1 )
11 ••• g6
T his stops B f5 and allows N e6 (si n ce B x f6/ B x f6

..• ...
and B x h 7ch a re n o longer possib le).
12 b4 a6
13 a4 Ne6
14 B h 4 Ng7
O r 14 N h5 15 Bxe7, Qxe7 16 b5, ab 1 7 ab, Ng5 18

•••
NeS fa v ors Wh ite.

15 b5 ab
40 Winning Wit h � d4
16 ab B f5
1 7 be be
1 8 N e5
Wi th the bette r p rospects for Wh ite (Van den Berg

Kramer, A msterdam 1950). Wh i te also gets a good position
from 1 4 B : d6, B : d6 15 R fcl and 16 b5.
A22
( 1 d4, dS 2 e4, e6 3 N e3, N f6 4 ed, ed 5 Bg5)
5 ... Be7
6 e3 c6
Not 6 B f5 7 B : d6, Bxf6 8 Qb3. O f cou rse, 6 ... N b d 7

••.
wo u l d l e a d b a c k into A 2 1 . N o w 7 Q e 2 w o u l d also trans

pose. Let's see w h at h appens if Wh ite v a ries:
7 B d3 Ne4
In t h e game Kotov- Donner, A msterdam 1 967, B l a c k

d e l a y e d N e 4 for a m o v e , b u t a ft e r 7 0-0 8 N f3, Ne4 9
.•• .•.
Bxe4, BigS 10 B d3, Be7 1 1 Qc2, g6 1 2 0-0, N d 7 13 R abl,

a5 14 a3, B d6 15 b4, N f6 16 N a4 Wh ite h as the e dge.
8 Bn7 Qn7
9 Q cl B f5
l:bapter Une: Winning wnn 1 04 '11
O n 9 15 10 Nxd5! o r 9 ... N xc:3 10 bxc:3 with a c l e a r

•••
superio rity f o r White.
10 N f3 Nd7
1 1 0-0 0-0
O r l l ... Bg6 l l N dl , N d f6 13 R fe 1 , 0-0 14 f3 ( t h e

point o f R f e l ) 1 4. . .Nxdl 15 Qxdl, R fe8 16 Bxg6, hxg6 1 7
e4, de 1 8 fe, R ad8 1 9 R a d 1 (Euwe - St a b lberg, A msterd am
1954) with a n e dge for White.
ll b4 a6
13 R fe 1
A lso good i s 1 3 R a b l .
13... Bg6
14 a4 aS
15 b5 Nxc:3
16 Qxc:3 c:S
And now the game Korc:hnoi- Suetin, U . S.S.R. 1 9 67,

con t i n ued 17 Bxg6, hxg6 1 8 de:, Qxc:S 19 Qdl w i t h posi
tiona l a d v an tage for White.
A23
( 1 d4, d5 l c4, e6 3 Nc3, N f6 4 cd, ed 5 BgS)
5 ... c6
42 Winning With 1 d4
This least com m t t t 1 ng alte rnati ve leaves B l a c k ' s op

tions for oth e r d e v e lopments of the KB and ON. H o w e v e r,
to avoid t ransposition i n to t h e l i ne s m e n t i o ned Blac k
wou l d have to make rath e r ris k y mo ves.
6 e3
Clearly 6 Be7 e n ters A22 and 6 N b d 7 heads for

..• .••
A 2 1 . T he real alte rnati ves for Black n o w are:
A 2 3 1 6 . . Qb6
.
A232 6 . B f5
..
A231
( 1 d4, dS 2 c4, e6 3 N c3, N f6 4 cd, ed S BgS, c6 6 e3)
6 ••• Qb6?!
S harp, b u t u nsoun d .
7 B d6! Q x b2
Obviously 7 gx f6 8 Qc2 i s bad for B lack.

..•
8 Qcl B a3
No better is 8 Qul c b 9 Ru 1, gx f6 10 N xdS!, cxdS

.••
1 1 R x c8ch, Kd7 12 Rc2!.

9 NxdS! Qxd 1 c h
10 Rxcl gxf6!
Not 10 ... Bxcl 1 1 Bxg7! w i n n i n g a c l ear p a w n .
1 1 R c4! Kd8
Or 1 1 ... Be6 1 2 Nc7 c h, Kd7 ( 1 2 ... K e 7 13 R a4!) 13

Nu8, Bxc4 14 Bxc4 w i t h a d e fi n i te posi t i on a l a d v a n t age
for Wh i te.
1 2 R a4 Be6!?
13 N b6 Bb4ch
14 Kd1 aS
Now the game Kondratiev - Radash kovich, Leningrad

1969 con t i n ued 15 Nxa8, bS 16 Rxb4, axb4 17 Ne2 w i t h a
cle a r a d v a nt age for Whi te.
A232
( 1 d4, dS 2 c4, e6 3 N c3, N f6 4 cd, ed S BgS, c6 6 e3)
6 ... B fS
T he atte mpt to f i nesse w i t h 6 ... h6 is n o better. A f t er

7 B h4, B f5 8 Q f3, Qb6 9 Qxf5, Qxb2 10 Qc8ch, Ke7 11
Rb 1!, QxcJ c h 12 Kd1 i t is true that B l a c k h a s 12 ...g5 (due
to 6 ... h 6) but a fter 13 Bg3, N e4 (or 13 ... Bg7 14 Q c 7 c h , N bd 7
1 5 Bd6ch, Ke6 1 6 Bb4!) 1 4 N f3, Bg7 15 Rxb7ch, K f6 16

BeSch, Kg6 1 7 N b4cb, gxb4 1 8 Qe6cb!! Wh ite w i ns. I f
1 8 he6 1 9 Rxg7cb, K f5 lO g4cb, bxg3 e.p. 2 1 B b3 m a te.
•••
7 Q rJ!
Seizing t h e i n i t i ati ve.
7 ••• B g6
7 ... g6? 8 Bxf6, Qxf6 9 g4 o r 7 ... Qb6 8 Qxrs, Qxbl 9

Qc8c b , Ke7 10 R b l!, QxcJc b 1 1 K d 1 a n d B l a c k h a s no a n
s w e r to Rxb7cb o r Qxb7cb.
8 Bxf6 gxf6
On 8 ... Qxf6 9 Qxf6, gxf6 10 N rJ, N d7 1 1 N b4!

Wh ite w i l l be able to occupy f5.
9 Qd1 Qb6
10 Qdl N a6
1 1 N f3 0-0-0
1l aJ Nc7
13 b4
With a clear positional a d v an t age to Wh ite

(Petroslan- B arcza, Budapest 1 955).
A3
T H E S L A V D E FEN SE
1 d4 dS
2 c4 c6
H e re aga i n we suggest t he E x c h ange V a ri a t ion.

Wh i te recei ves a small b u t s u re a d v a n t a ge t hat may ex
plode i n t o easy v i ctory i n t he l ate m i d d legame or e n d i ng.
3 cd cd
4 Nc3 N f6
5 N f3 Nc6
T h e re is no i n sistence on t h i s order o f d e v elop m e n t

o f t h e K n igh ts, b u t i t i s a d v i sable t h a t both playe rs b r i n g
them ou t i m m e d iately.
On 5 g6, for e x am ple, Wh i t e c a n get good p l ay

•••
with 6 B gS, Bg7 7 Qb3 e.g. 7 ... e6 8 e4!, de 9 BbSch or

7 . Nc6 8 e3!, e6 9 B d3, 0-0. He al s o h a s the s i m ple 6 B r4,
..
Bg7 7 Qb3, 0-0 8 e3 to c ro w d the B l a c k Queenside.
No bette r for Black i s S B fS bec ause, as o ften h ap

...
pens, B l a ck's Queenside i n gen e r al and b7 in part i c u l a r i s

weakened.
6 B f4
46 Wloolog With 1 d4
H e re Black b as a big c ho i ce of moves:
A31 6 ... a6
A32 6 .. Qa5
.
A33 6 ...B f5
A34 6 ... e6
A31
( 1 d4, d5 l c4, c6 3 cd, cd 4 Nc3, N f6 5 N f3, Nc6 6 B f4)
6 ..• a6
The move w e suggeste d io "Complete D e fe n si ve Sys

tem for B l a c k".
7 e3 Bg4
For 7 ... B f5 see A33.
8 Bel B x f3
9 B x f3 e6
10 0-0 Bd6
1 1 B x d6 Q x d6
1 2 N a4! eS
13 de N uS
14 Bel
Wh i te ret a i n s a s m a l l e d ge beca use of his u se of d4

and attack on d5.
A32
( 1 d4, d5 2 c4, c6 3 cd, cd 4 N c3, N f6 5 N f3 , N c6 6 B f4)
6 ••• Qa5
Poo r is 6 Qb6? beca use o f 7 N a4, Qa5 c h 8 Bd2,

••.
Qd8 9 e3, e6 10 Bb5 a n d Wh i t e is clea r l y ahead (Eu we).

Also good is 10 B d3 a n d a rece n t game, Seirawan - T o rre,
Indonesia 1983, we nt 10 Ne4 1 1 0-0, f5 12 R b 1 , Bd6 13 b4,
••.
a6 1 4 N c5, 0-0 15 a4 w i th a cle a r i n i t i at i ve on the Q u e e n

side.
More prom t s t n g for B l a c k , i f he w a n t s to a void

m a i n l i n es, is Botv i n n i k ' s 6 N h5 7 Bd2, g6. H o w e v e r 8 e4!,
•..
w i t h t he idea o f 8 d x e4 9 N x e4, N x d4? 10 B c3 ! is s trong.

••.
Also 6 g6 transposes i nt o the 5 g6 note consi d e red e a r lier.

••• •••
7 e3 Ne4
Again, for 7 •.• B f5 see 6 ... B f5 7 e3, Qa5--A33.
8 Qb3 e6
9 B d3 Bb4
10 Ret!
So fa r Botvinnik- Denker, U S A - U S S R Radio Match

1945; Wh ite is favored n o w a n d e v e n m ore a f ter 10 ... N x c3?!
1 1 bxc3, B a3 12 R b l , b6 13 e4!, de 14 Bb5! as p l a y e d .
A33
( 1 d4, dS l c4, c6 3 cd, cd 4 Nc3 , N f6 5 N f3, Nc6 6 B f4)
6 ••• B fS
S y m me t r y is a d ange rous poli c y -- som e t i m es. B l a c k

concedes a s l i g h t i n feriority w i t h 6 ...e6 (see A34) s o 6 ... B f5
must be e x am i n e d f i rst.
There is also the i ngenious 6 B g4!? to be consid

..•
e re d . Th i s idea caQte i n to fash ion i n the m i d - 1980s a fter i t

wa s d i scovered t h a t 7 NeS, Q b 6 8 N xg4, N x g4 9 N x d5?!
gave B l a c k a ferocious i n i t i a t i v e a ft e r 9 Qa5cb 10 Nc3,
•••
eS!
The w a y for Wh ite to c h a l le n ge t h i s i s to a v o i d 9

N x dS i n favor o f 9 e4!. One point is t h a t 9 N x d4 10 Q x g4,
••.
Nclcb 11 Kd 1, N x a 1 U B b5cb i s t e r rible for B la c k . A n

other n e a t poi n t is reveale d b y 9 Qxb2 10 Bd2, N x d4 1 1
•.•
Qa4cb!, Kd8 U Rb1! w h e n B l a c k i s again i n trouble.
The cruci a l line run s 9 e4, eS 10 Bb5 a n d now

10... N f6 11 B uS, N x e4 U Qa4! f avors Wh ite s l i g h t l y
(Szekely· Van de Oudeweeterlng, Gronlngen 1 986) an d
10 Bb4 11 B xdcb, Qxc6 1 l 0·0, B xc3 13 Q x g4! favo rs
••.
Wh ite e v e n more ( Guselnov- Side l f· Za de, B aku 1 9 86).
7 e3 e6
C hapter One: Winning With 1 d4 49
7 Qb6!? is a t r i c k y i de a, b ut accord i n g to H a ns
•••
M u l l e r, Wh it e prospe rs w i t h 8 a3!, Qxb2 9 N a4, Qc2 1 0

Q:u2, B xc2 11 NcS. More challenging i s 7 .. a6 to stop 8 BbS
.
and to meet 8 Qb3 w i t h 8 ... N aS. Wi th 8 B d3, Bxd3 9 Qxd3,

e6 10 0-0, Be7 1 1 R rct Wh ite w i l l con t i n u e N a4-cS w i th a
small s upe riority. O n 7 ... QaS 8 Qb3! B l ac k h a s problems on
b7.
8 N eS!
T h i s move gi ves Wh i te e x ce l l e nt c h a n ces a n d tm

proves o v e r 8 Qb3 o r 8 BbS. No m aj o r e x amples of t h i s
l i n e h a v e been tri e d .
8 ... N d7
Other t ries don't g i v e f ul l e q u a l i t y e i t h e r: 8 . N x e5 9

..
BuS, a6 10 Bd6, gd6 ( 1 0 ... Qx f6 1 1 Oa4ch) 1 1 B d3, or

9 . . Be7 10 B bSch.
.
Better for B l ac k i s 9 Nd7 10 Bg3, a6 a ft e r w h i ch

•..
Wh i t e keeps a slight lead w i t h 1 1 B d3 , Bxd3 12 Qx d3---

12 ... B e7 13 0-0, 0-0 1 4 R rct, ReS 1S Q d 1 as i n Spraggett
Yusupov, Montpelller 198S.
A fter 8 ... Qb6 9 BbS, a6 (or 9 . R c8 10 0-0, Be7 11

..
Qa4, 0-0 1 2 R fc 1) 10 B x c6cb, bxc6 1 1 Qa4 Wh ite s t a n d s

well.
9 Nxc6 bxc6
10 B a6
To stop 10 ... Rc8 a n d t h reat e n i n g 1 1 Bb7.
Also to be con s i d e red a re 1 0 Be2 and 1 0 R c l , e.g. 10

Be2, Be7 1 1 0-0, 0-0 12 Rcl, cS 13 N bS!, a6 14 N d6, B g6 15
dxc5, N xcS 16 Rxc5, Bxd6 1 7 Bxd6, Qxd6 18 Qd4!, R fd8 19
B rJ w i th press u re (Scbussler- Ree fsc b lager, B u n deliga 1983·
4) a n d 1 9 R d 1 , aS 2 0 Qc3, Rdb8 2 1 h3 (G aprindashvili-
Mokry , Reggio-Emilia 1 982-3). Even w h e n B l a c k c a n l i q u i

d ate h i s w e a k c-pawn w i t h ..cS, h e h a s t o worry about h i s
.
w e a k d-p a wn.
10... Qb6
1 1 Qe2 c5
12 0-0!
Wh i te has e x ce l l e n t play, for e x ample, 12 . cd 13 ed,

..
Qxd4 1 4 B g3 t h reate n i n g R a d 1 , N bS and Bb7, o r 1 2 ...c4 13

B bS.
A34
( 1 d4, dS 2 c4, c6 3 cd, cd 4 Nc3, N f6 5 N f3, Nc6 6 B f4)
6 ••• e6
7 e3 Be7
T his p rese rves Black's c h a n ces without s i m pl i f y i n g

i n to a posi tion (a fter 7 .. B d 6 , f o r e x a m ple) i n w h i c h he h as
.
to o v e rcome t he b ad QB p roblem.
T h e re is n ot h i n g attract i v e tn 7 Qb6 8 a3 ..•
(8 Q x b2?? 9 N a4). And 7 ... N h5 i s best m et b y 8 BeS!, e.g.

...
8 Be7 9 B d3, N uS 10 Nxe5, N f6 11 f4 fol lowed b y g4-g5.

•..
On 9 0-0 Wh ite might try 10 h4!? t hi n k i n g of N gS o r

•••
B:�h7ch.
C h apter One: Winning With 1 d4 Sl
S i mpli fication w i t h 7 ... B d6 8 Bxd6, Qxd6 9 Bd3, 0-0

10 0 - 0, e5 i s suggested i n s o m e m a n u a ls, b u t Wh i te ha s a
slight edge w i t h l l NbS, Qe7 12 de, Nxe5 13 Be2 using the
ou tpost at d4 a n d t he pressu re on d5.
That lejives 7 •••N h5 to be consi dered. B l a c k s tands

well a ft e r 8 Bg5, Qb6 b u t 8 Be5! m a ke s m ore s ense: 8 ... Be7
9 B d3 , 0-0 10 g4!, N f6 ll Rg1, B d 7 12 h4, Qb6 13 Qe2 w i t h
se rious attac k i n g c h a n ces ( S ilberstein- Polugayevsky,
Moscow 1974).
8 Bd3 0-0
9 h3
B y p rese r v i n g the QB , Wh i te assu res a s m a l l a d v a n

tage from h is better m ob i l i t y .
9 ... Bd7
Aga i n 9 ... Q b 6 is met b y 10 a3!. A g a m e l v kov-Mike

nas, Rijeka 1963, w e nt to Wh i te's pleasu re w i t h 10 ... Bd7 11
N a4, Qd8 12 Nc5!, BxcS 13 dxc5, Re8 14 Ne5. A n d 1 1 0-0,
R fc8 12 N a4, Qd8 13 b4, aS 1 4 bS, N a7 1 5 N eS is also
good - - - Lange weg- Donner, Beverw ij k 1 975.
10 0-0 a6
Again 10 ... Qb6 falls short o f e q u a l i t y . For e x a m p l e ,

1 1 a 3 , R fc8 (Wh i te w a n ts t o t r anspose i n to t h e l i n e begi n ·
n i ng 9 . ..Qb6 1 0 a3, B d 7) 1 2 N a4, Qd8 1 3 R e i a n d Wh i te has
t h e n a t u ral a d v a n t age i n space t h a t began with 6 ... e6.
Bl a c k m ust try to contest the i mprov e m e n t of Wh i t e's g a m e
w h i c h wou l d con t i n ue w i t h b 4 , Qb3 a n d t h e d o u b l i n g o f
R oo k s o n the o n l y open fi le.
ll Rei Be8
12 B b 1 NbS
13 B h2
As in the game Botvinnik- Smyslov, U S S R Champi

onship 1952. There followed 13 ... 15 1 4 N a4 (with t h e idea
o f N c5) 14 B d6 1 5 Nc5, Bxhlch 16 Nxhl, Qe7 1 7 Qb3,
•••
R l7 1 8 g4! w i t h a strong attac k i n g pos i t ion for Wh i te.

Chapter One: Winning Wit h I d4 53
A4
OTHER DECLINED VARIATIONS
O F T H E Q U EEN 'S GAMB I T
I d4 dS
2 c4
a a.t.itOA � a�
';6;;
...
�·; & j>&-
6:'
,' t'16
� ... • ...
& ;& ....
Wh a t e l se can B l a c k do? We l l , among his optio ns

a re:
A 4 1 2...c5 T h e Sy m m e t r i c a l D e fe nse
A42 2 ... N c6 T he Tchigorin De fe nse
A43 2 ... N f6 M a rshall's De fense
T he A l b in Cou n te rgambit, 2 ... e5, w i l l be consi d e red

i n C h apte r Seven.
A41
T H E SYMMET R I CA L D E F E N S E
I d4 dS
2 c4 c5
' ��>//
( ' ;�-
This speci al t y bas been tried b y the Belg i a n

G r a n d m aster O' K e l l y w i t h l i m ited success. I f Wh i t e h e a d s
f o r a n e a r l y en dgame w i th 3 e d , N f6 4 d e , Qxd5 5 Qxd5,
Nxd5 or 3 N f3, N f6 4 ed, ed 5 Nxd4, Nxd5 6 e4, N f6 7 N e3,
e5 8 N db5, a6 9 Qxd8eb, Kxd8 B l a c k m a y obt a i n e q u a l i z
i n g counterplay.
3 ed N f6
N a t u r a l l y Wh i t e h a s a n e x ce l l ent g a m e a fter
3 ...Qxd5 4 N f3, cd 5 Nc3, Qd8 6 Qxd4!, o r 5 Qa5 6 Nxd4, ..•
N f6 7 N b3, Qe7 8 g3!
4 e4!
This is the move w h i c h appare n t l y re f utes the

S y mmetrical De fense.
4 ••• Nxe4
5 de
Wh ite t h reatens 6 Qa4eh w i n n i n g a pi ece. The p a w n

at d5 ret a rds B l a c k ' s d e velopment f o r the n e x t several
m o v es.
5 .•• NxcS
N ot 5 ... Qa5eh 6 B d2!, Nxd2 7 Nxd2, e6 (7 . Q x c5?? 8 ..
R c l) 8 a3! holdi ng a h uge edge.
6 N f3!
Better t ha n 6 N e3, e5! w h i c h solves B l a c k ' s m aj o r

p roblems.
6... e6
7 N e3 ed
Bla ck i s not so bad a ft e r 7 .•. Be7 8 Be3, Qa5 9 N d2!

a l though his p roblems are m a n y .
C h apter One: Winning With I d4
8 QxdS! Nc6
Worse is 8 Qe7ch 9 Be3, Nc6 10 BbS, B d 7 11 0-0,

••.
Ne6 12 N eS!, NxeS 13 QxeS, BxbS 14 NxbS, a6 1 5 R ad l!,

Portlsc h - B ronsteln, Monte Carlo 1 969, Wh i te won q u i c k ly.
9 Qxd8ch Nxd8
1 0 NdS N de6
11 Be3 Bd7
12 N eS Ba4
13 Nc3
Wh ite h as a big a d v a n tage in the e n d i n g, ( Dooner

O'Kelly, H avana 1 965).
A42
T H E T C H I G O R I N DEFENSE
1 d4 dS
2 c4 Nc6
Tch igorin's D e fense is t r i c k y , a n t i t h e o r e t i c a l a n d

pote n t i a l l y d ange rous. Wi t h a m b i t i ous play, Wh ite may d e ·
v e lop good c h a n ces.
3 N f3 Bg4
56 Winning Wit h I d4
B l a c k doesn't h a v e m u ch choice:
( 1) 3 ... dc? 4 d5 is pain f u l

(2) 3 ...e 6 4 N c3, N f6 5 B g 5 w i t h a good game no w
that Blac k's QB is s h u t i n.
(3) 3...B f5 4 cd, Q x d 5 (4 ... N b4?? 5 Q a 4c h) 5 N c3
(4) 3 ... e5 4 N xe5!, N xe5 5 d xe5, d 4 6 e4! w i t h a supe-
rior v e rsion of the A l b i n Coun te rgam b i t.
4 cd B x f3
H or rib le w aste o f t i m e is 4 ... Qx d5? 5 N c3, Qa5 6

d5!, 0-0-0? 7 B dl , B x f3 8 e x f3, N b4 9 a3!, N x d5 (or 9 . . N a6
.
1 0 Nb5, Qb6 1 1 Be3) 1 0 N a 4 Resigns! (Tolusb- Aronson,

U S S R C hampionship, 1 957).
5 gx f3! Qxd5
6 e3
Now B l a c k h as two c h oi ces:
A42 1 6 ... e5
A422 6 ...e6
A421
( 1 d4, d5 l c4, N c6 3 N f3, Bg4 4 cd, B x f3 5 gx f3!, Q x d5 6
e3)
6 ... e5
C h apter O ne: Winning With 1 d4 57
7 N c3 Bb4
C l e a r l y B l a c k can not a f ford an y Queen move be

cause of d5 a n d Qb3 o r BbSch.
8 B d2 B x c3
9 b x c3 ed
To stop 10 c4 a n d 11 dS. The latest attempt to re

vive Black's c h a n ces h as been fou n d i n 9 Qd6 a n d then 1 0
.••
Rb 1, b 6 w i t h preparations for Queenside cast li ng. B u t 1 1

14! points u p the p roblem for B l a c k w h e n he fails to e x
change in t h e ce nter o n d4: Wh i t e s t i l l h as mo re ce n t e r
pawns a nd t h e y cou n t i n h i s favor a fter 1 1 ex f4 12 e4!,
. . .
Nge7 13 Q f3, 0-0 1 4 B x f4 (Lukacs- Plnal, H avana 1986)
10 cxd4 N f6
T his is consi dered m o re e x act t h a n 10 N g e7 be •..
cause of B l a c k ' s rapid use of t h e e - file. In e i t h e r e v e n t , we

reco m m e n d 11 Bg2! fol lowed b y 0-0 and f4. Wh i t e's
c h a n ces appear p re ferable.
A422
( 1 d4, d5 2 c4, N c6 3 N f3, Bg4 4 cd, B x f3 S gx f3!, Q x dS 6
e3)
6 ..• e6
B l a c k t ries to k eep the position close d .
7 N c3 Qd7
Tchigori n h i m se l f o ften played 7 . . Bb4 in the l ast

.
cen t u ry, but a fte r 8 B dl , Bxc3 9 bxc3, Nge7 Wh ite shou ld

play for a d v an tage w i th t h e simple 10 B gl followed b y 0·0
and f4.
I n the game Berezin·Z huravlev, U S S R 1 958, B l a c k

t ried 7 . . .Qh5. T h e re followed 8 f4, Qh4 9 B g l , N ge7 10
Bdl, 0·0·0. Wh i te's K i ng belongs on the Queenside a n d h e
shou l d consolidate w i t h 0·0·0, t h e n Kb 1 a n d R c l .
Better is t he e n d g a m e o f fered b y 8 ... Qxd 1ch 9

Kxd 1 , 0·0·0 although Wh ite h a s good Queenside prospects
a fte r 10 Bdl, N r6 11 Bgl or 11 BbS, Ne7 12 Kel, N rs 13
Racl (Karpov-MIIes, Bugojno 1986).
8 Bgl Bb4
9 0·0 Nge7
10 f4 R d8
1 1 a3 Bxc3
12 bxc3 N aS
So far as i n t he game Talmanov- Spassky, U S S R

C h ampionship 1960. N o w Pano v suggests 13 Qc2! followed
b y B d2 with a n e x ce l l e n t game.
A43
MA R S H A LL'S DEFENSE
1 d4 dS
2 c4 N f6
(See d i agram on fol lowi ng page)

C hapter Oae: Wlaalag With 1 d4 59
t
��. ft ;..ft,
This wa s M a rshall's con t ri b u t i o n to hype r - m o d e r n

theory a n d i t enjoyed a s m a l l re v i v a l i n t he 1 9 50's.
3 cd N x dS
O f cou rse, 3 ••. Qxd5 4 Nc3 a n d 5 N f3 g i v e s Wh i te a

developm e n t j u mp.
4 N f3!
M a rs h a l l used to score poi n ts with t ri es l i k e 4 e4?! ,

N f6 S B d3, eS! 6 de, N g4 7 N f3, Nc6 8 B f4??, N b4 or 5 N c3 ,
eS! 6 d e , Qx d lch. S a fe t y fi rst!
4 ... B fS
For 4 ... g6 S e4, Nb6 we h a ve a N e o-G r u e n f e l d . On 6

g3, Bg7 7 Bg2, Bg4 Wh i te m i g ht get i n to t ro u b le. B e t t e r i s
6 h3, Bg7 7 Nc3, Nc6 8 Be3 w i th a good fu t u re i n t h e
m i d d legame. A s i m i l a r posi tion i n t he C e n t e r C o u n ter
Game ( 1 e4, d5 2 e d , N f6), i n which Wh i t e h as a pawn on
c4 i n stead of e4, favors Wh i te.
S Qb3! Nc6
6 N bd2
This fin esse--s upe rior to 6 Nc3, e6 7 e4, N x c3 - - c o n

fers a f i n e g a m e on Wh ite. B l a c k m us t respon d to t h e
t h re atened fork o n e 4 . N o w 6 N f6 7 Q x b 7 i s j u st a pa w n
.•.
loss f o r B l a c k . How e v e r , t he alternati ve, 6 ... N b 6 7 e4 , Bg6

8 d5, Nb8 9 a4, aS 10 N e5, N b8d7 11 Bb5 ( T a k a cs- H avasi,

B udapest 1916) i s e x ce l l e nt for Wh i te. N oth i n g h as oc
cu r re d in the past h a l f cen t u r y to upset t h a l j u d g m e n t.
Ch apter Two: T h e Kiog's lodiao De feose 61
C HAPTER TWO
T H E KI NG'S I N D IAN D EFENSE
The fi rst o f the I n d i an syste m s we w i l l consi d e r i s

t h e most popul ar. Wh e n t h e Soviet pl a y e rs b u rst on t h e
world chess scene a ft e r WWI I a n d esta b l i s h e d hegemony
over I n te r n ational competition, t h e K i n g's I n d i a n w as,
perh aps, t h e i r m a i n v e h i cle. The K i ng's a n d o th e r I n d i a n
ope n i n gs t u rned t h e typical p l a y e r from 1 d4 to 1 e 4 . N o w
i n t h e l a te 1 980's w e m a y be see i n g another s h i ft b a c k to 1
d4.
O u r m a i n i n te rest i n t h i s c hapter is t h e K i ng's I n

d i a n p rope r (81) b u t w e w i l l also e x am i ne t h e o l d e r T c h i g
ori n I n d i a n (82) a n d t he younge r A ve rb a k h I n d i a n (83).
Wh at t h e y h a ve i n common i s t he tempo ra ry ced i ng o f t h e
cente r to Whi te. G a r y K aspa rov is c h i e f amo ng t hose GMs
who believe Bla ck's coun lc rpl ay i s adequ ate w h e reas A n a
toly K a rpov is a pre m i e r believer i n b road c e n t e rs.
81
T H E K I N G'S I N D I A N D E F E N S E
( 1 d 4 , N f6 2 c4, g 6 3 Nc3, Bg7)
62 Wiooiog Wit h 1 d4
For 3 ... d5 see Section C, the Gruen feld I n d i a n De-

fense. A n d 3 ... d6 is not a sepa rate open i ng. It s h o u l d t ra n s-
pose i n to t he l i n e we w i l l e xa m ine.
4 e4 d6
This k eeps B l a c k' s options more ope n t h a n 4 0 -0. I n

..•
some cases, B l a c k d oes not w a n t t o castle u n t i l t h e central

q uestions a re a n s w e re d . But for o u r pu rposes, h o w e v e r, this
m a kes li ttle d i f fe r e n ce--4 0-0 5 Be2, eS 6 dS, d6 7 r4 re
.•.
e n t e r s the t ex t.
5 r4
The Fou r P a w n ' s A t t ac k w as the fi rst at te mpt to

re fute t h e K i ng's I n d i a n a n d came to a b r i e f popu l a r i t y i n
the 1920's. Recently, a series o f n e w t a c t i c a l i d eas a n a
l y zed a n d catego rized b y t he German e xpe rt G. G u n de ra m
h a ve b rought t his l i n e n e w l i fe. I t is s h a rp, not e x te n s i v e l y
a n a l y zed, a n d appare n t l y sou n d .
5 •.. 0-0
A lso on 5 ... c5 6 d5, 0-0 we have the m a i n l i ne a ft e r

7 Be2. H o w e v e r, 7 Bd3!? m a y e v e n be better. U s u a l l y Bd3
i s a b a d idea i n t h e K i n g's I n d i an because .. e5 s h u ts i t out
.
o f t h e c h a n ce for e5. A fte r Black b as chosen the c5 plan, .•.
be i s not prepared to also play e5. ...
For e x a mple, 7 ... a6 8 N rJ, b5 - - a d elayed form o f

-
t h e B e n k o G a m bi t---can b e e f fe c t i v e l y m e t by 9 eS!:
9 ... dxe5 10 fxe5, Ng4 1 1 Qe2, N d7 12 B r4, Qc7 13 0-0 a n d
a s i n o u r m a i n l i n e below, the sacri ficed o f White's e-pa w n
i s ve ry da ngerous. ( 1 3 ... Ng x e 5 1 4 K b l , B b 7 1 5 R a e 1 , f6 1 6
c x b 5 , a x b 5 1 7 B x b5, Qb6 1 8 B x d 7, N x d 7 19 Qxe7--- Yrjola·
Sigurjoossoo, Reykjavik 1986). A lso good is t h e im m e d i a te
1 4 Rae l (i nstead o f 1 4 K h 1) N x r3+ 15 R x r3 e.g. 1 S ... Qb6,
1 6 Q x e7, b x c4 17 B x c4, Q x b2 1 8 R b l , Qc2 1 9 Bb3, Q rS 20
B d6, Qg4 21 N e4 with a w i n n i n g attack as i n Korchooi·
G heorghlu, Vieooa 1986.
Ch apter T wo: The King's I ndian De fense 63
6 N f3
Another ord e r o f moves i s S Be2, 0-0 6 f 4 b u t t h e re

is l i t t le i n depen d e n t v i rtue i n i t . We p re fe r S f4 a n d 6 N f3
because t h e re m a y be a c h a n ce to de velop t h e K B on a n
other squa re, w hereas t h e K N i s cle a r l y best de v e l oped a t
rJ.
Now we a n a l y ze:
B l l 6 ... c5!
B 1 2 6 ... e5?!
Othe r st rategies a re to q u i et and leave Wh i t e's m a �

si ve a d v a n tage in pawn con t rol to be sign i fi c a n t . O n t h e
fl a n k i n g idea o f 6 ... a 6 7 Be2, c 6 8 0-0, bS---w h i c h o fl c n
works w e l l agai nst o t h e r Wh ite piece a n d pa w n se t u p s- -
t h e re i s st rong play s i m i l a r to o u r m a i n l i n e below: 9 eS!,
Ng4 1 0 h3, N h6 11 B e3 , N d7 1 2 cS (N oguelras - Romanishin,
Renlo Emilia 1 985-6 w h i ch w e n t 1 2 .. . b4 13 N a 4, d 5 1 4
Qd2, Qa5 1 5 b3, K h8 1 6 a3 a n d Wh ite w as better on bot h
w i n gs o f the board).
81 1
( 1 d4, N f6 2 c4, g6 3 N c3 , Bg7 4 e4, d6 S f4, 0-0 6 N f3 )
6 ... cS !
7 dS e6
I f B l a c k com m i ts h i m se l f to e x ch a n g i n g his QB o f f,
Wh i te m a y e f fecti v e l y c ha n ge st rategy: 7 Bg4 8 Bel, e6?! 9
.•.
0-0, e d 10 e d! ( m u ch stronger t h a n the cd l i n e s w h i c h are

u s u a l l y good) ReS 1 1 Bd3, Qd7? 12 B c2!, R e 7 1 3 h3 (Martz
L. G arcia, Mayaguez 1971) w i t h a c ru s h i n g Wh i te attac k
a ft e r rs.
On a n y t h i n g slower t h a n 7 e6 Black gets chewed

...
u p b y t h e superior White K i n gsi d e pie ces: 7 N a6 8 B d3 ,

•..
N c7 9 0-0, a 6 1 0 a4, b6 1 1 h 3 , R b 8 12 Be3 fol l o w e d b y IS

a n d g4-g5, or the central attack w i t h Qdl, R a e 1 a n d eS.
Note t h a t Black's slow Queenside p l a y a l lows Wh ite time
for t he m o re aggressi ve B i shop placemen t at d3.
8 Bel ed
On wa1t1ng moves s u c h as 8 Re8, Wh ite may con

•..
t i n u e as i n t h e m a i n l i ne with 9 eS!, de 1 0 fe, Ng4 1 1 BgS!.
9 e5!?
This is G u n d e ram's gambit. The Fou r P a w n's A t t a c k

lost i ts pote n c y w h e n i t w as shown t h a t 9 ed, ReS! or 9 cd,
b5! w e re su f fi c i e n t to p rove Black's e q u a l i t y . B l a c k appears
to be bette r d e v eloped for the central p l a y t h a t no w e n
sues, b u t t h i s appe a r a n ce i s dece i v i ng.
9 ••• de
C h apter Two: The King's I ndian Defense 65
B y t a k i ng t h is paw n , B l a c k puts t h e c e n t e r u n d e r
st rong press u re. On t he o t h e r h a n d , t he e x c h an ge ope ns up
the l i n e o f Wh i te's QB.
The a ltern at i ves a re n ot at t r ac t i ve. For e x ample on

9 N e8? 10 c:d B l a c k gets a bad game w i t h e i t h e r 10 ... N d7
•••
1 1 e6 ( G u n d e r a m gives 1 1 Bb5, d e 1 2 B x d 7, B x d 7 1 3 f c ,
Bg 4 14 B f4, Qe7 1 5 Q e 2 ) 11 re 12 NgS!, B x c3ch 13 b x c3 ,
•.•
N g 7 14 0-0, or 12 N c:7 13 0 - 0 , eS 14 Bg4!, o r w i t h 1 0 . Bg4

••• ..
11 e6, fe 1 2 N gS, B x el 13 Qxel, N c7 14 N x e6, N x e6 15

Qxe6c:h, Kh8 1 6 0-0, N a6 1 7 Bdl, Q f6 ( 1 7... R e8 18 Qg4, c4
1 9 f5, Qb6ch 20 K h 1 , Q x b 2 21 f6!, B f8 22 Qd4 is a n o t h e r
favorable l i n e quo t e d b y G u n d e ram) 18 Qx f6, B x f6 19
NbS.
A n o t h e r idea i s 9 N fd7 w h i ch forces Wh i te i n t o a

•••
typi c a l p a w n - sac: 10 cd, de 1 1 0-0, e f 1l B x f4. The n o v e l

poi n t is t h a t Wh i te i s a c t u a l l y a tempo a h e a d o f a s i m i l a r
Fou r P a w n ' s V a ri a t i o n t h a t i s con s i d e re d O K f o r Wh i t e ( 9
c d , R eS 1 0 e 5 , de 1 1 fe, N g 4 1 2 0-0, N x e5 13 B f4). T h e re
a re some d i f fe rences i n t he t wo posi t i ons, b u t t h ey s h o u l d
n o t h u rt Wh i te. For e x a mple, i t is b e t t e r f o r B l a c k to h a v e
h i s K R at f 8 to d e fe n d f 7 . The best k n o w n e x ample o f
9 N fd7 10 c d , de 1 1 0-0, e f ll B x f4 is N e i - Polugaevs ky,
•••
T l flls 1966 whi ch w e n t l l ...N f6 13 Qdl, B g4 14 h3, B x f3

15 B x f3 w i t h the u s u a l compe nsation o f t h e G u n d e r a m
gambi t---co n t rol o f K i ngside li nes, a c t i v e m i n o r pi eces a n d
t h e passed d-pa w n . Acco r d i n g t o H an s M u l ler, Wh ite cou ld
h a v e i mproved w i t h 14 B c4 ( i n stead o f 1 4 h 3) , for e x a m
ple, 1 4 N bd7 l S Rae 1, N b6 1 6 b3!, Ne8 1 7 N e4, B x r3 1 8
••.
R x f3, B d4ch 1 9 Kh 1 .
A n o t h e r d e fe n s i v e i d e a for B l a c k 1 s 1 3 . . . B f5
(instead o f 13 ... Bg4). T h e n 14 R a d 1 or 14 R a e 1 g i v e Wh i t e
good compe nsation o f a posi t i o n a l n a t u re ---Wh i t e's pas!>cd
d -paw n , for e x ample. Typical play w o u l d go 1 4 R a e 1 , N e 4
15 N x e4, B x e4 1 6 B c4, B x f3 (not 16 .. f5 because o f 1 7 N g5 � )
.
1 7 Rx f3 , Nd7 1 8 BgS!, f6 1 9 B h4, gS?! lO B g3 , fS 21 d6 c h ,

K h 8 ll R e 7 w i t h a g r e a t position for Wh i te. I n t h e 1 9 8 1 - 3
Correspo n d e n ce Game Boom - G ol i a k , Wh i te won soon a f t e r
ll f 4 2 3 B fl , B f6 2 4 Be6!
•••
Wh at other K n ight rnoves a re t h e re? We ll, t h e re's

9 ... Ne4 s i n ce it is logi cal for Black to e x c h a n ge o f f pieces
to wea ken the b ri t tle cente r. G u n d eram o f fe rs as one e x
ample: 10 c d , N x c3 1 1 b x c3 , de 1 2 re, Qa5 13 0-0, Q x c3 1 4
B g 5 , B x e5? 15 N x e5, Qxe5 1 6 B r6, Q d 6 1 7 Bb5!, Bd7 1 8
Q d 2 (Gedult· Vlelle fond, Paris 1967) w as i mpressi ve, b u t
B l a c k c a n i mprove w i t h ll . . N d 7 . S o m u c h better f o r B l a c k
.
i s ll . . .N d7! s i n ce t he gambit i s m o re d ou b t f ul n o w o n 1 2 0 -
0 , d x e5 13 h e5, N xe 5 14 Be3?!, N x rJ c h 1 5 B x f3 , Qd6! as i n
L i - G heorghlu, Dubal 1986. H o w e v e r, Wh i te d oes bette r
w i th 12 e6! wit h play such as 12 ... 8 x c3 c h 13 Bd2, B x d2ch
1 4 Qxd2, he6 15 d x e6, N r6 1 6 f5!
That leaves o n l y 9 ... Ng4 10 cd (not 10 h 3 , d 4) de 1 1

h 3 w i t h e xcellent play. The critical posi t i o n s a rise a fter
ll ...e4 1 2 h x g4, ed3 13 gd3 . N o w 13 ... f5? is bad accor d i n g
to G a r y K asparov because o f 1 4 B e 3 . There fore 13 . . . R e 8 1 4
f 5 becomes c r u c i a l . K aspa rov reco m m e n d s 1 4. . .b6 h e re a n d
t h e n 15 Ne4, gd5 1 6 gx f5, B x rs. H o w e v e r , Wh ite n e e d n ot
s u r re n d e r a p a w n a n d can play i nstead 15 h g6, h g6 16
K U ! a ft er w h i c h h e u n tangles h i s pieces a n d k eeps a n i ce
e d ge i n space, e.g. 1 6 ... 8 a6 17 Ne4, Qd7 ( 1 7 ... B x e 2 1 8 Qxe2,
Qxd5? 19 N f6ch o r 18 . Nd7 19 Bg5!, R xe4 20 Q x e4, Q x g5
..
2 1 Qe6ch, K h 8 2 2 Q x d 7) 18 Kg2, B x e2 1 9 Qxe2, N a6!? 20

B h6!, Nb4 21 B x g7, K]l[g7 22 d6! - - - Frles-N ielse n-Mortensen,
Esbjerg �985.
There a re m a n y tactical oppo rtu n l ltes for B l a c k to

fa l l ap a rt on these l i n es. For i n stance, on 14 ... N d 7 (i nstead
of K asparov's 14 ...b6) 15 B h6, B ]l[ h6 1 6 R x h6 B l a c k can
col l apse with 16 ... N e5 17 Kf2, gx f5 1 8 Qc2!, Qg5 as in R avi
S e k h ar-Thlpsay, I ndian C h ampionship 1983: 1 9 R h5!, Qg6
20 f4! and w i ns o r 1 9 ... Q f4 20 Rg 1!, N x g4 2 1 R x g4, f x g4 22
Qh7+, K f8 23 Qh8ch. Black does bette r w i t h 1 6 ... Qg5, b u t
the e n dgame i s obviously f a vorable to Wh i te a f te r 1 7 Qd2!,
Q x d2 c h 18 Kxd2, gx f5 1 9 gd5, Kg7 20 Rd6!·· · Kouatly·
J adone, Montpelller 1985.
B a c k to t he main l i n e a ft e r 9 ... de.

C h apter Two: The King's Indian De fense 67
10 fe Ng4
H e re agai n w e h a ve a b road c h o i ce of Kn ight

m o v e s (o f cou rse IO ... d 4 d rops a piece):
{I) 10 ... N fd 7 1 1 Bg5, Qa5 ( 1 1 ...f6 12 Q x d 5 c h , K h 8 1 3

B h 4! i s e x cellent beca use o f 1 3... N xe5 1 4 N x e5, Q x d 5 1 5
N x d 5, f xe5 1 6 N c 7 o r 1 3 ... Qb6 1 4 0-0, Q x b 2 1 5 N b5!, N a6
16 Nd6, Q x e 2 1 7 R ae 1 M and e l - K e l le r, 1964 w h i c h s t ron g l y
fa vors Wh i te) 1 2 c d ! , N xe5 1 3 0 - 0 t r a n spos i n g i n to t h e
main line.
( 2 ) 10 ... N e4 1 1 cd ( N o w 1 1 N x d 5 w o u l d t r a n s pose
i n to the v a ri a t i o n s beg i n n i n g w i t h 9 ... N e 4 10 N x d 5 . I f
Bl a c k n o w con t i n u ed 1 1 ... N c6 1 2 Qc2, f5. B u t B l a c k m a y
i mprove w i t h 1 1. .. B f5 be fore 1 2 ... N c6. For t h i s reason we
cons i d e r 1 1 cd) 1 1 ... N xc3 12 b x c3 and n ow:
( 2a) 12 ... N d 7 13 B f4, Re8 14 e6!?, f e 15 0 - 0 or

1 3 ... Qe8 1 4 0-0, N xe 5 15 Qd2 w i t h good atta c k i n g com p e n
sation f o r t h e pa w n .
(2b) 1 2 ... Bg4 1 3 Bg5, f 6 ( 1 3 . . .Q e 8 1 4 0-0, Bx f3 1 5

R x f3, N d 7 1 6 Bb5, B x e5 1 7 d6, Qe6 1 8 Be7, R fe8 1 9 B x d 7 .
Q x d 7 20 Qb3 a n d 1 3 ... Qa5 1 4 0-0, Q x c3 1 5 R c 1 , Q a 5 16
Be7, Re8 17 d6 w i t h a s t rong b i n d .) 1 4 e f, Bx f6 1 5 Bx f6,
R x f6 16 0-0, N d 7 17 Qb3 ( Hans M u ller).
There i s also 13 0-0 when 13 ... B x f3 1 4 R x f3, N d 7!

allows Bla ck to de fen d m o re secu rel y: 15 e6, N e5 1 7
e x f7ch, K h8!- - C he k ho v - V as iu kov, Moscow 1 986.
(3) 1 0 ... N e8? i s again bad: 1 1 cd, N d 7 12 B f4 a n d

Bl a c k can h a r d l y m ove.
B AA� S,� ,
,;l: t ?W� � · � �
1 1 BaS
This creates new p roblems for B l a c k. I f h e moves

his Queen to an y p l ace besides aS, Black com m i ts s u i ci de,
e.g. 1 1 ... Qd7? U N )[ dS, NuS (12 ... N c6 13 0-0, N c x e 5 1 4
N x e5, N xe5 1 5 B f6, N g4 1 6 B xg7, K xg7 1 7 Qc2! i n ten d i n g
1 8 Qc3ch) 13 N x e5, B x eS 1 4 B f6!, B d 6 1 5 Qd2, R e 8 1 6 B c3,
Be7 1 7 Qb6, 16 1 8 0-0 w i th a c r u sh i n g attack (Orienter
Toran, Madrid 197 1).
On 1 1 ... f6 U e f, B x f6 Wh i te can o f fe r the p a w n sac

of 13 B d6, Q x f6 1 4 N )[ dS, Q)[b2 1 S 0-0 but w e pre fe r the
simple 13 Q x dScb!, Q)[dS 14 N x dS, B x gS 1S N x gS w h i c h
must favor Wh i te, e.g. 1 S N c6 16 N c7, Rb8 1 7 N ge6, B x e6
.••
1 8 N u6, Rbe8! 1 9 B )[ g4!, R f4 2 0 Bb3, Nd4 2 1 0-0-0, N xe6

22 R b e l Nei- Klrlllov, U S S R 1964.
1 1... QaS
1 2 cd N x eS
Another try i s U N d7 i n t e n d i n g to c apt u re the e

...
p a w n w i th a K n i g h t. O ne hai r y e x a mple o f t h i s w as the

C h apter Two: T b e King's Indian De fense 69
Postal Game N u n - Rozenzeig w h i c h went 1 3 e6!?, fe 1 4 d e ,

N d f6 1 5 b J , Ne4! 1 6 0-0!, N g f2 1 7 R x f2 , N x f2 1 8 Q d5, Q b6
19 e7 d.c:b., Be6 2 0 e x f8=Qcb, R x f8 21 Qd2, B d4 22 Be3,
Qd6 23 Kx f2 , Q f4 24 Qxd4 Resigns. Easie r to foresee i s 13
0-0, N gex5 14 N x e5, N x e5 15 Be7, Re8 1 6 d6, N c 6 17 B c4.
13 0-0
And h e re Black m u st t r y t o o v e rcome t h e problems

o f slight l y ret arded d e velopment, a d i splaced Queen and a
d e fe n s i v e w e a k n ess on t he K i ngside.
We n o w e x am i ne:
8 1 1 1 1 3 ... N x f3ch
8 1 1 2 1 3 ... N b d 7
81 1 1
( 1 d4, N f6 2 c:4, g6 3 N c3 , Bg7 4 e4, d6 S f4, 0·0 6 N f3 , cS
7 d5, e6 8 Be2, ed 9 eS!?, de 10 re, Ng4 11 BgS , QaS 12 cd,
N xeS 13 0 -0)
13 ... N x f3 c h
14 Rd3! f6
I f 1 4 ... Bg4 t he n 15 Rd7!, Rx f7 1 6 B x g4, Kb8 17

Be6 w i t h great compensation as in several postal games o f
the Czech M aster N u n .
O n 14 ... a 6 G u n d e ram gives 15 Ne4! (Better t h a n 1 5

Be7, R eS 1 6 d6, Be6) 15 ... Bg4? ( 1 5 ... B x b2 1 6 Be7, R e S 1 7 d 6,
N d 7 1 S Bc4, Ne5 1 9 B x f7ch, N x f7 20 Qd5) 16 R d7, R x f7
1 7 B x g4, B d4cb 18 K b l .
1 5 B f4
1 5 d6! m a y be b e u e r, e.g., 1 S ... h g5? 16 B c4 c b , K b 8

1 7 R d8cb a n d 1 8 Qd5. O r 15 ... N d 7 16 d 6 followed by 1 7
B c4 c b , 1 7 Qd5cb o r 1 7 N d5 w i t h a d v a n t age.
1 5... Bg4
1 6 Re3 B xe2
17 Q x e2 Nd7
1 8 Re7
Wi t h v ery strong p l a y for Wh i te .
81 1 2
( 1 d4, N f6 2 c4, g6 3 N c3 , Bg7 4 e4, d 6 5 f4, 0-0 6 N f3, c5
7 d5, e6, 8 Bel, ed 9 e5!?, de 10 re, N g4 11 Bg5, Qa5 12 cd,
N x e5 13 0-0)
13... Nbd7
C h apter T wo: T h e King's Indian De fense 71
I f B l a c k t ries 1 3 ... Re8 t h en 1 4 N x e5, B x e5 1 5 B c4!,

Nd7 16 d6, Bd4ch 17 K b 1, Ne5 18 Bd5, Be6 19 Ne4 is
strong (Nei-Westerinin, Helsinki 1 966).
V e r y w e a k IS 13 ... f6? 14 N x e5, fxg5 1 5 Rx f8c b ,

B x f8 1 6 Q f l , Q c 7 1 7 d 6 , B x d6 18 B c 4 c b , Ka7 1 9 N d 5 ! i s
crushi n g.
14 N x e5
Even st ronger t h a n 14 N xe5 m a y be t h e i m m e d i a te

14 Be7. Then 14 ... N g4!? can be met simpl y b y 1 5 Qd2, Re8
16 d6 with the u s u a l compe n s a t i on: 1 6 ... c4 1 7 Q f4!
(Nogueiras- Kiril Georglev, Ploudiv 1 982) th reaten i ng 18
Qx f7ch!
1 4 ... Nxe5
1 4 ... B x e5 1 5 Be7, R e 8 16 d6 is a l s o e x cell e n t for

Wh i t e as in a Postal Match between We st G e r m a n y a n d
England i n 1962-63 w h i c h w e n t 16 ... B x c3 1 7 b x c3 , Q x c3 1 8
R c l , Qe3 ch 1 9 K h l .
15 Be7 ReS
16 d6 Be6
17 N d5
T h is is a k e y pos i t ion for t h e w hole v a r i a tion a n d

seems to favor Wh i te a fter 1 7 ... R a c8 1 8 B f6 o r 1 7 ... c 4 1 8
N c7, Rxe7 1 9 N x a8 o r 1 7 ... N c6 18 N f6 c b , B x f6 1 9 B x f6,
N d4 20 B d3 (th reat of Q c l - h6) .
81 2
( 1 d4, N f6 2 c4, g6 3 N c3, B g7 4 e4, d6 5 f4, 0-0 6 N f3 )
6 ... e5?!

72 Wlnnln1 With 1 d4
B l a c k h as other t r ies:
( 1 ) 6 ... c6 7 Be2, N fd 7?! 8 Be3, e5 9 fe, d e 10 d5, f5

1 1 Qb3 and 0-0-0 w i t h a n opt i m is t i c game ( B e n ko - Panno,
Plat11orsky Cup 1 963).
(2) 6 ... N fd 7 7 Be2, c5 8 d5 or 7... e5 8 fe, d e 9 d5

m u st favor Wh i te. Black's K ni g h t m a n e u v e r is not partic
u la r l y good. The K n i g h t sometimes goes to d 6 via e8 ( a ft e r
... e 5 a n d f e , ... d e ) o r to h 5 .
(3) 6 ... N c6 7 Be2, B g 4 i s f i ne for Wh i t e a ft e r 8 d 5,

Nb8 9 0-0 , N b d 7 1 0 N g5!. Ho w e ver, B l a c k c a n i m p ro ve
w i t h 6...Bg4 7 Be2 , N fd7! 8 B e 3 , B x f3 9 B x f3, N c6 w i t h
good cen te r play. F o r t h i s reason Wh i t e m ust play t h e mo re
e x act 7 Be3, N fd 7 8 h 3!, B x f3 9 Q x f3 fol lowed by 0-0-0
w i t h a pow e r fu l attack.
7 fe
B l a c k gets e x ce l l e n t cou n te r c h a n ce s a ft e r 7 de, de 8

Q x d8, Rlld8 9 N xeS, Re8.
7... de
8 dS cS
To establish the blockade w i th 9 ... Ne8 and 10 . N d6.

. .
9 B1S! h6
10 B h 4
C h apter Two: The King's Indian De fense 73
Wh ite is de f i n i t e l y bette r. Another vers i o n of t h i s

cou ld h a ve come u p e a r l i e r w i t h Bl a c k pl a y i n g S ... cS
( i n stead of 5 0-0) 6 d5, e5. A f t e r 7 fe Blac k w o uld t r ans
...
pose into the l i n e we j u st consi d e red w i t h 7 ... de. H o w e v er,

i f h e t ries 7 ... N g4?! 8 ed, B d4 9 N f3, N f2 10 Qd2, N x h l I t
N x d4, Qh4ch 1 2 g3, N x g3 13 Q f2 o r 7 ... N fd7?! 8 ed, B x c3 c h
9 b x c3, Q h 4 c h 10 g 3 , Q x e 4 c h 1 1 Qe2, N f6 1 2 B g2 , Qxe2cb
13 N xe2 Wh ite is better accord i n g to G u n de r a m .
82
T H E O L D I N DI A N
( 1 d 4 , N f6 l c4, d6 3 N c3, e5)
Some rece n t e xpe r i m e n ts w i th Tal's 3 ... B f5 h a ve not

worked out. 4 f3, e5 5 e4, ed 6 Q:x d4, N c6 7 Qe3, Be6 8
N d5 is favorable to Whi te, b u t t he s i m p l e r 4 N f3 a lso c re
a t e s p roblems, e.g., 4 Nbd7 5 N b4, Bg4 6 b3, Bb5 7 g4
.•.
followed b y Bgl a n d N xg6. O n 4 b6 i n a n t i c i pation o f 5

.•.
N b 4 Wh i te can p l a y 5 d5, e5 6 de e.p., B x e6 7 N d4, B d 7

(7 . Bxc4 8 Qa4ch) 8 g 3 , N c6 9 B g l (Gilgoricb - lvkov, M a l
..
lorca 1970) w i t h bette r c h a n ce s.
4 N f3
T h i s s i m p l e move avo i d s the d ra w i s h n ess o f 4 de

a n d the comple x ities o f the u s u a l K i ng' s I n d i a n m a i n li nes.
4 •.. Nbd7
Wh ite stan d s clearly bette r a ft e r 4...Nc6 5 de, NxeS

6 e4 or 5 de 6 Q x d8 c h , K x d8 7 Bg5. A l so 4 e d 5 N x d4
..• •..
followed b y 6 e4 and 7 Bel i s good for Wh i t e c o mpared

w i t h n o r m a l I ndia n v a ri ations i n w hi c h B l a c k d e fers any
cente r e x ch a n ge.
But most i n te resting is 4 e4!? (Bronstei n ' s m o v e) . I t

•..
n o w appears that 5 N dl , B f5 6 e3, c 6 7 B e l f a v ors Wh ite

C h apter T wo: T h e King's Indian De fense 75
a ft e r 7 d5 8 Qb3, Qd7 9 cd, cd 1 0 f3, ef 1 1 N x f3 fo l l o w e d

.••
by N h 4.
T h i s f a vorite move o f P a u l K e res m a i n t a i n s a s u r e

p u l l f o r Wh ite w h o i n t e nd s e3, Qc2 a n d B d3 to cont rol t h e
Wh i te squ a res.
5 ... Be7
Clearly B l a c k cannot play 5 g6 t o e n t e r t h e m a i n

•..
K in g' s I n d i an because o f 6 de, d e 7 N x e5, N x e5 8 Q x d8ch,

a n d 9 B x f6ch. A good a l tern a t i v e to 5 Be7 i s 5 ...c6 so t h a t
.••
i f 6 e3, B l a c k p l a y s 6 Qa5 w i t h t h re a t s 7 e4 a n d 7 . . . N e4.

••• ..•
I nstead Whi t e p l a y s 6 Qc2, Qa5 7 Bh4 and e i t h e r 7 Be7 8 •..
e3, 0·0 9 Bd3 ( Kere s- Tolush, U S S R C hampionship 1 950)

t h re atens 10 B x h 7ch, or 7 ed 8 N x d4, g6 9 e3, Bg7 10 Bg3,
.••
Qc:7 1 1 Bel, 0·0 12 Rd1 f a v o rs Wh i te.
B l a c k can also t ry t h i s i d e a l a t e r on: 5 B e 7 6 e3, c6

•.•
7 Qc2, Qa5 but 8 B d3! covers the e4 s q u a re and g i v e s

Whi te c h a n ces o f e x ploi t i n g t he pos i t i o n o f t h e Blac k
Queen, e.g. 8 a6 9 0·0, h 6 1 0 B h4, 0·0 11 a4, Re8 12 b4! as
•••
i n Grlvas- B u rgess, S h arj a h 1 985. S i m i l a r l y 7 h 6 8 B h 4, 0·

.•.
0·0 9 0·0·0!?, Qa5 10 Kb 1, ReS 1 1 Bd3, N f8 1 2 h3 a n d 13

g4 as i n lonov- Kochrev, U S S R 1 984.
6 e3
Also good now is 6 Qd, e.g., 6 ... c6 7 e3, Qc7 8 0-0-

0, b 6 9 B b 4, a6 10 cS! (Knezevicb -Minev, L u b a c bovitz
1973 ) .
6 ... 0-0
Note t h a t B l a c k can e x ch ange B i shops h e re w i th

6 ... N g8?! 7 Bxe7, Qxe7, but the loss of time c an h a u n t h i m
i f Wh i te attacks v i gorously: 8 0-0-0!, N g f6 9 g4!, N x g4 1 0
R g 1 , N d f6 1 1 b 3 , N b 6 12 dxeS, d xe5 13 RgS! a s i n
Mocbalov-Z b uraviev, Riga 1 984.
7 Qcl
O r 7 Bd3, ReS 8 Qcl, ed 9 ed, N f8 1 0 h3, N dS? 1 1

cx dS! w h i ch t u rn e d o u t to b e e x ce l l e n t for Wh ite i n
Spassky- V asiukov, Moscow 1959.
7 .•• c6
O n 7 ...ed Wh i te can follow the Spass k y g a m e w i t h 8

ed o r try to m a ke somet h i n g o ut o f t he Queen's file w i t h 8
N x d4, N e5 9 Bel. I n Flohr- Petrosian, U S S R C h a mpionship
1949 Whi te s h i fted to K i n gsi d e attack a fte r 9 ... N g6 1 0 h4!.
This last idea is also use f u l a fte r 7 ... Ne8 8 b 4 (8 f5 9 c5,
...
e4 10 B xe7, Qxe7 1 1 Nd5, Qd8 12 Ng5--- Gorelov- Kre menet

sky, Moscow 1 985).
8 B d3 ReS
9 0-0
C h apter T wo: T he King's Indian De fense 77
B l a c k h as d e veloped i n t h e t r a d i t i o n a l Old I n d i a n
m a n n e r a n d now w i t h 9 Qc7 1 0 R fd 1 , N f8 1 1 h3 Wh i t e re
•••
tains a small a d v a n t age d u e to his better con t rol o f s p a ce.

Boleslavsk y mentions 9 h6 10 B h4, NhS 1 1 Bg3!, N x g3 1 2
•..
b xg3, Qc7 1 3 B fS a s better for Whi te. H i s con t rol o f w h i t e

squa res is sign i f i c a n t. Perh aps a more accu rate o r d e r o f
moves h e re is 8 b6 ( i nstead o f 8 ... Re8) 9 B h4, N hS w h e n
•••
1 0 B x e7, Qxe7 i s e q u a l b u t 1 0 Bg3!? i s p ro m i s i n g . Wh i t e

c a n a lso m e e t 8 b 6 w i t h 9 b 4 ! ? s i n ce B l a c k c an not tole rat e
.••
the ope n i n g o f t h e h - file w i t h 9 h xgS 1 0 h x gS. A rece n t

•..
e x a m ple o f 9 h4 w e n t 9 ... R e 8 1 0 dxeS, d x e S 1 1 B x f6, N x f6

( 1 1 ...B x f6 is met b y 1 2 0-0-0 a nd the a d v ance o f Wh i t e's g
p awn ) 12 N x eS, QaS 13 N f3, Bb4 14 0-0-0 w i t h s h a r p p l a y
(Giek- Podgaets, U S S R 1984).
78 Wiooiog Wit h 1 d 4
83
THE AVERBAKH INDIAN
(Or Modero System)
(1 d4, g6 l c4, Bg7 3 N c3, d6)
3 N f6 leads d i re c t l y to t he K i n g's I n d i a n , 3 ... f5

..•
leads to t he D u tch I n d i a n a n d 3 ... c5 leads to the Benon i -

a l l consi d e red i n other sections. We a re m a i n l y c o n ce rned
h e re with the alte r n at i v e replies to:
4 e4
N o w we a n a l y ze:
B 3 1 4 N c6
...
B32 4 e5 ...
B 3 3 4 c6
...
831
( 1 d4, g6 l c4, Bg7 3 N c3, d6 4 e4)
4 ... N c6
Ch apter Two: The King's Indian De fense 79
This di sti n c t i ve v a riation was po p u l a ri z e d b y

Ale x a n d e r K otov, the veteran Soviet G r a n d m aster and or
ganizer. Th e i d e a is to p rovoke a locked ce n t e r w i t h eS, dS
be fore Black h as com m it t e d his K N . The N fa c i l i t a tes rs •.•
be tter on e7 o r h6.
I n t e resting is t h e a l ternate d e p l o y m e n t 4 . Nd7. A f

. .
ter 5 f4!, e5 (an a w fu l a l t e rn at i v e i s t h e h e d ge h og- l i k e

S e6 6 N f3, N e7 7 Bd3, b6? 8 Be3, fS 9 e S w i t h a l re a d y a
...
w i n n i n g game, Prlbyl·Lecbtynsky, Czechoslova kia 1 972) 6

fe, de 7 d5 a n d B l a c k w i l l h a ve t h e u s u a l s l i g h t i n f e r i o r i t y
o f t h e Fou r P a w n s' a t t a c k w i t h 7 N g f6. O n 7 N h6 Wh i t e
••• ••.
prese rves an edge w i t h s i m p l e d e v e l op i n g m o v e s l i k e 8 N f3

and 9 Bel.
B l a c k can also try the b i z a r re - look i n g 4 rs . O n e ...
e xa m ple o f bow to seize t h e u p p e r h a n d is U ngureaou

G b lnda, Tlmlsoara 1 972: 5 N f3, N b6 6 Be2, N a6 (6 ... 0-0 7 0-
0, fe 8 N xe4, N fS 9 d S may also favor Whi te, b u t 7 h 4 is
stronger) 7 b4, c5 a n d n o w 8 d5!, B x c3 c b 9 b x c3, fe 10
B x b6 o r 8 ...re 9 N xe4, N f5 1 0 b5.
5 Be3 e5
B l a c k b as p roblems a fter 5 ...N b6 6 h3 i n te n d i n g 7

Qdl w h i c h forces the B l a c k K n i g h t b a c k . O n e e x a m p le is
Lebmann - S b amkovicb, Mallorca 1 966 w h i c h w e n t 6 . f5 7 ..
Qdl, N f7 8 d5, N b S 7 Ngel, c:S 10 e f, B x f5 1 1 N g3, Bd7 12

Bel, Na6 13 b4 a n d Wh ite b as g a i n ed e n o u g h t i me f rom
Bl a c k 's K n i ght p e regri n ations to h a v e a sol i d e d ge.
And with 5 ... N f6 w e reach a K i ng' s I n d i a n pos i t i o n

in w h i c h Bl a ck's o t h e r K n i ght i s ques ti o n a b l y pos i t ioned ( 6
h 3, 0-0 7 f4---be t t e r t h an 7 N ge2, a 6 8 d 5!?, N a 5 9 N g3, c 5
1 0 Bd3, Nd7 1 1 f4 , bS---N l klasson- B ilek, Helsinki 1 978).
6 d5 N ce7
This is an u n p leasan t move to m a ke, but t h e a l t e r

n at i ves a re n o better. F o r e x a mple, 6 ... N d4 7 N ge2, N x e2 8
B x el l e a ves Wh it e p re p a re d to k i l l B l a c k's K i n gs i d e p lay

w i t h 9 g4! o r to open u p h i s o w n l i n e s on t h e Q u eenside
w i t h 9 cS. O n t h e n a t u r a l 8 ... f5 Wh i te obt a i n s a n edge with
9 e f, gf (9 . B x f5, as u s u a l , i s b a d because i t cedes pawn
..
cont rol of e4) 10 B h5ch, K f8 11 f4! a n d n o w e i t h e r 11 ...ef

12 B x f4, Qh4ch 13 g3, Qh3 14 Qel, N f6 15 B f3, B d7 16 0-
0-0, ReB 1 7 Qfl, Q x f l 1 8 R h x f l , Kf7 1 9 c5 ( B a rden) o r
1 1 ...e4 1 2 B e l , N f6 13 Qdl, Q e 7 14 0 - 0 - 0 fol lowed b y
p re p a rations for g 4 (beg i n n i n g w i t h h 3 a n d R d g 1). The
Wh i t e K n ig ht sh i fts t o e3 a fte r Wh ite p l a y s B d4, K eene
a n d Botte r i l l obse rve.
Of cou rse, B l a c k need not d e n u d e his K i n g w i t h

8 ... f5, b u t on more soli d m oves s u c h as 8 ... N f6, Wh i te be
g i n s Queenside operations w i t h 9 cS! e.g. 9 ... 0-0 10 c x d6,
cxd6 11 0-0, N e 8 1 2 Qb3, f5 (the on l y sou rce o f cou n te r
p l a y now) 13 e x f5, gx f5 1 4 f4, Kh8 15 R a d 1 a n d l a t e r
h e5!---Quinteros- Kotov, London 1977.
A n d w i th o u t t o o deep a l oo k , w e c a n s e e t h a t
6 ... N b 8 7 B e l , f 5 8 e f, gf 9 B h5 c h , K f 8 10 f4!, N f6 1 1 fe,
de 12 N hJ , Na6 13 0-0, N x h5 14 Q x h5, Qe8 15 R x f5cb fa
vors Wh ite r i c h l y.
7 cS! f5
And now Wh ite can con t i n u e for a d v a n t age w i t h: 8

cd, cd 9 N fJ, f4 10 BbScb, K f8 1 1 Bd2, B f6 12 b4!, b6 13
g3!, fg 1 4 fg (Balcero wski-Espig, Stary Smokvenc 1972)
w i t h c h a n ces on t h e K i n gside as w e l l as the Queenside. O r
8 BbScb, Kf7 ( 8... K f8 9 f3, B h6 1 0 B f2!, N f6 1 1 h 3 , K g 7 1 2
Nge2 is Olafsson- Keene, Reykjavik 1 972) 9 f3, B b6 10
B x b6, N x b6 11 Qd2, Kg7 1 2 cd, cd 13 0-0-0 (Martz-Pala
clos, Malaga 1972). Anothe r ve rsion o f t h i s i s the i m m e d i
ate 8 f3 a n d then 8 ...N f6 9 Bc4, 0-0 10 b 3 , fxe4 11 fxe4,
N b S 1 2 N ge2 (Leroy - N e l m an, Paris 1986). In each case
B l a c k h as a t le ast one " problem pi ece" w i t h l i t tle f u t u re.
Ch apter T w o: The King's Indian De fense 81
832
( 1 d4, g6 2 c4, Bg7 3 N c3, d6 4 e4)
4 ... eS
S de de
6 Qxd8ch Kxd8
T h i s e n d i n g i s m o re f avorable to Wh i t e t h a n the
O l d I n d i an v a ri ations i n w hi c h Queens a re t raded o f f
e a r l y . B l a c k has a l r e a d y w asted t w o moves o n t h e f i
anchetto development o f h i s K B.
7 BgSch f6
8 Rd1ch
T h e poi nt o f t h i s is t o a v o i d t h e t ra d e o f b l a c k ·
squared B i shops a fte r 8 O·O·Och, N d 7 9 Be3, B h6.
8... Nd7
9 Be3 c6
Now 9 . . B h 6 10 D eS , b6 1 1 B a3 i s f i n e fo r Wh i t e .
.
1 0 g3 Kc7
1 1 B h3 N h6
12 N ge2
H e re a game Poschel- Saldy, U.S. Open 1 960 went

U N r7 13 b3, ReS 1 4 0-0, B f8 15 N a4, N g5 1 6 Bgl, Ne6 17
...
f4 w i t h a clea r ed ge for Wh ite. Wh i te's p l a n o f 0-0 a n d f4

is better c h a l lenge d b y 1 1 B h 6 12 f4, Ne7 a n d n o w 13 N f3
.•.
followed by Ke2 looks good enough for a Wh i te a d v a n tage.

I f Wh i te h ad castled q ueenside at move 8 a n d then
con t in ued with 11 f4!? (instead of 1 1 B h 3) h e h as a n even
m o re aggressive position, e.g. 1 1 Nb6 12 b3, ReS 1 3 N f3,
••.
N r7 1 4 f5!, B f8 15 a4---Smeykai· Szllagyl, V arna 1 9 7 1 .
833
(1 d4, g6 2 c4, Ba7 3 N c3, d6 4 e4)
4 ...
5 N f3 Ba4
For 5 N f6 w e h a v e a m o re f a m i l i a r K i ng's I n d i a n
.••
w h i c h shou l d favor Wh ite a ft e r 6 Bel, e.g. 6 . 0-0 7 0-0,

..
N bd7? 8 e5, de 9 de, N g4 10 e6!
6 Be3 N d7
7 Bel
And now 7 e5 8 d5, cS 9 0·0, Ne7 (9 ... N g f6 10 N d 2)

.•.
10 N e t , B x el 1 1 Qul, 0-0 U f4 ( Botvinnik- Czerniak,

H astings 1 966-67) or 7 B x f3 8 B x f3, N g f6 9 0-0, a6 10 g3,
..•
hS?! 1 1 h3, eS U Bgl, 0-0 13 Qd2 (Schmi d - B ronstein,

Monaco 1969) show how Whi te u ses his l a rge edge i n space.
Ch apter Three: T h e Gruenfeld De fense 83
CHAPTER TH REE
c
THE GRUEN FELD D EFENSE
T he G r u e n fe l d is an I n d i a n D e fe n se, b u t i t also
bears the i m p ri n t o f the Q u een's G a m b i t . N ot su r p r i s i n g l y
we w i l l e x a m i n e t he c h a n ces f o r i n i ti ati v e t h a t d e r i v e
from a n o t h e r E x c h ange V a ri ation.
1 d4 N f6
2 c4 g6
3 N c3 dS
4 cd N x dS
S e4 N x c3
I t' s been k n o w n for some t i m e t h a t t h e a d v a n t a ges

of s N b6 (e.g. le av ing the Wh ite d - p a w n w i th DO p a w n
...
support) a re o u t weighed b y t he loss o f t i m e a n d c o n f u sion

o f Black's m i n o r pieces. A ft e r 6 h3!, Bg7 7 N f3, 0-0 8 Be2
Wh ite retai n s a cle a r superiorit y---8 N c6 9 Be3, fS 10 d5,
...
NeS 1 1 e f, B x fS 12 0-0, N d3 c b l3 Bx f3, N c4 14 B g5!

(Bondarevsky- Averbakh, U S S R Championship 1 950) o r
8 c6 9 Be3, Be6 10 0-0, B c4 11 Qd2, N 8d7 1 2 B h 6
...
(Portisch- Szabo, H ungary 1959).
6 b x c3 Bg7
T here is n o perceptible d i f fe rence in 6... c5 i f Wh i te

rep l i es 7 B c4. B l a c k gets a d ub i ous game a f ter 7 ... cd 8 cd,
Qb6 9 Qcl! or 9 Be3, Qb4ch 10 Qdl, QJ:C4 1 1 R e i , Qe6 12
d5, Qd7 13 Qc3.
7 B c4
N o w we h a ve:
C 1 7 ... c5
C2 7 .. 0-0
.
C1
(1 d4, N f6 2 c4, g6 3 N c3, d5 4 cd, N x d5 5 e4, N x c3 6 bx c3,
Ba7 7 B c4 )
7 •.• c5
8 N el N c6
8 N d7 does not p u t e n ough p ressu re on Wh i te's cen

.••
ter. The fi rst p l a y e r m a y p ress u re B l a c k with 9 0-0, Qc7 10

B f4, e5 11 de, B x e5 U BxeS, N x e5 ( 1 2 ... Q x e 5 led to a cl e a r
Wh ite supe riority in Gl igorlch -Wex ler, Mar d e l Plata 1 960
a fter 1 3 Bd5, 0-0 1 4 f4, Qc7 15 c4!) 13 BbSch, but 13 ... Bd7
se e m s to hold. P robably better i s 12 Qdl! to be followed by
Radl. I f Black plays U B d4 h i m se l f, h e i n v ites a Wh ite
•••
K n ight to hi s dS.
C h apter T h ree: T h e Gruenfeld D e fense 85
9 Be3 0-0
Two i n te rest i n g ideas d e r i v e f rom 9 ... cd 10 cd. On

lO bS B l a c k obtains a tactical d r a w from 11 B x bS, QaScb
•••
ll N c3, Q x c3 c h 13 B d2 , Q x d4. B u t Wh ite h as bette r i n 1 1

Bd5, B d 7 ( 1 1 ...Bb7 1 2 Qb 3!) 12 B x c6, B x c6 13 dS, Bd7
( 1 3 ... B x a 1? 1 4 Q x a 1) 1 4 B d4. In A mos-Martz, May aguez
197 1 B l a c k pla yed 14 Qa5cb lS Qd2, Q x d2 1 6 K x d2 , 0-0
•••
17 B :xg7, K:xg7 18 N d4 and b a d an i n fe r i o r e n d i ng. B u t

even w i th t h e superior 1 4 ...0 - 0 15 B x g7, K x g 7 1 6 0 - 0 Wh i te
holds t h e h igh c a rd s because o f h i s f i n e d4 s q u a re.
The second idea i s l O QaSch 1 1 Bd2, Qa3 (not

••.
l l...Q h 5 12 d5, Ne 5 1 3 Bb5ch, B d 7 1 4 B x d7cb a n d 15 R b 1 )

Wh i te's b e s t l i n e is 12 R b l , 0-0 ( 1 2 . . . N x d 4 1 3 N x d 4 , B x d 4
14 Bb5ch a n d Bb4) 13 0-0, B g4 ( 1 3 ... Qd 6 14 d 5 , N e 5 1 5 Bb4,
Q f6 1 6 Bc3, Q h 4 1 7 B xe 5, B xe5 18 f4 a n d e 5 w ith a d v a n
tage i n a B u l g a r i a n g a m e q u oted b y H a rtston) 14 f3 , Be6
15 B e l , QaS 1 6 B x e6, he6 1 7 R x b7 w i t h a cle a r edge. N o te
that 15 ... Qd6 i n t h i s line i s met b y 16 B x e6, fxe6 1 7 Be3!
with a n edge s i m i l a r t o that q uoted.
1 0 0-0
H e re we h a ve to consi d e r the t w o m aj o r a h e r n a t i ves

for Bla ck: t h e old e r l O c:d a n d the m ode rn 10 ... Qc7. I n
•••
gene r a l , the m ore recent t h e theore t i c a l t r y i n t h e G r u c n

feld, t h e slower t h e b u i l d u p against Wh i te's p a w n c e n t e r .
T h e re ason is t h a t B l a c k w a n ts to m ai n t a i n t h e tension as
l o n g as possible u n d e r i d e a l con d i t i ons.
C l l 1 0 ...cd
C 1 2 1 0 ... Qc7
O t h e r moves d o not put i m m e d i ate p ress u re on t h e

cente r a n d a re t he re fore less-o ften see n . B u t t h e y a rc n o t
easi l y re f u ted. On t h e i m m e d i a te 10 ... B g 4 1 1 f3 , cx d4 1 2
cxd4 we w i l l h a ve t ra nsposed i n to the m a i n l i n e o f C l l . (I f
Wh i t e pre fe rs, he can a v oi d t h a t w i t h 1 1 d5!?, N a5 1 2 B d 3,
c4 1 3 Bc2 as i n Polugaye fsky - Timmon Match 1 979 i n
w h ich the closi n g of the c- f ile d i d not h u rt Wh ite

( 1 3 ... B x c3 1 4 R b 1 , Bg7 1 5 f3, B d 7 16 f4, b5 1 7 e5!).
Another common o r d e r o f moves is 10 ... N aS 1 1 B d3,

u d4 12 cxd4, Be6 t ransposi n g to the note to Black's 1 1 th
move in C l l. H e re B l a c k h as another option in the form o f
l l ... b6, keeping t h e c-file c losed . T h is, h o w e v e r, c an be
d a n ge rous to h i m i f Whi te strengthens h i s ce n te r, e.g. 1 2
R c :l , Bb7 13 d5, e6 1 4 c4!. Better i s 1 3 ...c4 14 B el , e6, but
Wh i te stands well i n t he e n dgame t h a t a r i ses a fter 1 5 dx e6,
he6 16 Qxd8 or the m i d d legame a fte r 1 6 14.
Yet another quie t idea for B l ac k is 1 0 b6. T h i s is a

..•
p a w n sacri fice that Wh i te m a y re a d i l y accept--- 1 1 d x cS,

Q c7! 12 N d4! a n d Wh ite stands well, e.g. 12 NeS 13 Be2,
..•
b x cS 14 NbS, Qb6 1 5 QdS, Bb7 16 B x cS! o r 1 3 ... Bb7 14

ub6, axb6 1S NbS, Qc6 16 13, N c4 1 7 B x c4, Q x c4 1 8 Qb3 · ·
- Portlsc h - Ftacnlk, WIJ k a n n Zee l 98S.
C1 1
( 1 d4, N l6 Z c4, g6 3 N cJ , dS 4 cd, N x dS S e4, N x c3 6 b x c3 ,
B g7 7 B c4, c5 8 Ne2, N c6 9 Bel, 0·0 1 0 0-0)
10 ••• cd
1 1 cd Bg4
B l a c k p re p a res for NaS and .. Be6. The f i n esse o f

•.. .
l l ... Bg4 i s n ecessary w h e n compare d to t h e slo w e r l l ... N aS

C h apter Three: T h e Gruenfeld D e fense S7
1l Bd3, Be6 13 d5, B x a 1 14 Q x a 1 , f6 15 B h 6, ReS 16 N f4

and now on 16 ... B f7, the desirable de fc nse to 1 7 Bb5,
17 ...Qb6cb i s not a v a i l able as Wh ite h as not been forced to
play f3. A fte r 16 ... Bd7 1 7 e5! Wh ite has a terri f i c a t t a c k .
1 2 f3 Na5
1 3 B d3 Be6
O n t h e passi ve re t re at 13 ... Bd7 Wh ite o b t a i n s the

u p p e r hand with 1 4 Rb1, e6 15 Qd2, b6 16 Bg5! (si m i la r to
Ragozln· Kholmov, U S S R Ch ampionship 1949 w h i c h a c t u
a l l y b e g a n w i t h l l .. Bd7 1l Rb 1 , N a5 13 Bd3, e6 1 4 Qd2,
.
e tc.) .
1 4 d5
T h i s E x c h a nge sac ri fice h as been h o t l y d e b a l e d

since the e a r l y 1 950's w i t h r e c e n t o p i n i on f a v o r i n g Wh i te's
c h a n ces. Clearly, 1 4 ... Bd7 1 5 R b 1 favors Wh i te.
1 4... Bxa1
1 5 Q : xa 1 f6
A nd h e re an y move by B l a c k ' s B i s h op a l lo w s Wh i t e
t o regai n t h e E x ch an ge w it h a d v a n t age b y 16 B b6.
1 6 Rb1!
T h i s is the n o v e l t y i n t rod u ced by Gligorich i n one

o f h i s m a n y G r u e n feld g am e s w i t h K o r c h n o i . The f o r m e r
Len i n«rad G ra n d maste r t r i e d 16 ... Kg7 17 Qc3, B f7 I S Nd4,
ReB 19 Qd2, Kh8 20 b3, b6 21 Qe2, Qd6 b ut in t h e post
mortem suggested t h a t Wh ite cou ld p rospe r w i t h 22 B a6,
RadS l3 N bS, QbS 24 N x a7!, Qx a7 25 B x b6, QaS 26 B x a5,
Rd6 2 7 Rb6, R x b6 2 8 B x b6 ( q u oted in H a rtston's " T he
G r u e n fel d De fense").
Among the poi n t s of 1 6 R b l ! is that i f 16 ... B f7

Wh i t e c a n p l a y 1 7 Bh6, ReS 1 8 Qd4!, Rc:8 1 9 Bb S e S 2 0 ,
Q : u7 (M i le v). Also f av o r i ng Wh i t e are 16 ... Rc8 1 7 B h 6 , ReS

18 Qd4, Bd7 19 e5! and 16 b6 1 7 B b6, Re8 1 8 Qd4, Bd7 19

••.
e5!
H av i n g been denied t he d e fe n si ve resou rce Qb6cb, ...
B l a c k shou l d retreat his attacked piece w i t h 16 Bd7. But •..
i n Donner-Ree, N e therlands 1 97 1 , Wh ite de veloped a q u i c k

a t t a c k t h a t scored a fter 1 7 B b 6 , R l7 1 8 e 5 , f e 1 9 Q x e 5 , b6
2 0 Bd2!, N b7 2 1 Bc3, R f6 22 Ng3, N d6 2 3 R e i , Bb5 24 B b 1 ,
R c8 25 N bS!! ( 2 5 ... g x h 5 26 Qg5ch, K h8 2 7 Q h6).
The correct d e fense f o r B l a c k i s 1 8 e6! (not •..
1 8 ... fxe5) w h e n 1 9 N f4, fxe5 reaches a critical p osi tion o n

2 0 dx e6?, B xe6! 21 Qxe5, B x a2! B l ac k s t a n d s better
(Pekarek-W. Scb mldt, Prague 1987). Co r rec t i s 2 0 N x e6!,
B x e6 2 1 d x e6 a fte r w h i c h Wh ite h as e x ce l l e n t com pensa·
t i on 2 1 Re7 22 Bg5, Qx d3 2 3 B x e7, Re8 2 4 Bg5
---
.• .
( Polugayevsky- C b andler, A msterdam 1984).
Note that if B l a c k rushes to re t u rn the E x c h a nge

( 1 6 ... b6 1 7 Bh6, Qd6 18 B x f8, R x f8 19 Q d 4 Van der Linde
--
H ort, U trec h t 1 986) Wh ite h as a com fortable game w i t h

e x ce l l e n t cen te r p l a y .
C1 2
( 1 d4, N f6 2 c4, g6 3 N c3 , d5 4 cd, N x d5 5 e4, N x c3 6 b x c3,
Ba7 7 B c4, c5 8 Ne2, Nc6 9 Be3, 0-0 10 0-0)
10 •.. Qc7
C h apter T hree: The Gruenfeld D e fense 89
The idea i s t o i n d i re c t l y t h re a t e n t he Bi shop on c4

a n d to p ressu re the d - p a w n w i t h .. Rd8. Wh i L e o n l y se cu res
.
a b a d game i f he accepts the pse u d o-sacri fice of 11 de,

NeS U Bb3, N g4.
1 1 Ret Rd8
Wh i te's 1 1 th m o v e also a n t i c i p ated t h e open i n g o f

the c - file. Bla ck h as o t he r re plies i n c l u d i n g (1) l l ...Bd 7 1 2
f4, e6 1 3 d e!, N a 5 1 4 Bb3, R fe8 1 5 Qd6! (So kolsky
Sh amkovlch, U SS R Corresp. and ( 2) 1 1 . .. b6 1 2 f4 (or 1 2 as
in ou r m a i n l i n e) 12 ... N a5 13 B d 3, f5 (to stop f5) 14 e f,
B x f5 1 5 B x f5, g x f5 1 6 de, R a d 8 1 7 cb, ab 18 Bd 4 (Spassky
Sch mldt, Lugaoo 1 968) . On l l N aS 12 Bd3, b6 13 Qdl and
.•.
14 B h 6 we h a ve a slight l y s up e r i o r pos i t ion com p a red w i t h

t h ose a n a l y zed i n t h e n otes a ft e r 7 c5.
..•
1 2 B f4!?
This i n teresti n g m ove w a s I n t e r n a t i on a l l y i n t ro

d u ce d in Korc h ooi- Steln, Moscow 1 97 1 . It a p p e a rs to be
over-provoca t i v e s i n ce Black w a n t s to play ... eS a n y w a y.
B u t 1 2 ...e5 13 BgS fa vors Wh i t e a fter 13 ... Rd6 14 BdS! o r
13 R e 8 14 d S , NaS 15 d 6 , Q d 7 16 BdS ( o r s i m p l y 14 Qd 5).
•••
And a ft e r 1 2 ... Qa5, the Q u een e x e rts less p ressu re i n

the center a n d a l lo w s Wh i t e a free b a n d a f ter 1 3 R b l !
.. .
1 2 ... Qd7
13 dS
A possible i m p ro v e m e n t is 13 Qb3, e.g. e6 (13 . . . e5 14

Bg5, Re8-- - 1 4... N a5 1 5 B x f?cb--- 1 5 B d 5, t emp o rarily s a c r i
ficing a p a w n . B a d i n t h i s l i n e w a s 1 5 de?, N a 5 w i L h a
B l a c k a d v a n t age. V a n Scheltinga- T immao, H ollaod O p e n
Champlooshlp 1970.) 1 4 de, N aS 15 Qb4 fol lowed by B d6.
13 ... NaS
A lso of i n te rest is 13 ... Ne5.

(See d i a g r a m o n fol l o w i n g page)
1 4 Bd3
The latest finesse is 14 Bb3!?, w h i c h w o u l d t rans

pose i n to t he next note a ft e r 1 4 c4 15 B el . I f B l a c k , i n
•••
stead p l a y s 1 4 ...b 5 , Wh i te can aim at t he queenside Black

w e a k nesses w i t h 15 Be3, e.g. 1S ...Qc7 1 6 c4!, b4 1 7 f4, N x b3
1 8 u : b3, aS 1 9 fS- - Re e - R ajna, Budapest 1977 o r 1 S ... Qd6 16
c4, N xb3 17 axb3, Rb8 1 8 N f4, B b 6 19 eS!, Q x e5 l O N x g6!-
Gorelov-Mikbal C bisbln, Minsk 1985.
1 4 ... b5
Anothe r possib i l i t y i s 1 4...c4 15 Bel, b6 .. w h e n 16

.
N d4, Bb7 1 7 Re1, e5 18 dxe6 is w e l l k n o w n to f avo r Wh i te,

b u t 16 ... Qg4!? i s u n e x pl o red.
Another i d e a a t move 1 5 i s 15 ... e6 ( i n stead o f

1 5 ... b6) s i n ce Wh i te can n o longe r rein force h is center w i t h
h i s c-pawn. I n general , t h i s st rategy l e a d s to e x ch anges
that favor Wh i te. For e x a mple, 16 d x e6, fxe6 17 BgS, R f8
1 8 f4, eS 1 9 fS! a n d the e n dgame a fter 1 9 ... Q x d 1 lO R c x d 1 ,
b 6 2 1 Be7!, R e 8 2 l B b 4 is st rong f o r Wh ite ( B alashov
Kengis, Minsk 1985).
R egard less of w h a t h e does at move 14, B l a c k m ust

be c a re f u l to avoid being o v e r r un in the cente r by c4!. Y e t
B l a c k cannot g o " too f a r " to l i q u i date t h e Wh i te ce n t e r:
14 ... e6 ( i n stead o f 1 4 ... b5 o r 1 4... c4) IS c4, bS?! 16 cxbS,
n d5 1 7 Q a4! o r 16 ...c4 17 B el, Qb5 1 8 B a4!, Qc5 19 Be3,
Ch apter T hree: T h e Gruenfeld D e fense 91
Qa3 2 0 Bd2! wi th a d v a n t age to Wh i te 1 n Portisch - G utman,

New York 1 984.
15 R b 1 a6
So far as in A dorian - Timman, Wij k aan Z e e 1 972,

w h i c h con t i n u ed 16 Q c l ( t h re aten i n g an u n p l e a s a n t 17
Qa3) e5 17 BK5, f6 18 Be3 w i t h good p rospects o f a t t a c k
a ft e r f4.
C2
( 1 d4, N f6 2 c4, g6 3 N c3 , d5 4 cd, N x d5 S e4, N x c3 6 b x c3 ,
B g 7 7 Bc4)
7 ... 0-0
..
B l a c k may a lso try to steal a tempo b y p l a y i n g

7 ...b 6 (instead o f 7 . . . 0-0) b u t a fter 8 e S (or 8 N e 2 fo llo w ed
b y Bg5 as above) 0-0 9 Q f3 , B a6! (Kane- Benko, U .S.
C h ampionship 1 973) 10 B x a6, N x a6 1 1 Ne2, cS 12 b4 o f f ers
c h a n ces.
Best i s 10 Bd5, c6 11 Bb3. This posi t i o n w as n o t

tested u n ti l two Y u s u po v - T i m mon games i n 1 986. I n t h e
fi rst B l a c k chose 1 1 . . . Q c7?!, b u t t h i s proved m u c h t o o s l o w :
12 h4!, c 5 13 h5!, c x d4 14 c x d4, gx hS? 15 R x h S , B b 7 1 6
Q d 3 a n d B l a c k c o u l d a l re a d y resign. H e i m p roved l a t e r
t h a t y e a r w i t h l l ...Q d 7 a ft e r w h i c h t h e c r u c i a l l i n e is 1 2
h4 a n d i f 1 2 c5, t h e n 1 3 Bd5, cxd4 1 4 B x a8, d x c3 w i t h
•••
som e c h a n ces for compensation. ( Note a l so that Wh i t e c an

reach th ese posi tions f r o m t h e alternate mo ve o r d e r o f 8
Q f3, 0-0 9 e5 r a t h e r t h a n 8 e5, 0-0 9 Q f3).
The independent v a l ue of 7 0-0 is t h a t B l a c k c an

••.
d e l a y c5 u nti l a ft e r h e h as p l a ye d b6, Bb7 a n d

•.. ... N c6-
.•. ...
a5. How is thi s d e velopment best accomplished a fter 8

N e2?
8 N e2 Qd7
Fi rst i t was thought that 8 ... b6 was su f fi c i en t, b u t

t h e n 9 h 4 ! was d iscove red. On 9 ... B a6 ( 9 . . B b 7 1 0 Q d 3 , Q d 7
.
1 1 h 5 does n oth i n g to stop the a t t a c k) 10 B x a6, N x a6 1 1

h5, c 5 1 2 hg, h g ( 1 2... f g 1 3 Qb3ch, R f7 1 4 R x h 7! f avors
White cleve r l y) 13 Qd3, Qc8 14 Qg3, cd 15 cd B l a c k h as no
easy de fense to the t h re a t of Q h 4 - b7 m ate. For e x a mple,
1 5 Qc2 16 Qh4, rs loses to 17 Qh7ch, K r7 1 8 B h6, Rg8 19
••.
e r, g f 2 0 Rh5 and 2 1 Rg5. O n 1 S N b4 16 Qh4, f6 o r r5

.•• ...
Whi te p roceeds w i t h 17 Qh7ch and 1 8 B h6.
The t ex t move, 8 Qd7 is a w a i t i n g mo ve p l a y e d by

•••
L a rsen so t h at if 9 0-0, b6 Wh ite h as g iv e n up the c h a n ce

o f b4-b5 to u se h i s R b l .
9 0-0 b6
I f Black plays 9 N c6 w e h a ve ye t a n o t h e r i d ea of
.•.
S i m agin's w h ich w o ul d n o r m a l l y be reached by 9 ... N c6 10

0-0, Qd7. For this w e recom m e n d K o p y lov's 10 B g5 w h i c h
is satis factory a fter 10 N a5 1 1 Bd3, b6 1 2 Q d 2 , c5
..•
( 1 2 ... R d8 13 Bh 6!, B h 8 14 R ad 1 , Bb7 15 Qg5! reposi t i o n s

Wh i te 's pieces f o r a s t rong attack w i t h e 5 as i n Fillp-Ko
rchnoi, Buch arest 1 954) 1 3 B h6, cd 1 4 B x g7, Kxg7 15 cd,
e6 16 Racl, a n d Qb2.
F i n a l l y, a ft e r 7 0·0 8 Ne2, N c6 K o p y lov's 9 Bg5 is

.••
a lso p l a y able. Then 9 Qd7 w ou l d t ran spose i n t o the above

•••
l i n e w h i le 9 b6 favors Whi te slight l y a ft e r 10 Qd2, Bb7 1 1

•..
0-0, N a5 1 2 Bd3, Qd7 1 3 B h6, R fd8 1 4 B x g7, K x g7 1 5 c4!

C b apter T bree: Tbe Gruenfeld D e fense 93
w h i le 9 N a5 10 Bb3, N x b3 1 1 a x b3 , b6 12 0-0, Bb7 1 3

••.
Qd3, Qd7 1 4 Rad 1, a 5 (Ovcb i n k i n - Dubinin, U S S R

Correspondence 1 959-60) a n d n o w 15 Ng3 i n te n d i n g e i t h e r
e 5 a n d N e 4 o r f4- f5 is a t r y for a d v a n t age.
CHAPTER FOU R
T H E N I M ZO- I N D IAN DEFENSE
1 d4 N f6
Z c4 e6
3 N c3 Bb4
We' ve al read y seen 3 d5 in A2, and w i l l see 3 c5

••. ...
i n C h a p t e r Eight. T he N i m zo-I n d i a n is a tough, solid de

fense which doesn't grant Wh i te t h e cen t r a l supe riori t y o f
t h e K i ng' s I n d i n a, b u t i s m o re flexible t h an t h e Queen's
Gambit.
4 Bg5
This position a l l y t r i c k y move, which leads i n to the

com p le x L e n i ngrad V a riation, i s u n d e rgoi n g a re v i v a l and
is a good we apon to m aste r. R a t h e r t h an attempt to ass i m
i l ate r e a m s o f 4 e3 a n a l ysis o r o f one o f t h e lesser- k n o w n
v a r i ation, Wh ite sh a rpens t h e s t r uggle.
4 ••• h6
By far the m ost popu l a r response. B l a c k m a y n eed

t o d ri ve the Bishop o f f with the p i n - b r e a k i n g gS.
...
C h apter Four: The N imzo- l n d i a n De rense 95
A m ong the alte r n a t i ves a re 4 d5, w h i c h t r a n sposes

.•.
i n t o th e Queen's G a m b i t D e c l i n e d , and the g u i e t 4 . . 0-0, .
w h i ch a l lows Wh ite to p roceed u n t roubled w i t h his m i d

dlegame p l a n . T h a t p l a n consists o f e3, B d 3 a n d Ne2 -g3 i n
o r d e r to a c t against t h e ligh t-colored s q u a res. Fo r e x a m p le,
4 0-0 S e3, d6 6 B d3 , B x c3+ (ot h e r w ise 7 N e 2 p r e v e n t s t h e
...
d o u b lin g o f t h e c - p a w ns) 7 b x c3, e S 8 Ne2, b 6 9 B x f6!?,

Q x f6 10 Ng3, c"6 1 1 0-0, dS 12 f4! w i t h a f i n e i n i t i a t i v e
d e ve loping i n Wh i te's b a n d s (Spassky - Kinnmark, G oteborg
1971).
Note t h at B l a c k o ften p l a y s 4 c5 5 d S , b6, t h e r e b y

.. .
t r ansposing i n t o o u r m a i n l i n e a ft e r 6 B b 4 . But t h e s a c ri

f i ce o f S ... N x dS? is u n sou n d (6 B x d8, N x c3 7 Qb3!, N e 4 c h ,
8 K d 1 , N x f2ch 9 K c 1!, K x d 8 1 0 Q f3!, N x h l 1 1 Q x f7 w i t h a
s t rong cou n te r a t t a c k).
S Bb4 cS
I f B l a c k does no t c h a l le n ge the c e nter at t h i s poi nt,

he m a y f i n d h i m se l f p assi v e l y placed. Note t h a t S ... dS
again h ea ds i n t o a Queen's G a m b i t D e c l i ned (6 e3, c5!? 7
d x c5, Qa5 8 B x f6!, gx f6 9 Qc2 w i t h m u c h bet t e r p a w ns).
T h e re is a lso a trap for Black to f a l l i n to---S ... d6? w h e n 6
Qa4cb!, N c6 7 dS! is too st rong (7 ... B x c3ch 8 b x c3, e x d 5 9
c x d 5, g5 10 d x c6, b5 1 1 Q xb5).
6 dS
The o n l y good move. B l a c k gets too much q u e e nside

p l a y a ft e r 6 e3, cx d4 7 e x d4, QaS! (8 Qc2, N e 4!) .
B y a d v a n c i n g to t h e fi f t h r a n k , Wh ite e s t a b l i s h e s a
pow e r f u l spat i a l a d v a n t age. A n d s i n ce B l a c k ' s 4th move
h as fu rther w e a k e n e d his ligh t-colored s q u a res, such as g6,
Wh i te h as a d i rect p l a n of Ne2 -g3, B d3 and Qc2. He does
.D..Ql need n o r even w a n t to occ u p y e4 with a pawn in t h i s
v a r i ation s i n ce t h a t squ a re shou ld be k e p t c lear fo r
K n ights a n d h i s K i ng Bi sh op.
We h a ve a p a rt i ng of t he w a ys:
0 1 6 ... d6
02 6 ... B x c3ch
03 6 ... e x d 5
01
(1 d4, N f6 l c4, e6 3 N c3 , B b4 4 BgS, h6 S Bh4, cS 6 dS)
6 ••• d6
Wi t h this move, B l a c k ensu res t h a t we w i l l keep

some kind of a b l oc k ad i n g wedge of pawns on t h e center
d a rk - colored squ a res. He c a n a f ford to keep t he position
c losed w i fh ...eS, ...g5 and l a te r Qe7, ...Nbd7 in this fash
•••
IOn.
H e cannot, howe ver, a f ford to p u rsue a t r a d i t ional

N i mzo-I n d i a n plan of using h i s que e n on t h e q u eenside be
ca use 6 Qa5 is met by 7 B x f6, gx f6 8 Qcl. N o r is 6 g5,
.•. ...
b re a k i n g t he pin a p p ropriate t h i s e a r l y in the s t r u ggle be

cause Wh i te can q u i c k l y establish h i s light-s q u a re b i n d , e.g.
7 Bg3, Ne4 8 Qc2, Q C6 9 R c l!, N x g3 10 h x g3 , d 6 11 e3,
B x c3ch 12 bxc3, e5 13 Bd3 a n d f3+ an d g4! w i l l ta ke a w a y
v a l u ab l e s q u a res f o r B l ac k .
7 e3
Chapter Four: The N lmzo- l n d i a n De fense 97
T h e re i s no reason to fear the d o ubli n g of Wh i te ' s

c-pawns (...B x c3ch) b y p l ay i n g 7 R e i because then 7 eS! ...
w i l l p rove t h e )\'b i te Rook i s m i sp l aced on cl. Wh i te also

a v o i d s 7 Q cl be ca u se i n some cases he w a n ts to b r i n g h i s
Queen t o f3.
7 ••• gS
T h is e x pansion i s B l a c k's l a test i d e a 1 n t he

L e n i ngrad V a ria ti o n . On 7... B x c3ch we w i l l t r an spose i n to
02 a n d on 7 ...e x d5, we w i l l reach 03.
T h e re i s som e t h i n g to be s a i d for t h e older 7 ... eS--

but o n l y if Wh ite f ai l s to play 8 N el! A fter t h a t i m po rtant
K ni g h t move, Wh i te d o m i n ates on the l ig ht- s q u a res, e.g.
8 ... B f5 9 a3, B x c3 c: h 10 N xc: 3 , Nbd7 11 e4, Bh7 1 2 Bd3, gS
1 3 Bg3 (Baglrov-Csom, B aj a 197 1 ) o r 8 ... N bd7 9 a3, B aS!?
1 0 Qcl, 0-0 11 Rb1! and 12 b4.
B l a c k can also d e l a y a decision i n the center w i t h

7 ... Q e 7 i n order to m e e t 8 N el w i t h 8 .. e x dS w i t h cou n ter
.
p l a y . But 8 B d3, B x c3ch 9 b x c:3, N bd7 10 N f3, eS 11 N dl ,

N f8 12 B x f6! followed b y Qcl, f 4 an d Ne4 m u st b e a t least
sligh t l y better for Wh i t e (Timmon-Romonlsb ln, Tilburg
1 985).
8 Bg3 Ne4
9 Qc:l Q f6
M a x i m i z i n g p re s u re on c3.
10 R c l e x dS
Again 10 ... B x c:3 c: h 1 1 b x c3, N x g3 1 2 h x g3 g i v e s

Wh ite a fine game desp i te h i s ug l y p a w n s t r u c t u re.
1 1 cxdS B fS
1 2 B d3 Qg6
Now i n H ort-de Firmian, Wij k ann Zee 1 986, Wh �te

played 13 K e .2 ! , p rotecting d3 and obt a i n i ng a f i n e game
a fter 13 ... B :u:3 1 4 B x e4, Bxe4 1 5 Q x c3 s in ce 1 5 0-0 allows
...
16 h4! w i t h k i n gside attack.
02
( 1 d4, N f6 .2 c4, e6 3 N c3 , Bb4 4 Bg5, h6 5 B h4, c5 6 d5)
6 •.. B :u:3 c h
This i mmed iat e l y establishes t he l o c k e d p a w n struc

t u re that White m us t c h a l le n ge. If t he posi tion rema10s
c losed, Whi te's p a w n w e a k ness c a n p rove decisive.
7 b:s:c3 d6
This appears to be m ost accu rate. On 7 e5 Wh i te ...
can tran spose q u ie t l y i n t o o u r m a i n l i n e w i t h 8 e3, d6.

N o w a d a y s Black o f ten a voids 7 e5 because of 8 d6!?, a
...
gambit i dea t h at h a s n e v e r been re futed (8 ... N c6 9 e3, g5

10 Bg3, N e4 1 1 Bxe5!?, N xe5 12 Q d 5).
8 e3 eS
Black p repares to fight for control of t h e cen ter (9

Bd3, e4! or 9 N f3, B f5!).
9 r3
C h apter Four: T h e N imzo- l ndian Defe nse 99
Al though t h e re are se v e r a l reaso n a b l e p l a n s f o r

Wh i te, t h i s, one, w h i ch p r e p a res B d3 a n d N e 2 w h i le k e e p i n g
Bl a c k pa wns a nd k n i ghts o f f e4, i s scor i n g m ost h e a v i l y
today.
9 ... Nbd7
H e re 9 B fS can be m e t b y 10 Bd3!, B x d3 11 Q x d3
••.
a ft e r w h i c h Bla ck m a y face an u n pleasant Ne2-g3 - fS. N ot e

also t h a t 9 gS 10 Bg3, e4 can be met e f fec t i v e l y b y 1 1 f4!
.••
followed b y Be2 a n d N h3! A recent e x a m ple o f t h i s s u per

sharp l i n e w e n t l l . . Qe7 U Be2, Rg8! 13 N b3 , B x h3 ( n o t
.
1 3 ... g4? 1 4 N f2 a n d 1 5 B h 4!) 14 g x h 3 , gx f4 15 B x f4, N b d 7

16 Qa4, N bS! 17 B x bS, Q b 4 c h 18 Bg3, Q x hS (Eisterer
Farago, VIenna 1 986).
1 0 B d3 gS
This pin has to be b ro k e n e v e n t u a l l y . A ft e r 10 Qe7 •..
1 1 Qcl, Kd8!? 12 N el , g5 I3 Bg3, Kc7 I4 h4! we re a c h a

t y p ic al m i d dlegame posi t i on o f the L e n i n g rad V a ri a t i o n ,
Wh ite h a s h i s k i ngside p l a y a ft e r IS h x g5 w h i le B l a c k r e
m a i ns fairly sol i d . Play m ight con t i n u e 14 Rg8 I S h x gS ,
••.
h x g5 I6 R b 6!, Q f8 I7 R h 2 , N b6 18 a4, Bd7 1 9 a S ! , N c8 2 0

Kdl, Rh8 2 1 R a h 1 (Timmon-Andersson, Tilburg 1977).
II Bg3 Qe7
U N e2 e4
This b i d for space is B l a c k ' s c h i e f c e n t e r c ou n t e r

p l a y . Now I3 B x e4, N x e4 I4 fx e4 leads to a d a n ge rous i n i
t i a t i v e for Wh ite a ft e r I 4 N e5 I5 0-0, 0-0 I 6 B xe5!, Q x e 5
•.•
1 7 Ng3 e.g. I 7 ... Q x c3 I8 Rei, Qe5 I9 Qh5, Qg7 20 Q f3 a �

i n Tlmmon- Kudrin, Wlj k aan Zee I985.
Bette r is I 4 ... N f6! in order to occ u p y e4 w i t h t h e

K night. Then I S e5!, dxe5 (Timmon- Hulak, Z agreb/ R ij e k a
1 985) l e a d s to com p l e x p l a y i n w h i ch B l a c k ' s K i n g s i d e
w e a k n esses com m a n d atte n t i on .
03
(1 d4, N f6 .2 c4, e6 3 N c3, Bb4 4 Bg5, h6 5 B h4, c5 6 d5)
6 ..• nd5
We should also mention t h e gam b i t i d e a o f 6 b5 .•.
w i t h the i d e a o f 7 d x e6, h e6 8 cxb5, d5 g ivin g B l a c k a

n i c e cen ter. A good w a y o f respon d i n g to t h i s p a w n o f fe r
i s 7e3! w h i ch e n ables Whi te to support h i s center w i t h Q f3
i n some i nstances, e.g. 7 0-0 8 QCJ, g5 9 Bg3 , ex d5 10 Be5!,
•••
Ne4 11 u : d5 or 8 Bb7 9 B : d6, Qd6 10 Qd6, g: d6 11 0-0-

•••
0, B x c3 1.2 bx c3 and Black's pawn weak nesses a re m o re ex

ploitable (Timman- Yusupov, Match 1986).
7 u: d5
The e x ch a nge of center p a w n s t a kes some of the po

si tional power a w a y from B x c3ch, b u t it gi ves B l a c k
.•.
s o m e resou rces on t h e e- file.
7•.• d6
8 e3 N bd7
There i s little to be gained from 8 .•.g5 w i t h an elas

tic enter. A fter 9 Bg3, h5 10 C3 B l a c k h as l i ttle to s ho w for
his K i ngside w e a k ness. A n d the p roblem w i th se i z i n g t h e
l ight-sq u a red d i agona l w i t h 8 B r5 is 9..• Bb5ch!, Nbd7 1 0
N el a n d 1 1 N g3 (e.g. 1 0 .. a 6 1 1 N g3!, Bg6
. 12 Bxd7ch, Qxd7
Chapter Four: T h e N imzo- I odiao De fense 101
1 3 B x f6, gx f6 w i t h w e a k p a w n s for B l a c k a s 1 n Spassky

Dobrlch, Canada 1971).
9 B d3
Whi t e can ignore t he attack on h i s d - p a w n f r o m

9 Qa5 since 10 N el , N x dS 11 0-0, N x c3 l l b x c3, B x c3 1 3
•••
N x c3 , Q x c3 1 4 B e l e x poses m aj o r w e a k ne sses (d6 a m o n g

them) to be e x ploited b y Wh i te's Bishops a n d s u p e r i o r d e
velopment.
9... 0-0
1 0 N el NeS
II 0·0
Among B l a c k ' s p roblems i s the m i splace m e n t of h is

Bishop on b4. (It belongs on g7!) T h i s e x pl a i n s h i s n e x t
move. N o bette r i s l l . . N x d3 ll Q x d3, B d 7 13 N e4 o r
.
l i N 16 l l 813, NbS 13 f4!

...
l l .. B x c3
.
1l N x c3 N16
B re a k i n g t he p i n i s a m aj o r concern, m a tched o n l y
b y t h e d i f fi c u l t y B l a c k h a s i n f i n d i n g a n a c t i v e s q u a re for
his remai n i ng B ishop.
13 813 Qe7
14 e4
Now Wh i t e is ready to ad v a n ce in the c enter. On

1 4...N14 15 h3, N 4e5 16 f4!, N x d3 17 Q x d3 t he i n e v i t a b l e
a d v a n ce o f the e-p awn assu res Wh ite a g r e a t g ame ( 1 7 f 5 ...
1 8 e 5 ! , d xe5 19 d 6 o r 1 7. . .B d 7 18 Rae 1 , b5 19 e5 as i n
U moasky - S h ldyaev, U . S.S.R. 1979).
CHAPTER FIVE
T H E D UTCH D EFENSE
For o u r p u rposes, t h e re i s n o d i f fe rence between

the D u tch De ferred (1 d4, e6 2 c4, f5) a n d the D i rect
D u tch (1 d4, f5). We will also consi d e r K e res' 1 d4, e6 2 c4,
Bb4ch system in this c h apter.
1 d4 rs
2 g3
1 & .1.;@0···
J� t � t * � �
� � �� 1
..
"� � � t �
� � �2 �·
�
�&:�l�,��;t
T h i s order o f moves av o i d s Bb4ch
••. 10 some l i n es.
(See Adden d u m at the e n d o f the c h apter )
2... N f6
3 Bg2
N ow Bla ck has th ree basic opti ons:
E 1 3 ... e6 N o r m a l D u tch
E2 3 g6 Leni n g rad Sy stem or D u tc h I n d i a n
...
E3 3 d6 Hort-Antos h i n S ystem
...
C h apter Five: T h e Dutch De fense 103
E1
N ormal Dutch
( 1 d4, r5 2 13, N r6 3 Bg2)
3 ... e6
4 N h3!?
The poi nt of t h i s de velopment, a t t r i b u ted t o J o h n

H e n r y B l a c k b u rne, i s t o b e a r d o w n o n e 6 a n d d 5 w i t h a
K n i g h t at the r4 v a n t age point.
4 ••• Be7
The K n i g h t i s very use f ul ag a i n s t the S t o n e w all

form a tion: 4 d5 5 0-0,
••• Be7 6 c4, 0-0 7 N c3 , c6 8 cd, ed 9
N r4, Kh8 10 N d3 , Ne4 1 1 r3 , N x c3 12 b x c3, N d7 13 Q c 2 ,
Nb6 1 4 B r4, N c4 15 e 4 ! ( T a i m an o v).
Out of ch a r a c t e r i n t h e D u t c h i s 4 c5 . Wh i t e e n j o y s
•.•
a n edge w i t h t h e s i m p le 5 d e , B x cS ( 5. . . N a6 6 0 - 0 , N xc5 7
c4, Be7 8 N c 3 i s s l i g h t l y bette r for Wh i t e) 6 0 - 0 , dS 7 c 4 ,
d 4 (7 0 - 0 8 cd, N x d 5 9 N f4!) 8 b4!, Be7 9 Bb2, 0-0 1 0 c S
...
(Steinitz-Aibln, 1894).
s 0-0 0-0
6 c4 d6
Again B l a c k has a di f fi c u l t time a f ter 6 ... dS 7 N cJ,

c6 8 cd, ed 9 N l4.
7 N cJ Qe8
B l a c k h as p roblems because the n a t u r a l 7 .. e S is a .
bad e n d i ng: 8 de, de 9 Q x d8, B x d8 (9 . R x d8 1 0 N d 5) 10 bJ,

..
c6 1 1 B aJ or K e res' suggestion of 10 e4.
F u rthe rmore if B l a c k secu res d S w i t h 7 .. c6 .
( i n te n d i n g 8 ... e5) Wh ite opens u p w i t h 8 e4!, e.g., 8 ... eS 9 de,

de 10 Qe2, Qc7 1 1 14, le 12 N x e4, N xe4 1 3 B x e4!, h6
( 1 3 ... B x h 3 1 4 Qh5) 14 Kg2 , N d7 15 Bel (Koch·Enlg k, Match
196 1 ) .
8 N l4
Now 8 ... gS 9 N d3, Qg6 as suggested by K e res m ust

be better for Wh i te a fter 10 14, g4 11 dS!. How e lse does
B l a c k con t i n u e si n ce 8 ... N bd7 h a n gs the e - p a w n . On 8 ... B d 8
9 e 4 , eS 10 d e , de (Leve n flsh- Ryumin, Leningrad 1984) 1 1
N ldS is very good for Wh i te . A n d on other ideas o ften em
ployed b y B lack i n the D u tch, 8 . . aS or 8 ... N a6, Wh i t e sim
.
p l y con tinues 9 e4 with fine p rospects.

C h apter Five: The Dutch De fense l OS
E2
Leningrad System
u d4, rs .2 g3, N r6 3 Bgl>
3 ... g6
4 N r3
Wi th ou t e6, Wh i te's m an e u v e r o f a K n i g h t to r4 i s
.••
less e f fective. I nstead, w e s h a l l e x a m i n e a Q u e e n s i d e f i

a n c h etto b y Wh i te to cou n t e r B l a c k's Bishop d e velop m e n t .
4 ••• Bg7
5 b3 d6
B l a c k m a y try to e x p l o i t the i m m e d i ate hol e o n c3

w i t h 5 Ne4, b u t w i th 6 Bbl, d6 7 Nbdl, N c6 8 e3! Wh i t e
••.
h as a slight e d ge. B l a c k m a y a lso t r y t o i m m e d i a t e l y w o r k

o n t h e long d i agon a l w i t h 5 N e4 6 Bb2, c5, b u t 7 0-0, N c6
••.
8 e3, 0-0 9 Qe2 followed b y c4 i s good for Wh i te.
6 B bl 0-0
H e re again 6 ... Ne4 is i n e x a c t: 7 Nbd2, Nc6 8 e3,

N x d2 9 Q x d2 , Qd7 (9 . e5 10 de, d e 1 1 Q x d 8 c h , and 1 2 0 - Ll -
. .
Och) 10 0-0-0, e 5 1 1 d e , de 1 2 Ng5!
7 0-0
And h e re B l a c k must c h oose a m i d d legame p l a n :
E 2 1 7 .c 6
..
E22 7 . N c6
. .
E23 7 Qe8
...
E21
(1 d4, f5 2 g3, N f6 3 Bgl, g6 4 N f3, Bg7 5 b3, d6 6 Bbl, 0-
0 7 0-0)
7 ••• c6
8 c4 b6
9 N c3 g5
10 Qcl Kb8
1 1 Rae1 Qe8
1 2 d5
A nd Kbolmov- K i avin, 1949 led to a boo m e r a n g at

t a c k w h i c h c u t d o w n Black a fter U f4? 13 g f, Qb5 1 4 fg,
•..
bg 15 Ne4. See also E23 for a d i f fe re n t u se o f the Qe8

...
i d e a by B l a c k .
C h apter Five: T h e Dutch D e fense lUI
E22
( 1 d4, fS .2 g3, N f6 3 Bg.2, g6 4 N f3, Bg7 5 b3, d6 6 Bb2, 0-
0 7 0-0)
7 ... N c6
A fter 7 ... a5 8 a3, c6 9 Nbd2, Na6 10 e3, B d7 1 1 Qe2,

Qc7 1.2 e4, fe 13 N x e4, Rae8 14 Rae 1 Wh i t e has a n e d g e on
the K i ng file a n d in the center ( Bolboc h an- G arcia, Mar del
Plata 1966).
I n te rest i n g is 7 ... Ne4, t h e n 8 Q c 1 , e6 9 c4, Qe8 10

N c3, N x c3 1 1 B x c3, N d7 w i t h e q u a l p l a y for B l a c k
(G arcia- Petersen, Olympiade 1968) . T h e re i s m o re s e n se i n
the simple 8 Nbd.2, N c6 9 e3.
8 dS
Stopping the plan of 8 ... e5 9 de, N g4.
8... N aS
9 N fd.2 cS
10 a4 Bd7
1 1 c3 ReS?
l l . . Ne8!
.
1.2 b4 cb
13 cb Nc4
108 Win ning With 1 d4
1 4 N x c4 R x c4
1 S Qb3
Wi t h a d v a n t age for Wh i t e , Larsen- Reyes, 1 968. I n

stead o f La rsen's t y p i c a l l y a m b i tious p l a y , Wh i t e c a n con
t i n u e more n a t u r a l l y w i t h 9 c4, cS 1 0 N c3, B d 7 (10 ... Ne4 1 1
Q c2) 1 1 NgS! i n te n d i n g Ne6 o r e4.
E23
( 1 d4, fS 2 g3, N f6 3 B g2 , g6 4 N f3, Bg7 S b3, d6 6 Bb2, 0-
0 7 0-0)
7 ••. Qe8
It m a kes sense for B l a c k to p re p a r e the ad va n ce o f

h i s e - p a w n w i t h t h i s move. The Queen a l so w a t c h es q u e e n
side sq u a res su c h as bS a n d c 6 , a n d t h e re fore i s better p re
p a red for 8 dS, c6 9 c4, N a6 fol lowed by B d7,
.•• Nc7,
•.•
•..Rb8 a n d l atter . bS!?

. .
8 c4 N bS
B l a c k i s not re a d y for 8 Nbd7 9 N c3, eS beca use o f

...
1 0 d:uS, d:uS 1 1 N bS! h it t i n g c 7 a n d eS.
9 N c3 14
T h i s opens B l a c k ' s c8-h3 d i agon a l .

C h apter Five: T h e Dutch D e rense 109
1 0 Qdl c6
1 1 dS!
Wh ite c a n n o w e x c h a n ge off B i s h ops w i t h N e 4 o r

Na4 a n d p re p a re for a m ajor p a w n - b re a k w i t h c 4 - c5 I n
.
Romanis hln-M. G urevich, U S SR 1987, Wh i te's a d v a n t age

grew ste a d i l y a fter l l ... N a6 1l N a4, cS 13 B x g7, K x g7 14
e4!, h6 15 eS! and 1 6 R ae l.
110 Wlooiog Wit h I d4
E3
T H E H O R T - A N TO S H I N S Y STEM
u d4, rs 2 13, N r6 3 Bg2)
3 •.. d6
4 c4 c6
5 N c3 Qc7
B l a c k ' s m ain i d e a i n t his v a ri at i on i n volves ... c6

and ... Qc7 i n orde r to e f fe c t ..e5.
.
6 N f3 e5
7 0-0 e4
7 ... Be6 8 d5, Bd7 9 e4 or 7 ... Be7 8 de, de 9 e4! fa

vors the bette r developed first p l a yer.
8 Nel Be7
9 f3 ef
1 0 e f! 0-0
1 1 N d3 B e6
12 b3 N a6
A nd t he game U dovcic-A ntosc hin, U SS R - Yugoslavia

Match 1964, con t i n ue d 1 3 R e i , B r7 1 4 B h3, g6 I S N f4 fol
lowed b y dS with a g re a t game.
C h apter Five: T h e Dutch De fense Ill
AD D EN D U M
B l a c k m a y a v o i d some o f t h ese l i n es i f t h e fi rst t w o

m oves a re 1 d4, e 6 2 c4, f5. F o r t h i s re ason, w e s uggest
t h a t i f the re a d e r d oesn' t w a n t t o p l a y a gains t t h e F re n c h
De fe n se ( 1 d 4 , e 6 2 e4, d5), h e shou l d l e a r n h o w t o p l a y
agai n st 1 d4, e 6 2 c4, Bb4ch a n d 1 d4, e 6 2 c4, f 5 3 g3, N f6
4 Bg2, Bb4ch.
Agai nst t h e l a t t e r , the s i m plest line i s 5 N d2 , 0-0 6
N f3, d6 (6 ... d 5 l e a d i ng to t h e Sto n e w a l l g i v e s Wh i t e a n e x
t r a tempo for Queensi d e a t t a c k a ft e r 7 0-0, c 6 8 a 3 . T h e n
8 ...B e 7 9 b4, N e 4 1 0 N e 5 , N d 7 1 1 N d f3 a s i n B o b o t s o v
Tsch aprasov, Bulgaria 1 958) 7 0-0, B x d2 (to a v o i d 8 N b 3

e m b a r r assi ng the B l a c k B i s hop) 8 Qxd2!, Qe7 9 b 4 , e5 1 0
de, d e 1 1 Bb2, e 4 1 2 N d 4 (Furman- Antoshin, U S S R C h a m
pionship 1 955).
A ft e r 1 d4, e6 2 c4, Bb4ch Wh ite can s w i t c h syste m s
a n d p la y 3 N c3, f5 ( 3 ... N f 6 i s t h e N i m zo- l n d i a n) 4 Q c 2 ,
N f6 5 e3, 0 - 0 6 B d3 . Now 6 ... d 6 7 Nge2, c5 8 a3, B x c3 c h
(8 ...Ba5 9 d 5!) 9 N x c3, N c6 1 0 de!, de 11 b3 a n d Bb2 i s an
e x ce l l e n t m i d d legame for Wh i t e w h o w i l l con t rol the d - f i l e .
On 6. . .b 6 , Wh i te a l s o d oes well. 7 f3, Bb7 8 N ge2, c5
9 B d2, N c6 10 a3, B aS 1 1 0-0, Rc8 12 d5, N e5 13 e 4
( T a i m a nov).
A n o t h e r ve rsion of ... Bb4ch is this d e l a y e d form: 1
d4, e6 2 c4, f5 3 g3, N f6 4 Bg2, Be7 a n d n o w 5 N h3,
B b4ch. A good pol i c y for Wh i t e i s 6 Nd2 a n d if 6 . N c6 . .
then 7 d5!? w i t h act � n i n t h e c e n t e r. For e x am p l e , 7 . N e 5

..
8 Qc2, 0-0 9 0 -0, c5 10 dx e6, dxe6 1 1 Nb3 as i n M. G ure

vich- Karlsson, Keres Memorial, 1987.
1 12 Wiooiog With I d4
CHAPTER SIX
T H E B U DAPEST D EFENSE
I d4 N f6
2 c4 eS?!
T he B u d apest i s a m u ch-m a l igned t r y , w h i c h fi rst

g a i n e d notice w h e n V i d mor d e feated R u b i nstei n (Be r l i n
1 9 18) a fter 3 d e , N g4 4 B f4, N c6 S N f3, Bb4ch 6 N c3,
B x c3cb 7 b x c3, Qe7 8 QdS, Qa3 9 R e i , f6 1 0 e f, N x f6 I I
Qd2, d6 12 N d4, 0-0 13 e3?, N x d4! 1 4 cx d4, Ne4 I S Qc2,
QaSch 16 Ke2, Rd4! 1 7 e x f4, B fS and m a t e d in se ven.
3 de N g4
The F aj a ro w i cz V a ri ation (3 .. Ne4) i s not t a k en se

.
riously a n ym o re because of 4 a3! Wh i te is both m a t e r i a l l y

a n d posi t i o n a l l y a h e a d a ft e r 4 N c6 S N f3, d6 6 Qc2, B fS 7
.••
N c3, N x f2 8 Q x fS, N x h l 9 e6, fe 1 0 Q x e6ch, Qe7 I I QdS,

f
h6 l g3 followed b y w i n n i n g the K n ight ( Reshevsky - B is
guler Rosenwal Tournament, New York 1 955) t h e v a r i a t ion
b as ly s u r p ri se v a l u e to aid i t.
_ _ . 4 N f3
C h apter Six: The Budapest De fense 1 13
T h i s i s the s i m plest met hod o f g a rn e n n g an e d ge .

Wh i te i s con tent to d e velop w i t h e 3 , B e l a n d t h e
fianchetto o f h i s QB. H i s cont rol o f t h e Q ueen file a n d d5
is a m aj or fea t u re of h i s a d v a n tage.
4 ... B c5
Bla ck n a t u r a l l y w a n ts to block 1 n Wh i te ' s QB. O n

4 N c6 5 N c3 B l a c k h as D O b e t t e r t h a n s B c S o r 5 N g x e 5
••• . . . .•.
t r ansposing because 5 Bb4 c re ates p roblems a ft e r 6 B g5 ! .

•••
I n fact, Wh ite need n o t t ry to t r anspose w i t h 5 Nc3, b u t

c a n p u n ish B l ack's i n e x a c t 4t h m o v e w i t h 5 B gS! (5 ...B e 7 6
B xe7, Q x e 7 7 N c3 a n d 8 N d 5 w i t h a n i ce s p a t i a l a d v a n
tage--- Polugayevsky - N u n n , B l e l 1 986.
S e3 N c6
6 Bel
A m o re a m b i tious p rogram is 6 a3, aS (7 b4 m u st be

stopped) 7 b3, NgxeS 8 Bbl and Qcl so that o n .. N x f3ch .
Whi t e recaptu res with t h e pawn and a t t a c k s on t h e open g

file. Best for B l a c k i s 8 d6 a n d n o w 9 Bel.
..•
6... NgxeS
Bla ck usually cap tu res !W i t h this K n i g h t on e5, but

6 N c x e S or 6 0-0 7 0-0, N c x eS a re l i k e l y to t r a nspose, e.g.
••• •••
6 0-0 7 N c3, Re8!? 8 b3, N cxeS 9 N x eS, N x eS 10 B b2 a n d

•••
the o n l y sign i f i c a n t d i f fe rence i n t h i s o r d e r o f m o v e s i s

t h a t Wh i te h a s retained some choice o f w h e re to p u t h i s
K i ng ( 1 0 ... R e 6 1 1 Q d 2, Qg5 1 2 0-0-0!, Q x g 2 13 N d 5 , O x f 2
1 4 b4!, c 6 1 5 b x c5, c x d 5 1 6 c x d 5 , R e 8 1 7 R d f l a n d B l a c k ' s
K i n gs i d e demonst r a t i o n h as failed m i se r a b l y - - - B anas·
Kouatly, Trnava 1 986).
7 0-0 0-0
8 N x e5
1 14 Winning With 1 d4
S i n ce B l a c k can a l m ost a l w a ys t rans pose w i th

... N x r3cb a nd NeS. T h i s doesn ' t c h an ge m atte rs much e x
.•.
c e p t to re d u ce B l a c k ' s options a n d s i m p l i fy p l a y . I s a y al

m o st a l w a ys because o f cases l i k e Slgurj annson- Segal, Ybbs
1 968: 8 N c3, d6 9 b3, a6?! 1 0 Bb2, N x f3cb 1 1 B x f3, NeS 1 2
Ne4!, B a7 13 QdS! as B l a c k d i scovere d a fter 13 ... R e 8 1 4
R fd 1, Qe7 1 5 cS!, N x f3 c b 1 6 g x f3, de 1 7 K b 1! w i t h a n at
t ac k on the g- file.
8 ... N xeS
9 N c3 d6
A nd now Wh ite b as the choice between the i m m e d i

a t e 1 0 b 3 ( 10 ... B f5 1 1 B b 2 , a6 1 2 Q d 2 , Re 8 1 3 R a d 1 , Q h 5 1 4
N d 5, R ac8 1 5 Bd 4! Tukmakov- Segal, H arracbov 1 967) o r
t h e w i n o f t h e t w o B i s hops w i t h 10 N a4 ( 1 0 ... 8 b 6 1 1 b3,
fS? 12 QdScb, N f7 13 B b2, Alekblne-Beatende, B udapest
1927).
In either case, Wh ite's simple play l e a ves h i m w i t h a

stru c t u r a l l y superior p a w n s k e leton w h i c h lead s t o bette r
p i e ce p l a y from e a r l y m i d d legame to endgame. M o re e n ter
p rising for Bla c k is 9 Re8!? w i t h the i d e a o f k e e p i n g the
•..
t h i r d ra n k clear o f p a w n s so t h at B l a c k can s ubse q u e n t l y

b r i n g h i s O R i n to action v i a a 6 . S e v e r a l recent g a m e s h a ve
seen 9 ... Re8 10 b3, aS 1 1 Bb2, Ra6!? and now 1 2 QdS p re
p a res t o s h u t out B l a c k ' s pi eces ( 1 2. . .B a 7 1 3 c5!, R h6 1 4 Ne4
o r 1 2 ... Qe7 1 3 Ne4, B a 7 1 4 c5!, Rg6 1 5 R a c 1 - - - A k esso n ·
Tagnon, Berlin 1984). Another o r d e r f o r Wh i te i s 1 2 Ne4,
Ba7 13 QdS a n d then 13 R ae6 14 cS (b u t not 1 4 N c5?,
.•.
R d6! 1 5 N x b7, R x d 5 1 6 N xd8, Rd2 1 7 B x e 5 , R e 5 1 8 B f3, c6

and B l a c k is better o r 1 4 Q x a5?!, Bb6 1 5 Q c 3, Qh4 16 f4,
Rh6 1 7 h3, d 5 1 8 f xe5!, B x h 3 --- V a i nerman - Legk y , U.S.S.R.
1 980).
C h apter Seven: A lbin CounterG amblt 1 15
CHAPTER SEVEN
ALB I N CO U NTERGA M B I T
l d4 dS
2 c4 eS
I ,& Ait�A A I
• t J; ; t ;i i
··· t t
ft ft
T h e A l bjn i s t r u l y a se p a r a t e o p e n i n g a p a r t f rom
the Q u e e n ' s G a m b i t D e c l i n e d . Wh e n i t s u c ce e d s, il s e r v e s
t h e d u a l f u n c t i o n o f f r ee i n g B l a c k ' s g a m e w h i l e f r u s t r a t
i n g Wh i t e ' s d e v e l o p m e n t . B u t i t s h o u l d n ' t s u c c e e d .
3 de d4
T h e 3 . . . dc 4 Q x d8 c h , Kxd8 e n d g a m e 1 s n o l m u c h
f u n: S N f3, Bb4ch 6 B d 2 , N c6 7 e3, B g4 8 B x b4, N x b4 9
N a3 ( Fio hr·Cholmov, U S S R C h ampionsh i p 1949) f o r e x a m
ple.
4 N f3 N c6
B l a c k w o u l d l i k e to f o r t i f y h i s ce n t e r, b u t 4 ... c5 S
e3, N c6 6 ed, cd 7 B d3 h a s a l l o w e d Wh i t e to a d v a n c e h i s e
p a w n a n d p r e p a re f o r t h e c o m p l e t i on o f h i s d e v e lo p m e n t
u n impeded.
1 16 Winning Witb 1 d4
s g3!
More e x a ct t h a n S Nbd2. Wh i te m a y p l a y a3 and b4

w i t h ou t m o v i n g h i s Q N .
s ... B g4
On S ... B fS Wh i te should con t i n u e w i t h 6 B g 2 , Qd7 7

0-0, 0-0-0 8 Qb3 as i n t he m a i n l i n e since 8 ... B b3 is s t i l l
b a d . A lso o n S ... Q e 7 6 B g 2 , N xeS 7 N x d4, N x c4?? 8 Qa4cb
o r S ... Bb4cb 6 Nbd2, Qe7 7 Bg2, N xeS 8 0-0! Wh i te s tan d s
well.
We can also d i spose of the a t tempt to reg a i n the

sacri ficed p a w n w i t h 5 ... N ge7 6 Bg2 , N g6 w i th 7 BgS! s i n ce
7 ... Be7 8 B x e7, Qxe7 9 N x d4 lea ves Wh ite at least one
pawn ahead and 7... Qd7 8 0-0, NgxeS 9 N bd2 c reates d e
velopmental p roblems for t he s e c o n d p l a y e r (9 f6 10 B f4,...
g5 1 1 Ne4! or 9 .. . Be7 10 B x e7, Q x e 7 1 1 N b3, N x c4 1 2

N f x d 4, N6e5 1 3 Qc1!---Smlt- Bulogb, Correspondent).
The ch ie f a l te r n a t i ve to S ... Bg4 i s S ... Be6, a t t a c k i n g

the c - p a w n . T h e n 6 N b d 2 , Qd7 7 B g2 l e a d s to p l a y s i m i l a r
t o o u r m a i n l i n es, e.g. 7 . .0·0·0 8 0-0, bS 9 Qa4!, Kb8?! 1 0
.
N gS!, B g 4 ( Bla c k m ust p rese r v e t h i s Bishop i f h e h as a n y

attac k i n g d rea ms) 1 1 QbS! a n d s i n ce l l ... N ge7 allows 1 2
N x f7, Wh i te forces a f a vorable e x c hange o f p i e ces o n c6--
Erikssoa-Wessman, Malmo 1 986.
6 Bg2 Qd7
7 0-0
Now there a re:
G 1 7 ...B h 3
G2 7 . 0-0-0
. .
C h apter Seveo: A lbia CouoterGambit 1 17
G1
( 1 d4, d5 2 c4, e5 3 de, d4 4 N f3, N c6 5 g3!, Bg4 6 B g2 ,
Qd7 7 0-0)
7 ... B h3
The m ost log i c a l . Also o f i n te rest is t h e s h a r p 7 ... h 5

8 a 3 , h 4 9 B f4, hg 1 0 B x g3, Nge7 1 1 b 4 w h i c h leaves Wh i t e
w i t h the better att a c k i n g game, e.g., 1 1 ... N f5 12 N b d 2 ,
N x g3 13 h: g3 (Sakolsky - Si m agin, U S S R C h ampioosbip
1953).
8 e6!
A sh a rp, forci ng m ove (8 Q xe6? 9 N g5!) t h a t w i ns

...
t i m e for Wh i te's com i n g a t t a c k on d4 a n d dS.
8... B x e6
9 Qa4 0-0-0
10 Rd1
Wh i te h as t a c t i c a l t h reats against a7 a n d d 4 no w
a n d a l so the idea o f occ u p y i n g d5: 10 ... a6 11 N c3!, N f6 12
B g5, Be7 13 B x l6, B x f6 14 Nd5 a n d now 1 4 ... B x d5 I S cxdS,
Q x d5 16 N x d4, Qa5 loses to 1 7 N x c6!, Q x a4 1 8 B h3 c h! so
14 ... N e5 15 Q x d7 c h , R x d7 16 N x d4, N x c4 17 N x f6 is l i k e l y .
Wh i t e i s c le a r l y bette r ( D z h i o d z h i kashvili-Maoievich, I srael
1978.
1 18 Winning Wit h I d4
G2
( I d4, d5 2 c4, e5 3 de, d4 4 N f3, N c6 5 g3!, Bg4 6 B g2,
Qd7 7 0-0)
7 ••• 0-0-0
Also a ft e r 7 ... N ge7 8 b4!, N x b4 9 e6!, B x e6 1 0 Ne5

fol lowed b y Qa4cb Wh i t e ha s a ferocious a t t a c k as i n To
lusc b - H orne, H astings 1 953-4.
8 Qb3! B b3?
Better i s 8 . Nge7, b u t t h e n 9 R d l th re a t e n s t h e d
..
p a w n ( 1 0 N x d4, N xd4? 1 1 Q x b 7 m a te) a n d 9 ... B x r3 1 0

Qx f3, Ng6 1 1 Qb5 w i t h 12 B b3 a n d B f4 i n m i n d i s o b v i
o u s l y u n pleasant f o r B l a c k ( Korcbnoi- Vein ger, Beersbeva
1 978).
9 e6! B x e6
9 Qxe6 1 0 Ng5.
...
10 Ne5 Qd6
1 1 N x c6 b x c6
1 2 Qa4 Qc5
N o b e t t e r i s 12 ... Qb4 13 Qxa7, Qb7 b e c a u s e Wh i t e

can re t a i n q u e e n s a n d t h e a d v a n t age w i t h 1 4 Q a 4 , Ne7 1 5
C h apter Seven: Albin CounterG ambit 1 19
R d l ( 1 5 . Qb6 1 6 N c3 , Leontro - Teulats, Spanish C h a m p i

..
o n s h ip 1 978).
13 N a3
Wi th an enormous e d ge. Spassky - Forin tos, Soc h i

1 964 w e n t 1 3 Qb6 14 B x c6, B x a3 15 b x a3 w i t h a q u i c k
•..
w i n . Even sho rte r was Osteostad- H artung-N ielsen, Cope n

h agen 1 986 w h i c h w e n t 13 . . .N e 7 14 B d2, B g4 1 5 b4!, Q f5?
1 6 Q x a7 a n d w i n s ( 1 6 ... B x e2 1 7 B f4, R d 6 18 b5! or 16 . . K d 7
.
1 7 f3).
CHAPTER EIG HT
T H E BENON I D EFENSES
T he Modern a n d G a m b i t v a ri ations o f t h e Benoni

h a ve been the most pop u l a r of t h e new i d e a s i n the
Q u e ensi de ope n i n gs for t he p a s t ten y e ars. The Benon i
h asn't been de fanged, b u t Wh ite should not be especi a l l y
fe a r ful. I n t h e Modern B e no ni ( H 1) w e ' v e c hosen a r a t h e r
u nspecta c u l a r but soli d line. I n t he B e n k o a n d Volga G a m
b i ts ( H2), Wh ite's b i ggest p roblem i s consoli d ation. B l a c k ' s
pieces u s u a l l y r e a c h a point o f opt i m u m e f fi c i e n c y a f te r
w h ich p rogress b y e i t h e r side i s v e r y d i f fi c u lt. The Closed
Benoni (H3) h as lost i ts sti n g but the S c h m i d a n d S i c i l i a n
Benonis ( h 4) a re t o o n e w to com pletely e v a l u ate.
H1
Modern Benoni
(1 d4, N f6 2 c4, c5 3 dS, e6)
T h i s can also be reached v i a 1 d4, N f6 2 c4, e6 3

N c3, cS 4 dS.
4 N c3 ed
C h apter Eight: The Benoni De fenses 121
B l a c k c a nno t a v o i d t h i s t r a d e forev e r a n d h e m i g h t
as w e l l do i t now.
s c:d d6
Whe t h e r S ... g6 should be p u n ished by 6 d6!? i s u n

c l e a r. Whi te c a n s i m p l y con t i n u e as i n t he m a i n l i ne.
6 N f3 g6
Y es, B l a c k c a n a lso d e velop h i s B isho p on e7, b u t

t h i s d e n i e s h i m se l f t h e a c t i v e K i n g file a n d long b l a c k d i
a go n a l p l a y h e needs. Wh i t e cou l d meet 6 B e 7 w i t h a s i m
.. •
p l e K i n gside fia nc he t t o followed b y N dl - c:4 f o r s u p e r i o r-

i ty .
.' L
(_tvr·�zo�·�� c I}
.
1 N dl Bg7
� O,..( lo.-ho-, )
T he ri gh t a n s w e r to 7 N bd7 is not 8 N c:4, Nb6 9 e4

..•
(be c a u se 9 ... N x c4! 10 B x c4, Bg7 i s OK for B l a c k) but 8 e4,

Bg7 9 N c:4, Nb6 1 0 Ne3 t ra ns posi ng i n t o N izovit c: h - M ar
shall, New York 1917 w h i ch f a v o red Wh i te n i ce l y a f ter
10 0-0 11 B d3, N b S 12 0-0, BeS?! 13 a4, N f4 14 aS, N d 7 I S
.••
N c:4. A bette r t r y i s 8 Qe7 ( i nstead o f 8 . . . Bg7) b u t 9 B e l ,

•••
B g 7 1 0 0 - 0 , 0-0 1 1 f 4 a n d 12 B f3, o r 1 1 Re 1 a n d 12 B f l
m ust favor Wh i te slig h t l y . T h e B l a c k Queen i s m i s p l a c e d
on e7 f o r t h i s p a r t i c u l a r v a ri ation, b ut c a n be use f u l t h e re
i n o u r m a i n l i n e below.
8 N c:4 0-0
9 BgS!?
T h is i s ou r sa fe a l te r n a t i v e to the a d v e n t u r o u s B f4
w h i c h o ften leads to a c t i ve B l a c k K i ngs i d e p l a y w i t h
•••NbS and fS. Whi t e w i l l p l a y e3 r a t h e r t h a n e 4 i n m ost
•••
c ases.
B l a c k n o w b a s a c h oi ce between k i c k i n g t h e B i s h o p
w i t h 9 h 6 , followed b y Queenside a c t i o n w i t h . . .a 6 o r
•••
... N a6, a n d t h e rece n t l y pop u l a r 9 ...Q e 7 fol lowed b y

122 Win n i ng Wit h 1 d4
Nbd7. Each h as i ts m e r i t s a nd a com pletely s a t i s factory

•••
d e fense has not been fou n d for B l a c k .
N o t e t h a t on 9 b6 Wh ite u s u a l l y c h ooses t h e p i n
•.•
n i n g d i a gon a l ( 1 0 B h 4) o v e r the retreat to f 4 . H o w e v e r,

Wh ite c a n t r y 1 0 B f4 a n d 1 1 Qd2 i n o r d e r to p rovoke
K i n gside w e a k e n e rs. F o r i n stan ce, 9 ••. b6 10 B f4, Ne8
( a n t i c i p a t i n g t h e c a p t u re on d6) 1 1 Qc1, gS 1 2 Bd2 a n d
n o w 12 f S 1 3 b4, f4 1 4 b x gS, b x gS 1 S e3, fxe3 1 6 Bxe3 i s
•••
a c l e a r edge f o r Wh i t e a n d 1 S B fS 1 6 ex f4, Qe7 c ia 17 Be2

•.•
i s promisi n g (Ftacnlk· Podzlelny, Trnava 1 984).
In all of these l i ne s t he r e is a veiled Wh i t e t h reat to

the B l a c k d - p a w n . For i n s t a n ce, 9 Re8 1 0 e3, b6 1 1 N bS!
•••
a n d now 1 1 ... Ba6 1 2 N x cd6, ReS 13 B f4, R x dS 1 4 Q f3, N c6

1 S B c4 w i t h a g ro w i n g edge (Brlnc k-Ciaussen- Bjarnassoo,
Copenh agen 1 9 8 1 .
B l a c k does not appe a r to h ave e n ough Q u e e n s i d e

p l a y w i t h 9 b6 10 e 3 , B a6 1 1 a4, e.g. 1 l. Q e 7 1 2 Q c 2 , b 6
..• ••
13 B h4, N bd7 14 R d 1 , B x c4 1 S B x c4, NeS 1 6 B e 2 , a 6 17 0-

0, Qb7 18 h3!, R fe8 1 9 f4, Nbd7 20 e4 (Averbac h - K apeogut,
Lvov 1 973). To b r e a k the K i ngside pin w i t h 14 gS 1 S Bg3,
••.
B x c4 1 6 B K c4, N b S wou ld w e a k e n the w h i te s qu a res too

m u c h a fter B d3- f5, i t would a p pe a r.
A n d now:
H l l 9 . .. h6 and 1 0 ... N a6
H 1 2 9 .. . h 6 a n d 1 0 ... a6
H 1 3 , ... Qe7
H1 1
( 1 d4, N f6 2 c4, cS 3 dS, e6 4 N c3, ed S cd, d6 6 N f3, g6 7
N d2, Bg7 8 N c4, 0-0 9 BgS, h6 10 B h4)
1 0 ... N a6
�- � .•
t .l.
&t t
..Q.
1 1 e3 N c7
1 2 a4 Qe7
12 ... b6 13 Be2, Bb7 14 0-0, Qe7 15 e4! Van den

Berg- Robatsch, Beverwij k 1 963.
13 B el b6
14 0-0 B a6
15 Re 1 B x c4
16 B x c4 a6
17 e4
G e l ler-Tringov, Belgrade 1969 and B l a c k must s t o p

1 8 eS. H e did i t w i t h 1 7 ... g5 18 Bg3, N d7 19 B f l!, N e S , b u t
r a n i n to a c rush i n g a t t a c k w i t h 20 Q h S a n d h 4 .
H12
( 1 d4, N f6 2 c4, c S 3 dS, e 6 4 N c3, e d S cd, d 6 6 N f3, g6 7
N d2, Bg7 8 N c4, 0-0 9 BgS, h6 1 0 B h4)
1 0... a6
(See d i agram on fol l o w i n g page)

A noth e r idea is the c l e v e r 1 0... Qd7 w h i ch t h reaten s

1 1 . b5 a n d 1 1 ... Qg4. A ft e r 1 1 a4!, Qg4 1 2 B x f6, Q x c4
•.
( 1 2 . .B x f6 loses a p a w n) 13 B xg7, K x g7 14 e3, Qb4 1 5 Qdl

.
w i t h fi n e p l a y for Wh ite. Better is 1 1 N a6 12 e3, Nb4 13

.••
Bel, b6 although B l a c k is a long w a y from e q u a li t y.
1 1 a4 g5
12 Bg3 NeB
This is si m i l a r to lines i n vol v i n g B f4. H o w e v e r h e re

Wh i te ca n t a k e a d v a n t age o f t he w e a k B l a c k K i n g position
w i t h ...
13 e4! f5
14 ef B x fS
15 Bel b6
16 0-0
As i n Donner· Langeweg, Beverw ij k 1 963. Black w a s

h u rting on the w hi te s qua res a fter 1 6 Ra7 1 7 B g 4 , R a f7
.••
1 8 B x f5, R d5 1 9 Qel and R ae 1 .

Ch apter Eight: The Benoni De fenses 125
H13
( 1 d4, N f6 2 c4, c5 3 d5, e6 4 N c3, e d S cd, d6 6 N f3, g6 7
Nd2, Bg7 8 N c4, 0·0 9 Bg5)
9 ... Qe7
10 e3
An att racti ve-look i n g a l te rn a t i ve is 10 Qd2 w i t h t h e

i d e a o f Q f4 a n d Ne4, b u t 1 0 Nbd7 1 1 Q f4, h6! b r e a k s t h e
•••
p i n a n d gives B l a c k good compensation f o r a p a w n ( 1 2

B x h6, B x h6 1 3 Q x h6, Ne5 1 4 e3, B f5 1 5 R d 1, R ab8--- Ftac·
nlk- Cramllng, B iel 1 984).
1 0... Nbd7
On 10 b6, w e t r a nspose i n to t h e n o t e m e n t i on e d
•..
e a r l i e r w i th B l a c k p l a y i n g 9 b6. A recent e x a m p l e o f e f
.•.
fective p l a y b y Wh ite ( Portisch-deFirmian, Tunis 1 9 85)

w e n t 10 b6 1 1 a4, B a6 12 R e i !?, N bd7 13 b3, Bb7 14 Bel,
•••
Ne5 15 0-0, h6 16 B h4, Rad8 17 K h 1 , B c8 18 Qd2, R fe8 1 9

R fe l, N x c4 20 bx c4.
1 1 a4
The c r u c i a l t e s t o f B l a c k ' s p l a y is 11 N b S , a6 12
N b x d6 w h e n l l . . bS m a y give h i m adequ ate c o m p e n s a t i o n .
.
1 1 ... NeS
12 N a3!? h6
13 B h4 g5
Wi th d i f fi c u l t p l a y ahead ( 1 4 Bg3, N fd 7 1 5 B e 2 , f 5 -
-- Diugy- Kilnger, S h arj ah 1 985)
126 Win n i ng Wit h 1 d4
H2
T H E G A M B I T B E N O N I ( B E N KO)
The g reat a d v a n tage o f t he Ben k o Gambit H21 is

t h at even when Black's Queenside i n i t i a t i ve h as been
stopped, Wh i te has a v e r y h a rd time m a k i n g p rog ress. It is
a re m a r k able gambit in that Black secures e x ce l l e n t d ra w
i n g c h a n ces even i f Wh i t e p l a y s pe r fe c t l y . T h e V olga
Gambit (H 22) is sti l l l a rge l y u n c h a rted t e r rito ry.
H21
B EN KO G AM B I T
( 1 d4, N f6 l c4, cS 3 d S , bS 4 cb)
4 ... a6
5 ba g6
6 N f3 B g7
U s u a l l y B l a c k p l a y s . B x a6 on the fi fth o r si x th
..
moves so t ha t he c a n meet e4 w i th . B x f l , forci n g Wh ite to

. .
castle b y h an d . O u r c ho i ce o f s ystems d oes not i n cl u d e e4,

so let us let Bla ck keep his options open.
7 g3 d6
8 Bgl 0-0
Wh i te's seguen ce o f moves is i mportant. H e a v o i d s

N c3 becau se he w a n ts to a n s w e r ... Qa5ch w i t h B dl a n d
C h apter Eight: The Beoool De fenses 127
B c3. I f Wh i te i s a l lo w e d to cou n t e r the l o n g B l a c k d i ago n a l

w i t h g a i n o f ti me, h e h as l i ttle t o w o r r y about.
Not i ce t h a t Black can also alter ill order o f moves

with 8 B x a6 9 N c3, Nbd7 1 0 0-0, N b6! as i n t rod uced b y
•.•
Lev A l b u rt i n t h e l ate 1 9 70s. The i d ea i s t h a t W h i t e c a n n ot

con t i n u e easi l y i n to ou r Qc2 / R d 1 p l a n because Wh ite
, would lose his d - p a w n a fter 1 1 Qc2?
I
A bette r p l a n t h e n for Wh ite is 1 1 R e i , 0-0 1 2 B f4,

e.g. 1 2 N c4 13 Q c l , Qa5 1 4 N d2 a n d Wh ite u n t a n g l e d his
•••
queenside favorably i n N i kolic- V agooiao, S arajevo 1 987.
9 N c3 B x a6
Wh a t h a ppens i s B l a c k takes on a6 w i t h h is K n ig h t ?
O n e good e x a m ple i s Doooer- U dovcic, B l e d 1 96 1 w h i c h
w e n t 1 0 0-0, N c 7 1 1 B f4, B a6 12 Qd2, Rb8 13 R fe l , Rb4 1 4
B h 6!, B x h6 1 5 Qxh6, N c x d5 ( l5 R x b2 is better, b u t Wh i t e
...
c a n p roceed w i th 1 6 Ng5, N ce8 1 7 N ce4 o r h4 w i t h a

st rong game now t h a t se v e r a l pi eces a re t i e d u p on t h e
K i n gs i d e) 16 N a 5 , N x c3 1 7 b x c3, R b 2 1 8 h4!, B x e2 1 9 hS!.
1 0 0-0 N bd7
T h i s K n ig ht must be d e v e loped h e re eve n t u a l l y .

T h e re i s n o spe ci a l m e r i t i n 10 ... Ne8 o r a Queen move.
1 1 Q c2!
Wh ite beg i n s to consol i d ate his Queens id e w i t h t h i s

move. H e m a y follow w i t h b 3 a n d Bb2 a f ter t h e necessary
p re p a ration Rbl. B l a c k ' s play comes f rom ... c4, but i f t h i s
i s i n s u f fi c i e n t , B l a c k h as o n l y succeeded i n i n s u r i n g
Wh i te's p assed p a w n a free road. Wh ite c a n a lso sh i ft gears
(as seen i n t h e D o n n e r - U d o v i c game above) and a t t a c k on
the K i ngside when Black has d e n u d ed his K i n g o f p i e c e
p rotection.
U8 Wlnnlna With 1 d4
And now:
H 2 1 1 l l ...Qc7
H 2 1 2 l l...Qb6
H 2 1 3 l l ...Qa5
H21 1
( 1 d4, N f6 2 c4, c5 3 d5, b5 4 cb, a6 5 ba, g6 6 N f3, B g7 7
g3, d6 8 Bgl, 0-0 9 N c3, B u6 10 0-0, Nbd7 1 1 Q cl!)
11 •.• Qc7
12 R d 1 R fb8
As in ' t h e game H ort-Calvo, Las Palmas 1973. Now

i n ste a d of 13 h3, Nb6 1 4 e4, N fd7 1 5 Rb1 w h i c h B l a c k
c o u l d m e e t a d e q u a t e l y w i t h 1 5 . . .c 4 , w e suggest Ha rt's post
mortem idea of 13 R b 1 , Nb6 14 b3. For e x am ple, 14 ... c4 15
b4, Bb7 16 e4, Qd7 17 N d4 or 15 N d4 i m m e d i a te l y i s good.
Or 14 Bb7 I S e4, c4 1 6 Be3. A more recent e x a m p l e went:
••.
13 Rb1 Qd8
14 b3 N e8
IS Bbl Nc7
16 N dl
The K night-shi ft to t h e p rotected c4 s q u a re is a k e y

i d e a i n Whi te's str a tegy.
C h apter Eight: T h e Benoni De fenses IZ�
1 6... NbS
17 N xb S B x bS
1 8 B x g7 K:�g7
1 9 N c4
Wh i te retains h is e x t ra p a w n a n d h o pes o f e 4 a n d
f4 e x p a nsion ( H ort - Ekstrom, Mendrislo 1 986).
H21 2
( 1 d4, N f6 2 c4, cS 3 dS, bS 4 cb, a6 S ba, g6 6 N f3, Bg7 7
g3, d6 8 Bg2, 0-0 9 N c3 , B x a6 1 0 0-0, Nbd7 1 1 Qc2!)
1 1 ... Qb6
U Rb1
Since Bl a ck ' s l ast m o v e b as d e n i e d h i m t h e oppor

t u n i t y to a t t a ck the d-pawn w i th ... N b6, Wh i t e does n o t
need to p l a y h i s K R to d l. A fter 12 R d 1 , R fb8 13 R b 1 ,
N g4! 14 h 3 , N g e 5 1 5 N x e5, N x eS B l a c k s t a n d s w e l l , e.g. 16
f4?, N c4 1 7 B f3?, Qb4 18 Be4, Bd4ch 19 Kh2, N a3! · · · San
dler-Aotom, Yurmala 1 982.
1 2 ... R fb8
13 b3! NeB
14 N d2!
130 Wlo olog With 1 d4
I n v i t i n g 14 ... B x c3 1 5 Q x c3, B xe2 1 6 Bb2, N e f6 17

R fe l , B a6 18 Rxe7 w i th a fie rce a t t a c k plus the p a w n .
14 ..• Qa5
Perhaps 14 Nc7 15 Bb2, Ne5 is better, b u t Wh i te

•..
s t i l l holds a slight e d ge .
1 5 Bb2 c4
1 6 R fc l Ne5
17 B a t
K orch noi h as p l a ye d a f e w games l i k e t h i s a n d

agai nst Q u i n t e ros at L e n i ngrad 1 973, he con n ected h i s a d
v a n t age a fter 1 7 R b 4 1 8 b x c4, N x c4 1 9 N x c4, B x c4.
•••
H21 3
( 1 d4, N f6 2 c4, c5 3 d5, b5 4 cb, a6 5 ba, g6 6 N f3 , Bg7 7
g3, d6 8 Bg2, 0-0 9 N c3, B x a6 1 0 0-0, N b d 7 1 1 Qc2!)
1 1 Qa5
•..
This w a s Ben ko's own pre ference, designed to p res

s u re c3 and prevent Whi te f rom orga n i zi ng h i s 0-si d e
pieces w i t h b3 a n d Bbl.
1 2 B dl R fb8
13 R a b 1
T h i s i s a n esse n t i a l m o ve i n W h i t e ' s se t u p . Wh i t e
w i l l h a ve to p l a y b 3 a n d perh aps a 4 to d e fe n d h i s p a w n s.
13... Nb6
14 b3
T a k i n g a d v a n tage of t h e post tton o f t h e Bl ack

Queen ( 1 4 ... N b x d 5 1 5 N xd 5 t h re a t e ns h e r m aje sty). A n o t h e r
k e y poi n t is t h a t 1 4 ... c4? c a n b e m e t b y 1 5 b4!, Qa3 1 6 B e l !
14... Qa3
15 Bel! Qa5
16 Rd1 Ne8
17 Bbl
Wh ite now h as a c h i e ved his i d e a l m i d d le g a m e pos i

tion. He e x p a n d e d s l o w l y b u t s u r e l y i n Altsman- Benko,
Lone Pine 1981 a ft e r 1 7 ... Nc7 18 e4, Nd7 19 B b3, B c8 2 0
B fl, B a6 l 1 B h3, B c8 2 l R d c l!, Nb6 l 3 B x c8, R x c8 2 4 N d 2 ,
Qa6 l5 a4, Qb7 l6 N c4!
H22
T H E V O L G A G AM B I T
( 1 d 4 , N f6 l c4, c5 3 d 5 , b5 4 cb, a 6 5 b a , e6)
��t:-
ft � i(:; ft �: ft "�(
t@4J�it�ltfcl .§
The mod i fied Volga is 4 e6 5 N c3, ed 6 N x dS, B b 7
•••
7 e4!, N :� dS! w i t h obscu re play. I f B l a c k takes the e - p a w n

i m m e d i ately, h e r uns i n to t roub le: 7 ... N u4 8 Bc4 a n d n o w:
( a) 8 . N d 6 9 Qe2ch, Be7 1 0 Bg5, f6 1 1 B f4!; (b) 8 B d 6 9
.. ...
N f3, Qa5ch? 10 N d2, N g 5 (else b4!) 1 1 0-0, Ne6 1 2 N e4

w i t h a fie rce m i d d legame i n Kroglous- Kuznetzov, U S S R
C hampionship 1 962 ; o r (c) 8 N f6 9 Qe2ch, B e 7 1 0 N x f6ch,
...
g x f6 1 1 N f3 w i t h a great game i n a n y case.
A fte r 7 . N x d5! 8 e x dS B l a c k must try to regain h i s

..
p a w n w i t h 8 . Qe7ch 9 B e 3 , Q e 4 1 0 N e l , Q x dS, b u t i t's

..
clear t ha t Whi t e h as a n easy e d ge a ft e r 1 1 N c3, Q x d 1 ch 12

R :� d 1 , e.g. l2 ... d6 13 B f4 o r l 2 ...a6 13 f3, Be7 14 B c4, ab 1 5
N :� b5, 0-0 1 6 0-0 Rovner-Orlov, R i g a 1 954.
6 N c3
B l a c k h as good gambit poten t i a l a fter 6 de, fe.
6... ed
7 N x dS N x dS
8 Q x d5 N c6
C h apter Eight: The B e noni De fenses 133
T h is is the posi tion B l a c k seeks. He has good

c h a n ces on the Queenside despite his tem po r a r y t w o - p a w n
m i n u s.
9 e4 Be7
On 9 ... B x a6 1 0 B x a6, QaSch 1 1 Bd2, Q x a6 Black ob

t ai n s e xcellent p l a y . I nstead Wh ite can p l a y 10 B c4!, B x c4
1 1 Q x c4, Rb8 12 a3 w i t h t he bette r c h a n ces. Wh i te m u st
m a i n t a i n cont rol of the Wh ite s q u a res to m a ke h i s p a w n
meaningful.
1 0 B c4 0-0
1 1 N f3 B x a6
B l a c k may a l so try the E x c h a n ge o f fe r l l ... R x a6!?,

but Wh ite si m p l y re fuses: 12 0-0, Nb4 13 QhS t h re a te n i n g
1 4 N gS.
12 Bd2
This i m portant move stops 1 2 ... Nb4 and aga 1 n

a v oids t h e p roblems o f 1 2 B x a6, Q x aS c h a n d 13 ... Q x a6.
1 2 ... Qb6
Black avoids . . B f6 because h e i s u s u a l l y j u st

.
t r a d i ng o f f Wh i te's b - p a w n f o r B l a c k ' s c-p a w n , a t r a d e

t h a t f a vors Wh i te.
13 0-0!
Wh ite ret u r ns t he p a w n to obt a i n pos i t i o n a l a d v a n

tages i n the outsi de p a ssed p a w n a n d p l a y o n t h e open
files against Black's p a w n s. N o w 13 ... B x c4 14 Qx c4, Qxb2
1 5 a4, B f6 1 6 Q x cS o r 1 5 ... R fb8 1 6 aS giv e s Wh i te e x c e l l e n t
c h a n ces. A n d 1 3 ... Q x b2 1 4 B x a6, R x a6 I S a 4 , B f6 16 Qx cS,
Q:ul 17 R x a 1 , B x a l 1 8 aS, R fa8 19 Q fS, B f6 ( 1 9 N x a 5 2 0
...
N g5) 20 Q�:d7, N x aS in Pytel- U ngureanu, Lublin 1972

134 Winning Wltb 1 d4
( w i t h the m i nor d i f fe re n ce that Wh i te's p a w n w as at e3).

Wh i te bas great w i n n i n g c h a n ces w i t h 2 1 Qd5!.
I t should be poi n ted out that as e a r l y as move n i n e,

Wh ite could v a r y with 9 e3 and still a c h i e v e the same k i n d
o f pos i t ion a s a ft e r 1 3 0 -0. T h e p a w n at e 4 m o re a c t i v e l y
res t r a i n s . . .d 5 a n d cont rols the w h i te s q u a res. B u t i t is also
a t a rge t. The reader can m a k e his choice on the m a tter o f
taste.
H3
T H E CLOSED BENON I
A lso called the Czech or H ro m a d k a S y s t e m , t h i s w a s

b ri e f l y i n vogue i n t h e l ate 1960's. I t w a s e v e n t u a l l y s h o w n
t h a t B lack's hopes o f l i b e r a t i n g p l a y w i t h ...B g S , co m b i n e d
w i t h r s or bS, were n o t su f fi c i e n t. I n H 3 2 w e w i l l l o o k a t
t h e C losed Benoni w i t h a K i ngside f i a n c h etto b y Blac k .
We n o w e x a m i ne:
H 3 1 Closed Benon i w i t h Be7

H32 Closed Benoni w i t h Bg7
H31
( 1 d4, N f6 l c4, cS 3 dS, eS 4 N c3, d6 5 e4)
s ... Be7
6 B d3
T h e re is m u c h choice for Wh ite e v e n i n h i s o r d e r o f

moves. H e w i l l p l a y B d3, N � Qe1 a n d b) i n pr e p a r a t i o n
f o r g4. T h e even m o re non com m i t t a l 6 N f3 m a y be b e t t e r
because t h e n B l a c k w o u l d a l m ost c e r t a i n l y c a s t le i m m e d i
a t e l y . A fter 6 Bd3, B l a c k m a y a n t i cipate t h e a t t a c k w i t h
6 ... N bd7 7 N f3, N f8! 8 b3, B d 7 9 Be3, N g6 1 0 N d 2 , h S 1 1
a3, b4! 12 N f3, N b S a ft e r w h i c h Wh i t e h e l d a v e r y s m a l l
edge. But 6 N f3 ha s the disa d v a n t ag� Qf allow i ng B l a c k the

c h a n ce to t rade off h i s QB with 6 ... 8g4. Although t h i s i s
B l ack's "good" Bishop, he m a y secure a bette r m i d d legame
b y also tra di n g o f f h i s KB w i � B gS, leaving Wh ite w i t h
..•
a " b a d " w h i te-sq u a red Bishop.
Bolesl a v s k y suggested 6 h3, and t h a t m a y be t h e

best a fte r a l l.
6 ... 0-0
7 h3 Ne8
B l a c k m a y a l s o b e g in h i s Q ue e n s id e p l a y w ith 7 ...a6
8 Qel, Nbd7 9 g4, Ne8 1 0 N f3, N c:7, b u t Wh i te c an stop
h i m w i t h 1 1 a4, Rb8 U a5 o r U R aJ ( U ngureanu - C ioc:al
tea, Rumania 1 972) w i th t he idea of b ri n ging this Rook
over to the K i ngside. A c t u a l l y even when ...b5 i s a c h i eved ,
B l a c k is not a n y w h e re n e a r e q u al. Y e t 7 ... a6 i s l i k e l y
Bl ac k' s best c h a n ce as his K ingside d e fenses a re n o t a s
sou n d as once thought. Wi t h 7 ... Ne8, B l a c k hopes for
8 ... B g5.
8 N f3 Nd7
9 Qel g6?!
A move . fre q u e n t l y played in s u c h posat 10n , b u t

h a r d l y com fortable. 9 ... a 6 is s t i l l best a l t hough Wh i te h a s
t h e option o f p l a y i ng o n t he Queenside w i t h 10 a 3 a n d 1 1
b4, o r o f keeping the Q ueenside closed w i t h 1 0 a4 a n d con
t i n u i n g with t he m a ne u v e r N d 1 -e3 and B dl -c:J. He stands
superior i n e i t h e r c ase.
10 B h 6 Ng7
1 1 g4 a6
U 0-0-0 N f6
13 R d g 1
Whi te h as a g r a n d attacking post taon w i t h c h a n ces

o f h4-h5 o r N h4 - f5 (w ha t K moch called t h e Benoni j u m p).
Two e x a m ples o f B l a c k' s p r e d i c a m e n t:
(1) 1 3 ... K h 8 1 4 K b 1, b5 1 5 N d 2 (p rote c t i n g t h e g

p a w n i n p re p a ration for h 4 a n d u nblock i ng t h e f - p a w n )
1 5 ... b4 1 6 N d 1 , Ng8 1 7 B xg7ch, K xg7 1 8 h 4 , a n d n o w si n c e
1 8 ... B x h 4 1 9 f4, e f 20 Q h 2, g5 2 1 N f3 is a w ful, B l a c k
p l a y e d 1 8 ... h 6 1 9 f4, e f 2 0 g5, hg 2 1 hg, Bxg5 2 2 N f3, B f6
23 e5!, Bx e5 24 O h 2 a n d lost q u i c k l y ( G h i tescu- Popov,
Slegen 1970).
(2) 13 ... Bd7 1 4 Nd2, b5 1 5 h4, Qa5 1 6 h5, R fb8 1 7

h g, fg 1 8 f4, b 4 1 9 N d 1, e f 2 0 e5!, f 3 2 1 Qe3 a n d W h i t e ' s
v i ctory comes a fter 2 1...d e 22 Q xe5, Qd8 23 B xg7, K xg7 24
g5, K g8 25 B xg6!, h g 26 g x f6, B x f6 2 7 R xg6ch, K f7 28
R h7ch R esigns (ED klaar- Sa hovlc, Wlj k aan Zee II 1972).
Note t h at the closed n a t u re of the posi t i on a l l o w s
e a c h s i d e t o a l ter t he o r d e r o f moves i n the v e r y e a r l y p o r t
o f t h e game. Whi te could p l a y 6 h 3 , 0 - 0 7 N f3, Ne8 8 g4,
Kh8 9 B d3 as i n Sequelra- Day Dubai 1986 w i t h t h e u s u a l
K i ngside p l a y ( 9... a6 1 0 a 4, b 6 1 1 R g 1 , N d f6 12 N h 2!, N g8
1 3 f4, e x f4 1 4 B x f4, B f6 1 5 N f3, et c.) Anot h e r common or
d e r i s 6 N f3, 0-0 7 h3, a6 8 a4, Nbd7 9 g4, Rb8 1 0 Bd3, e.g.
Gaprindashvili- Rogers, Wij k aan Zee 1 987 w h i c h w e n t
1 0 Re8 1 1 Be3, N f8 12 gS, N6d7 13 b4, Ng6 14 N e 2 , N d f8
.••
15 R g 1 , f6 16 hS w i th an e x cellent game.
H32
( 1 d4, N f6 l c4, cS 3 dS, eS 4 N c3, d6 S e4)
5 ... g6
138 Winning Wit h I d4
6 N f3 Bg7
7 Bel
T his is the recom mended d e veloping p l a n w h ich re

t a i n s p rospects of both K i n gsi d e and Queenside e x p a nsion.
7 ... 0-0
Whi te wou l d con t i n u e w i th 8 Bg5 a ft e r 7 ... N a6 or

7 ... Qc7. On 7 N h5 Wh i t e p l a y s 8 g3 and 9 h 4 followed by
•..
Ng5.
8 Bg5 h6
O t h e r w ise 9 Qdl stops t h is.
9 Bh4 Qc 7
The v a ri e t y i s i n t e resti ng.
(1) 9 ...g5 1 0 Bg3, Nh5 i s best h an d led by 1 1 N d2,

N f4 1 2 0-0, so that 12 ... f5 1 3 e f, B x f5 14 Nde4 o r 1 2 ... a6 1 3
a 3 , N d 7 1 4 b4, b 6 1 5 R b 1 f a v ors Wh i te's space.
(2) 9 a6 (pre p a r i n g 1 0 ...Qe8) 10 0-0, Qe8 1 1 N d 2,

...
N h 7 12 a3, f5 1 3 e f, g5 ( 1 3 ... g f? 14 B h 5) 1 4 Bg3, B x f 5 15

N d e 4 (GIIforlch - J imenez, H avana 1 966) w i t h f i n e use o f
e4.
(3) 9 . N a6 1 0 N d 2, N c7 1 1 0-0, B d 7 ( 1 1. .. a6 12 a 3,
..
Qe8 1 3 b4, b6 1 4 R b l , N d 7 1 5 N b 3 is w orse) 1 2 a3, Qe7 1 3

b 4 , b 6 1 4 R b 1 , R fb8 a n d n o w Gligo r i c h o f fers 1 5 Bd 3 for
a d v a n tage.
1 0 N dl N h7
B l a c k m a kes bette r u se o f h i s N f6 t h i s w a y t h a n
w i t h IO N e 8 I I f3, f5 U a3, B f6 13 B fl .
...
1 1 g4!
A n d DOW l l rs 12 e f, gf 13 g f, Bx rs 14 N de4 se

.•.
c u res too much gro u n d for Wh i t e. The u s u a l l y q uoted

l i nes f o r B l a c k be g i n w i t h l l a 6 12 N f l ! e . g . l 2 . .. B f6 1 3
...
B x 16, N x l6 1 4 Qd2, Kg7 1 5 h4 or 1 2 ... N d 7 1 3 N e3, N d f6 14

Qc2 both favoring the fi rst p l a y e r.
1 40 Winning Wit h 1 d4
H4
T H E S C H M I D A N D S I C I L I A N BEN O N I
1 d4 c5
l dS
B A .I.�OA -11 :8:

)l: i � � � ��
1':'� �t �
�
�·
H e re B l a c k b as not waited for Wh ite to p l a y c4, b u t

b e c a n ' t a v o i d transpositions:
(1) 2 ... d6, the v a r i ation o f Lotb a r S c h m i d , allows us

to bead b a ck i n to p revious l i nes with 3 c4, N f6 4 N c3. I f
B l a c k plays 3 ... e5 4 e4, B l a c k gets an i n fe r i o r posi tion a fter
4. . . f5 5 N c3: 5 ... N f6 6 B d 3 , g6 7 f4! o r 5. . . N e7 6 Bd 3, g6 7
f4!
(2) 2 ... e5 3 c4 aga i n transposes.
(3) 2 ... e6 3 N c3 (o r 3 c4) N f6 4 e4, d6 5 B b 5 c b fol

lowed b y de m ust be pleasan t. Note t h at 4 ...ed 5 N xd 5 ,
N xe 4? r u n s i n to 6 Qe2.
C h apter N ine: Other De fenses to 1 d4 141
CHAPTER N I N E
OTH ER DEFENSES TO 1 d4
O f the re m a i n i n g i d eas, few a re respectable:
( 1) l... N c6 allows 2 e4 entering t h e c l e a r l y f a v o r a b l e

N i m zo v i tch De fense, b u t i t c a n re m a i n i n t h e d - pa w n f a m
i l y w i t h 2 d5 , Ne5 3 f 4 , Ng6 4 e 4 . T hi s i s a s o r t o f w rong
si d e-of-the-board A le k h i ne's De fense. E x ce l l e n t p l a y f or
Wh i te.
(2) l...e5, the E n g l u n d G a m b i t. Wh i t e keeps t h e

p a w n sa fely w i t h 2 de, N c6 3 N f3, Q e 7 4 Q d 5 , f 6 5 e f,
N x f6 6 Qb3, d5 7 B f4 (7 ... B f5 8 Q xb 7!, Qb4ch 9 Q xb4,
N x b 4 1 0 N a3.
(3) l ...b5 is not as good as w h e n both p l a y e rs h a ve

K i ngside K n i ghts out. Wh i t e c a n t a k e t h e u p pe r h a n d w i t h
2 e4, B b 7 3 f3, a 6 4 c4!.
(4) l... N f6 2 c4, b6 3 N c3, Bb7 4 f3, d 5 5 c d , N x d 5 6

e4, N xc3 7 b x c3, e6 8 Bb5ch i s not as good for B l a c k as t h e
s i m i l a r v a ri ation o f t h e Gr ue n fel d .
(5) l ...N f6 2 c 4 , N c6 is h i g h l y p ro v ocat i v e. To a v o i d

com plicati ons, y o u c a n t r y 3 N c3 w h ich transposes i n t o t h e
Tchigorin Queen's G a m b i t D e c l i n e d a ft e r 3 . . .d 5 . A n d 3 d 6. . .
4 d 5 , N e 5 5 f4, Ng6 6 e 4 i s sim i l a r t o n ote ( 1 ) above.
(6) T he most reason able of the " i r reg u l a rs" is the so
called English (or O w e n' s) De fense:
1 d4 b6
2 c4
14l WIDDIDg Wit h 1 d 4
Bla ck a n n o u n ces w i th h i s fi rst move that h e w i l l

p ress u re e 4 a n d dS w i t h h i s Bishop on b7 w h i le ret a i n i n g
t h e option o f N f6 o r rs.
•.. ...
2 ••• e6
N ot ice t ha t B l a c k could also h a ve played 1 d4, e6 2

c4, b6 to reach t he same position. I n t he o r d e r c hosen
above, B l a c k also h a s t he possi b i l i t y of a n i m m e d iate
2 ... Bb7. B u t this move h as been consi d e re d dou b t f u l be
c a u se Black can aot gene rate enough cou n te rp l a y in t h e
cente r fol low i n g 3 d S ! , e6 4 a 3 , e.g. 4. . .Bd6 S N f3, Q e 7 6
N c3 , N f6 7 BgS, b6 8 B b4, Na6 9 e3, c6 1 0 Bel, N c7 1 1
Ne4! (Timmo a - Speelmaa, A msterdam 1 978) o r 4 ... g6 S e4,
Bg7 6 N f3, Na6 7 N c3 , N cS 8 Qc2, ex dS? 9 cxdS, N f6 10
B c4, 0-0 1 1 0-,0, c6 1 2 d6! (Timmoa-Spassky, H ilversum
1983).
3 a3
Th is appe a rs better t h a n 3 dS because t h e n B l a c k

posts h i s B i shop a t a 6 r a t h e r t h a n b7.
3 ... N f6
On 3 ... Bb7 4 dS we w i l l h a ve t r anspose d i n to the

note cove r i n g 2 ... Bb7 3 dS, e6 4 a3.
4 N c3 Bb7
5 dS
Chapter N loe: Ot her Defenses to 1 04
A n d now:
( a) 5 ... e x d 5 6 c x d 5 , Bc5 p u ts the B i s h o p o n a s q u a re

i t can not m a i n ta i n. An e x a m p l e o f t h i s w as P e t ro s i a o V i l
-
lela, Tallioo 1979 w h i c h w e n t 7 N f3, 0-0 8 Bg5, N a6 9 e3,

Be7 10 Bc4, Nc5 1 1 B f4, Re8 1 2 0-0, N ce4 1 3 N e 2 , N d 6 14
B a2, c5 1 5 d x c6, e.p. d x c6 1 6 Qc2 with a fine game.
(b) 5 ... Be7 6 N f3, 0-0 7 e4, exd5 8 e x d 5 , Re8 9 B c 2 ,

d6 10 N d 4!, N b d 7 1 1 b 4! (Goodmo o - N i kollc, Eoglaod 1 9 7 9)
i s a n obvious edge i n space.
(c) 5 ...Bd6!? 6 N f3, e x d 5 7 c x d 5 , 0-0 8 Bg5, Re8 9 c3

a g a i n poses problems for B l a c k s i n ce ... d6 w i l l e x pose h i m
to d a n ge r from a s ub se q u e n t Ne4!. A fter 9 .. B e 7 10 Bc4, h 6
.
1 1 B f4, N b S 1 2 Be5, B f6 1 3 B d 4, w e h a v e Karpov-Miles,

Las Palmas 1977 w h i ch s a w Wh i te slo w l y e n l a rge h i s edge
( 1 3 ... B a6 1 4 B x a6, N x a6 1 5 0-0, c5 16 B x f6, N x f6 1 7 Qd 3
fo l l o wed b y N d2-c 4 a n d e4-e5).

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WINNING

CHESS DIGEST, INC.

All rights rese rved u n d e r Pan A m e r i c a n a n d I n te r ­

T h i s is a rev ised a n d e x pa n d ed e d i tion o f "Wh ite

No pa rt of t h i s p u b l i cation may be reprod u ce d ,

Publisher: Ch ess D i gest, I n c.•, 1 1 836 Jud d Ct, S u i te 338-E,

Send the p ub l i s he r $2.00 for the N e w Chess G u i d e

C H A PTER FIVE - E 102

C H A PTER EIGHT H • 120

Wh en Gary K as p a rov won the World C h a m p i o nsh ip

Th is book is designed t o a r m t h e serious to urn a m e n t

Our a i m is t o a v o i d h e a v ily theoretical lines a n d

QU EEN 'S GAM B I T

V i r t u a l l y every top p l a ye r is p repared to p l a y l. dS

as well as one of the I n d i a n Sy stems. Bobby Fischer, for

open ing response. I t stops Wh i te i m medi ately f rom open i n g

Black has a choice here bet w een t h ree solid re­

I n each line, we w i l l con s i d e r the most d i rect and

T rad i t i o n a l l y the Queen's Gambit A ccepted h a s

We n o w con s i d e r th ree v a r i ants:

T h i s is the m ost e n e rge t i c a n d popu l a r a n s w e r. Also

transposing i n to (C)) 5 eS, NdS 6 N f3, cS 7 0-0 f a v o rs

Now play d i v i d es f u rt h e r i n to:

We w i l l e x a m i n e t hese l i nes i n some d e t a i l .

T his is an i m po r t a n t fi nesse s i n ce Wh i te c an n ot con­

(See d i agram on fol l o w i n g p age)

Bla ck pursues n o r m a l d e velopment. I f 7 ... c5, Wh i t e

N o better is 10 N f5 because Wh i t e re g a i n s his p a w n

w i t h a f i n e game a ft e r 1 1 N b3, 0 - 0 1 2 N b x d4. O n 1 1.. N c6

i n t h i s l i n e (or in t h e o r d e r o f 10 ... Nc6 1 1 N b3, N f5) Wh ite

Qx fS, Kb8 1 8 Qe4!.

So fa r as i n the game Pacbman- Tringov, Havan a

This is a ood i dea w h i ch re a res to castle a n d

velop ing move 7 N c6. For e x a m p le, 8 0-0, N f6 (8 .. N ge7

leads to the better en d i ng o r m i d d legame we' ve seen ear­

We a re follo w i n g B agirov- Gurgendize, U .S.S.R.

0 · 0 , N f6 w i t h com p lex c h a n ces f o r b o t h s i des. A m o re a m ­

Note t h at the first line is sign i fi c a n t l y d i fferent

N o w B l a c k b as several a l ternati ves:

The last tw o l i nes h a ve been parti c u l a rly popu l a r i n

Or 10 N r6 1 1 Nce5, N x e5 1l N x e5, Qe7 13 Bg5!

w i t h a d v a n t age according to Tibor F lori a n .

So far Flori a n - S l i w a, Gyula 1965, w h i ch led to an

R e l a t i v e l y bette r w as 9 ... Qd7 10 h3, B h 5 11 N b x d4

And i n t h e game Korchooi-Mestrovich, Saraj evo

h i s d ev elopment. The n e x t section shows a n other f a i l e d d e­

T his seems to be B l ack's best choi ce. In the g ame

And White follows up w i t h Bb2 and Qb3 rega i n i n g

T his move s u r faced in West G e rman y i n 1984 w i t h

fxe6 beca use of Wh i te's pressure w i th 1 0 Qb3, Qd7 11

Wh i te can rega i n h i s p aw n with b4 a n d Bbl if n ee-

A fter 8 ... 8e6 Wh ite should avoid 9 B x e6, fxe6 1 0 b4,

Better t h an 9 B x f7cb?, Kx f7 10 Qf4cb, N f6 1 1 eS

O r 9 ... N f6 10 eS! a n d 9 .•. 8 h 5 10 NeS! a cco rding to

A n d White regains his p a w n with an e x ce l l e n t game.

A lso possible is 7 ... Qe7 with e a r l y q u e e n side

The most e n e rget i c method. On 8 N b3, B g4 9 Nbx d4,

T h i s e n d s the h a rassment of B l a c k's Quee n , but n ot

loses to 15 N x h7, R x h 7 16 Bg5 a nd 14 Qc5 a l l o w s 15 a3

w i th a th reat of 16 b4. In Tlmmon- Tal, Match 1985 Whit e ,

obtained a w i n n i n g game a fte r 13 8e7 14 Be4, Qd7

( 14 Q xe5 1 5 Re1, Qd6 1 6 N xe6, f xe 6 17 Q h 5 c h , etc.) 15

N x e6, Qxe6 16 Bx c6c:h, bxc6 1 7 Qx d4.

All rights rese rved u n d e r Pan A m e r i c a n a n d I n te r

Black has a choice here bet w een t h ree solid re

T his is an i m po r t a n t fi nesse s i n ce Wh i te c an n ot con

leads to the better en d i ng o r m i d d legame we' ve seen ear

0 · 0 , N f6 w i t h com p lex c h a n ces f o r b o t h s i des. A m o re a m

h i s d ev elopment. The n e x t section shows a n other f a i l e d d e

Wh i te su rren d e rs a paw n to e x ploit h i s lead in de

(3) T he ce n t e r attack with 0-0 a n d Rae l 10 prep ara

B l a c k w o u l d l i k e to post h i s Bishop more aggres

Qc2, h6 10 Bh4, ReS 1 1 h 3, Qa5 1 2 0-0-0 followed b y ei