Download PGN of October ’24 French games
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Advance Variation 4...Qa5 [C02]
After 3 e5 c5 4 c3, the odd-looking 4...Qa5 was analyzed in the Archives game Shevchenko-Shimanov and has attracted increased attention in this past year. In Tabatabaei, M - Christiansen, J, Olympiad Budapest 2024, White played the logical 5 dxc5, with the idea 5...Qxc5 6 Nf3 and Black’s queen is misplaced. Black chose 5...Qc7 instead:
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Instead of the usual 6 Nf3, White chose 6 b4!? Qxe5+ 7 Be2. White got a large edge when Black played too slowly. Then, after mistakes, Black more than equalized, with a draw resulting. As far as I can see, White has no clear way to advantage versus 4...Qa5.
Advance Variation 5...Bd7 6 Be2 Nge7 7 0-0 [C02]
In the increasingly common position after 4 c3 Nc6 5 Nf3 Bd7 6 Be2 Nge7 7 0-0, 7...cxd4 8 cxd4 Nf5 used to be somewhat less popular than 7...Nf5 or 7...Ng6 because it frees c3 for White’s knight. Thus it allows 9 Nc3:
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To this day, the advantages and disadvantages of 7...cxd4 are not easy to assess. In Annaberdiev, M - Pelletier, Y, Olympiad Budapest 2024, a main line with 9...a6 10 Bg5 Be7 11 Bxe7 Qxe7 arose. This has been tested numerous times and play is apparently balanced.
Black can prevent this line by 7...Nf5 and he has often preferred that move:
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The drawback is that White now has the option 8 dxc5. There is a good deal of theory here. Can, E - Noritsyn, N, Olympiad Budapest 2024 continued 8...a5 9 Bd3 Bxc5 10 a4 h6 (there are interesting options at this juncture) 11 Nbd2 Ba7 12 Nb3 and Black played the new move 12....Nh4 which yielded an edge after White immediately played inaccurately. More tests and analysis are needed. The older move 12...0-0 is riskier, but may also be okay, as indicated by the notes.
Tarrasch Variation 3...c5 4 exd5 Qxd5 with 11 Bd3 [C07]
In the lines with 3 Nd2 c5 4 exd5 Qxd5 5 Nf3 cxd4 6 Bc4, Black is still enjoying good results with the main moves 6...Qd6 and 6...Qd7 (while 6...Qd8, sometimes transposing, has undergone a revival). A game from the Olympiad reminded me that I haven’t explained some of the subtleties of the 6...Qd7 line involving the delay of ...Nf6. After 7 0-0, 7...Nc6 is playable because White can’t gain a tempo with Ne4 as he might with the queen on d6. The game Papp, G - Vidit, S, Olympiad Budapest 2024, continued 8.Nb3 a6 9.Nbxd4 Nxd4 10.Nxd4 Qc7:
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Here White has his usual choice of setups. After the game’s 11.Bd3, Black can continue to delay ...Nf6 by 11...B6, but he chose 11...Nf6 12 Re1 Bd6 , and in just a few moves White played a forcing sequence which led to a draw. Naturally there are options.
Tarrasch Variation 3...c5 4 exd5 Qxd5 5 Nf3 cxd4 6 g3 [C07]
Instead of the normal and natural 6 Bc4, White tried the positional 6 g3 Nc6 7 Bg2 in Rodriguez Lemieux, S - Christiansen, J, Olympiad Budapest 2024.
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This might have proven quite promising due to White’s mighty bishop, but after 7...Qb5, White couldn’t castle without making concessions. 8 a4 Qa6 9 Bf1 followed, but after 9...Qa5, White had to choose between allowing a repetition or giving Black easy play. In fact, Black avoided the draw and a full-fledged battle ensued, but in general the ...Qb5 idea seems to neutralize White’s chances.
Steinitz Variation 4 e5 Nfd7 5 f4 c5 6 Nf3 Nc6 7 Be3 cxd4 8 Nxd4 Bc5 [C11]
As always, there were numerous Steinitz Variation games with 3 Nc3 Nf6 4 e5 Nfd7 5 f4 c5 6 Nf3 Nc6 7 Be3. In Volokitin, A - Meier, G, Olympiad Budapest 2024 Black played the slightly out-of-fashion 7...9 Qd2 0-0 10 0-0-0. Here Black avoided the normal 10...a6 main line and played 10...Bxd4 11 Bxd4 Qa5:
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Black is targeting a2, so 12 Kb1 Rb8 with the idea ...b5-b4 followed. There is a fair amount of theory here. My sense is that if White plays well this variation is not a complete equalizer for Black. On the other hand, when White does get an edge it tends to be small and not yield serious winning chances.
Winawer Main Line 6...Nc6 7 h4 [C18]
After 3 Nc3 Bb4 4 e5 c5 5 a3 bxc3 6 bxc3, I continue to find interesting new games with 6...Nc6. Recently more players have taken up the move, and one Olympiad game of note was Bologan, V - Blackburn, J, Olympiad Budapest 2024, in which 7 h4 was played, Black responded with 7...Bd7, and now White targeted the g-pawn by 8 Qg4:
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White’s relatively slow 7 h4 would suggest that 8...Qa5 or 8...Nge7 followed by an early ...0-0-0 might be best here, sacrificing the g-pawn pawn for development; indeed, I’ve analysed moves those at some length. Instead, Black played 8...g6, inviting attack by 9 h5. Deep down, I don’t believe that Black should play this way, but the course of the games proves interesting anyway, with the position becoming so complicated that both sides err badly and allow their opponents winning chances.
Winawer Main Line 6...Nc6 7 Qg4 g6 8 h4 [C18]
Instead of 7 h4, 7 Qg4 g6 8 h4 is similar:
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Then Black can anticipate h5 with 8...h6 (or, perhaps more accurately, 8...Qa5 9 Bd2 h6 with the same idea). A game from late July, Dominguez Perez, L - Xiong, J, Titled Tue 2024, continued 9 h5 g5 10 f4 f5 11 Qg3 g4 12 dxc5!. White has a small edge; the game was lengthy and complicated. I recommend playing 8...Qa5 first, after which any White edge is more symbolic than practical.
Winawer Main Line 6...Nc6 7 Nf3 Qa5 [C18]
Finally, 7 Nf3 is a natural and popular move. In Adireddy, A - Das, S, 61st National Chess Championship Gurugram 2024, 7...Qa5 8 Bd2 Nge7 transposed to one of the main 6...Ne7 7 Nf3 main lines of the Winawer:
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The game went 9 h4, following the popular trend we see in the other contests. I also analyse a recent game with 9 a4.
Till next month, John
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