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PART TWO: 5.c3

A Kosten (2515) - D Garcia Ilundain (2485)

Escaldes, 1998

1.d4 Nf6 2.Bg5 e6 3.e4 h6 4.Bxf6 Qxf6 5.c3

WHITE'S MOST COMMON MOVE

The second of White's alternatives and probably the most common these days. White doesn't exactly know where he wants to place his pieces and so makes a useful pawn move first. One of the main ideas behind 5.c3 is to leave the f-pawn free to advance later. No matter. Black proceeds as per the program:

5...d5! 6.e5

6.Nd2 c5! 7.exd5 exd5 8.Bb5+ Bd7 9.Bxd7+ Nxd7 10.Ne2 0-0-0 11.Nf1 cxd4 12.Nxd4 Bc5 13.Ne3 Bxd4 14.cxd4 Qa6 15.b4 Nf6 16.Qe2, draw, Wells-Ward, Southend 2002. Very weedy for White.

6...Qd8 7.b4!?

STOPPING .c5 COLD!

A bit of a shock! Kosten must be really afraid of ...c7-c5! Let's take a look at what might happen if White allows this move: 7.Nf3 (I guess most of your opponents will venture this move.) 7...c5:

A) 8.a3!? (A bit stodgy.) 8...c4!? (I quite like 8...Nc6 9.b4 cxd4 10.cxd4 Be7 11.Bd3 Qb6 12.0-0 Bd7 13.Bc2 a5! with a slight edge. Very clean play by Black and a good position to boot!) 9.Nbd2 Nc6 10.b3 cxb3 11.Qxb3 Be7 12.Bd3 Na5 13.Qa2 Bd7 14.0-0 Rc8 15.Rac1 Ba4 16.g3 0-0 17.Ne1 f6!

GRABBING THE INITIATIVE

A key moment. It's worth close consideration. Black activates both his Bishop on e7 and the Rook on f8. With White plodding around there is no reason at all why Black shouldn't take the initiative. 18.exf6 Bxf6 19.Nef3 Rc6 20.Qb1 Rb6 21.Qa2 Nb3 22.Nxb3 Bxb3 23.Qe2 Qd6 24.Nd2 Ba4 25.Rb1 Rxb1 26.Rxb1 b6 27.Qg4 Rc8 28.c4 Bd7 29.c5 bxc5 30.Rb7 c4 31.Bc2 Qc6 32.Rxa7 c3 33.Nb3 Rc7 34.Rxc7 Qxc7 35.Nc5 Bc8 36.Qg6 Kf8 37.Ba4 Qe7 38.Qh7 Bxd4 39.Qh8+ Kf7 40.Nb3 Bxf2+ 41.Kg2 Bd7 42.Bxd7 Qxd7 43.Kxf2 Qb7 44.Nc1 Qb6+ 45.Kf3 Qg1 46.Nd3 Qd1+ 47.Ke3 Qd2+ 48.Kd4 e5+ 49.Kxe5 Qxd3 50.Qc8 Qe4+ 51.Kd6 c2, 0-1, Mukic-Rogulj Kastav 2002. White fought like a demon but he fought uphill!;

B) 8.dxc5 Nd7!? (An interesting alternative to 8...Bc5, which is also fully playable: 9.Bd3 Qb6 10.Qe2 Nc6 11.0-0 Bd7 12.b4 Be7 13.Nbd2 Rc8 14.a3 g5! 15.Nb3 a5 16.Rac1 a4 17.Na1 g4 18.Nd2 Bg5 19.Rc2 Rg8 and Black has a very active game, Hodgson-Rowson, Southend 2001) 9.b4 g6 10.Nbd2 Bg7 11.Bb5 0-0 12.Bxd7 Bxd7 13.0-0 Qc7 14.Re1 b6 15.Nb3 Ba4 16.Qd4 Rfc8 17.Rac1 Qb7 18.Nfd2 Rc7 19.c4 Bxb3 20.Nxb3 bxc5 21.bxc5 Rd8 22.h3 Rcc8 23.Rc2 Qc7 24.f4 Bf8 25.Rec1 =, ½-½, Milov-Epishin, Amsterdam 2000.

7.Nd2 c5 8.dxc5 Bxc5 9.Nb3 Bb6 10.Nf3 Nc6 11.Bd3 Bd7 12.Qe2 Qe7 13.0-0 g5! (One could simply play 13...0-0 14.Bc2 f5 but Marusenko has something much more aggressive in mind.) 14.Nfd4 h5

BLACK WON'T LEAVE WHITE ALONE!

All a bit scary for White who just wants a quiet life and unchallenged control of d4.  15.Nb5 0-0-0 16.a4 a5 17.Nd6+ Kb8 18.Ba6 Bc8! (Calm) 19.Bb5 Rxd6 20.exd6 Qxd6 21.c4 Bc7 22.g3 Qb4 23.Bxc6 Qxb3 24.Bb5 d4 25.Qd2 Qf3 26.Qxd4 e5 27.Qd5 Qf6 28.c5 h4 29.Ra3 Qh6 30.Qd2 e4 31.Re1 Bg4 32.Rxe4 Rd8 33.Rd3 Rxd3 34.Qxd3 hxg3 35.fxg3 Bh3 36.Bd7 g4 37.Qe3 Qf6 38.Qf2 Qg5 39.c6 Bb6 40.Re8+ Ka7, 0-1, Ward-Marusenko, Port Erin 2000. I'm not sure what to make of that game apart from to say that it would have been rather intimidating to sit behind the White pieces. Note that the keystroke has been administered by the dark-squared Bishop!

7...a5

7...b6 8.b5 a6 is very reasonable indeed for Black.

8.b5 a4!? 9.Bd3 c5 10.bxc6 bxc6 11.Ne2 c5

TWO P-c5's IN THREE MOVES

For the second time!  If White really has to make all these lunging pawn advances then I really don’t believe his position at all. Note the very secure Black kingside!

12.0-0 Nc6 13.Nd2 Be7

Stronger than 13...cxd4 14.cxd4 Bd7 15.f4.

14.Nf3 cxd4 15.Nexd4 Nxd4 16.Nxd4?

It was ludicrous not to play 16.cxd4 0-0 17.Rb1 Ba6 18.Bxa6 Rxa6 19.Rb7 a3 with a probable draw.

16...Qc7 17.Re1 0-0 18.Rc1 Bg5 19.Rc2 Ba6 20.g3 Be7 21.f4 Rfc8³ 22.f5 Bc5 23.Rf2 Qa5 24.Bxa6 Rxa6 25.Re3 Ba7 26.fxe6 fxe6 27.Ref3 Rac6

White is toiling to justify his sore thumb on c3. He has a last chance to angle for a draw now but misses the opportunity.

28.Qf1

28.Kg2! Rxc3 29.Rxc3 Rxc3 30.Qg4 Bxd4 31.Qxe6+ Kh7 32.Qf5+ was the last chance to gain a draw.

28...Bxd4 29.cxd4 Qb4 30.Qd3 Qc4 31.Kg2 Qxd3 32.Rxd3 Rc3

He will really have to suffer for the draw now. In the end, poor Tony doesn't make it.

33.Rdd2 a3 34.Kf1 Rb8 35.Ke2 Rb2 36.Kd1 Rb1+ 37.Ke2 Rb2 38.Kd1 Rb4 39.Ke2 Kh7 40.Rf3 Rxf3 41.Kxf3 Rb2 42.Ke3 Kg6 43.Rf2 h5 44.h3 h4 45.Rf3 Rxa2 46.gxh4 Rb2 47.Rg3+ Kh6 48.Kf4 a2 49.Ra3 Rd2 50.Ke3 Rb2 51.Ra8 Rb3+ 52.Kf4 Rd3 53.Rh8+ Kg6 54.h5+ Kf7 55.Ra8 Rxd4+ 56.Kg5 Rd2 57.Ra7+ Kg8 58.Ra8+ Kh7 59.h6 Rg2+ 60.Kh5 a1=Q, 0-1. It's mate after 61.Rxa1 g6+ 62.Kh4 Kxh6 and 63.g5 mate.

Naturally 7 b4 won't be played very often; why, it doesn't even prevent ...c7-c5 as we have seen! 5 c3 is easily dealt with by 5...d5. Most of your opponents won't be in touch with any sort of sophisticated White strategy so look forward to a clear plan of campaign ...Qd8, ...c5, ...Nc6, ...Qb6 etc. and plenty of dark-squared joy.

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