The Safest Grünfeld Reloaded a Complete Repertoire for Black

The Safest Grünfeld Reloaded A Complete Repertoire for Black

Alexander Delchev

Chess Stars www.chess-stars.com The Safest Grünfeld Reloaded

Translation and editing by Semko Semkov Cover design by Kalojan Nachev

Printed in Bulgaria ISBN: 978-619-7188-25-7 Contents

Foreword 5 Introduction 9 Chapter 1 The Fianchetto System 11 Chapter 2 The Bf4 System 57 Chapter 3 The Bg5 System 99 Chapter 4 The e3 System 137 Chapter 5 The Russian System 5.Qb3 157 Chapter 6 Rare Lines. Deviations on move 5 167 Chapter 7 Rare Lines. Deviations on move 7 191 Chapter 8 The Exchange System 7.Be3 209 Chapter 9 The Exchange System 7.Nf3 225 Chapter 10 The Exchange System 7.Bc4 257 Chapter 11 SOS Systems 281 Chapter 12 The Sämish Anti-Grünfeld – 3.f3 291 Chapter 13 The English Anti-Grünfeld 313 Chapter 14 The Queen’s Pawn Anti-Grünfeld 335 Index of Variations 347 Chapter 1 Bibliography

Books An Expert’s Guide to the 7.Bc4 Gruenfeld, K.Sakaev, Chess Stars 2006 The Grünfeld Defence, M.Botvinnik and Y. Estrin, Fizcultura i sport 1979 (in Russian) 1.d4 Volume Two, B.Avrukh, Quality Chess 2010 The English Opening, volume 2, M. Marin, Quality Chess 2010 Playing 1.d4 - The Indian Defences, Lars Schandorff, Quality Chess 2012 The Grünfeld Defence, B.Avrukh, Quality Chess 2011 Chess Developments: The Grünfeld, David Vigorito, Everyman Chess 2013 Fighting the London System, Kiril Georgiev, Chess Stars 2017 The Ultimate Anti-Grünfeld, Dmitry Svetushkin, Chess Stars 2014 Play the Trompowsky Attack, Dmitry Kryakvin, Chess Stars 2018 The Modern English, vol.2, Kiril Georgiev and Semko Semkov, Chess Stars 2019

Electronic/Periodicals Chess Informant, Sahovsky Informator New in Chess Yearbook, Interchess Chess Today

Internet resources The Week In Chess ChessPublishing.com

4 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.g3 Bg7 4.Bg2 d5 Foreword

What’s new? A little background This book is a completely new I have been studying the Grün- edition of the original The Safest feld for years. I often used it in deci- Grünfeld of 2011. I rechecked all sive games as Black, but I also have the lines and changed my recom- extensive practice as White. mendations according to latest de- I always aim to surprise the velopments of theory and my new opponent in the opening, so af- understanding. ter the appearance of the book in Especially the anti-Grünfeld 2011 I started to choose the Grün- chapters are basically new. In feld mostly in rapid chess, to avoid my opinion top players have long home preparation. However, many lost hope to find advantage in the of my students went on developing main lines and try early deviations. new ideas. Thus I have been con- Anand chose 3.f3 against Gelfand stantly in touch with current theo- and 5.Bd2 against Carlsen. So I ry, and in 2019 I decided to test my devoted special attention to the new recommendations in classical Sämish approach with two different chess. propositions. 3...Nc6 is less studied and probably more rewarding from I am convinced that learning a practical standpoint, while 3...d5 an opening should not begin with is in perfect theoretical shape, but memorization of variations. We requires more memorization. should firstly understand what our Every too often White players positional aims are, what to pursue, try to avoid the Grünfeld by re- and what to avoid. Then we should fraining from d4 or c4. I added an examine the typical pawn struc- additional chapter on the very topi- tures and plans that ensue from cal lately Trompowsky and Barry/ them. Only then should we choose Jobava attack. a system which best fits in with The 7.Bc4 system in the Ex- our style of play. You will hardly re- change Variation, and the Russian member many details, but general System have also underwent a ma- understanding will save you from jor reconstruction. big trouble. Here are some examples from In general, I aimed to propose a the practice of my students. more dynamic approach than in the We had studied the typical ideas first edition, despite the book title. and a few classical examples, so

5 Foreword when Kadric got into the position Rc8ƒ, instead of the timid 15...Rc8. of the following diagram, he did not Later he got the upper hand none- get crushed, despite the fact that he theless. did not know the best move order: When we studied the ideas of Drenchev-Kadric the g3-system, I showed the game Plovdiv 2011 Benko-Smyslov, Budapest 1949 XIIIIIIIIY (given in Chapter 1), which intro- 9r+-wq-trk+0 duced for the first time the attack 9zppzp-zppvlp0 on the queenside by the a-pawn. 9-+n+-snp+0 During the following game, 9+-+P+-+-0 Kadric recalled it and, inspired by 9-+Q+P+l+0 Smyslov’s example, followed up by: 9+-sN-+N+-0 9PzP-+LzPPzP0 G.Szabo-Kadric 9tR-vL-mK-+R0 Plovdiv 2011 xiiiiiiiiy XIIIIIIIIY 9...Bxf3?! 9r+lwqr+k+0 Correct is 9...Na5! 10.Qa4 Bxf3. 9+pzp-zppvlp0 10.gxf3 Na5 11.Qd3! c5! 12.Be3 9-snn+-+p+0 Nd7 13.f4 a6 14.e5 b5 15.Qd2 9zp-+-+-+-0 XIIIIIIIIY 9-+-zP-+-+0 9r+-wq-trk+0 9+PsN-zPNzP-0 9+-+nzppvlp0 9P+-+-zPLzP0 9p+-+-+p+0 9tR-vLQtR-mK-0 9snpzpPzP-+-0 xiiiiiiiiy 9-+-+-zP-+0 11...a4!? 9+-sN-vL-+-0 Consistent, though probably not 9PzP-wQLzP-zP0 best (11...e5!=). 9tR-+-mK-+R0 12.Nxa4 Nxa4 13.bxa4 e5! 14.Bb2 xiiiiiiiiy exd4 15.Bxd4 Nxd4 16.Nxd4 Bxd4 White is 150 Elo points higher 17.Qxd4 Qxd4 18.exd4, and Black rated (2521) than his opponent and easily drew against the 185 Elo much more experienced, but he points favourite. was forced to think concretely in I would also like to call your at- an unusual position. Black remem- tention to a thematic manoeuvre bered that I advocated ...a6 and in the Grünfeld – ...Nc6-a5-b7-d6, ...b5 in the Grünfeld and success- blocking the advanced d5-pawn. fully gained space on the queenside. I first delved into this idea dur- Now he could have applied another ing my work with Ivan Saric, a typical method – a pawn sacrifice World and European champion – to seize the initiative: 15...f6 16.e6 under 18, now a leading Croatian Nb6 17.Bxc5 Nbc4 18.Qc1 f5 19.0‑0 grandmaster. One of my students 6 Foreword liked it so much that he strived to My advice is: study different reach a similar pawn structure in strategic ideas before drawing your every game, thinking that Black conclusions. Play according to the was even better. I spent some effort position – do not overestimate your to convince him that the evaluation chances. of such positions depended on the placement of the other pieces. Here The biggest challenge before the is an example from my own prac- author of an opening book is how tice: to solve the problem of the speed with which information becomes Naumkin-Delchev outdated and obsolete. I tried to Cappelle la Grande 2011 XIIIIIIIIY offer at least two alternatives in 9r+-+-trk+0 every major system. That should 9zppwq-+pvlp0 bring about flexibility in our reper- 9-+-sn-+p+0 toire, and allow a variable approach 9zP-zpPzp-+-0 to opponents according to their 9-+P+P+-+0 strength or playing style. With our 9+Q+-+L+-0 backup lines you should be able to 9-+-vL-zPPzP0 avoid long forced variations and 9+-tR-+RmK-0 surprise your opponents. xiiiiiiiiy During the game I indulged in The main dish of the book are meditation of a philosophical cha the “Step by Step” sections. How- racter – if White did not have any ever, the “Main Ideas” are also very problems even in this perfect ex- important as they often comple- ample of a blockade, I thought, ment the “Step by Step” sections. I then perhaps Black did not stand also tried to reduce the amount of so well in other similar positions “Step by Step” theory by examining either. He lacks an active plan. some backup lines in heavily anno- The natural-looking move ...f7-f5 tated games, given in the “Complete would only weaken the e5-pawn. Games”. That should facilitate your After Re1, Bc3, Black cannot make navigation between the numerous any progress since his setup is ba- branches of our repertoire. sically passive and defensive. His left flank is cramped. That is why I have arranged the material I recommend to resort to this plan according to the main pawn struc- mostly after having gained space tures in the Grünfeld. on the queenside first with ...b5. In this new edition of the book, I even Thus Chapters 1-4 consider sys- avoided such lines in favour of the tems where White does not hurry more dynamic pawn structure aris- to occupy the centre and our g7-bi ing after ...e6xd5. shop is restrained by the d4-pawn:

7 Foreword XIIIIIIIIY 9-+-+-+k+0 Chapters 7-10 are devoted to the 9zppzp-zpp+p0 Exchange System. This has been 9-+-+-+p+0 White’s most popular weapon. 9+-+-+-+-0 XIIIIIIIIY 9-+-zP-+-+0 9-+-+-+k+0 9+-+-zP-+-0 9zppzp-zpp+p0 9PzP-+-zPPzP0 9-+-+-+p+0 9+-+-+-mK-0 9+-+-+-+-0 xiiiiiiiiy 9-+-zPP+-+0 Then in Chapters 5-6 I examine 9+-zP-+-+-0 the more aggressive pawn forma- 9P+-+-zPPzP0 tion: 9+-+-+-mK-0 XIIIIIIIIY xiiiiiiiiy 9-+-+-+k+0 Chapter 11 calls your attention 9zppzp-zpp+p0 to several offbeat systems which 9-+-+-+p+0 might surprise you in OTB games. 9+-+-+-+-0 The last part deals with some 9-+-zPP+-+0 Anti-Grünfeld approaches. 9+-+-+-+-0 9PzP-+-zPPzP0 The material in this book is up to 9+-+-+-mK-0 date to the end of July, 2019. xiiiiiiiiy A.Delchev August 2019

8 Index of Variations Index of Variations

Chapter 1. The Fianchetto System 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.g3 Bg7 3...c6 4.Bg2 d5 23 5.Nf3 (5.Qa4 23; 5.e3 23) Bg7 6.b3 24 (6.cxd5 25; 6.Qb3 25; 6.Nbd2 26) 4.Bg2 d5 5.Nf3 27 5...dxc4 6.Na3 c3 7.bxc3 c5 8.0-0 0-0 9.Re1 28 9.e3 29 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.e4 (6.Nc3 31) 6...Nb6 7.Ne2 31 6.Nf3 Nb6 7.Nc3 Nc6 8.e3 0-0 9.0-0 Re8 36 10.d5 39 10.Re1 a5 11.Qc2 42 11.Qe2 44 11.h3 45

Chapter 2. The Bf4 System 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Bf4 Bg7 5.Rc1 66 5.Nf3 0-0 6.e3 68 6...c5 7.dxc5 Ne4 69 7...Qa5 69 6.Rc1 c5 75 6...dxc4 75 5.e3 c5 (5...0-0 93) 6.dxc5 Qa5 7.Qb3 78 7.Qa4+ 78 7.Nf3 81 7.Rc1 82

347 Index of Variations

Chapter 3. Systems with Bg5 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Bg5 Ne4 111 5.Bh4 (5.h4!? 287; 5.Qc1 287; 5.cxd5 111; 5.Bf4 111; 5.Nxe4 111) 5...Nxc3 6.bxc3 dxc4 7.e3 (7.e4 112) 7...Be6 8.Be2 113 8.Qb1 113 8.Rb1 114 8.Nf3 115 9.Be2 Nb6 10.0-0 Bg7 11.a4 116 11.e4 118 4...Bg7 5.Bxf6 (5.Nf3 119; 5.e3 c5 119) 5...Bxf6 6.cxd5 c6 7.dxc6 120 7.e3 120 7.e4 121 7.Rc1 122 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Bg5 Ne4 6.Bf4 123 6.cxd5 Nxg5 7.Nxg5 0-0 123 (7...c6 123) 6.Bh4 126

Chapter 4. The e3 System 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.e3 Bg7 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.Nxd5 142 (6.Bc4 142) 5.Qb3 146 5.Nf3 0-0 6.Bd2 153 6.b4 148 6.Be2 c5 7.dxc5 150 7.0-0 151

Chapter 5. The Russian System 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Nf3 (4.Qa4+ 160; 4.Qb3 160) 4...Bg7 5.Qb3 dxc4 6.Qxc4 0-0 (6...Be6 161) 7.e4 (7.Bf4 161) 7...a6 162 7...Nc6 164

348 Index of Variations

Chapter 6. Rare Lines. Deviations on move 5 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.Bd2 (4.Nf3 Bg7 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.Bd2 174) 5...Nb6 (5...Bg7 175) 6.Nf3 176 6.Bg5 178 6.Bf4 179 6.e3 180 5.Na4 181 5.Qb3 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Ba3 182 7.Nf3 183 5.Bg5 184

Chapter 7. Rare Lines. Deviations on move 7 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Bb5+ 195 7.Qa4+ Nd7 8.Nf3 0-0 198 9.Be3 198 9.Qa3 199 9.Bg5 200 9.Be2 201 7.Ba3 203 7.Bg5 204

Chapter 8. The Exchange System 7.Be3 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Be3 7...c5 8.Qd2 213 (8.Nf3 213; 8.Rb1 213) 8.Rc1 215

Chapter 9. The Exchange System 7.Nf3 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Nf3 c5 8.Bb5+ Bd7 236 (8...Nc6 236) 8.Be2 238 8.h3 239 8.Be3 Bg4 240 (8...Qa5 240) 8.Rb1 244

349 Index of Variations

Chapter 10. The Exchange System 7.Bc4 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Bc4 7...0-0 8.Ne2 c5 9.Be3 Nc6 10.0-0 (10.Rc1 261) 10...e6 (10...Qc7 11.Rc1 e6 262; ; 10...Qc7 11...Rc1 Rd8 263; 10...b6 262; 10...Bg4 277; 10...Na5 271) 11.dxc5 265 (11.Rb1 265; 11.Qc1 265) 11.Rc1 266 11.Qd2 267

Chapter 11. SOS Systems 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.g4?! 282 4.h4?! 283 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.h4!? 284 5...c6 284 5...dxc4!? 286 4.Bg5 Ne4 5.Qc1?! 287 5.h4!? 287 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.Bg7 288

Chapter 12. The Sämish Anti-Grünfeld – 3.f3 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.f3 3...d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nb6 6.Nc3 Bg7 7.Be3 0-0 8.Qd2 e5 9.d5 c6 10.h4 295 10.Rd1 297 3...Nc6 301 4.d5 301 4.Nc3 307 4.e4 308

Chapter 13. The English Anti-Grünfeld 1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 d5 3.cxd5 Nxd5 4.g3 c5 317 (4...g6 317) 4.Nf3 c5 (4...g6 327) 5.e4 322 (5...e3 322) 2.Nf3 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 326 (4.Qa4+ 326) 4...Nxd5 5.h4 327 (5.Qa4+ 328; 5.e4 328)

350 Index of Variations

Chapter 14. The Queen’s Pawn Anti-Grünfeld 1.d4 Nf6 2.Bg5 c5 3.Bxf6 339 (3.d5 d6 339) 2.Nf3 g6 3.Nc3 342 (3.Bf4 342) 2.Bf4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.e3 345 (4.Qd2 345)

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