The Central Counterattack - Chess.com
The main effect of a central counterblow against a wing attack is that it shifts the battlefield. Often, the counterattack in the center involves a move which would normally be undesirable for the side making the counterattack. For example, in the typical Scheveningen structure, …d6-d5 is a crucial counterblow. However, if it can be safely met by e4-e5, it often just leads to a sad French defense position. Now, after g2-g4 by White, it’s another matter…
When one side carries out a piece attack on the far wing, centralization of the defender’s pieces can carry more “weight” than even the scariest threats to the king. Here is an old game of mine that took place in the last round. I was a half point behind, and thus needed to win. I had a nasty cold and I remember generally having very little confidence in my chances. But I surprised myself, and by winning also won the tournament.
Note the serious problems the Black experienced as a result of his rook lift – not only did the rook not defend the back rank, but also it prohibited him from making a comfortable luft by playing …h6. This is a common scenario, showing the double-edged nature of rook lifts.
When carrying out potentially weakening operations on a wing, one needs to have either very strong threats there, or the center closed or under control. But even an apparently closed center can be torn open:
Burn is mostly known as the guy who couldn’t light his pipe fast enough to avoid defeat by Frank Marshall, but clearly he could play some chess too!
The “center counterattack against an attack on the wing” advice is so well-known that it is almost a cliché. Just as with any chess principle, it has its exceptions. Deciding what move to make in chess does not involve only applying principles, but also calculation and concrete considerations. To decide on a move, you need to first find candidate moves, using your intuition and the general principles of strategy. Then you calculate those candidate moves.
Among good players, the “principles” of chess strategy are usually internalized. During a game I don’t have such thoughts as “he is attacking me on the kingside, I should counterattack in the center”. Rather, I just feel a desire to counterattack in the center, without necessarily being able to explain why. Maybe other masters think differently, you would have to ask them.
Anyway, the principle of counterattacking in the center, while an important principle (after all, the center is the most important part of the board), is by no means always true. There are many instances where central counterattacks have failed. For example:
In this game, Najdorf lost because his central counterattack was simply not effective enough. It was a combination of the fact that White’s threats on the kingside were too strong, and that the white targets in the center were not worth enough.
While just as no chess principles operate 100% of the time, it is nevertheless important to be aware of them. You would be surprised how effective a central pawn break can be against even the scariest-looking pawn storm.
The Central Counterattack
Submitted by IM IMBryanSmith
Everyone has heard the saying “an attack on the wing should be met by a counter in the center”. Or, if you haven’t – now you have. But what does a central counterattack look like, and why is it so strong?
Every attack uses up some kind of energy, whether it involves moving pieces away to where the attack is taking place, or pushing pawns and possibly creating weaknesses during the course of a pawn storm. To be able to carry out a successful attack, you have to have some kind of advantage in your position, to be able to take such liberties. If not, then the opponent can hit back, and the best place to hit back is in that tinderbox of the chess board, the center.The main effect of a central counterblow against a wing attack is that it shifts the battlefield. Often, the counterattack in the center involves a move which would normally be undesirable for the side making the counterattack. For example, in the typical Scheveningen structure, …d6-d5 is a crucial counterblow. However, if it can be safely met by e4-e5, it often just leads to a sad French defense position. Now, after g2-g4 by White, it’s another matter…
Botvinnik vs. Ragozin
ECO: B84 | 0-1
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6 6. Be2 a6 7. Be3 Qc7 8. a4 b6 9. f4 Bb7 10. Bf3 Nbd7 11. Qe2 Be7 12. O-O O-O 13. g4?! d5! 14. e5 Ne4! 15. Nxe4 dxe4 16. Bg2 Bd5 17. Rfc1 Rac8 18. Bf2 Nc5 19. b4 ( 19. Re1 Qd7 20. b3 f6 ) 19... Nd3!! 20. cxd3 Qxc1+ 21. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 22. Bf1 Rfc8 23. Qb2 exd3 24. b5 axb5 25. axb5 Rd1 26. Nc6 Bf8 27. Bxb6 d2 28. Qc2 Bf3
Smith, B. (2384) vs. Fernandez, D. (2434)
NAO FIDE | Round 7| 29 May 2006 | ECO: B33 | 1-0
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 e5 6. Ndb5 d6 7. Nd5 Nxd5 8. exd5 Nb8 9. c4 a6 10. Nc3 Be7 11. Be2 O-O 12. O-O f5 13. f3 Bg5 14. Qb3?! ( 14. Bxg5 Qxg5 15. Qc1 ) 14... Nd7 15. Qa3 Bxc1 16. Raxc1 Rf6 17. b4 Rh6 18. g3 Qg5 19. f4! ( 19. Na4 f4 20. g4 Rh3 21. Rc3 h5 ) 19... exf4 20. Rxf4 Ne5 21. c5! Bd7 ( 21... Ng6 22. Rf2 f4 23. Ne4 ) 22. b5! Ng6 23. Rf3 dxc5 24. Rcf1 f4?! 25. Qxc5 Bg4? ( 25... Rc8 26. Qd4 axb5 27. Ne4 Qf5 28. gxf4 ) 26. Bc4! Kh8 ( 26... Bxf3 27. d6+ Bd5 28. Qxd5+ Qxd5 29. Bxd5+ Kf8 30. Bxb7 ) 27. Rxf4! Nxf4 28. Rxf4 Rg8 29. Ne4 Qh5 30. h4 axb5 31. Bb3! Rg6? ( 31... Bd1 32. Ng5! Rf6 33. Rxf6 gxf6 34. Qd4 Rxg5 ( 34... Bxb3 35. Qxf6+ Rg7 36. Qf8+ Rg8 37. Nf7+ ) 35. hxg5 Bxb3 36. axb3 ( 36. Qxf6+ Kg8 37. Qd8+ Kg7 38. axb3 Qd1+ 39. Kf2 Qc2+ 40. Ke3 Qxb3+ 41. Kf4 Qc4+ 42. Ke5 Qc3+ ) 36... Qxg5 37. Kg2 ) ( 31... Bd7 32. Rf8 Qe2 33. Qe7 Qe1+ 34. Kh2 Qe2+ 35. Rf2 Qg4 36. Ng5 ) ( 31... Bf5 32. d6 Bxe4 33. Qxh5 Rxh5 34. Rxe4 Ra8 35. d7 Rf5 36. Re8+ Rf8 37. Bf7! ) 32. Rf8 Be6! ( 32... h6 33. Rxg8+ Kxg8 34. d6+ Kh7 35. Qxh5 Bxh5 36. d7 ) 33. Qe7!! Qe2 ( 33... Bxd5 34. Rxg8+ Bxg8 35. Qf8 ) ( 33... Qh6 34. dxe6 Qe3+ 35. Kh2 ) 34. dxe6 Qe1+ 35. Kh2 Qe2+ 36. Nf2 ( 36. Nf2 h5 37. Rxg8+ Kxg8 38. Qf7+ Kh7 39. e7 )
When carrying out potentially weakening operations on a wing, one needs to have either very strong threats there, or the center closed or under control. But even an apparently closed center can be torn open:
Alapin, Simon vs. Burn, Amos
Karlsbad | 1911 | ECO: D00 | 0-1
1. d4 d5 2. c3 e6 3. Bf4 c5 4. e3 Nc6 5. Nd2 Nf6 6. Bd3 Qb6 7. Rb1 Bd7 8. Bg3 Be7 9. f4 O-O 10. Bf2 Rac8 11. Qf3 Rfd8 12. Ne2 Bd6 13. Bh4 Be7 14. Bf2 Bd6 15. Bh4 Be7 16. Bf2 Bd6 17. h3 Re8 18. g4 e5 19. dxe5 ( 19. g5 e4 ) 19... Rxe5 20. g5 Ne8 21. fxe5 Nxe5 22. Bxh7+ Kxh7 23. Qh5+ Kg8 24. Nf4 Bf5 25. Qd1 ( 25. Rd1 Qxb2 ) ( 25. O-O Nc7 ) 25... Nd3+ 26. Nxd3 Bxd3 27. Nf3 c4 28. Nd4 Be7 29. Qg4 Nd6 30. Bg3 Rd8 31. Bxd6 Bxd6 32. Kd2 Bc5 33. h4 Re8 34. h5 f5 35. Qf4 Bd6 36. Qf2 f4! 37. exf4 Re4 38. Rh4 Bxb1 39. Kc1 Bd3 40. b4 cxb3 41. axb3 Qa5
The “center counterattack against an attack on the wing” advice is so well-known that it is almost a cliché. Just as with any chess principle, it has its exceptions. Deciding what move to make in chess does not involve only applying principles, but also calculation and concrete considerations. To decide on a move, you need to first find candidate moves, using your intuition and the general principles of strategy. Then you calculate those candidate moves.
Among good players, the “principles” of chess strategy are usually internalized. During a game I don’t have such thoughts as “he is attacking me on the kingside, I should counterattack in the center”. Rather, I just feel a desire to counterattack in the center, without necessarily being able to explain why. Maybe other masters think differently, you would have to ask them.
Anyway, the principle of counterattacking in the center, while an important principle (after all, the center is the most important part of the board), is by no means always true. There are many instances where central counterattacks have failed. For example:
Letelier Martner, Rene vs. Najdorf, Miguel
Buenos Aires | Buenos Aires | Round 15| 1964 | ECO: B44 | 1-0
White has just played 13.g4. The principle of counterattacking the center points to the move 13...d5 as a way to blow open the center and make White pay. But the actual variations have to be calculated! It turns out that the center counter is ineffective here, and he should have played 13...Nh7, restraining the attack, with a decent game.
While just as no chess principles operate 100% of the time, it is nevertheless important to be aware of them. You would be surprised how effective a central pawn break can be against even the scariest-looking pawn storm.
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