SIMPSON'S

IN-THE-STRAND

SIMPSON'S

IN-THE-STRAND

CHESS

Caro can't

. Raymond Keene

IF THERE is one Black defence against the king pawn opening which represents a kind of rock of Gibraltar, standing against all White initiatives, it is the Caro-Kann. Great defensive geniuses, such as Nimzo- witsch, Capablanca, Petrosian and, in mod- em times, Karpov, have given it a special place in their repertoire. Even Kasparov has been known to employ it, though, famously, when he tried it in game six against Deep Blue, he mishandled it to such an extent that he went down in flames.

The main lines of the Caro-Kann com- mence after 1 e4 c6 2 d4 d5 3 Nc3. There is, though, a school of thought, led in the past by Mikhail Tal and more recently by Nigel Short, which insists that 3 e5 is the right response. At first, this might seem futile, since White quickly resolves the cen- tral tension, whilst allowing Black's queen's bishop into early play. Nevertheless, the advantages of the advance variation are that Black's king's knight is deprived of its best square, namely f6, while Black must also waste a move in order to attack White's central bastions with ... c5. A new book, The Caro-Kann Advance by Byron Jacobs, brings White's strategy up to date in a line where there is still plenty of per- sonal scope for uncharted creativity. The notes to the following game are loosely based on those in the book.

Ehlvest—Vyzmanavin: Novosibirsk 1995; Caro-Kann Defence.

1 e4 c6 2 d4 d5 3 e5 Bf5 4 N13 e6 5 Be2 c5 6 Be3 Nd7 7 0-0 Ne7 8 c4 dxc4 9 Na3 This is a good alternative to 9 Bxc4. White develops another piece and introduces ideas of invading on d6 after Nxc4. 9 ...Nd5 9 ...c3 can be met by the remarkable 10 Bg5!? cxb2 11 Nb5 Nxe5 12 dxe5

bxa 1Q 13 Qxal Qb8 14 Nd6+ when White has a strong attack but is the exchange and two pawns down. 10 Nxc4 h6 11 a4 This is perhaps a little slow and Ehlvest recommends instead 11 dxc5! NxcS 12 Nd4, when the threats to capture on f5 or enter on b5 and d6 give White a good game. It is very dangerous for Black to play 12 ...Bg6

13 Nb5 Nxe3 14 fxe3, when the open d- and f- files and active white knights create serious diffi- culties for him. 11 ...a6 12 Ra Rc8 13 Qb3 cxd4 14 Nxd4 Nc5 15 Qdl (Diagram) If Black could

develop his king's bishop and castle his king into safety, he would have a good game, since White's e-pawn and his queenside would then be a little weak. However, Ehlvest now plays very dynamically to prevent Black from co-ordinating his forces. 15 ...Bh7 16 Bh5! Qd7 16 ... Be7? runs into 17 Nd6+ Bxd6 18 exd6 Qxd6 19 Nxe6 Qxe6 20 BxcS with a continuing attack. 17 Q13 Rd8 A sample of White's possibilities in this position is provided by the variations after 17 ... Bd3, e.g. 18 Nxe6! Nxe6 (or 18 ... Qxe6 19 Bg4) 19 Bxf7+ Kd8 (if 19 ...Ke7 20 Nd6) 20 Nb6 Nxb6 21 Bxb6+ Ke7 22 RxcS Qxc8 23 Bh5 with a winning attack. It is noteworthy how frequently

the variations in this game underscore the possi- bility of incursions against Black's camp based on Nd6, the fruit of White's ninth move. 18 Qg3 Ne4 19 Qh3 Nxe3 19 ... Be7 is again impossible, this time because of 20 Nxe6. 20 fxe3 Ng5 21 Qg3 g6 22 Nb6! Hitherto White's knight had been observing the d6-square, but now White unexpectedly switches fronts to expose a hidden weakness on c8. 22 ...Qe7 23 Be2 Ne4 If 23 ... Bg7 24 Nc8 wins. 24 Qg4 g5 25 Nxe6! (Diagram) Position after 25 Nxe6!

25 ... h5 Black, faced with a devastating attack along open central files, calmly advances his a- pawn on the kingside to harry the white queen. However, there is a more specific reason for this advance, since 25 ...Qxe6 26 Qxe6+ fxe6 27 Bh5 + Ke7 28 Rf7+ Ke8 29 Rxh7 would be checkmate. 26 Qxe4! Ehlvest conducts his attack with consummate accuracy. 26 QxhS Qxe6 27 Bc4 looks overwhelming but 27 ...Bg6! hangs on for Black. 26 ...Bxe4 27 Nc7+ Qxc7 28 Rxc7 Although Black has succeeded in exchanging queens, White retains a huge initiative. 28 ... Rd2 29 1313 Bxf3 30 gxf3 Be7 31 Rxb7 Rxb2 This loses a piece, but Black's position was beyond hope anyway. 32 RN+ Bd8 33 Rdl 0-0 34 RdxdS Black resigns.

The Caro-Kann Advance by Byron Jacobs (f14.99), in the series of Chess Press Open- ing Guides, is published by Cadogan Books.