Robert Bellin & Pietro Ponzetto 4 j/ ¢ @: - — xX | pa ~~ 1 ~~ N ~ aa ma q@a as a@ s@ oa os oa * a ae aw o«4 ea ae lela aMastering the King’s Indian Defense Robert Bellin and Pietro Ponzetto Collier Books “Macmillan Publishing Company New YorkCopyiht © 1990 by Rober Beis aed Pleuo Poses ‘All is rere No pst ofthis tock may he eprodased by any mens conic {rimectoiea eluding phtocopying ecorig byob an alarms ore Sod vaca ss, wtiut permis a ing fom he Publisher Colle Books Macias Pabing Company ‘66 Td Avenue, New Yon, NY 1022 ‘Cote Macnilan Casads, tne Liteary of Congest Cataloging in Pubcon Belin, Rober, ‘Mastering the King nclan defers Robo. ein sd Peto Porte. — Ie Caller Boots ecm (A Basar ches boot) ISBN Gonomara T.-Chee Openings L Pose ite 1952, Tile Gviesnr mses 19 warm oP ‘Macriun Boot are asiahe xt spel cont fr bk pha forse promotions, premime. fanraiing or ecaonl we For deal contac Spi Sake Dior ‘Macmion Pubistag Compasy “ha Third Avenue ‘New Yoon NY 102 Fat Cale Books Eton 1980 wosresazad Pint in Great BriaContents Preface vii Introduction ix “The Mar del Piata Centre 1 2 The Petrosion Centre 28 3 The Simisch Centee 58 4 The Averbakh Centre 87 5 The Simplifed Centre 118 6 Orthodox Centre BI 7. Simisch Variation: the Modern Centre 145 8 The Orthodox Centre against 23158 9 Yugoslav Centre in 10 ‘The Panno and Kavalek Centres 185 ‘Table of Variations 20Preface With this work we have set our: selves. avery presise goal: 10 each the understanding of the opening not by cataloguing variations but by explaining the key ideas and plans of each player quickly and fasily with the Read and Play smethod and, in such a way, more- lover, that the reader can follow the greater part of the text withoot a chessboard ‘To achieve this ambitious aim, we have been guided by the prin ple that once the contra pawns have assumed a stable configu ation there exits a greater sira- {epic and tactical afhnity between diverse variations with the same fentral pawn structure than between different ines of the same variation which lead to diferent pawn sirvetures, This simple approsch enables us immediately to undersiand the basic idea of any position whatsoever. This is fn stark conteat to what happens in normal books of opening the- ‘ory, where the exigencies of 5y3- lematization end up making the process of understanding very ifeuty Having established this starting point the continuation is logical: we divide the opening not accord ing to variations but according to “rype of centre’ (which normally fetaine the name of the principal variation) so that diferent lines of the same variation will be exam= ined in one or other type of centre according tothe configuration of the central pawns which sooner or later becomes established. Con- sideration of each typeof entre is then divided into three parts: a deep analysis ofthe strategic ideas (orth particular attention to the ‘most moder). and overview of the recurring tactical themes, and finally some illustrative games, ‘meticulously annotated, especially inthe opening, inexamining which (and here iti necessary 10 use a chessboard) the reader will fod not only & practical correspon dence with the two theoretical parts but alsoa certain number of ‘exemplifying variations, Attentive reading of the illustrative games is Indispensable forthe full compre-Preface hension of the strategic concepts previously expounded, ‘Of course, it has not been poss- te to consider all the types of centre which can arise from all the ‘opening variations. ‘The central structures considered ace the most ‘important and the most common, sind comprise atleast 85 per cent ‘of possible cases, For those poss- bilities not considered (which all derive from minor byways) the reader can reler to traditional ‘monographs. Intheclaboration of our subject. we have ried to maintainas objec- tive @ viewpoint as possible without taking one side or the other. We hope thereby to have ‘obtained an impartial exposition ofthe ideas of each type of centre, the Knowledge of which is indi ppensable whether one intends 0 play the white side or the black Side. ‘This oeuore can be used by a wide range of players: it ean be used by beginners in order tolesra the fundamentals ofthe opening, ‘or by experts needing to expand their range of variations quickly or evento acquire an entirely new Addition 10 their opsning reper toire, OF course, srong players, for whom a more profound know” ledge of the variations and latest wrinkles is essential, must use this work in conjunction with a syste- matic text. ‘We hope that readers wil find four exposition clear, that they learn, that they enjoy themselves and that they quickly improve ‘their playing standard; only thea ‘will our Reed and Play method Ihave hit the markIntroduction The King’s Indian Defence is a system of playing agains the basic (Queen's Pawn Opening {1 44 foF lowed by e2-ct) characterized by the moves... 16... 86... 497 and... 6, Black's stratey almost always features kingside casting and either ... eS or ... 65. In the most general sense, White's response ean be classified accord lingo whether the KBis developed om its original f1-a6 diagonal or goes to e7. Both sides almost is fanchettoed slays case hingside Given that we have not divided the material into variations, as i= Chapter 2 rasually the case, but have intro- Pelsosian centre: White's KN is duced the concept of ype of ce ‘ue’ it willbe useful to provide the reader with a summary of the contents of the ten chapters in this book: The is throe chapters examine the various closed centres which can arise when Black plays .. eS Chapter 1 Mar del Plata centre: White's KN developed om 13, the centre closed, is developed on £3 and the centre and Black's QN placed on ether closed after .. Gc6; Black's QN 7 or a6. Both players often castleIntodetion short, but White retains more The fifth and sixth chapters Aexiblty than in Chapter 1. examine central pawn exchanges after Black plays 5 Chapeer 3 Chaper Simplified centre: the é-fle is ‘opened by dxes dre5. Simisch centre: White's KNis not developed on 1 (in order not to ‘obstruct the pawn). The cente is closed: White retains maximum Aexibility regarding casting. Chapter 6 The fourth chapter deals with Orthodox centre: Black plays the closed centre which arises exd4 when Black plays... e8 Chapter + Averbakh centre: Black plays 15 and the cents is closed ‘The seventh chapter gives Black's options against the Simisch not covered in Chapter 3Chapter 7 Modern centre versus Simisch Variation: Black initiates queen side action before declaring his intentions in the eentze. ‘Thelas three chapters deal with centres where White plays g2-. Chapter 8 Orthodox centre against g2-23) Black plays... e§ followed by exda Chapter 9 Yugoslav centee: Black plays cS and the centre is closed, ntodvetion Chapter 10 anno centre: Black pursues queenside action; central exbiity reserved Kava conte: the e-file becomesInsrodetion ‘open after d4-d5; the centre is bed. Which variation should ' play? To help you decide which vari ation is most appropriate for your syle we have compiled a table of variations (Gee page 200) which indicates their level of strategic and tactical complexity. In addition, we have used a survey of nearly 2000 games played in tournaments of FIDE category 7 and above to extract statistical data concerning the frequency and results percentage of each va ation $0 as (0 provide a useful ‘overview of theiclevel of risk. Thus you are given all the information necessary to make the most suit- able seletion according t0 your needs1 The Mar del Plata Centre Main Line: Mar del Plata Var 7.0.0 6 8 Le} mp4 9 £45 ‘tion fe 10 Ret HHS 11 45 Ger 1 d4 (6 2 of g6 3 Oc} tg? 4 08 d6 5 OF 060 6 Led 05 700 {Ge6 $ a5 eT (1). 1 Strategic Ideas ‘The main strategic ideas can be deduced from the pan structure and the positon of the kings (2) AA similar structure can arise feom other lines, eg. 1 d4 6 2 of £6 3 Oe} pT 404 d6 5 OD (0-06 de2 eS and now: (1) Closed centre with same side casting (2) Whites space advantage on Gligorie System the queenside T hed gs (or 7... Oc6 8 dS (3) The central pawn chains eT) 8 Ag5 16 9 Abs G06 (4) White's weakness on the d4 10 5 Ser. and fs squares 1The Mar del Plata Centre Closed centre with same side eastling With the centre closed and the kings casted on the same side it is clear that the game can easily develop into one of respective flank atacks, White exploiting his spatial advantage on the queen- Side and Black his natura. F7= {5 break on the other (3 The mutual mobilization of ‘Rank pawns is also indicated by the position of the Se7 and the ‘BIR. Black's QN i, in fact, ideally placed to support the advance F7-£5 and then join in the attack Via 6 or g8. White, on the other hand, normally chooses to support the ©4 point by 12-13 in response to Black's attack, and therefore it isnatural to transfer the knight to the queenside by ©13-e1-d3 oF an-d2-o, In positions with mutual attacks, Black will pnerally avoid cxchanging pawns on ef ater the sequence ... 5, Bas this would increase White's defensive space, and prefers instead to cramp the ‘opponent’ king by. 5-4 rely ing on the g-pawn to effect a breakthrough later on. The manoeuvre Of3-01-d3 Having spatial advantage on the queen's wing itis lear that White will ry 10 organize an attack in that sector Black's pawn structure {very solid, however, and in order tomake progress itis necessary to ‘open lines and create weaknesses Both these goals can be achieved by attacking the €7-46-5 pawn chain with the advance otc, and the mangeuvte best suited for is preparation is the simultaneously offensive and defensive 3+ Bit, Sometimes, White chooses to increase control of 5 by linking this manoeuvre with the develop- ment of the QB on ¢3, intendingto withdraw the bishop 10 £2 in ease of. 5-5, ‘The manoeuvre... Of6-47- 6 On his side, Black must free the path of his Epawn and thus i is ratural to move the kaight to 47 in order to hold up the c§ advance atthe same time () However, should White show imac reluctant to weaken bis King's postion and ereate a break ‘through point on the kingside by playing PB, then the a7 must retuen to (6 in order to force the defence of ed by 1-13. Iti also important for Black to force 2-3 in order to be able to play. 15 fin the conditions show in the above diagram without allowing White to get rd of his bad bishop by ded-et. ‘lack has an alternative to returning with the knight to “The Mat det Plats Centre in the capture... fSxe$ with the intention, at we shall ee later, 10 use {5 for his pieces and oocupy rn {twill be remembered that ater he moves =. 16, Black ‘biains nothing from the exchange {Seed and instead claims his fown space advantage on the king Side with .. (-f6 entrusting his canoes to the advance of the pawn, The opening of the c-file and the weakness of the pawn on 46 “The main aim ofthe advance od 8 is to follow up with the exchange 5:46 so that after the recapture... c7xd6 White obtains the eile and weakens the pawn ‘on d6 a8 a bass for his queenside play (6) ‘The pressure along the efile can be reinforced by doubling the 3The Mar dl Plata Centre heavy pieces, and that against the 46 pawn by Abé andor wb3- 23, Two other ideas ae the disrup- tive sally Qc7-e6 (generally linked with wb} ater which White does not feat ... Axes because the opening of the dfile, weakening of the light squares in ‘the enemy camp and enhanced dynamism of the 22-48 diggonal ‘Would all workin bis favour), and winning the a-pawn alter “We2 by means of the defection Qa? singe ... Zxa7 would leave the bishop on ef insuffclensy protec- ted, Black may either choose t0 abandon the a-pawn 10 its fate contenting himself with... eB 7 after xa in the hope that the ime fost by White will help his attack, or simply prevent the capture by playing... a6 ‘The advance 2-24 {Wis us for this last reason above ‘that White plays 22-a4 (see Diag- am 6) securing the position of the QBS in order to be able to rmeet...a7-a6 withthe manoeuvre 2bs-ai-ct looking 10 fix the weakness on bS by subsequent a-25 (7, Although Black can attempt to resolve the development of his quvenside by the manoeuvre o8-d7-5, it is elear that once White has occupied b6 he will have total control of the e-file ‘This paralysing manoeuvre can sometimes be effectively halted halfway if Black suoceeds in ‘organizing the advance... b7-5 before White can fx b6 with a4 258) In such types of position White's attack may be slowed up Sufiiently to allow Black to shit the emphasis ofthe struggle to the opposite flankThe defensive manoeuvre 2f6-08. ... 218-7. g7-18 Clearly, though, Black cannot afford to be solely. preaceupied with the a-pawn and/or 66 square ven that White's two main objec: tives are pressure on d6 and pen- ‘tration on 7. To protect these two weak points Black normally fetceats the ‘I6 to e8, bringing the rook to £7 and completing the elence ofthe U6 pawn by... £8 9). In this manner the points ¢7 and d6 ate defended three times and the square g7 is simul taneously made available 10 the KR, from where itis ideally placed to support the advance of the g- avin. The ... 96 br kthrough Black's hopes on the kingside are closely bound up with the breakthrough ... ef: the opening ofthe afl... x03} willevidently seriously endanger the safety of the white king. Thus iti logieal ‘hat White will ty to conteol e& as much as possible with moves such as h2-b3 and 43-2. Nate rally, given the key importance of the kingside breakthrough, Black, for his part, will not hesitate 10 enlist the h-pawn for support (10, Here, Black does not yet have sulcient control to effect the advance ... p5-g4, and therefore if be cannot play’... e8-f6 he sometimes has recourse 10. the manoeuvre eT-g8-6. Normally, however, the ®e7 will be transferred to hé via go and the breakthsough with ..e4 played anyway,evenatthecost ofa pawn, ‘expecially since the opening of the 4d8-hé diagonal will enable the 4quoen to join in the attack. One defensive method White may ase to belp prevent .. gS-e4 is 10 withdraw the queen tod Ir will be readily understood that if White has played 43-2. 5“The Mar det Plata Contre he will have more diffeulty in preventing the... g4 advance (1) In this type of position Black quite often achieves a decisive ‘opening up of lines of attack by means of the pawn saetifce... 84 B Detence by the major pieces along the second and third ranks Given the battle centred around control af gf (see Diagram 10) it fellows that when Black plays 85-4 a series of exchanges could focur which would free White's third rank, Ia such circumstances White quite frequently attempts 10 profit from this factor by rapidly transferring a major piece (0 the Infl, especially seeing as Black's king is usually placed on he (2) In playing Wh3 White aims to turn the tables on the kingside, note that Black eannot reply with agl+ because after hl he ‘would have two pieees en prise Sometimes this clearance of the third rank can be exploited by 3 rook which has previously been stationed at 3 of a. ‘Another method of defending the g-pawn from the attack shown in the last diagram is with the prophylactic 2e2 (which is also useful for doubling rooks on the fle) coupled with the elearance fof the second rank by £42-el ua, By 2d2-e1 White not only defends g2 but also makes it poss ile to eliminate the dangerous knight on ha.Occasionally these two defens- ive ideas can be combined, in ‘which case it is by no means impossible for White to achieve his aim of turning the tables on the kingside The weakness of the dé square nthe situation illustrated in Diag ram_$ Black may, in piace of forcing B by... 47-6, opt for a more simplified type of game by playing .. xed, This would create the following pawn struc: ture after the recapture QeBxe4 as. ‘This structure can also arse after...7-45 when White chooses tocapture on (S und Black decides to recapture with a piece. How- ever, it isclearly in Whites interest, to wail, at whoever makes the exchange of pawns loses & tempo and helps the centralization ofthe enemy pieces The Mar del Pita Conte ‘Aer the exchange. Sxe4 the steugale essentially revolves around the squares 4 and ed: Black has opened up s route t0 the wesk 44 square (for example by BeTHt5-d4) whilst White hs use of the strong base e4 and can keep a degree of control over af by the manoeuvre del-d2-<3 us. | wae a \& iW it Black cao bring aboot some simplification by = Oh, Oxo Bot AIS, wel deh, and may aso ofr the xchange of guess with. WES However, in the ending White tmaitana asight Dut enduring advantage due to the posession ofthe ed square the tong ent Tze postion ofthe Od, aad the possibity of launching «pawn assault on the queenside against Black's rather spi structure. Ia audition, sexing as White's King’s poston snot ata weakened, ts Siticult for Black to drum up any ‘meaning pay onthe kings“The Mar dl Plata Cotce Recently, after the thematic £4 and the black queen becomes advances .., {S-f4 aad of-c5, exposed Black has Wied opening up an alternative route to 44 by attack: ing the 45 pawn by... 7-c6(16). The attack against the pawn chain e-a5 Another idea which Black can pur- sue isthe dismantling ofthe pawn chain ef-45 by means of the dual theust...c7-e6 and 67-95 (13). Tae inadequate protection of 45 obliges White to make the double exchange eSed6 and dSx06 which allows Black, after... 47 x6, 10 Took forward to occupying. the square d4 (17), This idea finds its justification in the undefended position ofthe ‘pawn on 8: Black wil reply to 45x06 with... bSxo4, and answer cofnbS by . cfxd8, utilizing the strength of his knights to destroy the enemy centre, To implement this kindof counterattack it i nearly always necessary to play a prophylactic... 2g8-Af in order to avoid problems along the a2 8 diagonal ‘Such a strategy, however, has Generally, in this type of pos: ite defects, given that the ripping ition, White fights for possession ‘open of the ceatee does not fit in of 5 either with @d3-b4 or with the attacking thrust ,.. S- d5xc6 bSxe4, 043-2 followed by 5Aedro$ (19). When White obtains control of «Shs positon is clearly preferable in view of the backward pawn fon d6 and the queenside pawn majority The advance b2-b4 I we return to reflect om the pos ition shown in Diagram 1, it is clear that as an alternative to the manoeuvre ©3-e1-d3 White can also prepare the e5 advance by playing 62-b4, The basic aim of this idea is to earmark the square of for the KN (@1-d2 ef) and post the QB on a3 (after ‘the move a2-af) in order to exert concerted pressure against the d6 pavin (0), 1 Black proceeds with his usual strategy, White doesnot intend to make the exchange eSxd6 but will increase the pressure on d6 by playing b4-B5 with the further idea of breaking down Black's (queenside structure by means of a subsequent a4-a5 and/or bS-bs ‘The weakness of the £4 sau: Referring back to the position in Diagram 1 we observe that White can either advance with b2-bé immediately of fist transfer the knight to d2 before. prooseding with f2-bi, An anticipatory retreat ofthe KIN (either to d2 of 1) uncovers the action of the queen and bishop on the dls diagonal thos preventing. Black Irom exploiting the weakness off with a rapid. 0f6-bS-f4, This rmanocuste can be cartied out if White decides to play b2-b4 immediately (20, Here White must choose between protecting f with g2-g3 at thecost of weakening his castled position and continuing his queen- side action by of-e5 with the intention, after... DbS-I4, of °ing the troublesome y clef Tn the frst case, after Black's typical reaction of. -5, White can continue with b2-b4 and the consequent transfer QD~d2-c4 However, the weakening of Whi tes Kingside means that Black's Kingside counterattack comes more quickly, especially with the natural arrival of Black's QB on 13 (2) Black can increase the pressure on the fle by ...h7-1S followed by... 0f6-g4 and leave the other Knight to take care of the defence of d6 (... 2e7-c8. 0 Alternatively. White can attempt to exploit the weakness fn e6 created by the advance F7-£5 with the manoeuvre ©1— In this "ype of position the incursion into e6 often implies the sacrifice of a pawn after obxes, dSxe6, but White can find both strategic, and above tactical, compensation in general white square debility in the enemy camp, for example by ‘exploiting the obvious possibility of occupying the dS square oF vilizing the open defile to exert strong pressure on c7 and d6 after c4-e8 and De3-bs. When White decides against weakening his king's position by 82-83 in favour of continuing his ueenside action with ofS, and consequently also plays delat ater Oh5-f6, the following stra tegical outline arises (26, ‘After the recapture... eSxt4 Black has managed to free the badbishor, and in addition to the ‘normal pawn attack on the king's wing (.- H7-b6, followed by 6-85" gé) he has also exposed the ce-pawn to attack slong the hall. ‘open esfle, The 7 needs t0 be posted on g6 so as to prevent the suffocating advance ef-e5, For his part, White will pursue his usual pressure along the efile and against 46 (@c3-bS) and also use the newly acquired base at d4, the occupation of which may also be ‘sed to trasfer knight to IS in the event of Back playing... 26 5S The bad bishop One of the problems which fre query obliges Black to play sha ply and uncompromisingly isthe fact that he cannot lightly enter an ending on account of his bad bishop. The exchange of the bad Dishop ths represents a strategic clement which ean be realized in The Ma del Pata Cente various ways, according to how White plays ‘When White goes 3-42, with the idea of continuing with b2-b4, cf-c5 and d2-c4, Black can get i ofthe bad bishop by... tg? hs (25, Black invariably aims 10 exchange his bad bishop for its ‘00d counterpart so as not to give White the opportunity, after the exchange... -£h6xd2, £ctxd2, of exploiting the weakness of the dark squares by opening up the position with the advance 02-4 ‘When White eects the manoeuvre Of3-et-d3, the elim ‘nation ofthe bad bishop requires more complicated manoeuvres 253 efore blocking the position with .. {5-4, Black can play the preparatory ... 8-8 which, in addition to aiding a possible attack on the pawn chain of-d5 (Gee p.8}, can also contain the idea of getting rid of the bad "“The Mar del Plata Conte bishop with ... e7-g8 followed by 2g7-ho Finally, another method con sists of playing the anticipatory thematic move ... BIB-f7 to free the square 8 for the queen (27), ‘This is another way, albeit rare, for Black tocarry out theexchange of his bad bishop, Tho prophylactic advance. 7-05 ‘Given that Whites attack is based almost without exception on the advance of-e5, Black can ceflect @ prophylactic strategy by 2 playing . 7-5 himself 28) Generally speaking, this plan is more usually employed when White plays 23-42, as it has the fect of depriving the knight of the important of outpost, but ‘occasionally Black also employs this prophylactic idea when White plays the normal’ manoeuvre BB-et-d3, ‘Once Black has carried out the advance ... eT-e8, White must choose whether to take en passant orto stick with the opening up of the queeaside by Eal-b1 fol lowed by b2-bs Inthe first case, the strategic structure ofthe pos: ition changes considerably after 45206 bc (29). Having weakened his control of the centre, White will try to develop the queenside and exploit his pawn majority in that sector with quick b2-Dé-bS, whereas Black will ry to obtain count playin the centre by means ofthe thrust... d6-d5,“The Mar del Plata Cente captures the b-pawn by... eSxb4 ‘he will soon find himself exposed to the same attack ashe wil have to play... b7-b6 in order to keep 6 under contol ‘Aller the opening of the oi while Black is carrying on with his (pics! kingside counterplay, White wil be locking to occupy the square o6 by the manoeuvre ‘042 b}-a5-c6 and to penetrate enemy terctory by means of doub- ling the rooks on the open file Ta the second case, om the other hhand, White's queenside action will be based on the opening of the befle GO). The prophylactic advance o2-96 Whiten his tur can take prophy- tie measures against Black’s Kingside action. The motivating force for these measures is that after the advance. 15-18 White's Kkingside suffers from a chronic lack of defensive space. Thus in ‘order to make the delence easier Alter Hb! and bé (prepared by White will play g2-g¢. before 22-a3 in case of Black countering Black plays the restrictive... {S— With .. a7-a5) Blacks best strat- (8, supporting i by 1-5 3). xy 18 to play ... B7-b6 in order tobe able to recapture on eS with the bopawn, The recapture with the d-pawn would give White a protected passed pawn and leave Black open toa flank attack after 'b7 66 (sooner oF later Black is ‘obliged to play this move in order to defend the pawn on cS) by a2 14-35, Similarly, even if Black‘The Mar del Plata Cente By applying ths strategy White ‘bans sufficient defensive space fon the kingside: if Black decides to block the postion immediately with 15-6 (hoping to continue with .. go-g5 and subsequently prepare the breakthrough +. 7 ‘nS) White eam infact preveat the opening of any lines by playing 12h In this ease the bi pawn, can be protected either by et £2 or gt-g? followed by fl Ii, Should Black decide to make the capture... {xg then afer Bag iis clear that White's king side isnot restricted i the slight- est ‘This prophylactic strategy also contains another idea, that should Black try to get rid of his bad bishop a we saw in Diagram 26, ‘White would continue the advance lof the g-pawn by gd-g5 thus pre venting the exchange ‘Normally, in the type of pos: ition shown in Diagram 1, Black, having been somewhat thwarted in his Kingside attacking. aspir- ations, redirects his atack to the pawn chain of-d5, as we saw In Diagram 18. However, White, thanks to the move ©d3-b4, has real chances of obtaining contol of d5 (32). A position in which White is more concerned to contain the ‘opponent's play on both flanks rather than initiate his ow plans. 2 Tactical ideas ‘The presence of a closed centre, generally characteristic ofthe lines we have examined, mltates against recucting tactical ideas at least during the opening phase. Of course, inthe middle game, when the mutual attacks have reached their height and the respective defences have consequently become somewhat stretched, the game can become rich in tactical ideas which, however, are 100 diverse to catalogue. Norare there many thematic, recurring tactical ideas be found in the lines where ‘White weakens his king's postion with the advance g2-. Winning the a-pawn and ‘the counter ... Zo? {In one ofthe better known theor- tical variations the following pos- ition arises alter nineteen moves Ga.Here White can exploit the pressure exerted against the oS by playing @xa7 although Biack has the counter ... Ze? available (itshould be noted that Black can also ignoce the loss of the pawn and simply reply with ... £47) which forces probably equalizing simplification: aS Bxc2, dtxd8 Hxed, Oxc8 Brat (34) The Mae del Plata Centre ‘The knight sacrifice for ‘two pawns. The efficacy ofthe... ZeT counter comes seriously into question if White is able to capture on a7 ater having played the advance b-bd G9), ‘White plays 1a7 and after the counter move... eT he can reply with the sacrifice c6 because after... buo6, dxc6, he obtains ‘three connected passed pawns (36). Preseat-day understanding con- siders this position approximately equal ‘The advance bt rules out any danger of losing the e6 pawn and makes White's threats more immediate, 15“The Mar del Plata Conve overed attack on ‘and the psoudo- fork 94 ‘When White allows the opponent to play ... OS and protects the ‘4 square by g2-g3 the following position ean arise (97). > RR Hore White can play exfS obliging Black to recapture on 15 with a Piece (since after... px5 there isa favourable discovered attack by ‘xe8) although after. Oxf he must not fall into the trap of playing a pseudo-fork:ifga? O64) ‘and Black’s postion is better in case of either xd exd4 or gxhS Bed, wre? bgt (38) because Black regains the piece with a very lear advantage, 3. Illustrative games Game 1 Miles Sax London 1980 Mar det Plats Variation 1 ap af 2 e 3 oes gr ao An inversion of moves designed to avoid the Griinfeld defence. 4 a rs) 6 te 7 0 ‘This is the point where White declares his intentions regarding the king and also permits the development... b8-6. The principal alternatives are 7 dS (Petrosian System; see Ch.2)and 7 ‘e3 (Gligori System), The later, when it doce not revert (0 this type of centre, brings about those considered in Chapters 2,5, or 6 1 26 a 27 9 bel ‘The most commonly used continvation, with which White aims to support the c§ advance by a typical transfer of the Keght to 3. The alternatives are given in the notes to both White’s and Black's ninth moves in the second ‘game. . oa? ‘As well as fesing the path of the fpawn and controling the square 5, this move is also Useful {for maintaining control of eS. This becomes clear should Black, in place of the usual manoeuvre 216-47, ... 7-15 and ... 47 16-€8, try to save two tempi by playing 9 ... eB, in which case White would instantly change plans and challenge the e§ point with the thrust 2-f6, eg, 10243, 15 11 exis 12 Oxf with some advantage bearing in mind the possibility ef occupying the 6 square bo 6 4a Note that White waits for the ‘opponent's Knight to return to 1 before playing 1-13 so as to facilitate the advance o4-<5. The old continuation 11 exf5 has fallen nto disuse because the recaptore 11... Oxf helps Black to make use of the sensitive dd square a 6 The Mar del Plats Centre Black must aot continue with 11... £4 before having forced 1 as this would allow White to rid himseif of his bad bishop by play- ing 12 g4. Moreover, in order to be able to open up lines of attack on the kingsde Black needs to create a breakthrough point in ‘White's pawn structure: rom this derives the need to force £3 in ‘order ta be able to make progress fon the flank aftr ..{5-f4 with the thrust... g&-g5-a4. An alter- native is found in the simplifying ‘move 11... f5xe4 with the idea of exploiting the weakness ofthe o8 square with a subsequent SeT-f5-d4 manoeuvre. But in this case White gains two vital tempi (Ad? and ‘ixed) in com parison with the old line noted above 11 ex"5 x5) which ensure him a small but enduring advan- tage, eg 11. fred 12 Oxed 5 13 Be} Of 14 4B Ohd 15 Sub WxfG 16 ed £65 17 Wer Axes 18 Wred (ee the commentary to Diagram 15) 2 8.69) At this point Black must choose plan. There are thee basic posi- bilities: (1) to continue the counterattack on thekingside with 15-14, as we will see in this ‘game; the clastic and most popular continuation; (2) to take prophy- lactic steps on the queenside by 0playing ... €7-e5 either immedi- ately or after... 98-8, eg. 12 ©5 13 bt f4 14 ba be, or 12 ‘GhS 13 el 5, as will be seen in game 2; (3) to attack the cefedS pawn chain (after... 8 18) without closing the centre by 15-14, eg. 12... SHR 13 Eel €6 14 bd bS (ee the commentary to Diagrams 18 and 19) n “ BOS 8 “This is Black's tast chance to ‘opt out of the race to got there first’ by trying to open up a path to d4 with 13... oh eg. 14 cxd6 Wrd6 15. dxes 406 16 Obs WeT 17 |d4 with complicated play 4 ze In the present game this pos: ition was reached by a transpos- ition of moves: 10 442 15 11 Hel Of 12 BH 13 O63 95 14 8. Such transpositions are quite 18 frequent in tis variation, but the move order given isthe most log ‘clan most usual in practice. The text move is White's most direct, method of commencing his the: matic pressure on the celle. An alternative, although somewhat ‘more tortuous pian, isto bring the KR to cl: 14 cxdé cxd6 15 OD Ito prevent... 25-94 followed by Wale and Zff-cl, “4 66 Occasionally, when this pos ition has been reached with the Additional interpolation of the moves ... dp¥-h8 and b2-bi, Back can use this knight via ho) coupled with the advance BT-RS to support the breakthrough .. g5-p4. The text move is equally useful for teeing the seventh rank forthe defensi- vejolensive manoeuvre ... 28 1... p78 and... EOT-87, and sending the knight to hé from where, together with the 37, it will exert pressure on 15 end So far, the sacrifice 15 GbS «6 16 cxd6 axbS 17 exc? wd? 18 1W3 has only been mentioned in analysis oe exds 16 Obs Threatening 76 an 7 ¥a White supports the knight on ‘S by renewing the threat of eT, asotherwiveit could bechased out ‘of the game by Black's queenside pawns, eg. 17 OP a6 18 a3 'bS. Note that withthe text move White does not yet threaten ‘@bsxa7 on account of .. WaB- bo 7. a8 Black ca also consider permit- ting the penetration of the knight ito 7 and 06, eg. 17... g4 18, Qc) gxf3 19 ged ANB 20 Geb, but the solid text move is the most popular nowadays oat Necessary in order to prevent ‘a7-aG and .. b7-bS. With the double sim of control: The Mar del Plats Centre ling g4 and covering the diagonal thus activating the threat of Baa. ‘This classic position has been ‘much analyzed. There are bas: ically three waysfor Black to meet the “hreat” of ©xa7: (1) to let White play @xa7, having confi ence inthe simplification following the counter ,.. EeT, eg. 19 AIR 20 Qxa? Ee? 21 aS Ered 22 xd8 Exe? 23 Oxck xed 24 O03 4 with a position curently considered balanced; 2) to sacrifice the pawn in order to fain time for the kingside attack, as we shall se inthe present game; (8) to prevent the capture of the eh-dT side by ...2T-a6 and ... B7-bS, eg 19... 2a7 20 Wb3 4mm 21 Zed a6 22 a3 Bg7 23 h3 Oh 24 Biel bE 25 Hot gd 26 ined 'bS with an extzemely complicated position, 9 rt ‘Now itis White who stands at the crossroads: to take on a7 oF mon mer ‘These two thematic moves merely postpone White's decision. 21 exaT Quite apart from the counter »oT, there is the danger associ ‘ated with this continuation tha it will cost ime to bring the knight bck into play. 21 5 and 21 3, have also been experimented with Mae ar Deciding against the simp! ification with 21... ZeT. The interpolation of h3 on the twenti- eth move provides the as yet unteied possibilty 21... xia" 22 gxh3 Ba, a a) 23 wb White prepares to defend along the third rank. 2 ens Given that sooner or later Black will need to bring the 2e8 into play on 16 in order to support the ‘4 thrust, this sidestep is useful in cutting out potential dangers along the a2-y8 diagonal which ould follow from the Koight fvasion Ob5-