Monday, April 1
IM Bill Paschall – Crushing the Caro-Kann, Part 8 | Opening, Middlegame
White plays in the sharpest manner with Tal’s 5.g4 system against the Caro-Kann in the Advance variation. Black uses the flexible 4…h6 and the result of battles in these lines will determine ultimately if Black’s system can withstand the pressure. There have been successes in these lines for Black, but in this game White is able to sacrifice a pawn for the initiative and he never looks back.
Tuesday, April 2
FM Dennis Monokroussos – The Disimproved Stonewall Dutch | Tactics
We’ve been looking at some of Vladimir Kramnik’s great games, and after seeing a series of his wins over Veselin Topalov we move on to other elite victims. This time we look at an impressive victory over Alexander Beliavsky, then still among the world’s elite. The game began with a Reti/Barcza System, but Beliavsky tried to turn it into a Stonewall Dutch with the traditional bad bishop on g4, outside the pawn chain. It seemed like a good idea at the time; less so after Beliavsky resigned on move 18! Beliavsky’s idea took some critical tempi that would have been better spent getting his king out of the center. He would have gotten away with it too, but Kramnik’s extremely energetic and principled reaction completely refuted the idea. Sometimes, refuting the opponent’s idea involves burning one’s bridges, and Kramnik was not afraid to do so.
Wednesday, April 3
GM Nadya Kosintseva – A Nimzo-Indian Repertoire for Black, Part 4 – Meeting 4.e3 & 5.Nge2 | Strategy
In this lecture we will learn 4.e3 followed by 5.Nge2. White temporarily blocks his light squared bishop in order to guard the c3 knight and avoid doubled pawns when he then plays a3. From Black’s point of view, I recommend to keep the dark-squared bishop on the board, moving it down to f8 after he plays Re8. Next, Black starts targeting the center, advancing more pawns there in a hope to use his lead in development. Sometimes the position may look strategically dangerous for Black, but if he is creative and vigorous enough White can end up in a dangerous situation with his king stuck in the middle, the right to castle lost.
Thursday, April 4
GM Robert Hungaski – A Classical Repertoire vs 1.e4: Steinitz Defense vs the Ruy Lopez, Part 1 | Opening, Strategy
Hello! And welcome to my video series on the Ruy Lopez – Steinitz Variation. In these videos you will become acquainted with one of the most time-tested and reliable systems for black.
Moreover, if you are already familiar with some of my videos and my general approach when it comes to selecting an opening, you will not be surprised that this line also has a great practical value. As soon as move three we are forcing white down a path that we are much more likely to master than our opponent, without sacrificing much in terms of the quality of our position.
The basic premise for black in the Ruy Lopez, and the Steinitz is not the exception, revolves around our ability to maintain the equilibrium in the center. Usually this will mean that we will have to fight to keep our pawn on e5, despite white´s attempts to put pressure on it.
In this first video we will focus on what happens when white chooses the standard Ruy Lopez approach, by nurturing a strong center with the moves c2-c3 followed by d2-d4. Here we will see that black has ample resources, and should white decide to close the center by means of d4-d5, then play can become highly dynamic.
I now invite you to join me as I step into this time machine and try to turn back the dial on an opening that has been unjustly snubbed by recent opening theory, despite its long and distinguished track record!
Friday, April 5
IM Valeri Lilov – Positional Complexities | Middlegame
A lot of times players wonder about the most efficient way to approach complex positions. Truth is there are lots of ways to handle such situations, yet none of them are truly easy. The most effective always remains one though – looking for the positional dangers! Learn more from Lilov’s video!