Exeter Chess Club

Playing Black against Queen-side Openings

An Exeter Junior Chess Club booklet Edition 1.12, November, '95

White plays 1. d4 or plays one of the flank openings, and you reply with either a solid or an aggressive system.

Bibliography

Norwood, Trends in the King's Indian Attack

Evans, The Chess Opening for You

Kasparov/Keene, Batsford Chess Openings 2

Walker, Chess Openings for Juniors

Varnusz, Play Anti-Indian Systems

Wall, 500 English Miniatures

Soltis, The London System

Botvinnik, 100 Selected Games

Schiller, The Cambridge Springs Defence

Polugaevsky, Queen's Gambit Declined: Orthodox Defence

Various magazines and other books

Playing aggressively against the Queen-side and flank openings

Analysis and Games

I'll go through each approach in turn, looking at a system to play against each White opening.

A. Queen Pawn openings


The strongest move is c2-c4, so let us look at these variations.

A1.1. The Cambridge Springs Defence against the Queen's Gambit


R*B*KB-R
PPQ-*PPP
-*P*PN-*
*-*-*-*-
-*np-*-*
*-n-p-*-
pp-*-ppp
*-rqkb*r
which may be about equal but I don't fancy it as well. Let's try instead

7. Nd2 Bb4

8. Qc2 O-O
R*B*-RK*
PP*N*PPP
-*P*PN-*
Q-*P*-b-
-Bpp-*-*
*-n-p-*-
ppqn-ppp
r-*-kb*r
[8... e5 also equalises according to Polugaevsky]

9. Be2

White has also tried:


R*B*-RK*
PP*N*PPP
-*P*-N-*
Q-*PP-*-
-Bpp-*-b
*-n-p-*-
ppqn-ppp
r-*-kb*r
always this blow! But Black can also try


R*B*-RK*
PP*-*PPP
-*Q*-N-*
*-pP*-*-
-B-*-*-*
*nn-p-*-
ppq*-ppp
r-*-kb*r

R*-*-*K*
PP*-*RPP
-*P*-*-*
Q-*-*B*-
-Bp*P*-b
p-nNp-*-
-pq*-ppp
*-kr*b*r

9... e5
R*B*-RK*
PP*N*PPP
-*P*-N-*
Q-*PP-b-
-Bpp-*-*
*-n-p-*-
ppqnbppp
r-*-k-*r
10. O-O

Again White has tried other moves:


R*B*-RK*
PP*-*PPP
-*P*-*-*
*-*-*-*-
-*p*-q-*
*-Q-p-*-
p*-*bppp
r-*-*rk-
is OK for Black]

[10. Bxf6 Nxf6 11. dxe5 Ne4 12. Ndxe4

12... dxe4 13. O-O Bxc3 14. Qxc3 Qxc3

15. bxc3 Re8 16. Rad1 Kf8]
R*B*RK-*
PP*-*PPP
-*P*-*-*
*-*-p-*-
-*p*P*-*
*-p-p-*-
p*-*bppp
*-*r*rk-
10... Bd6

11. Nb3


R*B*-RK*
PPQNBPPP
-*P*-N-*
*-pPP-b-
-p-p-*-*
*-n-p-*-
p*qnbppp
r-*-*rk-

11... Qc7 =
R*B*-RK*
PPQN*PPP
-*PB-N-*
*-*PP-b-
-*pp-*-*
*nn-p-*-
ppq*bppp
r-*-*rk-

A1.1b. CAMBRIDGE SPRINGS with 7. Bxf6
7...Nxf6 8. Bd3 Bb4 9. Qc2


R*Q*-RK*
P-*N*PPP
-P-*P*-*
*-P-n-*-
p*ppB*-*
*-*-p-*-
-q-*bppp
r-*-*rk-
This is all the theory you will ever need if White allows the CAMBRIDGE SPRINGS. Play over each line, not to learn the moves by heart but to see all the different ideas. Once you know the ideas the moves will come naturally to you - perhaps better moves than are given in the notes!

A1.1e. White Avoids the CAMBRIDGE SPRINGS

A1.1e-1. White Avoids the CAMBRIDGE SPRINGS after 5. Nf3