July '01 Update
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This instalment of Daring action contains a special treat, as well as a fairly broad and encouraging survey as our Daring Defenders out in the field have been doing a good job for the cause. But first, some thoughts about my regular apology for the delay. I have been wondering a bit about why the DD deadline has just gotten harder and harder to miss slightly, let alone meet. I don't have this problem with other assignments, and here it just seems to be getting worse. But then I got some hints. A few people at Chess Publishing told me to take it easy - did I realize that the average update output per section was about ten games? Ten? I have been trying very hard to hold it under 30, and that is with stuffing each game with a few other, often annotated references in the notes. Ten? Aren't there more sections here than that? Some of the openings here can go silent for months, but when something happens, it is all the more likely not to be dismissable, since almost any evidence is necessary evidence when dealing with the relatively unknown. So, now at least I feel a bit better about the regular apology - at least it comes in a good cause. |
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This month's special treat comes as a result of a message from the new PGN service (ChessPub.exe). "SutterCane", a fierce English Defence theoretician, tipped me off that a line widely considered to be equal for Black was in fact unsound. The analysis fell out of the game online, but he has kindly sent it to me again, and I have forwarded it to the section guru, Tony Miles, for comment.
I am always skeptical first, and the innovation is on the borderline of an intuitive assessment. Sure, it looks dangerous, but winning? Several hours later, Fritz and I cannot see a defence, and I am sure SutterCane has put in far more time before making his claim. Thankfully, he also has a strong opinion about which line Black should choose earlier and assures me that there is nothing to fear in this variation, really, click to the English Defense.
GM Jonathan Tisdall
Benko
Many intriguing developments - in the fashionable g3+ early Rb1 line Black unveiled a very interesting concept in Epishin-Halkias, JUL01/09. This idea has been percolating for some time and this version of it should attract serious attention from theoreticians - Black may be on the verge of striking back.
Both Ulko-Konopkin, JUL01/12, and Ernst-De Rover, JUL01/11, contain quite a bit of theory and recent developments, particularly the latter which shows the battle in the currently fashionable gambit declined variation of Nf3+Qc2 moving to messy new turf. Aseev-Ponomariov, JUL01/14, is a noteworthy handling of the Black side of an unusual line that seems to be rapidly coming into fashion.
My favorite game of the month is Thorfinsson-Züger, JUL01/13. It may not do permanent damage to this sub-variation but it is a lovely idea, an original pawn sacrifice followed by a series of moves that appear to waste time but actually chip away at Black's position.
The game Wright-Fedorowicz, JUL01/10, is not included for theoretical reasons, but just because it is a picture perfect example of why people play the Benko, and the kind of trouble White can get into with fairly natural moves.
Other Games:
Budapest
The game Urosevic-Laketic, JUL01/02, is of most note for the Budapest player. It seems to provide further evidence that one of the lines considered to be normal for White may simply be bad. There is also a brutal upset win by Black over Haba wedged into the notes, and this shows that even when Black is trying to be solid, he can uncork a typically Budapest attack if allowed.
The Fajarowicz game, JUL01/08, contains the latest developments in its notes, though arguably none of the new games address the really critical questions in the gambit. But I have put up the important signposts, and tried to explain the key move order issues in the Fajarowicz.
Other Games:
The Albin
All of the games have encouraging information for the prospective Albin Gambiteer. The key game this month is Konev-Nebolsina, JUL01/05, which to my mind indicates once again that the system with ...Bg4 and ...Qe7 is Black's trickiest, if not simply best, way to play this opening. The Black queen sits a bit strangely on e7, but this set-up, combined with quickly castling queenside, give Black very quick pressure on the central files.
The game itself quickly turns into a random mess (that's a good thing in this neighborhood), and one that cannot have been bad for Black. The other games in the Albin, JUL01/06, and JUL01/07, are in offshoots, and show that these variations are not as threatening as the main lines.
English Defence (and other ...b6 lines)
The English continues to impress with its neat combination of solidity and originality. All of the games are interesting and provide good thematic material. No razor-sharp lines are discussed, with the exception of SutterCane's retrospective dissection of the game Yermolinsky (Mrs.)-Miles, JUL01/19. The game Neverov-Short, JUL01/18, is the high-powered English Defence of the month, with White's central control proving to be the critical aspect of the position, but Short's opening experiment is definitely worth trying.
In the 1... b6 games, Gicev won a lovely game against Blatny, JUL01/24, but better paths for Black can be found in the notes. Taranenko-Karasev, JUL01/04, features a bold new idea from Black but White did not choose the critical line.
Other Games:
v e4 & d4 (without early c4)
v d4 & c4
Hippo
This shapeless defence (fianchetto both bishops, knights (usually) to d7 and e7, huddle and wait) now enjoys real fashionability, thanks to the pioneering efforts of Miles and McShane, and tends to arise via an early ...b6 or English. Super-GM Kiril Georgiev abandoned his usual theoretical paths to take up the Hippo and turned in a stellar performance against Neverov, JUL01/23. His handling of the opening is very instructive, with a quick reversion to sensible, classical chess as soon as he has achieved the type of set-up desired.
There are very many new references in the notes to the Georgiev effort, and the most nerve-wracking encounters involve White playing an early h4 and castling queenside. For the time being though, no verdict can be made as there is no real shape yet to the lines and the limited experience. It reminds me a bit of the early days of the Modern, when 1...g6 followed by almost any old idea was a viable and successful defence. And daring, let us not forget daring.
1...Nc6
The star game here is an effort from our local hero Tony Miles, JUL01/22. This line scored very well, though there are many unanswered questions in the games included in the notes, especially the romantic win by Sulskis against Zapolskis. Miles piles on pressure with solid but dynamic play and finally scores the point using his determined technical skills. It is worth noting that after 1.e4/d4 Nc6 2. d4/e4 the big guns choose to react with 2...e5 rather than the more typical 2...d5.
1...a6
Features in a survey of recent games embedded into the clash between Hoekstra and D'Onofrio, JUL01/21. There are five games examined here, and many strange and fascinating things result.
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