Chess Strategy

Bellow are my quick analysis of the game Vladimir Kramnik - Krishnan Sasikiran, posted on Chessdom after the 4th round of the 2008 Chess Olympiad.

Vladimir Kramnik - Krishnan Sasikiran
Chess Olympiad 2008, Dresden
2008.11.16

1.Nf3 d5 2.d4 Nf6 3.c4 c6 4.Nc3 a6 5.e3 b5 6.b3 Bg4 7.Be2 Nbd7 8.h3 Bf5
8… Bh5 is played more often, but 9. g4 Bg6 transposes back to the game.

9.g4
GM Ivan Sokolov preferred 9.Bb2 as introduction to queenside expansion with c5 and b4…

9… Bg6 10.Ne5!?
Specialty of IM Iweta Rajlich, who played this move on three occasions.

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I used the opportunity of working on the official website of the European Club Cup to supply myself with a bunch of books from the local merchants. One of them was The Ruy Lopez: A Guide for Black by Norwegian authors Sverre Johnsen and Leif Johannessen.

In the extensive Preface, GM Leif gives a very instructive 12-step guide to adopting new openings. But before anything else, the necessary Step 0 is to review the Prior Knowledge of the opening, ie. basic theory, developing procedures, pawn structures, early middlegame ideas etc. Attached to Step 0 he gives a “then ground-breaking” 1912. game between Alekhine and Rubinstein.

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