Part 2: Learn a new opening

Tue, 2013-08-27 10:24 -- IM Max Illingworth
[Event "Gausdal Classics GM"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2001.04.19"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Solozhenkin, Evgeniy"]
[Black "Miezis, Normunds"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A52"]
[WhiteElo "2512"]
[BlackElo "2596"]
[Annotator "Illingworth,Max"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "2001.04.15"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "6"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.07.03"]

{Now that we've picked up a few ideas from some older games, we should look at
more modern games to get an idea of what our present-day opponents are likely
to play against us, and also to stay up on date on key lines. It's a very good
idea to have a look at which Grandmasters have played your opening most
frequently and successfully to see how the leading experts of the opening
variation play the positions. Two of the main Budapest experts are Normunds
Miezis and Ian Rogers; I've decided to use an example from Miezis's practice.} 
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e5 3. dxe5 Ng4 4. Bf4 Nc6 (4... g5 $5 {with the idea of ...Bg7
and ...Nxe5 is a less common idea you might wish to investigate. It certainly
took me by surprise when Hilton Bennett played it against me in the 2006
Doeberl Cup!}) 5. Nf3 Bb4+ 6. Nbd2 {With this move White aims for a small edge
with two bishops.} Qe7 7. e3 (7. a3 {is less accurate because of} Ngxe5 $1 8.
Nxe5 Nxe5 {, when White can't take the bishop because of ...Nd3 mate! Instead}
9. e3 Bxd2+ 10. Qxd2 d6 11. Be2 {will leave White a tempo down on the game (as
the move a3 is useless). Black will normally develop his bishop with ...b6 and
...Bb7.}) 7... Ncxe5 (7... Ngxe5 8. Nxe5 Nxe5 {is the more common move order.})
8. Nxe5 Nxe5 9. Be2 {White ignores the b4-bishop, arguing that it is misplaced
and will have to exchange itself on d2 anyway.} O-O 10. O-O Bxd2 {This is the
most common continuation but I don't think it is best. See the next game 
(Karpov-Short) for more theory on this line.} 11. Qxd2 d6 {White has scored
70% from this position, but this score is negated somewhat when we consider
that White outrated Black by 125 points. I'd still prefer White's position
because he has the bishop pair, a space advantage and possibilities to play on
the queenside with b4 and c5, or in the centre with f3 and e4, but Black has a
very solid position that will be hard to break down.} 12. Rac1 Be6 (12... b6 {
is the main move, trying to delay the aforementioned c5 break as well as
fianchetto the bishop.}) 13. Rfd1 (13. c5 $5 $146 {is a novelty - in case you
were wondering, chess theoreticians look for novelties for both sides when
studying an opening! After} Bxa2 14. Qa5 Be6 15. cxd6 cxd6 16. Rc7 Qd8 17. Bxe5
b6 18. Qc3 dxe5 19. Qxe5 Rc8 $1 20. Rxa7 Qd2 {Black has just about enough
activity.}) 13... f6 {Now c5 was a real threat, so Black shores up the
e5-knight which is his most active piece.} 14. Qc3 Qf7 15. Bg3 b6 {Black's
standard way of delaying White's queenside play is by playing ...b6 and ...a5.
Then if White plays a3 and b4 his remaining queenside pawns could become weak.
Also placing all the pawns on dark squares greatly increases the scope of the
e6-bishop.} 16. f4 $1 {This is quite a strong move, though he has to follow up
accurately as Black will try to plant his knight on the e4 outpost.} Nd7 17.
Bf3 Rae8 18. b4 (18. e4 $5 {would be my preference - it does block in the
f3-bishop but takes more of the centre. Then} f5 19. exf5 Qxf5 20. b4 {is
definitely more pleasant for White.}) 18... f5 19. Bc6 Re7 20. Bh4 $1 Nf6 {
White's two bishops completely tie Black up.} 21. Qa3 $1 {Black cannot hold
the queenside together any more, so he goes into swindle mode and starts a
kingside attack.} Qh5 $1 22. Bxf6 Rxf6 23. Bf3 (23. c5 Qe2 24. cxd6 cxd6 25.
Rxd6 Bxa2 26. Bf3 Qxe3+ 27. Qxe3 Rxe3 {is another possibility, when White has
a lot of activity but Black should hold.}) 23... Qe8 24. Qxa7 Bf7 $1 {Now the
e3-pawn falls and White's king becomes a bit more unsafe.} 25. c5 ({Now might
have been the time to simplify with} 25. Rc3 Rxe3 26. Rxe3 Qxe3+ 27. Kh1 Bxc4
28. Qxc7 b5 {, when the position is close to equal but White can press a bit
as Black has a few problems with weak pawns and a slightly draughty king.})
25... bxc5 26. bxc5 c6 27. Qa5 d5 $1 {Once Black gets this in I already prefer
his position as he has no weak pawns anymore.} 28. a4 Rxe3 29. Re1 Rfe6 30. Kf2
d4 31. Rxe3 $2 {This exchange gives Black a very strong passed e-pawn.} (31.
Rcd1 {keeps the position as it is, when it is hard for either side to make a
lot of progress.}) 31... dxe3+ 32. Kg1 Qb8 $1 {This threatens both ...Qxf4 and
...Qb2.} 33. Qc3 Qxf4 34. a5 {Black is up a pawn, but the passed a-pawn gives
White counterplay.} g5 $6 (34... Rh6 35. a6 Qxh2+ 36. Kf1 Qb8 37. Kg1 {should
favour Black, but the a-pawn is strong and the position messy.}) 35. a6 e2 36.
Re1 Re3 37. Qd2 $2 {A simple tactical oversight, probably induced by time
pressure.} (37. Qc1 $1 Qd4 38. Kh1 {would instead be quite good for White as
Black can't hang on to e2 and the a-pawn is very dangerous.}) 37... Rxf3 $1 38.
Qd8+ Kg7 39. gxf3 Qe3+ 40. Kg2 g4 {Having made the time control, White
resigned because of the line} (40... g4 41. fxg4 f4 $1 42. Qg5+ Bg6 {when the
threat of ...f3 is deadly.}) 0-1 
[Event "Candidates sf1"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "1992.??.??"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Karpov, Anatoly"]
[Black "Short, Nigel D"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A52"]
[WhiteElo "2725"]
[BlackElo "2685"]
[Annotator "Illingworth,Max"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "1992.04.??"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1999.07.01"]

{In the opening it's important to be objective, and this means looking at
games where your side lost to see what White is trying to achieve. It's also
very useful to play through games played at the highest level in your opening
to see what the critical continuations are. If you can't find any games at the
top level with your opening that either means your opening is bad or you've
discovered something the rest of the world doesn't know or value! As this game
is analysed in detail by Chandler I won't analyse this game except for the
promised improvement!} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e5 3. dxe5 Ng4 4. Bf4 Nc6 5. Nf3 Bb4+ 6.
Nbd2 Qe7 7. e3 Ngxe5 8. Nxe5 Nxe5 9. Be2 O-O 10. O-O d6 (10... a5 $1 {is
Black's best move, with the idea of stopping White's plan of Nb3 and a3 to
force the exchange of the b4-bishop.} 11. Nb3 (11. Nb1 {was suggested as good
for White by Chandler but} d6 12. a3 Bc5 13. Nc3 Be6 {is very solid and
certainly okay for Black.}) 11... a4 12. a3 Bd6 {This is the reason Black
avoided ...d6 - he can use this square for the bishop.} 13. Nd4 (13. c5 $1 Bxc5
14. Nxc5 Qxc5 15. Rc1 Qa5 16. Qe1 $1 c6 17. Qd1 {is better for White as Black
has difficulties getting his pieces out. Unfortunately when you play an
obscure opening there will normally be some line which gives White a better
position, but the materialistic folks will be happy to suffer a lot for a pawn.
}) 13... Bc5 14. Nb5 d6 15. Nc3 Bd7 {Black has maintained his pawn on a4,
which freezes White's entire queenside. After} 16. Nd5 Qd8 {I would definitely
be happy to play Black's position as all his pieces will be on comfortable
squares after ...Re8. It's noteworthy that often in the Budapest you'll be
constructing a robust position rather than going for an all-out attack.}) 11.
Nb3 b6 12. a3 Bc5 13. Nxc5 bxc5 14. b4 {This position is definitely better for
White and I wouldn't recommend going for this.} Nd7 15. Bg4 a5 16. Bxd7 Bxd7
17. bxc5 dxc5 18. Qd5 Ra6 19. Qe5 Re6 20. Qxc7 Rc8 21. Qb7 Qe8 22. Rab1 h5 23.
f3 Bc6 24. Qb2 h4 25. h3 f5 26. Qc2 Qg6 27. Qc3 a4 28. Rf2 Rce8 29. Rd1 Qh5 30.
Qc2 Qg6 31. Kh1 Qf6 32. Qb2 Qe7 33. Rfd2 g5 34. Bd6 Qf7 35. Bxc5 g4 36. fxg4
fxg4 37. Rf2 Qh5 38. Qe2 Rg6 39. Rd6 Re4 40. Rd8+ Kh7 41. Rf7+ Rg7 42. Rxg7+
Kxg7 43. Qb2+ 1-0 
[Event "FIDE Candidates"]
[Site "London ENG"]
[Date "2013.03.27"]
[Round "10.3"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A52"]
[WhiteElo "2809"]
[BlackElo "2757"]
[Annotator "Illingworth,Max"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2013.03.15"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[Source "Mark Crowther"]
[SourceDate "2013.04.02"]

{Let's recap our process of learning the Budapest Gambit: a) We've memorised
the moves up to 3...Ng4 and studied some games of the old masters. b) Then we
familiarised ourselves with a few traps and tactical motifs. c) We looked up
the Grandmaster exponents of this opening and studied some of their games,
making a note of any relevant ideas. d) We looked for improvements for both
sides over the game continuation, and checked the theory for more common moves.
For most players these four steps will place you in good stead to play the
Budapest successfully, but with this game I'll take our examination of the
opening a step further: e) Analyse recent games in the opening and look for
new ideas (novelties) for both sides.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e5 {This is only the
second time that the Budapest has been played at a Candidates (world
championship semi-final) level.} 3. dxe5 Ng4 4. Nf3 (4. e3 Nxe5 5. Nh3 {is the
most significant line I haven't mentioned, intending to bring the knight to f4
and clamp down on the d5-square, but} d6 6. Nf4 g6 {followed by ...Bg7 and ...
0-0 will lead to a decent KID-type position for Black.}) 4... Nc6 5. Bf4 Bb4+
6. Nc3 Bxc3+ {I think the reason Ivanchuk flicked this in was to avoid} (6...
Qe7 7. Qb3 $5 {which is nowhere near as common as 7.Qd5 but is more dangerous
as Black still can't take on e5 (because of the looseness of the b4-bishop) and
} a5 8. a3 a4 9. Qc2 Ba5 10. g3 Ngxe5 11. Nxe5 Nxe5 12. Bg2 Nxc4 13. O-O {is
just better for White, because of his big lead in development.}) 7. bxc3 Qe7 8.
Qd5 f6 {I think this move is a lot more reliable than 8...Qa3.} 9. exf6 Nxf6
10. Qd3 {Occasionally White moves his queen to d1 or d2, but it makes little
difference to Black's plans.} d6 11. g3 $1 {This is the correct move, placing
the bishop on the strong long diagonal. The weakness of the doubled c-pawns is
not as important as fighting for the initiative.} (11. e3 {is a move you'll
get a lot at the club level, but it's not dangerous at all for Black.} O-O 12.
Be2 Ne4 13. Nd4 Nc5 {The knight is very well placed on c5 as it blockades the
doubled c-pawns, making them easy targets for Black's pieces.} 14. Qd1 Ne5 15.
O-O Kh8 (15... b6 {and ...Bb7 is a good alternative.}) 16. Rc1 Bd7 17. Qc2 Qf7
18. Bxe5 dxe5 19. Nf3 Qe7 {Now Black is even better as White's extra pawn is
of little value and his pieces are much better placed, though Vukic-Rogers,
Reggio Emilia 1983 ended in a draw.}) 11... O-O 12. Bg2 Bg4 13. O-O (13. Rb1 $5
{is a tricky idea I discovered about 18 months ago, trying to lure Black's
rook to the passive b8-square before castling, but} Na5 14. O-O Rae8 15. Rfe1
b6 {is still playable for Black.}) 13... Rae8 {This is Black's ideal setup -
all of his pieces are on good squares, he has pressure against White's centre
and possibilities of a kingside attack, not to mention White's isolated
queenside pawns. It's noteworthy that the computer will tend to overestimate
White's extra pawn and bishop pair over Black's activity and dynamism in this
line.} 14. Rae1 (14. Rfe1 {is the other main try, when Black can play a la
Ivanchuk with 14...Kh8 but I like the novelty} b6 $5 {fixing White's doubled
pawns (White will often try to play c5 liquidating his pawns). Then} 15. Nd4
Ne5 16. Nc6 Qf7 17. Bxe5 dxe5 {would be fine for Black as White's bishop pair
has been exchanged and Black can play around the c6-knight with ...e4 next
move to blindfold the g2-bishop.}) 14... Kh8 {This is a typical move to avoid
checks along the a2-g8 diagonal.} 15. Nd4 {This is a very standard move to put
pressure on the c6-knight, and incidentally this is the move that ...b6 is
aimed against.} (15. Bg5 {has also been tried, when instead of 15...Qf7 I
suggest the novelty} b6 16. Nd2 Ne5 17. Qc2 Be6 {with strong pressure on the
c4-pawn. If Black can win this pawn he will almost always have an advantage.})
15... Ne5 16. Bxe5 dxe5 17. Nf5 $1 {White prepares to bring his knight to the
stable e3-square; Black exchanges it before that eventuates.} Bxf5 18. Qxf5 Nd7
19. Qe4 c6 20. Rd1 Nb6 21. Rd3 Qc5 {As noted by Moskalenko, Black has
equalised. He can take on c4 whenever he pleases and White has no good entry
points down the d-file. Black only has to watch out for his king which is a
little bit undefended.} 22. Qh4 g6 23. Be4 {This blunt attack can be explained
by the game situation - Ivanchuk was already in time trouble, without an
increment. I won't analyse the last stage of the game as it isn't
theoretically relevant but White's kingside attack isn't dangerous as long as
Black plays accurately.} Kg7 24. Kg2 Qxc4 25. Rfd1 Qxa2 26. g4 Rf4 (26... Qc4
$1 {(Moskalenko)}) 27. Bf5 Nd5 28. Rh3 Rh8 29. e3 gxf5 30. exf4 {A loss for
Ivanchuk, but a success for the Budapest Gambit which the world number two was
unable to prove a theoretical advantage against. I hope this practical
exposition has shown you how to learn a new opening - I for one have learned a
lot! You can't master an opening in one hour but with experience and hard work
you can become an expert in the middlegame arising from your opening.} 1-0