The Nadanian Variation (sometimes called the Nadanian Attack) of the Grünfeld Defence is a chess opening characterised by the moves:
(Redirected from Grünfeld Defense, Nadanian Variation)
The Nadanian Variation is classified in the Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings with the code D85.[1]
History[edit]
The variation is named after the ArmenianInternational MasterAshot Nadanian, who first employed it in 1996. His analysis was published in the 67th volume of Chess Informant.
The birth of the variation has caused major ripples in the chess world. One of the world's most authoritative chess editions New in Chess Yearbook printed on the front cover of the 45th volume the following: 'A Revolution in the Gruenfeld: 5.Na4!?!'.[2] Grandmaster Jonathan Rowson wrote in his book Understanding the Grünfeld that Nadanian 'should be congratulated for seeing what everyone has seen, and thinking what nobody had thought'.[3]
The famous chess theoretician Grandmaster Igor Zaitsev wrote in the Russian chess magazine 64:
Rowson Understanding The Grunfeld Pdf
The continuation 5.Na4 of Armenian chess player Nadanian shakes by the extraordinariness. Yes, extraordinariness, because it is unusual among the unusual. A voluntary removal of the knight from the centre, yet that has gone on advantage? Therefore, the value of such centrifugal maneuver is beyond a simple theoretical novelty, in a certain measure it is a challenge to chess foundations, an attempt to grope new properties in two-dimensional chess space.[4]
Theory[edit]
White's fifth move is overprotecting the key c5-square in the Grünfeld Defence, thus aspires to prevent an attack on the pawncentre by c7âc5. The extravagancy of White's idea is that they break at once two opening principles: avoid moving the same piece twice, and avoid placing a knight on the edge of the board. However, according to Nadanian,[4] the position after the fifth move is an exception to the rules. By placing the knight on а4, White takes under control the critical square c5, and by next move 6.e4 will return a tempo back, as Black too will play an already developed piece (knight on d5).
White should aspire to the following arrangement: e4, Be3, Be2, Nf3, 0-0, Rc1, Nc5. Black in turn should not allow this scheme for what it is necessary for them to put pressure on the d4 pawn.[5]
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The main line continues 5..Bg7 6.e4 Nb6 (Avrukh's 6..Nb4 is also interesting) 7.Be3 0-0 8.Nf3 Bg4 (instead 8..Nxa4 9.Qxa4 c5 10.Rd1 Qb6 11.Rd2 was good for White in KorchnoiâSutovsky, Dresden 1998) 9.Be2 Nc6 10.d5 Ne5 11.Nxe5 Bxe2 12.Qxe2 Nxa4 with approximately equal chances.
Another possible line is 5..e5 6.dxe5 Nc6 (suggested by Igor Zaitsev and first played by Mikhalchishin), which is according to Lubomir Kavalek 'perhaps the only way to punish the white knight's venture to the edge of the board'.[6] After 7.a3 (Nadanian's idea) 7..Bf5 8.Nf3 Qd7 9.e3 0-0-0 10.Be2 (Eingorn gives 10.Bb5 Qe6) 10..Qe7 11.Qb3 Bg7 according to Yelena Dembo Black has a powerful initiative (KantslerâAvrukh, Israel 1999).[7]
Use[edit]
The variation's most devoted practitioner has been its eponym, Ashot Nadanian. Various famous players such as Viktor Korchnoi, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Bu Xiangzhi, Alexander Riazantsev, Igor Lysyj, Walter Browne, Smbat Lputian, Timur Gareyev, Jonathan Rowson, Andrei Kharlov, Bogdan LaliÄ have employed it at some time or another, though few have made it their main line against the Grünfeld Defence.[8]
Example games[edit]
Modified versions[edit]
There are also modified versions of Nadanian's idea.
See also[edit]References[edit]
Further reading[edit]
External links[edit]
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Grünfeld_Defence,_Nadanian_Variation&oldid=836006554'
The Grünfeld Defence (ECO codes D70âD99) is a chess opening characterised by the moves:
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Black offers White the possibility of cxd5, when after ..Nxd5 White further gets the opportunity to kick the black knight around with e4, leading to an imposing central pawn duo for White. If White does not take the d5-pawn, Black may eventually play ..dxc4, when a White response of e4 again leads to the same pawn structure. In classical opening theory this imposing pawn centre was held to give White a large advantage, but the hypermodern school, which was coming to the fore in the 1920s, held that a large pawn centre could be a liability rather than an asset. The Grünfeld is therefore a key hypermodern opening, showing in stark terms how a large pawn centre can either be a powerful battering ram or a target for attack.
History[edit]
The first instance of this opening is in an 1855 game by Moheschunder Bannerjee, an Indian player who had transitioned from Indian chess rules, playing Black against John Cochrane in Calcutta, in May 1855:
and White mates in three (19.Nh6+ double check Kh8 20.Qg8+ Rxg8 21.Nf7#).[1][2] Cochrane published a book reporting his games with Moheshchunder and other Indians in 1864.
It gained popularity after Ernst Grünfeld introduced it into international play at Vienna 1922, where, in his first game with the defense, he defeated future world champion Alexander Alekhine.[3] Grünfeld usually employed a very classical style. The defence was later adopted by a number of prominent players, including Vasily Smyslov, Viktor Korchnoi, Leonid Stein, and Bobby Fischer. Garry Kasparov often used the defence, including in his World Championship matches against Anatoly Karpov in 1986, 1987 and 1990, and Vladimir Kramnik in 2000. Currently active notable players who employ the opening include Loek van Wely, Peter Svidler, Peter Leko, Viswanathan Anand, Luke McShane and Gata Kamsky.[4] Anand employed it twice in the World Chess Championship 2010. In the World Chess Championship 2012 between Anand and Boris Gelfand, each player used the Grünfeld once with both games ending in draws. Anand faced the Grünfeld against Magnus Carlsen during the first game of the World Chess Championship 2014 and drew in a Rook and Queen ending.
The Game of the Century between Donald Byrne and 13-year-old Bobby Fischer on October 17, 1956, featured this opening, although arriving in the Grünfeld via a transposition of moves (using 1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.d4 0-0 5.Bf4 d5).
Exchange Variation: 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 [edit]
The main line of the Grünfeld, the Exchange Variation (ECO codes D85âD89), is defined by the continuation 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4. Now White has an imposing looking centre â and the main continuation 5.. Nxc3 6. bxc3 strengthens it still further. Black generally attacks White's centre with ..c5 and ..Bg7, often followed by moves such as ..Qa5, ..cxd4, ..Bg4, and ..Nc6. White often uses his big centre to launch an attack against Black's king. One subvariation, frequently played by Karpov, including four games of his 1987 world championship match against Kasparov in Seville, Spain, is the Seville Variation, after 6..Bg7 7.Bc4 c5 8.Ne2 Nc6 9.Be3 0-0 10.0-0 Bg4 11.f3 Na5 12.Bxf7+, long thought a poor move by theory, as the resultant light-square weakness had been believed to give Black more than enough compensation for the pawn.
White can develop his pieces in a number of ways in the Exchange Variation. For decades, theory held that the correct method of development was with Bc4 and Ne2, often followed by 0-0 and f4âf5, playing for a central breakthrough or kingside attack. It was generally thought that an early Nf3 was weak in the Exchange Variation because it allowed Black too much pressure on the centre with ..Bg4. In the late 1970s, however, Karpov, Kasparov and others found different methods to play the Exchange Variation with White, often involving an early Rb1 to remove the rook from the sensitive a1âh8 diagonal, as well as attempting to hinder the development of Black's queenside. Another, relatively recently developed system involves quickly playing Be3, Qd2, and Rc1 or Rd1 to fortify White's centre, remove White's rook from the diagonal, and possibly enable an early d5 push by White.
Vladimir Kramnik and Boris Gelfand are the leading practitioners as White, and ĽubomÃr FtáÄnik has had many fine results with the black pieces.[4]
Russian System: 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Qb3 [edit]
In bringing more pressure to bear against Black's central outpost on d5, White practically forces ..dxc4, thus gaining a central preponderance; however, in return, his queen will often be exposed as Black's queenside play unfolds in the middlegame. After 5.. dxc4 6. Qxc4 0-0 7. e4, Black has several primary options:
Hungarian Variation: 7..a6 [edit]
The Hungarian Variation, 7..a6, has been championed by Peter Leko.
Smyslov Variation: 7..Bg4 8.Be3 Nfd7 [edit]
7..Bg4 8.Be3 Nfd7 was a topical line from the 1950s through the mid-1970s.
Prins Variation: 7..Na6 [edit]
7..Na6 (Lodewijk Prins') idea, which Kasparov favoured in several of his World Championship matches against Karpov.[5]
7..Nc6[edit]
This is recommended as the mainline by several recent Grünfeld texts.
Other lines[edit]
7..c6, 7..b6
Taimanov's Variation with 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Bg5 [edit]
In this line, favoured by Yasser Seirawan, after the nearly universal 5..Ne4, White plays 6.Bh4 or 6.cxd5, with Black then opting for either 6..Nxc3 7.bxc3 Qxd5 or 6..Nxg5 7.Nxg5 e6. In the latter case, 7..c6 is sometimes tried. 6.Nxd5? grabbing the pawn loses a piece after 6..Nxg5 7.Nxg5 e6. After 6.cxd5 Nxg5 7.Nxg5 e6, White has 8.Qd2 exd5 9.Qe3+, with attacking chances (though the interpolation 8..h6 9.Nf3 exd5 is a significant alternative), or the more usual 8.Nf3 exd5 after which play generally proceeds on lines analogous to the Queen's Gambit Declined, Exchange Variation, with a queenside minority attack by White (b2âb4âb5xc6), as Black aims for his traditional kingside play with ..f7âf5âf4 and, in this case, ..g6âg5.
Lines with 4.Bf4 and the Grünfeld Gambit [edit]
For players who do not wish to take on the complexities of the Exchange Variation, the move 4. Bf4 is generally considered a safer continuation for White.[6] White opts for the initiative on the queenside with a smaller pawn centre. In the main line (D82), play proceeds with 4..Bg7 5.e3 c5 6.dxc5 Qa5, with White's choices at his seventh move being cxd5, Qb3, Qa4, or Rc1. Despite its reputation, in statistical databases this variation shows only a slightly higher percentage of White wins and draws, as opposed to the Exchange variation.[7][8] The variation is not often met in top-flight play today, its usage having declined significantly since its heyday in the 1930s.[citation needed]
In this variation, play may also continue 4.Bf4 Bg7 5.e3 0-0, which is known as the Grünfeld Gambit (ECO code D83). White can accept the gambit by playing 6.cxd5 Nxd5 7.Nxd5 Qxd5 8.Bxc7, or decline it with 6.Qb3 or 6.Rc1, to which Black responds with 6..c5.
Neo-Grünfeld Defence[edit]
Systems in which White delays the development of his queen's knight to c3 are known as the Neo-Grünfeld Defence (ECO code D70âD79); typical move orders are 1.d4 Nf6 2.g3 g6 3.c4 d5 or, more commonly, 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 d5 (the latter is known as the Kemeri Variation, shown in the diagram).
Illustrative game[edit]
Smyslov vs. Fischer, Herceg Novi Blitz Tournament, 1970:
1.c4 g6 2.g3 Bg7 3.Bg2 Nf6 4.Nf3 0-0 5.0-0 c6 6.d4 d5 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.Nc3 Ne4 9.Qb3 Nc6 10.Be3 Na5 11.Qd1 Nxc3 12.bxc3 b6 13.Ne5 Ba6 14.Re1 Rc8 15.Bd2 e6 16.e4 Bb7 17.exd5 Bxd5 18.Bxd5 Qxd5 19.Qe2 Rfd8 20.Ng4 Nc4 21.Bh6 f5 22.Bxg7 Kxg7 23.Ne3 Nxe3 24.Qxe3 Rc6 25.Rac1 Rdc8 26.c4 Rxc4 27.Rxc4 Rxc4 28.Qxe6 Qxe6 29.Rxe6 Kf7 30.Re3 Rxd4 31.Ra3 a5 32.Rc3 Ke6 33.Kg2 Kd6 34.h4 Ra4 35.Rc2 b5 36.Kf3 b4 37.Ke3 Kd5 38.f3 Ra3+ 39.Kf4 a4 40.g4 fxg4 41.fxg4 b3 42.axb3 axb3 43.Rc7 Ra4+ 44.Kg5 Rb4 45.Rc1 Kd4 46.Kh6 Rb7 0â1[9] Other variations[edit]
Apart from the above, among the more popular continuations are:
See also[edit]References[edit]
Further reading[edit]
External links[edit]
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Grünfeld_Defence&oldid=891634945'
Posted by5 years ago
Archived
This is a place to discuss themes and ideas in the opening, your personal/other notable successes, and to recommend lines that work well but may not be mainline theory. Posting links to other resources would also be appreciated! :)
VOTE for next week's featured opening, if I've missed one that you would like, let me know in the comments!
The Grünfeld Defence
1.d4 Nf6
2.c4 g6
3.Nc3 d5
The opening relies on one of the main principles of the hypermodern school, which was coming to the fore in the 1920sâthat a large pawn centre could be a liability rather than an asset.
The first instance of this opening is in an 1855 game by Moheschunder Bannerjee, an Indian player who had transitioned from Indian chess rules, playing Black against John Cochrane in Calcutta, in May 1855:
1.d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. e3 Bg7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. Be2 Nxc3 8. bxc3 c5 9. O-O cxd4 10. cxd4 Nc6 11. Bb2 Bg4 12. Rc1 Rc8 13. Ba3 Qa5 14. Qb3 Rfe8 15. Rc5 Qb6 16. Rb5 Qd8 17. Ng5 Bxe2 18. Nxf7 Na5 and White mates in three 19.Nh6+ double check Kh8 20.Qg8+ Rxg8 21.Nf7# 1-0.
(Link to game, also displayed later in post)
It gained popularity after Ernst Grünfeld introduced it into international play at Vienna 1922, where, in his first game with the defense, he defeated future world champion Alexander Alekhine. Grünfeld usually employed a very classical style. The defence was later adopted by a number of prominent players, including Vasily Smyslov, Viktor Korchnoi, Leonid Stein, and Bobby Fischer. Garry Kasparov often used the defence, including in his World Championship matches against Anatoly Karpov in 1986, 1987 and 1990, and Vladimir Kramnik in 2000. Currently active notable players who employ the opening include Loek van Wely, Peter Svidler, Peter Leko, Viswanathan Anand, Luke McShane and Gata Kamsky. Anand employed it twice in the World Chess Championship 2010. In the World Chess Championship 2012 between Anand and Boris Gelfand, each player used the Grünfeld once with both games ending in draws.
The Game of the Century between Donald Byrne and 13-year old Bobby Fischer on October 17, 1956, featured this opening, although arriving in the Grünfeld via a transposition of moves (using 1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.d4 0-0 5.Bf4 d5). (Wikipedia)
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Popular Lines
Notable Games
[pgn]
[Event 'Unknown'] [Site 'Unknown'] [Date '1855.??.??'] [EventDate '?'] [Round '?'] [Result '1-0'] [White 'John Cochrane'] [Black 'Bonnerjee Mohishunder'] [ECO 'D94'] [WhiteElo '?'] [BlackElo '?'] [PlyCount '41']
[Event 'Third Rosenwald Trophy'] [Site 'New York USA'] [Date '1956.10.17'] [EventDate '1956.10.07'] [Round '8'] [Result '0-1'] [White 'Donald Byrne'] [Black 'Robert James Fischer'] [ECO 'D92'] [WhiteElo '?'] [BlackElo '?'] [PlyCount '82']
[Event 'The Match - Braingames World Chess Cham'] [Site 'London'] [Date '2000.10.10'] [EventDate '2000.10.08'] [Round '2'] [Result '1-0'] [White 'Vladimir Kramnik'] [Black 'Garry Kasparov'] [ECO 'D85'] [WhiteElo '2770'] [BlackElo '2849'] [PlyCount '79']
[Event 'Tilburg Fontys'] [Site 'Tilburg NED'] [Date '1997.09.29'] [EventDate '1997.09.27'] [Round '3'] [Result '0-1'] [White 'Tal Shaked'] [Black 'Garry Kasparov'] [ECO 'D85'] [WhiteElo '?'] [BlackElo '?'] [PlyCount '40']
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Be3 c5 8.Qd2 Qa5 9.Rb1 b6 10.Bb5+ Bd7 11.Be2 Bc6 12.Bd3 Nd7 13.Ne2 Rd8 14.f3 O-O 15.h4 h5 16.Bg5 Rfe8 17.Rc1 Bb7 18.d5 Ne5 19.Bb1 Nc4 20.Qf4 Be5 0-1
[/pgn]
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