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NIC Yearbook 70 (2004)
Reviewed By
Prof.
Nagesh Havanur
|
 |
Edited by Genna Sosonko
New In Chess
Published 4 times a year
Softback, 243 pages
Figurine Algebraic Notation |
The NIC Yearbook
offers a unique platform for aficionados of opening theory.
Grandmasters, theoreticians and amateurs alike share their knowledge
and experience in a friendly and democratic spirit.
This issue offers as
many as 33 opening surveys along with trademark features like the Forum,
Sosonko’s Corner and book reviews. Beside mainstream openings like the
Sicilian, French, King’s Indian, and Nimzo-Indian, the issue also has a fair
sprinkling of 19th Century openings like the King’s Gambit,
Scotch Opening (4…Qh4), Evans Gambit and Traxler Attack.
While it would be
beyond the scope of this review to deal with every contribution, a few
examples would suffice to illustrate the rich variety of material. The
following inspired analysis by a reader rehabilitates a whole variation:
Grünfeld Exchange Variation
1.d4 Nf6
2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Be3 c5 8.Qd2 0-0
9.Nf3 Qa5 10.Rc1 Rd8 11.Bh6 Bg4! 12.Bxg7 Bxf3 13.Bh6 Bxe4 14.Qf4
     
 
  
   
Black
appears to be in dire trouble. If 14...Rxd4 15.Qe5 wins.
14...cxd4 also looks bad after 15.Qxe4 dxc3 16.Qc2±
(16.Qxe7 c2+ 17.Ke2 Nc6 wins.)
14… Rd6!
15.Qe5 Rf6 16.Qxe7 Nd7 17.Qxd7 Bc6 18.Qg4
If 18.Qh3
Re8+ 19.Be2 Rxe2+ 20.Kxe2 Qxa2+ wins.
18...Re8+
19.Be3 Qa3 20.Rc2 Ba4 21.Rd2 Qc1+ 22.Rd1 Qxc3+ 23.Rd2 Rxf2 24.Kxf2
Qxe3#
A happy augury for
players employing the Grünfeld Defence.
But there are
disturbing portents for the Pirc Defence. The provocative title of the
article says it all:
Can White win at once with
9.f5 in the Pirc Defence?
The following
game is a striking example of the dangers lurking for Black.
Acs-Spasov
Budapest 2000
1.e4 g6
2.d4 Bg7 3.Nc3 d6 4.f4 Nf6 5.Nf3 0-0 6.Bd3 Na6 7.0-0 c5 8.d5 Rb8
9.f5 Nb4 10.fxg6 hxg6 11.Be2 Bg4 12.Ng5
12...Qd7
12...Bxe2?
13.Nxe2 Qd7 14.a3 Na6 15.Qe1 White has the initiative.
13.a3 Na6
14.Qe1 Nc7
14...Bxe2?
15.Nxe2 Qg4 16.Rf3 White is better.
15.Bd3 b5
16.Qh4 Rfc8 17.Be3 c4 18.e5 cxd3 19.exf6 exf6 20.Qh7+ Kf8 21.Nge4
Ne8 22.Rae1 dxc2 23.Bh6 Bxh6 24.Qh8+ Ke7 25.Nxf6+1-0
Black needs
energetic counter play to survive against this kind of attack.
The
Yearbook offers a number of GM secrets to the dedicated player. A case
in point is the article on the Slav Exchange Variation by Gulko. This
variation happens to be White’s safest route to advantage. Consider
the following line with which Kasparov beat Dolmatov in the USSR
Championship, 1979.
Slav Exchange Variation
1.d4 d5
2.c4 c6 3.cxd5 cxd5 4.Nc3 Nf6 5.Nf3 Nc6 6.Bf4 Bf5 7.e3 e6 8.Bb5
8...Bd6?
8...Nd7 =
9.Ne5 Rc8
10.Bxc6+ bxc6 11.0-0±
But what if
Black plays 6… a6 pre-empting the B-b5 move by White? Even here he
has to be careful.
1.d4 d5
2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.cxd5 cxd5 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bf4 a6 7.Rc1! Bf5 8.e3 e6?
9.Qb3!
Ra7
Virtually
forced.
10.Ne5
With
initiative. So Black has to defuse the tension by 8…
Rc8.
However, symmetrical
positions arising out of such variations are not to the taste of every
ambitious player. Nowadays even veteran GMs like Beliavsky have been
experimenting with offbeat openings like the English Defence with some
success. The following game is a brilliant example of the
uncompromising chess* played by the former USSR Champion (* It
also happens to be the title of his collection of games published by Cadogan
Press):
Jelen-Beliavsky
Ljubuljana 2002 English Defence
1.d4 e6
2.c4 b6 3.e4 Bb7 4.Bd3 f5 5.exf5 Bb4+ 6.Kf1 Nf6 7.Be2 0-0 8.c5 bxc5
9.a3 Ba5 10.dxc5 Nd5!?
11.Nf3
11.b4? Qf6
12.Ra2 Qxf5 13.Bd3? Ba6! 14.Bxa6 Qxb1 15.Rb2 Ne3+!
11...Qf6
12.fxe6 Na6 13.Qc2?
Missing
13.Bc4!
Analysis Diagram: After 13.Bc4!
13...dxe6
(13...Qxe6 14.b4 Ne3+ 15.Bxe3 Qxc4+ 16.Qe2) 14.c6 Bc8
(14...Rad8 15.Qe2 Bc8 16.Bg5) 15.Bxd5 exd5 16.Qxd5+ Qe6 17.Qxe6+
Bxe6 18.b4 Bb6 19.Be3. This line is the litmus test of Black’s
experiment.
13...Rae8
14.exd7 Rxe2 15.Kxe2! Qe6+ 16.Be3?
The decisive
error. After 16.Kf1! Qxd7 the position is still unclear.
16...Nf4+
17.Kd1 Be4 18.Qa4 Nxc5 19.Qb5 Bd3 0-1
Do not miss this
Yearbook.
Index of all reviews
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