Download PGN of April ’24 d-Pawn Specials games
The Trompowsky: 2...e6 3 e4 h6 4 Bxf6 Qxf6 5 c3 d5 [A45]
Lest you thought that all the 2600+ grandmasters were meeting 1 d4 Nf6 2 Bg5 with 2...d5, we’ll see Santos Latasa preferring 2...e6 and after 3 e4 h6 4 Bxf6 Qxf6 5 c3 he was happy with the French-like 5...d5. Here 6 e5 Qd8 7 Nf3 c5 8 Bd3!? Qb6 was certainly thematic from Black and, of course, rather like an Advance French:
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Unless I’ve missed something major, Black was OK in Paltrinieri, N - Santos Latasa, J, although after 9 Qe2 he should taken the chance to exchange on d4.
The Torre Attack: 3...h6 4 Bh4 c5 5 e3 d5 [D03]
Can White avoid having to follow up 1 d4 Nf6 2 Bg5 e6 with 3 e4? Of course he can, with 3 Nd2 recommended in my upcoming Everyman book and there’s also simply 3 Nf3, with an immediate transposition into the Torre. Then 3...h6 4 Bh4 c5 5 e3 d5 might look like a solid choice by Black, if perhaps not when followed up by 6 c3 Qb6!?:
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Yes, White does have the thematic response 7 Qb3, but after 7...Nc6 I’m not sure that Black is any real danger, as we’ll see in Hoppstaedter, D - Santos Latasa, J.
The Colle vs KID: 2...g6 3 Nbd2 d5 4 e3 [A48]
It’s hardly White’s most common option and we’ll consider a somewhat more normal type of Colle below, but some positional players are happy to meet 1 d4 Nf6 2 Nf3 g6 with 3 Nbd2, and if 3...d5 4 e3:
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Such an approach has now gained the patronage of Vincent Keymer. Here 4...a5!? ruled out any b2-b4 approach in Keymer, V - Vachier-Lagrave, M, where there were several points when White might have played more actively with an early c2-c4.
The Jobava-Prié Attack: 3...c5 4 e3 cxd4 5 exd4 a6 [D00]
Although the Open Candidates eschewed it, Eric’s old favourite, 1 d4 Nf6 2 Nc3 d5 3 Bf4, was tested on the biggest stage of them all in Toronto. A defence that remains fairly reliable for Black is 3...c5 4 e3 cxd4 5 exd4 a6 6 Nf3 Nc6:
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We’ve largely focussed on the main line with 7 Ne5, but in Tan Zhongyi - Vaishali, R, White preferred the more solid 7 h3!? Bf5 8 Bd3, proving very well prepared and giving something of a strategic masterclass in the resulting structure, ahead of finishing in style.
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Really all that you have to do is compare all the knights here and after 32...e5 White crashed through with 33 Nf6! gxf6 34 Ng6+! and 1-0.
The Reversed Slav: 3...c5 4 dxc5 [D02]
For almost a year I’d thought the chess world had largely forgotten the idea of 1 d4 d5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 c3 c5 4 dxc5 e6 5 Be3!?, as memorably used by Ding Liren in the play-off to the last world championship match. However, a few GMs are still using it, including Arjun Erigaisi and we must consider recent developments after both 5...Be7 6 g3 and 5...a5 6 c4!:
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Only this approach appears to call Black’s fifth move into question, as we’ll see in Erigaisi, A - Stelmaszyk, N.
The London System: 3...c5 4 e3 e6 5 c3 Nc6 6 Nbd2 Bd6 7 Ne5 [D00]
For what it’s worth, after a couple of hours of looking at 1 d4 Nf6 2 Bf4 d5 3 e3 c5 4 Nf3 e6 5 c3 Bd6 6 Ne5 Nc6 7 Nd2, I have to agree with Eric that even as a surprise weapon, White can surely do much better than this and should prefer the normal Bg3 to an early Ne5.
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For what it’s also worth, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave may disagree, or at least he was happy to try 7...Qc7 8 Bb5!? in Vachier-Lagrave, M - Ding Liren, where Black didn’t have too much trouble equalising.
The Colle-Zukertort: 3...e6 4 Bd3 c5 5 b3 Nc6 6 Bb2 b6 7 0-0 Bb7 [D05]
We’ll conclude this month by looking at a more common type of Colle than Keymer’s version above, especially at club level, namely 1 d4 d5 2 Nf3 Nf6 3 e3 e6 4 Bd3 c5 5 b3 Nc6 6 0-0 b6 7 Bb2 Bb7 8 Nbd2:
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On the odd occasion, Black has preferred 8...Rc8!? to 8...Bd6, and Wesley So used the rook move twice last summer. After it White has a few options, including the thematic enough 9 a3 Be7 10 Ne5 of Tan Zhongyi - Muzychuk, A, where White later got to make a rather unusual type of Greek Gift sacrifice:
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Round of applause please for 28 Bxh7+!! Kxh7 29 Qf5+ Kh8 30 Nc6, which was winning if not quite the end of the drama.
Kudos to Tan Zhongyi for her fine thematic play and brutal attacks. Will we have more such games to enjoy next month?
Until then, Richard
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