Suchergebnisse

I started playing the line 1.e4 c5 2.c3 in the Sicilian Defense as White in 1988. Since then I have employed it in more than 100 games, achieving a high performance score. My personal peak were the years 2005 - 2006, when I managed to win twelve 2.c3-games in a row. Yet I also know the other side of the coin – countless times I had to face this opening with Black when the opponents wanted to avoid my Dragon, for example during the World Candidates Match against Adams in New York in 1994. White tries to occupy the centre with a second pawn, and Black must know his stuff very well in order to be able to equalize. And this is only possible with 2...Nf6 – all other lines give the first player a small edge everywhere. Especially against stronger opponents, 2.c3 is an excellent weapon. If White doesn‘t risk anything, he cannot lose! Controlling the game, he can always make a draw from a position of strength. In contrast, playing for a win with Black is always connected with a extremely high risk, and we have seen many games when much higher rated players were completely smashed by White. In comparison with the main lines of the Sicilian, there is much less theory to study – and yet a lot of room for improvement for both sides. Video running time: 4 hours. See you too – with 2.c3!

The Giuoco Piano (Italian for “quiet game”) is the oldest recorded chess opening, appearing as one of 12 chess openings detailed in the Göttingen manuscript over five hundred years ago. It is popular with juniors and chess novices, as the basic ideas of this opening are simple to understand: rapid development, control of the centre, and an attack on the vulnerable f7-square. However, this reputation belies its sophisticated and fearsome nature, and it is played even today by many of the world’s top players, including World Champion Vishy Anand and Magnus Carlsen. In the first ever English “Master & Amateur” ChessBase DVD, International Master Lorin D’Costa and chess-software expert Nick Murphy take you through the main ideas of the Giuoco Piano in an easy to follow, conversational style. In this DVD they examine: 1. The Giuoco Piano ‘main line’ 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d4 – White challenges the centre straight away. 2. The Giuoco Pianissimo 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d3 – with a slower build-up. 3. The Giuoco Piano ‘Evans Gambit style’ 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.b4 – aiming for a queenside space advantage. The Master and Amateur series gives you the advantage of an expert’s chess knowledge combined with an amateur player asking the questions that YOU want to ask. Video running time: 5 hours 42 min.

Grandmaster lines explained for club players – Constructing an opening repertoire is one of the chess player’s most difficult and time-consuming tasks. Turned off by masses of theory, many players shy away from critical lines and concentrate on trappy lines, ‘universal’ systems, or variations which concede the advantage of the first move in order to get a playable position.