Four Pawns Attack

[A6869] & [E7679]

Written by GM Victor Mikhalevski, GM Joe Gallagher and IM Andrew Martin Last updated Wednesday, December 29, 2004

XIIIIIIIIY 9rsnlwqk+-tr0 9zppzp-zppvlp0 9-+-zp-snp+0 9+-+-+-+-0 9-+PzPPzP-+0 9+-sN-+-+-0 9PzP-+-+PzP0 9tR-vLQmKLsNR0 xiiiiiiiiy

sometimes involving considerable material sacrifice? Well, despite the menacing appearance of White's pawn centre, the fact is that most King's Indian players lick their lips when they see the Four Pawns Attack. A lot of the time the outright blitz in the centre is just too optimistic; this is precisely where the latent resources in Black's position will show to greatest effect. Therefore if White wants success with this system, he must temper his aggression. If he has the sense develop his pieces carefully behind the onrushing pawns then he can hope to run Black out of space later on. The attack needs thorough preparation.

hat do you think about the Four Pawns Attack ? Is it possible to criticise a line which offers such a dynamic and immediate occupation of the centre

which opens up so many possibilities of outright attack against Black's King,

All the games given in blue can be accessed via ChessPub.exe, simply head for their respective ECO code.

Contents

1 d4 f6 2 c4 g6 3 c3 g7 4 e4 d6 5 f4
XIIIIIIIIY 9rsnlwqk+-tr0 9zppzp-zppvlp0 9-+-zp-snp+0 9+-+-+-+-0 9-+PzPPzP-+0 9+-sN-+-+-0 9PzP-+-+PzP0 9tR-vLQmKLsNR0 xiiiiiiiiy

5...0-0 6 f3
6 e2 Four Pawns6...c5 without 7 Nf3/ 7d5 [E77]

6...c5
6...a6 Four PawnsIntro [E76]

7 d5
7 e2 cxd4 8 xd4 c6 9 e3 (9 c2 d7 Four Pawns7...cxd4 Intro [E76]) 9...d7 Four Pawns7...cxd4, 9 Be3 [E79]

7...e6 8 e2
8 dxe6 Four PawnsIntro [E76]

8...exd5 9 cxd5

XIIIIIIIIY 9rsnlwq-trk+0 9zpp+-+pvlp0 9-+-zp-snp+0 9+-zpP+-+-0 9-+-+PzP-+0 9+-sN-+N+-0 9PzP-+L+PzP0 9tR-vLQmK-+R0 xiiiiiiiiy

9...e8
9...g4 Four Pawns5...OO 6 Nf3 c5 7 d5 [A68]

10 e5
Four Pawns5...OO 6 Nf3 c5, 9...Re8 [A69]

Press F5 to toggle the Navigation Pane, then click on the appropriate bookmark to go straight to that section. Ctrl + 2 resizes the page.

All rights reserved Chess Publishing Ltd

Four Pawns Intro [E76]

Last updated: 29/12/04 by Victor Mikhalevski

E76 covers alternatives to the most common variations with 6...c5 in the Four Pawns Attack. An early ...c5 by Black might be worth reconsidering it tends to force White's hand. Gufeld once recommended 4...0-0 5 f4 c5 6 d5 b5!? but that's another story. 6...a6! is by far the most important line considered here I believe that as time goes by, this flexible, solid move will supersede 6...c5 completely. Of the remaining variations, the capture on e6 by White still gives dangerous chances, particularly as a oneoff surprise weapon.

1 d4 f6 2 c4 g6 3 c3 g7 4 e4 d6 5 f4

XIIIIIIIIY 9rsnlwqk+-tr0 9zppzp-zppvlp0 9-+-zp-snp+0 9+-+-+-+-0 9-+PzPPzP-+0 9+-sN-+-+-0 9PzP-+-+PzP0 9tR-vLQmKLsNR0 xiiiiiiiiy
5...0-0
5...c5 6 dxc5 (6 d5 could transpose, but... 6...0-0 7 d3 e6 8 ge2 and White lost in only a few moves, Svendsen,MPorrasmaa,T/Eikrem Memorial, Gausdal, Norw 2000) 6...a5 7 d3 fd7 8 d2 xc5 9 c2 c6 10 d5 d8 11 c3! Timman,J Damaso,R/Breda 1998.

6 f3 a6

XIIIIIIIIY 9r+lwq-trk+0 9zppzp-zppvlp0 9n+-zp-snp+0 9+-+-+-+-0 9-+PzPPzP-+0 9+-sN-+N+-0 9PzP-+-+PzP0 9tR-vLQmKL+R0 xiiiiiiiiy
Also covered by Vaiser in his book, which more or less says that the Four Pawns Attack wins, but his arguments are unconvincing. 6...a6 is a typical options preserving idea, arguing that White is committed, whereas Black can vary his strike against this massive centre. None of 7 e2, 7 d3 or 7 e5 seem to really threaten Black White ends up trying to hold his front over too wide an area. At present 6...a6 is looking pretty good. 6...a6 7 d3 g4 8 e3 fd7 9 0-0 c6 10 d5 d4 11 d2 xf3 12 gxf3 c5 13 e2 b5 Atanu,LThipsay,P/chIND, Mumbai IND 2000. 6...c5 7 d5 (7 dxc5 a5 8 d3 xc5 9 e2 g4 (9...c6 10 e3) 10 e3 a5 11 0-0 c6 12 ac1 e5 very unusual, (12...ac8 Topalov,VSherzer,A/New York 1994) 13 d2 exf4 14 xf4 xf3 15 gxf3 e5 Filgueira,HRicardi,P/Buenos Aires ARG 2003) 7...a6 Gheorghiu's favourite. Black hopes to launch the attack with ...b7b5 at the right moment. a) 7...b5?! 8 cxb5 (8 e5 fd7 9 xb5 dxe5 10 d3 a6 11 c3 c7 12 f5 Vaiser,A Loginov,A/AlmaAta 1980) 8...a6 9 a4! axb5 10 xb5 a6 11 d2 xb5 12 axb5 xa1 13 xa1 Nogueiras,JSax,G/Graz 1984. b) 7...e6 8 dxe6 Could cause a few qualms against an unprepared opponent. White can often whip up an attack with d3, 0-0, e1-h4, f4f5 etc. (8 e5!? Povah,N Kruppa,Y/Oerebro 1995, 8 e2 is the main move, but is considered under [A68] [A69].) 8...fxe6 9 d3 c6 10 0-0 a6 11 a4 b6 12 g5 a7! Nice. 13 a3 e7!= Larsen is ready for any advance by White and prepares counterplay with ...d4, Hjartarson,JLarsen,B/Reykjavik 1986. 8 a4 e5!? a fascinating idea that was developed by Greek players, foremost amongst them being 4 Pawns expert Banikas (although usually from the white side), 9 fxe5 g4! 10 g5! (10 exd6 f5! 11 exf5 xf5 12 e2 xd6 13 g3 xh2! with a winning attack, Houska,MBanikas,H/Calicut 1998.and Cebalo,MPavlovic,M/Biel SUI 2003.) 10...b6 11 a5?! (11 d2! is best) 11...xb2 12 a2 Colin,VSandu,M/Sautron 2004, and now the queen sacrifice 12...xc3+! 13 d2 xe5 is unclear. 6...bd7?! is passive, 7 e5 e8 8 c5 c6 9 e3 dxc5 10 dxc5 a5 11 a3 c7 12 c4 Banikas,HEuthimiadis,A, Open, Ano Liosia GRE 2000, Black wasn't allowed a single tempo to get his act together.

7 e2
6

7 e5 d7 (7...h5 8 e2 c5 9 d5 h6 Lalic,BHebden,M/Kilkenny 1998) 8 e2 c5 9 exd6 exd6 10 d5 c7 (10...b6 11 0-0 g4 12 h3 xf3 13 xf3 f5 Cebalo,MKozul,Z/Croatian Cup, Pula CRO 2002) 11 0-0 b5 12 f5 Vaiser,AGolubev,M/Biel Open 1995. 7 d3 g4 8 e3 d7 9 0-0 e5 10 fxe5 c5 11 d5 xe5 Parker,JGallagher,J/4NCL, Birmingham ENG 2001.

7...e5 8 fxe5
8 0-0 exd4 9 xd4 e8 10 f3 c5 11 e1 g4! A typical strike. Black besieges e4 and experiences no difficulty with development. 12 b3 xf3 13 xf3 fd7 14 xc5 xc5 15 d2 c6 16 h1 e7 Klyashtorny,VKhismatullin,D, chRUS Boys U20, Vladimir RUS 2002

8...dxe5

XIIIIIIIIY 9r+lwq-trk+0 9zppzp-+pvlp0 9n+-+-snp+0 9+-+-zp-+-0 9-+PzPP+-+0 9+-sN-+N+-0 9PzP-+L+PzP0 9tR-vLQmK-+R0 xiiiiiiiiy
9 xe5
9 d5 c5 10 c2 fxe4!? 11 xe4 f5 12 d3 xe4 13 xe4 f5 14 xf5 gxf5 15 0-0 e4 16 e3 d3 17 d4

9...c5 10 e3 e8
10...b4!? looks better, Huerta,RArizmendi,J/Madrid 2000. 10...g4 11 xg4?! (11 xg4 xg4 12 xg4 cxd4 13 d5 dxe3 14 0-0 is better for White) 11...cxd4 12 h6+ h8 13 f2 h3!? Belozerov,APoldauf,D/Rethymnon GRE 2003.

11 0-0 cxd4 12 xd4 g4 13 f3 xd4+ 14 xd4 e6

White's centre seems shaky, but Flear has it all under control, Flear,GVoiska,M/II Open, St Chely d'Aubrac FRA 2002.

Four Pawns 6...c5 without 7 Nf3/ 7d5 [E77]

Last updated: 14/03/03 by Joe Gallagher

1 d4 f6 2 c4 g6 3 c3 g7 4 e4 d6 5 f4 0-0 6 e2

XIIIIIIIIY 9rsnlwq-trk+0 9zppzp-zppvlp0 9-+-zp-snp+0 9+-+-+-+-0 9-+PzPPzP-+0 9+-sN-+-+-0 9PzP-+L+PzP0 9tR-vLQmK-sNR0 xiiiiiiiiy
There are only disadvantages to this move compared to 6 f3! as far as I can see. Certainly in the line where Black ventures an early ...b7b5 White doesn't really want to have moved this Bishop at all. So 6 e2 has become rare. As for the lines with 9 exd5 as featured well, they are also very rare. White depends on a future f4f5 to get his position together and Black has several good ways to combat this idea.

6...c5
6...a6 Ignoring the move order blip and heading straight back into a more familiar position is a practical approach.

7 d5 e6 8 f3 exd5 9 exd5
9 e5?! Unless white has something VERY new in mind, this old line of Gunderam's can be scrapped.

XIIIIIIIIY 9rsnlwq-trk+0 9zpp+-+pvlp0 9-+-zp-snp+0 9+-zppzP-+-0 9-+P+-zP-+0 9+-sN-+N+-0 9PzP-+L+PzP0 9tR-vLQmK-+R0 xiiiiiiiiy
9...e4! Just a strong move... 10 cxd5 xc3 11 bxc3 d7 12 e6 fxe6 13 dxe6 b6 14 0-0 xe6 15 g5 d5 16 b1 xc3! A bad day for Barsov, Barsov,AYe Jiangchuan, FIDE WCh KO, Moscow RUS (1.4) 2001. 9 cxd5 takes us elsewhere.

9...f5 10 0-0

XIIIIIIIIY 9rsn-wq-trk+0 9zpp+-+pvlp0 9-+-zp-snp+0 9+-zpP+l+-0 9-+P+-zP-+0 9+-sN-+N+-0 9PzP-+L+PzP0 9tR-vLQ+RmK-0 xiiiiiiiiy
10...e8 11 d3 d7 12 h3
Peng ZhaoqinPolgar,J/Novi Sad Ol 1990. As long as Black retains control over the e4 square all will be well.

Four Pawns 7...cxd4 Intro [E78]

Last updated: 14/03/03 by Joe Gallagher

1 d4 f6 2 c4 g6 3 c3 g7 4 e4 d6 5 f4 0-0 6 f3 c5 7 e2 cxd4 8 xd4

XIIIIIIIIY 9rsnlwq-trk+0 9zpp+-zppvlp0 9-+-zp-snp+0 9+-+-+-+-0 9-+PsNPzP-+0 9+-sN-+-+-0 9PzP-+L+PzP0 9tR-vLQmK-+R0 xiiiiiiiiy
A 'loose' Maroczy Bind.

8...c6
8...a6! Stein's old recommendation. Simply a good idea! I'll give some relevant analysis the essence of which is immediate counterplay for Black. 9 e3 c5 10 f3 a) 10...h6?! 11 0-0! (11 b3 e5 12 xc5 exf4 13 f2 dxc5 14 xc5 d7 15 xf8 h4+ 16 d2 xf8) 11...e5 12 db5 exf4 13 f2 and d6 drops b) 10...fd7!? 11 0-0 e5 12 db5 exf4 13 xf4 e5 is Bisguier,AWatson,J, St Paul 1982.

9 c2 d7
This collection of very rare lines are unfashionable rather than bad.

10 0-0 c5 11 f3 f5 12 exf5 xf5

10

XIIIIIIIIY 9r+-wq-trk+0 9zpp+-zp-vlp0 9-+nzp-+p+0 9+-sn-+l+-0 9-+P+-zP-+0 9+-sN-+L+-0 9PzPN+-+PzP0 9tR-vLQ+RmK-0 xiiiiiiiiy
Bisguier,APopovych,O/Lincoln 1969. Perhaps the final symbol sums up the variation: 'unclear' covers a multitude of sins!

11

Four Pawns 7...cxd4, 9 Be3 [E79]

Last updated: 14/03/03 by Joe Gallagher

1 d4 f6 2 c4 g6 3 c3 g7 4 e4 d6 5 f4 0-0 6 f3 c5 7 e2 cxd4 8 xd4 c6

XIIIIIIIIY 9r+lwq-trk+0 9zpp+-zppvlp0 9-+nzp-snp+0 9+-+-+-+-0 9-+PsNPzP-+0 9+-sN-+-+-0 9PzP-+L+PzP0 9tR-vLQmK-+R0 xiiiiiiiiy
Veteran GM Arthur Bisguier likes this line although most lines lead to comfortable equality for Black. In my view White is trying a halfway house solution to the problems of the opening it's a very loose Maroczy Bind.But again, the usefulness of these lines as a shock weapon means that they cannot be ignored.

9 e3 d7?!
9...d7 10 b3 a5 11 a4 b6 12 0-0 c5 13 xc5 bxc5 14 d2 d4 15 ae1 b7 16 f5 e6= With the central squares under full control and counterplay against e4 Black is well placed, Ben Menachem,IBitansky,I, ECC, Panormo GRE 2001.

10 b3 a6 11 0-0 a5?
Losing.

12 e5!

12

XIIIIIIIIY 9r+-wq-trk+0 9+p+lzppvlp0 9p+-zp-snp+0 9sn-+-zP-+-0 9-+P+-zP-+0 9+NsN-vL-+-0 9PzP-+L+PzP0 9tR-+Q+RmK-0 xiiiiiiiiy
This would be the advance that White is counting on to make the whole position work. of course Black must keep a close eye on e5. His failure to do so in this game makes life very uncomfortable.

12...e8 13 xa5 xa5 14 d5 d8 15 b6 b8 16 xe7+ h8 17 c5

White is winning, Bertok,MPetrovic,Z/TChCRO, Pula CRO 2001. Surprise is the key element here. One could not play this line on a regular basis and hope to get away with it.

13

Four Pawns 5...OO 6 Nf3 c5 7 d5 [A68]

Last updated: 16/01/04 by Joe Gallagher

1 d4 f6 2 c4 c5 3 d5 e6 4 c3 exd5 5 cxd5 d6 6 e4 g6 7 f4 g7 8 f3
8 b5+ fd7 9 a4 Kasparov,GKuijpers,F/Dortmund 1980.

8...0-0

XIIIIIIIIY 9rsnlwq-trk+0 9zpp+-+pvlp0 9-+-zp-snp+0 9+-zpP+-+-0 9-+-+PzP-+0 9+-sN-+N+-0 9PzP-+-+PzP0 9tR-vLQmKL+R0 xiiiiiiiiy
As you can see, a position which can arise from both the King's Indian and Modern Benoni moveorder. Here we will consider ideas from Black which do not involve the mainline 9 e2 e8.

9 e2 g4
One of the most solid and reliable lines for Black in the 4 Pawns Attack. Black plans to exchange his bishop for the knight on f3 and this benefits him in two ways. Firstly, White will find it much more difficult to force through e5 without the help of the knight and, secondly, with less space it is to Black's advantage to exchange pieces. 9...b5 The other sharper main line, where Black complicates right from the word go. Lovers of the tactical melee will enjoy 10 e5 (whilst White contenders seeking to dampen Black's spirits could try 10 xb5 xe4 11 xe4 a5+ 12 f2 xb5 13 xd6 b6 a quieter route where maybe White can claim a very small edge.) a) 10...dxe5 11 fxe5 g4 12 g5 b6 13 0-0 when perhaps 13...c4+ 14 h1 d7 15 e6 (15 d6?! b7!) 15...fxe6 16 dxe6 df6 17 e7 e8 is most precise b) 10...fd7 11 exd6 a6!? 12 0-0 b6 13 e5 xd6 14 e4 xd5 15 xd5 xd5 16 f3 a7 Petursson,GJiretorn,E, Open, Reykjavik ISL 2002. 14

c) 10...fd7 9...a6 a) 10 a4 e8 11 e5 (11 c2 g4 12 0-0 bd7 BishopricIvanov2000/Internet Chess Club 2000) 11...dxe5 12 fxe5 sergorNYCP99/Internet Chess Club 2000 b) 10 0-0 10...b5 (10...e8 11 e5 Regez,MKurmann,O/Christmas Open, Zurich SUI 2000) 11 e5 fd7 12 e6 Flear,GChevrier,T/Ist Open, StChely d'Aubrac FRA 2001. 9...a6 10 e5 dxe5 11 fxe5 Konikowski,JBraune,H/GERch qgB corr9395 1993.

10 0-0 bd7
10...xf3 11 xf3 bd7 Lesiege,AHebert,J/It, Montreal CAN 2001. 10...e8 11 e5 xf3 12 xf3 dxe5 13 fxe5 xe5 14 f4 e8 15 b3 bd7 16 fe1 occurred in Banikas,HBlot,J, TChFRA, Montpellier FRA 2001, Banikas is of course a modern connoisseur of the Four Pawns so we must note this pawn sacrifice carefully.

11 e1

XIIIIIIIIY 9r+-wq-trk+0 9zpp+n+pvlp0 9-+-zp-snp+0 9+-zpP+-+-0 9-+-+PzPl+0 9+-sN-+N+-0 9PzP-+L+PzP0 9tR-vLQtR-mK-0 xiiiiiiiiy
In similar Benoni structures White sometimes plays d2 in order to keep his knight but here it does not look too impressive. 11 h3 White claims the bishop pair. 11...xf3 12 xf3 b8! A good move order, no fishy Queen moves just straight for ...b7b5. (12...c4 13 e3 a5 Kouatly,B Nunn,J/Cannes 1992.) 13 a4 a6 14 a5 e8 Borbjerggaard,LHernandez,G/Open, Andorra AND 2001.

11...e8 12 h3 xf3 13 xf3

15

XIIIIIIIIY 9r+-wqr+k+0 9zpp+n+pvlp0 9-+-zp-snp+0 9+-zpP+-+-0 9-+-+PzP-+0 9+-sN-+L+P0 9PzP-+-+P+0 9tR-vLQtR-mK-0 xiiiiiiiiy
Here is what I wrote about this position in 'Starting out: the King's Indian': The most important factor in the position is the unbalanced pawn structure. White has a 2-1 majority in the centre whilst Black has 32 in his favour on the queenside. Pawn majorities need to be pushed so, as we already know, White will be looking to play e5 while Black will be looking to expand on the queenside, usually starting with the advance b5. Normally it is an advantage to have an extra central pawn but here this is counterbalanced by the fact that it is easier for Black to advance his majority.

13...a5!
The most accurate way to prepare ...b5.

14 e3
14 a4 c4 15 e2 c5 16 e5 dxe5 17 fxe5 fd7 18 e6 Bosboom Lanchava,T Gallagher,J/XVIII Open, Cappelle la Grande FRA 2002 White's attack is bluff.

14...b5 15 a3

XIIIIIIIIY 9r+-+r+k+0 9zp-+n+pvlp0 9-+-zp-snp+0 9wqpzpP+-+-0 9-+-+PzP-+0 9zP-sN-vLL+P0 9-zP-+-+P+0 9tR-+QtR-mK-0 xiiiiiiiiy
This is a key position for this important variation. 16

15...b6
Heading for c4 from where it will create great confusion in the white camp, but at a price: White can now play e5. 15...b4 16 axb4 xb4 17 a3!? a new move, (17 c2 b6 worked well for Black in Cebalo,MShchekachev,A/Biel SUI 2003) 17...eb8 18 e2 a5 the a8 rook needs to be brought into play, 19 f2 with a plus, RegezGallagher,J/Zurich 2003.

16 f2
White more or less abandoned this move after the game KozulNunn (see below) but analysis by Vaisser has given it a new lease of life. 16 e5 c4 17 exf6 xe3 18 xe3 xe3 19 fxg7 the pawn on g7 is doomed so we will eventually reach a material balance of two minor pieces against rook and pawn. Normally that favours the minor pieces but here the black rooks are very active and the white bishop is severely restricted by his own pawn on d5, see Banikas,H Gallagher,J/France 2001.

16...c4
Note that 16...fd7 17 c2 b4 18 axb4 xb4 is also possible, transposing to CebaloShchekachev.

17 c2 d7 18 e2 ab8 19 a4 b4 20 b5
20 xc4? Kozul,ZNunn,J/Wijk aan Zee 1991.

20...xb2
see Cebalo,MRasic,D/Open, Pula CRO 2001.

17

Four Pawns 5...OO 6 Nf3 c5, 9...Re8 [A69]

Last updated: 14/03/03 by Joe Gallagher

1 d4 f6 2 c4 c5
2...g6 3 c3 g7 4 e4 d6 5 f4 0-0 6 f3 is the real KI moveorder, but this transposes, of course, after 6...c5 7 d5 e6 8 e2 exd5 9 cxd5

3 d5 e6 4 c3 exd5 5 cxd5 d6 6 e4 g6 7 f4 g7 8 f3
With lots of theory to come. Without regurgitating everything here it is possible to state that the Modern King's Indian protagonist prefers ...a6, probably to avoid the nightmare of getting 'outtheorised'. GM Anatoly Vaiser's brilliant book 'Beating the King's Indian and Benoni' is indispensable reading for anyone wishing to play 6...c5. Black must find improvements.

8...0-0 9 e2

XIIIIIIIIY 9rsnlwq-trk+0 9zpp+-+pvlp0 9-+-zp-snp+0 9+-zpP+-+-0 9-+-+PzP-+0 9+-sN-+N+-0 9PzP-+L+PzP0 9tR-vLQmK-+R0 xiiiiiiiiy
9...e8
In the days when they devised the Informator coding system, 9...Re8 WAS the main line although today 9 ...Bg4 generally holds sway. I am currently persuaded that this 18

variation is serviceable only for correspondence chess or for players with an excellent memory. The complications after

10 e5
are many and varied and have been very well documented over the years. Black's defensive resources after 10 d2 are generally adequate, 10...a6 (10...bd7 11 0-0 c4 Kuzmin,ALi Shilong/Open, Cappelle la Grande FRA 2001) 11 0-0 a) 11...c4 12 h1 c5 Bagaturov,GIoannidis,E/4th Open, Korinthos GRE 2000. b) 11...c7 12 a4 b6 13 f3 (13 h3 b8 14 f3 Nevednichy,VAntic,D/TChYUG, Herceg Novi YUG 2001) 13...a6 14 e1 b8 15 f1 xf1 16 xf1 not exactly a novelty, but an unconventional move which unsettles Kovacevic 16...d7 17 b5! a further strange idea, which pushes Black over the top 17...xb5 18 axb5 h4? After 18...Rb7, intending...Nf8, Rbe7 Black's position is alright. 19 xa7 Kosic,D Kovacevic,A/57th chYUG, Banja Koviljaca YUG 2002 c) 11...b8 12 h1 (12 e1 c7 13 a4 a6 14 f3 b5 15 a5! probably the best move, which attempts to jam up the Black queenside, Ghane,SIuldachev,S/ADCF Masters, Abu Dhabi UAE 2002.) 12...c7 13 a4 d7 (13...a6 14 a5 d7 15 e5 is considered in Vaiser,AIbragimov,I/Berne 1992) 14 f3 b5 15 e1 b4 Mah,K Gladyszev,O/SWYM, Witley ENG 2001. I think that Black's poor results in the 10 d2 line can be attributed to lack of theoretical knowledge. The system is becoming more popular now and I expect Black will discover plenty of resources as the games go by. I recommend that Black proceed with ...b7b5 as soon as is practicable, even if this means missing out on ...a7a6!

10...dxe5
10...h5?! is a very odd move that cannot go unpunished, 11 0-0! dxe5 12 fxe5 Banikas,H Pappas,K/chGRE, Agios Nikolaos GRE 2000.

11 fxe5 g4 12 g5

XIIIIIIIIY 9rsnlwqr+k+0 9zpp+-+pvlp0 9-+-+-+p+0 9+-zpPzP-vL-0 9-+-+-+n+0 9+-sN-+N+-0 9PzP-+L+PzP0 9tR-+QmK-+R0 xiiiiiiiiy

19

12 0-0 xe5 13 f4 bd7 14 d6 Vaisser,AWohlers Armas,F/Masters KO, Cannes FRA 2000.

12...f6
or 12...b6 13 0-0 (13 d2 d7 14 e6! Blokh,MFeldman,A/USSR 1982) 13...xe5 (13...c4+ Kouatly,BMurey,Y/Lyon 1988 what a game!) 14 xe5 xe5!? An unpopular idea. Let's face it, the Rook looks exposed. But there are a few tricky points and White might not be too familiar with all the ins and outs interestingly, Nunn's Chess Openings doesn't even mention the move. (14...xe5 Albarran,G Bitelmajer,M/Copa Clarin, Villa Martelli ARG 2001) 15 d2 f5 16 ad1 Safely in behind the dpawn and soon it will be time to push: Cebalo,MIsonzo,D/Torneo A, Montecatini Terme ITA 2002.

13 exf6 xf6 14 xf6

14 d2 xg5 15 xg5 f5 Cano Sanchez,JCasares Cabanas,C/chESP (team) Div 1999.

14...xf6 15 d2 e3 16 f2
Tamarkin,LEdelman,D/New York State Ch, Saratoga Springs NY 2000.

20