It is getting harder and harder to achieve any advantage with White pieces in the main lines. Black seems to hold their own in most of the popular openings. Modern chess players of all levels have an access to the strongest engines, and they use them for opening preparation. Usually, your best chance against such players is to play something they don’t know. This way you avoid playing against the machine moves in the beginning. This approach made the Larsen’s Opening (1.b3) quite enticing for White. In recent years, many strong grandmasters started using it with great success.
Chess is extremely popular nowadays. A lot of people participate in different tournaments all over the world. To get on top in such a competitive field, you have to win frequently.
The old strategy of winning with White and drawing with Black pieces does not work in open tournaments.
Gambits in chess are usually associated with ferocious attacks, mating threats, and opening traps. The Benko Gambit is quite different from that.
Here Black does not get any immediate reward for the sacrificed pawn. Instead, the main idea is to clear files for their pieces for the future play on the queenside.
One of the openings that have become increasingly popular over the past few years is the London System.
For a long time, it has been considered a second-hand opening choice for white with a reputation of being dull, uninteresting, and suitable only for the “lazy players” who don’t want to learn any mainstream openings.
The Queen’s Gambit Declined is one of the most classical and solid chess openings. It starts with the moves 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 when Black strengthens the center with a pawn and prepares the development of the kingside. Later, Black can opt for different schemes of development but all of them promise stability and safety. This opening is a frequent guest in a tournament practice at any level and should be studied by everyone.
Owen’s Defense starts with the moves 1.e4 b6 or 1.e4 e6 2.d4 b6 when Black is going to fianchetto the light-squared bishop. This is a bit slow and allows White to occupy the center but Black is hoping to attack it later with pieces and pawns. This system is not going to equalize any quickly, but people usually don’t play it to make a draw. This is the way to unbalance the game and outplay the opponent in the less-known positions.
The Grunfeld Defense is one of the most dynamic and sound chess openings. It starts after the moves 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5, when Black opens files and diagonals for their pieces to target White’s center. This unusual system of development started gaining popularity in the 1920-s, after Ernest Grunfeld successfully employed it at the highest level, beating Alexander Alekhine. Later, Alekhine even used it himself. Nowadays almost every top grandmaster has the Grunfeld Defense in their repertoire.
Netflix’s “Queen’s Gambit” miniseries boosted the interest of people in chess but had no effect on the popularity of the opening of the same name.
There was no need.
The Queen’s Gambit is itself one of the oldest, most played, and respectable openings ever. It was played already by Gioachino Greko back in 1620.
On being asked why most GMs and super-GMs play 1…c5 and 1…e5 to 1.e4 instead of the French Defense, Peter Svidler recently commented: “I think the answer is twofold. Firstly, both the Spanish and the Sicilian offer you a much broader scope to choose from. If you play 1…e5 you’re not …”
What did he really mean? Is the French Defense not good enough to play at the elite level?
Sometimes, even a single move can change the course of a game—even so much as to turn a good opening into a GREAT one!
That’s what the move 2.Nc3 does to the regular London System. Not that the London system is a bad opening or such, it has got a few drawbacks where it does not offer sufficient attacking opportunities to Black, that it is not tactical enough or that the bishop on f4 can get too exposed for White’s own good.
