Download PGN of March ’25 1 d4 d5 2 c4 games
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What is the idea behind this quiet pawn move? First, it envisages the possibility of capturing on c5, exchanging queens and playing b2-b4. There’s a case for thinking that the position of Black’s knight on c6 might leave the c5 square vulnerable, which is certainly the case if Black plays a subsequent ...b7-b5. Meanwhile, should Black play ...c5xd4, the move a2-a3 is very useful in isolated d-pawn positions.
Is this enough for a White advantage? Perhaps not, but he can make Black play a lot of good moves.
Queen’s Gambit Accepted 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.Bxc4 c5 6.0-0 Nc6 7.a3 a6 8.dxc5 [D26]
The endgame arising after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.Bxc4 c5 6.0-0 Nc6 7.a3 a6 8.dxc5 Qxd1 9.Rxd1 Bxc5 has been a topic of debate in some high level games:
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In Le, Q - Praggnanandhaa, R we got something of a main line after 10.b4 be7 11.Bb2 0-0 12.Nbd2 Bd7 13.Be2 Rfd8 14.Nc4 Be8. Does White have anything here? Praggnanandhaa equalized very efficiently after Le, Quang Liem’s 15.Nd4, and the alternatives don’t seem to give much either if Black plays accurately.
White can also play 13.Nb3 Rfd8 14.Rac1 (or 13.Rac1 Rfd8 14.Nb3) as in Shitco, I - Royal, S and Kuzubov, Y - Samunenkov, I. In neither of these games did White have an objective advantage, but he certainly has some practical chances.
Amongst the mistakes Black can make, putting the bishop on a7 is one of them. Osmak, I - Alexieva, S featured 8...Bxc5 9.b4 Ba7:
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and White secured a small plus which soon become something much larger. Black needs to know what to do in this line, a draw will not drop out of the sky.
QGA 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.Bxc4 c5 6.0-0 Nc6 7.a3 a6 8.dxc5 [D40]
I should admit that this may actually be a Semi-Tarrasch, there again it seems just as likely that it will arise via a Queen’s Gambit Accepted. Bjerre, J - Ganguly, S featured a Semi-Tarrasch move order (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 c5 5.e3 Nc6 6.a3 dxc4 7.Bxc4 a6 8.O-O), but my interest in this line is that it offers an alternative to the endgame, with 8.dxc5. The line 8...b5 9.Ba2 Bb7 10.Qe2 has become something of a main line, and then 10...cxd4 11.Rd1 b4 12.exd4 bxc3 13.d5 suddenly gets quite sharp:
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This should fizzle out to equality, for example with 17...Bf6, but Ganguly erred with 17...h6, allowing 18.Nxf7. This was good for White, but still very murky, though he did eventually go on to win.
QGA 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.Bxc4 c5 6.0-0 Nc6 7.a3 cxd4 8.exd4 [D26]
As I mentioned above, Black’s main alternative to 7...a6 is 7...cxd4, producing a typical IQP position. After the further 8.exd4 Be7 9.Nc3 0-0, the normal move is 10.Re1:
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as in Aghayev, M - Gilevich, A and Brunello, S - Goroshkov, M.
Having said that I found Rasmus Svane’s 10.Be3 very interesting:
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just strengthening White’s position. Black was OK in Svane, R - Kunin, V but erred with 15...Nd5 and then 18...Qd7.
7.a3 looks like an interesting way to meet the fashionable 6...Nc6, and coupled with my previous investigation of 6...a6 7.Be2 can form a testing repertoire for White against the Queen’s Gambit Accepted.
See you next month! Nigel
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