The other idea is to play 10.Bf4, provoking 10…Nc6 and then 11.Rd1. One of the possible ideas here is to play 10.Bd2, planning Ba5 or b2-b4. This defines White’s main plan – to prevent that break from happening. If Black gets to play …c7-c5, they will get a comfortable position. The only thing that still worries them is the backward c-pawn. Black’s most popular move is 7…a6, planning to meet 8.Qxc4 with 8…b5 and 9…Bb7.īlack has solved the problem of developing the light-squared bishop quite effectively. White plans to take the pawn by the queen. If Black hasn’t prepared this line, White can get great chances easily.īut let’s get back to the main move 7.Qc2: It is one of those moves that are extremely hard to find over the board. White opens up their strong bishop, and it becomes hard for Black to complete the development of the queenside. White’s most popular move here is 7.Qc2, but 7.Ne5 can also give you good results in practice: Catalan Opening: Black’s Classical Defense.Īnother popular way of defending for Black is to complete the development of the kingside and then take on c4. Still, the arising positions are complex, and White has plenty of interesting ideas. With the subtle bishop maneuver, Black made it hard for White to achieve the desired setup. Nevertheless, the bishop stands on d2 worse than on c1! If you remember White’s setup above, the knight goes from b1 to d2, and the bishop goes to b2. It seems like Black gave White a tempo for free and helped to develop their dark-squared bishop. But if White blocks with 5.Bd2, Black’s main reply is 5…Be7! If White goes 5.Nbd2, Black can grab the pawn on c4, hoping to get a favorable version of the positions we will discuss below. One of the most interesting ideas for them is to play 4…Bb4+. If you want to learn more ways to win with Catalan Opening please see this article on Dominating Weaknesses.īlack can also try to be trickier and change their setup a little. You can see an example of White’s play in the case of 9…Bb7 in the viewer below. Black made a mistake by playing 9…dxe4, but the move looks natural and, according to the database, this is what people do the most at the club level! Better options are 9…Bb7 or 9…dxc4. In this position, Black often goes for 8…b6 9.e4 dxe4?! when after 10.Nxe4 Nxe4 11.Qxe4, White gets a great position.įor Black, it is hard to free the b7-bishop with the …c6-c5 pawn break. To prepare the pawn push, White usually plays Qc2 and Nbd2. White can calmly fianchetto their dark-squared bishop too, but the most popular strategy is to break in the center with e2-e4 until Black is ready for that. Later Black can fianchetto their light-squared bishop and open up the center when everything is ready for that. One of the most popular Black’s strategies is to support the center with …c6, hoping to restrict White’s g2-bishop. Black builds a wall in the center to block White’s bishop. Let’s examine Black’s main tries against the Catalan Opening and see how White can deal with each of them. Black needs to neutralize this piece to be able to finish the development of the queenside and equalize the game. Often the evaluation of the arising positions depends on the strength of the light-squared bishop. Instead, they slowly build a strong position and exert long-term pressure on Black. White doesn’t aim for a quick assault in this opening. The opening can arise on the board via different move orders, one of the most common ones being 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.g3. Later he also successfully used it in the Tata Steel 2022.Īlmost every elite player has this opening in their repertoire the most notable experts are Vladimir Kramnik, Ding Liren, Anish Giri, Boris Gelfand, and Daniil Dubov. Magnus Carlsen made the Catalan his main weapon for the World Championship match against Ian Nepomniachtchi. This strategy puts Black under serious pressure and often leads to a risk-free advantage for White. White fianchettos the light-squared bishop and gains space on the queenside and the center with the pawns. The Catalan Opening has been one of the most fashionable systems in recent years.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |