Garry Kasparov's Forgotten Weapon Against The Queen's Gambit (part three)

KASPAROV'S use of the Tarrasch Defence in his first Candidates quarter-final game with the black pieces against Alexander Beliavsky was both surprising - it was the first time in his career he answered 1.d4 with 1...d5 - and successful.

Beliavsky no doubt came to the board armed with an improvement the next time he had the white pieces, but Kasparov switched to the Nimzo-Indian Defence ... and lost, levelling the match score at one win each with two draws.

Kasparov restored his lead in game five by winning on the white side of the Exchange Variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined.

In the next game it was Beliavsky's turn to play the Queen's Gambit.

Beliavsky (2570) - Kasparov (2690)

Candidates Quarter-Final (Moscow) Game 6 1983

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c5 4.cxd5 exd5

This is not compulsory. Black scores four percentage points better in ChessBase's 2021 Mega database by playing 4...cxd4!?, the Von Hennig-Schara Gambit. The main line runs 5.Qxd4 Nc6 6.Qd1 exd5 7.Qxd5 Bd7 8.Nf3 Nf6 9.Qd1 Bc5 10.e3 Qe7 11.Be2 0-0-0 12.0-0 g5!? 13.b4!? Bxb4 14.Bb2 g4 15.Nd4. Mega21 has 40 games with this position, the most-recent high-level encounter being Simon Kim Williams (2442) - Spyridon Kapnisis (2464), Dundee 2017, which continued 15...Kb8 16.Ncb5 Nxd4 17.Bxd4 Bxb5 18.Bxb5 Bc3 19.Rb1 Bxd4 20.exd4 Rd6 with a position that Stockfish12 reckons is much better for White, but Komodo11.01 rates as equal (but 0-1, 50 moves). There are lots of alternatives along the way for both sides, starting right at the beginning when White often plays 5.Qa4+. The main line then runs 5...Bd7 6.Qxd4 exd5 7.Qxd5 Nc6, which is a transposition to the main line after 5.Qxd4.

5.Nf3 Nc6 6.g3 Nf6

Black has a major alternative with the Swedish Variation, 6...c4!?, which scores five percentage points better in Mega21.

The starting position of the Swedish Variation

Shamkovich & Schiller in Play The Tarrasch (Pergamon 1984) call this "one of the most-dynamic plans at Black's disposal." They add: "The line has constantly been 'refuted' and resurrected, and both White and Black must be well-versed in theory in order to survive the opening. Although the variation is considered suspect it still has great surprise value and in many cases Black can emerge relatively unscathed, provided that he chooses his lines wisely."

That is far from being a ringing endorsement, but 6...c4!? is quite liked by the engines, especially Stockfish12.

The main line runs 7.Bg2 (the thematic counter 7.e4?! is probably premature, eg 7...dxe4 8.Ng5 Qxd4 9.Be3 Qxd1+ 10.Rxd1 Bxg4 with a sharp but equal position, according to the engines) Bb4 8.0-0 Nge7 9.e4 (White is now much more ready for this break) dxe4 (9...0-0 is also popular) 10.Nxe4 0-0, and here the engines reckon 11.Be3 is just one move that gives White a large edge.

7.Bg2 Be7

The engines prefer trying to save a tempo with 7...cxd4!? 8.Nxd4 Bc5. The main line continues 9.Nb3, when the engines reckon 9...Bb6!? is an improvement on the more-popular 9...Bb4. Hikaru Nakamura (2761) - Daniil Dubov (2690), Fide Grand Prix (Moscow) 2019, went 9...Bb6!? 10.0-0 (10.Nxd5 can be met, according to Stockfish12, by 10...Be6 11.Nxb6 Qxd1+ 12.Kxd1 axb6, when Stockfish12 prefers White but Komodo11.01 reckons the position is equal. Komdo11.01 varies early with 11.e4, continuing 11...Bg4 12.Qd3 Nxd5 13.exd5 Ne5 14.Qb5+ Bd7 15.Qe2 0-0, when the engines agree Black has enough compensation for a pawn) d4 11.Na4 0-0!? 12.Bg5 Re8 13.Nxb6 axb6 14.e3 d3!? with an unclear but probably balanced position (½–½, 28 moves).

8.0-0 0-0 9.Bg5 cxd4 10.Nxd4 h6 11.Be3

The bishop goes here, rather than, say, f4, because on e3 it helps restrain the d pawn, possibly freeing the d4 knight to move at a crucial moment.

11...Re8 12.Qc2!?

So this is what Beliavsky prepared. The move is given an exclamation mark by Shamkovich & Schiller.

12...Bg4 13.Rfd1

The main line today is 13.h3 Bd7 14.Rad1 Qc8 15.Kh2 Bf8 (a common retreat in the Tarrasch, unmasking the king's rook), which first occurred in Beliavsky (2640) - Miguel Illescas Córdoba (2530), Linares (Spain) 1990. The engines reckon White has an edge (but 0-1, 42 moves).

13...Bf8 14.Rac1 Rc8 15.Nxc6!?

Transforming the pawn-structure is often available and has to be taken into account by Black. The engines prefer 15.Qa4.

15...bxc6

Clearly the d pawn is no longer a target for White, who should change his attention to the new, backward c pawn and, to a lesser extent, to the newly isolated a7 pawn. Black's chances, as is the case when he has an IQP, lie mainly on the kingside and down the e file.

16.Bd4

If Beliavsky entertained hopes of immediately capturing the black a pawn, he would have changed his mind on seeing 16.Bxa7?! c5! as 17.Bxd5? Qa5 18.Qa4 Qxa4 19.Nxa4 Nxd5 20.Rxd5 Ra8 21.Bxc5 Ra8, when the black bishop is worth more than White's three pawns. Less clear is the engines' 17.h3 Be6 18.a4! Qa5 19.Nb5, when White is a pawn up but badly discoordinated, and the engines prefer Black.

16...Bb4 17.Rd2

17.Bxa7!? Bxc3 18.Qxc3 Bxe2 19.Re1 is slightly better for White, according to the engines.

17...Qe7 18.a3 Ba5 19.b4 Bb6 20.e3 Qe6 21.Qb2 Bxd4 22.Rxd4 c5!?

Kasparov dissolves the backward pawn, confident the re-established IQP will not be a decisive liability.

23.bxc5

23.Rd2 Red8 24.Na4!? cxb4 25.axb4 Rxc1+ 26.Qxc1 Rc8 seems at least equal for Black.

23...Rxc5 24.Ne2 Rec8 25.Rxc5 Rxc5 26.Nf4 Qc8 27.h3

White's back-rank weakness means he cannot capture the d pawn, eg 27.Nxd5?? Nxd5 28.Rxd5 Rc1+ 29.Bf1 Bh3 etc.

27...Rc1+ 28.Kh2 Rc2 29.Qb3 Bf5 30.Kg1 Rc1+ 31.Rd1 Be4 ½–½

Kasparov gives a likely continuation as 32.Nxd5 Nxd5 33.Bxd5 Rxd1+ 34.Qxd1 Nxd5 35.Qxd5 Qc1+ 36.Kg2 Qxa3, which he regards as equal.