Contents

Bibliography 4
Introduction 5

1 The Veresov: 3...Ìbd7 4 f3!? 10

2 The Veresov: 3...Ìbd7 4 Ëd3 45
3 The Veresov: Other Defences 71
4 Veresov versus French: Lines with ...Ìf6 109
5 Veresov versus French: Lines without ...Ìf6 130
6 1 d4 d5 2 Ìc3: Second-Move Alternatives 163
7 Veresov versus Caro-Kann 188
8 Veresov versus Dutch 208
9 Modern, Pirc and Philidor 233
10 Schmid Benoni and Czech Benoni 263
11 1...Ìc6 and Owen’s Defence 280

Index of Variations 298

Index of Games 302
 Introduction:
The Veresov

This book is really the result of a happy ways considered the Veresov an open-
accident. I had just finished my first ing of dubious lineage. After all, with 1
book for Everyman Chess on the London d4 and 2 Ìc3 White violates one of the
System, when John Emms asked if I biggest taboos in chess, which is don’t
wanted to do a second book – on the block your c-pawn with your knight in a
Veresov. Apparently he had seen several Queen’s Pawn opening. What never oc-
of my games with the Veresov in the curs to Veresov naysayers is the fact that
database. There was only one problem: White isn’t trying for c4, but instead
John had been looking at my younger plays for e4! Diehard Veresovers like
brother Jimmy’s games! The database Jimmy knew better. He would heap po-
had inadvertently posted many of etic praises upon his beloved opening.
Jimmy’s games under my name. Jimmy Not wishing to hurt the lad’s feelings, I
had played the Veresov in the 80’s and indulged him by nodding politely,
had long since retired from tournament coughing, looking up at the ceiling and
play to become a captain of industry, whistling through my teeth, holding
running our family business. I, on the back any criticism of his favourite open-
other hand, had not played a single ing. Now, having thoroughly studied the
Veresov in my life. After confessing this opening, I can state with confidence
to John he gave me the go ahead any- that Jimmy was right and I was wrong.
way. Perhaps John thought Veresov was The Veresov is completely playable, and
in the Lakdawala family genes! if you are a tactician and attacking
The book constituted a real chal- player, it tends to suck your opponent
lenge, and the irony of a London-loving into your realm of power. Nobody both-
chess chicken like me writing a book on ers to study the line as Black. So the
one of the most bloodthirsty openings greatest strength of the Veresov is its
in chess was not lost on me. I had al- own dubious reputation!

5
A Ferocious Opening Repertoire

Profile of a Veresover A History of the Veresov

Jimmy was born to play the Veresov: Besides Jimmy, the other founding fa-
1. He was incredibly lazy about open- thers of the opening were Savielly Tar-
ing study. In fact, he reached an impres- takower, who invented the line in the
sive US Chess Federation rating just over 1920’s and played it his entire life; Kurt
2400 without ever studying a single Richter, who played it mostly in the
chess book! A feat only the young Capa 30’s; and Gavril Veresov, who played it
matched. The opening is easy to learn from the 30’s to the mid-70’s. Gavril
because you play d4, Ìc3, Íg5 and of- Veresov must have had the better press
ten f3 against just about everything. agent for the opening to be named af-
The idea behind the opening is incredi- ter him. Its pedigree includes four
bly simple: force e4! no matter how World Champions who employed it:
Black responds. This one guiding princi- Smyslov, Tal, Spassky and Karpov. The
ple makes your opening choices easy. top GMs who play it today are Hector
2. He was lopsided in his chess abili- and Khachian.
ties. I would estimate his strategic un- Here is an early game in the
derstanding at the level of a typical Veresov. Note the utter confusion the
kindergartener, while his tactical and opening inflicts on Black!
calculation abilities were right in the
neighbourhood of Rybka! Once at a
family birthday party I was playing GM Game 1
Kaidanov in a 5-0 game on the ICC. K.Richter-G.Rogmann
Jimmy came in late, looked at the posi- Berlin 1937
tion for about 20 seconds and stopped
me from making the move I was going 1 d4 Ìf6 2 Ìc3 d5 3 Íg5 c6 4 f3 Ëb6
to play. He reeled off a long variation W________W
with a cheapo at the end and insisted I [rhbDkgW4]
play it. Kaidanov walked right into it! [0pDW0p0p]
3. Jimmy was happiest when the
[W1pDWhWD]
position was a mess. The more unclear
the position, the better. And with the
[DWDpDWGW]
Veresov that’s what you get.
[WDW)WDWD]
So if you have any of the following [DWHWDPDW]
similar traits, then the Veresov is a per- [P)PDPDP)]
fect opening choice: you don’t have [$WDQIBHR]
much time or inclination for study; you W--------W
are a natural tactician; and you revel in Logical. Black hits the sore spot on
chaotic positions. b2 before White gets into his groove

6
 Introduction

with Ëd2 and 0-0-0. may still have adequate compensation.

5 e4!? He enjoys plenty of extra space and the
White can also take the milquetoast bishop pair, not to mention that his
route with 5 Îb1, but any red-blooded pieces are aimed at Black’s king and he
Veresover would hang his head down might begin a giant pawn roller, start-
in shame if this were played! ing with f4.
5...Ëxb2 6 Ìge2 e6 W________W
Choosing to keep the game closed [rhbDW4kD]
to protect himself from White’s devel- [Dp1ngp0p]
opment lead. Instead, 6...dxe4!? 7 fxe4
[pDpDpDWD]
Ëa3 8 e5 Ìd5 9 Íd2 Íg4 10 Ìxd5
cxd5 11 Ëb1! gives White enough for
[DWDp)WDW]
the pawn.
[WDW)WHWD]
7 e5 Ìfd7 8 Îb1 Ëa3 9 Îb3 Ëa5 10 [DRHBDPDW]
Íd2 Ëc7 11 Ìf4 a6! [PDPGWDP)]
It is too soon for 11...c5?! 12 Ìb5 [DWDQDRIW]
Ëc6 13 c4! dxc4 14 Íxc4 cxd4 15 Ëe2 W--------W
when the game has blasted open and 14 Ëe1 Îe8
White holds a massive development Black’s position falls apart after the
lead. mistimed 14...c5? 15 Ìcxd5! exd5 16
12 Íd3? Ìxd5 Ëd8 17 Ía5! b6 18 Ëe4! g6 19
His d-pawn required support with Îxb6!.
12 Ìce2 c5 13 c3. 15 Ëg3 Ìf8?!
12...Íe7? 15...c5! 16 Ìcxd5! exd5 17 Ìxd5
I just don’t buy that White has full Ëd8 is messy but probably still in
compensation for the piece if Black Black’s favour.
strikes with 12...c5! 13 Ìcxd5 (what 16 Ìh5 Ìg6 17 f4 Íd8?!
else?) 13...exd5 14 Ìxd5 Ëd8 15 e6 Black just doesn’t believe in coun-
fxe6 16 Ëe2 Êf7 17 Ìf4 Ìb6. More- tering wing attacks with central count-
over, Black’s failure to counter in the ers! He had to plunge into the craziness
centre results in a massive build-up of 17...c5 18 f5!.
against his king later in the game. 18 Ëh3 b5?!
13 0-0 0-0 On his tombstone, Rogmann should
This time the central counter entails have had the undertaker inscribe: “I
risk: 13...c5!? 14 Ìcxd5 exd5 15 Ìxd5 wish I had played ...c5!” Even here,
Ëd8 16 c3 Ìc6 17 Íe3 cxd4 18 cxd4 18...c5 19 f5 exf5 20 Ìxd5 leads to a
0-0 19 Ìxe7+ Ëxe7 20 Ëb1 and White typical Veresov mess.
has only one pawn for the piece, but 19 g4! Ëe7

7
A Ferocious Opening Repertoire

For the love of God, man, ...c5! But Deflecting a key defender.
maybe now it is too late. Also, please 28...Íc5 29 Íxc5 Ëxc5 30 Íxg6 fxg6
note how kind I am in awarding most 31 Îxg6+!
of Black’s non-...c5 moves ‘?!’ instead of Obvious but still pretty.
the full ‘?’ that they deserve. 31...Êh8
Here after 19...c5 20 f5 exf5 21 gxf5 Black’s king is utterly overwhelmed.
c4 22 Ìxg7! White has a crushing at- This is how Napoleon must have felt
tack. near the end of the Battle of Waterloo!
20 g5! If 31...hxg6 32 Ëxg6+ Êf8 33 Îg3 and
Planning to entomb Black’s king mate next move.
with a knight sac on f6. 32 f7! 1-0
20...Íb6 21 Ìe2 c5! W________W
Hooray! Perhaps this move should [WDbDrDWi]
be awarded a ‘!!’. Unfortunately, it ar- [4WDWDPDp]
rives too late.
[pDWDpDRD]
22 Ìf6+!
[Dp1pDWDQ]
W________W [WDW0W)WD]
[rhbDrDkD] [DRDWDWDW]
[DWDW1p0p] [PDPDNDW)]
[pgWDpHnD] [DWDWDWDK]
[Dp0p)W)W] W--------W
[WDW)W)WD] Black can’t deal with the double
[DRDBDWDQ] threats of 33 fxe8(Q+) and 33 Ëe5+.
[PDPGNDW)]
[DWDWDRIW] Summary
W--------W ...c5 was required! Defensive technique
The original maestro of the Veresov has come a long way since 1937. Today,
(the Richter-Veresov?) goes on to give a most club players would reflexively
beautiful demonstration in the art of counter in the centre at the first sign of
attack. a white attack, but one thing remains
22...gxf6 23 gxf6 Ëf8 24 Êh1 cxd4 constant: the Veresov continues to con-
The force of White’s kingside build- fuse Black.
up is revealed in the lines: 24...c4?? 25
Íb4! which traps the queen, and The Tone of this Book
24...Ìc6 25 f5 exf5 26 Íh6 f4 27 Ëh5. I hope the reader will forgive my occa-
25 Îg1 Ìd7 26 Ëh5 Ìxf6 27 exf6 Îa7 sional overly-goofy tone. In the middle
28 Íb4! of a chapter, I may suddenly engage

8
 Introduction

you in a conversation about the Borg kindness of others. I would like to

Collective and go on to confess impure thank John Emms for his Capa-like clar-
thoughts towards space goddess ity with the chapter outlines, and also
Sevenofnine! The idea is to recreate the for allowing me to write the book the
casual atmosphere of chess lessons at way I did. Thanks to Richard Palliser for
my home rather than that of a profes- his final edit of the book. Thanks to my
sor in a lecture hall. It’s actually a mys- friends Dave Hart and Peter Graves for
tery to me why most chess books are so their helpful discussions and sugges-
formally written, as if readers are tions while the book was in progress.
Amish elders rather than the goofs and Thanks to proof-reader-in-chief Nancy,
nerds most of us are! Besides, I can’t and to computer wiz Timothy (I would
help it. The dangerous combination of like to add that any lingering resent-
Jimi Hendrix and Buddhist chants ment over the fact that the damned
blasting away on the CD player while I fool accidentally deleted a full day’s
write induces such outbursts! I hope work in Chapter Six has dissolved in the
the reader gets as much enjoyment fog of time!).
reading this book as I did writing it.
Cyrus Lakdawala,
Acknowledgments San Diego,
No project this large gets produced by November 2010
a single individual without the helping

9
 Chapter Two
The Veresov:
3...Ìbd7 4 Ëd3

1 d4 Ìf6 2 Ìc3 d5 3 Íg5 Ìbd7 4 Ëd3 e) 4...c5 when Black will capture on
This is a sounder alternative to the d4 with greater central control, but
chaos of 4 f3 from the first chapter. your development lead in the open po-
W________W sition could make life tough for Black.
[rDb1kgW4]
[0p0n0p0p]
[WDWDWhWD] Game 15
Z.Kozul-A.Brkic
[DWDpDWGW] Zagreb 2006
[WDW)WDWD]
[DWHQDWDW] 1 d4 Ìf6 2 Ìc3 d5 3 Íg5 Ìbd7 4 Ëd3
[P)PDP)P)] c6 5 Ìf3
[$WDWIBHR] W________W
W--------W [rDb1kgW4]
In this chapter, we deal with: [0pDn0p0p]
a) 4...c6 from which you get mostly
[WDpDWhWD]
Caro-Kann style positions;
b) 4...e6 where you deal with French
[DWDpDWGW]
positions;
[WDW)WDWD]
c) 4...h6?! usually leads to inferior [DWHQDNDW]
French positions; [P)PDP)P)]
d) 4...g6 leads to a hybrid Caro/Pirc [$WDWIBDR]
position; and W--------W

45
A Ferocious Opening Repertoire

GM Prié considers this the mainline his pieces while White owns c5.
of the 4 Ëd3 Veresov. White takes a 8 axb4 Ía6 9 b5!
wait-and-see approach and refrains W________W
from an immediate e4. One drawback [rDW1kgW4]
is that White loses the option of slowly [DWDn0p0p]
building his centre with f3 and e4.
[bDpDWhWD]
5...b5
Blind ambition! Black launches an
[0PDpDWGW]
attack even before White commits his
[WDW)PDWD]
king to the queenside. Instead, after [DWHQDNDW]
5...g6 6 e4 dxe4 7 Ìxe4 Íg7 (the game [W)PDW)P)]
looks like it arose from some kind of [$WDWIBDR]
Gurgenidze Pirc) 8 Íe2 h6 9 Ìxf6+ W--------W
Ìxf6 10 Íf4 White has a little extra 9...cxb5?
space but Black stands solidly, A.Zubov- After this Black experiences serious
N.Papenin, Simferopol 2003. difficulties. He should enter the line
6 a3! 9...Íxb5! 10 Ìxb5 dxe4 11 Ëe3! cxb5
White remains flexible, changes (11...exf3?? 12 Ìd6 mate would be a
gears and plans to castle kingside. pleasant surprise for White) 12 Ìd2
6...a5!? Ëb6 13 Ìxe4 Ìd5 14 Ëd3 e6 when
If you are brave and stubborn White stands a tad better due to his
enough, you can actually still castle bishop pair, but Black’s queenside play
queenside: for example, 6...h6 7 Íh4 e6 gives him counterplay.
8 e4 dxe4 9 Ìxe4 Íe7 10 Ìxf6+ Ìxf6 10 Ìxd5 Ìxd5 11 exd5 b4 12 Ëb3
11 0-0-0!? 0-0 12 Ìe5 (the key for Íxf1 13 Êxf1 Ëb6
White is central play, since he is slower Brkic had probably intended
if he begins to attack Black’s king) 13...Ìb6?! 14 c4! bxc3 15 bxc3, but
12...Íb7 13 Íe2 a5 14 Íf3 Ìd5?! then realized that he couldn’t recap-
(14...b4!) 15 Íxe7 Ëxe7 16 Íxd5 cxd5 ture: 15...Ìxd5?? 16 Ìe5! and Black is
17 Ëxb5! Îfc8?! 18 Ëd7! and White helpless to stop Ëb5+ or Ëa4+.
was up a pawn in the ending but later 14 Ëa4!
botched it, M.Pogromsky-A.Pugachov, Pinning the knight and preparing c4.
Internet 2004. 14...f6 15 Íd2 Îc8 16 Êe2!
7 e4 b4!? Very brave. He sees that d1 is actu-
Or 7...Ía6 8 b4 axb4 9 axb4 dxe4 10 ally a secure spot for the king. Black
Ìxe4 Íb7 11 Îb1 e6 12 Íe2 with an simply doesn’t have the attackers to do
interesting position where White stands the job. An alternative plan is to play
just a shade better. Black controls d5 for h3 and walk the king to h2.

46
 The Veresov: 3...Ìbd7 4 Ëd3

The opening has been a disaster for After 24...Ëxg4 25 Îh2 everything is
Black. Let’s assess: covered and White remains two pawns
W________W in the plus column.
[WDrDkgW4] 25 Ëc2!
[DWDn0W0p] Simplifying into an easily won end-
game. Black can’t dodge the trade.
[W1WDW0WD]
25...Ëxc2+ 26 Êxc2 Îxg2 27 Íe3 f5?
[0WDPDWDW] 27...Îc8 28 Êd3 Ìb6 29 Ìd2 is also
[Q0W)WDWD] hopeless.
[DWDWDNDW] 28 Ìh4 1-0
[W)PGK)P)]
[$WDWDWDR] Summary
W--------W White takes a waiting approach with 5
1. He is down a pawn; Ìf3. He eventually plays for e4 no mat-
2. Not only is Black behind in devel- ter how Black responds.
opment, but the d5-pawn clogs Black’s
even further;
3. White’s king is safe and comfort- Game 16
able in the middle since Black doesn’t J.Bosch-A.Kabatianski
have enough attackers; Dutch League 2009
4. The a5-pawn is weak and hang-
ing; and 1 d4 Ìf6 2 Ìc3 d5 3 Íg5 Ìbd7 4 Ëd3
5. Black is stuck in an annoying pin c6 5 Ìf3 g6
on the a4-e8 diagonal. A more sober approach than 5...b5.
16...g5 17 c3 Ëa6+ 18 Êd1 bxc3 19 W________W
bxc3 Ëd3 20 Ëxa5 Îb8 21 Ëa2! Ëf5 22 [rDb1kgW4]
h3 Îg8 23 c4 g4 24 hxg4 Îxg4 [0pDn0pDp]
W________W [WDpDWhpD]
[W4WDkgWD] [DWDpDWGW]
[DWDn0WDp] [WDW)WDWD]
[WDWDW0WD] [DWHQDNDW]
[DWDPDqDW] [P)PDP)P)]
[WDP)WDrD] [$WDWIBDR]
[DWDWDNDW] W--------W
[QDwGW)PD] 6 e4 dxe4 7 Ìxe4 Íg7 8 0-0-0 0-0 9
[$WDKDWDR] Êb1
W--------W Moving the king to b1 is almost a

47
A Ferocious Opening Repertoire

reflex in such positions, but in oppo- after 11...Íg4 12 Íe2 a4 13 h3 Íxf3 14

site-wing attacks every tempo counts. Íxf3 a3 15 b3 White’s space and
Perhaps White should continue with bishop pair give him a clear edge and
the immediate 9 h4! h6 10 Íxf6 Ìxf6 help keep his king safe.
11 Ìxf6+ Íxf6 12 h5 Ëa5? (reckless; 12 Ëc2 Ìbd7
he should play the saner move 12...g5) W________W
13 hxg6 Íf5 14 gxf7+ Îxf7 15 Ëb3 [rDW1W4kD]
Íe4 16 Íc4 Íg5+ 17 Ìxg5 Ëxg5+ 18 [DpDn0pgp]
Êb1 Íd5 19 Îh3! and White had a ma-
[WDpDbhpD]
terial advantage as well as an attack,
R.Barhudarian-Y.Nikolaev, St Peters-
[0WDWDWGW]
burg 2008.
[WDP)WDWD]
9...a5 [DWDWDNHW]
Black is first to begin to attack, but [P)QDW)P)]
one advantage in White’s favour is ex- [DKDRDBDR]
tra space, which keeps his king safer. It W--------W
was Steinitz who first advised against The work is done on b6 and he pre-
attacking if you control less territory pares ...b5.
than your opponent. 13 h4 b5
10 Ìg3 Black can also try to halt the ad-
Putting a stop to ...Íf5 ideas and vance of White’s h-pawn: 13...h5!? 14
also preparing h4-h5. Îe1! (an exchange sac on e6 will be
10...Ìb6!? strategically devastating to Black)
Going for piece play over a tradi- 14...Íg4 15 Ìh2! (threat: 16 f3)
tional pawn storm. A more normal ap- 15...Îe8 16 f3 Ëc7! 17 Ìxg4 Ëxg3 18
proach would be 10...b5 11 h4 Ìg4 12 Ìf2 a4 19 Îh3 Ëc7 20 g4 a3 21 b3 and
Ëd2 h6 13 Íf4 h5 14 Ìe4 Ìb6 15 White’s attack looks a bit faster, but his
Ìfg5 Ìd5 16 Íg3 Íf5 17 Îe1 Ëb6 18 structure is also more shaky. Perhaps
f3 Ìgf6 19 c3 Îfd8 20 Êa1 b4 21 c4 chances are balanced.
Ìc7 22 c5 when the chances look bal- 14 h5 bxc4 15 hxg6 hxg6 16 Íxc4
anced. Or 16 Îe1!? (contemplating an ex-
11 c4!? change sac on e6) 16...Íd5 17 Íxc4
Taking control over d5 at the cost of Ìb6 18 Íxd5 Ìbxd5 19 Ìe4 and
undermining support for his d-pawn. White’s knights will attain powerful
11...Íe6 outposts on c5 and e5. Black has the
Traditionally in such structures, open b-file and chances against
Black tries to eliminate his light- White’s king, but I give White a slight
squared bishop for a knight. However, edge.

48
 The Veresov: 3...Ìbd7 4 Ëd3

16...Íxc4 17 Ëxc4 Ëb6 18 Íh6 Íxh6? 22 a3 Îab8 23 Êa1 Ìg4 24 Îxh8 Îxh8
There was no reason for Black to 25 Îe1 e6 26 Ëd2 Ìgf6
give White a free move to double on Black has equalized. The mutual
the h-file. He should play 18...Îfb8! 19 weaknesses on d4 and c6 cancel each
Ëc1 Íh8. other out.
19 Îxh6 Êg7 20 Îdh1? 27 Ìe5?!
A critical moment in the game. His d-pawn needs support: 27 Îc1
White’s move allows Black to challenge c5 28 Ëc3 cxd4 29 Ëxd4 e5 30 Ëc4
the h-file with his rooks. White missed Ëxc4 31 Îxc4 is balanced but still
the more subtle 20 Ëc1! and Black sharp due to the opposite-wing pawn
must be very careful. For example: majorities.
a) 20...Îh8?? 21 Ìf5+! mates. 27...Ëd5 28 f3 Ìc5
b) 20...Îfb8?? 21 Ìf5+! and once Threatening to land on b3, but this
again White mates in five. isn’t the strongest move. Black should
c) 20...Îg8! (the only move) 21 Ìe5 go for 28...c5! 29 Ëxa5 Îa8 30 Ëb5
Êf8 22 Ìxd7+ Ìxd7 23 Ìe4 Îb8 24 Ëxd4 31 Ìxd7 Ìxd7 (threatening to
Îh7 and Black’s king is in a precarious take on a3) 32 Ëb3 Îb8 33 Ëc2 Ìe5
situation; Ìg5 is in the air. with the initiative.
W________W 29 Êb1 Ìb3
[rDWDW4WD] W________W
[DWDn0piW] [WDWDWDW4]
[W1pDWhp$] [DWDWDpiW]
[0WDWDWDW] [WDpDphpD]
[WDQ)WDWD] [0WDqHWDW]
[DWDWDNHW] [WDW)WDWD]
[P)WDW)PD] [)nDWDPHW]
[DKDWDWDR] [W)W!WDPD]
W--------W [DKDW$WDW]
20...Ëb5! W--------W
A terrific defensive move. Black cov- 30 Ëe3?
ers the critical f5-square and deprives Meekly submitting to the loss of a
his opponent of opportunities to sac on pawn. White misses an opportunity to
f5. This allows Black time to challenge counterattack and target f7 with the
the h-file with equality. line 30 Ëf4! Ëxd4 (Black is in big trou-
21 Ëc1 Îh8 ble after 30...Ìxd4? 31 Ìe4 Ìf5 32 g4
No more Ìf5+ tricks, so Black con- Îh4 33 Ìg5) 31 Ìe4! Ìd2+! 32 Ëxd2
fronts White on the h-file. Ëxe5 33 Ìxf6 Ëxf6 34 Ëxa5, which

49
A Ferocious Opening Repertoire

regains the lost pawn with equality. 49...Ìe5?

30...Ìxd4 31 Îc1 Îh2 32 Ìe2 Ìb3 33 Yet another missed opportunity. It’s
Ìc3 Ëd2 34 Ëxd2 Ìxd2+ 35 Êa2 Îxg2 like a once-powerful wizard whose
36 Ìa4 magic has drained away. Black should
The pure pawn race favours Black: play the superior 49...Ìb6!, but White
36 Ìxc6 Ìxf3 37 Ìxa5 Ìe5 38 a4 g5 still has a problem-like draw with 50
39 Ìb7 Ìc4 40 Ìd1 Îg4 and now 41 Ìhxf7 Ìxa8 51 Ìxe6+ Êd7 52 Ìxf4
a5?? isn’t possible due to 41...Ìxa5! 42 gxf4 53 Ìh6 Ìe5 54 Êb3 Êe6 55 Êc3
Ìxa5 Îa4+. Ìb6 56 Êd4 f3 57 Êe3 Ìbc4+ 58 Êf2
36...Ìd5 37 Îxc6 Îg5! 38 Ìg4 Îf5 39 Ìxb2 59 Ìg4 Ìbd3+ 60 Êe3 Êf5 61
Ìc5 Ìxf3 40 Îa6 Ìd2? Ìh2 f2 62 Ìf1 Êg4 63 Êe2 Êh3 64
Black wins easily after 40...Ìc3+! 41 Ìe3 Ìg4 65 Ìd1! eliminating f2 and
bxc3 Îxc5 42 Êb3 g5 when his three drawing the game.
connected passers carry the day. 50 Ìhxf7! Ìxf7 51 Ìxe6+ Êd6 52
41 Îa7 Êf8? Ìxf4 gxf4
There was no need to defend the All White has to do is sac his rook
threat on e6. Indeed, Black once again for the pawn to seal the draw.
misses 41...Ìc3+! 42 bxc3 Îxc5. 53 Îg8 Ìe3 54 Êb3
42 Ìd7+ Êe8 43 Ìde5 Ìf3 44 Îa8+ 54 Îg1 also gets in range to sac:
Êe7 45 Ìc6+ Êd6 46 Ìxa5 54...f3 (or 54...Ìe5 55 Îh1 f3 56 Îh2
Black is still winning, but one gets Ì5g4 57 Îh3 f2 58 Îf3) 55 Îg6+ Êe5
the sense that he is in the process of 56 Îg3 f2! 57 Îf3! reaches the target.
botching things! 54...f3 55 Îg6+ Êe7 56 Îg3!
46...Îf4 47 Ìh6 g5 48 Ìb7+ Êc7? W________W
He should move closer to his pawns [WDWDWDWD]
with 48...Êe5!. [DWDWinDW]
49 Ìd8!
[WDWDWDWD]
W________W [DWDWDWDW]
[RDWHWDWD] [WDWDWDWD]
[DWiWDpDW] [)KDWhp$W]
[WDWDpDWH] [W)WDWDWD]
[DWDnDW0W] [DWDWDWDW]
[WDWDW4WD] W--------W
[)WDWDnDW] The f-pawn is worth more than the
[K)WDWDWD] rook! White finally engineers a position
[DWDWDWDW] where the pawn cannot escape the sac.
W--------W 56...Ìe5 57 Îxf3! Ìxf3 58 Êc3 Êd6 59

50
 The Veresov: 3...Ìbd7 4 Ëd3

b4 Êd5 60 a4 Ìe5 61 b5 Êc5 62 a5 Now we get a ...Ìd7 Caro-Kann with

Ìd5+ 63 Êd2 Êxb5 64 a6 Êxa6 65 Êe2 two key differences:
½-½ 1 White’s bishop is committed to
Phew! A close call for White, who g5. Black may make use of this to engi-
was on life support for a long time be- neer a freeing swap later on.
fore his miraculous recovery. I was sure 2. White’s queen is on d3. This may
Rybka and Fritz would be fooled and help, since the queen can later go to g3
erroneously claim Black is up +6 at the or h3, targeting Black’s kingside. In
end, but they both saw the light and some cases White may even manage
had it almost at dead even. I am very Ëe4 and Íd3, ganging up on h7.
sorry to have to report that Crafty, their 6...e6
naive cousin, has Black winning here. Khachian also had this position
Well, nobody’s perfect! against one of my students: 6...Ìxe4 7
Ëxe4 Ëa5+ 8 Íd2 Ëd5 9 Ëh4 (9 Ëe3
Summary is covered next game) 9...Ìf6 (blasting
5...g6 is a good way to respond to the 5 free with 9...e5!? may not be wise: 10
Ìf3 line. Black should equalize with Ìf3 Íe7 11 Ëg3 exd4 12 Ëxg7 Íf6 13
correct play. Ëh6 Ëe4+ 14 Êd1 Ëg6 15 Íd3 Ëxh6
16 Îe1+ Êd8 17 Íxh6 favours White
since he has the better pawn structure)
Game 17 10 c4 Ëe4+ 11 Ëxe4 Ìxe4 12 Íe3 with
M.Khachian-I.Miller just an edge to White, who has space,
US Open, Los Angeles 2003 but will have a tough time making any-
thing of it because Black stands solidly,
1 d4 Ìf6 2 Ìc3 d5 3 Íg5 Ìbd7 4 Ëd3 M.Khachian-E.Liu, Los Angeles 2003.
c6 5 e4 7 Ìf3 Íe7 8 Ìxf6+ Íxf6 9 h4 h6!?
W________W He doesn’t want the annoying
[rDb1kgW4] bishop to sit on g5 forever. However, if
[0pDn0p0p] Black now castles kingside, the h6-
pawn is a ripe sac target, and White
[WDpDWhWD]
has the simple plan of h4 and g4-g5,
[DWDpDWGW] prising things open.
[WDW)PDWD] 10 Íe3 Ëe7 11 0-0-0 e5!
[DWHQDWDW] Probably the best choice in a diffi-
[P)PDW)P)] cult situation. Black frees himself, de-
[$WDWIBHR] spite his lag in development.
W--------W In other lines, Black faces a dilemma
5...dxe4 6 Ìxe4 of where to place his king:

51
A Ferocious Opening Repertoire

a) Let’s say he goes queenside with 14 Ìxd4 Ìe5 15 Íe2 Îd8

11...b6?! 12 Ëe4 Íb7 13 Íf4 0-0-0 then 15...Ìg4? would be similar to the
14 Íg3! threatens 15 Ëf4 and after game: 16 Ìxc6+! bxc6 17 Íc5+ Êe8 18
14...g5 15 Ía6! Ìb8 16 Íxb7+ Ëxb7 Îhe1 Ìe5 19 Íf3 Íb7 20 Íd4 wins.
17 Ìe5 Black scrambles to cover his 16 f4!
multiple weaknesses. W________W
b) The kingside looks even worse: [rDb4WDWD]
11...0-0? 12 Ëe4! Îd8 13 Íd3 Ìf8 14 [0pDWip0W]
g4 and Black will not survive.
[WDpDWgW0]
c) 11...c5?! 12 dxc5 Ìxc5 13 Ëb5+
Ìd7 and Black has opened the position
[DWDWhWDW]
while dangerously behind in develop-
[WDWHW)W)]
ment. [DWDWGWDW]
W________W [P)PDBDPD]
[rDbDkDW4] [DWIRDWDR]
[0pDn1p0W] W--------W
This looks like a strategic blunder by
[WDpDWgW0]
White, who gives up the g4-square. But
[DWDW0WDW] beware: when a GM plays such a move,
[WDW)WDW)] there is usually a very good reason!
[DWDQGNDW] 16...Ìg4?
[P)PDW)PD] A trusting soul. Black jumps into g4
[DWIRDBDR] and also into a trap. He had to play
W--------W 16...Ìg6 17 g3, but even here White’s
12 Ëe4! space and slight development lead put
White foresees a superior ending. him in control.
12...exd4 13 Ëxe7+ Êxe7 17 Ìxc6+!!
Black can also give up a pawn in the W________W
hope of a draw after 13...Íxe7 14 Ìxd4 [rDb4WDWD]
Ìb6 15 Îe1! and then: [0pDWip0W]
a) After 15...0-0 16 Íxh6 Íf6 17
[WDNDWgW0]
Íe3 Ìd5 18 c3 Ìxe3 19 Îxe3 Íxd4 20
cxd4 Íe6 21 b3 Îfd8 22 Îe4 Îd6 23
[DWDWDWDW]
Íc4 White begins to consolidate his
[WDWDW)n)]
extra pawn. [DWDWGWDW]
b) 15...Ìd5? 16 Íc4 Ìxe3 17 Îxe3 [P)PDBDPD]
Êd8 18 Îd1 and Black’s king is caught [DWIRDWDR]
in traffic. W--------W

52
 The Veresov: 3...Ìbd7 4 Ëd3

A bolt of lightning from a blue, pawn down, but the damage to his
summer sky! Black’s king is a lot less structure is too much to overcome.
safe than he believed.
17...bxc6 18 Íc5+ Êe8 19 Îde1! Summary
A sting at the end. Black has no Be prepared to go into an odd, Smyslov
choice but to return the piece to get line of the Caro if you choose to play a
out of the crossfire. quick e4 against 4...c6.
19...Êd7?
After 19...Îd5! 20 Íxg4+ Êd8 21
Íxc8 Îxc5 22 Íg4 the factor of oppo- Game 18
site-coloured bishops gives Black some M.Khachian-I.Koniushkov
hope of survival. Moscow 1996
20 Íxg4+ Êc7 21 Íxc8 Îaxc8 22 Íe7!
W________W 1 d4 d5 2 Ìc3 Ìf6 3 Íg5 Ìbd7 4 Ëd3
[WDr4WDWD] c6 5 e4
[0WiWGp0W] If you castle, you can sometimes
transpose to the 4...g6 line: 5 0-0-0 g6 6
[WDpDWgW0]
f3 Íg7 7 e4 dxe4 8 fxe4 Ëa5 9 e5 Ìd5
[DWDWDWDW] 10 Ìxd5 cxd5 11 Ëb3 sees White lead
[WDWDW)W)] in development and space, J.Hector-
[DWDWDWDW] H.Olsen, Swedish Team Championship
[P)PDWDPD] 2006.
[DWIW$WDR] 5...Ìxe4 6 Ìxe4 dxe4 7 Ëxe4 Ëa5+
W--------W This is an annoying manoeuvre bor-
22...Îd7!? rowed from the Caro, which forces
Deliberately allowing his pawns to White to back off for a few moves.
sustain damage, but banking on coun- W________W
terplay down the g-file. Black should [rDbDkgW4]
lose the rook ending after 22...Íxe7 23 [0pDn0p0p]
Îxe7+ Îd7 24 Îxd7+ Êxd7 25 Îe1
[WDpDWDWD]
Îb8, since White is up a clear pawn
and has multiple targets: a7, c6 and
[1WDWDWGW]
possibly even g7 with the plan Îe3, h5
[WDW)QDWD]
and Îg3. [DWDWDWDW]
23 Íxf6 gxf6 24 g3 h5 25 Îe3 Îg8 26 [P)PDW)P)]
Îd1 1-0 [$WDWIBHR]
The five isolanis are driftwood scat- W--------W
tered along a beach. Black is only one 8 Íd2 Ëd5 9 Ëe3

53