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The Very Latest Developments

The September 2001 Update

It seems somehow irrelevant to discuss chess openings after the recent shocking events in the U.S.A.

I know I speak for everyone at ChessPublishing.com when I offer our heartfelt sympathy to all the American people.

On a personal note I hope that all my friends are safe and sound.


If you would like to see at a glance if there is anything new in one of your favourite lines, then go to ChessPub.exe, put the date on, say, 15th September 2001, and then click on Flank Openings, over on the right. All these games should appear!

This month almost half the games are from the French Championships, which were played at Marseille this year. This was despite the fact that the strange and unsatisfactory format produces more than its fair share of dull and uninteresting draws. Etienne Bacrot won this for the third time in a row, which is not too bad for someone who is only eighteen years old!

TonyK

English 1...e5

English 1...c5

English 1...Nf6 & others

Réti

Bird/Larsen Opening


 

 

English Opening

 

1...e5

A28: Following 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.e3, I have mostly concentrated on the theoretical, and very popular, 4...Bb4, but as SEP01/08 shows, 4...Be7










is perfectly viable.

A29: In the 4...Nd4 line White's surprising h4-move in SEP01/03 is the precursor to a startling queen move on the other side of the board.

 

1...c5

A36: It is about time that we had a look at the variation 1.c4 c5 2.Nc3 g6 3.g3 Bg7 4.Bg2 Nc6 5.e3 e6 6.Nge2 Nge7 7.0-0 0-0










which is the big problem for 5.e3, if White wants to win. This is analysed in SEP01/09

 

1...Nf6 & others

A13: Black shows his great chess experience in SEP01/05, firstly by producing a completely original opening, and then by choosing the right moment to transposes into a typical IQP position.

A17: The exciting Nimzo-English line 1.c4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.g4!? has gone quiet just recently, but proves that it still causes Black plenty of problems in SEP01/07.

A19: In the sharpest line of the Mikenas Attack, 1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e6 3.e4 c5 4.e5 Ng8 5.Nf3 Nc6 6.d4 cxd4 7.Nxd4 Nxe5 8.Ndb5 a6 9.Nd6+ Bxd6 10.Qxd6 f6 11.Be3 Ne7 12.Bb6 White plays the endgame after 12...Nf5 13.Qc5 Qe7 in SEP01/06, produces a strong novelty, and wins comfortably.

This fine victory against his former trainer provided a key point in Etienne's third consecutive French title.

 

Réti

D02: Some mistake, surely?

Well, in fact, the position after 1.Nf3 d5 2.g3 Nf6 3.Bg2 Nc6 is clearly a Réti, where White's best move might be 4.d4, and although this is classified under 1.d4 d5, I felt it would be of some interest to my subscribers. Have a look at SEP01/04.

A07/A11: There are several critical lines where Black decides to capture, and hang-on to, White's c-pawn.










Here is one such position, but in SEP01/10 White produced a powerful and surprising innovation that regained the pawn with a significant advantage. Worth a look!

 

Bird/Larsen Opening

You may remember, in last month's , Jerry Taylor complained about my poor coverage of this slightly obscure opening, a mix of b3, Bb2, and f4.

He decided to play it after having seen the brilliant victory of the young Lasker, against Bauer,J at Amsterdam 1889. If you have never seen it before, here it is:

1.f4 d5 2.e3 Nf6 3.b3 e6 4.Bb2










4...Be7 5.Bd3 b6 6.Nf3 Bb7 7.Nc3 Nbd7 8.0-0 0-0 9.Ne2 c5 10.Ng3 Qc7 11.Ne5 Nxe5 12.Bxe5 Qc6 13.Qe2 a6 14.Nh5 Nxh5










Now comes the famous double-bishop sacrifice:

15.Bxh7+! Kxh7 16.Qxh5+ Kg8 17.Bxg7!! Kxg7 18.Qg4+ Kh7 19.Rf3










19...e5 20.Rh3+ Qh6 21.Rxh6+ Kxh6 22.Qd7!

The sting at the end of the tail! White wins a piece, and the game.

So, in this month's last two games I have had a look at recent developments in this line. The first problem to address is whether the opening arises after 1.b3 d5 2.Bb2 Nf6 3.e3 c5 4.f4, say, the Larsen move order, or by 1.f4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.b3 c5 4.Bb2, the Bird's Opening move order. Well, both are possible, but whichever you prefer depends on whether you prefer to play 1.b3 e5, or 1.f4 e5, I suppose.

A01: The Larsen move-order, is examined in SEP01/01.

A03: Meanwhile the Bird's move-order is seen in SEP01/02, although most of these games could easily transpose. One thing to note is that with this precise move-order (1.f4) White will be unable to play his queenside fianchetto if Black plays a quick ...g6!

Tony K

English 1...e5

English 1...c5

English 1...Nf6 & others

Réti

Bird/Larsen Opening