Grandmaster Nigel Davies has undertaken a difficult task in trying to write a one-volume work on the Grünfeld Defense. He remarks more than once when covering a topical line that an entire book could be written on it alone. Perhaps several books could be dedicated to just 8.Rb1 in the Exchange variation. Davies finds an interesting solution to this problem without writing a very basic book. He looks at how the Grünfeld is played by aficionados who know how to sidestep big theoretical lines without acquiescing to a small disadvantage.

What this means is lines like 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 c5 7.Bc4 Bg7 8.Ne2 Nc6 9.Be3 0-0 10.0-0 e6!? (keeping open options like …Qc7, …Qa5 and …cxd4 followed by …Na5 and …b6 with…Bb7 in the air) against the mainline Exchange Variation. Against the highly topical 8.Rb1, Davies points to American GM Sergey Kudrin's antidote: 8…0-0 9.Be2 b6 10.0-0 Bb7 11.Qd3 Ba6 12.Qe3 e6!? with the idea 13.dxc5 Bxe2 14.Qxe2 Qc7!?. After 15.cxb6 axb6 16.Be3 Nd7 Black has excellent play for the pawn. Against the currently trendy 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Bf4 Bg7 5.e3, GM Davies recommends the sideline 5…c6 to sidestep the massive complications of 5…c5 and the sterile positions arising from 5…0-0 6.cxd5 Nxd5 7.Nxd5 Qxd5 8.Bxc7 Na6 9.Bxa6 Qxg2 10.Qf3 Qxf3 11.Nxf3 bxa6 12.Rg1.

This book is written mostly from Black's standpoint. The one exception is the Russian System 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Qb3 dxc4 6.Qxc4 0-0 7.e4 where the Prins (7…Na6), Smyslov (7…Bg4) and Hungarian (7…a6) all merit individual chapters. Another chapter covers earlier deviations and 7…Nc6.

This book succeeds in its aims with but a few exceptions. Normally Davies covers move orders quite well (for example noting that the position after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.Bd2 Bg7 6.e4 Nb6 7.Be3 0-0 8.f4 can also arise after 3.f3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nb6 6.Nc3 Bg7 7.Be3 0-0 8.f4), but one important finesse that wasn't pointed out is that after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nf3 Bg7 4.g3 d5 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.Bg2 Nb6 7.0-0 Nc6 Black can force White to choose between a not particularly promising pawn sac with 8.Nc3 or be forced to block in his Queen Bishop with 8.e3. The latter allows Black to sidestep dangerous lines with an early d5 and e4.

THE GRUNFELD DEFENCE is a good source of ideas and inspiration for players from 2000 on up.

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