WHEN a major improve ment is found in a popular opening these days, it’s rarely a “natural” move, such as moving a pawn to control the center, developing a piece or attacking a target.
These are the kinds of moves that were analyzed decades ago. Today, it’s the unorthodox and paradoxical that are tried in master chess, because they’ve never been given their due.
This was the case with 16 0-0-0! in place of the older 16 Bd2 in this week’s game. Queenside castling seems bizarre and justified only by the trap 16 . . . dxe3?? 17 Bb5+.
But after White loosens his king position further (21 c4!) to control d5, he had a bind. After 22 . . . Bxd1 23 Rxd1 the threat of Qf6 is murderous, e.g. 23 . . . Ng8 24 Bg6!.
In the end, Black sacrificed a piece but his attack failed (27 . . . Qxe5 28 Bd6 Rxc5+ 29 Bxc5 Qxc5+ 30 Kb2). He played on – after his queen was trapped – due to inertia.
EN PASSANT: Daniel Naroditsky, the world under-12 boys champion, threw out the first pitch at an Oakland A’s-Minnesota game on April 23.