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MODERN CHESS
MAGAZINE
practical games
Grandmaster Repertoire
against 1 d4 . – Part 1
36 Chapter I
39 Milchev,Nikolay (2348) - Chatalbashev,Boris (2541)
41 Tyomkin,Dimitri (2516) - Chatalbashev,Boris (2522)
43 Arnaudov,Petar G (2449) - Chatalbashev,Boris (2571)
46 Cvitan,Ognjen (2501) - Smirnov,Artem (2440)
47 Alekhine,Alexander - Flohr,Salo
48 Grischuk,Alexander (2710) - Shirov,Alexei (2720)
51 Peshina – Butnorius, Riga, 1975
52 Miler – Velmander, Izzevsk, 1949
55 Kacheishvili,Giorgi (2583) - Shankland,Samuel L (2498)
57 Mekhitarian,K (2568) - L'Ami,E (2631)
Playing Positions with Small one of the priorities in chess. In this article, I
would like to share with you some of the practical
Advantage details typical for this type of positions. By
commenting on two of my recent games, against
GM Kiril Georgiev
strong opponents, I will try to explain my way of
thinking in practical situations. I hope that the
readers will benefit from my experience.
3
4
This move is also logical. Black places the bishop an attack and does not have compensation for the
on the “a8–h1” diagonal and has different motifs worse pawn structure. Black keeps some chances
for attack of the white king. One of them is Qe6– for a draw, however White’s position is
Qh3. In middlegame positions with opposite- preferable.
colored bishops, the side that first manages to
create threats has the advantage. The following The following variations serve
variations are possible: to demonstrate methods of defence and attack in
this type of positions.
5
With
perpetual check If White tries to play for
victory, nothing good awaits him.
Despite the
fact that the material balance is almost equal,
White’s undeveloped pieces and the vulnerable
position of the king give advantage to Black. It is
hard to overcome the f4 and g5 threats.)
With a position that is close to equal, but
again I think that it is easier to play for Black.
Remember: the resources of the attack are
greater than the ones of the defence.)
The rook on “d3” is very
active. And again Black uses the weakness on the
kingside. This is the strongest move in this
With a very sharp endgame that cannot be
position. My opponent put a very beautiful trap.
properly evaluated but where the black pawn on
f3 appears to be more dangerous than the white
I decided to continue the development of
passed pawns on the kingside.)
the pieces and later find a better endgame for
White. Black’s pieces are temporarily active, but
the weaknesses of the queenside remain.
6
them Black’s chances to organize an attack on my that I did not consider this maneuver at all,
king weaken significantly. My main idea is, when instead I chose the ‘human’ continuation.
my king is safe enough, to organize an attack on (
Black’s weak pawn on the queenside.
With big, probably decisive
advantage.)
My opponent
reluctantly exchanges the second pair of rooks,
because the surrender of the “d” file gives me
more advantage.
7
A useful move,
claiming the “h3” square for the black bishop,
taking the king a square closer to the center and
preparing the movement of the pawn on the
kingside where we have a pawn up. In the
endgames, we strive to play on the side where we
have material advantage. This is our main
advantage; we have 4:3 pawns on the kingside
and can create a passed pawn, while Black has
3:2 on the queenside but cannot create a passed
pawn – first, the pawns are doubled, and second,
they can be subject to attack.
8
up and mate is threatening. Black resigned.
1–0
With a big advantage for White. He has a
pawn up and better chances for the attack on the
Nakar,Ey (2435) - Georgiev,Ki (2623)
weakened black king.
16th ch-EUR Indiv 2015 Jerusalem ISR (11.59),
Now it was time to find the 08.03.2015
optimal locations for my pieces. I wanted to put
the knight on "f4" near the black king and use the The Tournament in Jerusalem was not
queen to invade the "d6" square. Black’s position
very successful for me and my last chance to
is indefensible.
finish with dignity was to win the last round and
Black sacrifices a to take the Veteran prize. How to play a decisive
pawn with the hope to organize a counter play game against a younger opponent and with black
related to the distant passed pawn “a”, but a more
pieces? I decided to play solidly, in order to play
important aspect in the position is the weakened
black king. a long game and to wait for my opponent to make
a mistake. That is why I chose to play the Caro-
In Kan defense.
this position, other moves also win, for example:
or , but the move in the game is more White chooses a quit
decisive and starts a direct attack on the black variation with the idea –– and based on
king.
Black’s play, to decide where to develop the
pieces from the queenside.
9
Interesting idea. I borrowed it form the Logical move! I took advantage of White’s
Ivanchuk’s games. The idea is to quickly develop passive move and now Black already has the
the pieces on the kingside with and , and initiative. My knight on “a7” gets the opportunity
depending on White’s continuation, the knight to go to a better position - “c6”.
can be developed on either “b6” or “a7” square.
White is
slightly better, because of his space advantage.
10
decided that I could not create enough problems With a slight advantage for Black.
for my opponent without the queens.
I decided to create a distant passed
An alternative that deserves enough attention is pawn on the queenside that will seriously
Black’s aim is to prevent the queen distract white pieces. An alternative was:
exchange and to amplify the pressure on the “e” with the aim to occupy the open “d” file
and “a5” pawns. The following variation is also and to gradually enhance the pressure on the
possible: With an excellent queenside and center.
game for Black.
The rook took an active
This does not solve White’s position on the “d” file and in some cases after
problems: can create threats around the white king.
Black has a better pawn structure and
this gives him better chances in the endgame. In view of the opponent’s time trouble, it
is better not to force the events, but rather to
White manages to exchange the
make some preventative moves, reinforcing our
pawn on “c5” for the one on “e4” and it looks like
position. Here this is the case.
it is not far from a draw.
It is not good to play: Serious attention deserves the move:
And White remains with a
pawn up
Logical and strong, I
decided to activate the knight from “a5” and
launch a simultaneous attack on the rook on “e3”
and the vulnerable pawns on “e5” and “b2”.
Moves that attack the opponent’s pieces with
tempos are usually good.
Another option for White is:
Here I
made a mistake, it was more precise to play:
11
In a very A beautiful end of the game. The conclusion:
sharp time trouble, my opponent made a mistake, When you need a victory at any price, there is no
at a time when the position was close to equal. need to rush into crazy attacks – it is better to
steer into a long unforced game allowing for
gradual outplaying of the opponent. In order to
improve your level, I recommend you learn to
play simple positions with less material which
are close to equal. I hope my games have been
helpful and you managed to gain some insight
into the GMs thinking process.
0–1
12
Methods of Playing in Positions little part of the openings from which positions
with hanging pawns could arise. Depending on
with Hanging Pawns -Part 1 the concrete situation, hanging pawns could be a
GM Grigor Grigorov strength or a weakness. In the middlegame, when
there are a lot of pieces on the board, the side
playing with hanging pawns enjoys a
considerable spatial advantage. In such kind of
positions, hanging pawns play the role of a shield
behind which we can prepare for an attack
against the opponent’s king. Sometimes, hanging
pawns could go forward and create dangerous
threats. That's why we should always take into
consideration their dynamic potential. Despite
the numerous advantages they offer, in some
cases, the hanging pawns could be weak. In order
to understand their weak points, we should
clarify some basic concepts related to positions
with a spatial advantage. The side which has a
spatial advantage avoids exchanges, because
every exchange reduces dramatically the
importance of the space. That's why, when
playing against hanging pawns, we should aim to
exchange pieces. In the endgame, the dynamic
potential of hanging pawns decreases and they
need constant protection. Our course on hanging
pawns is divided into two logically interlinked
articles. While the present material concerns the
methods of playing against such pawns, in the
next issue, I am going to present some ideas
which might help us exploit their attacking
potential. In practice, we fight against hanging
pawns by using three main methods: piece
Dear Readers, pressure, attack from the side by b2–b4 advance
The present article marks the beginning of a and central attack by e3–e4 advance.
series of lectures on positions with hanging 1) Piece pressure - This is the most frequently
pawns. Before we dive into the topic, let us make applied strategy when playing against hanging
clear which pawns are hanging. Generally pawns. It's highly effective when some minor
speaking, this is a pawn couple situated on "d" pieces are already exchanged and hanging pawns
and "c" files ("c4" and "d4" for White and "c5" and are under fire from our major pieces. In such kind
"d5" for Black). Pawns are called "hanging", of positions, queen and rooks exercise a
because there are no pawns on "e" and "b" files considerable pressure against the opponent's
which can protect them. As this pawn structure pawn center. The attacker has the following plan
arises quite often in modern chess practice, every at his disposal: rooks are placed in front of the
chess player must be familiar with it. Grunfeld pawns (on "c" and "d" files), while the queen
defence, Nimzo-Indian defence, Queen's Indian should be situated in a way which allows it to
defence and Queen's gambit constitute only a attack at least one of the pawns. As the pressure
13
generated by major pieces is rarely sufficient, exchanged. As previously noted, the exchange of
minor pieces should enter the attack too. Let's minor pieces favours the pressure against the
see how the above-mentioned plan was hanging pawns. According to the rules,
practically applied by living legend Viktor Kortschnoj's first task is to place his rooks
Kortschnoi in his game against Efim Geler. against Black's central pawns.
"No Chess Grandmaster is normal; they only As I already mentioned, we should always take
differ in the extent of their madness." into consideration the dynamic potential of the
Viktor Korchnoi hanging pawns. With his last move, Kortschnoj
protects his bishop and eliminates the threat d5–
Kortschnoi, V - Geller, E d4.
Moskow, 1971
A typical move for such pawn
structures. White tries to restrict Black's
counterplay along the "b" file. At the same time,
by playing b2–b3, White discourages his
opponent from playing In this case, the b3–
pawn restricts the activity of Black's knight. It's
also interesting to note that the move b2–b3
should be played when Black's rook has already
left the "a8" square - otherwise Black could
generate counterplay on the queenside by means
of a7–a5–a4.
14
15
The restricted activity of Black's knight doesn't
allow him to make use of the dynamic potential
of his hanging pawns. Moreover, the c5 - pawn is
a static weakness which needs constant
protection)
1–0
16
Beliavsky,Alexander G (2650) -
Benjamin,Joel (2620)
Munich SKA Munich (9), 1994
17
a passer. You should remember the following
basic rule: We should place our knight in front of
the more advanced pawn, while our major pieces
should exercise a frontal pressure against the
backward pawn. In this particular position,
White knight goes to "c3", while White major
pieces could be even tripled along the "d" file.
Why did White give preference to instead
of playing Was it a random choice? There
are no random choices in master's games! By
playing White blockades the pawn on "d5"
and eliminates any possibilities based on its
advance. Even if our opponent's counter play
Black goes for a brilliant pawn sacrifice which doesn't seem real, we should try to restrict it!
increases the activity of his pieces. Maybe his Black realizes that the waiting
counterplay is already enough for a draw. As a policy leads nowhere. By playing a7–a5, he is
rule, we should always avoid passivity. We planning to open the "a" file and to prepare the
should fight for the initiative, even at the price of invasion of his rook. Moreover, as the pawn on
material sacrifices! Let's see how the game might "b4" could be a weakness, White should play very
continue after carefully.
In Of course! White pawn should remain on
this position, White is a pawn up and his chances "b4". In this position, it's not advisable to take on
are slightly preferable. Nevertheless, Black's "a5". After such a careless move, the pawn on
rook is very active and as there are pawns on "a3" will be a weakness and Black can make use
both wings, bishop is stronger than the knight. of the "b" file. Now White should pay attention to
The real fight is to follow. the ideas connected with the advance of the "c"
pawn. That's what Benjamin aims for.
The threat "c4–c3" becomes
real. White knight should enter the play.
18
Played just in time! After placing his knight on pair of rooks. By doing so, however, he runs out
"c3" White will manage to neutralize Black's of counter play.
pawn couple. Now Benjamin links his hopes to
the invasion along the "a" file.
After Black loses a pawn:
White is already dominating the board. All his
pieces participate in the attack against d5–pawn.
In order to protect his weak pawn, Black is
Another good positional idea. When an enemy obliged to place his pieces in a passive way, thus
piece invades our camp, our first job is to entering a position where there is no
exchange it or chase it out. In order to remain on coordination in his camp. That's why White is
his active position, black rook needs support. already planning to open the position by means
of e3–e4 and invade the opponent's camp.
The move ? is a blunder. Black can
overtake the advantage after: This move is already a decisive mistake.
The position of black king is extremely
weakened.
Again Alexander Beliavsky makes
the right decision. As I already mentioned, Black should have protected his back rank by
White's long-term plan consists in generating playing
pressure along the "d" file. Nevertheless, for the
sake of precision, we should place our security This is the logical culmination of White's
first. With his last move, White eliminates his strategy. Now black king is under fire.
back rank weakness. In the following
consequence, the Slovenian grandmaster will be Tempting looks
aiming for the optimal set-up of his major pieces. , but after
(or
White )
has managed to generate a considerable pressure White encounters some
against the pawn on "d5". That's why Black difficulties in the conversion of his material
decides to release the tension by exchanging a advantage. That's why the text move is much
19
more convincing.
This move marks the beginning of a well
calculated tactical operation. After the exchange
of the minor pieces, nothing can stop White's
major pieces in their invasion.
20
Euwe, Max - Winter, William e3–e4 is advantageous for us: 1) we are ahead in
Nottingham Nottingham, 1936 development; 2) our pieces are more active and
the opponent lacks coordination; 3) there are
only few minor pieces on the board. I want to
bring to your attention a game which perfectly
illustrates all the basic ideas in this kind of
positions.
21
22
We have reached a typical position which often After this energetic move, White is winning. For
arises after e3–e4 advance. Let's try to evaluate instance:
this complicated situation. From a statical point
of view, White's advantage due to his better pawn
structure is obvious while c5–pawn is a
weakness. The importance of this statical
advantage will increase in the endgame. Another try was When analysing this
Nevertheless, this position is rich in dynamic position, I have discovered the following
resources. Black's light-squared bishop rules interesting line which leads to a perpetual:
along the long diagonal, while his centralized
knight could easily jump to "f4" from where it can White is
create some threats against white king. Also, we planning to sacrifice his rook on "g6".
shouldn't underestimate the importance of the Black starts his
open "e" file where white queen is placed rather counterplay at the right moment.
uncomfortably. Another dynamic resource for
with perpetual.
Black is based on the maneuver . Taking
into consideration all of the above mentioned
constatations, we could say that this position is
rather balanced.
1–0
23
Dragon Variation- part 5
Dragon -
GM Nikolai Ninov
Dear Readers,
This is our last article on the Sicilian Dragon.
This time we are going to focus mainly on
variations where White's light-squared
bishop goes to "g2". Towards the end of the
present article, I am going to bring to your
attention an interesting line where White
develops his bishop on "c4" but castles on the
short side. All in good time, however. Let us
This is the most natural continuation.
begin with the bishop fianchetto: Nevertheless, White could have tried to interrupt
the development of black pieces. Let's take a look
at a few tries:
24
In such a situation,
the brave "a" pawn could easily become a
weakness.; Relatively new idea is
Playable but risky is
(Kramnik's recommendation
doesn't create big problems for Black. He should
react with ! (but not ?!
As we already pointed out in our comments
to move 6, this kind of endgames are favourable
White's initiative is so dangerous that even an for White.)
excellent theoretician like P.H Nielsen didn't
manage to neutralize White's initiative. ?! ! And Black has overtaken the initiative
(It was necessary to fight for the long diagonal by in Adams - Kramnik. After
means of
Their advantage
White is was already decisive.;
winning completely, Vl. Onishchuk - P.H Nielsen,
UAE, 2014.) (good
intermediate move) (Bad is
Vl. Onishchuk -
Miroshnichenko, E, 2014)
25
Tal, 1984. Black is ready to make use of the semi-
open "e" file, while White encounters difficulties White
in advancing his pawns on the queenside. decides to launch a kingside attack which is not
justified. (White should have blockaded the pawn
on "d6" by means of )
?! By going for this
concession, White admits that his plan is wrong.
(White should have perhaps tried to exchange
pieces in order to neutralize Black's growing
initiative
White'
s idea is to make a draw by exchanging all the
pawns on the queenside. For example, if Black
goes for ! he must be careful and
find the precise
with an
equality)
?? After this move, Black is
Black is fighting for the control over the "c" file by winning. (After
using the important outpost on "c4". Black has reasonable
chances to realize his extra pawn.)
The move doesn't stop White's typical
plan Nevertheless,
Black can start preparing the e7–e5 advance by
means of
26
equality:
b1)
b2)
b3)
In order to better understand the idea
behind Black's last move, we should take a look
As White can't execute the
at White's standard reaction Here Black
typical , he encounters difficulties in the
has at his disposal a powerful resource.
defence of the queenside. Makarichev - Svider.
Dragon -
27
mostly tries to occupy "d5" square which is the And Black enjoys a comfortable position
perfect outpost for his knight. Very often, White after)
tries to strengthen the position of his knight by
moves like "a2–a4", "b2–b3", "c2–c4" followed by White is winning an
the maneuver. Black has different exchange.) (Worse is In the above
reactions to this dangerous plan. I think that he
mentioned game, Black followed by
should first prepare the exchange of the light-
squared bishops by means of
And now, instead of accepting
28
In this position, White has tried 3 moves so far - White has managed to preserve his light-squared
and . Let's take a look at them: bishop but now it's difficult to castle.
0–0 (An important tactical idea
a) Efimenko - could be seen in the following variation:
Khalifman, 2012;
With excellent play for Black.)
b) 0–0!? ( is a typical reaction. Black Black is ready to start action in the centre
wants to open the long diagonal for his bishop.)
With a comfortable play in Sharapov -
Tukhayev, 2009.;
= Efimenko -
Riazantsev, 2014; After the natural
The plan with ?! gives
White the advantage. (Better was with
the idea b7–b5) And
White is close to his dream set-up.
(or followed
by c4, Plesec - Murko, 2014 in
the game Seyhanoglu - Baglan, 2014, Black gave
preference to
White is going to double his
rook along the "e" file and his pressure is In the game Chandler - Miles, 1981, White’s play
tremendous. Note that in spite of Black's was rather risky: After
perfectly placed knight on "c5", he has no active White's
play on the queenside. strategy has worked after Black's mistake
? (Chandler should have played
29
Preventing the move )
With the idea to double the rooks along
"d" file. Black has a huge advantage.
The plan with is rather passive
is possible Dragon variation-
! Narciso Dublan - Stets,
() , Salov -
Ivanchuk, 1994. Black enjoys a comfortable
game.
Very much the same plan can be realized after
but Black doesn't have problems at all
Black
was better in, Belia - Moor, 1996.; In response to
Black could follow
with the concrete
And here
Black's
chances are preferable.
Black goes for the pet line of
the legendary English GM Anthony Miles.
Black played the same way he did in the variation
Despite the fact that this move worked with . In this move order, he doesn't
well for Short in two of his games, it's difficult to experience any problems. Let's see an example:
accept that White has an advantage in this
position. Note that white king is still in the centre!
Let's follow the game Short - Mestel, played in With
Hastings 1982/1983. balanced position in Di Paolo - Gashe, 2006. The
game continued:
30
With a dangerous initiative for the missing
exchange. For example:
b) The standard idea is playable
but Black needs to be very careful. White can play
or go for a break in the center. A
dangerous continuation. Now Black must find the
following forced sequence:
Black has serious problems.)
With mutual chances.
31
b)
Also good is the intermediate
c)
Now it's time to make use of the
d) long diagonal: , Silva -
Kamejo, 1988
e) allows
the effective
With a huge
Black is
going to win a pawn. He has an obvious compensation for the sacrificed exchange.
advantage in this position.
Black has no problems in
(If this endgame.
Black is fighting for something more than a draw,
he could go for
With
exchanges and full equality after
32
Zhao Zong Yuan (2579) - Wei Yi (2604) Sometimes, White gives
Chinese Teams 2013 Tianjin CHN (22.4), preference to which leads to transposition to
24.12.2013 the main line after Nevertheless,
Black could have played with the idea "b7–
b5" followed by and . In this case, Black's
position is very flexible.
is possible here. Nevertheless, Black
should take into consideration the fact that in the
fight for the centre, the move is much more
useful than Here is a fresh example:
(Black often plays but after
Wei Yi
At
the end of our series on Dragon, we are going to
examine the move followed by 0–0. White's initiative shouldn't be underestimated. I
bring to you attention two victories of the English
Black should avoid the move
grandmaster Emms:
because of
33
White has a tremendous pressure, Emms
- Mestel, 1997.) A suspicious idea.
Generally, we should avoid the combination "g7–
g6" and "e7–e6".
In addition to the weak pawn on
"d6", White has managed to create an annoying
pin along the "h2–b8" diagonal.
White has managed to
convert his material advantage in the game
Solodovnichenko - Hauge, Oslo, 2014.
The alternative illustrates one of the Again, the bishop goes to its normal position. As
subtleties of White's move order. White is ready demonstrated in the game Grozpeter - Kan, 1999,
to play the standard Bf1 while the central break this move is justified from a tactical point of view.
"d6–d5" is impossible. Maybe, Black should play The game continued with
If then In the game
Zagratsky - Afek, White followed with
and here, instead of the anti-
positional ?! which takes the "e5" square
from the knight and at the same time kills the
bishop on "g7" (Black should have played
overprotecting the "e6" pawn which controls the
key "d5" square. Later, Black can go for a
maneuver like The move is well
met by ! With favourable
complications for Black.); The straightforward
doesn't pose problems for Black. Good
option is followed by and .
34
Grandmaster Repertoire against
1.d4 – Part 1
GM Boris Chatalbashev
This is the normal set-up and move order, though
other move orders are also possible. It all
depends on what you expect from your
opponent. If he likes to play aiming for
transposition into English Opening, then even
might be a good move to start with. Also
is common enough, but here
White has the option of going for Maroczy with
We will deal with the differences in the
When building an opening repertoire many
game section.
players (myself included) prefer slightly off-beat
That's how Black develops in
and rare variations. Especially when they do not
Reluctant Benoni - he goes for fianchetto, then
have the time to study the latest trends in d7–d6 and castles, leaving e7–e6 and eventual
modern lines. Besides, such an approach may e6xd5 (sometimes it is even e6–e5) for last. This
bring practical advantages, as it is likely that the opening might be very useful for people who
opponent may not be too well-versed in those already have experience with King's Indian or
rare openings. But what to choose? Most gambits Modern Benoni as it bears many similarities to
do not have good reputation, and rightly so; other both. Even in Benko Gambit might be useful,
though here we rarely go for early pawn
rare openings like Classic Benoni, for example,
sacrifices.
are known to lead to a passive play. To our
Obviously the main move. I consider the
readers I offer a variation that has served me well
alternatives rather harmless, even though
for many years, being solid enough, but far from and was analyzed in Boris Avrukh's fine book
passive. There is no official name for it, although about
in chess literature it is often referred to as
and normally lead to
'Reluctant Benoni' or 'Late Benoni'. You should transpositions into Four Pawns Attack and
not be put off by the rather unimpressive name – Saemisch King's Indian, respectively. To both
at least as long as it yields impressive results: these variations Modern Benoni set-ups (with
c7–c5) are considered as very good choices.
35
Other possibilities for White include and This position is the main one, from my
- Averbakh variation or and experience I can say that it occurs in about 50%
One might ask oneself - if so many transpositions of the games played in this opening. Unlike some
can happen, why not play just Modern Benoni - other authors, I shall start with the main and
most dangerous line, so the readers can decide
? First, that opening conceals some right from the beginning if they like the variation
very dangerous lines for Black - like the sharp or not :) Generally, of course, it is more suitable
or the positional for players that like complicated, dynamic
which has become quite popular in positions.
grandmaster games, and Black is still searching
for ways to deal with it...These lines normally Chapter I : Main Line
require a considerable amount of knowledge, as
Black should know exactly what he is doing -
move by move. On the contrary - Reluctant If White decides not to spend time
Benoni requires less concrete knowledge, it is on h2–h3, then the resulting positions are rather
more about plans and positional nuances. And if dry, neither side has big chances for a win...
someone is that afraid of Saemisch or Averbakh, (Worse is
we may try to avoid even that by move order In Modern
(more in the game section). So here is the main Benoni structures exchange of white-squared
advantage of Reluctant Benoni – it is very flexible, bishop is almost always favourable for Black.)
allowing us, when preparing for a certain
opponent, to choose just the line and move order
Mrva,M
to throw him out of his favorite positions. And the
(2445)-Chatalbashev,B (2535) Krynica 1998
negatives? Of course there are some, there is
hardly a perfect opening. Here it is mainly the
fact, that White may meet future e6xd5 with
e4xd5. In such positions Black is normally solid,
but playing for a win is quite problematic.
Here White can choose which is
more restrained and not very ambitious.
The key move that I like the most. Black's idea is,
after the knight comes to c7, to threat taking on
d5 and no matter how White responds- exd5 or
cxd5 - answer it with b7–b5. And if White decides
not to allow this and play a2–a4, then we close
36
the position with e6–e5, receiving a favourable
kind of King's Indian. In that case, yes, we have
lost a tempo, but typical play on the queenside
with a3 and b4 for White is now impossible.
Obviously in such positions a2–a4 is not a good
move, the square b4 might be of some use for
Black later.
37
Georgiev,K (2669)-
Chatalbashev,B (2555) Blagoevgrad 2010;
White is slightly better, but the max. he can is rarely played in that position. Black has weak
achieve is some ending 3 against 2 pawns on the pawn on d6, but d4 square is also weak. The
kingside. Trying for more might result in knight maneuvers and are typical
ways of trying to exploit those weaknesses.
orand
Georgiev,K (2671)- ()
Ivanisevic,I (2664) Subotica 2008 CBM 126 Extra
38
Black is ready to take on d5 with b7–b5 hardly decide the game, but which of the two
next. White has several options now - he may moves is better? Practical advice - when
take on e6, he may prevent the threat by playing preparing for a certain opponent, it is good to
a2–a4 or he may ignore it. In the last case, the big make a mental note of not only which moves he
question how to take on d5 - ed5 or cd5. As you likes in the opening, but also of his favourite type
will see in the game section, many prefer to make of positions. That way you may guess his next
this decision now - according to the type of move(s) and make a choice accordingly.
positions they like. However, the best move is to
postpone it and play Milchev,Nikolay (2348) - Chatalbashev,Boris
(2541)
first, protecting e4 pawn - BUL-ch 71st Pernik (4), 12.03.2007
is not working immediately for Black as after
he can not take on e4.
39
Lputian,S (2540)-Milos,G (2510) Palma de
Mallorca 1989)
Lazarev,V (2450)-
Chatalbashev,B (2535) Bourbon Lancy 1998
40
Tyomkin,Dimitri (2516) - Chatalbashev,Boris 0–1 Porper,E-Smirin,I/Israel 1996/CBM 52 ext
(2522) (61)
Verona op Verona (6), 05.01.2000
White intends to meet the move Nb4 by
The same structure arose in my game against the Bb1. Otherwise, his rook on "a1" will remain out
strong grandmaster Dmitri Tyomkin. of play.
g1–e2
41
Exchanges don't help White, either.
After
...
After this typical pawn break, Black has
0–1
overwhelming initiative. He is planning to open
"b" file and activate his queen's rook. White's
position is already very difficult.
42
Arnaudov,Petar G (2449) -
Chatalbashev,Boris (2571)
Albena op Albena (5), 24.06.2009
(I could have
continued like in the main game
(But somehow this bothered me
was not
an easy decision, though after White's
advantage must be just tiny.)
with
good play) This sacrifice is not
working well here, the piece on d4 square is
immediately exchanged.
Andreikin,D (2700)-
Chatalbashev,B (2550) Struga 2012)
43
As
the rook is already
placed on b8, this is the most logical plan.
Gladyszev,O
(2440)-Chatalbashev,B (2546) France 2004
Dreev,A
(2615)-Damljanovic,B (2515) Manila 1990 CBM
019 [Stohl]
Right timing.
with idea
0–1
Yakovich,Yuri (2534) - Marin,Mihail (2604)
Gothenburg Cup Gothenburg (7), 2001
44
exd5 - as the game here shows. It is important to
note the set-up with , . The position is
semi-closed and Black can afford to stay passive
for a few moves before regrouping.
This is a serious mistake. Now Black's kingside is
completely weakened.
45
Cvitan,Ognjen (2501) - Smirnov,Artem I like better the immediate b5–b4. Still, the game
(2440) is important, as White could also have played a2–a3
Split op 1st Split (8), 12.08.2011 earlier, when similar positions arise.
Some other tactical possibilities
-
46
Endgame Series – Part 5
GM Davorin Kuljasevic
Alekhine,Alexander - Flohr,Salo
Nottingham Nottingham (1), 10.08.1936
47
was certainly a
variation in which Alekhine had to take his
calculation until the end:
and
White wins.
with g6–g7 to follow, Black resigned.
1–0
48
to give up the piece for three pawns, the concept
that could save the game."
A slight, but almost a A sight to behold. White has 5 connected pawns
decisive mistake already. Shirov aims to lined up for the final offensive. We have seen in
challenge the white knight on c5 from e6, but his the previous examples that once connected
priority should have been blocking the passed pawns cross the middle of the board, it becomes
pawns. very difficult for light pieces to stop them.
49
"Three connected passed pawns can be stronger
than a rook. In case of the piece swap the knight
from f2 would certainly not be able to match
them."
50
Peshina - Butnorius e- and f- pawn duo. Neither of them can move.
Riga, 1975. (The attempt with f-pawn
leads to nothing but a draw after
To an untrained eye, it might seem that White
should be easily winning with his "extra" rook, and here White can relax as his
but it is actually he who is on a verge of losing! king is close enough, which allows him to hold the
perpetual check with:
This passive retreat is already a etc.
losing mistake!
Putting the wrong foot forward.
White could hold a draw with very exact tempo
play: (Giving up the c4 pawn Black should push the most advanced pawn:
is not advisable for Black since he is and with
not fast enough with his pawns White’s rook tied down on the kingside and pawn
majority on the queenside, Black should be
) and now White draws by using the winning.
familiar technique of attacking the most
advanced pawn: (If Black pushes the The comedy of errors continues, but this
e-pawn first then White has just enough time there is no coming back.
time to bring his king to the center:
and now the best seems In relation to the previous comment,
(Black could try playing fast with his
king:
but the resulting position is
drawn. For example:
allows the blockade and now
the key move nullifies Black's queenside
majority, so the position is drawn after
51
Black's pawns finally started The domination of pawns over the rook is clearly
rolling. visible. The rest is simple.
White's play is too slow and lacking any
defensive strategy. He allows Black's pawns to
get way too far. Breaking the blockade.
It was still better to stop the h-pawn with
i
leaves White
defenceless against the pawns.) And White resigned in a completely lost
position.
Miler - Velmander
Izzevsk, 1949.
A shocking
sacrifice!
52
both sides promoted queens, which is definitely
something that favors White. He wins after
etc.;
b) King in the endgame!
and Black's
pawns have been immobilized, so White wins.;
c) (In this variation, we can see
that White unnecessarily went for the a-pawn in
the game. He would have had plenty of time to
stop it if it had gone forward:
and if White notices that black king is in
trouble:
53
in the end White wins thanks to his passed pawn.
Black overestimates the strength of his passed
pawns.
Giving up the rook for two dangerous passed
pawns is as good a trade as any.
This endgame would be drawn if black king was
on g7. But here it is miles away from this safe
haven. (or
Cutting the king across the fifth rank as it is
essential that it does not reach g7.
Zugzwang. and White gradually
wins.)
puts Black in zugzwang
and he loses his last pawn.
White misses his last chance to win the
game.
54
Kacheishvili,Giorgi (2583) - Shankland,
Samuel L (2498)
USA tt ICC INT (8), 11.10.2010
55
Black has full compensation for the sacrificed
piece.
Exchanging pieces usually favors the
side with passed pawns.
A number of
strange decisions of GM Kacheishvili leads us to
believe that he might have been in serious time
trouble.
56
puts White in zugzwang as
(while loses to
is similar to the game.
leads to
the same result.
This double-edged endgame appeared in the last
Olympiad in the game between Brazilian GM
Mekhitarian and Dutch GM L'ami. Four passed pawns
on one flank is a rare occurrence and it is only natural
that even GMs have difficulties in correctly assessing
such unbalanced positions. Objectively speaking,
Black does hold an initiative, especially after the next
move:
threatening to completely shut down
white rooks with .
57
keeps the initiative in Black's hands
correctly putting the pawns
on the color opposite of white bishop.
White's life
would not be easy with permanent threats of
pawn promotion.
Mekhitarian
perhaps overestimated his position at this point
or missed something in his calculation.
! White finds an excellent
resource in a tough situation.
58
A very usual interference motif in endgames. What a nightmare for White! Just when he got rid
and of all queenside pawns, he has to deal with a
compared to the game, White has extra tempi so pawn mass on the other side of the board. What
his king gets in front of the pawns on time. is worse, his piece co-ordination is terrible so he
is not able to block the g-pawn.
This precise
move wins the game. White can't improve his
position without allowing Black to promote the
pawn, whereas Black's winning plan is to simply
march his king and pawns down the board.
0–1
59
Puzzle 1 Puzzle 3
Puzzle 4
Black to move and win.
Puzzle 2
Puzzle 5
60