Peter Svidler - Chessable Lifetime Repertoires: Peter Svidlers Grünfeld − Part 1

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1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6

{ The earliest mention of the Grnfeld Defense dates back to the 1860s, when an Indian player, Moheschunder Bannerjee, employed it in the games against John Cochrane. However, it wasnt until 1920 and the efforts of Ernst Grnfeld, that it came into prominence. Remarkably, the first time Grnfeld played that opening was in a game against the World Champion himself, Alexander Alekhine, in Vienna 1922 and he won that game! According to the classical principles of opening strategy, the concept of abandoning the fight for the center after 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 Whites two central pawns occupy the center, seemingly unopposed would be seen as plainly incorrect, making the GD an epitome of hypermodern chess. That simplistic understanding of central control has undergone a massive shift between then and modern-day, of course, and today no one is shocked to see Black attacking the large pawn center from the side, with c5 and Nc6, and then, perhaps, Bg4 or b6 and Bb7, aiming to increase the pressure further. The appreciation of the fact that Black will have an a+b vs. a pawn majority on the queenside in many endgames has also grown with time. }

3. Nc3

{ These days, the Grnfeld offers a wide variety of exciting dynamic structures on a spectrum from 3.f3, to 3.g3 and to all points in between. 3.f3 , where play will soon become a tactical slugfest: 3d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nb6 6.Nc3 Bg7 7.Be3 O-O 8.Qd2 , and White will castle queenside and attempt to go for a direct attack on the kingside with h4-h5. 3.g3 , where play is quite dry, in particular if White desires it to be: 3c6 4.Bg2 d5 , and in a lot of cases play will revolve around White trying to squeeze blood from stone in symmetrical middlegames. }

3 d5 4. cxd5

{ There are also gambits: 4.Bg5 Bg7!? 5.Bxf6 Bxf6 6.cxd5 is one of my favourite lines of all time. }

4 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7

{ The Grnfeld holds a wide range of complex strategic battles for all tastes. Ive played this opening for 30 years now, and I still find new and exciting ideas all the time. Enjoy the ride! }

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{ The Grnfeld has the reputation of being very sharp and concrete, with theory sometimes starting after move 15 and going even deeper than move 40, occasionally. Since the number of trainable lines is very generous, crossing the 1000 barrier, we implemented the Learn Important Only feature, known, to some of you perhaps, from the 5th Edition of Dvoretskys Endgame Manual or other courses on the Chessable platform that share the same concept. Learn Important Only: clearly distinguishes the lines that Grandmaster Peter Svidler himself deemed essential to study in depth. Currently, the default setting is Learn Everything, but the most critical variations are distinctly marked by the title in bold. We believe that this feature is very helpful since many of us have difficulties in sorting out which lines are most relevant and should be committed to memory or insisted on. We would recommend building up the knowledge by going through all the variations and using the bold titles as a reference and guidance throughout the study of this course. Best wishes for a safe, happy and fulfilling journey through one of the most complex and energetic modern openings! }

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[Black Early Deviations 3.f3]

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1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. f3

{ This is a very central line in the @@StartBracket@@Anti?@@EndBracket@@Grnfeld these days. White is trying to aggressively fight for the center, and depending on how Black replies, play can become incredibly concrete and sharp. Black has the option of abandoning the Grnfeld and switching to Kings Indian with 3Bg7 4.e4 d6 , or Benoni-type play with 3c5 but that would be off-brand for me and this course. Were playing 3d5 come hell or high water. The line probably started life as an Anti-Grnfeld since Grnfeld proper starts from @@StartFEN@@rnbqkb1r/pppppp1p/5np1/8/2PP4/8/PP2PPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 3@@EndFEN@@ 3.Nc3 d5 , and it was seen as a way not to let us play our favorite opening. However, it has become one of the absolute main lines of the opening, and everyone just calls it the 3.f3 Grnfeld these days. }

3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4

{ One of the points of 3.f3 is that with the white knight still on b1, we have to retreat the knight from d5, instead of trading. }

5 Nb6 6. Nc3 Bg7 7. Be3 O-O 8. Qd2

{ To some degree, the only move White makes here. By playing 3.f3, White players make the normal development somewhat tricky, pretty much locking themselves into an ultra-aggressive plan involving castling queenside and launching the h-pawn up the board. }

8 e5

{ This is a switch from 8Nc6 I recommended back when I did the chess24 course. Ive always been wary of entering this line, thinking it was a little bit too memory-heavy. But over the years, the Nc6 lines became, if anything, even more bloated with long forcing lines, and for this course, I decided to finally bite the bullet and delve into 8e5. Our plan here is quite clear were driving the pawn forward to d5, immediately undermining it with c6, and since White is still going to castle queenside, we will be using the open c-file to try to generate counterplay against Whites king. }

9. d5 c6 10. h4

{ Its important for White to begin with this as aftercastling queenside, we have more options. }

10 cxd5 11. exd5 N8d7

{ With White keeping the king on e1 for now, our Nb8 is much more needed on f6, where it will bolster the kingside, and also support the e5-e4 play which becomes crucial pretty soon. }

12. h5

{ It definitely makes sense for White to open the h-file before castling. }

12 Nf6 13. hxg6 fxg6 14. O-O-O { White needs to finish development first. }

14 Bd7 15. Kb1 Rc8

{ This is pretty much where the game starts these days in the 8e5 line, but it does explode into branches from here. Blacks plan stays consistent though we will be playing e5-e4 as soon as possible, activating the Bg7, and aim to generate as much piece play as possible. Na4 is also a very typical resource, distracting White from kingside plans, and introducing Qa5. Once the long diagonal has opened up a bit, we should always be on the lookout for opportunities to sacrifice the exchange on c3, blowing up Whites queenside and generating direct threats against the white king, particularly in the 16.d6 e4 17.fxe4 Ng4 lines, where we can follow it up with Na4, attacking the c3-pawn after White recaptures the rook. White players, in their turn, should be trying to combine making progress on the kingside Bh6 is always a useful move, and getting the Ng1 developed while also keeping an eye on our play in the center and on the queenside is very crucial. Pushing d5-d6 often affords White additional options because the opened a2-g8 diagonal, and access to the d5-square, could be very useful later in the game. However, no matter how much I try to be descriptive about whats in front of us, the fact remains this is probably the sharpest, and the most memorization-heavy, line among the topical responses you can expect to the Grnfeld today, and nothing will replace knowing exactly what to do against Whites best moves here. With that, I direct you to thecorresponding chapters in the full course, and may the force be with you. }

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[Black Fianchetto Variation 3.Nf3 Bg7 4.g3 #1]

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1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. g3