A repertoire based on his games emphasises positional mainlines in hardcore mainline openings.
White
Open 1.d4 (although Karpov preferred 1.e4 in his younger days, he has almost twice as many games with 1.d4 in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database), aiming for a set-up with Nf3 against attempts to play the Nimzo-Indian, ie 1...Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3.
If Black goes for a Queen's Indian: 3...b6, counter-fianchetto with 4.g3, meeting the mainline 4...Ba6 with 5.b3 Bb4+ 6.Bd2 Be7 7.Bg2 c6 8.Bc3. Against 4...Bb7 5.Bg2 Be7 play the slightly unusual 6.Nc3, meeting 6...Ne4 with 7.Bd2 and meeting 6...0-0 7.0-0 Ne4 with 8.Qc2 (Karpov also played 8.Bd2 and 8.Nxe4, but scored 20 percentage points more with 8.Qc2). Against 4...Bb4+ play 5.Bd2.
If Black makes it a Queen's Gambit Declined with 3...d5, play 4.Nc3, meeting 4...Be7 with 5.Bg5, generally avoiding playing the Exchange Variation. Against 4...c6 play 5.e3, meeting the main reply 5...Nbd7 with 6.Qc2. Against 4...dxc4 play 5.Qa4+. Against 4...Bb4 play 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bxf6 Qxf6, reaching a position from which Karpov had most success, albeit from a small sample-size, with the slightly unusual 7.Qb3.
Against the Bogo-Indian: 3...Bb4+ play 4.Bd2, meeting 4...Qe7 and 4...a5 with 5.g3 and meeting 4...Bxd2+ 5.Qxd2 d5/0-0 with 6.g3. Against 4...c5 play 5.Bxb4 cxb4 6.g3.
Against the Benoni: 2...c5 play 3.d5, meeting 3...e6 with 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3 Bg7 8.h3 0-0 9.Bd3. Against the Benko Gambit: 3...b5 play 4.cxb5 a6 5.bxa6, meeting 5...g6 with 6.Nc3 and continuing 7.e4 against 6...Bxa6 and 6...Bg7. Against 5...Bxa6 play 6.Nc3, transposing to a line already considered after 6...g6 7.e4.
Against 2...g6 play 3.Nc3, meeting the King's Indian: 3...Bg7 4.e4 d6 with 5.f3 and meeting the Grünfeld: 3...d5 with 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Be3 c5 8.Qd2.
Against the Budapest Gambit: 2..e5 play 3.dxe5 Ng4 4.Bf4 Nc6 5.Nf3 Bb4+ 6.Nbd2 Qe7 7.e3.
Against the Slav: 1...d5 2.c4 c6 play 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3. Against 2...e6 play 3.Nc3, transposing to lines already considered after 3...Nf6 4.Nf3 and 3...Be7 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bg5.
Against the Tarrasch: 1...d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c5 play 4.cxd5 exd5 5.Nf3 Nc6 6.g3.
Against the Queen's Gambit Accepted: 2...dxc4 play 3.e4 e5 4.Nf3 exd4 5.Bxc4. If 3...Nf6 play 4.e5 Nd5 5.Bxc4 Nb6 6.Bd3.
Against the Chigorin: 2...Nc6 play 3.Nf3, and against the Albin Countergambit: 2...e5 play 3.dxe5 d4 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.a3.
Against 1...e6 Karpov mainly switched to a French with 2.e4, but scored much better rating-wise, and with a higher percentage score, by playing 2.c4, which will nearly always transpose to lines already considered. If Black makes it a delayed Dutch with 2...f5, play a fianchetto set-up with g3, which was also Karpov's favourite answer to 1...f5.
Against 1...d6 and 1...g6 Karpov liked to head for a Classical Pirc or Classical Modern with 2.e4, 3.Nc3 and 4.Nf3.
Black v 1.e4
Play 1...e5 with the aim of meeting the mainline Spanish: 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 0-0 9.h3 with 9...Bb7 10.d4 Re8. Meet 11.Nbd2 with 11...Bf8 12.a4 h6 13.Bc2 exd4 14.cxd4 Nb4 15.Bb1 c5. Today 12.d5 is probably most popular - Karpov liked meeting it with 12...Nb8 13.Nf1 Nbd7. Meet 11.Ng5 with 11...Rf8. If White continues with the main move 12.Nf3, and a draw by repetition is not satisfactory, avoid 12...Re8 and instead play 12...Nd7, when the main line runs 13.Nbd2 exd4 14.cxd4. The only time Karpov reached this position he continued with the unusual 14...Nb4!?, which for quite some time is Stockfish11's top choice (the normal move is 14...Bf6).
White has many alternatives to following the main line of the Spanish, an important one, at least at club level, being the Mordern Exchange Variation: 4.Bxc6 dxc6 5.0-0, against which Karpov scored 80% by heading for a queenless middlegame with 5...f6 6.d4 exd4 7.Nxd4 c5, meeting both 8.Nb3 and 8.Ne2 with 8...Qxd1.
Also important at club level is 5.Qe2, against which play 5...b5 6.Bb3 Bc5, and the closely related 5.0-0 Be7 6.Qe2, against which Karpov played 6...b5 7.Bb3, usually continuing 7...0-0 8.c3 d6 or 7...d6 8.c3 0-0.
Against the Deferred Exchange: 5.0-0 Be7 6.Bxc6 play 6...dxc6 7.d3 Qd6!? but meet 7.Nc3 with 7...Nd7.
Against the Italian Game: 3.Bc4 play 3...Bc5, meeting the traditional mainline 4.c3 Nf6 5.d4 with 5...exd4 6.cxd4 Bb4+. If 7.Bd2 play 7...Bxd2+ 8.Nbxd2 d5 9.exd5 Nxd5. If 7.Nc3 play 7...Nxe4 8.0-0 Bxc3 9.d5 Ne5!? If 5.d3 play 5...d6 6.0-0 0-0. Meet 4.d3 and 4.0-0 with 4...Nf6, both lines usually transposing to those with 4.c3 and 5.d3. There is only one game with Karpov facing the Evans Gambit: 4.b4 - he took the pawn with 4...Bxb4 and, after 5.c3, retreated the bishop to a5.
Against the Scotch: 3.d4 exd4 4.Nxd4 Karpov mostly played 4...Nf6.
Against the Scotch Four Knights: 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.Nxd4 he mostly played 5...Bb4, and against the Spanish Four Kinghts: 4.Bb5 he mostly played 4...Bb4.
Against the Vienna: 2.Nc3 he liked 2...Nf6, meeting 3.f4 d5 4.fxe5 Nxe4 5.Nf3 with 5...Be7 and meeting 3.g3 with 3...d5.
Against the Bishop's Opening: 2.Bc4 he narrowly preferred 2...Nc6 over 2...Nf6.
Karpov usually accepted the King's Gambit: 2.f4, but after 2...exf4, with which he scored 67%, he varied his response the three times he faced 3.Nf3 and the two times he faced 3.Bc4. There is not enough to give a repertoire recommendation but, for what it is worth, Karpov won - against a 2634 -the only time he declined the gambit with 2...d5.
Black v 1.d4 and Others
Aim for a Nimzo-Indian: 1...Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4, meeting 4.e3 with 4...c5, meeting 4.Qc2 with 4...0-0, meeting 4.Nf3 with 4...b6, meeting 4.f3 with 4...d5, meeting 4.Bg5 h6 5.Bh4 with 5...c5, meeting 4.a3 with 4...Bxc3+ 5.bxc3 c5 and meeting 4.Qb3 with 4...c5.
Against 3.Nf3 play a Queen's Indian: 3...b6, meeting 4.g3 with 4...Ba6, meeting 4.a3 with 4...Bb7, meeting 4.Nc3 with 4...Bb4 (transposing to the Nimzo-Indian line 4.Nf3 b6) and meeting 4.e3, 4.Bf4 and 4.Bg5 with 4...Bb7.
Against 3.g3 play 3...d5 with transposition to a mainline Catalan after 4.Bg2 Be7 5.Nf3 0-0 6.0-0 or 4.Nf3 Be7 5.Bg2 0-0 6.0-0. Karpov liked to continue 6...dxc4, meeting 7.Qc2 and 7.Qa4 with 7...a6 and meeting 7.Ne5 and 7.Nc3 with 7...Nc6.
Against 2.Nf3 Karpov normally played 2...e6 with obvious transpositional possibilities. If 3.Bg5 he marginally more often played 3...h6 over 3...c5, scoring almost equally well with both moves. If 3.Bf4 he did best with 3...Be7, varying on whether he followed up with ...c5, ...b6 or ...d5.
Against the Trompowsky: 2.Bg5 Karpov scored best with 2...d5.
Against the English: 1.c4 Karpov scored best with 1...e5, usually meeting 2.Nc3 with 2...Nf6 3.g3 Bb4 4.Bg2 0-0. But his most common reply to 2.g3 was 2...g6, happily meeting 3.d4 with 3...d6!? 4.dxe5 dxe5 5.Qxd8+ Kxd8 and meeting 3.Bg2 Bg7 4.Nc3 with 4...Ne7.
Against 1.Nf3 he generally replied 1...Nf6 and 2...e6, but if White went for a King's Indian Attack set-up with 2.g3 he preferred 2...d5 3.Bg2 c6 4.0-0, scoring best by continuing 4...Bg4.
In two games against 1.b3 he played 1...d5.
Here is one of Karpov's earliest games with 1.d4.
Karpov - Boris Spassky
Candidates Semi-Final (Leningrad) 1974, Game 11
Queen's Gambit Declined
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5
Karpov wrote in My Best Games (RHM Press 1978): "An interesting psychological moment. White has not allowed the Nimzo-Indian and Spassky, for his part, refrained from playing the quiet Queen's Indian Defence. Maybe he did not think his opponent was ready for every opening beginning with d4, for in serious play I had opened with the queen's pawn only five times in my life."
4.Nc3 Be7 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bh4 0-0 7.e3 b6
 |
| Black has committed to a queenside fianchetto |
8.Be2!?
The main line goes 8.cxd5 Nxd5 9.Bxe7 Qxe7 10.Nxd5 exd5 11.Rc1, which Fischer used to beat Spassky in their 1972 world championship match.
8...Bb7 9.Bxf6!?
Giving up the bishop-pair may look strange, but Karpov has a concrete plan in mind. First he ensures Black cannot meet cxd5 with ...Nxd5, which keeps the long light-square diagonal open for the black queen's bishop.
9...Bxf6 10.cxd5
Now Black has an unpleasant choice between 10...Bxd5!?, after which 11.Nxd5 deprives him of his bishop-pair and leaves queenside light-square weaknesses (this is probably playable but is very unpopular), and ...
10...exd5
... after which the long light-square diagonal is blocked and, as Matthew Sadler points out in Queen's Gambit Declined (Everyman Chess 2000), Black has kingside light-square weaknesses (f5 is no longer defended by a pawn and h7 is no longer defended by the king's knight). In addition the black c pawn is backward and Black does not look ready to play ...c5 any time soon.
11.0-0
More popular today is 11.b4 but Carlsen and Kramnik have preferred the text.
11...Qd6!?
There are six more popular moves than this in Mega20, but that does not mean the text is necessarily bad.
12.Rc1
The game Korchnoi - Antonio Medina García, Palma de Mallorca 1972, went 12.Qc2 Nc6 13.Rc1 a6 14.a3 Rfe8 15.Rfd1 with an unclear position (1-0, 35 moves).
12...a6
Karpov: "13.Nb5 must be prevented."
13.a3 Nd7 14.b4 b5 15.Ne1
This is an inaccuracy, according to Karpov. He gave "15.Nd2!, followed by Nb3 and possibly Na5," the idea being to prevent ...a5.
15...c6!?
Karpov awarded this move an exclamation mark, but it is not liked by Stockfish11 or Komodo11.01, who reckon White can now get an initiative with 16.e4!? dxe4 17.Nxe4.
16.Nd3 Nb6?!
Karpov gives this a question mark, saying 16...a5 equalises "easily (by) opening the a file and practically eliminating all his weaknesses."
17.a4 Bd8!?
Karpov says Spassky hoped to significantly weaken the castled position of the white king "but this (manoeuvre) will definitely destroy the interaction among his own pieces." Karpov reckoned best is 17...Rad8.
18.Nc5 Bc8 19.a5 Bc7 20.g3 Nc4 21.e4 Bh3 22.Re1 dxe4 23.N3xe4 Qg6 24.Bh5!
Karpov: "After 24.Bxc4? bxc4 25.Rxc4 f5! and 26...f4, Black gets a very strong attack."
24...Qh7
Karpov says 24...Qf5 is bad because after 25.Rc3 "Black has no good defence to g4."
25.Qf3 f5?
Karpov reckoned that after 25...Qf5 White has a "considerable advantage" but not one that is simple to convert.
26.Nc3 g6 27.Qxc6 gxh5 28.Nd5
The black king is suddenly clearly more endangered than its white counterpart.
28...f4 29.Re7 Qf5 30.Rxc7 Rae8 31.Qxh6 Rf7 32.Rxf7 Kxf7 33.Qxf4 Re2 34.Qc7+ Kf8 35.Nf4 1-0
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