CVO_082.pdf

No. 82, July 28, 2010

OPENINGS

WHAT’S HOT AND WHAT’S NOT?

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More power chess

by Ponomariov

By IM Merijn van Delft & IM Robert Ris

Frequency

In this issue we are dealing with the second half of

the Dortmund tournament (round six through ten).

Ponomariov retained his excellent shape, surviving

three Blacks and adding another good win. The

youngsters in Biel played signiicantly less theoretical.

WHAT’S HOT?

Score

Until the very end of the tournament Le Quang Liem's Caro-Kann did a

very good job (adding up to one win and two draws) and in the last round

the Vietnamese even created winning chances with it in his last attempt to

keep Ponomariov from the title. Kramnik tried to play for a win with the Pirc

against Naiditsch, but lost track in the complications and lost.

Ponomariov kept changing his opening as White and scored another

impressive victory (compare last week), with the 4.e3 Nimzo-Indian against

Naiditsch, again making it to Game of the Week . In the diagram position

Black played 12...e4. Last week's popularity of the Catalan continued in the

second half of the Dortmund tournament, although all four games ended in

a draw (see PGN file). Rodshtein scored another victory with the Catalan

though, against Giri.

With 5.£a4!? and 8.£d1!? Mamedyarov tricked Naiditsch out of his Vienna

into a Meran. With 9...¥b7? the latter erred immediately, but then profited

from a dramatic case of chess-blindfullness in timetrouble. The very next

day Mamedyarov hit back by beating Leko from a Symmetrical English.

More Mamedyarov: see below for his amazing 5.g4!? versus the QGD.

Source: Megabase + TWIC, 2500+ only

With Black Ponomariov was surprisingly comfortable with the classical (¥b7) Queen's Indian versus Kramnik. Mamedyarov strangely lost

without a fight though, in a known line from the Ragozin against Kramnik. In this same last round it became clear that Naiditsch' Vienna

didn't make it bullet-proof until the end of the tournament. We have said it before: 1.d4 ¤f6

2.c4 e6 is not such an easy ride for Black these days.

WHAT’S NOT?

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ChessVibes OPENINGS what’s hot and what’s not?

No. 82, July 28, 2010

Keeping the target moving

After beating Kramnik with the Catalan and Mamedyarov with the 4.£c2 Nimzo, Ponomariov

again kept the target moving by effectively switching to a third repertoire against 1.d4 ¤f6

2.c4 e6 and beating Naiditsch with the 4.e3 Nimzo.

GAME OF THE WEEK

26...¤b5 27.¥a5 wins a pawn (but not

27.£xc5? ¦c7).

27.£xc5 ¦b5 28.£c7

Threatening 29.¥b4.

28...¦b7 29.£c6 ¤b5

Black seems to get rid of the pressure by

trading £s, but Ponomariov has calculated the

lines very accurately.

30.£xh6 gxh6 31.¤e4 f5 32.¤f6+ ¢g7

33.¥e5!

33.¤d5+? ¤xc3 34.¤xc3 ¦b3 35.¦fc1 ¥e6

and Black retains good drawing chances.

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33...¦xf6 34.¦fc1 ¥d7

34...¤a7 35.¦ab1 ¦xb1 36.¦xb1 ¤c6 37.¥xf6+

¢xf6 38.¦b6 ¥d7 39.¦xa6 is very difficult for

Black as well.

35.¦ab1 ¦a7

There is no time to get rid of the pin by 35...¢f7

since after 36.¥xf6 ¢xf6 37.a4 ¤d6 38.¦xb7

¤xb7 39.¦c7 White wins a piece.

36.a4 ¤d6 37.¥d4

Also possible is 37.¦b6 ¤e8 38.¥d4! ¦a8

39.¥xf6+ ¤xf6 40.¦c7.

37...¦a8 38.¦d1 ¤e4 39.¦b7 ¦d8 40.¥e5!

The final touch. After fine manouevring, White

finally picks up the ¥.

40...¢g6 41.¦dxd7 ¦xd7 42.¦xd7 ¦c6 43.g4

¦c1+

43...¤f6 44.¥xf6 ¦xf6 45.¢f2 followed by

46.gxf5 when a hopeless ending remains.

44.¢g2 ¦c2+ 45.¢f1

It was still not too late committing a blunder:

45.¢f3?? ¦f2#.

45...¤d2+ 46.¢e1 1–0

Ponomariov, R (2734) - Naiditsch, A (2684)

Sparkassen Chess Meeting (Dortmund),

23.07.2010 E59, Nimzo-Indian, 4.£c2

14.£e2 had been seen once before in Liang

Chong-Yuan Jun, Suzhou 2001. Ponomariov ’ s

plan to open the diagonals for his ¥s is more in

the spirit of the position though.

14...¤a5 15.c4 cxd4

15...¥f5 16.d5 would lead to similar play as

indicated in the note to 13...b6.

16.¥xd4

16.exd4?! a6 leaves c4 en prise.

16...£e7

16...a6 17.¥a4 ¤xc4 18.¤xc4 £xc4 19.¦c1

£e6 20.¦c6 gives White the initiative.

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1.d4 ¤f6 2.c4 e6 3.¤c3 ¥b4 4.e3

Since the Classical Variation (4.£c2) is

running out of resources, White is focussing

his attention again on the Rubinstein Variation.

4...0–0 5.¥d3 d5 6.¤f3 c5 7.0–0 ¤c6

The other main line 7...dxc4 8.¥xc4 ¤bd7

seems to be under pressure, as discussed in

earlier issues.

8.a3 ¥xc3 9.bxc3 dxc4 10.¥xc4 £c7

In CVO 75 we expected Black players to return

to this classical approach.

11.¥b2 e5 12.h3 e4?!

Releasing the tension seems premature.

Alternatives:

a) 12...b6 13.¥a2 ¥a6 14.¦e1 ¦ad8 15.e4!

cxd4 16.cxd4 exd4 17.e5 didn ’ t serve Black

well in Lugovoi-Naiditsch, Moscow 2005.

b) 12...¥f5 leaves the most solid impression.

Now 13.¥b5!? has been the regular choice

of GM Potkin. 13...¦fd8 (13...e4 14.¤d2 a6

15.¥xc6 £xc6 16.c4 cxd4 17.¥xd4² Potkin-

Hernandez Carmenates, Havana 2010.)

14.£e2 (14.¥xc6 exd4!; 14.¦c1 e4 15.¤d2 ¥g6

16.¥xc6 £xc6 17.c4 cxd4 18.¥xd4 ¤d7 19.£b3

¤c5 20.£b5 ¦ac8 21.¥xc5 £xc5 22.¤b3

£xa3 23.¦a1 £b2 24.¦xa7 £e2 25.¤d4

£xc4 26.£xc4 ¦xc4 27.¦xb7² led to a quite

unpleasant ending for Black in Potkin-Ortiz

Suarez, Havana 2010.) 14...e4 15.¤d2 ¤a5

(15...a6 16.¥xc6 bxc6 17.c4 ¥g6 18.dxc5 ¤d7

19.¥d4 £a5 20.¤b3 £a4 21.¦fb1² Potkin-

Kiselev, Moscow 2008.) 16.c4 cxd4 17.exd4

¥g6 18.¦ac1 ¦ac8 19.d5 was very promising

for White in Potkin-Corrales Jimenez, Havana

2010.

13.¤d2 b6

A model game from White ’ s perspective went

13...¤a5 14.¥a2 ¥f5 15.c4 ¦fe8 16.d5 ¤d7

17.f4! exf3 18.£xf3 ¥g6 19.h4! h5 20.¥b1 £d6

21.¥c3 b6 22.¤e4± Kramnik-Tiviakov, Wijk

aan Zee 2001.

14.¥b5

17.c5!

This temporary pawn sacrifice aims to distract

Black ’ s development.

17...a6 18.¥a4 bxc5 19.¥c3 ¤b7

19...£d8 allows 20.¤xe4! ¤xe4 21.£xd8 ¦xd8

22.¥xa5±.

20.¥c6 ¦a7 21.£b1

21.¥xf6!? £xf6 22.¥xe4 ¤d6 23.£c2 is

another line worth considering.

21...£c7

In case of 21...¤d6 22.£b6 ¦c7 23.¥xf6 gxf6

24.¦ac1 White regains his pawn with interest.

22.¥xe4 ¤xe4 23.¤xe4 £c6 24.¤g5 £h6

24...£g6 25.£xg6 hxg6 26.¦fd1! seems to

paralyse Black ’ s position, though after 26...¦d8

27.¦xd8+ ¤xd8 28.¥a5 ¤e6 29.¤xe6 ¥xe6

30.¥b6 Black has better prospects fighting for

a draw than in the game.

25.f4 ¤d6 26.£b6 ¦b7

PONOMARIOV - NAIDITSCH

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ChessVibes OPENINGS what’s hot and what’s not?

No. 82, July 28, 2010

THIS WEEK’S HARVEST

Caro-Kann, Exchange

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1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 cxd5 4.¥d3 ¤c6 5.c3 ¤f6 6.h3 £c7 7.¤f3 g6 8.0–0 ¥f5 9.¦e1 ¥xd3 10.£xd3 ¥g7

11.¤bd2 0–0 12.¤b3 e6 13.a4 ¦fe8 14.g3 ¤e4 15.¥f4 £d8 16.h4 h6 17.¢g2 g5 18.hxg5 hxg5 19.¥e3 f5

The situation before the last round in Dortmund was as follows: Ponomariov was leading a full point ahead of Le

Quang Liem (and Mamedyarov, who was facing Kramnik with Black). The whole tournament Ponomariov had

been playing amazing chess with the white pieces, winning all games. In the last round we believe he made a

typical psychological mistake by choosing a quiet, unprincipled sideline: 3.exd5 followed by 4.¥d3 versus the

Caro-Kann. If you want to avoid big risks against the Caro-Kann the traditional main line with 3.¤c3 is perfectly

fine and in fact an excellent choice. Healthy piece development, no weaknesses. As Jan Gustafsson once stated

half-jokingly: the best way of getting a draw is by playing for a win. With 8...¥f5! Le Quang Liem got rid of his so-

called bad bishop and after 12 moves Black looks perfectly healthy. With the very brave 17...g5! and 19...f5! he

even took the initiative going for an final attempt to catch Ponomariov in the standings. The latter seemed to get his

act together just in time and managed to reach a draw, learning an important psychological lesson in the process.

QGD

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1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.¤f3 ¤f6 4.¤c3 ¥e7 5.g4

There is an increasing amount of opening lines in which White goes for an early push with his g-pawn. An

old Dutch chess anecdote has it that someone once fixed GM Van der Wiel's g-pawn to the board with strong

glue, since he was known for such early g-pawn attacks. A very good example of a relatively new opening line

involving g4 is the Latvian Attack 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.¤f3 ¤f6 4.¤c3 e6 5.e3 ¤bd7 6.£c2 ¥d6 7.g4!? developed

by players like Shirov and Shabalov. Or what about 1.e4 e5 2.¤f3 d6 3.d4 ¤f6 4.¤c3 ¤bd7 5.g4!?, introduced

in 2003 by, who else, Shirov. Just when you think things cannot get more extreme, 5.g4!? versus the Queen's

Gambit Declined was played in Mamedyarov-Ponomariov. Strictly speaking it was not a novelty, but it was hardly

ever seen before and definitely not at grandmaster level. With the first new move 7.£c2!? Mamedyarov made a

real gambit out of this fresh attacking variation, obviously followed by castling queenside. Actually we believe that

Black should be fine in this whole line (we are talking about the QGD!) and the game indeed ended in a draw,

but of course more practical tests are welcome.

Ragozin

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1.d4 ¤f6 2.c4 e6 3.¤f3 d5 4.¤c3 ¥b4 5.¥g5 ¤bd7 6.cxd5 exd5 7.e3 c5 8.dxc5 £a5 9.¦c1 ¤e4 10.£xd5 ¤xc3

11.bxc3 ¥xc3+ 12.¢d1 0–0 13.¥c4 ¤f6 14.¥xf6 ¥xf6 15.¢e2 b5 16.cxb6 £xd5 17.¥xd5 ¥a6+ 18.¥c4 axb6

19.a4 ¥b2 20.¦c2 ¦fc8 21.¤d2 b5 22.axb5 ¥xb5 23.¦b1 ¥xc4+ 24.¦xc4 ¥f6 25.¦xc8+ ¦xc8 26.¤e4 ¦e8 27.f4

Carelessly copying earlier games is always a tricky business, but now Mamedyarov knows as well. Obviously he

had intended to improve Ponomariov's play, as has been suggested in CVO 46. Kramnik, though, had evidently

a more critical look at his own game and improved with 16.cxb6!, transforming the game into a dry ending.

Engines evaluate the arising positions approximately with just 0.25 in White's favor, believing that holding a draw

shouldn't be a big deal from Black's perspective. Kramnik on the other hand illustrates that matters aren't that

simple. Despite Mamedyarov managed to limit actions to one wing, the presence of ¤ against ¥ is clearly an

additional trumph for White. With 27...¥d4? the Azeri committed his final mistake, since after 28.exd4! White's

d-pawn proved to be way too strong. After two important victories for Kramnik, Novikov's treacherous 8.dxc5!?

might finally get its credits it deserves to have. As earlier deviations didn't give Black a satisfactory result either,

the Ragozin might be considered under pressure.

Grünfeld, Exchange

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1.d4 ¤f6 2.c4 g6 3.¤c3 d5 4.cxd5 ¤xd5 5.e4 ¤xc3 6.bxc3 ¥g7 7.¥c4 c5 8.¤e2 ¤c6 9.¥e3 0–0 10.0–0 ¤a5 11.¥d3

b6 12.£d2 e5 13.¥h6 cxd4 14.¥xg7 ¢xg7 15.cxd4 exd4 16.f4 f6 17.f5 ¤c6 18.¥b5 ¤e5 19.¤xd4 gxf5 20.exf5 ¢h8

The Grunfeld with 7.¥c4 still hasn't reached its limits. In CVO 58 we concluded that after 19.¤xd4 White has the

better chances. This evaluation was proven right until now, as in Giri-Bok, Dutch Championship 2010 Black didn't

obtain the desirable counterplay. However, So comes up with an interesting new concept by voluntarily opening

the g-file with 19...gxf5!? 20.exf5 when after ¢h8, the ¢ has found a safe residence in the corner. In fact it's

White who has to be careful, as Black has a clear plan. Black's idea is to put a ¦ on g8, while the £ and ¥ are

doing their job on the long diagonal. Black's pieces are co-operating in a harmonious way, while it's not entirely

clear what White is striving for. Black's only weakness on f6 is well protected and can't hardly be undermined.

Moreover, in the analysis you will find some variations where massive exchanges will lead to a favorable ending

for Black due to his potential outside passed pawn. A success for Black in a critical line!

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ChessVibes OPENINGS what’s hot and what’s not?

No. 82, July 28, 2010

IT'S YOUR MOVE

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LAST WEEK'S SOLUTIONS

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Le Quang Liem-Ponomariov, Sparkassen Chess Meeting (Dortmund) 2010

In a Grunfeld Black has a reasonable position at the first sight. Though, Ponomariov's last move (18...h5) is a

serious error, which is immediately punished by a gifted tactician as Le Quang. 19.¤xg6! ¤xg6 20.¥d6! £e8

Other moves aren ’ t anything better: 20...£xd6 21.¥xf7+ ¢xf7 22.¦xd6; 20...¥xd5 21.¥xe7 ¥xe4 22.¥g5 ¥xb1

23.¦xb1. 21.£xe8+ ¦xe8 22.¥xb7 and White is a clear pawn up.

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Pashikian-Matlakov, Lake Sevan 2010

We have discussed this theme before: a major disadvantage of playing ...b5 with Black in the Chebanenko Slav

is that a positional piece sacrifice on b5 is always hanging in the air. In the diagram position Pashikian prepared

this idea with 18.a4! axb4 and now grabbed his chance with 19.¤xb5! cxb5 20.axb5 and these connected

passed pawns are clearly worth a piece, while the black pawn on b4 is obviously doomed. White went on to win

a nice game.

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ChessVibes Openings is a weekly PDF magazine that covers the latest news on chess openings. Which openings are hot in top level chess?

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