Download PGN of February '15 1 d4 d5 2 c4 games
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QGA 3 e4 Nf6, 6 Bd3 Nc6 7 Be3 [D20]
Kramnik's Big Novelty
OK, it is old news by now, but with several games being played since Kramnik - Karjakin, I took a closer look at Kramnik's nice 9.a3! idea from that game:
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In the actual game Black drifted into a difficult position with 9...fxe4, although White needs to be accurate with his move order to guarantee this. My recommendation is 9...N4d5 10.Bf3 Bd7!? which has a bizarre feel to it, but Black's plan of ...Bc6/...Qd7/...e6/...0-0-0 is very harmonious and I can't find anything wrong with it. This idea is particularly significant considering that Black has been struggling to equalise when playing other responses to 3.e4.
QGA 3 e4 b5 [D20]
Disarming a Dangerous Exchange Sacrifice
En route to winning this year's Gibraltar Chess Festival, Nakamura used a trendy and potent exchange sacrifice in Adhiban - Nakamura to good effect:
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This position arises from the uncompromising 3.e4 b5 variation of the QGA, and it has been scoring well in Grandmaster practice recently. However I've managed to refute this variation with a new idea, and I doubt we'll see this exchange sacrifice again in Grandmaster play once my novelty is tested in over-the-board games.
QGA 3 Nf3 a6 - Alekhine Variation [D22]
Has Svidler Forced a Draw against 1.d4?
After playing through the game Cheparinov - Svidler, you may wonder why more top players don't play 3.Nf3 a6 (the Alekhine Variation) in the QGA. After all, Black exchanges lots of pawns and gets in ...c5 fairly comfortably to initiate further simplifications. However, I've found a good antidote in the novelty 11.Qb3!?:
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White's idea is that he will meet 11...Rb8 with 12.Qd3, when the pawn sacrifice played in the game no longer works because the White rook is on a1 guarding the extra pawn instead of b1! See my notes for more details illustrating how to prove an advantage against 3...a6.
QGA 3 Nf3 Nf6 4 e3, 7 dxc5 [D27]
Queenless Middlegame Suffering
My other tip to those facing the QGA is to check out Zhao - Edouard from the recent Hastings tournament, as White obtained a small advantage using the very fashionable 9.Be2! variation:
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The game also serves as a warning against assuming Black can hold a marginally worse endgame - White played very strongly to keep Black under pressure and eventually make him crack. Fortunately with my preference 7...Bxc5, Black can equalise with accurate play.
Tarrasch Defence 8 dxc5 [D30]
A Free Hit against the Tarrasch
It used to be assumed that White had to play a fairly early Nc3 at some point to fight for an advantage against the Tarrasch, but there have been a number of developments since GM Repertoire 10 was released on the opening and one of them is the move 9.a3! as played in L'Ami-Dale:
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White's idea is to play b4, Bb2 and Nc3 with a more aggressive setup than usual for attacking the IQP and generating a queenside initiative. The beauty of this system is that it is very easy to play, it can be used via. a Catalan/Reti move order as well, and even an inaccurate move order didn't stop L'Ami from obtaining an edge and winning the game.
Ragozin System 3 Nc3 Bb4 [D31]
Accelerating the Ragozin
A variation new to ChessPublishing but recently discussed on the Forum is 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4, mixing the QGD and the Nimzo! The general knowledge is that 4.a3 Bxc3 5.bxc3 is an improved Samisch Nimzo for White (as the c-pawns will soon be undoubled) but a number of GMs have been using this as a surprise weapon with 5...c5:
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In Beliavsky - Yu Black was successful with 6...Ne7, but I have demonstrated more than one route to a White advantage and Black should definitely play 6...Nf6, but then we're in a Nimzo! You already need to have the Ragozin and Nimzo in your repertoire to play this system, but if you do it's a handy move order device. For the record, you can enter the system we'll discuss in the last two games by playing 4.Qa4 Nc6 5.Nf3.
Ragozin System 5 Qa4+ [D38]
Strategic Warfare in the Qa4 Ragozin
If White wants to avoid the sharp Ragozin lines where Black plays ...c5 and bombards the centre, solace can be found in the 5.Qa4+ Nc6 6.e3 systems where we have a strategic battle full of finesses. We start with the old main line 6...0-0 7.Bd2 in Socko - Kosintseva, which reached the following position:
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Obviously when Black plays ...Nc6, she's committed to making the ...e5 break work, and Black has had a comfortable life from here, whether White trades on e5 or pushes with d5 as in the game. I've also covered some rarities you may frequent at the club level.
With 7.Bd2 facing a dead end, modern attention has shifted to 7.Qc2, voluntarily retreating the queen to keep White's options open and anticipate ...Bd7:
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In our main game Swiercz - Moiseenko, Black went for the standard 7...dxc4 8.Bxc4 Bd6 9.0-0 e5 plan, but after 10.h3 White can hold on to a small edge with best play. I think this is a really good practical weapon as Black's most common continuations tend to lead to problems, but Ragozin advocates can explore Aronian's recent 7...Bd6 (provoking White to release the tension) 8.c5 Be7 9.Bb5 Nb8! which I analyse in the notes.
I hope you enjoyed my exploration of some opening 'shortcuts' and next month I'll be emphasising the most trendy variations in my coverage! Max
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