[blind-chess] Chess Article #65: Elements of Chess Strategy: Open Lines
- From: Roderick Macdonald <rmacd@xxxxxxxx>
- To: Blind Chess Mailing List <blind-chess@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 27 Jun 2010 14:44:35 -1000 (HST)
Chess Article #65:
Elements of chess strategy - Open lines
Adapted and Condensed from
Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia
++1 Open lines
Open lines are incredibly important in chess. In fact, a game is
automatically drawn if there are no open lines. Why? Because the
opposing armies have no way to get in to the other side's position
without substantial losses of material! There have been several
instances of this. For example, A. Petrosian--Hazai, Schilde 1970,
at right.
Diagram #1:
White: King at a2, Queen at b2, Bishop at g3, Knight at a4,
Pawns at a3, b5, c4, d5, e4, f3, g2, h3
Black: King at c8, Queen at a7, Pawns at a5, c5, c7, d6, e5, f4,
g7, h7
A. Petrosian--Hazai, Schilde 1970
Position after White's 45th move
This position may look composed, but the pawn chains are typical of
the King's Indian Defense. Were White to play in this position, he
would have no trouble at all in winning with 46.b6!, breaking
through. However, it is Black to play! And he is hard-pressed to
find a way to stop this advance. If, for example, 45. ... Kb7, then
46. b6! still wins, because 46. ... cxb6 47. Qb5 wins due to
Black's light-squared weaknesses, also typical of the King's Indian
Defense (this should make sense now because we have already
discussed weak color-complexes). So, Black must resort to drastic
measures.
45. ... Qb6!
Shocking! Black gives up his queen for the knight! However, when
you think about it, this makes perfect sense, because the knight is
the only piece that could break through the dark-squared bind. And
now the queen cannot get in after the game moves:
46. Nxb6+ cxb6
47. h4 gxh4
48. Qd2 h3!
Blockading the position completely. After
49. gxh3 h4
the game was clearly drawn and was agreed drawn in six moves. Of
course, you can try telling your computer that White isn't better,
but it's simply too stubborn!
Note that the lack of open lines in the endgame gave Black the
draw. This is one of those rare positions in chess literature,
where Black has assumed a full defensive perimeter around his
position. Without open lines, although White had a material
advantage, there was simply no way to get in and make his extra
material felt.
++2 Open and half-open files
These are very important in chess strategy. Half-open files will
give your rooks pressure on enemy pawns (if they're your half-open
files). For example, in the Open Sicilian, two open files have been
created by move 3. 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 Now Black has an
open c-file and White has an open d-file. Black usually gets some
kind of pressure on the queenside, while White gets pressure down
the d-file. It's part of both players' respective plans.
++2.A Pressure down a half-open file
Pressure down a half-open file can be enormous. Take the following
position, from Smyslov-Denker in the USSR vs. USA match:
Diagram #2:
White: King at g1, Queen at e3, Rooks at c1 and d1, Bishop at
g2, Knight at c3, Pawns at a2, b3, c4, f2, g2, h2
Black: King at g8, Queen at e7, Rooks at c8 and d8, Bishops at
e6 and g7, Pawns at a7, b6, d6, e5, g6, h6
Smyslov-Denker, USSR vs. USA 1946
Position after Black's 24th move
Black is obviously worse here. Although he has the advantage of the
two bishops, in this case it is hardly an advantage, because the
dark-squared bishop is totally passive on g7, being blocked out by
its pawn chain on d6 and e5. This means that White has light-
squared central outposts to work with if the other bishop is
exchanged. White has space, but most importantly, a big hole on d5
and a weak pawn on d6 to work with. However, there is no effective
way to use these squares right now because Black still has a light-
squared bishop defending his holes. Therefore, White played the
sensible
25.Bd5!
Exchanging off Black's main trump, the bishop pair, and also
eliminating the defender of the light squares. As a rule you can
deal with a bishop pair by exchanging one of the bishops and
creating a more manageable bishop-vs. knight situation, or bishop
vs. bishop situation.
25. ... Kh7
26. Bxe6 Qxe6
27. Rd3
White starts laying siege to Black's d-pawn.
27. ... Rc7
28. Rcd1 Rf7
29. Ne4 Bf8
30. Rd5! Qg4
31. R1d3!
After the immediate 31. Nxd6?, then 31. ... Bxd6 32. Rxd6 Qxd1+ 33.
Rxd1 Rxd1+ holds the endgame.
31. ... Be7
32. Nxd6
The pawn falls at last. White won on move 52.
++2.B Pressure down an open file
Although no pawns lie on an open file, rooks and queens can still
exert enormous pressure down it, especially when there are enemy
pieces on it. One of the most effective ways to do this is known as
Alekhine's Gun, after the following famous game, Alekhine--
Nimzowitsch, San Remo 1930.
1. e4 e6
2. d4 d5
3. Nc3 Bb4
4. e5 c5
5. Bd2 Ne7
6. Nb5 Bxd2+
7. Qxd2 0-0
8. c3
First White secures his long pawn chain.
8. ... b6
9. f4 Ba6
10. Nf3 Qd7
11. a4 Nbc6
All these moves have been played before, and are still played
today. Now Alekhine introduced a novelty (at the time).
12. b4!
Breaking open a file that will be used later.
12. ... cxb4
13. cxb4 Bb7
Black was afraid of some tactics that might of popped up based on
b4-b5.
14. Nd6
The knight is now a tower of strength and is actually pretty hard
to exchange. It also ensures the domination of the c-file because
c8 has been controlled. This is a useful thing to know: The best
way to control a file is to control its back rank.
14. ... f5
15. a5 Nc8
16. Nxb7 Qxb7
17. a6 Qf7
18. Bb5 N8e7
19. 0-0 h6
20. Rfc1 Rfc8
Not exactly what Black wanted to do, but allowing White domination
of the c-file with 19. ... Nd8 20. Rc7 didn't exactly look
appealing either.
21. Rc2! Qe8
22. Rac1
Slightly more accurate was 22. Ra3 followed by 23. Rac3 and 24.
Qc1.
22. ... Rc7
23. Qe3
Again, more accurate was 23. Rc3, 24. R1c2 and 25. Qc1.
23. ... Rc7
24. Rc3!
White finally sees the light and invents Alekhine's Gun. The
formation rook-rook-queen suddenly pops into his mind.
24. ... Qd7
25. R1c2 Kf8
Rushing the king over to help in the defense.
26. Qc1
White has established iron control over the c-file and soon wins,
accordingly.
26. ... Rbc8
27. Ba4! b5
Sacrificing a pawn in desperation. The threat was 28. b5, winning
a piece.
28. Bxb5 Ke8
29. Ba4 Kd8
It seems for a moment that Black has everything covered. However,
the resourceful Alekhine realizes that this is only momentary, that
Black is in Zugzwang, and thus cannot move at all! He therefore
plays the quiet, but brilliant:
30. h4!
A waiting move that demonstrates the strength of White's position.
However, the more straightforward 30. Nd2, 31. Nb3, and 32. Na5
would have won easily enough. Nevertheless, Alekhine's move made a
greater impression on the spectators. Black struggled on for a few
more moves, and then realized the nature of his position and
resigned.
So in this game, White realized that pawns were not the only things
that can be pressured by rooks. Sometimes, you can look for bigger
gains and win on the spot.
++2.C Penetration on an open file
Penetration is one of the simplest goals of possession of an open
file. If you can penetrate down into the enemy position and
dominate there, you will have a clear advantage because he will be
unable to dislodge you (most of the time) and meanwhile, you can
cause chaos in the king's position and the pawns there. Here's a
simple endgame example:
Diagram #3:
White: King at g1, Rook at c1, Pawns at a2, b2, d5, e4, f5, g6,
h4
Black: King at g8, Rook at a8, Pawns at a7, b7, d6, e5, f6, g7,
h6
Instructive example
Material is level. However, White can assume an immediate advantage
with 1. Rc7, dominating the seventh rank and penetrating into the
enemy position. Note also, that Black's pawns and king are very
weak when the rook is on such a powerful square. Also, Black's rook
is driven to passivity after 1. ... Rb8 2. Kf2 Now the king follows
the rook. He will penetrate as well, and the game will be decided
by a march of queenside pawns.
++3. Ranks
If files are the means to an end, then the ranks are the end
itself. A file is best used when there is a rank down which to
penetrate. Most often, this rank is on the first, second, or third
(for the opponent). Here is a nice game Vasiliev-Zilberstein,
Ukraine 1993.
Diagram #4:
White: King at g2, Queen at c2, Rooks at a1 and f1, Bishop at
d2, Knight at d4, Pawns at a2, b4, c3, e3, e5, f4, g2, h2
Black: King at g8, Queen at d7, Rooks at a8 and f8, Bishop at
e7, Knight at e4, Pawns at a7, b5, c4, d5, e6, f5, g6, h7
Vasiliev-Zilberstein, Ukraine 1993
Position after White's 16th move
Black is clearly better because of his outposted knight on e4 and
his queenside space advantage. In addition, White has weak light
squares. However, all of this is meaningless if Black cannot
arrange a breakthrough. So, knowing this, Black plays
16. ... a5!
Creating tension on the a-file.
17. a3 Ra6!
18. Ne2 Rfa8!
First Black builds up on the a-file before opening it. Now White is
forced to abandon the file.
19. Rab1 axb4
20. axb4 Ra3
21. Ng3 R8a4!
Now the rooks make way for the queen. Black is planning to move on
to the 2nd rank.
22.Nxe4 dxe4
Now Black also has the d-file cemented under his control.
23. Rf2 Qd3
24. Qc1 Ra2
25. Qe1 Rc2
26. Rd1 Raa2
The "blind pigs" dominate the second rank! White is losing.
27. g3 Bd8
28. Bc1 Rxf2!
An elegant queen sacrifice.
29. Rxd3 Rg2+
30. Kf1 exd3
White resigns, because the rooks dominate the position, especially
the second rank. Let's review Black's winning plan:
1. Creating tension on the a-file. (16. .. a5!)
2. Doubling rooks on the a-file. (17...Ra6 and 18...Rfa8)
3. Opening the a-file and dominating it. (19...axb4 and 20...Ra3)
4. Moving the queen to the new outpost on d3. (23...Qd3) 5.
Penetrating on the 2nd rank. (24...Ra2, 25...Rc2, and
26...Raa2)
This plan is typical of such positions, and is a good one to bear
in mind.
++4. Diagonals
Diagonals are crucial operating lines for the bishops. Because
bishops can only operate diagonally, they need active diagonals in
order to be effective. One example should suffice to show the need
of bishops for diagonals. A line in the Danish Gambit goes:
1. e4 e5
2. d4 exd4
3. c3 dxc3
4. Bc4 cxb2
5. Bxb2
For two pawns, White has a capital development and two bishops
placed optimally on their best diagonals.
5. ... Bb4+
6. Nc3 Nf6
7. Nge2 Nxe4?!
This move is bad. Although Black is up three pawns now, White's two
bishops decide the game in his favor. Black has a horrible
development and now exchanges off the only two pieces he has
developed.
8. 0-0! Nxc3
9. Nxc3 Bxc3?
10. Bxc3 0-0
Black undoubtedly thought he would be safe here, because after 11.
Qd4 Qf6 there is no mate, and Black is three pawns up. However,
White mates after
11. Qg4! g6
12. Qd4
and now the power of the bishops shows itself on the open
diagonals. The f-pawn is pinned, and otherwise there is no way to
prevent mate on g7.
++5. Open lines in the attack on the king
An easy way to create an attack is to first create a weakness.
Another easy way to create an attack is to open some lines.
However, when you create a weakness, wouldn't it be better to open
some attacking lines to the enemy king while you're at it? It
would, logically, double the strength of the attack, with
weaknesses and lines everywhere, all leading to the enemy king. The
following game masterfully shows all of these ideas in action, with
a lesson from the sixth World Champion, Mikhail Botvinnik.
Diagram #5:
White: King at g1, Queen at e2, Rook at d1, Bishops at b2 and
g2, Knight at e4, Pawns at a2, b3, e3, f2, g3, h2
Black: King at g8, Queen at a8, Rook at e8, Bishops at b7 and
f8, Knight at c6, Pawns at a7, b6, e6, f7, g7, h6
Botvinnik-Larsen, Palma de Mallorca 1967
Position after Black's 20th move
Here White played 21. Rd7, which logically penetrates into Black's
position on the seventh rank. He eventually went on to win a long,
hard endgame. However, he had very little time on his clock. With
enough time, everyone was sure that Botvinnik would find the best
move,
21. Nf6+!
This creates a weakness (on f6), opens a file (the g-file) and
opens a diagonal (the long, dark one). In addition, the seventh
rank is cleared for the rook's use. Considering that no price is
too high for the king, it's a worthwhile sacrifice!
21. ... gxf6
22. Qg4+ Kh7
23. Rd7!
White uses all types of open lines in his attack against the enemy
king.
23. ... Re7
Or 23. ... Be7 24. Be4+ Kh8 25. Rxe7, with mate to follow.
24. Be4+ f5
25. Bxf5+
Opening more lines for mate.
25. ... exf5
26. Qxf5+ Kg8
27. Qf6 Ne5
28. Bxe5 Rxe5
29. Qxf7+ Kh8
30. Qh7#.
This was an example of a strong attack, preceded by a line-opening
sacrifice that created a weakness in Black's king position. It
turned out to be enough to win.
Unfortunately, White did not find this incredible winning resource,
a winning combination. However, this does not mean that the idea
was wrong. The knight sacrifice on f6 is common. It opens lines,
specifically the a1-h8 diagonal and the g-file for White's use. It
also weakened the seventh rank for the rook to come in and
penetrate. Also, the long, light diagonal from b1 to h7 was
weakened, and e4 was cleared for the bishop to use that diagonal.
After the king was checked about a little, the rook came down and
used the all-too common idea of the seventh rank. The rook on the
seventh rank played a major role in the attack by delivering the
winning blow. In many cases, the rook on the seventh increase the
power of such an attack. Then the bishop was sacrificed to open
even more lines. Then, using the weak dark squares in Black's
position, White was able to mate.
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