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Download PGN of November '05 Nimzo and Benoni games
Nimzo-Indian Leningrad 4 Bg5
Many thanks go to José Soza, who shares his thoughts on a line of the Leningrad that holds particular interest for me because it's one I recommended for Black in my (now quite old!) book Easy Guide to the Nimzo-Indian. The game Rain - Soza, correspondence 2003 begins 1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 e6 3 Nc3 Bb4 4 Bg5 c5 5 d5 d6 6 e3 Bxc3+ 7 bxc3 Qe7!?:
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By leaving the bishop on g5, Black hopes to use the fact that it's vulnerable to an attack by the queen. The game continued 8 Bd3 Nbd7 9 Nf3 0-0 0-0 exd5 11 cxd5 Ne5 12 Nxe5 Qxe5 13 Bxf6 Qxf6, a position that I originally assessed as equal. However, José believes that White still keeps an edge here and provides some analysis to back up his assertion.
Nimzo-Indian 4 f3
More now on a line that continues to be fashionable. Palliser - Sundararajan, Port Erin 2005 begins 1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 e6 3 Nc3 Bb4 4 f3 d5 5 a3 Bxc3+ 6 bxc3 c5 7 cxd5 Nxd5 8 dxc5 and now 8...Nd7!?:
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This alternative to 8...Qa5 and 8...f5 is an interesting move-order wrinkle for Black. It's strange that this seemingly natural move hasn't been played more often (it's not even mentioned in Yuri Yakovich's book on 4 f3, although Chris Ward does devote a game to it in his Offbeat Nimzo-Indian).
Nimzo-Indian: 4 e3 0-0 5 Bd3 d5 6 cxd5
Swiss GM Vadim Milov is perhaps the world's leading expert on the Rubinstein Nimzo. After 1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 e6 3 Nc3 Bb4 4 e3 0-0 5 Bd3 d5:
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he usually plays 6 a3 here (6 Nf3 reaches the 'main line') but in Milov - Naiditsch, Corsica Masters 2005 he instead opts for 6 cxd5 exd5 7 Nge2, a line that Kasparov has dabbled with in the distant past, and is rewarded with a win in under 20 moves.
Queen's Indian 4 a3 c5
After 1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 e6 3 Nf3 b6 4 a3, the move 4...c5:
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isn't particularly popular, but it's not a bad try if Black is happy to play Benoni-type positions. That said, I guess Black already had this option at move three! Straeter - Cu.Hansen, Bundesliga 2005 is a wonderful game from Black, but theoretically speaking my impression is that White misses a good chance on move 14 to gain a definite edge.
Queen's Indian 4 Bg5
Jobava - Carlsen, Skanderborg 2005 begins 1 c4 Nf6 2 d4 e6 3 Nf3 b6 4 Bg5!?:
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One or two strong GMs have been playing this rare move recently. I'm not quite sure what advantage there is over this move when compared to 4 Nc3 followed by 5 Bg5. Is it that White intends to meet ...Bb4+ with Nbd2 here?
The Keres Defence (1 d4 e6 2 c4 Bb4+!?)
Cmilyte - Eingorn, Hamburg 2005 is definitely worth checking out because Eingorn is a real specialist of the Keres Defence and perhaps what Cmilyte plays is a real critical test of the viability of this line. Eingorn prevails in the end, but it's not 100% convincing.
The Pseudo Modern Benoni
As well as 2...Bb4+, Black has another option with 1 d4 e6 2 c4 c5!? 3 d5 exd5 4 cxd5 d6 5 Nc3 g6:
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a Pseudo Modern Benoni in which Black can delay or even omit ...Nf6 in favour of ...Ne7. There are certain advantages to Black's set-up - see Gupta - Koneru, Hyderabad 2005.
That's it for now. See you next month!
John