Benoni Defense: Your Secret Weapon for Black with IM Marcin Sieciechowicz

It’s super sharp and excellent to play for a win against 1.d4, but few dare to try it because it’s too risky and borderline dubious.

That’s the Benoni Defense for you.

Strategically, you give up the e-pawn for a c-pawn and end up allowing White with a nice spatial advantage.

Then why does Black play this defense?

It gives Black nice play along the b- and e-files… and if White over-commits or stretches his position too fast, Black’s pieces can immediately spring into action with explosive tactics.

In short, the Benoni is dynamic and dangerous as no other defense against 1.d4.

And who better to teach you the Benoni Defense than our very own IM Marcin Sieciechowicz?

He is here with his 10-hour video training Benoni Defense for Black that dissects the most complex variations and reveals the best lines to pursue as Black…

And gets you playing the Benoni like a champ in no time!

Here’s what you are going to learn:

• 7.Bf4 nipped in the bud. White gets aggressive in this line…with a London like setup. With Black’s kingside fianchetto, the pressure on the d6 pawn increases. Learn how to play as Black—without falling for any traps that are laid by White.
• Fischer’s Benoni magic. If Fischer could play this line against Spassky in a World Championship tournament, you can surely play it in your next tournament. Just study his game first… and see how he yields the fiery potential of his pieces.
• 1 + 1 = 3? For Tal, it is. The best example of why you should play Benoni is probably the match of Tal against Gurgenidze in the 1957 URS championship. Look how he takes him onto a road unknown…and comes out with guns ablazin’!
• The Bd3 line… that gets White’s e-pawn done early in the game. It leads to complicated piece transactions, and it’s good to know what to do next. Let Sieciechowicz show you the best way to play as Black in this variation.
• White’s sneaky fianchetto idea. White wants to gain control of the a8-h1 long diagonal as soon as Black pushes his b-pawn forward. Huge imbalances created in favor of White! See how to survive as Black in this position.

Benoni is sharp. Benoni is unpredictable. And it creates imbalances between both sides.

It’s your opponent or you who will play the master stroke—who is it going to be?

No worries. It’s always YOU.

Outline:

Chapter 1. Illustrative Games in Benoni Defense
Chapter 2. Rare Sidelines
Chapter 3. Rare Sidelines – Game Examples
Chapter 4. Fianchetto Variation part I
Chapter 5. Fianchetto Variation part I – Game Examples
Chapter 6. Fianchetto Variation part II
Chapter 7. Fianchetto Variation part II – Game Examples
Chapter 8. 7.Bf4 System
Chapter 9. 7.Bf4 System – Game Examples
Chapter 10. White Plays 7.f4 part I
Chapter 11. White Plays 7.f4 part I – Game Examples
Chapter 12. White Plays 7.f4 part II
Chapter 13. White Plays 7.f4 part II – Game Examples
Chapter 14. White Plays 6.e4 Secondary Lines
Chapter 15. White Plays 6.e4 Secondary Lines – Game Examples
Chapter 16. White Plays 6.e4 Main Lines
Chapter 17. White Plays 6.e4 Main Lines – Game Examples
Chapter 18. Bd3 System
Chapter 19. Bd3 System – Game Examples
Chapter 20. Alternative Variations for Black
Chapter 21. Alternative Variations for Black – Game Examples

About The Author

IM Marcin Sieciechowicz (FIDE 2462)

Marcin won many medals in the Polish junior chess championship, from which the most important is the gold medal in the Polish junior chess championship in classical chess won in 2010 (under 18). He made two of his IM norms before reaching 18, and the last in 2010, and became International Master just after his 18th birthday. He has been competing three times in the Junior European chess championship (2004, 2007, 2008) and once in World junior chess championship (2010). He has two GM norms, made in 2010 and 2013, his highest rating was 2462. He is playing French Defense for 20 years and has a couple of wins in this opening with the players rated 2600+.