Download PGN of January ’24 1 e4 ... games
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Scandinavian Defence with 2...Nf6 3.d4 [B01]
We kick off with Aizenberg, B - Manor, I and a line which has a lot of crossover with the Alekhine. Following 1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Nf6 3.d4 Nxd5 4.Nf3 g6 5.c4 Nb6 6.Nc3 Bg7 7.Be3 0-0 the similarities are too evident to be ignored:
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So far Black has not been able to play ...Bg4 (frequently a silver bullet in analogous Alekhine positions) and my argument is that White should probably deal with that idea straight away with 8.h3, rather than allow the 8.Qd2 Bg4 of the game.
Scandinavian Defence with 2...Nf6 3.Bb5+ [B01]
Our second game in this line had lots to do with other openings, but not the Alekhine. After the further 3...Bd7 4.Be2 Nxd5 5.d4 Bf5 (I prefer 5...c5) 6.Nf3 Black essayed 6...Nb4 which reminds one strongly of the Jobava London (1.d4 Nf6 2.Nc3 d5 3.Bf4 e6 4.Nb5.)
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I have attempted to draw inspiration from all the relevant openings in my notes to Fluvia Poyatos, J - Movsziszian, K. Concretely, 6...Nb4 looks only barely playable, but it would be a shame to confine myself to purely theoretical remarks on such an interesting and free-flowing game.
Modern Defence, 150 Attack with 4.Be3 a6 5.h4 [B06]
The next game was a near-complete demolition of the Hippo setup, instructive for the ease with which White obtained a +2.5 (rather than merely +1) advantage out of the opening. The initial moves were 1.e4 g6 2.d4 Bg7 3.Nc3 d6 4.Be3 a6 5.h4 h6 6.h5 g5 7.a4 b6 (Black is on full “Hippo Autopilot”!) 8.Bc4 e6 and now 9.f4!:
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It is difficult to claim equality against 4.Be3 at the best of times, but with White having left out f3 from their 150 setup, this dangerous pawn thrust was always going to be on the cards and puts Black at risk of substantially more than the usual dynamic disadvantage. It is necessary for Black to investigate slightly more nuanced orders; the Hippo has its place, but the game Mitusov, S - Gomez Ledo, R fully illustrates the possibility that it can be quickly impaled if f4 is available.
Caro-Kann Defence, Endgame Variation with 5...Nf6 6.Nbd2 [B10]
The French GM Romain Edouard, continuing what looks from the outside like a remarkable transition from player to editor to organiser, recently helped organise a super-tournament on the Tunisian island of Djerba, featuring Niemann, Moussard and many more. It is almost a shame to have only one game from such a tournament in my column, but nevertheless here it is: Divya, D - Moussard, J.
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In the above position, numerous games have proceeded with ideas like 7...Ng4 or 7...g6. But in our present game, another French GM (of the same vintage as yours truly) went for the nearly novel approach 7...h5!? showing the kind of naked spatial ambition more often associated with the 6.Nfd2 line, or indeed with the Open Sicilian. After the reaction 8.Nd3, I suspect Black’s best is to push the same pawn further!
Caro-Kann Defence, Panov-Botvinnik Attack with 5...e6 [B14]
This is the ‘game between two Scandinavians’ promised in the introduction. The encounter Lindberg, B - Akesson, R was remarkable both for its decisive brevity, as well as the fact that Black, a grandmaster, lost without doing anything that didn’t seem particularly understandable. A common tabiya for both this opening and the Queen’s Gambit arises after 11.a3:
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With White’s bishop on c1, I favour the approach of ...Bf6, while in this version I think that plan allows White the chance to demonstrate some utility to the bishop being on d2. So I find 11...Nf6 a very reasonable reply, but suspect that the correct reaction to 12.Bg5 is in fact the rather nihilistic 12...Nd5, challenging White to do something better than repeating.
Caro-Kann Defence, Panov-Botvinnik Attack with 5...g6 [B14]
Another discouragingly brief defeat (from the Caro player’s point of view) comes to us from the Georgian Championships in the form of Jobava, B - Paichadze, L. Again, Black is a grandmaster (though few would dispute there is some form of class difference in this matchup) and finds himself in a lost position within 20 moves. The action starts after 6.cxd5 Nxd5:
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White can choose between 7.Qb3 or 7.Bc4, both attempts to execute the same idea of a quick attack on the f7-pawn. There are some differences between them, requiring Black to show some nuance in how they neutralise the pressure. Certainly the instinctive approach of 7...Nxc3 8.Qb3 e6 9.bxc3 Nc6 doesn’t seem the most accurate, and after 10.Nf3 Black already has to find something more in the vein of damage limitation- a challenge he was not up to in the game.
Two Knights Variation with 3...dxe4 4.Nxe4 Nf6 5.Qe2 Nxe4 6.Qxe4 Nd7 [B11]
Back to a perennial favourite and it’s time to take notice that the line with 10.Bb3 is starting to eclipse its sharper rival 10.Bd3 in top-level fashion. The struggle always revolves around whether Black can force through ...c5; White’s attempts to discourage this can include Nd3, Bg5 (reminding Black of the kingside) or a4 (trying to make problems for the b5-pawn.)
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It’s worth remembering, however, that Black is not permanently constrained to just playing for equality. It’s perfectly possible for White to mess up as well, and certainly the late opening did not appear to go very well for White in the present game. After 14.a4 b4 15.c4?! bxc3 16.bxc3 and now the long-awaited ...c5, Black was on top. See Jerez Perez, A - Asis Gargatagli, H.
Caro-Kann Defence, Short System with 5...c5 [B12]
Finally, it behoves me to include the game Adams, M - Fernandez, D from the recently concluded Cambridge International. Won by Mickey, who seems to benefit from the tremendous advantage of not having to play himself (though, in this case, neither did his co-winners), this tournament is an excellently organised open. It has few peers in the British Isles and benefits from a lavishly-appointed venue, but attracts relatively little interest from overseas.
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Anyway, while I enjoyed the tournament as a whole, I certainly didn’t enjoy this particular game, as a characteristically exuberant 10...h5 (straight after an early opening that, while not without nuances, should generally be decent for Black) was immediately demonstrated to not have enough to do with the centre, and White was better after the timely 11.c4. It’s also a good reminder that the mere fact of the c-pawn having moved once in this opening does not preclude it from moving again!
All the best, Daniel
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