One thing I teach to all my students is the concept of Statics vs. Dynamics. Another thing, which anyone who has read my books would know, is that I am also very much into teaching chess hopefuls how to assess a position properly.

The following game is extremely instructive. Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is:

* Tell me the first moment that appears when it's clear that one side will have statics on his side, while the other side will have dynamics on his.

* Assess the position after 25…Kg7. Is White better? Is Black? Is it equal? More importantly, tell me WHY you feel the way you do.

I recommend that you annotate the game as deeply as you can WITHOUT using computers or looking up the game in a database. You will find it instructive to compare your own observations with my own notes when I give the solution.

ANSWER

Dreev - Timman [E32]
Reykjavik, 2004
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4

We already have lots of hints about the future of the game: White might end up with two Bishops and a strong center. In turn, Black will get an easy development and chances to fight for the center via …c7-c5 and/or …d7-d5.

4.Qc2

Stopping Black from doubling White's pawns via …Bxc3+. This – together with the Rubinstein Variation (4.e3) – are White's most popular replies to the Nimzo-Indian Defense.

The only flaws with 4.Qc2 are that it takes a defender (the Queen) off of d4 and also leaves White behind in development.

4…0–0

The main line used to be 4…c5, but the simple 4…0-0 is now Black's most common choice.

5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.Qxc3

WHO HAS STATICS & WHO HAS DYNAMICS?

FIRST QUESTION: Tell me the first moment that appears when it's clear that one side will have statics on his side, while the other side will have dynamics on his.

Both Paul Gowder (1400) and Luke felt that White had a dynamic advantage while Black's plusses were more positional in nature. They need to understand that statics tend to be long lasting (weak pawns, weak squares, superior minor piece, space, material plus, etc.) while dynamics tend to be things one has to use with some urgency. What makes everything confusing is that both sides usually have a mix of static and dynamic imbalances – knowing how to read these things so you can determine the correct tempo of the game is quite difficult.

Here's a simplistic but, hopefully, useful read of this position: White now has two Bishops and a nice pawn center. These are basic static considerations that, if allowed to bloom freely, could also lead to a dynamic punch. But things are not at all bad for Black, who is already castled, and has a lead in development. Since a lead in development is not a permanent thing (White will eventually catch up), Black can be said to have a dynamic (but short-term) plus to White's static (long-term) advantages. This means that Black needs to start a war as quickly as possible, trying to take advantage of his safe King and development. Such “quick” play can lead to an attack, the destruction of White's center, or to long-term positional plusses.

6…b6

The most over the top way for Black to try and make use of his lead in development is the little-used (but never refuted) pawn sacrifice 6…b5. Here's a recent game: 7.cxb5 c6 8.Bg5 cxb5 9.e3 Bb7 10.f3 a6 11.Bd3 Nc6 12.Nh3 h6 13.Bxf6 Qxf6 14.0-0 Rac8 15.Qd2 e5 16.d5 Ne7 17.e4 Qb6+ 18.Qf2 Qd6 19.Rac1 f5 20.Qe3 Rxc1 21.Rxc1 fxe4 22.fxe4 Rc8 23.Nf2 b4 24.Rxc8+ Nxc8 25.Bf1 bxa3 26.bxa3 Qb6 27.Qxb6 Nxb6 28.Nd3 d6 29.Nb2 Kf7 30.Kf2 Ke7 31.Ke3 Kd8 32.Kd2 Kc7 33.Ke3, 1/2-1/2, Morovic Fernandez – Iordachescu, Tripoli 2004.

7.Bg5

White gets his Bishop outside the pawn chain before playing e2-e3, and also creates an annoying pin.

7…Bb7 8.e3 d6 9.Ne2

A fairly new idea that has supplanted the old and often played 9.f3 Nbd7 10.Bd3 (10.Nh3 is another popular move) followed by 11.Ne2. White intends to move his Queen and place his Knight on c3 where it affects the critical squares on d5 and e4.

9…Nbd7

Another try is 9…c5: 10.dxc5 dxc5 (10…bxc5 11.Rd1 favors White) 11.Qc2 h6 12.Bh4 Qe7 13.0-0-0 Rd8 14.Rxd8+ Qxd8 15.Nc3 Nbd7 16.f3 and White has an edge thanks to his two Bishops, Kramnik – Bologan, Dortmund 2003.

10.Qd3

Making way for Nc3. All this costs a bit of time though, and Black must now decide how best to open things up before White completes his development.

By the way, some readers wondered why the Queen would move here when it could step back to the safer c2-square. The answer is one of flexibility: White's Queen can make itself felt in some lines if the d-file gets opened, and it also allows for d4-d5 possibilities, which might not be doable with the Queen on c2.

10…Ba6

Black tries to punish the loss of time that 10.Qd3 signifies by pinning the c-pawn and sharpening up the game via the apparent threat of …d6-d5.

Previously, 10…c5 was Black's main choice, but good results for White have forced the second player to look elsewhere for counterplay: 11.Nc3 Qe7 12.Rd1 Rfd8 13.d5 (13.Be2 h6 14.Bh4 cxd4 15.Qxd4 Nc5 16.Bxf6 Qxf6 17.Qxf6 has been played in a few games. White gets a microscopic edge, but it's not enough to generate serious winning chances.) 13…Ne5 14.Qc2 h6 15.Bh4 Ng6 16.Bg3 Nh5 (16…exd5 17.cxd5 Nh5 18.Be2 Nxg3 19.hxg3 a6 20.a4 Bc8 21.0-0 f5 22.Qd2 Bd7 23.Rb1 dc8 24.b4 cxb4 25.Rxb4 with advantage for White in M. Gurevich – Gelashvili, Izmir 2003) 17.Be2 Nxg3 18.hxg3 exd5 (18…a6 19.0-0 Rdb8 20.a4 e5 21.Bd3 Nf8 2.g4 Qh4 23.f3 Bc8 24.Ne4 Qe7 25.b3, +=, I. Sokolov – A. Sokolov, France 2003) 19.Nxd5 Bxd5 20.Rxd5 Qe6 21.0-0 Ne7 22.Rd2 Rd7 23.Rfd1 Rad8 24.Qb3! g6 25.Bf3 h5 26.Rd3 Qf6 27.R1d2 Kg7 28.Qd1, +=, M. Gurevich – Mchedlishvili, Istanbul 2003.

A complex alternative, still very much in need of testing, is 10…a5!?. A quick sample: 11.Nc3 a4 12.f3 Ra5 13.Bh4 Qa8 14.Be2 (14.0-0-0 d5 15.Qc2 Rd8 16.Kb1 was agreed drawn in Morovic Fernandez – Arencibia, Capablanca Memorial 2004) 14…d5 15.cxd5 Ba6 16.Qd2 exd5 17.Bd1 Bc4 18.Kf2 Re8 19.Re1 b5 20.Kg1 Ra6 21.Bc2, +=, Khismatullin – Kiriakov, Russia 2004.

11.Nc3

This leads to simple positions that offer White chances for a small but very safe advantage. Players should always seek variations that they feel comfortable with, and the kind of technical play that arises after 11.Nc3 is very much to Dreev's taste.

A far more complex game occurs after 11.b4 c5 12.b5 Bb7 13.Nc3 a6 (13…h6 14.Bh4 Rc8 15.d5 Ne5 16.Qd1 exd5 17.cxd5 c4 18.Qd4 Rc5 19.Bxf6 Qxf6 20.Ne4 Qg6 21.Nxc5 bxc5 22.Qd2 Nd3+ 23.Bxd3 cxd3 24.0-0 Bxd5 25.f3 Bb3 26.Rfc1 Bc2, =, Ionov – Feoktistov, Russia 2003) 14.f3 h6 15.Bh4 Qe7 16.Be2 cxd4 17.Qxd4 e5 18.Qd1 g5 19.Bg3 axb5 20.Nxb5 d5 21.0-0 Rac8 with a messy position that was eventually won by White in Kasparov – Grischuk, EU Cup 2003.

11…d5 12.Qc2 Bxc4

More recently, Black has successfully tried 12…dxc4!? 13.Qa4 Bb7 14.Qxc4 (Perhaps White should hold off on this capture and first play 14.Rd1.) 14…c5 15.f3 cxd4 16.Qxd4 e5 17.Qd6 h6 18.Bh4 Nc5 19.Rd1 Qxd6 20.Rxd6 Rfd8 21.Rxd8+ Rxd8 22.e4 Nd3+ 23.Bxd3 Rxd3 24.Bxf6 gxf6 25.Rf1 Bc8 26.Nd5 Kg7 27.Rf2 Be6 28.Nc7 f5, 1/2-1/2, Berkes – Beliavsky, Gyorgy Marx Memorial 2004.

13.Bxc4 dxc4 14.Qa4 c5 15.Qxc4 cxd4 16.Qxd4 h6 17.Bh4

A SMALL BUT SAFE EDGE

It's not an exciting position, but its very simplicity makes it interesting. White has a small edge thanks to his Bishop – the Bishop's pin on f6 is quite annoying, not to mention that B + Kt always works better than two Knights.

17…g5

17…Nc5 18.Bxf6 Qxf6 19.Qxf6 gxf6 20.0-0-0 gave White a slight edge (the game was eventually drawn) in Ivanchuk – Kasparov, EU Cup 2003.

18.Bg3 Nc5 19.Rd1 Qxd4 20.Rxd4

Andrew Powell (1492) said: “White might have tried 20.exd4, intending to advance the isolated d-pawn.”

Silman replies: 20.exd4 Nce4 allows Black to swap off one of his Knights, a nice thing for him since one Knight isn't bad, but two don't cut it: 21.Nxe4 Nxe4 22.d5 exd5 23.Rxd5 Rfd8 and Black's better.

20…Rfd8 21.h4!

21.Ke2 is also playable, but this fine move forces Black's King to deal with some tactical threats and creates an attackable weakness in Black's kingside pawn structure (i.e., the g5-pawn).

21…Rxd4 22.exd4 Ncd7

22…Nd3+? is very dangerous: 23.Ke2 Nxb2 24.hxg5 Rc8 (24…hxg5 25.Be5 Nh7 26.Ne4 is winning for White) 25.gxf6 Rxc3 26.Rxh6 Rxa3?? (26…Nc4!) 27.Bd6! Rc3 28.Bf8! when Black's about to get mated with Bg7.

Joe (from Italy) said: “The first moment that a static versus dynamic imbalance occurs is after 22.exd4. Now an isolated white pawn appears – strong or weak? It depends! For Black it is time to trade minor pieces, to maintain the rook, positioning it at d8, activate the king and try to take the pawn. So, in my opinion 22...Ncd7 is not good, better was 22…Nce4.”

Silman replies: Joe's comments made good sense, and his desire to trade the minor pieces is just what you usually wish to do when your opponent has an isolated d-pawn. However, every idea must be proven tactically, and in this case 22…Nce4 runs into a brick wall. Our next reader tells us why:

Andrew Powell (1492) said: “Black wisely avoided 22...Nce4? 23.hxg5 hxg5?? (Both 23...Nxc3 24.exf6 and 23...Nxg3 24.Rxh6! leave White with an advantage.) 24.Be5! Rc8 25.Rh2! Rxc3 26.bxc3 and White is winning.”

23.hxg5 hxg5 24.Ke2 Rc8 25.Kd3 Kg7

SECOND QUESTION: Assess the position after 25…Kg7. Is White better? Is Black? Is it equal? More importantly, tell me WHY you feel the way you do.

Site reader Karlo Santos felt that Black was a bit better here, but he correctly noted that Black's d7-Knight wasn't happy on d7. He failed to realize White's dynamic potential and began to play defensive moves for White like 26.Rd1 and Ne2. Instead, White must make use of his active King and active Bishop, while also finding a way to get his Rook and Knight into the game. Here are the reasons why I give White the nod:

Black's been in a bit of trouble for quite a while, because White's isolated d-pawn isn't weak at all (Black can't attack it), Black can't make use of the d5-square (usually one of the problems with an isolated d-pawn), Black has two Knights (two Knights rarely work well together), and White's Bishop eyes many fine squares and, in the endgame, can attack Black's pawns on a7 and b6.

Black's last move (25…Kg7) is actually a mistake (better was 25…a6 26.f3 Kg7 27.Bf2 Kg6 28.Be3 with just a microscopic plus for White). Now (after 25…Kg7) Dreev took over the game.

Kevin said: “Since I know that Jeremy doesn't think much of bishops, I have a hard time believing that he would post a ‘white has a weak pawn but his bishop just manages to equalize' type position. Therefore, my assessment is ‘black is better.' Now, I guess I better prove it. Black would probably like to go into a pure bishop vs. Knight ending, where black has his kingside pawns on g5-f6-e6, and his queenside pawns on a6-b5. Ideally his king will end up on d5, and his knight will raise hell by running around squares like c6-a5-c4. The main idea is that white already has a pawn on d4 that requires the protection of the King and the bishop (when the knight is on c6). Black is hoping that white will be unable to deal with the threats to the queenside pawns that the knight will generate. Even if white can somehow maintain the balance, that will be all he can do, because black's plan doesn't involve any risk.”

Silman replies: Black would indeed like to go into a pure Bishop vs. Knight endgame because this means that he has managed to exchange off one of his Knights (as I mentioned earlier, you don't want two of them). If Black could trade a pair of Knights and trade Rooks, and if he could get his King to d5, then Black would indeed have all the chances. Unfortunately for Black, White won't allow this to happen. Nevertheless, it's a good sign that Kevin was astute enough to be looking out for such a favorable Knight vs. Bishop situation.

Finally Pascal Bouchareine (from France) said: “Definitely, white seems better to me. Open position with an active bishop, I'd play f3 to prevent a knight intrusion. Black king is not centralized, while the white king has a very good position. The black knights are stuck on their squares.”

Silman replies: Mr. Bouchareine's comment about the Black Knight's being stuck on their squares is an important one. The d7-Knight in particular is serving a purely defensive role (guards e5) – more proof that two Knights don't work well together.

26.Nb5! a6 27.Nc7

Here I would like to mention Rafael Arruebarrena, a site reader from Caracas, Venezuela (rated FIDE 2266). He broke the position down in impressive fashion (it's too lengthy to repeat here), but missed the strength of 27.Nc7. However, I WILL repeat his introduction since it shows a wonderful honesty about his strengths and weaknesses, and a desire to grasp positions that are, at the moment, outside of his normal expertise:

Mr. Arruebarrena (2266) said: Regarding this problem, I find it quite hard. I'm more the tactical player sort, and I have beaten IM's and WGM's by taking them towards very dynamic positions and tricking them (or sort of), as I'm confident in my calculating powers in middlegame positions with lots of tactics. I also played two GM's, but 0 points and only 60 moves adding both games later, I realize I can't trick them! Of course I have also lost my share of games against lesser mortals, particularly those ‘mini – Karpovs' you find from time to time. I also like endgames a lot, so if I get an advantage and the position simplifies, I can still push for the point. But I'm a 1.e4 player, so I don't quite understand this type of position, and I would really like to.”

27…a5

Saving the pawn, but giving White permanent use of the b5-square.

28.Rc1

Threatening to win by 29.Nxe6+ followed by 30.Rxc8

28… Kg6 29.Rc6

This move does a few things: the d7-Knight can't move since it's needed to defend b6, 29…Nd5?? fails to 30.Nxd5! Rxc6 31.Ne7+ winning, and in many positions White's advantage grows if the Rooks are exchanged. One sample: 29…a4? 30.Nd5!? (Also promising is 30.d5!? exd5 31.Nxd5 Rxc6 32.Ne7+ Kg7 33.Nxc6) 30…Rxc6 31.Ne7+ Kg7 32.Nxc6 with advantage thanks to White's superior King and nice Bishop, both of which can target Black's queenside pawns.

29…Kh5

Preventing all the Nd5 tricks shown in the last note.

30.Rc3

Bringing the Rook to a protected square

30…Kg6

Black probably should have tried 30…Rd8. Now White improves the position of his Knight and his advantage grows.

31.Nd5!

31…Rh8

The position after 31…Rxc3+ 32.Nxc3 is very nice for White since his King can attack Black's queenside pawns by Kc4-b5.

32.Ne3 Rh1?

It's a quick descent into hell after this. He had to play 32…Nh5 when the position is still defensible.

33.Bc7 Nd5?

Suicide.

34.Nxd5 exd5 35.Rc6+ f6 36.Rd6 Rh7 37.a4 Kf5 38.Rxd5+, 1-0.