What Do The Engines Say? 2. French Defence

MODERN computer programs are revolutionising how we approach openings.

This first became noticeable when supposedly refuted moves started making a comeback as engines showed resources that had evaded the world's top players.

But more recently, as engines grow in strength, there has been a trend in the opposite direction, at least at the highest level.

Grandmaster Nigel Davies summed this up in a post at chesspublishing.com, where he recounted a conversation with Canadian GM Kevin Spraggett, who "opined to me that ancient openings are making a comeback because engines are finding flaws in the more risky ones."

Davies added: "I think there is a lot of truth in this, which is confirmed by the migration of top players to strictly classical openings."

Engines are still far from the stage of knowing all there is too known about openings.

Their play in that stage of the game is not on a par with their abilities in tactical middlegames.

We cannot expect engines to tell us move-by-move how to play our favourite opening variations,

But their opinions on what we should be looking at - the moves that show the most promise - are certainly well worth considering.

So in this series I will be looking at what the engines say about mainline opening positions.

WHEN hot-favourite Gukesh Dommaraju sat down with the white pieces for the first game of the world championship match, he was probably not expecting the champion, Liren Ding, to play the French Defence.

Gukesh met 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 with 3.Nc3, and, when Ding replied 3...Nf6, continued with the Steinitz Variation, ie 4.e5.

Stockfish17 and Dragon1 fluctuate between 3.Nc3 and 3.e5 (the fashionable - after a long time in the doldrums - Advance Variation), but come to settle on the former, albeit marginally.

After 3...Nf6 Stockfish17 agrees with 4.e5, but Dragon1, although at first also preferring that move, comes to give the edge to the more popular 4.Bg5.

Both engines reckon their move gives White a slight edge, while claiming the other move leaves the game equal.

However, allow Dragon1 a lot more time to consider the position, and it too comes to prefer 4.e5, albeit marginally.