Monday, June 10
IM Bill Paschall – Great Matchups: Smyslov vs Botvinnik, Part 4 | Middlegame, Strategy
Smyslov performed well against the French in the matches with Botvinnik. In this example, Black tried to avoid theory with 7…f6 but got very little play. Botvinnik sacrificed a pawn but in return allowed too much simplification and went into a clearly worse ending. The great endgame Maestro, Smyslov, much like Bobby Fischer, excelled in bishop vs knight situations. The Winawer is meant to lead to sharp complications, but in this game the opening fell flat and Smyslov’s play looks almost flawless.
Tuesday, June 11
FM Dennis Monokroussos – Tal’s Training Games, Part 2: Another Crazy Sicilian | Strategy
Once again we take a look at another wild game between Mikhail Tal and the Maestro, Alexander Koblencs, as he dubbed his long-time trainer and friend. Everything said about the last show applies to this one as well, another crazy Sicilian where Tal’s full-blast attack forced his opponent to find all the right moves to survive, or get blown off the board. Koblencs was a terrific player in his own right, but on this occasion the storm proved too strong. Have a look, and dig into the analysis for yourself!
Wednesday, June 12
GM Eugene Perelshteyn – Fighting for Initiative with the Grand Prix Attack | Opening, Strategy, Tactics
Intiative above all is the theme of this game! Watch and learn how Black is punished for dubious moves in the opening, neglecting his development. Due to the closed center, there’s an illusion that Black’s king is safe, but with a very swift central breakthrough the game is finished before it even begins. They call it Grand Prix Attack for a reason!
Thursday, June 13
GM Nadya Kosintseva – (1.d4 d6) part 1 | Strategy
A Complete Hypermodern Repertoire for White: Play the Reti System – Part 1
This lecture starts a series about the Reti system that begins with 1.Nf3, 2.g3 and 3.Bg2 moves. White does not bring any pawns in the center for a while but instead develops his king side quickly. This set-up has a lot in common with the King’s Indian defense where black develops his dark-squared bishop to the long diagonal and then starts challenging the center.
In today’s lecture we will analyze black’s pawn advance right in the middle (d5, c5, e5 moves) which seems to be logical from a strategic point of view but at the same time gives white a variety of tactical opportunities to undermine the center. The positions that arise in this variation can be pretty sharp and require some energetic play from both sides. White should be vigorous to emphasize his lead in development whereas black wants to be sure that he castles on time.
Friday, June 14
GM Robert Hungaski – A Classical Repertoire vs 1.e4: Facing the Italian Game, Part 2 | Strategy
As we saw in Part 1, White can run into trouble if Black is allowed to freely expand on the queenside by means of a7-a5-a4. In this second installment of the Italian, we will discuss what happens when White takes the bull by the horns and halts any further advance.
In doing so, White has three choices: 1) fix the pawn structure by playing a2-a4 himself; 2) capitalize on the weakened b5-square and play Bb5; 3) regroup the bishop with the thematic Bb3, preventing …a4 as well as aiming for a future Bc2 that will support white’s expansion in the center.