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ChessEven the expert can find perplexing the analysis of the “simplest” position. He has in his tool bag numerous principles and-or rules of thumb. But often these principles collide with each other or fail to hold in a specific situation.Consider the following elementary position in the first diagram.BLACK.Xb N 8 d X fX NX axBLACK«b Nb 9b b x?X NX XXQR QN QB Q KWHITSKB KN KRThis position was reached after the moves 1) P-K4, P-K4; 2) P-Q4? PxP: 3) QxP. White’s second and third moves seem to be ideal examples of effective centralization.The exchange of white’squeen pawn has freed his queen’s bishop and the queen file has been opened for the influence of the white queen. Black’s important king pawn is gone and the white queen in the center seem powerfully centralized.As our more experienced readers know, however, the value of these seemingly cumulative advantages is illusory. In fact, black can immediately play 3) . . . N-QB3.Black has developed a piece,white must waste time retreating and again it is black’s turn to move. The gain of time by black has probablygiven him a slight advantage overall.Does this illustration indicate that one should never allow one’s queen on a central square in the early opening? Of couse not. Look at the following variation: 1) P-K4,P-K4; 2) N-KB3, N-QB3; 3) P-Q4, PxP; 4) NxP . . . Isn’t ■white now afraid of... NxN 5) QxN (forced to avoid loss of a piec£)? His queen will againQR QN QBQ K KB KN KRWHITEbe in the center and black will again effectively attack it? NO! One does not fear attack in general in chess; one only ‘ fears specific attacks. Inasmuch as black’s queenknight is gone from the board, black no longer has a meaningful attack on the dominant wrhite queen.The only move which will dislodge the queen is 5 . . . P-QB4!? But there are too many drawbacks to this move. Black will be left withpermanent weaknesses whichare too heavy a price for the momentary attack on the white queen.,Assume the queen has retreated to Q1 (there are other moves) and make moves for both sides. You may be able to get a sense of white’s ad* vantage. Here is one of the variations I looked at: 6) Q-Ql, N-K2; 7) N-QB3, N-B3; 8) B-KB4, B-K2) 9) Q-Q2, 0-0; 10) 0-0-0.Notice that black’s queen pawn is a fixed target. Made “backward” by the advanceof the queen bishop pawn, ithas no pawn support if it moves to Q3. At Q2, it blocks the bishop). The squares at Q5 and Q6 are both good posts for the white pieces (the bishop pawn is not available to contest either square). Black’s defensive burdens are too great. White should be able to pile up in the center and eventually win something.Concrete positions demand judicious application of generalizations. All advantages are conditional and must beweighed against accompanying disadvantages.Copyright 1973 by Shelby LvmanI
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Pomona Progress Bulletin
Pomona, California, US
Sun, Apr 01, 1973
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